Blog
Easter in Utah
3/31/2013
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Meeting Grandma
3/30/2013
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Fun with Grandpa
3/30/2013
A visit with Grandpa was our first stop upon arriving in Utah. Grandpa Walker lives in an assisted living facility in Orem, Utah. It didn't take long for Hannah, Rebecca, and Solomon to find entertainment on their own (and to think that I was a bit worried about them being entertained during our visits). Solomon immediately found a wheelchair to push around, and the girls found a different one out in the hall. It was quite a scene to see the kids pushing around the wheelchairs and a walker in circle. So sweet!
Meredith :)
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Utah Here We Come
3/29/2013
It was an EARLY morning for the Libbey family. After much packing, grocery shopping, trips to the library to borrow movies, and much more, we headed on the road about 4:30 am. Pretty amazing, for our first long road trip as a family. The kids slept with comfortable clothes overnight which made it easy to pack them up in the morning. It was actually a fun trip. Along the way, we saw lots of cows and horses, went through two tunnels, stopped at Little America for their infamous 50 cent ice cream cones, saw lots of train (one of Solomon's favorite attractions), and beautiful mountains and scenery.
Solomon did fairly well the first day but by the second day, he wanted nothing to do with his car seat. And insisted on getting out most of the way on the second day. He wanted "out"!! Hard to believe for a little boy who loves car rides!!
Meredith :)
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An Ethiopian Experience At School
3/15/2013
Hannah and Rebecca's teacher has done a wonderful job of embracing the girls culture and heritage. From the beginning, she has wanted our family to come and present about Ethiopia. And we finally had our opportunity today.
When the subject was initially brought up, Rebecca and Hannah wante ABSOLUTELY nothing to do with it!! They both informed me that they did not want to teach other kids in their class about Ethiopia or words in their language. I had been told that this might happen by other parents that had adopted children. To be honest, I was a bit surprised that it was happening so soon! Eventually, they embrace their culture.
When I further inquired with Hannah for her reasoning, she said "I am in America!" emphatically. I was able to convince Rebecca that we could have a secret language and that she could teach me words in Tingrinya. She is a great teacher. She taught me words of "tokre" for hair, "unka" for bracelet,
"hambasha" for bread, and many others. She is a sweetie and amazed at my ability to pick up on the language!!
Meredith
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Glasses for ALL
12/30/2012
While in Ethiopia this past June, we met in opthamologist who gave us information about Solomon's left eye that turns inwards. After arriving in Wisconsin, Solomon was seen by an ophthamologist. After having Solomon look through many different lenses, he determined that he was actually far sighted. The reason his eye was turning inward was because the the stronger eye (right) was actually compensating. Jim and I ordered glasses and Solomon has been wearing them ever since except when he pulls them off and throws them on the ground in a teasing manner when mom is driving the car. :)
Hannah and Rebecca were also seen by an opthamologist in December. It was determined that Hannah has a stigmatism and required glasses as well. Because the girls both spoke limited English, a machine that reads the eye was uses to assess the girl's eyes along with an examination by the eye doctor. Pretty amazing......it was accurate!! Hannah ended up getting prescription glasses and we purchased some "Wal-mart FOR DISPLAY ONLY glasses for Rebecca. She wouldn't have it any other way!!
Meredith
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First Christmas
12/25/2012
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First Day of School
11/5/2012
Hannah and Rebecca started their first day of kindergarten at St. Paul in East Troy today. Although the girls were very excited, they were also unsure about going to an unfamiliar place with new people. And mommy wasn't to sure about leaving them either (she stayed at school with them in the gym just in case). Jim and I decided to start them out slow in school. The first week, Hannah and Rebecca only went three half days and gradually we built them up to three full days and two half days by the first part of December. I will be starting back to work in December three days a week and will be able to spend afternoons on days off with all three of the kids. They are amazing girls and LOVE going to school!
Meredith
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Building Houses
10/17/2012
Rebecca, Hannah, and Solomon LOVE spending time outside! Way in our backyard near our tree line, we found some sticks, rocks, bricks, and branches with leaves. The girls quickly went to work building a house similar (I think) to what their house look like in Ethiopia. It was a amazing to see how they used the materials in nature so readily.
Meredith
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Home In America
10/6/2012
Rebecca, Hannah, Solomon, Jim, and I arrived home after 30 plus hours of traveling late in the evening on October 6th. Our kids were awesome travelers!! Solomon only fussed a couple of times. Most of the other recently adopted babies needed to be held by their recently adopted parents who stood up in the plane. Arriving home at 11 pm in the evening has also ease the our children into the time zone.
Sorry it took a bit to post. When mom and dad are not with kids, we have been SLEEPING!!
Meredith :)
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