Leaving romorrow!

Nico will pick us up so Dima dont worry about meeting us. We will look forward to seeing you though later in the week when I get the kids.

When we get in we will go to apt and probably crash until Tuesday. then my guess is we jump in with the gathering of birth certificates. Looking forward to being there. NOT looking forward to the long boring ride over there. but its what I have to do to get them home. At least I will have Cody to keep me company. Tell the kids we are on our way!

heard from the kids again

via friends. what a special gift to be able to send messages to them and hear from them via the friends we met over there. I hear my Andre is feeling better and will be back in his groupoo soon. My other kids are well and happy and enjoying summer(as children should!!!)

gosh I didnt know how much I would miss them coming home! we have passed the 10 day wait and its official. they are OURS! I cant wait to go get them and bring them home!! I love them so much!

every day the other kids ask if today is the day I will bring home Natasha Diana Jaeger and Andre. and I have to say no, not today. Sophie couldnt be happier that she can share her room with them. Maia couldnt be happier that I bought them all matching outfits. Chrysta will be happy, she has lobbied for these kids ever since the day we met them. She said we HAVE to get them! She was right. We did. they were ours in our hearts after that first day. we played with lots of kids those days we were there but none stole our hearts the way these 4 did. Ethan is thrilled to have some brothers who can keep up with him. he likes to do all boy all the time kind of stuff and poor Ben just cant. Ben knows these kids he was in groupoo with them. He looooooves the girls especially and asks about them all the time. and wants Jaeger to be on the top bunk of his bed. he and Andre are only ONE MONTH(precisely) apart in age. Cody is looking forward to going to Ukraine. last time he was sick the whole time. oh gosh I cant wait to get them home! I better go pack and get stuff done so I can get there and hug my girls and kiss my boys and see that special Jaeger smile and Andre's squinty smily eyes. so I can play Uno with Natasha and snuggle her and Diana.

heard from the kids....sort of...

poor Andre is sick again. poor baby. he was just sick 3 weeks ago. hope he feels better soon. would be better for him to be home with Mama when he is sick. soon Andre, Mama will take care of you when you get sick. Mama will hug and kiss you and rock you if you feel lousy. of course you will have hugs and kisses every day not just sick days. but Mama's have special powers when their kids are sick. They know how to make them feel better. Mama kisses and hugs can do wonders.

Dima visited with the other kids and sent us some cute photos. here is my favorite.

a fitting song

from The Music Man, by Meredith Wilson
There were bells....on the hill,
but I never heard them ringing
No, I never heard them at all,
Till there was you.

There were birds....in the sky,
but I never saw them winging,
no, I never saw them at all
Till there was you.

And there was music,
and there were wonderful roses,
they tell me, in sweet fragrant
meadows of dawn and dew.

There was love, all around
but I never heard it singing,
no, I never heard it at all
Till there was you.

Then there was music and wonderful roses
they tell me, in sweet fragrant meadows
of dawn and dew

There was love all around
But I never heard it singing
No, I never heard it at all
Till there was you
Till there was you

soooooooo

trying to plan my return. tickets are paid for. I have a cd I can cash in. I have MOST of what I need leftover from last trip. I might be able to squeese a little more out of my savings. I havent looked at it lately to know. but I leave in a week and I dont think I have enough money to finish all the paperwork and room and board and driver. Small town and not at all supportive so getting anything done around here is impossible. my ebay sales never go very well. I lose money there. My etsy isnt moving. I usually have a change bucket but thats already been cashed in. I am scared that I will be there and run out of money and my husband is at home and here I am in a foreign country with 5 kids. We have enough to pay our bills no problem. but adoption is expensive and we hadnt counted on 5 weeks in country for the first trip. so the bulk of what we saved is already spent on this adoption, there are no reserves. only money that is earmarked for upcoming bills. all ideas are welcome here!

Making progress!

Bunks are up! girls beds are made up wtih sheets and comforters. Boys bunks are put together just need to get all the mattresses and sheets on. I have pillows for everyone. girls are on their beds. boys will be when I make the beds. Cleaned out some closets and got rid of some useless stuff taking up valuable space. got plane tickets for myself and Cody. plane tickets for the kids to return home with me. I also have received word from some people who know the children. they tell me all about them. I love to hear what they are doing and how they are. I love to hear about what they have done or how they have been in the past. we have had very kind offers to help with the children, to take us and the children to see sights so the kids can remember Ukraine. I hope we will get a chance to do some of those things.

what I love most is hearing about the children, MY children(I love to say that), and their past before me. What a gift to get that information. Many adoptive parents know only the life their child has from the moment of meeting and forward. I have been given an insight into their past from people who love them. I used to think that adoptions should be CLOSED CLOSED CLOSED!! but as we go forward, knowing Sophie's birth family and communicating with them gives me great satisfaction. I want for them to know that she is our wonderful beautiful beloved daughter and she means everything to us. I love to show them photos. and now I have these people who have known our other children before we knew them. and I am so happy to know them and hear info about the kids. and to have that connection to their past. I don't think I could advocate closed closed closed adoptions anymore. children need parents who love them, but also they need other adults who love them, who want the best for them. Thanks Darina and Dima for all the letters and word of the children, photos and info on their past. what a special gift.