Looks like Jan-Feb to NAC

Nothing is for sure....yet. Have been following the posts from other families awaiting word on their travel dates and it seems the NAC has sent letters out most recently (we're waiting) to many of us who have been 'registered' around the same time; stating that our travel times will most likely point to Jan-Feb. Hopefully, we will get our letter this week as another couple who registered days before us recieved their letter on Oct. 22nd. Then, of course, NAC, often does things in spurts (not to different than our government on paperwork) and one might get a letter saying to be ready in 10 days. Whatever happens, we go! It does look like we will be able to spend time with our family during the holidays this year and are looking at airline travel back to Minnesota but with flights out of Anchorage being full already might have to go before Christmas or a little after but don't want to 'push' the January timeframe too much ....just in case we are headed to Ukraine around that time. Whoopee!

Fantastic, fantastic is the only word we can say for the beautiful, handmade quilt our friend June gave us for our fundraiser toward the adoption. June and Wayne have been very supportive and hopefully I can get Greg (with all his high-tech computer knowledge) to scan a picture of it and put it on this blog.

As most of you know, Greg and I are looking at 'older children' adoption. We are approved for the age range of 5 years old and up and would like to have siblings. We are flexible on gender and at this moment would say the ideal age combination might be an 8 & 10 yr old or somewhere in that range. HOWEVER, we have found that many people come back with different ages than they were expecting. One just has to follow their heart and be flexible. We will not break up a sibling group but two would be nice although we are approved for up to three. I'm calling Greg - PaPa sometimes so he can get used to hearing his 'other' name. He just beams with his funny little smile and gets a kick out of it. He is acting like an 'expectant' parent too so all of this is good. We're both so excited about each day we have to look forward too this month, next month and all the ensuing time with our children ahead. Keep in touch with us...ya all...out there and Happy Halloween. Arlene & Greg

Fundraising Plans!

While waiting for our travel date, we have been trying to use our time in a more focused manner and have decided that after a busy season at work in our business that we had better make m-u-c-h more room in our home for when the child/children arrive. Sooooooooo.....out go the many, many things we thought we couldn't live without....you know the 'buy one get the other one free' type of thing. Well, Greg and I have thought too much alike on this subject way back before we met and even after we got married. It seems we have just about double of everything we have accumulated thru the years; but could that be (astrologically speaking)the situation which arises when two Gemni's get together as we both were born in June....in fact one on the 12th and just reverse the numbers and yup that's me....born on the 21st.
So goes it then for two people born under the 'twin' sign....double or nothing :)
A friend who is in the fishing charter boat business here in Alaska is going to donate proceeds from one of his sell-out trips this summer to the adoption fund; another wonderful, talented lady has completed making a quilt to be auctioned off at a local fundraising effort for the children in the upcoming months ahead and other
supportive friends from our little town and church have come forth wanting to help us bring the children home. We are truly blest with wonderful friends and family!

An Update

Arlene and I are preparing for our trip to Ukraine by scouring the web for information on housing and restaurants in Kiev. I'm a "fast food fiend" so I was really happy to see that they have McDonald's there. Arlene has been checking a lot of the apartment rentals sites looking for just the right place to stay. We are also reading our Ukraine travel books, and trying to learn the language as well as some Russian which I believe is spoken in many parts of the country. We hope to get the news from the NAC soon on when our appointment will be. Stay tuned!

Darn Spam!

I hate to do this, but the spammers have found a new venue for their ads - on the comments area of our blog. Therefore I have enabled the "word verification" function for entering comments. I know it makes it a hassle, but we are trying to minimize helping encourage advertising where it doesn't belong!

NAC HAS A FIRE....but no one hurt!

'When it rains it pours' as the saying goes and in this case it was with fire. Just updated by one of our Ukraine observers that a fire broke out in the NAC director's office and at first there was concern as to if the many stacks of dossiers may have suffered fire or water damage...but THANKS to our quick reply back from our translator in Ukraine; Inna reports that it wasn't such a 'big' fire and the office staff at the NAC is back on a regular work schedule. Thank God there were no injuries or destruction of property and/or records.

Greg and I finally located the Lonely Planet's UKRAINE book which is one of the 'must-have' books for travel. Now all we have to do is try to master the challenge of the Ukrainian and Russian langauages so we can at least find our way to the necessary places we have to visit. WOW, we are getting more and more eager to venture into another new chapter of our life and that is to bring the children home.
So nice to be able to email so many others who have preceeded us on this journey and hope we can share some of the info we bring back with future parents taking the same trip. Snow is starting to make its way down the mts but the sun makes everything glisten during the day. More later.

We're 'In-Waiting'...Still.

This week we were so glad to be able to confirm with Greg's mom that she will be able to oversee things here in our Alaska home when we do leave for Ukraine. We are so glad that Arlene G (there can't be too many Arlene's in this World) will fly up here and join Mom until we get back. Taking care of a temperamental old cat and a very spoiled St. Bernard dog is no easy task....But thank God my mother-in-law is a true Survivor!!
Greg and I have decided to have a gigantic garage sale to help put monies into the adoption fund. After a busy summer and FINALLY trying to arrange our closets, we have found too many of 'this and thats'....all great treasures you know; but with the children coming we must get 'organized'....just like KENDRA has posted so many times!
We are doing the usual pre-adoptive things like checking the computer every chance we get to see if any more news from Ukraine has surfaced; checking all the new Posts which have been coming in on 'bonding' and feeling so good when we see others who are
gradually getting their appointments at the NAC...it's been a long 2-1/2 years for many of us....and hopefully ours will be coming soon as our translator did get it into the NAC on August 16th... So grateful for KT's imput to us and looking forward to meeting our translator, Inna when we do get to Kiev.
Greg said that we would try to keep some 'fresh' info on this blog but we are in a holding pattern waiting for our exact date with the NAC. Blessings to all.
Arlene & Greg