Chapter Twenty-Five - Finally, Vanya is with Daddy

October 10th:

I set my alarm for a couple of different times throughout the night that matched up to times where I could talk and text Rachelle.  Yesterday was especially one of those days when I wish she would have been here more than the rest.  Andrew hasn't been sleeping very well since I have been gone.

I was also able to call in and listen to the discussion portion of a Small Group I am involved in at Victory Edmond.  It still amazes me that I can be this far away, and yet after a couple of phone calls and text messages I feel like I am right at home.

Sasha and I left the Hotel around 8:00 am, glad I made myself go back to sleep and get some sleep.  We went to a coffee shop in Luts'k waiting for the Passport office to open.  I had a bacon and egg sandwich and a couple of cups of coffee.  Sasha was told that the Passport would be ready after 10:00 am, but he called the lady about 30 minutes before and she told him that it was ready.  SWEET!!!  After a few signatures and initials here and there on some forms, PASSPORT WAS IN HAND!!!

We then went to the Orphanage to pick Vanya up.  On the way there it still moves me that I was actually picking up this little boy and was in a few days be taking him HOME!!!

The Orphanage Director was SO HAPPY to see us.  I handed her a backpack of clothes and one of the staff there went upstairs to get him ready.  After a short while, here he was dressed in NORMAL clothes and ready to go.  Vanya and I took a picture with the Orphanage Director and then off we were. 

He sat in the seat so quiet and calm.  He would look out the window and just watch.  During the trip, I told Sasha that I can't imagine what is going through his mind right now.  Especially after the first hour in the car knowing that he had only been transported around ing a close proximity from the Orphanage.  

We were about an hour and a half outside of Luts'k when Sasha and the two cars in front of us got pulled over.  We had no idea why they pulled us over, but once we found out it was a Blessing!  Two cars in front of us missed the little small sign directing traffic to merge back over to the double East bound lane, and Sasha nor I saw the sign either.  Kind of convenient that the Police were stationed at this area, felt like a trap.  Vanya and I waited in the car while Sasha got out and talked to the Police.  He had to wait his turn, as he was the 3rd car that was pulled over.  After about 20 minutes of waiting in the car it started to get a little unnerving.  The ONLY guy that knows how to close this Adoption out just got pulled over for essentially going the wrong way on a highway.  FINALLY he was back in the car and on our way to Kiev we were once again.

As always, whenever travel to and from Luts'k from Kiev, Sasha has to stop at his parents house.  The issue I had was that it was close to 3:00 pm by the time we got there.  I know I was hungry and I couldn't imagine how hungry Vanya might be.  Sometimes Sasha's personal agenda's conflict with why I am over here.  So after about an hour at being at his parents house, with his mom continuing to add more and more stuff for him to take, I finally hit my boiling point.  I told him very firmly without loosing my cool that I was ready to get back on the road and I want to get settled into an apartment I haven't been in before with a little boy before it gets too much after dark.  I told him that we have yet to go to the store to get groceries for Vanya and myself and it is time to go.  Sasha did not take it too well.  We left shortly after and he didn't have much to say for the remaining two and a half hours we had remaining on our trip.  After about 45 minutes, I told him that if he was mad at me then I was sorry for that, however for him to put himself in my shoes for a minute then hopefully he would understand.

Once we arrived in Kiev, we went to the store and then to the Apartment.  Ah, a sigh of relief.  Vanya and I got acclimated, I fixed a late dinner as now it was after 7:00 pm.  The apartment has couple of doors leading into the bedroom, with the television in there.  There is a love seat in the little room just off the kitchen.  I took the cushions off of it and with the extra quilt made a bed for Vanya on the floor of the bedroom.  I found an English music station kept it there on low volume.  Before I knew it he was out and ended up sleeping all night. 

I got up a couple of times to talk to Rachelle and Andrew, filling her in on the events of the day.  Basically I have a couple of more days and I am SO READY TO BE BACK HOME TO STAY!!!

Thursday is Medical Appointment and the US Embassy appointment at 10:30 am to go over the documents and schedule the interview for Friday.

Chapter Twenty-Four - Finalizing Paperwork was Enough in Itself

October 9th:

I was able to touch base with a couple of guys from church last night after I woke up at 2:00 am so I could talk to Rachelle and Andrew via Tango.

I was able to finally fall back asleep around 4:30 am just for my alarm to go off a couple of hours later.  I Tango'd Rachelle again as she was winding down before bed.  It is really nice to be able to talk to her while I am over here.  Apparently the "Unlimited Data Cards" that I thought that we bought were in fact limited.  Our conversation was cut short and I was unable to reconnect to the wifi.  Looks like I will be buying another one and may have to cut down on the video calling and switch to the old fashion version of phone call or text message.

After getting ready, Sasha and I loaded up to go to the Orphanage to work on finalizing some documents.  I was able to see a copy of Vanya's Birth Certificate. We arrived at the Orphanage shortly after 8:00 am and had to wait for the Director and the Orphanage Lawyer.  Upon their arrival, Sasha worked diligently with them while I sat in the background without a clue of what they were saying.  There was time where they brought the two of us coffee and bread.  After we were done, Sasha went looking for them.  I was actually in the Directors office for close to 30 minutes by myself.  The DIrector would come in and great me, get something from her desk and off she would go.

In the background I could hear that some of the children were enjoying music time.  They were singing along with the teacher and it was a pleasant sound filling up the hallways.

Sasha and one of the Orphanages Lawyers went with us to a Local Building to start some of the finalization process.  After we were done there, we dropped her back off at her office for a short period so we could go check on the status of Vanya's Passport.  Unfortunately we found out that it will not be ready in Luts'k until tomorrow, Wednesday.  Just like that our plans changed to picking up the Passport in Luts'k mid morning tomorrow, then we will come pick Vanya up and head to Kiev.

After running a couple of other errands we went and picked Yulia back up.   We had to stop at the Courthouse where Rachelle and I had our Adoption Hearing. They went in while I waited out in the car.  The last time we were there is when the Judge officially approved our adoption of Vanya.  

When they got back, off to Luts'k we were headed to finalize another document.  This is where things started getting interesting, to say the least.  The people who were in charge denied our request stating that BOTH PARENTS had to be present to complete this process.  Uh, a little difficult to do that with Rachelle not here.  The place we were at was essentially the same as were we were earlier, just in a different town.  The good thing, if there was one is that this is just a formality, not a requirement and won't hold up the process of me bringing him home. 

Not taking "No" for an answer, we went up to the Manager and after a brief discussion, she then in turn put him on the phone with someone.  Sure wish I could have understood that conversation.   The lady from downstairs came barging in with a piece of paper, handed it to Sasha and then off she was just as fast as she got there.  At first glance it appeared that due to the body language of Sasha and Yulia that we were stuck, meaning that the Office where we were earlier should not have approved our document.  We were turned away again.

We went back to the car and picked up the Temporary Power of Attorney that Rachelle and I signed during the beginning of this process.  Then we went to the Office where the Lawyers were to plead our case.  The head lawyer appeared to have already had his mind made up without listening to what Sasha and Yulia had to say.  He was saying that BOTH PARENTS need to be here unless I have a document showing that Rachelle signed over Power of Attorney to me.  CRAP!!!  I have a copy of that, back HOME!!!  That was one of the original documents that was inclusive in our Dossier.  But since the Court process was done, neither Sasha, Rachelle or I thought that we would need it for this.  There were many things that Sasha was able to do in our absence with the Temporary Power of Attorney Rachelle and I signed at the beginning of this entire process, but this ONE GUY is saying that this will not work.  I began to Pray asking Favor over this situation.  That something that was able to work previous, should be able to work again.  That the Holy Spirit would move over this gentleman, or that Sasha and Yulia would be able to say it in a way where he would approve of the situation.  There were also two other Lawyers in the office.  I prayed that their influence would also be used to change this situation.  Finally after about an hour it happened, he changed his mind!  He approved that Sasha could sign for Rachelle using the Temporary Power of Attorney and that I could sign for myself.  Thank you JESUS!!! 

Then back to the original office we were, with the Lawyers signature in hand approving of our request.  However the person that we met with first was not there initially, so Sasha and Yulia had to explain the entire scenario for like the 5th time.  We had been trying to get this process done for practically six hours...

On the way back from Luts'k, we stopped back by the Orphanage to deliver a copy of the approved documents.  When we pulled up, the kiddo's were heading outside to play.  I was standing there and Vanya walked up to me and threw his hands up.  What an AWESOME feeling that was!!!  All of the stress from the day started fading away.  Sasha and Yulia went on inside as Vanya and I played out in the Courtyard.  He grabbed my hand taking from place to place until he noticed that one of the tricycles had been abandoned.  So off we went, him riding it and me pulling it from the handle bars.  His feet were on the pedals moving it, but at first he was letting me provide all of the power.  I slowly backed off until I just had my finger on the handle bars and he just pedaled away.  We got to play for probably 20 minutes or so, then it was time for me to leave once again.  He kept pointing at the car and I told him that we would come back and pick him up tomorrow.  That this should be the last night he stays here if everything goes as planned tomorrow.  I picked him up and gave him a HUGE Hug...

Sasha and I were exhausted to say the least.  I was very thankful and expressed that to both Sasha and Yulia.  They would not take "No" for an answer.

I was able to get Wifi again when we got back to the Hotel.  I called Rachelle telling her of the above events that she missed while she was sleeping.  However she wasn't sleeping much.  Andrew was up and down again all night.  I guess he knows that something isn't the same when I am not there.

The plan is that we will go pick up the Passport mid morning tomorrow, go pick Vanya up from the Orphanage and then head to  Luts'k.  

OK, NO MORE SURPRISES!!!

Chapter Twenty-Three - Yet Another Day of Travel

October 8th

After staying at Sasha's house last night, we got up and left his house before 7:30 am.  I don't know if it was because it was raining or if it was because it was Monday, but traffic was packed trying to get out of Kiev.  After a quick stop for fuel when we got to the outskirts of town, Luts'k bound we were.

Just like every trip Rachelle and I took out there before, we stopped at Sasha's parents house.  It is right at half way and gives an opportunity to get out, stretch our legs and for a bonus, he gets to see his parents.  We had lunch and stayed for a little under an hour.  His dad had fallen in the shower.  His right eye was black and blue like he got in a fist fight with someone.  His mother had just recently lost her older brother, so she was talking to Sasha about that as well.

After his mom Blessing Us as we walked to the car, on the road again we were.  Up to this point it had been cold and rainy all day.  The sun decided to come out and it was either that or a combination of that and the Orthodox Church podcast we were listening to that caused me to doze off.  He hit the brakes a couple of times to wake me up, but after about the 3td time I think he gave up.  When the clouds came back and it cooled off, I was awake again.

We finally arrived in the little community North of Luts'k where Vanya is from and got our Hotel rooms for the night.  We checked in our rooms and Sasha wanted to rest for a couple of hours prior to going downstairs to eat.  This provided me the opportunity to text Rachelle to see how her and Andrew were doing.  She told me that he started coughing throughout the night, so after some med's and in bed with her he was out.  I took a little bit of a nap myself before Sasha and I went downstairs and had a pizza.

Tomorrow, Tuesday is a BIG DAY!  We will be leaving early in the morning to go take care of some documents and he will call to check on Vanya's Passport.  Dependent upon when we get the Passport, depends on when we will go pick Vanya up and close-out the process at the Orphanage.  If everything goes well, by this time tomorrow; I will have Vanya here with me.  HOW AWESOME IS THAT?!

Chapter Twenty-Two - Traveling is ALWAYS an Adventure in Itself

October 6th and 7th

The feeling was little different leaving OKC this time.  Knowing that I would be definitely bringing Vanya home has both excitement and anticipation to go along with it.  To try to save some money, it was cheaper to book a round trip ticket for Vanya.  Also, to save money on both plane tickets, food as well as keep money coming in; Rachelle and I decided that it would be best for her to stay home.  After the last trip, Andrew and his Mommy really started missing each other and we felt that it was better for her to stay home with him, money aside.

We made it to Will Rogers Airport in OKC a little under 2 hours before departure.  We walked up to the check-in desk and explained to the airline that Vanya wouldn't be on this leg, however would be on the return flight.  That is when they dropped the bomb on us.  According to them, his entire flight itinerary would be cancelled since he is not on this flight.  They can make a note for them to hold his seat, however this is not a guarantee.  I would need to contact the other Airline, Lufthansa Airlines when I arrive in Washington DC to see if they would be able to hold the seat.  THIS IS NOT THE WAY I WANTED TO START THE TRIP!!!

It was hard enough that Rachelle was staying home, but now add this to equation.  I reached out to a couple of close friends (more like Brothers) for some prayer and Rachelle to a couple of her "Sisters".  The texts came back almost as quick as we could hit send confirming that our path has been prepared and God has this covered.  Such an AWESOME support when you need it the most!!!

Rachelle, Andrew and I said our "Good-Bye's" and off through the Security Checkpoint I went.  I had just got done getting all of my belongings back in order when Rachelle texted me telling me that it will all be OK and this just gives me something else to Blog about.

After waiting around for a little over an hour, I was on the plane headed for DC.  My seat was  on the last row, window side.  Apparently the flight was short of some people and the Flight Attendant asked me and the two other people sitting in the back row if we wanted to move up to the "Exit" row to balance out the plane.  Knowing that there is usually a little more leg room, up and forward I went.  A little more leg room?  How about a HUGE amount of leg room!  I could stretch my legs and could barely touch the supports for the seat in front of me.

I landed in DC and through a maze of escalators and trams, I was at the right Terminal in no time.  The first thing I did was went up to the Lufthansa desk and inquired about Vanya's flight reservation for the way home.  The lady assured me that his seat was secured  and even told me the row and seat numbers for the returning flights.  THANK YOU JESUS!!!  I know that our Journey to this point has been Blessed and we have had Favor in every aspect.  Perhaps a little test opening up our eyes to see if we still trust Him as we complete this process.  

Upon boarding the 747 my first impression of the airplane is this is Really Nice.  Each chair back had its own monitor.  I drew one of the middle seats in a four wide section in the middle of the plane.  As people were coming in, the seat next to me in the middle remained empty.  Could this be that Vanya's seat would indeed stay open giving me more room?  Sure enough, the seat was open the entire time and it sure was nice having a little more room.

The service on the flight was the BEST I had ever experienced when flying domestic or international.  Rachelle and I had heard great things about Lufthansa, it was nice to experience it for myself.  I hope that the planes that Vanya and I get coming home are just like this!

During the flight, I selected to watch one of Andrew's favorite movies, SHREK.  It kinda felt like I was home, except for Andrew acting out almost every scene.  I actually dozed off for probably half of the movie.

After landing in Frankfurt, Germany; I was walking through the terminal when I saw a woman wearing an OSU BIG XII Football Championship t-shirt.  I stopped and talked to her and her husband.  She told me that she was originally from Stillwater.  As a matter of fact, they were on my connecting flight to Kiev.

While checking in for the 3rd and final leg of my trip to Kiev, my seat was moved to a window seat and yet once again there is an empty seat next to me, in the middle of the section.  The empty seat began to continually remind me how Blessed and Honored we are to have the chance to travel 1/2 way across the world to adopt a special little boy who fill fill so much more than that seat!

As I landed in Kiev, in a weird way it is nice to be back to something that is somewhat familiar.  After a brief Tango conversation with Rachelle while waiting to get thru Passport Control, I met up with Sasha soon afterwards and off to his house we went.

He has a really nice place.  I met his wife Natasha and their older daughter Elizabeth.  Elizabeth showed me some of her sketches and she is very artistic when it comes to portraits, especially in the detail of the eyes.

After we ate dinner, I was able to Tango Rachelle.  She brought me up-to-speed on everything back home, especially all of those from Victory Edmond that inquired about the trip.  I continued to layout the plan here for the next few days.  We are believing that everything continues to go as planned and with no interruptions.  I slept good, but got up a couple of times throughout the night.  The good thing about being 8 hours ahead is I was able to text Rachelle back home.  

Chapter Twenty - Getting Back Into The Swing Of Things

September 25th

I know that it has been over a week since our last Blog, things have been a "little busy", to say the least...The following will be my attempt to bring everyone up to speed.  The date of our last Blog was September 13th.  It is hard to believe that we have already been home for close to two weeks. It is amazing how fast time flies when you are home.  Especially when you get back to the normality of work, running errands, going here & there, etc.

Rachelle and I decided to keep Andrew home with us on the 14th.  We hung out around the house for the most part, except for taking Andrew to see Finding Nemo 3D and meeting my parents in Guthrie that evening to get Andrew's glasses that we forgot to get when Dad dropped us off on Thursday.  We had a really nice visit as we were able to bring both Mom and Dad updated with stories and pictures from our trip.  The initial plan was for Andrew to go to the OSU Football Game with them, however we were looking at the possibility of going to the State Fair on Saturday instead.

Being selfish with our time that we had remaining with each other and Andrew prior to getting back into the swing of things, it was very hard not to tell everyone that we had made it back.  We did let some people know, especially those who had messaged or emailed us while we were gone.

Like I stated above, the initial plan was to go to the State Fair on Saturday, but due to the drizzle and rain almost all day we decided to postpone until Sunday after church.  Our extended family from Elk City came to Yukon on Saturday night to celebrate their sons birthday.  They were so kind to let us crash their party at the Restaurant.  We were able to meet a very fun couple and their daughter who made the trip with them.  The highlight of the evening was when the loudest waitress they had came over with the entire staff and sang "Happy Birthday" to Robbie.

On Sunday morning, we got up and ready as a family and headed to Victory Edmond.  We usually go seperately as I am there for the 9:00 and the 11:00 Experiences, and Rachelle and Andrew come for the 11:00.  We went between Experiences so that we would have time to visit with many of our friends prior to the 11:00.  Pulling into the driveway at Victory was some what different, since we hadn't been there in close to a month.  We barely had Andrew out of the truck, when Troy showed up to meet us.  Then as we got close to the doors here came Pastor Wade, Charlie, Jeff and Pastor Jon came running out jumping and wanting me to catch him I guess.  Darren and Ben followed shortly after. By this time Andrew had already ran inside and Rachelle was following him as I was talking about the high points from our trip.  It was AWEOME to be welcomed and greeted this way, as well as find out that most of them had been following along with this Blog.  As 11:00 approached closer, many of those  previously listed went back to their volunteering positions.  It was weird that I was there in a non-volunteering role.  It was GREAT to see those in the congregation that we had gotten to know over the past 11 months!!!  The Prayers and Support that we have received thus far in our process has truly been a Blessing!!!

After Church, Rachelle and I decided that we were going to the State Fair.  Our friends Vernon and DeeAnn, along with their son Joshua decided to go along and join us.  Vernon called to inform me that the traffic was backed up.  He actually let me "Cut-In Line" in front of him just before the 10th Street exit.  After we finally found a parking spot, the two boys sat in Mickey powered Radio Flyer wagon.  We ate Corn, Corn Dogs and Funnel Cakes.  In the first building we went in, both Vernon and I took advantage of the State Fair pricing on storm shelters.  We ended up going through all of the buildings, Andrew actually fell asleep  laying down in the wagon in the last building.  We were probably there for about 3 to 4  hours and decided to make the Trek back to  the vehicles.  We all left and went to dinner prior to going on to the house to get ready for Monday, Monday, Monday....

Just like pulling into the Church parking lot the day before, driving to Stillwater and walking into the office was the same way, just different after being gone for 3 weeks.  Trying to get caught up on where things are and where I need to help.  Every Tuesday is the Construction Progress Meeting and I was able to talk to those at OSU that have also been following along with the Blog.  A couple of them were actually getting worried because we hadn't posted in a few days, prior to Chapters Eighteen and Nineteen.  

Wednesday was here before we knew it and Rachelle wanted some "Her Time" so Andrew and I went to Church.  The format has changed from a Round Table Teaching scenario to an opportunity that promotes Small Groups.  The Campus Pastor asked that I attend the New Members Small Group.  It was a lot of fun.  Meeting the Newer Members of the Church, and their commitment to come in on a Wednesday night is HUGE!!!  I look forward to getting to know many of them as well as serving alongside them as well.

Thursday after work, I met Rachelle and Andrew at the Church.  She is participating  in the Beth Moore Bible Study there every Thursday evening.  Andrew and I went home, played for while, microwaved some popcorn and watched Thursday night football.  As soon as Momma walks in the door, off he goes!  He really loves his Momma! (Can't blame him a bit, she is Pretty Awesome!)

Friday roles around and knowing that Dylan has an event that he wants to attend after school; I drove home picking up Rachelle and Andrew prior to driving to Stroud to pick him up.  The drive was going along just fine until we were about 3 miles west of the Construction Zone.  The Turnpike turned into a two lane parking lot moving along at a snails pace.  After what seemed like hours, was probably closer to 30 minutes we were thru and back up to normal speed.  We arrived at the McDonald's early enough to have a quick dinner prior to Dylan showing up.  Once he got there, Andrew was SO EXCITED to see his older brother!!!  We went home a different way to avoid the Construction Zone.  Once we got home, we let the boys stay up later than normal so they could watch The Lorax, Andrew's new favorite movie.  He refers to it as "Trees".

Saturday morning came around and the boys and I hung out eating breakfast and wrestling while we let Rachelle sleep in.  Not very often does she get the opportunity NOT to have to get Andrew ready, since Monday thru Friday I am already out of the house when they wake up.  Shortly before 11:00, I started up the motorcycle and rode to the Church for the Guns and Self Defense Small Group.  We grilled burgers, and while we were eating them, we enjoyed listening to the adventures that one of the very active members had experienced during his African Safari that he had just returned from.  Rachelle loaded up the boys and they went to her Brother and Sister-in-Law's house so the kiddos could play.  After we each got done, we met back at the house for a few minutes then off to town we were again.  Rachelle really wanted Dylan to be with us when we bought Vanya's bed.  Needless to say, our sales lady, well she just needed some Grace and we will be looking for another next time we go!  After picking up the bed, we stopped at one of Dylan's favorite places to eat, Hideaway Pizza for dinner.  They brought out some dough for the boys to play with while we were waiting on the Pizza.  After dinner is was time for some "Down Time" at home and then off to bed.

I got Dylan up early like I usually do on Sunday morning, as he goes with me to Church prior to the 9:00 Experience.  However, Andrew decided to get up early this Sunday and I took both the boys with me.  Again, letting Rachelle sleep in a little and not have to worry about getting Andrew ready.  It was gratifying to take both the boys early.  Andrew really likes to hear the Worship Team sing, as he will most of the time sit on the front row while I was able to take care of my Usher duties.  Just like most Sunday mornings, once things start happening the 11:00 Experience is over before you know it.  We met Vernon, DeeAnn and Joshua @ Louie's for lunch and then off we were to take Dylan back to meet his mom in Stroud.  All in All , it was a Good Weekend Visit!!!

When we got back into town, Rachelle wanted to go get bedding for Andrew and Vanya.  While we were there, I received a text message that one of the guys who attended Victory Edmond when it first started, was actually back.  So after we were done shopping, we stopped by the Church as the 5:00 had just let out.  It was AWESOME seeing him and we hope to see him more and more in the coming weeks, months, etc.  We stayed and visited with many of our Church family and really enjoyed the relaxed atmosphere!!!  Time to go home and get ready for Monday once again!  

Sasha made it to Luts'k on Monday to pick up the Decree.  I sent him an email requesting a confirmation and he told me that everything has gone as planned.  He is going to pick up the document Tuesday morning and will start the process of getting the Birth Certificate changed per our Request and the Direction of the Court Decree.  I am still on schedule to go back in a week or so to finalize any of the remaining documents that he couldn't get completed, as well as FINALLY return with Vanya and bring him to his New Home!!!

Chapter Nineteen - Home Bittersweet Home

September 13th:

We woke up early so that we could eat breakfast and still make it to the Airport prior to 7:00 am.  Just like the dinner the night before, the Breakfast Buffet (that was free with the nights stay) was just as delicious.  We made it to the Airport, checked our bags and the lady from American Airlines told us about a Security Checkpoint that was closer to the Gate our flight was leaving from.  When Rachelle and I got in line, there were approximately 20 people in front of us.  As we were entering the X Ray machines there were now probably 100 people in line.  Timing was definitely in our Favor again this morning like it had been so many times throughout the trip.  Boarding the plane to OKC!!!

Unlike sitting on the first row on the flight from Kiev to Warsaw, we now drew seats in the last row, right next to the restroom.  The plane was one of the smallest ones I had ever flown.  It had two seats on one side of the isle and then a single seat on the other.  Sitting across from us was a tall, skinny older gentleman that was wearing a Harley Davidson jacket.  He started talking to us and was easy to tell on our end that he couldn't hear very well.  He asked if we lived in Oklahoma, or if we were just passing through or visiting like he was.  I told him that we were both from there and we had been away for close to three weeks.

I returned the question to him.  He replied telling us that he was on his way to Fort Sill for a 40 year reunion with some guys that he had served with in Vietnam.  The gentleman in front of me without hesitation turned around with his hand out requesting to shake his hand as he thanked the Veteran for his service to our Country.  I joined in the thanks and at that time he put his hand over his face and I noticed the Veteran fighting back tears.  

THIS IS WHAT AMERICA IS ALL ABOUT!!!  Giving the proper thanks to men and women who have given sacrifices for the rest of us.  We should ALWAYS take a moment to thank a Veteran for their sacrifices!  Too many people take this Country for granted.  Even if you don't agree with what they are ordered to do, just remember they are like you and me, however they have answered the call to protect our Freedom.  Reminds me of the Perfect One who Chose the Cross for Our Spiritual Freedom!!!

As the flight went on we talked about him riding his Dyna Wide Glide across country.  That his daughter is a Motorcycle Officer in Las Vegas, and that he actually lives close to the Harley Davidson plant in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.  He asked how long Rachelle and I had been married.  He expressed to both of us with his hand down low to forget the times when you are here and stick it out together.  Then with his hand up high, he told us to always remember the high (good) times, all of the while forgetting about the lows.  He told us not to bring up the lows, no matter what.  He said that he had been both married and divorced twice and that he still loved his 2nd wife and how wonderful of a woman she is.

It was actually raining as the plane landed in OKC.  I asked him how he was going to get from the Airport to Fort Sill.  He told me that his Lieutenant was meeting him there and he was going to ride with him.  We shook hands as we left the plane.

Shortly after we left the Gate, my youngest brother Blake was in the Airport awaiting a flight to Las Vegas.  We talked briefly, however Rachelle was looking forward to seeing Andrew who was waiting with my Dad on the way to Baggage Claim.  As we walked down the hallway, I could see Andrew sitting there waiting.  Then it happened.  He saw his Mommy and said very loudly "Mommy!"  Rachelle ran to him, scooped him up and the tears started flowing.  The two of them hadn't been away from each other for this long and needless to say, they missed each other a WHOLE Bunch!!!  There were a couple of ladies waiting for the arrival of one of their loved ones, however they got consumed by Rachelle and Andrew that they too started crying.  As we were going down the escalator, the ladies leaned over the edge and just told her how much they enjoyed watching their connection.

It felt really good to see Andrew and to be back in OKC, just wish that we would have been able to bring Vanya with us!  As we were walking to the truck, I told Dad that we wanted Mexican for lunch.  We went to On the Border on Broadway and enjoyed the company and told Dad details of our Journey.  After lunch, homeward bound we were.  We pulled up in the driveway, opened the garage door just to find out that her Dad had actually locked the deadbolt.  Unfortunately, we didn't have a key.  So Rachelle, Andrew and I loaded up in the car to meet him for the key and Dad headed back to Perry.  After sitting in the passenger seat for so long It felt weird to actually be DRIVING.

We met her Dad at the same restaurant we were just eating at less than an hour ago for the key exchange.  Rachelle got to talk to her Dad as Andrew took a nap in the car.  After about 10 minutes we were on our way home, again.  As I was driving home; Rachelle in the passenger seat, Andrew in his carseat behind her, I was thinking about how AWESOME it is going to be in less than a few weeks that Vanya will be in his carseat behind me!

Bittersweet as it is...WE FINALLY MADE IT HOME!!! 

I will be taking a trip back to Ukraine in a few weeks to bring Vanya home.  So in the meantime, we will be making the final modifications to our house for his arrival as well as loving on the little boy who we haven't seen.  We are so looking forward to seeing Dylan next weekend so we can bring him up to speed   on our process.  The last time we talked to him, he is Super Excited to meet his Brother!!!

Chapter Eighteen - A 36 Hour Day

September 12th:

We woke up early because we were excited that we were able to bump our original return flight plans from Saturday to this afternoon.  We really wanted to stay and bring Vanya home, however with there being about 2 full weeks of waiting on documents and then up to another week to week and a half of stuff to do afterwards, we decided to go back.  Rachelle was really starting to miss Andrew and he would actually start crying for her when we would Face Time him in.  It has been close to 3 weeks and it was time.  This allows me to go back to work for a couple of weeks, before heading back to finalize the Adoption and finally be able to bring Vanya home.

We walked down the street around 9:00 am looking for a cup of coffee and something to eat.  We found a little vendor store that also had donuts, we were all about that.  It was a cool morning and we tried to find somewhere in the sunlight to sit and soak in our last couple of hours in Ukraine.  Sasha was scheduled to meet us at the apartment around 11:00 am so he could take us to the Airport.  We started back about 10:00 am and as soon as we get to the Apartment, Sasha calls and is running early.  He picked us up about 20 minutes early and off we were to the Airport.

We stopped at a McDonald's on the way to the Airport for a quick snack.  It is uncommon that we saw for anyone to help another out in the short time that we were there.  The reason I bring this up is there was a guy holding two trays trying to leave the main part of the restaurant going out to the patio area.  I opened both of the doors and Sasha made a comment how nice that was for me to do that, cause that just doesn't happen here.  Rachelle told him that I try to do that as much as possible, and he was still beside himself.

We then loaded up and went on to the Airport.  We got there a little before two hours prior to our flight.  As we were standing around waiting to see what Gate our flight would be leaving, a guy about our age  was standing within hearing distance of our conversation and vice versa.  He started talking English so I asked him where he was from.  He was from New York and on his way to Odessa, down by the Black Sea.  His wife is from Ukraine and her family lives down in that area.  Sasha told us that it was easy to tell that he was an American, cause he too had his sunglasses up on his forehead like I am known to do.  Bob  made a comment that he was getting ready to get on a bus to the Kiev train station.  Sasha then offered him a ride, since Sasha was going that way after he made sure that we made it on to our Gate.  Bob was very thankful and I was actually proud of Sasha for offering up the ride.  Perhaps in some way me doing such a simple act of opening a door for someone, carried over to Sasha to asking Bob if he would like a ride.  Hmm, only God knows...

They finally flashed the Gate number so off we went to the correct Check-In lane to get our Boarding Passes and Check our luggage.  When the guy gave us our Boarding Passes, he also handed us a couple of coupons. I had no idea what they were for, however we were just thrilled that we were able to get our flights out this afternoon.  We said our "Good Bye's" to Sasha and off to Passport Control we went.  Still confused exactly what the Coupons were for, until after we made it through the checkpoint.  I guess that when I bumped our flights up it gave us Business Class seats instead of Economy.  So the Coupons were for the Business Class Lounge area.  This was definitely a first for both the two of us.

We walked in and there was hardly no one in there.  The seating was very comfortable and there was a full service bar as well as bottle beverages.  I went and got a couple of Coke's and went up to the counter to pay, and the guy behind the bar told me that everything in here is free. REALLY???  You know how it is when EVERYTHING is Free, there is ALWAYS this ONE PERSON who wants to take advantage of the situation.  No, it wasn't me; however this one guy would walk up to the counter and take like 10 to 15 pieces of little candy bars, walk back to his seat and dump them into his computer bag.  After a few minutes he would do it again, and again, and again...I guarantee he made no less than 7 trips back and forth.  There was one point I thought about going up the counter myself, picking up the basket the candy was in, taking it to him at his seat and then just pouring the whole thing in his bag.  However as funny as that sounded, Rachelle would not let me do it.

We boarded the plane and we were on the 1st row. This means that we will also be one of the first ones off when we land in Poland to so we can make our connecting flight that much easier.  As soon as  we were in the air, they brought us a nice lunch on ceramic plates, and actual silverware.  We were used to the paper plates and plasticware, so this was a welcome change as well.

Just like we anticipated, when the plane landing in Poland, we were off in no time.  Then it was through Customs and Passport Control then on to our Gate awaiting the long flight to Chicago.  Rachelle and I were still just in awe about the treatment and position the seats had been from our first flight. 

We were finally boarding the plane to Chicago and as we walked to our seats we realized that we were in the middle section, instead of on one of the outside sections.  Rachelle sat in the middle, me on the isle.  We were on the 2nd row behind the First Class Section, however nothing like what we had just experienced.  The lady sitting next to Rachelle was older and she couldn't sit still practically the entire 10 hour flight.  The lady that sat in front of her had a two year old that cried for practically the first 3 hours of the flight, until she finally fell asleep.  The gentleman that sat in front of me had a cat with him in a crate.  There were a couple of infants behind us a couple of rows back that would make up for the crying when the little girl in front of us was not crying.

Luckily I had a few movies that we could watch on the iPad, so that helped pass the time for some extent thereof.  The thing that I kept telling myself was to not get in a hurry and that we will get to Chicago when we get there.  Knowing that we had a 13 hour layover, I had called my brother earlier in the week asking him of where we should get a hotel room until our flight from Chicago to OKC mid morning on Thursday.  He informed me that there was a Hilton right  on the Airport and that he would get us the room.  That was SO NICE for him to do that!!!

FInally, we landed in Chicago...Off to Customs.  Rachelle did a Terrific job picking the fastest line.  Then we were off to Baggage Claim.  After we picked up both of the Bags, then it was on to one more Customs checkpoint then off to the Hotel.  As we approached the Security team, the Officer asked me "Are You Living the Dream?"  I replied that we were and that we were so thrilled to be back in the United States of America.  He then took our Customs paperwork and then took the time to tell us what terminal our flight in the morning will be taking off from, what stop we needed to get off on while riding the Tram, that will take us straight to the Hilton.  It was really nice for him to take a couple of extra moments to help us!!!

Upon walking up to the Check-In Desk at the Hilton, a gentleman walked up handing us a couple of bottled waters and directed us to an attendant behind the counter.  Customer Service is something that we hadn't had that much of while abroad and it was sure a welcome treatment!!!

We took our bags to the room, and then went back downstairs for some dinner.  The Spaghetti and Meatballs were AWESOME!!!  We enjoyed a drink and a desert as well.  Our Waiter was so polite and courteous, that I made sure he got the tip he deserved.  We were finishing up the desert and our drinks when he came back and thanked us again in reference to the tip  we  gave him.  We thanked him again for providing such a wonderful experience.

Rachelle had to get a report done so off to work she went as I stayed behind at the Sports Bar catching up on Sports Center.   I stayed for probably 30 minutes, part of the reason was to stay out of Rachelle's way so that she could stay focused on getting her report done.  As I was sitting there I realized that I had gotten up in Kiev, Ukraine at 6:00 am on Wednesday morning, and even though it was Wednesday evening in Chicago, it was getting close to 6:00 am Thursday morning.  I had been up for practically 24 hours, minus a couple of naps on the plane. So off to the room I went.  She was finishing up her report when I got to the room.  American Beds, especially those in Hiltons and Marriott's are AWESOME when you have been sleeping on 4 inch mattresses that you can feel the springs.  AWE, Good Night!!!