For the definitive word on how to make wonderful injera, do NOT miss Heather's wonderful post Step By Step Injera. If you need a mitad, the kind of grill used to make injera, check out the Heritage Grill from Target.com. And if you are in need of teff flour with which to make your injera, try The Teff Company. I am off to get some starter going to see if I can make injera RIGHT this time!

For those of you who have enjoyed reading There is No Me Without You, here's a YouTube movie of Melissa Fay Greene talking about the orphan crisis in Ethiopia. I was glad to hear Melissa 'in person'.

And also on the subject of Ethiopian children, here's a story compliments of my two year old, one of my favorite Ethiopians in the universe.

This morning she was hopping around on the floor near me saying, "Libbet... libbet... libbet..."... more

My sister's baby is getting closer to coming home! Their case went to court this week, and we're hoping they will be heading to Ethiopia by early April. She is planning on bringing some supplies for our agency's orphanage. One of the things Ethiopian orphanages need constantly is plastic pants. Most (if not all) of the orphanages use cloth diapers, and plastic pants are impossible to find over there. It is not uncommon to see the workers using plastic bags as plastic pants.

My older Ethiopian daughter came home with scarring on her upper legs. I am guessing it was from ill-fitting plastic pants... more

Here are some news highlights from Ethiopia this week. As always, links are only good for a few weeks, unless you subscribe to the news service.

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Ethiopia: "We Won't Oppose Ethiopian's Effort" - Starbucks

The Reporter (Addis Ababa) February 17, 2007

Representatives of Starbucks yesterday announced that they will not oppose Ethiopia's effort to trade mark regional names for its coffee beans.

In a press conference they gave to the media at the Sheraton Addis, the representatives stated that they had agreed to work with the Ethiopian... more

Dorothy from Germany was kind enough to share a recipe with me that her daughter made right after she came home from Ethiopia at the age of 8. This is a very simple recipe that can be used on pasta, and may be just the thing to tempt the palates of newly arrived Ethiopian children. This recipe serves 3-4 persons.

Bethlehem's Berbere Sauce -5 medium sized onions, chopped very fine (or done in the food processor) -3 medium sized tomatoes, peeled and chopped -water, oil, berbere, salt Stir fry the onions in a pan (without oil), stirring frequently. If necessary add a little bit of water from time to time to keep the onions from... more

I've mentioned before that Ethiopia runs on a different calendar. This year it is 1999 in Ethiopia, and September 10th is the last day of 1999 by the Ethiopian calendar.

Huge millenium celebrations are being planned. According to allafrica.com:

The Head of the Millennium project, Biruk Berga told BuaNews that 15 programmes were in place to mark the millennium.

These include building museums and communication centres to keep people informed about their history, heritage and new developments in Ethiopia.

"These... more

Adoptive families who already have children often face the dilemma of needing to leave some or all of the children at home while they travel to adopt the new child. This has always been the situation with my family, and I've done a lot of thinking about ways to ease the time while mom is gone.

Each time I have gone, we've been able to arrange caregiving that for the most part kept our kids in our own home. I felt like this was least disruptive to our children, especially the young ones. Some families opt to have the children stay with friends or grandparents, which can be a good solution too. The fun of staying someplace new may outweigh the strangeness of sleeping somewhere... more

One of the things I wish I'd done more of in Ethiopia is take pictures of the surroundings and the people. I got lots of pictures of our first days with the girls,in the hotel, guest house and and at the orphanages. But I felt self-conscious about whipping the camera out when we were on the streets.

I was hesitant to do so because I'd heard that sometimes people will object. And each time I came home I was disappointed that I didn't have more scenic pictures-- pictures that would give my daughters a feel for what Ethiopia is really like.

I began collecting pictures from friends who'd traveled,... more

Don't miss this excellent article about Ethiopian adoption.

Also be sure to check out this project www.change4orphans.com begun as a bat mitzvah project of a 12 year old girl named Leah who is interested in helping out Ethiopian orphans. Now that's my kind of kid! I am currently on my second reading of "There is No Me Without You" and I have been almost in physical pain thinking of all the children in desperate need there right now.

And finally, here... more

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(Part two here). .

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Thankfully both little girls slept fairly well, and our flight the next morning was not till 10 am. Tsion and my 13-year-old were happy to see the donuts in the hotel lobby and I was grateful to see coffee. In the bustle to load everything into the shuttle van, Tsion’s donut went face-down on the asphalt. I briefly considered claiming the 30-second... more