adjust those travel plans

I found out today that I don't have to be gone 14 days on the first trip!!!!
It looks like I will be able to get the required visits in and only be gone 10 days instead. While this may not seem like a big deal to most people, it IS a big deal. That will save me over $400 in travel expenses....maybe more.

We should have a better idea on when I will be able to travel tomorrow. If the first signature that we need is obtained tomorrow, then I MIGHT be able to travel in December. There is still a small window of hope. But, we REALLY need that signature to happen tomorrow.

packing list

I've started my packing list for trip one. Wait, let me rephrase that. I've starting thinking about what to pack. This will be my first attempt at writing it down.
Here are the standard things that I know to pack:
-3 pairs of pants
-3 long sleeve shirts
-2 sweaters
-PJs/comfy hotel room clothes
-lots of socks ("must keep feet dry"...according to my favorite soldier)
-whatever undergarmets my husband finally agrees are "warm enough" (I think he's decided on the underarmor stuff that they get issued with their cold weather gear)
-2 towels & 2 wash clothes (our experience in EE has always been that there are never enough towels....and some hotels charge for them...sheets too)
-hygiene products
-books (I'm taking one per day. I will be by myself, remember)
-snacks/food items
-measuring tape (to measure the boys)
-clothes to try on the boys (pants and shirts in different sizes)
-toys for the boys to play with during our visits

My carry on will include:
-lap top (with power chord & headset for skype)
-thumb drive
-camera (with charger and USB cable)
-video camera (with charger and USB camera)-MAYBE(my camera takes good video, so I may not take the actual video camera on this trip)
- 2 books (for the planes)
-iPod (with USB cable)
-change of clothes (I'm paranoid about lost luggage & I have to change planes at least once in order to get to Bulgaria, probably twice...so if my luggage arrives with me, I will be very impressed)
-notebook and pen
-hand sanitizer
-international calling card (just in case)
-adoption paper work folder (not that I should need it on trip one, but just in case)
-hat, gloves & jacket
-photo album to show the boys (I don't think I will get to leave them, so I should only need one)


I also want to take some supplies to leave at the orphanage and institution. Right now, we're thinking about vitamins and hand sanitizer. I'm going to try to get some donations collected for these things. I'm probably going to buy the hand sanitizer in cases from The Dollar Tree online. The only problem with going to two different places is having to split whatever supplies I take.

That's all I've got so far.

GOT THEM!!!!!!!!!

We got the referrals for the boys!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The MOJ issues the referral for our boys today. Now, we wait on the next phase of paper work and signatures to be completed.
No, we still don't have an idea on a travel date for trip one. Our paper work has to go through 3 more steps before we can travel (signatures). We'll be updated along the way and HOPEFULLY, it can make it through those steps in just a few weeks.
Still, GREAT NEWS today!

not good news

The officials in Bulgaria did not meet today. They are supposed to meet twice next week to make up for not meeting today....next Tuesday and Friday.
Hopefully, we will get better news next week.

cold

I must confess something. When we started this adoption journey and I realized that the time line was going to be a little "off" AND that I'd have to make two trips, I secretly prayed a selfish prayer. It went something like this: "Lord, please don't make me go to Bulgaria when it's COLD." You see, I am a southern girl right down to my core. Virginia was too cold for me....and seriously, it wasn't too terribly cold in Virginia(though we did see snow). The thought of the Army moving us somewhere truly cold quite literally makes me sick to my stomach (my nightmares are filled with orders to Ft. Drum....because of all that snow people talk about that live there).
So, here we are. It looks like I'm going to be traveling on trip one in the winter time. I just took a quick peak at what the temperature is in Sofia right now and well, my heart dropped. What are the chances it's going to be a whole lot warmer in December or January??????
Maybe it's the fact that we've waited so long, or the fact that we've had so many crazy things happen on this adoption journey so far. But, for now, I'm seriously worried about going to Bulgaria when it's COLD. I'm not worried about meeting the boys, I'm not worried about traveling across the world by myself(though I probably will once I know when I'm traveling), I'm not really worried about anything in regards to the actual adoption process(because I know our process is in capable hands in Bulgaria and The most capable hands Above).......but I AM worried about how COLD it's going to be in Bulgaria when I travel.
Here's the other part of that......I don't have clothes for COLD. Seriously. I own 2 pairs of jeans and maybe 4 long sleeve shirts. I think I have one sweater and I do have a well loved pull over. That's it folks. There might be a "cold weather jacket" out in our storage building some where. But, my idea of a "cold weather jacket" is probably not going to be what I need for the weather in Bulgaria.
Someone told me last week to focus on 3 things: head, hands and feet. The theory was that if those 3 areas are warm, the rest of me will be too. I guess that means I need to invest in some really good gloves and a warm hat. My husband saved the day with the shoes today.....which was supposed to be the point of this point before I got off on a tangent about the COLD.
Today, Robert brought me home a pair of "cold weather" Army boots. These things are awesome. He also brought me some insert things that go over the socks and will add extra insulation. They aren't pretty(the inserts).....but they're supposed to be WARM. And that, my friends, will be the goal...WARMTH!

Maybe Bulgaria will have a warm weather front come blowing through around the time I'm set to travel to meet my boys. A girl can hope, right?

registered!

Our dossier is now officially registered with the MOJ. We have our referral number and there's nothing left to do but wait. It's up to them as to how long we wait before receiving the official referral for the boys. It could be as early as this Friday or it could be several Fridays from now. We are, of course, still praying for THIS Friday.
Once they issue the referral, it takes about 3 weeks in order to get all the paper work needed that allows us to travel to Bulgaria and visit the boys. So, I may or may not travel before the end of the year. At this point, I don't have my hopes up about traveling. I'm certainly praying that I can. But, this adoption has been filled with delays and unexpected road blocks, so I guess I'm just hesitant to get my hopes up. Or, maybe I'm just finally really starting to accept that this is all in God's timing and not my own. Either way, we're praying for good news this Friday, and if not, then we'll keep praying for SOON!

look at it now

Today, I received photos of what my dossier looks like NOW. You see, after it left my house looking like this: it went through quite a transformation. It's been translated, authenticated and copied for all of the folks at the MOJ that have to look at it. So, quite a few pages have been added to it. Today, it looks like this:


and that means that it's now ready to be placed in the hands of the MOJ!!!!