First Photos!

Isabella was born on June 20 and arrived at the Bethzatha Children's Home (a government orphanage) in Hossana Town on July 21.  She spent a few days there, then continued her journey to the Bethzatha Home in Addis Ababa and finally arrived at Hannah's Hope (our agency's transition home) on August 5. 

Kiersten, another Case Manager at our agency (soon to be our Case Manager when Julie goes on Maternity Leave!) was visiting the Bethzatha Home in Hossana Town when Isabella was there!!! She just sent us photos and information this morning - what an incredible, unique blessing!  These are the FIRST PHOTOS ever taken of our little girl, when she was just one month old!

Of course we cannot publicly share the photos of Isabella until she is legally our daughter, but oh what precious photos!  She is this tiny little thing with a head of curly black hair, lying in a full-sized, worn, painted pink wooden bed with railings. They put her in the bed because the Home does not have any cribs; she was the only child there at the time.  She is covered by this huge redish patterned heavy blanket (or rug?) folded in half, that still takes up most of the bed, making her look even smaller and more lost underneath it.  There is a sweet receiving blanket wrapped around her shoulders and against her face.   Her eyes look so sad - so different from the laughing, smiling, joyful baby we see in her photos taken two weeks later. 

Here are photos of the Bethzatha Children's Home in Hossana Town: 

This is the staff at the Home.  The girl in the orange on the far left is the one Kiersten saw caring for Isabella while she was visiting:

Kiersten describes the Southern region as geographically beautiful, with red earth and more rolling hills than in Addis, which is several hours north.  She also tells us that the staff were very attentive to Isabella's needs.

We are so grateful to each of them, for loving and caring for our daughter when we couldn't.