Oksana, Oksana, Oksana!!!

It's like the night before Christmas here in Moscow...we are so excited, we are ready for that alarm clock ( or now, Baby Frances), to ring in the morning to start our exit...and then finally our entrance back home. The past couple of days have just...ummmm...been. A little cabin fever with Mama, as I have been outside with Frances once this whole week. There is a path worn in the hall from where we've walked back and forth passing the long hours. The weather has been crummy, keeping us in even more than expected. The good news is we had our interview with the Embassy this afternoon..the last step before boarding the plane to come home. All went well, and it was nice to coral with other families..many of which may be on our plane tomorrow. We've been so lonely, coming into contact with other English speakers was a treat!!
Charles and I looked up the origination of her given Russian name, Oksana. To our joy, we discovered it means "Praise Be to God!", with a Hebrew origination. Our Episcopal priest at St. James', Randy Hollerith, has become such a significant person in my life. My church has brought me so many blessings from my closeness to our Associate Rector, Dana Corsello, the women in our Bible Study, the church community itself. Above all, I attribute so much of my spiritual strength and guidance to the bond established with Randy and Dana. Many years ago, being at crossroads with where I was with my life, my relationships, my frustrations in general...I spoke with Randy on several occasions as to how to get through this very difficult and confusing time. Almost 30 years old, I was tired of meeting Mr. Right Now, the feeling of being stuck with my career, and other personal burdens I felt frustrated with. His words helped me tremendously. A few years later, I hadn't left Richmond for New York to be that aspiring actress or to a university to continue on my doctorate in counseling...but I had met and was engaged to my now husband. Something I truly thought was never going to happen. One Sunday after church, Randy stopped me and mentioned that he wanted me to know I had been in his prayers for all these years. He said that once he witnesses those prayers being nurtured and tended to by our God, he writes a special phrase by the person's name. That phrase is "Praise Be to God!". As we sit here about to end a 2 year journey, and begin another one that will hopefully last us the rest of our lives, I can't help but reflect on how perfect our precious angel's Russian name really is. We have faced the odds and disappoint of not being able to spend 10 months carrying a baby created by us, but I whole heartedly say, "Praise Be to God"for the miracle of our daughter, for her to be brought to us when suited, for the joy she has brought us, and for the blessing she is. Praise Be to God for the woman in some distant country who gave birth to our greatest gift, and saw fit to allow her to be loved and treasured by us. There are moments when I see all things are as they should be. Oksana, Oksana, Okasana!

O.k....8:35 p.m...Richomond..here we come!

Count Down!

The past few days have been wonderful,and certainly an introduction to parenthood! Once we got Frances back to the apt. on Monday, Charles has been hitting the pavement with Eugene going here and there in order to get the process done in order to leave us Saturday. It's been me and the angel for most of the afternoons and early evenings. Today, the Doctor came to the apt. at 7:30 this morning to do her exit exam for the embassy. He said that the only problems he saw was that she is going to have to fight off the boys. Charles did a half laugh, and I could already see the worry rise. All three of us were together for the day..so nice. Charles, being the families early riser, is such an amazing Daddy with her when she wakes. I, on the other hand, am trying to get over needing coffee first thing in order to even speak. We took our first outing to the stores across the street today, and by the end of our jaunt...Frances was laid back at an angle in her stroller with her leg bouncing up and down...like she's telling everyone, "Yeh, life is good now. These are my people with me, and they gave me teething cookies". Tomorrow should be another more relaxed day, and then we have our interview with the American Embassy on Friday. Yippee!!!! We're almost there.

Gotcha Day!!!!!!!!

We made it!! We finally had our gotcha day for Frances Oksana Bennett Gray!!! We are never going to let her go from this moment on. It's been a roller coaster of a day, but the greatest peak came when we arrived at the orphanage ready to pick up out sweet little girl. She had a complete perma grin on her face from the moment we saw her. It was if she knew all along what was going to happen, and actually calming our fears that all was going to be just fine. We changed her clothes (had to leave her old duds behind..even her Big Bird Yellow shoes, sad to say). We had some nice moments with her nannies..who all loved on her and gave us their best. The orphanage director was very kind, and we even got a few pictures of the three of us with a few of her nannies. Frances smiled all the way to the car! She fell asleep shortly, while we were in the car, but woke up as we had to go in and get her passport picture taken. Once home..it was time for lunch. It took us a while to get her down for a nap, but I know she's just totally overwhelmed. She slept and Charles went out with Eugene to continue the errand running needed in order for everything to be complete for us to leave on Sat. It was quite the race, and Frances really had tough go this afternoon. There are times she just clutches me in tears, for fear that I'm going to let her go. I literally just walk around with her, holding her. We will certainly share the route we decide on to help with attachment, but we can quickly see it will be a long road..but such an amazing one now that she is with us.

The week ahead will be filled with visits to the Embassy for her visa and paperwork needed to enter the country, and also her Dr.'s appt. Wé made it though...the best part is finally here.

Tick, Tock...

We are winding down another day...slowly, but surely. Let's see...the past few days have been busy and full. Monday, we found out we had another visit to see Baby Girl....wonderful surprise. We spent just a few hours with her in the morning. There is a lady there who must be the "music teacher", as she walks around to the separate groups of children at the orphanage and plays the accordion. The children dance and sing...it's so sweet to watch. Well, she was out walking to the play areas to have the assigned music time, as we walked by with Baby Girl. Our little precious one got the biggest grin on her face, started swinging her legs, moving her arms, giggling up a storm. Oh..she loves music!! The accordion lady didn't mind us staying out by the gate to the play area..so we spent quite some time just having a ball. It's a true wonder to already see such a creative side and glimpses into her personality.

Our afternoon was spent getting some papers taken care of that are needed for the end of the week. Yesterday, our apt. rental guy (the Aussie I referred to earlier) took us on our adventure of the metro. It was so kind of him to show us around and to spend time with us. It was a treat to be with another English speaking person, who "really understood us."The metro is amazing!!! The stops are so clean, and quite the architectural sight. Chandeliers, marble, sculptures..I could go on. They are something to see, though. The metro trains have a very quick get up and go, so you really have to be holding on before take off. Well, for one of our rides we were short on holding bars, so I held onto Charles and he tried to ground himself. In no time, Charles looses his balance and goes falling into a young businessman type with a really nice suit on. I'm trying to grab Charles and yet not laugh at the expression of complete surprise on this other's man face. We were a bit scared as to how this other man would react, but thankfully he didn't return the blow. It would of been a great visa commercial, though. I can see it now "Adopting a child of your heart from Moscow, Russia...expensive..having your husband barrel into some random stranger in a foreign country...priceless!!!! After a whirlwind tour, we grabbed some dinner and called it a day. Today, we got a late start on things, but ventured down to Red Square. We walked around the gardens next to the Kremlin, and then went inside St. Basil's Cathedral. We made a few stops back, and then returned home for the late afternoon. We are getting ready to call it a day. No idea as to when we pick up Baby Girl...maybe Sat.?????Maybe Sunday???? We'll just have to wait and see. Love to everyone!!!

Still Waiting.......

Over the past two years, we have been so used to hurrying to and fro in the paperchase for the adoption that we seem to have forgotten how to cope with not having much to do. Don't get me wrong, there have been times in the past week that we have been very busy but we have not been consistently busy on a day to day basis. We are finding it difficult to fill our days and break the boredom as we wait. Part of this is that we are deliberately leaving our schedule open in case we have to take care of something for the Agency which seems to be a spur of the moment thing at times. The other part is that everything is so new here and we are a bit overwhelmed. Slowly, we are beginning to explore more due in part to our curiosity. No matter how guarded we are, the curiosity of being in a new place helps us to seek out new experiences. I guess this is exactly how the baby will feel when we she arrives at her new home.....somewhat helpless, hesitant, and untrusting. Just as we have learned to venture out over the past few days, the baby will also learn to adapt to her new environment.......I think resiliency is just human nature and in a way, curiosity breeds resiliency.

On the lighter side........It was a very special Mother's Day.......we were able to visit with the baby twice followed by a visit to The Cathedral of Christ the Saviour. Shannon had the opportunity to hold the baby using the "baby sling" which definitely made it alot easier to carry the baby on our walks at the ophanage and it also seemed to help with bonding with the baby. During the break in between visits, Sergei was kind enough to give us a guided tour of the Cathedral. As we walked in, we were speechless....nothing prepared us for the awe inspiring beauty and peacefulness. Unfortunately photographs are not allowed on the interior. I can honestly say that I have never seen any thing quite like it and I probably never will again...it was that powerful. We also visited the Pushkin Museum of Art.....quite an impressionist collection. Before the end of the week, we plan to tour the Kremlin if possible. Not quite sure what else....stay tuned.

Could someone turn the lights out, please!

Good morning, all! Just a quick check in. We have really enjoyed some down time these past couple of days. We've rested up and caught up on some reading. Been wonderful. Of course, we can't forget a little "Billy's Bootcamp"to keep us going in the in between. Yesterday was Victory Day here...quite the big holiday for the Russians. It celebrates their victory over Germany in WW II. There were some big ceremonies in Red Square, and then a massive parade with all kinds of military goodies. We were able to stand at a window in our apt. and watch it all go by.

The amount of hours of sunlight here is crazy!!!! It's still very visible at 10 at night, and then the sun starts peeking up about 5 in the morning. A bit difficult to sleep!! We can't get over how bright it is. On the flight, they provide some eye covers (the little sleeping shades). Thank goodness I kept them...they have been used nightly! Talk about looking like a Princess while sleeping!!

Today, we're going to venture out some and see some sights. We need to get out and get stirring. I even think we're going to swing by a museum!!!! Tomorrow, we received approval to go see Baby Girl for Mother's Day. We are thrilled they are letting us go on a Sunday. We're going to try and take some pictures of the apt. and post on the blog tonight. Hoping everyone is well!!

Billy Banks Bootcamp is kicking Mama's Bootie!

No major news today...so we'll share some funny ha ha's taken place these past few days. First...now I admit I'm a bit OCD about excercise. Not afraid to admit it..but I love a good workout. Well..being limited about working out these coming weeks has increased my anxiety. A friend from work passed along some Billy Bootcamp DVD's to use while away. It's a combo kickboxing, weight resistance with straps. Ummmm...it's breaking me down. First day didn't count since I was just going along ""kind of sort of"". Yesterday after court I needed some stress relief so I did it in the afternoon before leaving for our 2nd visit to the orphanage. I was so in pain I was making yelping noises so badly that Charles ran in to check on me. Walking like an 85 year old, and I could barely carry my precious one...my arms were so sore. We'll see what tomorrow brings!

Second...our little precious dainty angel can shovel down some cookies, now. Good gracious!!!! The nannies at the orphanage have been so good this week about letting us feed her to help increase attachment. Today she had a type of teething cookie, and I seriously thought I was going to have to rescue her hand...whoah!!!! Cookie all over her face, and when her hand would come away from her mouth...she would stick her tongue out trying to lick the cookie from a far. How much have groceries gone up?

She is now saying "Da Da"". Yay!!!! Not getting many mama's out of her, but her da da's are coming rapidly. Boy, does she loves her daddy.It did take us by surprise when we held a little plastic duck and she referred to that as Da Da , too. Oh, well. She's talking, and it's all music to our ears.

We're winding down for the night, but continue to send our love to everyone! We miss you.

They grow up quickly!

We interrupt this post to bring you this important news bulletin.......We had our day in court and everthing went well. We received approval for the adoption!!! We are very excited and happy to be able to share this news with all of you and will continue to post througout the 10 day waiting period.

Back to our regularly scheduled programming......I now know what everyone has been trying to tell us over the past few years.......Enjoy every moment because they grow up quickly! We returned to Moscow with the mindset that the baby would make little progress with skills development in just two months. We thought this was a pretty realistic expectation. Boy were we wrong....she is now a little fireball. We are very happy to see that our little girl has made vast progress and also very tired after playing with her all day. I attribute all of this to the care that she is receiving at the orphanage and remain impressed with the staff there......they must be doing something right or maybe the baby was just holding back on the first trip until she decided what type of people we are. She has very quickly proven to be a daredevil (loves to fly around the room in my arms like a superhero), a marathon runner (always wants help in walking around), a boxer (I was hit in the lip several times today with toys) and finally, a wrestler (she pulled Shannon's hair several times, stuck her finger in my eye, and stretched my cheeks as if I needed them stretched). I guess she wanted my cheeks to be puffy like hers. She also has fun deciding how I can be holding her and also appear in the mirror at the same time. I can't tell you how good it make us feel to see her thriving as she is.

Take Two!

We're back!!!!! The past 8 weeks have come and gone, and we finally got our 2nd call April 25th. Again, it had been another roller coaster of a week and Charles and I were convinced we were never going to get that call. It was a happy moment. We were told our court date would be May 6th, but that they wouldn't know our travel dates until Monday...leaving us with 5 days to get ready. Our time here will be May 3rd-May 24th. Three whole weeks.

The flight was looooong, but we made it. We spent the week getting ready from last min. shopping to setting up the critter watch schedule (thanks to all who are chipping in to take care of those furry babies!!!). The week was spent with so many well wishes and even a goody bag was made for us!! Yum!!!! Thank you to all!! We arrived in Moscow Sun. late morning. Eugene was there to greet us, and it became like old times very quickly. We made it to the apt., who we are renting from an Australian man...he is so nice. The apt. is gorgeous, and we will certainly enjoy calling this home for three weeks. The Aussie and Eugene walked us to the nearest grocery store, so were able to get a few items we needed. Charles has referred to our eating and lifestyle here our Russian boot camp, but we're making it just fine. Early to bed last night, and ready to hit the ground running this morning. Sergei was our driver today...great guy!!!! We spent the morning with our precious girl....outside in the play area. The weather has been so glorious, so it was nice to play with her and enjoy the fresh air. We are both astounded as to how much she has grown and developed in 8 weeks. She had been so fearful and hesitiant the first trip...now...ummmm, well, we are fighting to keep up with her. Our first treat was to see that she finally started walking. We have to hold onto her, but boy is she proud of herself. She smiles the whole time she's walking, and then looks at us as if to say, "I've been practicing for you..look at me!!"She's gotten bigger and is so healthy. Our next treat was when Charles was walking her to me, she looked up at me and said, "Mama". Well, tears just start running down our faces. The happiest moment I've ever had. I couldn't of asked for a more perfect Mother's Day gift. She is smiling, clapping, and she likes to be a "faker". She'll cough to get our attention, and then she'll giggle...and then fake cough again and again. Oh, we could go on as to how she amazes us. Needless to say, our 2 visits today were amazing.

We have court tomorrow...please keep us in your prayers as we are a bit nervous about all this. We are trying to be as prepared as we can be, but just don't know what to expect. Once the judge approves us, we will have to wait ten days until we can get her. At first I really dreaded this wait, but I finally see that all of this is a once and lifetime situation...enjoy this great city. It's beautiful, so much to see and do, and the weather is perfect. It's time for life to start being lived, as it has been on hold for us for too long.

We'll write again tomorrow...I also wanted to give a big thanks to everyone for so many of the wonderful things that happened to make our 8 weeks waiting for this to be memorable.We are so blessed, and couldn't of made it without all of your love and prayers.