I Am A Mom Again!

This morning, Allison and I got up about 7AM, got ready and went down to breakfast. Blini are Russian pancakes and we were both craving them so we were very happy when they were on the buffet in the hotel restaurant. After many blini and some very strong coffee we set out to exchange some money. Across the street was a bank and the "Starbucks" coffee shop where we thought we could go and get a better cup of coffee. Bonus! But, no such luck as everything was closed. I get the bank not being open but, what coffee shop isn't open by 8:30 in the morning? I know. So, we headed back to our room to await the arrival of our children.
Dimitry had told us to be in our room by 10:00. So, by 9:45 Allison and I were getting pretty nervous and excited. We kept our door opened so we could hear for little footsteps and of course, with every sound of footsteps our ears were perked. 10:00, 10:01, 10:02, 10:10 no kids yet. 10:20 I hear little feet and little Russian voices talking down the hall.... It was them!
Grisha came running to me and gave me a big hug as I lavished him with kisses. What an awesome feeling to finally have him in my arms for good! No more leaving him at the orphanage! It was great! Nina came again, too. Which was awesome because I was hoping she would so I could thank her again and say one final goodbye.
After about 20 minutes, Dimitry came back and said we needed to go and get the children's passports and Nina would stay in the room with the kids. What? I just get him and I have to leave him again? Last time.
More details to come later. Check back
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Location:переулок,Moscow,Russia

Leaving as Two

So we left DTW airport at 1:45PM yesterday and had a connection at JFK airport. The anxious part was knowing once we landed we would only have about 45 minutes before our next flight left JFK. We arrived a few minutes early, thanks to the wind, but there was another plane at our gate. So we had to sit on the Tarmac which was supposed to be only a few minutes, but ended up being about 20! On top of that, our connection was at a different terminal of the airport. Aaaaahhhhhh!!!!

So after a bit of power walking we made it to the gate in time. Now the question was, "did our luggage make the connection?" 9 hours later we would find out.

Arrived at Moscow airport about 9 AM this morning (Moscow time, 1AM at home). Did not sleep at all on the plane one, because it's impossible for me to sleep sitting up and two, I had a terrible stress stomachache. Three, my back was killing me from doing yard work two days prior. Needless to say I was in rough shape. Anyway, went through Passport Control without a problem then retrieved our bags and met Natasha, Dimitry's wife. She was there to take the guys to the hotel and to help Allison and I get tickets for our flight later to Arkhangelsk. Just the two of us were flying there to retrieve the kids the next day and then fly back to Moscow. However, Natasha said there was an issue getting tickets for the kids and now there were no seats left because the flight was full. What that means is that we might be stuck in Arkhangelsk another night with the kids. Crap! Well that is yet to be determined as Dimitry was still going to try to get tickets.

Allison and my flight was not until around 3 and the guys couldn't check into the apartment until 2, so we hung out at the coffee bar at the airport. Then, we parted ways as Allison and I checked in for our flight.

We arrived in Arkhangelsk at around 5 PM, retrieved our luggage and met our driver. It was rainy and gloomy, and the traffic was horrendous but we finally arrived at our hotel at about 6. Dimitry was there and checked us in. We headed to the room for a quick cat nap and then bought a few snacks and drinks at the grocery store. Tomorrow the kids will arrive by train and will get to the hotel around 10 AM. I can't wait!

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Spoiled American

Yes. I admit it. I am a spoiled American. No offense to Russia but I cannot express how unbelievably relieved I am to be out of Russia. To be staying in a hotel with working elevators, air conditioning in the room, washcloths, more than one roll of toilet paper, a real shower with good water and best of all, A COMFORTABLE BED!
I think I only woke up twice last night versus 20 from back pain. The beds in the Hilton Garden Inn we are staying at even have adjustable, sleep number beds! The room was pitch dark with the curtains closed and there was no beeping cars, loud pedestrians or diesel smells. We had an awesome buffet breakfast this morning with food I was familiar with like scrambled eggs, toast, waffles, hash browns and BACON. Now we are just relaxing in the room waiting for our friend, Ina, to pick us up. Not some random driver who doesn't speak English.

I also must mention there was a bottle of champagne chilling, with a side of strawberries, waiting in the room when we checked in. A surprise from my wonderful husband! Yes, I am a spoiled American.


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Location:Frankfurt,Germany

It Rains Dirt in Russia

So now Ed and I are waiting for our flight to Frankfurt , Germany at the Schiphol Airport in Amsterdam. It is now a 2 hour time difference than Russia. My time clock is going to be so messed up when I get home.

I went for coffee this morning as I had planned. It had rained overnight and periodically in the morning and everything seemed to be covered in dirt therefore i think it must rain dirt in Russia. The streets and sidewalks always seem to be dirty but when it rains it is worse.

So, I ended up at a quaint coffeehouse ironically called "The Koffeehaus" and ordered a raspberry latte. Yum! There was no Internet in the cafe so I could not utilize one of my translation apps. I wanted to get a coffee to go to take to Ed, but I couldn't figure out how to say it. I did not see anyone come in and take a coffee to go so I was thinking maybe they didn't have takeout cups. I peeked behind the counter and didn't see any but I decided to try and ask the non English speaking waitress with some pieced together Russian words I knew. It failed. I even told her in my bad Russian that I speak bad Russian. She didn't even crack a smile. She just looked at me perturbed, like "what in the world did you just say?" so I resorted to just asking for my bill.

I walked around a town a bit and came across another restaurant in which I was able to get a coffee to go AND one of the waitresses spoke english. Bonus! Took my coffee to go and headed back to the hotel. Found a neat bookstore on the way and checked it out. The whole time I was in there a man, who I assume was security, kept watching me. He said something to me at one point, when I was trying to translate cards and find a "Happy Anniversary" one for Ed and I politely told him I didn't speak Russian in Russian. He gave me a weird look and continued to watch my every move. Even when I went into the back of the store in a room with kids books, he came to check on me. Creepy! I bought a math workbook, a Russian to English workbook and some Russian/English flash cards and left. I made my way back to the hotel, proceeded to pack up and then our driver came to take us to the airport for our flight to Amsterdam.

I am very much looking forward to being out of Russia and in Germany. Happy Anniversary to me and Ed!




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Location:Rinse Hofstraweg,Schiphol,The Netherlands

Back in St Petersburg

Phew!  What a trip!  I can't believe I am a mother again!  It is a bit bittersweet being that my son is on his way back to the orphanage and I am without him.  I keep telling myself he is just at camp with people he know and is comfortable with and who will take very good care of him.  Nothing better happen to him in the next 30 days that's all I've got to say.  We did not get the extended money back guarantee with him.  Just kidding.

So Ed and I arrived back in St Petersburg last night at about 7:30PM.  A driver was waiting for us and Allison when we got there and he drove us to our respective hotels, ours being the "Mini-Columb Hotel" again.  Ed and I chilled out at our hotel for a bit and then ventured out to grab a bite to eat.  We found a restaurant just down the road called "The Rock Inn" and I figured if it had an English title they might have a menu in english.  I was right.
 
We sat at the bar and the bartender, thank goodness, spoke english.  He offered us some beer made in St Petersburg.  It was pretty good.  I got the Beef Stroganoff over mashed potatoes and Ed got some sausages with Bbq sauce and onion rings.  The food was pretty good and they were playing an old Queen concert on the TV's that was good.  Ed proceeded to order some blini (thin pancakes or crepes) with sour cream, we paid the bill and left.

 Nothing much more exciting after that.  We went back to the hotel and I went to bed.

This morning, the hotel attendant, Valeri, prepared us a nice breakfast of fried eggs, bread with butter and jam, some yogurt, juice, coffee and a choco pie.  Seeing as we were staying in the "Mini-Columb Hotel" it was only us at breakfast.  I don't know if I mentioned this but the hotel only has six  guest rooms!

Veleri was leaving after her 24 HOUR shift (Ugh!) so I went to thank her for the breakfast and her hospitality and she said she had a gift for me.  She drew "The Little Prince" on a piece of paper and wrote a very nice message on the back telling us "you are doing a very good job.  Good luck! With best wishes, Valeri."  That was so sweet!

Now I am making an effort to catch up on the blog as Ed tries to catch some more zzzz's as he did not sleep last night. We have a late checkout so that we can just relax in the room as we need.  Later, we will be picked up and taken to the airport to catch our 5:45 flight to Germany!  Today is our 20th wedding anniversary!!  Wow!  We are celebrating with an extended trip to Germany and to visit our friend, Ina and her family.  I am excited!  It will be a nice distraction from the fact that we do not have Grisha with us.

So, I think I will venture out to find a nice cafe and get some coffee. 

 До свидания, пока! (Goodbye, for now!)

Day 2/Meltdown# 2

It was 9 A.M. when I heard a knock on the door. We were all still in bed. I answer it, in my pajamas, and it is Nina, and she has come to check on Grisha and have us join her for breakfast. Grisha and I get dressed and join Nina and the others for breakfast. Ed decided to sleep awhile longer as he did not really sleep last night.

After breakfast, we went back to the room to get Ed and headed out to get NEW SHOES! Because you see, the shoes he came with were two sizes too small! So, we had discovered a mall behind the hotel and headed there. Grisha took a whole two minutes to pick out the shoes he liked, a bright neon green pair with adjustable laces that didn't tie. Then, he saw a little stand selling trinkets and toys and he wanted to buy something with "his" money. I say "his" money because it was the change Ed and I would place on the dresser from our pockets and Grisha would then take and put in his pockets. So I tell him he can pick something and he tells the attendant what he wants. Ed and I had to laugh. He picked out a pair of glow -in -the -dark vampire teeth and fingernails. He paid for them with "his" money and immediately unwrapped them, put the teeth in and the fingernails on. It was hilarious!

Then, back on Ed's shoulders he went and back to the hotel we walked.

 

Allison and I had discovered a coffee shop across the street the night before, whose logo closely resembled Starbucks, that served great gourmet coffee. So we took the kids and went to get our caffeine fix. We were to meet Dimitry that morning to go over some paperwork and had him meet us at the coffee shop. While Allison was going over her paperwork I took Grisha for a walk. We walked to the park agin so he could play on the Jungle Gym. No bike stealing occurred this time.

There was a gentleman in the park that had battery run cars and motorcycles for kids to ride. He also had a bouncy house and some arcade games for kids. Grisha wanted to ride one of the motorcycles of course, so I bought him a ticket. He was allowed to ride it in the park until the battery died. Then, he wanted in the bouncy house and boy, can that kid flip! He was having so much fun showing off to me how he could flip. I was enjoying watching him so much! Then, of course, he wanted to ride the car, too.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ed found us and we walked towards the amusement park again. Out came the vampire teeth and fingernails again and onto Ed's shoulders he went.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

We still had tickets for the Ferris Wheel that I had bought the previous day, so we headed straight there. Here is Grisha on the ferris wheel.

 

He was a bit nervous I think when we started going up high. You can also see he has his fingernails on. LOL!

 

 

 

 

 

 

There was a great view of the sea at the top!

 

Next, Grisha wanted to go on the trampoline jump, in which the child jumps on a trampoline while in a harness. We go and get a ticket and wlk over to get in line. However, Grisha ran ahead and proceeds to go to the front of the line of about 10 kids. Ed goes to pull him from the front and lead him to the back of the line, but Grisha pulls away, runs and then throws another fit. Ed and I try to calm him and show him wat we want him to do, which is stand in line. But, Grisha wants nothing to do with us. I even go stand at the end of the line to show him but he refuses to do it and we must go back to the hotel once again. I am sure he does not really know the concept of waiting in a line, just trying to get what you want first, before any of the others.

The rest of the evening was pretty uneventful as we just chilled in the hotel, got some dinner and then hung out in Allison's room again. The kids played on the iPads, of course, and Ed and Jason went to get some beverages. When they came back, Dimitry was with them and had brought some Vodka and salmon. The salmon, he said, had just been caught the day before from the sea. The only thing is it was wrapped in some brown paper and I don't think it had been refrigerated. Yuck! I was NOT trying the salmon. Dimitry kept saying it was good and to try it. Ed risked it to please Dimitry but I just said I didnt like fish.

The vodka Dimitry brought was what he called "illegal" Russian vodka. Apparently it was very, very, very strong. Allison took one drink and said her lips felt numb. Yikes! I kept to the wine Ed and Jason had bought and the vodka was shared only between Ed and Dimitry. (Uh oh) What went on after that I won't tell, but let's just say Ed got the Russian to talk! AND drank him under the table! It was quite a scene! Mind you, the kids, Allison, and I were in the other room and didn't see what was going on, only hearing Dimitry getting louder and louder. Then, finally, Dimitry just stood up and said he was going to bed. Ha!

The end of day #2.

 

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Day1/Meltdown # 1

We all went to breakfast, then went to our rooms and as soon as we went to the room, Grisha was nosing in all of my bags. He figured there were presents! He was right! And even though I had things in different bags, he found everything I had brought for him. What a stinker! So he checked out his loot for about 5 minutes, then immediately wanted the iPad. Then, he was in heaven.


Later, after Ed and I took a nap, we went for a walk. We walked down the the street where we were told there was a park. We found it and Grisha played on the jungle gym apparatus with several other Russian children.

At one point, Grisha hops on a bike that a child had leaned against the gym, and takes off on it. Ed runs after him and lifts him up to get him off of the bike but, grisha won't let go of it. So i have to yank it out from his legs as several Russian mothers are looking on. (see pic below)

FYI -all Russian women commonly wear heels (very high) and dress fashionably like that.

So we leave the park and head towards a theater where there was a band playing outside and it looked like they were setting up for a concert, or festival, or something. There was a vendor selling toys and such so, of course, Grisha headed straight for it. I let him pick a toy car and he was happy.

We walked down along the river and ended up at a small amusement park. We came upon another vendor selling kids toys and trinkets and immediately, Grisha wanted something. Both Ed and I shook our heads, no, and Grisha immediately got angry and threw a fit. We hadn't even made it in to see any of the rides yet. In fact, right next door was a bumper car ride. I went to figure out how to get a ticket for the bumper cars while Ed stayed back watching Grisha throw his fit. I came back with the tickets and called to Grisha to come on the ride with me. Nope. He wasn't budging. After a few, when he realized he wasn't getting what he wanted, he started walking to me. We went on the bumper cars and then, Allison, Kirill and Jason found us. Grisha rode the cars again, this time with Allison.

After the bumper cars, Grisha and Kirill ran up ahead to a food tent. Grisha found a cooler with ice cream treats in it and wanted one. Again, Ed and I said no, and tried to interest him in another ride. Instead, he had another meltdown. He ran ahead again and found another vendor selling kids stuff. (They really know how to position these). He desperately wanted a Transformer toy, but we had to stick to our guns and say no. Well that put him over the edge and he was upset and yelling. Ed picked him up and began walking back to the hotel. Ed tried to put him down to walk but Grisha refused and laid down on the sidewalk. So, Ed had to carry him all the way back to the hotel which was about 1/2 a mile down the road.

After Grisha cooled down, which actually didn't take long, he was back to smiling and laughing. We hung out in Allison's room with her, Jason and Kirill and the boys played on our iPads while we visited. Later, Ed and Jason went to get dinner at a pizza place we discovered across the street. It was really good! We ate, we drank, we had a nice time.

 

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8:56 A.M.!!!

Sleep is wonderful when you can get it. I did not get much of it last night. The bed here sucks! I tossed and turned all night long because my back hurt. In fact, I overslept. I thought I had set my alarm on my iPad, but when I looked at the clock it said 8:56!!!!!! 4 minutes! until we are to meet the kids! Aaaah! Nice. Don't show up on time to see the child who's been neglected and abandoned by his parents. Good job, Carrie!

Woke Ed up and scrambled to make myself presentable and proceeded down to the lobby where Allison was already there along with Allison's friend Jason, Dimitry, Nina (orphanage co-director), Kirill (Allison's son to be) and GRISHA! Grisha immediately ran to me and gave me the biggest hug. Then, he jumped in Ed's arms. It was awesome!

 

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Medical exams

Today we had our physicals done at one of the state clinics. The process was like no other and really made me appreciate our modern medicine in USA. We were to be examined by eight different doctors we were told.
After Alex, our interpreter arrived, we were led to the director's office. There was a glass coffee table with snacks, tea and coffee on it along with chairs and a big couch aroundit. It was us, Allison (another adoptive parent), our interpreter Alex, the director, two other doctors and five other people that seemed to be together, all in the room. First, the director asked us a few questions while Alex translated. Then, the two doctors, a Cardiologist and a Pulmonologist, asked us questions in the same room with everyone else still present. Neither one of them examined us. They just asked questions like, "Do you have allergies? Have you ever had a cough? Have you had any communicable diseases?" etc. Then, we waited and had some tea and cookies while Allison was interviewed in the same room. Done. That was it. Two down, six to go.

Next, we waited until the next doctor was ready. Ed and I and Alex were led down the hall to another office. There was another doctor there, a Neurologist, and she told Ed and me to take our shirts off. As I am taking mine off, I notice the window with the blind open and a view to the outside. No problem. The Neurologist proceeded to perform a basic neuro exam checking our vision, strength, and reflexes. Wow! Then we were done and once again waited in the director's office.

Next, we were examined by an Oncologist and an Internal Medicine doctor both in the same room. Once again we were told to take our shirts off. The Internal Medicine Dr took our blood pressure and listened to our chest. The Oncologist told me to also take my bra off. She proceeded to give me a breast exam while I stood up with Ed, the other doc and Alex in the room! Can I just say,

Lastly, we were taken into the bowels of the clinic where lots of construction?/ renovation? Was going on. (see picture below)

This is where they kept the Psychologist. No shirts off here. Phew! He asked us several questions on our relationship, marriage, kids and parenting- pretty logical stuff here.

We went back to the Director's office where we were told to give the envelope with "the money.". This was to go to the Director and then she would stamp and sign all of our paperwork. A bribe? No comment.

Then, we were to pay the bill for each of the docs and we were off. What happened to the two other docs you ask, because we only saw six? When in Russia, don't ask questions.

Alex was gracious enough to accompany Ed and me for a few hours in St Petersburg. She took us to a quaint little restaurant that was known for their delicious meat/fish pies, which are a popular Russian dish. I had the whitefish pie upon Alex's recommendation and eventhough I was leary to have fish, it was very good.

Then Alex took us to a mall so I could get Grisha some Russian children books. And after that she showed us a beautiful church that I can't remember the name of it. Alex also has a regular job as a tour guide so she was in her element here explaining some history and culture of the church and of Russia. We went inside too, and below are the pics.

 

 

Alex got us a cab back to our hotel as my feet were quite sore and we relaxed until our driver came to pick Allison and us up to take us to the airport to fly to Arkhangelsk. We are going to see the boys!

 

We arrived at the hotel in Arkhangelsk at around eleven so exhausted, but eager to see the boys. Dimitry greeted us and helped us to check in. We were going to our room and asked where the boys were. But guess what? Dimitry said The boys were in bed asleep. Drats! As I was walking down the hallway I was thinking, "Grisha is in one of these rooms". I just wanted to call out his name to wake him up, so he would come out so I could give him a big kiss and hug! Oh well! Sigh. Dimitry told us to come to the lobby at 9 am tomorrow. It was probably for the best anyway since we were so tired with little sleep. We will wake up "fresh" tomorrow as well as the boys, and start the day off together. I can't wait!!! :)


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Rough night

Well it is 6 am here in St Petersburg and I am starving! Never did get up last night to grab a bite to eat. Was just too tired. Although, there has been quite a lot of happenings going on right outside the hotel. People were constantly walking by even late into the night and I could hear them talking and laughing. Then, there were the many cars that passed by and even a horse or two. Now, for the second time there is a diesel truck parked right outside that someone started about 30-45 minutes ago to "warm it up" I suppose. But really? It's been 45minutes of the grumbling motor that every so often sputters. Not to mention the diesel smell is wafting through the window and making me sick! What the hell! And this is the second time during the night! So needless to say, even though I was exhausted I really didn't sleep well. Oh well.


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On the plane

According to my iPad it is 2 am back home and we are an hour out from landing in Amsterdam. Which means the first 7 hour leg of our flight to Russia is almost over. I have probably slept no more than 45 minutes. Ugh! My right leg was restless and I had a stomachache so getting comfortable has been nearly impossible. I just can't wait to be able to lie down.

Later...
Flight from Amsterdam went without a hitch, then went thru passport control in Russia. No problems there either. Our translator, Valeria, met us at the airport with a driver and we drove to a bank to exchange money. In Russia it is around 5pm and all I can't wait to do is go to the hotel and go to bed. So, we arrive at the "Mini-hotel Columb" and from the outside you can't even tell it is a hotel. The entrance is a door after a few steps in the back.

The lobby is very small, too. There is bairly enough room for Ed, me, Valeria and the luggage. Guess that's where the hotel got its name.
Valeria helped us to check into our room since the clerk did not know English. We went to the room and I immediately crashed on the bed. Aaaaaah! Felt good to lay horizontal.
Eventhough I was getting hungry, I couldn't move from the bed. Figured I'd just sleep a bit and then maybe Ed and I could find someplace later. Goodnight! Finally!


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Nervous

I can't believe in about 19 hours I will be on the plane to Russia!


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Leaving in two days!

Wow!  I can't believe we are leaving in less than two days for Russia!  I have been anticipating it for so long now it just doesn't seem real.  Today, I was going thru paperwork we need to take and making a photo album.  Looking at all the pictures I have of Grisha made me smile.  The wonderful thing is almost all of the pictures I have of him, he is smiling in them.  He has such a great smile!  I can't wait to see it again in just a few days.  Found out today that he gets to stay with us for almost 4 days in Russia in the hotel! I don't know what we are gonna do, but I am excited to spend some time with him!  We received a new itinerary today because the clinic in Arkhangelsk is not able to do our medicals so, we must do them in St Petersburg.

.Aug.30 at 5:35 pm - arrival in St.PetersburgAccommodation at the mini-hotel Columb
Aug.31 around 7:15 am - pick up from the hotel, transfer to the medical clinic
Aug.31 at 8:00 am - medical exam will start (it will be over around 1:00 am or earlier)After medical exam you may do sightseeing with Alex (our guide-interpreter)
Aug.31 at 8:15 pm - take flight to Arkhangelsk
Sep.1 - stay with the child
Sep.2 - stay with the child
Sep.3 - get prepared for court
Sep.4 - court hearing
Sep.4 at 5:50 pm - take flight back to St.PetersburgAccommodation at the mini-hotel Columb
Sep.5 at 6:30 pm - depart from St.Petersburg (may do sightseeing before the flight)

We're coming, Grisha!   See ya soon!  Love, Mama

 

Itinerary

So here is our itinerary when we are in Russia:

Aug.30 any time - arrival in St.Petersburg or Moscow
Aug.31 in the morning - take flight to Arkhangelsk
Aug.31 - medical exam in ArkhangelskAug.31 in the evening - meet the child (the child will be escorted from the orphanage in Solvychegodsk to Arkhangelsk to your hotel room)
Sep.1 - stay with the child
Sep.2 - stay with the child
Sep.2 in the afternoon - the child will travel back to the orphanage
Sep.3 - get prepared for court
Sep.4 - court hearing
Sep.4 in the evening - may take flight back to St.Petersburg
Sep.5 - may depart from St.Petersburg/Moscow or stay for another day or two to do sightseeing

I am so excited Grisha gets to stay with us for two days!

Now just need to book our flights! :)

Got our Court Date!

Yippee!!!  September 4th is the court date!  So excited!  Now just waiting on Marianna, the representative in Russia to email us our itinerary so we know when we need to book our flights.  Can't believe this is finally happening!  Whew!

Update

Got some news yesterday that they are working on getting us a court date at the end of August. If that happens we will be bringing Grisha home at end of September or early October. :). Applied for our visas today so that we will have those in plenty of time and save a little money. Will hopefully hear by end of this week or next week on our exact court date. Can't help but be excited!


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Off to Columbus Again

Well, I am making another trip to our capital to apostille some more paperwork. I pray this is it! Once these final papers make it to the adoption agency, they will be on their way to Russia where they will need to be translated. That may take a couple of weeks. Then they will be sent on to the Ministry of Education. He, or she, has up to 10 days to review the papers and request any other paperwork. If all is acceptable, a court date will be set for the hearing for the adoption!


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So Very, Very, Very, Frustrated!!!

Today, got several emails clarifying the "extra" paperwork that is needed.  It seems Ed and I have to have some blood tests, Xrays and EKG done.  We also will need to have a medical exam done in  Russia which is $856 per person.  Great!  Also, both Zach and Jake need to write personal letters giving their blessing on the adoption and state how they will help Grisha transition when he comes home.  And, lastly,  Ed and I have to write letters.  Really?  What more?

The agency also said that July is pretty slim for getting any court dates, so August would be more likely.  That is, if we get all this to them.  Plus, Ed and my physicals are only good for three months, which would be at the end of August.  If we don't get a court date by then we have to redo our physicals.  Cha Ching!

So Very, Very, Frustrated!

Drove to Wauseon.  Got the notary "authenticated."  Drove back home and prepared the papers to send to Columbus by way of Express Mail.  Oops!  Just saw the postman drive by so now I will have to run this up to the post office once I get it ready. 

Ok.  Express mail envelope ($17.95) with papers for Columbus, return envelope ($20.45) and check for apostilling ($40.00) inside taken to post office to be sent.

45 minutes later:  
Just got a call from the adoption agency.  I just want to throw up.  It seems there is more paperwork!!
I cannot believe this!!!  I thought I was done!  Now, I have more papers to get notarized and apostilled which will require another Express mailing ($17.95) with return envelope $20.45)!  Not to mention the fee to get these papers apostilled.  I wouldn't have sent the paperwork I just did and saved a little money at least.

I am so upset and can't believe this!

 Reminding myself it is all worth it in the end.
 

So Very Frustrated!!!

Today drove downtown to the courthouse to get the new marriage certificates and visit the Lucas County Clerk of Courts.  Had to wait a little bit to get the marriage licenses but, no big deal,  I am a patient person.  Went down the hall to the Clerk of Courts to authenticate the notary and the notary was not listed with Lucas County.  What?  So, I called the person at the Whitehouse Administration building who did the notarizing and she said her notary is from Fulton County (Wauseon)!  No big deal, right.  It got to be too late to go today, so I will venture to Wauseon tomorrow and be done with this!

Happy Birthday, Grisha!

Today our little boy turns 8! I am sad I will not be spending it with him. :(. Hopefully, he will get the email I sent and his gift should arrive at some point, also. I can't wait to throw him a big party next year!

Road Trip to Columbus

So, yesterday was a road trip to Columbus.  Why? You ask.  Well, I finally finished up our side of the paperwork which was getting our physicals, completing a financial statement, completing a proof of housing statement, and obtaining certified copies of our marriage license.  Once these were obtained or completed, each piece of paper had to be notorized.  Then, they must be apostilled.  What?  I know.  Never heard that word before either.  Basically, eventhough the papers are notarized by someone official who is certified to notarize, the notary has to be proven official by the state the notary is from.  Huh?  This requires sending the papers to the Secretary of State (in Columbus) or presenting them in person and they attach a piece of paper to the document saying it is apostilled.  I chose the latter because I prefer to hand them to a person and receive them back to me versus trusting the mail or Fedex.  So, yesterday was such road trip to Columbus.

My dad came with me on the trip which was nice for company and for having an extra driver (I had him drive us back).  We made a visit to my cousin, Rena, who lives in northeast Columbus.  She has an 8 month old daughter, River, that I was excited to see, also. 

One glitch -A couple of the papers I had notarized by my adoption lawyer who has a notary stamp that never expires.  The other papers I had notarized by a notary at the Whitehouse Village Administrative building because it was close and convenient and they needed to complete the proof of housing form.  That notary stamp has an expiration though so, there is another step required before apostilling (your guess is as good as mine as to how to pronounce it).  I needed to verify or "authenticate" that notary at the County Clerk of Courts from which it was received.  Ugggghhhh???!!!!
Second glitch-Not only that but, my copies of my marriage certificate was not signed by the correct person, so I needed to get new ones.  Aaaaaahhhh!!!!!

Ok.  After researching where the Lucas County Clerk of Courts office is I discover it's in the same building I need to go to get my marriage certificate.  Yea! 
So, Monday I plan on getting both done and then Express mailing them to Columbus.  Yikes!  I know.  I said I didn't trust the post office but $17.95 is a bit cheaper than driving back to Columbus.  And things just keep adding up!

To be continued Monday.....

Catherine Palace

Thursday, April 27th

Today we had about four hours before we had to be at the airport so we hired a tour guide through the adoption agency and went on a tour of Catherine Palace.  It was a gift to Catherine from her husband, Peter the Great.  It was beautiful!  I cannot believe the richness of the decor with silk wall coverings, porcelain vases, parlayed floors and gold everywhere.  Meanwhile, the rest of the surrounding neighborhood and country is dirt poor.  Our tour guide was Toli, and he had been a political history professor by trade and was very knowledgeable about the history of Russia.  Ed loves history and politics so he enjoyed talking with Toli.  I am not so interested in such things so I just enjoyed the sights.

the spires are where the church was located

one of the ceilings

porcelain vases that were gifted

handcarved wood trim

The Great Hall (ballroom)

notice the guilded wall carvings

inlaid parquet floor

restored original ceiling painting

another ceiling painting

porcelain fireplace (these were in just about every room)

ceiling with original paintings

view of the servant's residence

hand carved out of mahogoney

made of crushed red rubies

made of crushes emeralds

silk wall covering

The Green dining room

silk wall covering

fireplace

a bedroom

Study of Alexander I

Ed, Toli, me

The Hermitage Pavilion

a bride (several weddings were happening that day)