We are scheduled to leave Thursday June 30, 2005 at 12:40 PM. We will arrive in Almaty, Kazakhstan at approximately 10:15 PM July 1, 2005. J and I are SO excited, we hardly know what to do with ourselves.
I know that the flights will be nothing but exhausting for me and I am really dreading the long haul. The two times that I have been to Europe I was unable to sleep a wink coming or going. I have never been able to sleep while on the move. Even as a child, I never slept in the car. It drove my parents batty when we drove to Florida.
Once we arrive in Almaty we will go through the usual airport whohah and then we will meet our coordinator and driver. At that point I am certain that I will be a walking zombie and I will just be thrilled to be on my way to the airport hotel. We will spend (what's left of) the night at the hotel and then the next day we will board a Soviet jetliner (from the rear I am told) and fly to Ivan's region.
If all goes as planned we will meet Ivan on Monday, July 4, 2005. We will then have 14 straight days of visitation and bonding in the Baby Home. On July 18, 2005 we should have our court appearance. If all goes well in court, we should take custody of Ivan on July 20, 2005 when we fly back to Almaty. Once in Almaty we will check into the Hyatt and spend the next 10 days waiting for all of the final paperwork to be completed. We will have an appointment at the US Embassy, where we will receive all of the paperwork for Ivan's IR-3 visa. This wonderful packet of paperwork is what will allow Ivan to enter the US as a US citizen.
After that, who knows what life will hold for us. A lot of joy and chaos I am sure.
I am not sure if I will be able to update this journal from Kaz. If I can, I certainly will! If not, I'll let you know when we are home and what it was really like while we were there.
TTFN!
Tuesday, June 28, 2005
Thursday, June 23, 2005
What's in a name?
At long last, J and I have given our son a name.
Ivan
We had it narrowed down to two names and then we read something about a Kazak tradition and that settled it for us. Apparently, it is a tradition to name your child for the meaning of the name and not the name itself. Well, Ivan means Precious Gift From God.
Enough said.
Ivan
We had it narrowed down to two names and then we read something about a Kazak tradition and that settled it for us. Apparently, it is a tradition to name your child for the meaning of the name and not the name itself. Well, Ivan means Precious Gift From God.
Enough said.
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
WE GOT IT, WE GOT IT!!
We have our Letter of Invitation!! We are supposed to be in Kazakhstan no later than July 1! Oh my gosh, we are really going to get there...and soon!!
Thank you, Lord!!!!
Woo Hoo!
Shwoooo....big sigh of relief over here.
Thank you, Lord!!!!
Woo Hoo!
Shwoooo....big sigh of relief over here.
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
Movin' right along....
Nothing really new to report. As of today we are leaving on the 30th of June. We leave from our home airport here in North Carolina and fly to DC. From DC we fly to Frankfurt and then onto Almaty. We should arrive in Almaty on July 1 at 10:15 PM. We will have flown over 7500 miles by the time we get there, and that is just one half of the trip! I'm tired just thinking about it.
J and I have been very busy over the past couple of weeks. We have started pulling everything together as far as clothes and other necessities and making lots of lists. I have been buying gifts, gifts and more gifts to give to the various people along the way. I have really enjoyed shopping for our little one's caregivers as well as our translator and driver. These are folks that I know that we will truly feel indebted to by the end of our time in Ust-Kamenogorsk. However, there are other folks that I need to have gifts for like the officials that have approved our paperwork along the way etc. These gifts are a lot harder for me to buy. I will likely never meet some of these folks. From what I understand, when J and I arrive in Ust we will hand over the 13 gifts for the "adoption officials" to our coordinator and then we will never see the gifts again. Apparently, while our coordinator is calling on these folks in regards to our adoption, she will present them with a token of our appreciation once the task has been completed. We are not to spend more than $10-15 per person, so it is not anything really nice, but it is hard to know what would be appreciated.
Not to mention that there are severe weight limitations on our luggage once we get to Kazakhstan. Until we arrive each of our bags can weigh up to 70 pounds without overage charges. However, once we enter Kazakhstan and have to travel domestically we will be charged $5 per pound over 40 pounds! So, we are trying to make sure that our bags don't weigh too much over 40 pounds each. This may prove to be very challenging.
Lots to do this week...so no time for cocktails!
J and I have been very busy over the past couple of weeks. We have started pulling everything together as far as clothes and other necessities and making lots of lists. I have been buying gifts, gifts and more gifts to give to the various people along the way. I have really enjoyed shopping for our little one's caregivers as well as our translator and driver. These are folks that I know that we will truly feel indebted to by the end of our time in Ust-Kamenogorsk. However, there are other folks that I need to have gifts for like the officials that have approved our paperwork along the way etc. These gifts are a lot harder for me to buy. I will likely never meet some of these folks. From what I understand, when J and I arrive in Ust we will hand over the 13 gifts for the "adoption officials" to our coordinator and then we will never see the gifts again. Apparently, while our coordinator is calling on these folks in regards to our adoption, she will present them with a token of our appreciation once the task has been completed. We are not to spend more than $10-15 per person, so it is not anything really nice, but it is hard to know what would be appreciated.
Not to mention that there are severe weight limitations on our luggage once we get to Kazakhstan. Until we arrive each of our bags can weigh up to 70 pounds without overage charges. However, once we enter Kazakhstan and have to travel domestically we will be charged $5 per pound over 40 pounds! So, we are trying to make sure that our bags don't weigh too much over 40 pounds each. This may prove to be very challenging.
Lots to do this week...so no time for cocktails!
Friday, June 03, 2005
WOO HOO!!
We heard from our Social Worker this afternoon...we have tentative travel dates! Here is the proposed schedule...
July 2, 2005 - arrive Almaty, Kazakhstan
July 18, 2005 - Court
July 27, 2005 - leave Almaty for HOME!!!
As with everything, this may change. We still don't have our official "Letter of Invitation" yet, but we have no reason to believe that it won't arrive in time.
Praise the Lord for this wonderful news!! His timing is perfect and I have to continue to believe that He will unite us at just the right time. What wonderful news for an otherwise unremarkable Friday! Thank you Lord!!
July 2, 2005 - arrive Almaty, Kazakhstan
July 18, 2005 - Court
July 27, 2005 - leave Almaty for HOME!!!
As with everything, this may change. We still don't have our official "Letter of Invitation" yet, but we have no reason to believe that it won't arrive in time.
Praise the Lord for this wonderful news!! His timing is perfect and I have to continue to believe that He will unite us at just the right time. What wonderful news for an otherwise unremarkable Friday! Thank you Lord!!
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