We're Connected

Well, today we crossed over into the other world of the adoption life - we got linked up with others from our agency via an online group. This is something we've avoided doing for a while, since we've been busy with work and, honestly, I just haven't had time to make chit chat about things that are still unknown.

Well, we're now officially "friends" with 8 other couples that are also adopting from Ethiopia through CHI, each one with our same court date and visa appointment/pick-up dates. :) It's really exciting to now be part of a group of 9 families that will all be traveling together. Radames and I are feeling way less alone in the journey simply because of their emails, posts and our little spreadsheet of "the May 28th visa appointment pack". Through our online dialogue, we've already had someone offer to take pictures of Addison for us while they are there (from an earlier travel group).

We also had a great conversation with our agency rep today who helped us demystify a lot of outstanding docs we still need to do/re-do. My brain is getting ready to explode, but information is a good thing these days.

We also made a lot of progress with the travel agency that CHI uses and recommended. It was SO nice to not be talking to the American Airlines or US Airways fool who has no clue about adoption travel. They knew exactly what we were doing, asked when our court dates were, when our visa appointment was, etc. and gave us a lot of good advice on planning, tix, fares, etc. That's a major relief!

Right now, our plan is to leave out of Dulles (in DC) on Sunday morning May 24th. We get there on Monday morning b/c of the time change. It's a direct flight!!! That's why we're going to just put all of our shit in the Acura and drive for 6 hours to DC. It'll be so much easier than driving four hours to ATL to then have to connect in London or Dubai or Frankfurt. And then we'll return from Addis on Sunday night the 31st and arrive DC on Monday morning the 1st of June. You have no idea how psyched we are to have gotten connected with them today and to now have a non-29-hour flight (both ways) in store. The flight is on Ethiopian Air, which seemed a little too rickety for my travel elitist ass, but we checked out the virtual tour of the airplane online, and it's awesome. You can see it at Ethiopianairlines.com and then click on "our luxury 787 Dreamliner to Ethiopia". We are so chillin' on that bad boy! Ethiopian Air, here we come.