Ethiopia continued...

This video is of SweetPea the day we got home. For those of you who are worried, she has been doing excellent since we have arrived home.

Again, I plan to give my honest thoughts on our trip and experiences. If you are one who is offended by honesty it may be best if you just watch the video.

DAY TWO, The Rejection Begins: SweetPea was great overnight and woke me up each time she needed to go 'Shint-ta-bet' (potty). It was really sweet because she would stand right next to me and say "Mommy, Shint-ta-bet" with her cute little accent. I would then assist her and she would lay back down and go right to sleep. In the morning, we ate breakfast at the Hilton's buffet... it was okay, but not worth the 300 birr (approx $30) we paid for it. We then went back to the room and played for a bit.
Once back in the room SweetPea began asking for BT. It was an almost constant request, and it was almost impossible to distract her. Finally, around 11 am Able came to pick us up and took us to the HOH. Again the drive over was disheartening. Children approached the car asking for food and money everytime we stopped. Able was very insistant that we give them nothing, but it really tore at my heart to do so. I hated it. Their little beautiful faces broke my heart and I had to wear my sunglasses to hide my tears.
Once at the HOH we were rushed by 4 beautiful children, and BT hopped into my arms and hugged me so tight I thought that my neck would break. All I could think was "man, this child really is ready for her family... I hope they come soon!" We played outside for a while with the children, then we had lunch. Again, it was fantastic traditional Ethiopian food and SweetPea ate a ton. She ate so much I thought I would burst. Her stomach was really round when she was finished and it looked so cute.
After lunch it was naptime, and SweetPea was very happy to go with BT to take a nap. Able took us on a driving tour of the city while she slept.
Addis is huge. There are very few trees, except on the palace, university, and large hotel compounds. There is also very little grass, or anything green... The air is full of smog and with the reduced amount of oxygen due to elevation (8300 feet, 3000 feet higher than Denver) it made it difficult to breath. I found myself gasping for breath often. Able first drove us through areas where he said mostly dignitaries lived. It was strange to see. Each house was on it's own little compound (most less than a 1/4 acre) and the high walls of the compounds were topped with razor wire or thousands of pieces of broken glass. Most of the houses were not visible from the road, but the two-story houses we could see were made of stucco and were brightly colored. Able then drove us through poorer areas. The buildings and houses were only separated by roads and each house appeared to be made out of corrugate tin, or thin pieces of wood. Many of the houses had no doors or windows and we could see inside fairly easy. Most of these houses seemed to contain a small metal stove-like thing and a bunch of blankets, but little else. Children were everywhere and in one area there were two young (maybe 4 or 5 years-old) boys that were washing themselves in a puddle next to the road. In another area a little girl (maybe 8 years-old) was drinking from a puddle. I was very shocked by all that I saw and although I have read many books on Ethiopia, read a ton of blogs, and have looked at every picture I could find on the internet, nothing prepared me for all that I witnessed while on that drive. Able also took us to Mesquel square. It was large, full of people, and it became apparent while we were there that the Ethiopian public reverred those that were wealthy. We were given a full speech on the wonderful wealth of an Ethiopian man who owned many textiles and realestate companies and is the 80th richest man in the world and 2nd richest man in Africa. We were also informed that this man spends much of his time in Addis. This whole monologue of information bugged me beyond belief. What I would have loved to hear was how this wealthy man was helping to pull the millions of destitute people of Ethiopia out of abject poverty, how he was setting up ways to assist individuals with education and employment; there was a never a mention of anything like that.
When we returned to the HOH, most of the kids were still asleep, so we went up and spent some time with the infants. There are a ton of babies at HOH right now, way more than referrals of which I know... They were all so cute and the nannies loved all over them. The babies all loved to be held and were ever so happy to have me pick them up and play with them. I held almost all of the babies and loved every minute of it. By then most of the children had woken up, so D and I went downstairs to play with them. There are 3 toddler boys, and a 2 year-old girl at HOH right now and they were a blast to play with. D and I each were able to feed a boy a bottle and played with all of them for quite some time(SweetPea was still sleeping.) We then went outside and played with the older kids (two boys and two girls) with the tricycles. It was pretty cute to see them all riding around and getting into to little tiffs with one another. BT, of course, would not leave my side and when it was time for me to wake SweetPea, BT cried. She was very jealous that SweetPea's parents were there and she still had to wait for hers. It was heart-wrenching. Her family is so blessed to have such a sweet, loving, intelligent little girl so excited to join their family.
Waking SweetPea was an ordeal, and she was not pleased to see us. She began doing the 'piss-off' shoulder-shrug at us, and refused to pay any attention to us. Dinner time was good, with more excellent food, but SweetPea would not allow D or I to serve her any food or drink. If she looked at us, it was only with the biggest stink-eye that is possible in such a small face and she spit at me one time with a look of total hatred.
After dinner, it was time to go back to the hotel and as soon as SweetPea figured it out she began to cry. She cried the entire way back to the Hilton, and wimpered all through the hotel. I was able to cheer her up a bit by giving her a bath, but once that was over she began refusing to look at D and I again. I was ever so happy to put her down to bed that night, and once she was asleep my tears flowed liked the Nile in rainy season. It wasn't just her rejection that caused my tears, but a combination of jet lag, missing The Bean, the so many people in need in Ethiopia, and feeling that it was very unfair that these people suffered so much and my life had been easy street for no other reason than where I was born. I stayed awake late enough that night so that I could talk to The Bean after school, and it completed brightened my dismal mood.