WE HAVE KIDS!

The most important thing about today is that we have our boys with us! WOO HOO!

It was a long and tiring day, but a day with the best outcome ever. We started out at 8:15 to get everything done we needed to do. To make a very long story shorter...we went from office to office to office to office. My job was to sign here, initial here, sit and wait, sign this, initial this, etc. We made copies, legalized papers, took passport pictures (again), went to banks, paid fees, waited on people to be at work, and drove all over the place getting everything done. Tanya was a saint! She worked so hard today to get everything we needed done. She is tired, and I don't blame here. She has worked non-stop since she got here last Friday. And, it is really hard when you are having to think and talk back and forth in two languages.

At 2:00 we went to the director's office. The inspector came at 3:00 and official paperwork was signed and sealed and copies made. Lance went to get the boys and help them change clothes since their clothes belong to the orphanage and other children need them. Lance said that Dima asked right away when they were getting to leave. Lance told him, "right now" and Dima jumped up in his arms and was so excited. They changed and got their small bag that we left them in December and came to the main building where I was. They were so cute when they walked in with their new coats, hats, and gloves and carrying their "suitcases".

We signed all the official paperwork, left our donation for the orphanage, and waited for the accountant to give us an official receipt. Then we took pictures with the director. After pictures, she explained to them that they were very lucky. They now have a home, parents and a family. She told them to study hard and make the best of their lives. She told them also not to forget the children in the orphanage. She said there are a lot of children here and most of them will never be as lucky as you to get a new family! At this point, Tolic, the one who doesn't show emotions much, began to get tears in his eyes. The director told him not to cry, because then she will have to cry. And, I told him, then I would have to cry with him. I did let him know though, that it was ok for him to cry if he wanted. I'm sure that when we say good-bye to the orphanage for good and to Babushka, I will shed a lot of tears.

Tomorrow afternoon, we are going back to the orphanage to have the "sweets table" party with the boy's class. Then, if we are able to get the passport tomorrow, we plan on leaving tomorrow night to go to Kiev. Tomorrow, when Babushka gets off of work, we will go to her house and spend some time with her. This will be our time to say good-bye to her. That will be a hard thing to do for all of us I'm sure.

At exactly 4:10 today, we left the orphanage with our boys! They were so excited, and so were we. We went to get new passport pictures taken as the ones we had printed early today, were not good. The gentleman taking and printing the pictures said it would take him 40 minutes to do so. We took the pictures, then left to make sure we had groceries for the boys for dinner and breakfast tomorrow.

We went to Amstore, a large German grocery store, because they have a deli section with lots of great choices. We let the boys pick out what they wanted for dinner. They wanted chicken wings. We also got some rice and salad and some chicken kebobs for us. It was so fun watching the walk around the store. They saw so many things they had never seen before. And they were so interested in the small birds that were flying around the store. They asked lots of questions including if we had large stores like this in America. Just wait until they see Wal-Mart! Everything was so new to them.

When we got home, we let the boys play a little on the computer while I cooked dinner. Ok, well, put it in the microwave and set the table! We had a nice family dinner and Lance prayed before we ate. Tolic repeated each phrase of the prayer that Lance said. It was precious!

After dinner, they each took a shower. I kept hearing knocking. I finally figured out it was Dima in the shower. He would get out of the shower, knock on the door, and then jump back in the shower. Lance was in the other room on the phone with our facilitator. So, I opened the bathroom door very slowly and carefully and asked if he was ok. He was so cute, his little wet head peaking out from around the shower curtain. Tanya had to help me understand what he wanted. I think his pair of clean underwear had fallen either behind the washing machine or into the tub because he needed a new pair.

Then it was Tolic's turn for a shower. They each came out smelling so clean and looking so cute in their new pajamas. We bought some pjs on clearance at Wal-mart for $3. I thought they would probably be too small because they were a size 8, but they fit them perfectly. They look so cute.

After we all showered, we gave them their new clothes. Lance did a great job making it a big deal like Christmas and each new thing was a new present. They did a pretty good job of choosing between the options without arguing over who got what. Then, we saved the best present for last. Uncle Jimmy bought them MP3 players and we had them loaded with Russian and English christian music. They were so excited. I recorded them on video saying, "Thank you Uncle Jimmy" in English. So cute! They were beyond excited to each have their own MP3 player. We told them that while we are waiting in the car tomorrow, that is what they could use to entertain themselves. We let them play with those for awhile and then I gave them their new toothbrushes and toothpaste. Tanya overheard them talking about if they could clean their tongues with their new toothbrushes. They were so cute to listen to in the bathroom. I could hear them asking each other how to open their toothbrushes and toothpaste and helping each other out.

Then, we started what we hope will become a family tradition. I have a children's Bible that I bought here my first year in Ukraine. On it each page it has a small Bible story in Russian, and then is repeated in English at the bottom. So, Lance explained that we were a Christian family and that it was important for us to read the Bible together. Tolic said he wanted to read first, then I read the English, then Dima read and I read again. Each page has a question and they answered them all. I was planning on stopping with just one page, but they wanted to read more, so they read another page each. Lance then prayed as we held hands together. They seemed to really enjoy this.

We then told them we were going to go to bed because we have to get up really early in the morning to be ready to go get our passports at 8:00. So, we put in the movie Cars and they cuddled up with us on the bed to watch it. My three boys are in the bed watching the last of it as I finish this post. Well, two of them are in bed watching the movie. Dima, just came into the kitchen on his cell phone (no, we didn't but it for him). It is 10:30 at night here, and he is receiving his third call from a friend, a girl, tonight. The first time he got a call and went into the hall to talk, Lance and I looked at each other and said, "What have we done?" Welcome to parenthood!

There are so many details I'm probably not putting in this post about our time with the boys, but I want to get in there with them. I'll come back and add some more of the details later, so that we can all remember our first day as a family!

What an amazing day! We are now parents. Oh my!!!!