For those of you not in the process of adopting, the following may seem very boring to you. I suggest skipping to the very end for the short version. For those of you in process, I really enjoyed hearing others reports of how everything went. Here is our story.....
Vladimir picked us up at the hotel today. We and the other family with us drove a little ways, did a big u-turn in huge traffic, headed the other way and through some apartments, finally turning into the area where the American Medical Center is located. He lead us through the door.......
We signed in at the front desk, hung our jackets in the cloakroom, and sat in the children's waiting area. We filled out the usual documentation, sans the HIPPA required paperwork. The family with us has a 3 year old son with them, so we went into a bright colorful room filled with toys and bright paintings. Thomas had fun with the toys :) After a few minutes, maybe 35 or so (seems like forever when you are waiting) Tim and I were called back to the exam rooms.
There is a hall filled with several identical rooms- all in a peaceful blue color. The staff were very friendly, and though only 3 Dr's spoke English, all were able to communicate with us through an interpreter (the nurse).
We entered the first exam room and there was the Dr seated at the desk. "Have a seat" we were told. The Dr was the Psychologist. He wanted to know if we had any mental illness in our families. If we'd ever had a head injury. If we were ever sad for no reason. Basically all the great depression questions. He wanted to know how we resolve conflict in our marriage...... we said by talking it out. I mentioned that we agreed when we married to never go to bed angry with each other. He thought that was a great idea, but one that wouldn't be possible to put into practice. Tim told him it has worked very well for us for the last 8 years :) Poor guy looked like he was being interogated- he was way overheated- sweating and looking a bit nervous- very little eye contact. Kinda bizarre. For a Psychiatrist.
We were told to stay there. Very shortly the "Narcologist" came in. He was quite young looking with a large birthmark on his neck. We had to answer several questions- use drugs, anyone in your family an alcoholic, do you drink, are you sure? you've never had a drink? Not even a sip? Stand up- feet together-put out your hands- touch your index finger to your nose-now the other- stick out your tongue. Follow my pen with your eyes. OK. Have a seat. The next Dr will be in.
The next Dr was the Pulmonologist. She was such a sweet lady- appeared to be in her 50's and very friendly. She actually smiled :) She asked us about our lungs, looked at our x-rays- does it hurt to breathe? Any pain? any exposure to TB? Very good. Wait here for next Dr.
The nurse stuck her head in for a second- do you have any allergies? Any skin rashes? Any drug allergies? And she left.
After a chunk of time went by, the nurse called us out to the waiting area and the other family with us went in to the exam room we vacated. We waited.... and we waited......
A mid-40's gentleman came and got us. We went into a different room- one filled with a lot of diagnostic equipment. He introduced himself as the neurologist. Any head injuries? Headaches? Any problems with nerves? Any back problems? Stand up- hands out, touch your nose with your index finger- and the other finger- Good. Sit. Put your head on your knee- I looked up questioningly as I prepared to fold like a pretzel- I said head? He said- Hand- hehe. then he wacked on us with his rubber mallot. No problems here- glad he stood to the side so I didn't kick him! OK- go on back out.
So we went out to the waiting area and waited..... and waited.....and waited.
We went back in to the first exam room and met with the Oncologist. He was an Asian looking gentleman in his 40's that spoke excellent English. He asked us about any cancer in our families, any problems we have- checked out lymph nodes- neck and top of chest( where shirt is open). Very pleasant man- he smiled, too :)
After waiting in the room for a long time, the nurse came and asked us to move back to the waiting area again. Where we waited..... are you getting the picture? Oh, there is a coffee machine that you can purchase coffee and cappachino- there is also a water cooler- yeah!!
A different nurse came and got us and we went to a different exam room. This time it was the infectionist. Dr of infections, apparently. He took our lab work (all written in English) looked at it for about 45 seconds each page. All questions went through interpreter. Wanted to know if we had our diptheria vaccination. I said as a child. They looked concerned and said not since? I repeated diptheria- discovered they were talking about tetanus. Got that cleared up. OK. Go back out and wait. ( I wondered if he could even read English???)
So we waited some more. And then we waited. The other family finished- at one point Dad and son waited outside the room- for the disrobing....... hmmmm...... didn't think we'd have to do that....... So we waited...... then we waited some more.
Finally after almost 4 hours since we had arrived, we were called back by Olga- she was the family doctor- or general practitioner. She did quite a through job. Spoke to us for several minutes about general health, any daily medications? Any diseases? Then said we would need to get onto the table for an exam. Take off the shirt, please, and she pulled a chair over to place it on. OK ladies- no problem here- just the shirt- we were still g rated :) No breast exam to write home about...... Phew!!!! She took the blood pressure, listened to the lungs as well as the kidneys, checked out our lymph nodes, eyes, ears, throats and heart. We laid down and she checked out and percussed the abdomen. She was, by far, the most through. Her English, thou a bit broken, was quite good. She then said- OK- I think that is it.
The nurse came over as we were walking out of the exam room and said we were finished. They were just finishing our paperwork that we have to take to court. Every Dr has a seal, and on 1 page we have now 8 different professions listed, eight stamps off to the right side and a signature of each Dr inside the stamp. Ladies and gentlemen, after 4 long hours, only difficult due to the boredom one experiences, we were able to walk out to the van 36,800Roubles lighter, I mean later, and make our way back to the hotel. We were glad to be able to charge this to our credit card, since we didn't have quite this many Roubles with us.
We sat in the van as Vladimir, the driver, double checked everything before we go away.
Short version:
We waited forever to see 8 Dr's in the American Clinic- but are now done.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Happy Leap Year Day!!
Happy Leap Year Day, everyone!! We have the internet for the next 24 hours, yeah!! So, we'll try to update as much as we can. We leave in a little bit for our medicals- will give an update when we return.
Tim took some video as we were traveling to the hotel from the airport. We'll see if we can add that to give you an idea of what it is like. Having traveled in Haiti, this was no sweat for us, but for many other families, this trip is quite stressful. Bumper to bumper traffic humming along at a great pace-traffic zipping past.
Amazing though is the lack of road rage you often see in America. Why is it we as Americans always seem to be a simmering pot ready to boil over? This is a difficult soul searching question and goes much deeper than you might first imagine.
Much of our trip is on the "second" way- the country trip around Moscow to avoid all but the heaviest traffic- and give us a good view of what the "suburbs" around Moscow are like.
We're going to work on the video and add it here soon.......
****NOTE**** tried to upload- only succeded in crashing the server- now it is VVVVVEEEEERRRRRRRYYYYYYYYY SSSSSLLLLLLLOOOOOWWWWWW........
Will try to upload this video when we return stateside..................
Tim took some video as we were traveling to the hotel from the airport. We'll see if we can add that to give you an idea of what it is like. Having traveled in Haiti, this was no sweat for us, but for many other families, this trip is quite stressful. Bumper to bumper traffic humming along at a great pace-traffic zipping past.
Amazing though is the lack of road rage you often see in America. Why is it we as Americans always seem to be a simmering pot ready to boil over? This is a difficult soul searching question and goes much deeper than you might first imagine.
Much of our trip is on the "second" way- the country trip around Moscow to avoid all but the heaviest traffic- and give us a good view of what the "suburbs" around Moscow are like.
We're going to work on the video and add it here soon.......
****NOTE**** tried to upload- only succeded in crashing the server- now it is VVVVVEEEEERRRRRRRYYYYYYYYY SSSSSLLLLLLLOOOOOWWWWWW........
Will try to upload this video when we return stateside..................
We have arrived!!! 2/26-2/28
Well, we made it safe and sound to Moscow. The trip was really uneventful- just a bit to make you smile- the tail winds were amazing- we were projected to land up to an hour early several times on the flight. We ended up landing at about 9:30 instead of 10:10am. Tim and I laughed and enjoyed the prayers of the saints- praying for our trip to go quickly....... It really worked!
I'm sure many of you wonder about Monday. It was such a difficult day, in so many ways. Tim went from work in the morning to get our last paper apostilled, so he didn't get home until a little later in the am than usual. I had prayed and prayed that God would show me that it was time for Penny to be put to sleep so I wouldn't always wonder. He left no doubt in my mind that this was the case on Monday morning. She appeared to lose control of everything that day. I ended up doing 6 loads of laundry- just from her, and she was only in the house a few hours. She had gotten so bad, I think she drank over a gallon of water. I had planned to spend the morning finishing up all we had to do- packing paying the last of the bills- preparing the house. All I ended up doing before we took her to the vet was cleaning up all manner of nastiness from my poor dog.
So, even though I cried and cried and could still cry if I think too much about it, God confirmed in my heart that Penny was indeed weary of this world, in a lot of pain and ready to rest. Farewell, sweet friend. I will often think of you and the sweet times we had.
OK, back to the present.....
Do you ever realize that you are stereotyping people? When we were waiting for our first flight in Columbus there was a young man who was obviously Muslim. His clothing and hair style were very typical. I wouldn't have noticed him, but he was very, very nervous. He had a whole bag of sunflower seeds he was eating and spitting the shells onto his robe across his lap. That made me very nervous. I prayed a lot for him. Hoping he was nervous because he doesn't like to fly, and not that he was nervous because he was soon to take down the plane and die. I really prayed for all of us. Of course, Tim wasn't nervous at all- wouldn't even look as I continued to point this poor guy out. Appears he was just nervous to fly :)
Arrived in Moscow, went through the lines at the airport- of course, met another couple here to adopt. Vladimir met us at the airport again. It was nice to see a familiar face. He brought us to the Renaissance Hotel. It is VERY nice!! We have such a posh room. A great view. Very comfortable. Feather pillows. Glasses and mugs, a hot pot for hot water. Most of the staff speak English, which is nice.
One doesn't realize what it means to be in a foreign land with an unknown language until one is there. Tim and I went out for a walk today for a few hours. We did a bit better than last time- actually went to the market. We bought water, bananas and bread. Just a few of the few Russian words I've learned. Hopefully I'll be able to do better once we arrive in Krasnoyarsk and we buy more groceries.
Dinner last night was very interesting. We went to the German restaurant in the hotel. There were 3 families in there with 3 little ones. 2 families stayed for a little while after we arrived. I heard one talking about the exchange rate. We had seen 20:1 in the airport. This means 20 Roubles per American dollar. When we were here in October it was just under 25. That is a huge difference. He told us 24. A lot better :)
The one family is from just outside Pittsburgh. The other family, you are not going to believe this, is from West Greene- yes folks, that's right, from my own Greene County, PA- just a hop, skip and a jump from where I grew up. How amazing is that? I run into a family that I never met when growing up, possibly 30 minutes away, but I meet them here in Moscow, almost 4,000 miles away from home. How amazing is that? The lady that grew up there actually knows several people that I know. Her sister's roommate in college was Stacey Parson- a great friend of ours we went to church with as we were growing up. What a small world.
We're joining these other families for dinner in a bit. Looking forward to seeing how they interact with their children and how they handle meals.
Update- had a great dinner- enjoyed eating with 3 other families who are in the last few days of their process. They're going to the Russian Embassy tomorrow. The other couple from our agency and their son joined us just as we finished, so we went over and joined them while they ate.
Tomorrow at 2:30pm we leave for the Clinic and have our physicals done- by 8 Russian Dr's- one of them a Russian Psychiatrist. Praying God will put the words in our mouths we need to complete these physicals with no problems.
Well, I'm sure this post is long enough- will try to post this soon, as well as updates on our physicals and the rest of our journey here in Moscow.
I'm sure many of you wonder about Monday. It was such a difficult day, in so many ways. Tim went from work in the morning to get our last paper apostilled, so he didn't get home until a little later in the am than usual. I had prayed and prayed that God would show me that it was time for Penny to be put to sleep so I wouldn't always wonder. He left no doubt in my mind that this was the case on Monday morning. She appeared to lose control of everything that day. I ended up doing 6 loads of laundry- just from her, and she was only in the house a few hours. She had gotten so bad, I think she drank over a gallon of water. I had planned to spend the morning finishing up all we had to do- packing paying the last of the bills- preparing the house. All I ended up doing before we took her to the vet was cleaning up all manner of nastiness from my poor dog.
So, even though I cried and cried and could still cry if I think too much about it, God confirmed in my heart that Penny was indeed weary of this world, in a lot of pain and ready to rest. Farewell, sweet friend. I will often think of you and the sweet times we had.
OK, back to the present.....
Do you ever realize that you are stereotyping people? When we were waiting for our first flight in Columbus there was a young man who was obviously Muslim. His clothing and hair style were very typical. I wouldn't have noticed him, but he was very, very nervous. He had a whole bag of sunflower seeds he was eating and spitting the shells onto his robe across his lap. That made me very nervous. I prayed a lot for him. Hoping he was nervous because he doesn't like to fly, and not that he was nervous because he was soon to take down the plane and die. I really prayed for all of us. Of course, Tim wasn't nervous at all- wouldn't even look as I continued to point this poor guy out. Appears he was just nervous to fly :)
Arrived in Moscow, went through the lines at the airport- of course, met another couple here to adopt. Vladimir met us at the airport again. It was nice to see a familiar face. He brought us to the Renaissance Hotel. It is VERY nice!! We have such a posh room. A great view. Very comfortable. Feather pillows. Glasses and mugs, a hot pot for hot water. Most of the staff speak English, which is nice.
One doesn't realize what it means to be in a foreign land with an unknown language until one is there. Tim and I went out for a walk today for a few hours. We did a bit better than last time- actually went to the market. We bought water, bananas and bread. Just a few of the few Russian words I've learned. Hopefully I'll be able to do better once we arrive in Krasnoyarsk and we buy more groceries.
Dinner last night was very interesting. We went to the German restaurant in the hotel. There were 3 families in there with 3 little ones. 2 families stayed for a little while after we arrived. I heard one talking about the exchange rate. We had seen 20:1 in the airport. This means 20 Roubles per American dollar. When we were here in October it was just under 25. That is a huge difference. He told us 24. A lot better :)
The one family is from just outside Pittsburgh. The other family, you are not going to believe this, is from West Greene- yes folks, that's right, from my own Greene County, PA- just a hop, skip and a jump from where I grew up. How amazing is that? I run into a family that I never met when growing up, possibly 30 minutes away, but I meet them here in Moscow, almost 4,000 miles away from home. How amazing is that? The lady that grew up there actually knows several people that I know. Her sister's roommate in college was Stacey Parson- a great friend of ours we went to church with as we were growing up. What a small world.
We're joining these other families for dinner in a bit. Looking forward to seeing how they interact with their children and how they handle meals.
Update- had a great dinner- enjoyed eating with 3 other families who are in the last few days of their process. They're going to the Russian Embassy tomorrow. The other couple from our agency and their son joined us just as we finished, so we went over and joined them while they ate.
Tomorrow at 2:30pm we leave for the Clinic and have our physicals done- by 8 Russian Dr's- one of them a Russian Psychiatrist. Praying God will put the words in our mouths we need to complete these physicals with no problems.
Well, I'm sure this post is long enough- will try to post this soon, as well as updates on our physicals and the rest of our journey here in Moscow.
Wednesday, February 20, 2008
Every day miracles
Thank you all for your prayers!! I can feel them, and I can see God answering them already!! How amazing is that?
We were able to get the documentation all together that we need for our house- thank you to all for your helpful suggestions!- Our paperwork is ready to go to Columbus and get apostilled Friday.
One document was not scheduled to be delivered until thursday at 7pm. I prayed so hard we could get this all done, and was disappointed when I saw that. Only it didn't come tomorrow at 7- it arrived this afternoon!! Can you believe it? Thank you for praying- and thank you God for these small everyday miracles!
Work was fabulous today. We weren't too busy and I was able to show the new pharmacist most of the "ropes"- all the things we do and the way we've done them. I got together stuff and threw a party for her today, too. My wonderful staff also got together and surprised me- they all brought in great things for our son. I think I realized today that even though I won't be manager of this pharmacy any more, I will still be a part of the family there. How cool is that to realize?
My heart is coming to terms with my mind about the whole doggy thing, too. Though it is not easy, I can talk about it without crying. Part of me wishes animals had souls, so I knew I'd see her again. The other, more practical part, chimes in and says that if she had a soul, I wouldn't be putting her to sleep........ Ahhh, the practical mind. Sometimes I wish I could shut it off....... hmmm.
Everything is coming together, as I knew it would. God has shown Himself so faithful through this whole process. He has become such a rock for us, especially me, as I learn to lay more and more at His feet. I'm sure this is a good thing since I know I'll need to remember that as we raise a child.
Thank you for your continued prayers. We leave tuesday. Less than a week away!! We'll be holding our son in less than 2 weeks. That is soooo incredibly exciting. Our friends we travelled with in October are in Krasnoyarsk now and had a successful court date on Tues. We are sooo excited for them and can't wait to see them in country again.
Well, that's the update for now. Praises and thanks to God- He has such beautiful orchestration.
We were able to get the documentation all together that we need for our house- thank you to all for your helpful suggestions!- Our paperwork is ready to go to Columbus and get apostilled Friday.
One document was not scheduled to be delivered until thursday at 7pm. I prayed so hard we could get this all done, and was disappointed when I saw that. Only it didn't come tomorrow at 7- it arrived this afternoon!! Can you believe it? Thank you for praying- and thank you God for these small everyday miracles!
Work was fabulous today. We weren't too busy and I was able to show the new pharmacist most of the "ropes"- all the things we do and the way we've done them. I got together stuff and threw a party for her today, too. My wonderful staff also got together and surprised me- they all brought in great things for our son. I think I realized today that even though I won't be manager of this pharmacy any more, I will still be a part of the family there. How cool is that to realize?
My heart is coming to terms with my mind about the whole doggy thing, too. Though it is not easy, I can talk about it without crying. Part of me wishes animals had souls, so I knew I'd see her again. The other, more practical part, chimes in and says that if she had a soul, I wouldn't be putting her to sleep........ Ahhh, the practical mind. Sometimes I wish I could shut it off....... hmmm.
Everything is coming together, as I knew it would. God has shown Himself so faithful through this whole process. He has become such a rock for us, especially me, as I learn to lay more and more at His feet. I'm sure this is a good thing since I know I'll need to remember that as we raise a child.
Thank you for your continued prayers. We leave tuesday. Less than a week away!! We'll be holding our son in less than 2 weeks. That is soooo incredibly exciting. Our friends we travelled with in October are in Krasnoyarsk now and had a successful court date on Tues. We are sooo excited for them and can't wait to see them in country again.
Well, that's the update for now. Praises and thanks to God- He has such beautiful orchestration.
Monday, February 18, 2008
Praying with/for us......
This is an exerpt from a post to our chat group:
Isn't it amazing how when you set your heart to rest in God, knowing that He'll work out all the details, every fiber of your being gets tested?
Here's my request:
Health- I fell on the ice and went down the concrete steps by the side of our house Sat am. (They do say that more accidents happen within 1 mile of the home, don't they? )Nothing broken, but sore and bruised- makes that 24 hours of travel sound a bit more daunting.
Paperwork. Does it never end? How much is enough? How many details do they need to know about us to know we'll be good parents? Can you hear my frustration? Thanks for letting me vent!!
Our deed only shows the outline of the land. So, even though we have a homestudy talking about our house, we have pictures of our house in our photo album, etc, etc, etc- we now have to have proof that we own our house and that house exhists. Since Tim built it, this is a bit more difficult that one might at first imagine. Our taxes are accrued with our mortgage, and the mortgage company takes care of that. So, how to get the copy of our last tax statement? A copy of the deed transferring the property to Tim from his parents 10 years ago? Hhmmm..... shouldn't be a problem- I'll just call the recorder's office and see if they can get me a copy of that.
Only today is yet another holiday. Don't let them tell you Russians have a lot of holidays!! We Americans must be leading the way!!
Yet, strangely, in the midst of all this I do feel peaceful. I'm just praying that you all will join in with me in covering these details so we can leave in 1 week with all we need for our trip and be gone for 30 days to bring home our son and start the next chapter of our lives.
A lot of words- sorry-sum up:
Speedy recovery from stiffness and soreness from my impromptu slide down the steps
God's speed in gathering these documents now being required of us before we leave next week
Thank you all. So glad to know we are there with each other, helping to carry burdens to God- can't wait to share all my joys with you!!
Stay tuned-Coming soon to a blog near you....... More than word, more than his hand, it's Eli-man- in person :) Soon I can show the world (or at least our limited viewing audience) his precious face.
Thank you for praying with us!
Isn't it amazing how when you set your heart to rest in God, knowing that He'll work out all the details, every fiber of your being gets tested?
Here's my request:
Health- I fell on the ice and went down the concrete steps by the side of our house Sat am. (They do say that more accidents happen within 1 mile of the home, don't they? )Nothing broken, but sore and bruised- makes that 24 hours of travel sound a bit more daunting.
Paperwork. Does it never end? How much is enough? How many details do they need to know about us to know we'll be good parents? Can you hear my frustration? Thanks for letting me vent!!
Our deed only shows the outline of the land. So, even though we have a homestudy talking about our house, we have pictures of our house in our photo album, etc, etc, etc- we now have to have proof that we own our house and that house exhists. Since Tim built it, this is a bit more difficult that one might at first imagine. Our taxes are accrued with our mortgage, and the mortgage company takes care of that. So, how to get the copy of our last tax statement? A copy of the deed transferring the property to Tim from his parents 10 years ago? Hhmmm..... shouldn't be a problem- I'll just call the recorder's office and see if they can get me a copy of that.
Only today is yet another holiday. Don't let them tell you Russians have a lot of holidays!! We Americans must be leading the way!!
Yet, strangely, in the midst of all this I do feel peaceful. I'm just praying that you all will join in with me in covering these details so we can leave in 1 week with all we need for our trip and be gone for 30 days to bring home our son and start the next chapter of our lives.
A lot of words- sorry-sum up:
Speedy recovery from stiffness and soreness from my impromptu slide down the steps
God's speed in gathering these documents now being required of us before we leave next week
Thank you all. So glad to know we are there with each other, helping to carry burdens to God- can't wait to share all my joys with you!!
Stay tuned-Coming soon to a blog near you....... More than word, more than his hand, it's Eli-man- in person :) Soon I can show the world (or at least our limited viewing audience) his precious face.
Thank you for praying with us!
Sunday, February 17, 2008
Completely
Our journey has turned a corner. "The Call" we've been waiting for has come. Yet, it is not the overwhelming sense we thought it would be. God is in charge here- we are resting so securely in His arms- watching as He orchestrates so many minute details-we are just waiting to give Him all the Glory. God, our journey is in Your hands. May you be glorified in all we do, in all we say, and may we learn to raise our son to rely on You as completely as You have taught us to do on our journey to him.
This video is from the movie "Facing the Giants." As you watch it, you find that giving complete control over to Him, allowing Him to work in your life as He wills and choses, may not always fit our plans and our timeline- but it is PERFECT. The creator God is just waiting, with arms outstretched, to draw us close to Him, comforting and directing us.
Thank you, God, for carrying us so far. For going ahead of us, preparing the way and leading us on this Journey of Faith.
This video is from the movie "Facing the Giants." As you watch it, you find that giving complete control over to Him, allowing Him to work in your life as He wills and choses, may not always fit our plans and our timeline- but it is PERFECT. The creator God is just waiting, with arms outstretched, to draw us close to Him, comforting and directing us.
Thank you, God, for carrying us so far. For going ahead of us, preparing the way and leading us on this Journey of Faith.
Friday, February 15, 2008
Buds and Dreams
Just one more thought before I go to bed tonight. Last year, mid-October, I spent a monday planting bulbs. I almost felt like I was going to kill myself getting all 200 bulbs in the ground around the front of the house. At one of my points of highest frustration, I suddenly stopped. I thought- I should enjoy this time now. Once we get a child or children, I won't have a day to just spend outside like this. I remember praying that our child would be able to see the bulbs growing and that we would be able to enjoy watching them together.
The next day, at the end of work, we got the call for our referral. We met our son 2 weeks to the day that I prayed that prayer and gave it all up to God.
Tim said yesterday to a friend of ours, since we'll be coming home at the end of March, the tulips will probably all be pushing their way up just about the time we get home.
HHHMmmmmm........... Thank you, God
I feel like it should be whispered, reverently- Thank you, God. You answer our prayers so many times after we've forgotten what we've prayed for. Thank you, God!! You are awesome beyond all we could ever hope to understand.
Thank you, God!!!
The next day, at the end of work, we got the call for our referral. We met our son 2 weeks to the day that I prayed that prayer and gave it all up to God.
Tim said yesterday to a friend of ours, since we'll be coming home at the end of March, the tulips will probably all be pushing their way up just about the time we get home.
HHHMmmmmm........... Thank you, God
I feel like it should be whispered, reverently- Thank you, God. You answer our prayers so many times after we've forgotten what we've prayed for. Thank you, God!! You are awesome beyond all we could ever hope to understand.
Thank you, God!!!
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