Waiting and More Waiting

Its been a busy February vacation for me. I told myself that while Ken is busy with tax season, I would start organizing the house. I cleaned dressers, closets, and made a hefty donation to the goodwill store. When I think of the reasons for cleaning, I get so overwhelmed...soon, we will have two children taking up the once-clean space, this is truly exciting.

There is not much for Ken and I to do during this waiting period. According to our 4-8 month wait, we could expect a call as soon as the end of May, but still, we have a feeling we will be traveling to Bryansk this summer. Though, as I'm slowly learning, no one can control the adoption world and its workings, we just need to hold on tight and ride the wave.

We have been endlessly reading and researching on many topics ranging from the region of Bryansk, how to build attachment with our children, eating and sleeping, and how to keep kids entertained on a plane ride when they don't speak our language or know who we are!!! (Any suggestions will be greatly appreciated!) Of course, we are still slowly practicing our Russian, and Ken is still much better than I am.

We just received a packet from Dr. Skurkovich from Providence, RI. He is a specialist originally from Russia who will help us read and decipher our children's medical records. This service provides great piece of mind for Ken and I, as it will help us make many informed decisions while we are in Russia.

At the beginning of April, we are required to go to a "preparing to travel to Russia" class put on by our adoption agency. I can't wait for this class. At times I keep forgetting that we are not traveling as tourists, but as people who need to conduct business with the Russian government. Our agency has been great at "hand-holding" us throughout this journey, thank goodness!

I've posted some links on the right side of the blog...want to learn some Russian? See what the weather is in Bryansk?

To Become a Family

I hope for this blog to be a true account of our experience in the adoption process. Also, I hope that this will be a great tool for our friends and family to stay updated throughout this exciting time!

Ken and I first went to our adoption agency on September 11th for an introduction meeting. Since then, just about 5 months later, we have been very busy! The initial rounds of paperwork are done, and currently, our dossier sits in Russia's hands. Our information has been sent to the Bryansk region of Russia, and we have been endlessly researching!

We are currently waiting a referral for a young (0-4 years old) sibling group! Some call us crazy for wanting more than one at once, but thats why we have family (right mom?!) We are truly happy and excited to take this leap of faith into the adoption world, and have been so overwhelmed with the support of our family and friends.

We expect to travel within 5 months for our first trip to Russia. Our first trip will be about a week in length, and we will be able to meet our children, visit their orphanages, review their medical records, and if all goes well,complete paperwork to make our adoption official. After this, we will come home and wait for a court date, which can be anywhere from 2-6 months later. Once we get the court date, we return to Russia to attend court, complete paperwork, and bring our children home! This second trip can be as long as 3 and a half weeks! We have been practicing our Russian with the Rosetta Stone, Ken is progressing much faster than I am!

Below is a map of Russia, Bryansk is located in the red part, close to Moscow.

Our adoption agency has truly been wonderful and knowledgeable. This link will bring you to their website. They have a ton of Russian adoption info! www.whfc.org

If you have the time (about 12 minutes) this video was made by our adoption agency. It gives good information on the Russian adoption process, the children, and the culture. http://www.whfc.org/resources/media.htm