All Thumbs!

My Poor Baby! Yonas was playing with a friend the other day and accidentally got his hand slammed in a door. The poor little guy had his first trip to the ER! Yonas got stitches in his thumb! They took this picture when he got back to the TH (transition home). They also took an X-ray to make sure he doesn't have any broken bones. I wish I was there and could kiss his little thumb and make it all better :( This being thousands of miles a part just isn't working for me anymore.....

Nesting

I think that I am nesting...yesterday I made a hearty crock pot meal, Ethiopian honey bread (it's now a house necessity!), home made granola, and I started washing all my cloth diapers for the baby! Hopefully, this means we will travel soon! Yonas, we are ready to bring you home, we are just waiting for the word go!! We love you, you precious baby boy. Eh wed eh hallo, ye ney leej!! I know that is not how you spell it and I'm sure I didn't get the sentence structure right but it is supposed to say I love you, my son, in Amharic!

Ethiopian Honey Bread

I made this bread the other day and it was amazing! Our friends, A & S, say that the typical Ethiopian Honey Bread is a little denser, has more spices, and no milk or eggs. However, they said it was very close and tasted even better than what they have made or had before. So, I am gonna stick with my recipe!

Ethiopian Honey Bread
Ingredients
1 Tbsp active dry yeast -1 packet
1/4 C warm water
3Tbsp egg white
1/3 C honey ( I used whipped honey b/c it is what I had on hand and it was so good I will keep using it!)
1 1/2 tsp ground coriander
1/2 tsp ground cinnamon
1/4 tsp ground cloves
1 tsp sea salt
1 C warm milk ( I used 1%)
6 Tbsp melted light margarine
5 C white whole wheat flour (I just used regular all purpose flour)

Directions
In a small bowl, sprinkle yeast over warm water. Let stand 3 min. then stir to dissolve.

Set in a warm place 5 min, should double in volume. If it doesn't, repeat procedure (mine sat for about 10 min).

Combine egg whites, honey, coriander, cinnamon, cloves and salt in a deep bowl, mixing until smooth.

Add yeast mixture, milk, and 5 Tbsp melted margarine. Beat until well blended (I just mixed w/a spoon). Stir in 4 -4 1/2 c flour (1/2 c at a time), until it is too stiff to stir. (You may not need all of the flour- I didn't).

On a lightly floured surface, knead daugh. Add remaining flour as necessary to prevent sticking. Knead about 5 min.

Place in a large, greased bowl. Cover w/a damp cloth and let sit in warm place for 90 min.

Grease baking sheet w/ 1 Tbsp margerine (I used shortening).

Punch down dough and knead again for 3 min.

Shape into a round (I braided mine), and place on baking sheet.

Preheat oven to 325.

Let dough rise 10 min while oven preheats.

Bake 1 hour until top is crusty and light golden brown.

New Pics!

Thank you Connelly Family for delivering our care package and loving on our little man!

We witness a miracle every time a child enters into life.
But those who make their journey home across time and miles,
growing within the hearts of those who wait to love them,
are carried on the wings of destiny and place among us
by God's very own hands.
---Kristi Larson

My Montage 3/25/10 at OneTrueMedia.com

We got the long awaited call this morning that we passed court and Yonas is officially ours. It will still be a little while before we can go to pick him up but what's a little more wait!! Here is a beginning stages collage of our little guy!!

Photo and video editing at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Court Date!

We finally have a court date!!! Yeah!!! We are so excited. Our court date is 3/25/10. Please, pray that we pass court the first time w/o any problems so we can travel as quickly as possible to finally pick up our son!