For those of you with future travel - Packing Tips

One thing that made my travels easier was all the wonderful advice I received from families who had gone before us. I want to also share some of my insights to help those who will travel soon.

First, I found Grace's spreadsheets on http://www.allthesereasons.blogspots.com to be tremendously helpful. In fact, I don't have too much to add in terms of packing items, but here I go:

Things I wished I had packed:
-Macaroni & Cheese or any kind of packaged foods that were easy to just boil - there were nights when we were exhausted and just wanted something simple for dinner. Our guest house, the Bejoe House, did not serve dinner, so finding food required calling a driver and getting takeout, which could take an hour or more.

-More washable sweaters or sweatshirts - during the time we went, the weather was cool in the morning and evenings and hot midday. Layering was really the best way to go.
I mention washable because remember, if you use the laundry service at the guest houses, they wash by hand. So, you want materials that can be washed by hand, not wool or even delicate cotton. Also, some night were chillier than others and there is no heat. I would sometimes wear a sweater to bed.

-More long pants for our baby - I brought him a lot of shorts, but I realized pants would have been better given the weather. Also, people in ET don't wear shorts (my husband was laughed at in the street one day for wearing them - I had told him so!) and so when we had babysitters, they always changed him into long pants anyway.

-A few more bottles - I did find that the Playtex disposables were the best. I could have used a few more. I was washing everything with Spring Water and sometimes, it would have been easier to just have a new bottle handy. Also, bring something to shake the formula in - otherwise, it can get messy with those Playtex bottles. Also, bring different size nipples, particularly if your baby is on the older side.

-Formula - Noah is one year old. I was told by Gladney that he drank milk, not formula. But when I got there, I found out he was still on formula. It was not a big deal to buy some at the supermarket, but it would have been easy to get it here in the US.

Washcloths - given how messy babies can be, these were really handy.

Things I am glad I packed:

-Tons of Purell and Wet Wipe disinfectants - I cannot say enough about how handy these were

-Pepto tables; Immodium tablets; Advil; Throat Lozenges; Infant Motrin and Cipro - Anyone who knows me knows that I carry a complete medicine cabinet. I found these were the most helpful. We got the stomach bug about five days into our trip and these drugs really helped. I also got a sore throat from breathing in the pollution, so the lozenges helped a lot.

Toys- Noah is one and really enjoyed the few toys I brought - a soft ball; a rattle and a few other things to shake.

Other things to keep in mind:

Supermarkets - Addis Ababa has supermarkets where you can buy diapers, baby food, formula, snacks, beer, soda, yogurt, bags of pasta, etc. So don't worry if you need more formula, etc. Bottled water is readily available and cheap.

Ideal clothing - I found the ideal clothing for me was a short sleeve shirt, layered with a sweater and then jeans. I love khakis, but again, keep in mind that if you bring things to laundry, they better be able to be hand washed and hung outside on the line. All the restaurants we went to were pretty casual.

Shoes - I would suggest closed toe shoes. The streets are dusty and you walk around the orphanages also. I would probably not bring my best pairs either - they will be filthy by the time you are done with them.

Sunglasses - a must given the sunny midday.

Gifts:

-For the orphanages - they love just about anything and I am sure Gladney can tell you what they need. My sense was that they always need underwear, shoes, socks and money donations to purchase food.

The older boys orphanage does have a DVD player - so you could even bring them a DVD in English. Also, the LOVE OBAMA! So even a magazine with an Obama story, or a poster, would be so welcome.

For the caretakers - I gave Noah's primary caretaker (his "Ma") a photo album with a few pictures of him and some of our family. I also gave her a calendar with pictures of our town. She seemed to love it. In addition, you can ask Gladney what they need or just give a money donation.

For in-country staff - ask Gladney, as they have a list of things to suggest. We gave Ryan & Abby tortillas, taco sauce and some chocolate chips. Pretty easy things to find.

Phone Cards:

I had a three year old son at home, so needed to make a few calls here. I bought my dad a phone card here. I would call him from the guest house for $1 a minute and tell him to call me right back. It worked out well.

If anyone has questions, just let me know!