The boys slept through most of the flight to Frankfurt. When they woke up, I gave them some Teddy Grahams, and they were amazed by the little bear shapes. Then Opiyew decided that he had had enough of his seatbelt, and cried the rest of the way into Frankfurt. This does not bode well for his car seat at home!
We had a 7-hour layover in Frankfurt. After getting our boarding passes, going through security, riding an escalator (which the boys thought was absolutely the neatest thing they had ever seen!), riding a train (which they also loved!) and hopping into an elevator (another new experience for them), we camped out at gate A56, where the boys soon fell asleep. I dozed off at one point, until a man yelled something behind me. I must have jumped a mile, because when I looked over at Chris, he was laughing his head off at me. Then I heard a voice say, "I think I've read your blog before," and I quickly sat up and put my glasses back on so I could see who was speaking! The woman standing in front of me was from Michigan, and she and her husband were bringing their son home from Ethiopia. They were very kind, and I'm glad we got to meet them! It always amazes me that there are actually people out there who read my ramblings on this blog! We visited for awhile, and then it was time to board our last flight home. The boys had slept for the entire 7-hour layover!
On the flight back to Detroit, the boys slept some, cried some, and did not want to be buckled into their seats during take-off and landing. Back in Detroit, we went through customs and immigration, where we turned in the boys' "top-secret" immigration envelopes. One official told us that we should expect to receive the boys' citizenship papers in the mail in a few weeks. Then we went to claim our luggage, only to find that none of it was there. It was still back in Addis. :-( We filled out some forms, and a woman told us that someone would deliver our luggage to our house in a few days. As Chris talked to her, I could see my mom, Chris's parents and our kids standing just outside the glass doors to the international arrivals area. The kids had each made welcome home posters that they were holding, and I was so anxious to go give them all hugs! The twins saw Shana, and were dying to get to her! We stepped out the doors and introduced Opiyew and Uchan to their new family members!
All 8 of us! Together at last!
After taking some photos, we went to the parking garage, climbed in the van, and headed to a nearby hotel so that we could pick up our other vehicle. Opiyew and Uchan seemed to do fine in their car seats - yay! They loved riding in the mekina and talking to their new brothers and sisters. We stopped at a restaurant to eat, and I took this photo:
6 kiddos!!!
We arrived home at about 8:30 pm, where we introduced the boys to their new home and then went to bed, totally exhausted.
Ahhh!! We're home!!
It's really hard to believe that the adoption process is over, and that life as a family of 8 has just begun! God is good, and we are blessed.
Thanks, again, for sharing. Just LOVE the last photo!!!!
ReplyDeletemlynne