Hi everyone back home!  sitting here in the cafe again.  trying to quickly summarize my thoughts is no easy task.  so much to tell, so much to process.  jeff, hannah and joelle are sitting nearby on a balcony.  this is quite a nice bakery/cafe that is very busy and popular with locals.  we were lucky to get a spot at a computer at all.  Elias, our driver has gone to drop off two families at the airport, leaving with their children.  one family from Manitoba, the other from Windsor!  Nice connections....

well, this morning i think will rank high on my list of trip highlights.  next to meeting A.Z, of course....have i mentioned how sweet he is????  we traveled a ways to an amazing oasis in a place that lacks so much calm.  it is the hamlin fistula hospital.  perhaps some of you have heard of the book "Hospital by the River" or seen a documentary on it.  worth "googling" for sure....wow, this place was amazing.  we had a tour by a sweet tour guide, and learned about this facility that is offering hope to many of ethiopia's wounded.  it is a complete holistic approach, and they are so much about providing healing to these women who have been cast aside by society around them.  fistulas are extremely common due to prolonged labour and other factors, but this hospital is offering surgery free of charge.  pre and post natal care, basic life skills training, emotional intervention for the years of grief and trauma they've faced as they've dealt with the social implications of living with a fistula, and often the still birth of their children.  anyway, i could go on and on... the grounds were so beautiful.  off a dirt road with so little greenery was this tranquil place with lush tropical flowers and grass and vines.  you could smell the fresh flowers, quite a contrast to the ethiopian streets.  we saw a woman who had just had a second delivery (i assume she lost the first) by c-section and the baby was swaddled tightly on the bed.  she has been given hope and a future through the wonder of this place.  apparently the founder is now 86 years old, a woman from Australia.  she still operates once a week, all without eyeglasses.  yikes...talk about investing in a country for the long-term....love that.  anyway, the ride to and from the hospital was equally intriguing.  wait till i show joe the pics of the scaffolding they use here.  oh my.  hannah has lost track of the number of men we've seen peeing on the streets.  there are incredibly sad cases of orthopedic injuries and swollen limbs, these people often resorting to begging on the street. likely injuries and conditions so treatable in canada.  one young women approached our van on a busy street, asking the Canadian woman in front of me if she would please take her baby.  she was wearing a small baby on her back, and her eyes lacked such hope....this has been amazing, and given us four such insight into Zake's birth country already.  tomorrow we are planning an excursion with another family.  perhaps a hike up a mountain that some are recommending.  we cannot wait until court on Thursday, to hopefully make this official.  we are hoping and praying we pass first time, because we'd be so disappointed if we weren't able to see Zake on Saturday.  he is so darling, and Adam, Layla and Hudson are going to be as smitten as we already are....

love to all back home.  hugs to our dear kids.  we truly miss you three.  we speak of you often and imagine what you would say about things here.  will try to update again tomorrow, but if not, then definitely on Thursday after court....

S.