Here we go again!

You may be wondering what Joseph is so happy about in this picture and what all of those papers are in front of him . . . well . . . Joseph is excited because he is going to be a big brother - and all of those papers in front of him are the first steps in making that happen!! That's right, we've decided to start the adoption process again. We have always thought we would adopt again, and after praying about the situation we have decided to get things moving. We are using the same agency and adopting from Ethiopia but other than that have not made many decisions yet, as this will need more prayer. As you can see from the timeline on the right this is not a quick process so we anticipate that it will be at least 12-24 months before we get a referral. We appreciate all of your prayers along our journey to #2!!!

Orphanage memories

Last month we had the opportunity to visit some of Joseph's friends from the orphanage. They live in Michigan so we decided to meet up in Chicago. Our friends actually adopted sibling girls, one who shared a room with Joseph in Ethiopia. It was exciting for us to see them and catch up and Joseph had fun reuniting with the girls too. We hope that we can make this an at least once a year trip so they will be able to keep in touch. The pictures above are from our reunion in Chicago. Below are some pictures from the orphanage including Joseph's bed and one of his nannies that he was fond of.

Dedicated to Christ

May 29th was a special day for our little man as we had lots to celebrate that day. Not only were the Galbraiths in town to celebrate Joseph's 2nd birthday, but we also had Joseph's dedication at church. For those who are not familiar with a Baby Dedication, this was a time for us to celebrate God's gift of a child to us and also a chance to publicly pledge ourselves as parents to raising Joseph as a follower of Christ. Our friend and pastor at The Rooftop Community Church, Matt, led the ceremony which was very special for us. We were certainly excited to introduce Joseph to our church community and had a great time celebrating afterwards! Here are a few pictures from church and Joseph loving on his grandma afterwards, courtesy of my friend Lana who is the owner of Art and Soul Photography.

Mother's Weekend

Celebrating my first Mother's Day was fabulous! The weather was beautiful and I was able to spend the day outside with my family. Joseph even surprised me with flowers that he picked out himself! It is so awesome being a momma.

Something about this weekend, though, that many people don't know is that the day before the traditional "Mother's Day" is a day called "Birthmother's Day." This year we celebrated Birthmother's Day in a special way. We framed a picture of Joseph's birthmother and I from Ethiopia and put it in Joseph's room. We had been debating for a while about when we would show him this picture. Originally, we thought about waiting until he was older to show him, but recently we thought, "Why not now?" I think putting the picture in his room when he first arrived home would have been confusing, but he certainly has formed a strong bond with the two of us now. Plus, I wanted him to see the picture now while he still could remember her.

So we did it! When we showed him the picture, he immediately pointed to me in the picture, and said "Momma!" I then pointed to his birthmother and said, "This is your birthmother," and then back to me, "and this is momma." I do think he remembered her, but just wasn't quite sure what to think since it has been 9 months since he has seen her. We now have the picture sitting on his dresser in his room.

It was awesome to be able to honor Joseph's birthmother by doing this. She is such a strong and amazing woman and it is so important for Joseph to grow up knowing that. This Mother's Weekend I thank God for Joseph's birthmother and for the amazing gift that she and our Heavenly Father have given us.

Happy Birthday Joseph!

Today our sweet baby turns 2!! We celebrated this weekend with a cake and will be going out for Ethiopian food later in the week. Next month we plan on having a big celebration when Grandma and Grandpa Galbraith are in town. If you can't tell by the video, Joseph thought the cake was pretty cool!

He is Risen!!

This weekend, in addition to celebrating the resurrection of our Saviour, we were also able to share some of our family traditions with Joseph. We dyed eggs, participated in multiple Easter egg hunts, and Joseph even found a little Easter surprise waiting for him Easter morning. We feel so blessed to have Joseph as part of our family and to be able to share the joy of celebrating our Risen Lord!







1 Peter 1:3
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ! In his great mercy he has given us new birth into a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead...

Daddy's Boy

One thing that we weren't expecting after bringing Joseph home is how quickly he would attach to the men in his life. He absolutely adores his Dad, Grandpas, and Uncles. In fact, when we are all together he immediately gravitates to the men. The reason we were surprised is that there were few, if any, male caregivers at the orphanage. We weren't sure how he would respond to the men in his life. I must say I think it is very cute how much he LOVES his daddy. At times, I admit, I am a bit jealous but it is so amazing to see my husband in that role and the incredible bond that they have already formed.

And you will never believe this, Joseph likes to dress like his Daddy too! :)

Take me out to the ballgame

It was opening weekend in St. Louis and we were excited for Joseph to get to experience Cardinal nation at Busch stadium! We were so proud of our little man who lasted all the way to the 8th innning - pretty impressive for an almost 2 year old. Let's just say his daddy was proud.

Lots of Firsts

Things are still going great with our new family of three. We seem to grow more and more in love with Joseph by the day. He is such a sweet and fun little guy. One of the best parts of the last few weeks has been to experience so many "firsts" with him. Here is a sampling of a few of them. . . .

First train ride


First dental appointment


First time to the top of the arch


First swim


First snow (yes in March)


First birthday party

One Month Ago

One month ago yesterday, we attended the Farewell Ceremony at the orphanage where Joseph was living and then he spent his first night with his momma! The farewell ceremony was emotional and memorable. One of the nannies brought Joseph down wearing a traditional Ethiopian outfit and then we were serenaded by some of the children in the orphanage. The children who were also leaving with their families that day then cut a farewell cake for everyone. Joseph ate every last piece of his cake and then we made our way out the gates for the last time and on to the bus.





So much has happened since we left those gates of the orphanage. While Joseph seems to be adjusting incredibly well and is certainly bonding with mom and dad, there are times when we know he is grieving over what he had to say goodbye to on that day. And we grieve with him knowing the heartache that even a child at his age can bear. Fortunately, we have the foresight to know that he will certainly be loved by our family. As a child, though, he is not able to see what his future with us holds. As I have reflected on this over the past month I have thought - isn't this a reflection of our relationship with our heavenly Father? We don't understand the trials, tribulations, and hard times here on earth but one day we will see our creator face-to-face and know fully how perfect His plan was.

When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put the ways of childhood behind me. For now we see only a reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known.
1 Cor 13:11-12

The Ups and Downs of Week 2

It is hard to believe that we have been home over 2 weeks! Here is a recap of the last week with our little man.

The UPS of week 2
- NEW WORDS! baby, water, hot, "brush your teeth", bannana, hello, and most importantly TIGER (still working on "M-I-Z")
- success on the potty (#1 and #2) - is that TMI?
- class at The Little Gym
- blood work that came back negative!!
- visiting with Grandpa and Grandpa Galbraith



The DOWNS of week 2
- ER visit and pneumonia :(
- bilateral ear infections
- trying to get Joseph to take his medications
- lots of bloodwork, stool samples, xrays, immunizations at his first doctor appt



Although, we had a few bumps over the last week with Joseph's health he is doing MUCH better now. Overall things are going great. We feel like he is bonding really well with us. Our favorite part of the day is at night when he gives each of us big hugs and kisses before going to bed. He goes back and forth multiple times between the two of us and it just melts our hearts! We know that our successful transition is due to the fact that we have been covered in prayer by so many friends and family during this time. Thank you all again!

Speaking of bonding. . . since things are going well we would love to start having visitors!! We think he is certainly ready to meet all of his new family and friends so please call and find a time to come visit!!

And of course, some video for your viewing pleasure. As you can see he loves to sing and dance and really loves his Daddy!!

One week home

Joseph has been home now for a week and things are going very well. It is amazing how resilient the little guy is after all that he has been through. He seems to be bonding with "momma" and "ababa" and getting used to the new routine. We have been amazed at the English he is already picking up. So far he can say doggy, momma, cat, bye, and monkey. We've also picked up a handful of words in Amharic that he uses often which has been helpful in communicating with him. We've had a blast this week with the warm weather visiting parks and playing outside.

We've discovered this list of likes/dislikes over the last week:

LIKES: "Makenas" (Amharic for cars), eating, baths, reading books, anything that lights up or makes noises (basically anything with batteries), eating, dogs, looking at himself in the mirror, swinging, slides, and did I mention eating?

DISLIKES: vegetables, waiting for mommy to make his meals (he wants it the moment he sees it), any food that is cold, dirty hands

We feel so blessed to have this amazing child as part of our lives!!

For those of you who would like to see more photos of our welcome home celebration at the airport, visit this link.(username: Joseph G password: 11046). My friends Ashley and Lana photo-documented the big event for us. This is something I will forever treasure!! Lana owns Art & Soul Photography which I would highly recommend checking out if you are looking for a photographer for any occasion.

Our friends Stephanie and James, who are also in the process of adopting from Ethiopia were also at the celebration and took video of the event. The video can be viewed here.

Finally!!

Well, after over 19 hours on a plane . . .



And 3 airports later. . .



We touched down in St. Louis . . .



And Joseph is finally home!



Daddy was so happy to see him. . .



And so was grandma and grandpa. . .





Now we are at home adjusting to life as a family of three - and it has been great! Praise God from whom all blessings flow.



I promise more pictures in the near future. :)

Almost time to come home...

Things are still going really well here in Ethiopia. On Monday, we attended the farewell ceremony at Joseph’s orphanage which was very cute. All of the children that were going home with their parents were wearing traditional Ethiopian outfits and they all sang a song and then cut a cake together. They gave Joseph this knife that was about a foot long to cut the cake with, which was interesting. He knew exactly what to do, though. It was really cute. Yesterday we had our interviews at the Embassy and things went well there also. They will have our visa ready to pick up tomorrow and then we will be flying out tomorrow evening.

So far, being a mommy has been going well too. I made it through the first meal, bath, nap, bedtime, and very large BM without any problems. Joseph is such a sweet, sweet boy. For the most part he is very laid back, especially around strangers. He has certainly warmed up to grandma and I, though, and we have seen lots of laughs and giggles. We have also been chatting via google video chat with Jack too and Joseph loves seeing him. He points to his face on the screen and waves and says, “Abba” which means daddy. I can’t wait to get him home so daddy can hold him!

Super Sunday in Ethiopia

Sunday was another great day in Ethiopia! We attended a church service in the city and then in the afternoon we visited Mount Entoto (10,000 feet high!) as well as a museum. I have been trying to take in as much of the Ethiopian culture as I can so I can share it with Joseph as he grows older.

I wanted to also post some more pictures of the trip to Hosana we took on Saturday. These are pictures of the landscape on the way there as well as one of the thatch huts. We actually just pulled over to the side of the road and asked this family if we could see the inside of their home. They were more than happy to show us around. The pictures show the inside of the hut with a fire burning, a kitchen area, and a bed all in the same room! The hut next door housed 6 cows and chickens. What an experience. I was excited to get these pictures as Joseph was born in the same kind of home!

Today is day number one of being a full-time mommy! This afternoon, Joseph’s orphanage will have a farewell ceremony and then he will stay at the orphanage with us the rest of the trip. I am so excited!