Val took Carl, Danil and me out today to do some toy shopping for Danil for the plane ride home. I asked him to take us to a toy store and oh my, what a toy store he took us to. It was like a toy store in some movie - a toy store that doesn't really exist. It was decked out with the window displays - the kind that they used to have at Christmas in the center of shopping malls. Animated figures, miniature houses, trees, fences....The whole place was unbelievable. There was a person for each department (each age group) and that person walked around with you and helped you select the right toy. There were rocking horses as beautiful and detailed as carousel horses. There were Oscar de La Renta strollers - almost $3000. There was an animal house with little movng animals inside and outside, each doing something different - a monkey sawing wood, a bear working on a clock, etc. Danil loved it and it was a mere $20,000. There were SO many cute things! But all we wanted were a few small surprises to occupy Danil on the plane and we found them! I just wish I had 3 days to spend in there but Val rushed me in and out in 30 minutes. I think Carl conspired with him ahead of time! :)
Well, then we went to a couple places looking for Dad a hat. We think we found a good one - hope he doesn't mind that it's Austrian!!! It's what everyone is wearing here in Russia!
Next it was off to the Russian Consulate to pick up more paperwork and then back to the hotel.
Poor Danil, every time he went to sleep today we would stop the car and go in some place different. He never got a full nap today and bless his HEART, it was ROUGH on him. Carl and I cannot even imagine how difficult the next transition to Texas is going to be for him. Then surgery in November. Then visiting our families at Christmas. I just hope we are not putting too much on him. From all that we have read and all that we have been told, what he needs more than anything in TX is a ROUTINE and a calm, peaceful environment. We can definitely give him that. I just hope these disruptions aren't too much. We'll just have to see how he does when we get back from surgery.
All that being said, this is our last night in Moscow. I liked Moscow much better once we had Danil with us. I enjoyed people watching more than anything. I got a lot of chances to do that with all the time I spent pushing Danil in the stroller in the hotel lobby. Carl and I have had some precious moments with our new son - we are smitten. We are tired. We are so hoping we know what we are doing. I told Carl I may be on the internet every night trying to find the answer to some new parenting question I have - like I've been doing every night here!
We called Singapore Airlines today to try to get bulkhead seats. The guy on the phone said, "You need to do that online." I told him that we tried to do that online but ALL the seats are blocked off and we couldn't reserve them. He told us to go back to the website and try again. We tried again. Same problem. We couldn't choose bulkhead seats - they were blocked out. He said, "Well, I guess you are just going to have to wait and talk to the folks at the ticket counter tomorrow. Maybe they can work something out for you." I said, "Sir, we have a 2 year old little boy who is NOT going to be happy if he has to sit confined in a normal row of seats. And I can guarantee you that your entire plane of passengers will NOT be happy if he has to sit confined the entire trip. In fact, if you like, I can give you a sample of what it is going to sound like on that plane if you want." And at that precise moment Danil let out a few of his cranky "not-had-a-nap-today" noises. The man said, "Okay maam, just one moment and I'll see what I can do." He came back on the line if a few seconds and said he thought he had it handled for us. Couldn't have scripted it better if I had tried...
Please pray for our safe travels back to the U.S. - and pray that we can keep our nerves calm for the 11 hour flight back to Houston, the four hour layover and the 1 hour back to Dallas...
And thank you so much for all the petitions you've made to God on our behalf....
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
One step closer to home!
Well, we had to do a little research on the sleep situation. Paul now doesn't seem to want to go to sleep. He plays and plays until he nearly falls over. Actually, night before last he did. He played in the dark until he literally just laid down on the floor and went to sleep. He has started this thing of crawling in my arms and getting down, crawling in my arms and getting down...he does this for almost an hour straight before bedtime! We read that this is likely a result of over stimulation. Too many new sights, sounds, smells, tastes...more attention than he is used to. More touching than he is used to. All that. So, we'll manage. He keeps us laughing all day so it's easy to love the little dude (as Carl calls him). :) We're glad to report that he LOVES the stroller. The hotel loaned us one and we get him in that thing now about 4 times a day and stroll him all over the hotel. The front desk is getting pretty used to seeing us. Probably tired of seeing us.
Yesterday afternoon, we had our interview with the immigration office at the U.S. Embassy to get Paul Daniel his immigrant visa. He was approved without incident, so he can now enter the United States. Once his visa is stamped when we enter the U.S. at Houston, he will be a U.S. citizen. We can then get him a US Passport. He will also remain a Russian citizen until his 18th birthday, at which point it will be up to him to decide whether to retain dual citizenship. He has a while before he needs to think about that.
This morning we were scheduled to go to a toy store and to a couple other stores but Val was stuck in traffic and needed to take some of our paperwork to the Russian Consulate...so he said the shopping trip would have to wait till tomorrow. The weather is cold and damp now so we are trying to occupy ourselves in the hotel. We learned yesterday that there is a playroom in this hotel, so Carl played with Paul this morning while I did all our laundry in the sink. Would love to let the hotel to do our laundry...but just to launder one pair of socks costs $4.50. So you can see why we prefer the sink.
Carl is out strolling Paul Daniel around the halls on our floor. We hope we can keep him asleep long enough to eat our lunch. He doesn't understand right now that he can't eat big people food so he gets very offended when I have to tell him no to certain things on my plate. He would try to eat a T-bone steak if we sat one in front of him...
Two more days until the plane ride home...we can do this. God has blessed us at every turn and we trust that He will help us through this. We are so, so thankful for our new son. We know there is much work ahead...we'll do the best we can. He just seems so, so happy. In fact, Carl just brought him in the room still asleep in his stroller and he giggled in his sleep. This is so great. Thank you, God.
Yesterday afternoon, we had our interview with the immigration office at the U.S. Embassy to get Paul Daniel his immigrant visa. He was approved without incident, so he can now enter the United States. Once his visa is stamped when we enter the U.S. at Houston, he will be a U.S. citizen. We can then get him a US Passport. He will also remain a Russian citizen until his 18th birthday, at which point it will be up to him to decide whether to retain dual citizenship. He has a while before he needs to think about that.
This morning we were scheduled to go to a toy store and to a couple other stores but Val was stuck in traffic and needed to take some of our paperwork to the Russian Consulate...so he said the shopping trip would have to wait till tomorrow. The weather is cold and damp now so we are trying to occupy ourselves in the hotel. We learned yesterday that there is a playroom in this hotel, so Carl played with Paul this morning while I did all our laundry in the sink. Would love to let the hotel to do our laundry...but just to launder one pair of socks costs $4.50. So you can see why we prefer the sink.
Carl is out strolling Paul Daniel around the halls on our floor. We hope we can keep him asleep long enough to eat our lunch. He doesn't understand right now that he can't eat big people food so he gets very offended when I have to tell him no to certain things on my plate. He would try to eat a T-bone steak if we sat one in front of him...
Two more days until the plane ride home...we can do this. God has blessed us at every turn and we trust that He will help us through this. We are so, so thankful for our new son. We know there is much work ahead...we'll do the best we can. He just seems so, so happy. In fact, Carl just brought him in the room still asleep in his stroller and he giggled in his sleep. This is so great. Thank you, God.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Another good ending...
As concerned as we were after the plane ride yesterday, everything was downhill from there. We borrowed a stroller from the hotel and took Paul Daniel for a walk. We found an outdoor cafe just down the street from the hotel where se stopped for lunch. We fed Paul Daniel first, then we both ate a little. Then Carl walked him around some more while I ate, then I walked him around while Carl ate. Paul Daniel finally fell asleep. He does not seem to be at all afraid of the city noise and traffic like we thought he might be. We stopped at the pharmacy for more baby wipes and the grocery store for bottled water. We brought Paul back to the room where he slept in the stroller for about 30 minutes - and that gave Carl and me a 30 minute nap!!!! :) The rest of the night, we played and played. Paul Daniel has got a great sense of humor. He laughs at himself when he falls or bumps his head. He thinks I'm REALLY funny. We rolled around on the floor laughing, playing with balls, standing up Coke bottles, dancing to the musical toys, tickling, and generally acting silly. He was running around the room and giggling with delight for the entire time. When he was able to stand two Coke bottles up at the same time (one with each hand), he gave himself a standing ovation! When it got close to bedtime, we had some more food, a diaper change (with minimal fussing), and then our nightly routine of lights out and singing hymns. He was fast asleep within 5 minutes. This morning we are meeting Val at 9Am to take Danil for his medical evaluation in Moscow, and then to do some paperwork at the Embassy. We should be finished and back at the hotel by 1-2PM.
We're back in Moscow!
Yesterday was our last full day in Kemerovo. We thought we would try to get out and do some walking around with Paul Daniel. Not that he would remember a thing - but somehow we thought we ought to get Danil out into the city he has lived in for the last year and 8 months, but has never seen. We started out letting Danil walk, then Carl took him. We walked to a nice park near our hotel (a fifteen minute walk). Carl immediately took Danil to the swings and within 5 minutes of Carl swinging with him, he was asleep. So Danil slept through our walk through the park and back to the hotel...but at least he got a nap. We ate at a restaurant near the hotel - Danil did well sitting in my lap. We once again decided to try singing Paul Daniel to sleep at 8pm and it worked like a charm. We are so thankful we at least know how to do that!
We were up at 4:30am for our flight to Moscow. Oh my. That was a challenge. Danil started screaming as soon as we sat down in our seats. After about 15 minutes, the lady in front of us turned around and asked, "Why is your baby crying." We told her this was Danil's first time on an airplane. She said, "Oh" and said nothing else. Really don't know her point - if maybe she was going to offer some advice or something...just not sure. Well, he put up the fuss of a life time. It was like trying to hold a wild animal. I looked at Carl. He looked at me. We were clearly thinking the same thing...4 hours on this flight. Eleven hours on the next. Well, once again, Carl had the solution. He pulled out food. And more food. As soon as we got one jar finished, we pulled out another. When Danil finally got full, he started another tantrum. I took him to the bathroom to do a diaper change - he screamed bloody murder. After the diaper change, I stood the rest of the flight and rocked him. I had him so close to sleep, but it was time to sit back down and buckle our seatbelts. He started his screaming again, but we made it. Val met us at the airport and took us to the hotel. No car seat, but most in Russia don't use them. Danil fell asleep in my arms. He slept for 30 minutes and woke up when we arrived. He's been playing wide open for the last hour. Carl and I are trying to figure out how we could just get a smidgen of rest before 8pm tonight...but that may just be the way it is. We're about to take Danil for a walk again. Got to get rid of some of this energy! Carl and I are scared! Can we keep up?????
We were up at 4:30am for our flight to Moscow. Oh my. That was a challenge. Danil started screaming as soon as we sat down in our seats. After about 15 minutes, the lady in front of us turned around and asked, "Why is your baby crying." We told her this was Danil's first time on an airplane. She said, "Oh" and said nothing else. Really don't know her point - if maybe she was going to offer some advice or something...just not sure. Well, he put up the fuss of a life time. It was like trying to hold a wild animal. I looked at Carl. He looked at me. We were clearly thinking the same thing...4 hours on this flight. Eleven hours on the next. Well, once again, Carl had the solution. He pulled out food. And more food. As soon as we got one jar finished, we pulled out another. When Danil finally got full, he started another tantrum. I took him to the bathroom to do a diaper change - he screamed bloody murder. After the diaper change, I stood the rest of the flight and rocked him. I had him so close to sleep, but it was time to sit back down and buckle our seatbelts. He started his screaming again, but we made it. Val met us at the airport and took us to the hotel. No car seat, but most in Russia don't use them. Danil fell asleep in my arms. He slept for 30 minutes and woke up when we arrived. He's been playing wide open for the last hour. Carl and I are trying to figure out how we could just get a smidgen of rest before 8pm tonight...but that may just be the way it is. We're about to take Danil for a walk again. Got to get rid of some of this energy! Carl and I are scared! Can we keep up?????
Friday, September 24, 2010
We've got him!!!!
Yesterday Irina picked us up from the hotel at 11:15am. She took us by the court house to sign more documents, then to the grocery store to buy two cakes for the orphanage and some extra food for Danil...then it was off to the orphanage! Irina took us to the director's office for our last chance to ask questions... at that point, we couldn't think of any more to ask. We gave the director his Robin Williams movies...they didn't work in his DVD player but they worked in another dvd player in the orphanage. We found out the little girl we fell in love with on our first visit has been adopted out. We were happy to hear that. I brought clothes for the orphanage to change Danil into - a caregiver came and got the clothes from us to go change him. After about 20 minutes in the director's office, they brought Danil out in the clothes we brought. Well, needless to say, he was a cutie pie. But it turns out he's not big enough for 12 months clothes yet and his shoe is not a size 7. Oh well.
There wasn't any fanfare when it was time to say goodbye. The orphanage director gave him a hug and some kisses. We all had a picture made together. Danil didn't fuss or cry. He just left with us and sat quietly in Carl's arms all the way down the mountain. Just riding in the van was a big adventure for him. We were back to the hotel by 2:30 pm. Carl had to go with Irina to get Danil's passport and do some more running around. He was back to the hotel about 4:30. We "skyped" my parents at 5:00pm - which would have been 5am for them. (They asked us to call them no matter what time it was when we got Danil back.) By that point Danil had missed his afternoon nap so he was quite fussy. We decided we would just play until bedtime @ 8am. We knew this unfamiliar environment would throw him off - and it did. He ate good, though. He had one jar of chicken and gravy baby food, one vegetable baby food, one juice box, and two bowls of oatmeal. Eight o'clock came and went and Danil was showing no sign of winding down. So I finally picked him up and attempted to rock with him on the small couch in our room. We discovered early on that Danil loves music so Carl put in a cd I brought of piano hymns I bought at Hobby Lobby. We turned out the lights and sat together on the couch. Danil loved the music. Carl said, "He's liking this. Start singing." So we sang to every song - "Be Thou My Vision, Nearer My God to Thee, In the Garden, What a Friend we have in Jesus, Softly and Tenderly..." Danil was jelly in our arms. We sang every song on that cd and Danil sat and cooed. I realized this qualified as our first family devotional and the #1 most special moment Carl and I have shared together in our almost 8 years together. Our little boy went to sleep and slept the whole night through.
We were up this morning at 8am. We've done nothing but eat and play...when I finally get showered, we'll go out to explore. Our flight out of Siberia leaves tomorrow morning at 7:30...we'll spend the week in Moscow and fly out on Friday.
Paola and Callan, we haven't booked our flights yet but it looks like we'll be arriving around 9:15pm...we will let you know when we know. Hope that time works for you...
Gotta go...gotta a little boy to chase...
There wasn't any fanfare when it was time to say goodbye. The orphanage director gave him a hug and some kisses. We all had a picture made together. Danil didn't fuss or cry. He just left with us and sat quietly in Carl's arms all the way down the mountain. Just riding in the van was a big adventure for him. We were back to the hotel by 2:30 pm. Carl had to go with Irina to get Danil's passport and do some more running around. He was back to the hotel about 4:30. We "skyped" my parents at 5:00pm - which would have been 5am for them. (They asked us to call them no matter what time it was when we got Danil back.) By that point Danil had missed his afternoon nap so he was quite fussy. We decided we would just play until bedtime @ 8am. We knew this unfamiliar environment would throw him off - and it did. He ate good, though. He had one jar of chicken and gravy baby food, one vegetable baby food, one juice box, and two bowls of oatmeal. Eight o'clock came and went and Danil was showing no sign of winding down. So I finally picked him up and attempted to rock with him on the small couch in our room. We discovered early on that Danil loves music so Carl put in a cd I brought of piano hymns I bought at Hobby Lobby. We turned out the lights and sat together on the couch. Danil loved the music. Carl said, "He's liking this. Start singing." So we sang to every song - "Be Thou My Vision, Nearer My God to Thee, In the Garden, What a Friend we have in Jesus, Softly and Tenderly..." Danil was jelly in our arms. We sang every song on that cd and Danil sat and cooed. I realized this qualified as our first family devotional and the #1 most special moment Carl and I have shared together in our almost 8 years together. Our little boy went to sleep and slept the whole night through.
We were up this morning at 8am. We've done nothing but eat and play...when I finally get showered, we'll go out to explore. Our flight out of Siberia leaves tomorrow morning at 7:30...we'll spend the week in Moscow and fly out on Friday.
Paola and Callan, we haven't booked our flights yet but it looks like we'll be arriving around 9:15pm...we will let you know when we know. Hope that time works for you...
Gotta go...gotta a little boy to chase...
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
Court is complete.
Carl and I were up this morning at 4am. We talked, got our paperwork ready, reviewed our answers, prayed, got showered, Carl fixed his coffee (thanks, Walton's!) and then went for b'fast. Irina, our agency representative, picked us up along with Daniel and Stacy. We headed for the courthouse at 9:30. Daniel and Stacy went first. It took them a mere 30 minutes. They were approved for adoption! Yea! They are returning to LA tomorrow and will come back in 10 days to get their little girl. Carl and I were up next. We were escorted into a small room with a judge, prosecutor (representing the state), a court reporter, our social worker and a translator. Carl had to answer the majority of the questions. It was hot in that tiny room and I was sweating within 5 mins. I tried to remember not to cross my legs - Irina told us not to. Our translator talked at the same time as the judge so it was very hard to follow her words...but we managed. By law we were required to give short, uncomplicated answers to the judge's questions so obviously Carl got an A+ in that area!!!! They asked us everything - how long we've been married, how many previous marriages, how much do we earn, what do we do for a living, why do we want to adopt, why Russia, why Danil, why special needs, are we ready, can we afford it, when will we have surgery, what if he has more problems, are we prepared, do we have experience with other special needs children, do we know how to feed and care for a cleft palate baby, what is our education, are we working in our field, do we want to have him re-examined in Russia before we take him....(the answer was "no" to the last one). The judge gave an overview of EVERY document in our file and then ended by reading the two letters from our surgeon and the orphanage director - both requesting that the 10-day waiting period be waived.
So when the judge finished, the prosecutor only had two questions - do we have medical insurance and when will we have his surgery. She read a statement indicating that she was not opposed to the 10-day waiting period being waived.
Then the social worker stood up. She read more information to the judge about us and she said she also felt it was in the best interest of the child to waive the 10-day waiting period.
We were asked to sign that we understood the proceedings and then asked to leave the room for 30 seconds. We came back in and the judge read a statement that we were approved and the 10 day waiting period HAS BEEN WAIVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The social worker and the translator both smiled. They knew this was a big deal and we knew it!!!!!!!!! We get to come home early!!! Tomorrow Irina will take us to the orphanage - and Danil will come to stay with us in the hotel! If all goes as planned, we can be on a plane on Monday or Tuesday to Moscow and on a plane to Dallas by the end of next week!
All we can say is thank you from the bottom of our hearts to everyone who has been praying for us since we started down this path to adopt Danil. God has heard our pleas and He has given us yet another blessing. Tomorrow begins a new chapter of our life - the chapter that starts with a sweet little boy hopping back into our arms - this time for good. We are just amazed.
So when the judge finished, the prosecutor only had two questions - do we have medical insurance and when will we have his surgery. She read a statement indicating that she was not opposed to the 10-day waiting period being waived.
Then the social worker stood up. She read more information to the judge about us and she said she also felt it was in the best interest of the child to waive the 10-day waiting period.
We were asked to sign that we understood the proceedings and then asked to leave the room for 30 seconds. We came back in and the judge read a statement that we were approved and the 10 day waiting period HAS BEEN WAIVED!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! The social worker and the translator both smiled. They knew this was a big deal and we knew it!!!!!!!!! We get to come home early!!! Tomorrow Irina will take us to the orphanage - and Danil will come to stay with us in the hotel! If all goes as planned, we can be on a plane on Monday or Tuesday to Moscow and on a plane to Dallas by the end of next week!
All we can say is thank you from the bottom of our hearts to everyone who has been praying for us since we started down this path to adopt Danil. God has heard our pleas and He has given us yet another blessing. Tomorrow begins a new chapter of our life - the chapter that starts with a sweet little boy hopping back into our arms - this time for good. We are just amazed.
We saw Danil!
We actually didn't get to go to the orphanage until 1pm, but no matter!!!! It was SOOOOOO worth the wait. At 12:30 we drove the familiar winding road up the mountain to the orphanage. It was in the 70's today...tomorrow it is supposed to be cold and Saturday it is supposed to snow.
As we pulled into the orphanage drive, there were bundled baby snowmen all over the playground. We looked for our little bundled snowman but he was no where to be found. The translator escorted us to the director's office to give us a chance to ask more questions. The director was out, but the assistant director was there to tell us whatever we wanted to know. Before we began our questions, she (the asst director) told the translator to tell us that Danil has become cranky ever since he met us the first time. She said he liked all the attention he got when we were there and expected the caregivers to give him the same kind of attention. My only real question was - has he been sick since we were gone. The answer was - no! :) Yea!!! He had not had any sickness since we were there last. They fed him ALL the formula we bought until there was none left to feed him. He has gained a whopping 3 1/2 pounds. We chit chatted about a few things and I asked her if they had talked to him about us while we were gone. She said that the caregivers had continued to show him our photo album. I asked, "so does he know we are mama and papa?" She said, "To Danil and all the children, every caregiver is mama. So to him, I am no different." I knew that...but I thought I would ask...
Well, just when I thought I could wait no longer, we hear the pitter patter of little feet headed down the hall towards us. In walks Danil with one of his caregivers. I got down and held my arms out. I wish I could say he ran to me with arms stretched out wide, but he didn't. But he came right up to me and after about 20 seconds of holding him, he had his arms around my neck and his head on my shoulder. Carl grabbed the camera and we hugged and kissed on him for about 10 minutes or so.
Without going into all of the details of our 2 hours together, suffice it to say it was WONDERFUL! He again sat in our arms for about 45 minutes before he was ready to get down and play. We are full of optimism about our court date tomorrow. Please, please pray that our 10-day waiting period will be waived. If so, we would leave Siberia on Monday or Tuesday. We would be back to Texas by next Saturday.
God has been so good to us.
As we pulled into the orphanage drive, there were bundled baby snowmen all over the playground. We looked for our little bundled snowman but he was no where to be found. The translator escorted us to the director's office to give us a chance to ask more questions. The director was out, but the assistant director was there to tell us whatever we wanted to know. Before we began our questions, she (the asst director) told the translator to tell us that Danil has become cranky ever since he met us the first time. She said he liked all the attention he got when we were there and expected the caregivers to give him the same kind of attention. My only real question was - has he been sick since we were gone. The answer was - no! :) Yea!!! He had not had any sickness since we were there last. They fed him ALL the formula we bought until there was none left to feed him. He has gained a whopping 3 1/2 pounds. We chit chatted about a few things and I asked her if they had talked to him about us while we were gone. She said that the caregivers had continued to show him our photo album. I asked, "so does he know we are mama and papa?" She said, "To Danil and all the children, every caregiver is mama. So to him, I am no different." I knew that...but I thought I would ask...
Well, just when I thought I could wait no longer, we hear the pitter patter of little feet headed down the hall towards us. In walks Danil with one of his caregivers. I got down and held my arms out. I wish I could say he ran to me with arms stretched out wide, but he didn't. But he came right up to me and after about 20 seconds of holding him, he had his arms around my neck and his head on my shoulder. Carl grabbed the camera and we hugged and kissed on him for about 10 minutes or so.
Without going into all of the details of our 2 hours together, suffice it to say it was WONDERFUL! He again sat in our arms for about 45 minutes before he was ready to get down and play. We are full of optimism about our court date tomorrow. Please, please pray that our 10-day waiting period will be waived. If so, we would leave Siberia on Monday or Tuesday. We would be back to Texas by next Saturday.
God has been so good to us.
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Sitting in the airport...
Today has been a long day. Val, our driver and translator from the agency, met us at breakfast. He took us to another hotel to meet two more American couples to complete more paperwork. One of those couples is flying out with us tonight to Siberia. They are adopting a 26-month old girl from an orphanage 3 1/2 hours outside of Kemerovo. After completing our paperwork, we went to the bank to exchange dollars for rubles. Then to the hospital to get our medical exam. One bright spot of our day is that we only had to see 7 doctors instead of the scheduled 8. We then had an early supper and drove 2 hours to the airport (this time I was in front!) We are now sitting in the airport with our new friends, Daniel and Stacy, from Louisiana. Our flight leaves at 11:40pm - it's a 4 hour flight. When we touch down in Kemerovo, it will be 6:40am Kemerovo time. We'll be at the orphanage at Noon to visit Danil! Please keep praying for us...God has blessed us every step of the way and we are so hopeful about the days ahead of us in Kemerovo...
Monday, September 20, 2010
We made it to Moscow!
"Does the road wind uphill all the way? Yes, to the very end. Will the journey take the whole long day? From morn to night, my friend." - Christina Georgina Rosetti
We're here, but don't ask me what day and what time it is, because I have no idea. I am having a harder time keeping up with that this go around.
A few of you know we were worried Friday night. After reviewing all our paperwork, we discovered our agency had not sent us some papers we were required to have for court in Siberia. We called the agency director at midnight and she was trying to think of a way she could get them to us when our first flight landed in Houston...or if nothing else, she would have them Fed-Exed to us in Moscow. She spent hours working on this and then we got a call shortly before we were to board the plane - after more digging, it turns out the court would not require us to have those documents. We are fine.
We flew Singapore Air from Houston to Moscow. It was a 10 1/2 hour flight. We had EXIT ROW seats! Yea for exit row seats!
We arrived to Moscow 5am on Sunday morning (Dallas time). It was 2pm Sunday afternoon in Moscow. Our driver, Val, was ready and waiting for us when we arrived. The weather was a cool 57 degrees! We hopped in Val's station wagon and headed for our hotel. Carl asked me if I wanted the front seat (knowing how prone I am to car sickness) and in a moment of disillusionment I said, "No, I'll be fine in the back." Well, you know where this is going. First, the drive that should have taken an hour, ended up taking two. And I forgot about the driving over here. So it was - go, stop, swerve into this lane, stop, go, go faster, go faster, slam on brakes, go, brake, go, brake, go, go, swerve into that lane, slam on brakes.... Within 20 minutes I might as well have been on the teacup ride at Disney World. I put my head in my hand and tried some breathing exercises. We were within two streets of the hotel when I thought I was going to lose it - and you know what I mean when I say, lose it. I just started swallowing over and over again. I made it. Only Carl, my parents, grandparents and siblings know what a huge accomplishment it was for me to get through that car ride without incident...
We are in the same hotel as before. It's nice to be familiar with the place. Our sleep is off, which is to be expected. We went to bed at 4pm (moscow time) yesterday. Got up at 8pm for supper. Went back to bed. I slept for an hour and then was awake the rest of the evening. Carl managed to sleep. I spent most of my time standing at the window watching the people coming out of the bars and coffee shop across the street. At 4am Carl woke up. We watched a National Geographic show about two American men searching for the ruins of World War II submarines. Then we went to sleep at 5am and woke at 9am for b'fast. It's 11:35 and Carl is back to sleep and as soon as I finish writing, that's where I'll be...if we can get our sleep on schedule, we'll be much better off in Siberia.
We heard there is a toy store around here so we're going looking for it some time today. Thought we might buy Danil a couple of Russian toys - I'm looking for one in particular that was in the very first photo we ever saw of Danil.
Carl will have to work this afternoon. I'll try my best to stay awake and keep him company.
Tomorrow is our 3 hour medical and yet another psychological evaluation in Moscow. Our flight to Siberia is 11pm.
I'll leave you with another Gary Henry article that I have brought with me to read for encouragement...
"How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?" Proverbs 6:9
Our English word "stupid" is a word worth doing some serious thinking about. It comes from the Latin stupere, which meant "to be stunned." Usually we think of "stupidity" as extreme foolishness or a lack of intelligence, but in its most literal sense, "stupid" means dazed or stunned. The stupid person is in a "stupor," and what he needs is not to increase in intelligence but to wake up and pay attention. Stupidity is simply the state of being inactive and insensible when we ought to be alert.
Spiritually speaking, we need to shake off our stupidity, don't we? Too much of the time, we are lethargic and apathetic. Although there is work to do and dangers to watch out for, we doze off into such a state of insensibility that even God can't get our serious attention. Like Peter, James, and John, who fell asleep while Jesus was enduring His agony in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46), we are drowsy. Our desire, it would seem, is for God to leave us alone and let us sleep just a little while longer.
Usually, it takes some huge, life-altering crisis to bring us to our senses. But the closer we get to the end of our lives in this world, the more most of us will wish that we'd waked up sooner. We don't really have to wait for tragedy to turn us upside down. If we make the choice, we can wake up on our own - and we can do so right now. We can shake ourselves into sobriety and determine that our minds will be wide awake from now on.
One good reason to wake up is so that we can be better stewards of the gifts God has given us. Our Father has endowed us with great capabilities, and these are to be used to further His purposes. We need to be more keenly aware of our abilities and our opportunities so that we can use them more fully. When we allow the devil to discourage us, we fall into a stupid, insensible daze - a sleepiness from which nothing comes that is truly worthwhile. There is so much more to the life of godliness than we've experienced and so much more to God Himself than we've ever known. Too long have we been stupid! Too long have we slept!
"Compared to what we ought to be, we are only half awake" -William James
We're here, but don't ask me what day and what time it is, because I have no idea. I am having a harder time keeping up with that this go around.
A few of you know we were worried Friday night. After reviewing all our paperwork, we discovered our agency had not sent us some papers we were required to have for court in Siberia. We called the agency director at midnight and she was trying to think of a way she could get them to us when our first flight landed in Houston...or if nothing else, she would have them Fed-Exed to us in Moscow. She spent hours working on this and then we got a call shortly before we were to board the plane - after more digging, it turns out the court would not require us to have those documents. We are fine.
We flew Singapore Air from Houston to Moscow. It was a 10 1/2 hour flight. We had EXIT ROW seats! Yea for exit row seats!
We arrived to Moscow 5am on Sunday morning (Dallas time). It was 2pm Sunday afternoon in Moscow. Our driver, Val, was ready and waiting for us when we arrived. The weather was a cool 57 degrees! We hopped in Val's station wagon and headed for our hotel. Carl asked me if I wanted the front seat (knowing how prone I am to car sickness) and in a moment of disillusionment I said, "No, I'll be fine in the back." Well, you know where this is going. First, the drive that should have taken an hour, ended up taking two. And I forgot about the driving over here. So it was - go, stop, swerve into this lane, stop, go, go faster, go faster, slam on brakes, go, brake, go, brake, go, go, swerve into that lane, slam on brakes.... Within 20 minutes I might as well have been on the teacup ride at Disney World. I put my head in my hand and tried some breathing exercises. We were within two streets of the hotel when I thought I was going to lose it - and you know what I mean when I say, lose it. I just started swallowing over and over again. I made it. Only Carl, my parents, grandparents and siblings know what a huge accomplishment it was for me to get through that car ride without incident...
We are in the same hotel as before. It's nice to be familiar with the place. Our sleep is off, which is to be expected. We went to bed at 4pm (moscow time) yesterday. Got up at 8pm for supper. Went back to bed. I slept for an hour and then was awake the rest of the evening. Carl managed to sleep. I spent most of my time standing at the window watching the people coming out of the bars and coffee shop across the street. At 4am Carl woke up. We watched a National Geographic show about two American men searching for the ruins of World War II submarines. Then we went to sleep at 5am and woke at 9am for b'fast. It's 11:35 and Carl is back to sleep and as soon as I finish writing, that's where I'll be...if we can get our sleep on schedule, we'll be much better off in Siberia.
We heard there is a toy store around here so we're going looking for it some time today. Thought we might buy Danil a couple of Russian toys - I'm looking for one in particular that was in the very first photo we ever saw of Danil.
Carl will have to work this afternoon. I'll try my best to stay awake and keep him company.
Tomorrow is our 3 hour medical and yet another psychological evaluation in Moscow. Our flight to Siberia is 11pm.
I'll leave you with another Gary Henry article that I have brought with me to read for encouragement...
"How long will you slumber, O sluggard? When will you arise from your sleep?" Proverbs 6:9
Our English word "stupid" is a word worth doing some serious thinking about. It comes from the Latin stupere, which meant "to be stunned." Usually we think of "stupidity" as extreme foolishness or a lack of intelligence, but in its most literal sense, "stupid" means dazed or stunned. The stupid person is in a "stupor," and what he needs is not to increase in intelligence but to wake up and pay attention. Stupidity is simply the state of being inactive and insensible when we ought to be alert.
Spiritually speaking, we need to shake off our stupidity, don't we? Too much of the time, we are lethargic and apathetic. Although there is work to do and dangers to watch out for, we doze off into such a state of insensibility that even God can't get our serious attention. Like Peter, James, and John, who fell asleep while Jesus was enduring His agony in Gethsemane (Matthew 26:36-46), we are drowsy. Our desire, it would seem, is for God to leave us alone and let us sleep just a little while longer.
Usually, it takes some huge, life-altering crisis to bring us to our senses. But the closer we get to the end of our lives in this world, the more most of us will wish that we'd waked up sooner. We don't really have to wait for tragedy to turn us upside down. If we make the choice, we can wake up on our own - and we can do so right now. We can shake ourselves into sobriety and determine that our minds will be wide awake from now on.
One good reason to wake up is so that we can be better stewards of the gifts God has given us. Our Father has endowed us with great capabilities, and these are to be used to further His purposes. We need to be more keenly aware of our abilities and our opportunities so that we can use them more fully. When we allow the devil to discourage us, we fall into a stupid, insensible daze - a sleepiness from which nothing comes that is truly worthwhile. There is so much more to the life of godliness than we've experienced and so much more to God Himself than we've ever known. Too long have we been stupid! Too long have we slept!
"Compared to what we ought to be, we are only half awake" -William James
Friday, September 17, 2010
Almost Packed...
I haven't been this nervous since I don't know when. It has been hard to breathe today. And no amount of puffing on my inhaler today will fix it. There is nothing about an international adoption that is easy but I'm not worried about these last few hurdles we have to jump through. I'm trembling at the thought that in about 20 days I will have in my possession a little 20 month old boy. In about 30 days I will be his MOM. I will be responsible for knowing where he is 24 hours a day for at least the next 16 years. I will be responsible for feeding him, teaching him, encouraging him, protecting him and...well...you can fill in the rest. I know I'm talking as if I'm raising this little boy by myself. And of course, I am NOT. Carl and I will raise Paul Daniel together. But I will be MOM. (And Carl is looking to me to know what to do!) I'll be okay. Don't worry. Just thought I would let you know I'm scared today - and it's hard to get stuff done when you just want to run and hide.
Carl has had to work all day and will have to work while we are on this trip. That's good and bad at the same time...but he has a job. So we aren't complaining.
Met with our agency over the phone this morning to prepare for our day in court.
Almost have our bags packed. Will finish up this evening when Carl gets home.
Thanks to Patrick and Misty for the ride to the airport in the morning.
Don't know when we'll have time to get on the computer on this first leg of the trip...you may not hear from us for a few days...but I'll be sure to resume the daily updates once we get to Siberia.
Thank you in advance for your prayers.
Carl has had to work all day and will have to work while we are on this trip. That's good and bad at the same time...but he has a job. So we aren't complaining.
Met with our agency over the phone this morning to prepare for our day in court.
Almost have our bags packed. Will finish up this evening when Carl gets home.
Thanks to Patrick and Misty for the ride to the airport in the morning.
Don't know when we'll have time to get on the computer on this first leg of the trip...you may not hear from us for a few days...but I'll be sure to resume the daily updates once we get to Siberia.
Thank you in advance for your prayers.
WE HAVE HIS MEASUREMENTS!
Length - 76 cm (29.9 inches)
Weight - 9760 grams (21.5 pounds) He's gained almost 4 pounds since our last visit!
FOOT - 13.5 cm (5.3 inches) Toddler Size 7 in an American shoe!
Weight - 9760 grams (21.5 pounds) He's gained almost 4 pounds since our last visit!
FOOT - 13.5 cm (5.3 inches) Toddler Size 7 in an American shoe!
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Week 12 - Random story
When Carl and I visited the orphanage back in June, I just couldn't get over how much the orphanage director looked like Robin Williams. (He actually has better hair than Robin Williams but in the face, I think they could be twins!) Anyway, so one day while Carl and I were talking to the Director (with our translator), I just said, "Would you tell him he looks remarkably similar to one of our famous actors in the U.S.?" She said "which one?" So I told her and she told him. He laughed. I said, "Does he know who Robin Williams is?" and she said he does. Smiling, he said "I'll take that into consideration."
So, in preparation for this trip, I have been trying to figure out what gifts to take to the orphanage workers, the director and our translators. I asked the agency to help us find out what they would like me to bring them from the U.S. so our agency contacted the orphanage and spoke to the director personally! (I guess there was a translator involved because he doesn't speak English.) Anyway, the agency called us back extremely puzzled. They told me the Director only asked for one thing - a movie with Robin Williams in it.
I just had to laugh. I love that man. I ordered him my three favorite - Mrs. Doubtfire, Awakenings and Patch Adams. Unfortunately couldn't find ANY with Russian subtitles - but oh well.
So, in preparation for this trip, I have been trying to figure out what gifts to take to the orphanage workers, the director and our translators. I asked the agency to help us find out what they would like me to bring them from the U.S. so our agency contacted the orphanage and spoke to the director personally! (I guess there was a translator involved because he doesn't speak English.) Anyway, the agency called us back extremely puzzled. They told me the Director only asked for one thing - a movie with Robin Williams in it.
I just had to laugh. I love that man. I ordered him my three favorite - Mrs. Doubtfire, Awakenings and Patch Adams. Unfortunately couldn't find ANY with Russian subtitles - but oh well.
Monday, September 13, 2010
Week 12 - So many blessings!
God is blessing us in every direction. He is giving us the strength we need to complete this journey and bring our little boy home.
Blessing #1! We found out that we do NOT have to leave Siberia while we wait for Paul Daniel! This will be a tremendous blessing for us since this means we will get a few visits with Paul Daniel before we are allowed to pick him up from the orphanage. We are only promised 3 visits - of course we are earnestly praying for more.
Blessing #2! Paul Daniel's surgeon is sending us the bottles and nipples we need for not only our trip for Siberia, but to feed Paul until his surgery in November!
Blessing #3! We found out last week that we need a psychological evaluation from a Texas-certified psychologist before our trip and that the letter from the psychologist must be apostilled in AUSTIN and returned to us before we board the plane on Saturday! We spent a day and a half calling psychologists all over the DFW area. EVERY SINGLE ONE WE CALLED was either booked solid for two weeks to a month or had a waiting list!! We finally decided to send an email to our Christian brothers and sisters for some help and long story short, we got our 5-hour psychologist evaluation completed on Friday afternoon. Dr. Erick Gonzalez cleared his appts for the day so he could see us and he worked into the evening on Friday to complete our letter.
Blessing #4! When Carl and I made our first trip to the orphanage in June, we asked the orphanage director what supplies we could bring to him from the U.S. on our return trip. He only asked for thermometers. So Carl and I decided to go with the ear thermometers and some fancy rectal thermometers. The problem was - the instructions were not in Russian and there are no English-speaking workers in Danil's orphanage. SO, I called the thermometer company - they couldn't help. I made contact with two ladies on the internet who both said at first they would do it. After seeing the instructions - both ladies declined. I had decided my next attempt would be to contact someone from the Russian Dept at SMU and had begun formulating a plan on how to approach them with this request. BUT THEN, last Saturday Carl and I decided we would spend the morning working in the front yard flowerbeds. About 3 hours into it, 2 ladies walked by. I looked at Carl and said "were those ladies speaking RUSSIAN???" He said, "I think so." I couldn't believe it! So I took off running after them... "Excuse me! Excuse me!" I told them our problem and would you believe it, they were willing to do it!!! Alexandra and her mother translated 13 pages of thermometer instructions into Russian for us - charts and all. It turns out that Alexandra does not live in our neighborhood. She was just passing down our street to get to her neighborhood after a trip to the store. Her mother is in town visiting from Russia. Alexandra told me that literally MINUTES before she passed our house, her mother was saying that she was wishing there was some type of charity work she could do - she says she feels so useless on her visits to the U.S. and wished she could find something good to do with her time!! God is good.
Carl and I are working every day to check things off our list. I have all Paul Daniel's clothes laid out. Wish I knew his sizes now, but the agency has not been successful in getting that for us. So all I can do is take multiple sizes. The main thing I wish I knew was his shoe size, but oh well. I have him a little hat and a little coat. I'm carefully reviewing each toy and book to decide which would best for our week in Moscow and on the flight home. Everything is going just fine. If we can just keep up our energy...
Blessing #1! We found out that we do NOT have to leave Siberia while we wait for Paul Daniel! This will be a tremendous blessing for us since this means we will get a few visits with Paul Daniel before we are allowed to pick him up from the orphanage. We are only promised 3 visits - of course we are earnestly praying for more.
Blessing #2! Paul Daniel's surgeon is sending us the bottles and nipples we need for not only our trip for Siberia, but to feed Paul until his surgery in November!
Blessing #3! We found out last week that we need a psychological evaluation from a Texas-certified psychologist before our trip and that the letter from the psychologist must be apostilled in AUSTIN and returned to us before we board the plane on Saturday! We spent a day and a half calling psychologists all over the DFW area. EVERY SINGLE ONE WE CALLED was either booked solid for two weeks to a month or had a waiting list!! We finally decided to send an email to our Christian brothers and sisters for some help and long story short, we got our 5-hour psychologist evaluation completed on Friday afternoon. Dr. Erick Gonzalez cleared his appts for the day so he could see us and he worked into the evening on Friday to complete our letter.
Blessing #4! When Carl and I made our first trip to the orphanage in June, we asked the orphanage director what supplies we could bring to him from the U.S. on our return trip. He only asked for thermometers. So Carl and I decided to go with the ear thermometers and some fancy rectal thermometers. The problem was - the instructions were not in Russian and there are no English-speaking workers in Danil's orphanage. SO, I called the thermometer company - they couldn't help. I made contact with two ladies on the internet who both said at first they would do it. After seeing the instructions - both ladies declined. I had decided my next attempt would be to contact someone from the Russian Dept at SMU and had begun formulating a plan on how to approach them with this request. BUT THEN, last Saturday Carl and I decided we would spend the morning working in the front yard flowerbeds. About 3 hours into it, 2 ladies walked by. I looked at Carl and said "were those ladies speaking RUSSIAN???" He said, "I think so." I couldn't believe it! So I took off running after them... "Excuse me! Excuse me!" I told them our problem and would you believe it, they were willing to do it!!! Alexandra and her mother translated 13 pages of thermometer instructions into Russian for us - charts and all. It turns out that Alexandra does not live in our neighborhood. She was just passing down our street to get to her neighborhood after a trip to the store. Her mother is in town visiting from Russia. Alexandra told me that literally MINUTES before she passed our house, her mother was saying that she was wishing there was some type of charity work she could do - she says she feels so useless on her visits to the U.S. and wished she could find something good to do with her time!! God is good.
Carl and I are working every day to check things off our list. I have all Paul Daniel's clothes laid out. Wish I knew his sizes now, but the agency has not been successful in getting that for us. So all I can do is take multiple sizes. The main thing I wish I knew was his shoe size, but oh well. I have him a little hat and a little coat. I'm carefully reviewing each toy and book to decide which would best for our week in Moscow and on the flight home. Everything is going just fine. If we can just keep up our energy...
Tuesday, September 7, 2010
Week 11 - Praise God!
We got the news we've been praying for! Please give thanks to God today! We are leaving Sept 20 to go get our little boy from Siberia. Carl and I have now switched into high gear - we have a list a mile long of things we need to do before we leave the country. So I will be buckled down and busy every second of every day.
Our schedule is as follows:
Sept 20 - Arrive to Moscow
Sept 21 - Medical evaluation (of Carl and me) in Moscow
Sept 21 - Depart Moscow for Siberia at 10:05pm
Sept 22 - Arrive in Siberia @ 5:30am
Sept 22 - Orphanage
Sept 23 - Court
Sept 24 - Leave the Region for Moscow at 6:50am - this is the depressing part. This is the first we are hearing that we cannot stay in Siberia while we wait to get our little boy. We are told now that we have to leave the region and come back to get him. This changes everything for us. It is possible we will come back to the U.S. and make a 3rd trip back to Siberia. I'm PRAYING we do not have to do this - but there is good reason to return to the U.S. Carl cannot waste a single vacation day this year. Please, please pray the judge waives our 10 day waiting period after our court day and we do not have to leave Siberia after our court date.
Our schedule is as follows:
Sept 20 - Arrive to Moscow
Sept 21 - Medical evaluation (of Carl and me) in Moscow
Sept 21 - Depart Moscow for Siberia at 10:05pm
Sept 22 - Arrive in Siberia @ 5:30am
Sept 22 - Orphanage
Sept 23 - Court
Sept 24 - Leave the Region for Moscow at 6:50am - this is the depressing part. This is the first we are hearing that we cannot stay in Siberia while we wait to get our little boy. We are told now that we have to leave the region and come back to get him. This changes everything for us. It is possible we will come back to the U.S. and make a 3rd trip back to Siberia. I'm PRAYING we do not have to do this - but there is good reason to return to the U.S. Carl cannot waste a single vacation day this year. Please, please pray the judge waives our 10 day waiting period after our court day and we do not have to leave Siberia after our court date.
Friday, September 3, 2010
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