We are now a family of 8!

It's official. We met in the judges chambers this morning and after some questions, she congratulated us on our new son. Hearing Russian never sounded so good!! It only took about 20 minutes and that was it. Oleg then took us to the orphanage so Bill could see Patrick once more before leaving and it gave us a chance to get our first official famil photo. I can't wait to get one with everyone, but for now this will do. YAY, I'm a mommy again!!!!!

A day of exploring

(written on Monday but couldn't get it posted, so now it's Tuesday)

Today we couldn't go see Patrick, so Bill and I decided to be brave and see what we could find on our own. Today is our last day together, as tomorrow is court and he leaves Wed, so we took advantage of some alone time. We had fun. We took the metro somewhere, road the fenicular to the top of a hill, walked down to the river, took a river cruise and then hit some souvenire shops. We have now finished shopping for the kids at home, but there are a few more things we are looking for. Anyway, we got some great picstures today, which I will upload later, but for now leave you with this...

Hard day...

Today was hard. There was a caregiver there that I hadn't seen before and she didn't seem to care for us too much! It's been raining for a couple of days, so the yards are wet, and they don't want him dirty. They don't want him to even sit on the concrete. It is very hard to try and get him to sit on our lap and play with a few toys for 2 hours, but it seems that is all he was allowed to do today. We didn't stay the whole time, it was just too hard on Patrick and us to have to sit like that when we have gotten used to some extra freedoms from the other caregivers. Tomorrow we will not go, becuase it is a holiday here. Constitution Day, and from the looks of the streets, they are going to party hardy around here! Tuesday is court, we are hoping we will be able to see him for at least a few minutes on Tuesday, since Bill leaves on Wed morning...EARLY!

It is also starting to get harder that I am away from my kids at home for so long. Every day I miss them more and more, and seeing all these kids withough a family makes me miss them even more. I have gotten to talk to them several times and they are all doing well, but that doesn't keep me from wanting to hold them!

We did some site seeing today with some other RR families. I will post pics later. Right now, I am sticky with sweat and can't wait for my shower.

Hopefully tomorrow will be better!

We have a date!

Today we went to the embassy to sign some papers, went to the notary to sign some more papers and went shopping. Girls here DO wear jeans!!! So, I splurged and bought a pair. I am a jean wearing momma at home and was starting to miss my denim. I'm happy now :) We also bought some groceries so we could relax and eat in tonight!

We didn't see Patrick today, but we have good news...court is Tuesday!!! YIPPEEE!!! We will be at the court house that morning and then Bill will be on his way home on Wednesday. I will stay here until Patrick can come with me.

We're almost done, hurray!!!!

Today and Yesterday (Wed and Thurs)

This is the hand-kissing game that we play...

Yesterday we were not allowed to go to the orphanage for the first time. The city doctors were there doing checkups of some sort, so no visitors. So, we decided to go site seeing. The weather had other plans. It poured rain in the morning, leaving it hot and muggy the rest of the day. After the rain stopped, we headed out to see the botanical gardens. I'm thinking they may be more botanical in the spring or fall, not so much in the summer, lol. It was relaxing though and Bill and I were able to spend a quiet day together, so that was nice! We met up with several RR families for dinner at a mexican restraunt in town. It was super yummy! We actually took a taxi there and the metro back, so those were 2 new experiences. The guy that drives us to the orphanage is actually a very good driver, the rest of the city drives crazy and the taxi's are INSANE!!!! (mom, you would have a heart attack here with the driving...patti, your muscles would be tight and sore, you would be so tense from the ride!) Anyway, we enjoyed a lovely dinner and were able to meet up with the new RR family in the area. It was tons of fun.

And this is his sweet sweet smile....

Today, we were able to go back and see Patrick. I think the quarantine must be over, cause we were allowed on the playgound today! We were able to stay out for the whole visit even when the other group came out. Patrick was very good today and made his first phone call to his Babushka (grandma), which we spent a fortune on, but he seems to like my cell phone, so we allowed one 3am phone call to the states (sorry mom, but I'm sure it was worth hearing his "HALLO" to wake up at such an hour!) We ate lunch with Gillian and her daughter. We really enjoy them, they are very down to earth, fun people. We met up with other families from RR for dinner, which was again a lot of fun. We didn't eat dinner, just appetizers, cause we were still full from lunch, but it's always nice to be with other couples, and everyone here is so nice and fun to be around. We feel very blessed to be able to share this experince with so many others.

Teresa...

Paula and Joy...

Paula, Kevin and Natasha (there translator aka Ukrainian speed walker!!)

Teresa, Joy, Gillian, Alaina, Bill and me

Amy, Adam, Reuben and JoAnn

Bill, me, Joy, Amy, Adam, JoAnn, Reuben

Natasha, Paula, Kevin, Bill, me, Amy, Adam, Teresa, Joy

Kevin and Bill

Here's a little somethin' to start your day!- updated

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The video on my end is a little rough, hopefully if you are watching it is better quality. You can see one of his "excited outbursts", you will also hear us calling him Vladislov and Vladick. This is what he is called right now, we have been introducing "Patrick" to him each visit and will slowly switch over to his new name. Luckily "Vladick" and "Patrick" kinda sorta rhyme, so it should be an easy transition!

Our time in Kiev

We have been very lucky to have been able to spend every day so far with Patrick. His caregivers are wonderful with him. He listens to them when they correst him and you can tell they all care about one another. Every visit, he calms down a little more, he is beginning to realize that we are there for him and when we leave, we come back. His caregivers have been working with him on learning the members of the family. Yesterday when I showed him the photo-album of us all (brothers, sisters, Bill and I) he said Jessie after me. He hasn't caught on to the other names yet, but he will! He does know that Bill is PaPa and I am MaMa, which will take some getting used to for Bill...he is used to dad or daddy, lol. Papa is the word right now that has meaning for Patrick, so it is what we will use until he hears the other kids, he'll catch on pretty quick I think.

All about him:
Things he likes to do:
color
build with the big blocks (like what you give a 2 or 3 year old)
play with balls
play with cars and trucks (chunkier ones will be easier)
music, singing, insruments, he loves music!

What size he wears:
He will be a comfortable 4T. We have seen him in 3T most often, but those are snug on his belly, so 4T is best. Elastic waist is also best!! He IS potty trained :) We are buying him shoes here, and I don't know that size yet, but I can tell you his foot is big and fat!!!!

He likes to play and cuddle. He loves to sit on my lap and me sing to him (those of you that have been priveledged to hear me sing before realize that this isn't something that is requested often by others!). He loves it when I kiss his hands, he just giggles so sweetly whenever I do it. I will kiss him on the cheek and he will grin and hand me his hands to kiss then. It's a game that I like to play too!! With daddy (papa) he likes to be wild. He wants Bill to tickle him and blow rasberries on his neck or belly. Those 2 are crazy together!

We have noticed something with his legs now that we have been able to watch him more. I'm not sure how to explain it either, and it may just be low muscle tone (which I doubt, cause this child is strong!), but his ankles turn in when he runs and he doesn't bend his knees to pick stuff up off the floor. A little therapy will help whatever it is. Either way, he walks and runs with no problem at all, but I think this is what the lady at the SDA was talking about.

------------------------------

So, every day, we wake up, shower, eat breakfast and walk to meet our driver. It is about a 20 minute walk to where he picks us up, and it saves about an hour and a half in the car because of traffic, so we walk! We drive to Vorzel (the city where the orphanage is), which takes about 45 minutes or so (depending on traffic). We play with Patrick and all the other kids in the group (we have only had one visit with just him, usually we are with all the kids) until lunch time and then they take him in and we leave. We drive back to Kiev, have lunch, go back to the apartment to drop off our bags that we take to Vorzel with us and relax a little. Usually I read and Bill watches a movie at this time as all of you in the states aren't up yet and our day is half over, lol. We then either go shopping or do some site seeing. We still have to buy shoes, socks, and underwear for Patrick. other than that, I already found a few outfits for him. He has 3 outfits now (it is enough for our time here, we can get more at home). We usually go to our little market downstairs on the way home (you can only buy as many groceries as you can carry and they charge you for bags, so we just get one bag full at a time and reuse the same bag (yep, i am that cheap!, but isn't that being eco-friendly too, hahahaha). We either cook in the apartment (this is challenging because of archaic utensils and lack of space) or eat out with RR friends. I have been really bad about not taking pics of us with the families we are with. I need to better with that!

For now, here are some pics of Mr. Patrick, I will upload pics of Kiev later today. I think I like it here!!!



Here are some of his friends. Elizabeta (Liza) is beside me (she needs a family, NOW!!!!), and Masha is beside her (her family is here with me!)

Here, I was giving him a juive box (bad idea, he has never had a straw before and the sugar in the juice made him HYPER!) and he kept biting the straw, he though it was funny when he bit it and it popped out of the box to spray me!

Patrick had just walked in the room and went straight to Bill! (Aren't they sweet?!)

Daddy and Patrick playing bubbles!

This is the sign to Vorzel, the second word says "Vorzel", have no clue about the first!!

Internet Troubles and I'm a Stupid American

Our internet went out yesterday. Very frustrating when this is your only contact home. It costs about $4 a minute to call home with the phone and I can skype for free. So, we went yesterday and today with no internet. At home, when our internet goes down, I reset the router. DO NOT DO THIS IN UKRAINE!!! It erases the router instead of resetting it, therefore it won't work ever again, lol. Once our super smart technology guy came and reprogrammed our router we are good to go. And guess what?! We now have WiFi too, lol. We actually had it the whole time and didn't know. They had told us it was broadband, so i was plugging us up...well, our connection is much faster unplugged! It is now 10:30 at night here and I haven't talked to the kiddos yet. I will update with visits with Patrick, pictures of Kiev and more fun stuff later. For now, we are well and alive in Kiev!!!

Goofy, wild and smart...he'll fit right in!

Today when we got to the orphanage to see Patrick, he was VERY excited to see us! In fact, he was so excited, that he was unsure how to express this emotion and was being a bit wild. He kept screaming and laughing and throwing himself at us. He took to Bill very quickly and loved being held by him. I kissed his chubby little hand, and he kept putting his hand back up to my mouth to be kissed again and again. It was so sweet. When Bill held him, he nuzzled right into him...he knew who we were! He is a quick learner too. We were rolling a ball back and forth and I kept saying "ball". He, after a few times, said "ball". He also said "up" to Bill to be picked up, and said "shoe" to me after repeatedly removing his shoe and needing it put back on. His caregiver said that he is very talkative, repeats stories when read to and knows his friends names. He needed redirected a few times today, but he was just to excited to know how to handle himself. I imagine the next few visits will be just as crazy as today, until he knows we are forever coming back and taking him home. We will be back to visit tomorrow, so stay tuned for more!

Enjoy the pictures and mini-movie!

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My first visit

Today, after waiting severfal hours for one stubborn persons signature, I got to go meet Patrick. This was not an "official" visit, and I was not allowed to take pictures today, in fact, Bill was not even with me. This is what happened...we met at the SDA this morning with 2 other families. One family just needing to get some things notarized and go visit there daughter, and the other family, like us, waiting for the referral letter to be signed. All 6 of us had the final destination in commone and so we were needing to take 2 cars wherever we were headed. Anyways, only one member from each family needed to stay the SDA and sign this paper, so the wives took off in the seperate car to the orphanage thinking the men weren't too far behind us. We were wrong, the men never caught up! However, with a little help from our facilitator (we love Oleg!) we were able to get a sneak preview of our children. Patrick is wonderful! He was sitting at the table playing tea party and shared his "tea" and "biscuits" with me. We read a book together, and I was able to hear his beautiful laugh! He got hot at one point and removed one of his shirts, he folded it neatly and placed it on the edge of the table. He also picked up his dishes when he was done playing tea party and put those away as well. His teacher commented that he was very well behaved and listened and followed directions better than most kids. She then asked if I liked him and would accept him in our family. I said yes, i love him and I want to take him home. She got teary eyed when she started telling me that she had prayed for a family for him for so long and she was so happy that one finally came along. I told her we had been praying for him as well, and we shared a joyful/ teary hug. Tomorrow Bill will get to go with me, so we are very excited. The paper is now ready, so maybe tomorrow we will have pictures. And if not, just know that he is absolutely as beautiful in person as he is in the pictures I have of him already! And for the foot thing that was mentioned yesterday, I didn't notice anything. We're gonna go grab dinner now, more later!!

More waiting and a run in!

We got to the SDA to get our paper and received a phone call while we waited outside that our paper was not ready yet and we would have to come back in the morning. The next phone call was from an RR family wanting to meet up for dinner. So, on our way to dinner, we crossed under the road and were walking through the mall down there when I saw another RR friend that I hadn't had the chance to meet yet (I love that I could recognize her from an internet picture, isn't technology grand!). It was really great running into her, she is also adopting from the same orphanage, so there are 3 families here right now for our orphanage. Anyway, she speaks Ukrainian, so she was able to help us find socks for Bill. Which, I forgot to mention this story....while we were packing, we were trying to fit into as few bags as possible. To do this, we kept consolidating bags. In the process, Bill didn't transfer his socks from one of the other bags, so I have been hand washing his socks every night and blow drying them with a hand dryer every morning. No big deal, just annoying! So, now he has socks. It is so wonderful to have so many RR famillies here at the same time, and more are coming! We look forward to getting to know these other families as well as Patrick over the coming weeks. More tomorrow!

SDA Part 1

This morning we went to the SDA for our appointment. I think it went well. We go back this afternoon at 4:30 to get the offical referral in writing (at least that's my understanding). . We got to see a precious picture of Patrick, he was a newborn in the picture and had the fattest cheeks I have ever seen! I do believe he has always been a bit of a chunker, lol! We asked if we could take a picture of the photo and were told that if we bring a new picture, we can have the old picture. I want that baby picture, so I will be taking a newer one to trade. We learned that he was left in the maternity house and his parents left no contact information, so they consider him to have no known parents. They don't even think the names that were left on the birth certificate were real. To there knowlwedge he has no brothers or sisters. We were told his birthdate (which we already knew) and also that he has Down Syndrome (which we already knew!). What we didn't know and still are not clear on is that he has a deformed foot or leg. Nadia was unsure about how to translatevwhat it is, but it isn't club foot. They know he is able to walk on it as we have seen in pictures, so this is not something I am worried about, but will have the doctor look at it just the same!

We went to a restraunt after our appointment. We thought we were stopping in for coffee, but it ended up being a full service restraunt with an english menu! I had a chef salad. It was good, but not a dressing I would choose again. It also had sprigs of fresh dill on it, I could have done without that, but I ate it and am very full now. Bill had cheese crepes and was very happy with his selection. One of the servers spoke english, but not ours. We did well enough and I am very proud that we got the food we ordered and needed no assistance! Unfortunately, it was a bit pricey, so I doubt we will return very often. That one meal was our food budget for the day, but we have breakfast and dinner already here at the apartment from what we got at the grocery last night.

We are looking forward to going back for more pizza, a whole pizza for under $3 is much more affordable then todays'a meal! Again, we are learning as we go, and I am very proud at what we have learned already. In fact, today Bill was very impressed with my sense of direction. He is still a bit lost, I am normally the lost one. I still get lost at home, but for some reason (survival mode perhaps?) I am finding it very easy to get around Kiev. Perhaps because he tends to rely on signs at home and I follow landmarks. Here I am 100% looking at landmarks at all times to learn where to go and he cannot read the signs. It's good though, I am glad we are able to get around where we need to.

I will update again later once we go back for our referral paper, and hopefully I remember to get the traditional SDA sign picture while we are there this time.

Today, we explored (with pics)

Nadia (our fabulous translator) picked us up this morning around 9:20 to bring us our cell phone. (Communication on the go is great in a strange land!) She took us to exchange our money, we stopped and had coffee, and did some site seeing. We met up with Oleg at the SDA for a little while (we needed to know how to walk there for our appointment tomorrow, our friends appointment is before ours and so Oleg and Nadia will be unavailable to pick us up; it is close, so no worries!) We visited 2 beautiful churches, St. Andrews and St. Michaels. I wish I could have gotten pictures of the insides, because the art and architecture were breath taking. They are both traditional orthodox churches, but did not require head coverings, so we were good to go! Behind St. Michaels is a wishing fountain, not like we have at home, but very cool. You take a coin, dip it in the water to make it damp, hold it to the end piece and make a wish; if your coin stays, your wish comes true; if your coin does not stay,keep trying until it does, LOL! We then had lunch with Nadia, and then she left to pick up our RR friends from the airport. At this point she had spent almost 4 hours with us showing us around the city and making us feel much more comfortable here. We returned to the apartment after walking around a bit more and sat down to relax and fell asleep, we did not wake up for almost 4 hours! (I think that is what they call jet-lag, lol!) After naptime, I was able to speak to several RR families that are in country on the phone and was even able to meet up with 2 families for our adventurous dinner. That was an experience! We went to a cafeteria style place (you can just point to what you want and go with it). They also had a pizza place within it, where you could order your pizza (no pointing though, just straight ordering!). One of the other families called her translator and ordered through her and then gave her phone to the pizza guy for the official order. This system worked great and Bill was able to make his order this way as well. It was worth feeling lost to see the look on pizza boy's face when he realized why he was being handed the phone, I'm sure they will be talking about us for days!!! We had an enjoyable meal (I'm not sure what I ate, but it had meat...vegetarianism is going on hold until I am back in the states!), and enjoyed being with other families as well. I didn't get a picture of us all, although one of them did. Hopefully there will be many more opportunities for group photos real soon! After dinner we found a grocery store and picked up some things for the apartment. Our appointment is in the morning at 11. It is now 10pm here and we are going to get some much needed sleep. I think tomorrow will be a long day.

I will post again later with pics, I do not have a highspeed connection, so the upload is taking F-O-R-E-V-E-R!!!!

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First Impression of Kiev

The city is BUSY! There are people everywhere. The girls are very pretty, although dressed a little revealing for what I am used to! I do believe that everyone in this city smokes; and from what I can tell, nowhere is off limits (the guard inside the airport was even smoking!). Public drinking is allowed. I'm not sure what the point of the traffic cop is, I think they just stand around; noone enforces any traffic rules (I don't even think there are any rules). Parking spots are just for decoration, sidewalks are much more accessible for parking (at least that's where everyone thinks they should park). To cross major roads by foot, you go under them, kinda freaky and cool all at the same time. Having paper and pen handy at all times is good for when your apartment lady changes te code 5 minutes after you leave and she speaks no english and well, I speak no Russian! Lines mean nothing; if you are not standing against the person in front of you, that means there is room for someone to be there, and they WILL be there. Overall the city seems great. I am looking forward to learning more tomorrow when I am awake!

We made it!

We arrived in Ukraine in one piece! We had no problem with our layovers and breezed through customs. We are now going to get some rest!

Our SDA appointment is Wed at 11am (3am at home!)and Patrick has officially been told about us and we are told that he is very excited!

This is it!

We leave in about 18 hours. My bags are packed, Bill's are not! But, everything is ready to go. We are about to drop the kids off and come back home for some detailed cleaning that we don't do when Jessie is around! If I can get connected I will post from the airports, but if not, my next post will be from Ukraine! Please pray for safe travels and a fast and easy process while we are in country. We're on our way to get our boy! Praise God!!!!

In less than 48 hours

I will be sitting in Chicago airport waiting for our flight to Germany. In Germany's airport, we will meet up with another adopting family and ride into Ukraine together. I am looking forward to connecting with this family and many others while we are there! I have been sick with nerves the last few days, the feeling of finally going to get my boy and the fear and sadness of leaving my kids at home are a bit overwhelming. But, I know that it is all worth it. I can't tell you how anxious I am to wrap my arms around Patrick. In less than a week I will be able to hold him, look into his eyes and tell him I am his mommy! How cool is that?! We have been SUPER busy this week. Spending time with the kiddos (fitting summer into a week is exhausting!), cleaning house (no one wants to come home to dust and grime!), and lots of packing. Tomorrow we will be tying up all the loose ends around here and dropping kids off (boys with there dad and girls with grandma). My mom and step-dad are going to stay here with us on Sat night and take us to the airport early on Sunday! So, by Monday afternoon I will be in Ukraine!!! We have a day of rest planned for Tuesday and our appointment is Wednesday. I'm not sure if we will meet Patrick on Wed or Thurs, but we will meet him this next week!! Please pray for safe travels and for my mind and heart to be at ease about travelling and leaving my babies. Thank you all for your ongoing support!!!

It hit me today, it hit me hard!

I'm leaving! I am leaving my 5 children at home for at least a month! It hadn't hit me yet, until I started packing the girls things today. As I packed I realized why I was packing. It wasn't for a weekend visit with grandma or an overnight trip to there aunt's or cousin's house, it is because I am leaving them for a really long time. WOW, the tears started flowing. I knew it would be hard to leave them, but today I got my first dose of just how hard it will be to not hold each of my kids each day. Regrets, NO...I have NO REGRETS, and NO SECOND THOUGHTS. I know I am doing the right thing, and nothing can change my mind. Patrick belongs home with us, period!! My kids WILL survive without me and vice-verse, although it will be hard and even painful. Thank God for Skype, at least I can see and hear them! We leave them in 3 days! Wow, I can't believe it is time to go already, time has just flown by since I first saw that precious face! We're coming baby, mommy and daddy are coming!

Zoo day

We did make it to the drive-in Tues night. The kids thought it was great...and I actually enjoyed the movies. Yes, movies , it was a double feature. You really can't beat that. We paid $18 ($5 of which we paid to bring in a cooler of our own food!) and got to see 2 movies, 5 people! Yesterday, we went to the zoo (we are members and we pack our lunch, so this is a free day!)with my SIL and nephew. It was a fun day! Today we are staying home and I am packing. Tomorrow we are going to Dave and Busters so we can have some fun with the older kids. Friday is another day of packing and cleaning. Saturday we will spend time together in the morning and then we will drop all the kids off with the people that will be keeping them. It will be very busy the next few days. We are trying to spend as much fun and quality time with all the kids as we can before we leave. Here are some pics of our day at the zoo yesterday!

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Family Fun, in pictures

We had a great time with our family yesterday. There was a TON of food, volleyball, badminton, kites, bubbles and, of course, family! It was so nice to see everyone before we leave. The hardest part about this adoption isn't the paperwork or the amount of money, it's not seeing my kids and family for so long. So, it was really nice to spend the day with them yesterday. Of course, we lost track of time and missed the movie, so I think we are going to try to do that tonight....please don't rain!!!!!

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Family Time

I have a very close family. We talk daily on the phone and see each other several times a month (they all live a little over an hour away!). So, since I am leaving for an extended period, today we are having a get together. We are all headed over to to my mom's house for games, food, and time together. It will be a great afternoon/ evening.

Tonight, Bill and I are taking the kids to a drive-in movie. They are showing "Up". it's a great deal and the only way to see a movie with a budget and a large family. Our drive-in only charges $12 a car. That breaks down to less than $2 a piece!! Not only that, but if everyone wants to, it's a double feature! The second movie is "Earth". It's very tempting to stay out really late tonight to catch both of those, but we'll see. We will be packing a cooler and taking that with us to avoid going to the concession stand.

OK, well, I'm off to get ready, it's gonna be a looooong day!

More shopping...

Yesterday we finally bought Patrick's mattress. I don't know why we waited so long to do this, but we did. That was such a big stress point to me, that we didn't have it yet, so I'm glad that is now checked off the list.

I also did some clothing shopping for myself. I am a jeans and t-shirt kind of girl usually, and since I stay home, I don't keep a "large" wardrobe. We went bargain shopping, I bought 4 pairs of casual/ dress pants, 9 shirts and a sundress, all for under $150. All of my clothes will travel well and are easy to pack lightly with.

We haven't really bought anything for Patrick, we are planning on buying him clothes once we know his size and toys once we know what he likes and where he is developmentally.

WE LEAVE IN 9 DAYS!!!!!!!

The 10 day post

This was written by Chris and Mary, and originally posted 10 days before they left for Ukraine. Since they posted it, it has become a bit of a tradition to post this 10 days out, it is a beautiful poem. Thank you Chris and Mary for letting us "borrow" this from you!


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


So, now for those of you that didn't know before, we are going to Ukraine. This is one of the details we couldn't share on a public blog. Specifically, we are going to the region of Kiev. We are blessed to be traveling with several other families, 2 of which are going to be at the same orphanage as us. I think this will help when it comes time for Bill to leave. I will have friends over there, and we will be able to be together and enjoy each others company in the absence of our husbands and children.

I am still feeling anxious about leaving my kids for that long, but I know they will be safe and loved while I am gone. My biggest fear is how much Jessie will change in the month and a half that I am gone. She is learning so much every day right now, and I am afraid of leaving a baby at home and coming home to a big girl. Even though I have these fears, I am still at peace, I KNOW this is what God wants for us, and I KNOW Patrick is going to bless our family in so many ways. I am so excited to meet him and hold him and show him love!

"An Orphan's Prayer"

I got this from Christy's blog...

"An Orphan's Prayer"

I am waiting..... somewhere far...far...away on the other side of the world.
I may not know who you are or what you look like,
But some how deep in my heart I know you are out there.
That one day you will come and find me.
It's a long journey, and it takes a lot of time...
I wish it could be easier.
But I know that the ones who come for me will not count the cost.
They will only see the joy of finding me.
For now I abide in the fields of the fatherless.
Day by day wondering why I was born here and not somewhere else?
Asking...why my life couldn't have been different?
It is so lonely...
Even though I am surrounded by hundreds of other children,
I know that something is missing...I know in my heart I need a place to call home.
My arms long to be wrapped in a father's embrace...I long to be saved by a mother's love...
Gazing out the orphanage window, I offer a prayer of hope,
"Oh God please help them come quickly."
Even as I lay in the darkness each night somehow I feel assured,
That no matter how lost I appear I am not alone.
Holy hands guard my steps; sacred fingers wipe my tears, touching my lonely heart.
The one who made me,
The God that knew me before I was born,
Hears me every time I call.
He whispers His promises in my ear.
I listen with hope to His voice.
But what I worry about most is that no one wants to look for me.
The fields are vast and there are so many scattered all over the earth.
I wonder how one little child, so lost, can be found?
Yet He calms my heart and assures me that He will find you.
That He will make sure that you hear His voice clearly.
He has promised me that He will make a way through the fields,
That He will personally cut a path, and lead you right to my orphanage door.
My prayer is...
When He speaks...Please don't forget to listen...
When He calls don't be to afraid to go
For I am waiting...somewhere, far...far...away
On the other side of the world
To come Home.

~Author Unknown


Thank you, Jesus, for finding me and leading me to Patrick. I am so thankful that You made Yourself so loud that I could NOT drown out the sound of Your voice, leading me to him. Please bring Patrick comfort in the coming weeks, let him know that we are coming.