And....We're Off to Ethiopia!

Amazing... this day has finally come. We are on our way to finally meet our son face to face, skin to skin. What a journey this has been! What a story of God's goodness and faithfulness. In just a few long airplane rides, I will be kissing this little face!
"For I prayed for this child, and the Lord has granted me what I have asked of him." 1 Samuel 1:27.

We covet your prayers on our long journey to bring our son home. Will you pray with us?

• Safety in flights and in country
• Health for us and Mekonen
• That our luggage arrives with us in Ethiopia
• That Mekonen adjusts well to us and begins attachment
  
• That Mekonen does well on the plane ride home :)

ETHIOPIA HERE WE COME!!!

We're Finally Packed!!!!!

Wow. I can't believe it! 9 hours until we leave and 5 hours until we get up! So much for our 7:30pm bedtime. It was a good idea, but no, not happening. Hopefully we sleep on the plane. Oh my.

Suitcases are packed, small details finally in order, us finally on our way to bed! I can't wait to hold my boy in my arms!

I fit all of our stuff (me and Jon) into one suitcase and two carry-ons (along with other things). One big bag for Mekonen, 2 big bags for donations, and 1 rubbermaid tote of donations. Holy smokes! This is a lot of luggage! (Sorry the pics are blurry!)

Here are all our donations! Jammies, undies, socks, small bras, and formula! We had two suitcases (50 lbs. each) full of jammies and a whole rubbermaid tote full of formula! Thank you SO MUCH for all of you who contributed to our donation drive for Mekonen's older friends at the orphanage! What a blessing you are!

Mekonen's Suitcase In Progress!

Whoa...Mekonen's suticase. That's all I have to say... whoa!(Macy looks absolutely thrilled doesn't she? Haha. She has no idea what's coming!) Don't call me crazy yet! There are not clothes piled that high inside the suitcase. The whole first layer or two of the suitcase is diapers, wipes, formula, and all the other baby supplies, then clothes on top.(Diapers are WAY HEAVIER than I thought). So really there are only clothes on the top! The ones set outside the suitcase are still being organized. His bag is way bigger than I imagined for a few reasons.

1. Size- I need to take 6 months mostly, but also a few 9 months. I hear he's skinny but long.
2. Weather- it's the rainy season so it'll be 50's and 60's sometimes 70's and colder at night. Therefore, I wanted to bring a few warmer outfits. So I have several of each kind of weather oufit.
3. Poop- many of the babies have giardia (from a parasite) which causes explosive poop, and explosive meaning needs a complete change of clothes every time. Some friends babies have had it and used all their clothes they brought. Other friends babies didn't have it and didn't come close to using all the clothes they brought. Better to be prepared than unprepared! We will have access to some laundry services, but no dryer, and with the rainy season we were told it can take quite awhile for things to dry.
4. We will be in Ethiopia for 10 days. That's a lot of clothes for a baby... especially one who might have explosive poop! (haha)
5. Either way we have to be within 50 lbs. Funny that a little tiny baby only 14.5 pounds gets 50 pounds of luggage!

Today I also organzied the kitchen cupboards and made one little shelf for Mekonen's stuff. I know that one shelf will quickly turn into two shelves when more sippy cups and the like come into play! But for now, here's a pic. :)

Things Are Movin' Along!!

Wow, what a crazy last couple weeks! I have been tackling my to-do list like a mad woman! My 30 hour grad. school project is complete! WAHOO!!! (Still have some reading left to do, but not due until November!). I have also completed most of my shopping for Ethiopia, although I know I'll have a few odds and ends to get once I start putting everything in the suitcases.

Our house has looked like a bomb went off for several days as we moved all Mekonen's stuff out of his nursery to paint and set it up, and cleaned out closets, cabinets, etc., in order to fit all his things. Stuff was everywhere!!! Our luggage is out sitting in the living room waiting to be filled and it's making our dog Macy quite anxious these days. Whenever she sees all this comotion and luggage she knows something is up! She has been moping all over the house. It's quite sad. Here is what she has been looking like lately. Poor baby.
The nursery is coming along and I can't wait to post pictures. We have been working all week on little odds and ends to decorate the room with. Tonight Jon finished Mekonen's rocking horse. So cute! His crib needs a few more coats of stain and that will be finished!

Tomorrow is laundry day for Mekonen's clothes so I can get them all packed! It will be interesting to see how we are going to fit all those diapers! :)

I just cannot believe it! 1 week from tomorrow!!!! 1 week from tomorrow and we are off to see this sweet baby boy face to face!

Pajamas, Pajamas, Pajamas!

41 jammies, 59 to go!! We are well on our way to meeting our 100 PJ goal for Ethiopia! We are so incredibly thankful for those of you who have sent pajamas and/or money for pajamas and formula! We are also collecting socks, underwear, and small bras. Here are some snapshots of our donations so far! If you'd like to contribute to our donation drive for Mekonen's older friends at the Layla House in Ethiopia, drop me a message for our address.

• 41 pajamas

• 22 pairs of socks

• 78 undies

• 2 small bras

WE PASSED!!!!

We got INCREDIBLE news today at 3:07 pm! WE PASSED COURT TODAY!!! For the first time...introducing our sweet baby boy, Mekonen Jack Oren.

I actually made this slideshow last night and this morning with great faith that we would pass court! Hope you enjoyed it! Our hearts are so full of excitement and joy. We are incredibly blessed by how God chose to display His power today in Ethiopia. God's goodness is not our definition of goodness...we have been clinging to that truth this whole time. We prayed and sought the Lord, asking that His goodness and greatness would be best displayed in us passing the first time. Thank you Jesus for hearing our prayers and answering them. We owe you EVERYTHING, ALL the glory and ALL the praise.

Still waiting....

Ahhh! Still waiting on pins and needles! I couldn't stand the waiting any longer so I called our agency again. They said they still have not received the court results from Addis Ababa and are expecting them at noon Seattle time, which is 3:00pm our time. Oh my... another two hours to wait.

My heart has been full of joy this morning as I know deep in my heart that God is working out what is best for Mekonen, for us, and for His glory. I have such a deep peace about that, no matter what the outcome is. Even still though, I am anxious, nervous, excited, etc, etc, etc.

Hoping Today is the Day!

It is 12:26 a.m. right now in Indy, which means it's 7:26 a.m. (Monday, the 29th) in Ethiopia. We are unsure of the exact time our case will be heard in court today, but we were told the courts probably open and begin moving around 8am. Whoa. In a half hour, our case could be heard and decided! We are anxious, excited, joyful, nervous, ready to celebrate, longing to celebrate. We had 3 of our dear friends here this weekend (Ronaldo, Kelli, and Demetrius). We believe by God's sovereign design they were here the weekend before our court date. We spent some great together tonight gathered around our dining room table praying for court, praying for Mekonen, and praying that God will do whatever brings the greatest glory to him... even if that means we wait for another court date. We were blessed greatly with such godly friends who lifted us and our growing family to the Lord tonight and thank all the family and friends who have sent us encouraging notes, phone calls, and messages that they are thinking of us and praying for us.

So it's already passed midnight and I'm not tired at all. Sleep anyone? We probably will not find out the verdict of our court hearing until noon our time tomorrow.

I'll post as soon as I hear the good news! ;)

4 Days!

Wow! Only 4 days until our court date! Again, nausea hits almost every day (and again, no I'm not pregnant). I couldn't sleep last night because my stomach was full of butterflies. We got a new video of Mekonen the other night and it is simply precious!!! He was practically asleep in his nanny's lap and was drinking his bottle. As soon as the two nannies realized some of our friends were taking video of him they tried waking him up. They were snapping their fingers right in front of his face and waving this really loud rattle at him. He was blinking his eyes like crazy and was very confused. I felt bad for him because he looked so sleepy, but I was so glad because he woke right up and was looking all around, so curiously. They got a super clear, close-up shot of his face and wow, his eyes are so big, and super dark. It doesn't even look like he has pupils. Oh I just looove it. I've watched it about 50 times!

4 Days Until Court and here are 4 things I've been doing to keep busy!

1. Graduate School - I'm in a two week class now (ending tomorrow) and another session

July 6th-15th. Right now my class is on International Education.

2. Baby Carriers- searching for the two baby carriers I decided on: the Beco Baby Carrier and the Peanut Shell. I have been on a daily quest to try and find them used because they aren't

"cheap."

Here I am with my niece Jane in the peanut shell. My sister and I opened it up in Babies R' Us and I carried her all around the store in it to give it a test run. I found out later the fabric is supposed to be a little more spread out across my shoulder. I loved it though and Jane seemed to really like it too!

3. Friends- hanging with my friends in Ohio who are letting me live with them during grad.

school, and then getting to hang with more friends from PA this weekend who are coming to

visit!

Naomi and her girls Ali & Claire who I've been staying with in OH. (Sorry Brian, I couldn't find a pic with you in it too).

Some of our dear friends from PA who are coming to visit this weekend! Ronaldi & Kelli.

4. Lists- I am making a lot of lists!!!

• Things we still need for Mekonen when he comes home.
• Things we need for our trip to Ethiopia
• Packing lists
• Lists of where to find what we need to buy and price comparisons for them (haha, yes, I have a lot of time on my hands during this grad. class).

Who's Waiting for Mekonen?

6 Days until court baby Mekonen! Here are 6 important people who are anxiously waiting for you to come home! We love you! Praying hard you are fully OURS on Monday!

1. Mommy & Daddy- Here is a picture of us the day we got engaged on December 25, 2004!!! Can you tell how happy and excited we are! We fill exactly the same way waiting to bring you home! 2. Grandma and Grandpa Castro- "Grandma Missy and Grandpa Jack" (although Grandma really hates the name Missy. hehe).
3. Uncle Meade, Auntie Amy, and your cousins Manny & Aderyn


4. Uncle Tom, Auntie Rebekah, and your cousins Natalie & Jane


5. Grandma and Grandpa Oren- "Grandma Magz and Grandpa Dig" (although Grandpa hates being called Dig).
6. Uncle Josh and Aunt Meghan, and your cousin Owen

7. Aunt Lindsay, Uncle Jeremy, and Uncle Aaron (sorry Aaron, I didn't have a picture of you on this computer!)

We love you and can't wait until you come home! Hang in there little man. We'll be there soon!

Some Baby Love

Whoa! 8 days until our court date! I am full of so many insane emotions I can hardly sleep! I'm anxious we won't pass the first time, and then all the other emotions are super excited and happy ones that go along with the thought that we do pass! A group of friends from my AAI group just returned this weekend with their babies! We have new pictures and video coming soon! I cannot wait! It brought tears to my eyes reading about them arriving home with their sweet little ones. I cannot wait to be in those shoes! Soon.... very soon.

In the meantime, here's some sweet baby love about Mekonen from my traveling friends. Oh how I have loved these updates while they were there in Ethiopia. They all hugged and snuggled my little guy and told him his mama and daddy are coming soon!

June 15th- Rachael, Mekonen is such a sweetheart. Sean and I got some pictures today and I shot some video. Oh, what a doll. He was a bit cranky from just waking up, but so sweet (from Elizabeth).

June 16th- Mekonen! Rachael, he is so adorable. I came in to see him today and he was fussing in his crib so I picked him up. He just melted into me. What a sweetheart. He has such wide, expressive eyes! I got him smiling and laughing. He has a bit of chest congestion right now and was a little wheezy, but the nurse is aware so don't worry about him. We'll make sure he's okay. I put him back down and he cried, so I picked him up again, walked around and bounced him and he feel asleep! Oh my he's adorable (from Allison).

June 21st- Mekonen is in the room just next door to Eden. He is in with E* and
S*. The nanny in his room was one of my favorites you can see her kissing
on the babies in one of my pictures. He is a tiny boy, I checked his clothing
size and he was wearing 3-6 months and I think he will be in that size for
awhile. He loves to be held and Elizabeth had a tough time putting him down.
He is adorable, really a handsome little man (from Allison).

And here is a little note about Mekonen from back in March. A fellow AAI mom just emailed it to me. I'm so excited to have all these people who have met my baby and can give me little stories about him. I'm putting them all in his lifebook!

I only spent a little time with Mekonen at Wanna when I was visiting Y* in March, but he was such a little snuggler. He really seemed to want to be held and to relax a lot when picked up. I think he maybe had just arrived, and maybe he wasn't really settled in there yet, but I think you have a little guy who will LOVE being held, carried in a sling/ carrier, having baby massage, etc. I really noticed that when I picked up Y*, he immediately scanned the room like 'great, I can finally get a good look around, who's here?', but when I picked up Mekonen, he was really tuned into being held. I'm not sure if that makes any sense! But they struck me as very different personalities. Y* is my first so I am not really speaking from experience, but a lot of what I've read about attachment talks about touch, and Mekonen was very responsive to being touched and held (from Irene).

As we near court, my dreams about him are almost every night! Oh I can't wait to snuggle that boy! I'm off to another week of grad. school. I'm glad I have something to fill the time.

Still clinging to God's goodness...
no matter what.

Butterflies Have Taken Over!

Every day I have butterflies in my stomach! (Maybe this is why I feel continuously nauseous! And no, I'm not pregnant). Some of these butterflies are flying around with great excitement and bubbling joy, and others are flying around with some anxiety and fear. I picture what it will be like to hear the words in 1 week and 6 days, "You passed!" and I can't even contain my excitement. It brings tears to my eyes thinking of those words and the fact that they mean we can go get our precious babe!

I have been thinking A LOT about the realization that we may not pass court the first time and the thing that continually comes to mind is God's Goodness. I remember being in college when I first really understood God's Goodness. I realized that when I struggled with believing that God is Good ALL the time was when I was determining what was Good. A professor of mine, Dr. Baumann, really made this stand out to me. He's super smart and I can't even come close to describing it the way he did, so I won't even try. But, he talked a lot about who or what defines Goodness. God is all-knowing, creator of all things, and He is the one who determines what is Good, even when we don't understand. If God doesn't define Goodness, then we are saying something is above God, i.e. Goodness. He loves us and Mekonen more than we ever could dream and wants only what is good and best for us.

In my view of Goodness, which I sometimes falsely believe IS Goodness, we should pass court on the first time, have no trouble traveling or anything, and have Mekonen in our arms, being welcomed by our family at the airport this July.

However, that may not be what God sees as Goodness. I know from the Bible that God works ALL things out for the good, according to His purpose and plan (Romans 8:28). God's Goodness is what is GOOD for us, or to the benefit of others in our lives. It could be that we don't pass court the first time so that God can accomplish His purpose: helping people see God's greatness and the faith that we have in His plan for our lives. Or, maybe His Goodness and those purposes will be displayed better by us passing the first time! Whatever God sees as best, will be accomplished. Even when it doesn't feel good to me, I need to keep reminding myself it IS Good.

While getting ready for class today, I even allowed myself to think of what I would do and how I would react, how I would survive, if God took Mekonen from this earth before we could get to him or anytime after for that matter. This has happened to a few of our friends while waiting to bring their babies home from Ethiopia. Normally, I avoid all thoughts of death and extreme sorrow as much as possible because it scares me so much. But this morning, I was overcome with a bit of anxiety and deep sadness even at the mere thought of such a tragedy and I kept saying to myself, "I belong to Jesus. In the end, Jesus will defeat every bit of death and sadness. All that happens in this life is for my GOOD, pointing to the day when ALL that is wrong in the world will be made RIGHT, and GOOD, and WONDERFUL, when Jesus comes back to claim His own. I just keep reminding myself, in my fleshly misconceptions, that God IS Good ALL the time.

Without Jesus in my life, this makes no sense. Even re-reading it, I can see how people might think I am incredibly crazy. But Jesus has changed it all.

We Have a Court Date!!!!

Woo-hoo!!!!! We are rejoicin' over here!!! We got news today that June 29th will hopefully be a very happy day for the Oren family! June 29th is our court date in Ethiopia!!!! If we pass court on the 29th we will be the legal parents of Mekonen and will travel approximately 3 weeks later to bring him home! The tricky part you ask? PASSING THE 1st TIME!

Common Court Questions
1. Do you have to travel to Ethiopia for your court date?
We do not need to travel for our court date. We signed a Power of Attorney for our agency's lawyer to act on our behalf in court. That way we don't have to travel twice, especially when there is always a chance you don't pass the first time.

2. Why wouldn't you pass the 1st time?
There are many reasons why some families do not pass court the first time. This is not due to the adopting family at all. We have already been approved by Ethiopia to adopt and all our paperwork is already signed, sealed, approved, and delivered. If there are problems with our case, it is due to factors on the Ethiopia side. The most common thing lately seems to be the missing MOWA approval letter. If the Ministry of Women's Affairs(MOWA) doesn't send your case in with a cover letter, you do not pass court. The cover letter basically says they approve everything about your baby's case. There are lots of different reasons they don't send cover letters. Many times they don't because they are understaffed and run out of time. Other times, MOWA requests more information about the baby or their background before they will write your approval letter. In the past year the director of MOWA has been imprisoned twice while the government checked on some cases, therefore, MOWA has been extra cautious and making sure everything is done ethically and in its entirety.

3. What happens if you don't pass the first time?
If we don't pass the first time, we are scheduled another court date. In the past, if a family doesn't pass the first time, there have been many, many weeks, sometimes 6 or more between their dates. Recently, make-up cases have been much closer together, sometimes the next week, or just a few weeks out at most it seems. But, here is the tricky part for us. The courts close sometime in early August through early October. So, if we don't pass court the first time and don't get a quick make-up date and actually pass that one, we might have to wait until October for a new date when the courts re-open. That could be the difference of Mekonen being around 9 months + when we get him instead of 6 months when we get him.

4. What happens when you pass court?
When we pass court, our agency will notify us of our embassy appointment in Addis Ababa. This is the day we have to appear at the embassy for Mekonen's visa to travel home. Usually, once you pass court, you travel in approximately three weeks! So, if we pass the first time, our little guy will be home this July! Wow, that is insane! We have SO MUCH to do!!!!

Please, please join us in praying for our court date on June 29th. We desperately want to bring our son home where he can be smothered with our love and attention!

Waiting: Pre-Referral or Post-Referral?

I am in an amazing online group with about 15 families I think it is from AAI who are adopting. Some friends of mine from that group just returned this past weekend from Ethiopia with their babies and we got lots of new pictures and video!! My friend Corrie, who also lives in the Indy area, got some awesome pictures of Mekonen smiling!!! Real big, gummy smiles, with that big dimple right in the middle of his cheek. I can't even handle his cuteness!!! Her husband Andy took video of Mekonen for several minutes, playing with his toys and rolling over, and just smiling away. I can't even count the amount of times I have watched the video already! What an amazing gift to get! They got pictures of his crib, his growth chart, the baby room he's in, and said he's in 0-3 months clothes and maybe some 3-6 months. In the background in one of the pictures, we saw the photo album we sent set up in his crib turned to the picture of me and Jon! I don't know why, but that did something crazy to my heart! :) We are eternally thankful for these gifts of pictures and videos from our friends. I cannot wait to meet their little darling baby girl Macie when we get back to Indiana. Another crew of families from our group are leaving today to go get their babies. Wow! I can remember when we were all waiting for referrals! Hopefully our turn is coming soon!

I was telling a good friend of mine yesterday, who just started the process of adopting from Ethiopia with CWA about the difference in the wait times. During our wait for a referral everyone kept telling me the wait after the referral is the worst than the wait before the referral because you know who your baby is and that makes the waiting extra hard. But I totally disagree. The wait for our referral was way worse. The wait time since referral has been much easier for me. Now I have a little face to stare at, a name to call him, and little milestones to look forward to such as a group assignment, being filed in court, then a court date, and not to mention that I have gotten picture updates almost every 2 weeks from traveling friends, and even video! So I feel like I'm always waiting for another little something to brighten my day, like a new picture. During the referral wait there was nothing to look forward to except our monthly check-in, and the months felt long. However, if our court process doesn't go smoothly and weeks and months end up tacked onto our timeline due to not passing court the first time, then I might change my mind about which wait was the worst. I was also telling her about how I know God has protecting my heart so much in regards to our precious baby boy. God has been filling me up with wonderful, happy, joyful thoughts of Mekonen, and I feel as though he is protecting me from really thinking about the reality that Mekonen is there, in an orphanage, without me. So anyway, I keep trudging along, hoping to hold him in my arms this summer, and PRAYING we pass court on the first try!

We had to sign a paper for AAI and we sent it off with the new address labels we made ourselves! Aren't they cute! :) hehe.

Our New Favorite Letter!!!

So, can you guess our new favorite letter? Yep, you guessed it! M!!! We got word today that our case was officially filed in court on May 29th and that we are in Group M! M is a good letter for us!

• M for Mekonen!
• M for court group!
  

The adoption cases are filed in court by letters of the alphabet. The court cases are heard by the judge in order of the alphabet letters. Groups K & L are next in line to be heard and their court date is on June 8th! Their court date (specifically Group L) is MUCH sooner than we anticipated. The good news with that is the fact that Group M is next to receive a court date! Maybe we can even get a June court date! Our agency said today that it has been about 2-3 weeks until we hear when our court date is. Once we pass court, we will travel about 3 weeks later to pick up Mekonen! Whoa!

HOWEVER the trick is: Passing court the 1st time! Not all cases will pass court on the first try. We know families who had a very long and difficult court process and many families who passed with flying colors the first time. If we don't pass court it doesn't mean that Mekonen is not ours. It just means that they have to correct whatever paperwork problem there is and try again. We have already been approved by the Ethiopian Government to adopt, so if there is a problem and we don't pass court, it is not because of us or our paperwork. Common reasons people don't pass court are things like, missing paperwork, power outages, birth family not showing up if applicable, a file being misplaced, etc.

So, our current, very pressing prayer needs:
1) A SPEEDY court date- June specifically
2) That we pass court the 1st time!

In the meantime, we are anxiously awaiting videos and pictures of Mekonen! Some friends of ours are in Ethiopia right now picking up their babies!!! How exciting! We got to hang out with our friend Corrie and her family a few days before they left and it was so exciting to see all their luggage packed and the nursery set up! She sent two different emails so far and here's what she said about our darling baby!

Mekonen is beautiful and HAPPY! He rolls over and smiles and giggles when you play with him. An absolute doll. He was sitting in the bumbo today. He really is precious Rachael. I can't wait for you guys to come here. The nannies LOVE the babies and they are always kissing and holding them.

Mekonen is rolling all over the place. Andy got video of a lot of our babies yesterday and I'm gonna get more tomorrow. We got Mekonen smiling and playing and giggling!!!! He is a happy baby, Rachael.

I cannot WAIT to see those videos and pictures. I can't believe he is rolling over! First big milestone. As long as we get to him before he starts walking! :)

A Few Thoughts...

We received two of the cutest pictures of Mekonen this past week from a traveling family! He actually doesn't look scared or confused in these ones, which helps my mommy heart! He's kind of smiling in one of them and has a little dimple! Yes, a dimple! I hope that sticks around! Oh I want to kiss that little brown face! He is simply beautiful!!!

I have wanted Mekonen home in a different way this week. I can't describe it, but it's a new stage of longing, a new feeling of wanting desperately to have him here. Jesus has been so close to me this week...I feel so at peace despite this new, different, desperate need for my son. I am confident in his plan for seeing our son arrive home and I continue, steady on, trusting that there will be an end to the wait.... soon.

My sister Amy has been my biggest support throughout this adoption process (besides my Jonny of course). She understands the process completely. She is a mom to a son born in Guatemala and a biological daughter. She's done both and has felt it all. She sent me an encouraging message awhile back and it was so insightful. It really speaks to how I am feeling this week.

Adoption is totally different than pregnancy because you feel for this baby who is already here, that you cannot hold or comfort. The strain when your child is already there somewhere, is so different. It's a mom thing that is anxiety and trust in a way like you've never experienced. I am so thankful for that time of waiting because I feel like I understood far earlier that God is 'loaning' my kids to me from him and that he is in control, not me.

What a great thought! I never thought of this waiting as depicting that very truth. God is loaning our children to us asking us to love them and raise them to know Jesus and go out and make a difference in our world.

Our Boy Is Growing!

Our Boy Is Growing!!


Yippee!! We came home from work today to an update report on Mekonen from our agency! At 3 months now he is 11 lbs. 2 oz. and 22.24 inches long! He's a peanut, but healthy and growing! Here's the chart we got (sorry it's a little fuzzy).


Here is what was written on his update form.

Mekonen Oren
Mekonen is doing very well. He can raise his head and turn towards the direction of objects and light. He turns his head, moves his arms and kicks legs independently of each other, and sucks his finger. He smiles when you play with him. He feeds well and sleep a lot.

Aww, just like his mama... sleeps a lot! :) I am glad he is gaining weight! When we first got our referral his medical form said he was 6 pounds on March 5th. Still a tiny little guy, but doing well! We got two new pictures of him today from another traveling family. Oh how I can't wait to hold this babe in my arms!

Quiet Thoughts

Our sweet baby boy, Mekonen Jack, has truly captured our hearts. I dream about him several times a week and think about him all day long at work. Most of the time, I am feeling super positive and excited about everything, but then there are days like today, where I feel sad. So sad that I'm watching my babe grow up in pictures. For some reason it really hit me this morning...that his little, tiny, 2 month self will soon be 3 months, then 4 months, then 5, then probably about 6 when he comes home. He will look and be so different in just those few short months. We got new pictures of Mekonen last week from a traveling family who returned home and it was the greatest boost to my day! Truthfully, I check snapfish about once a day to see if any new families have posted pictures. A new picture is usually just what I need! :)

It's really quiet at home right now. I'm supposed to be doing work for grad. school, and Jon is coaching baseball, but I am so distracted by this little man so far away in Ethiopia. Adoption is an amazing, but yet complex thing. Through much sorrow and sadness, comes another's joy and celebration. There are moments, when it's quiet like this, that I grieve in my heart for our son. That I feel the full weight of what he has experienced and lost in his short life already... the loss of being able to be raised by his birth family, in his birth country. But then there's the other side.. he is joining our family, forever, as our son, and what a crazy, insane amount of love we already have for him. Wow. The morning after we received our referral, I cried the whole way to work. The grief over our son's loss was so real, so heavy. And how do you deal with that, while, at the same time, you are rejoicing & celebrating, and would label the moment we saw his face as one of the happiest moments in our lives. Wow, talk about complex.

All I know, is that God is completely sovereign. That God values life and the blessing of children. That before the world began, he knew of all these things, he knew of Mekonen Jack who is forever ours. I can't sort out the complexities of adoption, but I can experience them as a gift from God and as a picture of how God has chosen to adopt us into His family.

Mekonen's Welcome Bag

Last week we sent Mekonen's welcome bag to AAI in Washington for our director to take to him when she flies to Ethiopia this week. How exciting! It was so fun to put together this little gift for him. We were told to send an outfit, a small toy, picture album with our pictures in it, and a dispoable camera for them to get pictures of him getting his bag. The key? It all had to fit in a gallon size ziploc bag! Whoa. We went shopping for this stuff on our date night the day after we got the referral call. Jon picked out a little blanket doggie toy which we washed in our regular laundry detergent/fabric softener and then slept with it for a week and a half. The agency suggested this so that it has our scent on it which he will then recognize when we come to get him. Awww, so sweet. I picked out two little outfits (we most likely won't get these back, and he probably will only wear them once as the laundry pile at the orphanage is massive to say the least). The picture album is one of the baby einstein one's where he can chew/play with it. We included 3 pictures of Jon and I, one of our dog Macy, and one of our nieces and nephew, labeled "Your Cousins!!" It came out very cute. :) So here it is!

This...

And then this...Last night we went through our packet and signed our names 17 times officially accepting the referral of Baby Mekonen! It was shipped off to AAI this morning! Woo-hoo!!!
We also had to prepare a new Power of Attorney, get it notarized, physically bring it to the Secretary of State in Indianapolis, get the state seal, and FedEx it it to AAI. The Power of Attorney allows a specific man from AAI to represent Jon and I in court so we don't have to travel twice. The man we signed POA to has moved from Ethiopia to the United States. A new guy was hired and we had to prepare another POA that would allow him to represent our case. Phew. As far as I know, everything is all done for now.

Wow. I can't even believe we are at this point! Everyone said the waiting after referral was hardest, but so far, it has been easier! (although as we continue on, I might change my mind). It's easier now because I have a little face I see everyday when I get up, a little face I look at on my desk all day at work. I have a name to use when we pray, and a specific little person on my heart and mind all day long. What a joy!

What's In A Name?

With much excitement we officially announce the name of our son!


In case you can't read the piece of paper it says,
Mekonen- our son's given Ethiopian name. It is part of his life story and how he came to be ours. We have found two meanings of Mekonen.
1. noble, dignitary
2. the angel
Jack- named for my dad and Jon's grandpa.

It means so much to me to name our first born son after my dad. I would like to take the opportunity to share a bit about my amazing daddy! For those of you who know my dad, he is one of the most incredible men I have known, and will ever know, in my entire life. He loves Jesus more than life itself and forever I will remember him always singing, "I'd rather have Jesus than silver or gold, I'd rather have him than have riches untold. I'd rather have Jesus than anything, I'd rather be held by his nail pierced hands." My dad has an incredible story. I love hearing how Jesus saved my mom and dad. Their story is amazing, if you haven't heard it, you should ask them! My dad has experienced a lot in his life, our family, our spiritual lives, the life of the church, etc. Through it all, he has been faithful to Jesus, faithful to the Bible, faithful to his family. He works harder than anyone I know and has a peace deep in his heart. I commend my dad. In my 26 years he has shown me by his life who Jesus is. When God saw our destitute state, our depravity, our rebellion, he didn't sit far off, alone, distant, unengaged. No, he CAME. He came as the man Jesus and DIED for us. He fought for our hearts, pursued us, forgave our sins, rescued us. Amazing. Simply amazing. That is the picture I see of my dad. He sees his role as husband, dad, and spiritual leader as one who is like Jesus. Protector, defender, rescuer, healer, encourager, strong, and the list goes on and goes. When trouble has come into our lives, he never retreated, but rather pursued most vigorously.... our hearts and the hearts of those he was given to minister to. No matter what the outcome, my dad can stand and say "He has led well. He has been protector and defender." I honor my daddy because he loves like Jesus and through that, I have grown to understand how Jesus loves me. I pray and trust that my son, our first born son, will continue the godly heritage my dad has begun in our family. When he gets to a ripe old age, I pray my dad is encouraged by the legacy he himself started. He chose a different path. He chose to love Jesus. I hope that in that old age many years away, he can sit back, and watch from the corner of the room, the children he raised to love Jesus, and the grandchildren who followed, and the great grand children who followed. So Mekonen my dear son, you have a great heritage, a great legacy. Carry it well.

(This little post about my daddy wasn't intended to leave out Jon's grandpa. I just wanted to take the opportunity to publicly acknowledge my dad. Jon's grandpa and grandma tragically died in a plane crash before he was born. In just the recent years we have begun to hear the stories and life of his grandpa. They are incredible. This past summer at the Oren family reunion, I was blessed to hear so many stories about the man who is my husband's grandpa. The man who started a legacy on the Oren side of our son's family. So, I will have to let Jon tell you a little about him).

So...back to the naming process! Before we received our referral, we were undecided about a name. We had a list of names we liked, two or three we really liked, but nothing set in stone. We wanted to wait until we saw his face and heard his Ethiopian name. Without a doubt we said we would keep his Ethiopian name in some fashion, whether it be his first or middle. We decided to wait till we knew his name to see if we liked it, if it was easily pronounced, etc., for a first name. I can still remember when Merrily said, "His name is Mekonen." I just smiled. I loved it! This might sound strange to some people, but we sat on it, prayed about, and then decided! After all, God is concerned about all the affairs of our lives and the lives of our children, so why not the naming process? It was kind of stressful at first, deciding his name. I mean, this boy will have this name for life! It will be so much of who he is. Jon is very much a believer in a child's name having some kind of meaning and/or significance. We decided our baby's name on just those things! His heritage and his family! (And for all of you who don't like it, please don't tell me all the horrible things it reminds you of). haha.

Here's a fun little story from my four year old nephew Manny that my sister told me.
"mom... listen, mmmmmmmm, mekonen!, That starts with M like Manny! and we're both adopted! we rhyme!" "also mom, I think I will teach him to play baseball, but when we play baseball, I will only call him Jack." me: "why, manny?" "UGH, MOOOOMMM, b/c that's his baseball name." This was BEFORE we decided on Mekonen's name and before we announced it! Hehe.