An Update

I received a call from our coordinator yesterday- we have been unofficially placed in either Tula or Tver regions. We will know as soon as they know, but they felt that the 2 of these regions would be a good fit for us. They are both just outside Moscow (which means no connecting Aeroflot flights!!), do not require blind travel, and allow us to bring in a Dr. easily (since they're both just outside Moscow). It's still sinking in, but my excitement is growing with each thought of what this means for our journey- it's beginning to feel more real- you know, when you see something beyond paper-chasing that really puts you "into" the journey.

They've given us both of these regions because they run very similarly paperwork wise (and will thus give us more to do now instead of later). The "tricky" part of these regions is that they only allow 1 registered family per agency, thus the reason we do not know which we will be placed in. I suppose it has more to do with which family currently registered there accepts a referral first. We were told that one of the regions has a family over there right now. We are the first in line in both regions to be placed next, so it looks like we are moving along quite well.

In other adoption news, Mark & I are currently reading Adoption Parenting. Awesome book which I highly recommend. We are both beginning to feel much better prepared for our daughter with the information it is giving us, and frankly, there's quite a bit of great information that we are applying to our boys; it's certainly written for the adoptive family, but has great information for all children in general. It's a required reading for our agency (part of our Hague-compliance pre-adoption education) and I'm very glad it is!

And in non-adoption excitement:  tomato plant #1 (I currently have 3 growing in my yard) has tiny-pea-size tomatoes that have "sprouted" from it's limbs!!! I'm thrilled to have success in my garden. Once I get my laptop back from those geeks over at Best Buy (and thus have photoshop again), I'll post some pictures. I leave you with an Etsy find that I would love to purchase (but really, needing 6 of them at $8 a pop, they're not in my future), just because they are so stinkin' cute!! (and because pictures make blog reads so much more enjoyable, right??!!)

Comments

[Angie]

Wow, what an exciting update! Thank you for commenting on my blog (findingourdaughter). I had no idea you were in FL too...we are in a suburb of the Jax area. Our boys are ages 7.5 and 5.
I have followed your blog for quite a while, before you traveled to Russia last year. It sounds like your process is going really fast now!
I would like to connect with you via email and share stories.
God Bless!

[Heather]

Sounds like things are moving smoothly! I have heard good things about the Tula region. It is the region where some of our agency's Russian staff were from and they'd registered a family in Tula every once and awhile.

Thanks for visiting our blog recently! We are enjoying our sweet boy and currently are seeking God's wisdom/direction regarding adopting again in the next couple of years.

God bless you as you continue waiting for your daughter,

heather
www.russianblessings.wordpress.com

[Rachel (Troy & Daniel)]

Sounds like things are moving along! Slow but sure wins the race right?!?! Our region (Izhevsk) only allowed 2 families at a time, so I know timing is everything in Russia.

I'm jealous of your tomato plants - mine are still small, but we have been chilly in VA lately! I grew up in Orlando and I miss the warm weather!!

[Kristine]

I really enjoy Etsy as well...so many fun things on that site!

I will definitely post on Wed. about Throw Away Thursday! just for you since you asked so nicely ;)

I am glad to hear things are moving forward..I think I have heard good things about both regions...Tver is somewhat strict from what I understand, but is a very good region.

[Rachael]

Just catching up with you. So glad to hear that you're giving adoption another shot in Russia. Best of luck with everything. Sounds like everything is lining up nicely this time around. Can't wait to hear more!

[christen]

Thanks for the tip on the book. I think I'm going to order that one.

I love etsy finds. I post things often that I find online and never purchase. Can't afford every cute thing, but I do love to share them!!

I'm actually considering buying a metal stamping set. I'd like to be able to make gifts for Christmas this year. I know it's early, but I'm guessing it'll take awhile to order and make everything I'm imagining. The spoons are a cute idea.