Monday

Today was quite eventful.  We learned very early in the adoption process the essence of "hurry up and wait".  This trip was not different.  We wait and wonder, then we run as fast as we can!  Then the cycle begins again.  This morning we walked to the mall to pick up a few items at the grocery store, ate our lunch, and tried to sit for a few minutes before we went out again.  Delyana, one of our translators, drove us to pick up Victoria's passport first, then we drove to a private medical clinic to get a doctor's note for Victoria's visa application. 

The clinic visit was really interesting.  We arrived in the entry where our translator gave information about Victoria.  Then we climbed two flights of stairs. Our translator asked in the small hallway who was last in line (for the pediatrician).  She then told John to stay there and make sure he called us when it was our turn next.  Then she took Victoria and me down a flight of stairs to the ear, nose and throat specialist.  There seemed to be no nurses or medical aids to direct people or do triage at all.  I learned by observation that people just open the door to the doctor's office (several offices on one floor) to see if a patient is inside.  If there is a patient there, they close the door and stand in the small hallway outside the door to the office they want to visit until it's their turn - talk about privacy!  The doctor's office is one small room.  The doctors have all of the equipment that they need for their specified job, a few chairs, and a desk with a computer.  We were told that this was a nicer clinic because it is private and not government owned.  After visiting the ear, nose and throat specialist for about five minutes, we hurried back upstairs to the ophthalmologist.  We waited a little bit to see her, checked that appointment off our list and then waited for the pediatrician.  The pediatrician was very kind.  His job was a little more involved because he had an extensive form to fill out for Victoria's visa application.  As soon as we were done with the appointments, we went back down two flights of stairs, paid for the appointment and headed to our next stop - to get the translated copy of Victoria's birth certificate. 

From there, we headed to the US Embassy which we were told was away from the downtown area (unlike most of the other embassies) for safety reasons.  There is about the same amount of security at the US Embassy as their is in an international airport with flights headed for the USA - a lot.  We had all of our belongings scanned, our cell phones and any electronics were held for us until we were ready to leave, anything liquid had to be tested by using a little bit of each liquid (we didn't have any, but our translator did), and we walked through scanners as well.  When we applied for the visa, we were given forms to fill out and then we were interviewed.   They were very kind and asked us if we had any suggestions about how to make the adoption process easier.  We were also informed when we were there that Victoria's visa is approved!  One of the translators will pick it up tomorrow and bring it over to us in the afternoon.  As soon as we have the visa, we can leave the country with our little girl.  Our flight actually takes off on Wednesday morning at 7:00 AM (yep, early morning for us!) which means that it will actually be around 11:00 PM on Tuesday night.  The US Embassy was our last appointment of the afternoon, so we were dropped off at our apartment and we walked to our favorite Italian restaurant for pizza and pasta and Sprite.  We returned home and watched a Franklin movie.   (We found 4 different Franklin movies in Bulgarian at the grocery store and Victoria really enjoys them!)  Now it's bedtime for Victoria, and it's still a struggle...

Oh, I should also make a note about the roadways in Bulgaria.  John says that he would compare driving here to driving downtown in a big city "on steroids".  This afternoon we parked in several different places: a dead end - the very end of it, in an alley-like road by a dumpster with the car half on and half off of the curb, in what looked to be a pedestrian area, and, believe it or not, in a regular parking space!  The roads are sometimes so packed with parked cars that only one car can drive through at a time.  Many of the roads are very old cobbled roads and most of the sidewalks are cobbled as well, often with missing bricks.  As we might tend to criticize this country and others for not being as "successful" in our point of view, it's easy to see that they are still people, created in the image of God, who think, work, and have emotions.  Their definitions of success and their life view is certainly different from ours, but they also have the same needs of a Savior.  It's amazing to see how lost so many people are in this country, and the sad thing is, I'm ashamed to say, that one of the things that is destroying them is our American pop culture.  The egocentric mentality, the music and the dress pervade most of the Bulgarian culture.  We find that we, as Americans (though I am so thankful to be one), are no better than they are.

As far as Victoria is concerned, she continues to do well.  She is learning to enjoy riding on John's shoulders (like Jocylin and Cherith love to do!) without feeling like a "rag doll" (as John says).  Maybe that helps her to exercise her back muscles a little bit more.  We've also noticed that it's important to her to always have her shoes on.  She cries when we take them off for rest time and bed.  It could be that she dislikes rest time and bed (which is definitely not out of the question!  :), but it also could be that she knows she is better able to walk with them on.  I'm sure we'll find out in time.  We also are finding out that Victoria likes to be very silly and laugh!  Right now she and John are making very loud seal noises, with the motions and everything.  She fits in to our family VERY well - of course, I mean just John and the girls!  :)   It is and will continue to be a lot of work helping Victoria to adjust to a family, but we're trusting God for the grace and strength.  She really is a sweetheart, and seems to want to please us.  She even told our translator, Rosi, on the cell phone tonight that she didn't need her, much to Rosi's amusement!  As I have rambled on way too long, let me show you a few pictures of Sofia, Bulgaria....

The very old elevator in our apartment building - it works!

Inside the elevator - we're on the sixth floor

The outside of our apartment building

Our door has four bolts and a very large key :)  We have to turn it four times to completely lock or unlock the door!

Living and dining space - very modern and comfortable for guests

Small, but functional kitchen area

Bathroom - what more can you say...

One of two bedrooms

Victoria's bed situated beside ours

The mall that we walk to

On our walk to the mall - I think these are downtown buildings

Typical side street - not really a busy one

Same street as above, different view

Our favorite restaurant here, in Sofia

with a brick oven to bake the pizzas

and a nice dining area

Although it's still pretty cold in Sofia, it's exciting to see some spring flowers peaking through the ground - something I haven't seen in MN for a while!

Sunday

I asked John (thanks, Hon!) to post last night, but I'm (Steph) back now.  Today was another fairly low key day.  We are really working to transition into being Victoria's parents and not just friends.  We have crossed multiple times over the past few days with her, which we expected.  It's a very delicate balance.  We have been teaching her "yes (da), Daddy" and "yes (da), Mommy".  She has also been responding well to "time outs".  The most difficult time of the day is bedtime.  She resists just about everything about it.  I think we're making some headway, but the progress is slow and the effort is intense.  We have been able to get a little more sleep lately, though, which has been very nice.

Jet lag has also taken its toll.  We don't have an abundance of energy and have had to trade off taking naps.  I'm so glad there is two of us.  Some families have done this with only one parent, and it must be twice as hard.

I can tell our little girl is immensely enjoying having a daddy, even more than having a mommy right now - probably due to the novelty of it.  All of her caretakers have been women, and John has been just wonderful with her.  I'm sure it's a nice change.  Who can blame her for feeling that way!  :)  It is a little hard for me that she has a preference.  It's a challenge not to compare myself to ten doting women who all have a decent night's sleep.  I have to remind myself that I'm not only giving Victoria myself, "Mommy", I'm giving her the opportunity to know Christ, something those women could not give her.  It's worth the challenge.

Our day was fairly uneventful with a few highlights.  John and Victoria prepared breakfast (toast, yogurt, granola, and bananas), because I had accidentally slept in.  We had toasted open faced sandwiches for lunch with more bananas (and we found out that Victoria likes milk! - a big relief because I haven't seen much milk used in Bulgaria).  We're helping Victoria learn a few English words: please, thank you, yes, no, I love you, wait, later...  We also have some picture flash cards that we brought out today.  She really enjoyed them, and was pretty good with repeating the English words after she told us the Bulgarian ones.   Victoria also painted some window sun-catchers that we brought from the US, and seemed to enjoy it.  We walked to the Italian restaurant again for pizza and shepherds salad.  The biggest highlight of our day was this evening when we were able to tune in to WCTS and hear our church service at home in MN.  We really miss being home, and the familiarity of hearing from home blessed us.  Everything about it was good!  We are so much looking forward to bringing our little girl home and being a family of five!  We'd love for you all to meet her in due time as well!

I just want to comment on the notes that many of you have left on this blog and my Facebook page.  It's such a blessing to know that you're praying for us and thinking of us.  It really means a lot to us.  Thank you so much!!!

Victoria

One of the views from our apartment window - yes that's a mountain back there

What is it with Daddies, kids and shaving cream?

Looks like fun!

       I took this clip of Jocylin and Cherith before we left.  I thought it was cute enough to share.

P.S.  John did just get Victoria to sleep in record time tonight.  He really does have the magic touch with her!

Saturday

It is now 10:00 PM in Sofia, Bulgaria. Our third day with Victoria was rewarding and challenging at the same time. She is getting more used to us, and her Mommy and Daddy are learning so much more about her. She is determined to climb stairs, walk longer distances, and go up the slide at the park, but when she gets tired she asks her Daddy (me) to pick her up and carry her. We are getting better at communicating mostly with gestures, a few Bulgarian words, and some English words as well. We encourage her and gesture just as much if not more than we talk. Simple words and gestures works for us and for her. She insists on doing so much by herself such as brushing her teeth, tying her shoes, and cleaning up the table. What a great helper.

Our day started early when Victoria woke up about 6:30 AM. Later that morning, we all went to the grocery store. I carried Victoria on the way there, but we purchased too much for me to carry her and the groceries home. So her mom carried her and I toted about thirty pounds of stuff. Incidentally, I decided to be a little less ambitious next time and make more than one trip to the mall. Great workout, though!! Then we went to our favorite pizza place that has only Bulgarian menus, and I placed an order without the menu. The shepherd's salad was great, but the pepperoni pizza was stronger than a Chipotle burrito. After some gross dissection (i.e. removing the jalapenos and pepperoni) we were in great shape!! I broke my vegetarian diet even after learning the hard way on our previous trip. Time for cheese pizza! Once again, we promised to refrain from Bulgarian-cooked meat. Later this afternoon, I took Victoria to the park. After a short time on the swing and climbing up the slide, we went home to the greatest supper. Steph had made pork chops, brown rice, and shepherd's salad with spinach. Those pork chops were out-of-this world delicious.We then watched Franklin the turtle in Bulgarian and gave Victoria a bath. After getting over some initial apprehension, she really enjoyed her bath and even helped Mommy wash her hair.

I mentioned above that Victoria was getting used to us. She struggled with eating a few soggy Cheerios (they looked like Cheerios) this morning, and finally got them down. Daddy also needed to explain the importance of listening and obeying to her this afternoon. Victoria's biggest struggle is going to bed and sleeping. A lot is going through her little head right now. She has left everything familiar and is required to sleep in a strange place with people she hardly knows. She told our translator today that she loves sleeping with Mommy and Daddy, but Mommy, Daddy, and Victoria don't sleep when Victoria is in bed with Mommy and Daddy (found that out the first night). Since then, we have been teaching her to sleep in her own bed in our room. She is quite the vocal student!!

Although she struggles, we couldn't hope for a better daughter.What a sweet little girl! She loves to roughhouse (my department) and gives us lots of hugs and kisses. She is also very patient while we pray with her. Although it is difficult for her at times, she has been willing to obey her Mommy and Daddy. We are becoming more and more attached to her and pray for her every day that we will believe on Jesus.

Friday

Victoria hardly slept at all last night, and, of course, neither did we.  She went from one of us to the other all night giving us hugs and kisses and saying our names, "Mamo, Daddy".  We think she might be nervous and excited about all of this change.  We expected this, and will be gradually working on it - although it would be nice to sleep a little bit tonight!  John worked with her at naptime to stay in her bed.  She didn't sleep (we did!), but she was quiet with her books and obedient.

Today was a much more relaxed day, and Victoria is doing exceptionally well.  We can tell that she is really beginning the attachment process and we anticipate that she will blend in with our family very nicely.  What a sweetheart she is! She likes to help and share.  She is picking up on several words already too!

I made breakfast and lunch at the apartment, and that went well.  Making some of our own food is helping me learn what Victoria can tolerate.  I hope that it will give me a head start when we get back to the States.

It looks like we'll be waiting until Monday to have any more appointments, so we'll take the time to relax and maybe get out a little bit.  One of the translators came over to help us find an Italian place for supper.  We're told that Bulgarians love Italian food - and I can't say that I blame them!  Bulgarian food doesn't look especially different from some things that we would eat, but it does taste significantly different.  I think it's the oil that they use.  It might take me a while to get used to it, but I'm sure I could.

Victoria is sleeping in her bed (in our room) for now - thanks to John's patience and persistence!  We'll see how long that will last.  She hasn't slept much since she's been with us, so we hope she's tired enough just to sleep now.  It's 1:00 AM here (although it feels like 5:00 PM to us), so we'll be heading back to bed soon too.  Goodnight!

Victoria in her new jammies waiting for breakfast

Eating breakfast

She thought Daddy's hair needed fixing! With COLD water - see John cringe!

All done!

Our little girl at last...with pictures!

Today has been so eventful that it's hard to know where to begin.  We took a cab this morning to Victoria's orphanage for the last time.  When we arrived we gave an outfit to her caretakers to put on her and began to discuss details with the director of the orphanage.  We went to Victoria's department and met her, many other children and her caretakers there.  She was fairly quiet, but smiling so brightly.  We were given everything that Victoria owned in one plastic folder, finished asking questions, signed one paper, and we were out the door. 

The cab took us to the Burgas airport, but we found out our flight was cancelled due to snow.  So we took a bus with the other flight passengers to Varna (just north of Burgas) where, after a 2 hour drive, we boarded a plane and took off for Sofia (the capitol city where we are going to complete paperwork for Victoria's passport and the US Embassy).  Victoria loved the airplane, she was so excited to ride it.  I was a little nervous what her reaction would be to taking off and landing, but she was so into it!  John said that she was his adventurous one!  When we landed we took a cab and drove to the police department in the nick of time to apply for Victoria's passport.  We were so thankful that we got in today, because it would have really complicated our time here if we'd have missed it.  We were not able to stop for lunch, so I was so thankful I had packed snacks for Victoria.  She was so patient and compliant the whole day.  She seems to be very excited and content to have a daddy and mommy.  It seems she's even excited to see her sisters.  I never really saw her very sad today, just thoughtful.  We'll see what tomorrow holds. 

After the applying for Victoria's passport, Petkov, the owner of organization that works on the Bulgaria side of the adoptions took us to a mall with a grocery store to buy some food for the week.  He then took us to the apartment where we will be staying for the rest of the week.  (The apartment is furnished very well; it has two bedrooms, a living and dining area, kitchen and even a washing machine.  We are very comfortable.)  We walked back to the mall for dinner and had some Bulgarian food and Dunkin Doughnuts. 

When we arrived back at our apartment, it was 8:00.  We started to get Victoria ready for bed.  This was the first time we saw her really nervous.  We both laid down with her until she fell asleep.  After a while she was sleeping pretty soundly, and we got up to have a snack and a movie.  Like a typical child, she woke up and we found her coming into the living area to see us.  We're thankful that she wasn't a bit scared.  John's in there now again helping her go back to sleep.  She needs to be confident that we will always be there for her, and it seems that might be beginning to happen - which is a relief for us!  We still have a long way to go!  Tomorrow looks like we'll be able to relax a good part of the day, which will be very nice.  John and I have been pushing pretty hard, and Victoria I'm sure is tired from so many changes so fast.  Thank you for your prayers!  We've seen God putting things together despite many what could have become big complications during this trip.

Victoria's classmates had made her a special hat in celebration of her adoption

Our beautiful little girl

Yes, our little girl!

Victoria with her caretakers.  You can see the love they have for this little girl.

Victoria leaving everything she has ever known.

But God has a plan for Victoria, and this is in His plan.

In Bulgaria Again!

Yes, we're finally here!  We were delayed by the snow storm for 24 hours in Minneapolis, but were finally able to take off on Tuesday morning on a stand by flight.  The rest of the trip went smoothly, although we're very tired.  In 9 hours we will be meeting our little girl again, flying back to Sofia, applying for her passport, and possibly taking her to a medical exam.  We will have a busy day!  Please pray that we will all be prepared and this transition will go smoothly.  Now on our way to bed after 36 hours up...

Getting ready!

The time is fast approaching!  We are very excited to see Victoria again, be her daddy and mommy, and bring her home. We have been working hard to get last minute things done in order to fly out to Bulgaria on Monday afternoon.  We will be traveling about 24 hours to get there on 4 different planes again.

 We just want to thank everyone who has contributed to our adoption journey whether by prayer support, encouraging words, monetary donations, and/or gifts for Victoria.  Everything has been so appreciated!  We have especially enjoyed getting the girls' room ready with so many new and pretty things!  I wonder if adoptive mothers go through the "nesting" stage too, or if it's just me! : )

If you would like to pray for us, we would appreciate it!  Here are some things that are on our hearts:

• Uncomplicated and safe travel from February 21- Mar 2
• Preparation of Victoria's heart to transition into our family well, her salvation when she can understand God's love for her
• Preparation of our hearts to be her parents, work through the language barrier, and perceive and sufficiently meet her needs
• Uncomplicated appointments throughout the time in Bulgaria
• Our time away from Jocylin and Cherith, their acclimation to having another sister, and their salvation

One thing that I could add for you to pray about is that John and I are both trying to stay well for this busy and changing time in our family - without a lot of success.  We'd really appreciate your prayers that we would be healthy and strong to finish out this adoption journey and begin another journey as a family of five.

I look forward to updating you throughout the next week, and will be soon posting pictures of our newest little one!