Kings Mountain Daytrip

 On October 22nd we took three of the kids (H, E, and L) to the Kings Mountain National Military Park and State Park.  One of my family's ancestors was Robert Young, who is generally credited with firing the shot that killed Loyalist Major Ferguson (Revolutionary War).  We really came to enjoy the fall colors, so we didn't spend too long in the military museum. 

L enjoys the wide open space and the blue sky.

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We really enjoyed the recreated farm at the State Park.  We could go into all the buildings and explore.

The outdoor kitchen.

The chickens were very happy to see us, but not so happy when we left and they hadn't gotten their dinner.

Isn't this just such a pretty setting?

Inside on of the barns.

Literally, watching the cows come home.

Time to go, everyone is tired, but happy.

L was pretty tired by this point.  She was barely hanging on to her good humor.

The girls and I.

H pondering nature.

Beautiful Beach

Some photos from our vacation in May to Rosemary Beach, Florida.

Our eldest turned 14 the day before we left.  We had a quick ice cream cake celebration before we left. Unfortunately, my daughter (E) misunderstood when we'd brought the cake home.  She thought I said put it in the refrigerator instead of the freezer.  So, his cake was a little wide at the bottom.  Tasted just as good, though!  Happy Birthday, S!!

The house golf cart, Seabiscuit, was a big hit, and very useful for hauling all our stuff to the beach.  As you can see below. . .

Another hit was the pool.  Even when Baby L had to nap, or had had enough of the beach, we could enjoy the pool.

I promised the boys a trip to the Pensacola Naval Aviation Museum.  They loved it!  The Blue Angel atrium.  Look closely, you can see the boys at the bottom right.

The boys enjoying the cockpit displays.

More beach photos.

Baby L enjoying the sand, sort of.

H trying to catch a tan.

Erik and H enjoyed burying S in the sand - they even gave him a sand-six-pack.

We went back to Pensacola to see the Blue Angels do their weekly practice show.  It was loud, hot, but fun!

Got to get autographs, too!

And we had lunch at the museum restaurant, which is filled with squadron memorabilia.  S especially loved this.

Then some of us crashed on the way home.

E and Baby L dancing while we make dinner.

A last day photo of Grammy and E.

It was one of the most relaxing vacations we've had!

A funny thing happened on the way to Accra...

This is L sleeping on my knees during part of the ride back to Accra yesterday. She wiggled and jiggled for the first half of the trip and then fell fast asleep for the second half. Not too bad! So, what did I do while she slept... Took the opportunity to snap some photos, of course!

How about some on the road shopping? Here you go...

This market, right along an old colonial wall in Elmina, is a pretty common type of "market" in Ghana. You'll see just about everything being sold here - fish, shoes, vegetables, cell phone minutes, sunglasses, plantain chips, etc. People bring their wares and set up "shop" right on the sidewalk.

Mini-marts on the head - yes, these street vendors are like walking mini-marts. They have a little of everything you might need and some things you really don't. Water, chips, juice, mints, fruit and also, posters, super glue, belts, etc. My favorite on the road purchases have been plantain chips - really good! We've also purchased cell minutes, chocolate, and an electrical outlet converter from these street vendors.

Dry goods? Yes, I think these would somewhat classify. These are "yams" and are a staple food here. When boiled they are a lot like potatoes in taste and texture, but a little waxier. Very tasty!

Need some supplies for your small business? How about a sliding-glass-topped freezer for your grocery store? Get them righ there under this tree!

And finally, a bookstore!

Now this is not the only shopping- there are also more modern shops in Osu (a neighborhood frequented by embassy personnel) and of course the shopping mall. But this is how most of Ghana shops.

We are back in Accra. Here we are having dinner en suite. Notice the bed-baricade to the left of L. This is so she won't roll off the bed in the middle of the night. In Coconut Grove we had a small crib, but here we have to do it the make-shift way.

Talked with the kids (HI KIDS!) and Erik...and my Mom - today is her birthday. HAPPY BIRTHDAY, MOM! (Send her an email or leave a comment and help me wish her a happy day.)

L's keeping herself entertained while I finish unpacking and getting the room situated. See that pretty blue batik fabric? That is my new and favorite baby wrap! I've had a request for a tutorial...I'll do that when I get home. :)

Thought you might get a laugh out of my laundry room here in Ghana. Have I mentioned I can't wait to get home to my washer and dryer? :) When we arrived, we had water (this is never a sure thing here), so I decided to make good use of it and get my laundry done and a bath. Oh, I feel so much better - clean clothes and clean me!

Tomorrow morning we expect a return embassy visit to finish our interview process. I'll update the blog (as long as the internet cooperates) as soon as we get home.

Last Day in Paradise...

Well, our R&R tour at Coconut Grove has come to an end. We have one more night to sleep listening to the rhythmic crash of the ocean and the rustle of wind through the palms. One more morning to wake to a bleached-out sun that rises quickly, clearing the palms to almost overhead before 10am. Perhaps one more walk on the beach with it's craggy outcroppings of basalt-black rock and its daily harvest of sea shells, coconuts, and the occasional flip-flop. One more morning of cocoa-and-nescafe-au-lait (this is really the best one can do for coffee here!).

Even a place as truly lovely as this can lose its lustre when you are homesick. And so it has for me....

So, tomorrow back to the sweaty streets of Accra with its sewers and sellers, and stares. Back to the hotel with spotty internet, daily power outages, and less-than-ideal water supply. Back to Joseph, our waiter, and "no juice" and only jollof for dinner. And all that is OK because it means we are closer to getting HOME.

Erik says he wishes I had some red slippers so I could click my heels and say, "There's no place like home, there's no place like home," and be home before dinner. And despite my tendency toward a touch of wanderlust, I plan on staying put "in my own back yard" for quite some time!

Tomorrow the 3 hour drive...Monday the embassy re-interview...and updates to come!

Photos to enjoy...

We (Aimee, Ben and I) are enjoying our stay at Coconut Grove, but we'd still all reather be at home. However, we are making the best of it...and it's not hard to do here.

So, while we await news on the embassy front, I thought I'd share some photos!

This shows you why packing with L is a bit challenging (when there is no place for her to be but on the bed - where one is trying to pack). She likes to roll around on the bed gathering items around her body as she goes. This was taken the night before we left Accra for Coconut Grove.

And here she is at Coconut Grove hangin' with her Ma in a makeshift "playpen" of sorts. (I sit in that chair right beside hers and make sure she doesn't keel over the side.)

It also makes a nice sleeping spot - and don't you love her awesome batik "blanket"?:

Here is our bungalow, the white one with the double arches in the middle of the photo. Yes, it is truly in a coconut grove complete with falling coconuts. No, they don't issue hard hats when you check in. I wonder if many guests have been hit by falling coconuts.

And here is the view down the beach. It is just magnificent scenery. The ocean is really churning this week as there are a series of storms coming across the African continent just south of Ghana. They are passing across the Gulf of Guinea (on which Ghana sits) and giving us some impressive surf. I could really sit and watch it for hours, which is good since that is what I've done the last couple days.

African Adventure Update

Baby L after her bath

Well, our two week adoption trip has turned into a month and will probably be another two weeks - if everything goes well. If not, it could be longer. It's a bit crazy, but we are all OK. Truly, I do feel the end is in sight...but I'm also keeping in mind that there could be further roadblocks.

I hate that Erik's 12 weeks of paternity leave will be half over when we get home (if we get home in two weeks), but I'm thankful that he has had it. Our friends here adopting with us do not really have paid leave. Every week means less time they can afford to spend at home with their daughter. And while they are doing good bonding here, it isn't the same as being at home.

Here's where we are: On Monday, we had our interview for the L's visa (and the other baby, too) at the Embassy and it did not go very well. The embassy has given us more hoops to jump through, for things (documentation-wise) that have been acceptable before, and now, are suddenly not acceptable. What's worse, we were treated poorly and there were insinuations of wrong-doing on our part (and the family traveling with us), or on the part of those assisting us.

There is some backstory here which we are trying to figure out, but basically, there have been some issues in an orphanage up North that have alerted the authorities...not orphanages our agencies work with. In order to be extra vigilant, the US Embassy has changed their requirements for documentation for adoption visas...we are just caught in the middle of that change. Our paperwork is clean and solid, but we just need a bit more of it.

One of the agency directors(Jen Press of Partners for Adoptions) (it is a two agency-partner-program) is here in country and has done tons of work on our behalf (and the program's) with the Embassy...including an hour long meeting yesterday to clarify the process/documentation as it now stands. She was able to reassure us that the embassy does not think we have done anything wrong (although that is NOT the impression they gave us), they just need to make sure all the "i"s are dotted and "t"s crossed. Our agency director (Robin Sizemore of Hopscotch Adoptions) has been working equally hard with some higher ups in the Department of State stateside.

In order to complete the extra documentation, the bio-moms need to get passports, which is currently in process and takes about 5 business days to complete. In order to get these passports, they need birth certificates. For people living hand-to-mouth in a "shelter" made from scrap lumber and metal, this is not an easy request. However, our in-country facilitator has been working really hard to help them with this. Once the passports are done, the bio-moms will need to appear at the embassy and we will be issued the babies' visas. With the passport process, reinterviewing at the embassy and a minimum of 24 hours to process the visa, we expect to have the visa on or around March 17th/18th - and we could travel on the 18th or 20th. Since that is still 2 weeks out, we've decided the best thing is for Erik to travel home while to be with the kids and I stay on in Ghana to wait for the visa.

So, Erik has returned to the States (he arrived last night, Friday, March 6th). All the remaining adoption families are heading back out to Coconut Grove to wait out the visa process! I feel MUCH better knowing the kids will have Daddy back soon. :) And the kids are THRILLED now that they know he's going to be home so soon! (Thanks for letting us be the ones to give the news.)

Pray for safe travel for Erik back to the States and all the families heading to the beach (the road can be a bit crazy here)...and for the passports not to be delayed...and for the visas to be issued quickly (if they are issued on the 17th, we can fly the 18th...otherwise the next flight is the 20th)...oh, and my 10 hour flight with L on my lap...LOL!

Tomorrow morning we head over to Coconut Grove in Elmina, Ghana. You can google that and see what we have to look forward to! It isn't fancy by American standards, but it is really very beautiful and quite comfortable. Shoot - Will Smith has visited, so you know it's good! :)

The first seven days in Ghana, West Africa

While in Ghana, my husband kept a diary quite faithfully. Now that he is home and I'm still here, it is my turn to be the journal keeper. Here are some quick (and not so quick) thoughts on the first seven days of our journey to bring L home.

Day One
We met our traveling mates and fellow adoptive parents in the JFK airport. They are really friendly folks and I think we will get along well. We are quite different - east coast vs. west coast, southerners vs. californians, conservatives vs. liberals...but we have lots of common ground, too!

When we descend the stairwell from the plane I become aware immediately of the heat (it is barely 10am). Yep, this is Africa. We walk across the tarmac (looks like all flights do this - no "gates") and enter under a big "AKWAABA" sign. There is a little AC running as we enter....but soon we realize that will be it while we are in the airport. I guess they want to make a good impression...or they want to cool us off from our hot trudge across the tarmac? After standing in the warm and stuffy baggage claim area, I think the AC would be better appreciated there!

Outside the airport we walk a gauntlet of brown, black and tan faces. Luckily, we quickly meet our driver and we head out to the cars. Everyone looks on at us...some carry signs bearing the names of other passengers, some smile and say "hello", most just stare. Finally we see a sign for us: Branches of the Vine, Dio of Accra...our friends from Ghana are here! They've been waiting in this hot crowd for our airplane for a couple hours, I'm sure. Hugs and introductions all around then we continue out to the cars.

As we walk, there are "generous" offers of help, rides, information...we've been warned though that these always come with a hefty price tag. In fact, we ignore most of them, but they still persist in following us to the cars. They attempt to help us put bags in the car, but our driver tells them we don't need help. They try again to help by directing us out of our spot...and then comes the pitch to our driver for cash. Wow - pretty bold. I'm not sure what he says to them...but I'm sure it was along the lines of "Get Lost".

We zip through crowded, busy, bustling streets - vendors, tro-tros, street sellers all hustling to make some cash. The streets are dirty and as we drive along we get small glimpses of the life of the poor in the big city: living with no sanitation, no electricity (or what can be hobbled together), no running water, no trash pick up, no refrigeration, etc in a ramshackle lean-to. The people who live in these areas seem to have showed up, rummaged around for scrap wood and somehow put together some sort of shelter. They live and work all in the same area.

We arrive exhausted at our guest house. Dump bags, try to freshen up a bit, and head back out into the hot traffic to go meet our daughter.

We've just met these people and yet we are crammed in the back seat of a sedan - sticky, sweaty bodies smashed together for a 45 minute drive through a fumey, smokey, humid city.

Our driver entertains us with parables and proverbs...and lots of laughter. We arrive at the church/orphanage and are met with many stares from groups of people scattered around the "yard" doing various tasks (talking, washing, selling, etc). We are ushered into a low-building and seated in a large "sitting room". Two young ladies come in with bundles on their backs. I barely even realize it when the one of them approacehs me and gracefully bends down to release the baby from her wrap. The next thing I know she has placed a slightly-built, large-eyed, ill-dressed baby girl in my arms. Sister Juliette (the head of the church and orphanage) says, "This is your baby." But I knew that already...she looks just like her photo. The girls leave the room before I can even look at their faces...or maybe I was just so transfixed by my daughter's.

We spend an hour or so with Juliette learning a little about her and her church/orphanage. She shows us how she feeds them and puts them to sleep. Poor L is a bit traumatized by the feeding she is given. Seems she does not take a bottle and has to be cup fed "African style" - which involves plugging her nose so that she must take in a breath through her mouth...then the cup is quickly poured. I wonder how often babies fed this way inhale their formula and develop pneumonia? But I also know that a child that doesn't eat will die here...and that trumps a number of things in an orphanage.

Back at our guest house, both families retire to their rooms worn out and ready for sleep. I spend an hour or so with L gently introducing the bottle with silliness and games. She manages to take a couple of ounces and we are all thrilled. We have a long way to go, though.

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