moscow - trip 3 - day 4 (part 2)

Long and grueling day. Way too many hours in the car. Anton and Katia picked us up at 9:15am. First, we went back to Krasnogorsk to the courthouse. The courthouse was more crowded than normal. Thank God, our paperwork was ready. Then we drove to the town Krasnogorsk to go to the registry office, to obtain his birth certificate and adoption certificate. R and I sat in the hall on uncomfortable metal chairs for almost an hour while Katia filled out forms.

Next it was off to the police station, to apply for his passport. While we were there, we saw Kathleen M., her brother, and her daughter Megan. They are also with our agency. It was nice to chat with them for a few minutes. Then finally, we were off for Kolomna. We had driven a short time when Katia realized the clerk at the police station had taken an extra copy of our court decision by mistake. We had to turn around and go back. This added an extra hour to our time in the car.

When we finally got to Kolomna, it was 4:30pm. Eli had been napping for about an hour. He had been all bundled up, sleeping on the balcony. When they brought him in, he was confused, because we were there and there were lots of people standing around. We took him into a small room to change his clothes. When I laid him down on the couch, I heard him really cry for the first time! He does not like having his diaper changed! R and I working together got him dressed, and everyone talked about how precious he looked in his outfit. The caregivers brought a bag with the items we had left (blanket, beanie pooh, photo album, camera), and they returned the small journal we had left. A few women wrote notes to him in it, so that was nice. Everyone wished us well, and then we left.

He was looking around, taking everything in. There was no car seat in Anton’s car, so he took turns sitting in our laps for the drive to Moscow. He never cried or fussed or even whined. He is a miracle baby! He looked out the window and watched everything. Then after about an hour, he put his thumb in his mouth and fell asleep, making up for the rest of the afternoon nap he had missed. He slept for a while. Then when he woke, we still had 1 1/2 hours left to drive (really hate the Moscow traffic!), so I made a bottle for him in the car. (I had the packets of Enafmil Lipil.) The water was room temperature, not warm, and I didn’t know if he would take the bottle. He seemed to like it just fine. He had a little trouble at first adjusting to the nipple, even though it was fast flow. I think he was used to liquids flowing very fast. He had a little trouble figuring out how to seal his lips around the nipple. He would suck, but some of the formula would go down his chin. I took the bottle out of his mouth often to give him time to swallow. It was a slow process, and it was sad. A baby his age should take a bottle easily. After he drank about 1/2 the bottle, he figured it out, and the 2nd 1/2 went down much more easily.

We finally got back to the apartment about 8:10pm. We were all exhausted. Eli’s bedtime has been 8:00pm, so already his schedule was completely messed up. I changed his diaper, which he had soaked. Even though he had vinyl pants on, his little pants were soaked too and the snowsuit. I dressed him in just a onesie, and he seemed to like the freedom. I put a comforter on the floor and he played happily with the ball we brought. He crawled a little, and at one point, he pulled himself up using the coffee table. He was able to stand there while just holding on with one hand! He’ll be walking soon!

R fixed dinner and we ate quickly while Eli played on the floor. Then I fixed him rice cereal and baby food bananas. He loved it! After the first bite, he put his hand in the bowl and tried to pull the bowl closer. He wanted me to feed him faster! He ate the whole bowl, so no picky eater here! I let him play for a few minutes, so he could digest a little, but he put his thumb in his mouth, and I knew he was tired. Then I put his pajamas on, and he looked so adorable! No bath tonight, because it was just too late. I took him into the bedroom, turned the lights off, and held him for a minute, talking softly to him. Then I put him in the crib, and he didn’t cry or fuss. Nothing! He watched me until I left the room, and still not a peep. 5 minutes later when I went to check on him, he was completely out! He is an amazingly easy baby!

We’re so thankful to God! We feel blessed beyond belief, and we’re looking forward to tomorrow, our first day as a family.