Day One

I haven’t posted too much about our trip to Haiti. It has been hard to find the time to sit down, collect my thoughts and write. Life’s been a whirlwind since we have returned. As I looked ahead at my calendar, I really don’t see an end in sight for the crazy schedules. Soon, we will take a mini vacation with the kids up to the Dells, PTO responsibilities start up again in two weeks, and then school begins. Summer went by way too fast for us! So, I am forcing myself to find the time to sit and write. I don’t want to forget about the life-changing experience we had together has a family before I get it down on paper….

We spent the night before the trip in Miami at the Hilton Hotel. It was very nice with wonderful accommodations. The kids were relaxed and comfortable in an environment they were pretty accustomed to ~ nice vacations are something they are very fortunate to go on quite frequently. We spent the evening hanging out in the lush hotel, relaxing by the pool and watching movies on the big screen television in our room.

The view from our hotel room in Miami.

As the evening wore on, anticipation of our travels to Haiti loomed over us. Well, at least loomed over Kate… ...We had to take our anti-Malaria medication that night. Kate HATES to take medicine and her grumpiness loomed over all of us the rest of the night after we forced it down her throat. If her reaction to dealing with the third world country was this awful already (even before arriving), what was it going to be like when she is forced to bathe from a bucket, eat Haitian food, sleep without air conditioning and spend days on end in the humidity with 35 children climbing all over her…? I had a feeling we were in for some “good times” ahead…

The kids woke early Saturday morning ready for the flight to Haiti. We headed to the airport to meet up with the team. The kids sat quietly in the chairs (and I mean quietly – even for my kids!) as they were anxious to meet their brothers, nervous around 16 people they did not know and scared to arrive in Haiti. We sat around playing cards and eating pizza while we waited for our delayed flight to board. Thankfully, the kids are veteran travelers and waiting around in airports does not faze them in the least.

During the flight to Haiti, the kids took turns looking out the windows to see the ocean, Cuba and other Caribbean islands. It really is a cool flight when you think about all you can see during the flight. As we approached the island of Hispanola, they were excited and awe-struck by the views. Tim noticed the magnificent mountain range right away and thought it was beautiful. The girls were surprised by all the “houses” they could see. Even with all we told them about Haiti, they still struggled with the idea that 8 million people living on this little piece of land.

Who could imagine so many homes, so close together in one place?

Time spent at the Port au Prince airport was not so bad. The kids are familiar with the craziness while searching for luggage. Once we stepped foot outside, life was not so quiet and became a little bit overwhelming from the crowds of people, the noises and the commotion. Tim and Meg stuck close by me while Kate held my hand until we got in the van. The ride to the orphanage was long, but a good one for them to see all we had talked about. Asking them over and over what they were thinking, if it was what they thought it would be and how they felt kept the conversation going. So surprised by their surroundings, they were speechless otherwise.

The kids were surprised by all the vendors and really liked the paintings!

As we pulled up to Angel House, I heard my most favorite noise. The children were singing and shouting inside as they learned the team had arrived. I was so anxious to see the children, but even more so for our kids to meet them all!