We are home!

We made it home last night and thankfully, the jet lag is affecting me WAY less than it did in Russia.  There I could only sleep for four hours at any given time (hence all the blog writing ;) and the first morning I woke up, it felt like I had been hit by a train.  I think it might have something to do with the fact that I stayed up almost the entire plane ride on the way there.  So thankfully, I was able to sleep for several hours on the plane trip back.  I was even able to sleep for eight hours straight last night... the first time in over a week!  Maybe I just needed my own bed back.  ;)

On the last day in Russia, we had our medical.  It was interesting... to say the least.  I was SO nervous for the blood draw because I'm the type of person where they have to try three times in each arm (after missing each vein and jiggling the needle in order to desperately find it somehow).  I have had some horrible experiences so I just wasn't thrilled about trying it out in a foreign country.  I even asked my translator to tell the woman drawing my blood that I had small veins.  He said not to worry, that they were all really good here.  :) To my relief, he was right!  Although it was the biggest needle I've ever seen, she got my vein on the first try!  Amazing.  I seriously think this has only happened once before?  I gleefully ran out of the lab, practically bursting in excitement.

The hospital was very clean and quiet.  There are several doctors who specialize in specific things, so basically in each long hallway there are chairs lined up along the wall. Depending on the doctor you were there to see, you would wait in the chair directly outside his/her door.  Although we were in line to see several different doctors, oddly enough, we got right in each time... (which may or may not have to do with the fact that we paid $1000 per medical?? ;)  All in all, we saw a dermatologist, cardiologist, pulmonologist, psychiatrist, oncologist, neurologist, and a phlebotomist.  Whew!  Let's just say I had to take my shirt off several times and somehow follow the directions of doctors who were speaking Russian.   We passed, even after the horrifying realization that I forgot Adam's blood work papers at home.  My heart almost stopped because forgetting ANYTHING can be seriously detrimental.  It is amazing to see how God has come through for us in every circumstance though.

That night, we went to a restaurant with our friends and walked around some stores in a different part of town.  Our friends really wanted to take us to one of their favorite places, even if our interpreter was really worried about our ability to get back to the hotel.  With a GPS on our cell phone, we can find our way around anywhere right?  It's a lot more fun to find your way around Russia, buy souvenirs, and figure out how to order food with friends, that's for sure! And yes, in the restaurant and in the stores, they tried to bring us Russian vodka.  I think they must have found that free Russian vodka = more sales in the long run.  Ha!

So here I am at home, trying to figure out how in the world I'm going to get Christmas presents, decorations, traditions, Jacob's birthday party, visa applications, preparations for our court date, ... all planned or completed before we leave again on December 1.  This is definitely going to be a whirlwind of a month and the only way I can get through it is one day at a time.  We are so anxious to be back in Russia with our little girl, but it's definitely hard leaving our boys... especially during my favorite holiday season!  To quote another mom who adopted from Russia, it will be a beautiful day when we don't have to leave one child in order to see the others.