We are new people this morning!!

We are still in Seoul but are new people after a hot shower (You're right, Elle!) and a great night's sleep. When I laid down I thought this bed sure is hard and it was the last thought I had for about 9 hours! We are feeling great and ready to get to Khabarovsk and to that sweet little girl!!
We are about to meet Catherine and Kathy for breakfast. It was so nice to just follow them around yesterday since they already know what to do! This is a huge and very nice airport. They had a cultural experience place but we couldn't get Todd to make any Korean crafts!

We are in Seoul, Korea!

Wow! We've been up 25 hours. This has been one long day! We got up at 4:00 this morning and now it's 5:00 am Central time. We are in the transit hotel here at Incheon airport and about to go get in a tiny little bed but it will feel wonderful!! We flew right over Khabarovsk today. It felt funny to pass it up and then fly back to it tomorrow! Tomorrow it will just be a short flight there. We are so close!! We are excited but tired. Those seats are not made for people who are 6'4"! I was uncomfortable but Todd really was!! We'll post more from Khab. tomorrow. Thank you so much for all the prayers and sweet words of encouragement! Love ya'll!

On Our Way!

We're in Dallas!! We've completed the first leg of our trip. It was definitely the shortest leg of our trip. Gin and Mike picked us up at the airport and we went out for a nice late dinner. I am so excited that we are finally on our way to meet our baby girl! Saying goodbye to Blaine was very hard and I can't say that I didn't cry. I tried so hard but couldn't help it. He was so sweet and was a big boy! I am going to miss him so much but I know he is in good hands.
We have a very early morning tomorrow. We are going to head to the airport at 5:00 am. I am already looking forward to sleeping on the plane. I'll try to post more when we land in Seoul.
I'm wiped out. Good night!!

Last Minute Details and a Fire

I can't believe we leave tomorrow! We fly to Dallas tomorrow night and then on to LA early Thursday morning. Then La to Seoul, then Seoul to Khabarovsk (prounounced Ha bar usk) on Saturday. We kinda lose Friday on the way over there but we'll get a day back on the way home. I am so excited!! In about 5 more days we'll have met our little girl!

Our apostilled documents arrived from Austin yesterday. I made copies and then sent them off to Alaska to our agency. It feels so good to be done with all that paperwork. I think there are a few more forms to sign after our trip but no more gathering documents. Yay!!!

Yesterday started off great. Donna and I went to Odessa and I picked up some last minute things for the trip. She bought me lunch for my birthday and we had a good time and got a lot done. Thanks, Donna! When I got home I went to the alltell store to see if our cell phones will work in Russia. I called Todd at the bank to let him know that they won't work and his secretary told me he had left because there was a fire on the ranch. I headed south to look for him and it was a BIG fire. Needless to say, no packing was going on last night. He and his dad fought the fire until late in the evening and got home about 9:00 filthy and exhausted. With the high winds and dry conditions it took forever to get it under control. We are so thankful for our volunteer fire department and all the others who just came out to help! We need some rain in a big way.
I was hoping to get mostly packed last night and just have some good relaxing family time tonight before we leave tomorrow. So.....I guess I'd better get off this computer and get a move on!

2 Down, 1 To Go

Yeah!! Our passports with Russian visas and our plane tickets arrived today - It feels so good to have them in hand! Now all we need is our documents from Austin. When I called the Sec. of State's office yesterday, I talked to a girl who said she had just apostilled them that morning and sent them off in the overnight envelope I provided. I tracked the package today on the UPS website and it isn't even in their system yet. Hmmm. This isn't something we have to have before our trip but it must be submitted in order to receive a court date. I really want to have it to our agency before we travel. Todd says, "Quit Worrying!"


I was able to get quite a few things marked off my to do list today. I promised Blaine I'd watch Man vs. Wild with him at 8:00 tonight. I wonder what that guy will eat tonight. I plan on being in bed by 9:00. I am wiped out.

5 more days!

Blaine Loves to Snorkel!

This boy loves his baths! He can stay in until the water is cold and his fingers look like prunes. Mamaw gave him a snorkel and goggles and he has a ball "diving" for toys in the tub. He has a purple octopus that often attacks things which he has to dive under and rescue!

I am going to miss Blaine terribly while we're in Russia. It's a funny feeling not being able to wait to meet one child and dreading leaving the other one. 11 days is a very long time. I have bought 11 little gifts like books, candy, floam, computer games, etc. He can open one each day we are gone. He will be able to count the gifts that are remaining and know how many more days until we are home. I hope this will be fun for him and remind him how much we love him. I hope this trip won't be too hard on him. It's sure going to be hard on me! Of course, knowing the two sets of grandparents he'll be staying with, he may not be in any hurry for us to come home. Mamaw & Papa and Grama & Pa, don't make him too rotten! Seriously, I can't tell you how thankful we are for each of you. We are truly blessed with our family.

Some of you have called or emailed and said you don't know how to leave a comment because you don't have a blogger or google account. Click on comments at the bottom of the post, write a comment, then just select anonymous and publish your comment. You can still sign your name to your comment so I'll know who you are!

1 Down, 2 To Go

Yesterday, I mentioned 3 important things I was hoping to receive in the mail. 1 of those came today, 2 did not. We did receive our packet of info. from Dr. Skurkovich, our international adoption doctor. It was very informative and came complete with growth charts and a measuring tape. Very useful! We are still waiting on our passports, visas, and plane tickets which were sent Priority Mail on Monday. The tracking results say they were sent from Seattle and nothing more. I keep reminding myself that next Wednesday is still 6 days away (all the while that strange feeling in the pit of my stomach intensifies)! I called the office of the Secretary of State today about my apostilled documents for our court dossier and they were still there. I can be patient just as long as I know they're not lost out there somewhere.

I piled up all the things we have gathered for a donation to the orphanage into a huge pile today. Then I loaded them up into a Space Bag and vacuumed out all the air. I so wish I had taken before and after pictures. It was amazing, just like the commercial! I'm very impressed. I have been reminded that although it takes up much less room, there are still weight limits on baggage.

We were given 5 pictures of the little girl we are going to meet. I blew them up into 8x10's and have spent hours staring at them. She looks so sweet and I can't wait to hold her. Everyone says not to fall in love with your referral and to remember that she's not yours until after court. Too late! Someone will have to tell me how to hold back that part of my heart because I don't seem to have any control over it. That feeling in my stomach is rising into my chest!!
6 more days!

Disappointment at the Post Office

We were told by our travel agent to expect our Russian visas in the mail today. They weren't there. I was also hoping to receive an important information packet from our IA doctor that we need before we leave next week. It wasn't there either. I also hoped the nice UPS man would bring our very very important apostilled documents from Austin today. He didn't. Ugh!
When you mail off your passports with your visa applications or send off all the documents that you have spent forever obtaining, it gives you a kinda sick feeling in the pit of your stomach when you place them in the drop box. When they don't come back on the day you expect them, that feeling gets much worse! I'm trying not to stress too much until tomorrow.
On the bright side, I did get my new boots from Land's End. They are fur lined, toasty warm, and feel really good even if they are quite ugly!

Todd has been so incredibly busy at work that I don't think he's been able to give much thought to this trip lately. He joked tonight that I'll be pulling him away from his desk to go to the airport and he'll be saying, "Wait, I've got to write up one more loan!" Another quote from Todd: "I'm going to have to quit sleeping in until 5:30 every morning if I'm going to get everything done." Crazy!! So much for "banker's hours"! I know that travel and jet lag can be rough but I'm hoping this trip goes smoothly and he can "sleep in" a little later than that each day!

One week from tonight we fly to Dallas. One week from tomorrow, we'll be on our way to Seoul!
(If those darn visas show up!!)

Just 10 More Days!!

The fact that our trip to Russia is coming up soon really hit home today in the grocery store. I picked up a gallon of milk and looked at the expiration date. It said Feb. 29. and I realized we will be in Russia when this milk expires!! Silly I know, but it just still seemed like a long way off until that moment.

I got to shop for orphanage donations this week and I really enjoyed that. It was fun getting to buy all sizes of clothes and wondering just what size my little girl will be in. I'll have to try some on her while we're there and then guess what I think she'll be wearing in about 3 months when we get to go back and get her. I can't wait to get my hands on her!

I've been thinking alot about how our first meeting will go. I've read so many other blogs and lots of posts about trip 1 on FRUA and everybody has a different story. Some people report that it was love at first sight with the child running into their arms while others say their baby screamed and cried and didn't want to have anything to do with them. Also, many of the children have never seen men before except for maybe a doctor so Todd may seem very scary to her at first. Of course I'm hoping for lots of hugs and interaction so I'm hoping for a good first experience but am also preparing myself for anything! The fact that they have stranger anxiety and don't want to leave their familiar caregiver is a good sign that they know how to bond so that will be a comfort if our little V doesn't take to us immediately. We are going to be armed with bubbles, toys, and some snacks so maybe that will help too!

Some of you have asked us if this is for sure the one we will be getting. The purpose of the 1st trip is to meet the child that has been referred to you and make a decision whether to decline or accept the referral. We feel very good about this child from the limited information we have been given about her as well as a few recent pictures. Did I mention that she is beautiful?! We have been praying for a long time that our first referral would be the child that is meant to be in our family. However, we have also prayed that God would give us the wisdom to know if she is not the one. I cannot imagine how difficult it would be to decline a referral but I have visited with people who have and they have ended up with a perfect fit for their family in the end. Another thing we must keep in the back of our minds is that she is not ours until we go to court. It is a very rare thing, but families have lost the child they intended to adopt when a Russian family stepped in and chose to adopt them. This happened more during the long waits for reaccreditation but it is a slim possibility. All this being said, we are feeling very positive about this little girl and are so thrilled to go meet her. When all is said and done, if God intends her to be ours, she will be!

Just 10 more days and we'll be on our way!

My Cutie!

The main purpose of this post was to see if I could figure out how to add a photo on my blog. I'm not the most computer literate person in the world (understatement of the year)! I want to be able to post pictures of our trip to Russia so I thought I'd better start practicing now.

Isn't he the cutest boy in the whole wide world?! This was Blaine on the first day of Kindergarten.

Busy Times!

We have been very busy shopping and gathering things we will need for our trip. Todd even went to the mall with me. That NEVER happens! Blaine helped us pick out a few small toys to take with us for when we play with little V at the orphanage. We are also putting together a little photo album we can leave behind for her. I'm going to leave a disposable camera with her name on it in hopes that we can get some pictures showing how she spends her days. Right now we are not actually packing, just gathering things. I'm making all kinds of lists which I keep losing!!

I cannot wait to get there and meet this little one - It can't come soon enough! At the same time, there is so much to do between now and then. We need to write out Blaine's schedule for the grandparents and cover all of our responsibilities at home, work, church and school while we are gone. We are blessed with awesome friends who have volunteered to help out in so many ways. Thank you all!

My Blaine says the sweetest prayers. Every night he prays, "Dear Lord, Please take care of V while we can't get to her." We echo that prayer and hope you will too!

I'm Beginning to Like the # 28!

I'm beginning to like the number 28. AIA was reaccredited on Dec. 28. We received our referral on Jan. 28. We will leave for Khabarovsk on Feb. 28! Yep, it's official. Our tickets are bought! We are so excited! We'll leave the good ole USA on the 28th but we will actually leave home and fly to Dallas on the 27th and spend the night with Ginger so we can catch our early flight out the next morning. We will spend the night in Seoul, Korea both on the way over and back.

We got some more good news this week! A lady named Catherine who adopted from Khab. through AIA in 2006 is going back for #2 & #3 and she will be traveling with us. We are so lucky to be going with a pro both in terms of travel and adoption. It really eases our minds to be traveling with someone who's been there, done that.

For the last year, we have focused so much on the paperwork and the actual adoption itself that we really haven't thought alot about the travel. Now as we are preparing for it, I'm beginning to realize what an awesome opportunity this is to get to visit Russia and to really experience the birthplace of our daughter. I am really excited!

Just 18 more days!

Tentative was the key word!

Our old "tentative" travel date was Feb. 23. Our new "tentative" travel date is Feb. 28. There were 2 Russian holidays during that 1st week so it wouldn't have worked out well for us to go during that time. This new date is probably more of a sure thing, we even received a proposed itinerary. It looks like this first trip will be 11 days. We originally thought it would be about 7 days. I put Blaine to bed tonight and held him extra long. I cannot wait to go meet this little girl but leaving my sweet boy for that long is going to be oh so hard. OUCH - My heart hurts already! Thank goodness for two sets of awesome grandparents! Seeing the flight on paper like that made me realize what a long journey it really is - 16,240 miles round trip and that doesn't include the distance from Monahans to Dallas. The furthest I've been from Monahans is California. Doesn't really compare, does it?

This is beginning to get real!

We heard yesterday that our tentative travel date is Feb. 23. That is 17 days from now! I can't believe it. Things have moved so slowly over the past year and now they seem to be flying. I ordered warm coats for Todd and I because I didn't think the jackets we wear around here would cut it in Russia. As I'm writing this, the nifty little weather girl over to the left says it is
-8 degrees in Khabarovsk. Brrr!! We've never seen that kind of cold before! By the way, thanks Elle for the cool site design - I love it! Also notice the clock. That's what time it is where our baby girl is right now! It's already tomorrow in Khab. I pray during the day here that she is having a good night's sleep and I pray at night that she's having a great day and that someone is loving on her until we get there.

Yesterday we filled out applications for our Russian visas and overnighted them to our travel agent. It made me a little nervous to send off our passports. Then we spent all afternoon in the doctor's office waiting to have our bloodwork and TB tests done. I think half of Monahans was in there sick. Hopefully we didn't pick up anything.

I was thrilled to hear that we will probably get to travel with another lady who is also with AIA. She has adopted from Khabarovsk before and is going back for #2. How awesome to go with someone who has been there, done that. We need all the help we can get. Those of you who know us well are probably getting a big kick out of imagining us in an airport in a foreign country. Quit laughing!! Keep praying!!

Hoping and Believing

So many of our friends and family have been so good about asking us how our adoption is coming and letting us know they are praying for us. Thank you, it means so much! Now that we finally have some real news to share I thought I would start a blog to keep those who are interested informed. It will also serve as a journal so we can remember the details of this adoption adventure. I've decided to name this blog Hoping and Believing. We are hoping this will be the year that we complete our Russian adoption of a little girl and believing God has a special plan for our family! Please feel free to click on Comments below and ask us a question or leave us a word of encouragement.

We have been so blessed with our precious son, Blaine. I remember thinking that if we could ever just have one child it would be enough. But this little boy is so amazing that we want more!After several years of many unsuccessful infertility treatments and a miscarriage, we decided to adopt. After a very short stint with a domestic agency, we decided international adoption would be best for us and felt led to Russia for many reasons.

After checking out many agencies, we signed up with Alaska International Adoptions in January of 2007 and have been so pleased! We have completed tons of paperwork, had a homestudy prepared and a recently a homestudy update since a year has gone by, been fingerprinted 5 times (more than most hardened criminals!), been cleared by the FBI, the DPS, USCIS, had medical exams and blood work..... Then we waited almost 9 months for our agency to receive its reaccreditation in Russia (for those unfamiliar with adoption in Russia, it's a long story). We have not always been patient but have tried to remember that God's timing is perfect. Reaccreditation was a late Christmas present for us on December 28!

Now for the "real news" I mentioned! Our dossier was registered in Khabarovsk on January 10 and we have already received a referral for a precious little baby girl!!!! She's 18 months old with gorgeous blue eyes! We will get to go meet her soon, maybe even this month. We are so excited and nervous! After we meet her, we will have to come back home to wait for a court date, which will probably be several months later. Then we will return to Russia for court to make her officially ours! This is quite a process and we definitely need your prayers. I will update when we have more news. Stay tuned!