Well, we had some Internet problems and then we were home and it has been a great few days and hectic. The time for updating the blog in Moscow was after Annabelle went to bed. Here it is the same, except it seems that we barely had the energy to stay up 15 minutes and clean up the house a little.
The flight home is long. No way around it. We knew it going in and it proved to be everything we feared. Some of the highlights:
Our Interpreter drove us herself so we did not have to pay both the driver and interpreter fee. We wanted our interpreter (Irena) to go in with us as we were still getting a paper ticket for Annabelle. We arrived at the airport by 9:30 for our 12:55 flight. After about 30 – 40 minutes of working with the lone Delta agent, we were issued a paper lap ticket for the flight. The good news was that he did it as a round trip and managed to book it for 3800 rubles or about $162. Lesson one for those reading this and planning an adoption: Go to the Delta office in Moscow and get the ticket, it is a lot easier and faster.
Irena then went with us to the first long line to get our bags scanned. She walked us to the front of the line and told the people we needed to go with the baby who was in the stroller. Saved us 20 minutes. We gave Irena a hug and figured we were in good shape. The first check point was easy. We packed our bags, they were with us at all times, no one asked us to carry anything for them. The next step is the hand search of the checked bags. Lisa spotted a not so energetic searcher who we headed for, however, another guy waved us over. I hoisted the first large bag up and unzipped it. He patted it three times and said OK. I went for bag #2 and he signaled no, it was OK. Great, now onto Delta check in.
We wait in a short line and get a relatively young and new agent. Lisa and I have boarding passes and we have the paper for Annabelle’s lap ticket. After several minutes and assistance from a supervisor, our bags are checked and we are now headed to Passport Control.
The line here was crazy long. No quick way through this line, so we think. After about 30 minutes we are two or three people from the window when we see a couple of parents with infants in strollers working their way right to the front of the lines next to us. Apparently, while no one will hold a door open for you with a stroller, no one will question you cutting in the front of the line with the same stroller. We go to the uniformed passport control woman (none of them ever seem to smile) and she asks for the passports and boarding passes. Irena has told me to be prepared to show the adoption decree, birth certificate with my name, other documents that may be requested. I give her all three passports and tickets. She keeps asking for another boarding pass. I keep saying that is all Delta provided as Annabelle is a lap ticket. After a few minutes the three star supervisor appears in five-inch heels and a short skirt and says we must go back to Delta and get a boarding pass. Although not smiling, she was very helpful as she marched over to the Delta counter and asked for a boarding pass. No kidding, the agent pulled out a blank card from the printer and hand wrote Annabelle’s name on it and the flight number. We marched back to the window and we were processed through. It had taken us nearly 2 hours to get to our gate. Annabelle was an absolute princess the whole time, smiling and charming the crowds, she never cried or fussed.
After the final baggage search at the gate, we boarded our flight. We had both aisles in the middle row of three seats and waited anxiously as the plane started to fill. Annabelle was a lap ticket and we were gambling on an open seat. Finally, a young guy shows up and looks at his ticket and the middle seat and says that is my seat. YIKES!! I talk to the flight attendant that says that it is suppose to be sold out but to wait and see. He said if there was an empty seat, he would move our guest. Fortunately, there were three open seats and we were saved. They closed the doors and we pushed back and left Moscow about 35 minutes late. The flight was uneventful, but a very long 11 hours. Annabelle took a 75-90 minute nap early on and then another 60-minute nap when we were 10 hours into the flight. I actually woke her as I picked her up for landing. It did not give us much rest.
We had a 2 hour 50 minute layover in Atlanta that worked out fine. By the time we cleared all customs and completed the adoption paperwork (turned over the secret sealed brown envelope) we had 90 minutes to our flight. Annabelle was running out of gas and so were we. We boarded the flight and all three of us fell asleep for part of the hop to BWI. We got off the plane at 9:15pm and made our way to the terminal where Annabelle’s Mommy and brother Tyler were waiting.
The second journey is now complete. In a little over two years (26 months) we were able to take the thought of adoption and selected an agency, switch agencies, and bring home two wonderful children. Both our kids were 13 months when we met them and 15½ months when we got them home. It took five round trips to Moscow over 18 months and a total of 58 nights in Moscow hotels and apartments. Maria spent countless hours completing the endless stream of paperwork with notary and apostilled for everything. In the end, we won because we have our forever family with two kids and as Visa says "priceless". We are not planning on a third, but never say never . . . check back occasionally.
No pictures right now but some family shots will follow shortly.
Thanks for the support and help.
Jeff, Maria, Tyler, and Annabelle