Hi all, just wanted to let you know that we made it home safe and sound last night. We can't thank you all enough for your prayers.
The flights were all fine... there were a couple little hang ups because we switched our return flight from the 6th to the 2nd (and very last minute) but it all worked out fine. And our flight from Charlotte to Nashville was supposed to be way delayed because of some maintanance issues, but it ended up leaving and arriving on time as well.
It was SOOO good to see our babies last night. :) Its wonderful to be home. I just can't express... :) We slept like rocks last night (Jake still is) but I woke up this morning around 6 and couldn't go back to sleep. Don't think its a jetlag issue, I just couldn't stop thinking about all I want to do around here to get ready for my little boy to come home. :) The girls are still sleeping as well so I thought I'd steal away a few minutes to update the blog. Abby is in there making her precious noises now actually...
I have so much in my heart and in my head that I want to share. But for now, we are here, we are safe, and we are blessed. Love to you all...
Wednesday, June 3, 2009
Monday, June 1, 2009
Court
We just got back from our court appointment and it went great!!! Pavel Micah Spencer was just declared our son! It went so fast- 10 or 15 minutes maybe. And we were asked just a few questions, the answer to most of which he had right in front of him but was verifying information.
Our interpreter is just awesome, she made the whole thing so much less stressful. We really love her. When it was over, we all hugged and there were lots of translated congratulations. :) We said our goodbye's to Svetlana our facilitator/orphanage lawyer (who has also been GREAT) and she gave Jake some quick information about his return.
I wish I could write more but we only have a couple of hours to pack up, clean up our apartment and run to the market before our driver gets here to take us to the airport. Please pray for our travels, that all of our flights would be safe! We leave Odesa at 7:00 and arrive in Kiev one hour later. Then we're basically staying at the airport until our flight leaves at 6:30 in the morning. Then on to Munich Germany, Charlotte NC, and Nashville!! :)
(Oh and the performance was adorable this morning!! Pavel Micah sat with us and was every bit what you would expect from a 3 year old little boy who's TRYING to be good through an hour and a half performance. :) But I got tons of pictures and video that I'll share when we get home!)
Our interpreter is just awesome, she made the whole thing so much less stressful. We really love her. When it was over, we all hugged and there were lots of translated congratulations. :) We said our goodbye's to Svetlana our facilitator/orphanage lawyer (who has also been GREAT) and she gave Jake some quick information about his return.
I wish I could write more but we only have a couple of hours to pack up, clean up our apartment and run to the market before our driver gets here to take us to the airport. Please pray for our travels, that all of our flights would be safe! We leave Odesa at 7:00 and arrive in Kiev one hour later. Then we're basically staying at the airport until our flight leaves at 6:30 in the morning. Then on to Munich Germany, Charlotte NC, and Nashville!! :)
(Oh and the performance was adorable this morning!! Pavel Micah sat with us and was every bit what you would expect from a 3 year old little boy who's TRYING to be good through an hour and a half performance. :) But I got tons of pictures and video that I'll share when we get home!)
Saturday, May 30, 2009
Prayer Requests
Ok all you prayer warriors, we need your prayers for lots of different things!
1) Jake's grandmother might be having a surgery this week. Without going into too many details, she could use some prayer for Divine intervention and for all that goes along with having this surgery.
2.) My dad's having some problems and has been back in and out of the hospital the last couple of days. Again, without too many details, please just pray that the Dr's would have wisdom, do what needs to be done, and that Dad would be as pain free as possible.
3.) Diane is probably driving up to see her mom on Wednesday and is helping juggle the girls before she goes, working and trying to get herself ready to go out of town. Pray for her strength through the next few days!
4.) My mom has got her own medical issues on top of taking care of Dad, work and the girls. Please pray for endurance for this week as well.
5.) The girls are doing great and have truly been covered by the Lord while we have been gone, but please continue to lift them up. That their little hearts would be sealed and that they would not be anxious for anything but know that they are safe and Mommy and Daddy are coming home soon.
6.) Pray for Pavel Micah as we have our last two days with him. Pray that he would not be confused that we aren't there anymore but that the time would go quickly. That God would speak to him and he would know that we are coming back for him soon.
7.) We are hoping and praying to leave Odesa on Monday night, take a small flight to Kiev, and then fly out from there early Tuesday morning, so please pray for our safety for all of those flights.
8.) Please pray for court on Monday. We expect that it will go quickly, but it IS a holiday so we're praying it doesn't get bumped. Especially because the judge will be out of town the rest of that week. Things move pretty quickly for adoptions of children with special needs, and we have an awesome team working for us, but nonetheless. We need prayer! We need to get home to our babies.
9.) Pray that the paperwork all plays out smoothly. Its a little difficult that I'm not coming back after court appeals are over, and we need to be sure to have all paperwork layed out correctly before we go. Pray specifically that nothing is overlooked and that everything that needs to be done, signed, notarized, etc. gets done.
Thank you all so much. I'm actually tearing up right now knowing what an amazing group of people are going to be reading this and that you all WILL pray. I can't thank you enough. What would we do without you?
1) Jake's grandmother might be having a surgery this week. Without going into too many details, she could use some prayer for Divine intervention and for all that goes along with having this surgery.
2.) My dad's having some problems and has been back in and out of the hospital the last couple of days. Again, without too many details, please just pray that the Dr's would have wisdom, do what needs to be done, and that Dad would be as pain free as possible.
3.) Diane is probably driving up to see her mom on Wednesday and is helping juggle the girls before she goes, working and trying to get herself ready to go out of town. Pray for her strength through the next few days!
4.) My mom has got her own medical issues on top of taking care of Dad, work and the girls. Please pray for endurance for this week as well.
5.) The girls are doing great and have truly been covered by the Lord while we have been gone, but please continue to lift them up. That their little hearts would be sealed and that they would not be anxious for anything but know that they are safe and Mommy and Daddy are coming home soon.
6.) Pray for Pavel Micah as we have our last two days with him. Pray that he would not be confused that we aren't there anymore but that the time would go quickly. That God would speak to him and he would know that we are coming back for him soon.
7.) We are hoping and praying to leave Odesa on Monday night, take a small flight to Kiev, and then fly out from there early Tuesday morning, so please pray for our safety for all of those flights.
8.) Please pray for court on Monday. We expect that it will go quickly, but it IS a holiday so we're praying it doesn't get bumped. Especially because the judge will be out of town the rest of that week. Things move pretty quickly for adoptions of children with special needs, and we have an awesome team working for us, but nonetheless. We need prayer! We need to get home to our babies.
9.) Pray that the paperwork all plays out smoothly. Its a little difficult that I'm not coming back after court appeals are over, and we need to be sure to have all paperwork layed out correctly before we go. Pray specifically that nothing is overlooked and that everything that needs to be done, signed, notarized, etc. gets done.
Thank you all so much. I'm actually tearing up right now knowing what an amazing group of people are going to be reading this and that you all WILL pray. I can't thank you enough. What would we do without you?
Just for fun
The other day I tried to catch our little greeting on video. This is what we see every single day, twice a day. And his joy to see us only gets bigger and bigger, like we're long lost friends of his. :) We are truly BLESSED that he has connected with us so well... after this part we take him outside and for the first 5 or 10 minutes we're there he just holds Jake close and smiles that big smile as if to say "I've missed you so much... since lunchtime!" :)
Friday, May 29, 2009
Court date!!!
We just found out tonight that our court is set for Monday at noon!!! I'm so excited right now!!!
Our translator and her husband invited us to their house for dinner tonight with another adopting family... and it was such a nice evening! They were such sweet people and the food was wonderful! So nice to get a cook home cooked meal- she had sausages and potatoes with salad and bread. And we had ice cream and fruit for desert. They shared about their ministries here and we shared a lot about our youth ministry at home. These people have such a big heart for orphans and even just for the poor children of their community. And it was fun to get to know this other family- Marsha and she had four of her kids with her... her husband is back in the states with their other children for a bit. Her kids were all so well behaved and sweet... we were very impressed. :) And they are Texans! So they've GOT to be good people. ;) Anyway, we were so glad to be there especially since we weren't able to make it to our last dinner invitation from Marsha. Alyona and her husband walked us home and helped us with some little details that needed worked out (like they installed a new door on our apartment building so now we can't get in without a code which we don't know and couldn't find out because we don't speak Russian... stuff like that :)) They are such a sweet couple and I wish we could spend more time with them; I could see us all being very good friends.
So PRAISE THE LORD for our court date... only two more Groundhog Days left! :) And Monday is National Children's Day so the children at the orphanage are doing a performance which the director invited us to, at 10am. We still aren't sure if Pavel Micah is in it yet or not, but nonetheless we are looking forward to seeing this little play and then heading to court. I will try to tape as much of the performance as I can, and if so, I'll post it. But for now, please pray for Monday!!!
Our translator and her husband invited us to their house for dinner tonight with another adopting family... and it was such a nice evening! They were such sweet people and the food was wonderful! So nice to get a cook home cooked meal- she had sausages and potatoes with salad and bread. And we had ice cream and fruit for desert. They shared about their ministries here and we shared a lot about our youth ministry at home. These people have such a big heart for orphans and even just for the poor children of their community. And it was fun to get to know this other family- Marsha and she had four of her kids with her... her husband is back in the states with their other children for a bit. Her kids were all so well behaved and sweet... we were very impressed. :) And they are Texans! So they've GOT to be good people. ;) Anyway, we were so glad to be there especially since we weren't able to make it to our last dinner invitation from Marsha. Alyona and her husband walked us home and helped us with some little details that needed worked out (like they installed a new door on our apartment building so now we can't get in without a code which we don't know and couldn't find out because we don't speak Russian... stuff like that :)) They are such a sweet couple and I wish we could spend more time with them; I could see us all being very good friends.
So PRAISE THE LORD for our court date... only two more Groundhog Days left! :) And Monday is National Children's Day so the children at the orphanage are doing a performance which the director invited us to, at 10am. We still aren't sure if Pavel Micah is in it yet or not, but nonetheless we are looking forward to seeing this little play and then heading to court. I will try to tape as much of the performance as I can, and if so, I'll post it. But for now, please pray for Monday!!!
He knows.
Well, today is another beach day for Pavel Micah so we have no plans and not much to do until 4:00. I just finished a bowl of cheerios that we bought at the store last night and even though the milk came in a carton that was not previously COLD which was a little concerning... it was actually pretty good. :) Jake is sleeping in (I know, who Jake?! lol) and I'm sitting here checking email and reading blogs and reflecting on our lives at the moment. I am IN Ukraine. Adopting. I'm 26. And I'm pregnant. With our FOURTH daughter. My mom said in an email the other day not to worry about the kids at home, just to worry about my two babies here. :) And it really hit me- two of my FIVE kids are right here with me. I don't know either of them very well yet, but they are both IN my heart every bit as much as my other three.
Part of me wonders, "how did I get here?". And the other part laughs because its a silly question. The Lord has brought us here. HE CHOSE Pavel for us. He chose every one of our kids. He knew Ashley long before we were in the delivery room thinking I was about to give birth to a Jordan Elliot. He knew. And He knew Emily long before we brought her home and that little peanut STOLE my heart and I was immediately wrapped around her little finger forever. He knew. :) He knew that Abby had three chromosomes long before WE knew we'd have three kids in 4 years. He knew it would rock my world and I'd learn things and meet people and go places I never would have otherwise. He knew. He knew that when I was 37 weeks pregnant with Emily a little boy was born on the other side of the world who's mommy would give him up because SHE didn't know and that almost exactly four years later, he would become a Spencer. He knew. He knew that this baby in my womb was coming and was a girl long before we signed up to adopt two little boys with Ds.
I love that my life is in His hands. May it never be any other way. And its because I know that He knows... that I have faith, that I have strength, that I TRUST that everything is working out according to His purpose.
I still don't know a court date. I still don't know what we're going to call Pavel. I still don't know what we're going to name this baby. I still don't know when we're coming home. I still don't know if this whole adoption is going to fall through. I still don't really know if this baby has Ds too. I don't know if my kids will follow Christ as adults and I don't know if I'm guarentee'd tomorrow.
But He knows. :) And you know what? That's enough for me.
Part of me wonders, "how did I get here?". And the other part laughs because its a silly question. The Lord has brought us here. HE CHOSE Pavel for us. He chose every one of our kids. He knew Ashley long before we were in the delivery room thinking I was about to give birth to a Jordan Elliot. He knew. And He knew Emily long before we brought her home and that little peanut STOLE my heart and I was immediately wrapped around her little finger forever. He knew. :) He knew that Abby had three chromosomes long before WE knew we'd have three kids in 4 years. He knew it would rock my world and I'd learn things and meet people and go places I never would have otherwise. He knew. He knew that when I was 37 weeks pregnant with Emily a little boy was born on the other side of the world who's mommy would give him up because SHE didn't know and that almost exactly four years later, he would become a Spencer. He knew. He knew that this baby in my womb was coming and was a girl long before we signed up to adopt two little boys with Ds.
I love that my life is in His hands. May it never be any other way. And its because I know that He knows... that I have faith, that I have strength, that I TRUST that everything is working out according to His purpose.
I still don't know a court date. I still don't know what we're going to call Pavel. I still don't know what we're going to name this baby. I still don't know when we're coming home. I still don't know if this whole adoption is going to fall through. I still don't really know if this baby has Ds too. I don't know if my kids will follow Christ as adults and I don't know if I'm guarentee'd tomorrow.
But He knows. :) And you know what? That's enough for me.
Thursday, May 28, 2009
Downtown Odesa
We had such a fun time downtown yesterday. Its true what my RR friends say about the orphanage visits... they are truly like the movie "Groundhog Day". Every day is the same. Its almost freaky.
But a little walking around and sightseeing in this part of town did us good. We had some good food, enjoyed walking around and people watching, doing a little shopping, and touring some sights. We went to the Wax museum, walked through the Archaeological museum, walked the long pier thingy to the Black Sea (though this area wasn't beaches, it was all ports and boats and boy stuff. :)) And we saw the famous Potemkin Stairs, lots of statues, and many many street vendors. I had my first experience with a Turkish Toilet (aka Squatty Potty). Yikes.
There was even this one area that had all these cute little old men having some sort of chess and domino's tournament! My Papaw would have LOVED it! :)
Odesa has TONS of beautiful gardens and fountains and parks. (One would be PERFECT for weddings... Jodie, you and I could make a lot of money here! :)) And lots of upscale shops and outdoor cafe's. This was such a fun city, we both said we would come down here all the time if we lived here. It was such a nice little get away for both of us. WE {HEART} ODESA! :)
But a little walking around and sightseeing in this part of town did us good. We had some good food, enjoyed walking around and people watching, doing a little shopping, and touring some sights. We went to the Wax museum, walked through the Archaeological museum, walked the long pier thingy to the Black Sea (though this area wasn't beaches, it was all ports and boats and boy stuff. :)) And we saw the famous Potemkin Stairs, lots of statues, and many many street vendors. I had my first experience with a Turkish Toilet (aka Squatty Potty). Yikes.
There was even this one area that had all these cute little old men having some sort of chess and domino's tournament! My Papaw would have LOVED it! :)
Odesa has TONS of beautiful gardens and fountains and parks. (One would be PERFECT for weddings... Jodie, you and I could make a lot of money here! :)) And lots of upscale shops and outdoor cafe's. This was such a fun city, we both said we would come down here all the time if we lived here. It was such a nice little get away for both of us. WE {HEART} ODESA! :)
Wednesday, May 27, 2009
Some Mommy Love
Not much new to update. We still don't have a court date and are kinda frustrated we haven't heard anything yet. Please pray we get one soon. We're so ready to move to the next step in this process.
Since today was Pavel Micah's (I guess that's what we'll call him for now :)) beach day, we took the opportunity to walk around downtown Odesa. (But that's another post... we had a great time, had some good food and saw some fun sights. I'll post pictures tomorrow.)
But today I wanted to share some pics of me and my little boy. We've had a few sweet bonding moments the last couple of days... He's figured out that its really fun when Mommy holds you close and gives kisses and sings. :) But thats what Mommy's are for. I've been singing the "So let the sun shine in, face it with a grin..." song and he really likes it. :) He smiles so big when I hold him and sing it.
He played around a bigger group of kids today while we were on the playground, and seeing him next to some of those boys put in perspective for me what a little guy he really still is. He looked so "baby" pushing around on his car while they zoomed around him on bikes. It made my heart pull to him even more and you know, I don't NEED anymore reasons to be head over heals for this kid!!
Tomorrow I'll try to have some pics from our sightseeing day.
Since today was Pavel Micah's (I guess that's what we'll call him for now :)) beach day, we took the opportunity to walk around downtown Odesa. (But that's another post... we had a great time, had some good food and saw some fun sights. I'll post pictures tomorrow.)
But today I wanted to share some pics of me and my little boy. We've had a few sweet bonding moments the last couple of days... He's figured out that its really fun when Mommy holds you close and gives kisses and sings. :) But thats what Mommy's are for. I've been singing the "So let the sun shine in, face it with a grin..." song and he really likes it. :) He smiles so big when I hold him and sing it.
He played around a bigger group of kids today while we were on the playground, and seeing him next to some of those boys put in perspective for me what a little guy he really still is. He looked so "baby" pushing around on his car while they zoomed around him on bikes. It made my heart pull to him even more and you know, I don't NEED anymore reasons to be head over heals for this kid!!
Tomorrow I'll try to have some pics from our sightseeing day.
Praying for court
Today marked one week that we've been visiting our little guy. And what a wonderful week of firsts it has been. :) Its hard at times to keep a busy busy little four year old guy occupied for 4 hours a day but we have loved every minute of it and are SO ready get him out of there!!!
We still have heard no word about a court date. Please be in prayer that the paperwork moves quickly, that we hear something soon, and that what we hear is that court comes quickly!! :)
The quicker all of this moves, the sooner we can get back to our little girls at home and the sooner Jake can get back here to bring home our little Pavel!!!
We still have heard no word about a court date. Please be in prayer that the paperwork moves quickly, that we hear something soon, and that what we hear is that court comes quickly!! :)
The quicker all of this moves, the sooner we can get back to our little girls at home and the sooner Jake can get back here to bring home our little Pavel!!!
Monday, May 25, 2009
Names
Though Pavel's new legal name has already been chosen and is on paper "Pavel Micah Spencer", we still are having a hard time deciding what to call him.
He doesn't really answer to anything. He is called such a wide array of names here. Mostly Barusah and Pasha, but a lot of times its some version of one of the two. I don't know if he's confused... or just too busy to respond (which is very possible :)) but in the few days that we've spent with him- he answers to NONE of them from us.
So basically we feel like we have an opportunity here to call him whatever we want. But we feel sort of torn... Pavel is how we've always known him, but now seeing him, he doesn't really feel like a Pavel. And I may have already said this, I don't remember, but in their language, Micah means T-shirt. So the people here think it's HILARIOUS that we are making his middle name Micah. We tried to explain that it is a book of the Bible, but they didn't really seem to get it or care. Just thought it was really funny. They kept saying "Michael?" and we would say, "No, MICAH" and they would look at each other and laugh. (Which... I guess I would too. :))
Being a 'special' kid, I want to make things as easy as possible for him. And if telling people his name is Pavel later as a bigger kid or adult causes people to say "what is it?" or "how do you spell that?" or causes any confusion at all, I would just as soon name him Micah. Pavel isn't exactly a common name. And I know if we called him Micah it would be a constant reminder to me of the mandate the Lord put in my heart to pursue this little boy on the other side of the world. But its also hard because I feel like our families, our friends, and mostly our KIDS know him as Pavel and to change that might be confusing.
So this is all just stuff we're talking about and thinking about. We haven't really made any final decisions yet, just kinda letting things play out and knowing that God knows what we will call him in the end. But I felt like I should address it on the blog because we've had a lot of people ask over time if we were going to change it.
We also have been trying to use all this spare time to think through a name for this little girl in my belly. :) Not having a ton of luck there either, but we do have a couple of thoughts that we're discussing. (Jake said last night that if we end up deciding on Micah, that we should call the baby "Jeans". Haha, very funny Babe. ;))
Seriously though, in the end, we just want to be sure that no matter what, we step out of the way and let God... well, just let God. :)
He doesn't really answer to anything. He is called such a wide array of names here. Mostly Barusah and Pasha, but a lot of times its some version of one of the two. I don't know if he's confused... or just too busy to respond (which is very possible :)) but in the few days that we've spent with him- he answers to NONE of them from us.
So basically we feel like we have an opportunity here to call him whatever we want. But we feel sort of torn... Pavel is how we've always known him, but now seeing him, he doesn't really feel like a Pavel. And I may have already said this, I don't remember, but in their language, Micah means T-shirt. So the people here think it's HILARIOUS that we are making his middle name Micah. We tried to explain that it is a book of the Bible, but they didn't really seem to get it or care. Just thought it was really funny. They kept saying "Michael?" and we would say, "No, MICAH" and they would look at each other and laugh. (Which... I guess I would too. :))
Being a 'special' kid, I want to make things as easy as possible for him. And if telling people his name is Pavel later as a bigger kid or adult causes people to say "what is it?" or "how do you spell that?" or causes any confusion at all, I would just as soon name him Micah. Pavel isn't exactly a common name. And I know if we called him Micah it would be a constant reminder to me of the mandate the Lord put in my heart to pursue this little boy on the other side of the world. But its also hard because I feel like our families, our friends, and mostly our KIDS know him as Pavel and to change that might be confusing.
So this is all just stuff we're talking about and thinking about. We haven't really made any final decisions yet, just kinda letting things play out and knowing that God knows what we will call him in the end. But I felt like I should address it on the blog because we've had a lot of people ask over time if we were going to change it.
We also have been trying to use all this spare time to think through a name for this little girl in my belly. :) Not having a ton of luck there either, but we do have a couple of thoughts that we're discussing. (Jake said last night that if we end up deciding on Micah, that we should call the baby "Jeans". Haha, very funny Babe. ;))
Seriously though, in the end, we just want to be sure that no matter what, we step out of the way and let God... well, just let God. :)
Sunday, May 24, 2009
Notes
These are some (most actually) of the notes I took from the meeting with the orphanage on Wednesday. This was all interpreted to me, and very quickly. I was jotting down notes as quickly as I could, but wanted to type it all up while it was still fresh in my head. Some interesting (and some very sad) information, but I'm a details person, so I thought I would share. :)
Name: Borislov Pavel (last name first)
Birthdate: June 4, 2005
Birth mother born 1967, birth father born 1957
(We are still waiting to find out his birthweight, length and parent's nationality but we believe they were both full Ukrainian)
They were married, they did not know he had Ds until he was born at the maternity house. They were very upset and embarrassed. They blamed the doctors saying that they would have had an abortion if they had known. They told all family members that he died in the hospital. The mother showed no remorse and never came back to the hospital, but the father would stop by to drop off money for him (I'm assuming for his hospital bills). After a short while he stopped coming and their lawyer would drop the money off. They both signed papers to release him for adoption as soon as he was born. There is no contact info for either of them but only a phone number for their lawyer.
He was taken to Odesa Orphanage #3 at 4 months old and has been there ever since. He has been sick and hospitalized many times, fighting colds, the flu, bronchitis, laryngitis, pneumonia twice, and an ear infection in one ear. He has also had the chicken pox. When he was 12 months, he ran such a high fever in the hospital that he had a seizure but was tested and does not have epilepsy- it was an isolated event due to the fever. It was the only time he as ever seized. He was last hospitalized on Sept. 08 for a cold.
He was born with a small hole in his heart, known as an oval window, but was rechecked in Jan. 09 and the hole is much smaller. It is believed to be closing. He may be far sighted and is suggested to see an eye doctor before he turns five. He's had many vaccinations and was also tested for HIV, cyphalis (sp?), and hepatitis. All tests were negative.
They are saying he has dermatitis. They are systematically withholding different foods- currently apples, candy and any juices. He is on 4 different medications , oral and topical, to fix the problem. (Besides his rashy cheeks, Jake and I saw two different rashes today, one on his elbow and one on the back of his leg. Not sure about those but I have a good feeling some good, frequent face washings and some Aquafore will clear his cheeks right up. :))
He likes to play drums, can stack circles (those donut shaped toys on the stick) and knows many parts of the body. He follows basic instruction and though his speech development is delayed, he understands quite a bit.
That was about it. We shared pictures of the girls and the doctor was glad to see the picture of Abby with red, dry cheeks. I think this made her feel more confident that we know what we're dealing with and can handle it. :) They told us he is a sweet boy and well loved by all in the orphanage. Even the caregivers from other groups call out to him as we pass. During our visits, some who are off duty and are leaving for the day will come out to say goodbye to him before they go. I think they are all so happy he has found a family but are also sad to see him go. No doubt he has left an impression and this sweet little boy will not be soon forgotten.
Name: Borislov Pavel (last name first)
Birthdate: June 4, 2005
Birth mother born 1967, birth father born 1957
(We are still waiting to find out his birthweight, length and parent's nationality but we believe they were both full Ukrainian)
They were married, they did not know he had Ds until he was born at the maternity house. They were very upset and embarrassed. They blamed the doctors saying that they would have had an abortion if they had known. They told all family members that he died in the hospital. The mother showed no remorse and never came back to the hospital, but the father would stop by to drop off money for him (I'm assuming for his hospital bills). After a short while he stopped coming and their lawyer would drop the money off. They both signed papers to release him for adoption as soon as he was born. There is no contact info for either of them but only a phone number for their lawyer.
He was taken to Odesa Orphanage #3 at 4 months old and has been there ever since. He has been sick and hospitalized many times, fighting colds, the flu, bronchitis, laryngitis, pneumonia twice, and an ear infection in one ear. He has also had the chicken pox. When he was 12 months, he ran such a high fever in the hospital that he had a seizure but was tested and does not have epilepsy- it was an isolated event due to the fever. It was the only time he as ever seized. He was last hospitalized on Sept. 08 for a cold.
He was born with a small hole in his heart, known as an oval window, but was rechecked in Jan. 09 and the hole is much smaller. It is believed to be closing. He may be far sighted and is suggested to see an eye doctor before he turns five. He's had many vaccinations and was also tested for HIV, cyphalis (sp?), and hepatitis. All tests were negative.
They are saying he has dermatitis. They are systematically withholding different foods- currently apples, candy and any juices. He is on 4 different medications , oral and topical, to fix the problem. (Besides his rashy cheeks, Jake and I saw two different rashes today, one on his elbow and one on the back of his leg. Not sure about those but I have a good feeling some good, frequent face washings and some Aquafore will clear his cheeks right up. :))
He likes to play drums, can stack circles (those donut shaped toys on the stick) and knows many parts of the body. He follows basic instruction and though his speech development is delayed, he understands quite a bit.
That was about it. We shared pictures of the girls and the doctor was glad to see the picture of Abby with red, dry cheeks. I think this made her feel more confident that we know what we're dealing with and can handle it. :) They told us he is a sweet boy and well loved by all in the orphanage. Even the caregivers from other groups call out to him as we pass. During our visits, some who are off duty and are leaving for the day will come out to say goodbye to him before they go. I think they are all so happy he has found a family but are also sad to see him go. No doubt he has left an impression and this sweet little boy will not be soon forgotten.
Video of Pavel!!
But first an update- every thing is going so smoothly here, we feel so blessed! Its always difficult spending long periods of time in a country where you don't speak the language but seeing our little boy each day makes it all melt away.
He is absolutely a gift from the Lord. He LOVES his daddy, the two of them have already formed a very special bond. It breaks my heart to know that this little guy has never had the affection and security of being held in a daddy's arms... but now he's soaking in every minute of it. And thought he doesn't run to me as quickly, we do play together and have fun, and when he and Jake walk to the next thing, he always checks to be sure I'm behind them, which I think is sweet. We sang to him yesterday and he really seemed to like it. This little man has quite a lot of energy but while we sat and sang songs like "itsy bitsy spider" and "abc's" he sat still for about 10 minutes looking through his photo album of our family and occasionally humming along! Just precious.
We are still waiting on a court date, not sure how long until we find out. But we have a feeling the trip will be much shorter than the three weeks we planned for. Please pray for a quick court date so we can get home to our girls, then get back to Pavel and bring him home!!
Sorry for the lack of pictures, but here is a video I was able to create... enjoy!!!
He is absolutely a gift from the Lord. He LOVES his daddy, the two of them have already formed a very special bond. It breaks my heart to know that this little guy has never had the affection and security of being held in a daddy's arms... but now he's soaking in every minute of it. And thought he doesn't run to me as quickly, we do play together and have fun, and when he and Jake walk to the next thing, he always checks to be sure I'm behind them, which I think is sweet. We sang to him yesterday and he really seemed to like it. This little man has quite a lot of energy but while we sat and sang songs like "itsy bitsy spider" and "abc's" he sat still for about 10 minutes looking through his photo album of our family and occasionally humming along! Just precious.
We are still waiting on a court date, not sure how long until we find out. But we have a feeling the trip will be much shorter than the three weeks we planned for. Please pray for a quick court date so we can get home to our girls, then get back to Pavel and bring him home!!
Sorry for the lack of pictures, but here is a video I was able to create... enjoy!!!
Saturday, May 23, 2009
Pipes and phones
***Update #2: We got our translator on the phone and they called out someone to fix our pipes. He's here now and is almost done. Its fixed! Yay, we have water again!***
***Update: We got our phone working, YAY!! Yulia emailed us right back and had the code to reactivate the other chip inside the phone. But by the time we fixed it, had our afternoon visit with Pavel, bought a REAL phone card, it was too late to get together with the other family for dinner. And we still don't have their number to say we aren't coming, so we hate that but... we tried. :( Also the man who sold us the phone card smiled at us when he heard us speak and in a Ukrainian accented english said "what city are you from in America?" We told him Nashville and he said "I'm from philadelphia"! So we talked for a second and he let us pay in Dollars which was awesome, and we told him we'd come back and see him if we needed another card on our trip. But PRAISE THE LORD our phone is back to normal!!!***
Today has been, um, interesting. :) We woke up this morning to a kitchen floor half flooded with water. The pipes under the kitchen sink have sprung a leak. We got one of the women who sit out front (there isn't exactly a 'front desk' here :)) to come look at it and tried to ask if we could get it fixed. Jake found the main knobby thingy that turns all the water OFF, but now we think she thinks that fixed it and we're not sure she's going to have anyone look at it now. We'll have to get our translator to get this all worked out later.
Then on our way home from our morning visit with Pavel/Micah/Berusa/Pasha/Berushi/Pashka (no wonder this poor kid doesn't respond to anything!!) we tried to stop and get a phone card. Something we've been meaning to do since we got to Odesa. Actually, we really needed it because we were invited to dinner by another American family adopting, along with another American family adopting and our translator (who is also theirs) and her husband. Anyway, I told them we would call them back, hense, needing the phonecard.
ANYWAY, we went into this store to buy one and asked the man if he spoke any english, he said he did and said enough back to be pretty convincing that we all understood one another, and asked to see our phone (we assumed so that he could see which kind of card we needed). After we paid 25 grivna's (which is only like $3.50) he handed us our phone back along with this little plastic case. We asked how many minutes that gave us and he rattled something off that we didn't really understand but it sounded like he was saying 'plenty of minutes if you're just making local calls', and we left. When we got home we realized he changed a chip INSIDE the phone and now we have a whole different service! Crap! The only numbers we have written down are Nikoly (the driver from Kiev) and Bridgitte- everyone elses were IN the phone and no longer there! But we can't even call those two numbers, it says something in Russian we can't understand, and we're PRETTY sure our phone number isn't even the same, so no one can call us! This is not good.
So I've emailed Yulia and explained the whole thing to her and we're hoping she can email us back with some kind of instructions on how to get this fixed. We would take it back to the same man and have him change it back, but to put the old chip back in and activate it requires a four digit code and who the heck knows what that is.
So please pray that this phone situation gets resolved quickly!! We are meeting our driver back at the orphanage at 6 tonight, so if all else fails we can try to explain the situation to her in spanish (she speaks no english either, but we communicate mostly in our broken spanish!) and she will call Alyona (our interpreter) for us. We are both so frustrated and wish we had just waited for our driver to help us buy one. Oh well, though! Live and learn!!!
I do have to say that the redeeming highlight of this whole day was our visit with Pavel. He was already out on the playground with his group when we got there, and when he saw us coming, he RAN all the way to us with both arms in the air and Jake scooped him up and they held each other for about 10 minutes straight. As soon as Jake picked him up I tried to show the caretakers our little red form saying we could visit him, but they smiled and shook their heads no and waved us away as if to say 'don't worry about it'. Which I thought was kinda cool. Anyway, we had a great two hours with him, he stopped every little while to hold Jake and snuggle with him. When Jake picks him up he smiles SO big and presses his cheek against Jakes. Its just the sweetest sight and everyone who's around to see them can feel it. :)
***Update: We got our phone working, YAY!! Yulia emailed us right back and had the code to reactivate the other chip inside the phone. But by the time we fixed it, had our afternoon visit with Pavel, bought a REAL phone card, it was too late to get together with the other family for dinner. And we still don't have their number to say we aren't coming, so we hate that but... we tried. :( Also the man who sold us the phone card smiled at us when he heard us speak and in a Ukrainian accented english said "what city are you from in America?" We told him Nashville and he said "I'm from philadelphia"! So we talked for a second and he let us pay in Dollars which was awesome, and we told him we'd come back and see him if we needed another card on our trip. But PRAISE THE LORD our phone is back to normal!!!***
Today has been, um, interesting. :) We woke up this morning to a kitchen floor half flooded with water. The pipes under the kitchen sink have sprung a leak. We got one of the women who sit out front (there isn't exactly a 'front desk' here :)) to come look at it and tried to ask if we could get it fixed. Jake found the main knobby thingy that turns all the water OFF, but now we think she thinks that fixed it and we're not sure she's going to have anyone look at it now. We'll have to get our translator to get this all worked out later.
Then on our way home from our morning visit with Pavel/Micah/Berusa/Pasha/Berushi/Pashka (no wonder this poor kid doesn't respond to anything!!) we tried to stop and get a phone card. Something we've been meaning to do since we got to Odesa. Actually, we really needed it because we were invited to dinner by another American family adopting, along with another American family adopting and our translator (who is also theirs) and her husband. Anyway, I told them we would call them back, hense, needing the phonecard.
ANYWAY, we went into this store to buy one and asked the man if he spoke any english, he said he did and said enough back to be pretty convincing that we all understood one another, and asked to see our phone (we assumed so that he could see which kind of card we needed). After we paid 25 grivna's (which is only like $3.50) he handed us our phone back along with this little plastic case. We asked how many minutes that gave us and he rattled something off that we didn't really understand but it sounded like he was saying 'plenty of minutes if you're just making local calls', and we left. When we got home we realized he changed a chip INSIDE the phone and now we have a whole different service! Crap! The only numbers we have written down are Nikoly (the driver from Kiev) and Bridgitte- everyone elses were IN the phone and no longer there! But we can't even call those two numbers, it says something in Russian we can't understand, and we're PRETTY sure our phone number isn't even the same, so no one can call us! This is not good.
So I've emailed Yulia and explained the whole thing to her and we're hoping she can email us back with some kind of instructions on how to get this fixed. We would take it back to the same man and have him change it back, but to put the old chip back in and activate it requires a four digit code and who the heck knows what that is.
So please pray that this phone situation gets resolved quickly!! We are meeting our driver back at the orphanage at 6 tonight, so if all else fails we can try to explain the situation to her in spanish (she speaks no english either, but we communicate mostly in our broken spanish!) and she will call Alyona (our interpreter) for us. We are both so frustrated and wish we had just waited for our driver to help us buy one. Oh well, though! Live and learn!!!
I do have to say that the redeeming highlight of this whole day was our visit with Pavel. He was already out on the playground with his group when we got there, and when he saw us coming, he RAN all the way to us with both arms in the air and Jake scooped him up and they held each other for about 10 minutes straight. As soon as Jake picked him up I tried to show the caretakers our little red form saying we could visit him, but they smiled and shook their heads no and waved us away as if to say 'don't worry about it'. Which I thought was kinda cool. Anyway, we had a great two hours with him, he stopped every little while to hold Jake and snuggle with him. When Jake picks him up he smiles SO big and presses his cheek against Jakes. Its just the sweetest sight and everyone who's around to see them can feel it. :)
Thursday, May 21, 2009
Today's visit
Can I first just say that I LOVE having internet in our apartment! :) The first picture is looking out from our apartment front door... and the second one is me... in front of our apartment front door. :) And yes, everyone here knows I'm pregnant, there's NO hiding it anymore. But everyone has said its totally fine and not a big deal at all. Praise the Lord!
Today went really well! It was a VERY tiring day, but a great one. We first went to the notary's office to sign some paperwork. We officially naming him Pavel Micah Spencer. :) We were waiting until we got here to decide for sure what we might call him... we had heard that the nickname for Pavel is Pasha, and that is a 'nickname' for him at the orphanage but he more often is called (and responds to) Berusa or Berusic (like bear-U-sah or bear-U-sick). Which is basically his last name shortened.
He was wearing yet another cute hat today (this is the third one we've seen) and he really loves them. This one was more like a baseball hat. If you take it off or twist it, he uses those bear paws to adjust it tight. This kid is definitely meant to be one of Jake's kids. :) My camera battery died as soon as I got there, but since I got over 100 pictures yesterday, I figured it was fine. :)
Our visiting hours are between 10-12am and then again from 4-6pm. (So that he can eat lunch, nap, and have "second lunch" during the in between times. So we decided that since we are paying the driver PER trip, that we'd have her drop us off at the orphanage at 10am and not pick us up until 6... then we would walk around that part of town during those middle four hours. Well, that proved to be one of the most exhausting 4 hour periods of our lives. :) We walked and walked and walked and walked. Mostly because there weren't a ton of places to just sit, and also because we knew of this big grocery store which felt not far (by car) and walked all the way to it and back. And during our walking, we found a wonderful thing- never have the golden arches of McDonalds looked SO wonderful! We haven't really had many opportunities to try out some good Ukrainian cuisine (I think mostly because we don't really know the "good" places to go and what to order there... everything we've seen in the tiny places we've passed doesn't look too appetizing. So we've basically been living on trail mix and granola bars (that we brought with us) and buying fruit, chips, crackers, juice and coke from the store. So we haven't actually had a MEAL since we ate at TGI Fridays in Kiev. We're pathetic, I know. :)
Anyway once we got back, the afternoon visit was SO nice. He wasn't quite all the way awake from his nap and sat with us for quite a while looking through the photo album of our family that we brought for him. We pointed to "Papi" (what the caregivers call him) and to mommy, and to each of the girls. He seems to go point to the pictures of Ashley a lot, which I think is fun. The rest of the time we just walked around the grounds outside and occasionally we'd have to stop so he could snuggle with Jake. He wraps those little hands around Jakes neck and holds on so tight. Its absolutely the sweetest thing. And Jake will kind of "mmmm" hum when they hug and he LOVES it. Then he touches Jakes face and thinks for a bit and squeezes him some more. (He definitely is in need of a father figure.) Then he gets down and holds Jake's hand to lead him around. He's not as affectionate with me at all yet, we mostly play tickle games and say "ugg" back and forth to each other, but when he holds Jake's hand he almost always turns around to be sure I'm following them. :) I know my one on one time with him will come when we get home, and its so important to me that he fill this need he has with Jake right now. Also I think it will help so much having that bond for when Jake comes back to get him.
We are pretty exhausted tonight... sore and our feet are KILLING us, but it was a good day. Tomorrow we won't see him until 4 because in the morning he's making his twice weekly trip to the beach. :) They told us he loves it and is the first one to the water! Again... this is meant to be our child. :) I think we'll check out the area around our apartment tomorrow and try to rest a little. We'll update more soon.
Wednesday, May 20, 2009
The blessings continue...
Ok, wow, where to start!? (And better yet, how to keep it concise!?)
The train ride was great. Again, more trouble sleeping (though after today, not having the chance to nap, I think all our jetlat troubles are behind us), but nonetheless a safe uneventful trip.
Our whole "facilitating team" (? :)) is GREAT! McKenna, we've been with Svetlana, Alyona, and actually Yuri's WIFE :) all day. And all three of them have been amazing. And they were SO excited to see pictures of your family! Lots of high pitched russian squeeling! :)
Our apartment is nice... it has its own wireless internet in the livingroom PRAISE THE LORD! I was afraid any updates from here would be difficult, but this is GREAT. We were able to skype the kids for the first time today and it was so good to see them. :) This apartment is not as clean as the last one but much bigger. I think I'm gonna find some cleaning gloves and go to work! I guess we got spoiled from the last apartment.
Even being a private blog, I'm nervous to go into too many details about the day until this thing is over, but suffice to say, we were VERY blessed with MANY wonderful opportunities... I was able to catch some pictures for some friends of other kids who will be coming home soon ;)we had a great meeting with the orphanage, and found out lots about his history. AND we got to spend LOTS of time with our little boy!!!
He is... wow, how to explain Pavel?! He's boy to the bone, LOVES throwing balls (and toys), runs just as fast as his little legs will take him, and has more energy than he knows what to do with so he just keeps very busy! The first time we saw him, he smiled at me and backed into me to sit in my lap!! Then I got my little hug and he was off! He has really connected with Jake, though, which was sooo precious to see. He loves his gottee and wanted to touch Jake's face a lot.
He's not talking... at all really, but the staff said that he understands quite a bit. All he said when we were with him was "ugg". :) We aren't really sure what that meant, but assumed it covered a lot of things, lol!
Well here are some pictures from our day today... I've got video too that I'll try to post tomorrow but I'm running out of battery for now.
Our sweet boy...
The train ride was great. Again, more trouble sleeping (though after today, not having the chance to nap, I think all our jetlat troubles are behind us), but nonetheless a safe uneventful trip.
Our whole "facilitating team" (? :)) is GREAT! McKenna, we've been with Svetlana, Alyona, and actually Yuri's WIFE :) all day. And all three of them have been amazing. And they were SO excited to see pictures of your family! Lots of high pitched russian squeeling! :)
Our apartment is nice... it has its own wireless internet in the livingroom PRAISE THE LORD! I was afraid any updates from here would be difficult, but this is GREAT. We were able to skype the kids for the first time today and it was so good to see them. :) This apartment is not as clean as the last one but much bigger. I think I'm gonna find some cleaning gloves and go to work! I guess we got spoiled from the last apartment.
Even being a private blog, I'm nervous to go into too many details about the day until this thing is over, but suffice to say, we were VERY blessed with MANY wonderful opportunities... I was able to catch some pictures for some friends of other kids who will be coming home soon ;)we had a great meeting with the orphanage, and found out lots about his history. AND we got to spend LOTS of time with our little boy!!!
He is... wow, how to explain Pavel?! He's boy to the bone, LOVES throwing balls (and toys), runs just as fast as his little legs will take him, and has more energy than he knows what to do with so he just keeps very busy! The first time we saw him, he smiled at me and backed into me to sit in my lap!! Then I got my little hug and he was off! He has really connected with Jake, though, which was sooo precious to see. He loves his gottee and wanted to touch Jake's face a lot.
He's not talking... at all really, but the staff said that he understands quite a bit. All he said when we were with him was "ugg". :) We aren't really sure what that meant, but assumed it covered a lot of things, lol!
Well here are some pictures from our day today... I've got video too that I'll try to post tomorrow but I'm running out of battery for now.
Our sweet boy...
Tuesday, May 19, 2009
SDA, Kyiv and ZZZ...
As I write this, I am one very blessed (very TIRED) woman!
Today I sat in a little office with my husband and two Ukrainian women and we looked at the file of a little boy named Pavel. :) We were asked a few simple questions and we told a brief story of who we are and how we came to be here. We were told that this little boy’s parents didn’t feel that they could take care of him when they had him at ages 45 and 35. So they have signed papers saying they don’t want him and will willingly give him over for adoption. We felt such favor from the Lord in that room… the woman said that she was grateful that we wanted him and admitted that it is difficult to find families for children with Down syndrome in their country. She understood that we were fully aware of all that is associated with Ds and absolutely wanted to make him our own. And she said that she wanted to speed this process along because she understood that we needed to get home to our other children. We all thanked each other once more and left. And in that 10 minute period, we became one huge step closer to our lives changing forever. :) We are to go back this afternoon to finalize what happened this morning and then we are getting on a train tonight to travel the 8 hours or so to meet our little boy for the very first time!
I don’t think that this morning could have gone any smoother. Everything happened so quickly and so effortlessly. We are SO blessed to have our amazing facilitator. She has been absolutely wonderful. And we have been so blessed that this process has been so smooth this far.
Psa 40:1 I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. (2) He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. (3) He has put a new song in my mouth; Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD. (4) Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies. (5) Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered.
Please pray with us that:
~Our meeting this afternoon would go well
~For safety for on train ride to Odessa
~We could recover from the jet lag which is still pretty bad for both of us
~That God would give us wisdom, favor and that we would shine the love of Christ where ever we go
~For our first meeting with Pavel
And now, a few pictures!! (Uploading takes forever, so I will try to post more later.) We very much enjoyed our time in the beautiful city of Kyiv. And our apartment was very cozy… we hope the next one is as nice. We had a lot of fun walking around downtown… here are some of my random observations and thoughts about this city: 1) I never knew what “underground sidewalks” meant until we got here. I think more cities in America should do this. 2) I am very curious to know what would warrant a parking ticket in this city. Cars are parked anywhere and everywhere… the street, the sidewalks, absolutely anywhere. 3.) What they say about exact change is true. People get VERY irritated if you don’t have exact bills, but coins don’t matter as much. 4.) Don’t be too proud to bust out the translation guide when trying to buy some conditioner. You may accidentally buy MORE shampoo. 5.) Hallways of buildings can be very misleading. You can walk through a hall way and feel like the building is going to cave in at any minute… only to walk into a room and it looks like it was built 5 years ago. 6.) Birds are EVERYwhere, but I have only seen 2 bugs since we got here. I’m wondering if the two are related… 7.) If you are a woman in your 20’s, you must own skinny jeans, some shiny pumps and have bangs that are cut straight across. 8.) We saw a couple of different women pulling their strollers instead of pushing them. Don’t know if that was just a coincidence or if that is common here. 9.) Everyone walks in front of cars and I’m curious to know how many people die a year from being hit by a car on the street. 10.) There are little chunks of white fluffy stuff that floats through the air everywhere. It looks like cotton almost but we think its from the tree's. Anyway, its all over the place and looks kind of pretty but its really annoying when it floats into your face. 11.) Taxi’s are terrifying. They must be exempt from all traffic laws. Exhaustion, leftover nerves from an important appointment, car sickness and a little touch of morning sickness do NOT mix in the back of a taxi!
I guess that’s all for now. We love you ALL and will update again from Odessa!!
Our kitchen
Thanks Wes and D'Arcy for the bag, it doubles as a great entertainment center! :)
Before we left the Nashville airport... so ready to go!!
(Sorry these were random pics... I'm running out of battery now and trying to grab pics quickly! Will post better ones soon I promise! :))
Today I sat in a little office with my husband and two Ukrainian women and we looked at the file of a little boy named Pavel. :) We were asked a few simple questions and we told a brief story of who we are and how we came to be here. We were told that this little boy’s parents didn’t feel that they could take care of him when they had him at ages 45 and 35. So they have signed papers saying they don’t want him and will willingly give him over for adoption. We felt such favor from the Lord in that room… the woman said that she was grateful that we wanted him and admitted that it is difficult to find families for children with Down syndrome in their country. She understood that we were fully aware of all that is associated with Ds and absolutely wanted to make him our own. And she said that she wanted to speed this process along because she understood that we needed to get home to our other children. We all thanked each other once more and left. And in that 10 minute period, we became one huge step closer to our lives changing forever. :) We are to go back this afternoon to finalize what happened this morning and then we are getting on a train tonight to travel the 8 hours or so to meet our little boy for the very first time!
I don’t think that this morning could have gone any smoother. Everything happened so quickly and so effortlessly. We are SO blessed to have our amazing facilitator. She has been absolutely wonderful. And we have been so blessed that this process has been so smooth this far.
Psa 40:1 I waited patiently for the LORD; And He inclined to me, And heard my cry. (2) He also brought me up out of a horrible pit, Out of the miry clay, And set my feet upon a rock, And established my steps. (3) He has put a new song in my mouth; Praise to our God; Many will see it and fear, And will trust in the LORD. (4) Blessed is that man who makes the LORD his trust, And does not respect the proud, nor such as turn aside to lies. (5) Many, O LORD my God, are Your wonderful works Which You have done; And Your thoughts toward us Cannot be recounted to You in order; If I would declare and speak of them, They are more than can be numbered.
Please pray with us that:
~Our meeting this afternoon would go well
~For safety for on train ride to Odessa
~We could recover from the jet lag which is still pretty bad for both of us
~That God would give us wisdom, favor and that we would shine the love of Christ where ever we go
~For our first meeting with Pavel
And now, a few pictures!! (Uploading takes forever, so I will try to post more later.) We very much enjoyed our time in the beautiful city of Kyiv. And our apartment was very cozy… we hope the next one is as nice. We had a lot of fun walking around downtown… here are some of my random observations and thoughts about this city: 1) I never knew what “underground sidewalks” meant until we got here. I think more cities in America should do this. 2) I am very curious to know what would warrant a parking ticket in this city. Cars are parked anywhere and everywhere… the street, the sidewalks, absolutely anywhere. 3.) What they say about exact change is true. People get VERY irritated if you don’t have exact bills, but coins don’t matter as much. 4.) Don’t be too proud to bust out the translation guide when trying to buy some conditioner. You may accidentally buy MORE shampoo. 5.) Hallways of buildings can be very misleading. You can walk through a hall way and feel like the building is going to cave in at any minute… only to walk into a room and it looks like it was built 5 years ago. 6.) Birds are EVERYwhere, but I have only seen 2 bugs since we got here. I’m wondering if the two are related… 7.) If you are a woman in your 20’s, you must own skinny jeans, some shiny pumps and have bangs that are cut straight across. 8.) We saw a couple of different women pulling their strollers instead of pushing them. Don’t know if that was just a coincidence or if that is common here. 9.) Everyone walks in front of cars and I’m curious to know how many people die a year from being hit by a car on the street. 10.) There are little chunks of white fluffy stuff that floats through the air everywhere. It looks like cotton almost but we think its from the tree's. Anyway, its all over the place and looks kind of pretty but its really annoying when it floats into your face. 11.) Taxi’s are terrifying. They must be exempt from all traffic laws. Exhaustion, leftover nerves from an important appointment, car sickness and a little touch of morning sickness do NOT mix in the back of a taxi!
I guess that’s all for now. We love you ALL and will update again from Odessa!!
Our kitchen
Thanks Wes and D'Arcy for the bag, it doubles as a great entertainment center! :)
Another of the apartment.
The view of Kyiv from our window, we're on the top floor!
Before we left the Nashville airport... so ready to go!!
(Sorry these were random pics... I'm running out of battery now and trying to grab pics quickly! Will post better ones soon I promise! :))
Monday, May 18, 2009
Hello from Ukraine!
We're here! I'm sitting in a little cafe not far from our apartment, SO thankful to have an internet connection!!!
Our flights went well, thanks to all who prayed! The 8 hour flight from DC to Frankfurt when by in no time and we were able to sleep which was nice. We cleared passport stuff and customs in Kiev with no problems what so ever and a man from Yulia's team picked us up and took us to our apartment. He was so very helpful and really friendly.
I still can't believe we're really here... we slept more hours in a row than we've ever slept in our lives!! But we are doing good and ready to go for our SDA appointment in the morning! Today we're going to do a little more sight seeing on our street (sorry, I don't know the name of it for those who have been here... but I will find out) :) Its beautiful with pretty sidewalks and tree's and lots of upscale shops... I'm really looking forward to walking around more today.
I thought I would feel more adventurous when it came to the food, but I have to say I think we're planning on checking out the TGI friday's for dinner! lol :)
Will try to update more later... and post some pictures... but we weren't sure we were going to find internet when we first left the apartment. This was a pleasant surprise!
Thanks again to all who are lifting us up in prayer... your prayers are definitley felt! Blessings to all back home....
Our flights went well, thanks to all who prayed! The 8 hour flight from DC to Frankfurt when by in no time and we were able to sleep which was nice. We cleared passport stuff and customs in Kiev with no problems what so ever and a man from Yulia's team picked us up and took us to our apartment. He was so very helpful and really friendly.
I still can't believe we're really here... we slept more hours in a row than we've ever slept in our lives!! But we are doing good and ready to go for our SDA appointment in the morning! Today we're going to do a little more sight seeing on our street (sorry, I don't know the name of it for those who have been here... but I will find out) :) Its beautiful with pretty sidewalks and tree's and lots of upscale shops... I'm really looking forward to walking around more today.
I thought I would feel more adventurous when it came to the food, but I have to say I think we're planning on checking out the TGI friday's for dinner! lol :)
Will try to update more later... and post some pictures... but we weren't sure we were going to find internet when we first left the apartment. This was a pleasant surprise!
Thanks again to all who are lifting us up in prayer... your prayers are definitley felt! Blessings to all back home....
Friday, May 15, 2009
Leaving on a jet plane
24 hours from RIGHT now, I'm going to be on a plane. And the thought that keeps coming to mind is: "Didn't we just decide to adopt like, yesterday?!" I've been very reminiscent the last couple days of the moment we made the decision. The moment the Lord spoke to me... the moment the Lord confirmed it to Jake... the moment I emailed Andrea to say, "Save them for me." I'm telling you it all feels like yesterday. My brain has already forgotten the paperwork, the frustrations of homestudys and medical forms and notary certifications. Blessed forgetfulness. :)
And you know, I don't feel nervous at all. Not even a little. I'm completely at peace and looking forward to my first journey over sea's. A little unexpected getaway with just my husband... and an introduction to a little boy who will be ours for the rest of our lives.
I've been thinking too about how the world must look at this as foolishness. To bring home a little one with special needs. I can almost hear peoples thoughts... "Do they know what they're getting in to?" Yes. We do. "Can they handle it?" Yes. Because God called us to do this and He will give us the strength. "Will this affect their other kids?" I sure hope so. I hope they grow up with more patience, more love, and a better understanding that everyone needs to be loved and accepted no matter what the world says about them. And they are getting the gift of an intimate experience of what Christ has done for us. Adopted us as His own. Taken us under His wing and called us His beloved.
I'm going to try to take it easy today and enjoy the day with my kids. Maybe we'll get some ice cream and go to the park.
This is my last post before we leave, I'm turning OFF my computer today. But I will check email one last time before bed. And the next post... will likely be from Europe! If you think of us, say a prayer for our flight tomorrow. :)
And you know, I don't feel nervous at all. Not even a little. I'm completely at peace and looking forward to my first journey over sea's. A little unexpected getaway with just my husband... and an introduction to a little boy who will be ours for the rest of our lives.
I've been thinking too about how the world must look at this as foolishness. To bring home a little one with special needs. I can almost hear peoples thoughts... "Do they know what they're getting in to?" Yes. We do. "Can they handle it?" Yes. Because God called us to do this and He will give us the strength. "Will this affect their other kids?" I sure hope so. I hope they grow up with more patience, more love, and a better understanding that everyone needs to be loved and accepted no matter what the world says about them. And they are getting the gift of an intimate experience of what Christ has done for us. Adopted us as His own. Taken us under His wing and called us His beloved.
I'm going to try to take it easy today and enjoy the day with my kids. Maybe we'll get some ice cream and go to the park.
This is my last post before we leave, I'm turning OFF my computer today. But I will check email one last time before bed. And the next post... will likely be from Europe! If you think of us, say a prayer for our flight tomorrow. :)
Wednesday, May 13, 2009
A wonderful gift!
Someone (knowing them, they'd want to remain anonymous) has decided to bless us with the gift of Molly Maids coming and cleaning our house!!! What a BLESSING!
We were given the option to have it done at any point in this whole travel process... before we go, while we're gone, after we get home, or whatever. And it might sound strange to some, but I decided to have it done before we go. They're coming tomorrow afternoon! I just want to SEE my house immaculately clean... before I go. You moms will understand... there's just something about seeing and knowing that your house is clean before you go out of town. Yes, my kids will probably destroy the house while we are gone (despite the inevitable efforts from my mom, MIL, and friends to keep it clean ;)), but even if it is a mess when we get back, I really don't mind. Just having that peace of mind before we go will be such a blessing to me. And I don't have to spend the time cleaning it myself! Why is it two maids can come into your house and clean the whole thing in a an hour and a half, but for me to do the exact same work, it takes hours on end? Its because I would want to organize all the toys in the house, weed out old lotion bottles from my bathroom, and do 400 loads of laundry WHILE I'm cleaning. Lol!
Anyway, I'm completely thrilled about this and just had to share. And Friday- I get to lay out all my clothes, take my time packing, and enjoy looking around at my clean baseboards. I can take a bath in a CLEAN bathtub. I can walk across the kitchen to get a drink without getting crumbs stuck to my feet. THAT to a mom... is GOOD STUFF.
We leave in 3 days!!!
We were given the option to have it done at any point in this whole travel process... before we go, while we're gone, after we get home, or whatever. And it might sound strange to some, but I decided to have it done before we go. They're coming tomorrow afternoon! I just want to SEE my house immaculately clean... before I go. You moms will understand... there's just something about seeing and knowing that your house is clean before you go out of town. Yes, my kids will probably destroy the house while we are gone (despite the inevitable efforts from my mom, MIL, and friends to keep it clean ;)), but even if it is a mess when we get back, I really don't mind. Just having that peace of mind before we go will be such a blessing to me. And I don't have to spend the time cleaning it myself! Why is it two maids can come into your house and clean the whole thing in a an hour and a half, but for me to do the exact same work, it takes hours on end? Its because I would want to organize all the toys in the house, weed out old lotion bottles from my bathroom, and do 400 loads of laundry WHILE I'm cleaning. Lol!
Anyway, I'm completely thrilled about this and just had to share. And Friday- I get to lay out all my clothes, take my time packing, and enjoy looking around at my clean baseboards. I can take a bath in a CLEAN bathtub. I can walk across the kitchen to get a drink without getting crumbs stuck to my feet. THAT to a mom... is GOOD STUFF.
We leave in 3 days!!!
Tuesday, May 12, 2009
Fundraising Goals
I know its on the sidebar, but I just needed to make this announcement:
We only have $1,768 left to raise!! We have raised a total of $22,231 for this adoption!! GLORY BE TO GOD!
Jake and I are SO humbled and grateful to EVERY PERSON who has donated. From the largest donation to the smallest, God has used each of you as HIS hands to provide for us, and for our little boy. I can't stress it enough, because of Christ in you, OUR LITTLE BOY IS COMING HOME!! I'm sitting here crying as I type this because I am so in awe of the great things God has done.
Thank you to everyone who showed up for our fundraisers, thank you to everyone who donated through our Church, who mailed us checks, thanks to ALL of the people who have never even met our family but came across our blog and donated. There have been so many people who've donated $5 and $10 through paypal the last couple of weeks, and WOW does it add up! THANK YOU!
And I feel like it should be another post all together, but I want to continue to thank everyone who is following our blog and PRAYING us through this adoption. We need your prayers now more than ever.
We leave in 4 days!!!
We only have $1,768 left to raise!! We have raised a total of $22,231 for this adoption!! GLORY BE TO GOD!
Jake and I are SO humbled and grateful to EVERY PERSON who has donated. From the largest donation to the smallest, God has used each of you as HIS hands to provide for us, and for our little boy. I can't stress it enough, because of Christ in you, OUR LITTLE BOY IS COMING HOME!! I'm sitting here crying as I type this because I am so in awe of the great things God has done.
Thank you to everyone who showed up for our fundraisers, thank you to everyone who donated through our Church, who mailed us checks, thanks to ALL of the people who have never even met our family but came across our blog and donated. There have been so many people who've donated $5 and $10 through paypal the last couple of weeks, and WOW does it add up! THANK YOU!
And I feel like it should be another post all together, but I want to continue to thank everyone who is following our blog and PRAYING us through this adoption. We need your prayers now more than ever.
We leave in 4 days!!!
Friday, May 8, 2009
Cleaning and calendars= Adoption nesting :)
This house has been a flurry of activity the last few days! Cleaning out closets, cabnets, painting rooms, I want this house to be CLEAN when we leave!
The countdown continues... my kids are even counting down. They are SO excited that we are leaving to meet "brover" but I don't think it's set in for them yet that this also means we will be GONE for 3 weeks. They just think it'll be a few fun days with Nana, Grandma, and some friends. I'm praying that the time flies for them and that that is exactly how it's remembered- just a few fun days!
I'm making them little count down calendars (I'll try to post pics if I have time to take some!) ... counting down the days until we leave, and then for them to count down the days until we come home. And each day even says who they are 'staying' with right then. My kids are such planners (I wonder where they get it ;)) and do so much better when they know what to expect. I'm hoping this will help with that a lot. And hopefully make a fun little momento to look back at and remember. If only someone in that orphanage could make a little calendar for Pavel....
The countdown continues... my kids are even counting down. They are SO excited that we are leaving to meet "brover" but I don't think it's set in for them yet that this also means we will be GONE for 3 weeks. They just think it'll be a few fun days with Nana, Grandma, and some friends. I'm praying that the time flies for them and that that is exactly how it's remembered- just a few fun days!
I'm making them little count down calendars (I'll try to post pics if I have time to take some!) ... counting down the days until we leave, and then for them to count down the days until we come home. And each day even says who they are 'staying' with right then. My kids are such planners (I wonder where they get it ;)) and do so much better when they know what to expect. I'm hoping this will help with that a lot. And hopefully make a fun little momento to look back at and remember. If only someone in that orphanage could make a little calendar for Pavel....
Wednesday, May 6, 2009
The 10 Day Post :)
I think this little poem of sorts is becoming a '10 days away from traveling' ritual among RR folk. :) I've read it 100 times over and it STILL makes me tear up.
10 days away... and I'm wondering...
I wonder...when it was 10 days before I met God and He adopted me, was HE this excited?
I wonder if His stomach did flips and He got tears in His eyes when He thought about holding me for the first time.
I wonder if His heart ached when He thought about my life without Him as my Daddy.
I wonder if it grieved Him to know that I was living as an orphan and had no hope of a future without Him.
I wonder if He was as okay with paying my ransom as I am with paying our boys'.
I wonder if, for Him, there was no cost too high, no sacrifice too great.
I wonder...by Chris and Mary Malone
Also, I need to let you all know that we've decided not to make this blog private. We will leave it public and only share some very basic information until we get home. For the safety and security of our ourselves, our adoption proceedings, and our little boy. I will warn you that the postings may be few and far between, but we are so thankful for everyone who follows along with us and still covet your prayers. We are honored to have you join us as we walk this final leg of our journey!!
10 days away... and I'm wondering...
I wonder...when it was 10 days before I met God and He adopted me, was HE this excited?
I wonder if His stomach did flips and He got tears in His eyes when He thought about holding me for the first time.
I wonder if His heart ached when He thought about my life without Him as my Daddy.
I wonder if it grieved Him to know that I was living as an orphan and had no hope of a future without Him.
I wonder if He was as okay with paying my ransom as I am with paying our boys'.
I wonder if, for Him, there was no cost too high, no sacrifice too great.
I wonder...by Chris and Mary Malone
Also, I need to let you all know that we've decided not to make this blog private. We will leave it public and only share some very basic information until we get home. For the safety and security of our ourselves, our adoption proceedings, and our little boy. I will warn you that the postings may be few and far between, but we are so thankful for everyone who follows along with us and still covet your prayers. We are honored to have you join us as we walk this final leg of our journey!!
Tuesday, May 5, 2009
We got a date!!!!
Our appointment in eastern Europe is MAY 19TH!!!!
We're leaving in A WEEK AND A HALF!!!!
Please pray that we can pull everything together in time and that God would give me His peace and ease my nerves! I have SO much to think about!
We're leaving in A WEEK AND A HALF!!!!
Please pray that we can pull everything together in time and that God would give me His peace and ease my nerves! I have SO much to think about!
Monday, May 4, 2009
Gift that gave again!
**Update- It keeps getting better!! Click here!***
Those following our blog know that "Katrina from TN" was the name drawn from the hat for the Honeybaked Ham give away. Well Katrina is a new friend of mine who is in our church small group (we call them "cheers" groups).
Well bless her heart, Katrina decided to turn around and re-give away the gift certificate on her own blog! It just ended, and she raised more than I did with our two give away's combined!!!!
Click here to check out her blog and see how much she raised for our little boy! (Scroll to the end of the post) And look at those cute tickets she made!!! Hang on to those for me Katrina, I'd love to put those in his scrapbook!!! :D
When we first committed to this adoption and knew how MUCH money there was to raise... Jake and I said to each other that if God had called us to this, that He would bring in the money. And here we are, 5 months later, standing in awe that God would have brought in THIS much money... so much of it from total strangers!!! That is nothing less than GOD at work.
I've said it before, I'll say it again, may God use this adoption story for HIS glory alone!!! Great is the name of the Lord and greatly to be praised!!!!
Those following our blog know that "Katrina from TN" was the name drawn from the hat for the Honeybaked Ham give away. Well Katrina is a new friend of mine who is in our church small group (we call them "cheers" groups).
Well bless her heart, Katrina decided to turn around and re-give away the gift certificate on her own blog! It just ended, and she raised more than I did with our two give away's combined!!!!
Click here to check out her blog and see how much she raised for our little boy! (Scroll to the end of the post) And look at those cute tickets she made!!! Hang on to those for me Katrina, I'd love to put those in his scrapbook!!! :D
When we first committed to this adoption and knew how MUCH money there was to raise... Jake and I said to each other that if God had called us to this, that He would bring in the money. And here we are, 5 months later, standing in awe that God would have brought in THIS much money... so much of it from total strangers!!! That is nothing less than GOD at work.
I've said it before, I'll say it again, may God use this adoption story for HIS glory alone!!! Great is the name of the Lord and greatly to be praised!!!!
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