Here is what
families have said about staying
in the Guest House
at CHI House of Hope.
Our experience at
the HOH was wonderful - we really feel like we got a taste
of local culture by staying there. We fell in love with the
staff and really got to see them interact with the children
- everyone (I mean even the guards) helped with the little
ones and it was wonderful to see. We also were able to sit
and talk with different
staff - especially with the cook Rahel - she would sit and
talk to us about Ethiopian history and the Oromo people (her
husband is Oromo and so is Micah). We feel like we would
have missed out on a lot if we had stayed at the Hilton the
whole week.
We were lucky enough to get a lot of time to interact with
the kids at the HOH. We brought some soccer balls and Kevin
played soccer with the kids (and Daniel and the guards :) on
the sunny afternoons. We have some wonderful video and
pictures to share with families once referrals are made
(can't wait - we are so missing these children - we can't
wait for them to be referred to families!!). That was
probably
my favorite part of staying at the HOH - the sweet smiling
faces of those children... watching them sit on Kevin's lap
and LAUGH at him trying to pronounce their beautiful
names... watching the nannies do the girls' hair
(super-quick and BEAUTIFUL!)...having them say goodnight to
me when I went in to get Yabsira from the baby room.
They were all so sweet. (I'm rambling yes, but it was my
favorite part after all!)
When we stayed at the Hilton for one night we realized that,
at least at night, you felt like you could be in any city in
the world. At the HOH, you felt like you were definitely in
Ethiopia all the time. The Hilton was set up like any other
hotel and is very nice, but I really think you'd have to get
out a lot to feel the city and the people. Also, while
we were there, I was thinking it would be hard to be stuck
in the hotel room the whole week with an infant - at the HOH
you can walk around, play with the kids, etc. When Micah
Yabsira was getting antsy, I would walk outside with him to
calm him, and he loved to watch the kids play. That all
being said, I would recommend a night at a hotel if you're
wanting to just get away - especially if there are lots of
families staying at the HOH. It was nice for us to get away-
have some time alone and just talk about our week - kind of
process things before going home.
And, like Jenni & Jim - we're definitely available to answer
private questions through email. I hope this helps a little
bit!
Stacie and Kevin
We really enjoyed our stay at the transition home. It was
wonderful and the bed there was actually a bazillion times
more comfortable than the beds we had at the Hilton!!!! We
were the only guests actually staying there at the time, so
we were spoiled in our
experience, I'm sure. Our room was right off the "common
room" where I imagine all families who are adopting at any
particular time will be hanging out; therefore, I probably
wouldn't like it as much if there were to be tons of people
travelling at the same time. When we were there, Stephanie
was the only other parent visiting/hangin out at the house
-- and that was fun and just wonderful and very helpful
actually; but, I would be nervous of the traffic otherwise
if there are more than one/two families. We are fortunate
that Mamush is a little "Zen Baby" as Stephanie calls him
(love that!!!!), so he's easy going and people traffic is no
issue for him overall. I just expect that as of mid-week
Mommy here would have been really wanting more privacy and
room to spread out, for example, if more people would have
been around! Naturally, nothing against other people but
some of us just need more space/quiet time than others
But, it was very comfortable. And, there is a water cooler
with the hot/cold water that was PRICELESS!!! Also, in the
common room are comfy couches, dining rm table, TV (CNN/BBC
- thank heavens!), DVD player though we didn't use it and
really enjoyed only having the tv on briefly each night/am
for some news; a fridge; and a bathroom is right off of it,
too. I would definitely stay there again. Plus, the
babies/kiddos rooms are right down the balcony; so, we were
able to interact and visit with the children/nannies as much
as we wanted. (I have tons of photos of the children, but I
will wait to share any with parents once referrals are
received! SO CUTE!!!)
I wrote on our website last night - we've been home one week
and I'm terribly missing everyone at House of Hope. I mean
VERY WEEPY MISSING... I'm so excited for all of you who get
to go this fall and wish I could go back with you.
:) Jenni and Jim
