It’s like childbirth. You dread it. You don’t want to go through it. You go through different imagined scenarios of how one might otherwise birth this child into our family….We didn’t have a choice – we had to travel the 24 hours to Denver. You could see the tiredness and the anticipation on everyone’s face as we arrived by bus at sunset to the Addis Ababa Airport. Yet, there was an excitement and a pride to take our precious ones home. And this made it all bearable…
We proudly showed her Ethiopian passport to many government and airport agents, which read Dinknesh Jeeva Ratnathicam. (Until we apply for citizenship to the US and apply for a new birth certificate this will be her name – very feminine!) Even though it was hours past her bedtime, Rayne’s eyes were so big, and looking around. Everything was new – lights, buildings, sounds, people, jostling around in the Baby Bjorn. She grabbed my fingers tightly, eyes popping out, but never cried. Rayne copes. She seems strong. She takes it in. She may be nervous, but she rarely shows it by crying. She just holds on for the ride! When her little brain can’t take it anymore she throws her head back, puts her thumb in her mouth, and just cuddles in. She seems to find comfort in us.
The airlines have developed the baby bassinet, which screws onto the bulkhead wall in front of the seats. So, the two Dinknesh’s shared a bulkhead wall and fell fast asleep in their own beds for 6 of the 8 hour trip to Amsterdam. Upon arrival, we said goodbye to our friends and the two Dinknesh’s parted with a promise to see them soon in Chicago, where they live. I pray that Rayne will know Ayla , the other Dinknesh, as she grows, and that somehow having a friend which shares a similar story will make it feel a little better.
Jeeva and I had just enough time to grab some delicious European croissants and head to our next flight to Detroit. Rayne happily cruised in the baby bjorn and never had a complaint! She fell asleep again in a different bassinet for another 5 hours upon take off! It was really a honeymoon. Time for just the three of us. Sweet time to just stare at our new baby, and to take it all in. The hours flew by, and we knew that this time was precious. She did the same. Just stared at us, and when that grew tiresome she would just look around.
Thankfully, Rayne successfully drank from the sippy cup shortly before we headed to the airport. Since she would not take a bottle, and we could not seem to manage the open cup without losing half of the milk on her and us, the airplane eating was going to be a challenge. So, with the sippy cup, we had smooth mess-free eating!
Once we arrived in Detroit, we pulled out the sealed envelope. This envelope was given to us at the US Embassy in Ethiopia and could not be opened by us, only be an immigration officer in USA. It was our ticket into the country with Rayne. For months, we have been compiling these documents and waiting for this moment. Jeeva has always said, “I am going to feel a lot better when we get through customs with Rayne on American soil!” We waited in the customs line as American Citizens – three passports – one Ethiopian and two US. Rayne gave the grumpy stern customs officer a great big smile. He quickly finished looking over us, and sent us to the Blue Line. The special services line – number 37. We approached the desk and they opened the yellow sealed envelope, looked over it, and looked for this and that, filled out paperwork….as they are looking through everything…I am thinking…REALLY? ARE you really going to send us back?...submit to the system….submit to the process…one thing I have become more comfortable with. I am sure it was only 10 minutes, but it seemed like forever…and they stamped Rayne’s passport. Our little Ethiopian princess has a green card and is headed to Denver.
We proudly showed her Ethiopian passport to many government and airport agents, which read Dinknesh Jeeva Ratnathicam. (Until we apply for citizenship to the US and apply for a new birth certificate this will be her name – very feminine!) Even though it was hours past her bedtime, Rayne’s eyes were so big, and looking around. Everything was new – lights, buildings, sounds, people, jostling around in the Baby Bjorn. She grabbed my fingers tightly, eyes popping out, but never cried. Rayne copes. She seems strong. She takes it in. She may be nervous, but she rarely shows it by crying. She just holds on for the ride! When her little brain can’t take it anymore she throws her head back, puts her thumb in her mouth, and just cuddles in. She seems to find comfort in us.
The airlines have developed the baby bassinet, which screws onto the bulkhead wall in front of the seats. So, the two Dinknesh’s shared a bulkhead wall and fell fast asleep in their own beds for 6 of the 8 hour trip to Amsterdam. Upon arrival, we said goodbye to our friends and the two Dinknesh’s parted with a promise to see them soon in Chicago, where they live. I pray that Rayne will know Ayla , the other Dinknesh, as she grows, and that somehow having a friend which shares a similar story will make it feel a little better.
Jeeva and I had just enough time to grab some delicious European croissants and head to our next flight to Detroit. Rayne happily cruised in the baby bjorn and never had a complaint! She fell asleep again in a different bassinet for another 5 hours upon take off! It was really a honeymoon. Time for just the three of us. Sweet time to just stare at our new baby, and to take it all in. The hours flew by, and we knew that this time was precious. She did the same. Just stared at us, and when that grew tiresome she would just look around.
Thankfully, Rayne successfully drank from the sippy cup shortly before we headed to the airport. Since she would not take a bottle, and we could not seem to manage the open cup without losing half of the milk on her and us, the airplane eating was going to be a challenge. So, with the sippy cup, we had smooth mess-free eating!
Once we arrived in Detroit, we pulled out the sealed envelope. This envelope was given to us at the US Embassy in Ethiopia and could not be opened by us, only be an immigration officer in USA. It was our ticket into the country with Rayne. For months, we have been compiling these documents and waiting for this moment. Jeeva has always said, “I am going to feel a lot better when we get through customs with Rayne on American soil!” We waited in the customs line as American Citizens – three passports – one Ethiopian and two US. Rayne gave the grumpy stern customs officer a great big smile. He quickly finished looking over us, and sent us to the Blue Line. The special services line – number 37. We approached the desk and they opened the yellow sealed envelope, looked over it, and looked for this and that, filled out paperwork….as they are looking through everything…I am thinking…REALLY? ARE you really going to send us back?...submit to the system….submit to the process…one thing I have become more comfortable with. I am sure it was only 10 minutes, but it seemed like forever…and they stamped Rayne’s passport. Our little Ethiopian princess has a green card and is headed to Denver.
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