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They got their bags, their sunglasses, their braids, it's a great day!

Here they come.  Today is the day they left the orphanage.  And oh were there smiles.  Upon our arrival they were all in the mess hall, dining hall, I’m not sure what they call it, I haven’t asked, eating their breakfast.  When I saw Sophia, my heart kinda kicks up in my throat.  Every time I see her it’s like the first time.  I think I’ll be fine as a dad with a daughter.  This morning though we could tell that she was not feeling up to our usual crafts.  Today her close friends in the orphanage are going to America.  A trip she was slated to be on until we found her.  Her time will come for sure, but it wasn’t today, and that hurts.  So we consoled her as best we could, with hugs and gentle touches to let her know we are there, even if we can’t speak, we can still communicate and understand the emotions she is going through.  I guessed it helped as she started to warm up a bit and asked if we could play badminton.  We had brought a couple of rackets and a birdie, so I said yes.  Heck yeah!  This was great.  She played for about 10 minutes and then had enough.  During the game, I think I saw her smile about a dozen times.  This is huge as she is usually a very serious girl.  I think she is learning how to have fun and be a kid.  This is going to be a fun journey with her.  The other children had gathered around and wanted to play, so I kept playing for another 15 minutes or so.  Sophia was standing on the side watching and I asked her if she wanted to take pictures and video.  She said yes and got busy.  Most of the photos on today’s post are care of Sophia.

Masha and Anya.  It's hard not to smile.

Luda and Anya and Yulia and Masha and Vova and the brother and sister (I think their names were Natasha and Kolya), they were all hanging around the front steps.  Today’s activities were badminton, photos, and music on the iPhone and thanks to my teenage son, we have several of the latest pop sensations on Lisa’s iPhone.  Anya had her hair done up in braids, as did Luda.  Masha was wearing the bracelets we got the girls over the weekend.  It was tons of smiles and hugs and giggles.  You still have the hitting, the kicking, the screaming, the throwing of whatever is near their hand, but it wasn’t going to spoil the day.

As time was getting close for everyone to leave, including us, the girls went upstairs and changed their outfits.  Today is a special day.  A day they are taking a leap of faith by travelling all the way to America.  By the end of the trip, they will have travelled around 6,000 miles and have been travelling for 41 hours!  Pray for their safety.  Have fun and take lots of pictures because you are about to create some awe inspiring memories.

When we left the orphanage we hustled home and changed shoes as we were going to spend the afternoon with a group of college students painting a fence at a church.  We met them over in Lenin Square and rode the bus to the church.  Oh yeah, a little background.  We were introduced to the pastor and his wife, as well as another couple who I think are associate pastors, I don’t know, through a mutual friend.  They are definitely spreading the Truth and working in the community to spread God’s love.  The lunch was absolutely fantastic and getting to talk with the group about what they have been doing while here was also very uplifting.  We had a great time and got the first coat on the gates before Lisa and I needed to head out.  They are having service this weekend in English so we are going to try and make it, but it conflicts with our visit with Sophia.

Lastly, we do have a date for court.  It will be on next Wednesday, July 25^th.  Which means we won’t finish this process until around mid August…at best.  That’s ok.  I went back and read Karen’s blog from when she was waiting for her court date and pretty much had the same thought.  If Sophia is meant to be ours, then He has to work it on His clock, not mine.