Asher & I at his orphanage in Ethiopia.
A lot happens in a year! So many of you were following our adoption journey just one year ago. One year ago, my husband and I had met our son for the first time at the orphanage in Ethiopia. We had passed Ethiopian court which meant that per Ethiopia, we were our son’s parents. This time last year we had also returned home to the states with him. We had to wait for the US Embassy to investigate his paperwork to confirm that there were no discrepancies. Once he cleared embassy, we could bring him home. We didn’t know if we would clear in one month, two months, three months, etc.
At this point a year ago, I had decided to return to Ethiopia early, without a confirmation from the US embassy that he had cleared. I wanted Baby T (remember when we called him that?) out of the orphanage. So I had booked a one way ticket scheduled to leave on July 30th and planned to take him out of the orphanage and live with him in Ethiopia until the US embassy cleared us to come home.
So much has gone on since once year ago. Baby T came home (I will blog more about my time in Ethiopia and our trip home on upcoming Thursdays) and we became a family of three. We named “baby T” Asher Terefe. I want to say that this past year was all rainbows and butterflies. But that would be a lie. And seriously, there is no such thing as a perfect life without any hitches. But this past year was a great one. Especially when I think about the fact that one year ago today, I was grieving the fact that we had met our son and started to bond with him and then had to leave him in the orphanage while we returned home.
I will recap more of this past year in the next few weeks. One of my regrets for this past year is that I didn’t post more updates to you guys while I was in Ethiopia and also once I returned home. To be honest, I was living day by day and didn’t have much free time to do anything besides bond with Asher. But now, I want to get everything down in writing. So I will be writing more soon. 🙂 I know this isn’t going to help you save any money. But it will give you a glimpse into our life as we became first time parents.
A video of Asher taken just a couple of weeks ago. He’s grown so much!
Thanks for coming to Addicted to Saving! Here’s a little bit about me so you can know who’s behind all these posts!
My name is Liza and I began my money-saving journey in the Spring of 2009 as a way to stretch a limited household income. I had lost my job and my hubby was self-employed. I launched Addicted to Saving in November of 2009 and it has grown by leaps and bounds. Since then, my hubby and I have struggled with the ups and downs of two failed adoptions and are now LOVING being parents to our little man Asher who we brought home from Ethiopia in August of 2013. I feel incredibly blessed to be able to help you save money. My goal is that you will have FUN and become empowered to save more and more money each week..
What a smart little guy! I couldn’t help but smile as you tested him on all of the animals. He’s so cute and yes, he’s grown and losing his baby look. You gave this baby a new life and one he could never have in Ethiopia and I know how grateful you are to have him as your son. God is good. Love your updates on Asher. I will often look at the Friday show and tell to see if Asher is in the picture as he has been in the past. So cute!
I’ve appreciated you checking in on me through the years Judy! 🙂 You have been so encouraging through all of the good times and bad times. I’ll keep posting pics of Asher! I promise 🙂