Just waiting......

Here is another picture of Birgit. I took this during my trip to visit her. I can hardly stand the waiting to be able to go and get her. I spend every day wondering what she is thinking or doing. Does she think about us? I did get to leave her with some family pictures. Maybe she is looking at them and getting some comfort from knowing that this is going to be her family.

Bridget

This is Miss B. playing with the paper dolls that I took with me.

The Value Of Life

To realize the value of a sister

Ask someone who doesn't have one.

To realize the value of ten years:

Ask a newly divorced couple

To realize the value of four years:

Ask a graduate.

To realize the value of one year:

Ask a student who has failed a final exam.

To realize the value of nine months:

Ask a mother who has given birth to a stillborn.

To realize the value of one month:

Ask a mother who has given birth to a premature baby.

To realize the value of one week:

Ask an editor of a weekly newspaper.

To realize the value of one minute:

Ask a person who has missed the train, bus or plane.

To realize the value of one-second:

Ask a person who has survived an accident.

To realize the value of a friend or family member:

LOSE ONE

Time waits for no one.

Treasure every moment you have.

You will treasure it even more when you can share it with someone special.

Author Unknown

This is the land surrounding the orphanage. It is next to a huge lake. The lake is surrounded by a fence so the kids are unable to get to it. I guess that Elva is a vacation spot for many people. There are several big homes in the area, but I didn't see many places for people to have jobs. It looks like it would be a nice place to live.

Another day......

This is some of the children that are at the orphanage. I think all of them were 7 or under. Except for Birgit. They had kept her home from school that day because I was coming to visit. Birgit is the one to the right in the purple coat. Apparently they do have her in a speech therapy class because she isn't up to her age level for speaking. I don't know Estonian, but it sure sounded to me that speaking wasn't a problem for her! She was trying so hard to talk to me and I didn't have a clue what she was saying. The boy that is in front, I believe is Raiko. He was very talkative and wouldn't stop pushing buttons on my camera. He was being taped when I was in the room with Birgit. He loved the gummy worms that I brought for Birgit. The gummy worms came with a pair of tweezers that had a little light that would come on when you picked up the worms and would cause the worms to glow. The looks on their faces when they saw the worms glowing was priceless! The next picture is of the orphanage. It is a 100 year old home that was owned by a doctor. The offices are located to the right in what was probably the quest house. That is where I hung out with Birgit for most of my visit.

More pictures

This is the airport/mall in Amsterdam. It was HUGE! Tons of places to shop. Good thing too! I had lots of time on my hands. I didn't buy anything though . This is a Lego town that I found on display. Everything was made from Legos! I had to have a picture of it because my youngest son was a Lego fanatic up until a couple of years ago. The picture on top is a statue that looked like a cross between a samurai and raggedy andy!

Still Waiting.........

Just thought I would throw in some more pictures of my Estonia trip. This is Birgit and I "doing" lunch. It was a small cafeteria. I had a "hamburger", unlike anything I've ever had before. They drowned it in some sort of sauce that had an odd flavor to me and I don't even want to think about the mystery meat! I do know that it wasn't any beef that I've ever tasted! I know that my husband will enjoy our trip to Estonia when we go and get her. He is more adventurous than I am and will enjoy trying everything. I noticed I look a little washed out. I had only gotten about 3 hours of sleep since leaving home and arriving in Estonia. I think my total sleep time for the 3 days may have only been 8 hours! The seats on all the planes were extremely uncomfortable. I would never recommend taking an overseas trip in 3 days to anyone!!!! I think that you need a minimum of 2 days to recuperate from the 1st round of flights before starting the 2nd round in getting back! I did manage to lose 10 lbs because I couldn't eat a thing and had 7 hours to kill in Amsterdam so I did a lot of walking!

I finally went on my preview trip to visit Birgit. I only visited with her for 5 hours, but it was a good visit. She is an adorable little girl and very polite. I just wished that I could have brought her home with me right then. This whole adoption process has been long and frustrating for me. I know that it will be worth it when we finally do get her home. It probably won't be until July or August before we get our court date to get her. I am not looking forward to the wait, but I know that time goes by so fast that it will be here before we know it. I have lots of things left to do in getting ready for our trip as well as getting her room finished.

In this picture, I was allowed to take her to lunch. She loves coke! She cleaned her plate and then took her plate to the rack that was used for dirty dishes.

This is the most recent picture of Birgit. Isn't she adorable? I think that she is 7 in this picture. Not for sure, though. She just had her 8th birthday in March. Hopefully, we will be able to get her home before her 9th birthday.

HISTORY OF THE UNITED STATES RELATIONS WITH ESTONIA

The United States has maintained diplomatic relations with Estonia continuously since July 28, 1922. The United States Embassy currently occupies the building which housed the U.S. Legation in Estonia from 1938 to September 5, 1940. Estonian diplomats have been accredited to the United States Department of State in Washington, D.C. and Estonian consular representatives have operated in the U.S. continuously since 1920. Estonia was visited in the early days of its independence by American diplomats who went on to celebrated careers in the United States' foreign service.

The United States never recognized the forcible incorporation of Estonia and the other Baltic republics into the Soviet Union. Following the restoration of Estonian independence on August 21, 1991, the United States opened its Embassy in Tallinn on October 2, 1991 under the direction of the late Ambassador Robert C. Frasure. The United States Mission resumed operations in the current Embassy chancery building at Kentmanni #20 in 1992.

Estonia, here we come!

We have decided to go with Estonia. We have chosen an adorable 8 year old girl. I will try to post a picture of her on this website. It will take anywhere from 6 to 12 months to get her home. Which means that she will be almost nine before we get her here! I will have to stay busy with fixing up her room and buying her toys so I don't go stir-crazy!!!! Fortunately summer is almost upon us and I will have my garden and my canning to help take my mind off of the long wait. By winter though, my husband might have to put me in a padded room and lock the door!!

Still trying!

Well, it's been a few months seen I last posted. We were thinking about giving up on adopting and have spent the last few months contemplating on it. However, I think that we are going to continue trying. We are going to be switching to Estonia. I will post more when we get further down the road. At this point, we are going to have re-do several things for our dossier. Plus get our I171-H.

Adoption Timeline

April '06 - Originally decided on Kazakhstan.
May - Found homestudy agency and set up appointment.
June - Completed homestudy by end of month.
August - Ran into some complications that caused us to rethink this country. Contemplating which country to switch to. This process took several months!
March - Picked Estonia
April '07 -Contacted the agency and selected Bridgit!. We will have our homestudy update done within the next 2 or 3 weeks. Also, updated this timeline and posted.
Nov. 07- Got final copy of homestudy.
Dec. 07 - Dossier sent to Estonia.
Oct. 08 - ADOPTION IS FINISHED!!!!!

So, it's been a long year and we still have 6 to 12 months to go! But, I feel that this time we will actually be bringing our child home. I have read several blogs where the couple have spent 3 or 4 years before they actually got to bring the child/children home. I guess if it only takes me 2 then I should count my blessings!

Praise You in the Storm

I love the song "Praise You in the Storm" by Casting Crowns. The lyrics go like this:

I was sure by now
That You would have reached down
And wiped our tears away
Stepped in and saved the day
But once again, I say “Amen”
and it’s still raining

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God
Who gives and takes away

Chorus:
I’ll praise You in this storm
And I will lift my hands
For You are who You are
No matter where I am
Every tear I’ve cried
You hold in Your hand
You never left my side
And though my heart is torn
I will praise You in this storm

I remember when
I stumbled in the wind
You heard my cry You raised me up again
My strength is almost gone
How can I carry on
If I can’t find You

As the thunder rolls
I barely hear You whisper through the rain
“I’m with you”
And as Your mercy falls
I raise my hands and praise the God
Who gives and takes away

I lift my eyes unto the hills
Where does my help come from?
My help comes from the Lord
The Maker of Heaven and Earth

My husband and I have been happily married for 10 years. We have 4 children (he has 2 from a previous marriage and I have 2 that he was able to adopt).

This is just the beginning.....

This is the beginning of our adoption story. My husband and I have been in the process for 1 month. We are still in the paper chase phase. Since we have started this process, I have read many blogs of other people who have already adopted or are farther along in the process of adopting. It has been wonderful to read their stories. It has definitely been an encouragement to me and my husband to continue with the process no matter what. I would like to share my experience with others in the hopes that it will help them to continue or to think about adoption. At this point it won't be too exciting, but, I hope that you will continue to check back as I feel it will be soon!