Like the Sands Through the Hourglass.....

Just two short years..... what a difference!

Like the sands through the hourglass...

So are the days of our Lives. This was the lead-in on a soap that was on US TV for years. Each grain of sand - a day slipping so quickly through.

2 years ago Alan and I stepped off a plane in Addis Ababa Ethiopia. WE figured that even though the adoption process was at time difficult and so nerve wracking, it would probably pale in comparison to what lay ahead in the days, weeks, months and possibly years to come. We had waited nine months for that day to arrive, but we would not be holding a new baby for the first time. This was no small child that we would know everything about since their birth. We would be holding 10 & 12 year olds. Children that were smart, wise, clever. Children that had seen and experienced things many of us can only imagine. They had lived a life that had shaped them and moulded them into the young adults that there were quickly growing into. Alan and I would be there to give them love and guidance as they complete their journey into adulthood.

Were we in love with them from the start? In a way I know we were. Maybe for us it was just the glimpse of what we saw in them and the dreams we had for them that we loved. It didn't take long though to know that we did love them. These two kids were a perfect match for this family. We hadn't a clue either about their personalities. We had thought Fantu would be quiet and shy - oh boy did we get that one wrong! She is crazy funny, has a infectious laugh all the time. She entertains with song, dance and comedy even when not trying. She is quirky, has her own style, and could care less what anyone else may think about her. If she doesn't like you - she'll tell you. You'd think people would be offended by her bluntness - but it's so unexpected they usually think she's joking. Fantu is loving and caring which is something we saw from the start.

Abate was and still is all about sports. Doing it all... all the time. Teenager, sports star, over achiever. He excels at school in academics, sports and is quite popular. He loves school here. He has grown at an astronomical rate this year. Lately it's been new shoes every 2 months - sometimes even sooner. He can be a sweetheart and a cranky moody teen. He is the more serious of the two. He loves picking on his sister and playing practical jokes on me. He is a son to be proud of often. He can also get into trouble as we have noted lately. Abate completes the definition of what it takes to parent a teen.

Two years from frightened little kids to confident outgoing teens. Two years to go from parenting two Ethiopian children to Parenting to Ethiopian -American teenagers ( emphasis on the American). What a ride it has been and I'm sure it will be.

Days of our lives - are quickly becoming years.