What a year

In the orphanage

At home this week


My friend Kara left me a message the other day saying can you believe it was a year ago that we got our daughters! Her and her husband Wei were in Kyrgyzstan the same time as we were adopting their little girl. They were not with our agency or anything we just saw them at the orphange and we connected, obviously, we were going through craziness together!
I was just thinking about the things Sofia has been through, seen and done in her little life already! She lived in an orphanage for the first 6 months of her life, traveled across the whole world to a new family, moved to a new home after 6 more months, and now she is getting a baby brother! So much in a year and she is so easy going and sweet!
When I think back to a year ago the stress and anxiety of bringing her home is hardly memorable. I remember thinking if we can just make it home I will be able to breathe again! Those 10 days trying to bring her home were absolutely the most stressful days of my life. It felt like everything that could go wrong did, and I was just so worried we would not make it out of there with our daughter! One of the days that papers were missing, out hotel reservation was lost and it was 2am and I was crying in this scary motel room with no a/c and it was 90 degrees outside, Dan said you know we didn't sign up for some easy trip to pick her up, we knew it would be hard. It was so true, I just needed to be reminded that adoption is not an easy road, but God was so faithful in providing everything we needed, often at the very last second!
I just love the way God has put our family together, none of it has been easy, but all of it has been so worth it and I am so grateful to have our little Sofia. To look at then and now and see how much she has changed and grown in amazing to me!

Oh the frustration of paperwork

This morning after my dentist appointment I got to work on more paper work for Sofia's adoption. You might ask "Alyssa isn't she already adopted?" The answer is yes but there is so much more to do, it overwhelmes me just thinking about it! Since her birth certificate is in Kyrgyz we cannot read it nor can anyone else who is not Russian or Kyrgyz! So when she has to go to school or many other things you need a birth certificate for, it will be a problem. So we have to call and get paperwork, fill it out, file it with the court, get a court date, go get her name changed, do some more paperwork, send it off and then get her new birth certificate in English. This is only one of the things, there is her passport that needs changing, we have to apply for her Social security and more. With each process there are so many papers to fill out as well. So when I called to find out where to file our petition, no one, and I mean no one knew what I was talking about. I was on the phone for over an hour and I talked to, no lie, 8 people. I finally found someone who informed me that this is not what I need, but instead I have to re-adopt Sofia and do another home study, more paperwork, pay more money, and get a lawyer to do this. I am freaking out!!!! I have a call in to my agency so I am hoping and praying this is not true. I am so frustrated! Don't get me wrong, I would do this all day everyday for my baby, but it is hard, especially when Zeke is yelling in one ear about finding his hummer and getting him more cheerios, and Sofia is pulling my hair on the other side! Being on the phone for an hour is not an option with kids around. To be continued...