PLEASE JOIN US ON AN ALL NEW ADVENTURE

We invite you to join us on our new adoption adventure as we continue to seek to do God's will and receive His little ones into our family. We promise there will never a dull moment!! http://thewollschlagerweekly.blogspot.com/

A note to our Blog followers, I promise to do my best to be true to our new Blog address name and update weekly.

All for His Glory,

Theresa

Boys, oh boys

My favorite house.....

Mark , Nick and I were playing one of our bordom buster games as we ran errands yesterday. "My favorite things" as we have dubbed it. We started out with the usuals, what is your favorite color, animal, food. Then we tossed in a new one, what is your favorite house, as we were commenting on all of the big, pretty and very expensive new houses in our city. We did not elaborate on the fact that we assumed this meant a favorite physical dwelling. Nick chimed in first that our house we live in right now is his favorite and began to describe why. To our delight, he began to describe what we call our "home" and the relationships and love that are contained within the physical dwelling of our "house". It reminded me again of how insignificant the size or location of a family's house is and filled me with true gratitude for all of the blessings God continues to give us.

It has been almost a year since Mark and I traveled to Ukraine to grow our family with three more wonderful sons. The past several months have stretched our emotional, physical and spiritual lives far beyond what we imagined. The many challenges have brought us true joy as we rely on our Lord to provide for the family He has given us. Immediatly upon returning from Ukraine, Mark lost his job and we faced several months of unemployment. But God is forever faithful and in His Divine timing, provided for all of our needs.

All of our sons are bonding well and forming a true brotherhood. Many days there are the usual sibling spats, but at the end of the day they all defend and encourage each other without fail. Christopher has likely changed the most and has gained 20 pounds in nine months. We are encouraged that he will walk one day as he is taking steps with assistance. Chris is also learing how to utilize a simple communications device to express himself. We are so proud of all of our boys for including their exceptional little brother in their activities and for always offering to lend a hand to mom.

Check out our new pictures. Click on the "view all images" button above.

Did someone say Doctor?

A few weeks ago I received a request from an interested person that keeps up with our Blog to "update". This request was made indirectly to a dear friend of mine, who lives in another state. I was unable to update at that time and although we are blessed by the concern of others I must admit sitting at the computer for any length of time these days is far from my thoughts.

I know I did promise to update every once in awhile though and so here I am.
All of our boys are all adjusting as well as can be expected and learning to adapt to their new environment and adjusting to everyone's habits. I include Charlie and Nick as I speak about adjustments. Instantly having three new brothers to share everything has been an experience for them as well.

Since we have arrived home we have been to the Emergency Room 4 times (nothing life-threatening), to the dentist 3 times(4extractions, cleanings, spacers, sealants, numerous cavities filled) to the eye doctor 2 times (3 needing glasses), 2 MRI's, 2 outpatient surgeries (same kiddo-2 for one day), 3 pediatric head to toe visits and immunizations for all, 3 TB tests (if your child has had the vaccine in Ukraine or country of birth... they will test positive...just get chest x-ray and skip the pain of stick and check), 3 chest x-rays, one broken wrist (most active kid in cast for 8 -10 weeks), audiology exam, follow-up visits from surgeries, orthopedic visit for 2 (another 2 for 1 appointment), 1 pelvic x-ray, orthotics lab visit for leg braces (1 down two to go), 2 visits to Audiologist, PT,OT and Speech for Christopher (these are the fun appointments) Now these appointments have been just for Artyom, Andy and Christopher. I have not mentioned Charlie and Nick's visits for their annuals and monthly Orthodontist. Not to mention, 3 visits to SSA.

I have seen and signed more HIPPA consent forms in the past 1 1/2 months than in my 15 years as a heart patient!!

Now the fun stuff... We are keeping our sense of humor and counting our blessings each and everyday. It has been good to have Mark home to help with the transition although we certainly would not have planned it ourselves this way. Thank God, He knows best!! Artyom and Andy will be playing futbol (soccer) and Charlie and Nick will be at the Baseball field this spring. Everyone has started practice as of this week and all four have opening Day on March 1st. Christopher is enjoying watching his brothers and is an enthusiastic cheerleader. We pray that next spring, he too will be on his own team. Please do not be upset if you ask me what day of the week it is and I say, "February", really, I am just fine.

Sometimes I am asked by a concerned friend if there is anything that I need. I have been pondering that thought and If there is anyone willing to design and build a bathroom for me that can double as a sanctuary, I would be grateful. Also any ideas on how to keep the athletic cups from ending up on the kitchen table, like they are centerpiece of sorts, Please, I appreciate any input.

Life with our crew

And then there were 7!!!!

Who'd ever thought we would be the parents to seven children? Yes, I still include our daughters who are living on their own. After all, I did endure 16 weeks of morning sickness with each of my pregnancies and that in itself gives me authority to also refer to my adult children as "my babies".

Having just delivered triplets, by the grace of adoption, I find myself not more physically tired, but mentally challenged. Therefore, this entry I am dedicating to my new friend and also a new adoptive parent, Leslie.

Dear Leslie, on this morning after Christmas Day, I am up before the newly acquired chaos of the Wollschlager home. I decided to catch up on what is happening with the world around me, first of all our other friends who have recently adopted. When I began reading your Blog, I did not check the date of your last entry (because I already felt like I was neglecting my Blog and did not want to see how far behind I was) I confess, I have been amazed at not only your gift for writing, but talent for keeping up with your Blogs with so much detail. I so enjoyed reading about Kristina and feel like I know her, even though I have not met this lovely girl yet.

Then, it hit me between the eyes (or somewhere that counts) when I read about Robert being a Blog Bully and reading how you were being driven "nuts" by my lack of my ability to find a minimum of 30 minutes to update the world on our life (I picked 30 minutes, because I am a slow writer). I am confessing to you and the cyber world now that before we left for Ukraine to deliver our "triplet sons", I had the very same comments spewing from my thoughts about other families who had "dropped off the face of the earth". They were leaving me hanging in the balance!! "What are they thinking?" I thought a mom of multiples would truly understand. Oh, my friend, if you can tell me how you do it, I would like to know.

Until I learn the ways of Blog mastering , I will be lucky to update once every few months, or at least with my annual obligation to update Ukraine. God has really taught me a valuable lesson about time and how I need to spend it. For those of you reading this post, who have not known me quite long enough, I admonish Leslie in good humor and with love and thankfulness for being the instrument God used to let me learn how to relax a bit more. I have also learned that God's sense of humor is much greater than mine and I have a long way to go to acquire such a grace. Five boys and a husband (from a family of nine kids)in the house and me a prissy mom (raised in a family of 3 kids), who gets easily grossed out and has an innate, prophetic vision for potential danger, is a fine way to gain an expanded funny bone!

Just when I thought there were no more unimaginable and interesting places the 100 Nerf darts in our home could turn up......... Just when I thought instructions on how to lift the toilet seat , by one male authority and two concerned females had alleviated the number of times in a day I have to wipe down the toilet seat.........Just when I thought, the words, "Do not try to see how much pain your brother can tolerate, he IS a superhero too" were truly understood.............

See what I mean? When do I possibly have time to Blog anymore? And for those of you waiting for my usually prompt responses to e-mail... Hang in there and give me a few days or if you really need an answer, call me and I will answer the phone with a shrill (I mean thrill) in my voice. Just, pleeeaszzze (yes, I know how to spell please) ignore the strange jungle sounds in the background , we are watching National Geographic.

Home Sweet Home!!!!

It is sooo good to be home!! We are anxiously awaiting Mark, Artyom and Andy's arrival in a few hours. I have tried to sit and upload some photos, but it is slow going. Where does the time go? Here are a few from our last week together with daddy in Kyiv and our first week home.

Still here in Kyiv

We have just now found an Internet cafe to make a quick post. We are all well and safe in Kyiv and Christopher is making many new discoveries. Unfortunatly, our connection tool on the laptop is not cooperating, so I will have to post my mama musings when I get back home. I will post more photos too for all of you who are requesting them.

Christopher and I will be arriving in Atlanta at 9:55 pm tomorrow, Thanksgiving Day!!! Thanks be to God!!! Mark will be home with the boys the following weekend.

Just hangin out in cyberspace!!!

Lately, I have spent entirely too much time in the Internet cafe'. Hours, in fact, since Artyom and 'Andy" are in school during the day and Zhenya is an hour and a half away waiting for two more days until his Papa and Mama will take him home forever.

I am beginning to get those swirly halos dancing in front of my eyes. It wouldn't be so bad if so a mouth would appear on the monitor and begin to console in my native tongue. Ahhh, the sound of English is so soothing. Yes, Mark and I are still speaking and still best friends, but he is presently consumed with catching up on NFL (for those who still care, the Patriots are 9-0). Please, I am just the messenger!! Then there is the Star Trek, the old William Shatner series. Is there anything else? Mark reminds me of how he wants to purchase the entire 79 episodes on DVD. "I can dream, can't I?", he pleads for sympathy. Then, when I told him I'd like to watch a movie last night he suggests the Special Features on The Incredibles, which he has seen for the last three days! See what I mean? O.K., I admit, I may be sounding a little stir crazy. After all, isn't this the very results (brain malfunction and visual impairment) that we lecture our computer savvy children about.

I miss the sound of my children fussing and fighting over a toy or who is irritating who. (My family and friends have my permission to remind me of this admission in a month when we are all experiencing the "togetherness" again.) I miss sitting on my own potty, in my own bathroom and I understand why I was born after western toilets were invented. I do not miss though, living in the 80's anymore. What do I mean? The fashion (very sparkly and furry for women) and the music ringing in my ears, in the taxis, restaurants and Internet cafe' is very reminiscent of the 80s and early 90's. Not all bad, but I guess this is where I am feeling my age. I miss my daughters who have been my greatest supporters and e-mail buddies. I miss our homeschool playgroup on Friday afternoons and one hundred other things I haven't mentioned but that are equally as important. I miss just picking up the phone to check in on my family or friends without hearing a Russian speaking operator on the other end speaking to me incoherently about how I am not getting through.

I do know now why God said, "No, you will not be living for years in a foreign country as a missionary," in answer to my childhood prayers. It is not the romanticised life I imagined as an idealistic child, dreaming of how I could make the world a better place.

I will return home to America with a greater appreciation for so many things we take for granted. I will make it foremost in my thoughts and prayers to consider the great sacrifices that individuals and families who are called to be in the mission fields of the uncomfortable for a lifetime and who do it with joy. These are real sacrifices.

Dear Lord, Now we need that van, please!!!

Today was a great day in Gorlovka! Mark and I are the proud parents of two more bouncing boys!!

Thomas Artyom and Andrew Vladimir had big smiles when the judge announced her favorable decision granting our petition to adopt them. The judge told the boys to enjoy their new family and life in America, to work hard in school and learn English. She told the boys to be good to their parents and to respect us and listen to what we instruct.

It's that last admonition that I wonder about--ha! They are, afterall, our children now.



"Blessed are you among men" is a quote of Mark's in reference to me and my position these days as the matriarch of the household. Chloe, my sweet girl beagle is the only one who comes close to really understanding me now. Still though, I love my boys even among the stinky socks, random burping contests and other humorus boyish habits we won't mention right now. God has blessed me more than I could ever have imagined and I just pray for the graces that I know I will need to raise these little guys into compassionate, God fearing men that will have the level of integrity that their Daddy does.




I must admit though I am counting on my lovely daughters to rescue me from time to time for a girls only day out.

Alot Happenin'

Our court date has been moved up one day to Tuesday at 11:00am. No problems, just a delay in the receipt of a neccessary document for the court.

Monday we will take Volodymyr and Artyom for their visa photos and pick up some clothes for V since I did not bring anything his size.

Yeah !!! Theresa and Zhengya will be home to Atlanta on Thanksgiving Day. Mark, Artyom and V. will be joining them on November 30th or Dec. 1st.

We have a court date in Gorlovka

We have a court date in Gorlovka next Monday for Artyom and Volodymyr. We are hoping that it is much shorter than Torez. A. tells us to compare, as it will maybe be 15 minutes.

Mark and I just wanted to say Thank you so much for all of your prayers and heartfelt comments. As those of you who have been here before us know, it is what keeps us encouraged and makes everyone at home seem so much closer than the thousands of miles between us. Be assured that the families that are waiting are in our prayers as well.

A great day in Torez!!

Well we made it through the court hearing and received a favorable decision to adopt Zhengna. He is now legally our son. There is now a mandatory 10-day waiting period before we can take physical custody of him. The judge told us to come on the 9th day and we could take him then. She already has written the formal decree. One might ask us why if he is legally our child, why we have to leave him in this sad orphanage. The explanation we are given is that this waiting period is for any appeals to be made by either us or other parties interested in the child's welfare. I better not express my strong opinions at this time, or this Blog will no longer be family friendly.
Zhengna, Pondering the events of the day.

We introduce the newest member the Wollschlager family, Christopher Eugen Wollschlager.



For those of you that like the details, just click on the link to The Mama Chronicles.

Court Date in Torez, Ukraine

We have a court date on Monday, November 5th at 10:30am. This is the court date for Eugen "Zhengna". We will hope for the 10-day waiting period to be waived which we know will require a Miracle . A. went to meet the judge today so that we knew what she required in documents and such. "We do not want any surprises", states the General. A. comments that the judge, a woman , is very nice and professional. This is her first adoption though in the city of Torez. Torez, unlike other larger cities, has just one orphanage and it happens to house only children ages 4-18 with special needs. It is making me concerned that they are going to bring in the media to broadcast their first adoption in this city. We are getting a clearer understanding of how really big of a deal this is. If you think our media representation is "over the top" (I am being G -rated with my adjectives) the programing here is totally inappropriate! So let's hope this courtdate is low key.

Because of our limited time and access to the Internet, I have begun to keep more detailed journal of our activities and life here in Gorlovka. This way I can just create in MS Word at any time of day and copy and paste when we are at the Internet Cafe. Just click on the link in the upper right column, www.themamachronicles.blogspot.com to read more of what is happening.

I am still a few days behind, but hope to get current soon. Here are some photos to go with our ongoing adventure.

No longer MIA

Hi everyone, sorry to keep you in suspense for the past several days, but I promise it was not intentional. We have been without advanced technology since we left Kyiv on Wednesday after our SDA appointment. Our original plans to stay at Donetsk Christian University were changed as it was the opposite direction of the two orphanages.

A. made arrangements for us to stay in an apartment in Gorlovka. It is a 10-15 minute drive to Artyom's orphanage and 1 + hours to Torez. It is very nice and comfortable and we feel very safe to walk to the Internet cafe and Market (during the day, as there are no street lights here and it is very dark at night) There is no Internet however, in the apartment, so we are now just able to post.

Enough of the boring stuff. I will get to the real news. Our SDA appointmnet went well.
Short and pretty sweet as others before us have reported. All of 10 minutes, if that.
We had learned the Friday before leaving Atlanta that Igor's file was not at the SDA, which indicates he is not registered nor available for adoption. It was very disappointing, but we knew God had the bigger plan, we just were waiting to see it. 

Since we have been approved to adopt 3 children (boys) we decided that maybe God had a third child intended for us all along that only he knew of or maybe we were suppose to just bring home Artyom and


Zhengna. Either way, we were at peace about the changes and continue to pray for clear direction and wisdom. 
A. informed us that we should make a petition at our appointment 
for the third child so that we could meet with him when we saw Artyom as he was also at
 Gorlovka Hope. 
This way we are not losing any time and extending our stay in Ukraine. 
Otherwise, had we just gone to the orphanage and chosen a child while visiting, we would 
have to return to Kyiv (an 11 - hour train ride) and petition again. 
This could add another 
week to our stay. So A. brought us 5 profiles of little guys. 
A few of them had been to the 
U.S. in the past 1-2 years on the hosting programs like Artyom was with us last Christmas. 
I was still too fatigued to make a decision about what child to meet so 
I asked Mark if he would. He chose to meet a boy who is 8 years old and has similar
 physical features as our Nick.  We will meet him next Monday as we have to wait for the 
SDA to fax permission to the Gorlovka Authorities.

We traveled by train on Wednesday evening to Gorlovka. A. had us hit the ground running on Thursday after a quick stop to the apartment to drop off our baggage and shower we headed for Torez to meet Zhengna. Artyom had been at camp at the Crimea, an island off the Black Sea. This is a special state funded camp for orphans and he was there for the past one month. So he just arrived back on Thursday night. We will see him on Friday.


Our visit with Zhengna went well and although we knew he was small for his age, it was very emotional, not only for Mark and I but for the many observers in the room present. We are the first family that has come to adopt a child from this orphanage. Z. responded positively to both Mark and I and smiled and laughed as we played catch and blew bubbles for him.  I am keeping a detailed journal of each days events on our laptop. I will post them when we return to Kyiv, as the cafe will not allow us to hook up our lap top to their connection. I will also post our many photos and videos at that time as well.

Friday was actually the first day I did not have to check with Mark on the day and time we were existing in. I felt well rested and out of the haze I'd been in. We headed to the deputy's office in Gorlovka to get the permission of the local authorities to visit Artyom, just as we had in Torez. This time though the assistant deputy" wished to meet and question us. We were in her office for what seemed to be an hour. Her phone rang every 1 minute for the first 30 minutes, I think. Anyway, she was a woman who meant business, but she was also was warm and smiled often, which is not common in Ukraine (the smiling, that is) . She was obviously concerned for the well being of the children and asked us many questions about our parenting styles, examples of how we discipline our children, what do we "expect" of the children with regards to their behavior. We shared photos of our home and family. She was amazed and smiled big when we showed her photos of a few of our wonderful godchildren and told her we have 6 all together. She is also an animal lover and ooohed and aahed when we showed her the photos of Chloe and her6 puppies. Another step closer, we headed to the Orphanage with another social worker from the office to observe again our interaction with Artyom.

Artyom looked great, although mama thinks he has lost weight. Funny, I say that because apparently at the Crimea the children are fed very well and can have all they want to eat. Helen, the director of Gorlovka hope is an amazing and loving woman. She is Ukrainian and also fluent in English. FYI for the families with coming soon t Gorlovka Hope. Helen tells me that the frying of potatoes in the orphanage is FORBIDDEN by the doctors. So get ready for a trip to McDonalds. No wonder there is not a bunch of chubby kids with bad cholesterol! No wonder Artyom was thrilled when I let him make his favorite dish for us at Christmas last year .... "fried katoshku (potato) chips" and I kid you not, there was a 1/2 pound of butter and 1/2 shaker of salt on those chips!! But , boy were they good!

We  are getting ready to leave the Internet cafe and head to Gorlovka Hope at 1:00.  We will be delivering special gifts today for families coming soon to bring home their children. We wish we could download the photos right away as I know you are longing to see those sweet faces. I will do what I can to find another way, otherwise I will do it for sure when we return to Kyiv. Please continue to cover us in prayer as it is so comforting and definitely helping.

We have arrived safely in Kyiv!!!!

Many thanks to everyone covering us in prayer as we set out yesterday. Your prayers were answered in awesome ways. Our flight from Atlanta to JFK (brief 20 minute connection in Charlotte) went very smooth. Pete and Christopher met us at the baggage claim to pick up Charlie and Nicholas. Although we will miss each other very much, the boys were very excited about spending this time with Nick’s godparents and our dear extended family. It was daddy and mom that got all teary eyed as our smiling little boys trotted off out the door.

We made our way up to the A-train and to the International Terminal. This was a new experience for both Mark and I as the only ‘International" traveling we have done is driving across the borders of Minnesota and North Dakota to Canada during childhood family trips.

Well, first I have to say that although one of my concerns was that I had over packed, I thought I had done an efficient job. Wrong! I had made several attempts while in my packing process to reach Aerosvit (Ukrainian Airlines) to get specifications on baggage restrictions as their website is a bit vague. First off, our checked bags were all under weight, which I was proud of. But I soon had a reality check when I was told that ALL of our carry ons were over. We were required take the luggage aside and reorganize to meet the requirements. I tried everything and redistributed our items including taking our 1 set of clothing for our SDA appointment out and praying we would see them in Kyiv in the checked bags they were now in. Each passenger is allowed 1 carry on item weighing no more than 5.0 kilos. (12.5 pounds) and 1 personal item such as a purse or diaper bag . I had a large back pack that I thought was considered a personal item as I did not have a purse, wrong again, It weighed more then 5.0kg. As well. Laptops/notebooks are not counted as carry on so it is O.K. to have them in addition to the 1 carry on and personal item.
I had to empty out 1 complete carry on bag and leave it behind in the airport. I hope somebody that really needs it will get it. We were still over weight, Oi vey!!! That’s when I broke out the puppy eyes and said to the nice young man behind the counter that I did not know what to do anymore and that we were taking donations and medicines to the orphanage with us and we could not leave them behind (true, not joking) He said, "that is O.K., you can take them." We were still one carry on piece over , but he overlooked it. God was certainly with us.

The luggage saga is not over. We also are carrying two pediatric wheelchairs with us . Because they do not have passengers in them yet, we are charged for extra cargo, $90 dollars per chair!! (another little surprise to spice things up) The nice young man, trying to be most helpful then said that if Mark could "wrap" them together and make one piece, then he would just charge for one. So as I was making attempts to redistribute weight in the luggage, Mark headed over to the wrapping machine. He disassembled as much as he could and Voila! A lovely one piece. Suggestion for anyone needing to "wrap" items: B.Y.O.W. or wrap before leaving home. Total cost for our wrap job- $80.00. Total for our wheelchair cocoon $170.00 We saved $10 bucks whoa!!

The Wheelchair "Cocoon"

The rest of the process including security was painless. The flight to Kyiv went seemingly fast to me as I was able to sleep for a couple of hours. The food was good (yes, girls, mom likes airplane food too). I went to get a water and discovered the bar was open with a little party going on too.
Mark’s thoughts on his first Int’l flight, "The flight to Kyiv was flawless and the food was very interesting. I really liked the status reports and logistical map (must be a guy thing) He also observed that Ukrainians like their shots of alcohol with breakfast. "I thought it was very charming when everyone clapped when the plane landed"





Taxi, taxi????? Thank you Dan for instructing us on the taxi protocol and what not to do. As soon as we came out of passport control, we were bombarded with drivers in black leather insisting we take their taxi "with many bosses". Yeah, right . All that went through my mind was your word "illegal". I had to say "no" or "nyeet" at least three times, then they asked Mark and he had to do the same before they finally walked on. Finally we went outside and found the Taxi hut and got a wonderful driver with a big van so we did not have to split up to get to the hotel. We took his business card for anyone that needs a big taxi out of the airport or in the city. He did not speak English, but had a real kind disposition.



Good Tuesday morning1 We checked into our hotel yesterday afternoon around 2pm Kyiv time. We spent a few hours just trying to get technically hooked up so we can communicate with everyone back home in the States and locally with our coordinator.
We do not have internet connection in our hotel room, but can post to blog and check e-mail at the business center here. We hope to see a bit of the city today and will post tonight to share our day.




Our appointment at SDA is tomorrow, but we are not sure what time yet and will post details when we do. We will make train reservations and head out to the region of Donetsk.

Hey everybody, we're still here.

Yes, I did say I was going to post again 2 weeks ago, but I was not thinking of all I had to get accomplished in 2 short weeks. Whew!! We just packed the last bag and can breath a bit easier after getting through most of the To do lists. I'm sure there will be some last minute details we forgot about, but it wouldn't be a true adventure if everything got done just so.


We are departing from Atlanta on Sunday morning . We will connect at JFK Sunday evening and arrive in Kyiv, Ukraine at 11:00am Monday. I hope to blog daily or atleast often as long as we get internet connections. We are staying at the Hotel Lybid in Kyiv and our SDA appointment is on Wednesday. We will then head to the region where our future children are. It is an 11-12 hour train ride to Donetsk. We will then stay in an apartment on the campus of Donetsk Christian University.


Please e-mail us anytime at our yahoo address or post a comment to our Blog. It will keep us feeling in touch with home sweet home. Charlie and Nick are staying with our dear friends and Nick's godparents in upstate New York.

OH MY GOODNESS GRACIE!!!

WE GOT OUR APPOINTMENT!!!!!!!!!!!!! AND WE ARE STILL SCREAMING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

ITS OCTOBER 24TH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

We will write more tomorrow when our brains stop whirling. Thank you for the many prayers and much love sent our way during these past months. God truly has a sense of humor giving us 16 days (14 days, as we need to be there on the 22nd) to be in Ukraine. Leslie, are you responsible for this? I'm not complaining, I promise.

The Wollschlager Weekly

Breaking News................................................................

Friday, September 28, 2007

Pictured Above:

Ukraine's President, Viktor Yushchenko;(He's even thinking...What's up with this? Let the Wollschlager's have their appointment already!)

This poor guy, just like George W., has the weight of the world on his shoulders. He needs our prayers too. We all have our political opinions and it is easy to criticize, but personally, I wouldn't want the job for anything!! O.K., maybe I'd stand in for an afternoon if the compensation was an appointment with the SDA!!!!

I am contemplating changing the name of our Blog to The Wollschlager Weekly, because every week since our dossier submission, there has been a new story out of Ukraine regarding our status. Get the latest news reel here. Today, I made my ritual phone call to our Agency (Not that I thought there was anything new that they perhaps had forgotten to tell me. But...... as a matter of fact the new news, is the same old news, but just with a little twist just in case we are getting bored waiting or maybe to give me some fresh material for my faithful Blog groupies.

This week, in Ukraine, the Parliamentary Elections are taking place and therefore all of the government offices, which of course include the State Department for Adoption and Protection of Children’s Rights - "SDA", were closed. Which means our Coordinator did not go to Kyiv as she had thought she would and reports that she will go next week to obtain our appointment. (HUGE SIGH! Can you feel my breath throughout cyberspace?)

Anyway, it is a darn good thing I know that God's timing is so perfect or I wouldn't be chill'in right now. Please keep the prayers coming, I know we must be in the home stretch of this marathon because my shins are killing me!!! I'm going to go eat a bowl of Cheerios now. True comfort food for children of all ages.