Worth the Wait

After the long trip and very little sleep along the way, I was surprised at how alert we all were when it was time to leave for MOE appointment. I did not feel nervous at all. We were picked up in the hotel lobby at about 1:30. We had about a 10 minute drive to a nondescript building where we met Marina, the translator. Then, the other couple along with us were all taken into a small room where we sat and were given a little information, and asked specifics about our family and our reasons for wanting to adopt a child from Russia. This was different from other people's experiences, I think. Most people are taken in one couple at a time. It went quickly and I did not feel any pressure at all. The women were very friendly and they complimented us on our clothes and how young we looked and that we were "nice looking." I felt really good leaving this appointment. Off to the orphanage....

About an hour outside of town, sits a building that is beautiful to me. It is very old, falling apart in some places and yet is home to 180 children that need a family. Inside is my daughter. We walked into the building and I cannot even put into words my thoughts and feelings at that moment. The walls when you walk in are covered in pictures of former residents. Pictures that their parents have either sent back or brought back on return trips. They are each a different story and soon, our story will be on that wall also.

Upstairs is a room they call the music room. We are told to sit down and so we do. And the next thing I know, the door opens and in walks a lady holding the hand of a little pixie in a pink dress with golden curls and eyes the color of a summer sky. Here they call her Vika. The nanny bent down and said something to her in Russian and the only word I could understand was "mama." Then, my little girl walked into my arms for the first time and it was amazing. She snuggled her head into my neck and I knew immediately that this moment was where God had been leading me for the past two years. It was worth the wait.

Stampede

We are in Kras and it has been an interesting journey to say the least! We started out having an emergency landing in Atlanta...see previous post. Then we had to RUN to our gate there because we got in late and our next gate was a mile from our landing gate and of course, the trains were not working. We made the flight to Moscow during the final boarding call and we both have blisters on our feet because we are wearing new boots...genius! So that flight was pretty uneventful...Adam took some drugs and slept like a champ, I must have bragged too much about being able to sleep anywhere because I was not able to sleep well at all. We landed in Moscow and discovered there was another family flying in from New York. Once we had them and all the bags, we were taken to a fairly nice hotel where we rested, ate and showered and then the real fun began.

Our flight from Moscow to Kras was to take about 4.5 hours. We sat on the runway for a good hour and a half for some unknown reason because oh, we don't speak Russian. While trying to get on the plane, we witnessed a stampede. When they call to board, all the Russians get up and rush over to the gate. They are filtered through in no particular order to what I now call the underground freezer. Once you passed through the gate, you descend stairs to a room and wait for a bus to drive you out to the plane on the runway where, by the way, it is about 5 degrees. Then, you walk up the stairs and fight your way to your seat. Once at our seat, we realized this plane was designed to transport "little people." There is NO and I mean NO leg room. Of course all the Russians ran to the gate and now we know why...to get the overhead space. So here we are trying to fit our frames into a space designed for a four year old and we can't figure out how we will get our backpacks, our heavy coats, plus, um, our bodies into this tiny space. One of the ladies sitting by us tells (signs) us to put our bags under our own seat...we did. We got yelled at by the lady behind us who is Russian and we cannot understand a thing she is saying! We laughed that off.

Side note...when a Russian begins to talk to you, and you look at them like,"uh...I have no idea what your saying." and then you say, "English." They will continue to talk to you. You still so not understand. As Americans, I have found that we tend to continue talking in English only we ad some form of sign language. I am not sure who looks more silly of the two.

Anyway, we landed...the flight was smooth the food ok. Adam slept again and I did not, again. Our drivers were there to meet us and help us with our bags. We got into the car and traveled about an hour to the hotel. Once we were checked in, we went to the hotel cafe and had our first taste of Russia. it was interesting but Adam and I like the food. After this, we walked around a bit, went to a bank to exchange some money and then returned to the hotel to get ready for our ministry of education appointment.

To be continued...

Moscow

We made it to Moscow. After losing our hydrolics on the way to Atlanta and having to have an emergency landing, we made it to a hotel here for about a 6 hour layover. We leave for the airport again in 10 minutes but I thought I would take the chance and blog for a moment. The flight over the Atlantic was mostly uneventful. We landed and our driver was right where he was supposed to be. We found out that another family is traveling with us but they are from a different agency. They also have a little girl in the same baby home as our little one. It is nice to have some Americans to talk to. This is also their second adoption from Kras so that is pretty cool also!


We had a very expensive, very yucky lunch in the hotel here...the Russian attempt at Mexican food leaves a little to be desired:0) Then, we went up to the room and crashed for about three hours. A shower has never been so nice. All of our luggage is still with us and we will see if it makes it to the final destination. We are fine, everything is going as planned and we will update as often as we can!!!!!

Rome Was Not Built in a Day...

But these bunnies were:0)

Here are our bunnies, the Russian one is named Tori and the American one is named Ellie. We are taking one with us and leaving it there and should we never see it again, we have another one here just like it. We attempted some Russian into the voice devices in Tori and we spoke English into Ellie. It was fun to do this with Adam and to be doing something for our girl...kind of like a Christmas present for her. Everyone was watching us...we figured out the women there thought we were making them for each other...funny! Anyway, we said a quick prayer over the hearts and gave each a kiss before they were tucked inside and although I know it was partial torture for Adam to this, he did it, for me...I wish Faith Hill would realize that I am the lucky one:0)

So the bunnies and not bears are built and we are just about finished gathering everything we want to take along...I have a huge box of donations from a fellow adoptive mother and another two bags full of clothes from a friend at church...thanks, Laura and Tammy! We will be paying for the extra weight but that's ok with me. I am signing off on the blog from my home computer because it is sick and I am taking it in for some medical attention while we are gone. I will try to blog from Atlanta before we fly out and as much as possible while in Russia!

Keep praying for us...emotions are running high and sleep is running low...not a good combination!

Graduation

Well, the troops have graduated from boot camp and returned home. We are ready to sleep in our own bunks, at least for a few days. Disney was wonderful and I did journal each day but Adam felt that it was a bit wordy for the blog so I will just say that we had a wonderful time and it was enhanced by the knowledge that this was the last vacation as this family and on our next vacation, we will be a new family. We just really had a good time...I don't know how to say that we just fell in love with our children all over again. It's kind of like how I felt just before Rusty was born. I remember getting out of the shower one day, about a month before my due date and I walked into the family room where Ruthie was sitting watching a video and I looked at her and had an overwhelming feeling of just wanting more time...time to spend loving her and holding her and just focusing on her. I have that sense of urgency now. Our world is about to change so drastically. It is not like when we had Flip. This is a child who is nearly two, who has been speaking Russian, living in an orphanage, never had a bath in a tub. Everything will be different for her! Smells, sounds, sights and tastes...sensory overload and while I know that children make the adjustment a lot quicker than us adults, I can't help feeling somewhat sad that our way of life is about to change. (definitely for the better, I know, but the unknown is such a scary thing!) Anyway, the impending change really set the mood for our vacation and it was a special time that I plan to relive in my memories for a long time to come.

So, tomorrow we are to church and then Build-a-Bear to make our little a girl a bear (and a spare) with our voices in the paws and then to catch up on some work for our J-O-Bs before Monday when we both have physicals and, oh yea, packing. Then, Tuesday we are off to Russia.

Prayer requests: My heart, being away from children. Also, that God will give us the right words and actions to put our little girl at ease and that we will remember that although we already love her, we are strangers to her.

Airborn

We finalized our Itinerary today (post on the side board) and I have to say that even for a fast paced vacationer like myself, we are going to be going nonstop for 7 full days. We leave on the 27th and with the time difference, we land on the 28th. It is 10 hours and 40 minutes going over the Atlantic and 11 hours and 55 minutes coming back. Yippee! I will be fine, give me a good book and I can sit and read it cover to cover (or sleep). Adam on the other hand will be miserable. Which will inevitably make me miserable. So, pray for us.

We lay over in Moscow for about 10 hours during which we will go to a hotel that will (we are told) cost about $250 to take a nap which I am sure we will need and a shower which I am POSITIVE we will need. Then it is back to the airport to fly to Kras where our girl is. This flight is about 4 1/2-5 hours and with time difference between Moscow and Kras we will be landing in the early morning of the 29th. I understand that we will be taken to the hotel we will be staying in and allowed to clean up for a few hours before we go to either the orphanage or the Ministry of education. At this appointment, they will ask a few questions and we will officially accept the referral in Russia. And , I pray to God, they will remove her from the national registry of eligible children.

If we haven't already been, we will go to the baby home and visit for a few hours. We will be permitted to ask more questions and see more pictures of her. Then we will return back to the hotel which is about an 1 1/2 hour drive back to the city. We will eat dinner, go to bed and get to visit with her again the next day and likely see some of the city our little girl was born in. Who knows, I may pass her birth mother on the street.

We get up early the following morning to catch a flight back to Moscow where we land at 7:55 Am and we will spend two full days touring there. We will be back on the 3rd jet lagged and ready to chase more paper...Yippeeeeee!

All of this will take place just two days after we return from Disney Boot camp...Whew!

I hope to be able to blog while we are there but if not, I will definately be journaling and I will post when we get back:0) Keep praying for safe travels and smooth paperchasing! I have some out there right now I am still hoping to get back before we leave so I can take them with me!!!!

Gotta go pack for our "magical" time!

Craziness

I must be going insane! I just took some Tylenol, which those of you who know me, know I don't do but I was desperate. Last minute paperwork I am trying to get done and apostilled so that we can hand carry it over in hopes of being a little ahead in the process but who knows. The constantly changing system of adoption in Russia is so unpredictable and everything I have been scrambling to get together before we go could be completely overlooked by the judge and then he will request a picture of my toes to see if I have the dominant larger second toe or not...it could happen.

Anyway, I think I got the last piece of paperwork together this morning that I can do before trip one and when we get back, I will race around getting more paperwork done! Fortunately, I feel better when I am doing SOMETHING than NOTHING. It's when I have nothing to do that I wonder if I should be doing something....This is a Dr. Seuss book so keep up.

We leave in two days for the vacation my husband affectionately refers to as Disney boot camp. In case you haven't guessed, I am Type A...I may have actually defined Type A, not sure but nonetheless even my vacations are planned down to the minute. Our rest days are scheduled and when I say "rest" I mean only that we will not be at a park those days but we will still be going:0) So, Pray for Adam. He tapers for this vacation...cuts back on his workouts and eats healthy as well as getting extra sleep before we go...kidding, sort of. Good times, good times.

God is Good!

Two posts in one day!!!!! We got our travel dates so you can scratch that off the prayer list! Keep praying for smooth paper chasing as we are still right in the middle of that mess! We leave here for Russia on the 27th! Just two days after we get back from our vacation...this week just got a whole lot busier! Who wants to work the nursery for Adam and me on 12/2? :o)

Keep checking In!!!!

One additional request: Please pray for a fellow adoptive mother named Laura...the judge in her region is not cooperating and she just had to cancel her trip to bring her little boy home...Her road has been even longer than mine. We are praying God will soften the heart of this judge and start finalising adoptions.

Weekend Wanderings

This weekend I spent with some of my girls at the Women of Faith conference. We traveled to the arena and stayed in a hotel on Friday night. The conference was wonderfully put together as usual and the speakers were funny and profound. I got to hear Henry Cloud and Max Lucado speak for the first time and they were great! I had a really good time and laughed a lot with my girl friends. It was a great way to spend the weekend before the week of chaos. The only negative was my near deathe experience in the elevator...just a small thing!

The list of things I need to get done this week seems endless and I honestly don't know how I will get it all done...I will, I always do or, I will leave something undone and it will not be the end of the world like it seems it will today. So, I plan to take this week one day at a time, one chore at a time, checking them off and feeling good about small victories.


Prayer request for this week: travel date and smooth paperchasing!

Info to Go

I wanted to leave the last post up for a few days but I am leaving in the morning and wanted to get some information out as we have had a lot of questions over the last few days. Viktoria is 19 months old and she is very healthy even by American family standards...meaning that she is developmentally on par with a child growing up in a home here and surprised even our IA doc as to how well she was doing! We plan to keep her name as a part of her name which will be Elisabeth Viktoria Joy. She has beautiful blond hair and big blue eyes. We are not allowed to post any pictures or any other "personal information" about her because she is not legally ours yet.

As far as travel goes...I hope to be able to report our first trip dates to you by the middle of next week. Our facilitator is currently in Russia advocating for other families and I believe we should know something upon his return to the states. In the meantime, I am packing for Disney and Russia as I feel that we will literally finish one trip and go right into the next. The first trip will be rather quick...5 days unless we decide to stay a few extra and do some sight-seeing. It will consist of flying into Moscow and then to Krasnoyarsk for a meeting at what is known as the Ministry of Education. We will likely get to see our little girl for 1-3 hours on two different days and then we will fly back. When we have a confirmed itinerary, I will post it so you can keep up with us.

Many of you asked if there is anything you can do...we want to be able to take donations to the orphanage and I have posted a list on the side bar of items that would be good and would not be hard to travel with. We will be collecting from now until we leave for trip 2. What ever we have when we leave on each trip will be packed at that time and taken over. We are asking for clothes and money mainly. With the money we can then buy the things that they are most in need of when we get there...It might be diapers, medications, formula, we don't know. So, if you would like to make a donation to Ellie's home away from home, we would welcome the gift and we thank you.

Lastly, please just continue to keep us in your prayers. Now that we have a little face in our prayers, it will at times be even harder to be patient. We are resting in the Lord. He has kept her safe thus far and He will continue to do so. And for us, that we might feel His peace until we can bring her home, where she belongs.

Yes Sir, that's my baby!

On Sunday evening I sat down to read my email and came across some interesting information in the group chat. I decided I would email Christi just to get a few answers so I could be prepared in the event that I needed to be. I won't go into any of the specifics because it all has to do with paperwork but I mention it only to say that I was not surprised that she called at 9:44 AM on Monday, November 5, 2007. It seemed to me she had maybe called to answer some of my questions. But, she started the conversation (after a few common greetings) with, "is Adam with you?" Apparently he was not answering his phone at work because he did not recognise her phone number. Caller id is not always a good thing! When she asked this I realized the moment had come. "Do you have our referral?" "yes, I do!"

The rest of the conversation was just a matter of me calling Adam from our other line and telling him to "pick up your phone!" and then a "congratulations, now go open your email" from Christi. When she disconnected, I had to call Adam back and of course, the phone did that hang up thing where you keep hanging up but you can't get the dial tone back for about 30 seconds which felt like 5 minutes...all the while I am refreshing my email page and the email is NOT coming up fast enough for me! Plus, I had to go to the bathroom!

I got Adam back on the phone and I am running from the bathroom yelling,"don't open it without me!" But, in the silence, I hear a giggle and I know, "you opened it!" And he says,"hurry up and scroll down and there at the bottom of a lengthy email are the pictures of our daughter. The little girl I have carried in my heart for over two years and she is beautiful.

Here's what you said:

*Congratulations!!! Is there a way to e-mail a bigger picture of her? I am super excited for you guys!! God is good. Sarah *Wow, this is wonderful, congratulations to all of you as I am sure that the kids are just as excited with the news. What is the next step and how long do you have to wait to actually pick her up? Love to all, Aunt Becky *Congrats!!! I would prefer a bigger picture of the beautiful baby and less of mom and dad in the next blog. Mike S. *Yeah!!!! We need a bigger picture though! We can't quite see her! So excited for you! Michelle *Pretty exciting. I am really happy for you guys. Jeremy P. *Congratulations! So I take it from the timeline there are a few formalities that you have to go through and then you can bring your new addition home? Feel free to correct me if I'm way off on what's going on here. We are really excited for you guys. Joe S. *Absolutely wonderful!Frank and I are so happy for you! But I was left hanging....after: she's beautiful. Is there more???? Love, Lourdes *Oh my gosh!!!! Andy just called. I am so excited I can hardly stand it. I know you must be in a state!!. She is beautiful...and blonde. WOW!! Hurry an update that "Referral TBA". There's a date now. I absolutely LOVE your blog. I can't get the pictures at work, but they come through here (go figure). Andy said her name is Viktoria....Elisabeth Viktoria (?) Ellie!!! I can't wait to see more pictures. CONGRATULATIONS!! Love, Margaret *WOW!! THAT'S AWESOME! I am so happy for you! Congratulations!! Tera E. *I am so excited for you!!! I need a better picture to see that BEAUTIFUL FACE!! Marie S. *Praise the Lord, and congratulations! Give Adam our best too. Terry PS-Could you beat Georgia for us this weekend? *lori, thanks for this email. congratulations! how old is she? Kara*Congrat's I am very happy for you. Randy*She is "wonderfully made"! How old is she? How long before she becomes an Auburn- Nole fan? Jill Y. *YIPPIE!!!! I can tell everyone now!!! She is sooooo beautiful. I’m so thrilled and happy for you and your family! My Mom and Aunt are going to cry too! Love you guys! Darcie*I go to this website once a week if not more. I have said a prayer each time for your family before I sign out. Today I will Thank our Heavenly Father that his timing is perfect, and your daughter is so beautiful. Thank you for sharing your life with me. Meg D.*OH MY GOSH! OH MY GOSH!! OH MY GOSH!!! GOD IS SO GOOD! What's next? Send a better copy of my newest neice. And kiss the rest of the crew for me!*Lori, I am not sure how to relate the excitement through email, but I am so happy for you guys!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!I spoke with Adam on the phone a little while ago and he filled me in. I am so thrilled for all the Jergers, especially the newest addition! The patience and perseverance you guys have shown has made a deep impression on me and my family, and many others as well. I have been praising God all afternoon now, and will continue to pray for the upcoming travel. If there is *anything* we can do (big or small), please don't hesitate to ask. I can't imagine how great you guys must feel! Again CONGRATULATIONS! His, Brian *Awesome news!!! I’m so excited for you and can’t wait to hold that precious little girl in the nursery. Congrats, congrats, congrats!!!! Tammie A *Yes! We are sooo excited for you! Congratulations with Love, The Foerster Family*I am so excited for you all! I have tears pooling upin my eyes. Congratulations!!! Anna *CONGRATULATIONS!!!!! Any links to her photos???? We are so happy for you all! Tonya D. *Congrats!!!! We are so happy for you!!!!! Please bring her picture to WOF we would love to see her : ) Anita L *Praise GOD! I am so happy for you guys. Where is a bigger picture of her? I can't blow up the picture of you and Adam holding her picture enough to get a good look at Ellie! Post or email me a picture please. When do you head to Russia? In the meantime, I am praying everything goes smoothly, Jen. *This is wonderful news, thanks for sharing! Sally D. *Congratulations, God bless you and your wife. Edwin C. *Wow!!! I am so happy for you and your family!! Congratulations…. and yes, next time I see you I would LOVE to see a picture of Viktoria! Janice *That is wonderful news! Congratulations! God bless you and your family! Susan D. *Adam, this is wonderful news, I will pray everything will continue to go well for you and our family. Diane C. *Congratulations! May this bundle of joy be a blessing to your family Lynn P. *CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! THANKS TO YOU GOD!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I love her name. Viktoria like me, Victoria. *YAYAYAYAY!!!! Christi *Congratulations Jerger family!!! We hope you get to travel and meet her soon! –Carine *Congratulations!! Tricia *What a blessing, I am very happy for you and your wife! Hopefully we get to meet her before Christmas Sandra R. *That is awesome dude. I am excited for you guys. I will continue to keep it in our prayers. J-Dog *Praise God! Congrats. Chad R. *Adam… I can’t believe this is finally happening!!! J I am so happy for you… I like the name Viktoria, do you think you’ll keep it? I would LOVE to see a picture… Kelley *Jerger – No doubt, God has answered everyone’s prayers for this miracle and I am glad she is becoming a member of such a great family. I will continue to pray for your safe travel and a speedy return with Viktoria. Congrats! Sanchez *Amen!!!! Dafinka *Congratulations!!!!!!!!! I’m so pleased for you, but of course we will continue to pray for you and your family. I’ll have to see the photos soon. Mandi.*CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!!!!!! Our prayers will be with you on your travels and always. *This is a beautiful and rewarding commitment. All the best, Tony *Congrats Lori! I'm so excited for you. Chris and I were at that very same orphanage 1 week ago. She's in great hands. The orphanage is the largest in Russia and the children that we saw there were happy and healthy. They loved their nannies and their nannies loved them. If you have any questions about travel, feel free to ask. Blessings, Penny Mom-to-be of 2 boys in Kras *Congratulations Adam–a better family couldn’t adopt her. I bet Lori is ecstatic. So amazing to see prayers answered right before our eyes! Hallelujah! Can’t wait to see the photos. What a beautiful name. Anna L. *Hang on tight- all this waiting has just been the click, click, click of the car you're on reaching the top of the first hill- you're tetering at the top, ready for the rollercoaster ride to really begin:) Don't forget to throw your hands up in the air and enjoy the ride :) We are sooooo excited for you! Tim and Debbie *yeah!!!! I am so excited for you guys!!! XOXO Suzannah W. *Lori, that made my day. Thank you so much for sharing, I’m soooo excited for you guys. May the time you spend anxiously waiting for her arrival be totally blessed; as I’m sure you will be once she finally arrives! Linaea *We are so happy for you!!! Congratulations!!! Love, Sherry, Mitch and the Boys*God Bless you ALL. Can't wait for the next E mail chapter to come. Diane N. *Hi Lori, This is Nicole Schuenke. Our girls had dance class together a few years ago at Suncoast (Ally and Rachel danced, Sarah ran around the lobby). Anyway, I received an email tonight from my friend Heather and I saw your name as being one of the people she sent it to also. I asked Heather if you were Ruthie's mom and if you guys had been successful with your adoption. She sent me your blog...CONGRATULATIONS! I'm so excited for your family. May God bless each and every aspect of your adoption process. I'll keep checking your blog for updates. Blessings, Nicole *SOOOOOO thrilled for you guys. I enjoyed reading it. Can't wait to see her picture. Love, Dana *Oh my gosh Congratulations! So when do you travel? Do you need anything??? Let me know! Cristy *Congratulations! !! What wonderful and exciting news!! Sherri A.*WOW! Congratz!! What a wonderful account of how it happened. WooHoo!!! Debbie from the blog*Hooray!! Will you keep the name Viktoria? Laura P. *CONGRATS Adam and Lori!!!!! She is beautiful. Can you post some close-ups of her so we can get a better picture? We're so happy for you and we'll continue to pray for you guys as you await to have her in your arms. Kelly B. *this is awesome news. Congratulations to your whole family. And what a wonderful home Viktoria will be coming home to. Dar *PTL! You are all in my prayers. Tracey H. *CONGRATULATIONS!!!!!!!!! I am so happy for you!!!! You have waited so long and I bet it all feels worth it today. *Lori, Congratulations!!! I remember that feeling well! What sweet memories it brings back. May your new daughter arrive home as quickly as possible. Many blessings, Mary *YEAAAAAA~ I'm so happy for you! Tam

Apples of My Eye

We had a fun filled day...We got up a little later than usual because we had a family slumber party which is something that Adam made up and it basically goes like this...the kids bring their sleeping bags out into the family room and they lay down (in theory) and Adam and I each take a couch or, if I get my way, he sits behind me and rubs my shoulders:0) We pick a movie...Last night it was Dr. Doolittle. Rusty asks questions through the whole movie, Flip does somersaults and sings, Ruthie lays there and tries to watch the movie (can you believe it?) and we sit there and say, "be quiet." It's great Fun!

So, we woke a little later than usual (8:00 instead of 6:00) That was nice and Ruthie had a private lesson at the gym. So after that, I took her to a little place where you can paint pottery for some "girl time." She painted a frog and I painted ornaments for the kids which I like to do every year so they will have ornaments to start their own trees some day. Adam got to stay home and paint the family room (yeah!) The boys played outside which was nice because our weather is finally taking a turn!

Then, we made CANDIED APPLES! The kids went through their Halloween stashes and each picked something to roll their apples in. Butterfinger, peanut butter cups, nerds. Yes, nerds but they were pink so you can guess who's apple that is! I made one for Adam rolled in Whoppers which he loves when he remembers they exist. (smile) This was fun because they chopped their own candy, rolled their own apples and I did not screw up the caramel...and it was just another little first for me to file away in my memory!

Now, the kids and I are going for a walk while Adam finishes painting...yes he is still painting and it has nothing to with the 15 minute breaks he takes every 15 minutes to watch football. After that, I am going to come home and make some spaghetti...from the jar. And I must say, it has been a nice weekend, at home with my family and not running here, there and everywhere...just home, with my apples.

Bee Hive

Well, it has been an interesting week...we got back from Auburn and settled in to bed and woke to vomit from one child and hives on another...Tuesday we had more hives and then yesterday, they covered Rusty from his forehead to his toes and EVERYWHERE in between! Today he looks better but he had us worried for a while. So for Halloween, the other two donned their costumes and Rusty was "stroller boy" (we made that up) because he couldn't walk from the hives on the soles of his feet. I went door to door with the kids carrying Rusty's bucket feeling like a fool and explaining the hives to every adult who looked at me like,"ya, right."

Regardless, it was a happy Halloween and he is doing marginally better today. Tomorrow, he will attempt school, I think. As for the other two...Well Wonder woman was a wonder and everyone (mostly adults) loved her costume and few kids asked who she was:0) And the lovable sidekick Robin had fun but didn't make quite the splash with out his superhero who was supposed to be batman but wore a disguise..."stroller boy." We brought home a huge amount of candy that will likely go straight to MY hips and so, I must throw 90 % of it out...it is evil!

So, the wait for a referral continues but, in 15 days we are off for some magical fun at Disney world...Stay tuned!