It has been a while since my last post. Sorry! But being a mommy takes lots of time and energy…I’m sure all you mama’s are thinking…”Duh, Rach!!!” But seriously, I thought I’d have more time for “me” when she was sleeping but what I have found is that when she is sleeping so am I. With that said, I’m sitting here in bed at midnight, trying to catch up on my blogging. And due to the delay, I have so much to share! So…take a seat and plan to spend a lil’ time at your computer as I feel like this one is sure to be a lengthy post!
But before I can tell you about our time at HOME, I guess I should briefly share about our “adventure” coming home…this trip definitely makes me want to NEVER travel United again! Given our experience on the trip to Russia I thought coming home would have to be better…but I was wrong!
Vika was such a trooper and is a wonderful traveler! We had to leave our apartment in Moscow at 4 am, due to traffic and weather to catch our 8 am flight. Vika didn’t mind the long flights at all. She played and slept a lil’ bit on the plane. The only time she cried was when she woke up on the plane and was scared/confused. It was sooo sad, as I wasn’t able to explain everything was okay…but after walking up and down the aisles for about five minutes, she was good to go.
Surprise, Surprise (lots of sarcasm) the “excitement” began in Chicago (yes, Chicago) when our plane landed a good 30 minutes late, and the United personnel refused to help us. Given we only had an hour and 10 minutes originally to make it through passport control, security, etc. we knew we our layover was going to be tight. However, it was totally doable.
Unless you have airport personnel, unwilling to help you. Luckily, people in the lines were sympathetic and allowed us to cut them in line to get through the primary passport control However, I then had to go to secondary security, because I had Vika and they needed to go through all of my adoption paperwork. Surprisingly, that didn’t take long at all. However, they would not accept Vika’s boarding pass, stating that they did not have a flight reservation on file for you…and therefore were unsure how I printed her boarding passes…but they were not going to permit her to board the plane. 30 minutes later, they found her reservation…however, the plane left, without the two of us.
So, we were left to wait standby for the next flight. That is not fun, even with the best behaved four year old child, after 24 hours of travel! Thankfully, I struck up conversation with a gentleman who offered me his seat. He went up to the desk at our gate and told the United lady his intentions and was told that she would be unable to guarantee me his seat. Apologetically and frustrated, he boarded the plane, and there we stood four hours later, still waiting to finish our journey home. They were not going to compensate us in any way, but after talking to my mom, I put on my “big girl panties” and asked for a manager. Within five minutes we had the plane (which was already in the air) turning around!! Woot woot…it pays to be bold!! The nice gentleman gets off the plane and I board, carrying Vika (who is beyond exhausted at this point). I struggle to quickly get situated and buckled with Vika on my lap, to only have the flight attendant explain that Vika is 13 months too old to sit on my lap for take off and landing. Well, now what am I suppose to do?!?! Off the plane I go…and back out the gentleman gets…and after four hours, of waiting to fly standby, I am still waiting. Ughhhh now Mama is nearly in tears from exhaustion, among other emotions.
Thankfully, the manager did set us up in the Hilton with food vouchers. So, we were able to get a good nights sleep along with another blessing…we were able to do lunch with an old time friend, Casey (on the airlines, lol). Unfortunately, his wife was not able to join us (maybe next time Holley!), but it was so great to be able to share what the Lord is doing in my life, and simply catch up.
Finally, Saturday evening at 6:16 pm, we landed in ICT, and were greeted with lots of smiles, hugs, and even balloons! It was great to share the special moment with such great friends…thank you so much!!
Fast Forward…
Vika has been home for one week (WOW, this first week has flown by) now and things are going amazingly well. I feel like she is attaching and transitioning well, especially given all the new experiences! She seems to be very happy, and continues to be full of smiles!
As many of you know, I am NOT a “do it by the books” kinda girl…and that goes for Mama, as well! I will seek advice, but in the end, I will “go with my mommy instincts”. According to the books, we should spend the first six weeks, “alone” and “focus on bonding”! So, if you are a “stick to the books” kinda person, sit down and prepare yourself for the complete opposite. As this has been a busy seven days for us, full of new experiences and new special people…but they have also been seven days FULL of FUN and LOVE!
With Saturday being Christmas Eve, it’s nearly impossible to not be surrounded by family and friends. With that said, we woke up Saturday repacked our bags, hopped in the car, and traveled to Topeka to do Christmas Eve and Christmas Day with Justin and his family. And it turned out to be a great Christmas, and Vika did great.
Here are some pics of our FIRST CHRISTMAS!!!!! ENJOY!!!
Here are some pics of our FIRST CHRISTMAS!!!!! ENJOY!!!
Christmas Eve…
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| Getting ready to sing Christmas carols...Justin's FAVORITE Christmas tradition  |
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| Opening her Kukla from Terry and Reagan |
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| She LOVES her Kukla |
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| Reagan with Vika |
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| Vika and Terry |
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| Finally warming up to the sobaka |
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| Vika "getting"Justin...she loves to tickle people |
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| She LOVED Beth!!! Thanks for loving on my lil' girl! |
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| Kristin and Vika |
Christmas Day…
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| Apparently, Vika thought Justin's lips weren't soft enough and needed a lil' attention :) He's such a good sport! |
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| Yummy, holiday suckers with Beth |
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| YuM, yUm, YuM Mama! |
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| Sitting with her new friend |
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| She found the M&Ms in her stocking |
My mom was full of smiles—such a proud Babushka!
This week has been filled with great memories with her Babushka and Auntie Jenny! There are too many priceless stories, but I will have to wait until I have more time to share. But until then, let me leave you with some pics from this week.
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| lunch at Chipotle |
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| Ran into Anna when we went shopping |
Christmas celebrations with Babushka and Auntie Jenny…
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| and a lil' bday celebration (thx Auntie Stephie) |
…and Christmas with Myn, Mady, and Emy
Fun times at the park…
Making cookies...
Random Notes from Week ONE
**She is learning English very fast. She understands more than she can express (which is typical to English language learners), which is a good thing because my Russian is still EXTREMELY limited. She will have her first Russian “lesson” next week, because it is very important to me that she keeps her Russian.
**She ate AND drank better today than she has since she left the Baby House. I was getting very concerned about her eating and drinking habits as she was doing sooooo lil’ of both. But here’s what I have found that she likes thus far: NUMBER ONE: Yogurt (any flavor as long as there is NOTHING chunky in it); Close NUMBER TWO: Bananas; She also loves potatoes: she likes french fries, mashed potatoes, company potatoes, and potato soup (which is great because her mama loves potatoes too). She also likes mac and cheese, cheese, quesadillas, peanut butter, ravioli, grilled cheese sandwiches, toast with peanut butter and bread with butter. Top Beverages: Sweet tea, water, and apple juice (and those are the only things that she’ll drink more than a sip of, at a time).
**She continues to like everything that makes noise, particularly music. I am seeing music lessons in her future, for sure!
**When she is “alone” or not actively engaged with an individual she will sing or talk to herself in Russian.
**She likes things CLEAN!!! WOOT WOOT!! She makes the bed every morning, likes to sweep the floors, and dusts the furniture.
**She sucks her pointer and middle fingers when she’s tired.
**She enjoys bath time.
**She likes technology…she can operate both cell phones and computers.
**We are working on re-potty training and she’s doing great!
God gave me the greatest blessing this Christmas!! I have no idea how I’m going to be able to leave her next month when I have to go back to work…ughhhh!
