Nutso

Boy, so much going on… so little time! Work has been nutso so I apologize for having disappeared off the face of the earth for a week and a half (I especially apologize to Carol and Melissa, who were worried, after my last post, that I had forgotten about blogging. :-))

First and foremost (and SHAME ON ME for having not posted this earlier)… A big ole’ CONGRATULATIONS to my wonderful friends, Rachel and Troy and Carey and Norman! Rachel and Troy received their referral last week from Izhevsk. Carey and Norman are now the proud parents of a little girl from Vladivostok! I have had the pleasure of meeting both of them in person and they have been the greatest of friends throughout this process. I’m so happy to see them both so happy!

I have a little news of my own… it’s not “carved in stone” news, but it’s news all the same. Our dossier is done being translated! It won’t be registered today because it is still with the notary (notarizing in Russia is MUCH different than here), but it WILL be registered next Friday, March 7th! We were also asked if our agency should request travel dates for March 23rd. Uhhhhh… YES! Now, we might not get those dates because it will depend on the number of families already scheduled to go and available referrals, but we know it will most likely be that week or the next!

I’m so hesitant to post any of this because I feel like, in the past, I have rejoiced over the little things only to be let down again. I have a gut feeling that won’t happen this time but I’m still so scared to believe it could possibly be true! Of course, all of that being said, it hasn’t stopped me from looking at airfare, hotels, apartments, etc…

Here’s what I have done for Trip 1:

~ Contact an in-country doctor and reserve a few tentative dates.

I know you’re thinking “Oooo… she forgot to type the rest of what she’s done so far.” But nope. After 8 months of waiting, that’s it – that’s all I’ve done. :-)

Some things I can think of that I need to do (off the top of my head without my many lists and other’s lists in front of me):

~ Water the money tree
~ Learn some basic Russian (I’ve had 8 months and I wait until NOW to do this?!?)
~ Verify Marriott’s adoption rate and availability
~ Find a few apartments that seem to be available
~ Find tentative flight times and compile Skymiles (I think we have enough for maybe 2 tickets)
~ Figure out this whole Visa process
~ Decide what to pack
~ Call the doctor for some “just in case” medication
~ Order new money (once I figure out how much I need)
~ Buy things (notice this is generic – that is how I’ll be explaining it to Keith too :-))
~ Get re-acquainted with my video camera
~ A whole heck of a lot more!!!

We are so hopeful that we get our travel dates on Friday so we have 2 weeks notice (or more) to book things because as you know, it winds up being a bit cheaper and at this point the more we can save, the better!

I’d appreciate any Trip 1 tips and tricks you all have! Things like “don’t forget…” “don’t bother packing…” would be most helpful!

I promise to post again soon. Really, I do! If nothing else you should get a registration update next Friday. Please keep your fingers and toes crossed, stand on your head and chew gum, pray or wish on a shooting star – whatever it is that you do – that this is for real and we are truly moving forward.

Hugs!
Little Miss “Optimistic”

P.S. I need to update my header too since all of those pictures are of Izhevsk! Did I ever mention where we are going with the new agency? Have I mentioned that I’m forgetful? We’re going to the Moscow Region. This doesn’t mean the city of Moscow… more on that later!