Learning English words

Well I think today Calvin is finally over his jetlag, his nap time was later and shorter and he doesn't seem ready to go to bed for the night either. Thankfully, hubby has taken over bedtime duty this weekend. This means he gets to sit next to Calvin's crib until he falls asleep. This can take between 15 minutes to 45. So far he has been sitting there for 30 minutes. He doesn't cry just lays there.

This morning hubby got up with Calvin and ate breakfast with him (eggs). I was supposed to sleep in but my eldest kept coming into my room, either to snuggle or ask when I was going to get up to asking me to make pancakes. Calvin was up at 7:15, I was up at 8am. I made pancakes for the girls while Chris took Calvin outside to swing (so he wouldn't beg for more food). After we were all ready for the day we then took a walk to our friends down the road. They bought a house a few blocks from us and are fixing it up before they move in. We got to see the progress and they got to see Calvin. We then got home, made a picnic and went to the park by the public pool. After 1 hr of playing the girls went to the public pool with daddy and mommy and Calvin went home for a nap. He slept 2 hours (the same as in Bulgaria) which is an hour short of what he has been sleeping this week.

After nap, the first thing he always asks for is food (same in the morning). After snack we went in the basement to play. It is very hot here, in the 90's and our back yard is pretty sunny in the afternoon. For dinner we grilled outside and ate outside. I also put Calvin in the turtle pool (the water was warmer than his bath water). He was complaining in the beginning but enjoyed it for 15 min. He of course wanted to drink the water, and didn't understand how to play in it. I had to show him how to transfer water from one cup to another.

So far his english vocabulary is : doggy, woof woof, sorry (when he is in time in, or hurts someone), dally (for daddy), swing, yum yums (for eating food), he did say water but usually says the bulgarian work 'voda'. And he is singing twinkle twinkle little star. He says pee pee's when he wants a diaper change. This boy is ready to be potty trained, but I am not. I feel like we still need to work on tantrums and obeying. He thinks it is really funny when I say no and then he smiles and does it again (like hitting a glass window with a hard object or throwing toys). Have to say today his time out was alot shorter, praise the Lord. I still think he is really doing well, so much better than I ever expected. He wants only me to hold his hand walking up and down stairs, he wants only me to go outside, put him in his swing and push him. I have to say though I love the weekends when daddy can help me a bit.

Pictures ..

Me and the kids at Meijer Garden Monday afternoon (daddy is taking the picture)

The 1st picture of our kids. The girls loved to push him in the stroller. They are such good helpers.

Calvin playing in the sandbox with the girls

Calvin touching the wall of water (he is in his swimsuit here, because there is a part of the garden where the kids can walk through water and play with boats. He walked through the water but didn't know what to do with the boats)

Day of Firsts...

Calvin slept through the night again, he went down at 8:30 after the girls' softball game. I had him in the ergo carrier so people wouldn't pick him up and/or he wouldn't run away or get overwhelmed by all the people.

Today he had his first McDonald's hamburger and french fries. Ate half and burger and all the fries. He also was introduced to our basement this afternoon. His eyes said,wow, is this a toy store. He is playing with the kitchen and food right now. He loves baby dolls too, kisses and hugss them. So good to finally see him playing, he isn't too interested in the little people stuff yet.

Tonight the girls are going to see Cars 2 with Chris.They are dying to get out of the house, so they are going on a date with daddy. Next week I will try and do something with them while Chris stays home. It is raining today, so we played outside this morning in the back yard. He doesn't play very long in the sandbox, but loves the swing and his car we push him in.

Monday Day 2 home

Calvin wakes up happy to see me in the mornings. We got dressed and then I unpacked suitcases and the girls put away their clothes and did their chores. Calvin was walking around looking at the different bedrooms, and exploring. The girls then played with him in his room with is cars and trains. Once I was done we all went down stairs, I got breakfast for the kids and then we went outside to water the flowers. Calvin loves being outside, he especially enjoys the swing and he did play in the sandbox a bit. We filled up his turtle pool but he didn't like it (it was probably a bit cold). I then had some errands to run so we left in the car to go to the bank and library. He had his first lollipop, which Cathryn taught him to lick. At the library he was running away up and down the aisles, thankfully we got there at 9:30 when it opens so no one else was there. The girls chose some books and then we left.

After lunch Calvin took a nap by himself in his crib and woke up 1.5 hr later. Chris worked half a day and came home. Once everyone had a snack we went off to Meijer Garden. It has a children's area which he enjoyed touching the water and playing in the sandbox. We were there for 2 hours. I was hot and Cathryn was tired of walking so we returned home. Dinner was hamburgers, which he ate and he had some chocolate cake. We bathed him (still not a big fan) and then we read some books and he played with his sisters upstairs (wanting to be chased). At 7pm I put him down for bed as he started crying and acting tired. He fell asleep 20 mintues later. However, at 8:30 he woke up screaming. So I went in and rubbed his back, he fell back to sleep until 9:30 and screamed again. This time he wouldn't go back to sleep and he didn't want to be in his crib. I sat in the rocking chair next to him crib but he didn't go to sleep. Finally at 10:30 I left the room and he started screaming again LOUD. I was soo tired. I went back up and took him out of his crib and lay on the bed with him, he kept pushing me away, saying no , I felt like he wanted me to hold him but he didn't want me to hold him. He was confused. This is what they call grieving I guess. Chris came in telling me to leave him and come to bed. But I felt like he was afraid and needed me. So I finally just held him really tight (legs and arms) and told him to be quiet, stop, it's okay, singing, etc. About midnight he finally relaxed in my arms, fell asleep in the bed and snuggled with me. This was soooooo hard. I was soooo tired and sooo angry that he wouldn't be quiet. I had to keep reminding myself, he is scared and is grieving. Of course he didn't sleep in , 7 am he woke up next to me. So up we got (otherwise he rocks back and forth). Now it is 10 am in the morning and he is tired (so am I). So he is taking an early nap, so much for trying to be on a schedule. We have been eating breakfast between 7:30-8am, eating lunch between 11:30-12 and then he goes down for a nap until 2:30/3pm. We do a snack when he wakes up and eat dinner between 5:30/6pm. He has been going to bed 7/7:30 when he is tired. I am hoping this is just jetlag and doesn't last a long time.

I am just not sure what to do about night time. Do I sleep with him in his bed (for how long, will he let me transition to his crib, or do i leave him in the bed?) or do I bring him into our bedroom in a pack and play and transition him out (then he has to get used to his bedroom down the road). Wish I could just let him cry himself to sleep but that doens't work, I tried to do that last night when I was at my wits end at 10:30 last night.

Also today he has been a bit jealous, Cathryn was kissing and hugging me and he said no and came over to sit in my lap I have made an effort to kiss them all at the same time to show him I love them all. Well that is an update of how things are going now that we are home.

1st Day home and travel update.

We left early Friday morning to get to the airport and Calvin did great on the first leg of the journey to Germany. The 8 hr flight from Germany to NY was awful. He didn't want to watch the t.v screen, he doesn't really know how to play, he was over tired but not wanting to go to sleep. All he wanted was to drink juice and eat. Well after a point a parent has to say no, or he would have vomitted. Well he screamed, we didn't know what to do. Chris covered his mouth and he bit him, it made him scream louder if possible. I then started taking him to the restroom when he screamed but he liked that and the bathroom wasn't always available. So we ended up having a screaming child on and off, walking up and down the asile ( he would see others eating and want a snack), at one point the stewardess asked us what the problem was and I started bawling. The shorter plane rides went a lot better. We almost missed our plane at one point (long story). It was so good to finally get home. We were greated by some friends at the airport, which was wonderful after the long day we had.

A friend picked us up and took us home. She also made us dinner. It was so good to eat a homecooked meal. Calvin was a bit nervous about his new home. He said no when I showed him his room. I sat in his room with him, while he fell asleep in his crib. Calvin actually slept alone in a room at his orphanage, so he is used to that. But I did sit with him because he wasn't so sure about his new room. He went to sleep at 9 pm and woke up at 8am. He slept through the night, and so did we. Once he got up we gave him breakfast and a bath. We then went to the grocery store ( Chris had the cart, Calvin was in the ergo on my back). He loves going out so he really enjoyed the car ride and the store. Once we got home he went on the swing in our back yard. He loves being outside. I think being inside makes him nervous. We tried playing some in his room, with trains and cars. He did play with me for a few minutes and then it was lunch time. He is a great eater. He went down well for his nap, slept from 12:30-3pm. Our girls finally came home at 5pm. Calvin was shy in the beginning but by the time he had dinner at 6pm he was smiling at them. He is now in bed at 7:30. He started screaming at 7pm for no reason, so I told him it was time for bed and he was happy about that. I have tried reading to him before bed, but he isn't interested. He was rocking himself to sleep for 15 minutes. I guess he isn't comfortable in our house yet. Tomorrow we are going to put water in the turtle pool and see how he does, and play in the sandbox. Overall, he is doing great adjusting and settling in. He still speaks Bulgarian to us, which we don't understand most of the time. I understand he wants his shoes on and wants a diaper change, but that is about it.

Friday, last day in Sophia

Calvin woke up again at 6:15 and rocked until we got up. He ate his baby cereal with milk and fruit puree. Chris made himself eggs, and I got to eat a yoghurt behind them as they walked down the street. I can't eat in front of Calvin or else he wants to eat all my food too.

We didn't really know what to do today, so we walked to the subway where the souvenirs are and bought ourselves something and got Calvin a hat that says Bulgaria on it. We then walked around and made our way back home for lunch. I had my usually gyro and Chris had eggs and sausage. Calvin had a meal I bought in America that you warm up in the micro (veggies and meat and pasta). We skyped our family again today and Calvin went down for a 2 hour nap. Once he was up he was ready to go again. He had juice and a snack.

This time we walked to the Grand Hotel Sofia by the theatre. He enjoyed swinging for a while and watching the other children. He also went down the slide. We then got went back home try and book our seats home (didn't work, we have too many different passports among us - American, British and Bulgarian). We played around the apartment and went to our local dinner spot Pizza Roma. He was very good about waiting for the food, he asked me only a few times when we got there for food, but understood he had to wait. Once we got done with dinner we returned home, gave Calvin a bath (not a big fan tonight, was whimpering) and then watched some Animal Kingdom on tv until bed time. He finally fell asleep at 8pm, with me by him. Our translator then dropped off our translated paperwork (court papers, Calvin's birth certificate, his Bulgarian passport etc) We were told we will be picked up tomorrow at 3:30am, so guess I should go to bed now so I can get some sleep. Excited to be traveling home tomorrow, Chris is worried about the flight, I just want to get home and people are just going to have to deal with it!

Glad this is finally coming to an end in a sense. We can start living a new 'normal' and not have life up in the air anymore. We now start a new chapter as a family of 5. Thanking God and leaning on him each day.

Mosque

Celeste clothing store

Calvin finally trusting daddy to carry him! Mommies back says thank you. We stopped at Happy Bar Grill for ice coffee and coke, and then later for dinner. Great to be outside and eat with a little one who is loud. Tip: ask for your check when they bring you your food so you don't have to sit there so long with an impatient child.

Thursday Day 4 with Calvin

Can't believe it has only been 4 days that Calvin has been with us, feels longer. Well the orphanage said he slept from 8pm-8am. The last 2 mornings he has been up at 6:15am. I let him lie there until 7:15 and then turn on the animal channel on the tv. This morning he was rocking back and forth lying on his back at 7am so I turned the tv on a bit earlier. This stopped him, it must be because he is bored? This is the only time I have seen him rocking!

Today he also had his fingers in his mouth most of the day, when he wasn't talking. Chris got him to go in the ergo carrier on his back, I am so thankful for that because my sciatic nerve in my left leg was hurting today from carrying him. He still wont' hold Chris' hand, but he will let him pick him up and carry him if I am standing close by. Thankful for the little progress we are making there.

We left this morning at 8:30 (all the shops were closed still) so we walked to see a mosque and indoor market by the statue of Sophia. The marked had food, clothes, toiletries, everything you could think of. We found some baklava so bought 2 pieces for me. I had one tonight with some tea and will have the other one tomorrow. After the market, we walked to the mineral baths (it is closed) and then we saw a place to get a drink. Happy Bar Grill. We sat outside and gave Calvin a snack (10 am by this time) and I had an ice coffee and Chris had a coke light. Calvin wanted my coffee of course when he was done with his water and snack, but I said no. So he screamed on top of his lungs. Chris about died and asked me to take him out to the sidewalk. I told Calvin he had to stop 'spri' and be quiet ' topli'. Chris then paid and we left (not very relaxing, but oh well we do have a 3 yr old with us). We then walked back to the area where our apartment is and took some different side streets, and we came across a clothing store called Celeste. Too funny. Once we got home at noon, we fed Calvin and put him down for a nap. Chris then went out and got me another gyro. He had eggs and sausage, which he made in our apartment. Calvin slept 2 hours and woke up still kind of sleepy. We then skpyed our girls and gave Calvin a snack of pureed fruit. He loves to eat and always asks for more when he is done.

At 3pm we were picked up by Petko and taken to the US Embassy with the Dornberger family and their daughter. It was great to finally see them. They are a bit far out from us and their little girl doesn't like to go out, it over stimulates her. The embassy appointment was Chris signing some paperwork and that was that. I asked Petko why they didn't ask us for out tax returns etc and he said that is usually requested for the I600, we are the I 800. We then returned home and walked back to the Happy Grill Bar (15 min one way from our place) to get dinner. I was tired of pizza. I ordered a hamburger and shared my french fries with Calvin. He loved them. Chris had chicken and salad and shared some of his chicken with Calvin. Once we got home it was 6:30 so we gave Calvin a bath and then he actually asked to go to bed!!!! WHAT.

I should have know that was too good to be true. He climbed into bed around 6:45 and then was playing around, grabbing the curtain, making noises etc. I actually fell asleep until 7:15 and he was still awake. I repeated go to sleep, good night. He would laugh etc. At 7:30 I then got up to leave and he started to scream, so I got a book and was going to sit on the floor. He was telling me to lie down in the bed. So I sat in the bed and read, finally at 8pm he fell asleep. I don't think he was ready to go to bed at 7pm, I think he likes me to just lie down with him. Now I know. We did have to put him in a time out today. He was screaming when I told him he no to having my hot tea, so Chris took him and placed him on the couch opposite of me and wouldn't let him get up until he stopped screaming. This wasn't longer than 5 min. No hair pulling today either.

Tomorrow we have no plans, our translator will pick up our stuff from the us embassy and bring it to us in the late afternoon. We will go and buy some more souvenirs, eat lunch in and eat dinner out. I forgot how hard it was to eat out with a little one. He wants to eat as soon as we sit down and doesn't understand we need to wait so gets upset. Then when he is done eating he wants our food and doesn't understand why he can't. Please pray for our journey home, we leave Saturday early, probably have to leave our apartment at 4am for our 6am flight. FUN!!

Pictures for those of you who asked...

Calvin finally sitting with Daddy, eating peanuts.

Have food, he is your best friend.

Playing in the sand box, outside of the Grand Hotel Sophia

Loved the swing, he could pump his legs himself.

He loves the ergo baby carrier, and sings nursery rhymes as we go. Today he let daddy carry him home in the carrier, mommy is so happy about that.

Wednesday in Sophia

This morning started off a bit early, Calvin was awake at 6:15 am which means I was awake at 6:15 am. I have been sleeping with him. He laid in bed until 7:30. I turned on the animal planet for him to watch, he was talking about the cats etc so I couldn't sleep. He was then pulling my hair, pinching my nose so I figured it was time to get up. I fed him baby cereal with milk and pureed fruit. He asks for bread, which I am guessing is what he had for breakfast at the orphanage. He also drinks apple juice (sok). He asks for this all day. This morning I actually had Chris feed him, so I could eat in the other room (otherwise he wants my breakfast too, and he can't eat all that food or he will be sick).

After breakfast, we gave him a bath. He enjoyed it more this time. The first think he wants is his diaper and shoes on! He is going to nap and bed with out his shoes now. After his bath, we got ready and he occupied himself. He was ready to leave at 9am, and gave Chris his shoes and then gave me my shoes. We put him in the ergo carrier today. He freaked out when we tried the first day at the mall. This time he cried at first but once he was in it he loved it. The second time out after his nap he actually asked for it. At 9am it was already warm outside. We walked to all the sites we had seen on trip one, but took pictures of Calvin in front of them this time around. We also went inside one of the churches, it was beautiful with many murals. Calvin started getting loud, so I had to go outside and wait for Chris. We stopped along the way at a few 'parks'. By park I mean grassy areas with some shade. The first stop was by the Russian church, I was hot from carrying Calvin so we stopped and blew some bubbles. There were a lot of dogs and their owners at the park. The second stop was a play area by the Grand Hotel Sofia (close to the Alexander Church). It had some swings, slide and sand box. Calvin enjoyed playing there. We then made our way back home as it was getting hot and we had run out of water. We stopped along the way to buy some souvenirs and once we got home we gave Calvin lunch and put him done for a nap. Chris went out and got us some gyros (so good, I was starving). We both took a nap after skyping with our family. Calvin went down at 1:15 and got up at 3:15. He then had a snack and we went out again for a couple of hours. There really isn't much to do in the apartment, so he likes to go out. I had a frappacino at Starbucks by the Palace of Culture, it was so yummy and cold. We were looking for shade where ever we went. Calvin also finally wore his hat today, but still won't wear his sun glasses. He also sat on Chris' lap to eat some peanuts. If you have food, he will be your friend. As soon as he was done eating his peanuts he was off Chris' lap.

When he doesn't want to walk, he sits down in the dirt and won't stand up. So we have started having Chris pick him up, so now when Chris starts walking towards him to pick him up, he says ne and jumps right up. Too funny. Most of the time he is on my back, but when I get too tired or hot he walks for a few minutes. Of course he would rather be carried. So he is now in bed sleeping after eating pizza at Roma Pizza. That is a good place to eat dinner. It is close to us and he can be as loud as he wants and we have our own room (non smoking). Thanks for you prayers, we feel so blessed. I am homesick and missing my girls, so looking forward to leaving in a couple of days. Tomorrow we have an appointment in the afternoon. lecka nosch (good night)

Photo's of our trip so far....

Day 2 was Gotcha Day

This first picture is Chris and Calvin at the airport leaving Varna for Sophia

This is us leaving the orphanage with Calvin.

This was taken after they changed his clothes into what we brought for him and I was reading him a book.

Day 1 in Varna

We saw the Roman Baths, Navy Museum (outside), number of orthodox churches, walked around looking for a number of other museums. Most of the roads had no names on them so it was a bit difficult to find anything. Then we went to the beach in the afternoon and I got to swim in the Black Sea.

Tuesday Day 2 with Calvin

Sleep:

Calvin cries for about 5 minutes for naps and night time and wants me with him. He then turns over, and sucks his fingers. We have seen no rocking or other orphanage behaviors.

He slept from 9pm until 8 am this morning.

Food:

He eats solid foods that are cut up. He will eating anything. He had baby cereal with milk for breakfast and a crosissant. And asked for mine, but I said no. He loves juice, which I give to him in the morning with his asprin. He didn't know how to drink out of the sippy cup, I took the suction part out so he can drink it now with the lid on. For lunch he ate 1 piece of pizza, mango and pear puree and cheese and cucumbers from Chris' salad.

Behavior:

This morning we went out to run some errands for paperwork. He wanted to hold my hand, sit in my lap but he didn't want Chris today. He was also testing me, when I say no he would redo what he was doing to see what I would do. He through his toys across the room at the doctors, so we put them away etc. He did great at the doctor though, when we left he told the doctor he will come back again!

The only time he cried today is when we returned to our apartment after lunch, for nap. He says a word we don't understand (and neither does our translator). He said the same word yesterday at the mall while we were coloring and started bawling. GRIEF. I am wondering if it a person's name? I will post pictures tonight when he is in bed. I need to get him up from nap. Chris is sleeping as he isn't feeling well today, a bit achy. Hope it isn't flu! Thanks for your words of encouragment but most of all thank you for your prayers, we need them. I turned to Chris in the car today on the way to our appointment and said this is one of the most stressful situations i have been in. It is hard! Wish I could understand the language and Calvin when he talks. He talks no stop. Today he was also talking to strangers, saying hello and goodbye.

Gotcha day Monday

I didn't sleep as well as I did the night before, must have been because of the coffee I had at dinner time. Anyway, we finally got up at 9am, went to breakfast and got a phone call at 10am that we needed to meet our translator to go to Dobrich. Our translator had left earlier in the morning to take an Italian family to the Varna Orphanage. Once we left for the 40 minute car ride, I started getting butterflies in my stomache. I turned to Chris and and asked if he was nervous, and he said no. Well I was. I was terrified of him screaming and not wanting to leave, and having to pull him out of there. I had all these horrible scenerios going through my mind. Then I started praying, asking God to give me the wisdom I would need and the patience, and to protect Calvin's heart. This calmed me down, and I tried to dwell on different scriptures in my mind to calm myself.

We got to the orphanage and the security guard remembered us and welcomed us. The social worker then came out to meet us. We gave her gifts for two of the other children there, whose parents had sent gifts with us to give to them. I got to meet them, it was so precious. The kids were outside in a swimming pool and some of the others were playing in the shade. There are some really young beautiful children at this orphanage. Once we gave them their gifts, we then had a meeting with the Director. She told us some things about Calvin's health, medications, his schedule and thanked us for adopting him so he wouldn't be in an institution. We gave her a small gift and thanked her for taking care of our son.

We were then lead to his side of the orphange and he came through the door saying 'I am going to America". Of course he has no clue what that means. He came up to us and I kissed him. We then went into a room where we read him a book and they took him to change his clothes into an outfit we brought him. We then asked if we could take a photo of all of the caregivers with Calvin, which we did. They were telling us that he recently went to the zoo and enjoyed it, and that he loves cats and dogs. He also loves juice. I then gave his 'teacher' a pendant with his picture. She is the closest one to him. She was crying when we left and walked us to the door. I had Calvin hug his friends so we could take some pictures, and the social worker also took pictures. She asked that we send them updates and photos. I was doing great, I lifted him up to leave and we started walking down the hall. I remembered he liked to walk so just before we got the the exit I put him done, and he started saying no and crying. This did me in. I started bawling, so I put my sunglasses on so he wouldn't see and then the social worker took his hand and led him to the car. She placed him inside. I climbed in next to him and then his 'teacher' came out with his favorite stuffed animal, and she could tell I was crying so she started crying. At this time Calvin was calm and he sat all the way between Chris and I to Varna looking out the window and eating his snack.

We had some time to kill so we spent a couple of hours in a mall that had a children's play area, Calvin colored and that was about all he was comfortable doing. The ball pit scared him and so did the swing. We also ate lunch there, and he loved it. He will eat and eat if you don't stop him. We then left to go to the airport to return to Sophia. We flew with the Italian couple and the kids really did great. The only time Calvin made a peep was when I put on his seat belt, he was terrified and crying. It last about 5 min and he just stopped. At this point he had missed his nap so he was almost dozing off but not letting himself. Once we arrived in Sophia it was dinner time so we had a quick salad which I shared with Calvin (ham, cheese and bread for him). I feel like he has been eating none stop the whole day. Once we got home it was almost 9pm so we got him ready for bed. He did great except for when he had to go to sleep (and he wanted his shoes on)....I lay down with him rubbing his back while he screamed and after 5 min he just stopped and started sucking his fingers. I was praying those 5 minutes that none of the neighbors would call the cops and that he would trust me and go to sleep. Prayers were answered. He is sleeping now and I will be joining him soon. So that is our day in a nut shell. Over all it went really well.

Tomorrow we have our passport appointment and doctor's appointment. Please continue to pray for him that he will grow more comfortable with us and that we would have patience and wisdom with him. The biggest obstacle is he is talking a lot and we don't understand what he is saying, and we don't know how to communicate with him either. My pronounciation is terrible. I have been kissing him a lot, he holds my hand without me asking, and he has been sitting in my lap a lot today. Thanks again for following our journey and please leave comments :)

Day 1 in Varna

We left our home at 11am Friday, flew out of the airport at 1:30, landed in Chicago and flew out to Frankfurt, Germany late afternoon. We didn't fly air france this time, instead we went with Lufthensa. The seats were tight, the lady next to me had her elbow in my waist most of the time. Chris had the person in front of him lying down in his lap. It was a bit uncomfortable. The plane was full and there were a number of crying children through out the journey. We also didn't have our own dvd screens like we did on air france. So I read my book, and finished it, and tried to sleep. I think I slept for 1 hr, was woken up by the lady next to me hitting me in the chest (she was taking off her sweater). Once we landed in Germany, we had breakfast at McDonalds (no free wi fi anywhere). We found this airport a lot more nicer than the one in Paris. Easier to navigate. We then boarded our plan for Sophia. It was a little plane that we had to take a bus to get to, it took 3 hours to get to Sophia so we finally got some sleep for a few hours. Once we landed in Sophia we had 6 hours to wait for out flight to Varna on the Black Sea. We ate lunch and tried to sleep, I dozed off for about 30min. We finally slept on the plane from Sophia to Varna (50min). We were exhausted. I think we got a total of 4 hours sleep Friday-Saturday. Once in Varna, our cab driver met us at the airport and took us to our hotel. It is in a great location. We are right by the beach, downtown. We showered and went to bed as soon as we got to our hotel. It was about 10:30 p.m Saturday when we put our heads down. We slept until 9:30 am Sunday morning. We have breakfast with our hotel, which closes at 10 so we had a quick breakfast and ate outside. We ate boiled eggs,cheese, sausage and coffee. I love the coffee in Bulgaria, nice and strong.

What we did today: after breakfast we walked to the Roman Baths, saw the navy museum (didn't go in), walked in the Sea Garden (large park along the beach) and then we spent a few hours at the beach. I swam in the black sea, it was lovely and then we lay out for a bit in the sun. If you want shade, you have to pay for an umbrella. Chris paid 5Lev for some shade :) A side note, if you go to the beach in Bulgaria, some woman go topless!!! We are now spending some time in the air-conditioning and will go out again in a bit before dinner. We plan to eat at one of the restaurants on the beach. Our translator flew into Varna and met us at the beach this afternoo. We spent about 30 min with her, she is still there. She said we will be going to pick up Calvin tomorrow at 11:30 and be back to Varna by 2pm. She has an Italian family here that she is taking to the Varna orphanage early in the morning, then she will return to take us to our son in Dobrich (30 min away). We are supposed to be at the orphanage at noon. So far, we are doing well, not too tired and enjoying Bulgaria. We should be flying out of Varna back to Sophia Monday night. Thanks for your comments on facebook, they are encouraging. Will post again when we are able to find wifi.

Tomorrow is our big day....

Can't believe the day has finally arrived! I finally finished cleaning our house and doing laundry. Tonight the girls have 2 softball games then they go to their grandparents for the week. We leave tomorrow morning and arrive in Sophia the next day at lunch. Can't believe we are actually doing this! It has been a dream, that some days never seemed possible. After one delay or another, we saw our son in an email from our agency. We visited him in February and are now going to go and get him on Monday 18th. Hoping by Tuesday we will be over our jet lag. I will be updating our blog in country as often as possible. We will not be getting back to our apartment in Sophia until later that evening, so I am guessing we won't be updating our blog Monday. Please pray for our son's transition and for wisdom and patience on our parts. Thank you.

We probably won't post pictures either until we get home, it is pretty slow in country.

Final count down...

Getting excited and nervous.

This is the final week, as my mom said, 4 more sleeps until we leave!

So what are we doing this last week....we are doing VBS in the morning 9-11:30 ( I can get cleaning done and the girls can be with their friends hearing about God). Today the girls have a friend over for the day (babysitting/play date). I had my allergy shots and chiropractor appointment. Tomorrow we are going to the beach one last time with some friends and doing laundry. Wednesday and Thursday will be cleaning and packing day. The girls have a softball game Tuesday and Thursday night. Friday we leave in the morning for Bulgaria.

So close...3 year journey coming to an end, and a new chapter of life about to begin. So looking forward to moving on with our life. The last 3 years have been so difficult with trying to make life plans but not sure if we would have to travel to Bulgaria. Glad to see this chapter close!

7 days...

"Not flesh of my flesh nor bone of my bone but still miraculously my own."

We are coming little guy! Every night I go into room, look at your clothes, pack and repack for you. Praying that you are prepared for us and are expecting us. I pray that your caregivers are talking to you about your mama and tate, that you are looking at the book we left with you with our photos in it. I am praying you won't be too scared leaving with us.It will be hard to leave all you have known, but God has something better for you. A REAL family. One that will look out for you, will kiss your boo boos when you hurt, will hold you when you are scared, will kiss you just because and will tuck you into bed a night with a story and a prayer. You won't have to worry about being hungry, you won't have to wonder if you are loved. We love you and your Heavenly father loves you. He knew you before you were born. He chose us for you as your family. I can't wait to hold you, touch you and kiss you. Soon little man. In 7 days we board a plane for your home country and we will have you in our arms in 10 days time.

Fun Times..

So time is flying by. We have been doing a lot of play dates with friends from school and our past church. The girls got to go to a new place called Java Gym. I especially enjoyed it because the adults drink coffee while the kids play in a safe environment in a maze of foam. It reminded me of Mac Donald's play area, but cleaner and bigger.

We have also gone to the beach quite a bit with friends. The girls have had fun playing with their new tubes and fishing nets. A couple of weekends ago we had a great time as a family canoeing, almost tipping over when Caroline was screaming about dragonflies and I flicked Chris with a branch, oops.

4th of July weekend we did our annual trip to Chris' family. We spent the night and were up early for the parade and then spent the rest of the day by the water and eating. The girls had fun spending another night at their grandparents house for fireworks and I picked them up the following day. In the middle of all the above we did have a mini garage sale last Saturday and what we didn't sell we took to the salvation army. It was stuff that we have been hoarding for 10 years that has been sitting in our basement storage. We went through, organized and de-cluttered. Feels so good! Our garage is neat and organized, as well as my laundry room and storage room. We still have some big items on craigslist we are trying to sell.

We are also in the swing of softball. The girls are playing for the first time this year. Cathryn is loving it and Caroline isn't. She thinks there are too many rules to remember. She is going to soccer camp while we are in Bulgaria. Both kids will be staying with their grandparents that week. Caroline is looking forward to soccer camp. Last year we signed her up at 3 different places where we live and they all cancelled at the last minute because of not enough interest. So this year we signed her up where Chris' parents live, and God worked it perfectly that we would be traveling the same week. We have 3 more beach dates left before we leave for Bulgaria, a wedding, bridal shower, piano lesson, and a couple of soft ball games. Everything is ready for us to leave for Bulgaria. My plan is to clean our house top to bottom next week and buy food staples for the fridge and pack a few outfits for us. Calvin is packed, donations are packed, gifts are packed (translator, director and 2 children whose parents are sending gifts to them through us). We have friends watering our flowers, cutting our grass, taking and picking us up at the airport. I also have to get someone out here to fix our AC before we leave and our lawnmower is in the shop. Praying nothing else dies before we leave, because of the expense but also because of the stress!

9 DAYS TILL BULGARIA.

Great article on attachment

http://www.adoptioncounselingservices.com/graytopten.html

God ALWAYS provides....

God always provides doesn't he? Well he did again this time with our adoption. He did this by providing funds for us through MOPS sales, Abba Fund matching grant (through friends and family), generosity of another church in Georgia, coffee fundraiser, savings on our part, and selling of books on Amazon. Each penny helped so thank you if you contributed in anyway. I wanted to give the glory to God.

If you are reading this and have 'thought' about adoption but then thought you can't do it because of finances, please know that there are many grants out there and God will provide to rescue his children. He did so much more for us, to rescue us from an eternity separated from him. He suffered death on a cross to redeem you. What is money in the scheme of eternity and saving a child from prostitution, death, drugs and an eternity separated from HIM? Who do you think has put that thought of adoption on your heart and who do you think is whispering 'you can't do it, you can't afford it'. It is researching, educating yourself and stepping out in FAITH. If you haven't read the book Radical please do by David Platt. He really gets to the point, where are our values? In America it is money!!! Yes we could have been done paying off our mortgage but instead we refinanced so we could have money for our adoption. Was that a wise financial decision, of course not. But a child's life is so much more important than my bank account statement. Just saying!!!