Passport Ordered

I returned about 3AM this morning from my third trip to Russia. The purpose of the trip was to order Alexander a Russian passport. It was a VERY rushed trip with a lot of travel. I arrived in Moscow Tuesday about 6PM. I then got in the car with a driver who took me to Vladimir - we arrived about 11PM due to heavy traffic. Wednesday started about 8AM and we drove to Murom (4 hour round trip) to sign some documents because that is listed his as his birthplace. We returned to Vladimir to drop off and sign his passport documents and eat lunch. After lunch I got to visit Alexander for about an hour (it was 4 PM by now).

It was good to see him and his smile! When he entered the room, he looked around and I could only assume he was looking for Dawn. After looking around the room, he came running to me and jumped into my arms. He is a clown and loves to laugh! We played for about an hour and then it was time for me to leave and go back to Moscow. It was hard to leave him and I know he is terribly confused. Being deaf, I could not explain that I would be back in just a few days to take him home. If he spoke Russian, I could at least struggle through that to get the point across to him that I would be returning soon. Anyway, he hugged my neck and kissed me on the cheek and waved "bye" to me. Very tough to say goodbye. I arrived back in Moscow about 10PM.

Thursday morning the driver picked me up at 7AM for the long journey home. Due to some delays in Chicago, I did not arrive in Atlanta until 12AM. I then had a 2.5 hour drive ahead of me.

God has been very good and not only taken care of Alexander, but also watching over us/me while travelling. Each trip has had some small surprises but God took care of it all. I am thanful for His love and grace.