And then, a bed, and a couple of puzzles, and febreze, and dried soup, and detergent sheets.

I want to pack.  Pack, pack, pack.  So I started getting travel items at Target and the dollar store.  We're trying to keep it cheap and light (we've been warned about hauling luggage here and there and everywhere with no ramps, often to fifth floor apartments--nary an elevator in sight--um, see how challenging this country is for people in wheelchairs?  Mind you, I understand they have been in an economic mess for 20 years if not more, but it does underline one reason why we are going there.

Did you know you could buy detergent sheets--throw in a sheet in a washer (or a sink of water) with clothes and there is your soap?  Pretty darn cool.  And yes, you can buy detergent in Alex's home country.  It's just that everything apparently costs about the same as it does here, so it makes sense to go ahead and pack a few things you know you'll need anyway.  And we'll be on the move a bit (capital, region, capital again)...liquid detergent doesn't travel well.

Jerry went out and bought a new mattress today, to fit under Ben's loft, on top of a bedframe.  It looks very nice, is easy enough to access, and I think it will be pleasant for him.  We transferred our 2 yr old to his sisters' room for now--which he really likes.  He's pretty attached to everyone, but his 6 yr old sister is special in some ways, the closest to him in age.

With a friend's help, we did a deep cleaning of the kitchen today...and got halfway through.  Sigh.

Spring cleaning, making room, considering what to pack...could a travel date be too far ahead?

Have a blessed Holy Week everyone!
--Susan

Making a place for Alex

Lately we have been busy physically rearranging the house to make room for Alex. Here is the larger dining room table that we picked up at a local thrift shop, thanks to the tip of a neighbor:

Our old table sat six. This one seats eight comfortably, ten in a pinch, and twelve if we put in benches. So, theoretically, we could adopt six more kids! Just kidding.

I spent last weekend rearranging the kids' rooms (for the umpteenth time). These are SMALL rooms, so rearranging the furniture in such a way as to accommodate one more child posed significant challenges. I think I spent more than an hour just trying to figure out the geometry of the girls' room (where our two-year-old will now sleep)...trying all sorts of configurations with no luck. It's difficult when you don't want the kids' beds up against the windows, blocking the air vent, or blocking the doors. My exasperated prayer: "Would it be asking too much for You to bend the laws of geometry a little here?" Yeah, that didn't happen, but I was inspired to a new solution that I hadn't thought of before. (Toddler's bed and girls' bunkbed smashed together in the middle of the room...not elegant, not pretty, but it works.) The space for Alex's bed is all set up, too, under our eleven-year-old son's loft. Sometime in the next week or two we will be running to the store to get a mattress for him. He already has a beautiful blue and white blanket, knit by my aunt (she has knit blankets for all the kids).

What else do we need? We do not need carpentry help at the moment; we are waiting to see Alex's situation to determine whether we will need to install a ramp. We will need clothes, but we are holding off on asking for old clothes until we know how big he is. I think our most pressing material need is CHAIRS  to go with that table. Our current chairs are literally falling apart. Again, we're asking people to simply keep their eyes open for a set of used chairs in good condition -- we will buy them, we just need all your eyes to help us look! (I'm referring to Winona people, here, obviously!)

Of course, we also need continued prayers for Alex's safety and the process to move along quickly. At this point, we could be traveling in a month...or in two months...and the way things have gone lately, it seems more likely to be on the long side. One of our concerns is getting Alex home soon enough to provide him with a few months of adjustment time before beginning school in the fall. I think I will continue fasting until we meet Alex -- perhaps we can break my fast with a shared piece of Ukrainian chocolate? Or five, given my appetite for chocolate.

Please also pray for our two-year-old, who is going through that clingy stage of toddlerhood -- having lots of difficulty separating, even with people he knows. It sits heavy on my heart to think of leaving him for three or four weeks...the other kids, too, but he won't understand what's going on at all.

Thanks, everyone!

Jerry

Dossier submitted

It's March 29th...do you know what that means?

Dossier submitted!  It's done!

Next step: they approve and register the dossier  (prayers, y'all!).  Then, in a few days, they issue an appointment in Alex's capital city for a referral.  And we buy tickets and kick into high gear.

The timeline for all this from this point out is 5-9 weeks, and I would err on the late side.  The wheels of their govt process have been grinding VERY slowly since they reorganized.  Others before us have taken 8-9 weeks from this point, although maybe it could be faster if the agency gets caught up on their backlog of paperwork.

Peace, Susan

Quick update

Just so everyone knows...the dossier is going to be submitted to Alex's home country government next Thursday, March 29th. Not today. :-( But next Thursday is a sure thing!

More later....

Blog going private again

Hello, everyone. It's been recommended we put this blog on private very soon, for reasons that have nothing to do with Alex, but a couple of situations in his country. If you were reading the blog before when we went private, you'll still be able to do that (although you may have to sign in). If you were out of the loop, just send us your email and we can add you as a reader. We will add anyone we know.

Send your email address to:

The Jeopardy Theme Song

You know it, right? The one they play when you're waiting?

It's our background score these days. We're waiting--for any more news if possible about Alex's institution, about the special needs list getting registered, March 29th (the dossier submission date) if noting else works...waiting about everything, it feels like.

In the meantime, we're building beds...one from a kit (for our littlest) and one connected to our oldest's loft (for Alex). Jerry is assiduously learning Russian, and I just feel stupider and stupider at it.

Jerry is still fasting from sweets and desserts, and says that continues until we hear good news about Alex. We're all praying.

We're making sure we're techno-outfitted there so we can be in contact with home folks, and can use Google Translate English-Russian when need be. Haven't bought anything yet.

I'm planning to start packing (I kid you not) this week--why not, is my feeling, and when we do get a travel date, a lot of things happen fast.

I have to admit, we're just tired at this point and are trying to put things in order, enjoy some time with our kids, stay sane. It helps that we got news that Alex is in a somewhat better institution than we had feared, although we still don't know much at all. It feels a bit surreal. But we'll continue to wait.

Thanks for your support, everyone.

Peace, Susan

News about Alex's institution

The team in Alex's country confirmed today that he is in the same institution as another child listed on Reece;s Rainbow, and that child's description offers a little more information on the institution:

Laurel has arthrogryposis — and look at that beautiful smile!
She’s already 15 years old, and has less than 6 months (from January 2012) to be adopted, or she loses all hope for a future.
Laurel is blessed to be in a very good older child orphanage for those with mostly physical disabilities.  Her orphanage has been supported by many humanitarian aid groups, and offers child sponsorship programs and trips for these children.  Laurel does face transfer to an adult mental institution SOON, and at 16 she will no longer legally be able to be adopted at all. We simply can not let this happen to her.
Our facilitation team has met Laurel…she is very smart and friendly, and she SO wants a family of her own.  Laurel is in a region which often waives the 10 day waiting period! 

 So, based on this description, and the picture (bed in background, etc.), it sounds like Alex is one of the better institutions. Thank goodness.


No other news, no movement on the travel date. Please continue to pray for Alex...and pray for Laurel, too, okay? That girl really needs a family.

We hope...God's word for Alex.

Interestingly enough, this verse was also prominent at our wedding--the one song we really wanted sung was John Foley's "A Song of Hope," based on this scripture.

*****

In a related note, Reece's Rainbow is running their "21 Days of Hope" campaign right now.  This three week campaign funds the running of the organization--which truly operates on a shoestring--and has helped place 650 special needs children in families in a mere 5.5 years, growing every year.  If it weren't for them, the people running these orphanages wouldn't be seeing people seeing post-adoption pictures of these children thriving.  They wouldn't be seeing adoptive parents tearing up with joy at the first sight of their children.  They wouldn't have begun thinking "maybe there is a better way."  Reece's Rainbow is not connected with a particular church or institution--this began as a labor of love and justice by a mom of a child with Down Syndrome, who saw the need for special needs adoption advocacy, especially internationally.  RR says if everyone who supported them offered $21, they would be funded for the entire year.  I encourage you all to give, even if it is only $5, to help them out.  They have been incredibly helpful to us in the process.  And if it weren't for them, we wouldn't know about Alex.