Orphanages and Futbol

I can't post many pictures from our day yesterday, since most of the pictures include kids from the three orphanages we visited. It was a tough day, seeing so many kids that didn't have a family to go home to every night. I played soccer at the older boys orphanage on their mud field. Yes, it really was a mud field. I fell about 10 minutes in and covered my backside and shoes with "chica" or mud. Word to those traveling during the rainy season... Two pairs of tennis shoes are necessary if your activities will include soccer.
So, for the pictures we can post...
The first is of Addis making his silly sniffing face. Since he now has a sinus infection, it serves other purposes as well as you can see from the picture.
The people at the Hilton have been so great and friendly. The man that opens our door every day LOVES Addis and plays with him every time. Also in the picture is one of the drivers, Solomon.
The silly white people are Travis and Ryan, your fearless in-country coordinators. You will love them. They are great fun.
And, once again, the bath was not his favorite. If you want to hear his cry, put him in the water.

Church and Traditional Dinner

Yesterday, we toured an Ethiopian Orthodox Church. It was built in the 30s and 40s during the Italian invasion. There were several events going on there, since it was one of their major fasting weeks and there was a large funeral. Due to all of the people that showed up after we had gone in to tour, our cars were blocked in when it was time to leave. And I don't mean like one car parked behind us. I mean like 60.
We decided to walk to a taxi to take us to lunch. The taxi driver was pretty pumped to see a bunch of lost Americans, and he charged us 10 birr each to get to the restaurant. Average fair is between 70c and 2 birr, so he made his days wage off of our group alone.
We went to the lion zoo, or lion cages, after lunch. It was pretty entertaining, because there wasn't a giant pit between us an the lions, and the locals would hit on the fence to get the lions to growl at them.
Last night was the traditional dinner. The food was interesting. I ate a lot more than Erin. I was a little disappointed because they didn't ask anyone from our group to dance. I guess they could tell that we had some moves and didn't want to be embarrassed.
Today, we go to the older kids orphanage and play a little futbol. Addis is still the bomb. He sleeps like a champ, 12 hours at night without waking up. He goes to everyone, though he clings to his mom and dad when he is tired. He crawls all over the place, entertaining himself with water bottles and magazines. We couldn't have asked for a better baby.
Keep praying for a safe flight home. 4.5 days and counting…

A Very Long Day...

*** The internet was down yesterday. Sorry for the delay in the post! ***

Today, we visited the Gladney Foster Care centers where Addis has lived for the last 6 months. The minute we walked in the door, his primary caregiver found him and stole him away for most of the morning. When he left, he was in an outfit we had brought for him, and when he returned, he was in traditional Ethiopian wear. It was a gift from his caregiver, and incredibly cute.
It was great to see him interact with her, because we learned so much about his personality by watching them play. The faces he makes, his sniffing obsession, and the way he crawls towards you when he is happy. Other caregivers in the house tried to take him from her, and she coaxed him back every time. He loved her very much, and he was obviously her favorite. (She is in the yellow coat in the picture.) When he was about 5 months old, we received a lot of pictures of Addis with her and we were able to give her copies of all of them. She was very grateful. We will always love her for loving our son so much.
We then went across the street to the older babies home where he has spent the last month or so. We met his caregiver there as well, maybe 19 or 20 years old, who still lives at the girls orphanage in town. She was wonderful as well, and both asked to receive pictures and updates on how he is doing.
After lunch, we had our Embassy appointment. Everything went as planned, and we should have our Visa by Friday if all continues to go well. As I type this, it is 7:30 and we are hearing him cry FOR REAL for the first time. He is in his bed, not wanting to go to sleep. Maybe it has finally worn off… We will see! Actually, 5 minutes in and he is asleep. Perfect…
When we get back, we will give a better play by play of the days. For now, this will have to do.

No Really... It has to be...

Ok, so he really is the best baby ever. Although we did hear him cry today, it was because he fell over and hit his head on the floor. Even then, it only lasted 10 seconds. To add to his "Best Baby Ever" campaign write-up, we laid him in his crib wide awake tonight with the lights on and he laid himself down and went sleep. Really? Can it get any easier than this?

We had some free time this afternoon, so I set up a mini-studio in our room using some sheets and suitcases. As you can see, the pictures were awesome. Tomorrow, we head to the Gladney foster care centers and we will be delivering care packages to a few of the kids whose parents sent them to us before we left. Also, in the afternoon we will have our Embassy appointment, (which will be early morning your time.)

Too Good to be True

It has to be… He is perfect! He rolls around our floor squeeling and playing, one of the craziest babies we have ever been around. Then, we take him to a nice dinner, and he sits very calmly on our laps without ever making a peep. We have now known him for 24 hours, and we still don't know what his cry sounds like!
When we got back from dinner, Erin fed him his bottle and he was asleep before he was done eating. We put him in bed at 8:30 last night, and he woke up for the first time at 7 am this morning.
We gave him a bath this morning, and he was way unsure of that whole experience. He warmed up to the idea after a while, but he certainly isn't the water bug that the other three are. It is going to take some practice.
Today, there isn't much on the agenda. We are getting out for lunch, and then we will do a little souvenir shopping. Tomorrow we go to the embassy, so pray for all to go smoothly! (By the way, it is 3:00 on Tuesday afternoon right now.)
Also, even though this is a wonderful experience, we miss the other kids a lot and are ready to get back to them so they can meet their new brother.

We have him!

It was everything we had hoped for and more. He is even cuter in person than any of the pictures we have been sent so far, and smaller than we expected, though his thighs are pretty chubby. His skin and hair are so soft, and he has the cutest curls ever! He has the beginnings of a tooth on the bottom, and he is commando crawling around our room yelling dadadadada. He makes a funny face every once and a while and sniffs his nose really fast. He thinks it is pretty hilarious.

We are in heaven and can't wait to get him home!

We made it!

We just checked into the hotel and we are settling in. I just took a few sleeping pills and I think they are starting to kick in right about now. We get Addis in the morning! I will post some pictures as soon as I can.

Thanks for all of the continued prayers.

The long flight....

We just got on our plane for the long one, and it is far less than what we expected. I think they planned on short people, cause our legs are crammed into our seats.

Next stop... Ethiopia!

(After we refuel in rome that is.)

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On to DC

I just drug erin through the airport after she took the pill that was supposed to "take the edge off."

It is actually sort of funny. I always wondered what she would be like drunk.

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In the airport

Yes. I am the geek with the blackberry taking pictures and posting them to the internet.

We are about to head to Chicago!

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Off to Ethiopia!

We are trying to stay up late to cut down on the jet lag once we get there, so here is our last post from the United States. There is supposed to be free internet access in the lobby of the hotel, so we will try to post as much as possible.

Pray for Erin, as she HATES airplanes. Being stuck on one flight for 15 hours won't help that at all. We can't wait to hold Addis, and we will upload as many pictures as we can.

Our other kids are going to stay with their grandparents for the week. They are really pumped for the visit, but even more excited to see their little brother.

And, since Sophie didn't make the last post, here is another funny picture of our little firecracker.

Bad News...

The day has come. After four years, Easton is preparing to go to preschool, and they won't let him have long hair anymore. With our trip to Ethiopia just around the corner, we decided that we better do it now. We took one last picture with his long hair.

Mrs. Lindsey does a great job and we were thankful she could squeeze him in this week.




And the grand finale...

A before and after for grins. If you are wondering why Sophie didn't make the cut, she has cried all day. She is moody like that.




So there it is. I don't really think it is bad news after all. What do you think?

Introducing Addis Zachary Yeabsera Kennedy!

We found out today that Addis is officially a Kennedy! We have to be in Ethiopia on August 4th to meet him for the first time. We are so excited and feel extremely blessed to be able to share his pictures with all of you.

Thank you for all of your prayers.
We appreciate everyone being a part of our journey.

We Miss You!

Look at his eyes.
Though we have only seen pictures, we miss those eyes.

He weighs 17.64 lbs.
Though we have never held him, we miss those chubby legs.

He now objects to toys being taken from him.
Though he has never been home, his brother and sisters ALREADY fight over his toys.

We miss you Addis. Mommy and Daddy are coming to get you soon.

Sophie Turns Two

Besides being one of the cutest two year old little girls in the whole world, Sophie also happens to be one of the funniest. Even after living with her for two years, she still makes us laugh every day. While she can be feisty at times, her smile always shines through and we couldn't imagine our lives without her in it.

We love you Sophia! Happy Birthday!

Still Waiting

Today was tough. We were supposed to be in Ethiopia today, picking up our baby boy. However, due to in country delays, we are unsure when that day will come.

We feel like we are missing out on so much. Every day that we have to wait, he gets a day older without us there to watch it. I suppose it would be easier if we had a date that all this would come to an end, but we don't. We just have to wait.

I think God teaches more in waiting than any other experience of life. That is probably why he put Abraham through all of the ups and downs... to teach us the value of patience. Abraham and Sarah waited 25 years for their promised child. Sure, he got desperate a time or two, but Abraham believed God and it was credited to him as righteousness. They hoped in the promise of God, and God did not let them down.

John Piper says it this way.

That’s exactly how God wants his children to live: by faith in future grace—the assurance of things hoped for; the conviction of things not seen. You can either stand in His place, or go at His pace.

So, here we are. Relying on faith and not sight. Hoping in the promise of God and believing that he has a purpose in all of this. Going at His pace.

Patience is one of those things that God doesn't give you. He gives you opportunities to develop it. Here is our opportunity. It is our prayer that we don't squander it.

The Yard Sale and Catch Up

It is time for the annual Kennedy yard sale, where we once again drag out those sweaters Erin wore in Jr. High and try to convince her that they are NEVER going to be in style again.
It is time for our friends to peruse through said sweaters and find the ones that just might make it back into a stylish wardrobe and steal them before the sale ever starts.
It is time for a strange old man to purchase a bikini for 25 cents for reasons no respectable person cares to know, only after he attempts for 15 minutes to haggle it down to a mere 10 cents while my stubborn wife refuses to back down.
It is yard sale time.

Saturday at 7 am, let the festivities begin.

Now, to catch up on weeks gone by.

Catherine had her first dance recital a few weeks ago. She was beautiful, and she made us all very proud. Notice, even when she has all of her make up on and her hair done, she still manages to find a baby to carry around with her.

Easton gave her a rose after her award-winning performance.

We have been visiting family since last Friday. Grammy and Poppa (Erin's Mom and Dad) held the first annual Kid Camp. Every day was planned with fun activities for the kids, and the whole family had a blast.


This is Easton with his cousins, Harrison and Everson.

Catherine tubing with Peyton and Mackenzie.The whole family.
Here is Grammy and Poppa with all 9 of the grandkids.

One Last Step

We got an update on Baby Addis. Here are the details.

"Addis is really special! Some people have super cute personalities and some people are just plain good-looking. Addis has both! He is in a constant good mood and if he was not an innocent baby, I would think he is trying to get something! Addis' cocked eyebrows and sideways grins are irresistible and he has only been spotted crying in regards to food! He is healthy, strong and very active."
Weight- 16.76 pounds Height- 25.98 inches