We are still waiting for official travel dates. They said we would either need to be back in Kyrgyzstan on the 21st of August or the 28th- so hopefully we'll know exactly the date this week... We heard that court went very well. Our translator sent us an e-mail and she said that everything went smoothly and the officials were very kind. She has walked with Riannon and fed her... So it's nice to hear. Now we're just getting more and more anxious to go back and bring her home! We've been busy here- Grant started Flag football for the 2nd year. It's a young team & he's more a leader-instead of getting thrown around the field... Love football season! My Girlfriend's Kitchen is under way! We're still waiting for our final architectural plans to submit for permits and bids from our contractor- should be getting those next week- then we can roll & get in there to start demo & build out....Everything is such a waiting game :-) Well we'll update again once we know our dates- of course I'm already packed & ready to go- We have to weigh & reweigh the bags everytime we add something in the suitcase... Don't want to go over the 50 lb. limit and trying to only bring 2 large suitcases on this trip....

1st week back

Well we've managed to adapt back to our schedule. Grant started 1st grade at our neighborhood school.. He likes his teacher and is making new friends...Brett and I have just been running around getting errands finished (oil changes, etc...) and going to Tumbles...We finally signed the lease to our store and have met with our contractor to start the build out of My Girlfriend's Kitchen in ... so excited... We're trying to keep busy so the weeks will go by faster and we can get back to Kyrgyzstan soon and bring our baby girl home...Now we're just trying to get our house back in order and start thinking about repacking for the last trip... We'd love to have everyone over soon for a BBQ and see pictures of our trip... Love you all! Until next time...

more pictures

last day w/ our baby girl

Hi all, this is our last post in Kyrgyzstan.... We have very mixed emotions of leaving... we are extremely homesick... We miss the boys tremendously and all of you.... but leaving her behind, just is heartbreaking... she really is well taken care of... The director, the doctors, and caregivers are very loving and we feel very fortunate and at ease knowing that they really do love the children.... so we will be home Thursday evening and will wait until August to come back- this time to bring her home forever.... It's just the next step....I caught a cold 2 days ago & think I gave it to Riannon- yesterday she had a mild temp & runny nose, but they gave her medicine & today she was fine... We took the babies to get their passport pictures taken yesterday... It was cute- they all have little mugshots :-) Riannon was so adorable today.... she made lots of little noises and cute faces... she also seems a lot bigger and stronger from last week.... On day 2, we bought some multivitamins for her & it seems to be working..We're going to try to post one more picture of our princess.. if it doesn't work... we'll have you all over this weekend to see video and pictures of our trip.... Thank you all again... I love all the news & comments from home..... see you this weekend.... love to you all...

Day 5 and 6

Hi all- well these 2 days w/ Riannon have been great.... for the first hour, she interacts and smiles with us, but these past 2 days, she's fallen asleep on me for about 40 mins. or so... We think she's probably overstimulated and just really loves the snuggles (we do too)...The time w/ her seems to fly by... we all feel like the movie GroundHog Day (remember how his day was the same every day)... that's us... except after coming home from the baby house, we do get a little down time, then we venture off to eat dinner and walk a little....We've had some pretty funny run ins, the language barrier is a bit tough... today we had Italian (sometimes I feel like we're not in Kyrgyzstan)...it's so funny......that's all for now... Happy Birthday Christian (7th) & Angela (11th).... Sorry we're missing it.... Ang- take lots of pictures and notes at MGFK retreat...
It sounds like the boys are having a blast w/ everyone... thank you all so much again.... We love you!!!

Day 4 with Riannon

Today was a short visit...We had to get back because our interpretor (sp?) had to get back... but any event, when we got there, she was getting her massage.. Look out Daddy- I see mother/daughter spa days :-) It seems that is great for her circulation, but I'm not sure she liked it as much... She was pretty mellow with us today, a couple smiles, but she just wanted to snuggle... About 15 or so minutes into our visit, she fell asleep on my chest for about 45 mins. or so... it was such a great feeling to snuggle with her like that... when we left, she had to wait her turn to be fed & I put her in the little bouncy seat... when I walked out, I heard her start to cry... It's only day 4 and it's getting harder and harder to leave her....
We met up w/ a family from Raleigh, NC adopting a 5 year old little girl... we had dinner at an Indian (as in from India :-) restaurant... pretty good... Now we're heading up to our apartment to rest up for tomorrow.... Love you all so much, thanks for leaving comments, it's so nice to get word from home....

Happy 4th of July

Wow- I cannot believe we are half way around the world on the 4th of July... Dorothy is definitely not in Kansas anymore :-) I guess now, I will definitely have to make a trip to the Philippines with my Mom & Manani...Well we had an eventful day w/ Riannon today... No pictures today, because it's kind of a pain here in the internet cafe (although this place is great)..
When we walked into the baby house today, Riannon was already dressed & playing in her little bouncy seat... I called her name and she looked right at us.. It seems in 3 days, she already knows the sound of our voice. She was so expressive and happy today.... Lots of smiles and giggles.... she loves to be kissed on her cheeks.. everytime I'd kiss her cheeks or the filipino sniff on her cheeks she would have a huge smile on her face (it's comforting to know, that it does seem that she is used to getting kisses because her reaction is not one of uneasiness)...She is already a Daddy's girl.... She loves nose rubbies and butterfly kisses (just like her big brothers love from Daddy)... Just her huge smiles and giggles just absolutely melted our hearts...We fed her again today, but we fed her bottle first- we didn't know we needed to feed her the mashed potato type of food first... She's definitely used to eating fast.. she would get kind of irritate with us if we slowed down for anything... hopefully we'll get to feed her again tomorrow..We get so excited everyday to see how much of her personality we will see... Just in these 3 days, it seems that the 3 babies (ours, Nadine's, and the Brugnoni's) have progressed and they are all starting to open up.... I just feel very blessed & fortunate....We do have comfort in believing that our children are loved dearly....It's not as difficult to leave.... We've been taking in the sights a little here (yes I'm not such a scaredy cat :-) Walking around (lots of people walking everywhere & yes Dad- we're not walking in the dark :-) It really is a beautiful country... I wouldn't trade this experience for anything... We miss you all so much... especially Grant & Brett and again thank you all for your support... none of this would not be possible without you all... sorry again for no new pictures... we'll see if we can spend some time here in the early part of the day to get some new ones up.... God Bless & kiss our boys for us...

Some pictures (hopefully)

We forgot to tell you all, we are 14 hours ahead of you... okay let's see if we can get some pictures on here... Here's our sweet baby girl and our eyes first meeting... I'll try again in a minute & see if I can get at least 3 more pictures up...

We Made It

Hi all- yes-we are finally here in Bishkek and have met our sweet baby girl... but before we get into it... let me update our adventure to Bishkek...
Thursday, June 29, we left LAX at 6:50 p.m. on Aeroflot airlines (Russian air), we arrived in Moscow on Friday, June 30th at 7:00 p.m. The Moscow airport is full of shopping, lined with Lancome products, Moscow duty free...Our flight to Moscow- was long, but bearable- I think a 14 hour flight time... we were sitted by it seemed like a million teenagers and Armenian families w/ this dance troop and they were pretty loud and crazy :-) We finally leave Moscow at 11:00 p.m. and arrived in Bishkek on Saturday, July 1st at 5:10 a.m......
The flight was great and all or baggage made it... Our passports got stamped and customs went well....so here's where the fun begins.... We were warned by a previous family to be careful of taxi drivers, etc... trying to carry your bags, then having to bribe them to get them back... so with our 3 huge (filled to capacity 50 lb. bags & 1 box of diapers), we came out and was very overwhelmed by the amount of people... Luckily, our translator & coordinator found us quickly and were not mobbed.... We were taken to our apartment- which is absolutely gorgeous= more than expected....and then had breakfast at the "American"style restaurant= FatBoys... I was pretty starved at this point and probably ordered everything I would've ordered at Family House Pancakes... everything is different... Jet lag took control of us & we all pretty much slept for the ladder part of Saturday...
Sunday, July 2nd...... The big day...
We were picked up at 9:00 a.m. and drove about 45 minutes- finally we arrive at Riannon's baby house.... Our emotions are so mixed at this point.... anxious, excited, terror.... all in one... we've had 3 months to bond with her, but nothing could prepare us for holding her... When we walked into the baby house, the outside courtyard/playarea was very colorful, with lots of child like pictures painted, old colorful tires as planters.... We were met by the baby house director and doctor and then split into 2 groups... Riannon was in a different group from our friends' babies, so the director brought us in to her room... the room is kind of musty and she was in a room with probably about 10 babies in her group.. she was laying on the changing table being changed and she looked right at me and Ted... our hearts absolutely melted....She was pretty layered up and there was a recent flu epidemic in the baby house, so she was pretty congested (sounded a lot like Grant in bronchitis days :-) The director picked her up and we just took it slow... saying her name, touching her hand, when she decided to give us a smile... Then we held her.... I can't even describe holding her... it was the same feeling we felt when I gave birth to our boys....She is a tiny little thing, but now weighes 12.5 pounds... We just held her & walked around, she would look at us and touch our faces, she was very curious.... At 12:00- it was time for us to leave- they keep a very organized schedule....
Monday, July 3rd- Day 2 with our princess.....
Today was a wonderful day today, we heard a lot of noise from her today, laughter, whines, and a little cry... but she smiled a lot for us today..... She is already a daddy's girl... Ted would hold her and she would just smile this big smile......They let us feed her twice today, which was a wonderful bonding experience for us.... We went over her medicals today with the director and some of the personal information about how she ended up there.... She is absolutely beautiful and a pretty happy mellow baby so far in 2 days.... The times she would start to cry, we would hold her up and just kiss her cheeks.. she seemed to absolutely love that..I'm just excited that she shared so much of her personality with us today.... everyday is just going to get better....
*We are having a great time so far here in Bishkek- It's more westernized that I thought and there are a lot of Americans..... Right now we are in an internet cafe- our labtop broke the night before we left, but were kind of glad we didn't bring it.... So we won't be able to post everyday, but we will try to get on here again in a couple days... We hope you all are well.... and please KISS GRANT AND BRETT FOR US AND TELL THEM WE LOVE THEM & MISS THEM... I hope they are not any trouble....We love you all so much... We're going to try and post some pictures... if it doesn't work, then we will have a picture/video party when we get back... We love you!

last blog on US soil

Well, this is the last blog on US soil... Friday night at about midnight CA time, we will have met our baby girl for he first time. These past 8 days to get ready for the trip have flown by. We are so lucky to be travelling with 2 other families adopting their babies from our same agency. We've been in touch daily and have managed to be on the same flights.. so the trip is definitely less scary..... I think the time change will probably be the hardest...I think Bishkek is 14 hours ahead of our time... We really hope we'll be able to post pictures and blogs while we're gone...I'm sure the internet cafe's probably don't have High Speed internet, but we will make do :-) I still have to finish some last minute house work, so this blog is short.... The feelings we have are so overwhelming right now- I just don't know how to put it all into words... You all- our family& friends mean so much to us.. we really could not have made our dreams a reality of having a daughter without all of your love, prayers, and support.. We are so thankful & blessed... Please continue to keep us all in your thoughts and prayers....Love to you all....

finally some news

Well, we finally got the news we've been waiting for since April... We will be travelling to Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan from June 30th (we have to be there on July 2nd) and home on the 13th...
This first trip will be strictly bonding with "Rima" and I'm sure some paperwork... I have so many things in my brain- luckily I've been pretty much packed since April, now it's just some last minute things... good thing because we only have 8 days to do it...
Once we come home on the 13th, we'll be home about 6 weeks- while we are home, "Rima" will still be in Kyrgyz :( In the meantime, our coordinator will go to court, prepare all the docs, get her passport, & visa & everything else that needs to happen to make our baby girl legally ours. Then once we get the last & final call :-) we will travel back to Kyrgz for about 7 days to finalize interview & medical exit at the Embassy in Bishkek & Embassy in Kazakhstan... So there is the short end of it... By the end of the summer we will be a family of 5... so now I must say adios, so I can gather my thoughts and start preparing for our trip.... We will try our hardest to update this blog & add pictures of our trip & our baby girl while we are there... Please continue to keep us all in your thoughts and prayers for a safe & smooth trip & adoption!!

still waiting

Well we are still waiting for word of travel....hopefully soon... on a more happy note.. Grant graduated from Kindergarten today.. hee hee... In July he will start 1st grade at our neighborhood school... Brett is still running around.. his vocabulary is increasing... we can pretty much understand him all the time... Ted is convinced that he will be potty trained soon... Right before he goes #2- he holds his diaper & we ask do you need a new diaper- he says "Yea" so we'll look & sure enough he needs a new diaper... so who knows... anyway- I am 2 days away from summer vacation.. woo hoo- hopefully we'll have our baby girl home before the end of my break... Keep you posted....

Hooked on pictures

Now that I've learned- let update some photos of the family ;-)

Here's Grant & Brett at California Adventure..

Hmmm.. Let's see if I can add a link to My Girlfriend's Kitchen- our franchise owned & operated by me & Angela - We are moving along with the plans to build & open soon :-)http://www.mgfk.com

Update

Hi all- so I'm kind of playing w/ the blog to see if I can figure out how to put our pictures up.. I got a quick (cliff notes version) on how from my dear friend Joyce. Our doggie Bailey has really settled into being one of us.. He is spoiled rotten, but is starting to behave & is completely an indoor dog now, though he does still enjoy being a dog outside- he thinks he's a kid inside.. Him & Brett are constantly competing for Mommy & for the toys.. It'll start to get interesting when we had our baby girl to the mix :) So good news on Baby Girl- Adoptions have picked up again- so now we really are hoping & anticipating some travel (Here's Bailey- our Beagladore- hey it worked- thanks Joyce) dates soon.. It is a new system in country & the first family there did have some pitfalls- but they are working out the kinks now... so hope & pray... Well I will post more- let's see if we can get pictures of the family up :-) Love to you all!

Well we are still in the waiting game... We are now awaiting travel dates to Kyrgyzstan. So no new information, but as soon as we get those dates we will let you all now. Until then- thank you for your continued support and we ask that you please continue to keep us all in your thoughts and prayers & especially Baby "Rima" .... For the rest of the family- we are busy here. Grant is 3 weeks away from officially being a Kindergarten graduate & on to 1st grade... Wow how time flies. Brett is always a laugh- a complete Mama's Boy though... Our business is moving into high gear. We just found a space & hopefully will sign the lease soon. So stay tuned to www.mgfk.com ... Woo Hoo!
Other than that- Our brain is pretty consumed with when we'll finally get to bring our baby girl home!

One step closer

Well...we are one step closer to bringing our baby girl home (keep praying please)... We had a consultation with a wonderful pediatrician who examined her medical records... He said by looking at the pictures- he doesn't see any facial features that would red flag for Fetal Alcohol Syndrome.. good news.. Medicals look good- her height & head circumfrence are all within normal range for a 5 month old.. so that is also good news... Though, she is extremely underweight at 5 months.. She was 8 lbs. in the beginning of April.. so we will need updated weight info, but he as are we are optimistic that she just needs to be home with us & fattened up :-) So we officially accepted our referral & now the next step in the waiting game.. Travel dates... hopefully hopefully those will come soon... so continue to keep up with the progress.. We are getting so close... This waiting is way more difficult that waiting for the referral.. Now we've fallen in love with her & she's for the most part healthy.... Thanks for continuing to support us...
We can't wait to be a family of 5....
Love ya all!

Her medicals are in

Well- another step towards bringing our baby girl home. Last Monday, we received "Rima's" medicals.. We have sent them to a pediatrician- specializing in FAS & international adoption...They will examine all the medical jargon & go over it with us next week. So continue to pray for our baby girl... What we did understand was her weight at birth & now.. At birth she was 5.5 lbs. & 18 in. long... On April 5th, she weighed 8 lbs. & 20 in. She's a little tiny thing at 5 months, but she's gained weight.. so we'll pray she's healthy otherwise..
After that step, then we will move even closer & hopefully get travel dates SOON!!! We've been very busy here at our house in the meantime... Grant is taking soccer & karate 1 day a week through Champion Youth Sports.. He's enjoying it... At least he's keeping active & having fun, before the competitve flag football season starts for him... Brett keep us all running around.. He keeps my Mom-in-law quite busy.. We've signed him up for JW Tumbles starting next week... Hopefully that'll wear him out some :-) Ted hurt his shoulder 3 weeks ago playing football- He loves playing, but he swears he still has the flexibility of a 20 year old :-) LOL
Me- I am keeping myself Busy w/ Mommy stuff, teaching & opening a business w/ my girlfriend Angela.. It's called My Girlfriend's Kitchen... We make it ridiculously easy for busy families to eat a healthy dinner together... Our store has done all the chopping, slicing, & prepping for you- all you do is come in- put it all together, take it home to freeze & cook when you're ready & HAVE FUN! More time w/ your family & no clean up..
It is the best invention since the invention of the wife TM-I love that motto :-)
So continue to keep posted... We've got lots of things going on here..
Love ya,
Jenn

The waiting is over

On Friday, April 7th, we got the official call, we've been waiting for, for 3 months. We have a picture of a baby girl... Our baby girl (if all goes well)... She's a beautiful 4 month old baby girl-Her DOB is 3 days before Brett's and her features are so similar to the boys! As her picture was uploading onto our e-mail, I felt as if I was giving birth to her... The feeling of seeing her face for the first time was overwhelming for both of us!
So now more waiting, but at least we have a face and she's already captured our hearts...
We are awaiting her medical records which are being translated.. once they arrive- we will send them off to a pediatrician who specializes in international adoption for review to make sure she is healthy.. after that we can accept our referral & then wait for travel dates.. Once we travel, this site may be the only communication we have w/ our loved ones... so keep posted here & we will let you know more as we get word.. Please continue to keep us & especially baby "Rima" in your thoughts and prayers as we move closer to finalizing & bringing our princess home!
Love to all!

the waiting begins

We have officially turned in all our paperwork... Our homestudy is complete & our dossier is complete... so now the wait begins! We have kicked into high gear at the house. rearranging the guest bedroom & playroom & getting baby girl's room ready! I've been working hard trying to organize my craft stuff... what a nightmare that is :-) Ted is busy painting the guest/play room, then next he'll paint baby girl's room! Every weekend we are busy, until we get the call that they have a baby for us... so many emotions are consuming us right now.. excited, nervous, scared, happy, etc...I just can't wait to get the call and bring her home... but until then, we have a lot of work to do here at home... On top of that, we've still got a house to upkeep.. Grant is taking a basketball class 1 night a week and I'm looking into starting Brett at J.W. Tumbles...so the boys are busy... we'll keep you posted.. until then....