Turnpike Play Date

As I mentioned in my December Recap post, we had the opportunity to meet another adoptive family that I have known through blogging for several years. However, it didn't come about as you might expect. Rebecca's blog was one of the first blogs I started reading when we began the process to adopt from Ethiopia. They were in the final stages of waiting to bring their son home in 2008 when I first stumbled across her blog. Since then we have communicated several times over Facebook and email and through our blogs. She cheered us on when we brought LB home and I cheered for her as they returned to Ethiopia to adopt their daughter. We've even talked about trying to arrange a get together when LB and I were visiting Oklahoma, since they live about two hours from my parent's house. However, as Rebecca said several times when we met, "We could not have planned this!"

We decided to begin our journey back to Ohio on December 28th. The plan was to leave around LB's nap time and drive to Illinois and stop for the night. My sister, who lives in St. Louis, was going to follow behind us. (My sister also followed their blog.) We were about an hour into the drive on the Oklahoma turnpike when an SUV with an Ethiopia bumper sticker passed us. D and I both noticed the bumper sticker and wondered aloud if the people in the car were an adoptive family. D even mentioned that maybe they used the same agency since we were still in Oklahoma at that point. All of a sudden the SUV slowed down and pulled in front of us so it left D with no choice but to merge over and pass them. I looked over into the car as we were passing and Rebecca was waving at me! It turns out she had recognized me when they initially passed us and told her husband to slow down. I happen to have an Africa bumper sticker on my car as well, which is what prompted her to look at our car. I actually wonder that if neither of us had Africa themed bumper stickers would this meeting ever had happened? Maybe not. Once I saw her, I started dying laughing and D thought I was totally insane. He couldn't believe I would recognize someone that I had never met. I started wondering if they would know to follow us off an exit so we could try and meet and just say hi. But then I got the idea to message her on Facebook with the hope she had her phone on her. She wrote me right back and we decided we would travel up a few exits to a stop in Missouri where there was a Starbucks. It turns out they were driving from Oklahoma to Missouri to see family. Thankfully, LB had yet to fall asleep because I really wanted our kids to meet. I should also say that we used the same agency so LB and Rebecca's kids were all at the same care center in Addis. Not at the same time. But still the same place and the same nannies. So they didn't meet in Ethiopia but they did meet at a Starbucks off the highway in Missouri. Too funny.

It was so surreal to see her family get out of the car and to give her and her kids a hug. We spent close to an hour at Starbucks where we chatted and our kids ate snacks and played. It was so fun to see them together and to experience her kids' personalities, even though I felt like I already knew them. They were as cute and as wonderful as I thought they would be. Rebecca and I kept laughing about the craziness of the whole situation and the time we spent there flew by. We did snap a few photos to document the occasion before we all continued on our road trips. As you can see from the photos, LB was quite smitten with cute Ruthie. You can hardly blame him! I love that he put his arm around her.

Seriously? How often does stuff like this happen? I'm so glad it happened us!

Rebecca, next time let's pick a spot other than the turnpike for a play date.