Stage one complete.

Nice leisurely start this morning after our travels last night, surprisingly familiar breakfast in the hotel restaurant, though can't remember the last time I had roast pork and sprouts with my sausages and eggs in the morning!  After breakfast we ventured out for a walk to explore the area and get a few supplies.  Finally 4pm came round and we were able to head out for our meeting with the ministry officials so that we could formally begin the adoption process.  We met in a very 'Soviet' building and handed over a huge quantity of paperwork, answered a few questions through our interpreter and thankfully everything seemed to go very smoothly.

Tomorrow we are heading out to a local clinic to have our medicals, these are a requirement for court.  Over the course of the whole day we see 8 different doctors and have blood samples and X-rays taken.  We have been warned to expect a long, boring day.

Weekend we have nothing to do and will hopefully head out to a few of the tourist spots around Moscow, Red Square, Kremlin, etc.

Finally on Monday we will have our follow-up meeting with the ministry official and then at last we get to the real reason we have come all this way, seeing our son for the first time!

Thanks to all who have been praying thus far, keep praying that the rest of the trip will progress well.

Philip & Amanda

Made it to Moscow...

It's 3.02am and we have just arrived at the Hotel Bega! Drove past the Kremlin on the way, any lingering doubts that we were really in Moscow kinda vanished then!!

Will post more tomorrow, just wanted to let everyone know we've arrived safely. Feels very surreal at the moment, lots of memories of our time in Kazakhstan flooding back!

We are meeting the ministry officials tomorrow at 4pm, pray all goes well.

Philip & Amanda.

Part of the Kremlin

Our Hotel 

On our way to Russia, yes really!

Ok, that was a little quicker than expected!

Got a phone call on Monday night from our agency in Russia telling us that they had a referral for us in Moscow and could we make it out next Wednesday.  Once the initial shock wore off we very quickly agreed and have spent the last couple of days frantically trying to get visa's, flights and hotel accommodation, etc organised.  Few issues with our visas but I think everything should sorted out now.

Leah is incredibly excited, firstly because we are going out to Russia to start the process of bringing home her new wee brother and also the fact that she will spending the 8 days we are away staying with both sets of Grandparents, Brooke and Molly's house and Charlie and Olivia's house and being spoiled rotten!

So... heading out to Moscow on Wednesday to meet our son for the first time, we'll keep you posted!!

Keep praying!

Philip, Amanda and Leah

Documents in Russia... Patiently waiting...

A few minor delays, a few redone documents, few last minute changes, standard adoption procedure really but all our documents are now finally in Russia, nothing more for us to do other than wait and pray!

Our agency has told us to expect a 1 to 3 month wait for a referral and once we get details of a child we should travel out roughly a week later.  Three trips this time and it could be up to 3 months between travelling out and meeting him for the first time and the third trip when Leah, Amanda and I travel out to bring him home!  Very surreal to think that we will meet our son for the first time soon...

Meanwhile, since our last post Leah has started school and loves it so far, it really helps that she knows so many of her class already from our Sunday School and last years playgroup.

I'll finish this edition with a few pics of Leah in uniform.

Next post will be confirming when we are travelling out for the first time, hopefully we will be posting soon!!

Philip, Amanda and Leah

Leah's first day.

In the park after a stressful first day!

Leah's Ballet Pose.