Hit the Ground Running

We arrived home safe and sound (and without any flight delays--thank you for your prayers!) yesterday early evening. Despite traveling for 20+ hours straight and getting about five hours of sleep in a 48-hour time span, we stopped to run some errands on the way home from the airport. Bennett really needed more clothes and of course Celia could always use another pink something-or-other, so we stopped at Old Navy. However, the frugal gal in me struggled with paying $20 for a tiny sweater. Grandma and Grandpa had no problem with it though...

Today we got a lot accomplished as well. We installed the video monitor (having to build our own mounting platform); sorted through some toys and organized them in their bedroom, the playroom and our upstairs bonus area; put away clothes (mostly Celia's as the large majority of clothing donated to us by our generous friends are for a girl); installed a new shower head for their bathroom; bought the second car seat; and more! There's still much on our to-do list before the kiddos get here, but we'll get the main stuff done!

All My Bags Are Packed, I'm Ready To Go

We're finally packed! Just a few more days until we go before a judge who will officially decide if we can be parents to B and C. Eeeek! I am so nervous can't wait!

Since this is our shortest trip, we're trying to make the most out of our luggage space. For only three full days in Russia, we don't have to pack too much clothing, and I've always been a very practical packer anyways. So, with the extra space in the two large suitcases we are allowed to bring this trip, we've packed some items that we'll need for our third trip and are allowed to leave with our translator. We have practically any over-the-counter child medication (suggested by our pediatrician) one can think of packed away. We have a few small Christmas presents. We have one snowsuit. (Try finding a decent snowsuit in a store in Tennessee. I dare you! Oh Chicago... how I miss you sometimes.) We also have two bags of infant clothing items to donate to the baby homes. Oh! And how could I forget all the gifts for the caregivers? (Remember, B and C have never met and are currently in two different baby homes, so we're bringing double.) They're small items really, but it all adds up. So, needless to say, we're stuffed to the gills right now. But better now than when we have to pack for four people for about ten days in bitter cold Russia!

My mind has been going 90 miles an hour for the last few weeks, so I haven't really had a chance to sit and truly enjoy the anticipation leading up to seeing our babies again. I think I'm finally getting there...

Busy, Busy, Busy!

I'm still here! Things are still moving along! (My! Are they moving...) Please forgive my absence from the blog. There has been so much to do to prepare for our kiddos' homecoming that I've just been running around like crazy!

An international adoption forum I like to peruse every now and then includes suggestions from other PAPs regarding how important it is to relax and pamper yourself before finally bringing your child/ren home. How in the WORLD do they manage to do that?

Take a long bath.
Really? When I could be making more to-do lists, or shopping for toddler snowsuits, or figuring out what we should get the caretakers at the Baby Home, or researching what I should be feeding each of my kiddos, or painting their room, or setting up their crib, or...

Get a mani/pedi and a massage or "buy yourself something special."
Um... With what money? LOL!

Enjoy your last evenings with your husband without children.
Does the hour following work events and other obligations count if most of that is spent winding down from go-go-go-days?

Please don't mistake any of my silly ramblings for griping. I wouldn't change this process for the world, as it's what is bringing our family together! Four more days until I can hold B and C once again!!!

Are You Ready?

The question of the hour has turned from "Have you heard anything yet?" to "So, are you ready?" To which I ask... Is anyone ever completely ready for parenthood?

I'm a planner by nature. A worrier too. It can be a toxic combination. Part of me keeps thinking about the books on motherhood and parenting a toddler I haven't finished reading...not to mention the stack of books on attachment, over-stimulation and parenting an internationally-adopted child. While their room is set up for the most part, it's not completely finished. There's still much to put away. I have yet to know how to properly install their car seats. We have no shoes for our little ones. I could go on and on.

But deep down...when I really let myself think about it... God's got it all in control. He had our path to parenthood in control when we felt helpless and lost. He had the financial aspect of adoption in control when it looked like the monetary mountain was insurmountable. He had the timeline in control when we worried we would be apart from our children on Christmas. He's got it all in his powerful, capable hands.

So parents... if you had one piece of advice or one thing to tell me that would help prepare me for parenthood, what would it be? Am I crazy for having fleeting moments during which I feel completely unprepared?

We Have a Court Date!

PRAISE GOD! I know that so many friends and family have been praying for our family (of four!) and specifically that we will be home by Christmas. The chances of that happening were really slim—especially according to some of our agency reps who were trying to keep our feet on the ground.


Well, I'm so thankful that we worship a miracle-making God! We got the call at about 2 p.m. this afternoon informing us that our court date is set for December 9. We will leave no later than December 6 and be able to see our children for the first time again on either December 7 (if we have time right after we land in St. Petersburg) or the next day. It would be wonderful if they recognize us, but even if they don't what a reunion it will be!!!


We will probably leave the day after court to get back here to tie up some loose ends before we bring our babies home. There is a mandatory 10-day waiting period after court before we are able to take them from the baby homes. At this point, we are unsure if the 10 (work) days includes Saturdays or not. If it does, we should be able to pick them up on the 21st—C's birthday! If not, we're looking at the 23rd. I don't want to get greedy, but it would be AMAZING if we were able to bring them home before the first of the year. Financially—thanks to taxes and a hidden benefit for adoptive families from "Obama-care"—it would be very helpful. But, God's got us this far. I have no doubt that He will provide for our needs, whatever they may be. The third trip can be about 8 days or so. So if we can get them on the 23rd, we'll be pushing a 2010 return. We'll see.


Either way, it looks like it will be a Russian Christmas for the Hunters! We should be able to be with our kiddos on Christmas! It may be in a country that views December 25 the same as any other day, and it may be in a tiny, crowded hotel room, at it may be without a Christmas tree, but it most certainly will not be without God's miraculous beginnings, and the love of a forever family.

The Winter Palace at Christmas

HAPPY BIRTHDAY B!

Happy birthday my sweet little man! I desperately wish I was with you today to help you realize just how special you are. However, I have faith that today—because of His infinite love (particularly for orphans) and the many that are praying for you here in the States—our Lord is doing a fine job of showing you just that. You are in great hands, B. The best. Nevertheless, I selfishly wish you could also be snuggled up in my arms.

Ahhh... I miss B. To celebrate his birthday, I had plans to make a large Russian family meal. A very unpleasant stomach virus may have spoiled those plans, but nothing could spoil our excitement over B's big day. Derek and I went out to eat (I still didn't do much eating...) with my parents, who had exciting news to share with us. World travelers that they are, they informed us that they found an "amazing vacation deal" which will take them on a cruise from St. Petersburg to Moscow this spring. How amazing is that?! They will get to see where their grandchildren spent the first part of their lives. I can't tell you what it means to me to see them so excited over the possibility of experiencing our family's heritage. Everything is just fitting together so perfectly. God has a way of doing that, doesn't he?

In addition to dinner, we stopped at Target to get the birthday boy his first birthday presents! Readers, shhh! Don't tell B what he's getting! ;-) We plan on having a birthday bash for each of our kiddos once their home, on their 1/2 birthdays. Perhaps at least one of these gifts will stay unopened for the big day!

Friends, thank you rejoicing over B's birthday with us. And thank you for understanding that, though today is a wonderful day to celebrate his birth, it's also difficult in that we can't be with him. Well... here's to many more birthdays (celebrated together) to come!

Home Sick

Two blogs in one day about illness?

Well, they say home is where your heart is. While I'm getting over the stomach virus, my heart is aching to be with my children. Particularly today.

November 4 is B's second birthday! And while that is definitely a reason to celebrate, it's so hard knowing that I won't be able to spend it with him. I won't be able to make it special for him. I won't be able to help him blow out his candles and wipe the cake from his adorable cheeks once he has gotten into it.

I had planned on making November 4th special here, even though we don't have our kiddos. I was going to make authentic beef stroganoff (the VERY easy recipe I've been using is nothing like the real stuff in Russia!), but I highly doubt anyone would want to eat anything prepared by my hands after the last 48 hours. Knowing this, my sweet mother sent me a text which proves that mothers truly know exactly what to say at exactly the right time.

"Forgot to say bought ingredients for borscht. Maybe delay a day or two until you feel better? 'B' is already 2 by Russia time!"

It didn't occur to me, but she's right. It's already November 4 in St. Petersburg. HAPPY BIRTHDAY B! I miss you so much...

Boo!

Happy Halloween, friends!

Every year since I've moved to Tennessee, Derek and I have participated in our church's "Trunk-or-Treat." It's always a blast and a good time to be silly with our friends.

This year I'm sure I'll be thinking of what future Trunk-or-Treats will be like with our kiddos. Derek and I have talked recently about what B and C would be this year if we had them here. We can just picture our little ones in adorable costumes (him as a pumpkin and her as a little monkey... don't ask me why, that's just what I picture).

In the meantime... I'm still missing them like crazy.

Checking In

I'm short on time and feel even shorter on brain function. It has been... *deep breath* ...a truly AMAZING few days. With the absolutely miraculous success of our yard sale (thanks to so many of you), the overwhelming joy I felt with my loving friends at our "babies" shower, and—most recently—the wonderful news of my Dad's continued health even after three prior diagnoses of liver cancer, I have experienced some of the most amazing days of my life. God has been all over it, and it's awesome.


But... *another deep breath* ...I'm a little overwhelmed.


A friend of mine was talking to me about my blog tonight. She said that she just loved following along and really felt that my writing was a true window into all that we're experiencing. At first, I thought she was talking about our time in Russia. But the post she referred to was my most recent one—probably the one I've been the most nervous to share. So... I suppose it's time to be raw again...


While I am experiencing all these TRULY AMAZING blessings, I'm struggling a little. Two weeks ago I met our breathtakingly beautiful children. My life has since forever changed.


A little more than a week ago, I had to leave them...


I came back to the biggest yard sale ever, the resulting clutter that remained and disorganization, a thoughtful shower, a huge work deadline (or two, or three...) To put it lightly, I've been busy. But now... now, it's starting to catch up to me. I miss our B and C. I wish we didn't have to leave them. I wish B would be able to celebrate his second birthday next week with his parents by his side. I wish C would have us to smother her neck with kisses. I wish I was freezing my behind off in Russia. I wish I was with them...


*sigh*


So... that's what's been going on in my head the last few days. Don't get me wrong, I'm so unbelievably beyond grateful for all the many blessings. But... I just miss our kiddos...

Different Perspective

I'm going to be honest. I am so indescribably thankful to everyone who has donated items or money for our yard sale and to help us bring our children home… but this outpouring of love has been difficult for me to receive.


Truth be told, I didn’t have many friends in school. In eighth grade, I was the tall, lanky girl who had to sit at the edge of the lunch table by herself and was made fun of for being so skinny. Yeah, yeah, I know… You can hear the violin playing. But I’m not writing this for pity. Since then, for whatever reason, I have struggled with accepting love and assistance from friends.

I called my mom today to tell her about all the new items that were left in or just outside of our garage and explained to her how I felt. “I’m so undeserving of all of this. So unworthy of all this love,” I said. That’s not the right attitude—I know that and she reminded me of it. She proceeded to tell me how meaningful it was to her that people are reaching out to her daughter like this. The sacrificial love that everyone is showing is just so amazing.

And then it hit me and my perception changed.

All of this—the donated items, the gifts, the encouragement, the time and effort, the excitement—it’s all really for…my children. This love is for my children! And this new mother’s heart is so thankful that people are loving B and C before ever meeting them. It’s not about feeling deserving or not, it’s about being able to witness the love our extended family (read: our friends) is anxiously bestowing upon our kiddos. I’ve never experienced a feeling like this before. I’m praising God for all of this, there is no doubt!

Back to "Normal"

Today was my first day back to work since our trip...and since becoming a Mommy. Someone asked me what it was like to be back to my "normal" life here in Tennessee. While it's what I've known for the past few years, there just is nothing "normal" about it. Not anymore.

Being apart from our children just doesn't feel right. Even though we spent only a few hours each day with them for just six days, being with them fells like how things should always be. It feels unnatural not to be with B and C. But, despite all that, I know we are following God's path and all of this is supposed to be happening. There's a reason we have been chosen to become a family through the unique blessing of adoption, and there must be a reason for this waiting.

We showed some videos and pictures to Derek's parents today. Seeing their adorable smiles and beautiful dark, expressive eyes on the videos melts my heart and makes it ache at the same. Gosh, I miss them so much. *deep breath* We'll be together soon... I pray sooner than estimated.

On another note, preparations for the yard sale are going better than I could ever imagine! We literally have thousands of items that have been donated. I'm completely blown away by the outpouring of love and support. I will never be able to thank those of you who have donated to us enough.

Please spread the word! We would love a great turn out to help us raise some money.