I'm Leavin' on a Jet Plane...

...in just over 12 hrs from now! I can.not.wait to get back to hold Jonathan in my arms again. I have missed him dearly this last week. It's hard when my heart is in two places. But, on the other hand, it almost seems like those 3 weeks in June were a dream. I mean I have nothing here to show for it...but that will change!

Ok, it's late and I do need some sleep tonight, so I'm just going bullet point this.

Prayer requests:
- Uneventful flights there and back
- Smooth "paper chasing" on Wednesday for the court decree, the birth certificate, the PASSPORT! All it would take is for one "director" at one of the places to not be in to sign off on something to derail our fast track and we won't be home until Tuesday.
- A fun "Gotcha Day" on Wednesday! I have a couple of things to take care of at the orphanage, so please pray I'm granted favor for that as well.
- Peace for Jonathan as he leaves the only home he's ever known - that he would sleep and eat well and stay healthy.
- Wisdom for me as I parent him solo in a foreign country - so glad Vanya will be with me Wednesday and Thursday. :-)
- Smooth process in Kiev for the medical exam and visa processing
- Sleepy, quiet and cooperative baby :-) on the flights home and that the Lord would put the right person on the flight to help me if need be.
- Here at home: understanding for the kids as Mommy leaves once again, patience and endurance for my parents, the 3 "middles" start swimming lessons this week, Sarah going to Lifest, a fun 4th of July for the family and friends they'll be visiting, and a VERY HAPPY BIRTHDAY TO ANNA!!! She will be 9 years old this week! I'm very sad to miss her birthday, but I know she will be surrounded by those who love her. I'm so proud of her for being so understanding!

Blog updates:
I'm NOT bringing the laptop with me as I would only have the potential to have internet a couple of days, plus it's heavy. I'm hoping Vanya will be able to email Sarah quick updates and she can post updates throughout the week. Gotcha Day photos will come when I get home. :-)

Homecoming:
All the "experts" tell adoptive parents to keep the airport homecoming thing low-key. I'm sure there is wisdom to that. BUT, since we got totally jipped out of the "homecoming" experience with Elijah, anyone who wants to give up part of their Saturday afternoon is more than welcome to join us!  Lord willing my plane will get in about 4pm. :-)

Attachment:
Just a quick note about this until I can explain it better at a later time. Jonathan does not know who his mama and dada are yet. He has always had revolving caretakers, not one single person to "attach" to. So, in an effort to help him understand who his mama and dada are, we will be making a conscious effort to limit who holds and feeds him to basically just Pat and I. We are so grateful to everyone who has loved and supported our family through this process and love you all. We feel this is the best thing for Jonathan at this point. Thanks for your understanding!  Tensey, who brought home Kirill from Russia, wrote a wonderful, thoughtful blog post about this here.

Names:
Typing Kirill's name above reminded me of something.  Jonathan's middle name is Kiril with one "L". It is his given name and we wanted to honor his heritage by preserving his given name as his middle name. In a way, I regret not doing that with Elijah, especially since we are in contact with his birth parents. Anyway, when translating the name from Russian, it is spelled with 2 L's. When translating it from Ukrainian, it is spelled with 1 L. Interesting, huh? Aren't you glad you read all the way down here to learn that little tidbit.

On that note, I'll sign off! Thank you again to everyone for your prayers, love and support for this final leg of our journey. We are beyond grateful! Love to you all!