We have Mason!

It is Monday night here in ET. They let us take the babies today rather than wait till tomorrow. We still have our embassy appt tomorrow and after that, it's official. We picked him up from the care center around 5pm, fed him, and he is asleep now. He is doing great. He is equally comfortable with both of us which is a nice treat for Matt since the girls preferred me in the beginning. He mimicks us in sound and gesture. He'll blow on us when we blow on him and he just has the cutest smile. He took a bottle just fine much to my excitement and fell asleep before finishing it. He was easy at least for tonight. He is stretched out between us on the bed in his cute little jammies. Tomorrow we go to the embassy and will spend the rest of the day in the hotel.

I keep forgetting to tell you about something he did just before meeting him. As we entered the care center and they brought the babies down, they sat them on a step. We of course,were looking at him and Matt waved to him.....and he waved right back. It took my breath away. It is a moment we won't forget.

Earlier today, we hired a guide to take us to the Merkato. We went with another couple in our group. Our guide, Saywa, is the head of security for the Canadian Embassy here. The Merkato is the largest outdoor market in Africa. Thank goodness we had him with us. It was crazy. We got some good stuff and will do more shopping on Wednesday. I was asking him about the culture and wages and such. When I asked him how much the average Ethiopian makes, he said 10 birr per day which equals about $1 US. If you have a Master's degree, you can make as much as $10 US per day. I don't know how people survive here. I asked him what Ethiopians think of Americans and he said that we are loved here in ET. He also told me that everyone loves Barack Obama (which I already knew from a previous conversation with someone else here). He said, "he is not America's President, he is the world's President". I'm glad we went to the Merkato but what a nuthouse, total chaos, very crowded.

So far, we have seen chickens, oxen, donkeys, and goats. It is very common to see these crossing the road or walking along the road with all the people and the traffic.

Better run. Internet has been easier than I expected but I still don't know about pictures. We'll see.

We are missing our girls terribly and can't wait to be reunited with them..........