Hi Welcome to our world...

Many of you have heard there would be an adoption blog coming... well here it is.

Just a few house keeping tips in case you're not familiar with how they work.

Last posting is first ..on top.. so you have some catching up to do.

You are welcome to leave comments after each post. Just please keep in mind that someday the entire blog will be transformed into a bound book for Tamara. So please keep it clean ;o)

At the bottom is a video bar. There should be videos of the Republic of Georgia. Should you see different ones REFRESH the page and they should appear. When viewing the videos you may want to mute the music first so you can hear the videos.

When we travel we will be posting updates from Georgia so you can all follow along on our journey. Please feel free to post comments as it will be great to hear from our friends and families from around the world as we plunge into parenthood. OK... I'm done for today... ENJOY!!!

I had a Brilliant Idea...

Nina Ananiashvili & the State Ballet of Georgia

As I researched The Republic of Georgia the other day I found out that their prima ballerina will be back in Tbilisi in April having returned from a world wind tour. So I thought hum... I like the ballet. I bet Tamara would as well as the Foster mom's Bio 10 year old daughter and neighbor's daughter that Tamara is friends with. So I'm hoping to arrange a girl's night out ;o) . Bruce of course will join us as will the translator and perhaps the nanny? Wish me luck in arranging this extra special evening at the Tbilisi Ballet and Oprah house.

Then in a few years when Tamara is taking ballet we can take her to see the same ballerina in NYC. Pretty cool idea don't you think?

One of the many things we'll need to pack is gifts for the staff in Georgia. Everyone from the facilitator to the driver, foster mom, foster siblings and friends gets a gift from Tamara before we leave. For Tamara's little friends I thought a night at the ballet would be a well received treat and a very memorable evening that I'm sure they will all cherish for the rest of their lives.

Thank Heaven for little girls ... I finally got Bruce to agree to go to the ballet.

Where are we now...

We're in a sort of waiting mode this week.

Our Dossier is ready for Georgia. Dossier is a French word for a bunch of documents. Everything has been apostilled in Trenton and Madison and is ready to roll. Apostil is the notary for the notary. Every document has to have this done for international adoptions now.

Just waiting for our NJ Home study report to arrive. Not sure but I think they're waiting for the Ceries report and perhaps the FBI / Homeland Security clearance? But everything else is ready and waiting.

We also filed our I600A with immigration and are waiting for our next finger printing appointment and I 600 which is basically the US gov. giving permission to us to bring Tamara home.

Then our Dossier gets OK'd in Georgia and when we're issued a court date we travel. I emailed our Dossier to Georgia last week for translation and gave power of attorney to our Georgian lawyer so he could go speak to the judges and get things moving.

We are supposed to be traveling in April so things will be moving along at lightening speed. We hope.



In the mean time we're starting to pack. Bought 2 new 5pc luggage sets a week ago. We'll be gone for 2-3 weeks but as you can imagine we need to bring a tremendous amount of stuff with us. Beyond the basics for us we also have to bring medications (just in case). Lots of health and beauty products and even protein bars for energy. For Tamara we need clothing, health & beauty products ( that's what we call J&J baby lotion at our house ). A stroller, traveling aides such as special harnesses for planes, toys, movies, things to entertain her. Pull -ups ... yes my baby is potty trained ;o) . And healthy snacks and sippy cups. The list goes on and on so I won't bore you. But imagine you're going to a foreign country where you don't know the language... certainly have no hope of learning how to read or recognize the words in such a short time as their alphabet is so unlike ours. Now add in 2 food allergies. One for each and imagine you have a toddler who doesn't speak your language. You'd bring a tremendous amount of stuff ... just in case. Better safe then sorry on this trip.

Oh yes I found out yesterday that in Georgia they really really like their walnuts. In fact they use them as a thickening agent in soups, sauces and dressings as well as desserts. How much fun that will be with my nut allergy. So when our crash Georgian language course arrives hopefully this week I'll have to learn how to say "If I survive this meal you'll get a much bigger tip" in Georgian. lol . Seriously I am somewhat concerned but I can usually tell with the 1st bite and a shot of Benadrly is usually all it takes. Besides we will have a translator with us most of the time and when at home a cook. Did I mention the Nanny, house keeper and driver? Oh .. we may never come home. ;o)

Last Saturday we got our 1st round of shots.
ouch!!! Arm still hurts. :o( Yeah... I know... I can hear ya "quit being such a baby"

So Exciting!!!

This is getting pretty exciting! One of my friends that I met when we first started researching Kazakhstan is on her way to meet her baby girl. She left Florida yesterday and we heard from her in NYC and then again in Paris on her way to Almaty. 4 flights in all to meet her baby. Congratulations Sandy. Can not wait to see your baby. Safe Travels and lots of hugs.