T-minus 6 days!

In just SIX DAYS

we will cross the ocean AGAIN

for the 2nd of 3 trips

this time without our love Ari,who will be being spoiled and loved on and carted all over Eastern Wisconsin and Northern Illinois by his family

(BTW, because family rarely ever gets all the credit they truly deserve for all they do for us, here are their names and please add them to your prayers too! Starting at the top row (standing) from Left to right: AMY, TIM, LINDA, RICH, my mom CHRISTINE, CINDY, DAN, JIMMY, ROSE, JANE, and my cousin IAN! Middle row (seated): RICK, TIM JR., DALE, LAVERN, AUDREY, WAYNE, ME. Bottom row (on the grass): DENICE, NATE, JENNA holding JACK, LAUREN, COURTNEY, MORGAN holding ARI, and LUCAS.)

This journey we make is to take the biggest step we have ever attempted to take, and stand in front of a foreign court and plead our case for

Ian's walkin' papers!

can you tell he is SO ready to go!

strangely, I am not nervous about court

I AM however, nearly sick to my stomach with nerves over seeing Ian again

WILL HE RUN TO US?

WILL HE SMILES AT US?

WILLHE RUN FROM US?

WILL HE CRY?

WILL HE REMEMBER US?

This meeting holds a bigger anticipation than the last for me, and Craig is so even keel that he is being a real cool cucumber!

The mom (me), is freaking out! LOL

PLEASE ADD MY MOTHER CHRISTINE TO YOUR PRAYERS THIS WEEK AS SHE IS TAKING CARE OF ARI FOR US AND GOING TO BE FLYING BACK AND FORTH TO ATLANTA IN THE NEXT MONTHS TO HELP US WITH ARI AND THEN AS NEEDED, WITH SWEET IAN.

THANK YOU ALL AND YOU WILL SEE ONE MORE POST FROM ME BEFORE WE LEAVE

and....make sure you follow along our journey in country as I have a spectacular surprise planned for Daddy who recently told me that we need to have more fun!

WATCH OUT DADDY, strap yourself in, hold on!

because here comes the FUN of a lifetime!

PS - Just in case you were wondering, we are still in need of donations to complete Ian's adoption. We are waiting for news of a grant that could end our need to beg strangers for money LOL, but that word will not come until July 27th. We are going to be $7,000 short without the grant, and $2,000 short if we do get the grant. So, PRAY FOR THE GRANT! We will find out in Russia, after court, when we can return for Ian. It will not be ten days later, as we first had hoped. It will be sometime in August. Still, we need to buy plane tickets, book an apartment for Ian & I, and get ready for all of the expenses associated with the final trip. Right now we have about $300 in our FSP.

Thanks for spreading the word!