April 10, 2017
This day will go down in history.
At least in Fritzler family history.
I woke up at 5 am bright-eyed and bushy tailed (where does that saying come from anyway?). I tried to convince myself to sleep more but I just couldn’t. Too much excitement.
During breakfast in our hotel, Yared came to meet us. He is a staff member of our adoption agency’s in-country team. It seems like he single handedly runs the operation really. An amazing man. It’s apparent that he loves adoption and he wants to help as many orphans as he can. He’s Ethiopian but we learned he lived in Denver for 13 years. And he still owns an Ethiopian restaurant on Colfax. We will definitely have to dine there when we are back in CO!
He arranged for transportation for us to the Care Center to meet with him and two other adoptive families who are scheduled for court tomorrow as well. Our time with him was enlightening. He explained a lot of the complexities of Ethiopian adoption. It all makes a little more sense when you’re in country. More on that later.
Teddy (nickname “Zuma”), our driver, then brought us to Edget orphanage where L lives. It took about an hour to get there I think. Our coordinator had said no matter where you’re going in Addis, it seems like everything is an hour away. In our brief two days here, we have already learned why she says that.
When we first arrived, there was some misunderstanding with those at the gate. We asked if L lived here and they said “no.” But after a minute, one of the nannies said “yes” and ran off to get him. (The language barrier can make things a little confusing!)
I caught a glimpse of him through a window. The nannies were getting him ready. They dressed him in cute plaid shorts and a white collared shirt. When Dave and I walked into the nursery, everyone made a big fuss. There were a few nannies and another set of adoptive parents from Turkey. They were telling him, “This is your mommy. Go to your mommy!” They handed him to me and he just balled! The poor kid. Too much attention. I think everyone was worried that we’d feel badly if he didn’t respond well to us. But I wasn’t worried at all. I kept saying, ‘It’s ok, it's ok.” He needs some warm-up time to get to know us.
The nannies seemed amazing. We didn't really get to communicate with them-- our Amharic is pretty limited ;) Even with the language barrier, it was easy to see their good hearts. These kids are well loved and cared for. No question. We were so happy to see that first hand. You could tell that L was attached to them. If he was worried or scared, he would go to a nanny to be held and comforted. There was also an adoptive mom there from Turkey who he was very comfortable with. He snuggled in her arms and would come up to her and hug her leg. This was encouraging to me. I know sometimes adoptive children have a hard time with bonding and attachment but seeing these behaviors makes me think he'll be quick to bond and attach with his new mommy, daddy and brother.
We brought a few match box cars. L liked to hold one on each hand. He wouldn't let them go. When we were playing soccer with him, he made sure each car was safe in his pockets. After some playing with matchbox cars and soccer balls, the nannies directed us to the courtyard. It was beautiful! Lusciously green. Full of flowers in an array of color.
For a little while he sat next to a three-year-old girl (the one who is being adopted by the Turkish couple) and watched the iPad with her. We just hung out next to him for a while and he seemed to really warm up at this time. He played with a xylophone and let Dave put his hat on his head. I rubbed his legs and arms and we took pictures together. It was so cute-- he sat there with his arm around the little girl for quite some time. I think he's going to be a little charmer!
Less than two hours later, our driver returned to bring us back to the hotel. When we were saying goodbye, L reached both arms up to Dave gesturing for him to pick him up. So sweet! He walked us to the gate with one of the nannies and watched our every move with his big, observant eyes waving timidly until we weren't in sight anymore.
We got back to our hotel around 3:00 and ate a mushroom pizza from the "Addis View Pizzeria". Not an authentic pizza by any means but it didn't matter. We had so much fun talking about meeting our first born son!
We both decided he was exactly how we imagined he would be. The few precious photos we had received totally captured his personality. Calculated. Observant. Quiet. Smart. Kind hearted and gentle. He and Ben couldn't be more opposite but they will balance each other perfectly! We can't wait to bring Ben's older brother home.
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