One Year Home

One year ago, on April 14, 2010, we landed in the US with Simon Kebebe. I can say without a doubt that it was the longest 24 hours of our lives! Mark likes to tell people that he walked home from Ethiopia. That is because Simon only wanted to be held by Mark and wanted to be held standing up. And it was HOT on the plane. Oh my. It was an incredibly long journey home. I love looking back at these photos because you can see how much Simon has grown in the past year. This first photo is of me and Simon pacing the Addis Ababa airport. He pushed this cart up and down the corridor for about an hour before our flight. You would think that it would make him tired. Wrong! He hardly slept on the flight home. Unfortunately, this is the only photo I have of Simon on the plane. It was a pretty stressful trip for all of us!

We scheduled a long layover in Washington DC so that my parents and Aunt Barbie could come and meet us for a few hours. We took some time to freshen up before they arrived to meet Simon. He had them charmed from the first minute they met!

Our first family photo in the US ... just after changing a nasty diaper on the airport floor!

And later that day, we landed in Indianapolis and were greeted by most of Mark's family and the Ponsler's. Simon was sound asleep -- he didn't even flinch! Mark's mom couldn't wait to hold him. I remember leaving the airport in our mini-van ... it was almost sunset and it was a gorgeous evening, very similar to today's warm weather. What made the ride home almost unbearable was that Simon woke up and HATED the carseat. He literally screamed the entire hour drive from Indy to Lafayette.

We arrived home and were greeted by our friends the Sharp's. They brought us dinner and we are so thankful for their visit because we think that their son Sean helped to ease Simon's transition into our house. Clearly, the tricycle helped too! : )

The next morning, we woke up in our own home as a family of three for the first time. Mark made us pancakes and Simon discovered the fridge farm. He still dances to the music a year later!

Then it was bathtime. He hated his first bath in Ethiopia but quickly learned to love the water.

And then I wanted to take a photo for our blog. We spent our first day playing, unpacking and going to Target and Babies R Us for a few things we needed, like a gate for the stairs and a booster seat. I have a hard time believing that all happened one year ago. Most days, it seems like a dream and that Simon has just always been here.

I try hard to savor every moment and milestone with Simon. He has certainly changed our lives for the better! Even in the chaos and sleepless nights, he is such a gift to us and we are so grateful that we get to parent him. It is our greatest challenge and privilege to try to keep him connected to Ethiopia and his story. We love you, Simon Kebebe!!