It will be here before we know it.....

After almost 2 years of waiting, we will be leaving to get our daughter. On January 6, 2012, Jason and I will be leaving North Carolina and traveling to Bulgaria to pick up Olivia. Please pray for a safe and smooth trip. Also pray for both sets of grandparents who will be staying with our children at home.

Adopted for Life - A Sermon by Russell Moore

As we are filling out more paperwork and preparing to send it off to the United States Immigration Services, our church was hosting an "Orphan Care" weekend. Around the time Jason and I decided to pursue adoption, our church formed an Orphan Care Ministry. Jason and I have become involved in that, and it's been neat to watch it grow. This past Sunday, Russell Moore, author of "Adopted for Life" preached on adoption. His sermon was phenomenal, and I would encourage everyone to watch it.

If for some reason the link does not embed properly in my post, here's how to find it:

www.summitrdu.com
Click on Watch/Hear Sermons
Click on Adopted for Life by Russell Moore (June 26, 2011)

Home Sweet Home - Well Almost!

Jason and I woke up at Saturday morning at 3am Bulgaria time (Friday night at 8pm EST. We took a cab to the Varna, Bulgaria airport and checked into our flight to Budapest, Hungary. Once we arrived in Budapest, we had a 6 hour layover until our flight left for JFK. What did we do in those 6 hours might you ask......?

Because it was 6am Budapest time, we both crashed on rows of seats in the gate waiting area. I always wondered why people fell asleep on the benches in airports....now I have become one of those people. Jason set his alarm to wake us at 9am because the American Airlines desk opened at that time, and he wanted to make sure we got exit row seats for the 9 hour flight to JFK. Leg room is very important to Jason. :) After that, we roamed the small airport, got something to eat, and grabbed some snacks for the flight. At a little before noon, we boarded our flight to JFK.

The flight was uneventful, for the most part. We watched a movie, had some lunch, and watched some NBC TV shows. Then, the flight attendant came on the loudspeaker asking for a licensed medical professional. Someone "had fallen ill" on the aircraft. Jason was gone for a short while tending to a passenger with belly pain. I just kept picturing us having to re-route somewhere to land and take care of this person. I certainly didn't want to do that, and even though we haven't received any bad reports from my parents about the kids, I'm sure my mom is looking forward to us making it home tonight. :)

After the medical incident, we still had 3 hours left in our flight. Another movie and a nap later, we finally made our descent into JFK. We were so happy to be back on US soil!

Now we just have one more leg of our trip to go. We're sitting in the airport until our flight leaves for RDU at 7pm. I'm sure our blog will remain quiet for a while until we receive news that we can travel again. We'll be sure to update it as get more information. Thanks again for following us on this journey!

"Grumpy" - And we don't mean the Dwarf!

We checked out of the Hotel Shumen at around 8am this (Friday) morning. I can’t say that I was terribly sad to leave the hotel, but it did provide a roof over our head and a warm shower each day, along with breakfast for the week. After stowing our luggage, we headed off to the park for our final visit.

Olivia saw us and ran straight to Jason for a good morning hug. We let her play on the Merry Go Round and money-operated rides (just like you see inside the malls) for a little bit.

Later on, she discovered a “bobo” (dog). There are many homeless dogs that roam the streets of Shumen. She followed the dog, and Jason watched very carefully to make sure she didn’t get too close. As 3 year olds can be, she was very quick, and made her way toward the dog and was “hitting” it. When I say hitting, I mean just as any toddler would do. A very strong pat. When Jason gently scolded her, she got very upset. At that point, we made our way to the playground equipment.

We played for a little bit, but we could tell she was sleepy and a bit grumpy…..hence the title. I’m sure the week has been tiring for her. She saw another mom holding a bouncy ball for her daughter, and Olivia took it out of her hand. The mom didn’t seem to mind. Olivia played with it for a few minutes, and then the little girl wanted it back. I guided Olivia over to the little girl so we could return it, and another tantrum broke out. Just like a typical 2-3 year old. I guess some things are the same, no matter what country you’re in…

After getting her distracted with my “tick tock” (watch), she became calm again. She remained focused on the watch for quite some time, keeping it with her until we said goodbye. Once she was put in the swing, Olivia started singing to herself, as she has done in the past. Then, her foster mother got her Barbie ball out of the car. Olivia loves to kick the ball and is fascinated by older children. She’s going to have lots to watch and imitate when we get to bring her home.

We had to catch a 2:30pm bus to Varna, where the airport is located. So, around 12:30, we said our goodbyes. I told myself to hold it together, but when I tried to tell the translator to tell the foster mother, “Thank you for taking care of her while we’re away…” All I could get out was “Tell her….” then I began crying. There were many kisses, and when the foster mother realized I was crying, she hugged me and kissed me on both cheeks as Europeans do. I thank God every minute that Olivia has such a wonderful, loving and caring foster mother. We could not have asked for a better caretaker for her in our absence. As Olivia was buckled in the car, we blew kisses and waved goodbye. Four to six months is just too long!

Once we caught our bus, we arrived in Varna around 4:15pm. We got a cab to our hotel, which is a bit better than the previous one. We will leave the hotel tomorrow (Saturday) morning at 3:30am, that’s 8:30pm on Friday night EST in the US. It will be a 24 hour day for us, and we’ll try to keep you updated during our layovers.

Thank you all so much for your thoughts, prayers, and words of encouragement during our trip. What would we do without the internet and email?

Sleepy Baby

Olivia, her foster mother, and the social worker had a court meeting this morning, so we did not get to meet them at the park until around 11:30. Olivia enjoyed her lunch, and then we played at the playground.

She climbed and slid down the slide until she slipped and decided that she didn’t want to do that anymore. We put her in the swing, and she almost fell asleep. She started walking around with her thumb in her mouth and rubbing her hair.

After a quick snack of “soletti’s” (pretzel sticks), she gained a second wind, and we played some more. Her foster mother brought out the Barbie ball we bought her, and she enjoyed kicking that around the playground and rolling the ball down the slide.

I wish I had more to share today, but it was just more time spent with Olivia. Jason’s comment was, “enough of this visitation business, we just need to get her home.”

Tomorrow morning we have to visit a notary to sign documents confirming that we in fact want to adopt Olivia. We could have signed those documents the day we met her, but the law states we must spend 5 days with the child prior to signing the documents. Once we sign the documents, they will be filed in municipal court in Sofia and a court date will be set. Once we receive notice of the court date, we will make arrangements to return. That time, we won’t be leaving without our daughter!!!

In order to complete those documents, we had to provide our translator with the American name that we would give the child. Well……once upon a time, we thought we would name her Olivia Sofia. Sofia is the capital city of Bulgaria, and we wanted to somehow recognize her heritage. After learning and confirming that her given name, “Radostina” means joy, we decided to name her Olivia Joy. I hope this will give us the opportunity to share her Bulgarian heritage with her as she grows up.

Tomorrow (Friday) afternoon, we are leaving Shumen to take a one hour bus ride to Varna. We will spend the night in Varna and catch an extremely early flight (5am) on Saturday morning to Budapest. From Budapest, we will fly to JFK and then to RDU. It will be a long, exhausting day, but we’ll be back at home late on Saturday night. If we don’t get to blog anymore after this, we’ll do our best to conclude our trip later on.

Thanks again for your thoughts and prayers.

Seeing the Sights

Another night of restful sleep prepared us for the adventure we shared with Olivia today. We met at a park this morning where Olivia saw me and ran straight into my arms for a big hug. What a way to start my morning! After that greeting, she quickly asked for Jason’s sunglasses and began to march around with them. She discovered that when she poked Jason’s cheek (which was filled with air), he made a funny sound. That trick received many giggles.

We were only at the park a short time before we left to visit a monument in Shumen. This monument was built 30 years ago in recognition of the 1300 years of Bulgaria’s existence. When we arrived, our translator told us not to speak. We said OK, and walked slowly away from the ticket booth. There was some discussion about what to pay to enter the monument. The translator told me it would be 5 leva (Bulgarian currency) for all of us to enter (Jason, me, Olivia, the translator, the foster mother, and the social worker). I gave her the money, and when she returned, she said the ticket receptionist asked where we were from because apparently we sounded American.  Her comment was that she had given us too much of a discount because we were American. That has seemed to be the mentality since we’ve been here. The Bulgarians see “rich” Americans coming, and feel like they can gouge the prices of their products. Fortunately, our translator knows this and has been watching out for us.

After spending some time at the monument, we found a hiking trail through a nature center. This seemed to be a place where kids visited to go to camp during the summer. We could tell Olivia was getting tired, so we decided to go back into town.

She fell asleep in the car, while she was in her less than acceptable car seat. When we arrived at the park, we parked right next to an outside café. The foster mother and social worker waved us to the café and left Olivia in the car to sleep. I felt very uncomfortable leaving her, and encouraged them to roll the windows down in the car. I had not noticed that one window was already rolled down. We sat at a table where we could see the car, and Jason went over several times to check on her. I told our translator that we would be arrested in America if we left our child(ren) in the car like that (I should mention that we were able to see the car the entire time - we're not completely insane...). We enjoyed a light lunch and when Olivia woke up, she was not in the best of moods (she’ll fit right in at our house!). But, we got to spend a few more minutes with her until they left for the day.

Tomorrow we will meet later in the morning since the foster mother and Olivia have a court visit, we think to review how things are going in the home. We have been told that it will be 4-6 months before we can bring Olivia home. This was a shock to us since we have been told previously that it could be 1-2 months. It’s very frustrating, and we ask that you pray for us as we enjoy this time with her and that the goodbye’s on Friday will not be torturous.

There have been several frustrations, unexpected events, and nuisances throughout this short week. But, we have to remind ourselves that God is good, and he has given us a beautiful child in Olivia. And, if we have to endure all of this nonsense to get her home, then we will. We cannot imagine our lives without her, and we know she will fit right into the chaos that we call our lives! “Ciao” for now.

Another Day of "Joy"

We found out that Olivia’s given name (Radostina) means “Joy” in Bulgarian. And that is exactly how I would describe our second day with her…

We briefly met at the Social Services Bureau again this morning. When we saw Olivia, she was wearing a T-shirt and her diaper covered only with underwear. She was also wearing socks and dress shoes. I brought a bag of clothing to give to the foster mother for future use, and I desperately wanted to put a pair of pants on Olivia. However, I did not want to offend the foster mother in any way. So we spent a little time together, and then Jason and I went to a municipal office to sign and notarize a document regarding the use of pictures we take of Olivia. Afterwards, we drove to a park and met her there.

When we arrived at the park, Olivia had on a pair of shorts that I had sent in the clothing bag. I had a sigh of relief. Jason and I are both amazed at the “joy” Olivia has in life. She walks with confidence, swinging her arms and almost marching ahead of us. She is constantly laughing and smiling, finding happiness in the smallest of things. I don’t know if she had ever been on a slide before because she was unhappy about trying it out. But once she saw how fun it was, she wanted to keep doing it. She also enjoyed the swing and climbing on the playground structures, as well. As lunch and naptime approached, Jason carried Olivia on his shoulders (another thing she loves and repeatedly asks to do) back to the car, and we said our goodbyes until later in the afternoon.

One of the things we wanted to do while we were here was visit the orphanage where Olivia spent the first 3 years of her life. Fortunately, the director was kind enough to allow us entry to visit with him and tour the facility. The director was genuinely friendly, answered our questions thoroughly, and made us feel very comfortable. As we toured the orphanage, we were able to meet some of Olivia’s caretakers, and we did the best we could to thank them for taking care of our daughter. They all seemed very loving. We saw where Olivia slept and played inside and outside. I was biting the inside of my lip to stop myself from sobbing the entire time. It was obvious I was shedding tears, but I tried not to show my heartbreak to the director and caretakers. The cribs were lined up right next to each other, about 15 to 20 to a room. The room adjoining the crib room was a small playroom, which had a futon and one small cabinet of toys. This was also where the children would eat. When we stepped out onto the terrace, we could see the outside playground below us. It was very overgrown with weeds and there were a few rusty pieces of play equipment. When our visit was over, we waited outside the orphanage for a cab to take us back to town. I stood looking at the dreary building that was falling apart and reminded myself of how truly blessed we are.

After the fun and emotional morning, we sat down to lunch at a pizzeria and then went to a different park to meet Olivia again. She loved the bubbles we brought, but became disinterested in the sidewalk chalk pretty quickly. She was much too excited to run around the playground and play with mommy and daddy. You’ll see in some pictures that we bought her a pair of sunglasses to keep as her very own; however, daddy’s sunglasses were still a big hit. As evening approached, she raised her arms to me, I picked her up, and then she laid her head on my shoulder. I knew then that she was tired and it was probably time to say goodbye for the day. She also started putting her thumb in her mouth and playing with her hair….another sign of being tired. We gave kisses all around and we’ll plan on meeting her at the park again tomorrow morning.

She's Perfect!

I collapsed into bed last night after dinner and I think both Jason and I slept like rocks. We were exhausted. But nothing could stop us from seeing our daughter, Olivia, for the first time today.

We enjoyed a breakfast with our translator (who has been a God-send). A bit of history about Bistra....she is a recent college graduate and studied translation in school. She has been working with the adoption agency for almost a year, and it has been such a comfort to have her with us all the time.

After breakfast, we took a taxi to the Social Services Bureau in the town of Shumen. We were a bit early, so we took a walk down the main street. Lots of shops, outside cafes, etc. Once we had killed a bit of time, we anxiously walked back to the Social Services Office.

Once entering, we went upstairs to the information desk. Olivia was sitting in her foster mother's lap, and two social workers were present. My breath was taken away at seeing her for the first time. I have been looking at her picture for months, and I couldn't believe that I was finally seeing her in person. Amazingly enough, she was not shy at all. She ran right to Jason, raised her arms to be picked up, and she grabbed the sunglasses off of his head. That was her favorite item for quite some time. She also became interested in my sunglasses, and we enjoyed playing with her while passing the glasses back and forth. We were desperately wanting to take pictures but didn't want to bombard Olivia with photographs. Once we were led into a small playroom, we were able to spend more time with Olivia.

Despite the fact that we didn't want to pull the camera out right away, I just couldn't wait. Amazingly, her first English word was "smile." She repeated it right away when we started taking her picture. Then, of course, we showed them to her on the screen and she was completely fascinated. She was pushing all the buttons on the camera, wanting to take more pictures. She kept saying, "smile," which let us know she wanted more pictures taken. Once we stopped taking pictures, we took out some of the gifts we brought. She loved the new markers and stickers. She even started learning more English words. One of the stickers was a star, and she learned that word right away.

After a while, we went outside to a small courtyard to play a bit. She let Jason take her hand and lead her down the steps, and we found a ball which she loved. She and Jason played soccer for a while, and she laughed and laughed the entire time. I enjoyed playing peek-a-boo with her and she loved being tickled. While outside, she also said the word "yucky," as I would describe trash on the ground. Pretty funny!

As the temperature became hotter, we went back inside to play for a bit. It was hard to say goodbye, but she gave each of us kisses and said, "ciao" as she left. She was also calling us "Daddy" and "Mommy" by the end of the morning. When we would point to each other she would call each of us our names with a prompt. When she kissed Jason goodbye, she got a funny look on her face and rubbed his whiskers. You could tell that was a new experience for her.

All in all, it was a great morning, and we can't wait to see her again tomorrow. We will get to spend more time with her tomorrow, and we're hoping to take her to a little carnival that we saw just down the road.

We couldn't believe how well adjusted she seems to be and how easily she took to us right away. God has truly blessed us and has blessed our daughter in so many ways. We continue to ask for your prayers as we continue our week here. And, we'll do the best we can to update you as often as possible. Love to you all.

Finally in Bulgaria

Well, after about 21 straight hours of travelling and 24 hours without a shower, we have finally made it to Shumen, Bulgaria. We landed in Varna, Bulgaria on time and met our interpreter after clearing customs. Bistra is a new college graduate who works as a translator for 2 adoption agencies in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. She quickly ushered us out of the aiport, contacted our "driver" who was dutifully waiting for us outside, and then we were off for our last leg of the journey, a one hour drive to Shumen. Once we arrived, we checked into the hotel and finally got showers! I'm used to going all night without sleep and showers, but I think Sally was really ready for a rest. All in all, though, the trip couldn't have gone smoother. We're heading off to dinner with Bistra and then headed to bed for some much needed sleep. Tomorrow, after about 3 years of prayer and discussion, and after about 18 months of paperwork, interviews, planning, delaying, more praying, and travelling, we will finally meet our precious daughter, soon to be Olivia Sofia Williams. God is good, we are so blessed! More to come tomorrow....

Hello From Budapest

We've landed safely in Budapest, Hungary. The flight was uneventful and we are now in a nice but small airport for about two hours as we wait for our next flight to Varna, Bulgaria. Not much else to report for now. Well try to check in once we arrive safely in Bulgaria.

Arrived Safely in New York

In preparation for our trip, I feel like I haven't slept much. My anxiety level has been pretty high. With that said, I slept the entire flight from RDU to JFK. What a nice afternoon nap. Jason said he kept getting hit by the flight attendant everytime she walked by. I told him it was too bad he wasn't sitting by the window. :) We are sitting in the Admiral's Club at JFK....this is where they host their military personnel. Nothing like the warm greeting we received at the RDU USO. We actually have to pay for food here. :( But, we get the free internet access. We leave at 6:40 EST for Budapest, Hungary. That will be our overnight flight. We will do our best to get online while we're overseas to update you with information and pictures.

On our way!

Well, we've checked in and sent off our bags. We had a little extra time so we've come to the USO here at RDU and are enjoying a nice lunch before we head through security to catch our first of three flights. In about an hour we're off to JFK, followed by a 9 hour flight to Budapest and then another flight to Bulgaria. All in all we'll be travelling for about the next 24 hours. Keep us in your prayers...we can't wait to meet Olivia!

We're Leaving!

Hi all!  I really didn't have any updates until recently.  We found out almost 2 weeks ago that we'll be traveling to Bulgaria June 4-11, 2011.  I had such a mix of emotions when I found out.  I wanted to laugh, cry and jump up and down all at the same time. 

We have made our flight reservations and hotel reservations.  We have to make 3 flights to get to Varna, Bulgaria.  And then we'll drive about 1 hour to Shoumen where our precious girl is located.  She was moved from the orphanage to foster care about one month ago. 

We will hopefully take lots of pictures and video and either update our blog, facebook or send things via email.  Just keep a look out as we do our best to document our trip. 

We truly ask for your prayers during this time as we leave the other 4 children behind with very capable grandparents!