Days of Elijah Day 26 - GOTCHA DAY!!!

WOOHOO!!!!!!  Elijah is OUT!  Out of that orphange FOREVER and EVER and EVER! :-)  PRAISE GOD for His absolute faithfulness and goodness. I can't say that enough. God is SO GOOD!

Onto our day...we did our morning visit as usual. Just before we finished up, Marina called said the passport was ready. Our regular driver was busy, so we had a new "kid". (He was 21 and drove like a wild man!) Anyway, "Ursula" gave me the passport and we are good to go! After finishing packing, cleaning our apt a bit, and paying the landlord the final 2 days of rent, we were off to the orphanage.



Clothes in hand - let's go get him!




First time I saw his legs and toes!
His feet are very, very, very dry. :-(




Yep, socks over the tights...I didn't want the nannies to think I was going to neglect the poor child.
The tights and sweater vest are from his first mama.




Just about ready! "Thanks big sister Sarah for the cool hat!"



Saying a tearful good-bye to their sweet "Aloysha"
(I was tearful too...)

Walking out the door for the LAST time!

He did great in his 2nd "machina" ride on the way to the train station. Our train left at 4:26, but we were there before 4pm. That was great! This particular train is VERY long - so long you can hardly see the end. And depending on what track it is on, one usually has to go down steps, under tracks and back up. But not us! We walked right up to the train, and our car was right there by the main entrance to the tracks. Thank you Lord! See, we had lots of stuff (extra food and water too) and the stairs would have been difficult. We will have to repack and organize before getting on the plane, that's for sure.

Getting on the train!

In the cabin - he was done in the Ergo.

"Hey, look! I look like a little American boy!"

A Christmas present from Auntie Debbie
"Spa-see-ba"

Elijah did GREAT on the train. It was AMAZING! It was like it didn't even phase him at all. Thank you to all that were praying! He had some snacks, a little supper, played, more snacks, more snacks (he likes to eat!) and then it was jammies and bedtime. I put a bunch of the train's blankets on the floor, covered with a clean sheet and he was pretty contained down in there between the 2 benches/beds. He slept great! At least 10 hours I think. He does the cutest little sucking thing with his tongue. I'm sure it's a self-soothing thing, but no rocking back and forth, so that's good. I did try snuggling with him on my bed, but it was just too close for him. He kept hitting me, so I knew it was too much for him. He did great on the floor. When he woke up, he just laid there playing with his hands until we turned on the light and got him up.

So, there you have it - "Gotcha Day"!  Have I mentioned lately how all this still seems so surreal? I honestly don't think it is going to really hit me until we get home and have our whole family together. We are almost there...2 more sleeps here and then we are off - headed for home. I can not wait! It was one month ago yesterday that Pat and I left on this adventure of a lifetime. It seems like a lifetime ago. But all of the sacrifices we have made are all just temporary and short-lived compared to the wonderful blessing this precious child of God has and will continue to bring into our lives. Thank you for all of your support and prayers! We couldn't have done it without you or without the love our Heavenly Father!