I promised an update

There was a meeting with the Judge (which Judge, not sure...new, old, older, interim) on Monday.

The message we got from our guy in Irkutsk is that he spoke directly to the Judge about our case - and asked her to help set a court date ASAP.

Please keep praying - this is potentially a big deal...or potentially not. After 5 years of dashed hopes, and 5 years of saying "we hope by Christmas" - I don't get too excited about anything.

When we know more...so will you!

the waiting game

Our documents were resubmitted to the Judge again this week. There are some vacations, new Judges, old Judges, bla bla bla drama that we don't want to get hung up in - so our guy in Irkutsk rushed to get things submitted quickly.

I am assuming we won't hear anything more until the end of next week.

about my Anya

In case you were wondering,

1. She has his eyes
2. She has my chin
3. She has his artistic abilities
4. She doesn't like beef (I am a vegetarian)
5. She likes candy, especially cookies (Marty's nick name is Cookie Monster)
6. She comes to me when she isn't feeling well...not the caregivers, ME!
7. She has a crazy sense of humor (if you spend any time in our house, you'll understand!)
8. She loves to dance, but doesn't dance well
9. She is a talker
10. She is very concerned about what she wears
11. She told me she doesn't like numbers (i.e. math)
12. She has a Strong will

So yea, she is ours...

headaches and packages

Over the years, I've sent literally dozens of packages to Russia. DHL, FedEx, Standard Mail...yep - been a customer of all those shipping sources.

I have found that DHL is the best - when shipping to Irkutsk.

Last week, I sent a box with some goodies to Anya. It has been hung up in randomness since it left Indianapolis. Frank (my new best friend at DHL) has called me at 8:30 every morning to tell me the status of the package - no, I am not kidding. This is TREMENDOUS customer service. Even though the package still isn't at the destination (and should have arrived last Friday), I'm not mad...why?

1. When shipping things to Russia, I have learned that I have no expectations, therefore am never upset or mad when something goes wrong

2. Because Frank is on the case

Just wanted to give a little shout-out for good customer service. It's a hot button with me, so when it is perfectly executed - I like to talk about it.

Way to go DHL (now, if you can please deliver the package, that would be great...my little girl needs clothes!)

the docs are in the mail...again

Quick update...

THE DOCUMENTS ARE IN THE MAIL

Not going to bore you with all the drama that came with actually getting in the car to get to Indianapolis, to get the documents to the Secretary of State's office to get them in the mail. But I will tell you that my Mom and I celebrated with a great dinner at PF Chang's!

Documents should be delivered tomorrow (Friday), hope to know more next week. Stay tuned!

Pics of Anya, paperwork updates and more

Wow, there is a lot going on.

First - paperwork. I have been working on updating some documents that had errors on them. Not a big deal, but trying to decipher what the Judge means when she says things in the legal statement like "there is an error on the document showing the license". OK, which document, which license (seriously, we've provided at least 12-15 different agency and professional licenses).

Got a note from Tami, or friend in Irkutsk today. She offered the following info on Anya, as observed by Luda:

Luda said that Anya is a really nice girl. She is outgoing and visits very well. Luda said that Anya knows almost nothing about God. She is learning in the Bible study, but this is totally new to her. I believe Luda said that the first lesson they had was that God made you very special, and you are special to God. The next lesson explains more about God and who He is. Then they have a lesson about sin and what it is. Slowly they introduce about Jesus coming to be the payment
for our sins, and about accepting Him as personal Savior.

This makes me happy - to know that she is learning WHO God is. Can you imagine? Even children who do not go to church in our country, know who Jesus is and who God is - generally. Can you even fathom a world where the words 'God' and 'Jesus' aren't a part of everyday language?

Tami also said:

From what Luda has explained to me, Anya's group lives in a "home-style" apartment. That means they eat, sleep, and live in the same little area. Luda said that there are 2 bedrooms for girls and 2 bedrooms for boys in Anya's group. Anya has one other girl in her bedroom. Of course, the kids go to school each day. Luda said that Anya's group leader often locks the door to their "apartment," so that the older kids can't come in to bother the little ones.

This is so good. I have been very worried about the older kids with Anya.

Here are some pics of Anya:

meet Luda

Before I get into this post, I feel like I need to share something with all of you. As you remember, months back I took this blog private. I did that for several reasons...primarily because I wanted to keep the very PRIVATE details of the last leg of this nightmares PRIVATE.

Russia has some pretty specific laws about photographs of orphans. I won't beat around the bush here....if the Judge got wind that I was using Anya's photo on the Internet, it would NOT be a good thing.

For that reason, I feel like I need to ask you to PLEASE PLEASE not share photos or information that I post here with anyone (ANYONE!). I personally know each and every one of you, that is why I feel comfortable in sharing a lot of very private information here, and posting photos of Anya. Thank you for understanding this delicate place we're in.

I've mentioned the Jackson family before. I have been following their journey in Irkutsk for quite some time. Tami (the Mom) and I traded emailed for a while, and then when I was in Irkutsk in January - I got to spend some time with their family. Since then, they've become very special to us...and we kind of think of them as our family who lives in Irkutsk.

The Jackson's have a wonderful woman, named Luda, who comes to their home to help out from time to time. Luda is from Shelechov, the same city where Anya lives. Luda was an orphan. She grew up in the same orphanage where Anya is. Luda has found Christ, and is sharing God's love with the orphans in that orphanage! In Russia....this is a REALLY BIG DEAL.

To put this into perspective: in January, I had a conversation with one of the caregivers (via a translator) about God. The caregiver didn't know what God was, and was calling God "the god". The translator didn't know what 'the god' was either, so couldn't translate for me.

This is why the fact that Luda has found the hope that only comes from Jesus Christ...in Irkutsk...is WOW! And, she chooses to share this Love with orphans! Yes, we love Luda!

...meet Luda. Here she is with Anya at a weekly Bible Study.



This photo Luda sent to us - I posted a Facebook message about it, commenting on Anya's "ball boy" shirt. She is not a boy! It makes me so sad to see her little chubby cheeks go away! This means she is growing up....far too fast for my liking!

This is the Bible Study group Anya is a part of. She is the youngest in the group, but is in this group because Luda teaches it. All of those faces deserve the Love of Jesus, and I thank HIM every day that Luda is showing them this kind of love!