A BIG, BIG Catch-Up Post... Pictures, Too!!!

Wow... I haven't been away awhile or anything!  In the busyness of post-adoption life, I just now took a look at my blog to see when I last posted.  The day before I left for Bulgaria to pick up the kids!  Yikes!

So, as a peace offering to anyone who may still be following along, here are some pictures from Bulgaria!

Leaving Denny's orphanage... the best feeling in the world!  And in true American form (at least, as far as my dad believes), he's wearing his first pair of Chuck Taylor's!

Denny was so overwhelmed, and wanted desperately to hold my hands the entire drive.  He did so well, all things considered.

Viki ran straight to me, calling "Mama!"  There were many happy tears that day!

You can't see it in the picture, but the kids and I left Viki's orphanage by walking through water that was poured out on the stairs.  The director, a beautiful woman with a kind heart, told us it is a Bulgarian tradition, signifying a new beginning.

I realize now how tall Denny looks in this picture, but these are 2T clothes.  At 6 years old.

Viki decided she loved the camera after all!

Some of our first snuggles!

If we were in the apartment, she wanted to color.  I was glad I brought three books, because she used them all up!

My sweet little man... he wasn't a fan of anything loud or exciting, and this spot on the couch, scratching his nails against the pillow, settled him.

And a glimpse of the first three months home...

Viki loved swinging at the playground near her orphanage, so it was no surprise that she wanted to swing at our house, too!  If we're outside, this is where you'll find her!

Denny had resigned himself to rough sisterly love...

And FREEDOM!

Both kids went to a pediatric ophthalmologist, and we discovered that Denny needed glasses!  He wasn't thrilled about wearing them at first, but the whole drive home, he kept looking around, like he was seeing everything for the first time!

Our cat, Hardy, loves to climb into Denny's lap.  And Hardy isn't a very social cat.

All five of my loves... HOME!

We joined a pool for the summer, and Denny loves to sit at the spout and splash!

Viki loves it, too!

After dinner, toes are the best dessert!

Viki drew a picture of herself, and a smaller picture of Denny.  We adopted spiders, FYI. :)

Storytime for the littles happens in Sadie's room, and she is THRILLED that Denny gets to share that time with her!

Viki is quite the artist!

Okay, so no hard feelings that I've been MIA?  Life has been busy, and not only from having the two newest kiddos home.  We've had appointment after appointment for them, between the pediatrician, ophthalmologist, cardiologist, endocrinologist, dentist, the list goes on.  That's just part of the process.  We needed to make sure we had all the health stuff out of the way first thing, especially with Viki having Type 1 diabetes.

Learning how to manage Viki's diabetes hasn't been the easiest thing, but I've got a workable plan, with the endocrinologist a phone call away, night or day.  I've figured out how much extra insulin she needs if we're having cake at a birthday party, and I know that 12 animal crackers will keep her glucose levels stable overnight if she's low before bedtime.  We just attended a JDRF (Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation) event, and learned more about the technological advances coming out in the future.  Viki will need eye surgery, to correct some damage caused by diabetes, but the ophthalmologist wants us to settle in, adjust, and then we'll talk surgery.  

When I picked Denny up from the orphanage, he had no idea how to suck from a bottle.  The food just ran down, and he sounded like he was aspirating.  By the time we flew home, he had great tongue thrust, and was eating more than what ended up on his clothes.  Once we were home, and I had access to a blender, he started getting some jam-packed nutritious smoothies, and gained four pounds.  After a month, he graduated from bottle to silicone sippy cups, and would clap when I brought out the blender.  He was loving this food thing!  During the second and third month, we really worked with Denny on eating solids, and it was a slow process.  Last week, he grabbed a fry and shoved it in his mouth!  To say he's come a long way in three months is a gross understatement.  He still has so far to come, in terms of communication, but we're seeing more and more personality from our little guy!  Oh, and he's in a 4T now, and those Chuck Taylor's are too small!

Okay, there's a catch-up post, and I hope to be back to blogging a little more regularly now!

Ready... Set...

I've had a running to-do list this week, with things ranging from "pay utilities" to "measure bed for mdf/boards", trying to get everything ready before I leave.

My time is winding down, and nearly everything I can do before leaving tomorrow is done, with only a few things still straggling.  The caretaker gifts are purchased and waiting to go into my mom's luggage Saturday morning, along with sippy cups, toys, my Ergo carrier, and a few other things that just. won't. fit. in my bag.  (Hey, you try fitting anything else in the bag full of clothes and shoes for three people for a week!)

I'm off to the store now, to get groceries for Scott and the kids for next week, and pick up the last couple of things for the trip, like Carnation Instant Breakfast for Denny, since he still takes pureed food from a bottle, and go and buy that sheet of mdf for Sadie's bed.  And then it'll just be down time here, until tomorrow!  TOMORROW!!!

Keeping Busy

The past fourteen months, Scott and I have gotten so used to waiting.  Don't get me wrong, waiting has never been easy, but it's where we've been, how we associated with the adoption.  One big wait, with a few fast-paced moments thrown in to keep things interesting.

And now, we're no longer waiting.  Yes, there are still five and a half days (Ohmigoodness, LESS THAN A WEEK!) until I travel, but the wait is over.  It's done.  We've passed court, I know when I'm leaving, the tickets are booked.

Which has reduced me to an emotionally overloaded puddle.  I'm coming to the time I've dreamed about for the past year, getting to leave the orphanages with my kids... MY kids!  And now, it's not a dream, it's real.  And my mind is having a hard time wrapping around all this.

Last Sunday, at our lunch and dessert auction, my dear, dear friend, Tonya, put together a slideshow of pictures from our first trip.  I have looked at these pictures again and again, but seeing them on Sunday, scrolling through, surrounded by our friends, surrounded by people who have prayed for us, prayed for our kids, and are living out 2 Corinthians 8, giving out of their abundance to supply our need, caused an overflow of emotion.

Now, with everything, I'm just a weepy mess.  Unless I'm busy.  When I'm busy, I don't have time to watch the clock, and I soon realize another day has passed, and I am one day closer to having the kids with me.  When I'm not busy, well... the puddle in me comes out.

So, whether it's been taking Elijah to three different appointments for a swallowed marble (and almost endoscopy/removal), or taking my Girl Scout Daisies to the Children's Museum, or painting two beds, I've been busy.  And busy is good.  Almost there!

A BIG Update!!!

I meant to come back sooner and share about our court date, but things have been busy!

Our attorney went to court for us on Friday, March 1, and on Monday, March 4, we heard that all went well, and we were now parents of FIVE!

We were told that, as long as the court decree was signed on time (there is a 7-day appeal period), we'd travel on March 23 and pick up the kids!  And finally, on Tuesday, March 12, I was able to share the good news... and PICTURES!  We've waited 14 months to share pictures, to respect our agencies' wishes, and now, the kids are ours and we're free to share them!

Also, in huge news, we hosted a "thank you" lunch at church, in appreciation for everyone who prayed for us and gave to us, either monetarily or with items to sell/auction to raise money.  After the lunch, we had a dessert auction, and raised the rest of the money we needed to travel!  We raised $1,081 after all was said and done!

So now, I'm leaving in EIGHT DAYS, and I'll have both kids back in my arms in just TEN DAYS!!!  I miss them, and I can't even look at their pictures without getting weepy.  It's been five months since we left, and it feels like an eternity!

So, here they are, our sweet kids!  Who are orphans no more, and instead are a loved daughter and son, sister and brother!

And soon, they'll be home forever!  I'm leaving in...

Eeek!!!  So, back to packing, cleaning, painting furniture, rearranging bedrooms (again), and maybe sleeping somewhere in between!

We Have... A Court Date!!!

This morning (here... it was evening there), the Minister signed off on our paperwork.

She signed off on everything, and assigned our case to a judge.

The judge has already assigned a court date.

March First.  Eight days from now.

We have an estimated travel date of March 23 (to arrive there on March 24).

Which means....

MY KIDS WILL BE HOME FOR EASTER!!!!!

I am not the bunny-who-lays-eggs type person, but Easter is still my favorite holiday.

It's the day we, as Christians, celebrate OUR adoption into God's family!

I cannot think of a better first holiday to celebrate with my kids!

(I also can't wait to show them to you!  And I can, just as soon as we have the court decree.  So, a couple more weeks.)

Thank you all for helping us to come so far in our process, we are almost at the finish line!!!!!

Tile Update

I just wrapped up a facebook auction, with 58 items totalling $750 in high bids!  Now that donations for the winning bids are coming in, we're back to clearing these tiles!

And...

We FINALLY have our first two winners!!!  Traci and Kacey, you've each won a $10 Amazon gift card, as a thank you for helping us to reach our final fundraising goal!

That means there are eleven prizes left!

Here are the updated Prize Reveal Tiles for Tory and Denny, so get your tiles before all the prizes are gone!

I'm going to be very busy, mailing auction items next week, so I know I'll forget to mention the beautiful necklaces Kristin at 2:12 Designs is selling to benefit our adoption.  For every necklace purchased, you can uncover a tile for YOUR chance at a "thank you" prize!

The Reveal

Based simply on others' timelines from their completed adoptions from the same country, I'm estimating that we have 9-10 weeks left before I travel to bring our daughter and son home!

And, based on our budget for plane tickets, food, our apartment, kids' visas, and other travel expenses, I'm estimating that we need $3,000 to finish.  (You can find a complete listing of all our adoption expenses HERE.)

So, to make it fun to hit that final amount, how about a little game!  See these blocks?

I originally hoped to have a picture reveal, where you could buy blocks to reveal the kids' pictures underneath, but that plan is tabled until our court decree is issued, probably in 8 weeks or so.  I know, I know, it's been a year and you're desperate to see their beautiful faces, and I'm so ready to be able to show them to you!  (Keep reading to the end, there WILL be pictures under these tiles eventually!)

While I can't do a picture reveal *now*, I can do a PRIZE reveal!  And who doesn't love prizes?!

Here's how it works:  Each block is labeled with a specific letter (T for Tory, D for Denny) and number (1-100).  Each block is worth $15.  You have a couple of options for how you buy your blocks, whether it's a tax-deductible donation to our GRANT or by purchasing a beautiful necklace (in-stock or completely custom) from the 2:12 Designs Etsy page, like this one...

If you donate to our grant, please forward your Paypal receipt to scottandchandres at gmail dot com, and include the letter and number of the block(s) you want uncovered.  If you purchase a necklace, just include the letter and number of the block you want uncovered in the "notes to seller" part of the checkout process!

What am I forgetting?  Oh yeah, PRIZES!!!

Underneath random blocks (okay, it's not really random, but it is predetermined), there will be prizes!  Sort of like Double Jeopardy, only without having to say, "What is an Amazon gift card?" in order to win!

Here are the prizes up for grabs:

TEN $10 Amazon gift cards

TWO sets of handmade jewelry from our kids' country
(Items pictured not available, but I will purchase more jewelry while in country, and you can choose from what I purchase. )

ONE more handmade doll before I travel to bring the kids home, then I'll probably never have time to sew again!
(These are the dolls I made for the kids before we travelled to meet them, and are only a sample of what you can choose.   Embroidery/monogramming is not available.)

 I've got other fundraisers coming, including another auction, but I didn't want to wait on this fundraiser anymore!  So, shop, give, and choose your blocks!  As soon as that court decree is in, there WILL be pictures behind the remaining tiles!  So, clear them now and you'll see their beautiful faces as soon as I can show them!