Not yet...

The Ministry of Education has not let our Moscow representative know whether or not our documents are registered at this point. We are praying that the wheels of bureaucracy are continuing to turn, just that the communication is a little lagging. The meeting of the 'expert level' panel begins tomorrow between the U.S. and Moscow. Please pray that cooler heads prevail, and that a workable solution is found. Katie and I went looking at baby room stuff on Friday - okay, when did all this cool stuff become available??? Katie will be 13 next month, and there was nothing like what we saw available back in 1997. Just saying. I couldn't hardly drag her out of the store... she has officially appointed herself Anya's personal shopper and stylist. Yes, we've chosen the name Anya... (we've been referring to her as that for a long time. We may not have a face, but we know her in our hearts). Anya is an Irish and a Russian name, so it's pretty perfect. (Shawn is almost 100% Irish, and I have quite a bit on my side, as well.) Her name means 'favor' or 'grace' in Russian, and 'brightness' in Irish (spelled Aine). (Okay, in Sanskrit it means 'inexhaustible', which is a little daunting....)

So, we can dream about her room, make plans for her wardrobe, and pray. Really, really pray. Oh... and learn Russian. Shawn is a student of languages, and has dove in full-on to Russian. Once my semester is over in seminary, I can start in as heartily as he has. I know the very basics, but would love to know more before we go. (I need to learn how to say 'I'm sorry, I can't like borscht.' Ha ha) Love to all, and hope on the journey.