November 17th
This is a quick update. We had another good day with William. We drive 1.5 hours to visit him, we stay 2 hours, then we drive back to Moscow,
so we don't spend much time with him. He is recovering from a cold, so we quickly overwhelm him with toys and chatter. Today, he was
content to be held as he waited for his lunch. He quickly devoured his bottle, and then our visit came to and end. We were then whisked away
on another tour.
Our interpreter wants us to see all the old parts of Moscow so we headed back to the Kremlin to see where Putin works and to visit many old
churches. We never thought of Russia as a particularly religious country, but it is very religious, and the religious history is even stronger. We
visited 6 old churches within the Kremlin (which means fortress) walls despite the 18 degree temperature, and they keep telling me it is not cold
yet. The churches were impressive, but the temperature was even more impressive. 18 degrees was very cold to me, and when we came home
it took a good 45 minutes in the bath for my toes to regain circulation. Had we done any more site seeing I would have certainly lost my toes to
frostbite.
Tomorrow is our last day with William, and it will not be easy. We are doing our best to not think about where we are leaving him. We will just
hope and pray that we are able to come back quickly. Our prayer is to be home as a family of 4 for Christmas.
This is a quick update. We had another good day with William. We drive 1.5 hours to visit him, we stay 2 hours, then we drive back to Moscow,
so we don't spend much time with him. He is recovering from a cold, so we quickly overwhelm him with toys and chatter. Today, he was
content to be held as he waited for his lunch. He quickly devoured his bottle, and then our visit came to and end. We were then whisked away
on another tour.
Our interpreter wants us to see all the old parts of Moscow so we headed back to the Kremlin to see where Putin works and to visit many old
churches. We never thought of Russia as a particularly religious country, but it is very religious, and the religious history is even stronger. We
visited 6 old churches within the Kremlin (which means fortress) walls despite the 18 degree temperature, and they keep telling me it is not cold
yet. The churches were impressive, but the temperature was even more impressive. 18 degrees was very cold to me, and when we came home
it took a good 45 minutes in the bath for my toes to regain circulation. Had we done any more site seeing I would have certainly lost my toes to
frostbite.
Tomorrow is our last day with William, and it will not be easy. We are doing our best to not think about where we are leaving him. We will just
hope and pray that we are able to come back quickly. Our prayer is to be home as a family of 4 for Christmas.
| Freezing to Death at the Kremlin |
| Learning to smile for the Camera |
| Having Fun with Dad |
November 18th - 23rd
Our last day with our little boy was by far the best. We have gone back to calling him our little boy, because we are just not sure he is a William.
Now we have several weeks to make the final decision. Although, we will have to change his name once we get home, we will most likely be doing
so.
Throughout our visit the little guy was suffering from Bronchitis, and it seemed by the end of the visit he was feeling much better. On our last day
he was full of smiles and giggles. It was easier saying goodbye to him when he was in a good mood. Thinking of him laughing and full of joy is
much easier than thinking of him stuck in the dreary room.
We are very prayerful that we will get back to bring him home before or around Christmas. Many of the paperwork items we must do on our next
trip are very hard to do during the Christmas Holidays, and even more difficult in January. Our best shot at bringing him home soon is if we leave
in early December. Needles to say we are very eager for a phone call from the agency.
We are frantically getting his room, and all the paperwork ready for our next trip. This is not as easy as it sounds with Andrew always wanting to
play trucks, and with Meric working in DC. However, the chaos of a very long 'to do' is fun, when we think of being at home as a family of 4.
Our last day with our little boy was by far the best. We have gone back to calling him our little boy, because we are just not sure he is a William.
Now we have several weeks to make the final decision. Although, we will have to change his name once we get home, we will most likely be doing
so.
Throughout our visit the little guy was suffering from Bronchitis, and it seemed by the end of the visit he was feeling much better. On our last day
he was full of smiles and giggles. It was easier saying goodbye to him when he was in a good mood. Thinking of him laughing and full of joy is
much easier than thinking of him stuck in the dreary room.
We are very prayerful that we will get back to bring him home before or around Christmas. Many of the paperwork items we must do on our next
trip are very hard to do during the Christmas Holidays, and even more difficult in January. Our best shot at bringing him home soon is if we leave
in early December. Needles to say we are very eager for a phone call from the agency.
We are frantically getting his room, and all the paperwork ready for our next trip. This is not as easy as it sounds with Andrew always wanting to
play trucks, and with Meric working in DC. However, the chaos of a very long 'to do' is fun, when we think of being at home as a family of 4.
| Enjoying Moscow's first snow before going to see Swan Lake at the Bolshoy |
| Enjoying some new toys |
| All smiles on the last day |
| Will's (???) Journey Home |