overseas

 

A crisp 2 degrees Celsius, as I walked outside the airport in Kyiv, it was 8:30 PM. I see my breathe as I say "net" (nee-ette) to the multiple men who ask me for taxi's or if I would like to exchange money. I walk with my head down, rolling my one suit case through the cool, dark air, to the parking lot, weary of my surroundings.  

Over 8,000 dollars in cash and a United States passport strapped to my body.

Consumed with fear and disappointment that the bag containing the gifts for Yana and Alex was not on the conveyor belt when we arrived.
Yes, Ally and I both have our clothes and basic needs, but the goody bags with toothbrushes, toothpaste, mascara (for the girls), a deck of cards (for the boys), gum, mints, floss, deodorant... the special gifts picked out for the director, and the whiskey for the lawyer, no where to be seen. Missing. Customs' waved us through knowing we had been talking broken English for the past 45 minutes with the airport baggage person.

The baggage lady looked more confused than I did and even walked around the empty baggage claim area twice, wondering if we missed it.

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Eugene, our driver, lifts our bags into the car. He drives slow on the highways and through the streets of Kyiv. He tells stories of his apartment, the history of his many friends. He talks about different families he has met and how he has to pick up another family after dropping us off.

 

The warm car, compared to the chilly out side fogs the window making it nearly impossible to see what he is actually talking about. Ally laughs as I continue to ask him questions. A year ago, she sat where I sat, in the front seat and heard the exact stories.

 

He parks (ON THE SIDE WALK) and  walks us up to the apartment where we will be staying for the next two days. I tote up the 5 flights of stairs with a 33 pound bag and think to myself, boy am I out of shape.

We pay him and thank him, as he tells us he will be picking us up at 8:15 for our SDA appointment.

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Dinner awaits us at Karen's (an american missionary) apartment as well as a warm king size bed to share and two towels to use. We stay up and chit chat around the kitchen table until around 10:45, but our tired bodies begin to win the battle and we both feel the need to go to sleep and talk to this amazing women tomorrow.

A map in Karen's apartment of the many families whom have stayed with her

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Up and out of the house by 8:15 with a cup of French pressed coffee in a travel mug I borrowed, not sleeping much, and still exhausted, we leave for my appointment. I wear the best outfit I brought, a pair of black slacks and a sweater making sure to look conservative. My Ukrainian cell phone rings, and we are picked up on the street outside of the apartment.
Again Eugene drives slow, and other cars pass by and honk. We continue our conversation from last night until we park in front of a large church.

 

The facilitator walks up to the drivers car and gets in. I meet him for the first time although I have heard so much about him. He guides us to our appointment, and the driver leaves to attend to another family. Almost as though it was the changing' of the guards. Eugene leaves and Igor takes over.

 

We walk through a court yard to an unmarked blue door.

 

 

This door holds the approval for me to see my kids and the files on what has happened in their life up until now.  Ally comes with me, as I introduce her as my sister. The SDA officer asks me a series of basic information questions and has me sign a large book next to the kids names. We are told birth dates and biological parent names. We are told Yana is "persistent" and Alex is "calm". We are told  when they were removed from there mother's care. 

I do the math in my head,  I thought they were older than that?  

I am asked to come back at 3:00 tomorrow.

 

It was over. The appointment that I longed to have for 6 months took 15 minutes. The appointment I traveled 6300 miles to be at lasted 15 minutes. The appointment that took me 24 hours to get to, was 15 minutes.

 

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Update:  I have had 3 people call the baggage claim number, however we still have not heard anything.

 

As far as being in Ukraine. Everyone is kind and there is never a time we are alone outside the apartment. It is a well oiled machine where we are picked  up at the exact time we are suppose to be picked up. We are given exchange rates better than what the app I downloaded says we should be getting. We are taken to breakfast and introduced to many people, all excited for us to be here and Yana and Alex to have a forever family.

 

Taste and see that the Lord is good; blessed is the man who takes refuge in him.

Psalm 34:8

 

It's go time

Thursday morning, I recieved a text while teaching 2nd grade reading groups.
I have a bluetooth speaker connected to my phone so when I play music my class rotates. One down fall of this system is if anyone text's (or calls) during that 90 minute period, the entire class hears it. AND if you know anything about 7 years olds, if they hear a random ding, they are filled with curiouslity, and 27 little voices start asking "what was that?" 
This was less than a 5 second distraction, but resulted in 3 minutes of all the students telling me (and each other) their mom/grandma/sister/cousin has the same ring or phone or hair cut. 

Well there is was,"Got your date!!!!" Written in black with a gray bubbled background on my phone screen.

It is actually happening. It is like the one question that everyone asks me now and I never have an answer, but now I do. 

14 days. I leave in 14 days. 

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This was the news I have been waiting for.  Praying for. Excited for.

Last night, Adam asked how are you feeling, and I started to cry.  
What is wrong with me???? I am suppose to feel excited. Through this entire process, I have felt peace with this part. Money always worried me but 21 hours on a plane without kids seemed like pure bliss. Just me, Rachel, Ross, Joey, Chandler, Monica and Phoebe. What mom wouldn't love that? So why am I being such a baby?


Then it hit me. I will be gone for 10 days not just 21 hours. I will be gone over Easter. 

The Easter bunny is going to come and I am going to miss it. I will miss them dressing up for church.  


I have never left my kids for more that a quick weekend trip. I am always there to pick them up, to kiss their booboos, to find their kiki's. 

I have prayed over this last month that I don't miss the girls birthdays, (which falls 3 weeks apart). I have prayed that I don't miss Adam and my wedding anniversary, (which is inbetween the girls birthday on March 28th) and God has totally answered my prayers. 

Elle's b-day last year

Even though we are not doing much, it's nice to be able to be there with them on their special days. 

Lily's birthday last year

I will be traveling through our school's spring break (so I don't miss work), leaving the day after our anniversay and arriving 2 days before my soon-to-be-6-year-old's birthday. 
Blessings, right? So be grateful! 

Stop feeling sorry for yourself Kimmy! 

God's work, God's plan. 

This is what I prayed for so stop complaining.

May He grant you your heart's desire and fufull all your plans!

Psalm 20:4

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I told Alex on Ukrainian Facebook,
"I am coming! I will be in Ukraine on March--- but won't be able to visit you until April ---!"
His response was,
"well we'll see you soon"

I think that's how a 16 year old shows he is excited!

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It's go time

This is the first of 3 trips. I am going for 10 days. Then I come home for 3 to 4 weeks. Then I go back for 72 hours (they are officially mine on that trip, but there is a 10 day wait period). I am coming home during that time, but most people stay.  The third trip is the I gotcha day, where they get to leave the orphanage with me,  as their mom. 

That third trip is a little longer because we have to wait for their United States Passports and birth certificates. 

This will most likely be early or middle May depending on my next court date. 

Honestly, I do not know what to expect. I don't know where I will be staying or what the orphanage will be like. I really have no clue.

I am suppose to come with a notebook of questions to ask the orphanage staff about the kids. I don't even know what to ask. I guess I was wondering if I can copy of some pictures of them when they were younger, but that's all I have.

Those of you who have done this before can you please comment below or email me some things I should ask? :)

Also, what should I bring the kiddos in the orphanage? Does anyone want to help me make little goodie bags for them?

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I am humbling asking for prayers from everyone. Prayers for my friend Ally and I during this first trip. Prayers that someone is willing to come with me the second and third trip. Prayers for Y+A and their transition. Prayers for Lily and Elliot (and Adam) while I am gone. Prayers for Ally's family and her kiddos while she is gone.

Prayers that the remaining 6,802.33 dollars comes in. 

And as always praise to God and his beautiful plan for our lives. 

And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

Colossians 3:17

Cleaning out some junk

imgarcade.com

Have you ever invited someone to go through your junk drawer? How awkward and uncomfortable, right? Having them pick up every random receipt folded and jammed in there, examine every stick of Chapstick that no longer has the cap, trying every ink-less pen to see if it writes...questioning why are you keeping such junk? Such clutter?  

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When I gave my life to Christ, I didn’t realize what it would entail. I knew the gist of what it meant, but there was so much I didn’t know...

I mean, I checked in on him every once and a while and thanked him when things were going great. 

But, God kept presenting himself and I would feel that pull to get closer to him and so I did. Then He put a friend or relative in my life that brought me closer to Him still, and little by little I began to follow Him more. 

But then he asked to go in my junk drawer.  See, I didn’t want anyone to see that much ugly, not even God.

thereaderomaha-film.blogspot.com

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With preparing for our two new additions, I began cleaning out the two extra bedrooms. I started opening closets. I started to be face to face with the ugly. 
AND Oh boy, it was a-whole-lot-of ugly. Embarrassing clutter that is still hidden in closets, drawers and shelves.

My friend and I decided to clear everything out of our houses for Lent. 
Clear out the things that clutter our homes and our hearts. Clear out the things that we do not need. Things that block our focus on what our life is suppose to be about.
This Lent idea totally fit in with having to prepare for Yana and Alex, as well as spring cleaning. Win-Win

We are doing 40 bags in 40 days. Well, I was gonna do that, until I realized I could really fill up 40 bags with my garage alone. 

So I modified and adjusted, and now for lent I am de-cluttering 40 zones in 40 days.  (I haven't reached the garage yet, that's gonna be a scary day/weekend).

Things upon the mantle,

Things on the shelf,

Things that others gave me,

Things I gave myself.

Things I’ve stored in boxes

That don’t mean much anymore, 

Old magazines and memories

Behind the attic door.

Things on hooks and hangers, 

Things on ropes and rings,

Things I guard that blind me

To the pettiness of things.

Am I like the rich young ruler,

Ruled by all I own?

If Jesus came and asked me,

Could I leave them all alone?

Oh Lord, I look to heaven, 

Beyond the veil of time,

To gain eternal insight

That nothings really mine-

And to only ask for daily bread

And all that contentment brings,

To find freedom as your servant-

In the midst of all these things.

For discarded in the junk yards,

Rusting in the rain,

Lie things that took the finest years-

Of lifetime to obtain.

And whistling through these tombstone

The hollow breezes sing

A song of dreams surrendered

To the tyranny of things. 

~Scott Wesley Brown

They are only things? So why am I holding on to them? The stuff has no value. And there is a bigger treasure.

Just junk in a drawer or a closet or a garage or a shelf. 

There is so much freedom in not feeling as though I need to keep a box of old pictures and a movie stub from an ex boyfriend. I don’t need to keep 9 rolls (?!?!) of holiday wrapping paper. So much stuff, I didn't even know I still had.

Goodwill here I come.  

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When we began the adoption process 3 years ago with San Diego County, we were pretty clear about the child we wanted. 

The boxes checked were as follows: 0-3, and girl. Period.

But then God stretched us. He came in and he cleared out some junk.

Ok God we will take an older girl but no boys. I mean we have little girls. We can’t have a boy in the house, especially an older boy. 

But then God stretched us. Cleaned out a little more of our junk, and some of our fears. 

Ok God but only for 8 short weeks. Then we did our duty and lived for you. 8 weeks and we are done. 

But then he stretched us some more...
Ok God we miss them, but adoption is forever. I know there futures are bleak, but we could never travel across the world and leave Lily and Elliot at home.

And he keeps stretching us. 

As soon as I start feeling comfortable, 

that’s when God asks to look inside my junk drawer. 

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God is so good, His plan is so perfect.

Even if it means cleaning out a little junk. 

Amazon.com Axis Junk Drawer Organizer