Welcome!

I have totally gotten myself into a mess I'm afraid. Who knew switching over a blog to private would cause such a giant headache. I have been importing, exporting, dowloading and uploading. Some contacts stick (Yeah! You're here!!!) and others disappear. Hmmmmm.....So I have a ragtag half list of people that want to read my blog.
So if you're not here yet it's not that I hate you and don't want you reading my blog. It's either I am technologically stunted (likely) or Blogger hates me (likely)....
Sooooo hang in there. I am working it out. I need tech support. Hubster????

Going Private...

After thinking long and hard about this decision, I have decided to take this blog private. Why you may ask?- Well, I am planning ahead for the very near future. Soon, it won't be so cool to my boys that their faces pop up when you google their information or the word adoption. That and I am concerned about privacy and the recent influx of "Nutters" accessing my blog according to my stats page. You may be asking- what does that mean to me?

Well, if you send me your email address I will add you to the approved readers list. Not so bad, right? If you could help me out- if you are anyone other than my mom, sister or in-laws, include a brief note- something to the effect of "You know me you ninny- we went to the third grade together" or "I'm so and so, we adopted so and so from such in such" Just to jog my memory. My memory is really, really bad. Sorry.

I am aiming to switch everything over within the next two weeks- so....email me by lets say September 17th.

Here is my spanking new email address for blog purposes only:
sarahblogger1@hotmail.com

(If you have my personal addy, keep using it- I am not switching permanently to hotmail, just wanted to have a nice clean slate for blogging usage :)

If this is the end of the road for you following my blog, let me just say it has been an absolute pleasure. I never thought that so many people would care about our journeys to bring our sons home. It has been a humbling and encouraging experience. I am now connected to more adoption loving people than I even knew existed. We've laughed together, cried together, experienced great loss and great joys together, and cursed various government employees together. What a ride.

Never in a million years would I have thought that this blog would become a way to speak out about adoption, get sound advice from fellow parents, and expand our friendships with other people going through similar circumstances. You have given us tremendous support and love and I can't say thank you enough for the joy you've brought to our corner of the world.

Bye Church School- Hello Pre-K!

We have been truly blessed for C to attend school at our church (where we work as well as worship). One- it's down a flight of stairs from my office. and Two- The teachers there have been patient, kind and loving to take care of a little boy fresh from an orphanage, not really sure about this whole "daycare" thing, because I'm sure to him- a bunch of kids in a class with a caregiver didn't immediately bring warm fuzzy feelings. When we arrived home in February of 2011 with C, our goal was to return to work by May. When we took C for a "tour" of downstairs he literally froze in my arms. He couldn't say the words, but his panic was palatable. Something about those long hall with cheerful paintings and noises of children made him come undone. Rightfully so. He just wasn't ready. And I wasn't either. After fighting for a year to get him home, I wanted to wear him like a sweater everywhere I went.
So we set up a little school in my too-big office. Train tables, books, puzzles, blankets on my sofa, even a little potty in the closet. C hung out with me while I worked for seven months. Then we re-toured that Fall he was like a different child. He was so excited to go to school. You can see his joy on the picture from September 2011.
I cried for the first week. He wanted to go to school every minute of everyday. I would go in to pick him up at 2:30 and the popular phrase became "No, Mama...I stay...." So we let him stay until Hubby was done working at 5:00. The difference was like night and day. He was confident that we would return, loved being around his friends, and loved his teachers. Ms. Pearl, Ms. Heather, Ms. Judy, and Ms. Vicki were angels in disguise. They were so loving and nurturing of my little guy. Hopefully, he didn't get too much special treatment due to the fact both his parents were staff members. But if he did I can't complain. I know what a difference a little bit of nurturing can do....We called his first class the "International Room" because of the 8 or so kids, three were from different countries.- India, Russia and Ukraine. He flourished. Coming home with new words and phrases on a daily basis. And a love of Dora the Explorer. So some of the phrases were Russian-English-Spanish hybrids.
A year has passed and now it's on to Pre-K at a great Christian school. Uniforms, school supply lists, class rosters, and school calendars. 5 days a week (!!!) Again, I am feeling so fortunate at the level of education he will be receiving. It's going to be strange to not have him "under my roof" during the day. I guess it will just take a little getting use to....
So, thank you church for making my boy feel loved. Thank you for taking what could have been a bad experience and making it joyful. Thank you for understanding my little guy's needs even though at first you couldn't understand a word he said. Thank you for fostering in him a love of learning. Thank you for letting me experience the fun of every single field trip. Except the corn maze, I didn't really enjoy the corn maze. You made C's first educational stepping stone a firm one and I can't thank you enough.

Busy. Busy.Busy

We've been on vacation! (It was wonderful!) I flew to Orlando solo with the boys. That was fun. (Insert sarcasm here....) You may recall how much I hate to fly, but it's amazing how you forget your fear when you are entertaining a 4 year old, opening snacks, digging through a diaper bag and trying to keep an infant from grabbing the hair of the lady sitting in front of you as he octopus climbs up your face.
We ate at our favorite restaurants. I saw two of my closest and oldest dearest friends. We went to Legoland. We went to Disney. We went to the Science Center. We went to the Disney Marketplace. We ate at the T-Rex Cafe. When we asked C what the best part of vacation was he says- "The pool" (as in my parents and in-laws pool) Further proof that it's the simple things in life :)
Both boys great throughout the week. They were champs. Despite their schedule being seriously disrupted and the super intense heat. I am truly blessed with wonderful, easy going boys. High energy, but truly go with the flow little guys.
I still haven't unpacked our bags. I should say "BAG". One thing Russia has taught me that I feel liberated to know is that Americans carry too much stuff. One suitcase for the three of us. Yes, I am bragging. You should try traveling with 4 outfits. It's quite liberating to be quite honest. You do laundry mid-week and feel all travel savvy. You don't even have to recycle your underwear, I promise. Pack half of what you think you need and you'll thank me for it, I promise.
So, we are back to the swing of things- back to school shopping. *sniff* My baby has a school list. With a lot of stuff on it. I finally gave up couponing and picking stuff up from here and there just to save $ and just bought everything in one trip to WallyWorld today. I surrendered to the school list. I just wanted it over with. But then I realized I forgot an entire section on the page. Ugh. I guess I'm not done after all. You moms out there are saying "oh no....you're never done...." I hear it gets worse and more expensive.
So, I am excited for C to start school. He is going to a top notch private Christian School with a VERY small class size. I am hoping this year allows him to make up some lost ground by leaps and bounds. I am really excited. He is not. He keeps insisting he is NOT going to a new school and wants to stay at daycare. Hmmmm.....
In other news:
1- J's two top teeth are in!
2- He is standing up and kinda walking along furniture
3- He still HATES to crawl. But will do it as a last resort.
4- C is having some dental work done on Tuesday (prayers please) We are going with another dentist and trying a different approach. 
5- I got a crazy wacko comment on my blog concerning the Warm Shelter Auction. I wasn't really sure what was trying to be said since the person writing it was obviously poorly educated and used several words out of context, but if any of you saw it, I apologize. I am now moderating my comments. I tolerate a lot of crazy, but I will not tolerate taking my Lord's name or motives in vain or people that speak poorly of Russian adoption or orphans. Now if the coward that posts "anonymously" will have to man up and have her crazy comments made public to me if she wishes them to be shared on this blog.
That's all. :)

PLEASE HELP!

A few months ago we received word that a small orphanage in C's hometown had lost their government funding. Placing them at risk for being shut down- their children would then be transferred to a large facility. ("Large facility" in Russia is NOT a good thing....)
Long story short, it is VERY hard to get funding directly to them. BUT, God's angels are always available, a future adoptive mom was on her way to Pskov to meet her little girl for the first time. In less than a day we were sending Wal-Mart gift cards to "Agent 88" and she bought about $500 in clothing and medication to deliver on her first trip. Well, that about broke her back and her wallet. So THIS time there is an online auction. 100% of the funds will travel in Agent 88's wallet and be used to shop in country. Much better. Right?
So, you may be wondering how you can help. Well, start by bidding on SOME GREAT STUFF!!! Goes live on Sunday. So:
1- Go HERE and bid and bid often! There are some really cool things. And really folks, Christmas is only like 5 months away. And my birthday is only like 3 months away! Buy for yourself or buy gifts. Just buy! Ok?
2- Please re-post this and share this information.
3- Go to the link again HERE and share it on your social media of choice. Please help us get the word out.
Thank you, thank you, thank you.
Auction starts at 1:00 on Sunday, July 22nd and closes on Sunday, August 5th at 10pm.
Of course there are gift cards for everyone- Wal-Mart, Target, Game Stop...but there are also some beautifully unique items- jewelry, clothing, quilts, etc. Here are some of my favorites:

If I had a daughter of course...

Moleskin Journal with silver charm

Super cute!

Big Boy-isms

"Are you kidding me?" When I say it, it's more of a phrase of disgust, when I drop something and it shatters, when I can't find my keys after searching for them ALL.DAY.LONG. (That is a true story and I'm about to loose my mind....) C prefers it's in it's literal context.
C, it's bath time...
Are you kidding me, mom?

"I can't know" To which I respond, you mean you don't know? Yeah, mom, like I said "I can't know!"
C, what did you have for lunch today?
I can't know, mom.

He is frequently shorting words. I used to be "Mama", now I am "Mom". This works for a lot of words, except "Baba" (his grandma) Whom unfortunately, is now "Bob". 

Tonight, I am standing in the kitchen (looking for my keys...) and C is playing with J in the living room, rolling a ball back and forth. C comes in and says "What mom?" I told him I didn't call him. He says....guess....."Are you kidding me?" No, C. Not kidding you. I didn't say your name. He says "Oh, it must have been my tummy calling my name"

My tummy doesn't call my name, but it does say FEEEED MEEEEE CHOCOLATE!!!

A tale of 2 teeth....(tooths???)

Ok, more than 2..but the name just sounded catchy. Ahhh...teeth. I brush them, floss them, yet we are still having MAJOR issues.

Poor C. We went to the dentist on Wednesday. Major trouble. Back molars...done. Next molars, cavities. The dentist (who was ridiculously good looking by the way, I digress....) says we need 4 silver caps and 2 fillings.We tried x-rays and after several attempts verging on tears, we stopped. I guess when you don't get dental care for the first 3 years of your life you may be prone to issues and extreme fear of people poking around in your mouth, no matter how good looking they are...Dashing Dentist wants to have the work done all in one shot at a hospital, under anesthesia. . Estimate: $10,000!!! Say whhhaaatttt???

Saturday night: I look over at C and he looks like a chipmunk. His cheeks have ballooned up like the third round of chubby bunny. I ask him what happened- he says he hit his face on the wall. But it's not red, not bruised. We ice it down. No improvement. We give him Benadryl. No improvement. Fairly certain at this point its an abscessed tooth. In the front. Whaaattt???

A friend of our family's brother is a dentist. Sunday we get an antibiotic prescription called in and an appointment for a second opinion.

Now you may ask, what about the other tooth in this tale. Ahhh....J. He is breaking in the next round of teethers. The top two front ones. Oi. There has been three sleepless nights of wailing and gnashing of teeth (literally) in this household and I am about to scream. It's a horrible feeling not being able to help your babies. I hate seeing them in pain. Praying that it all goes away. Quickly....