Cindy just called me from the plane. They were able to make a 1:00 PM flight that will get them into New York at 4 this afternoon. If all goes well and they are able to make it through immigration, they will arrive late this evening. We cannot wait until they are finally home!
They were originally scheduled to come home on May 5. As with much of this process, we planned for the worst and prayed for the best! They got the doctor's appointment done last Saturday and, due to the extended May 1 holiday, had to wait until Thursday for the U.S. Embassy appointment. They went early with all the paperwork and hopes of getting the visa the same day. They were happy that Alyona received her visa the same day. Julie took care of changing all the tickets because they thought all the visas were complete. At the end of Thursday, they found that there was a technical problem with scanning a photo. They were promised the visas for Maria and Matt early today, Friday
I got a call at 2:30 AM letting me know that they had the visa. Then we went hunting for new tickets home. I was dropping Caroline off at school when I got the message that they had made it onto the Aerosvit flight. Caroline has a field trip with her class to Chicago. Hopefully she will see her mom, sister and brother when she gets back.
The last week was eventful. Cindy, Maria and Matt shared and apartment in downtown Kyiv with Julie and Alyona. I wanted to stay to help the kids get home, but it turned out best for Matt and the girls to help each other out. They went on walking tours around town and played in parks near their apartment.
The taste of everyday life in Ukraine continued. They were shopping and Matt wanted sunflower seeds. Cindy did not want to get too many because they can be messy in the apartment. She asked for half a bag. The clerk weighed the bag, but rolled her eyes as she gave it back. When checking out, the clerk at the check out counter stated that she could not sell her the partial bag because that quantity was not in her system. No sunflower seeds for you!
The kids are getting used to a life with more choices. Cindy told Maria and Matt they could get one soft drink from the soft drink aisle. While Maria picked hers quickly, Matt selected and returned five bottles before completing his selection. Must be a guy thing.
I have set up doctors and dentist appointments for the kids and they will start school next week. The house has been updated to make places for a family of six plus one exchange student, who will be returning to Germany in June.
We are very thankful for the many blessings that God has shown to us through this process. He has shown us the path around the many obstacles, provided wonderful people that share our love and concern for the children to help us and given us the patience to see His way. Praise God!
Subscribe to:
Post Comments (Atom)
No comments:
Post a Comment