I just come across this on my computer

DAY 1 & 2: Traveling

Hey everyone! I am just going to tell you a little bit about our travels thus far.

On Friday we got to the South Bend airport around 2:45 p.m. to get checked in, but our flight was not until 5:05. Our flight went from South Bend to Detroit. Bless Mom’s heart, stayed until she wasn’t allowed to follow us through the airport anymore. J

The sounds of rolling suitcases and airport personnel over the loud speaker got us anxious. There were lots of smiles and the clapping of hands, but we realized this was the start to a long two days of traveling.

The plane from South Bend to Detroit was very tiny, but after only 48 minutes in the air, we made it safe and sound. From the Detroit airport to our next flight to Amsterdam, we had to rush. We only had one hour to get from one plane to the next and they were on opposite ends of the airport. We definitely broke a sweat. Ha.

The plane from Amsterdam to Ethiopia was rather large and very comfortable. We got to watch a lot of movies and had a nice meal on board. Of course Claire was running through all of our heads.

Jolene’s mood on the plane to Amsterdam: “excited, but not nervous.”

The hour change is 7 hours ahead, so we felt pretty out of whack. Watching the sun go down when at home it was the afternoon.

Our flight from Amsterdam to Sudan went pretty smoothly. We had to sit for an hour and a half in Sudan while they refueled.

From Sudan to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, we ran into some bad weather. We had quite a bit of turbulence and had to circle the airport for about a half an hour.

Getting off the plane was quite a relief and knowing Claire was so close was such a great feeling!! We met our driver at the airport and he helped us with our luggage to his vehicle. A group of about 8 men surrounded us and insisted on helping us load our luggage into the car. They seemed friendly and were pushing their way through to touch our bags. The one was pretty demanding to Darin to give him some sort of payment. He was going to give him a 5, but he demanded more. Darin gave him a 10, and that still didn’t seem to be enough for him. Finally our driver had to shoo them all away. Darin asked him if that was enough…. He shook his head and let him know that that was more than enough.

We got to the house, which seems very safe. Darin and Jo are in one room and Laurie and I are in another. Another family who just adopted a 13 year old girl are here with us as well. We are actually chatting with them right now in the living room about all their experiences and they are giving us a lot of great information for being here. The currency here is called the birr. One of our dollars is about 14 of their birr. So our dollar has a lot of value here.

We were thinking we wouldn’t get to go get Claire until tomorrow afternoon. GOOD NEWS! We get to leave here tomorrow at 8:30 am to go get her!! We are so excited. Laurie helped Jolene pick out Claire’s outfit for tomorrow. Right now Claire is at what they call the transition house. The children at this house are waiting for their parents to come get them. I imagine we will stay there for awhile and love on the little children… J

Tomorrow’s agenda is just to get Claire and welcome her to the family in person. J

I pray that my loved ones know the presence of God in all that they do.

I send my loved ones this blessing: “You are dear to my heart, and my greatest desire for you is that you know the presence of God in your life. I pray with you and for you, knowing that what is best for you is not my will or your will; it is God’s will.

“God’s will is that you have life, understanding, joy, love, and peace. This does not necessarily mean that every day of your journey through life will be an easy one. When you need extra strength to reach some goal, God is your source of almighty strength.

“Yes, you are dear to my heart, but as great as my love for you is, God’s love is greater. So I pray that in all that you do, you know the presence of God.”

“We have not ceased praying for you and asking that you may be filled with the knowledge of God’s will in all spiritual wisdom and understanding.”

--Colossians 1:9

When we traveled to Ethiopia my sister cam with us. She documented all of our days there in Ethiopia and this is the 1st I have seen this :)