A Little Taste of Home and Noodles

Hi Everybody, Micah here. Yesterday was such a busy day! My Grandma and Bubba came from Sheboygan and took me out for lunch and shopping after my nap; I had a great time, and couldn't stop talking about them. I really missed them, because last night was the first night I didn't sleep through the night - too busy rehashing the day's events! Last night I gobbled up my meal of spaghetti and meatballs...as you can see, I can do it all by myself. Had a bath and then I didn't even want to finish watching Elmo (!!!), just wanted to sleep.

I'm still doing great, but I can't wait until they all get home, because I really miss my Mommy, Daddy and big sister. Sunday is almost here!

Lots of love on this last day of 2009 and catch you later,

Micah

Eat, Play, Sleep, Repeat

Hi Everybody, Micah here. Yesterday was pretty uneventful, so I decided to take a day off from blogging. Well, we are on day 4 and I'm still doing great! Less than a week until Mommy, Daddy and Sit(ota) come home. I can't wait, and that reminds me that I need to start working on my surprise for them. I was very excited to hear that Mommy and Daddy sent an email to say that they are there safely and enjoying their time with Sitota.

I am having a great time. This morning, my "first" breakfast consisted of three waffles, among other things. I love saying waffles over and over again for Kris. I've been running around like crazy and taking 2 1/2 hour naps. I would sleep longer but Kris keeps waking me up because she says she wants me to get a good night's sleep. That hasn't been a problem either! I can't wait to tell Mommy and Daddy what a big boy I am! I no longer what to be held or rocked when I go to bed. I just say "sleep", crawl into bed, and fall right asleep (ok, I do like it when Kris rubs my back and my temple, just like Mommy told her to do)!

Hope you all are enjoying these last days of 2009. Lots of love and catch you all tomorrow,

Micah

Bouncing off the Walls

Hi Everybody, Micah here. Day 2 away from Mommy and Daddy and doing great! Got back from my trip to Sheboygan, and I was so tired that I quickly wrote this information down so Kris could post it tonight.

I had a nice time meeting my friends' family. Because of all of the rain, we couldn't go for the horse-drawn sleigh ride, but we did go jump in a bouncy castle. I might have cried when I first saw it, but, needless to say, I overcame my fear and would still be jumping if they would have let me! After, we got to feed the pygmy goats, pot-bellied pigs and the llama (they would grab my ice cream cones filled with food right out of my gloves...whole!).

I hope all of you had a great Christmas. Lots of love and catch you all tomorrow,

Micah

Merry Christmas from Micah

Hi Everyone - Micah here. As all of you probably know, my Mommy and Daddy are on their way to Ethiopia to get my big sister Sitota! I am very excited, and, of course, I miss them very much. I will be updating you all later today, but for now I'm in Sheboygan at my friends' Grandma and Grandpa's house. We decided to all come yesterday for Christmas and sleep over. Mommy and Daddy would be SO proud of me; I went to bed at 8 o'clock last night and woke up at 7 this morning -- I'm such a big boy, hehe!

Lots of love and catch you all later!

Micah

P.S. Lucky for Mommy and Daddy, they were already in Detroit and it was not their plane that had the little "incident" yesterday.

Merry Christmas!

In less than 12 hours we will be leaving for the airport to fly to Ethiopia and bring home our daughter. I am still in amazement at how this has all come together. Last year at this time I would have never thought I would be flying back to Ethiopia so soon to add to our family! Amazing!! We want to wish you and yours a Very Merry Christmas and a Blessed New Year! See you in 2010, when we return as a family of 4! Melissa

Ready, Set, Go

Last week is kind of a blur. We spent everyday rushing to get things done so we can be ready for our trip. Spent lots of time on the phone with the travel agent, who was finally able to get us flights...but we have to leave on Christmas Day! Set up all the arrangements for the sitters (Micah and Pepe'). Called the National Visa Center several times to try to verify Sitota's Visa 37 had the correct information on it...the list goes on and on. The good news is that the list is much shorter for this week, good thing because we are leaving in 4 days!!! We also had time to get together with family this past weekend to celebrate an early Christmas. Was great to see everyone. Micah is very into opening presents this year and LOVED all his new toys :). Have a blessed Christmas and Very Happy New Year blog friends!! Melissa

Expect the Unexpected

If there is one thing we have learned throughout these adoption journeys, it is to never plan on anything. Today, for example, we got an email saying that all of our documents are filed with the Embassy and they issued us an embassy date of December 31st!!! That is 2 weeks earlier than we thought we would be leaving. We are excited, but now we have to put everything into high gear. Calling airlines, getting the sitter lined up (for Micah and Pepe'), canceling Christmas at our house (since we won't be here that day!)...the list goes on and on. We are so excited to go and get our little princess!!! Melissa

Our Daughter (take 2!)

We got word today that we DID pass court in Ethiopia!!! We will travel soon to go and bring our little girl home. Here is a picture of Sitota Eden Troedel to bring a smile to your face!!! Melissa

Has it really been a year already????

Today we celebrate Micah's 1 year famiversary!!! For those of you who are not familiar with that adoption term, it means that one year ago today is the first time our baby boy was placed in our arms. I can not believe that it has been a year...where did the time go?!?!?! Our baby boy has grown into a little man already. When we first saw him he could barely sit up by himself, had not had anything to eat other than formula, had no teeth and only said Ba-ba. Now he runs circles around us, eats us out of house and home, still a little slow on the teeth thing but is only missing 4, and says over 127 words!!!

We had a wonderful family day together, thanks to Scott getting a snow day! We started by heading outside in the snow and "helping" dad clear off the 9.5 inches of snow. After playing outside for awhile, we headed in to decorate our Famiversary cookies...YUMMY! The afternoon had more time for outside fun...this time mommy got to pull Micah around on his sled, LOVED IT! We had pizza for lunch per Micah's request and he wanted to go to 'Donalds for a hamburger and apples for dinner. Here is a pic from our first meeting and also some from today! Enjoy - Melissa

First Snow Fun

Today we woke up to a blanket of white snow on the ground. Micah was too little last year to get out and enjoy the snow, but he was so wanting to get outside today. This afternoon, armed with boots and snow pants, we headed to his friends Emily and Grace to enjoy some fun in the snow. He was so cute trying to walk straight in his boots and bulky pants. He has been obsessed with lawnmowers all summer, and the snow did not stop him. He got out the mower and mowed his way through the snow.

After playing outside we went in for cookies and hot cocoa. This was his first taste of hot cocoa and to make it more special he drank it from his first attempt at a big boy cup. He LOVED the cocoa and did not let a drop fall. He was so proud! I am usually not a snow person, but I could not help but have a good time playing with my baby boy!!

Santa Land!

All Micah has talked about lately is Santa. I had been planning on bringing him by my parents today to go to Santa Land, where I used to visit Santa when I was little! In anticipation of the Big visit, Micah drew him a picture and was practicing his smiles and what he would say to Santa. He had me write down what he wanted from Santa : Pizza, Pans and Glue ( for crafts, not eating or sniffing or whatever those naughty kids do with it!!!).

So today we headed down, letter in one hand and camera in the other. He liked looking at Santa's Elk (aka reindeer), the worker elf's, and loved talking with Bruce the Spruce the talking Christmas tree. We stood in line for about 35 minutes and then it was finally Micah's turn....he got one look at Santa and started screaming, crying and clinging to me yelling "ALL DONE!". When Santa would ask him a question he would answer in between crying...managed to get a picture of me on Santa's lap and Micah on my lap saying "Cheese" in between crys :) When he was asked if he liked seeing Santa he said..."YEAH!". That says it all!! Enjoy these pictures of pre-Santa sighting! Melissa

Journey to Bethlehem

We had a fun family night tonight. We started by going to see a live nativity at one of the local churches. The program was called: Journey to Bethlehem. You were led on a guided tour leading to Bethlehem. On the way we met the Angel, the Wise men and Shepherds. We then went through the village where the people offered us bread, fruit and drink. We watched the people of the village make candles, bake bread, spin on the pottery wheel, and do needlework. We were included in the census and there was no room in the inn, so we were led to the stable where we were able to meet Mary, Joseph and the baby Jesus. Micah LOVED it, he kept saying, "Baby Jesus!". After the journey, we went to a local pizza place. Our credit union gave us free coupon, can't beat that. We ended the night with a drive around town looking at lights. Micah loves when we can find a Santa. Enjoy the pictures of our journey to baby Jesus. - Melissa

More of the Photo Shoot!

Photo Shoots

Recently Micah has become obsessed with pictures. He does funny smiles and says cheese whenever he sees a camera. He also likes to take pictures and I must admit, this kid has talent! Below are some he took over the last few days, as well as a few cute ones of the little man :) Enjoy - Melissa

Comfort in Numbers

While we are still trying to wrap our heads and hearts around the news about Sitota's adoption, we are finding that we are NOT alone in this journey. We have found so much support and love from family and friends, even those people we have never actually met! It is amazing to have such support and we are truly blessed! We also recently learned there is another family in the area going through the same situation...and they are not even using the same agency! They were told they passed court on November 2nd, only to find out on the 11th that they had not passed and instead had a new court date of December 1st. They too are waiting on paperwork from MOWA (the department that oversees adoptions in Ethiopia). There are several people from their agency in the same situation. Though I am sadden to see anyone go through this, it does kind of give me some comfort that we are not alone...also renewed hope in our agency, since this problem is not with them and instead is something out of their control. So, we wait...and pray that all goes well on December 10th and our princess is in our arms FOREVER soon!!! Melissa

Meet Our Princess!!!(revised 11/16/2009)

Today we got a upsetting call from our agency. It appears that Sitota did NOT pass court last week as they had thought. They got word today that they are still waiting on something from MOWA and we have now been issued a new court date of December 10th. This means we will not be traveling for an Embassy date of December 17th and it is very likely that we will not get to travel until mid-January to bring her home. We are still processing all of our thoughts, but needless to say we are frustrated, confused, disappointed, sad, scared....yet we are also HOPEFUL!!! Pray for things to go well on the 10th!!! Melissa

PINK

One of the best things about adoption are the wonderful families you meet along the way. There were several BFAS families that recently traveled to be united with their kiddos and they were kind enough to LOVE on Sitota for us. They brought her care packages and got us some GREAT pictures. She looks so HAPPY, I can not wait to bring her home!! She told one of the families that her favorite color is pink...AWESOME!! We are told that she is a very loving and happy little girl. From the pictures that we have seen, that seems to be an accurate description!
We have been talking to Micah a lot about Sitota and how he is now a little brother. He loves to go in her room and makes sure her Barbies have cute dresses on and shoes...they MUST have shoes. He said that he wants to cook pizza and pancakes with her :)
It will be amazing to watch their relationship grow! Melissa

We passed....well sort of

We had court in Ethiopia for Sitota yesterday and our agency called to tell us we did pass. However, there was an error in our paperwork, so they will not issue our adoption decree until next week when the corrected paperwork is handed in. This means that our adoption DID go through and we are now the parents of a little Ethiopian princess...but, you will have to wait to see any pictures of her until we get the adoption decree :) So hold tight for another week and then I promise we will post TONS of pics of our beautiful little girl. This also means that we now know our travel dates: We will travel December 12-19 and have her embassy appointment on December 17th! Another GREAT Christmas present!!!! Melissa

We have a Date!!!

We received our court date today...NOVEMBER 6th!!! That's right, 2 weeks away!!! We will keep you posted as to when our embassy date will be :) Melissa

Fall Fun!

This weekend we got to enjoy some family time at a cute little area farm. We went to a place called Glacier Ridge and they have many exotic animals. When you pay your admission, which was next to nothing, you get loaves of bread to feed the animals along the way. Included in the animals we met and fed were: camels, horses, elk, cattle, bison and an ostrich. At the end of the trail they had a pumpkin patch and Micah loved walking through the pumpkins to pick the perfect one. It was a Great way to spend a beautiful fall day!!

Potty Story

Micah has been spending a lot of time with his little friend Emily ( of Em-ma-nee,if you ask Micah). Anyhow, she is older and is potty trained. He has seen her using the big potty and has become obsessed with talking about pottys and "poop". Today I had to use the potty and he said that he wanted to poop and brought me his potty chair. He had already pooped for the morning, but I thought why not let him sit there :) Well, my little man actually went pee-pee on the potty!! I know that it was just a fluke...but it was still too cute not to tell! I will post some updated pictures soon, although probably not on the potty!! Melissa

This week...

Well, the courts in Ethiopia will re-open tomorrow. This means we should hear of our court date soon! YIPPEE!!!
Also, Micah moved into his big boy bed this week. It is a train bed that he got from his cousin, RJ. We are praying this helps with his sleep issues, figure it can't make it any worse! I will keep you posted and also post some pics of him in his new bed soon!!! Melissa

Still Waiting...

Wanted to update everyone on where we are with Sitota's adoption. We have all our paperwork in Ethiopia and have been filed for court. This is GREAT news!! The bad news is that the courts have decided to remain closed until October 13th. This means that we will not hear anything about when our court hearing will be until after the 13th. The court dates are expected to be about 4-8 weeks out when they do start issuing them. That would have us traveling in December or early January to bring home our Princess! Please pray for a speeding and successful court date!!! Melissa

SIX

Most brilliant child ever!!

"She is very sweet...."

We got the most wonderful new pictures of Sitota last night from a family that just got back from picking up their new little bundle of joy. She also said the following about her time with Sitota:
"She is very sweet. I was blowing bubbles with the kids and holding the wand so they could blow. So it was really hard to get them to take turns and she was helping me by pointing out who was next and was telling me their name and then telling the others to wait. She's very happy and wanted to show me her High School Musical shirt. I would point to a child and try to remember their name and she would giggle and tell me the right name. I'm glad you're close to being filed for court. She will be very excited to come home."
I can not wait to go and bring our little girl home!!!!!! Melissa

On the Way

We got word today from BFAS that our updated home study is officially on its way to Ethiopia as of yesterday!! Yippee. That is the last document that was needed to file us for court. There is still some confusion as to when the courts are going to re-open...they either opened yesterday or are going to open on October 6th. The office in MN is waiting to hear back from the staff in ET as to when the courts are open. What we do know is that we are one HUGE step closer to bringing home our little princess!! We have gotten some GREAT pictures recently from families that have traveled and are going to be getting more soon!!! YEAH!!! Melissa

Our Forever Family T-shirt design!

Happy Day

Today is a very special day in the Troedel house. It is Scott's 35th birthday...that's right, he is half way to 70 :) It also happens to be Ethiopian New Year, so it is now the year 2002! The Ethiopian calendar is based on the beliefs of the Ethiopian Orthodox Church and therefore differs from the calendar used in western countries (such as the U.S.). A notable difference is that the Ethiopian calendar is approximately seven years and eight months behind the western calendar - January 1 according to the Ethiopian calendar falls on our September 11. So if we lived in Ethiopia Scott would only be 28 today :). Micah surprised Scott by learning to say Happy Day Da-da and also made him a special present (something he has worked on for 3 weeks now!). Micah also wanted to buy his daddy a pizza for his birthday (it is Micah's favorite thing), but I talked him into getting him Dots instead. He also got a new netbook! Happy Birthday Luvey!!! Melissa

Email that changed our lives!

It was one year ago today that we received the email that would change our lives forever. It was our referral for Muse (Micah)! It was LOVE at first sight! Who would have thought that just 3 months later we would hold our son for the first time. What a year this has been...who could ask for anything more?!!??! Melissa

First day on the job

Today Micah started his first job (with a little help from Mom!). He let's out Lewy, the neighbor dog, while his owners are back to work. Micah carrys the poop bag and I walk Lewy. We walk Lewy around our neighborhood and after he does his deed, we take him home. Micah then throws Lewy a treat and takes the poo to the trash. He was very proud of his job and clapped when he was done. I asked him if he likes his new job and he said "Yeah". Here are some pics! Melissa

The stats are in!!

Micah had his 18 month wellness visit yesterday and the doctor was Very impressed with all the progress he has made over his 8 months home with us. He now weighs 24 pounds (40th%), height is 34.25 inches (95th%), and head size is the 97th%!! He asked if Micah is saying at least 8-10 words...try about 26 words!! That is how many Scott and I could come up with, I am sure there are more since he adds more everyday :). He is also putting words together like, "Da-da Banana" and "Cloth Please". He LOVES playing with his doll, Joe. Here are some pictures of his play time the other day...note that the one where he is holding Joe over his head looks like he is going to throw him, but he is actually trying to get him on the firetruck so they can ride together!
Have a great weekend!! Melissa

Can you help???

We are trying to raise enough money to purchase 6 mattresses for the care center before we travel in November/December. They currently have only 1 twin size mattress and 5 cribs for all the kiddos to share. Being that they average around 25 kids, you can see where this would not be enough space. It will cost about $80 per mattress and we are trying to raise enough to buy 6. We will take the $ with us when we go and will personally go and purchase the mattresses and post pictures here so you can all see how much you helped. All donations are tax deductible and our agency would send you a receipt for taxes. Please post me a comment with your email address if you are able to help and I will send you further information. If you are not able to give a monetary donation, please help us by praying we are able to meet our goal. Thank you!! Have a Great weekend!! Melissa

A few words and a few Pictures!!

Thank you to all who have commented expressing your support of our journey to bring our daughter home. You all mean so much to us and we look forward to sharing our journeys with you all. We found out the courts in Ethiopia are only going to close for 2 weeks this year instead of 6, this is Very good news as that means we can be filed for a court date sooner!!! We got our appointments for getting our finger prints done for USCIS and this will take place on September 9th!!

Micah is doing Great. He is talking SOOOOO much now. His favorite words are: cheese, truck, bye, please, basketball, thank you, welcome, dada, mama, and of course Elmo. He also knows lots of animal sounds: duck, cat, dog, cow, sheep, monkey, elephant, and snake. Here are some pictures from the past few weeks. Enjoy!! Melissa

Cake walk??? Uh, NO!

Since we have started telling people of our referral for "S" we have gotten very mixed responses. It is funny how everyone was so happy and excited when we got the referral for Micah. not sure the difference, maybe because he was a baby?!?!? Many people are saying we are CRAZY for wanting to adopt a child "that old", we will have nothing but problems, and those who think that it will be great to have a "little helper". We are not choosing to adopt "S" because we think it is going to be easy to bring home an older child or because we think she is going to be a helper with Micah. We do know that we will possibly have many challenges with her and are trying to prepare for how we will handle the language barrier, the grief she may have regarding the death of her mother and the loss of her home land, the attachment issues we may have, schooling, Micah's adjustment to a big sister, the list goes on and on. Those who have adopted in the past know all to well that you can never be 100% prepared for the challenges you may have because no child goes "by the book". We have taken class after class (mostly because they were required!) about all the things that can go wrong and how to handle the situations as they arise. We were extremely blessed that Micah adapted so well and other than a few minor issues, we had what would appear to be the PERFECT match...
When we were in Ethiopia to get Micah we spent a lot of time in the baby room at the orphanage he was in. It is soooo easy to fall in love with each and every one of those little cuties, but we both said that we know that they will all have families, after all there is a waiting list up to 2 years long for the infants. The kids we were drawn to were the older children, the ones that we were all taking Cute pictures of...and then leaving there in the courtyard. I knew then already that we would bring home an older child someday. I did not know who or when or what age, but I knew that God was placing this mission in my heart and I would follow.
What we are confident about is that God has chosen this journey for us and He will get us through. We also know that now more than ever we (Myself, Scott, Micah, and "S") NEED the love and support of our family and friends....I pray that we have that!!!
Next time new pictures of Micah ( I promise!! Today I just needed to vent). Melissa

It's a Girl!!!

Today we had our home visit for our update to the home study. We talked with our social worker about the possibility of adopting a older girl from Ethiopia. We were made aware of a little girl (5-7 years of age) that was available for adoption. We had been aware of her for a week now and had prayed about her and knew she was meant to be our daughter. He agreed to approve us for her and we called BFAS right away. Agitu is now sending us our official referral letter and then we will have to wait for our home study update to get to them and for USCIS approval and then we can be filed for court!! I can not post pics until after we pass court, but she is beautiful!!! More updates soon!! Melissa

Micah's Day in Court

Today was the big day that we have all been waiting for - Micah's Re-adoption. This needs to be done so that he can become a US citizen and we also got to legally change his name. He is now Micah Muse Troedel Officially!!! The hearing went great and Micah did a good job sitting (as good as any toddler can do!). The judge did agree to correct his b-day, so it is officially February 23, 2008!!!! He was lucky enough to have his Grandmas and Grandpas , as well as Auntie Heidi and his cousins to support him and celebrate his big day. He was so excited that he fell asleep on the way home from court and slept through the party :) Here are some pics!! Melissa

Road Trip

Over the 4th of July weekend we took Micah on his first real Road Trip...all the way to Iowa! We went to visit our good friend Danette, who is also Micah's God Mom. Our friend Adele was also staying with Danette so we were able to catch up with her as well. Micah did great on the ride down...slept all the way through WI and did not wake until Dubuque. We stopped there for some lunch and then continued to Cedar Rapids. Micah LOVED his Auntie Danette and took to her right away. It was great to watch them interact, she was really good with him. Adele happens to do photography as well and got some GREAT pics of Micah while we were there. He saw his first parade and fireworks (he did not watch most of them and instead snuggled in on mommy!!). We all had a wonderful time and can not wait to go back again!! Here are some pics that Adele took...Enjoy- Melissa