We have a Court Date!!

We have just been given a court date in the second week of December, which is so exciting.  We leave for Russia on the 7th of December, and just make it back in time for Christmas.
I am them traveling back to pick him up in the second week of January.  It is all happening.

On To the Next Step

We have been told that our documents will be given to the court now, so we are starting to get really excited and really hoping we get given a court date soon.  I have been pretty patient this time round, but now it is getting close, all I can think about is holding our little guy in our arms again, kissing his little checks, and seeing his little smile.

I am trying not to get my hopes up, but we would so love him home for Christmas, that would be the biggest gift ever.

I don't think we have any idea at all about how cold it will be this time, but I really can't wait to see Russia in winter.

Our Trip to Meet Our Son

I was going to post before now but I have been so tired, it was a really big trip.
We have meet the cutest little boy, with the most adorable smile, and we can't wait till he comes home.

The first day we arrived in Vladivostok we met up with Rachael and Durham (not forgetting gorgeous Olive) from Living hope Vladivostok, for a traditional Russian BBQ.  They work with street children, among lots of other things.   This was a real high light for us, we can't wait to go back.

Some other things:

• We meet some great people at different stages of an adoption process and got to celebrate with them.
• Saw the biggest "road kill" we have ever seen!  Two horses.  
• Got to enjoy Russia in a warm climate, next trip it will be covered in snow.
• Saw Road rage at its finest, quite a novelty haha
• Was able to travel over the new bridges in Vlad, that were built for the Apec summit
• Saw all the excitement building getting everything ready for the summit, helicopters, more police than I have ever seen in one place.
• And the best part, was we fell in love with a gorgeous wee boy.  My husband has turned to mush, and it is all he talks about.  Good sign I say.

I wish I could share our little boys picture with you, but I am not allowed till he is home, so these will have to do for now.

Little Mr V

Living Hope Vladivostok, by the river

Living Hope

Some of the kids, Rachael and Rachael

BBQ by the river.  

Outside the orphanage

About to meet our son

One of the gorgeous churches

Fruit market outside orphanage

Lovely families celebrating passing court

Typical traffic in Vlad

View of the new bridge

Yes we got to drive it

Outside the Vlad Inn, the main place adoptive families stay

The park at the Inn that will be covered in snow next trip

Our goodbye dinner

We're Here

Here is just a quick update on our trip.  We arrived to our hotel at about 3 pm, and then at 6pm, we went to have a Russian style BBQ at Living Hope Vladivostok.  It was great meeting all the kids, and a neat kiwi family that are staying there with their three children, helping at living hope for a month.

Bit disappointing we don't get to meet the child today, not sure why, but tomorrow is the day.

It is surreal being back, mixed bag of emotions really.  The good thing is, because this is the second trip, we are very relaxed and know where everything thing is and how things are mostly done.  We have meet three other couples at the hotel who are either meeting there children, going to court and one that is getting her wee boy today.  Very exciting.

Nearly There :)

Well, after a chaotic few weeks, we are nearly ready to go.  We have had lawyers, flights, ballet exams, our son rushed to hospital, husband sick, on top of trying to get ready to go, aahhh.
I hate leaving my kids so much, it's particularly hard with the little one, expecially when she asked me today if I will come back, poor little thing.

Things I am excited about:

Meeting this new little person
Catching up with the 4 families who are traveling at the same time as us and staying at the same hotel.
Hopefully some relaxing involved??
Getting this process started again.
Seeing Rachael, Durham and Olive from   http://www.livinghope.org.nz/

So it is 12 hours to go before we travel to Auckland to begin a new journey, hopefully I will be able to post while we are there.

I came across this post by an adoptive mum, and it made me laugh because of how true it is!
http://jenhatmaker.com/blog/2012/08/21/the-truth-about-adoption-one-year-later

Off To Russia!!!

It is hard to believe it has been nearly 10 months since we did trip one to Russia.  We are really excited to say we have had a referral come through, and we are leaving in less than two weeks to go and meet ????.  If you don't know what a referral is, it is a child/children that have been matched to your family for adoption.  

Timeline from now:

August 2012 trip one to meet the 'referral'

Lots of waiting

Trip two to go to court and be granted custody, fingers crossed

30 days later, trip 3 to pick up and bring them home.

This has been a long journey for our family, we are hopeful this time it will happen.

Adoption Vladivostok "2nd time lucky"?

Well, ALL and I do mean ALL of our adoption paper work is expiring this month in Russia, so we have started at the beginning with it all, getting all the documents ready, notarizing, and of course hoping they arrive on time.  We have adopted from China before, but paper work for a Russian adoption is a whole other story.  

It feels surreal being back at the beginning of the process again.  It has been nearly a whole year since we meet the boys we were meant to adopt, and then lost.  Hard to believe where the time has gone.   We are hoping to hear good news soon, have been saying that for a while now.  We are in a really good place, but it is hard waiting, it has been soooo long, and we are really excited to be adopting again.  So many families who were a few months behind us in the process have returned with their children, and we are still patiently waiting :).   I love seeing all those gorgeous kids coming home to their families, and watching them blossom after only a month or two.  This was our little girl when we meet her and then a month later.  So love seeing their little personalities coming out.

Fiji mission trip

Our oldest son just returned on Saturday morning, from a two week trip to Fiji, helping the people on the Island of Labasa.  We missed him so much, but it was so great for him to be able to go.  He has wanted to do a mission trip for a while now.  It was such an experience for him, even got totally bitten by 'bed bugs'!!

My gorgeous boy 

The kids club help helped with.  

Jackson at one of the churches they helped in.

This is his feet after a night with bed bugs

He was invited to a kava ceremony

coconuts

Helping to local villages by planting watermelons

One of the horrible insects found while planting!
Very poisonous apparently

*** Jasmine ***

This week has been an eventful week.  Our oldest son is on a mission trip to Fiji for two weeks, helping in Villages etc, quite a huge deal for him and us.  This week has been also about little miss Jasmine.   We finally managed to have her birthday party, after waiting patiently for the movie to come out at the cinema.  Lots of fun was had but all her little girlfriends.

And two days ago, we again enjoyed reminiscing about the first time, 8 years ago (hard to believe) we first saw our daughters little face.  It was the date she was allocated to our family and we were given her photos.

Birthday Fun, and JUST LOTS of waiting............

Been a bit slack updating my blog lately, but since I am getting lots and lots of questions about what is happening with our adoption, I thought it was high time I wrote something :)

The good first:

In amongst all the sad parts of the last two months (loosing our boys), there have been very fun family times, and two birthdays.
Jasmine turned 9 and Jason....Well I'm not allowed to say.

We took the family up to Auckland for a long weekend to have some birthday fun, at Rainbows End and the Zoo etc.  We are still tired, :)

Daddy and his 2 girls

Chanel

trying to soak each other

Our family almost used up all the boats

ADOPTION:

Waiting....... is the word that best describes how that is going.  We are finding it really hard to understand why it is taking so long for us to receive another referral from Russia.
We have three friends who lost children after their first trips and received referrals the day after, so for us waiting this long seems excessive.
We are aware there are children there that appear to match our profile.  Is it really hard, not being told anything, and not having any idea what is going on.
So the whole situation is pretty sad and disheartening for our family.  We were so looking forward to adopting again.
There was an update of 'our boys' on the internet this week with their new family, which is so hard to see.  That would have been us home with them, but instead we are still in this process with no answers and no child.
So all in all we know as much as you .. nothing.  I so hope we have some good news soon.  It is 7 months since our first trip to Russia.

Our second oldest

Birthday Girl turns 9

My oldest boy

In the weekend my oldest born went to his first school Ball (for all my American friends, that is a Prom)
This event certainly made me feel a little older!
They went as a group, had a nice pre-ball get together with all the families,  and hired out a Limousine for an hour drive around the city before it started.  Very exciting.