August 29, 2008

Today is a new day and with it renewed strength from Above.

As a parent you are always second guessing yourself and your abilities to parent and I sure have lately. I always question whether I’m handling a situation correctly and fairly. The last several days have been really rough around here. We have been dealing with Kristofer acting out and the little ones are constant crying over food. It really wears you out emotionally, mentally and then physically. I have been wondering when the mother was going to show up and take over. Haha

Through this time I have been praying for God to help me and give me strength, but I have not been taking the time to read the bible and get spiritually filled. Mind you, all through the adoption I was always reading the Bible and asking God to give me a sign. A sign to let me know if this is what we were supposed to do, sign that my children were safe, and a sign we might be traveling soon. He did provide all the signs I asked for and now after I get home I’m trying to handle it all myself instead of relying on God like I had been through the adoption. Silly me.

Last night I picked up my Women’s Devotional Bible 2 and started reading the next devotional from where I had left off before the adoption was complete. It was a holy smack down for me. The title was I Am Chosen. In John 15:16 Jesus states, “You did not choose me, but I chose you”
It also goes on about the prophet Samuel going to the house of Jesse and choosing one of his sons’s to be king. That son was David the most unlikely person of all. Imagine little David going up against Goliath. David by himself did not kill Goliath, but God with him. David knew whatever God chooses you to do He will equip you to do and David knew the battle was the Lords.
This is my verse that is getting me through today. God has chosen me to be these boys mother and he will be with me through this trying time.

Isaiah 41:10 So do not fear, for I am with you; do not be dismayed, for I am your God. I will strengthen you and help you; I will uphold you with my righteous right hand.

If you are struggling with something hold on to this verse. God is with you and will give you strength.

Day 5 of Therapeutic Lockdown-Compassion

It is amazing how calm I am able to stay when I let compassion through. As a first time mommy it was not so easy. To my “first time mommy friends” Hang in there. This is only a small fraction of time and it will pass and get better because after your first child you are able to tune out crying. For those of you who do not understand what we go through as new adoptive parents imagine an 18 month old with colic. Good times. When we adopted Kristofer I was sure the rest of the world was nuts for continuing to have children and now look at me with two more. Oh my, I have to laugh at myself.

My boys cry every morning while I’m making breakfast. I just tune them out and reassure them here and there that they are going to be fed. They may not understand my words now, but they will. They have learned that crying gets them fed and now it will take time for them to learn that they will always be fed in this house.

Here is a quote to keep close for those of you who may be struggling:

“Keeping compassion as our reference point encourages us to have the patience and stamina to keep trying on the toughest days.”

The Connected Child by Dr. Karyn Purvis, Ph.D., David R. Cross, Ph.D., and Wendy Lyons Sunshine

Some thoughts on yesterday:

I worked a lot with Igor and his chewing issue. He started doing better and while I was feeding them I at an apple. Sasha started grunting at me and really wanted a bite so I thought I’d try it since he chews well. He bit off a little chunk and thoroughly enjoyed it. Of course, Igor could not be left out and wanted a bite too. I was concerned to try it, but it did him good. At first he just put his mouth on the apple and did not bite hard. Then he figured it out and his bite started getting stronger. A couple of times he bit off some good chunks and boy was I nervous. I was so proud of him because he actually chewed them well.

Sasha gave me more kisses and snuggles. It was so sweet at one point I was holding him and patting his back. He started patting mine. Sigh…Melted my heart.

Sasha was crying and dropped his binky. Igor picked it up and shoved it into Sasha’s mouth. I think he was tired of the crying too!

Today the younger boys took a 2.5 hour nap and Kristofer and I got to spend some good quality time together. We played Candy Land and read stories. Kristofer was in dire need of some extra mommy time. He is still doing a great job hanging in there and being a good big brother. For the most part he is patient and good to them. At the end of the day everyone seems to get a little roudy and cranky until we put them into their beds. Then it is sweet silence. Aaahhhh….

I want to share what Kelly wrote from our children’s perspectives of what they are experiencing right now. When I read it I started crying because it made their pain so much more real and I was able to see it and have compassion for them.

If my children were to discuss their current situations with us and if we were able to listen, this is likely what they would say.

"Hello, I'm Sasha. That's a nickname for Alexander, the name that my birth mother gave me before she terminated her parental rights and left me at the hospital. I stayed there for nearly a month before I was able to go to the baby home. Once I was there I received the best care that was possible from the few caregivers and the dozens of children. There were more children in the home that what should have been. It was very stressful. Since there were so many of us babies, we had to eat really fast. We were also on a very rigid schedule. Every day, we I ate at the same time, slept at the same time and were changed at the same time. Sometimes I had on a dirty diaper for too long. Sometimes I lay awake in bed because I was stressed and not tired. Early on I would cry for someone to change me or hold me while I was trying to go to sleep. I would just cry, but no one would come. After several months, I just gave up.

"Nights were the worst. I would wake up and cry but no one was there. So I would sit up on my hands and knees and rock back and forth and cry myself asleep. I still do this when I wake up in the night and can't find my pacifier. Luckily my Mama and Papa hear me cry and come in the find my pacifier for me. They put it in my mouth, lay me down and rub my back. About my mama and papa, they are not like any people I've ever met, and I've had quite a few caregivers in 18 months. I've only known them for about two weeks now, but I've know other caregivers longer. They talk a funny language but sometimes say a few Russian words that I recognize. I'm not sure if I trust them any more than my last caregiver. I really miss her.

"Mama and Papa spent some time this weekend and made the big living room look much more like the orphanage I used to live in: tan walls, a few pieces of furniture and a few toys. I feel much better now. Too many toys, noises and distractions was making my very irritable. My brother Igor is doing better too. I'll let him tell you."

"Добрый день, (Doh-brey-dean, that's "good day" in Russian). My name is Igor (ee-Grley). Like my brothers who still have Russian nicknames, that is the name my birth mother gave me in the hospital in Rostov-on-Don, Russia before she terminated her parental rights. I stayed in the hospital for several weeks before I was able to go to the baby home. My baby home was nice too, but was also over crowded. I got to visit with these strangers for just two hours in May and three hours in June. Then in August they came and took me out of the baby home. I got to ride in a car for the first time! On the same day, I got to fly from Rostov to Moscow!

"Several days later I got up at 4:30 a.m. Moscow Time and rushed to the airport. After staying with my mama for over two hours in line to get our tickets we barely made our flight, but it was delayed for nine hours. We got to stay in the business lounge, but I got really tired of that. We finally got to fly to Frankfurt, Germany. But when we got there we had to wait for four hours for Papa to get hotel arrangements and get me and my brother an emergency visa so that we could sleep in Frankfurt. You see, my brother and I at the time were still Russian citizens and couldn't be in Germany even though we weren't even two years old!

"The next day we got up early and flew to Chicago. That was a long nine hour flight. Later that day we flew into Louisville, Kentucky. My Mama carried me in a sling. I got really tired and sweaty in it. They tell me the sweating is from my Rickets, a Vitamin D deficiency. I think it is just because I'm scared. I'm also very itchy because I got Scabies right before we left Russia. Tonight, Mama put cream all over my body. I sure hope it takes care of this. I'm in a new house, with new people, two new brothers, I itch really badly and I don't feel very good. I'm also tired of hearing Sasha cry. I really like to play with Dima in his room and in the yard. He's pretty neat. He can talk next."

"Hi, I'm Dima and I'm 4. I need to tell you where babies come from. You drive to the bank and get a bunch of money. Then go on an airplane, that is not broken, three times. You fly to Russia. You are gone a long, long time. Then you can bring home a baby. Their ears will be really owie on the plane and they will cry like this, waahhh. When Mama and Papa brought home my little brothers, I stayed at Grammy and Pa Orr's house for a week on the first trip, at Grandma and Pa Kinkade's house on the second trip and with both of them on the third trip. I wanted to have five little brothers, but my mama and papa said, two. I love them so much.

"I love my mama and papa, too. I tell them that a lot each day. I miss them. We used to ride bikes, jump on the trampoline, eat dinner and ice cream together on the porch, and go on trips. But, now that my little brothers are home, I have to share my time with them. It makes me mad some times. I go to my room and cry sometimes, but mama and papa make me come back out and snuggle with them on the couch for a while. But I have to do that with my little brothers, too. I love them, but I sure miss my time with mama and papa. I'm trying to understand these changes, but it's just hard."

I survived!!!

Today was my first day home alone with all three children and it went well. My children were cranky/grieving and defiant and I kept cool and took care of business. I also managed to keep up with the dishes, keep the house picked up, sit and play with the boys, take them outside twice, get them to nap on time AND had dinner on the table when Kelly walked in the door. Yeah, that’s right I went ahead and gave myself the title of supermom. We will see if I can keep that title tomorrow!

Kelly left for work this morning and I did not want him to go. I could feel the emotions coming on and I was hoping he would get out the door quick. Nope. He didn’t want to go either, so he kept lingering and then I couldn’t hold the tears back anymore. He finally got out the door and had to come back in twice for stuff he forgot. The boys were so confused by the time he left. At 10am Kristofer started asking when papa was coming home. Holy cow, I heard that at LEAST once every hour!When Kelly did walk in the door it was so cute to see the joy and excitement on all three boy’s faces. They do love their papa.

Over all Kristofer did well today. We did have a couple of episodes of him being mean to his brothers. Once Igor started crying out of the blue. I asked Kristofer what happened and he told me Igor hit his hand on something. After I picked Igor up and loved on him and told him to be careful Kristofer admitted he did it. I thanked him for telling me the truth and explained how we need to be nice and kind to our brothers.

Sasha and Mama had another moment. He gave me his first open mouth wet sloppy kiss!! He has been giving them to Kelly for the past two weeks so it melted my heart even more. We are bonding!!!

I have noticed with Sasha that feeding time is a high anxiety time. I feed them out of the same bowl and alternate bites between them. Poor Sasha’s legs are going a hundred miles a minute and he is pulling on his tray trying to get at the bowl. At dinner I decided to try something different. I had Kelly feed Sasha at the opposite end of the table from me feeding Igor. Sasha is a much faster eater, but his anxiety level was very low. He still cried and threw a fit when it was over. Igor was able to eat at a much slower pace and I got him chewing a lot more than usual.

After dinner Kelly and I kept right on schedule of giving baths and putting the boys to bed. I gave Sasha his bath first by himself and he is improving little by little. He did not shake as much today and his crying was a little decreased. He still gets mad at the water spout and smacks at it. It is kinda funny.

All three boys were in bed by 7:20pm and asleep by 7:40pm. Mama is pleased with this day.

I'll leave you with this quote that I think is great.

"If we can experience another's mind in our own, we know that love is possible." --George Bowering

Today we had some breakthroughs with Sasha, but our little Igor is starting to grieve. Igor has been so happy go lucky these past three weeks I didn’t recognize it as grief at first.

Igor had been a little needier (needing to be held) today, but still for the most part was his happy little self until dinner time tonight. He had been crying while I made their dinner, but I thought it was because he was hungry and wanted to be held. I put both boys in their chairs and Sasha was making his happy noises about being fed. Igor just lay forward on his tray and cried. It was a stronger cry and was coming from the back of his throat. I tried coaxing him to sit up and eat and he was having none of it. I took him out of the chair and put him on the floor so he would understand he had to sit up to eat and I thought he was having a tantrum for no apparent reason. He just folded over and did more very deep crying.

My first instinct was to get mad/irritated and then it dawned me that he had finally started grieving. I wasn’t sure what to do because I was the only one home and trying to feed Sasha, but I knew Igor NEEDED to be held. I picked him up and put him on my lap and kept feeding Sasha. Igor was able to settle down and eat. I guess he needed the comfort of being close to me. My heart is breaking for him.

Sasha’s breakthroughs started as soon as he got up this morning. I walked out of the bedroom holding him and he saw Kristofer in the hall and stretched out his hands and fell towards him. He wanted a good morning hug from his big brother. Igor got two hugs from Sasha today too; one in the morning and one after Igor’s meltdown at dinner. It kinda makes me wonder if he understands Igor’s grief and he was trying to comfort him.

Sasha also let me hold both he and Igor at the same time without getting mad and getting down.

I think Sasha and I are really starting to bond now. He was sitting on Kelly’s lap, jumped down and ran to me with his arms up ready for me to pick him up. That has NEVER happened. He sat on my lap for a little while and then got down and went about his business. Throughout the day he wanted me to hold him. He was so much more relaxed against me. It feels like he is more my baby now. I know this bond is only going to get stronger.

Sasha has really improved with bath time too. Normally while he is in the tub he is screaming in terror and trying to claw his way out. Today he was shaking and crying, but only cried when I poured the water over him. (And no I did not dump any water over his head.) There was no screaming involved. Instead of giving him baths we have been washing him down with a washcloth and doing little things with him to get him used to the water. We let Igor and Kristofer play in the tub and take him in to watch. I also put his little feet over the tub and pour water on them. Kelly did this as well outside with the pool. He did not cry just did very heavy breathing because it stressed him out. Sasha is so terrified of water he screamed in terror when rain drops fell on him. Poor baby.

Kristofer did very well today. He helped me feed his brothers lunch and it was really a big help. We are trying our hardest to keep everything very positive for him. We have two rules right now that he has to abide by.

#1 is we only talk. Translations mean no yelling.

#2 is we walk. Translation means he is not allowed to run around the house like a crazy boy because it over stimulates his brothers and kinda freaks them out.

I walked up behind Kristofer when he was bugging Igor. It was hilarious to watch. He was holding Igor’s arm until Igor bent over his hand open mouthed ready to bite him. At the last second Kristofer would let go and jerk his hand away. He did this like three times before he realized I was watching him. He did not get in trouble, but I did mention to him that it is not nice to aggravate. He looked at me a little sheepishly.

We found out on Friday when we took the boys to the International Adoption Clinic that Igor has scabies. We did a treatment last night and I have been doing laundry all day washing our clothes and bed sheets in hot water. Why is it we just have to have all the drama? I’m beginning to think I’d like to share it with someone else. I mean really…

At the end of this day I am finding myself falling more in love and attaching to my boys and my heart is aching for them. I know in some ways all three of them are grieving. Yes, even Kristofer. He is used to having me all to himself every day and now he has to share me. It cannot be easy for him.

Tomorrow is my big day. Kelly is going back to work so it is going to be all me until about 5:30pm. I have to admit I am a little nervous, but I know I am capable. For those of you who offered me your phone numbers get ready! I might burn up those phone lines. (grin)

Longing for Russia

Yes, CM I am in the same boat as you. Oh, to go back to the happy days of our children in Moscow.

I never thought those words would cross my mind, but in a sense I am longing for Russia. I was thinking back on how good the boys behaved when we were in Moscow and how things had changed. I was trying to figure out what we were doing different and if we needed to change it to make the boys happy. Then I realized that in Moscow they were scared and shut down little boys. Yes, they appeared happy giving us laughs and giggles, but they were not comfortable with us yet to show how they were really feeling. Now they are comfortable with us and their grief is starting to show. I was reading my friend CM’s blog and the puzzle pieces just fell together.

Our little Sasha/London is having a tough go of it. Poor little thing. He cries more often than not. I’d say about 95% of the time. One thing is he does not like is human touch when he is upset/mad and crying/screaming and he only want to self sooth. He will self sooth by sitting and rocking or getting on his hands and knees and rock back and forth. Depending on how upset/mad he is his rocking can be pretty violent. It is at that point one of us will pick him up and hold him which he does not like. We just put him on our lap facing out and our arms around him loose enough that he can wiggle a bit, but not get down.

The first time I did a hold on him I decided to leave his arms out to be nice and just put my arms around his waist. I learned real quick his arms have to be pinned at his side or he will pinch and scratch. That day I also learned exactly how I had to hold him so he could not lean over and bite me. He did not bite hard, but still he bit just enough to let me know he was not happy.

You might think it is silly for us to hold him during his tantrum and we should just ignore him and leave him alone. The reason we do a hold is to break his cycle of relying on himself. He has done that his whole life and we want him to learn that we will always be there, we are his parents, and we will always take care of him.

I want to make very it clear we are not doing holding therapy when he is being calm and happy. We only do this when he is having a tantrum/meltdown. There are some therapists out there that believe holding therapy is good to do when the child is calm and cause them to be very upset. According to Dr. Federici this is not healthy holding therapy and I believe him. He is one of the best adoption therapists out there.

Igor/Kolton is a happy go lucky little guy. He is happy 95% of the time and cries on occasion. His cry is opposite Sasha’s screaming and it is a gentler pitiful cry. It us usually because he is hurt, tired or hungry all things we can usually fix. Igor and Dima have really bonded too. They do a lot of playing during the day.

Kristofer/Dima has taken his roll of big brother VERY seriously. He says it is his job to throw away the diapers. I thought this might last for a day or two, but when I asked if he still wanted to throw them away for me he said, “Yes, because it is mine job!” in the most serious voice. Too cute

Another cute moment was when Kristofer had been naughty and had to put his nose on the wall. Sasha came over and looked up at Kristofer and then put his nose on the wall too. He stood there for about 10 seconds and then toddled off to play. I chuckled and said to myself, “Yeah, he was testing it out because he knows he is going to spend some time there too in a few years.”

Since our home has been such a change for the boys we stripped the living room of a lot of stuff. It is down to our couches and rocking chairs, and the entertainment center making it more like the bare orphanage the boys are used to. We also decided to start a 30 day “Federici” lockdown and not take the boys anywhere except outside to play. We are going to wait to invite anyone over until this time is over with. This will help lower their stress levels and help them to bond to us which is very important.

Today was day one and we survived!!! I have great hope that all will be well in the next few weeks. God is on our side!

Name Reveal!

We were keeping the boys names a secret until we got home so I thought I'd share them now that we have been home for 2 weeks! Yes, I know, I am very late on updating. Give me just a little break. I am VERY busy around here. I feel like all I do is feed them and change diapers. So anyways...

Igor's name has been changed to Kolton Wayne and Sasha's name has been changed to London Dale. Their middle names are our father's middle names.
We are having a hard time calling them by their new names because we have called them by their Russian names for so long. We do plan to continue calling them by their Russian names all through out their life like we do with Kristofer/Dima. Their birth mothers did name them and I think it is only fair to continue to use those names.

On Wednesday night we got the boys ready for bed and finished our packing…not like we had much to do since we had not luggage. We went to sleep at about 10pm and Kelly and I both woke up at midnight (6pm Louisville time). We were so excited that were finally bringing our babies home that we could not sleep another minute.

At about 2:30am our message light started blinking on the telephone. Kelly called the front desk and they said our luggage had arrived at the DMO airport in Moscow. We told them we would pick it up in a few hours and to please hold it for us….How nice of them to get us our luggage just in time for us to recheck it on our departure flight.

Jane picked us up at 4:15am and took us to the DMO airport in Moscow. Kelly and Jane located the lost and found department at the airport and were able to get our luggage. We proceeded to the check in counters and of course there was an issue. By the time everything was straightened out we ran through all the security check points and was escorted to our gate. By the time we sat in our seats we had 3 minutes to spare before takeoff. Mind you we had been to the airport about 2 ½ hours early.

As our plane pulled away from the gate they discovered a problem with an engine. They tried to fix it but decided it was not fixable and took us back to the terminal. Since we were traveling with babies they let us hang out in the business lounge. They were bringing a plane from Frankfurt big enough to combine 2 scheduled flights to Frankfurt. Ours and another flight that was leaving at a later time. The boys were such troopers hanging out, playing and napping in the lounge for 9 hours. Finally, the attendants had a lot of people leave the lounge and proceed to the new gate to get their boarding passes and board the plane. They kept telling us to wait. It was really worrying us that they would forget about us and we would miss the flight…Yes, that is right. We have no faith left in the people that work for Lufthansa/United. FINALLY, they said we could proceed down. When we got to the gate there were about 20 of us needing seats on the flight and with the way the Lufthansa people were acting I didn’t think there would be enough seats for us all. Sasha started having a tantruming meltdown and Kelly was trying to get him quiet. I told him to let him scream and cry and then maybe we could get a seat faster. I went ahead and had a meltdown with Sasha. I started crying and could not stop. Then a crew member in a neon vest pointed at us and said, “You, come with me.” He walked us down the ramp and directed us to our seats. I cried until we were in our seats and settled.

When we arrived in Frankfurt I sat with the boys while Kelly tried to get us seats on a connecting flight. By this time I was so exhausted and I was hoping they would give us a hotel for the night. I knew there was no way I could handle two babies on an eight hour flight to Chicago. I needed sleep. After Kelly was at the counter for about an hour we indeed did get a hotel and a connecting flight in the morning. Only one minor problem. The boys were Russian citizens on Russian passports with no visas to stay in Germany. We had to go to the police station in the transit area and get emergency visas so we could take the boys past passport control and stay the night outside of the transit area. The officer at the counter was being such a jerk I had a second meltdown for the day. While Kelly was trying to discuss with him what we needed I was holding the boys and just crying. I was so exhausted and all I could think about was the movie The Terminal where Tom Hanks’ character is stuck in the transit area of an airport.

After another hour in the police office the boys were issued one day visas and we left for our hotel. We had dinner and put the boys to bed. They were soooo tired and cranky. We were also so exhausted because by this time we had been up for 24 hours and we had only made it to Frankfurt Germany.

Friday morning we woke up and made our Chicago flight with plenty of time to spare. We got to sit in the bulkhead seats and it worked out great. We had a bassinet that hooked to the wall that the boys took naps in and there was plenty of room on the floor for them to sit and play.

We made our Louisville connections with no problems and arrived in Louisville at 5:50pm. I about started crying and I have never been so happy to be home in all my life.

From the time we woke up on Moscow and could not go back to sleep to the time we landed in Louisville it had been 48 hours of traveling. Normally, this trips is between 20-24 hours. How did we get so lucky?

Hi Everyone,

We did make it home at about 5:50pm last night. It has never felt so good to be home. I have to say I got quite emotional about it. I'll post more about your incredible crazy journey home as soon as I have a little more time.

The boys did really good last night. They went to bed at about 8pm and woke up a little after 5am this morning. We had to get up with them about 3 times in the night. They are quickly adjusting to their new environment here at home. Kristofer is being such a fabulous big brother all ready.

Jennifer and Kelly wanted everyone to know that they made their Chicago flight and should arrive in Louisville just after 6 pm as planned. They asked that you please bring your cameras!!!

We will be arriving at 6:18 p.m. in Louisville (SDF) from Chicago (ORD) on United flight 5862 tonight.

It looks like we will be in at 6:20 pm Louisville time on Friday evening....assuming there are no further delays!

We will not be leaving Moscow until 2:30pm so we will miss all connecting flights. The should be interesting because our boys are Russian Citizens and require a visa to be in Frankfurt. Lufthansa will have to work out something so we can stay in a hotel. Hopefully, we will have internet access and be able to update everyone with details. So for now it looks like we will arrive on Friday. I just don't know when yet...Stay tuned once again as the drama continues.

Well, once again we are delayed in our travels. We had issues checking in and barely made it to the plane on time. Then we sat on the plane for 40 minutes only to have them tell us we are having engine trouble and they can try to rebook us. We are now hanging out in the business class lounge in Moscow...One plus to traveling with children is they let us come here.

They are expecting our plane to take off at 11am and we are hoping to still make our connecting flight in Frankfurt to Chicago. I will call Tasha from Chicago to let her know if we made it on time and she can post another blog for those that want to meet us. Stay tuned...

Igor slept well through the night last night. Sasha tossed and turned and cried a little so we kept waking up to check on him. He is sleeping in a regular bed because he does not like sharing a crib with Igor. We just put pillows on all sides of him, but I keep worrying he will fall out of bed with the tossing and turning.

Kelly and I were awake at 2am and could not go back to sleep. We were thinking back on how different it was when we adopted Kristofer in 2004. At this stage in the game I was so over whelmed I was shut down pretty hard. I was living in a big fog. This time around I am enjoying it and if they fuss and cry it does not bother me as bad. When it is your first and they cry you feel like you have to fix something for them to make it better and that can be very stressful. Sometimes there is nothing for you to fix.

We all slept in until 10:30am. I was shocked the boys slept that long. Even though they went to bed late I thought for sure they would still wake up at their usual time of 7am. I fed them their cereal while Kelly made a trip to the supermarket. He purchased more diapers, wipes, and baby food for the trip home. I think the airlines supply baby food, but I am not about to rely on them at this point.

Jane picked us up promptly at 1:15 this afternoon and took us to the American Embassy for our appointment. All of the paperwork was processed and we now have the boys' passports, adoption and birth certificates, and the lovely sealed packet for Homeland Security when we land in the U.S. The gentleman that helped us at the Embassy was the same guy in 2004 who processed our paperwork for Kristofer’s adoption.

In 2004 when we adopted Kristofer the waiting room was packed with adopting families. This time was so different. There was only one other family there from Maryland . It was nice to chat with them while we waited for our paperwork.

The boys are napping now and Kelly went to purchase more Vodka for us to bring home. Luckily we had left 2 duffle bags in Rostov with our donations so we have bags we can check on the way home. We were trying to figure out how we would pack the vodka with out the bottles getting broken and then it dawned on me. DIAPERS! If we pack the bottles in clean diapers it will be good padding and if they get broke it will soak it up without too much mess. I am such a genius. Haha Kelly also traded 100 rubles for the liquor stores tape and a box. We should be able to get it home ok...I think.

Well, tomorrow is the day of our big trip! Jane is picking us up at 4:15am and taking us to the airport. I guess the next time I post we will be home. Waaahooo! Can’t wait to see everyone!

P.S. We still do not have any luggage and no sign of getting it. The Lufthansa site says it is still trying to track it. We are thinking we may never see that luggage again…or if we do it will be weeks from now. For those of you who are getting ready to make your 3rd trip to pick up your kids I would recommend packing a good sized carry on with the essentials you might need to bring them home. (Clothes, bottles, Benadryl, Tylenol etc.) Some of these things can be very hard to come by in Russia...Especially at a reasonable price.

Flight update:All of our paperwork has gone smoothly today and Jane said we will be clear to leave on Thursday instead of Friday. We should arrive in Louisville at 8:34pm for those that want to meet us at the airport.

We went shopping yesterday to try and find things for the boys. It proved to be a difficult task as none of the stores had anything in stock. They all said they were getting ready to put in their orders because people would be shopping for school soon. Larissa called the orphanages and let them know our luggage had been lost and we needed the boys dressed and their shoes too. They also provided us with extra shirts. We were so thankful the orphanages helped us out. We are able to find hats, but Igor’s is a tad tight.

The boys did very well on the flight to Moscow . I had Igor and he slept the whole flight. Kelly had Sasha and he shared his lunch with him so Sasha is very attached to Kelly. It is funny when Sasha cries he only wants Kelly and when Igor cries he only wants me. It is nice that they are both getting attached and not just to one parent.

Jane picked us up from the airport and took us to our hotel. We fed the boys dinner and put them to bed. They were both asleep in under 5 minutes and slept mostly through the night. Sasha woke up at about 5pm and then at almost 7am. At about 7:30 we woke up Igor because the doctor was coming to check them out for our Embassy paperwork.

The doctor did come and he is the same doctor that inspected Kristofer in 2004. He said he remembered our family name and we showed him pictures of Kristofer. He said he has had one family adopting over 16 kids and they had told him it was addicting. We have to agree. He said, “Maybe I will see you again?” and we said, “Maybe?” Doctor Boris said both boys were fit. I was a little concerned about a rash Igor has, but he said it is heat rash. His rickets causes him to sweat which causes the heat rash. The rickets should clear up as soon as we start giving him vitamin D milk and getting him into the sunshine.

It seems when the boys get a little fussy and clingy we just feed them and then it is like magic. They sit on the floor and play and talk. We had left little photo albums for them between our trips and they love to look at them. Igor says, mama, papa and ba. We are fairly certain the “ba” is his way of saying “brat” which is brother in Russian.

At noon we all took a nap and slept just over 4 hours. After we fed the boys a snack we took them for a walk down to Red Square and St. Basil’s. It was pretty comical. We had both boys in a stroller for one. They didn’t like it too much, but as long as we were moving they didn’t fuss. Sasha does not like Igor touching him. We fed the boys dinner at Red Square and then came back to the hotel. We gave them a quick rinse off bath and they cried. They do not like taking baths. We put their clothes back on them and put them to bed. We had asked Jane about buying some P.J’s for them and she said they are hard to find unless you want to pay $100 for them. We said, “No thanks. They can sleep in their clothes.”

Tomorrow we go to the Embassy!

We arrived safe and sound in Rostov at about 5pm last night. However, it would not be an Orr adoption trip without airplane drama.

We were delayed leaving Louisville because if thunderstorms in Chicago. Because of our late departure we missed our connecting flight to Frankfurt Germany. They rerouted us onto a different flight and the only seats available were first class. After she printed our tickets and we had sat down I leaned over to Kelly and said, "You know what is funny? When we were checking in at the United counter I had asked God to please give us REALLY good seats like an aisle seat and let us sit together." Nothing like a REALLY good seat in first class!

Because it was first class we got to hang out in Chicago at the first class lounge and then board directly on the plane without waiting in line. We were also served a fabulous dinner that included crab cakes, Fillet Mignon and hot fudge sundaes for dessert. It was a great anniversary dinner. First class is certainly the way to travel Trans-Atlantic. Our seats went completely flat so we were able to get a good nights sleep.

When we arrived in Rostov our luggage did not make it. Because there are so few flights into Rostov from Frankfort we are having our luggage rerouted to Moscow and it should be there when we arrive this afternoon. Larissa and Vladamir are taking us shopping to buy clothes, food and toys for the boys. Yes, all the lovely things we needed for the boys are in our checked luggage. We will just have some extra baby souvenirs from Russia.

We will be picked up today at about 10:30am and we have to finish the passports for the boys, take them to the airport to purchase tickets, go shopping and then pick up the boys in time to make our 4pm flight. We should have Internet in Moscow so I will post more when we arrive.

We returned from our second trip on Saturday after spending an extra day in Munich Germany. We really had good time touring the city. If any of you adoptive families are having layovers in Germany and have never been I would suggest adding it into your itinerary if you are able.

We are looking forward to returning to Russia to pick up our boys tomorrow the 12^th. What a day to celebrate! Not only do we get to return to pick up the boys, but it is also our 11^th anniversary! Yes, that is right. We have survived 11 wonderful years and I believe the best is yet to come.

Tomorrow we will be flying directly to Rostov from Frankfurt Germany and bypassing Moscow. From the time we leave Louisville KY until we arrive in Rostov it will be about 19 hours and 30 minutes. After missing our connecting flights on our last two trips in Germany due to issues in Chicago we have a 5 hour layover in Frankfurt. I am praying whatever delay we may encounter in Chicago will still let us make that flight. I just checked Chicago’s weather for tomorrow and they are supposed to have T-storms. Ugh, Lord help us!

Well, I am off to finish packing. Pray I don’t forget anything for the boys.

We are parents!!!...again.
The judge said, "Da-da" and "Da-da." Once for "I" and once for "S".

We went to court at 10am this morning and had a good court hearing. It was very nerve racking. We realized how stressed we were afterwards when we relaxed. I think I was more stressed going to court then to the medical clinic, which is weird for me.

Kelly did the talking for us in court and the only thing I had to answer was if I was ready to be a mother of 3 small children. The judge wanted to make sure I had people to help me too. Kelly did a great job answering the questions. Next the social worker and head doctors for each child spoke about the health conditions of the children and our interaction with them on our visits.

We all left the court room while the judge deliberated and when we returned she granted the adoptions and waived the 10 days so all the paperwork could be completed this next week. We will be able to bring the boys to Moscow on the 14th so we will be making a third trip.

We are now off to the airport!

This morning we went to visit "S" first. When we first took him he fussed a little and then went very still. Soon caregivers started walking past and talking to him. He kept wanting to go with them, but we kept him with us. After a bit he opened up and started playing with the toys we brought. He really liked to bang the cups together. We did get some smiles out of him.

His little roommates came out and went into a gazebo to play with the caregivers. We walked over and let "S" talk and play with the caregiver for a bit. We got some good video of his caregiver singing a song and "S" doing the hand motions. It was cute.

We went to see "I" this afternoon. We were hoping his group would come out and play with us, but they headed to a different part of the orphanage grounds to play. "I" was very stiff and plastered against us at first. We tried to get him to play, but it was not working so we just held him and let him get used to us for a bit.

Kelly started tickling his belly and that got a smidgen of a smile out of him. We had him walk back and forth between us and that helped too. I sat down on the carpet, with him sitting against my legs, and got out the toys. He liked to bang the cups together and try to stack them. We started stacking them and showing him how to kick them over. Eventually, I moved back just a bit and he turned to see where I was going, but was OK with not leaning against me anymore.

Soon the older kids came out and they were a hoot, but they broke my heart too. Some of them saw us and ran the other way, others cautiously approached. I had bubbles I was blowing and they loved chasing them. It was sad how the children had to fend for themselves because the caregivers could not keep their eyes on all of them at once. A couple of the boys were going around hitting the other children. A little bit later the one that got hit would sneak up behind the hitter and give him a good whack! It breaks my heart to see all of them there needing mommies and daddies.

One little boy was hitting and pushing for attention. I thought he was just naughty and would fit some of Dr. Federici's Dx's to a T. It broke my heart though because at one point he fell down and started crying. A caregiver came over to him, sat him on his feet, but did not pick him up. He fell back on the floor kicking and screaming. As soon as she picked him up and gave him some attention he was fine. I wanted to take him home and "fix" him and love him.

I fell in love with so many children today and it breaks my heart I can not take them home with me. As good and as nice as the orphanage is, it is just no place for children to live.

Tomorrow we will be checking out of our hotel and going to court at 10am. After that we will do a little paperwork and head to the airport and back to Moscow. I do not know if we will have internet access at our hotel we are staying at tomorrow, but we will post again as soon as we are able.

We got to see the boys today!

"I" has a lovely black eye. Poor little thing. They said he was playing and fell on a toy.
"I" is such a snuggle bug. He did not want to play he just wanted to be held and loved on. He was at the end of his nap and they woke him up. Seeing him was nice, but nothing to really report about.

When we went to visit "S" they got him ready and had us take him outside to a gazebo. He was in his shut-down mode and we were trying to play and interact with him. Some of the older kids came out to another gazebo and that interested him. It broke my heart because the kids were so happy to be outside, but they wanted to run around instead of being gated in the gazebo. Two of the kids ran off a bit and the caregiver went after them. One little boy was fighting about going into the gazebo so she pinched the back of his neck. He started crying and it started upsetting "S" so he put his binky in his mouth.

A little bit later his age group came out. They joined us in our gazebo and "S" turned into a completely different child. It was great! We got to see him smile, laugh, clap his hands, dance and interact with the other children. We also got his caregiver on video singing with him. It was so cute.
He said Papa! It was coming out as BaBa and the caregiver pointed out to us what he was saying. I guess when he needs something he can holler for papa first. haha

After a while I was able to get "S" to smile. When I reached out and picked him up he when stone still again. Ahhh, I guess one day he will relax with us. Both boys just need time. sigh...

Tuesday

We went to the airport early today and purchased tickets to Rostov. We had an uneventful flight here...thankfully.

Our driver and translator picked us up and we headed to "S's" orphanage. His schedule had been changed and he was sleeping so we went and checked into our hotel instead. We get to see the boys later this afternoon and we'll update you later.

Monday

We survived the medical clinic!!!

Today Jane picked us up and we went to purchase our return tickets from Rostov. After that we went to the American Medical Clinic in Moscow. I was so stressed even though I knew it was a non invasive exam. When they were ready to draw blood I was determined not to cry or friek out. I did very well thank you very much. The girl that drew the blood was very good and all I felt was the initial prick.

Jane, our translator, took us to drop off a stroller to the "P's" who had just returned from Rostov with their little boy. Our apartment was just a short distance from their hotel so we stayed and had dinner with them and walked back to our apartment afterwards.

It was great to be able to sit and chat with them. Towards the end of the meal there little guy had gotten used to us and was laughing and playing and talking. "L" asked if I wanted to hold him, and of course I did! It was so funny because as soon as I took him he froze and went into the "orphanage blank stare" and it took him a bit to warm back up. Poor little guy. He is beautiful and had adjusted to them well.

Tomorrow morning we go to Rostov.

Sunday

In Chicago our flight was delayed (of course) due to thunder storms. Our plane was coming in from Beijing and had to be in a holding pattern for an hour before it could land. By the time it came around to our gate,cleaned and ready for us to fly to Frankfurt,we were more then an hour delayed. As we were landing in Frankfurt our flight was taking off to Moscow.

We had to go out through security and try to rebook onto a different flight. They put us on standby for the next flight out and also booked us on the following flight. Luckily we were able to leave on the earliest Moscow flight.

Because if our delay into Moscow we did not have someone to pick us up from the airport. We tried using the payphones available but could not get them to work. We finally went to the information desk and thankfully they spoke English. They called our coordinator for us and she directed us to get an official taxi. Our taxi driver spoke some English and had no problems finding our apartment.

The apartment was great. It was nice, clean and comortable. We had an electric tea pot so we were able to boil water to drink. It was also nice to have a warm shower. Alla, our coordinator, told us to be ready at 2pm the next day because we had to get our medicals done and purchase flight tickets.

And we are off to the airport! We will update when we get to Moscow. I think it will take about 24 hours to get there and get settled.

Please keep Kristofer in your prayers. He is very stressed about us leaving.

We got to book our flights today!!!

Kristofer and I were out picking blueberries today (www.bryantsblueberries.com) and Lisa from Enroute Travel called and said she had the ok to book our flights for Saturday.

This evening we worked on booking our Moscow apartment through peace travel. (www.go-russia.com) I thought we could just book online, but it is a little more of a process than that. You reserve it through email, but it is not really reserved until you fill out Peace Travel’s form, make a copy of your credit card and fax it to them. I called the Highlander Point UPS Store to see if they were still open (at 7pm when they were closing) and they were so nice and stayed open until I could get there.

I am excited to go back to Rostov to see our boys!

A colleague of Kelly’s is traveling in Russia right now and I had to post his YouTube video of a “Nyet” Song he and is friend came up with. Nyet means "no" in Russian. If you have traveled to Russia I’m sure you can relate. If you are waiting to travel this will sum it up for you. Hope you get a good grin out of it.

We drove up to Indianapolis Friday and hit the outlet mall for gifts to take with us to Russia. All I can say is, “SCORE!” I was having a hard time finding anything around here that was nice, but did not cost an arm and a leg. The cosmetic store had great little gift packs under $20, the perfume store had great perfume under $20 and the Tote store had purses and gloves for $9.99. Nothing like getting a great deal!

On Saturday we attended the KidsFirst Reunion picnic in Noblesville. We have attended the past 4 or 5 years and I think this was the year for the least to attend. Normally the playground is a mass of children and this year it was quite spars. I don’t know if the cost of fuel was keeping everyone away or the threat of possible rain. It was a great day and the rain held off for us.

It was wonderful to be able to get together with the families and share our adoption experiences.
Here are a few pictures of Kristofer and his “Ekat Cousins” who were adopted by the” H’s” and the “A’s” who traveled to Ekaterinburg the same time as us in 2004. We survived our adoptions together!

Our 3 families minus Mr. "H". Inna is in the middle and she is the one who makes our adoptions possible.

Here are our little ones in 2004.

Here they are now with "A's" big sister too.

Inna called us yesterday afternoon to let us know we will not be traveling on Saturday. This phone call came while I was on my way back from Frankfurt KY. I had to get the pediatrician letter, which helps get some of our 10 day waiting period waived, aposilled at the Secretary of State’s office. Since our court date has changed I’ll probably have to redo it…Again! It’s only money right? sigh

Here are some pictures of Kristofer and I at the KY capitol building. I took these pictures because I didn’t think we would be coming back to get anything else apostilled. Boy was I wrong.

Kristofer got to watch movies on the drive to and from Frankfort KY

We told Kristofer today that we would not be leaving on Saturday to go to Russia and he said with a sigh, “When Sasha and Igor going to be here?” It was sweet and cute. I think he is just ready for it all to be over with.

Our consolation prize for bumped travel dates is to be able to attend the KidsFirst Annual Reunion Picnic on Saturday. It is always fun to hang out people we have adopted with, chat with others from the region we are adopting/have adopted from and be able to put a face with someone we have exchanged emails with.

Our new possible travel dates are on June 28^th with us returning on July 4^th. Stay tuned…

We have “possible” travel dates for trip two!!!

Inna called today and said we could reserve (not book) our tickets and hotels. I called Enroute travel and the prices of the hotels in Moscow are CRAZY right now. With an adoption discount they are still $900 per night! This is not something we had planned in our adoption budget.

Our travel agent suggested using Peace Travel (www.go-russia.com) and renting an apartment. For 3 nights we will be spending under $600. Now that is more in my price range! We are hoping, when we are able to book, something will be available for us. God knows our need and he will provide. If we do stay in the apartment we will be (I think) the first family using KidsFirst Adoption to stay in the apartment. However, about %60 percent of Frank Adoption (who KidsFirst uses) stay in apartments with no problems so I am excited. Nothing like experiencing full on Russia!

I was on the phone or email all day today trying to coordinate last minute documents and travel plans. Kristofer was such a trooper once again and played all day by himself and was soooo good! He should really get the “good son” award! He is great!

If all goes well we will be flying out on Saturday. I will know for sure on Thursday. Stay tuned!!!

So Kelly and I were talking about our boys last night and he shared a very cool and touching moment with me.

When our plane was heading to the runway, leaving Rostov Russia, Kelly was praying for our boys. Praying for God to keep them safe and for the caregivers to give them the love and attention they need. As Kelly put it, “Before I was done praying some lady (me) pipes up. Hey look; there is a rainbow out the window.” Kelly’s immediate thought was, “Of course there is!” It was our sign and promise that our boys will be taken care of while we are gone.

God is so good to us. If we are still and listen he will give us signs and speak to us. You may not hear an audible voice, but he is talking. Are you listening?

Update:
According to Inna we will probably travel for trip two at the end of June or beginning of July.

Hey everyone, we have made it home safe, sound and in one piece. We are just missing one piece of luggage that hopefully United/Lufthansa will be able to return to us. Not sure how they managed to lose it when we checked in about 2 hours early to our flight. We got in to Louisville around 11:30pm on Saturday.

Sunday we managed to make it to the 11:00 service at church and then drove to Indianapolis to pick up Kristofer from Kelly’s parents. He was so cute. I picked him up and started hugging him and he was touching my hair and face and telling me how he missed me while I was in Russia. We ate lunch at McDonald’s and the whole time he was plastered to my side and rubbing on my arm in some way, either his face or his hand. Our son is definitely 100% attached and bonded to us. I pray the other two will bond to us the same, not to long after we bring them home.

Saturday. We have had a wonderful morning in Frankfurt spending time at the Romerberg which is the shopping district. We rode the subway which was an experience all in itself. We bought tickets to go one way, but not the other. We realized once we got off the subway on the way back that purchasing tickets must be on the honor system.

For breakfast Jennifer had a carmel latte from a local coffee café. We also had two kinds of pastries purchased at a local bakery next to the café. We ate at a table in the courtyard and watched people start to gather for a festival. We were amazed at how the store keepers took so much care in setting up their stores each morning and going the extra mile by putting table cloths on the public tables in the courtyard.

There was a children’s festival underway all morning. It was neat to see a lot of Germans out enjoying the shops, festival and parks in the morning. We walked through a grocery store and were absolutely amazed at the quality of goods and freshness of produce. We stopped at the festival and got sausage, bratwurst, bread and an onion, pepper and cheese salad along with a Henniger Brau. We got back to the hotel just in time for the weather to turn rainy.

We are looking forward to heading back to Indiana and hope that our flights will be on time.

We have made it to Frankfurt Germany…again.

Today we got to spend a little bit of time with each boy before heading to the airport. Ready to know their names? Yeah, it’s a little hard to write about them with using their names so I’ll spill the beans… They are Sasha (short for Alexander) and Igor (pronounced E-grey…roll the R good.) Yes, we do plan to call them by their Russian names, just like Dima, as well as the new names we give them. Their birth mothers named them so we feel it is important to incorporate it into their new life.

We saw Sasha first. Yesterday he cried the whole time we were with him and had a hard time settling down. It was very stressful for him. Today, instead of being in the medical room we got to take him outside. That helped a lot. The orphanage had a little gazebo with toys to play. His favorite thing was the pinecones. They had some stacking buckets so we were able to get a better idea of his gross motor skills. He liked putting the pinecones in the buckets and taking them out again. We gave him a truck to play with, but he kept banging it down on the floor. He liked the sound it made. He did pretty well walking today. He is a little unsteady, but for the most part he does well. Sasha warmed up to Kelly better today. Kelly got to hold him and Sasha did not cry.

Kelly teaching Sasha to give Fives! A must in our home!

I had started reading the book The Connected Child. The books states that when a PI (post institutionalized) child gets stressed they start breathing heavy. I was able to catch it every time Sasha did it and give him a firm open-hand back rub to settle him down. It was cool to see it work. I highlyrecommend the book to all adoptive parents and biological parents for that matter. I think everyone could learn from it. This book was written by Dr. Purvis and another doctor.
Dr. Purvis worked with Dr. Federici with Saving Dane for those of you who remember him talking about that at his seminar. If you use The Connected Child by Dr Purvis and Help for the Hopeless Child by Dr. Federici I think the transition of a PI child will be so much better. We plan to incorporate principles and practices from both books in the lives of our sons.

After spending time with Sasha we got to go see Igor (E-grey). We also got to take Igor outside. His reaction was a little different. He is a snuggler so he clung to us for a very long time. He had never been outside and the wind was blowing the trees. He was in “shutdown” mode for a while.
We did get him to walk and he walks pretty well too! There were no toys available for us to play with and he did not like the nerf ball or rattle we had brought with us so we did not get to test his gross motor skills like I would have liked. They did have a swing that I put him in and he enjoyed it. I was surprised simply because when we first brought Dima home he hated the swing. Of course, now you can’t get him off of them.

Enjoying the swing.

(It was hard giving him back.)

Both boys are very sweet and I can’t wait to get them home and get them where they need to be developmentally. It breaks my heart to leave them in the orphanage for the next several weeks.
We are hoping to have a court date in the next 3-4 weeks, then we will have 10-15 days to get paperwork done in Rostov, then we pick them up and have 3 days in Moscow doing more paperwork and then home. When it is said and done we hope to have them home by the end of July. I do not know which summer month Rostov’s vacation is so that could play a part in extending our time between trips.

Since we are now in Frankfurt we are going to do a little sight seeing tomorrow before we head to the airport at about 2pm. I can’t wait to get home and sleep in my own bed!

Today we got to meet our boys. The oldest has dark hair with green/blue eyes. The younger is blonde hair with green/blue eyes. Both are developmentally delayed as expected, but do not seem to have any other difficulties. After intense medical review and physical tests the doctor sees both of them as good and ready to be adopted.Meeting Igor for the first time.

Igor did not like the toy.

Meeting Sasha for the first time.

Dr. Lada trying to get Sasha to reach for the toy.

It appeared the boys did not like us right away. As soon as the caregivers walked into the room with them they started crying. However, neither orphanage had a play room for us to meet them. We met them in the medical room where they get their shots and medical care. I believe the boys were crying because they remember that room as being unpleasent. It really made it hard to assess how they interact with others.

The boys seem to be well attached to their caregivers. This is good because it means they should attach well to us once we get them home. They are not used to seeing men so Kelly scared them a bit. It was nap time when we went to see the oldests so he fell asleep on my shoulder. We feel good about bringing these little ones home and can't wait for trip 2.

We have finally made it to Rostov...4 flights later. We are checked into our hotel and ready for dinner and bed.

We will be meeting our boys tomorrow at about 11am with Dr. Lada. They are at different orphanages so we will see one in the morning and one in the afternoon. Can't wait to post about them tomorrow.

Tuesday May 27, 2008

We went down the the Taverne, a tavern style restaurant in the hotel, and had a wonderful traditional German meal. It was mashed potatoes, sausages and sauerkraut.
Nothing like a full stomach to change your perspective on your situation.

We have to be at the airport early in the morning so we will post once we make it to Rostov. Please pray there are no more complications and don't get stuck in Vienna next.

Good night to all.

Tuesday May 27, 2008

Hello All,

Greeting from Frankfurt Germany. Yes, that is right. We have only made it to Germany. Our flight was delayed in Chicago because as they were pulling the plane into our gate they ran one of the engines into a baggage cart. Needless to say it was a big fiasco for them trying to locate a new plane for us. After a 2 hour delay they finally brought a new plane to a new gate. Then we got to sit on the plane at the gate for another 2 hours. Our connecting flight to Rostov left at 12pm so we missed the flight by 2 hours.

Once we arrived in Germany they booked us on a flight, leaving in the morning, to Vienna and then Rostov. We got to stand in line for 2 more hours to receive our hotel and meal vouchers. Needless to say, we don’t care if we EVER fly United/Lufthansa again.

On the bright side we are certainly happy we are not trying to travel with 2 children on this flight. United has also compensated 2 tickets for us so maybe we will be able to use them for one of our other trips.

Well, we are now off to dinner. We have had a little fruit cup and Danish many hours ago and are about to fall over.

Love to all!

Wednesday May 21, 2008

We got to book our tickets today!!! We will be meeting our boys on the 28^th and I can’t wait!

I can’t wait to see if they have dark hair or blonde hair, blue or brown eyes, and if they will be all smiles for us. I can’t wait to hold them and tell them they get to come home and live with us. I can’t wait to tell them about their big brother Kristofer who can’t wait to play with them.

I do know there is potential for us to have to turn down a referral if the medicals do not look good. My heart is a little heavy thinking about it, but I know it is in God’s hands. He knows the children that are right for our family.

Psalm 27:14

Wait on the Lord: be of good courage, and he shall strengthen thine heart; wait, I say, on the Lord.

Friday May 16, 2008

Well, those plans have now been shot down. We got the call this morning that we will not be traveling until “possibly” next weekend.

This phone call came 15 minutes after I had just gone to the bank and withdrew the brand new money we have to travel with. (If there is so much as a crease or a crinkle it will lower the value.) This was also after a very stressful night last night of going over our travel instructions making sure we had everything. We misread the instructions and thought we had to have a document for this trip. As it turns out it is a document we need for trip 2. (Yes, I am rolling my eyes.)

It was loads of fun trying to explain to Kristofer as well that he did not get to spend the next several nights at Grammy and Pa’s house. He has been asking all day, “Do we get to go to Grammy and Pa’s now?” I have lost count of how many times I have had to explain that plans change and we just have to go with it. Not so easy for a 4-year-old who does not like change.

Our adoption this time around is starting to remind me of the waiting we had to do with Kristofer’s adoption in Ekaterinburg. The only difference is the order of things. Instead of waiting 14 weeks between our trips this time we are doing it before we even meet the children! Aaaaahhhh!!! So frustrating! Nothing like God STILL trying to teach me a little patience. I think I’m hard headed or something. (grin) I will say that the waiting before you meet your child is still FAR easier then waiting between trips after you have met and fallen in love this the child. So, I'll continue to wait...

May 14, 2008

Today was exciting! We got to RESERVE our flights (but not book them). We should be flying out on Saturday and I am so excited! On the way home we have to spend the night in Frankfurt Germany so we will get to do a little sightseeing. Neither of us has been to Germany before. We're always up for a new adventure!

May 13, 2004

This morning as I was sitting in bible study I just felt a peace that all would work out the coordinating a doctor, our flights and everything else. I just need to give it up and let God handle it once again. I AM NOT IN CONTROL! I have to tell myself this daily!

When I got home I had an email from a doctor saying they were available to travel to Rostov with us. Whew, what a relief. God really is in control.

May 12, 2008

Today I tried to email a few doctors in Moscow. We need them to come to the orphanage with us to check the health of our children. One responded that she can’t come and the others have yet to email me. I am a little concerned no one will have their schedule open to accommodate us. I guess we’ll know soon.

May 8, 2008

Today was a happy day in our home. Kristofer asked Jesus to come into his heart! We are thrilled!

At church they did a great job teaching the crucifixion story at Easter time because Kristofer was able to come home and tell us all about. Since then we have taken every opportunity to talk to him about it.

Today we were looking at an Evagecube (A cube that as you open it in different directions it tells a story.) of the crucifixion and I asked Kristofer if he wanted to ask Jesus into his heart. He said yes and I led him in the sinner’s prayer. It was such a sweet moment.

May 7, 2008

Today we had an appointment to resign our medical documents with our primary care physician and a notary. We had to be at the doctor’s office between 11:30 and 12:30pm. The notary called at about 9:30 to say she could not meet. We scrambled and looked up a traveling notary on 123notary.com. I went down the list of names and saw someone I recognized from the mortgage business. She was able to meets us and the show moved on.

Getting these documents signed should not be stressful as they are all fill in the blank. However, having done a Russia adoption before we know if every “I” is not dotted and every “T” is not crossed the paperwork can get kicked back. I think I called KF about 5 times in an hour time period with little crazy questions.

After the signing was complete I was off to the Jefferson County clerk’s office to get the documents certified. Tomorrow I drive to Frankfort KY to get them apostilled.

Monday May 5, 2008

This morning was a flurry of phone calls trying to get paperwork updated and documents ready to hand carry with us to Russia. I was on the phone from 9am-1:20pm nonstop. Kristofer was such a trooper and did not bother me too much. He played quietly with his toys.

Every time I would get on the phone I told Kristofer to be really quiet because it was an important call. After several hours of this I told him I was working on paperwork because Mama and Papa were going to go and see his brothers in a few weeks. He said, “Mama, I want you to go get baby Allie.” I then had to explain that we could not get Allie because she is Keira’s sister. (Keira and Allie are my good friend Elizabeth’s girls.) It was a cute moment to end the flurry of the paper chase.

Saturday May 3, 2008

Today we had a yard sale to raise money for our travel expenses. God was so good to us!

Last night it rained and stormed so loud it kept waking Kelly and I up. We had a small pond in our backyard by the time it was done. We kept everything in the garage because we did not know how the weather was going to be during the sale.

This morning God kept the rain away and bought the people in. We were able to raise $432.85. This is more than double from the $200 we made last year! Definitely a God Moment!