Another Little Blessing!!

Wow He is Growing!

2010-02-06T12:15:00.002-05:00

Here is some pictures of my little man! He has been with us for almost 2 years, but it seems like a lifetime! He loves the movie "Cars" and any toy that goes with it! He talks all the time and loves to pick on his sisters! He is truly a blessing!

Almost 1 Year Ago...

2009-05-19T20:23:00.003-04:00

Wow, It has almost been 1 year since we left for Russia to pick up Cooper. It has been a crazy and exciting year. Cooper is doing great. He has gained almost 10lbs since he has been home and is learning words and phrases. He loves to hang out with his sisters and other kids. Computer time is non existence except for checking email and a little bit of facebook time. Everyone is doing great, Amelia is finishing First Grade, Ella is finishing Kindergarten and Lucy will be attending Pre-K next year at WJPS. I am looking forward to another fun filled, crazy year with my many blessings.

Home and Happy

2008-06-26T02:14:00.002-04:00

Well we have adjusted well since being home. Cooper did good at his dr. appt. on Wednesday. All his test came back negative and he does not have a parasite in his belly, which is great! He made his first appearance at church on Sunday and was a little shy, but started to warm up by the end. He even stayed in the nursery and played for a while. He is sleeping through the night and is eating everything he sees. He is a little attached to mommy right now. At home I can't leave a room without him getting upset. If his sister's are playing with him then he is very happy. The second he is upset, Lucy will go find a bottle for him. It doesn't matter if it is clean or dirty, full or empty, she just gives it to him. She likes playing mommy to him. Amelia likes to pick him up and carry him around and Ella helps him with his toys. Things are going good and Cooper is adjusting well. He even likes the kiddy pool outside. Cooper has even made his first trip to Target. He enjoyed the buggy and just stared at everything and everybody. He likes to go places and do things. He doesn't like to crawl on the grass. It is the only way to keep him in one place for a few minutes. He just holds his hands up and makes a face like, "Please come pick me up!" I haven't taken on the grocery store yet with all 4 kids and probably won't. John has been great. He is definitely changing his share of dirty diapers (and Cooper gives us plenty). Thanks again for all the prayers and support.

Home and fighting Jet Lag!!

2008-06-16T13:35:00.002-04:00

God Bless the USA!!!
We are so happy to be home. We arrived in the US at 4:30 PM on June 14th. We went to mom and dad's for some good BBQ and to show off Cooper. He did very well considering it was the middle of the night for his little body. Sunday was a day of catch up on everything. Cooper took several naps, he is still fighting jet lag too. He is getting better everyday with people. He loves his sisters and his sister love him. They are like little mommies to him, especially Lucy. He has gotten up in the middle of the night both nights that we have been home, so hopefully he is on America time now. I just put him down for a nap and he is mad. He is fighting sleep right now, and I am too tired to wrestle him. I was fine until about lunch time and I have just seem to run out of steam. Hopefully one more night and I will be back on schedule. Cooper has his first doctor appt on Wed. morning, so this should be fun. Well, I had better use this time wisely (like take a nap myself). Thanks again for all your prayers and for all the help with the girls. I am so happy to be home and have my girls with me!!!

My Last Post from Moscow!!!

2008-06-13T17:50:00.003-04:00

Yeah!!! We are going home in the morning. It has been a long 14 days!! I am so glad that is all that we had to be here for. I miss the girls more than words can express. I am Thankful for the experience, but happy it is over.

We went walking on Thursday and today we took Cooper to the pool. He actually like the pool. He splashed around a lot and smiled a lot. He did much better than I thought he would. We ate at a place called the "American" and it was good. It tasted like food from home. Wish I could say we did more today, but we weren't very adventurous. We are ready to get on the plane and come home.

Please remember our travels in your prayers and pray for Cooper to sleep some on the plane. He is wild and likes to crawl around, so this should be a fun 11 hour plane ride.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY COOPER

2008-06-11T09:10:00.002-04:00

What an adventure it has been. We got back to Moscow on Saturday and had a crazy day on Sunday. Cooper was all out of sorts on Sunday, his inside clock was off. It was not much of a day of rest. He did sleep through the night though, so I can't complain. On Monday we went to the American Doctor and Cooper is healthy and doing fine. His Chicken Pox are almost gone, he looks so much better. On Tuesday we went to the American Embassy and got the very important "IMMIGRANT VISA" This will allow us to take Cooper into the USA. Also on Tuesday I was stricken with the dreadful stomach bug. I woke up sick and was able to make it to the embassy. I got sick once we were at the embassy, and then was bedridden the rest of the day. I don't remember the last time I throw-up so much. I woke up this morning (Wed.) and felt much better. We went to the Russian Consulate to do some register paperwork and now we are DONE!!! We could come home tomorrow, but thanks to Delta, we can't afford the darn ticket change fee and other fees. I could buy new tickets for the price they want to change the tickets. So we are STUCK here until Saturday.

Today is Cooper's 1st Birthday. We went to the Moscow Zoo. He could of cared less, but it made the day pass by faster. Tomorrow is the "Day of Russia." I don't know what it is for, but it is a big holiday here. Then on Friday we will prepare to come home.

Not too much more is going on. We have really enjoyed staying at the Marriott, we call it our little piece of America. It has some English channels and most of the employees speak English. Me and John made a list of what we missed most about America (this excludes people, because I miss my girls soooooo much)

John and Farrah's Top 10 List of things we miss about the
good 'ole U.S. of A...
10. ESPN (this is John's not mine)
9. Drinkable tap water
8. ENGLISH!!! (people, signs, TV)
7. vented fans in the bath room, John stinks and the smell has no where to go!!
6. American Money (Rubles is like monopoly money)
5. Mobile to Mobile Cell phone use (it's $5.00 a minute now)
4. Our house with more than one room (the hotel room seems to get smaller each day!)
3. Washer and Dryer (I know this one is a surprise!!)
2. Walmart and Target!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
1. My Van!!!

Well, that is pretty much it for now. I will post some pictures too. I will post some with Cooper's Chicken Pox and some of him today. He looks much better than when we picked him up at the orphanage. Please pray for a safe return for us and for all those who are keeping my kids.

So Much To Tell...

2008-06-07T11:28:00.007-04:00

Wow, what a crazy week. We went to the 8 Doctor Medical Exam, which was a waste of time and money, but it was required, so that made it OK, I guess. After that we left on Tuesday for Kemerovo. Because of the time zones, we arrived on Wednesday morning, early. We slept most of Wednesday and then prepared for Court on Thursday. We went to Court on Thursday and that was very interesting. There was a lot of talking in a language I didn't understand, and the one thing I did understand was when they said... " Congratulations, you are now parents to Cooper Keith Galley." I do know that some of the ladies in the court got their feathers ruffled when they asked us about our Religion. We told them we were baptist and that we believed in Jesus Christ and they went nuts in Russian tongue. I asked our translator what was going on and she said that when it was the soviet union, that the baptist religion had a bad reputation. I didn't go into detail with her, but she explain to them that it wasn't bad, and not believe everything they hear. It was an experience!! We drove Friday for 3 hours to pick up Cooper. There were times I thought we would not make it. It was raining and the driver was driving like a mad man, but so was everyone else. We got to the orphanage and they brought Cooper to us. He looked so pittyful, because he had gotten chicken pox. He broke out on May 31st, and now they were just crusted over. I will attach pictures when I get more time. We drove back to Kemerovo with the kids in our lap and played a little while. The guys went to the police station and picked up Cooper's Passport. We left early on Saturday morning to go to the airport. We arrived at the airport around 6:15 AM for a 8:00 AM flight. After a 4 HOUR DELAY, we loaded the plane and headed back Moscow. Because of time zones, we arrived in Moscow at the same time we left. So Cooper's little time clock is out of sorts. Everyone is asleep and that is where I am about to go. We should be home Wed. or Thursday, we will know for definite on Monday. Thanks for all your prayers!!

A New Way to Potty!!

2008-06-03T02:43:00.002-04:00

Hello,
We leave today to head to the Region. We are having breakfast and planning our day. Yesterday we went site seeing and I had to go potty. So... we went inside a "mall" where we had to pay to use the potty. When we got into the bathroom, there was no potty, just a hole in the ground. I have attached a picture. Enjoy!! Our 8 Doctor Medical went good yesterday. Mainly just a waste of time.

I will post once we get to the region!!

We Made It!!! We are in Russia

2008-06-01T10:14:00.003-04:00

We made it to Moscow this morning around 11:30 AM (Moscow Time). We had a good flight, just really long... 11 hours long! We have made it to our hotel and rested for a little while. Not to much to post right now. Here is our schdule this week...
Mon: 8 Doctor Medical
Tue: Fly to Kemerovo
Wed: Arrive in Kemerovo and prepare for court
Thurs: COURT!!
Fri: Pick up Cooper
Sat: Fly back to Moscow!!

I will post as I have any new news. I probably won't post anything until we get into Kemerovo. Thanks for all your prayers and remember those who are caring for the girls this next two weeks. Pray for patience and strength!!

It's Almost Time!

2008-05-26T09:01:00.002-04:00

Wow, time has flown by. We will be leaving in 5 days to fly 11 hours to Russia. Then another 4 hours to Kemerovo. Thank goodness we have a few days in between plane rides on this trip. Our court is on June 5th and we will pick up Cooper on June 6th. I am so nervous and excited at the same time. My biggest worry this week is the thought of leaving my girls for 2 weeks. I know that they will be fine and will have so much fun with the family and friends that they will be with, but I have never been away from them for this long.

We are going to take the laptop with us to Russia so that we can update the blog with pictures and tell everyone what is going on. The computer is the easiest way to communicate while we are in Russia. This will probably be my last post until we get to Russia. Please keep us in your prayers while we are traveling. Please pray for the girls and the people that will be taking care of them while we are gone. Thank you to everyone and their support during this time!!

Mom Update: We found out this week that mom will NOT need Chemo!!!! Praise God for this great news!! She is doing good (except for her voice) and is ready to wrangle 3 kids for the next two weeks. What doesn't kill us only makes us stronger!!

Count Down to Get Cooper

2008-05-18T00:40:00.004-04:00

What a crazy week. Preschool is over and Ella has graduated from Pre-K! Amelia has 1 more week of school and then we are officially on Summer Break. This week we had school parties and ceremonies. Next week I can focus more on getting ready for our travels. I bought our plane tickets and hotel tickets this week. Good grief, our airfare almost doubled since we traveled in February. Flying the first week in June is one of the most expensive times and fuel costs aren't helping with the price either. Either way, it is all worth it!!

Mom Update: Her biopsy results came back negative and she is doing good. Still tired a lot, but that is to be expected. Thanks again for all your prayers!!

WE HAVE A COURT DATE!!!

2008-05-07T20:25:00.002-04:00

We got an email today and will be traveling May 31st for court on June 5th!! We are so excited. I have so much to do to get ready for Cooper to come home. This is the best Mother's Day gift. We will be in Russia for Cooper's 1st Birthday. At least I get to be with my baby when he turns one. So much to do and not enough time to post right now. Thank you again for all your prayers!!

Good News Finally!!!

2008-05-06T16:49:00.002-04:00

Today we found out that our letter has been received from Moscow and we can now set our court date. Unfortunately we have to wait until next week because this week is a holiday in Russia. I'll post more as I find out. This is a very exciting time!! Hopefully we will have Cooper home by his first birthday. (June 11)

Mom Update: Please remember my mom this week. She is having another biopsy done on Thursday. This time it is her lymph nodes in her chest. She is such a trooper!!

Some news from Russia, but still NO court date

2008-05-04T17:21:00.004-04:00

We recieved some information from our case worker. Basically Kemerovo (our region) has had too many adoptions this year and need to slow down on the international adoptions. It's a whole bunch of mumbo jumbo, the bottom line, we WILL get to finish our adoption sooner than later. God has truly blessed us with this opportunity. I am praying for a court date, but I am also praying for the others who are adopting and are now on hold until fall. Thank you for all your prayers! Hopefully we will have Cooper home soon!!

This Waiting Sucks!!

2008-04-27T21:24:00.002-04:00

OK, I know that isn't the best title to use, but it is truly how I feel. And it is true, waiting on Court stinks!! Waiting on a referral is one thing, but once you have held your precious little one, all you want to do is bring him home. The girls keep asking when are we going to get Cooper, and I hate not having an answer. Lucy is so funny when she asks about Cooper. I think she thinks he is going to fit in her little hands. She will say, "I hold Cooper in my hands." Then she cups her little hands. It is so precious. Anyway, I will end with this... Still No News!!!
Hopefully we will hear something this week.

Another week goes by...

2008-04-11T16:12:00.001-04:00

Still Nothing!!! Every week I think this is going to be the week we hear about our court date. It is Friday, again, and still haven't heard anything. It is sooooo frustrating!!

Cooper is 10 months old today!! I am praying that we will see him before he turns 11 months! I am so upset about the wait, but knew it would happen. I watched Cooper's video today and just wondered how much he has changed this past month.

Please pray that we will hear something soon. I know that it is in God's timing and not mine, but I am still so anxious! I don't want to miss another day of Cooper's life.

Still Waiting on Court

2008-04-06T07:45:00.002-04:00

We found out this week several things...
First, we heard of another adoption death in the US. It was in Utah and it was due to child abuse. I believe people who beat or mistreat children should have the same done to them. Anyway, this incident has Russia in a frenzy too. If you want to hear the story you can go to www.youtube.com and search for Russia child death in Utah and see the news report. This makes the 12th death for an adopted child from Russia since 1996 due to abuse. What are these people thinking???

Second, we found out that the DOE (Department of Education) has been closed for the past 2 weeks and is to open this next week. What does this mean for us... EVERYTHING!! The DOE sends out our letter which gets us a court date. We probably would of had our court date by now if they would not of been closed.
I just have to remember that it is God's timing, not my own.

Update on Mom, she is doing great!! She is up and doing so much more that she was. Her shingles are finally getting better and she is able to go more places. She made it to church last Sunday which was so great. Please keep her and Cooper in your prayers this week.

I AM SO ANXIOUS!!

2008-03-26T18:46:00.002-04:00

Not much to report. It has been 1 month and 6 days since we have seen Cooper. I haven't been too anxious until now. I did hear from our agency that it should be soon, but I want to go NOW!! I knew it would be hard to leave Cooper, but I didn't realize how much I was going to miss him.

An update on Mom...
Mom is doing pretty good. If she could get rid of the shingles she would be doing much better!! She is finally getting around more and starting to leave the house more. Thanks for all your prayers and the meals. They have truly enjoyed them.

Mom's Surgery

2008-03-02T10:41:00.003-05:00

Once we returned on Feb. 22nd from our trip, mom was scheduled for her Double Mastectomy on Monday, Feb. 25th. Her surgery went well and she stayed in the hospital until Thursday. Just a few setbacks with recovery, but in all she is doing good. Main problem now is really sore and a lot of pain. Her lymph nodes are clear of cancer, which is an answer to our prayers. The only bad thing is she came down with the shingles while in the hospital, which didn't help her much with her pain, but that is what a morphine pump is for!! :)

She is home now and handling the pain well. She is sleeping a lot, which is what she needs!! Remember her in your prayers as she continues to heal.

What a Wonderful Trip

2008-03-02T10:16:00.002-05:00

It has been a while since my last post. We found out on January 30th about our referral for our son. Since then we have traveled to see him. Here is our story...

Our Journey Started on Feb. 16th when we started our journey to Russia. We flew 9 hours direct to Moscow. We were so excited and tired. We would then meet with our Russian Coordinator who would then take us to another airport. After 10 hours in the airport we boarded a plane to Novokuznetsk. It would be another 4 hour flight before we reached our final destination. We left the States on Saturday, Feb. 16th and arrived on Monday, Feb. 18th to Novokuznetsk. We went straight to our hotel and 45 minutes to change. We then drove to the orphanage for the first visit. The orphanage was about an hour away from our hotel. The anticipation was killing us. We finally arrived at the orphanage and met the director. She went over background and medical information on our son. Then the workers brought him into the room and our hearts melted!! We couldn't believe that we were looking at our son! It was a moment that I will never forget. It is just like giving birth and seeing your little one for the first time. We were then able to spend about an hour and a half with him in the playroom at the orphanage. He didn't know what to think of us, and he stared at John a lot. John is probably the first man that our son had actually seen. We decided to name him Cooper Keith Galley. We played and loved on him and then it was time to go. We drove back to the hotel, ate lunch and went straight to bed. We had not actually been in a bed for 2 days.

The Tuesday we left for the orphanage around 9:00 AM. We played with Cooper for about an hour and then he fell asleep in my arms. It was so sweet. Right before they came to get him he woke up and gave us a big smile. He is so precious. It was so HARD to let him go, but it was obvious that he was happy at the orphanage. It was a very nice orphanage with a nice play area. While we were there they were having music class and you could hear the children singing. It was so sweet. Cooper would rock back and forth on his hands and knees when the music would play.

As we left the orphanage, it was a bittersweet moment. I knew the next time we would come to see him that we would get to take him home. I tried not to look at it as "leaving him" but as a time to prepare for him at home.

We flew back to Moscow on Wednesday and spent the day. We got on an airplane on Thursday and arrived back into the States (after a LONG 11 hour flight) at 6:00 PM. We were happy to be home and we missed our girls SOOOOO much!! We spent most of Friday trying to get back on Eastern Standard Time with our sleep. It took a few days to get over jet lag, but well worth it!! We are counting the days until we get to go back and pick up Cooper!!

Thanks to everyone who helped make this trip possible. Thanks to Mom, Dad, Edie, Brian, Jason and April for helping keep our kids while we were gone. Thanks to Michelle for keeping Amelia and taking her to school for me!! Without our family's help and Prayer, this wouldn't have been possible.

WE HAVE A REFERRAL!!!

2008-01-30T22:19:00.000-05:00

We received our referral tonight at 7:00 PM!!! I was on my way home from church and checked my phone and saw that I had a voicemail. The voicemail was from John letting me know that we had just received a referral. From that point I have no idea how I made it home. I called him immediately and asked for the details. I told the girls in the car what was happening and they screamed with delight. Ella asked how big he was and I said he was little. She said I want to eat him up! When we pulled in the driveway we all jumped out of the car to see pictures of our new little boy. WOW!!! What a cutie! He is 7 months old which is definitely younger than we were expecting. I have posted pictures for everyone to see. What a night of mixed emotions!! It is like finding out your pregnant and having the baby all in one night!

Please remember my mother. We will find out tomorrow about her surgery date. Our travel date and her surgery date will be happening this month. Please remember to pray for us daily. God has truly blessed us!!

US Approval Received!

2008-01-21T17:37:00.000-05:00

We received a letter from Homeland Security this weekend that stated...

"Notice of Favorable Disposition Concerning Application for Advance Processing of Orphan Petition"

This means we have clearance to bring our son home. We are still waiting on a referral and should hear something in a few months. Thanks to everyone for their prayers.

Bump in the Road

2007-12-28T22:55:00.000-05:00

No new news about the adoption. But just felt like posting tonight. A lot has happened since my last post with our family. Mom spent a few days in the hospital at Christmas and came home on Christmas day (Thank you Lord!). God has once again blessed us this Christmas with more than we could ever ask for. This year has truly made me open my eyes to what is important this time of year... FAMILY!! Don't get me wrong, I have always thought family was important, but this year has been one of the toughest for me. As we grow older, so do our loved ones. And each year time with our loved ones becomes more precious. You see, Mom was diagnosed on December 27 with Breast Cancer. I don't know what to do or what to say. The only right thing to do is give it to God, but I so want to fix it myself.

Then I have thoughts about our son in Russia who we don't even know yet. I wonder what next Christmas will be like? I have so many emotions right now of happy and sad. My main prayer right now is for my mom, pray for her strength, faith, and self-esteem. Pray for dad that he will find relief from his leg pain and for strength to care for mom. Pray for the doctors who will be treating her. Pray for God's timing with the adoption trips we will be taking and mom's treatment schedule.

Tonight I was watching a Barbie movie with the girls and the last song really made me think about the direction our life is heading. Here is some of the lyrics to the song...

Now that I've seen the world around me,

Now that the answers are all clear.

Old concerns behind me, new adventures near,

I know a chance can be worth taking,

And that a family can grow...

When we have love to guide us as we go.

There may be miracles awaiting

They may be closer than we know,

When we have love to guide us as we go.

(Isn't it funny how God talks to us through some of the craziest ways, even a child's movie.)

6th in line...

2007-12-14T10:45:00.001-05:00

I found out yesterday from our case worker that we are 6th in line for a boy. Russia closes for the holidays and will reopen mid January. So nothing will happen for the next 2-3 months. If we here any other news, I will be sure to post it. Thank you to everyone for your prayers. Merry Christmas everyone!!

Paperwork will be sent to Russia on Friday!

2007-12-12T20:48:00.000-05:00

Our caseworker emailed us today and approved our paperwork. It will be translated and mail by Friday to Russia! This is so exciting for our family. Ella told someone at church tonight that our paperwork was done. I think it is funny that they are so involved in this process. Adopting is a lot like being pregnant. You have your ups and downs and you just can't get your baby fast enough. I also received our list for the court documents needed after we get our referral. Oh my Gosh!! I might as well cut off my arm and mail it along with all the stuff they want. The paperwork includes another police clearance, a copy of the deed to our home, and another medical clearance along with the license from the doctor. Like I said, why not cut off my arm and give it to them too. It is all worth it!! This is the "labor part" of adopting.

The start of a wonderfrul Journey

2007-12-11T19:54:00.000-05:00

Our journey began in October. After several months of discussion of a 4th child, we discovered that the path God would have us travel is Adoption. We were driving to church on a Sunday morning and I said to John, I know we haven't made a decision about a 4th baby, but what would you think of adoption. It was at that moment we knew what we needed and wanted to do. I immediately began making phone calls to DHR and other agencies. I did a lot of research online and after talking to numerous people we decided to adopt from Russia. John and I knew in our hearts that this is where God wanted us to be. So began our Journey.

After 2 months of unbelievable paperwork, we submitted our Dossier on December 10, 2007 to Adoption Ark. This will be the beginning of one of the hardest parts... THE WAIT!!

Please pray as we make adjustments in our home life for our new addition. Pray for that little boy who God has already chosen.