packing, packing....

and more packing! That seems to be the story of my life, these days.
I know it's been a while since I've updated you all on our journey, so I'd like to take this time to give you a quick overview of what the Robinsons have been up to lately.

1) Showers of blessings!
Our church family was so kind and gracious to give us a baby shower a couple of weeks ago.
We cannot say enough how incredibly blessed we are to have such loving and caring church family. They have completely embraced our adoption journey and at times it's almost as if they themselves are going through the process. They've cried, rejoiced, prayed and walked hand-in-hand with us. We truly love our church!!
So here are a few photos from the shower:

2) Needles, needles and more needles!

That just about summarizes our past Wednesday. Jeremy and I finally decided to face our fears head on! (ok, we don't really have a "fear" of needles...but we're not crazy about them either). We were so glad to discover we had our full series of hepatitis done with our employer and didn't need to re-do it! AH....the simple joys in life!! :)  Anyways, we are now fully immunized for: polio (boy, does that vaccine hurt for days...), menactra meningitis (apparently quite popular in Ethiopia), typhoid and tetanus. 

Here is a picture of my boo boos :-(

3) Let the packing begin!

So I can pretty much sum up my life lately with something like this: laundry, folding, packing...repeat steps one through three...    

I can't complain (too much) because this means we are just one suitcase closer to seeing our baby boy!! 

As you all know, I am planning on staying in Ethiopia between court and embassy, so I have LOTS of food items, baby items (300 diapers to be exact) and not too mention all of my junk to carry with me to Ethiopia. So here is a picture of the suitcases carrying the food. (yes, I love black beans!!)

Never did I know how many microwavable items exist in this world!!! But, apparently quite a few - and they are probably all in my suitcase!

Well, that is it for now. Once I finish organizing Ethan's room and putting away all of the gifts, I will share a picture with ya'll.

xoxo,
Keyla

calling all prayer warriors...again

this time not for me but for some families who are facing some issues with embassy.
They have passed court recently, so legally the kids are theirs, but the embassy is refusing to give them a visa for the kids to come home.  I can't get into too many details about these cases but we need to get on our knees and intercede on behalf of these couples and boldly come before the throne of God and ask Him to remove all mountains and obstacles so these children can forever unite with their loving families.

We have already seen small miracles happen in the past few days so we know God is preparing the way.

I'll keep you posted as I hear more updates.

God bless!!

oh, the memories...

As we get closer to our trip to Ethiopia (T minus 16 days, in case anyone was wondering...hehe) I've been thinking of what I should give Ethan's family (as we have asked to meet them during our court). I decided to create a small photo album with photos of Jeremy and I, our home, friends, families and photos of Ethan. To be honest, I never expect it to be such an emotional process. I guess just knowing that his family will look at it from time to time and will have completely different emotions than mine is a bit overwhelming. The more I think about that, the more respectful and almost spiritual I would like this album to come across to them. I pray they always know how much I cherish the priceless gift they have given me and how much I respect them and want to honor their memory and heritage.

Remember our courier angels?

well, we are rejoicing with them tonight as they have recently heard back from the courts in Ethiopia that their precious Jameson is legally and forever their son! One less orphan in the world! Praise GOD!!

Here's the video they posted of the day they met their sweet baby boy for the first time.
Can't wait until the day I can post pictures of our precious Ethan!!

court update

Hey ya'll!

I apologize for my lack of blogging...hehe I've been on tour in Puerto Rico this week and very busy traveling from city to city. It's been a lot of fun, although I miss my hubby terribly!!

Just wanted to log in for a few minutes and let everyone know that we just received confirmation from our agency that the judge declined our appeal for an earlier court date. Although, a bit disappointed, we are trusting in God that He knows the best timing and He sees ALL things. So we are reassured in the promise that He works all things for our good.

We thank you so much for your prayers and please continue to keep us in your prayers as we prepare to travel to Ethiopia on March 4th and our court date on March 10th.

Please pray that ALL of the documents needed are in order and ready for court on that day and consequently, for a prompt embassy date/visa appointment shortly after.

I'll keep you posted as more news come in.

God bless you all!
Keyla

calling all prayer warriors!!

We just received a wonderful email from our agency travel coordinator asking us if we would be interested in appealing the Ethiopian courts for an earlier court date....hmmmm....YES, WE WOULD!!! :-)

This is not a for sure thing but we have begun the process and we'll wait to hear back from the courts.
I call upon you all my prayer warriors to PLEASE keep this in your prayers as we implore God to move within HIS will.

I will keep you all posted as I hear any news.

Blessings,
Keyla

Why Ethiopia?

The question we get asked most frequently by people is, "why Ethiopia?" My first thought usually is, "why not Ethiopia?" but instead I try to explain the horribly poor conditions found in this beautiful country and how many children are in need of love, food and families to take care of them. Sometimes it is hard to do that with words, so I am showing a short video that in my opinion does a fantastic job of conveying the reasons why we should all be concerned about the children of Ethiopia. Please watch!

(feel free to pause the playlist at the bottom of the page to hear the video)