Well, Jack Bauer’s got nothing on us. After one LONG day (or so), we are finally here in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia! It is all very surreal and the journey is a bit of a blur, but truly it was one we won’t soon forget.

Too make a long story short, our travel started off with a serious bang. We arrived to Knoxville Airport in plenty of time to check our bags and make our flight…or so we thought. One computer open for MANY people checking in on a holiday weekend…and that one person running that one computer being on his first day on the job, does not make for a good situation. So, we missed our first flight! Thankfully, we were scheduled for a 13 hour layover in DC. Sightseeing however went out the window when we found out that every flight that made sense for us to take to DC was completely overbooked. So we ended up taking a 9am flight to Denver only to get off at Denver and have 18 solid minutes to get back on the plane and head back across the country to DC. Yep. That’s what we did. AND THEN we got off the plane in DC and had about 2 hours to then get BACK on for what was a LONG 17 hour journey here to Addis, where we got off the plane and then stood in line for 2 hours to get through immigration. Whoo!

HOWEVER, there were lots of cool parts to the trip. Firstly, I was with my husband the first time he ever rode on a REAL plane. I thought his eyes might pop out of his head when the 747 started its engine for take off. Secondly, we refueled in Rome and spent about an hour there. And although we didn’t get off of the plane, we could still look out and see the ocean. While we were waiting, they opened the doors to the plane and literally the breeze from the ocean rushed through the plane for about 45 minutes. After 8 hrs of stuffy air in a plane crowded with about 275 people, it was pure heaven. I’m thinkin 10 year anniversary = a Roman holiday!  Lastly, we met some really neat people from all over the US and the world on our myriad of flights. I have decided after that final flight that Ethiopian people are just plain beautiful, not to mention so helpful and kind. The woman I sat next to was so completely preoccupied with trying to make sure I was comfortable that I am not sure she slept much for herself.

Thank you all for your prayers as we traveled yesterday (and a little before that), they were very felt, we are so grateful and hope you will continue to pray for us over the next week.

On a final note, and perhaps the most exciting, TODAY is the day that we meet our sweet Silas. Last night I unpacked his little things and put them in the drawers of our room (our hotel is very nice), and was in complete disbelief that he would actually be WEARING this stuff in less than 24 hours! So please, keep reading and following and leave us your comments. We are 7 hours ahead of EST here. I will do my best to post pictures after the big events of today. The internet access is currently limited to one computer in the hotel lobby. This morning we meet Silas, then we will spend the morning at Hannah’s Hope and then the afternoon here at the hotel. Then this evening we are headed out for a cultural dinner with the whole group of 7 other families who are also picking up their children. Already, we have bonded with two of the couples as they were on our flight with us. There are all kinds of strange connections there as well. God is big. To all of you who have been a part of this journey, whether through financial support or prayer, we carry you with us today as we meet our boy. Thank you just isn’t enough.

More to come! Love you all!

In the words of the bad guy magician from Frosty the Snowman, our life right now is, "Messssy, messsy, messsy!" The compartments as listed in our previous post are no longer in nice neat little boxes. Stuff is pretty much everywhere and we are on the final countdown to leaving on Saturday morning. Our dear friends, Greg & Jess are sacrificing good sleep to have us at Tyson by 5:15am. They volunteered! So we are just trying to get all the right stuff in all the right spaces over the next 24 hours or so. I am so thankful that my sister, Shelly is here or i would literally be losing my mind. I have called her from Target this week on a few occasions just to receive the next pep talk on how we can do this, we're gonna make it and everything is gonna be just fine. My friend Meriam kept A&A yesterday afternoon for several hours so that Shelly and I could do a packing run through. Meriam is amazing and my sister, the world traveler could be a personal packer for people! Where would i be without these people in our lives? Not gonna answer that one.

So i know i am rambling, but that is pretty much the state of the homefront as we round the bases. I would ask that if you're the prayin' sort that you keep our whole family in your prayers as we go through the climax of this adventure. Below are some specific things to pray about if you would like.

1. Health. Please keep our health and the kids' health (all three) in your prayers. We need God's protection over us as we travel to Ethiopia, where life is well....different from what we are used to. :)

2. Joy. In the hustle and bustle of this time we do not want to forget to stop and experience the sheer joy of being in this beautiful country, with these beautiful people. What a privilege. I so do not want to miss out on it!

3. Red tape. Please be praying that all the travel, admin stuff that goes along with adoption will go smoothly. Our embassy visit is on Tuesday.

4. Silas. OF COURSE keep our sweet boy in your prayers. This is obviously the biggest transition of his life thus far and we are so praying that it will go well, that attachment and bonding will begin quickly, and that travel will not be too stressful for him.

5. Safety. Please just pray for our family's safety as we travel, that God would protect us and give us wisdom in each and every moment.

Thanks in advance to those of you who read this and pray. We are so grateful and consider this the most important part of supporting us on this journey!

Lastly, please continue to check back here for pics & updates while we are traveling. We are hoping to have the ability to keep posting along the way.

Compartmentalist extraordinaire. That is my current status in this whole process. If you haven't heard, our travel dates are confirmed and we even have a flight schedule! We are flyin' out at 6am on 5/29 and will be back in Knoxville on 6/4 around 6:15pm. Yep. That's soon. And that is why i am choosing to compartmentalize. B/c traveling at the end of May also means that there is a lot of other stuff going on!

1. Ava & Atley end of school year stuff. Next week i have something with their school literally every day of the week. Now, i am a PreK parent so that means that I insist on attending everything. Yes, i know it is not necessary and the world will not come to an end if i am not there. However, it is important to me, time is fleeting, and i will be there for every little thing as often as i can!

2. Employment. Well, it's done (at least officially). Trained the new girl this week. She is officially sitting at what was my desk in what was my chair across from the guy who still is my husband. ;) She is gonna be great and i am so thankful for her. However, as much i am relieved to be done, the tranisition is still to take place. I am now officially doing something else on my Never List. And i cannot deny that i saw a hint of sadness in my husband's eyes when we did our last presentation together yesterday.

3. Daniel already mentioned this one previously but, The Pure Joy Project. Our friend Kayla Joy Hurst is generously offering her incredible talent for photography to help us raise one final bit of funds before Silas comes home. She is offering an incredible deal on a photography package for our friends and family in Knoxville. $100 of every package purchase goes directly toward our adoption! If you're reading this, please take the time to visit http://www.adoptiontees.org/ to learn more about the project and what role you might play. Even if you just help us get the word out we would be thrilled. A little marketing goes a long way!

4. Travel prep. Well. At least my sister is coming. That's all i can say. I got nothin. Nothin is together and honestly, not real sure where to start. And that is why my world travelin' sister is comng to my aid and relief. B/c this will require thought and organization...something i am quite short on currently.

So there are my current compartments. At least they are labeled right? But underneath all this stuff that is so prevalent right now is this slight rumble. And no matter how hard i try to keep it under control, i am so full of mixed emotions (in a not so compartmentalized fashion), that i am not even sure what to do with it all. I am so incredibly excited to go to Ethiopia, to meet Silas, to hold him, to smell his skin, to kiss my favorite spot on the side of his warm little forehead. And then i am scared to death. Scared of the transition, scared of what we might experience medically with him when we get home, scared of failing to help Ava and Atley transition well. And really, what i am holding on to in all this inner chaos is that the same God who brought Atley to us is the same God who deliverd Ava from her scary circumstances as an infant, is the same God who is bringing Silas home to us. We are his family. He lives in Ethiopia right now, but WE are his family. So, "peace, be still," are the words i am trying to choose to cling to in the midst of all this noise.

I should probably go back and read this about once a day.

This is getting long, but one more exciting bit of news. We learnded last week that we WILL have internet in our hotel room in Ethiopia, something we were previously told would not be. So please plan on following our journey. We will keep everyone updated. How can we not? Our friends and family have been SO amazingly supportive that i have run out of words to describe my gratitude.

Okay, now go visit http://www.adoptiontees.org/ and check out the Pure Joy Project!

We are thrilled to offer a special photography package from Kayla Joy Hurst of Pure Joy Photography. Kayla is a fantastic photographer with an eye for both unusual and simplistic details. Kayla's intuitive ability allows her to beautifully capture the essence of her subjects. Whether she is photographing your whole family, new baby, bridal portraits or just everyday life, we can offer assurance that you will be beyond pleased with the results! Witness Kayla's excellent work for yourself by visiting her website; Pure Joy Photography and on Facebook.

With great generosity, Kayla is offering a special mini session package for only $150. With $100 of every purchase going directly toward our adoption, Kayla will spend 20-25 minutes shooting your photos on June 5th (rain date is June 12th), in Knoxville's Market Square/downtown area and/or Krutch Park.Each session will become available online in a password-protected gallery within 7 days. of your session. You will then have 2 weeks from that date to pick out your favorite 5 images to receive on CD with printing rights. Additionally, you will receive those same images printed as 5x7 proofs. Of course, you will have the option to purchase more prints, products, or digital images through your online gallery as well.

To help us bring Silas home by becoming part of The Pure Joy Project, sign up for your photo session by clicking here. Then make your payment here.Time slots are limited.

For questions, email Kayla  here .

4:30AM. That is the time that i have been waking up every morning since receiving Silas' referral. I don't always stay awake but I do always say a prayer for him as soon as i wake up. 11:30AM. That is the time in Ethiopia that it is when i am saying these prayers. I wonder if this is at all significant. I guess i will learn for myself soon enough since WE PASSED COURT ON THE FIRST GO! From what i hear this is somewhat unusual. I totally anticipated Christy from AGCI calling to tell me that we were delayed. With all the changes in Ethiopian adoption law lately i suspected it and even had a speech prepared in my mind to lighten the blow and keep myself from getting emotional on the phone with our poor caseworker. But instead, it was a joyous occasion and one that I will not soon forget. I planned a picnic with one of my best friends, Betsy, and her brood of kids, so that i would be distracted while waiting for the call. I got everyone loaded up and in the van and of course was running late AND needed gas in the van. While i was pumping gas Ava started banging on the window. This not an unusual occurrence, i ignored her at first. But then i heard her say, "Your phone!" My heart started racing and i managed to open the door and grab my phone on the last bit of ring tone before voicemail. Thank you my sweet little busybody Ava-Bell! Thankfully, Christy is a smart caseworker and knew not to even attempt small talk, she just said, "Well are you ready to be a mom again? I hope so, b/c you have a new baby boy!" Such. Good. News! Once again, we continue to marvel at the work of the Lord and his favor on us in this adoption. We continue to pray for Silas' complete and total healing from the Tetanus are believing in the God of Restoration. We are waiting for some more paperwork (again praying over paper, see previous post), and should receive tenative travel dates in the next two weeks.

On to some additional exciting news. A few weeks ago we sent out a Facebook message to everyone we knew appealing to people asking them to consider supporting our fundraising for travel expenses to Ethiopia. We were doing pretty well saving little by little but when we received Silas' referral so much earlier than anticipated it kinda threw the adoption budget for a loop. So in faith we sent out this message hoping that people would be able to give just a little to help. As of this evening, generous friends and family have given $1860 to help us bring Silas home! How AMAZING is this?!!! We are just so in awe of the generosity of people. Many of these people may never even meet Silas. Friends from high school that i haven't seen in years have sent in donations. An old friend today sent me a message to let me know that her little elementary aged girls picked up pine cones in their yard this weekend to earn money to help "the baby in Ethiopia." I keep telling people that i cannot wait to tell Silas about each one of the people who gave to help bring him home. They are each a part of his story. And our family will never be the same. We are better people for having experienced such generosity. Lord, forgive us for ever doubting that we could afford international adoption. You are not bound by any earthly thing.

There is one other fundraiser that we are working on that is VERY exciting and let's just say those who choose participate will reap GREAT benefits! That is all i am going to say for now but stay tuned for further details! ;)

I am sure there are many, many more lists to come along this journey, mostly of the packing and preparatory nature, but this week has been especially fully of cool little encouraging moments. So without any further rambling, here goes:

1. I worry about Silas. I worry about his health, his adjustment to getting home, his development, the mysteries that are waiting for us on the other side of this journey and lots of other little things. One particular day this week, i think it was Tuesday, i had been thinking a lot about Silas' health and development, wondering and dare i say worrying. While i was cooking dinner the doorbell rang and a package arrived from my little sister Misty. She had been doing her sister thing and buying up a bunch of stuff for Silas. I opened the package and there was whole plethora of super cute little baby things along with a few things for Ava and Atley. There was one little piece of clothing though that helped me to get my mind/heart straight for the day. It was quite the kick in the butt really. It was this little romper with a monkey lifting a barbell and on it were the words, "Stronger than you think." I burst into tears. And once again the heaviness of the day was eased by something simple, a little message of hope. On a romper. Made by Carters. Thanks Aunt Kitty. I love you.

2. As i have mentioned before i have been more than a little overwhelmed by the amount of reorganization that needs to take place before Silas comes home. It's funny really, although there are a few things that really MUST get done, many of the things on the list are things that would really just be nice to get done. Maybe it is my way of coping with the wait. Anyhow, also in the midst of all this we decided as a family that it is time for me to resign from my position at The Restoration House. So along with the list of things i said would likely never do/be (which apparently that list doesn't matter at all to God), i never thought i would be a 100% stay at home mom, never wanted to NOT be at home, just not 100% of the time--as in unemployed in the official sense of the word. On Wednesday afternoon i got the sprinkler out (IN APRIL), and let the kids play around, i just kept having this sense of urgency that i should go inside and get some "stuff done." I mean after all i have SO MUCH to do! But i just couldn't get myself to do it. I was SO enjoying that time outside with the kids, feeding them popsicles, playing bike wash and squirting water guns. It was a good moment, i had a conversation with a good friend about it. I think her words were, "We need to learn how to do that in every part of our lives." So I am trying, in these last few weeks of being a family of four, to really enjoy the end of an era, to as hokey as it sounds, cherish the little moments.

3. And now to Thursday. Wow. Thursday. It starts with a meeting Daniel had with our local radio DJ and friend, Marisa. They were meeting to discuss an upcoming TRH fundraiser and within the meeting Marisa mentioned that she had some tickets for us to a big event coming up. So this past Thursday was the big event, and the word "big" isn't the best word to describe it really. it was amazing. Hope in the Darkn, put on by Mike Hamilton's family (UT Athletic Director), was a fundraiser on several fronts. The money received during the event benefited Blood Water Mission as well as Show Hope. Both amazing organizations helping to make a difference in the water crisis as well as the plight of orphans in Africa. Show Hope is founded by Steven Curtis Chapman's family and serves to bring grants to families adopting internationally. Chapman ended the night with an acoustic set in which he shared his personal heart for his family and all that they have been through in the past few years. I simply cannot imagine the pain of losing a child. With that said, although there wasn't necessarily one big moment for me, it is still list worthy in that the evening was a huge reminder to me of how desperately i want my family to live outside ourselves, to always be aware of the world beyond Knoxville, TN. I want them to know and understand that $20 can buy 20 years worth of water for a person in Africa, that there are places in the world where they walk for miles to get water and it's dirty water! Lord, help me to teach my children to look beyond themselves.

4. Ok, gonna keep the next few short and light. Our new stroller arrived in the mail today! Woohoo!

5. One post on FB led to a ton of people offering to help us out in collecting baby stuff. It is good.

6. My hand is permanently damaged from writing thank you notes to people who have bought a tshirt or given toward our travel fund. That is good too!

7. ONE WEEK TIL COURT!

So there's the list. Feels good to review these things as i write them down, whether people are reading or not. ;)

So, i know it isn't really just over paper, that ultimately it is really about getting Silas home, but seriously I have never prayed more about paper in my life! I was just praying today about it in fact, praying that the person from MOWA and the person from Central Authority or whoever, would please get their stuff in THIS WEEK, so that next Friday when our name comes up all the PAPER is where it should be and says what it is supposed to say. There was this one moment today, around 12:23 to be exact, that i just had this strong sense of urgency to stop everything i was doing and start praying about the papers. So I did. I prayed. About paper. Again. God is faithful, even in the little things. Like paper. :)

In other news, a few important things got done around the house this weekend in the name of Silas Preparation. It does seem like Mission Impossible, but i am trying not to get too overwhelmed with it all. We cleaned out Atley & Ava's closets, moved some stuff into the cellar and hung some organizer things up in the closet for Silas' things. The best part was looking at each little article of clothing and thinking about how cute his little brown skin will look in each color. Some of the things he will wear will be passed down from Atley, which is super special and quite bittersweet. The clothing has been in rubbermaid tubs for awhile now, but you can still smell the faint sent of baby detergent. It is hard to imagine that he was once that little, especially after taking him for his kindergarten shots last Friday! Whew, was that a battle?! Another story for another day.

Well, time for the bedtime routine to begin for A&A. 10 days. 10 days until our court date. Hopefully and prayerfully what will be our only court date! Things moved so quickly to this point, but these days seem to be creeping by. I will probably look back and think of this time and wonder, "What the heck was my hurry?!"