A big thanks to D & M for the picutres! (I’ve blocked some other children/people out of these, as we don’t have permission to post their photos…just Nicky, Gramma R (Mum), Sugar & Spice.

 Looks like everyone is having a great time. One question, though. What happened to not dressing them alike? (sorry, folks, I couldn’t resist a little sister jab, there   )  ~Ena

Great News, people! We have pictures! It was such a nice surprise to find this in my inbox this morning. Thanks to Nicky’s friend Leah for making this happen! Below is a great update from ‘Gramma’ R….the description of the pictures are from Nicky. I can’t wait until Gramma R gets back next week and I can see more pictures, and hopefully some video, too.

Oddly enough, these are the first pictures of the girls where I can’t tell them apart! Enjoy!

This is of us and their teacher.  This is the teacher they love so very much… the first few days they just cried and cried and called out her name – for like 1 1/2 hours at a time.. serious agony.  Now we avoid nap times… we’ll ahve to start reinstituting them soon, but at first it was too painful for them, since they used to sleep with their teacher every afternoon.

This is of when we first met them too – the first day.  They were SO shy… now they are bouncy and happy! and even with strangers they are less shy.. as long as they are holding my hand

These are of the girls getting their packages the first day that we met them – they were really stoked about the pictures.  They look at their photo albums several times a day, which is awesome… They can point out daddy and mommy easily – and occasionally gramma.. (and, apparently, their Auntie Ena!)

 Here are Sugar and Spice passing out in the bed the first day.  They have consistently gone to bed easily,,,, and sleep through the night until precicely 7am!
The two below are from a few days ago – you can see I have an eye infection so I am wearing my glasses… we are out in the courtyard playing with the other kids.  

Grandma’s Post:

The girls are doing very well. They have now relaxed with Nicky and seem quite attached to her. A few crying jags from Sugar helped; Spice attached much more easily. We have modified their schedule from the transition house and so have avoided some of the triggers that were creating problems. Both the girls are loving and affectionate – they love to be tickled and to play games. Nicky is holding “school” most days. It
involves pictures that she sketches of familiar word (bear, ball, etc.). These pics are taped to the back of the door and once the girls say the words a few times, they run to tag the picture. They love it. Both girls
seem very bright and eager to learn. Spice likes books and drawing more than her sister; Sugar tends to be more athletic while Spice has better fine motor co-ordination. Sugar is the bossier twin; she can be quite
determined and is adjusting to being told “no”. I don’t believe that happens at the transition house – they just redirect the energy. Spice is the more demonstrative of affection. Both, however, are typical 3 year olds
and full of fun and mischief.

Nicky has developed an eye infection (already seem a doctor and aretreating it – 30 birr or $3 to see a doctor). Between that, sleeping with two active children and all the activity here she is tired. Today she will
get a nap while I play with the girls. I had the nap a couple of days ago – sure feel better now. (One of the big ‘triggers’ for the girls was nap time, so it has been cut out for the time being…it led to much greiving, as nap time was with their teacher at the house. Nicky says they’ll phase it back in eventually, but for now it seems to be better for the girls this way ~ Ena)

So far, our tourist activities are limited. It’s been more important to just spend time with the girls. We’ve been to a shawl-making co-op, a pottery co-op, a silver store, a coffee shop where they sell bags of
beans, etc. and the Ethiopian immigration. The paperwork is coming along -we now have the ethiopian birth certificates and taken pictures for their Ethiopian passports. They should be ready on Tuesday or Wednesday. Then Martha, from the transition house will send them to Nairobi where the Canadian
passports or visa will be issued and sent back to us. Then Nicky and Jrock can take
them home. Jrock is booking a flight here – he’ll arrive as I leave. We may take a couple of day trips out of the city to see some of the countryside but Nicky and Jrock have some longer trips planned now the girls have settled down. I am looking forward to seeing some of the country.

Addis is a strange city. Poverty and wealth go side by side. However even in the poorest places, the trees and many shrubs are preserved. The laws are quite strict about leaving the 3 types of eucalyptus trees alone.

The smog (very bad, with vehicles blowing black smoke in our faces when we travel on the streets and with heavy industrial smog as well) hasn’t bothered me as much as I thought it would. I take extra Benydril and Advil all day long and it keeps the head aches, etc. at bay. I think that’s why I am tired all the time.

We went swimming at the Hilton yesterday. Girls not too certain about getting in the pool but Nicky fanangled them in up to their necks (on her knee). Afterward, they were really hungry so spring for the brunch bufet. At $34 US for Nicky & I, we won’t do that again. Sure enjoyed it though. Everyone is entitled to one big splash! Most of our meals cost us $10 to 20 (100 to 200 birr).

Today, the girls insisted on putting on their bathing suits again. Nicky tossed them in the tub with them on and they went “swimming”. Had a ball.

Hope you all enjoyed this as much as I did! I’ve turned into a bit of a blubbering idiot lately, it seems, as the unexpected pictures, (particularly the ultra cute sleeping pic and the ones of Nicky and the girls in the courtyard, ) had me in tears…yet again ;-D  ~Ena

Today, I got to speak to my nieces for the first time (over the phone, obviously)! Yay! A very good way to start a Thursday!

I had a nice long conversation with Nicky today (it was evening in Addis), and we spoke a lot about the girls and how they are adjusting, how she’s adjusting, and what they’ve been up to.

I guess the twins are a little hyped-up today, because they all spent the whole day at the hotel, waiting for the call to go pick up their birth certificates and passports. Unfortunately, the power cut out in the middle of the printing of the birth certificates, but they should be able to pick them up tommorrow. Then they’ll have all the paperwork to send to Nairobi and can relax a bit and go for more day trips while they wait for the girls’ canadian passports. Things seem to be moving along really well, though (Thanks to everyone in Canada, Ethiopia and Kenya for making that happen!), and we’re hoping that they will be home sometime in August.

Nicky says that the girls are adjusting really well. The first few days were difficult, since they don’t remember any home besides the transition home. Their whole world was in that courtyard. They had some serious grieving in the first couple of days over leaving their teacher, but are now bonding really well to Nicky. Nicky was laughing at my Mum, saying that she was taking advantage of Nicky being on the phone to get some hugs in with Sugar and Spice. Certainly, they seemed to be having fun in the background, with joyful toddler screams from tickling and playing hide-and-go-seek under the bed covers. I guess that when Mummy is available, Grandma doesn’t get much hugging. (Which is really good, as anyone who’s done any reading about attachment issues knows) Apparently, they went for a long walk the other day, and part of the way there, each girl was being carried by Mummy and Grandma. On the way back, though, they were both too tired to walk, but Mummy had to carry them both – so she had one on the front and one on the back for about 10 blocks! I hope Nicky’s been working out!

Nicky says that initially, the girls seemed to be exactly as we thought, with Sugar being the shy, less risk-taking of the girls and Spice being the outgoing, more devil-may-care of the two. But as they are getting to know each other, she says that they are revealing their true natures more and more. Sugar is the one most often in charge, and she also has more of a temper than her sister. Spice is more constant and even-tempered,  and does occasionally take charge, but more often lets her sister lead the way. She seems to be the more trusting of the two.

Both girls are quite bright, and Nicky says they’ve picked up about 25-30 words in English already. Wonderful how sponge-like little minds are. She’s discovered that their best days are the days they spend some time at the hotel, but also go out for a bit of a day-trip. Days when they are either in or out of the hotel all day can be a bit rough.

The girls are quite well behaved, but they are still toddlers. Sugar has thrown a couple of tantrums, but nothing much different from any other 3 year old. They are energetic, but not in a really physical way- they are alert and need to be kept busy, but they don’t like to get dirty or roughhouse much. They like to draw (80% of the ‘amoebas’ [Nicky's word, not mine ;D ] they draw are Daddy), sing, talk, learn, and most of all to play dress-up and pretend. There is a constant stream of chatter between the two of them. I could hear the girls in the background while we spoke, and they are definetly little chatterboxes! There was constant conversation going on between the two of them (I can’t tell, because it’s all Amharic, but Nicky says they’re actually conversing, not just making noises), singing, and lots of laughter. It was so wonderful to hear them laugh.

Nicky put each of them on the phone with me, and each said ‘Hello Ena’ and then spoke to me in Amharic while I spoke to them in English. Apparently, I was so hilarious to Sugar that she was in stitches after our conversation. As best as Nicky could figure out, it was because I sound just like her and Grandma. So we know that Sugar has a sense of humour! I’ll admit that I was in tears speaking to them for the first time and hearing Nicky being her new Mama-bear self. I’ve been waiting for a long time to hear that. They each came on the phone again at the end of the conversation, said ‘caio’ and gave me a phone-kiss. Tears again. Apparently, they love talking on the phone, especially to Daddy. I’m sure Daddy loves it too.

I asked Nicky how the transition was for her – did she feel like their Mummy right away, or like she was babysitting someone else’s wonderful girls? She said that she instantly felt that they were her babies, though she feels like a mum-in-training, as she’s learning a lot! She said she had worried about everything on the way over; from bum-wiping to consoling them in the difficult transition time, but that it’s all coming very naturally.

One of the things that she was somewhat surprised at was the positive support of strangers in Addis. I guess it took a bit of getting used to, but over there, it’s quite common to have perfect strangers come up and kiss a baby. Nicky’s girls get even more attention because they are twins. What she was really surprised at, though, is how many of the people that come over and give them kisses on the cheek then tell her a big thank you for adopting the twins and giving the girls a better life in Canada. They are being genuine, she said, and it’s nice to know that they feel that way. She says she wishes that some of the people over here who are so negative about international adoptions could see that.

More news when I get it…

Ena

Good news from Nicky this morning.  A representative from the transition home went to the meeting the ministry of womens affairs was having in Addis and got the paperwork signed.  We should have their Ethiopian passports in a couple of days and then everything will be sent to Nairobi.  I am holding off travel bookings for now until we hear how things are being processed at the high commission because we hope that I will be able to travel back with everyone.

Nicky and R are well.  They are settling Sugar and Spice into a new routine.  This involves regular eating, play, and nap times.  The kids seem more settled and have really bonded to Nicky.  I have talked to them on the phone multiple times which mostly involves me talking and them listening and occasionally saying “Daddy” or amharic words.  Nicky and R are quite exhausted by the end end of the day and collapse into a long slumber in the evening.

I am organizing a few odds and ends around home.  As many of you know we have had some large fires in our area, but fortunately for us, they are across the lake and I have not been evacuated.  But, we do know families in the evacuation area and wish them the best and a speedy and safe return to their homes!

I talked to Nicky last night and things are going well.  A lawyer from BDO dunwoody visited with the parents yesterday in Addis.  An anonymous corporate donor has agreed to fund the transistion home until all waiting for VISA and pre court children are home.  This is really great news to everyone who is waiting and worrying at home! At the present time, there is no need for donations because of the sponsorship provided.  The lawyer indicated to Nicky that the high commission in Nairobi has met and will be doing everything possible to rush Visas.  Already several Visas came in on Friday and families will be travelling soon to pick up their children.   Our documents are currently in Addis and will hopefully be sent to Nairobi soon.

Sugar and Spice are doing well.  Overall, they are adjusting well, but do have some setbacks from time to time which is to be expected.  Nicky says they are very intelligent and have already picked up a dozen words.  She said they are extremely neat and tidy and can eat a bowel of cornflakes in bed without spilling any.  They can pick me out in a photo book and kiss the page and say “Daddy”.  I talked to them a little on the phone last night. 

As an aside, the DVR I just bought for the satellite just paid for itself.  I was able to watch a small interview with Nicky and see her and the kids together in video for the first time.  What a treat!  Nicky wanted to do the interview for me to see the kids because she can’t get pictures to me.  Nicky was on CBC Newsworld weekend morning edition.

I have booked time off work and I am planning to travel after the August long weekend.  Hopefully the Visas come while I am there and we can travel home together with the kids!

-JRock

I had the pleasure this morning to speak to my Mum in Addis for the first time since she and Nicky left. It was evening there, and Nicky was putting her girls to bed for the very first time. How wonderful! So here is the news…

First of all, the news regarding the situation in Addis and the transition house. According to Mum, Martha is now working independently to get paperwork completed for the families who have been through court and those with referrals. They have shut down the baby room in order to keep costs down. Children without referrals are being sent back to their original orphanages, but they are not transferring children with referrals. At the moment, it looks as though they have the money to keep running for about a month, thanks in large part to Martha’s contingency fund and some money donated by Sue.

For those wishing to send donations to the transition house, thank you but no thank you is the message at the moment. The house is not accepting donations at this time, as they are being very careful to set up with an accountant to make sure everything is kept above board. They are concerned that if they start accepting donations, the Ethiopian government may pull their liscence. So once again, thank you for the thought, but please help in other ways.

The main issue is still getting the paperwork processed for passports and visas as quickly as possible. Please continue to write letters and emails and contact your local MPs, MLAs, Jason Kenney and Deb Matthews. As Nicky put it, we need to think not only of the parents and children in Ethiopia, but those who have the hardest time of all right now, the parents here at home. Jrock did a wonderful job on the radio this morning, and his stoic and well-spoken manner makes it easy to forget how very hard this is for him – that he’s missed being there when his wife meets their children for the first time. It’s important that we work to make sure that parents like him get to be with their children as soon as possible.

Okay, enough serious stuff! Here’s the news as it pertains to Nicky, Sugar and Spice! As I said, when I was speaking to Mum, they were getting ready for bed. They were brushing their teeth for the first time – they weren’t too sure about the toothpaste, but they were thrilled to have their own toothbrushes, a different colour for each of them, so they could tell whose was whose.

Here is the other stuff that Mum had to say about them:

They are tiny! They are wearing a size two, but it’s very big on them. Mum was congratulating them on climbing up onto the bed by themselves while I was on the phone.

Their teacher says that she figures they are about 3 1/2 years old (about 6 months older than we thought), and very bright.

They can count to 4 in English.

They are being very quiet right now (big changes!), but are apparently normally very chatty.

They are very strong-willed, as Nicky discovered today when they were afraid to come into the Weygoss.

Nicky is in love.

More updates as I get them…

Ena

If you want to listen to my interview tomorrow here is the link,  I will be on shortly after 7am PST.  Looks like Alysia will be there as well.

http://www.cbc.ca/daybreaksouth/

Good news for those of us through the court and for Nicky in Addis

http://lfpress.ca/newsstand/News/Local/2009/07/16/10160731.html

Hopefully their actions speak as loud as their words.

-J Rock

Well today was the day we had been working towards for so long!  I was able to talk to Nicky briefly about Sugar and Spice.  She said they are very SMALL.  She can easily carry both of them.  Spice’s hand wraps entirely around her thumb.  She said they are even cuter in person.  They are definitely twins, when one cries the other cries, when one has to pee the other one does.  Spice is more outgoing and Sugar is very shy.  They were really scared and seeked the comfort of their caregivers etc.  Nicky says they seeked out the men for comfort more, so hopefully they will bond to me well.  Nicky was playing a game with them with a balloon.  Tomorrow, they will pick them up forever!!!

Nicky and R went to the Canadian consulate in Addis to speak with the minister there.  He said he was well aware of the situation and his mom had MySpaced him about it as well, LOL.  Unfortunatly, emergency passports will not be able to issued from there but he is working on the situation.  Everything is going to have to be done through the high commission in Nairobi.

In regards to our adoption, we are waiting for the ministry of womens affairs to come back from a two week training session in order to produce paperwork that needs to be completed in order for Ethiopian passports to be produced and sent to Nairobi.

I have been in communication with our MP and am going to our MLAs office this afternoon.  I also have an interview with CBC radio in Kelowna tomorrow morning (wish me luck).  Nicky was on CBC radio this morning (apparently).

Fortunately I have had the last two days off work, and I am holding up ok.  I really wish I wasn’t here though, but soon my day will come too.

-J Rock

Family and friends,

Please take the time to read through this petition and sign it if you support it.  Although Nicky and I are through court, I can’t imagine how devastating it must be to those who have not received a referral yet.  Something needs to be done to help these families dreams of an ethiopian adoption to be facilitated.

-J Rock

http://www.ipetitions.com/petition/SaveOurDreamofAdoptingInternatio/index.html

Well folks, howdy from Ethiopia!  Mom and I met another lady K and her sister at the airport
 in Frankfurt – we saw each other’s Canadian passports.  Many more parents are on the way….
We were picked up by Solomon… he and the rest of the staff are not getting paid but are sticking around for as long as they could. Apparently Imagine’s previous director arrived a day or two ago and bought food for 8-10 days – and gas for a few days.  But warning to parents coming… what used to be free may not be since, for example, Solomon won’t have a paid for van in 2 days.  So we’lll have to pay for his servics (that’s moms recommendations, not from him…)

Speaking of tomorrow!!!!
God, I REALLY wish Jrock was here – I was thinking of him all day for the last two days, wishing we were here together…Tomorrow I meet our babies.  Solomon says they aren’t going anywhere – so tomorrow I will meet them… and then the next day I will pick them up and take them home.  THAT will be something  It sort of hit me when we climbed on the Luftansa flight and there were all these Ethio kids and one little 2-3 year old girl in the seat behind me  .  Tomorrow I will see them!!!

There is an avalanche of parents arriving.

If you are still at home, this is what you can do -  families of parents, please do too:

CALL YOUR MP… tell them the kids who are legally children of Canadians need to get emergency passports and get home… or at least speed up the citizenship process in Nairobi, so people like me aren’t here 3 months waiting for the High Commison in Nairobi to process the paperwork at the usual speed….

Then
CALL THE MINISTER OF IMMIGRATION and say the same.  Get these kids home in a timely fashion

Then

CALL ONTARIO MINISTRY FOR CHILDREN AND YOUTH provincial minister, Deb Matthews
and tell her that the bankruptcy accountants need to get food and operating money to Ethiopia for the kids and that visas need to be expedited so people can get their kids home (also relieving pressure financially on the agency there…

I’ll keep you posted… I’ve had 4 hours of sleep in the last 48 hours.  I had a hard time sleeping on the plane – so anxious – and mom snores like a bear. 
Cheers
Nicky

—–Well looks like July 16 will be the first day we meet the kids.  It is also Nicky and I’s 4th anniversary!!——J Rock

Hello All, this is Nicky’s sister, Ena. I am posting for Nicky because, as you know from Jrock’s post, she is currently en route to Ethiopia with our Mum.

First of all, thank you to all for your heartfelt thoughts and prayers (atheist or otherwise ;~D ). They are very much appreciated. Nicky and Jrock’s family are all a little shell-shocked at the moment, to say the least. Just a few days ago we were celebrating finally getting through court, and thank goodness they did!

Nicky and Jrock are both holding up remarkably well. Those of you who know them know that Nicky’s first instinct was to leap to action…which is why she will be the first among many to arrive in Ethiopia to claim her daughters. Jrock is being…well, a rock! Where Nicky is action in the face of chaos, Jrock is the calm in the eye of her storm.

Secondly, the real reason I am posting. Nicky would probably articulate this much more clearly than I, but here we go…

As many of you will have seen, the first of many articles around the Imagine fiasco has hit the web: the Globe and Mail came out with it this morning. If you haven’t seen it, here is a link:

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/adoption-agencys-bankruptcy-devastates-families/article1217223/

While the article speaks to the monetary loss that many couples are facing in the wake of Imagine’s bankruptcy announcement, it does little to speak to the emotional loss of those couples in the pre-referral and referral stages of adoption. Our hearts go out to all of you.

It also fails to speak to the situation that families that have passed court now find themselves in. Nicky is lucky, in many ways. She can stay in Ethiopia as long as is necessary for Sugar & Spice to get their citizenship documents. Obviously this isn’t preferable, as it is hard both financially and emotionally for everyone involved. Jrock doesn’t know when he will be able to meet his daughters, and Nicky is essentially going to be a single mom in a foreign country! But many families will risk losing jobs the longer they have to stay in Ethiopia, as well as dealing with the rest of this. And from what I understand, it isn’t just families adopting from Ethiopia that are affected, either.

While I know that many of you are as shell-shocked as we are, or dealing with the possibility of an incredible loss, I want to urge all of you to follow Nicky’s lead and take action. Please write to your MP, Canadian Immigration, and whoever else you can think of to urge the government to support these families by ensuring a speedy process for those who have been through court. We are asking that in the wake of this devastating announcement by Imagine, they issue emergency passports and visas to all of the children who have been through the court process.  This would allow families to minimize the long-term impacts, both financially and emotionally, of this chaotic time. I am also urging the government to put priority on these cases in the citizenship process in order to minimize the wait for families wishing to bring their children home and have this all put behind them.

These children are already vulnerable and have experienced great loss. Allow them to come home as quickly as possible to start building their new lives with their loving parents.

This is J Rock posting for Nicky.  Today has been quite possibly the most craziest, gut wrenching, scary, and exciting days ever.  I wanted to do this post to keep our family updated and friends because we have not had the time to contact everyone.  We learned this morning of terrible news regarding our adoption agency in Canada, Imagine adoption.  Imagine adoption is officially bankrupt, for what reason we are not entirely sure.  The accounts the transistion home relies on to feed and care for our children have been frozen.  

 Nicky and I had serious concerns regarding our children and where they would be taken care of in the coming weeks, therefore, we decided that it would be best if Nicky travel to Ethiopia immediately.  We do not know what will happen when she gets there, but we are hoping that Sugar and spice will be in her care withing the next few days.  Nicky is travelling with her mom, R. 

The plan for now is that Nicky will stay with the kids and her mom in Addis and try to get the court docs on there way to Nairobi to complete the citizenship process.  She will wait there indefinitely until they can travel home.  R will be there for 3 weeks.  If Nicky gets the kids, I will be travelling there in 3-4 weeks.  Nicky could be there for months, we really don’t know

Although I am not a religious man, I would ask you that you keep them in your thoughts and prayers.  I will be keeping the blog updated while she is gone to keep everyone informed

-J rock

To be released at Christmas this year – finally! She is from the south – New Orleans – and her name is Princess Tiana. Have a look at the preview below!

I’m actually getting pretty darn good at making injera – I’ve moved beyond the “cheater recipe” to make the authentic stuff – fermented yeast and all.  Actually, it’s still a big of a juggle with the make-up of the flours, but my Ethiopian friend in Kelowna says that she is always playing with the flours as well.

Anyways, here is ROUGHLY my family-sized injera recipe – it’s more an art than a science.

1 1/2 cups self-rising flour
1/2 cup millet flour
1/2 cup rice flour
1/2 cup oat flour
1/2 cup rye flour
1/2 cup wholewheat flour
2 tablespoons yeast
6 cups warm water
1 tablespoon roasted fenugreek powder

Mix all except the fengreek together – then sprinkle the fengreek on top.  Cover the bowl (not air tight!) and let it sit on the counter for 3 days.  Seriously! You can stir it every once and while if you want.

On the day you are making it, thin the batter with water to thin “crepe-like” consistency – like thin pancake mix. Cook big pancake-sized injeras on a non-stick griddle (I use my cast iron pan on low heat) with a lid on top.  Basically, as soon as the top is not doughy, it’s done.  You shouldn’t have any crustiness – they should just be soft.  Once they have cooled for a minute, you can roll it. If you aren’t eating right away – store in plastic wrap in the fridge, as they get dry.

Another tip – if you can’t find fenugreek powder, grind the fenugreek seeds in your coffee grinder – same goes for millet flour!

Serve with your favorite stew or Ethiopian dish!

He likes it! He really likes it!(Leftover Ethiopian food from the freezer and some fresh injera out on the deck…