My Return To Ethiopia...Post #4

If you missed my last post on my return trip to Ethiopia...you can read it by clicking HERE first!!!! If you're caught up and ready to go....then here goes:

***So, where did I leave off?? Ok, so I remember :) Yes, my contact was able to locate Lucy Lane Martha's birth mom. Yes, it felt like a miracle...I got chills all over my body WHEN I SAW HER FACE AGAIN!!! It suddenly felt like the world was a VERY SMALL place after all!!! I sat staring and shocked and WANTING to tell the world, "I found her...I found her!!" But, I knew I couldn't blog about it THEN...I needed some time to soak it all in and MAKE SURE I was doing the right thing (oh, but it was SO hard not to post it to the blog world that instant...I have a big mouth and I so wanted to share the good news :)

**So, before I go any further..I feel I must say that THIS is a very delicate topic and situation!!! Birth parent meetings is a VERY sensitive topic. I sought LOTS of advice from my agency, my many adoption friends, and even friends that were adopted themselves. As I said in my last post: I didn't want to hurt anyone and cause anyone ANY MORE pain, I didn't want to break any international laws, and I wanted to make sure that she WANTED to be found first!! So, my advice to you before seeking out a birth parent is to ask your agency what THEY recommend... The warnings I received that I feel I should share with you are:

1. What if you travel across the world and you show up to find this family has moved.

2. What if the birth parent is deceased

3. What if they are just out for the day that you arrive...you would have traveled across the world and missed them.

4. Communication is nearly impossible...so setting up an accurate time to meet and for ALL to be present would be hard to do on my own.

5. It could be dangerous traveling on your own out of the capitol city: wild animals, dishonest people and disappointment is possible....

***So, those are just some of the warnings I feel I should share...so now that you KNOW them...back to my post:

**Well...there were actually many pictures coming in that day on my computer...I saw pictures of MANY of LL's birth family. They all look so much alike...I just couldn't believe my eyes...but LL's birth mom stands out...I can see where LL got her beauty...she is stunning!! :)

**What I heard next was a breath of fresh air...it was the exact same details of WHY she placed Lucy lane Martha up for adoption that my agency had told me. I had ALWAYS felt my agency was AMAZINGLY HONEST and had GREAT integrity..but hearing those same details for myself just confirmed for me HOW WONDERFUL AGCI is/was and HOW HONEST and caring of an agency I used. My contact would have had NO WAY of knowing those details about Lucy Lane's history...so I KNEW he had found her birth mom...and I knew she was indeed sharing with him HER STORY!!!

**Most importantly...she gave her BLESSING for me to come and meet them. Now imagine having a stranger from the city walk up to you while you are at the market and say, "I'm here because of Martha".... Imagine the shock that was present for her. I just can't imagine HOW SHOCKED and STUNNED she was to learn that I wanted to come and meet her and her family.... and that some stranger traveled 3 days to find out if it was OK that I come....Well....she WAS shocked but also VERY EXCITED. She gave us her blessing and told my contact that she would share every detail of Lucy Lane's birth, etc. when we came. So, they know we're coming...Communication will be hard to set up an actual time to show up...so we'll need lots of PRAYERS..cause we know that so much could go wrong:

**I'm guarding myself knowing that this could be NOTHING like what I dreamed...or it could be EVERYTHING that I dreamed it would be.

**It might be awkward and strange..or natural and wonderful.

**Communication might be hard and weird..or we may have a great interpreter and conversation may flow well....

**We may show up and they aren't home...or they may be waiting for us...

So, i'm putting this in God's hand...He's gotten me this far (which I feel is a true miracle) and I know He'll see us through the rest of the way whether good or bad. And, I KNOW God already KNOWS how this will all play out...I'm trusting in HIM!!!

**So, there you have it...my tickets are booked and we fly out on December 10th..and fly back in on the 19th. Yes, this is a VERY long trip for me..especially since i've NEVER left my children for even ONE night before. This is WAY out of my comfort zone, which is exactly WHY i know God is leading me here...cause it is the ONLY explanation on HOW I'm able to go through with it all.

**I'm traveling with my big sister, Kelly, again..and we've got EVERY day packed FULL with things to do. Not ONLY am I going to meet LL's birth family...but...

* we're going to orphanages and photographing "waiting children" in hopes to get back and help them get placed with a family.

*We're visiting Kora... (can't wait for that)

*I'm hoping to visit and see the water well we put in in Ziway, Ethiopia. LifeSong for Orphans runs a school and feeding program there and we REALLY want to go see that too.

*I really want to go visit the new Hannah's Hope and visit with Almaz again...I loved talking with her when I picked up Lucy Lane and can't wait to see her again...I'm also hoping to photograph the waiting children there that AGCI has on their wait list.

* And, my kids are praying about something specific when I visit and meet waiting children...well...and I am too... God willing.. God willing!! :)

*****So, the count down is on....I'll be blogging and updating AS MUCH AS ELECTRICITY and CONNECTIONS allow!! I want to share every detail that I can of each of my days there... I'm very excited and very nervous... I'm NOT nervous about meeting LL's birth family...I'm nervous about flying!! :) Yes, I'm a nerd and I'm NOT adventurous at all..so flying that far MAKES ME VERY NERVOUS!!! So, PLEASE pray for me/us. PRAY for my hubby who will be home alone with our 5 littles during the craziest month of the entire year. I'll give more specific prayer requests CLOSER to departure...but for now...that's my story!!! I hope you'll all join me on this GREAT adventure!! I'm sure it will be a wild ride!! :)

Happy Wednesday to you all, kj