Trip #2 Moscow Day #2

On our second day in Moscow we went out for some more touristy activity. Our plan was to tour the Kremlin but sadly it is closed on Thursdays. We did this exact same thing last time!! Haha. Tried to go on a Thursday. Instead we took a tour of St. Basil. It is just as beautiful inside as it is outside!

Below: Paper mache version of St. Basil....very impressive!

Below: Worn by Christians to show penance. This particular set was worn by a famous Russian saint.

All of the following pictures are of different churches within the cathedral. They are each detected to a different patron saint.  The outside of St. Basil is large but when you walk inside it feels some what cramped because of the many corridors and tall pillars.

We also took a picture of the river when we were inside St. Basil. Its hard to tell were its at because its frozen this time of year!!! If you can make out the bridge you can see the river underneath.

We had lunch at our favorite restaurant(not that we have tried many there).Its a Japanese restaurant and they have the best sushi and a really good seafood soup! So yummy!!! We took the overnight train to Kirov and arrived there Friday morning.

~The Rileys

He said YES!!!

Going out of order on the post but this is BIG exciting news...we will go into more detail later but he judge said YES!!!!! Thank goodness!!! We get to pick him up in a little more than 30 days!!! All smiles!!!

~The Rileys

Russia trip #2 Raleigh to Moscow

We have been a little slack since we have arrived with updating our blog! Now the long weekend has arrived and we are in the hotel for Saturday and Sunday with not a lot to do. Starting from the beginning...

We left Raleigh on Tuesday(Happy Valentines Day!!) around 12:00 and arrived in New York shortly after maybe 130. Got on to the flight for Moscow around 430. Upon boarding I got taken out by an elderly Russian women and her suitcase. She decided she wanted to put her luggage in the overhead bin and I guess I was in the way. I now have a bruise the size of a grapefruit on my thigh. Nice...but she looked like someone that was not to be messed with so I just limped on to my seat.

We flew Delta this trip and have decided Aeroflot was nicer. But either way its still a 10 hour flight and it cant end soon enough.

Our driver met us at the airport and we took the train and then the subway back to our hotel. Last time we drove but he said the traffic was so terrible that this would be faster. It was a 30 minute train ride and 4 subway stops so not to bad.

We took a nap and then ventured out to our standby Sbarro. You really cant go wrong with pizza! Our driver had mentioned checking out Red Square at night with the ice skating rink that is there this time of year. It is right across the street from our hotel so its a just a quick walk underground to pop up on the other side. Pictures below are from our night time tour of Red Square. It was snowing and was truly very beautiful!

The last picture below is a picture of our hotel which we love staying here! It is across the street from Red Square and we have found several restaurants that we enjoy close by.

~The Rileys

13 days until takeoff

We leave in 13 days for Russia!!!!! Hooray!! Our flight leaves on February 14th.  Nothing says "I love you" like a plane tickets to Russia! Our schedule will go something like this:

02/14  Leave for Moscow
02/15 Arrive in Moscow and stay the night
02/16 Take the overnight train to Kirov
02/17 Visit the orphanage
02/18 Hopefully visit the orphanage again(we are still waiting for approval for a second visit. they usually do not allow any visitation on the weekends but we are hoping for a exception...fingers crossed!)
02/19 Hang out in Kirov
02/20 COURT!!!!!!(pray,pray,pray!!!) we would then leave on the overnight train to Moscow
02/21 Arrive in Moscow
02/22 Leave for the US

So excited!!!

~The Rileys

Gathering paperwork for trip 2

We got the news we would need to update our physicals and background checks when we returned home...again. I know our doctors are so sick of us! We go almost every three months and have them fill out the same paperwork and run the same blood test. Hopefully this is the last time!!!

Everything was sent to Russia to be translated and ready for court!

~The Rileys

Trip #1 Moscow 11-11-11

We arrived back in Moscow in the morning. Our driver picked us up at the train station and took us back to the hotel. We spent the day walking around and seeing a few more touristy things.

Sunday morning we left for the US. It was a long, long plane ride home. The three ladies behind and beside us made for an entertaining flight. They were a riot! We so thankful and glad to make it back!!!

There is nothing like having a BIG cup of ice water!! Who would have thought we could miss ice so much?!

~The Rileys

Trip #1 Kirov 11-10-11

We returned to the orphanage the next day and spent a couple of hours playing with our little guy. He is so full of energy!! We love it! He loves to play ball and work with his stacking cups and rings. But mostly he loved Scott turning him upside down...cannot wait until we can post pictures of this!

Afterwards we signed our intent to adopt. AWESOME feeling! We then traveled to a notary were they finished our paperwork and we officially decided what his name would be. What a great,great day!!

We left on the overnight train back to Moscow...14 hours back!

~The Rileys

35 days...

There was a long time in between post! We do apologize but we miss our little guy so much!! I promise to wrap up trip #1 this week!
But...in 35 more days we go back and have our court date!!!! Counting down the days until February 20th!!

~The Rileys

Trip #1 Kirov 11-09-11

We took the overnight train from Moscow to Kirov. We left late in the afternoon so most of the ride was during the night. The two "beds" were comfortable and we got some sleep. We were super excited!!!!...so sleep did not come easily!! We did not really take any pictures on the train except for the one below. We promise to take more next time!

All the clothes behind Scott got wet because it was snowing so we had to lay them all out to dry on the way to Kirov.

We arrived in Kirov and our translator, Helen, meet us at the train station. She is truly an amazing person, who was so genuine and kind. Her English was also excellent!! We then headed to our eight doctor exam

YES...eight doctors to see!! Well eight doctors to approve of our physical condition and read over the lab test and chest x-rays we brought. We didn't have to see all eight some reviewed our paperwork and approved us. It was a strange experience. We went to a clinic were we saw a neurologist and immunologist to name just a few. The good news is we passed!! We had to return later that afternoon to see the psychologist which is a whole another story but we survived!!!

After our medical exams we went back to our hotel and got to clean up and rest before we went to the orphanage. The orphanage was located about 45 minutes away...longest ride EVER!

We arrived and were greeted by some of the staff and then lead into the music room. It was a very bright and cheerful place. We cannot post pictures now but after everything is complete we will post some. The caregivers brought "L" in and placed him in my arms. He is AMAZING!! We are totally in love and cannot wait to share pictures! We got a lot of good play time! He is an active, happy two year old! We played with blocks and balls. There were lots of laughs!

He also had a physical from a pediatrician from the American University in Moscow. She traveled with us and reviewed all of his medical information with us. She was great! L loved her and so did we. We also were able to speak to the social worker and she gave us a lot of information that on L's background.

After playtime we had tea and cake with the orphanage director and our translator and the pediatrician that traveled with us. Which was a cool experience! Then we headed back to our hotel for dinner at the restaurant in our hotel. The food was great...there was only one menu that was in English so there was a lot of pointing involved.

It was an AWESOME day!

moscow trip #1 11-08-11

We slept in today...I guess you could say that? Since our sense of time is so completly out of whack! Checked out of our hotel but left our bags there and took a visit to the conceirge. We asked for suggestion for places to eat. The lady,who spoke perfect english, described a street that had multiple restraunts and that also was pedestrian friendly since cars could not drive down it. PERFECT!!! We were not looking to be roadkill, which surely would happen if we continue to cross too many streets.

As she promised the street had several good choices. Most of the restaurants had menus posted outside so we could see if the had an English version. We choose a Japanese restaurant, I know how original! Unfortunately, we did not see any restaurants that served authentic Russian food. The food was amazing!! Great sushi and soup! Although, it is weird not having ice with your drink...you just get the bottle and a glass.  Regardless our stomachs were very happy!

We had about 5 hours left before we had to catch the train. Plenty of time to check out some most sees in Moscow!

We checked out St. Basil Cathedral. Which is truly beautiful and unique. The Czar Ivan the Terrible had it built in 1552 to mark the capture of Kazan from mongol forces. It was finished in 1560.

St. Basil is located in Red Square.

 Red Square has had an assorted history. It started out as a shanty town beneath the Kremlin walls. It housed peddlers, criminals, and drunks. At the end of the 1400s it was cleared and used mostly for public executions. The squares name actually has nothing to do with communism. The word derives 'krasnyi' which at one time meant beautiful. In contemporary Russia it means red. The name became official in the 17 th century where it was also known as 'fire square' which reflected the number of times medieval Moscow burned. Until the end of the 17th century there were many battles.During the 20th century it was used for military parades and demonstrations. Today it is used for rock concerts,fashion shows, and parades. A parade took place the day before we arrived. 

You can get a feel for red square in this picture. It is very large, hard to capture in a picture!

The Kremlin became the seat of Russian government after the 1917 Revolution. There is evidence of human habitation dating back to 500BC at the Kremlin. Different rulers throughout time have added to it as time passed and now it is quite large. We did not go inside but walked around the outside.

The state historical museum.

And of course we had to visit GUM(acryomn for state universal store).Pronounced "goom" Russia's most famous shopping mall! Now it has boutiques and small restaurants and cafes. Prior to the 1920s it was called the upper trading rows and there were 1,200 shops! An area for trade and a place to buy your goods. In 1928 Stalin closed the area and used it as headquarters for officials working on the first Five Year Plan. It was reopened in 1953 and was the site for the famous Soviet queues. (first come first serve for goods) The lines could extend throughout Red Square. Many goods were hard to get during Soviet times and long lines formed. In the 1990s it became privatized and now has many top-end retailers.

After a full day of walking around we headed back to the hotel to wait for our driver. He took us to the train station and helped us board the train. We settled into our sleeper compartment, which consisted of two small beds against the wall and a tiny table. It was not a bad arrangement and so much better than a plane! You could stretch out and relax! We settled in for our fourteen hour ride!!!! Thankfully, most of it was overnight!

Moscow trip #1 Nov. 6th-7th 2011

Schedule:

Sunday: Fly from RDU(Raleigh) to JFK(New York) our plan left at 7:00am and we arrived in New York around 9:00am. We hung out at JFK until our plane for Moscow left at 8:00pm. Yes...we spent an extremely long time at JFK!!! We read,ate,watched football...time went by.  I read an entire book, yes the entire thing. 

Monday: Our flight from JFK to Moscow was about 11hrs..we were delayed for an extra hour on the run way. We flew a russian airline, Aeroflot. Great service,extrememly nice people. We were able to sleep some. I think it was more just sear exhaustion! 

We arrived at our hotel, Hotel National about 3:30pm. Beautiful hotel! Love the archicture and our room. You can see the Kremlin from the lobby. 

We met with our facilator in the lobby and she reviewed our schedule for the week. Everything is organized and we feel ready to roll.

Since we were exhausted and just wanted an easy quick meal we decided we would go to Mcdonalds. I figured how hard could it be to order from there...they have they combo meals,right??? right???

NO!!! we get inside no english, no numbers. Just all al la carte. Ughh...what do we do?? I was totally just planning on holding up a 1 or 2 fingers for the combo I wanted and it would be easy breezy. We decide we will go with big macs because the russian word is basically big mac and then an order of fries and two waters. I mean simple right? Well this is what we ended up with: two big macs and two fish roll ups and no drink.

We decided he must have thought we said fish instead of fries?? Dont know? Ok, well not the end of the world we have food. Thats what counts!  

We go back to our room thinking ok we will go to a supermarket/drugstore get more bottled water. I mean we dont want to get sick from drinking tap water. We had already went threw two bottles of water that was in our room.

First we had to cross the street underground. Yes, the traffic is that bad. The cars will run over you. They DO NOT care!! Very scary even crossing little side streets. So we go underground and go to a supermarket.  We see what we think is water grab the two BIGGEST bottles we can find and some dried fruit snacks. Wonderful! Go to check out...apparently getting in line at the back is optional. People just kept walking to the front. It took forever to get out of there but we make it back to our room. 

Inside...lets open these HUGE bottles. So thristy...mcdonalds will do that to you. 

The first bad sign we see is the water has bubbles, second bad sign upon opening it explodes. Third bad sign taste like crap. Yes its confirmed we bought club soda. Both bottles! and its icky!!! Fail number two of the day. Sigh. 

We are laughing,we are here safely and we get to meet alexei soon...so all is well. 

Going back out to get water, just water. keep your fingers crossed!

10-19-2011

This post is long overdue!! But we felt that it would be best to post this after our first trip. We just wanted to make sure everything went smoothly and did not want to post information about a child until we signed the intent to adopt paperwork!

So rewinding...on Oct 19th 2011 in the afternoon I got a call from our agency. I could only assume she was calling about paperwork. We had done so much of it. There was always more to do and we had been told probably another month before we received a referral. However, I was pleasantly surprised!! She had a referral for a little boy who was two years old and at an orphanage in Kirov. We reviewed all the medical information and agreed to be sent pictures and more information. We had a week to make a decision.

We forwarded this information to two pediatricians. One is our pediatricians who specializes in children who have been adopted internationally. The other was a pediatrician who has more specific experience with children from eastern Europe. Waiting for their responses was agonizing and exciting all at the same time!
They reviewed everything and gave us a green light! So we excepted the referral and were told we would leave in around ten days!!!!

Ten days!!! Ten days to get visas, more doctors appointments, and new money from the bank. So much to do in so little time! With the lots of help we were able to do it! We had to have an updated physical that included blood work to screen for HIV,Hepatitis A,B,and C, and Syphilis. Along with a chest x-ray that we had to bring with us. It was a crazy, insane time! Not to mention book flights and hotels. Whew!! But guess what...it all came together! We left for Russia on Nov. 6th!!

biometric appointments!

We received notification for our biometrics appointments with the USCIS in Durham!!!

Biometrics refers to the process used to used to identify people based on physical traits. Basically, we are having our fingerprints taken for the FBI to analyze.

We received our notice in the mail a few days ago! It is one of those things they set the date and time and you show up. You do not get to schedule it for yourself. If you have a problem with the day or time you go to the back of the pile and wait a few more months. Needless to say we will be there! October 11th @ 11:00.

Once we get clearance the USCIS will send us documentation stating we can bring an orphan from Russia into the country and he will automatically become a citizen once the plane lands! Russia must have this paperwork before they will finalize the adoption.

Progress is being made!!


The Rileys!!

Dossier submition

I am a little behind with this update...but I guess better late than never!

We finished our dossier and it is in Russia as I type this!!!!! AWESOME!!!!!! Currently it is being translated into,well Russian. What else?

It left the US about 2 1/2 weeks ago!

A dossier by definition: a file containing detailed records on a particular person or subject.

Our dossier was complied so that Russian officials can understand who we are as a family. It is compiled of around thirty documents and then many, many copies of those documents.
Documents like our:
marriage license
financial  statements
home study
our agency license and supporting documents,including their recommendation
copy of the deed to or house(yes you read that correctly)
and so many,many more!!!!




All of those documents had to be apostilled. When documents are apostilled this means they have been authenticated. Essentially it is a seal placed on the papers saying they are originals and we are the ones who signed them. We made MANY trips to the Secretary of State getting all of the documents apostilled.


So once everything was completed we had two sets of originals and one set of copies. The total weight was 5.1 pounds!! Wow!!!!!!

·         

Yes...we put them on our scales for an official weigh in.

Picture of Scott holding all of the documents...the stress of it all has made his hair crazy!!!!



The Rileys

Slow down your moving too fast...

So small hiccup!

In the absolute craziness of doing the dossier and petition to the USCIS we totally forgot to include the check in our application to the USCIS. Whoops!!!

and...that is not all! We also forgot to include copies of our birth certificates. (You know the things that prove we are already citizens ourselves.)WOW!!!

Normal we have everything really organized. Still in shock we left out these important pieces. BUT the USCIS rejected our application very quickly and mailed it back to us. Thankfully, because I would have hated that to have sat on someones desk for five weeks and then mailed it back to us. It has since been mailed back in with a check and correct documentation(at least I hope).

So fingers crossed that it is correct this time!!!

We also submitted our dossier to our agency so they can proof it before it goes to Russia. My next post will explain all the details of the dossier.

So the lesson learned: no matter how much you have going on and how stressful things get...triple check things!! and learn to just laugh at your mistakes!! (I am sure someone at the USCIS is laughing)

~The Rileys

Go Heels!!! Tailgating at the first game of the season.

Hope this kid likes football?

USCIS

Lots of activity this week!!!

We submitted our request to the USCIS (United States Citizenship and Immigration Services)to bring an orphan into the country. We must have approval from them before our court date to complete the adoption in Russia. In some regions you must have it before your first trip. They will contact us to set up an appointment to be fingerprinted by the FBI. Once we get clearance they will send us documentation stating the child will become a U.S. citizen once we return to the US.

Side note: some people refer to the USCIS as the BCIS(Bureau of Citizens Immigration Services) they are the same thing.

The documentation we sent to the USCIS included a copy of our home study and various documents from our agency with proof of their accreditation and their recommendation to allow us to adopt.

We are hoping to have an appointment for fingerprinting in the next 4-6 weeks. Fingers crossed!

Picture of the new chair for the babies room! It is very comfortable!!! The small red chair was mine when I was small. It was one of my favorite things. Hopefully the baby will enjoy it as well!

~ The Rileys

home study approval

Our agency finished our home study!! H-O-O-R-A-Y!!!!

They emailed us a copy Thursday. We proofed and reviewed the documents and things look great!! We will receive the hard copies early next week. If this schedule holds we will be to get all of our documents apostilled next Friday. 

A great picture of our friend, Kristin, notarizing one of our many many documents. 

Thank you Kristin!!! This was a huge undertaking!!!

The Rileys

quick update

Just a quick update:

After emailing with our agency they informed us we are next in line for our home study review! Awesome! The home study must be reviewed by a panel of three social workers from our agency. We should get an email version by the end of the week to review and then the original paper copies next week. Progress is being made!! 

The Rileys

interview #4

Our finally home study interview was Monday. It also went great! We just had a few wrap up questions. Now our social worker will write her report and send it to be edited and approved. In around two weeks we should get a copy. So now we wait!




Fun fact: Russia has the worlds largest forest reserves and is know as "the lungs of Europe" and is second only to the Amazon rain forest in the amount of O2.

interviews 2 &3

Scott and I had our individual interviews Friday morning. They went great! Just more questions that were easy to answer. I will say it again...our social worker is awesome!!! You feel like you are talking to a friend about life, your goals, and plans. Last interview is scheduled for Monday at 6:00pm!

We also did a little shopping this weekend...I will post pics tomorrow of what we got!


Fun Facts:
The Russian alphabet contains 33 letters. 11 vowels 20 consonants and 2 pronunciation signs.