Some African Wildlife and a Day at the Beach

J staring into the "distance".

Building castles...just minutes before being flooded by waves.

My little family splashing in the waves.

While it may be winter in Durban today was another beach day for the Ehmann family. We may not have gone swimming but there was much running from waves and sand playing (eating) to be had. We strolled along the promenade, watched surfers and skateboarders, enjoyed some ice cream and dreamed what it would be like if this was "winter".....poor girl doesn't know what she is in for :-)

Among other things we have had a few encounters with some African "wildlife" during our stay here. A few morning ago Tim and J found a snake in the garden they were playing in. Not knowing what kind it was they asked a staff member....not a fan of snakes herself they decided it might be of the dangerous variety...it apparently was the right colour. Being the family protector that he his...Tim chased it with a broom stick, flung it on the driveway and fought a hissing snake to its death with a rock. That was about enough of the Ehmann discovery channel for me. We later found out it was probably harmless.....but we will let Tim think otherwise :-)

Miss A loving the beach.

Playing in the sand.

Today on our beach adventures we decided to enjoy a nice lunch on a patio overlooking the ocean. Some monkeys thought it was a good idea too as we were quickly joined by about four of them, running across our patio umbrellas, jumping to nearby trees.....swinging on the bars underneath our umbrellas.....let's just say we managed to find a table inside before our lunch was swiped by these seemingly fearless visitors. We are enjoying our time as a family. There have been some growing pains, as to be expected, but we are doing well, taking lots of time to splash in the Indian Ocean and enjoy our beautiful tropical environment and the many animal encounters we have had.

Some South African Adventures

We have been in South Africa for over a week now. I honestly can't believe that time has gone so quickly. Just like that there are four of us. Our court date was on Thursday and things went really smoothly...so this sweet girl is really truly and Ehmann now. The next four weeks we will just be processing her citizenship documents and passport for our return home. Please pray that this goes smoothly. There has been some new changes to immigration law this month that might cause a few hiccups. We are praying they don't though. 

Our little girl is finally getting over her cold....her momma and big brother have a bit of one but seem to be trooping through it. Dad has dodged the bullet....for now. She is definately coming out of her shell. Lots of giggling and smiling, chasing her big brother around, and singing.....she loves to sing just like our J. It took until Saturday but she finally let Tim hold her...and feed her a bottle. She goes to him now no problem and for the first time he was able to change her this morning.  He was pretty excited. So was mom....takes a bit of the pressure off now and allows some Mommy and J time....which was much needed.

Tim's first chance to feed our little girl.

With the relief of court finished and our sweet girl with us forever, we have had the opportunity for a few adventures. Tim braved it and we have rented a car. He has done a great job of navigating on the other side of the road, dodging pedestrians crossing at random on the highway and driving alongside people with no particular standard of driving. There was a brief moment of concern today when the GPS failed to find the address to our B and B on the way home from the beach....but we managed to figure it out.

The rental car has proven to also be a great source of play. This "driver" is getting ticketed for driving too slow today.

Our little A has come with giggles, some particular food preferences, a beautiful smile and a gorgeous head of hair.....LOTS OF IT! Navigating the ways of her curly mop has been a bit of a challenge. One of the workers at the B and B has been incredibly helpful, providing us with the right comb and multiple suggestions on how to quickly and painlessly detangle in the morning bath. So after many tears and half a bottle of conditioner (in four baths) we now have a system. This morning went considerably smoother and I was able to get two braids in to keep the tangles down for the day.

This picture is entirely deceiving...looks as if this is the best part of her day....don't let it fool you!

Little lady with her locks all combed out.

J has been such a trooper through the last week and a bit. He has had his challenges adjusting to a new sibling, being away from home, and being stuck on the property for a few days. We really are quite proud of how he has done on the whole though. The first few "outings" we have had have been to malls. We have had what has seemed like a constant supply of things to pick up (hair products, passport pictures, groceries, a few items of clothing for Miss A). Even Tim admitted that going to the mall was a joy after being "stuck" on the property for almost a week.....to a preschooler the mall is not a joy.....but he has taken it in stride. While it seems like South Africans love their Nescafe.....we have welcomed a trip to a coffee shop for some real brew. The last one we visited gave both our kids "babyccino's" (i.e. steamed milk)....J thought this was great. Thankfully for the whole Ehmann clan (all of whom do not really like shopping) we have ventured beyond the realm of shopping and visited a local park and zoo (Mitchel Park) and headed to the beach today. It was a beautiful winter day (about 26 degrees celcius)....we saw everything from speedos to wool trench coats (it is winter after all :-)

J and two babyccino's ....Miss A shared hers :-)

No wool coats for this family. Tim and J riding on the water slide at the paddling pools by the beach.

 

 

 Daily life continues to be a hybrid of our normal routine and what has become normal during our stay in South Africa. Getting used to a toddler again has been wonderful but has kept us on our toes. Our little lady is not yet walking independently but she can move fast. J has proved to be helpful in keeping tabs on her in our "cottage". We are served breakfast daily in style and our laundry is done and folded whenever we request it. I might have a hard time coming home.

Miss A is coming out of her shell....and getting into everything!

 

 

I like to pinch his cheeks too....but I am his Momma :-)

I must admit it is taking some getting used to to adjust to some of the cultural aspects in South Africa. The one that has caused the most distress is the more "hands on" approach when it comes to children. J gets pinched on the cheeks on a daily basis (which he hates!) and has even been picked up by a stranger....who was trying to help but sent our preschooler into hysterics! It is hard to explain that they are just being friendly.

 All in all we are adjusting well. Sleeping lots (we often hit the hay shortly after the kids), and starting to explore the world around us. We are loving those sweet moments of bonding as a family and working hard at navigating those more challenging moments of adjustment. We are thankful for this time and the two beautiful children God has blessed us with.

J reading his little sis a bedtime story....it's the one we made for her. He has it memorized :-)

Introducing.......

Our Sweet Baby Girl

  
We are thrilled to announce the newest addition to our family. Miss Ada Kietumetsi Ehmann......at around 2:15pm this afternoon it became official. She is ours.....now we can show you what she looks like :-)

Makes a momma's heart full.

Love that sweet smile.

Family Pic on Court Day!

Probably the most accurate photo of what court day looks like during nap time :-)

Life as We Know it......

Tonight will be Miss A's last night at 17 Tweed. See you tomorrow our sweet girl.

Tonight marks the end of the second full day visit Miss A has had to our bed and breakfast. For the last two mornings we have gotten up, eaten breakfast, been shuttled to Ada's baby home, picked her up and brought her back for the day. Shortly before 5pm each day we are shuttled back to the baby home to drop her off. Yesterday our little A was still pretty sick. She spent most of the day sleeping either in a carrier or on mommy. Today she was much more perky ( I would like to say herself....but we have still not really seen who Miss Ada is). The other babes also looked much better this morning. Thankfully (keep on praying) none of the other Ehmanns have become sick yet.

J takes his job as big brother very seriously.

Having our girl at "home" with us was a bit surreal. We have been waiting for this precious babe for so long and now here she is. J is a very helpful big brother. He takes great pride in preparing her bottles and checking in on her. He is experiencing some growing pains as he learns to share mom and dad and be patient with a sick and adjusting sibling but he continues to tell us how excited he is that Ada is joining us forever tomorrow.

.....That's right TOMORROW! Tomorrow morning when we pick up Ada it will be for good. We plan on making a few visits back to the baby home while we are here but her new home will be with us. It is overwhelming to think....and I am not the 14 month old with the total life change on the brink. Tomorrow night will be the first night we all sleep under the same roof. Amazing! Thursday afternoon is our court date.....as I explained to J....we know that she is already ours forever, but sometimes grown ups need special forms to remind them that. :-)

For those who continue to pray for us here are some ways to direct your prayers:

1) Pray for Ada as she adjusts to a new family. Pray that we would have wisdom in how to be sensitive to her needs and that attachment would form between the four of us.

2) Pray for Jake as he adjusts to his new role as big brother. Pray for wisdom and patience as we seek to meet the needs of both of our children as they adjust to so many changes.

3) Continue to pray for our health. Ada is on the mend it would be wonderful if during this time of transition we were able to stay healthy.

4) Pray for the legal side of this adoption. The judge is apparently very pro adoption so we have little concern for the actual court proceedings. We have heard of some changes in documentation for citizenship. Pray that things would continue to go smoothly so that we might return to Canada when expected.

Thank you for all your encouraging words. Being so far away from family and friends they are much appreciated.

Happy Father's Day

Tim's father's day present...snuggles with his baby girl.

 Father's Day 2015 started like any typical day in the Ehmann house....wake up in gingerbread cottage.....get dressed to have breakfast served to us as requested the night before.....eat at table with full silverware setting and WHITE tablecloth....view monkeys....head to baby home to visit new daughter.....yup nothing out of the ordinary :-) To be honest, this having breakfast made for us thing is going to be hard to give up. Dining in a fancy dining room with white linens and glassware is enough to make any mother of a preschooler cringe but our host is so incredibly gracious and absolutely loves children which makes the whole formal breakfast dining thing easier on the nerves.

J opening his present from his sister.

Our second day was a challenging one for our immune systems to be sure. Over the night the babies became more noticeably sick. Today marks the first day my little girl puked on me....I guess there is a first for everything. The babies have come down with a nasty cold (the puking mostly a product of milk and not being able to breathe properly). The wee ones were sleepy and weepy....we got lot of snuggles today. Miss A fell asleep on both her mommy and daddy. Upon our return we promptly stripped down and scoured ourselves in the shower....then ate some oranges. It will be a minor miracle if we don't all get sick in the next few days.

Watching the house mother and the volunteers today truly amazes me. These women are so dedicated to loving and caring for these little ones. Today we met a woman who has spent a considerable amount of time with our Ada. She spent her first Christmas with this family, has enjoyed going to soccer matches and school performances with them. You can tell she has a real soft spot in their hearts. This woman is also an administrator for the home. Today she brought with her her two boys. One in grade 6 and the other in grade 11 it was amazing to watch them wipe runny noses, change dirty diapers, and put little ones to bed. Not many teenage boys I know would give up a day off of school to do that. This family put together a baby book for Ada documenting the first year of her life in pictures and notes. They included a USB full of pictures and a letter from each member of the family to her and us. To top it off they brought a gift for J.....from his sister of course....to help keep him busy during our visits to the baby home.  Our baby girl is so loved. We are so thankful and deeply humbled by the service that we are witnessing.

The Beginning of the Rest of our Lives

J sleeping with both his beloved "PB" and Ada's new bunny.

A proud brother giving his little sis a special present.

Today was the beginning of an amazing journey. Today was the day we got to hold and play with our Ada. The morning started with a tumult of emotions. Excitement, anticipation, .....a good dose of anxiety. Not knowing how our baby girl would respond to us, how our big boy would handle a day at a baby home or what our day would really look like. We were picked up from the bed and breakfast at 8:30 and driven to Ada's baby home. Greeted by one of the main caregivers and led into their living room where there sat our sweet girl. I think she sensed something was up. While the first hour or so she kept her distance seeking the security of the arms of her care giver she soon warmed up enough to let me hold her. While her initial distance was difficult to endure we are thankful for it as it indicates that she has a healthy fear of strangers...boding well for a good attachment to her new family. All the babies at the home were feeling a bit under the weather today so she was extra snuggly.....which I didn't mind one bit. We spent the day meeting volunteers and playing with the babies. Helping with feeding and changing and taking notes on routines during nap time. It is quite evident that Ada has been well loved. There will be many a tear shed when she leaves.

J was a trooper. We are so proud of him. He was gentle and patient with his baby sister. Clearly excited to meet her and wanting to engage in play with her right from the beginning. Having slept with her bunny last night he was anxious to give it to her. He was helpful during nap time lending a hand at sorting donations and had fun interacting with the volunteers.

Leaving our sweet girl this afternoon felt strange. It feels like she belongs to us. I can't wait for the day we can take her home, the day we can become a family unit......only four more sleeps! We are back at the baby home all day tomorrow. Please pray for our boy, that he would have the endurance to make it the day with babies again. Pray that we would have wisdom as parents to balance the need of both our children, spending time Ada and recognizing when J has reached his limits. Pray for our health. Snot and germs abounded at the baby home. Ada is already sick but it would be lovely if the rest of us could maintain our health throughout this transition. I can't wait to share pictures of her beautiful face....but that will have to wait until after court.

Sweet Snuggles....can't wait to show you this beautiful face.

The Night Before

Chilling in London....watching some movies

Riding the "Magic Carpet"

Best airport time killing activity ever! Small to pack...pop when you board....kill some energy.

Flying "Air Canada"....waiting for our real plane.

Four flights, five airports, a ridiculous amount of granola bars and children's television....we have landed....on the other side of the world. We made it and I am happy to say that J was an absolute champ. On the car ride to our B and B we were telling the driver how well he did and he responded with an enthusiastic, "I didn't cry or have a fit the the whole time!" In fact, our little J has been quite excited and especially chatty....to everyone. Making sure to inform everyone new that he is in fact 3 and 3/4 and knows his alphabet.....did they want to hear him? I can tell he is excited. It has been exciting for him to fly, to find a new little home, to meet so many new people and now to finally get to play with his baby sister.

We are thankful for our decision to come a day earlier. While we are incredibly excited to meet our little girl....TOMORROW MORNING!.....we have enjoyed spending the day resting, stocking up on groceries and exploring. J is enamored with the monkeys swinging on the backyard trees and the gekkos that scamper across the patio. Our bed and breakfast is beautiful and the staff incredibly welcoming and helpful. J refers to our cottage as the gingerbread house....a fitting description. When we figure out our technology situation I will post a picture.

With the sun setting just before six it is easy to turn in early and convince a preschooler that it is actually bedtime. So, while most of you are just starting your day we will be making it an early end. Tomorrow is a big day. Which may just be the understatement of the year. We are going to meet our baby girl. To hold and play with the little person who will be shortly joining our family. I am not sure how to even describe how this feels. Surreal would probably be the closest. I am been imagining the moment we see our little girl face to face and now it is a few short hours away. It has been three days of surreal. We are in Africa....we are drinking coffee with monkeys swinging nearby.....we are going to meet our daughter for the first time tomorrow. Now to sleep.....right :-)

First picture in South Africa... our "brother of the year" would only consent to a picture if it was funny faces.