Made it to Vlad

We are finally settled down at the Vlad Motor Inn and our jet lag is wearing off. It's amazing to think that we are now 15 hours ahead of our time in DC. We all woke up the first few nights at 3am and had a big "can't sleep" party. It's really nice getting a chance to spend time with Sarah and we have LOTS of time in the hotel.
We also got to see Matthew yesterday and it was nice to see that he is still so happy and growing. His face is thinning out and his laugh is still cute as ever. Sarah got to experience the small room or I like to call it a closet that we get to play with him in. It is so tiny and adding one more body doesn't help. We're headed out to see him again in 30 minutes. We have to wait for him to have his breakfast of rice and milk. They told us yesterday that he also loves to drink hot tea. Sounds just like Luke!
I'll post more later on our doctor visits. There were interesting...

Easter dinner??

We arrived in Beijing and had a great time visiting some of the sites. It doesn't quite feel like Easter without a beautiful church service, Easter eggs, hunting for baskets, or cute kids in their Easter outfits. We are so blessed though because we are safe and spending family time with Sarah.
China is pretty amazing. It's one of the cleanest cities I've been in and I've been in quite a few. The parking garage at the airport had painted floors and workers were buffing them! Never seen that before! We had a 14 hour direct flight here that went very quickly. We slept through half of it and that makes it a short flight.
Today we got to see the OlympicVillage. I loved it! The Bird's Nest was incredible!! We also drove by Tian An Men Square and saw some cool night markets. Tomorrow is going to be a little easier with a short flight to Vladivostok.
Good night from Beijing!

On our way!!

We're headed to the airport with our important documents!

Paperwork complete and 3 days 'til Departure

I'm so thankful that I've had this week off of school. It's our spring break and it's been anything but a break for me. My break begins after we take off on Saturday and head for China! Until then, I'm taking it one day at a time and checking off the packing list. Today, I finally went over the entire documents list and made sure that everything was in place. I only needed to print our home study and add it to the growing pile. What a relief to be at this point.
Tomorrow, Luke and I will head to SC to pick Sarah up. We're staying at a hotel with a pool so we can have a little fun! I am feeling a little guilty about leaving Luke behind for the next 7 days. He'll have a great time though and I know that he's in great hands.
Here's a photo of our paperwork ready to be packed up! Yes, we have to carry large x-rays for this trip! Bet you haven't packed that before when you've traveled! We have medical appointments in Russia this time around and we want to carry all of our own documents. That way, we won't have to have this done while we are there. I can't imagine how much that would cost.
The countdown is on and we are getting super excited!

Court Date!!!

We finally have our court date and we're headed to Vladivostok!! We have been busy with getting our paperwork in order and finalizing plane tickets and visas. I forgot how much work this was when we went to get Luke. We'll be staying for one week to complete medical exams, meet with the social worker, and have our final time in court on the 13th!! Send lots of prayers our way for a safe trip.
Scott and I can't wait to see how much Matthew has grown up. It will also be fun to play with all of the other children there. I always love to give them some special attention to let them know that they are loved!
It will be a busy week with packing and finishing up my report cards! It's nice to have spring break this week to help with all of the errands I have before we depart on Saturday.
We'll be staying at the Vlad Motor Inn this time and we hope to take some walks to the beach and on the nature trails. Can't wait for our adventure to begin!

Still waiting...

Now that the Christmas rush is gone and all of the decorations are put away, we patiently wait for our court date. The Russian holidays are over and the courts should be up and running again. Our package was sent before the holidays and we really should hear some news in the next few weeks. Everyone at school asks if we have any news; the anticipation is building and we're all excited to bring our new little man home.
Russia making the change with the court system puts a little damper on things. They have recently changed the waiting period after the court date to 30 days! Scott and I will both return home after court and Scott will return for a third trip. He is such a wonderful husband and I am blessed to have him in my life. He will return to bring the little guy home all by himself. Luke and I will anxiously be waiting their return. Hopefully this time Scott won't get bit too many times - ha!

We do have great news about Luke! We have turned in our final paperwork on him and we no longer will have visits from the social worker. It is such a great feeling to know that we are passed all of the paperwork with Luke. Three years is a long time to and we passed with flying colors! We love Luke so much and can't imagine our lives without him. It was great to see how close Sarah is getting to him. Each visit brings them closer as brother and sister and he's at the age where they can finally have fun together.

We all can't wait for our family to grow larger and see where the next chapter takes us!

Thankful For...

We have so many things to be thankful for this year! We are thankful for our health, friends, family, and of course, the ability to bring another little boy into our family. Our plans to bring Matthew home are moving right along. I did have a few problems with getting a doctor to allow me to make a copy of their medical license and that is all solved now.
Wonderful news! Our dossier is finally ready to be shipped off to our agency. It feels so good to finally have all of that paperwork complete. Next up will be a date to bring Matthew home. We are so thankful.

Finally Friday

We've had a long two days and it feels good to finally relax in our hotel room. Knowing that we made the right decision for our family also feels good. Our new little guy is so sweet and loves to smile and laugh. Reminds us a lot of Luke.
All of our paperwork is complete for this trip and we played with our son one last time before heading to the hotel. If all goes well, we'll be back to get him in February. That gives us time to prepare for him and enjoy time with Luke and Sarah.
These trips are so exhausting and we look forward to being back home. We now have our family complete and Matthew Alexander is such a gift!

Tough Decisions

Scott and I had to make a very difficult decision this morning. Adoption is never easy and you have to be very strong. We had to go with our instincts and decline the boy we had been matched with. For adoptive parents who've been where we are, you know how emotional this is. At first, we "talked" ourselves into being the family that could handle this boy and be able to give h a good home. After hours of thinking and researching; we decided to say no. The next few hours were very sad for both of us. We've come so far and the thought of leaving behind a child is not taken lightly. We feel blessed to have 2 wonderful children and we'll have to see where our path leads.

Day 2

We got to visit the orphanage again this morning and we made progress today. Playing outside for 2 hours was refreshing and we learned a lot about our little guy. It's as if a whole new boy came out. He played soccer with us and laughed a lot! Luke will love having a soccer playmate. He also told the other children that we were his mama and papa. So sweet.
Now to come up with a name and relax a little before tomorrow comes.

Waiting...

I forgot how many hours we spend waiting while the adoption process happens. We spent 2 short hours at the orphanage and the rest of the time walking around the city in search of a grocery store. Success was found after an hour and we're now stocked up on drinks, cheese, and bread-yum!
Today, we finally got to meet with our little guy. It was nice to finally meet him and have a small chance to play. He is the opposite of Luke because he is so shy and quiet. Some delays are present and we'll need lots of prayers before we make any decisions. We'll speak with the doctors back home tonight and that may help with any questions we may have. We also get to play with him and see him interact with kids tomorrow. Each time I come her, I am thankful for what I have and that Luke is a part of our lives. We appreciate all of your prayers.

United is the Best

We've arrived at our favorite lounge and just waiting for our first part of the trip. United has such a nice lounge and it's a nice way to spend an hour before takeoff.
SanFrancisco, here we come! Can't wait to relax on the plane and do some reading.

Away We Go!

Scott and I will be off in less than 5 hours for our first adoption trip to meet our potential son. Luke was so cute this morning as he made a movie for his "brudder." He is in love with this little guy already. We bought a cute little bear that Luke picked out and he hugged and kissed it a lot before we put the bear in the suitcase. It's such a blessing to have wonderful friends that are looking after Luke while we leave for the next week.

We're both a little nervous to meet our little guy and see if he is a good match for us. We'll say our prayers and way we'll go. Monday afternoon we plan to meet with the Minister of Education. We have a 30 minute interview and the possibility of meeting our son on that same day. What an exciting time that will be!

I'm off to sleep for a few short hours before we are off! We'll take all of the prayers we can get.
Big hugs to all!
Lisa

One Week Until We're Off!

Scott and I have been working like crazy! I can't wait to slow down enough to actually see him. I have my usual school work along with interims and making sub plans for 5 days. I'm super excited that I have a great sub taking over for me. I never like to leave my classroom and they will be in great hands!

This weekend our research begins for questions to ask about this 3 and half year old little sweetie. We have to be prepared with questions, toys, and a few fun food items for the little guy. I also need to pack a suitcase for Luke because he'll be staying with friends while we're away. He's super excited about spending the week with them and that is such a blessing. I wouldn't want him to be sad and we know that he's in good hands.

Gotta go add a few items to my list and do some research!

We have a referral!

About a week ago we were given a referral of a little boy! We were a little shocked to find out that he is only 3 years old. We were hoping for a 5-6 year old boy and we had to think quite a bit before making our decision. We decided to go forward and visit him. This time around, our adoption process is going so quickly. The referral came faster than we thought and now we already have our travel date!

It's going to be an exciting trip because we get to fly through Korea. I get to check another country off of my list. We're checking for short tours that get us a little taste of Seoul. We have less than 24 hours in the country and I hope to get to a few temples and market areas.

So, our heads are swimming with so much to do. We have our visas being processed, ticket reservations for our flight, and now we're searching for a hotel in Vladivostok. We'll be staying there for a week and getting a chance to meet with this boy and see if he's a good fit for our family.
We appreciate any prayers because this is always a tiring process with so much to accomplish in such a short time.