Gotcha Day, Table for 3 please

Well getting here was not the easiest but somehow we managed. After several really bad delays we somehow managed to get here at the exact same time we had originally planned. Of course our baggage did not. Thankfully we packed Allie's "gotcha day" clothes in our carry on, along with her new music box. Unfortunately we did not have our coats, Brrrr! I am sorry I am just now writing this but of course things have been kinda busy. I am only writing now because it is 3:00 am here and everyone else is asleep. So I am going to try to cover everything from our first full day as a family of 3.
Yesterday morning we both woke up nervous. For so long we have fantasized what this day would be like and it was finally here. It did not feel real. I was excited and scared at the same time. What if she did not recognize us, what if she refused to come to us when we saw her, what if we are absolutely terrible at this whole parenting thing, what if, what if, what if?? It is so strange to go from being a couple to be a couple and parents in minutes. So it was finally time to go pick up our precious girl. We went in her room and there were several children in there but none of them were Allie. The caretaker shared that she was in class and left to go get her. A full hour later (okay it was 2 minutes, but it felt like forever) she brought Allie into the room in a precious pink dress. She was not bald!! In fact her hair is much longer now. She did not scream in glee but she definitely recognized us. We hugged and loved on her, and she was giggling from the first second. We then had to change all of her clothes. Everything that was hers at the orphanage, has to stay at the orphanage. Changing all of her clothes to me is also symbolic of leaving the past behind and starting a new life. She was so patient with us. I was very proud of Chris who learned how to get boots on somehow. Then it was time to say goodbye to the caretakers. This was very emotional for them and me. They were telling her, "You are going to go take a walk". Apparently they do this so that she will not freak out. Her caretaker had tears in her eyes as she gave her blessings, "She told her to live a healthy and happy life". We then had to say good bye. I am so thankful to these women for taking care of my little girl.
We were then expected to go say goodbye to the director and the doctor. We knew this would be rough because Allie does not like the Doctor hall. She screamed and screamed the entire time. We knew this was likely but we started wondering if this was how the rest of the day would be. Thankfully the second we walked outside she was fine. She fell asleep in the car and was not scared of the hotel. We fed her lunch, of course all she would eat was mashed potatoes. Sound like anyone you know? It is so much fun to learn all of these things about her. We were only at the hotel for a couple of hours before we had to go back to the airport to fly to Almaty. She fell asleep in the car yet again. In the airport she was so curious about everything. She likes to point at cars and say "beep beep" and now she is saying "car beep beep". Evertime she says "What is it?" in Russian, she will repeat what we say in English. She is so smart! We hoped that the plane ride would be much like the car ride. Instead she was quite playful the entire time. She did do great though. She ate cheerios the entire time. The only time she got upset was when we had to strap her back in before landing.
When we got to Almaty our luggage was waiting on us and so was our driver! She fell asleep again in the car. When we got to the hotel, they told us that the only room they had left was the suite which costs $300 a night. We just about had a hear attack, but unfortunately do not have much of a choice on the matter. We are hoping that another room will come open tommorrow. Apparently reservations just mean that they are guaranteeing you a room not that they are guaranteeing you a room you actually can afford.
I am so amazed by how easily Allie has adjusted to new environments. She just walks around like she owns the place. She is eating great and even used the potty!! We are still trying to master the sippy cup. She hasn't figured out that she has to suck on it and when we take the plug out she likes to give herself a shower with it. When the plug is in it she sees it as a challenge to try to get the water out by all means necessary (but not in her mouth).
Bedtime was a bit of a struggle. She was not fussy, she just wanted to play. Since Chris and I were both exhausted we just went to bed with her and we were all asleep within a few minutes. Allie is a sqirmer and when I just went in there to check on them, Chris and her were both laying sideways across the bed.
She is so amazingly comfortable with us, it is as if it has always been 3 instead of 2. I feel so incredibly blessed. Please keep the prayers up. We will be going to the doctor for her physical today. This will likely be very scarey for her. Hopefully we will then have the embassy appointment on Wednesday and leave early the next morning. I will try to blog quicker this time, today should be less hectic.

Here we go again, kinda

Day...uh...who cares! The wait is over!

It is finally time to go back to Kazakhstan and pick up our daughter. The wait has gone by fast and slow at the same time. It is hard to describe what it has felt like to be home without her. For me it almost felt like none of it ever happened. It felt like a fairtale story. I am very ready for it all to be real again. We are currently sitting at the Nashville Airport and have been for a couple of hours. Our flight is delayed/grounded with no notification of when we might be allowed to leave. Once we are in Kazakhstan our schedule is pretty tight so if we can't get there by Sunday we will have to be there 2 extra days and it will cost us a bunch of money. This is a rough start but we remember that it is not our plan that counts and we know that God is in charge of every step of this journey.

So, our plan as of now is to get to the region on Sunday. We will then pick her up on Monday and immediately fly back to Almaty. On Tuesday we will have her doctor's appointment and Wednesday her Embassy appointment. Then we are hoping to fly back early Thursday morning.

I did not finish the blog in Nashville so this is a continuation. After a couple of very stressful hours in the airport in DC, we are now in London. This was not our original itenerary but it looks like we will still get there in time. This was fortunate because otherwise we would still be in DC enjoying a 27 hour layover.

During the time we were home, we really enjoyed celebrating Allie with all of our friends and preparing the house for her arrival. I almost cried when we childproofed the fireplace (it used to be so pretty). Still, Allie's room has really become something that I am proud of. We quickly realized that our plans for the baby's room were centered around the notion that we would be decorating for a boy, so our "neutral" plans for the room really didn't help us much. With the aid of wonderful friends and family, I am very proud of how the room ended up. A very special THANK YOU goes out to Cole and Kayla for their hand-painted artwork!