LAST day!

Oh what a day! and its not even over yet.

we were supposed to be picked up at 9am our driver called at 8:05am and said to be ready in 20 minutes. After he heard the alarm in my voice he said 30 minutes. So we get ready really fast. Wake up the boys, feed them breakfast, change them and wait...... 9:05 comes around and our driver shows up.

We go for medical appointment. The doctor just kept shaking her head about the condition of the boys. By how small and malnourished these three year olds are. She gave me some suggestions as to where to start regarding medical care when we get back. One thing that eased my mind was she said the Yuri had had two skin hematomas removed, which explains these two massive scars on him. She kept saying severe mental retardation. I just smiled thinking you wouldn't say that if you knew them. I asked her for some medicine to give Yuri for the palne ride. I requested the same kind that Adeye gave Hailee to come home on. She didn't understand so we went to the pharmacy together. They must have opened 20 boxes looking for what I asked for. In the end she gave me an anti-stress and a calming sleep helper. She said they are very strong and Yuri is very little so use only little bit.

Well we do, wait.... nothing. Give a little more, wait...... nothing. Not even a hint of change. I'm glad we tested it today and not on the plane. I'm headed to another pharmacy now to try again.

While at the medical exams this man came by squatted down and started talking to Yuri, in english!! We were so excited! He said that he knew we were Americans because Robin smiled at him when he walked by. So that's the tell tell sign, not tennis shoes, or back packs, all though I'm sure they don't help, its common courtesy. HIs name was Chris and he and his wife are adopting a 17 year old and running into a lot of road blocks. They have been in the process since she was 15. They are hoping to come home on Thursday. Please pray for them.

We head off to the embassy and have to go through security. We knew what to expect so we were ready. We go through everything and then a guy comes out with a little strip of paper and runs it all along the stroller. ? He goes into a little room. When he comes out he asks if the children are on a special diet. We say 'no'. Then I say, 'yeah they are on baby food." Then he asks about it being special. No jsut regular baby food. then he says do you feed them powder ..... Yes their cereal is powder. He runs the stroller again, goes into the room and then returns and tells us we are ok. I guess they thought it was some other powdery substance. Robin and I just looked at each other in amazment. We have come so far and it could have all been ruined because they thought drugs were on our stroller. We just laughed.

We have our interview and the lady was super nice. She has family in Texas and then mentioned she has lived in Alamogordo, NM. Our jaws dropped! since Robin and our husbands went to highschool in a small town just a few miles from there. What a small world!! She could have been from anywhere in America!

In about 5 minutes the guy comes to the window and says Congratulations!! We got the visas, the passports, we are clear to go home.Robin and I were estatic. We were hugging each other, kissing the boys, and crying! It wa a great moment.

So we leave and have a long taxi ride back to the apartment. It is after 3:30pm when we get back and the boys are exhausted!! The only thing keeping them from a nap is 4 flights of stairs, by the way this is the first apartment that has not had an elevator, of course. So we are trudging up the stairs carrying the boys, our back backs, the stroller, wishing there was an elevator. We get to the third floor and we see it. We see him. He is a large man in his late 50's early 60's. He is dressed in a sweater jeans and jacket. There is a packet of cigarettes under his leg and he is out cold and snoring. He is sitting on the second step and his head is laying on the 4th step. His arms are splayed out to the sides of him. I stop look at Robin with wide eyes. She looks at him, then looks at me and we die laughing. You can't make this stuff up. there is no way we can get around him carrying the kids. Robin puts down the stroller and I give her Bohdan. I put my foot in the small space between his right arm and his body. I step over his arm and step next to his head. I throw my back pack on the landing and come back. Robin hands me the boys one at a time and then makes her way by the sleeping man trying not to step on him. We had dropped the stroller and had made noise. I don't know how he didn't wake up. We laughed and laughed about the sleeping man in the stairs. Only here.

Well gotta run to the pharmacy. We are meeting some other Reece's Rainbow families tonight for dinner and then in the morning we are catching a plane outta here. Our plane leaves at 6:45am arriving in Munich at 8:15am. Leave Munich at 11:35am arrive in DC at 3:10 and leave at 5:41 and arrive home at 8:26pm. Thank you all so much for your prayers!!! and for following our journey.