This is it....

Dearest Family and Friends,

Well it looks like this will be our last posting until Lamar and I start our journey in 72 hours. Lamar finally finished his last shift and is officially off until we return from Ukraine. My mom and dad are on the way up from Florida and they should arrive tomorrow late morning. Sunday we will all go to church and then brunch for Lamar's birthday. Then, we're outta here! Everything is happening at very fast speeds, but we are very alright with this.

Packing has been fun. We have been watching the weather and it looks like it will chilly and wet while we are there. As most of you know, our dear friends we met in Japan, the Bryant family, also adopted from Ukraine. They came home in May with a beautiful 3 year old son, Max. They have been our inspiration in so many ways. They have paved the roads for and made our preparation so much easier. For example, they told us that we need to pack fitted queen-sized sheets, oatmeal, a head scarf for the temples (which they bought for me while they were there!), and boots, just to name a few. NONE of these things were on my packing list, so you can see what life-savers they are to us. In fact, our facilitator, Yuri, whom acts as our liaison, translator, tour guide, and advisor, was their facilitator. We hired him after the amazing treatments and experience they received from him. It's been a blessing to us to have all this guidance. Lamar and I don't feel so blind now heading out there. {shout out} Thank you, Bryant family! We can only pray we are blessed with such a beautiful child as Max. It gives us so much hope and eases many fears we have. Thank you!

Well, I still have a list of things I must complete so we can relax and enjoy the last couple of days with our boys.

Thank you all for the cards, well-wishes, phone calls, prayers, love, and support. A dear friend said she stocked up on candles to burn while we are away in honor of the adoption. (She's not even Catholic!) How cool is that?

Lotsa love,

Kris

6 more days... but who's counting?

Greetings!

The boys and I returned from Florida yesterday afternoon. We had such an amazing time in Florida visiting our family and friends. The trip went by quickly and it's hard to believe we are already home and getting ready for our turn around to Ukraine. Lamar and I are so excited! We have made a pretty long To-Do list, but it is very manageable. We want to make sure we leave time for fun with the boys because we will be away from them for quite some time. (That's the tough part) Dad and Mom will be here before you know it and then things will be happening very quickly.

Off to the pool with the boys.

God bless everyone.

Kris

It's official! The tickets are bought and Lamar and I are off in 6 days!

Daily, God gives us reminders that He is with us and we are not alone. Thank you, God!

During our time in St. Augustine, we went to Fort Mantanza. We took a boat ride out to the island and had a wonderful morning learning the history, going on nature walks, and finding crabs.

Preparation for Ukraine

My sisters, Jamie-Lyn and Teresa celebrate with us. Teresa takes all of us out for Mexican! Yumm!

The boys take time to enjoy the Florida sunshine. They love to play in the waves! It's nice to have this time to relax and be with family.

Before we left for Florida, the boys and I started preparing their brother(s)/sister(s) room. It's a very tedious job peeling off wallpaper, but so much more fun with their help!

Joshua (above) and Jacob (below) are an integral part of preparing for the newest Douberly(s).

They are just as excited and anxious as we are!

We Have Officially Been Invited....

We celebrate receiving "The Call" with my nieces, Erin and Jade, frozen treats and a Ukrainian hat!

We finally receive the call from Yuri! We've been waiting for this day for a very long time!Dad and Mom make us a special sign in St. Augustine to celebrate receiving "The Call".

This hat, compliments of Jenny Vaughn, has been traveling with us for some time now! It's nice to finally put it on to celebrate our invitation to Ukraine to adopt our newest Douberly/s

Dearest Family and Friends,

Well, today is the day! After over 21 months of waiting (that's more than 2 1/3 pregnancies!), we FINALLY received "The Call". Yuri called us today while we were staying at my parent's house. He told us we have officially received an invitation to come to Ukraine 3 Sept. We are so excited it practically hurts! We will be flying out in 3 weeks on 31 Aug. We will land in Ukraine on 1 Sept in time to go out for a Ukrainian dinner to celebrate Lamar's birthday. Happy Birthday, Lamar!

We have been studying and researching ticket prices for quite some time so we are very comfortable with buying them immediately. Lamar should be purchasing them tomorrow.

As for the boys and I, we will finish out our vacation here in FL enjoying the beach, sun, family and relaxation. We will return just in time to get the boys settled with my parents, finish packing, and hop on the plane.

Again, thank you for all of your prayers. Lamar and I love reading your comments you post on our blog. That means the world to us.

God bless you all and we will keep you updated as we continue on this very exciting journey.

Good night!

Kris

...and waiting...

Dearest Family and Friends,

Well, today we were suppose to receive confirmation of our Aug 31 travel date and Sept 3 appointment date. Unfortunately, it did not come. Yuri turned in the newly required paperwork and they want another week to look it over before setting anything in stone. This was frustrating news for all of us. We were hoping to all go out tonight to celebrate before the boys and I leave for Florida. I keep telling myself, "It's His timing....not mine". However, the thought of waiting yet, ANOTHER week saddens me deeply.

In the mean time, Joshua, Jacob and I look forward to having fun with family and friends in Jacksonville and St. Augustine, FL. We will stay there for two weeks. What a perfect diversion while we wait! God is good.

I'll still let you know when we receive the confirmation. (You might even hear me screaming in celebration from wherever you are!)

Love to all and good night.
Kristina