Packing

Sorry I haven't updated in a while.  We have been so busy lately and we were at the beach all week last week. 

We are officially packing now!  Our living room looks like a tornado went through it!  We have our "Ukraine" stuff everywhere!!!  I stayed up until 3:30 this morning trying to organize all of it.  This isn't like your normal "trip" to the beach, you can't just throw stuff together last minute.  When packing for and adoption in Ukraine, you need to have a strategy.  Our "goal" is to get EVERYTHING into ONE large rolling duffle.  And we will each carry a small back pack on the plane.  But........by the looks of our pile.......um, I mean mountian........I don't know if we can do it!  We will either have to cut what we have in half, or take an extra duffle.  The only problem with taking too much is that it is so hard to get around with too much stuff.  The cars we will have to put our stuff in are very small and the overnight trains have hallways that you pretty much have to walk sideways in.  Oh, and in some apartments there are only stairs, no elevators.  So, imagine lugging 2 large duffle bags, and keeping up with our 4 yr. old while cimbing up and down several flights of stairs, manuvering through dark hallways, and running to keep up with our translator.  And then, on the way back.........doing all that with 3 kiddos???  My solution is to take what we have so far, cut it in half, then cut it in half again.  It's not easy. 

Time is ticking away!!!  Only 16 days to go!!!!!!  It is feeling so real now.  I feel like I am running out of time.  Chris is starting to get excited now!!  :)  Alyssa and I talked about our trip for a while today.  She can't wait to get on the big airplane and to play at the park with Mama and Papa everyday.  She said that she is gonna give Dina and Sergey a big hug, but that she can't talk to them until they learn English.  But then she said "Maybe when I get there I will remember my Russian", how cute :)  I wouldn't be suprised if she does pick up on some pretty quickly though.  Her only request for now is that we get home in time for Halloween. She has already spoted the Lion costume at Old Navy, and that is what she wants to be this year.  I hope we are back by then.  Who knows, but there are a lot more important things than Halloween right? 

I'll try to update very soon to let you know how things are going.   Oh, and you can leave comments on our blog now.