one.org

By Gabrielle.

The other day, I had some beautiful light shining through the windows, so I gathered up the souvenirs I brought home from Ethiopia and had a little photo shoot. I thought it might be fun to do a show-and-tell for anyone who is curious. (Ulterior motive: I thought it might change how some of us think of the Brand of Ethiopia.) Alas, I don’t have shopping sources for any of these items, so if you love them, put a trip to Ethiopia on your travel wishlist. : )

This wasn’t actually a tourist-y trip, so we only had a few minutes of shopping here and there, but I love what I brought home! The first things I picked up were three embroidered toys. A multi-color ball with the amharic alphabet, a pink rhino and a camel.

Oscar adopted the rhino. Betty hangs the camel on a corner of her bookshelves. And June adores the embroidered ball.

Click through to see a bible, some jewelry and more toys!

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By Gabrielle.

I’ve been home from Ethiopia for a couple of weeks now and I’m still trying to process everything I learned, everything I saw. This morning, I was on the phone with my friend Erin and she asked me about this particular Instagram I published during my trip. She wanted to know more about the Health Workers I mentioned. So I promised her I’d share everything I knew about the program here.

The health needs in Ethiopia are great, so the program is ambitious. With assistance from USAID, Ethiopia created an army of Health Extension Workers. These workers are assigned to every village and community in the country.

The program is pretty amazing, but the stroke of genius is that all 30,000 of the Health Extension Workers are women.

Keep reading to find out why I think that’s so smart.

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By Gabrielle.

Yesterday blew me away. We had a crash course in the rural medical system here in Ethiopia. And I’m writing up a post about it. But oh my. I have got to get some sleep! So instead of a report today, I thought you might like to see what Ethiopia looks like, through the viewfinder of Karen Walrond.

Friends. It is gorgeous. Gorgeous! We’ve been told this is the prettiest time of the year (sort of like the leaf-changing season is the prettiest time in New England), but it’s hard to imagine landscapes like this not looking beautiful.

Click here for more stunning images!

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By Gabrielle.

Yesterday, we traveled outside the capital to a town called Mojo. We were there to visit a Primary School and a Secondary School (Elementary and Jr. High/High School) that have benefited from foreign aid. In this case, aid from the UK. I was blown away at everything they are accomplishing with limited resources.

Over the last 4 years, these Mojo schools have received approximately $30,000 in aid funding. That’s not one lump sump. It’s $30,000 spread over 5 years. As part of receiving the funding, the schools have to be incredibly accountable for how they’re spending it, and the school administrators were more than happy to give us a tour and demonstrate all the improvements that have been made. They are proud of what they’ve accomplished. When we saw the improvements and read the numbers, we were proud too!

Instead of writing an essay today, I thought I’d share lots of photos (taken by Karen Walrond) and add notes about what I learned yesterday to each one. I hope you enjoy.

They used some of the funding to improve buildings and classrooms. They don’t have access to the learning posters that fill American classrooms, so instead they paint huge diagrams (about 5 feet x 6 feet) on the exteriors of the buildings. They are awesome!

Just to give you some context, Mojo is a not a big city, but it’s not a small village either. There are cars, but donkeys are far more prevalent.

Click here to find out more about these amazing schools.

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By Gabrielle.

Yesterday we visited the Mary Joy Organization. We were greeted by children, and by singing, dancing, flowers, and thousands of smiles. It was awesome. These were happy, happy kids. The organizers shared a presentation about the center. Then the kids performed — songs and juggling and acrobatics. Then we all danced. And danced and danced. I love dancing! I did my best to copy their moves, but that mostly made them laugh. Or in some cases, challenge me with harder moves. : )

Click here to read more. And to see more of these gorgeous happy faces!

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I’m here! I’m in Ethiopia. And it’s entirely unlike how I pictured it. The weather, the mountains and the lush greenery all remind me of Southern California. I had no idea!

Karen Walrond, the trip photographer, met each of us at the airport as we came from baggage claim. I didn’t know she was coming and love seeing these candid shots of how happy I was to arrive here. I am still that happy to be here!

Knowing there would be a photographer traveling with us, I purposely didn’t pack my big camera and instead, plan on depending on my iPhone. Feel free to follow along on Instagram (I’m gabrielle_designmom) if you’d like to see more of this adventure.

I had my first (of sure to be many) embarrassing story on the airplane. I sat by a friendly fellow that asked me if Addis Ababa was my destination or just a stopover. I asked him the same question and he said he was headed to his home in Djibouti. He asked me if I’d heard of it and I said, “No. It’s a city in Ethiopia?” And he said, “No, it’s a country. Near Somalia and Eritrea and Ethiopia.”

A country? How did I miss a whole country? Sigh.

This week, I’m in Ethiopia at the kind invitation and expense of The ONE Campaign, a nonpartisan, advocacy organization dedicated to the fight against extreme poverty and malnutrition, particularly in Africa. ONE works to convince governments to invest in smart programs that save lives. While here, I’m with a group of parenting bloggers to observe how the organizations for which ONE advocates are effecting real change in Ethiopia.

ONE doesn’t ask for your money, just your voice. If you’re moved by anything you read or see here, or on the ONE blog, please consider adding your voice, and join ONE by filling out this form. Your information will remain confidential.

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By Gabrielle.

I’m headed to Ethiopia tomorrow. My flight leaves Paris at 10:50 PM. It’s a red-eye, direct to Addis Ababa. I’m still trying to wrap my head around this trip and I think some of you are too, because I’ve been getting emails asking me what it’s all about.

Karen of Chookooloonks, a dear friend of mine, and the photographer for this trip, wrote up a really wonderful explanation about what the ONE Campaign does. It’s probably the clearest thing I’ve read on the subject, and I hope you’ll go check it out. I’m going to quote two paragraphs here:

“In their words, ONE is a “nonpartisan advocacy organization dedicated to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa.” What this means is that ONE is all about working to convince governments (primarily the U.S. government, but also others) to invest in smart programs that help to eliminate extreme poverty and preventable disease in a sustainable way. Furthermore, it doesn’t raise money or grants: ONE is almost completely funded by its board members and by foundations (like the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, for example) — and therefore, it never, ever asks for money from the general public. ​ Ever.​

Keep reading to find out how this involves a trip to Ethiopia for bloggers.

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By Gabrielle.

With six kids, I don’t think we’ve ever had a year when we didn’t have a visit to the doctor that included a shot. Usually several. Last month, I went in to get travel shots for my Ethiopia trip. I needed vaccinations for Hepatitis A, Typhoid, Yellow Fever, Diphtheria, Tetanus, Polio and Whooping Cough. When we moved to France, part of getting permission to live here included getting a few of these, so I only needed 4 to be caught up for the Ethiopia trip.

Like most everyone on the planet, I generally avoid getting shots. And I absolutely can’t watch as the needle goes in, or I’ll get queasy. But as I was sitting in the doctor’s office, I had a flashback of early morning, sitting in my pjs on a bar stool at our kitchen counter, watching my father take his insulin needles out of the fridge for his daily shot. And with that flashback came the always shocking reminder that shots are a daily part of so many people’s lives. It’s so strange, isn’t it, the things we get used to?

In case you’re curious, the shots didn’t hurt at all — not even a pinch. My arms were only sore for a couple of days afterward, and as an extra bonus, the kids were impressed with all my band aids. Easy peasy. I think it’s good for me to be reminded about what the process feels like so I can be more compassionate toward my kids when it’s their turn.

When’s the last time you had a shot? Have you ever visited a country that required vaccinations? Want the funny band aids? They’re from Urban Outfitters. (Here are some other ones that made me laugh.)

P.S. — I also have boxes of malaria pills to take while I’m there (they are expensive!). I’ve heard mixed stories about them. Have you ever taken them? I’d love to hear.

I’m traveling to Ethiopia with One.org and OneMoms. By joining ONE, you add your voice to millions who want to make a difference in the fight against malnourishment and hunger. ONE will never ask for donations and will keep your contact details confidential. I hope you’ll join.

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Today is New Year’s Day in Ethiopia. Melkam Addis Amet (Happy New Year) to all of you!

Why do I know this or mention this? In October, I’ll be traveling to Ethiopia with ONE Moms to make connections with Ethiopian mothers and share their stories. I’ll be with a group of ten influential women and we’ll travel to Addis, Tigray and other communities, to meet with women, farmers, school kids, and visit health clinics. We’ll visit organizations and projects that have benefited from foreign assistance and share what we see though the lens of women and families.

I’ve written about ONE Moms before but in case you missed it, it’s an arm of ONE.org, a non-partisan organization dedicated to the fight against extreme poverty and preventable disease, particularly in Africa. They never ask for money, but they do want your voice! ONE.org & ONE Moms work to change policy at the government level.

I’ve done a bit of traveling lately, but this trip feels very different. Instead of going as a tourist, I’ll be visiting as more of a student. I’ll be there to learn. To learn about what’s happening there. What’s working and what’s not. And I’ll report back to you. That said, the tourist in me still can’t help but be excited to visit Ethiopia and experience its beauty. It’s a country I know so little about!

When I was invited, the first thought I had was a flashback to being a 4th grader and listening to Band Aid on constant replay. (Raise your hand if you had the same memory). Clearly, I’m embarrassingly under-educated about Ethiopia and as part of our trip prep, ONE Moms has been sharing book titles and articles and having conference calls where we can ask questions. I can’t get enough! Visiting a country I’ve never been to before always opens my eyes to new and different perspectives. I’m sure this will be true in Ethiopia and I’m really looking forward to learning as much as I can.

Teach me, Friends. When you hear about Ethiopia, what comes to mind? Have you ever visited the country or tried Ethiopian food? Read any good books or articles with Ethiopia as the subject? Tell me everything! And please, if you feel touched by the ONE Moms mission, I hope you’ll consider lending your voice to the cause by signing up.

P.S. — The image of Meskel flowers is found here. During Ethiopian New Year, the countryside is carpeted with them. So pretty! Since September always feels more New Year-ish to me than January, I can already tell I’m really going to like Ethiopia.

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