We are currently at the Aeroport Hotel (about 10 minutes from the airport) and we will be leaving at 5:35 AM tomorrow. The middle girls are already dressed and plan on sleeping in their airplane attire, Madeline refuses to wear clothes and we actually caught her in the hotel hallway with absolutely nothing on her body! And, of course, my oldest is watching the last bit of Ukraine television before going to sleep and leaving the country she has known for 15 years.
We had the blessing of seeing Alla the last night of our journey in Ukraine. She has been a part of my girls' lives for the last 4 years and is like family to them. She met us for dinner at our favorite restaurant in Kiev (Arizona's BBQ). Check out the photos below :-). They import their food from the United States and its authentic! Check out the Mississippi flag in the background - how appropriate for this MS Girl! We also greeted another family (our friends) that traveled to Kiev today from New Braunfels to adopt out of our same orphanage. Their appointment is on Thursday and they are adopting three kids that have come on hosting trips to the US. They are excited and we wanted to give them the details on what to expect while in the region. It was good to see them before we left the country. We also got to have dinner with our incredible facilitator and her husband. They have done an AMAZING job on our adoption and we are forever grateful to them for their services. Denis and Vika were also there to say good-bye to us. Molly cried for 30 minutes because she didn't want to leave Vika. They have been such a huge help to us during this trip. They are Aunt Vika and Uncle Denis to my girls!
Stephanie also had a hard time leaving and this was the first time she has actually shown any emotion since we've been in Ukraine. I thought it was odd that she did not cry when we left the orphanage but I wonder if its all beginning to hit her now. Plus, we were leaving Alla tonight and she is like family to my girls. So, the car ride to the hotel was very quiet with the sounds of sniffles coming from three of my four girls. It is bittersweet to leave this place. Three of my girls are from this country and this is a part of their lives that will never be replaced. This is their homeland. This is where their journeys began and it will always hold a special place in their hearts and mine.
We are ready to return home. We got here on October 2nd and we are leaving November 3rd. It was a little longer than expected but it went so incredibly smooth! We are forever grateful to all of you that have prayed us through this journey. We could never do anything without the love, encouragement and support of our family and friends. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts!
Is our journey over? ....who knows. I don't know what the future holds but I know Who holds the future.
Blessings,
The Hills (all 6 of us)!!!
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| My two Cowgirls |
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| My Chocolate Addict |
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| The Whole Gang! |
7 comments:
Oh my goodness I am feeling the bittersweet feeling of saying goodbye to Ukraine and the close of this part of the journey, right along with you. Now the next journey begins and I am praying that the Lord will knit your hearts together as a family as you transition home!
What an incredible picture to see all of you at that restaurant together. Nat looks beautiful :) I miss her and Kostya and Alla and Vika and Denis!! And it is so great that you met up with Shelle and Kevin! Wow - very exciting and great timing! Do they have your phone now? I can't wait to see you all!! Love all 6 of you!! (we are still ahead by one though...)
make sure you take a picture of that cute girl with no front teeth! those pictures are priceless! i think by the time you read this you will be on your way or even home. welcome home!
Gammy looks forward to hugging my four precious grandchildren...and my Becca and Craig! Praying for travelling mercies and that Madeline's ears won't hurt! I miss my friends in Ukraine and all the adorable children in the orphanage. Counting the hours now!!
You gave me chill bumps reading this! Love your blog & I'm working on someone else who tried an adoption here in the US & it didn't work. She was discouraged & hurt. She says she's not ready to try again yet, but maybe at some point.
We are soooo grateful we were introduced to you, as you are an integral part of our adoption plans and have become such a wonderful friends. We consider your friendship a blessing and long term relationship. It was very moving to be able to celebrate with you as a newly expanded family! As we parted, the reality of Stephs emotions brought to light how brave a child must be to make such an important decision with life long effects. We pray she finds instant peace with her new American life. We know you and Craig are instruments of His
Will and, without a doubt, are truly blessed to have all four girls! Much love your way, Kevin & Shelle
Glad to see everything turned out well! Looking forward to meeting you in the future! God Bless!
Congratulations on your adoptions. I just ran across this from twitter contact. Awesome stories to tell. I am a grown adopted adult now & from my own experince & life's journey know I was raised when I was ment to ne raised. I was & am very blessed. Im sure your children will feel the same. I always felt special & wanted in my family.
I wish you the best in your incredible journey.
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