SO SO BEHIND!

I'm so behind in posting updates! They are going to be out of order since I still haven't posted summer updates for hosting!

The last few days before our trip were spent in a flurry trying to get everything together. It was very stressful as there was not much time to bond and spend with the boys before saying goodbye. :(

The night before we were set to leave for UA my hubby had to work all night. (He literally showed up at the house in the morning and we left for the airport). So I got the fun of packing for our trip, and also packing up the boys-since they had almost 2 days left in America and were going to stay with another host family. It was very emotional and stressful for me packing them up. I had to decide what clothes, toys, etc for them to bring back. It was easier to pack up "V" since I knew we didn't want to send too much back considering we would be bringing him home in roughly 4-6 weeks....

I slept about 45 minutes that night-as I spent most of the night packing and preparing.

Our friend took us and the boys to the airport and dropped us off. It was very emotional saying goodbye to S and 2.0, as we knew we would TRY to see them when they came in a few days later, but there would be no guarantees. S was a lot more stoic this time (than during winter), but 2.0 had a harder time letting go. (He had also cried himself to sleep the night before). He is definitely a "mama's boy" and I love it. He is attached to my hip.

(The boys had a fabulous time with our friends though!-we were able to skype with them the night before they left and they seemed in very good spirits. S was so excited to tell me about spending the night at their friend's house.)

Our trip went very well. We had a direct flight from Seattle to Frankfurt, Germany-then from there on to UA. No delays, no lost luggage, and mostly smooth flights. Definitely some favor from God there! (I hate flying and really am rather terrified of it) The only negative was that I was unable to sleep-so I arrived in Kiev going on almost 2 days of no sleep. I did spend much of the day near tears-from the emotions of everything and from leaving the boys though. I was also facing a lot of fears and doubts in the day before we left and the day we left. It was very sudden and unexpected, and maybe I will do a post on that another time.

Our first 2 nights in Kiev-we stayed with a pastor and his wife and their 2 children-they were the pastors of a friend (that now lives in California). They were wonderful, very sweet people and it enabled us to really see how Ukrainians live. They let us stay with them free of charge and even cooked us a few Ukrainian meals. Really really wonderful people.

The family we were staying with. did not live near the city center, so we did not sight see until our last day in Kiev. It is really an amazing and beautiful city! Our driver took us around to a bunch of sights, and did his best to explain with his limited English. We had a terrific time and ate some great food!

Later that day we headed to the airport! More about that soon!