The deed is done

Simple news: After some issues this morning, we were able to get the Petition notarized (2x). Drove to Tallahassee. Got the apostille. Overnighted it to our agency. Got back home at 9:30pm.

Finished, Finito, законченный, fini, beendet, the end.

FINALLY!

WE GOT THE PETITION!

What does this mean? We now have a relative estimate of traveling in 4 - 6 weeks!!!!!!

What about the home study update? Still have to do that since it will expire while we're there.
How do I feel? Unbelievably amazing! Indescribable! This brings an even greater reality that we will be parents to a wonderfully adorable little boy.
What am I doing right now? Jumping up and down in between typing these words! (I'm a little dizzy so I think I need to stop.)
What's next? We sign and notarize this document and then I drive to Tallahassee for it's apostille. I will then send it to our agency who will then send it on to Russia. Takes about a week to get there. After it's translated our regional facilitator will submit all of our paperwork to the judge on a Wednesday (submissions only happen on Wednesdays). If it looks good, then the judge will assign us a court date and then we head over there about 5 days before that date.

Thank you, everyone who has prayed for us. We know that God is still working out things perfectly on our behalf. He is awesome!

The Pediatrician

We had our first ever Pediatrician consultation yesterday evening. I won't go into details but it was interesting and comfortable. I can't wait to be able to bring our little boy in to see the doctor because that will mean we actually have our little boy!

There hasn't been any news of that Petition yet, but we're continuing with the Home Study Update paperwork. It can be discouraging at times. We really thought we'd be traveling this week. It will be at least 2 months before we return with Jack. As you can imagine, we're frustrated and tired of all the rigamarole.

That said, we truly appreciate your prayer and know that God is working on Jack's and our behalf.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly

Well, the good news is that we're next in line to get our 'petition' so that should happen any day now. (does that sound familiar?) The bad news is that it was recommended we complete the Update to our home study, rather than just do an amendment. This is where the ugly comes in, if you know what I mean.

Yes, we knew we were cutting it close with our Home Study expiring Feb. 28th. We were advised, way back in October that it wasn't necessary to go through the hassle to update the home study, probably because they thought we'd be over there by now. (so did we.) With court being as tough as it is, I understand it is best that we complete the update so everything is current and there's no chance of anything expiring while we're there. It's a high price to pay, literally, for this security. Thankfully we've been blessed with a financial gift that covers our home study update fees. What an awesome God!

So, my latest "freak out" moment has been due to a concern that this Home Study Report Update, which could take a while to complete, could be required to be submitted with the Petition. (Remember, we need the 'petition' in order to get a court date. The court date will determine when we go back.) I don't have a final answer, but we're figuring and hoping this won't be needed since it won't expire until after we arrive there. We're hoping the judge won't need it to set our court date.

Ok, you have now been updated.

No Sign

We are through Day 2 and there hasn't been any sign of our Petition yet this week. We've still got a few more days though. I've really been learning the concept of Trusting in Jesus. It's like I'm taking a college class on the subject and every hour of the day I'm doing home work! It's a good thing though. I'm praying nothing hinders our Petition from coming through, and I'm also relying on Jesus to work things out for our good and also that things will happen at the perfect time. God is so gracious. We've been so blessed and still are every day, over and over.

Just wanted to give you a heads up. Keep praying! Thanks!

More Paperwork

Update: We were advised to complete one more piece of paper that extends our age range parameter, for the sake of the US Embassy in Russia. I just found out that in order to get this extra sense of security we have to complete even more supporting paperwork. With more paperwork comes more fees and more time.

We're also still looking for that pesky petition to arrive in our email's inbox. I think part of the delay has been due to their Christmas (on Jan. 7th) and New Year's (the 13th) holidays.

This past week has been my most difficult week emotionally thus far. God is so Faithful though. This scripture has really helped me so I thought I'd share:
Psalm 29 (the whole chapter is powerful but here are the last two verses)
10 The LORD sits enthroned over the flood; the LORD is enthroned as King forever.
11 The LORD gives strength to His people; the LORD blesses His people with peace.

Thanks and keep praying!

Thank you, everyone, for your continued prayer. I've heard good reports about how things are still moving along in the usual fashion in Russia, concerning adoptions. We still need to pray, though, that it continues.

We have another urgent need at this point. It concerns our court date and our paperwork. In our paperwork filed with the US government we have been allowed to adopt a child up to 18 months old. Jack's going to turn 18 months in the middle-end of February. We really need our court date to be scheduled before that. I'm not sure, with our petition not having come yet, if that is even possible. Though, with God all things are possible. If it doesn't happen in the specified time frame, we will have to spend more money and more time updating our paperwork. NOOOOOO.

Please continue to join us in prayer for this matter. Thank you all so much. To God be the Glory!

DESPERATE FOR PRAYER

Please take a moment and offer up prayer for all the American families who are in the process of adopting from Russia. Many might not know, last summer in Virginia there was a father who forgot his 21-month old son in his car while he worked all day. The boy had just been adopted from Russia three months prior. The boy died and just recently the court found the father not guilty. I'll post the links below to a couple of news reports, but it is very clear that many in the Russian government are extremely unhappy, outraged really, with this verdict and can potentially halt, or prolong the adoption process if they get their way.

As you can understand, this would devastate us after already having met and bonded with who we expect to be our son. Please, please stop and fervently ask God to intervene in this situation. We were hoping to be on a plane back to Russia by end of January. At this point that doesn't look likely, and it's possible it could be longer than even the middle of February.

When reading these articles, you will be able to pick up the irritation for the situation from the Russia media.
http://english.pravda.ru/society/stories/18-12-2008/106849-hot_car_death-0
http://en.rian.ru/world/20081217/118913479.html

My heart is so heavy. Please help us pray.

Happy New Year!

Still waiting to hear of our Petition. Can't wait to fill the spot in between the dogs. :) All is well though. We are looking forward to how different 2009 will be from any previous year!

We are patiently waiting to hear any news of our return to Russia. We know God is working behind the scenes. I've begun collecting our travel supplies and it's starting to get more and more real that we will be going back in about a month or so. woohoo!

We hope you had a wonderful start to this new year. We wish you a wonderful and blessed year!

Phooeee!

Well, I just learned that our coordinator won't be in the office today and tomorrow, and the agency is closed Wednesday through Friday so I guess we won't be getting the Petition this week either.

Phooee.

Almost the New Year

Well, the Christmas week has come and is just about gone. We didn't get the long awaited "Petition to Court" like we had hoped. At this point, it looks like the only way we'd be able to go back to Russia in January is if the Petition came next week. Of course, it's still possible. We're actually praying for that to happen. (Will you join us in prayer?) If it doesn't, then most likely we won't get on the plane until February. That really, really, really stinks but I know God's timing is perfect. Basically, I've been trying not to think about it.
This Christmas, as usual, we were so blessed with wonderful gifts for us and also for Jack. Thanks everyone! Jack will love his new little things and David will have so much fun playing bball with Jack on his new little basketball goal.

Most of all I'm grateful to Jesus. He has given us so much. We are so blessed. It overwhelms me when I think about how Good He is to me. He is always working on my behalf and it's all because I accepted His gift of freedom. There's so much to say about Jesus but none of it will express His greatness. He's awesome! Thank You for Christmas, for Hope and a new way of Life Jesus!

3 Months

It is 2 days until Christmas and things are so exciting... lights are up, holiday music everywhere, people giving gifts, the celebration of our Savior's arrival, all things happy.

But instead of being overwhelmed by the season, I find myself thinking about our little boy in an orphanage in a far, far away place. Today marks exactly 3 months since we've last seen him. He was a little cranky from having all his shots right before we got there. He wouldn't sit down very much because he was interested in everything. He would hum a little and try to sing a tune with me. Mostly, he wanted to explore and climb and play with everything, even for just a moment. Oh, it seems like much longer than 3 months ago.

But, then I snap out of my inward thoughts and I celebrate the fact that we are 3 months closer to going back there for him. Hopefully only another 6 or so weeks before we get to see his cute little face again. Yippee!

God has been so good to us this year, as He is every year. Though we may be sidetracked with all the gift giving and holiday parties, Jesus is the reason we can celebrate. God's grace is so amazing! So, with that thought, I hope you all are having a wonderful holiday season and I wish you all the best Christmas ever!

Time for a Fresh Look

In anticipation of the new year, and the drastic change we are looking forward to making (bringing our son home), I've decided to give our blog a fresh look. Jack's room colors are mainly blue and brown with polka dots so I thought this new design would be fitting. (Who knows, I like redesigning things so I might change it again soon...) Everything works the same (I hope) so keep checking things out and I will continue to update you with the most current news.

As of yet, nothing is new. We have no word of anything happening but I'm sure things are working behind the scenes. So often God works this way too. We aren't able to see what is being worked out on our behalf, but we know God has good things planned for us. A plan not to harm us but to accomplish a good work in us. I try to relax in this knowledge and I hope it causes a little rest in you too.

'til next time.... take care!

Already the middle of December

Happy December everyone. It's hard to believe there are less than 2 weeks before Christmas. What's on our Christmas list? We're hoping to receive the long awaited Petition to Court this month - maybe even Christmas week! That means we'll be even closer to returning to Russia to bring Jack home!

With all that excitement brings the pressure of the high cost of the remaining expenses of our adoption. I've been working on some new recipes and some fresh designs for our greeting cards. Some of our new food items are Caramel Almond Popcorn (delicious and addicting), Peppermint Bark (perfect for the holidays), Caramel Apples, Rice Krispy treats, Sugar cookies and the long awaited doggie treats.

If you can, please take a look at our website (goodiesandgreetings.com) and see if there is anything you might like, either for yourself or for a gift. It would really help us out in this tough time. Also, if you would like to make a tax-deductible donation, please contact me through this link for more information. Thanks!

Unknown Customer (found)

I received an order from our fundraiser page for 3 cards but there wasn't a name or email address entered. If you placed an order Saturday evening, please submit it again so I can get get it to you. Thank you! Michele

Thanksgiving and the "latest"

Isn't it amazing the little gifts God gives us. As the morning dew was wearing off, David noticed the little hearts of frost on our windows. It just reminded me of God's love and blessings. No matter where we are in our lives, whether it be in a time of struggle or in a season of calm, God is always faithful. I am also very thankful for our family and friends who have been a source of great support and encouragement, especially through this past year. Thanks to all of you!

The latest news of our adoption process is that we will spend more time waiting. ugh. Our coordinator filled us in on what happens next. She says that for now we sit and wait to receive the "Petition to Court". This will come from the officials in our region as they need to release information about Jack and remove him from the domestic database. Our Russian facilitator will receive this information and add in some personal information about us to the petition. We'll then receive it via email, sign, notarize and apostille it and send it back. It will get translated and submitted to the court judge with all of the other paperwork we submitted last week. This submission can only happen on Wednesdays. Hopefully the court date will then be set for a few weeks after that. We will work on our medical appointments soon also. There's really no telling when all of this would take place, but we're one of two families next on the list. woohoo. Our prayer at the stage is that Jack's information gets released soon so we can get things moving again.

Thanks again for all of your prayers and encouragement. Keep 'em coming!

On a roll!

Well, this is post 4 in four days! Don't expect a 5th though. haha

I forgot to mention that David and I have decided on a name for our son. His new birth certificate will say JACK (russian name here) PENTECOST. Jack means God is Gracious and we feel it is extremely appropriate for our little boy. We are truly blessed and realize God has had everything in His hands, including our child.