Merry Christmas!

Family Photo

We had a photo shoot yesterday at the mall, and I quickly realized that Cole's modeling career would have to wait, because he really doesn't like strangers taking his picture. Point in case, the photo to the left was taken by mom....note the happy face! Oh well, at least we got a partial grin out of him.

Dinner With Grammalin

Marc's mom (Linda) is here to close on her new construction home, which she purchased while visiting here during Mother's Day, and of course she was also here to visit her newest grandson. If Cole doesn't look like his normal smiley self, it's because the photo was taken before dinner & he's just not truly happy until he eats!! Well that, and the fact that he had 4 vaccinations today...poor little guy. He is enjoying his time with his grandma, who of course has been spoiling him rotten:)

Medical Review

We took Cole to an endocrinologist on Friday, to check into the rickets he was diagnosed with in Uzbekistan. I'm happy to report that the Dr felt very confident that the rickets are no longer an issue, and that Cole is at all the right levels. We did decide to do one additional blood test just in case, but we're pretty sure it will confirm the Dr's opinion.

I also received a phone call from his primary care Dr yesterday who told me that all of his previous testing showed a healthy little boy! The anemia he once suffered in Uz is also gone. But his testing did reveal that he was not immune to Hep, so he will definitely continue his series of vaccinations for Hep. Overall, the Dr was very impressed by the test results, considering he was adopted internationally.

We are still working on getting Cole an apt to have all of his developmental stages evaluated, but there seems to be a long wait to get him in....we may just have to wait until 2008. All good news in the meantime, and he's catching up quickly in the height & weight department:)

Happy Thanksgiving

For our 1st Thanksgiving with Cole, our dear friends, that have fed us at their place for the past 3 years, were able to come over to our house.

We had a really nice evening, and Cole was loving all the food.

We have so much to be thankful for:)

First Haircut

I had to get my hair colored this morning, it was turning grey way before Cole came, anyhow while we were all sitting there it occurred to me that I should ask my stylist if she did children's haircuts? Yep, so Cole ended up getting his 1st "professional" haircut. I was so proud of him, he didn't fuss or cry at all the whole time, and his hair looks great. He even got a few compliments later in the day while we were running errands. I'll post pic's as soon as I can download them from my cell phone...

Saturday Nov 10th - Jackson's B-day Party

We took Cole to a birthday party yesterday at a place called Frozen Ropes Baseball Park. It was Jackson's 7Th B-day, and Cole was the youngest one in attendance, but he very much enjoyed watching all the kids play various baseball games. And then he got to play with a wiffle ball towards the end of the party, which he had a blast doing (See Video Clip Below).

After the party we headed over to Jackson's house to visit with his mom & dad, and let the kids play. Jackson's sisters, Anna Carol & Katie, thought Cole was their very own real life play doll! They made him drink from his water bottle & do pretty much whatever they wanted him to do. He was in absolute heaven, believe me!

Happy Halloween!

Cole had a great time answering the door and seeing all the kids in their costumes, but he absolutely loved going trick-or-treating himself with daddy.

It didn't take Cole very long to get the hang of things....walk up to the door, look really cute, hold pumpkin bag out, and get lots of cool stuff!!

I'm pretty sure that Halloween is his favorite day of the year now...until he has his 1st Christmas anyhow.

P.S. It seems that the costume worked much better for Cole without the head piece.

Certificate Of Citizenship

We received Cole's Certificate of Citizenship, but they mispelled Uzbekistan! Oops. So, it has to go back, and we will have to wait for a new one to be issued, because unfortunately it does matter. We also need to submit 2 passport type photos when we send it back, so I guess I'll have to take our little man to the post office for some pics.

I was really thinking that once we completed the adoption that we wouldn't really have anymore paperwork to deal with...yeah, I was dead wrong!

We applied for Cole's passport, but I found out that his social security number still has to be applied for, because the forms we filled out in Uz at the US embassy had to be redone & of course that part got filled out with a no, instead of a yes on the corrected form...we were in a hurry & I missed it. Anyhow, at this point I'm hoping we will receive Cole's passport without his social security # being submitted. If not, well then it's gonna get tricky, because the passport agency has Cole's birth certificate, which of course is needed to apply for his Social Security #. Always something.

Oh, and then we need to file his Recognition of Foreign Adoption paperwork with the courts, so that he can be issued a new birth certificate from Texas. I'm telling you the fun never ends! LOL. He is still worth every bit of paperwork & more!

Fort Worth Alliance Air Show

The boys went to the air show today, and as you can plainly see Cole is still all smiles from it! You could say he had a good time.

I am waiting on photos from Stoney, that were taken at the air show, and will post them as soon as I get them.

Saturday Morning

Cole is using my childhood rocking chair, while watching his Sesame Street DVD. The chair is closer to his size than all the other chairs we have for him, as he's really small for his age, but I'm sure he'll be growing like crazy very soon...

He's getting over a cold, but sleeping all the way through the night, with one nap in the afternoon. He's finally starting to like milk, and drinking much more of it, thankfully.

He's received all kinds of new toys since we got home from friends & family, and is having a ball playing with each & every one of them!

Cole is still only saying "momma" in English these days, but he's getting really close to saying something else soon, I just know it.

New Pics

Home At Last

Our dear friend Stoney met us at the airport with sign in hand. It takes a confident man to hold a sign with a big girly flower on it...have to thank our girlfriends for designing the sign, BTW.

Tee also brought a large box of Cheerios, new pj set, & a playpen. What a friend! I know y'all are jealous:)

Meanwhile, Cole snoozed the whole way home from the airport, and continued to sleep in his crib for at least another 2 hours. This gave us time to quickly unpack what we needed, and get ready for our puppy dog (Bella) to be dropped off.

I wasn't quite sure how Bella & Cole would react to one another, but luckily they were both immediately smitten with each other!

Cole learned how to play "Fetch" within minutes, and plays with Bella every day now.

Sunday, Sept 30th - Departure Day!

I'm trying to play catch up for friends & family now that I have a few minutes!! Yes, the child sleeps...

Anyhow, we woke at about 3:30am on Sunday morning & got ready to head to the airport. Getting checked in was pretty easy, and we ended up with some time to kill before boarding our plane. We were in business class flying home, so there was a pretty nice lounge that we got to wait in, which offered free refreshments & snacks.

Cole did very well on the flight, with only minor crying/fussing here & there, and finally fell asleep about the last 6 hours of our 17 hour trip. We landed at JFK around 3:30pm on Monday afternoon, and had to take Cole's paperwork to a seperate line in customs. We waited about 10 minutes, got called up to the desk, handed our son's visa and that was that.

My good friend Danny lives in NY, and since we had a full nights layover he was able to join us at our hotel for dinner. Shortly after we got done with dinner, and headed back up to our room Cole had warmed up to Danny. It was really nice for us to have someone else entertain our son for the first time in 2 weeks let me tell ya:)

Oh, and I forgot to mention how happy we were to be on US soil, even if we weren't all the way home, yet!

Danny gave Cole a stuffed Tigger & Pooh Bear, but I think Cole ended up a little more attached to Tigger.

Our Last Day in Uzbekistan

Friday

After we finished getting the visa, and going through the last of everything, our coordinator gave us each gifts....this is a traditional Uzbek cap & vest that she got for Cole, and she gave me (Julia) a very pretty silk scarf & a hand painted ceramic mug for Marc.

Visa Day

We're just counting down the hours until we can go pick up Cole's visa....

UPDATE! We have in our hands Cole's visa!!!! We are thrilled beyond belief to know that we are just a couple of days away from being home. Our coordinator took us to the airport afterward, so that she could get Cole's passport checked in advance, which should save us some time on our actual departure day. Also, Cole turned 19 months old today (Friday over here).

Thursday

We finally have an appointment with our embassy today at 3pm, however this doesn't guarantee that they will have Cole's visa ready for us by tomorrow. We are praying that all will go well, and that we'll be able to get out of here on schedule...We should know one way, or the other after our appointment this afternoon. Keep your fingers crossed for us!!!!!

BTW, we just had an on-camera interview with the local news station, because today is National Tourist Day, and the front desk of our hotel phoned us up & asked us if we would be willing to come down to the lobby, and have an interview. Why not! It will air at 7:30pm this evening, but I don't know if we'll be able to get a copy of it. We of course told them we were just here visiting friends, and mentioned nothing about adoption...not something you want to announce on camera ya know?

Okay so it is now Thursday evening, and our interview at the embassy went very well, thankfully! We are to pick up Cole's visa at 4pm tomorrow, which will keep us on our original departure schedule. We had a ton of family & friends working on our behalf contacting congressmen, senators, etc, and it seems it all paid off! A big Thank You to everyone that was helping us:) Can't wait to be back in the good old US.

Departure Date Unknown

We were hoping to get an interview date from the US embassy today, because we've been waiting for one since Monday now, but still nothing. We are stuck waiting by the phone for them to call us with whatever update they have. It is a tad frustrating to say the least, and the last place we expected to have any problems was at our own US embassy!

Sunday

We spent our Saturday at the zoo in Tashkent. I think Cole actually slept through most of it, but he seemed to be fairly intrigued by the fish at the aquarium, and I think he associated them with his now favorite movie Finding Nemo!

Saturday

Today our coordinator took us out on a tour of Tashkent. We visited a bazar, where we tried on some traditional Uzbek garments, and tasted a ton of different nuts, fruits, & candies. Later we went to the Caravan for dinner, and after visited a small art shop next door. It was a pretty full day, and I think all 3 of us were passed out by 9pm!

Breakfast Included

Thank goodness breakfast is included with our hotel stay, and that it's all Cole can eat!

Cole loves to flirt with practically every woman he sees, and is quite taken with other children. We've had quite a few people introduce themselves to us, because they were drawn in by our little bee charmer of a son!

He really is a good little boy, except when he runs out of food & he's still hungry...then look out! He smiles and laughs most of the day, and is entertained fairly easy. We've been working on walking...his is between Frankenstein & the mummy right now:) And we're learning to communicate the best we all can.

We have received Cole's new birth certificate and passport so far. We're pretty much on our own until next week, and we're hoping to find something to do over the next couple of days, as hotel life is starting to get a little old.

We will take Cole to see an International Doctor first thing Monday morning, and then have an appointment to meet with the US Embassy on Tuesday. We will have a 2nd appointment with the embassy a couple of days later, and that should then complete everything.

Overall, things have been great...our son, the food, the people, etc, but we are of course looking forward to getting home soon....

Internet usage is a little different over here, and not cheap, so I will do my best to update the blog every couple of days, or when I have news. Talk to everyone soon:)

First Words

I was in our hotel bathroom when all of the sudden I heard Cole through the door, but surely I must have heard incorrectly. I quickly opened the bathroom door and Marc says, did you hear what Cole just said? It sounded like he said "momma" Yeah, he said momma 4 times!

We Are Family

Greetings from Uzbekistan! We made it!! After 2 lengthy flights, 1 bus shuttle, and a horrendous arrival into customs in Tashkent...we're unpacked & in our hotel just a mere 30 hours later.

Our first evening was spent unpacking & decompressing.

On Tuesday morning our coordinator picked us up and drove of us all over the city to various stops and/or appointments that we needed to make.

We were able to get Cole's new birth certificate. And, we got back to our hotel around 1pm, to prepare our room & ourselves for Cole's arrival.

Cole arrived at our hotel around 3:30 with our coordinator, his nanny, & another friend of our coordinator. He was a little confused about his new surroundings, and after talking for a bit in the lobby, we headed to our room. We spent about a half hour talking, and letting him adjust. I believe he only cried for a few minutes initially after everyone left him with us. He handled it all very well.

I had him hysterically laughing after just a few short hours, and he's a huge fan of the Cheerios! The language barrier doesn't seem to be an issue, as he knows how to get his point across just fine.

We're now going to get some breakfast. I will try to add more today, or tonight!!

It's Travel Day

I'm pretty sure I got a grand total of 3 hours sleep last night....tossed & turned way too much. But the good news is that I'll have plenty of time to catch up on sleep during our endless flight to Uzbekistan. My next post will (hopefully) be from Uz...

Hurry Up & Go

It's amazing how quickly any little thing in International Adoption can change in less than a moments notice. For anyone that has not yet heard, we were told yesterday that we need to get on a plane to Uzbekistan this Sunday! Oh, and that we'll need to extend our trip by another full week. No pressure there.

Travel Update

We are now looking into traveling some time between September 23rd - October 6th.

This is all happening so fast. And yes my mind is completely spinning out of control right about now.

So many things to do still, but that's okay, the sooner we can be with our son...the better!

However, finding airline tickets is proving to be quite the challenge, so who knows when we'll actually get there?? There's still more waiting to be had, unfortunately.

We Are Now Cole's Legal Parents!

As of today our adoption has been legally finalized, and we will be traveling in October to bring our son home!!

Our agency will apply for Cole's new birth certificate and passport, our Letter of Invitation, and finally our visas.

We look forward to having Cole home in time to celebrate his 1st Halloween, and wear this adorable little dragon costume we just purchased for him:)

This news couldn't have come at a better time, and now we can really enjoy our 3-day weekend!

Cole's Video Link

The video is about 18 minutes long, and was taped a couple of months ago. Cole is pretty quiet during the majority of the clip, too busy stuffing his little face, but you can hear a few giggles here & there.

The nanny is speaking in Uzbek, which is Cole's native language, and the coordinator is speaking in Russian. I could really only understand our names being said a few times, along with mama & papa.

BTW, the box that is shown at the end is an iron supplement that he has been receiving, because I pitched a fit about him not getting it, and now they have proved to us that he is:)

Anyhow, I hope you enjoy the show! Just click on the word "video" above to be taken to the site.

Tuesday

I just got home from a lovely trip to CA, where I helped my papa celebrate his 70th birthday, and got some much needed R & R! It was really nice to hang out with the family for a few days.

I spoke with our agency today, and they finally received the video of Cole! We should have it in a couple of days. Also, I was told that our petition has officially reached the Mayor's office, and that we may have a timeline to travel here shortly.

Last, but not least....Cole turned 18 months old today, and now has 12 teeth. That's all for now!

P.S. Sorry I changed the blog to a private setting, without telling everyone first...I just didn't like the fact that everyone on the planet had viewing access, ya know.

Our Wait Just Got Longer

Unfortunately, I just found out from our agency today that we should no longer plan on traveling in September. In fact, at this point we are realistically looking at traveling a lot closer to November. It's not the kind of news I was hoping to hear, and I'm sorry I don't have better news for everyone right now, but I'll be sure to let you know if anything changes.

The Latest News

So of course the guy that needs to review our final document (petition) went on vacation to Egypt for 3 weeks!

Good grief, right?

We're hoping he'll be back any day/week now, so we can get back on track.

Other than that, our little boy is doing very well thankfully.

And there is a video that is supposed to get to us at some point...

Seventeen

Cole is 17 months old today.

Custom T-shirt

My mother had this little t-shirt custom made. And, yes she is a proud grandma-to-be!

The Baby Shower

We had a wonderful time at the baby shower today! A huge Thank You to Beth J, Beth & Mike, and Allison for making a fabulous party. And many thanks to all of our friends & family for sharing a very special day with us. We are truly lucky to have such a great group of friends who we consider our extended family. We love you all bunches!!

P.S. It's nice to have a baby shower where the expectant mother is actually allowed, if not encouraged to drink! Leave it to Rebecca to be the 1st one to point that out :) LOL