Columbus Group

Wow, this week is really flying by. I have had lots of thoughts swirling around in my brain about what to write about and am finally finding time to actually post.

This past Sunday we went to the Abyssinian Café on the East side of Columbus to meet with a group of people that have adopted or are in the process of adopting from Ethiopia. When we first decided to adopt from Ethiopia I was totally clueless that there was such an active group. It was wonderful to meet other couples who are also knee deep in the process or were recently so it is easy to relate. It was great to meet Amy and Paige in person since I have been following their blogs. I’d thought from the get go that I wanted my future child to know other adopted children from Ethiopia. So I think the support of this group will be important for D and me but hopefully in the future it will be a good support for our child.

At the dinner we also heard about the upcoming Ethiopian New Year Celebration here in Columbus organized by ETSS (Ethiopia Tewahedo Social Services) of Central Ohio. Did you know that Ethiopia doesn’t follow the Gregorian calendar but they go by the ancient Julian calendar? I had only learned that recently. It is still 2001 in Ethiopia. So if you want to turn back time on your life you should head over to Ethiopia! I have decided that when we travel there I will temporarily be 7 years younger. If you live in Central Ohio you should consider attending the Enkutash Celebration. It will be on September 19th at Whitehall Yearling HS. Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the door and children under 12 are Free! D and I will definitely be attending. I am just so thrilled there are cultural events like this in Columbus.

I have decided that I am entering an important phase of international adoption…. the mailbox stalking phase. It’s an official stage. From what we have heard, CIS here in Ohio is usually pretty fast and several families got their CIS approval letters within just a few weeks. Next week it is going to be very difficult to squash the desire to drive home at lunch to check the mail for that elusive letter. D has already been instructed to text me when he gets home with a daily report of the contents of our mail. The last time I was stalking the mailbox I was looking for our FBI clearances. If you recall at that time I sent out a very polite plea to the FBI to hurry up please. Then we got them in the mail just a few days later. So I am making the official plea now to CIS. C’mon CIS! (please)

Also, there are tons of Gladney families with court dates tomorrow so I am praying they are all successful and can travel soon to bring home their kiddos before courts close for the rainy season.

On a more peaceful note, I will leave you with one of my favorite photos from our trip to New Mexico. It reminds me to keep breathing.

(That's me being Zen.)