[mjkkbbr]

I am Jennifer and Mom to 6 great kids. We live in Montana.

Boys ages 11, 9, 6 and 3 (3 yo from Korea)
Girls ages 8 & 4. (8 yo from Russia and 4 yo from Korea)

We began our Russian adoption in July 2005 by getting a referral of a photlisted child from Ivanovo. We then had to update our homestudy and start the dossier. Trip #1 was Oct 05 and court was 4/28/06. The adoption took about 10 months from initial application to arrival home after court.

Overall our process was smooth but compared to our Korean adoptions that don't require dossiers and only one optional trip I can't honestly say I would recommend Russian adoption. This adoption cost about the same as our 2 Korean adoptions combined! I am very happy that we have our daughter and would do ita all again for her!

[jaw's mom]

I am Katie. We have one 2 1/2 year old little boy adopted from Vlad in October 2004. It was the single best thing we've ever done! We are currently waiting to travel on trip one to meet his biological brother who is 13 months...we think! We are praying for our 2 little guys to be forever united quickly!

God bless all of you in "the process"!!!!

[emjay]

Maura here...DH and I live west of Boston with our two children. Our bio daughter Erin is 5. And next week will mark the anniversary of meeting our son Danny, who is 22 months old. We brought him home at 12 months last September.

Our process took 17 months, but D is worth all that waiting. We haven't had any major attachment issues, although he had some sleeping issues for the first few months, and digestive issues that cleared up with some dietary changes. Home 10 months, he's now a very happy-go-lucky, active, mischievous little boy.

This site was very helpful before, during and after our adoption - and I met some new friends through this board!

[MustangLippy]

We are from Raleigh NC. We have a bio son aged 4 and our DD is from the Moscow region aged 18 months. She's been home for 6 months now. She has had quite a few health issues which are hopefully now resolving, her attachment is going well and her development is slow but steady.

Angela

[suzynfm]

Hi everyone,


I am new to the site and the process. I live in northern California, am single and 37. Recently, I added a lab/terrier mix puppy to my family. I just starting the process, in fact I have just started searching for an agency and am interested in adopting from Russia, so I would greatly appreciate any suggestions and recommendations. I am appreciative of all the information I have already gathered just by reading this site. Just a warning, I do not know anyone who has adotped internationally, so I may/will be asking a lot of questions.

Suzy

[tbristow]

We are Calvin and Theresa. We just relocated from Missouri to the upstate of South Carolina a few months ago. We adopted our son from St. Pete 17 months ago. He's doing great and appears to be VERY bright. DH and I have a total of 4 bio daughters from our first marriages. I also have a step-dd that is making me a grandmother (at almost 38!! ) to a little boy expected any day!! We think we're done now, but you never know.

[oncereluctantspouse]

Originally Posted by torussiawithlove

I am Tatiana my DH Jay and I are waiting for a referral for a 1-18 month old boy from the Moscow region. We started the adoption process 3/05 originally planned to adopt from the Ukraine ( my mother and father are both Ukrainian). Hit a big bump with all of the changes that they are in the process of making......and here we are. We live in Maine with our 3 cats 2 dogs and a rabbit. (I think we have the pet thing covered).

We really do appreciate this site. We don't know what we would do without all of your stories, support and advice.

I'm rapidly nearing 42......Our pet bunnies name is "Stu"...I know I'm ready to be a Dad...Not sure how "prepared" I am....I'm sure I'll find out !
Moscow !!! Here we come..At some point !

[waitinginnj]

I'm Tara. I adopted my daughter from Tver in October 2003. She was two and is now 4.5 years old. We are moving towards our 3 year anniversary as a family of 2 + one Yorkie named Darby.

Good luck to those in process!

[mikeintexas]

I'm Mike and my wife Della and I have 3 kids - two bio sons, 8 and 3, and a daughter, Julia, age 7. We adopted Julia in March 2005 from Ulan-Ude. Our daughter has RAD but I love her so much. I pray she will one day understand how much her family loves her.

[Traci Major]

I am Traci and my husband is Randy. I have a 20 year old son, he has an 18 year old son and I have a 16 year old daughter and we now have a 14 month old daughter from Tolyiatti, Russia, Samara Region. We signed on with our agency on April 4, 2005 and went to court in Samara on April 4, 2006 to finalize the adoption. So exactly 1 year from start to finish which was great compared to some of the other family's who have had to wait so long. We have been home 3 months and she is the joy of our life, but so exhausting at times. Still some adjusting going on for all of us, but we are still early in the game.
Blessings and prayers for those who continue to wait.

[becky26]

I am Gabi (33) from Miami, Fl. DH and I adopted our son Colin from Kemerovo (tomorrow is our first gotcha day!!!). And we are leaving on Friday for Moscow for a blind referral of a little girl... What an exciting week!

[RussianBabyParents2B]

^^^^^ lurker!


Ok I will play!

My name is Monica, my husband and I have recently started to research international adoption and have attended various seminars and gotten lots of info. Especially from these boards.

We are both in our 30's (33 and 36), live in the Indianapolis area and plan on completing the home study in the fall, select an agency in early 2007 and start the process in March.

I know the rules about agency naming on the boards but if someone has any opinions about Families Through International Adoption I would love to hear it. Please PM me!

Thanks and congratulations to all of those with complete families! I can wait to be where all of you are now!

[jimpol]

I am Polly (34) and my husband Jim from Cumming, GA. It is a suburb of Atlanta. We adopted our son, Andrew, from Vsevolozhsk (outside St. Petersburg) in June 2003. He has been with us now for THREE years. He is now 4.5 years old.

We have been dealing with eating issues from day 1, but have chosen not to make it into a big deal. We supplement his diet with Pediasure. He also has some sensory issues with smell and touch, but is better after working with an occupational therapist.

[kcgirlinfl]

I'm Debra, DH is Steve. We live in the Tampa, FL area - but originally from Missouri and hopefully heading back there soon.

DS is Gabriel - he has been home with us just over a year, and is from the Moscow Region. He will be 2 in August.

We hope to go back some day for a little sister.............

[jroc]

Hi There! So nice to see this board so active and alive. I have learned so much from everyone already, so thank all you posters who always provide such great advice.

DH and I are from South Florida. I am 29 and he's 31. We started this process at the first of this year and are waiting for a referral of a baby (<18 months) from Russia. We are open to whatever God brings are way.

No matter where you are in the process, I wanted to wish everyone the best of times in the future.