OY YOY YOY

First of all, nothing is wrong with our actual adoption procedure. Ava is still LEGALLY our daughter on March 25th!!!! Praise God for that. However, just when you thought our adoption couldn’t get any more unusual, random, and difficult… it has! Here is the short and simplified version of the story: Our current visa expires on the 23rd of March and so when we went to get that visa extended, Sveta was informed that a new law has gone into effect as of March 1st which doesn’t allow any personal visas to be extended. We were told we’d have to leave the country and obtain another visa. As they say in Kazakhstan, Oy yoy yoy! So, we have spent the past week exhausting every single possible option to solve this problem. Our plans have ranged from flying to Kyrgyzstan to get a tourist visa to coming home and having Sveta escort Ava to us. It seems that our plans have changed each day. Finally we have reached a decision that seems to be best for everyone involved. James and I will fly to Germany on March 22nd and be picked up by our AMAZING friends Peggy and Jan. They will take us to their home in Belgium where we will stay for a few days. During this time we will pick up our new visa from the Kaz embassy in Belgium and then be back on our way to Ava. This unfortunately means that we will miss being the ones to pick Ava up from the orphanage. We have been dreaming of that day for so long now and now we will never have that moment but that’s ok. Ava will be picked up by Sveta on the 25th and will stay with our friends Brian and Belinda Issac for a couple of nights until we return to the country. Trust me, there have been moments this week that have seemed completely hopeless and we have had many down moments. But in order to get through this incredibly hard process, we HAVE to look at the bright side. SO…here is the bright side.
1) We will have a few days to escape the craziness of Kaz and spend time with our dear friends Peggy and Jan. We thought it would be several years before we got to see them again. Being with them lifts our spirits and encourages us to finish out this adoption strong!
2) We will get to see some of Europe! James and I will not likely have the chance to see Europe together for at least another 20 years so we are getting excited about seeing Belgium, Germany, and possibly France.
3) We have so many people here supporting us! Between Sveta and the Issacs, we are in good hands and so is Ava! Yes, Sveta is working for us and is our coordinator but she has become an amazing friend and part of our family over this past year. She has sacrificed countless hours with her children and husband to answer our zillion questions and wait at offices for our paperwork. She never shows frustration or impatience with us. She is truly a saint.
4) These changes are not delays! This will not extend our trip at all. It will take the same amount of time to complete the adoption regardless if we stayed here in Kaz or exit the country for a few days. The days that we are in Belgium are days needed for Sveta to gather Ava’s new birth certificate and visa.

Unfortuantely, we aren’t total Polyanna’s and there are some major stresses that this issue has caused. You have been with us through the good, the bad, and the ugly and so I wanted to be honest with you about our situation. When we began this process of adoption we never could have anticipated all the time out of country that it would require. When we arrive home in April we would have spent a total of 7 months out of the country this year. We’ve managed financially but this last visa issue has pushed us over the edge a bit. Having to purchase tickets to Europe was not in the budget! We considered James going home now and returning to work but it looks like by the time he can arrange a flight home, I will be only one week behind him. It doesn’t seem to be worth it for me to travel alone. Now, we know that in these difficult economic times no body has extra money to spare but we wanted to share our financial need in case you feel lead to give. Also, if you have any little girls in your life, my dolls are seriously cute! I mean, not to brag or anything J But honestly, they make great gifts and I love making them. Any orders there will help us out as well.  Email us with any specific questions about this.  Bla…I hate talking about money! But there it is…the ugly!

Now…for some pictures of the little life who makes all this insanity worth it!

Is she photogenic or what?  I think she could be a model.  Spoken like a true Mama huh?

Sneaking a kiss

More dancing going on in the music room

My lesson with Ava's group went very well.  We water colored kites for spring!  Ava was soooo excited to have me teach her class.  You can see her in the front row clapping her hands in excitement.  She was so proud to have us there!  By the way, isn't that classroom adorable?

The artist at work

Mrs. Letterneau admiring her students work

I just adore this picture.  Look how excited they are about their work.  There are two other girls in Ava's group besides her.  Can you spot them?  I'm not even sure I can.  We've got less a week to go before Ava's hair is safe from the orphanage scissors forever!

Getting ready to take Ava to get her passport picture taken.

On our way to get the photo taken.  They weren't there so we will try again today.

We will post again before we leave for Europe.  Thanks for the prayers and support.