Day 1 of our Philippines adventure

Hello friends and family! We made it safely to the Philippines. It was a long flight. It felt like we were never going to get off and at one point it felt like I had always been on the plane-weird feeling because you are literally trapped in that little seat and beyond a trek down the aisle or the bathroom, you are stuck. But, we made it. I met a very nice Filipino woman on the flight and enjoyed chatting with her. We had a short layover in Nagoya, Japan-long enough to get off the plane, go through security, use the bathroom, and board the plane again. We arrived in Manila at 11:00 pm which is 12 hours ahead of our Ohio friends and family. It was fairly easy navigating through the security checkpoint, luggage claim, and customs. Even finding our way to the hotel transportation was easy. We arrived to our hotel-it is nice. We crashed into bed after finding out we couldn't use our calling cards from our room and int'l calling would cost us a small fortune. Oh, yeah, and Kory reminded me it took a good 5 minutes to figure out how to turn on the lights in the room. It required a hotel key inserted by the door to activate the switch. Who knew? We made ourselves sleep which wasn't too hard due to 18 hours of being on a plane. It was about 1 am their time. I woke up around 6 am. The traffic here is like nothing you've ever seen unless of course, you've been here! The streets were packed at midnight and I have decided this is a city that never sleeps. Even at 6 am, the streets were bustling with walkers, joggers, and others. We enjoyed a good breakfast and were elated to discover we can access internet in our room via internet cable. And the laptop adapter to charge it can be charged up to 240 V...yeah! We have one 110V outlet in the bathroom which is handy to use my straightener. Now, we are vegging in the room. Honestly, we don't feel too tired just stiff. We need to sort through what we want to take to the orphanage tomorrow and figure out our week. We have some contacts here in the city who are going to take us sightseeing one day. We plan to go swimming today-its in the high 80s. I want to venture and walk some but Kory is a bit more reluctant. Kory and Ash are on their way to the lounge-a nice feature of our room is we get free drinks-pop, juice, etc. This experience is going to be a week to remember. We never in our lives have been in the minority. We're from smalltown America and we're now in a huge city which in and of itself is unnerving. And although all the staff speak English, they don't always necessarily understand what you mean. We look different, we talk different and people around us are speaking a different language. One look outside of our window shows the vast differences of the city-tall buildings and then shack like structures. I am determined to make the most of this trip and absorb as much as I can of my son's culture. I will try to blog daily since we have the convenience and privacy of in room internet use. Well, I am going to drink my Coca Cola light in my 330ml can and enjoy the sights out the window. We are overlooking Manila Bay, 8 lanes of traffic, a pretty green park. Well, this is long but I want to journal our experiences for everyone so you feel like you are along with us for the ride because I know in thoughts and spirit...you are all! We love you all and will see you soon.

We're registered!

I just finished registering on the US Embassy website. One more thing to check off the list. Today was my last day of work until June 1st. My co-workers gave me a wonderful send-off with a potluck of all my favorite foods...yum! It was hard to tell everyone good-bye but I promised to visit and I will as soon as he has adjusted some. I appreciate the time I will have off work to spend with Jay-R. My social worker told us that bonding is hard work and I am prepared to pour my whole heart and soul into this. I'm not really sure what to expect but I know God will be with us through this all. I can already feel the strength of prayers!

I have tomorrow to finish last minute things and then Friday we'll be leaving on a jet plane!

Flying High...

not in the sky yet...but emotionally and with sugar! I have the best bunch of co-workers ever...they treated me to pizza today and Scotcheroos...my absolute favorite. (I know, Linda, you told me not to eat too many, but I'm feeling lightheaded from a tad bit too much sugar!). Everyone is so excited for us. To have so many people praying for us and sharing in our joy and excitement is a tremendous comfort. I'm not feeling very nervous at all (for the moment)!!

I checked my email after work. Our social worker had emailed us our itineray for our trip. We will arrive late Saturday and meet him on Monday. Sunday is a free day for us to rest up. We will attend a Mass and Turnover Ceremony at the orphanage Monday. We have a few other things planned for us and a couple of free days to spend. I've made some connections in the Philippines through people I know here in town that have family/friends in Manila so that is a comfort as well. We are soo exicted, this week can not go by fast enough!

For now, I'm going to drink some peppermint tea to calm a stomach filled with too much Italian and Scotcheroos!

A Surreal Moment

Well, the flights are booked. We are leaving Friday the 13th...good thing we're not superstitious! I have so many things to do at work and home. I'm an Activity Director in a long term care facility so I'm used to planning for things months in advance but I don't know if it's March, June, April...my head is spinning with the many things that need done. Our daughter is traveling with us so we've been in contact with the schools so she can take her homework. We have felt that keeping Ashleigh involved is very important to helping her adjust as well. I have crying moments, overwhelmed moments, exhausted moments, excited moments...this is worse than being pregnant! There are so many emotions that exist...it's hard to put in words. We've been working, praying, dreaming for this day for 2 years. We've been praying for this little boy for 6 months. Everything is falling into place. God is so faithful and it amazes me every day He is blessing us with another child. Adoption has always been close to my heart. I believe God planted those seeds a long time ago. Lots of people make the statement about how blessed Jay-R will be to have a family. I think we are the ones who are being blessed with the gift of a precious child to love. We'll keep you all updated...

Philippines here we come!

The visa is ready...need I say more! I have flight reservations to make, bags to pack, so much to do but Jay-R we're finally coming!!!!! I can't believe this day is coming. We'll be in the Philippines soon!!!

Email Update

Things are falling into place. The visa appointment was today. We will hopefully tomorrow have a more concrete idea on dates so we can begin to research flights. We're very excited but starting to get nervous butterflies. It's the unknown...we've never flown overseas. It's all a little intimidating but the excitement outweighs everything. The thought of hugging that sweet little guy in less than 2 weeks is ....I can't even put my feelings into words. We're all excited. We are trying to get so many things done before we leave. The appraisal for our refinancing was done today so hopefully that can be completed before we leave. I am trying to finish up my course for work. Taxes need done. Oh, yeah...what about packing? Ahhh!!! It'll all get done. We should know more in the next few days. :)

Cultural Lessons

We met with a Filipino exchange student today and the regional director of an exchange student program. We learned a wealth of information about the Philippines such as foods, games, and money. She shared with us that plain white rice is usually eaten at all meals...that I can cook! It was fun and we plan to stay in touch so when Jay-R returns, he can meet her. Everything seems to be falling into place and we just waiting for the official go ahead from our social worker. We'll keep you posted!