The Great American Pastime

Well on the evening of June 24th, 2008 Eyob and I went on his inaugural trip to see America's greatest and most storied Baseball franchise, the New York Yankees, take on the Pittsburgh Pirates along with Patrick and Pap. To say that Patrick and I had been waiting for this date in the baseball schedule for longer than he had even known Eyob was going to be his brother is not an understatement. As we drove to the field there was certainly plenty of excitement in the air as every Pittsburgh radio and television station had been hyping the game for well over a week. The hype was due to fact that this was the first time that the Yankees had played in Pittsburgh since they had lost the 1960 World Series to the Pirates. The drive was fairly quick and soon enough we had arrived at PNC Park.



The view of PNC Park from downtown.

Soon after we made it to the ballpark and we were enjoying the pre-game aura of the event. We were able to see the Yankees take batting practice for a little while, after which we began out journey to the Upper Deck of PNC Park where we were surrounded by our Yankee brethren.



Pap, Patrick and Eyob enjoy the pre-game festivities while proudly sporting their Derek Jeter shirts. (Thanks for the shirts Nanny and Poppy)

Sadly the game didn’t turn out the way Patrick and I would have liked as the Yankees fell victim to less than prolific hitting and awful pitching. As Patrick is quite a passionate Yankee fan this led to a near meltdown in the bottom of the seventh inning. Conversely, Eyob really seemed to enjoy the game and all the cheering that was going on around him. The funny thing about Eyob’s participation at the game was that it didn’t matter whose fans were cheering, he was happy to cheer along with anyone who was enjoying themselves. The funniest part of the game occurred while he was cheering during a Pirates rally, a plane flew within view of the stadium and his cheers of yeah for the home team quickly turned into, “oh daddy airoplan”. It was priceless vintage Eyob...easily distracted as well as easily excited.

The Yankees wound up pitching their weakest pitcher for their first game back in Pittsburgh in 49 years and the results were not truly unexpected in my opinion. As my grandfather would has likely said that Rasner is a stiff. A great game to see overall I know Patrick and I are looking forward to going with Eyob to hopefully two more Yankee games this year.



Posing with Willie Stargell…Patrick, Eyob and I begin our new journey, which may take a while, to see the Yankees play in every major league ballpark before Patrick goes to college.

"Oh, my goodness"

This is Eyob's new favorite saying. We're not sure where he picked it up but he sounds so cute when he says it with his accent. This weekend we took Eyob to Kennywood(the local amusement park). Toni's parents and 2 y/o niece went with us. The first ride we rode was a roller coaster(looking back, not the best decision). Eyob is not easily scared so I thought he would love it. When we got on, he was very excited. He put his hands in the air like the other kids and had a big smile on his face until we went down the first hill. He screamed the rest of the ride. After that everytime went near a roller coaster he said "Momma, no." He enjoyed the rest of the rides, especially the Log Jammer, which had the same size dips as the rollar coaster but he loved it because you land in water and get wet (He LOVES water). We had a great time until it started to rain (I mean pour), but it was time to go home anyways.The kids with OdieEyob on the carousel
Eyob one the motorcyclesPatrick on the motorcyclesIsabella and her cousin on the motorcyclesEyob on the "awoplanes"

Our Busy Family

Well it's been a month since Eyob came home and it's been a very busy one.
1. Ella finished the third grade with flying colors and received the AR reward again for having the most points in her class.
2.Patrick graduated from kindergarten and had the lead in his class play. Now Patrick does not enjoy plays at all so it was funny that he was given the part. He did a great job. I was truly impressed with how much he'd learned and grown this year.

3. Isabella finished preschool and was the perfect princess in her first dance recital (even if she did get a little stage fright)
4. Ilana is a crazy toddler and is into everything. She still isn't talking much but signs alot and I think she even says a few Amharic words.
5.Eyob has come a long way this month. He has learned to ride a bicycle(with trainng wheels) and he loves it! He loves playing in the sprinkler and the swimming pool and playing baseball. He is listening much better, has become very clingy to me and crys alot less. He is speaking English in small sentences and understands even more. This weekend our neighbor planted her garden and every year she asks my kids to help. I was very nervous this year since I knew Eyob would want to help but his ability to follow directions needs improvement. He has a very strongwilled personality and wants to do things his way. Amazingly he did a great job and simply loved watering the plants(although he got more water on him than on the plants) I realized then how much he's learned this month and how far he's come. Eyob on the slide (he's learned to take his turn)
The kids having fun in the water

The kids after helping our neighbor plant her garden

Eyob playing baseball

Eyob riding his bike

Thursday May 15th - Going Home

We awoke on Thursday morning excited to be going home that day but we had much to do before we left. We had breakfast and then headed to Hannah's Hope. We were planning to tour Enet Alem (the government run orphanage) and Mother Theresa's Hospital that day but we were leaving the children at Hannah's Hope. We went to Enet Alem first which was very different than Hannah's Hope. I know they are doing their best to care for these children but they are working with limited funds. Then we went to Mother Teresa's. That was a very difficult place to see especially the house with the mentally disabled children. They were desperate for affection but we were unable to have any direct patient contact due to an outbreak of TB. Finally we did some last minute shopping and then headed back to Hannah's Hope. Eyob said good bye to his friends and then we went back to the hotel to pack. Our flight was at 10:15 that night but we left the hotel around 6:00. Eyob was very quiet in the airport until he saw the airplanes then he was very excited. When we boarded he was thrilled with the little tvs in the seats. He fell asleep during take off and slept for the first half of the flight. He was remarkabling good during the flight. We landed in D.C. at 9;30 Friday morning. I was never so happy to set foot on US soil. The flight seemed much longer coming home then going. Walking to our connection we met with an Ethiopian gentlemen who stopped us to ask about the adoption process. We talked a few minutes and as we left he said "you have no idea how much this means to my mother." This seemed to be the sentiment of all the Ethiopians we met. They are very supportive of adoptions and love their children very much.The last thing we did before we boarded was have lunch at a little restaurant next to our gate. To our surprise the entire wait staff was Ethiopian. These ladies were so sweet and it was a nice ending to our trip. We arrived in Pittsburgh at 2:00 but our luggage did not (it came the next day). When we walked through the parking lot, Eyob was so excited to see the "mukeeinas." But he was even more excited to meet his new siblings. It was so great to be home and begin becoming a family of 7. Eyob and his special mothers Danny, Yohannes and Eyob Eyob at the airport in Addis Ababa

Eyob on the plane being silly Eyob and Mommy on the plane to Pittsburgh - the last leg of the journey

Wednesday May 14th

We were up early this morning. Today was the morning we were meeting with Eyob's birthmother so we were a little on edge. We had breakfast at the hotel and then headed to Hannah's Hope at 10:15(our meeting was at 10:30). When we walked into Hannah's Hope, I immediatley saw Eyob's birthmother. Almaz was still in with another family but another staff member introduced us. She walked over to us, shook my hand and said "thank you". We were surprised that she was able to speak English and were able to show her our picture album and take some pictures before Almaz came out. After that Almaz translated for us since she was more comfortable speaking in Amharic. This meeting was the hardest thing I've ever done but was well worth it. We learned so much that we will be able to share with Eyob when he's older and Eyob got his chance to say goodby although he was very unemotional. After the meeting was over we went back to the hotel and got ready for lunch. At about 1:00 we headed for the Addis Golf Club for lunch, I felt so much more relaxed and Eyob seemed happier and more comfortable with us too. Lunch was very good and the grounds were beautiful. There was even a little playground but that proved be a little too much for our kids. It was obvious they had a lot to learn about taking turns. Eyob being silly at the Golf ClubEyob and his friend at the Golf Club. This young man is such a special kid. Eyob really looked up to him and I believe he helped Eyob transition well in Ethiopia.

After lunch we headed back to the hotel to meet with Almaz to tour the Fistula Hospital. This incredible place treats woman from all over Ethipoia with child birth injuries. Most of these very young women had lost their babies and the difficult births had resulted in permanant injuries. The hospital was clean and the grounds were beautiful but the most amazing part was the patients. They weren't much more than children themselves but they smiled and shook our hands so sweetly. It made me realizeze again how much we take for granted in the United States. Due to good prenatal care and modern hospitals this type of childbirth injury is non exsistent in the western world. After the tour we headed back to the hotel to get ready for dinner. That night we met at Hannah's Hope were we were given the paperwork which would allow our children to enter the US. This is me receiving the paperwork that allowed Eyob to enter the US

Then we headed to one of the highlights of the trip, a traditional Ethiopian Restaurant. It had music and traditional dancing and good food. I was very tired so I didn't enjoy it as much as I liked but the kids did great despite the late hour (we didn't get home until after 10:00). In fact Abraham, one of the babies was much more awake than I was, he dance the entire night. It was adorable. We arrived back at the Union Hotel and went right to bed ready to return home the following day.

The now famous picture of Abraham dancing A painting on the ceiling of the restaurant
Kevin and Eyob at the Traditional Ethiopian Restaurant