Venting

Okay it's been 3 weeks (tomorrow) since the last court hearing in Angarsk, and STILL no word. Last week Irina told us that the letter from the court (containing the testimony of all the families who were ordered to appear) was going to be mailed by around Thursday, but still nothing!

I came home 3 weeks ago, thinking (and hoping) that within 10 days to 2 weeks, we'd have a new court date...

I'm tired of waiting...but I suppose God isn't done teaching me patience yet!

Guess I'm buying a turkey..

Seems progress on securing another court date is, like the entire adoption process, moves at a snail's pace, it looks like we won't be leaving before Thanksgiving.

Word from our friend in Russia today is that the local court has completed it's report for the Judge overseeing our case, and it will be sent to her within a few days. I don't know if all the families are accounted for, but at least there is SOME movement here. Our Russian Attorney is going to contact the court as well, to see what to expect next.

So in the meantime, we continue to wait - and, I suppose plan a Thanksgiving dinner....

...no word..

Irina has been unable to find anything out about the court case for the families. Her contact at the Guardianship Department says they don't know if the rmaining family showed up or not, and if not, what will happen next. She is hoping to get an answer by the beginning of the week...

As for our visas, we hoped to extend our adoption visa letter dates since it is dated 30 days from the ORIGINAL hearing date. Apparently it can't be extended, so we have to reapply - which will take another month.

So that means if we get a new court date for early Dec., we'd likely need to do that "Mike flies to another country bit, to get the correct visa, and returns to get us" bit.

It just never goes smoothly!

Trying to adapt

back to EST, but not being very successful. Skip struggles the most - wanting to sleep all day, and then up 1/2 the night. We've tried keeping him awake til 6 p.m. but then he was wide away at 2:30...tried letting him nap a few hours, but then we couldn't wake him up. He napped for 2, then I spent 3 hours keeping him awake til 7, and he was up at 3:30! Argh! Both Mike and I were sick this weekend, I think for the most part due to the exhaustion. We're both feeling better now, and getting back to something of a normal routine...if you can call it that... We'll survive, that's for sure.

Tomorrow is the hearing in Angarsk for the remaining 3 families. We're praying that all of them show up, so the judge has no excuse to further delay the hearing, and set a new date for us within the next 3 weeks. Guess we should know by tomorrow nite what the outcome was.

Another family adopting from the region and waiting as long as us just got news that their dossier was accepted, and that a directive has been sent to the city officials where he lives (he was moved from Angarsk to an orphange in the same region, but different city, about a year ago) to prepare his paperwork for court! They think they will be their in early January! Let's pray that this is just the beginning for all the waiting families, and that these children will all come home by 2009!

Continued prayers are greatly appreciated. Not only for us, but for all the families we've come to know and love, who are waiting for children from the same region!

home...

physically.

We got home around 2:15 a.m. Skip, who slept 8 of the 9.5 hours from Moscow to New York, had insomnia, and didn't couldn't sleep. He, and Sabaka, who was beside himself when he saw me walk through the door, ended up in bed with us (not exactly the first night in my bed I was looking forward to) and didn't get to sleep til after 4. In desperation for some sleep, I even told him he could watch Sponge Bob! Anyone who knows me will be gasping over that news! Anyway, he slept about 6 then was wide awake. Ugh. Mike got up with him around 7 and I slept til 9. Today I am useless. My mind is mush, my body is really ticked off at me, and I can't seem to do anything. My house looks like a hurricane hit, which normally makes me crazy, but I am totally unmotivated to do anything about it. Maybe tomorrow...or not...

I am struck by how much color is around here. The trees, the leaves on the ground, the houses...THIS is so different than the bleak, dreary colored buildings and evergreen trees that surround the city. There is NO color!

We napped this afternoon, and found it hard to make Skip get up - but I don't want him to be up all night again, so we forced him up...Mike took him out for a haircut - partly because they both needed one, and artly because I knew getting him outside would wake him up. It worked...

I find myself wondering what Harry is doing, and if he is asking for us... Well one thing is for sure, we're thinking about HIM and hope to be back there with him in a few short weeks. Well, my heart wants to be there, not so sure my body is liking that thought, but.......

Leavin' in a few hours

I should be asleep since my ride comes in about 6 hours, but it's been a long, emotion day. Our bags are packed, our friends are keeping some of our stuff here to make it a little easier, and the apt. has been cleaned... I suppose I'm ready...

This afternoon I gave a note to the caregiver in charge - who as fate would have it, was Natasha, our favorite. I wrote a note explaining that we're leaving for a little bit, hopefully no more than 2 weeks, and that while it's not what we want to do, it's what we NEED to do. I explained about my visa, and INS paperwork, and that we'll return just as soon as we can. Irina translated it into Russian for me, since I wanted to leave the note there so ALL the caregivers know what is going on... I also asked them to tell Harry often that we love him, and will be back for him very soon.

Natasha cried when she read the note - showing me just how much she cares. She is awesome!
when Skip & I were leaving, she gave me a hug.

Earlier in the day, for the first time, I got my first unsolicited "I glove you" from Harry. Yes, he says "glove" you... Every day for 6 weeks, when I leave him I say "I love you". Lately I will say it one word at a time, and he repeats. Today after he did something really cute, I said I love you to him. When I turned to walk away, he chirped in with his own little "I glove you"... ah, timing is EVERYTHING!

Wordless Wednesday...

So...

I'm exhausted, I'm overwhelmed, I'm confused, I'm disappointed. I'm broke. I'm coming home.

Yep, coughed up yet another $300 to change the tickets and now we leave Harry behind for the fourth home, and leave Irkutsk first thing Monday morning. I get to spend 7 hours in the Moscow International Airport to watch other families, who began their adoptions from in other regions 5 or 6 months ago, chase their kids around while wait for their planes to take them home... I still don't have flights from JFK home, but I figure walking from New York can only take a few days as compared to walking from Siberia will take a bit longer...

I'm out of energy,resources & options. Mike starts his new position with HD today, 4 hours north in Maine, adding more confustion & stress to the situation. He has no idea where he is going to live while he's up there. It's not like we have many options at this point, considering what this adoption has done to us financially, so he might be sleeping in the back of his truck.
If this adoption drags on much longer we'll ALL be living in the back of his truck.

So now I spend my time sorting what will stay here, what will have to phone call with news of a court date, then pray we still have the money to return and start this all over again. Waiting together is bad enough...but this time it'll be Skip and I in MA & Mike in Maine.

What a mess.

From the end of the earth will I cry unto thee, when my heart is overwhelmed: lead me to the rock that is higher than I.

Psalm 61:2

What's wrong here...

After leaving the Halloween post earlier, I put the boys down for their pretend nap. Pretend because generally they pretend to be trying really hard to calm down and sleep, and I pretend that resting with the tv on with my intermittent "lie downs" and "the tv goes off if you get up agains".

Anyway, today after they were down for about 45 minutes I decided that I really needed a nap, but would settle for resting...like them. I put a pillow between them on the pullout sofa and Harry promptly covered me with HIS blanket.

30 minutes later I woke up (although I know for a fact I was awake for the first 10). I sat up quickly, amazed I had dozed off while the two of them were awake. I looked at Skip - sleeping...

And Harry - wide awake, playing with a handful of Hot Wheels Cars next to me.

So what's wrong here. The littlest one, who was is the reason we are pretend napping, is wide awake, while Skip and I are the ones who end up sleeping?

The improv...

As I continue to struggle with travel issues/decisions, I also battle with coping with the fact that much is going on back home, that Skip & I are missing out on because of the prejudices of one judge. But, today, I decided to fight back and NOT let her take Halloween away from Skip - or for that matter, deprive both boys of their first one together. So...we improvised, and here you have it:

The boys colored their own masks, I taped a paper "H" on Harry's shirt, and an "S" on Skip's, then turned the mini blankets into temporary capes, with the aid of the shoelaces from Skip's sneakers. On the way home from picking Harry up today we stopped for milk & bananas at the corner store, and picked up a bunch of candy. They'll get to eat a little and most will go to the BH for the other kids. It works.

In regards to the court hearing this week for the 6 families and birthmom. Three showed up and gave what the Dept. of Guardianship deemed "appropriate statements", as did the birthmom. One family had moved and was just located, and a hearing has been set for ugh, 12 November for both them & the one family who thusfar is refusing to appear. Not that they have anything bad to say, just that they work, don't have transportation/babysitting issues, and just can't be bothered. Irina said perhaps they'll send armed escorts for them...goodness. The last family, lives in a very remote village in another city. They are willing to cooperate, but have no way to get to their regional courthouse, which apparently is quite a distance. They have asked to have escorts - or as Irina called them "ushers" to come to take legal statements from them. It appears everyone should be accounted for by the 12th. Then their statements will be sent to Judge Stepanova in Irkutsk. The concensus here (Irina, Guardianship Dept. Center for Adoption people, etc.)is that this is good news thusfar, that after the 12th, we'll get a court date shortly thereafter.

Of course we're talking late November, if that is true. My visa expires on the 20th of December. Not sure what to do at this point. Unless we get a date by the end of Nov. my visa will expire. If we don't, there is no use staying here, but there is no way of predicting when the date will be. I'm hoping for some insight/guidance from the Attorney, who is due like any time... The logical thing would be to return for a short period and return once I get the new visa, but, we're talking yet another $3,000 minimum for tickets for Skip & I, on top of what it will cost to get Mike back here. On that note, we are extremely grateful to Brandi, who had a relative that not only got Mike back from NY to BOS this week, but is willing to help him get back from BOS to Moscow when we get a court date! That is HUGE! We are SO grateful to them, and so thankful for the prayers and efforts from everyone!