Preparing to go get Baby J!

So, a lot has happened in the last 4 days. Nick and I booked our plane tickets to Addis. We are going to fly on Emirates Air - 15.5 hours to Dubai and 4 hours to Addis. We are leaving THIS THURSDAY! We get to Dubai on Friday night. We are going to stay there for 3 days. Should be fun to see the sights, get adjusted to the time change and enjoy some couple/non-kid time. THEN, we are flying to Addis on Monday. We still aren't totally sure when we'll get Baby J, but we are hoping on Monday. We have our embassy date on Thursday, March 5th. We will stay in Addis until Sunday night, March 8th.

Once the reality set in that I am about to be a mother I realized all the stuff we didn't have. No bottles, no pacifiers, no diapers, no diaper wipes, no diaper bag, no gallon zip loc bags for nasty dirty diapers or puked on clothes. I have been diligently getting all of the aforementioned items and marking them off our list. Nick and I are going to TARGET tomorrow to get the rest of our necessities.

I have been putting some final touches on Jost's room (Lena and Christina are also going to work on it a little while we are gone). Nick practiced using his sling by puttting our beagle, Boobers Magee, in it. Boobers was pretty comfortable and is a good comparison to Jost's size, so we are hopeful that the sling will work well. I watched my Ergo demonstration video (very hippie dippie, but informative) and practiced putting it on in the front, switching to the back and jumping up and down (just to make sure it fit snuggly).

We have done about 10000000 laundry loads of baby clothes which I guess is just the beginning of our new reality. We put Jost's highchair together, finally put together our Maclaren stroller, and got the car seat out (Boobers liked it, too. But I guess what choice did he have since he was prone restrained).

I managed to eat a pint of Ben and Jerry's Mint Chocolate Cookie in the last 12 hours. I feel like it's giving me strength and helping me focus. Ok, not really. Mostly it's a comfort food that tastes good and I couldn't think of eating anything else right now. Nick has been getting some food for Jost so he doesn't starve when we get home or only have water or beer as a beverage option.

I can't believe this is happening, but with every thing I pack or buy or wash I feel like I am becoming a mom. Since I am an Oakland Mom, I couldn't resist getting Jost his first "Oaklandish" shirt (see picture). I can't wait to tote him around with all of the cute clothes we have for him.

Thanks to all our friends and family for being so supportive of our journey. We couldn't have come this far without you!