tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-61003249203538017512012-01-20T11:33:55.837-08:00Our journey to Russia to find our daughter and bring her homeJaninehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.comBlogger1121100tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-36162532037126798602010-06-05T10:59:00.000-07:002011-01-30T20:45:44.171-08:00

What do you get when you give your children some old kitchen utensils and pans?  Why mudpies of course!!  What a blast they had! Kept them busy all day.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-80450492926815501042010-06-02T22:09:00.000-07:002011-01-29T10:51:42.024-08:00

We spent our Memorial week down South visiting the famous mouse that resides in the Happiest place on Earth.  It's always such a treat to be there.  The kids really enjoyed themselves and Emily especially is quite taken with all the Disney characters but there is one in particular that she loves... Minnie Mouse.  She loved seeing her so much that she got back in line again just to see her one

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-24711345252422887082010-04-15T11:00:00.000-07:002011-01-29T10:49:35.576-08:00

*Important Update: Adoptions are still continuing between Russia and the United States.  This post was written when it looked as if Russia was suspending/possibly closing all adoptions to US families.   I am the proud mother to three children, one of which would not be possible without the help of the US and Russia.  It is through adoption that our daughter is a part of our family.  We love her

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-74241720042785998672010-04-13T14:03:00.000-07:002010-04-14T22:31:54.622-07:00

I received the following letter from my adoption/placing agency from the Joint Council on International Children's Services (JCICS) regarding the recent horrific actions of one American family to abandon and send their Russian born child back to Moscow all alone.  They are asking for immediate help from any and all people tied to the adoption community to help save intercountry adoptions.  You do

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-85702696319407604392010-04-12T19:47:00.000-07:002010-04-12T19:50:28.831-07:00

These pictures were taken a few weeks back at school and are a little blurry.   Emily loves to swing and is enjoying a few moments in the sun on the tire swing. Such sweet moments of childhood.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-64493033732937532762010-04-09T21:12:00.000-07:002010-04-09T21:16:50.062-07:00

Emily had her first birthday party with friends.  Her friends from her school class, a few close family friends and family also celebrated with Emily.  It was a fun day of painting, bubbles, birthday cupcakes, presents and smiles.                    You go Girl! We love you!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-86717980822911172982010-04-09T20:13:00.000-07:002010-04-09T21:35:17.848-07:00

My little girl is growing so fast right before my eyes!!!  Can you believe Emily has been home for almost 2 years now?  Wow! What is Emily like at 3?  Well...she is a little ham. She has such expressive facial features, loves to be so silly and is constantly talking from sun up till sun down.   She especially loves to talk to her little fairies at our nature table, take good care of her baby

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-13617402575285602442009-10-08T16:14:00.000-07:002009-10-14T22:49:17.523-07:00

Emily started school in the fall just like her brothers. She goes one day a week to Mtn School with mommy. She is in class with 11 0ther 2 and 3 year old children. Emily is loving her school and asks every day if it's her day to go to Mtn School. In the fall and spring Mtn School meets outdoors at various locations. Currently we are meeting in a redwood grove that has a creek and a sandbox. The

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-35249060829459556112009-09-19T22:49:00.000-07:002009-09-19T23:41:18.472-07:00

Well, it looks like I took a little time off. All is well, just had a busy and fun summer. Lots to catch up on. Here is a quick photo series of my silly kids this evening.For fun..here is a look at a photo series I took a little over a year ago. Oh..so little and oh so cute! Hard to believe how fast they grow!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-22365168348197362512009-06-25T20:02:00.000-07:002009-06-25T20:28:27.986-07:00

Back in Feb 2008 I was desperately trying to get a response to what happened to my I-600A. It had been sent in completed 6 months prior and I couldn't get anyone at Homeland Security to respond to me. In desperation, I sent off many emails to my local homeland security office in charge of adoptions inquiring desperately about why I hadn't received my 171-H yet. We were told we would most

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-51448574096822194872009-06-25T18:52:00.000-07:002009-06-25T19:25:09.371-07:00

Oh sweet goodness! My little baby girl has been in big girl undies the past few weeks and has had no accidents the past 4 days in a row. We have been on the go...parks, carpooling to camps, grocery store runs, restaurants, swim lessons...she has used the potty successfully everywhere we have been. She is so proud of herself and loves wearing her big girl undies. It's amazing..it's like it just

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-30781604613391776742009-06-04T17:42:00.000-07:002009-06-04T19:59:02.716-07:00

We are still here! Just been so busy with the end of the school year stuff!! Little miss smiley is still keeping me on my toes. She continues to grow and amaze us. Her little personality is not so little! She is full of smiles and sillyness. She likes girly stuff but is also my sporty tom girl..totally into climbing, riding her scooter and bugs! And she is fast too! Full on sprints, totally

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-44372658860832173822009-04-21T17:16:00.003-07:002009-04-21T17:42:30.705-07:00

One year ago today a judge helped us to expand our family to include a beautiful little girl!!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-35102016560891355572009-04-18T21:54:00.000-07:002009-04-19T00:47:55.607-07:00

My little girl turned 2 and suddenly it just feels like she's growing up faster. Where's my little baby? It's hard when it's your last and you know this is your last everything...last baby toddling, drinking from a bottle, wearing the little clothes, sleeping in a crib, etc. So everything she does or outgrows I can't help but feel a brief sigh of sadness. Now, on the flip side, she really is at a

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-85003339259479003472009-04-13T22:23:00.000-07:002009-04-13T23:26:42.587-07:00

I had a wonderful birthday spent at the beach. My hubby made me a cake and with help from the family kept an eye on the kids so I could have the day off to relax. My mom bought me my favorite flowers, pink tulips and made me my favorite dinner...TACOS!! And there were presents too! What a wonderful birthday! My oldest loves tacos just as much as me.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-47911418183907966302009-04-12T18:18:00.000-07:002009-04-13T22:11:21.933-07:00

What a busy month I've had! I'm only now getting caught up on blogging due to a small reprieve of having one child out of school this week. I'm so looking forward to the end of May! My workload will slow way down then and my sanity can return too. Life has just been way too busy right now. Just hanging on and trying to enjoy the ride!Let's start with Easter! We spent a few days at the beach

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-38201710466415796332009-03-16T21:27:00.000-07:002009-03-16T23:26:06.397-07:00

It's hard to believe that just one year ago we were in Russia this week meeting our daughter for the very first time. I can still easily recall almost every moment of that trip. All of the feelings I felt...the rush of excitement, wonder, awe, fear, total joy, amazement, worry and sadness. All those intense heightened feelings all jumbled up inside mixed in with the unfamiliar language, unique

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-10059646480638563162009-03-05T16:14:00.000-08:002009-03-05T17:10:20.388-08:00

Two years ago today in St. Petersburg, Russia, our daughter was born.She weighed 6 lbs 9 oz and was 19.2 inches long.She was beautiful and perfect in every way.How I wish I could have been there! Happy 2nd Birthday our dear Emily! We love you! Before school this morning we had a breakfast celebration of cheesey scrambled eggs, yogurt, milk, strawberries and

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-4343173175061852402009-03-03T21:54:00.001-08:002009-03-03T22:20:27.974-08:00

We have had quite the rainy day weather this past week and to top it off I have been house bound with 3 sick kids and 1 sick hubby who reappears at the end of each day. Since the kids have been too sick for school we have been home having a pajama day as Bubba likes to call it. For the most part they have had more energy today. Yesterday was more of a snuggly hold me kind of day which gets a

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-3435825356436784712009-03-03T19:13:00.000-08:002009-03-03T20:56:46.788-08:00

We left the day after Valentine's Day for Disney so I didn't get to share our Valentine's pics. Making Valentines a few days before...For Valentine's morning we enjoyed a yummy breakfast of chocolate chip pancakes and whip cream. The kids found a little kitty cat at their place setting awaiting them. They are so in to cats. Of course we have 2

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-40912335814503900142009-02-21T18:39:00.001-08:002009-03-03T19:11:08.132-08:00

We are home, the bags are unpacked and laundry has been washed and put away. It's always nice to be home especially after being on the road with 3 little ones for 7 hours and hearing every half hour a combo of how many more miles to go and are we home yet. Ugh! It was a long, long drive but it was worth it. Although next time I think I would take the hastle of flying just to save myself a half

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-23782495631799693022009-02-17T23:48:00.001-08:002009-02-25T16:54:54.405-08:00

Need another hint? I think you've got it figured out now, but just in case... We are in Disneyland! The first day here, we had on and off showers but as you can see, it didn't slow us

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-66113967313191918792009-02-10T20:45:00.000-08:002009-02-10T23:51:47.572-08:00

It's hard to get anything done. Where does the day go? I find myself wondering how I'm going to accomplish the oodles of stuff that is just hanging over my head. I'm not panicking yet but I know it's looming ahead.What happens in just one day. Here's a look at just today...5am--I'm up and make 4 lunches and begin to get breakfast ready. I pack Bubba's backpack, set out all the jackets, hats and

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-54174539994090722732009-02-06T01:06:00.000-08:002009-02-06T01:37:27.871-08:00

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-82513324799865524612009-02-01T15:14:00.000-08:002009-02-06T00:34:07.649-08:00

Where does the time go? Can you believe we are 2 months into the new year already? Can you believe I'm still posting about Christmas? This is the last post, I promise. I have been so tired at night that after putting the kids to bed, after getting all the chores done and getting ready for the next day I've been crashing much earlier than usual. I have missed posting. Hopefully, I can get back

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-54807058387535348302009-01-07T22:11:00.000-08:002009-01-07T23:23:00.584-08:00

Making Gingerbread CookiesThe simple recipe we used...1/2 c margarine1/2 c sugar1/2 c molasses1 egg yolk2 cups sifted all purpose flour1/2 tsp salt1/2 tsp baking powder1/2 tsp baking soda1/2 tsp ground cinnamon1/2 tsp ground cloves 1 tsp ginger1/2 tsp ground nutmegIn a large bowl, cream together the margarine and sugar until smooth. Stir in molasses and egg yolk. Combine the flour, salt, baking

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-43054624730289113772008-12-30T09:53:00.000-08:002008-12-30T23:49:34.389-08:00

Here's the 2nd installment...Meeting SantaI'm kind of a traditions girl. Every year since Boy Wonder was a baby we have taken the kids to see Santa. The funny thing is that for each boy their second Christmas when they were around 20 months they refused to sit with Santa so I have no photo of them that year. So...I was wondering how would Emily do. Would she too not sit with Santa being that this

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-51290071255786451922008-12-27T11:02:00.000-08:002008-12-28T09:03:03.219-08:00

I've been so busy this month with school and all of the Holidays that I haven't had a chance to post in a long while. I'm going to try and do a series of posts on our holidays.Here is a little of what we've been upto...Our version of a white Christmas. It's been so cold here this month that our backyard almost looks like it got a dusting of snow.Emily's First Christmas TreeThere's a Christmas

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-31007387524630701922008-11-26T21:39:00.000-08:002008-11-27T01:16:25.174-08:00

Emily...20 months old...How I love my amazing little girl! Everyday we talk about how much her family loves her. I will start and say, "Mama loves you Emily." And then she will say..."Dadda?" And I will say.."Dadda loves Emily." And she will say "Bubba?" And then I will say "Bubba loves Emily." And then she will say her other brother's name (BW). And then MuMu? (nickname for our littlest dog

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-5158219628905391532008-11-24T23:08:00.000-08:002008-11-24T23:52:42.502-08:00

I'm excited about a new find!! I'm a toy nut! I'm always on the hunt for new and imaginative toys that are age appropriate, well designed and of course fun! Dolls have become a small obsession for me. Gee..I wonder why? Well anyways..I'm not really a fan of Barbie for about a zillion reasons and she really is more tame than some of the other very scary role model dolls that are on the market

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-2625803626697929812008-11-23T22:36:00.000-08:002008-11-23T23:40:41.717-08:00

In Bubba's 3's class the children planted wheat berries in a jack-o-lantern they named Hairy and set him in the garden. Each time the kids come to school they water Hairy and watch the grass grow and the pumpkin decompose back into the earth. Each child was given a packet of wheat berries to take home. It was a fun experiment at school so we decided to give it a try at home. We chose 2 of our

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-41357495638812302022008-11-13T22:51:00.000-08:002008-11-20T00:15:01.634-08:00

An update: November 19th... Bethany and Kyle have arrived home today with their beautiful little girl. They are settling in. I'm anxiously awaiting homecoming photos of the entire family.Adrienne and Jim have had a complication arise in their adoption. The birth mother has chosen at this time to raise her child. My heart goes out to Adrienne and Jim. I'm so very sad for them as I know how very

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-20062214719414361912008-11-09T23:01:00.000-08:002008-11-10T00:12:03.711-08:00

Emily has 2 older brothers. She adores her brothers. She is also very interested in what they do. Bubba loves his Disney Cars and plays with them every day. Bubba is away today with daddy. Emily found Bubba's stash of cars and decided to give them a try. She drug them all over to me. She seems very interested...I love that she picked the pink car. :-)It takes a little while to get the cars in the

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-82982479368895671862008-11-02T22:06:00.000-08:002008-11-02T23:07:35.536-08:00

I just love Halloween!! We had a fun filled day and evening trick or treating. In the morning our little downtown, hands out treats to all the children. The block is covered in thousands of small children..babies to preschoolers in costumes. We dropped off BW at school. (He had a fun day at school enjoying a parade and party.) That gave Bubba, Emily and I time to meet up with my sister and her

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-70787218886857113732008-10-29T23:39:00.000-07:002008-10-30T14:18:44.332-07:00

Every year since BW was born we have been visiting a pumpkin patch and taking pictures of our kiddos in their costumes. A little bit of a tradition you might say.We stumbled upon this pumpkin patch 3 years ago and have made it our yearly pilgrimage. It's more like a pumpkin amusement park. Every year the farm adds more and more attractions. Besides buying pumpkins, indian corn, hay bundles, etc,

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-70723996577520038592008-10-05T14:49:00.000-07:002008-10-05T21:20:37.690-07:00

I've been tagged by Angie at http://www.tofindadaughter.blogspot.com/. So...six random things about me. That's pretty hard. Let's see what I can come up with...1. I like to see and do new things. I keep a list of all places I want to visit in our file cabinet. Basically I want to see everywhere. I especially want to do a road trip with the kids when they get a little older and see every state in

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-84485546312357458242008-10-01T20:53:00.000-07:002008-10-03T23:43:27.479-07:00

Time is flying!! My little baby is looking more and more like a little toddler. She is 18 months old now.We had our first post placement home visit today with the same social worker that helped us through our homestudy. It was fun to see her again and show off all of our hard work. She was quite taken with Emily. Since we were asked so many progress questions today I thought I would take a moment

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-36114897409039685262008-09-24T14:53:00.000-07:002008-09-24T15:06:54.886-07:00

Bethany and Kyle are in St. Pete right now and have met their baby girl! She is beautiful!It sounds like they are having a wonderful first trip. The memories just come flooding back! She is blogging while abroad. Go on over and read all about their first trip and see their beautiful daughter!http://www.dreamingonanangel.blogspot.com/

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-27535740236101854342008-09-12T17:22:00.000-07:002008-09-13T01:24:31.220-07:00

My baby girl is now 18 months old...and she is a mama's girl all the way. How sweet that feels!As we quickly approach our 1st post placement report I can't help but reminisce over the past 6 months that we have known our daughter. She has changed so much from that independent 12 month baby we first met in the baby home to such a loving and feisty 18 month old. There is not a day that goes by that

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-48248381921017242602008-08-28T00:31:00.001-07:002008-08-28T14:54:21.157-07:00

I must be seeing stars!! These two just crack me up. Bubba wanted no part in this.PS..We just got back from her follow up doctor's appt and Emily is now up to date on her immunizations and has gained 1 more pd!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-21575991620158184862008-08-18T22:27:00.000-07:002008-08-19T15:20:13.792-07:00

Such a little personality this one has. Emily tries to put everything in her mouth. Right before this series of photos she was drinking off one of the cups of water. I told her not to put it in her mouth because it was dirty. These are the toys from the sandbox. So here she is splashing the water and trying to catch it in her mouth instead. Such a funny little smartie pants.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-25482025208284258982008-08-08T15:27:00.000-07:002008-08-08T17:10:27.772-07:00

Meet a very special family. Bethany and her husband Kyle and their 2 children Mason and Payton. Bethany and Kyle are adopting a little girl from St. Petersburg, Russia. The same city that Emily came home from!! The little girl they are adopting has Down Syndrome. It is a difficult road ahead for any orphaned child living in Eastern Europe. Now if that orphan child has a disablility like

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-39956456185628226692008-08-07T14:44:00.000-07:002008-08-07T15:20:51.054-07:00

We celebrated our 8th anniversary on July 15th. We decided it would be fun to celebrate the big day in Monterey by the sea. We took the boys to their swim lessons first. We then had a picnic afterwards on the lawn, changed our clothes and made the trek to Monterey. We decided to stop at the Dennis the Menace Park for a fun few hours of climbing on trains and riding crazy slides and playing in

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-21376108707443725542008-08-05T18:47:00.000-07:002008-08-08T00:14:37.803-07:00

It's really hard to believe Emily has been home just a little over 3 months now. She has grown in so many ways since that time. In the baby home we could see her true self but it was like her light would dim and we would have to work really hard to get her to light back up. Since she's been home it's like she's a shiny bright light all the time. We just can't believe how comfortable she has

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-88112763106949987582008-07-20T00:57:00.001-07:002008-07-20T01:40:32.605-07:00

We spent a week at the beach earlier this month with family. It was a great week. Emily and all the boys had a blast! We even had a bonfire on the beach and roasted marshmellows on the 4th and listened to the fireworks. It was a great way to celebrate Emily's first 4th of July. She turned 16 months that week. Here are the highlights:

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-50235995436466600562008-07-14T16:26:00.000-07:002008-07-14T23:33:02.305-07:00

I've recently had the chance to begin again getting caught up on blogs. Something I have really missed. A lot of topics that seem to be echoing each other concern transitioning into the home and keeping it real with stories and feelings... more kind of reality stuff rather than cute fluff. Since I do tend to post more cute fluff I feel a little guilty in the AP/PAP (adoptive parent/potential

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-79279894485175817922008-07-11T16:36:00.000-07:002008-07-11T17:35:51.283-07:00

Who said you had to have girls to play dress-up?What a fun surprise. We recently received a box of dress up clothes that had been out on loan in the 'hood. Their reappearance made for a fun afternoon for the kids. Thanks neighbor!! My oldest especially had a great time. Aren't they so pretty?

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-11844295938324746082008-06-15T22:10:00.000-07:002008-06-15T23:34:59.082-07:00

Hope you had a very nice Father's Day today! We took it easy and relaxed at home. I've still got that sore throat...I'm finally heading in to the doctor's this week.Here's a few photos from our day...Daddy and his kids... I couldn't resist a few more photos of Emily... Emily is really getting into dress-up. She can put on hats and glasses pretty easily. She then runs over and checks herself out

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-4256634026001578182008-06-11T23:48:00.000-07:002008-06-12T01:16:49.813-07:00

It's been awhile since I've posted. I've been sick this past week and a half and I'm just now getting back on my feet. Sick in June? Yeah..real funny. Funny thing is the only trip I made outside of the house the week I got sick was to the grocery store...hmmm. I swear I used wipes on my hands and put a cover on the cart for Emily to ride in. Unfortunately, Emily also caught the bug. Bubba was the

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-16748213386414507642008-05-28T15:50:00.000-07:002008-06-12T01:07:38.066-07:00

I wanted to take a photo of all three kids together today so that I could send in a copy to my placing agency along with the packet of final paperwork and my huge thank you letter. Shameless plug here... but if anyone is looking to adopt from Russia and needs info on a great placing agency I would be happy to share my agency with you. I'm a bit mushy having just finished my thank you letter to

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-18533817486082010842008-05-26T10:50:00.000-07:002008-05-26T21:25:20.816-07:00

Emily at 2 weeks home................................. Emily at 4 weeks homeWow!! It's hard to believe we have been home a month! Emily is doing very well, continuing to grow and fill out. You can see this from week 2 and week 4 at home. She is now in 12 - 18 month clothing exclusively and slowly moving towards 18 months. She is bigger at 14 months than her brothers were. This is a good thing as

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-88355639451845660052008-05-08T14:50:00.000-07:002008-05-08T17:28:49.422-07:00

Emily is doing great. She is settling right in to our family. She has quite the fun personality. She is happy, attaching well, funny and loves to play and eat. During the almost two weeks home both my boys turned a year older and we had small family parties for both of the boys.She did very well during both parties and the grandparents and great grandparents all got the chance to meet her. She

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-33883765373728714602008-05-04T09:06:00.000-07:002008-05-04T09:59:58.495-07:00

Here is Emily with her brothers. She is 13 months old.The boys finally woke up...first my oldest, Boy Wonder. He heard us in Emily's room. He came in and he looked so big!! It had only been 8 days since I saw him last but wow, did he look so different to me all of a sudden. He was so excited to meet Emily. Emily was just as interested and she seemed a little surprised like where did you come from

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-77529038955826390382008-05-02T14:29:00.000-07:002008-05-04T18:23:29.029-07:00

I know everyone's been waiting for some pictures...so here they are....a look back at our 2nd trip. We are doing well. Everyone is adjusting beautifully including Emily. She has finally slept through the night the past 2 nights so I finally have enough energy to sit down and blog.. :-)Here we are outside of court and our first meal together...room service in our hotel in St Pete before we caught

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-35932129904068139322008-04-27T07:02:00.000-07:002008-04-27T07:15:54.970-07:00

Sorry I haven't had a chance to update. When we reached Moscow we could not get internet accecss in our apartment, though we tried and tried. We had a great stay in Moscow. It was a very busy 4 days. All of our appts went well. We had no problems at the Embassy and it was fun to see other American families adopting children. Everyone there was so excited, as you can imagine. We also stayed within

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com11tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-45080218094835380292008-04-21T14:02:00.000-07:002008-04-21T14:21:02.190-07:00

We are so happy to introduce the newest member of our family... our daughter Emily!!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com25tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-48552224628266566892008-04-20T19:46:00.000-07:002008-04-21T14:32:21.832-07:00

We had an amazing day with Emily yesterday!! She did not hesitate to come to us. We were so happy to see that and so happy to have her back in our arms. We have only been gone a month but was amazed to see how much she has physically changed in that time. Her cheeks are a little more filled out, she looks a little taller. She is definately growing and still the sweetest little girl. We are so

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-8492334215059267272008-04-19T21:37:00.000-07:002008-04-19T22:40:08.400-07:00

We arrived safely last night and checked into our hotel. It's a different hotel from our first trip and it's very nice. We woke up and went downstairs for a yummy breakfast served in a beautiful ballroom. I will have to get a photo of that room tomorrow! There are a few other families staying here from our agency..some are on their first trip. We hope to get in touch with them later today.We have

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-76036372390927924512008-04-19T02:04:00.000-07:002008-04-19T22:45:25.515-07:00

We have landed in Frankfurt. It's 10am here, 2am back in California. We are exhausted and just passing the time in one of the lounges. We had a nice flight over but I didn't really sleep. I ended up watching 2 movies. Funny enough they were both adoption stories...Juno and August Rush. I had been wanting to see them both, so that was a nice treat. And they sure did get me even more excited to see

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-58986035619553486362008-04-17T09:37:00.000-07:002008-04-17T09:39:57.197-07:00

I can't believe it is almost time!! Today will be a busy day of getting everything done so we can leave tomorrow! I have so much to do still!! Hopefully we will still be able to get to bed early tonite! Okay...I'm off and running!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-23192043223481864192008-04-13T20:13:00.000-07:002008-04-13T20:16:05.426-07:00

I've been working steadily along all day getting ready for our trip. I'm beat and thought I would sit for a minute after dinner and try out a new blogger setting. One of these days I'm going to have more than a few minutes and really learn some new tips on headers or some other cool idea. But for now this will have to do.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-65942896315852796972008-04-11T17:23:00.000-07:002008-04-11T17:37:40.983-07:00

I got a very special phone call this morning on my birthday........We got our COURT DATES!! Wahoo!!Our court date is Monday April 21st! In just a week I'll get to see my baby girl again!!! I can't believe in just a week I'll be back in Russia!! Wahoo!!What a crazy weekend this will be!!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com13tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-68855942140668778672008-04-09T14:05:00.000-07:002008-04-09T14:34:37.477-07:00

I talked with my agency casemanager earlier this week and there's a chance we may get our court dates for this month!!! I could know as soon as the end of this week...that's friday. Friday also happens to be my birthday!!! How wonderful would that be if I got the news then? Of course I don't mind getting the news a day early, like tomorrow. Better than a day late like Monday.I can't believe

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-39118106612251995442008-03-29T20:16:00.000-07:002008-04-13T21:29:09.310-07:00

I am almost done with Emily's room. I still need to find a rocking chair and I would like a muralist to come and paint her name on the door and a small painting of birds and toile on her wall above her crib. She had done such a great job in the boys' bedroom that I want her to do something for Emily too. I will have to post the boys' bedrooms some time. I love kid's spaces..they are so much fun

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com17tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-89407429951358333962008-03-28T20:04:00.000-07:002008-03-29T20:15:24.774-07:00

It's hard to believe we have been back in the states a little over a week now. It feels like our trip to Russia was just a dream. I miss our baby girl. I have been shopping for her like crazy. Now that we have met her it feels so real the hope of a daughter. My boys are getting excited too. At least once a day my oldest will say I wish Emily was here! Me too, I say. Me too.I had a few

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-80859777473222268292008-03-21T11:12:00.000-07:002008-04-13T22:35:51.619-07:00

It sure is nice to walk into customs in the US and hear the words "Welcome Home." There is no greater feeling. As much as I love to travel and as much as I miss being in Russia with my baby girl, it is really good to be back home where all is familiar. We are so glad to see our boys. How've missed them!I will post again later. Just wanted to let you know we made it home.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-47466083994253878362008-03-17T09:08:00.000-07:002008-03-30T12:15:07.579-07:00

On Sunday we woke up to find it had snowed and a blanket of snow covered everything. It was beautiful! Being from our part of California we don't see the snow often. And it had probably been a good 8 years since I've seen the snow last. I was so excited and we went crazy taking photos of the city and babyhome covered in the snow. After we ate our breakfast at the hotel we met our driver/

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-56013078557462604872008-03-15T11:20:00.000-07:002008-03-17T12:18:48.680-07:00

On Friday we ate breakfast at the hotel and then our driver/translator picked us up and off to the baby home we went. Emily, naturally, is still very unsure of us and unfortunately we were in a busy room today which did not help. As soon as she would relax and enjoy playing with us someone would walk in the room and she would freeze, start crying and run to them. And they would pat her on the

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-61376432531780562262008-03-13T22:03:00.000-07:002008-03-13T22:13:48.334-07:00

I forgot to mention that hubby and I used a 22" rolling suitcase each as our carryon and that we used the eagle creek medium sized space saver bags and that is how we got so much in our carryon. We each brought 2 pairs of pants and 4 shirts, half our socks, all are undies and all emily's things in 3 of those space saver bags. As well as three care packages from 3 different families for their

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-35412149435759841522008-03-13T12:15:00.000-07:002008-03-13T12:58:11.808-07:00

Our meeting went well at the MOE this morning and we received our referral for our little girl. We got to meet our daughter today!! She is just precious. What a cutie pie. She is very well cared for and very well loved. Our first impression is that she is not fond of strangers...she most certainly did not take to us as we did to her. But by the end she was doing better with us. She also seems to

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-5414132887888563012008-03-12T22:44:00.000-07:002008-03-12T22:52:26.953-07:00

We are here in Russia!! It was a smooth flight. Coming down into our region I kept looking at the city below and thinking our daughter is down there somewhere. I took many aerial shots from the airplane of the city. We are not in California anymore. The landscape and archectiture is very different from home. The city celebrated it's 300 year birthday a few years ago. It is so rich with

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-48877278219439074992008-03-12T03:35:00.000-07:002008-03-12T03:50:13.546-07:00

We are almost there!! We have a 2 hour layover in Frankfurt, Germany so I thought I would pop in and say hi! We had a nice flight on Lufthansa airlines although I was unable to sleep on it..even after taking 2 sleeping pills! It was just a 10 hour flight. The plane was late boarding so they shaved an hour off our arrival. I just love it when they do that!! This is our first time to Frankfurt.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-17157848189492323682008-03-10T09:17:00.000-07:002008-03-17T15:47:17.152-07:00

Where has the week gone?I can't believe tomorrow we will be on our way to RUSSIA!!Even more unbelievable, we are actually ready!The kids' schedules, dogs' schedules and medical releases for both are done for my parents who will be taking over for us while we are gone. The laundry is done, the kids' backpacks are packed for the week, carpool schedules have been adjusted, house cleaned, i-pods

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-77710389722953128932008-03-04T18:13:00.000-08:002008-03-13T13:06:53.916-07:00

I got to talk with a family that traveled two weeks ago and she shared with me things to bring. And since Becky mentioned she wants ideas and I know we are all wanting ideas, here is what she suggested to bring. For the weather right now...warm coat, mittens, hat and boots that can be worn in slushy, dirty snow. She said she never even wore her other shoes at all..just her boots everywhere. Leave

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-39286844522088353662008-03-04T16:54:00.000-08:002008-03-04T20:55:24.714-08:00

After an adventurous morning at USCIS and meeting the man who had been holding onto my file for the past 6 months I will have to sum up what I have learned from this experience...Be persistent. Do not feel bad if you send a second letter before you have gotten a first response. Just keeping sending the letters. Everyweek if you have to. If you really need somthing get an appt and go down in

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-33271492116297140922008-03-03T17:39:00.001-08:002008-03-03T22:18:44.927-08:00

Who would have thought that the hardest part so far of our adoption journey would be to obtain a one page form from our local USCIS deeming us fit to be a parent to a foreign born child. It seems that no matter where I turn I see others getting this paper so easily. How is it that 2 people born and raised here in the U.S, both attending 4 year universities, with no medical problems or criminal

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-49804682419227909882008-02-27T14:52:00.001-08:002008-03-12T22:42:03.351-07:00

First thing this morning I got a call from my agency!! We have our travel dates!! I'm so excited. It really seems so real now!! We are leaving March 11 for a week!! Yeah!!! I can't wait to get our referral and meet our daughter!!!I will be back later...I have so many things to get done today in preparation and not enough daylight hours to do it in.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-28340874199831104772008-02-25T17:29:00.000-08:002008-02-25T18:15:35.869-08:00

It's been awhile since I've had time to post. It's been another crazy month. We've had a lot of bad news in my extended family these past 2 months and my heart has been with them. We have also been sick and stuck inside which has left me feeling a little helpless to anyone and getting behind in my coop preschool requirements to boot.In my own personal family we found out that we are losing one of

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-64718303859991948032008-02-08T20:50:00.000-08:002008-02-08T21:15:40.031-08:00

So I looked on my USCIS field office's processing page that was updated on Jan 15. According to the webpage my local office received a significant increase of applications filed this past summer. In July and Aug 2007 nearly 2.5 million applications of all types were received. (So not just I-600A applications). This is an increase from the 1.2 million they received during this time period last

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-18719551734403165282008-02-06T10:27:00.000-08:002008-02-06T11:12:25.034-08:00

I started looking at flights. Wow!! Just a month ago there were still so many choices. Quickly...quickly those flights are dwindling...the planes are filling up with out us! My first choice flights are all taken...the non-stop flights out of LA and a few other short connecting flights here in the states on carriers I would have preferred to fly. The flights I'm looking at now are all over the

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-19439479435209112682008-01-24T18:28:00.001-08:002008-01-24T18:59:18.967-08:00

I talked with my casemanager this morning...it looks like we are on target for traveling to Russia on our first trip in March. If all continues to go well and there are no hang ups we could know as early as the first week of March when we are traveling. We have 2 documents that we still need for our updated dossier from our homestudy agency that needs to be in before the second week of Feb. It's

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-30279534661170175892008-01-14T09:26:00.000-08:002008-01-14T09:39:09.124-08:00

It's Monday morning and we are home. Back to the routines and daily grind that is our life. Even though our dream vacation is over...there is something comforting about walking back into your home after being away. We had a crazy funny day of traveling and will post the story later today on the boys blog if anyone is interested. The link is inbetween the boys pictures off to the right side.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-66358241770650751562008-01-10T16:43:00.000-08:002008-01-12T10:28:36.244-08:00

Aloha from Maui! It's amazing how the sound of the waves crashing on the beach can free my mind and leave me feeling so well rested. The ocean has always been my calming place and I hadn't realized how long it's been since I've been to the ocean. I also had no idea how stressed out I had become. My mind has apparently been on overload from the holidays, worrying about kindergarten next year and

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-19917779254173569972008-01-05T23:17:00.000-08:002008-01-05T23:38:51.500-08:00

We are loving the Holidays so much that we are putting our regular chaotic lives on hold for just one more week. The wet weather is really starting to get to us. 3 days straight of rainy weather and throw in a 12 hour power outage. We just can't take it anymore. This is supposed to be sunny California afterall. So.... we are going to where it is truly sunny...to Maui!!! But seriously folks, my

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-22231236782116384002007-12-31T16:20:00.000-08:002007-12-31T16:31:32.249-08:00

Here we are, standing in the last day of 2007. Looking back over this year I have a lot of fond memories. We moved into our dream home, watched my baby start preschool, enjoyed Disneyland and San Diego with my family and began our adoption journey. It's hard for me to be sad about leaving 2007 when I know that in 2008 we will bring our daughter home!! I know for me just being in 2008 makes me

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-65889423812479262872007-12-22T18:43:00.000-08:002007-12-22T18:50:01.235-08:00

I collected the extra documents needed for my I-600A and mailed them on Thursday. I just received my certified receipt that the documents were received by USCIS on Friday, Dec 21st. We are hoping to have our approval back by the end of January. Hope everyone is enjoying this Holiday season. Christmas is almost here! We have actually finished our christmas shopping and our grocery shopping.

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-19137634588547181392007-12-18T07:19:00.000-08:002007-12-18T07:51:26.460-08:00

On Friday I got a call from the USCIS officer handling our I-600A application. Wow!! If that isn't a miracle, I don't know what is. Getting a call...not waiting for news through the mail. Wow! He confirmed that he has received our entire file and that our fingerprints came back clear. There are no words for that simple gift. He is requesting 3 additional documents and then they can finalize

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-20287738967669585942007-12-13T12:43:00.000-08:002007-12-18T07:42:27.227-08:00

I was expecting to receive good news in the mail regarding our I-600A any day now. Our local office was reporting 3 month turn around times and my application was sent in late August and my homestudy completing the application followed in Sept so that put me at the end of December at the latest. Well, imagine my surprise and disappointment when I got a letter from USCIS asking for additional

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-17379872129691245812007-11-10T19:47:00.000-08:002007-11-10T20:10:08.763-08:00

I've been so obsessed with reading blogs, FRUA, yahoo groups and staring at the Russian Database that I've decided to also focus and use my energy on getting something constructive done for Emily. So I visited Michael's craft store today and bought some fun new papers and dooh hickeys to use in Emily's lifebook. I'm so excited! I go through creative waves and hadn't scrapbooked in ages and

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-46275706980221511542007-11-08T23:29:00.000-08:002007-11-09T00:41:01.024-08:00

Now that our dossier has been submitted, we have nothing to do but wait and finish up our education requirements. So... I've allowed myself to dream and play. Besides spending a lot of time on the Russian national database staring at the baby girls that are in our agency's regions and trying to imagine which child will be ours, I have allowed myself to buy things for her room. Fun things like

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-41848319688371931552007-10-30T20:26:00.000-07:002007-10-30T20:50:49.679-07:00

Wow!! At 8:05pm we just had a 5.6 magnitude earthquake. I haven't felt one that strong since the big one in 1989 at 6.9. I had just walked downstairs after kissing both boys goodnight. The whole house just shook very fast and very strong. I almost lost my balance and just saw all the pots on my potrack swinging back and forth. I yelled out my husband's name and ran back up the stairs to grab

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com5tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-8547536221317979092007-10-25T17:18:00.000-07:002007-11-01T10:30:12.610-07:00

Wow!! Where does time go? I wanted to post a lot earlier but unfortunately my sons' preschool is keeping me very, very busy.The highlight of our trip...meeting with our agency. We spent most of Friday with them going over the adoption process, what to expect, working on our dossier paperwork, and asking and answering lots of our questions about everything adoption related. We also got a chance to

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-7163406802134597632007-10-18T07:31:00.000-07:002007-10-18T07:33:36.635-07:00

We are all ready to go to the airport. We are set to fly to the east coast by noon today. We have an appt first thing in the morning with our placing agency!! Yeah!! We are so excited. I'll let you all know how it goes!!

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-57836286842283864322007-10-10T15:37:00.000-07:002007-10-30T10:45:59.526-07:00

So..the paperwork trail is long and time consuming for an adoption. Some documents are relatively easy to get and some take months to get. Some are very simple and some seem a little bizarre in their request. For the most part, the entire process has been pretty smooth and easy and no matter what we have asked of people, no matter how unusual the request, people have been willing to help us.We

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-75434817766365947702007-10-09T19:10:00.000-07:002007-10-09T19:47:26.298-07:00

Last week I had my appt with a psychologist to take my MMPI-2 psych evaluation as required by some regions in Russia. I've never had an appt with a psychologist before. She was very nice and actually specializes in adoption issues in kids. She agreed to give hubby and I the test, score it and do the write up of the results and get it back to us in time to bring it with us next week for our

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-39430206926691371672007-10-08T23:36:00.000-07:002007-10-08T23:59:06.109-07:00

I called to check in with my homestudy agency. I hadn't received my "official" copy of our homestudy yet in the mail and wanted to check to make sure they had sent in our homestudy to the USCIS office and also to our placing agency. Yeah!! She did not forget and it was mailed on Sept 27th, 2007. I was so excited. It's funny how something so simple can make your heart flutter with absolute joy

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-69497516668365392602007-09-26T16:49:00.000-07:002007-09-26T17:49:06.335-07:00

Yeah!! Plane tickets!!! Where are we going you ask? Is it Russia?? No, silly, we haven't sent in our dossier yet. We are going to the east coast for 3 days mid October to meet with our placing agency. It will be a very fast trip and because of the 3 hour time difference ahead of CA, we have chosen to go without the boys. I don't think Bubba would make it and frankly, I really want to make a good

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-30285297555141311172007-09-15T18:20:00.000-07:002007-09-15T21:32:27.219-07:00

I have wanted a little girl for as long as I can remember. I had names picked out since I was a girl...of course they always change. But I always imagined I would have a daughter. When I used to volunteer in the dependency court I would chose girl cases to manage and sometimes I would really fall for a child and wonder what it was like to be her mother. (None of them were available for adoption,

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-14081158836830841642007-09-15T17:59:00.001-07:002007-09-15T18:10:24.088-07:00

I spoke with our case manager from our placing agency on Friday. As soon as he receives our roughdraft of our homestudy we can make an appointment with them for our interview and collection of our dossier documents. Yeah!! I'm so excited to be completing the first leg (homestudy) and moving onto the dossier leg of the paper trail. I called the social worker that is incharge of finalizing all

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6100324920353801751.post-56436795821454255002007-09-08T15:37:00.000-07:002007-09-08T16:24:57.480-07:00

Friday we got a letter in the mail from the USCIS office saying they have received our I-600A application and it's been logged in on Aug 27th. The letter also included the forms we needed to get our fingerprints done. The office is only open on Sats and we had 2 weeks to get the fingerprints done...or 2 Saturdays. If we couldn't come in during the next 2 weeks then we could come in on a Wed

Janinehttp://www.blogger.com/profile/17383039718040670720noreply@blogger.com6