Almost Home!

     Ahhhh, the words we have been waiting to say.  We are going to be heading back to Houston tomorrow.  As much as we have enjoyed this trip and meeting Jonah, we are ready to get back to Hull.  Of course, we wish Jonah was coming with us, but since he cannot, we are anxiously awaiting to board our plane in the morning.  We arrived in Moscow last night around midnight and were met in the airport by our translator, Margaret.  It was cold and rainy, and we had to catch a cab out to our hotel.  Airports in Russia are regoinal, so eventhough we were in the Moscow airport, it was about an hour drive to our hotel.  We arrived and were immediately taken back by how beautiful this hotel is.  It is a Marriot and everyone speaks English, and our room has a king size bed.  We have been sleeping on two twins pushed together since arriving in Volgograd, so the king was like being in Heaven! 
     Yesterday was our last day in Volgograd.  It was also Jonah's birthday and the day we officially filed the documents with the Volgograd courts to become his parents.  We signed the official paperwork to change his name in Russia from Stadnikov Nikolay Andrevich to Jonah Nikolay Elder.  It was a pretty cool event.  We realized that October 31 was becoming a big day for him.  In 2010 it was the day of his birth.  In 2011 it was the day we legally filed to be his parents. In 2012 it will be his first birthday party in the US!  We have come to terms with the fact that he has to stay here for now.  It was very sad to leave him at the orphanage, but we had no choice.  Hopefully we will be able to return in January to pick him up.
     Next time we update this blog we will be back in Hull.  It has been a long, whirlwind, 10 days, but we wouldn't trade any of it for the world.  From the uncertainty of the first night when we arrived in Volgograd, to the unexplainable feeling when we first saw Jonah being brought out of that crib, to the anxiousness we both feel as we await the long flight home, it has been amazing.  We will try to update weekly now that we will be back home.  As we get news, you will get news.  Please do not stop praying.  We cherish the friendship and support we have gotten from you all throughout this time.  Thanks so much.  Goodbye Moscow....Until next time.