They had prepared us...

for a difficult moment while we were in Ethiopia. The social worker with our agency said that there is almost always a time, while you are still in the country, when your child will focus in on your face then all of a sudden break out in inconsolable tears. It is like she has the realization, "This is it. I am really stuck with these people."

Well, it happened. On our second day with her, it was obvious that our sweet Rediet looked into my eyes and was filled with sadness. She immediately started to bawl, a scared cry unlike any we had heard from her before. Bill, who she always has a smile for, came over to her and she fixed her eyes on him and broke into the same sad, sad, cry. It was short-lived, but it was obvious what was going on. It hit her, "This is it. I am really stuck with these people." Oh how my heart ached for her loss. It is important for her to grieve. And in her short life, she has had much to grieve.

Indeed, you are stuck with us sweet girl. We are a bit of a crazy bunch. But we will love you with a faithful love throughout your whole life. We are sorry for your losses. But we thank God that from now on, you will face those losses as well as any others to come, with us at your side.

They had also prepared us that, though we had an appointment scheduled to meet her biological Grandmother that day, that she might not show up. I tried to be prepared for that, but in my heart I was just sure she would be there. But she wasn't. We don't know what happened. Almaz never had confirmation that she got the message about the meeting. I was so sad for Rediet. So many questions that can never be answered now.

But God knows the answer to each one of our questions. He knew Rediet when her inmost being was formed in the secret place (Psalm 139:15) and He knew all the days that were formed for her before one of them even came to be (Psalm 139:16). I know it might make things harder for her down the road to not know the circumstances of her birth or her mother's death. But we will trust in the fact that God knows each detail, indeed every curly hair on that precious little head, and He holds her in his loving hands. He held her for the first 5 months of her life before she was with us. The same hands that ordained that she would join our family. And He will hold her all of the days of her life.

Though it was such a loss not to see her Grandmother, she returned home to two Grandmothers anxious awaiting her arrival...
Gunga getting an up-close view...
While we waited hoping her Grandmother would come, we got to observe the two birth family meetings that did happen that day. What a bittersweet experience for these families. The fact that you have this potential to meet the birth families is an incredible part of the adoption program in Ethiopia.

This was the coldest day while we were there. I was pretty self-conscious about keeping Rediet wrapped up since they bundle their babies up quite a bit there. Here's what we did to keep her warm that day...
I wrapped Bill's rain coat around him and zipped it up backwards. If someone in our marriage needs a straight jacket, it's definitely not him. But it did the job!

That night we got to go out for a traditional Ethiopian dinner and dance. The food was amazing. Okay, not all of it was amazing to me. But Shiro was delicious. It's the yellow stuff in the middle...
Bill calls it "Ethiopian Queso". Tate was not impressed. He had been a trooper all week given his "food sensitivities" (his way of saying "picky eater") so I let him just eat a piece of bread. Looking at the above picture, I can see why it wouldn't be desirable to an 11 year old. He did find something he was very excited about at the hotel...
Ethiopia's version of Mac and Cheese. He has no "food sensitivities" to Mac and Cheese in any country!

Speaking of food, look who had rice cereal for the first time...
No "food sensitivities" so far...