It was nice to have uneventful flights for a change. Everything worked the way it was supposed to. It was a pleasant surprise considering how things have worked for Greg and I so far. While picking up our luggage from our Stavropol flight, Greg noticed that someone had checked 2 large smoked fish. They were wrapped in paper but their heads were peaking out. No wonder things smell funny in Russia. There were quite a few adoptive families on the flight from Moscow to Chicago. You could tell the kids were adopted because the parents were enjoying them way too much. It was obvious they had gone through a lot to get them. All the other travelers looked bored or frustrated and the adoptive parents looked tired but relieved and happy.

It's nice to be home. We haven't made it all the way home, actually. We are still at Greg's parents. Paul picked us up at LAX last night and we came home to have some wonderful soup and oatmeal cookies that Ursula made for our homecoming. It was wonderful. We didn't get up until after 1:00pm. We were desperate for sleep and it felt great to get caught up. Greg and Paul watched football this afternoon and I shopped for flights.

Planning trips is always tricky as we never know what we will encounter until we get there. We have had to change the dates of our return tickets on each trip. We have been told to purchase changeable tickets but they cost 4x the price of the economy tickets. Instead, we buy the economy tickets knowing that we have to pay the $250 change fee per ticket and whatever the price difference is for traveling a different day. So far, it has been a more economical choice. This time around, if the dates don't work, we can be in big trouble due to prices climbing over the holidays. Our team on the ground told us that they aren't sure if we will be finished at the American Embassy on Friday and able to fly out on Saturday, the 20th or finished on Monday and able to fly out on Tuesday the 23rd. Due to a dramatic price difference, I purchased our tickets to fly out on Monday the 22nd. I checked it out and even if we have to go to the American Embassy again on Monday the 22nd, we should be able to go first thing in the morning to get Elsa's visa and still make our 2:30 flight. That is what we are praying for anyway... It would be nice to have everything done on Friday and spend a few days getting to know each other before taking a transatlantic flight.

It doesn't look like we are going to make it home tonight. We are just way too tired. Paul & Greg picked up Chinese food, which was wonderful, and we have made quick work on the cookies that Ursula made. I'll try to share more about the trip when we get home.
Hugs,
L