Can you picture it?

Doesn't this house look like it is missing something? Yep, you got it!! It's missing two beautiful Russian babies!!! Soon you'll see pictures of Rowan and Rylie playing ball out front... Can you picture it? Ready for a game of kick ball?

Well, not much going on right now with the adoption. My homestudy and all of the paperwork for my dossier is complete. I am just waiting on the package, and then it will be sent off to be apostilled which is a 3 day turn around service. I am not too worried about it because the adoption agency has not been registered as an NGO yet nor have they been reaccredited. I am anticipating both of these hurdles to be crossed in the next month or so, but I could be sorely mistaken! We shall see how long God needs the babies to be in Russia before coming to America! :)

On a completley different note, as far as life goes! I am thoroughly amazed with the house fans that we just had installed. There are five in the upstairs of the house. They are basically large vents that suck all of the hot air out of the house and then either pull the cold air in from the open windows OR suck hot air out and then allow the air conditioner to cool the house very quickly. To say the least, we have not had to run the air at all since we got the fans and in the morning the house is VERY cool and EXTREMELY fresh because the air being sucked in is the fresh morning air! I LOVE IT! Oh, and did I mention that running the fans costs 1/10th of the cost of running the air conditioner! PRAISE JESUS for small mercies!

Okay, well peace out my friends! Please comment if you read! I am feeling very lonely in this blog!!! Praise be to God for giving me good friends like YOU! Yep, you! Don't act so surprised! :) LOL Love you all! Rowan and Rylie are going to be so lucky!!!!

Waiting List

In Russia, many people including the officials take 60-90 days off work in the summer. This type of hiatus is common in some European countries as well. In Russia, I would imagine that having some extended time off when there is no ice and snow would be helpful!

Due to this 60-90 day hiatus, the government offices are pretty much closed for service. During this 60-90 days which began in June, those of us preparing to adopt continue to be busy bees getting our paperwork completed, notarized and in some cases astopilled. We work as though everything is still moving on that side of the ocean. Well, this in unless your paperwork was completed by June 1st. Then this 60 days becomes VERY long as you wait.

During these 60-90 days, a list begins forming of those waiting to adopt. In my case, the waiting list for Omsk is 6 families long. This means that once the reaccreditation is received, I will be 7th in line. I started getting a bit bummed about this because the agency is only able to send 1 family a week to meet their children. Tick tock, tick tock is what I began hearing. And, there are many others whose clocks have been tick tocking much more loudly than mine. Why is it that the ticking of the clock goes so slow when we are waiting???

I was bummed until I realized that in the past 60+ days, ONLY 6 families have gotten their names on the waiting list to adopt a baby from Omsk. There are 180+ babies in the three little Omsk baby houses, and only 6 families are in line ahead of me. Most of them are adopting one which seems to be the sane way to go! That means of 180 babies, 8 have families waiting to take them home. That thought is humbling. I pray that the Lord lay it on more hearts to save the little ones and to adopt them as He has adopted us.

Now, I know it is a calling so I am by no means trying to make anyone feel guilty. I am just sharing my thoughts and dreams. As I wait, I grow...

So, do you think we could finagle a way to get 60-90 days off???!!!!

"Gotcha Box"

A few of you have asked what my "gotcha box" is so I thought I'd give a short definition. During the home study process, one of the topics that Annette and I discussed was the transition time for the babies.

Annette was pleased that I have traveld a lot because she said a huge part of the bonding process includes making the babies feel at home whle keeping some of the familar around them. She even said that some Chinese orphanages smell very stongly of urine so the suggestion is that rather than completely cleaning the baby up and giving him/her that Johnson and Johnson's smell, the adoptive parent should consider pinning a small piece of their cloth diaper to the pajamas so that they can be comforted by the familiar smell. The suggestion is to ween them off of the old and gently introduce them to the new. That, I thought, was so counter American culture. Most of us including me would equate good parenting with cleaning them up and rescuing themfrom the less than fragrant odor.

Annette explained that not only will the smells be new but their entire world will be new. The feel of their clothing, their beds, there blankets, the arms of their new parent, the lighting in the house, the basic surroundings, etc... I was amazed at the thought of how this little one might feel in the first couple of weeks in America, in California, at home!!!

So, Annette told me about many adoptive parents keeping good records of the "gotcha date" which is the day that the child(ren) come home. She suggested collecting things from Russia while there and also collecting items during the process of the adoption. These things are what will be put in my "gotcha box". The box will be brought out once a year and little by little I'll introduce them to the world that used to be all they knew. I want them to appreciate their roots and the culture from which they came. I hope to one day when they are older take them back to visit. We shall see if that dream comes to fruition.

So, that's the "gotcha box". First, I will gently ease them into not missing Russia too much and then I will teach them little by little to appreciate the beauty of the culture in which they were born.

Last Call

ONLY FOR THE STRONG IN HEART

Okay, so here's the down and dirty of it all as far as the raffle goes!!! We have some killer prizes just waiting to be won! I mean there is an AWESOME flat screen telvision and a pillow top and bottom mattress the size of your choice up for grabs! And, this for just a $5 donation or simply for picking up a ticket from Gina or Wanda!!!

Now, here's the down low... Some philanthropic company which will remain unnamed is ascared (homemade word for homemade fears) to step outside the box to help little orphans needing homes. So, instead of focusing on the fact that tickets cannot be openly solicited on the premises, I choose to focus on the fact that they can be solicited on my personal BLOG! And, you as my friend can choose to read my blog on your break or at home time!!! :) Isn't God good?! I think He supports us jointly standing in the gap for these little helpless ones waiting to be brought to America! All aspects of the raffle are above board and have been checked through Christian legal counsel. Since tickets are available freely with a suggested donation, it is not even close to gambling! :) Try to pick up a lotto ticket for free or come by and help the orphans!

So, in short, if you would like a chance to win something from the LONG list of AWESOME prizes, please see Gina or Wanda for a ticket and consider making a $5 donation if the Lord so leads. Every penny will go towards bringing two little ones into the fold.

Raffle Tickets!!!

Soon there will be two more playmates for little Mikey Pompey!!! With your help, I'll be bringing Rowan and Riley over a much larger body of water!!! Then, someday, they'll be sitting on the side of that same jacuzzi being coaxed to jump in the water! I'm not sure if Scott ever got Mikey to make the plunge!

If you work at ECCU and would like a raffle ticket, please see Gina or Wanda. There is a suggeseted donation of $5 for 1 ticket and $20 for 5 tickets. See the long list of cool prizes on my website located under the fundraiser section!!!!

Fundraisers to come: Yard Sales, Car Wash, Ebay sales, bake sales, and Tupperware!!!

And, if you keep up with my blog, let me know by posting a comment! :)

Estimations

Well, I am approaching my 36th birthday this Saturday, and I am feeling just a tad bit OUT OF SORTS!!!! :) Really, I say to myself, stop the drama! I'm excited that this 36th year will be a year of rejoicing! Okay, so it will be a year of learning to be patient and to celebrate small victories leading up to the big ones. It will be a year to forget about legalistic people and places and to reach higher for greater things!

According to my estimations which seem to be a theme in this blog, I will likely go to Russia in late October to visit the orphanage. It will be a fall trip to Siberia - burrrrrzy! I'm getting myself excited about the prospect of traveling in just 2 or 3 months! Even though I have traveled all over the world, I am very uneasy about long flights over the Atlantic! What a baby! On my last flight back from Italy, there were two Italian boys pretending the plane was going down! I almost hyperventilated!!!

This trip I will be traveling with the same group that I went to Italy with - my 23 year-old sister Victoria, my 19 year-old brother Andrew, and Gina our "adopted" sister (age unknown he he he). I am not sure who can actually go to the orphanage with me, but they will all be there for support and also to see Moscow and perhaps St. Petersburg while I am at the orphanage. I'm not sure as to the details at this point. I am just glad I'll be surrounded by family!!! They'll fill in time gaps as necessary.

Pray for me as I seek further funding for the remaining funds to be gathered. I have sold Pampered Chef and will be selling Tupperware next month. Gina, Wanda, Victoria and my 21 year-old sister have put together a raffle (fully as in 100% legal and verified by an unbiased attorney), car wash, and ebay sales. Each dollar counts for these little helpless ones!!!! God will provide!

Thanks to all of you who have donated to the raffle and to those who have donated funds towards the adoption in whatever way you have. I have been working very hard to find ways to earn the remaining 1/3 of the funds and without God working through you, I'm not sure I'd succeed.