Can you say "THANK YOU GOD! ! !" ?

What a day it has been!  We are so excited!  Okay, let me get to the point here!  We are the blessed new parents to two new little Diester fellows!  To God be all the glory!  Pinch me~~is this for real??  As God revealed a bible verse to us as we were praying and on a 3-day fast at the beginning of our adoption process, he once again showed us again today how he takes care of us.  He specifically showed Diester Proverbs 30:5, which says "Every word of God is pure; He is a shield to those who put their trust in him."  It was this bible vs. that encouraged Diester to take this leap of faith, and know that God would take care of us.  He shielded us then, and as we walked this journey, and as we went through court today.  He will not disappoint us even when times are tough.  We have had to trust in him all along the way.

Today was no exception.  We knew, from speaking and reviewing for court with our translator and facilitator yesterday, that there was a problem with our deed that we got from the Kenton County court house .  The deed that was provided to us a few months ago, unbeknownst to us, only included the additional piece of land that we purchased on the back side of our property in 1999. A TOTAL SHOCKER!!  Besides that, it is for a piece of property that is only 225 sq ft.  But, at the courthouse, they did not include our main deed when we requested it.  So, here we are with one piece of our documents showing that we purchased our home in 1995, however, the deed (that we provided) showed 1999.  A total discrepancy! !   A huge problem actually~just a little stressful.  So, when we got picked up today, it was THE topic of discussion, and the facilitator once again asked why we provided this deed instead of our actual deed?  Of course, it was my mistake that I didn't catch that we did not get our entire deed, only the addendum.   So, I basically just said what happened; and we agreed to act surprised that it was not the proper deed if it got brought up.  It always gets brought up.  It was at that time that we got a little concerned that there might be a serious problem.  It was also at this time that I suggested that we pray.  (Diester had spend time this morning in God's word, and in prayer, and preparation, and asking God for the judge to have mercy on us for any problems that might appear, or any mistakes.)  We prayed together in the car for God to cover us in this process, and for us to know that whatever happens, the Lord is in control, and wants the best for us. 

Additionally, last evening in the meeting with the facilitator and interpreter, we had spent time talking about the questions that we would be asked so that we would understand how we needed to answer to have the judge review in a positive light about approving our adoption.   So, we felt like we were prepared, and Diester was reviewing our notes, and also practicing the Russian phrases that he has learned (in case the judge wanted to hear them).  It was very nerve racking, (but I did find out that I would do very little talking, so it was not as hard for me.)  Diester is laughing at that comment~~he did have all of the pressure to answer the questions being asked by the judge.  He is very good at getting prepared for something like this, and I have to say he did totally awesome! ! ! 

So, we are in the courtroom waiting, just waiting for the judge to show up.  (Oh, on the way into the courtroom, the facilitator, who is not invited in, made the sign of the cross over us as we passed by.  So sweet!  Truly we needed the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit on our behalf.)   There are 3 women judges, and Diester was trying to get a feel for the judge prior to meeting her, and Ilena had told him the judge was very unpredictable.  She may allow things. . . .or she may not.  We were thinking in the little bubble above our heads :-)  that she is a 'flexible' judge.  In the meantime, we just keep praying silently, and asking God to cover us.  We needed the Lord to be with us right then.  And he was.   

To speak about what happened next, the applicants, Diester and I, were asked to state our names, DOB, place of birth, etc.  Then the judge started court.  Diester was asked to stand to answer the questions, and then they started.  Ilena was a wonderful interpreter.  The judge asked if we had anything that we wanted to present to the court, to which he replied yes, and we offered the judge pix of our visits with the boys.  I told you that the pictures from yesterday with the boys were incredible, due to the fact that these boys were so excited to see us, and could not hide their excitement.  So, we offered these up to the judge.  The judge asked him many questions, to which he responded wonderfully.  Seriously, he was amazing!  He was very thorough in his answers, and covered all of his bases.  He answered with such sincerity, and love towards the boys.  She also wanted to know why we chose Russia~~great lead in for Diester to share about his grandmother who was born in Russia; to show pictures of her, the boat she immigrated to the United States on, and a pix of the two of them from her 100th birthday.  Anything to help our cause!
The judge stated that she appreciated the 'warm words that he speaks about the children.' (note about this later)

So, they get finished with him, and then they ask if there is anything that I would like to add, and I stand up, and totally lose it.  Kind of my mode of operation~~I just said "I am really excited, and can't wait until we get these boys home if we are approved."  She asked if I knew what kind of effort it was going to take with Diester working, and me being the primary caregiver.  I answered "Yes", and then she questioned if I had any fears or reservations about taking on these 2 boys, to which I replied "no".  You can ask me about that later!  I AM trusting in the Lord to lead us~~I know I cannot do this on my own.  Totally not possible! 

So, then they moved on to the different representatives there.  One for the orphanage, one for the Dept. of Education, and one who was the state's public defender.  These people had to state their case, and help our case or not.  They in fact did help us out with our case.  The lady from the orphanage was quite a blessing, and told about our interaction with the boys, how they missed us and asked for us when we were not there, how she could really tell that we tried to learn some Russian before we came to Russia to help us communicate with the boys, etc.  She was a joy to have in the court!   

After these representatives spoke their peace, the whole group of us were asked to leave the room.  Now mind you, the judge did ask about the pool in our back yard, and the safety needed for that to which we were very clear about knowing the importance of being aware of this possible temptation for the boys.  Nothing was said about owning our home or when it was purchased.  So, Diester and I leave with everyone while the judge is deciding on her decision.  We were in the hallway, and I got a drink of water, and discussing 'nothing' of importance~~you know, those awkward moments when noone knows what to say.  Within 2 minutes, we were called back into the courtroom.  There we were asked to stand while the judge read her decision.  She had a whole long thing to read to us, which basically gave us the green light to bring these 2 little lives into our family to make 6.   As you can probably imagine, I cannot hardly contain the tears or the excitement.  It was a blessed moment!  We hugged everyone (not the judge), and left the courtroom.  What a wonderful point to be at!  We can breathe now!  Thank you Lord from whom all blessings flow!  He is a good God all of the time!

This is Lidia (the facilitator), Ilena (our interpreter), and us!   What a blessing they have been!
We decide it is time to go, and so we headed for the car.  On the way, Ilena complimented Diester on how well he did, how he was so positive, and how he was very confident.  That was so nice.  She made it clear that he had done an excellent job.  She was very happy and positive about that.  Then we got into  our facilitator's car to come back, and Ilena let the cat out of the bag.  Here is when we find out the truth about some things.  First off, there were some papers that we had just taken care of prior to our 2nd trip.  She did not notice until it was translated that one of the notaries dated something for 2010 when it should have been 2011.   That would have never been allowed if caught.  Lidia (the facil.) at this point says how we must have a lot of great guardian angels watching over our family.  We give all the glory to our Father in heaven.  Secondly, Ilena told us that there are many people who think that this judge we had is 'mean'.  She said she has never heard this judge speak so kindly about how Diester described the children.  (remember, I told you to make a note of her comment above)  Okay, so this is quite a shock that she is considered 'mean'.  We could see that she was a very serious, stern judge (who would not crack a smile), but that didn't deter Diester!  He just kept on his track of answering her questions to the best of his ability, with positive, honest, heartfelt responses.   Then of course, the 3rd thing that we all were able to breath easy about was the fact that she didn't even bring up about how long we had owned our home.  Praise the Lord for he was our shield in all of these situations. 


So now, I have a few things I want to add.  The blessings just keep coming.  This morning when we SKYPed with our girls prior to court, Diester shared with the girls that one of the highlights of our visits with the boys yesterday was that we took I.A. on a car ride.  (remember, the little guy just freaked out when I tried this the last time we were in Russia).  He told them how it was an incredible surprise that he only threw a fit for literally 3 seconds, and that was all.  And how then, he was entranced the entire time we were driving.  They responded:  "We (our house church group) prayed about that for you today!"  And the Lord heard their prayer.  Now it makes sense how I.A. handled it so well so quickly!  Praise God!  Whoever was involved in praying for that, we thank you! 

Another fun thing was to hear about Mallory's first day of work.  She is like me, and likes to tell all of the details. We love to hear about it.  Sounds like it was a blessed day.  Nice that she has a job where they pray together before the day gets going, and even together before their lunch.  Now, that is the kind of employer we want our girls to work for.   And we also got to hear about all of the fun things they have been doing with the family they are staying with.  Once again, a blessing!  But they did tell us it would not be the best day to skype them today, because they would be too busy, with Mallory working, and the party going on tonight.  :-(  We are going to miss them.  Glad life is full for them!

Also, great news about something that all parents would lament if they didn't have.  When we met with the orphanage Doctor and the social worker from the orphanage yesterday, we found out that they have some pictures of the little guys from when they were younger.  3 pictures each.  Okay, as I write this, it sounds pretty pitiful, but you know, when we thought we had nothing, 3 pictures is a LOT!  What a little gold mine!  Thank you God!  We are thankful!

After court, we went out to Mama Roma's as a celebration lunch, thinking it was going to be a great pizza buffet.  It is a decent Italian restaurant, so it wasn't a pizza buffet, it was a classier Italian buffet with many healthy choices for lunch.  We enjoyed the food as we listened to a Michael Jackson (gag me) soundtrack.  The food was excellent--but just not NO pizza.  Does anybody know about tipping in Russia?  We have been told that you do not tip in Russia, but I am going to have to ask Iris (our local friend here) for clarification. 

So, we had a nice lunch, and then needed groceries for the week.  We went to the grocery store, and got stocked up.  Diester was able to communicate with one clerk ~~the basics you know, Press tee tah (which means Excuse me in Russia)  Vah-Da? (which means water) and he used his hand gestures to indicate we wanted the big jug.  She understood and showed him where it was located.  As we were standing in line to check out, we realize we are going to have to carry all of this food back to our apt.  Oh my, we normally buy, put it in our car and drive home.  We don't walk blocks upon blocks carrying 20 lbs in each hand.  So then it is our turn to check out, and the cashier looks at us and in our grocery cart as if to ask why we were in her line?  Not really, but I panic and think we must be in the line like for people with 12 items or less.  I look around, and then exclaimed loudly to Diester that we must be in the wrong lane (in English.)  She looks confused.  Everyone in all of the lines are looking at us.  I am visually counting items that other people have, and Diester is making hand gestures trying to ask if everything is okay, trying to calm everything down, forgetting his Russian phrase to ask 'Is everything okay?"  If people did not know we were Americans already, this was the dead give-away.  The cashier was actually trying to determine the size of bags she needed to use for our order.  Hence, the look into our cart.  We were not kicked out, or made to go to another lane.  She just rang us up, we paid, and we were on our way home. 

Well, that is it for today!  Diester and I are relaxing together (me blogging and he is channel surfing~and helping me blog)!  Hope you enjoyed!  God bless you all, and thank you again for your prayers! 

WE ARE BLESSED!  We would love to hear from you if you have the time!  Thank you so much! 

Blowing bubbles with the little guys!

        This is when they took a ride in the car!  Sorry, can't show pix of the boys yet!  Trust me, they're precious!