Thankful

Thanks to Kerri for posting this link.

This gave the needed boost for my self-promise to remember all that touched my heart in Ethiopia and the profound understanding of the wealth and blessing of my life...

Doctor Visits

We had our first doctor visits during the last few weeks. We were to go to our regular pediatrician last Thursday for a check up and to start her vaccinations. But, Sophia developed a cough towards the beginning of last week. Our well visit turned into a sick visit. The cough was viral, and we found out that she had an ear infection as well.

We were supposed to have her first visit to the International Adoption Clinic at the University of Kentucky the day before that, but we had to postpone it. We just didn't think Sophia would be too keen on being poked and prodded (especially the OT exam) while having 101-102 fever.

Fast forward to this Wednesday, we had a great visit with Dr. Shawn Taylor at the IAC. She is a great doctor with tremedous wealth of knowledge about international medicine, especially internation orphans. Sophia still had the ear infection. We are on our second round of antibiotics. As for the physical, the outcome was close to our expectations. She is a bit behind in her truck muscle development and her reaching, grasping, etc. But Dr. Taylor and the OT specialist, Megan, gave us some great instruction and documentation on how to get her up to the curve.

In all other areas, Sophia is all A-pluses, with gold stars. We had our first trip to the book store tonight--she loves her books! That makes me a happy papa!

We are home..

Well, we have been home now for one week. We left for Ethiopia on 11/24 and arrived home with our little one on 12/21. Over the next few weeks I will post what one could call a wrap up of our trip. There is so much to cover day by day, so I will try to cover the highlights.

We arrived late in the evening on 11/25, minds and bodies numb from being awake almost two days. Queued for our visas, then for immigration, for our bags, and finally for customs (which was nothing but an x-ray machine). Outside we found our driver, Alazar, who proved to a trusted ally and resource on the streets of Addis, and made our way from the airport to our guest house.

The next day, we awoke, called our lawyer, Abebe, and made arrangements to meet our little one. We arrived at Toukoul Orphanage, had coffee with the director, and left there to go to Toukoul 2, where little Sophia waited for us. A short car ride down the street, around a roundabout, a left turn, right, then another left, we were there. The culmination of our journey was upon us.

Amy and Sophia --taken just after she was placed in our arms for the first time around 11:00 on 11/26. This is the first picture taken and is by far my treasure of the entire trip.

Second day, morning visit. She is just too precious.

Our first family outing--Metro Pizzeria. They make some of the best pizza you will find anywhere.


A close up on the way to Metro. Sophia loves the Snugli!


Kidist and Sophia. Kidist runs things at the Addis Kidan Guest House. I can only begin to tell you how wonderful and caring she is...


Just a happy baby hanging out, entertaining her parents.

Clearing the fog of confusion

Hey all..so there was some confusion on our travel, etc.

We found our on Wednesday that they (out Ethiopia coordinator & domestic agent) want us there before the court date so we can see Sophia at least one day before the court date. This will change the after placement procedures when we arrived stateside...no domestic readoption proceedings...

So our court date is the same, 11/28...we are going just much sooner than we expected..

We have our travel date

We were gobsmacked with the sooner-than-expected referral and the quick court date, but nothing compared to the news we got today.

We leave next saturday...the one just after Thanksgiving!!!!!! November 24!!!!!!!! I guess that we will be packing our bags rather than putting up the tree on the Friday after.

We have so much left to do, but we know that we will get it all done in its own time. We are just basking the cloud that has enveloped us with the thought that she will be in our arms in two Mondays from now.

We are waiting to hear how long we will be there, but our miracle-worker Carol said she wants to get us there and back quickly.

We will be posting any and all updates that come in the next few days...

For the Fathers, and especially mine...

Since we received our referral, my thoughts have been consumed with knowing, understanding, and collating the never before felt emotions and feelings I have for this little girl. Just I as I posted before in having to remember there is no value for time in algebra, I need to remember my physic lessons as well. I told Amy one night I have so many swirls of feeling and emotions inside me,I know from whence they came, but I do not know what they are. I just know they are. But these new residents of my heart and soul have not displaced who lived there before. My soul has gained an immense mass, but the volumes has remains unchanged.

Most days I check the Poetry Foundation web site for the daily poem, but I have not in while (we were our of town most of last week). I finally found the words in the following quatrains for a new, swelling feeling I am experiencing: I am starting to feel more like a father than a son.

Men at Forty

Men at forty
Learn to close softly
The doors to rooms they will not be
Coming back to.

At rest on a stair landing,
They feel it moving
Beneath them now like the deck of a ship,
Though the swell is gentle.

And deep in mirrors
They rediscover
The face of the boy as he practices tying
His father’s tie there in secret,

And the face of that father,
Still warm with the mystery of lather.
They are more fathers than sons themselves now.
Something is filling them, something

That is like the twilight sound
Of the crickets, immense,
Filling the woods at the foot of the slope
Behind their mortgaged houses.

--Donald Justice

We have our court date!!!

November 28, 2007!!!

We got the email last night from our agent--we were totally surprised that we got it so soon and it is so soon. i have trying to get this post up all day, but the hours today have slipped past. The Observational Amy Breedlove noticed the subtle change of one of the two tickers above, so now I have to post.

We will talk to our agent tonight...hopefully we will hear some definite travel times, etc.

Check back soon for more....

Introducing....

Sophia Lidet Baker!!!

That's right! We have our referral. Due to a few hiccups with our case, Amy and I had resigned ourselves to a December-January timeframe for our referral. Through God's blessing and the hard work of others, we were caught totally unaware at 10:20 a.m. Wednesday morning.

October 31 is a day that will live in our hearts and minds forever.

Her birthday is July 16, so she is just 3.5 months old; just touch under 10 pounds, but 24 inches long. And she had long fingers. And her eyes are just precious.

In reading the good news of other referrals, I have noticed a string of coincidences of dats and times, etc. We have some interesting ones as well:

• Her birthday is July 16, same as Amy's Granddaddy (which just tickles him to death).
• We received our referral on October 31, which is my dad's birthday.
• She arrived at the Addis orphange on October 13, our anniversary...
• She is named Lidet, which means "anniversary"

Amy was home on Wednesday, which started an any other unassuming Wednesday. I was in my office working a map when Amy rang. We usually talk around this time everyday, so I minimized my work, and as I answered something in my email caught my eye. There, in bold, black, unread typeface, "Baker family referral." My head and body was instantly numb. I asked her what was happening, I think I remember saying "I don't understand, what's happening?" She had tried calling just before that, but I had my headphones on and the phone on vibrate so I didn't hear the rattling.

We now understand how the simplest of tasks become cumbersome and almost impossible when adrenaline hits the body. Amy had wrestled the laptop attempting to open it and was having trouble opening the email and then the attachments. Our mouths were dry. And, there is not many other details I can recall for the next few hours.

I know I left vapor trails leaving my office and then the parking garage. I truly drove my path through town all by memory and instinct.

We meet at the top of our stairs for the deepest and stongest hug I have ever felt.

Then, I saw the beautiful face of out daughter for the first time.

We owe a debt of gratitude to all those who have offered the abundance of encouragement and prayers; thank you from the depths of our hearts.

We look forward to the next phase of our journey to finally join our daughter, was are glad we have you all to share it with.

May she stay in St. Brigid's cloak...

LifeBooks

Anyone started one?

Anyone have any plans for one?

Pre-made/store bought layout? Striking out on your own?

The Google returns about 27.83 books about lifebooks for every 1 return for a life book...

An Evening With David Sedaris

We had a awesome weekend away for our anniversary. We started the day (well, at noon) with a 90-minute massage for each of us that was in a word, much-needed. We left the Massage Center with a slightly different and lighter gait. And, it is still with us.

We had a great hotel room downtown, just a few block from the Victoria Theater and adjacent to the Oregon District. We ended up having dinner at The Dublin Pub and cheered on the Cats for the part of the game we were able to see.

And then, on to the theater. David Sedaris is one our favorite authors. Mostly non-fiction, he writes with a sharp wit and humor, but it is always layered over insightful and meaningful obersvations of love, family, life and loss. We laughed all the way through the reading, with only a few moments surprised by a few tears. As you can see in the photo, we stayed around after to meet him and get our book signed. While talking to him about our anniversary, he pulled his bag from under the table and handed us a little bauble--a small, black, plastic spider. We loved it.

After returning to the Bluegrass, we meet our friends and goddaughter at an apple orchard in Woodford County. We stayed a brief span, the sun was brutal. But we did get some good photos.

We had an absolutely wonderful weekend. I am still floating from the time away I had with my girl. Hearing her laugh during the performance was the treat for me...

Jobs I've Had
1. GIS Specialist
2. Technical Writer
3. Trainer

Places I've Lived
1. Sidney, OH
2. Oxford, OH
3. Lexington, KY

Food I love
1. I could go on longer here than in books and tv combined....so, steak, shrimp, scallops, green beans, irish potatoes, and cornbread.

Places I would rather be
1. Ethiopia
2. Somewhere with Fall-like weather right now

Movies I love
1. The Shawshank Redemption
2. The Usual Suspects
3. Any Monty Python

TV Shows I watch
1. Brotherhood
2. Lost (Counting down to Feb 2008!)
3. The Office
4. Damages

Books I love (where to I start, these I could not go without)
1. The Stories of Breece D'J Pancake
2. The Complete Works of Elizabeth Bishop
3. All Day Permanent Red-- Christopher Logue
4. The Great Gatsby
5. "Hills Like White Elephants" -E. Hemingway (short story)
6. "The Things They Carried" -Tim O'Brien (short story)
7. The Collected Poems of William Carlos Williams Vols I & II
8. The Road Cormac McCarthy
....ok, I stop there...but I could go on...

I would tag someone...but all those I would tag have been tagged and/or tagged me...

Our first shower

Amy work folks threw a baby shower for us last night (Thursday). We both had a great time and were humbled at their support and generosity. We had some great food, fun games, and one of best cakes we ever had!

And the gifts were nice too...cute little sleepers, outfits, trickets and accoutrements...and a beautiful, hand-knitted blanket. Very cute!

A much needed getaway

Amy and I are taking off for the weekend...for our anniversiary. Headed to Ohio to see/hear our favorite author read (from his new book, hopefully). We are very excited. Plus, with all going on around town, it is a good weekend to get of town.

We received an updated timeline for our new case manager. We are looking at 2.5 to 6.5 months until we are home with our little one. Even though this is a bit longer than we orginially anticipated, knowing that lessens the impact. The prosopect of interminable waiting was trying on our patience, to say the least.

A big thanks to Lindsey and Courtney for their continued prayers and support.

And, big ups to our new case manager, Carol.

Hope everyone has a great weekend.

Well, there was more

We were able to head our for little shopping on Saturday--I found the worlds greatest shower shirt

And on Sunday we found the cutest sign/plaque to hand on the outside of her door. It is predominantly pink, with some green tones--complements her room colors nicely....and Sophia in script. It all hangs from a pink ribbon...very cute. Now, we just have to find something of equal cuteness to hang it from...

We took the find as an omen of good news soon to arrive.

Monday Cleanup

First of all....the temperature should not be any where near 90 degrees on October 8 in Kentucky. The A/C unit has been fighting the good fight all day, but it is slowly losing ground. Once the sun makes the turn to the south-facing side, my windows become an Easy Bake Oven.

The weekend was tame...Amy and I reclaimed the guest bedroom that was the office. It was chocked full of all sorts of furniture, wall hangings, and anything else that was displaced while we finished Baby Sophia's room. Wow, it feels so good to have that room cleaned up.

Other than that, no new information on the adoption...

Remebering algebra class

"In zen and the art of algebra
there is no value for time."
-John Cale "Zen"

As I lay, restless, yesterday's down swing still sits fat on my neck. I really do not have a thought as to where this post is going, so it will be a surprise for all. I was reminded of the snippet above from a John Cale song--i still do not know how it arrived to be on my iPod--it always strikes me, though, the times it would slide into the rotation. There is no real narrative to the lyrics, no meaning or 'plot' to follow. The words of the lyrics blend into the music to a point that the one can not exist without the other--becoming some Lryic..beautiful, but impossible to understand...much short of but similar to the gliding voice of an aria...the unequivical beauty of words never really meant to be understoond, but felt...carried forth...remembered.

I thought of this while working on Sophia's room with Amy...we would lose hours in there...leaving the left side of our brains outside, we danced--inside--as we taped, rolled, brushed..she with light pink, I with the darker. There was no waiting in her room...she was there with us...no presence to felt with finger tips...just the soul's knowing what the fingers can not touch and the eyes can not see.

There is the fruit of our labor. We are so glad that it is done, but we really enjoyed doing to project, and doing together. We almost had to replace the carpet because some paint seeped through the drop cloth....so we are glad that we didn't have to take it that far.

The file transfer to the new computer is complete, ahhhh..wireless is sooooo cool.

The Room!

We have to be close, right?!?

I am so incredibly happy with the referral news that seems to hitting the blogosphere...at least in the small circle we keep....it gives me hope that we are soon in the queue!

Ah, relish the finishing

We are done with the baby girl's room!!! Woot woot! Everything seemed to come together at once, and poof, we were done. The chair rail turned out nicely--(big ups to the fact daddy got to buy a new saw ;) I think Amy and i discovered a new type of math while ciphering the odd angles in a few parts of the room.

The paint colors are perfect.

We did take a break on Saturday to head to the Christ the King Octoberfest. Excellent brats, german potato salad, and kraut...raffles....and bingo. A real treat of the evening turned out to hear Peter Buck (of R.E.M) and Scott McCaughey play a set.

I hope to get the pictures up this evening so all can see.

take care

-d