Going Blind in Ukraine

We have made it home!  We are so glad to be here with our new family!!  This has been an amazing journey.  I haven't been able to update like I had hoped, too due to time and availability of the internet, but it has been great.  I was suprised when I saw how few posts I had done.  It seemed like I was always doing them!!  Anyway, thank you for following with us!! 

 

Last time I wrote, we had just gotten the children from the orphanage.  It was a little scary, to be honest, to take them home and know that they would be ours forever and ever!! What if they don't like us?  We had had several 2-3 hour meetings, but what would happen when they were with us ALL the time? We couldn't believe how good it would be.  Luckily, God had chosen the children for us.  Chelsea and Cody really settled in well with our family and the family we lived with.  They very easily would come and sit on our laps and give hugs and kisses.  They would just smile and play like they had been there for years.  Cody is very shy!  He will engage well, but usually gives his beautiful shy smile and lowers his head giggling.  It is so endearing!!  They five kids spent the last few days in Lugansk swimming in the pool.  We also had our wonderful friend Denis take us to the park.  We took the kids on several carnival type rides.  Cody loved ALL the rides.  I hope that I can download the pictures because they are unbelivable!  He would scream in fear and then scream with delight just seconds later.  He couldn't get enough of the adrenaline it seems. He was very excited and ran from place to place.  Chelsea wanted NOTHING to do with the rides!!  She wanted to watch Mikey ride the power wheels.  She spent the time hugging on Thom and I and walking hand in hand with us.  She is quite the young lady!! She laughs so easy and is readily pleased.  We only had a couple of days in Lugansk before we headed back to Kiev.

THE TRAIN:  If you have never been on a train in Ukraine, it is deffinately something worth doing.  We decided to take the children back to Kiev by over night train.  We had a wonderful send off from Iina, Denis and Sasha. Lianna, Marina and Anna said good bye at the house.  We were all in tears as we said good bye. It was so hard to say good bye to our new family.  We will surely miss them!!  I have very much fallen in love with Lugansk and hate to leave it, but know that we will be headed home soon, and this is a huge step forward.  Tommy, Jessica and Mikey were amazed!  We played games and ate the dinner that our wonderful Lianna packed for us. 

Sorry, I have to cut this short, but I will write more later!

 We have been home since the 18th and been having alot of fun!!!  It is amazing how a trip can change your life completely!!  We have had just over a week of adjusting and getting to know each other.  A lot has happened since my last post, so I will try to tell all as usual. 

I will start with NOW since that is the most important!  We are really settling in as a family.  It is much better than I could have dreamed!!!  All the kids are still getting along well.  Mikey has been jealous today of Cody and Tommy spending time together.  It's quite cute but sad at the same time!!  Cody is VERY attached to Tommy and Tommy loves him a bunch!  Cody and Mikey have been playing cars and building blocks like crazy.  They are very good together.  Unfortunately he has quickly become a game freak.  I guess it is a boy thing.  He does like the leapster, and it is helping with his learning.  He is still shy but so cute!!  His shyness is in his talking mostly.  When he talks, he covers his mouth with his hand.  He doesn't like to try to speak English because it sounds so funny to him.  He always laughs if he says a word.  The one word he knows very well is "ice cream".  He uses it VERY often.  It's good since it is over 100 degrees outside!  He is getting used to his name now and readily answers to it.  He is especially fond of Babuska and Dadyuska!!  He uses any excuse to go with them or spend time with them.  When we go to their house, or he sees their car he cheers with all his might, clapping and singing!  They love it of coarse!!  Because of all the problems in the past, they were rightfully hesitant about our adoption before we left.  They are very happy that I did not listen to them and that we perseveared in our quest!!  They love our new children a tremendous amount! 

Chelsea has been a suprise for me.  I thought that she would be a great child and would fit in well, but I was not thinking that it would be this wonderful with her!  She is always ready for a hug, cuddle or kiss!  She is happy, laughing and helpful all the time!  I love her sooo much!  We dance and sing, laugh and play all day long!!!  She is a prize for sure!!  I can't believe that they are ours  It seems impossible.  I love her spirit and how much she loves us.  First thing in the morning she comes running in with hugs good morning!  She is always watching for "Daddy" when we come home and is dissappointed when he is not here.  When he does come home she goes running for him with her arms wide open.  Ready to be scooped up in a hug!  She is a gem!  No matter what I am doing, she is always right beside me.  Right now she is sitting in the chair next to me, head on my shoulder, relaxed and practicing her reading.  She has been reading EVERYTHING in sight.  She is great at the letters and sounding them out.  She has a hunger for knowledge.  She does everything with zest.  If I am cooking, she is chopping, stirring, fixing.  If I am cleaning, she is sweeping, washing, cleaning right beside me.  She always says, "Moi Mommy!" (My Mommy!)  She seems happy to have a mom and not have to be in charge!  She is amazing...did I say that already???

We have had quite a homecoming!  Our family and friends put on a dinner and pie auction for us.  It was a wonderful success with so many friends and loved ones wishing us well and supporting us!  We had my favorite teacher that I never had, do the auctioneering for us.  He was a load of fun!!  My friend Cas framed many of her own photographs to use for auction.  They were amazing!!  Our friends at Dr. Massy's office were there and supportive as ever.  They have been amazing in their support of us.  We love them a tremendous amount!  Girls, and Massy, we missed you terribly and thank you for your enthusiasm!!  My dear friend Jeri.  We have been best friends for 36 years!  You have been so faithful and supportive.  We all love you very much!  There is a funny story here...  Jeri and her family came to support us as usual.  After the long drive, they spent the time entertaining our children, all 5, and making sure they were safe as we ran around busily at the dinner.  Jeri and Donna were helping every where, and Jose, Jeri's husband, was hanging out with Cody.  I guess Cody could sense what a great "football" (soccer) player that Jose is.  He would not let him go all night!  At the end of the event, he was hanging on to Jose's neck and sheepishly said, "Mama!  Etta Papa!"  He wanted to have Jose for his daddy!  Now I know how these poor kids must feel being "shopped for" when seeing if they will match the family.  When I explained to him that he could only have one family to live with, and one daddy, he happily came back to us as his parents and said good-bye.  I know that he is waiting to visit though.  There were so many other wonderful people who helped us with the dinner, I can't even begin to name you all.  Please know that we were very blessed by your giving, friendship and prayers.  Last week the children are quite the stars.  We had an interview for the news paper that was in last Saturday's paper.  Anita did a wonderful job on the story!  Bless her heart, she has really put up with me and not returning calls since I have been home.  She also did a television interview on the family for a local TV show.  We are hoping to shed some light and get some help on the Child Trafficing situation that we were involved in.  We really want to help the children as best we can!!!  The community has really embraced the children and we are so thankful.  Tommy, Jessica and Mikey have been thrilled to be home and with their friends doing all the summer type things.  Jessica left yesterday for church camp.  Her first time ever.  She was really looking forward to it!  Tommy started football practice and is doing very well.  When we first came home, we went to see his closest friends.  He is really blessed to have great friends!!  We were especially excited to see Cody.  This is the wonderful boy that inspired our Cody's name.  He was very proud and happy that we named our son with him in mind!  I hope and pray that our Cody is as wonderful a boy as Tommy's friend!

LEAVING LUGANSK --I have to tell you I have been very homesick for Ukraine!!  I didn't realize that I would leave half of my heart there!  I knew that we were blessed to be in the situation we were in.  I didn't know how much I would miss it until we came home!  As you know, we went to Kiev on the 11th of July (Tommy's birthday) to wait and finish the adoption.  It was so very hard to leave our new family.  I couldn't even look at Lianna or I would have broken down in tears.  My wonderful Denis had taken me to develop pictures at the last second.  He was always willing to indulge me in whatever I needed to do.  After some coffee and last minute shopping,  he went with us to the train station.  He and Iina waited with us until the train came and took us, unwillingly, away from our new home and family.  The kids and I were so sad to go, but anxious at the same time!  We had a great train ride back to Kiev.  What an experience!!  We left our Iina in Lugansk to clear up the passport mess.  If you don't know, a couple days before our final court date, the whole process in Ukraine changed AGAIN!  It is always something!  Apparently, the government decided that they would no longer issue the old style passports.  They knew this was coming for several months.  In typical Ukraine style, they pulled all the old passports from the offices and did not leave the new ones to be used.  MANY people are still stuck there waiting for the passports so that they can take their children home!  But as God does, he managed to bring our wonderful hostess, Marina back just in time to save the day.  She made several calls to many of her high contacts and worked hard to get our passport issue resolved.  When we returned to Kiev, we were told that they were able to get passports, legally, and that they would be done soon BUT one of us would have to return to Lugansk to sign for them.  We decided that I would go back and Thom would stay in Kiev with the kids.  Our good friends Olga and Granny came to Kiev to help Thom with the kids while I was gone.  We met them the first time I went to Ukraine in  2005.  Luckily they were there because Thom got terribly sick and was in bed the whole time I was gone!!  As for me, I was the lucky one who got to go back home, I mean to Lugansk, and play.  The flight to Lugansk was crazy!!  There was almost no rubber left on the tires of the airplane!  I kept praying that we would land without popping them!!  As we approached Lugansk, there was a lightning storm.  Unlike American planes, we flew right through it!  There were lightning bolts right off the wing of the plane!  I kid you not!!  Not even a second between strike and thunder!  They went from next to us to the ground, under the plane, over the plane...Every where!  It was amazing! 

When we got to Lugansk, Iina was there to meet me (at 10:30 pm).  I was really suprised when our Denis was there with his great big smile, welcoming me back home!  It was a homecoming I will not forget.  I couldn't believe how good it felt to be back!  We travelled the next day to Sevierdonetsk, did the paperwork and returned to Lugansk to pick up the passports.  You can only imagine how wonderful it was to have them and know that we could go home with our children!!!  I think I was as happy as when the court gave us the children in the first place!  So we went back to have an unforgetable night with our friends in Lugansk celebrating our victory!!  Absolutely amazing!!!  Iina and I left early the next morning for Kiev. 

When I got back, I was suprised to see that Thom was really not doing well.  He was sooo sick!  I am so thankful that Olga and Granny were there to help while I was gone.  It was wonderful to see them again!  They were able to get to know the kids and they love them all very much!  Our Olga is getting married in October and I will do all I can to go!  I am so happy for her!  In Kiev the mosquitos were horrible!  It was so hot, and there was no Air Conditioner, so we had to have the windows open for air.  Unfortunately, that let the mosquitos in.  Poor Mikey was eaten from head to toe by the mangy things!!  He looked like he had a horrible case of the chicken pox!  He was miserable!  We spent the last day going to different museums and such.  We went to the Military museum.  IF YOU EVER GET TO UKRAINE THIS IS A MUST!!!  My life will forever be changed by this WWII display.  I couldn't stop crying as we walked through it!  I found out that the building just outside our kids' camp was an old concentration camp.  We thought it was, but it seemed unreal that it could be!!  I stand in awe of the museum and what it stands for.  Really you must see it!!!

After our busy and emotional day, we met our great New Yorker friends at TGI Fridays.  We had a great time and drank a Margarita in celebration!  It was soo good to see them.  The fact that we met up was almost a miracle!  She is the one I asked you to pray for.  After we left, she accepted a referral on a sweet girl and is in the process of adopting her.  What a blessing!!  I pray that it goes fast for her!  I then spent the next two nights saying good bye to my great friend Iina.  I am soooo sad that we had to leave her.  She is truly a gift from God!!!  Anyone who needs a GREAT and HONEST faciltator, you couldn't go wrong with her!!!  She is TRULY special and gifted!!  She made this experience one to remember, nearly making up for all the horrible things that happened in the first 3 years!  We love you Iina and miss you TERRIBLY!!

Well, another long entry!  Can you imagine how much I talk in person?  I have 3 more stories that I will tell later.  One is about "The Dead Lady"  another is the crazy plane ride back and finally MY TOY BEAR!  Always an adventure waiting for us!!!

Well, we finally have our kids!!  We are so thankful and happy!  I thought that I could never smile as big as I did yesterday...and I smile ALOT!  We picked up Chelsea and Cody yesterday.  There were many tears from the caretakers and all were a little nervous but they are ours at last!! Cody's care taker said, "please don't hurt him!"  Can you imagine??  I couldn't believe that she would think such a thing!!  After all we have been through to get to where we are, they are a deep treasure!  I can't believe how much we love them already!!  Jessica and Chelsea are inseperable!!  They even slept together last night.  So did Mikey and Cody...all hugs and smiles!  You wouldn't believe how big the dinner table was!!  Our hostess Marina returned from Michigan yesterday, so she was there with a toast to family and health!  Chelsea put her necklace on right away and has not taken it off.  I know that I am not going in order, but there is so much to say, and so much that happenned.

OK---

THE MEETING: We went to the orphanage and had a wonderful meeting with the director and Assitant director.  Mikey is in  love with the Assistent Director!  He played and played with her.  It is amazing because he has been terribly shy most of the time!  It was the 3rd time he saw her and the second time he ran to her and jumped in her arms.  She is very sweet!!  The director is wonderful as well!  I can't say the same for the lawyer, he doesn't smile and isn't friendly.  Oh well, there has to be one!  We signed the papers and headed to the camp to get our children!!  Thom and Tommy stayed behind do to lack of room.  Jessica and Mikey wouldn't hear of waiting to see their new brother and sister and needed to be there for the event.

THE CAMP: Sasha drove the 30 minutes to the camp, joking about the roads and his driving.  He has actually learned where the potholes are!  So we get to the camp and our 2 favorite older boys come out to greet us and take us to the kids.  We went to go get the kids and Chelsea was not in her dorm.  So we went to the other dorm, and she wasn't there either!!! My heart was out of my chest!! Finally we found her in Cody's dorm with the caretakers.  The caretakers were in tears and it was obvious that Chelsea had been too.  AS the caretakers talked with us, I started crying too.  Their loss is deffinately our gain, but it is hard to know that we are taking away children that they love so much.  It was certainly a bitter sweet day.  Anyway, when she saw us she started smiling and came straight to me.  She seems to have closed that chapter and started on the new one of her life!  Cody was shy as always.  He eagerly came to me with his cute little grin.  He told Iina (formerly known as Star) that he was happy to be with his new family and that it is OK to be leaving the caretakers.  They were all smiles as we pulled away from the camp.  Then I looked up and saw our 14 year old friend, the boy, in tears.  I was moved!!  Was he crying because he too wishes to leave with a forever family?  Because he would miss the kids? US? Happy for the kids?  I don't know, but it is a picture that will stay with me for a VERY long time.

GOING HOME:  So, on the way home, it was wonderful.  Chelsea was exhausted and just wanted to put her head on my shoulder and hold my hand.  She looked so peaceful and happy!  Cody was on my lap and very allert.  He was watching everything with so much wonder and amazement.  The word "WOW" is deffinately a universal word!  He was amazed the most when we came out of the hills and he saw the valley below us.  Everytime he would relax and lean against me, he would see something and sit straight up again and talk excitedly.  I wish I could understand, but I know in my heart what he was saying.  When we got home, our wonderful Lianna and Anna had dinner prepaired for us.  Marina, our host, had returned.  We had a great meal with Kognac for toast.  (Luckily this time it is only the second time we were expected to drink!)  We were all so happy!  Then it was time for a rest.  We said good night and headed up stairs.  Iina came up a bit later to talk about today.  She said that it was the first time she saw a bit of panic in my eyes.   She was right!  I was in a very fancy house, not childproof by the way, with 5 kids in a large but confined area!!  How could I keep these excited, exhausted children from celebrating until all hours of the night??  Everything was new and wonderful for us all!  Cody and Chelsea took turns finding Thom and I's laps and plopping confidently down on them for a cuddle and kiss.  It was amazing!!  GOD IS TRULY WONDERFUL AND FAITHFUL...NOT TO MENTION SMART!  We definately consider this a match made in heaven!!  Finally, we had them cleaned up, PJs on, and in bed.  The girls wanted to sleep together and so did the boys.  You should have seen the hugging that was going on!!  Somehow we all fell asleep.

TODAY:  Our friend Denis, the taxi driver, met us to fairy the Hobbs clan wherever we desired.  We could have been anywhere but we decided to go to the market to get swimsuits for the kids.  He then took us to the park with the kids rides for some out door fun.  The children had a blast!!  Chelsea is not very daring.  She wouldn't ride most of the rides, but she enjoied screaming with the others.  Cody is a daredevil!!  He will try anything!! (And yet he's shy???)  He squeeled in delight at the little roller coaster.  Then they did one that goes high in the air and side to side.  He would scream in fear one second and squeel with delight the next.  We didn't know if we should stop the ride or not.  At the end he clapped.  Then he and Jessica and Tommy went on the Yo-yo and everything else.  It was a great day!  Now they are swimming in the pool at the house.  I ran out so that I could post for you guys. What a time it has been with so many blessings!!

PRAYER NEED: We know that we have been tremendously blessed in this process, and couldn't ask for more or better.  However; we have a  prayer need.  As I said last post, we have had issues with the tickets.  TOMMY'S TICKET IS LOST IN CYBER SPACE!~!!  I think the travel agent screwed up AGAIN!!!!  I am trying to get ahold of him and Delta and will keep trying as soon as I leave here.  Thom is still very upset that he is letting his work down.  They haven't called, so I hope they are OK.  We are really trying to get back.  Being stuck for extra time is not fun.  Please pray for tickets to open up so that we can go home!! IF  NOT, we will make the most of it and spend time bonding...maybe it is another of God's Blessings?!

Love, The Hobbs'

Hello, I am sorry that it has taken me so long to update the blog.  We have had some issues that took alot of time to work out.  When I did get to the internet, there were errors and I couldn't post.  So we are here now and lots to tell!

 

We have visited the camp several times since my last post.  We continue to have great times with our kids, getting to know them and bonding.  It is going very well!  Chelsea comes up very easily to wrap her arms around me and rest on my shoulder.  It is very sweet!  She is still trying to get Mikey, but he is playing hard to get.  He thinks it is funny....she is going along with it for now.  It is so wonderful to see her grab Jessica by the hand and run to discover new things or introduce her to friends or caretakers.  It is a great gift for the soul.  Jessica is still very in love with her sister.  She made 2 new friends at the camp.  She is having a great time!!  Cody is such a sweetheart.  He is undemanding, always smiling and shy.  He is VERY happy when he is with us.  He plays well with the other kids and seems very comfortable.  He shares very easily and seems to be friends with everyone.  Mikey is very much in love with his brother and loves to play ball, army men and any kind of game they can think of, especially water guns!!! 

The kids at this camp are amazing.  They are so friendly and easy to like.  There is no pounding on each other or really rough play here.  It is a great place to be and visit.  The care takers are wonderful and very much in control of the children.  I have been taking notes!!!  Tommy has made friends with 2 great boys.  When we get there, they shake his hand and they are off on adventures.  They all play well with the little kids, unusual for boys that age I think!  And they call the orphans here "wild children, unable to be tamed"??? What, they must not be in the camp with the kids!!!  They are truly remarkable!!

The lead caretaker visted with me yesterday.  She often stops by to tell me good things about the kids.  This time she spent a lot of time telling me how much she loves these two kids and how they are her favorite.  She tells me what a great help Chelsea is...we have seen it already.  She said that she is always happy and friendly to everyone.  She is especially fond of all her caregivers.  She tells me that Cody is the best boy she has met...he is kind, courteous, sleeps through the night, eats well, plays well with the other children and more.  She tells me how lucky we are to get these 2 kids.  I AGREE!!!  She then says how lucky they are to have us.  She has seen the pictures of our amazinrsg family and friends.  She knows the children will be surrounded by love...This makes her cry!!  She bawls and appologizes for her tears.  I am so thankful that she tells me about the kids and that she is friendly and loving and in charge of my children's care for the last 22 months.  They have been in good hands!

Yesterday we had a celebration for Chelsea and Cody's classes.  We brought cookies, juice, balloons and gifts.  Cody's class was first.  This is the group I have gotten to know so well.  I wish I could find homes for most of the children in this group!  Cody is very excited to hand out his precious gifts to his friends.  We had the Kelly Barbie dolls for the girls and cars for the boys.  WOW is a universal word by the way.  He was so proud to give his friends gifts.  They had fun with their little celebration.  We didn't have time for a game, but they wouldn't know the difference.  We took a ton of pictures and gave many hugs and kisses over and over!  It was a dream!!  I am praying that at least one of the girls is available for my friend to adopt.  Please pray with me... she will be a remarkable mother and the child will be very blessed!  It would be great to have the children stay in touch and be friends.  Now I only need to find 15 more people!!! (Just kidding, kinda'.  I promise not to hound anyone! Except maybe one of my best friends that wants to adopt and needs some encouragement!!! Hint-hint!)  The kids got really loud at one point, you can imagine 24 kids having fun!!!  The teacher clapped her hand several times and the children immediately went to whispers.  (Did I mention I am taking notes?!)  They left after more hugs and kisses and a chorus of "PA-ZHA-LU-STA!!!  DAS-V-DAN-YA"

Chelsea's group was next.  They came in very happy, sat down at a seat, hand in their laps, talking quietly.  What a change!  They accepted their goodies, ate with enthusiasm and were confused when I gave them 2 balloons and asked them to blow one up.  After the treats we played a game.  They got into 2 lines and cheered each other on as they ran to a chair and popped their balloon.  They were all laughing hysterically!  Yes I have pictures of that too!  Chelsea had already given them all the gift of a stuffed animal on a keychain.  They were cute and the kids really liked them.  I think they would have been happy with anything.   They all said "thank you" and left for lunch.

So it was time to go...again!  It is getting harder and harder to leave them!!!  It is aweful!!  Chelsea used to be very good at minding her teacher and leaving right away...now she finds excuses to stay with us and linger.  We love it!!  She has to wear her necklace while we are there and takes her time taking it off and putting it away.  She also has to get a hug from Mikey, that is a job in itself!  Cody just smiles and shyly turns away to leave...his eyes begging to stay, but he wouldn't dare go against a request!

THE GOOD NEWS IS WE ONLY HAVE 2 MORE DAYS UNTIL WE TAKE THEM HOME FOREVER!!!  We will go Monday morning to sign our papers of responsibility and then go to the camp to pick them up for a last time!!  YEAAAAAAAAH!  We are all very excited!  Last night it finally hit me that it will be soon.  I had a hard time getting to sleep...I feel like a kids at Christmas time!!!  Today I laid out all their clothes to see what we had.  I got all teary eyed again!  Life is good!!

We fill our days, when we don't go to the camp, with trips around the city and eating...eating...eating!!  I had always heard that this is the 20 pound diet!  Well it may be, but I will probably gain 20 instead of losing!!!  Our cook, and wonderful friend!!!!!, Lianna is keeping us very well fed.  She is very observant and learns quickly.  Much quicker than us apparently!  We love her cooking, much better than the resteraunts.  I HAVE TO TELL YOU THIS FUNNY STORY!!  We realized that what we don't eat comes back in a meal or two either the same or changed slightly.  They don't believe in throwing things away that's for sure!  As with anything, there are things that are not quite to our taste.  Since we realized that if we don't eat it, it comes back, we have this funny thing.  She makes a wonderful crepe!!  Instead of breakfast it is served as a supper, or desert.  The crepe is filled with cottage cheese and raisins.  It is very wonderful, but not so much to our tast.....SOOO we eat them all as to not have them at the next meal or so...We are SMART!!!  But, what this tells her is how much we like them!!  She makes them very often...to please us!!  How do you tell a wonderful person, who gives you all that she has, that we don't care for cottage cheese???  So, we have learned to like them and eat them with a smile on our face!  Last time, she let us fill our own crepes.  It was great fun.  She hasn't made them in the past couple of days.  We will see what comes tonight though!  She does everything with so much love!!  She reminds me of my mom.  She makes the food by hand, even grinding her own hamburger!!  She never stops cleaning and cooking.  She won't let us help her at all.  I try to sneak to clean the dishes and she will come up and say so sweetly, "Angela...PLEASE!" and give me a pouty look.  Anna, her niece, does the same thing.  I had someone tell her that I would like to help her, she works so hard.  She only says that I will have ALOT of work to do when I get home and that she wants to take care of our family, her family, while she can.  She enjoys it.  She has truly become a great friend!  You know me, match maker!! I am going to be actively searching for a husband for her.  She will make someone a great wife!!! She has agreed to let me help her find someone and hopes to find someone that is near us, and friends with us, so that she can be close to us.  I have some really good ideas!!!!  I would love for her to be near us!  She is one of the biggest blessings we have had here!  She is beautiful inside and out!! 

Another blessing has been Denis.  He is our English speaking taxi driver.  He has also become a good friend.  He is young, 30ish, and very sweet.  He reminds me somewhat of Thom's brother Charlie.  He has a great heart and is always happy to help.  He made me a CD of Ukrainian music that is in English and Ukrainian.  It is a great CD and was made with alot of love!  We have been so lucky!! I am certain that we will remain friends for a long time!

So, why haven't I been blogging lately?  We have had our first REALLY BIG snaffu (sorry guys, my spelling is gone, and there's no spell check! At least not without deleating everything on accident).  Thom was scheduled to go back to America with Mikey and Tommy on July 5th.  We found out that they did not arrange the tickets and the 5th was sold out, so our travel guy got them tickets for the 7th.  A couple more days in Ukraine, no big deal!  BUT... the guy messed up and didn't get the tickets!!!  We tried EVERYTHIN possible and impossible (as they say in Ukraine) to get them home!!!  You won't believe it, but they are stuck here until the original tickets are good on July 18th!  Thom has nearly had a heart attack several times.  I am serious!! He is sooooo upset that he is letting his work down!  He would try to swim back if he could!  We are all upset as this means we will be here an extra week, waiting for our tickets.  Who would have thought that that would be our problem.  Usually you have to change the tickets to wait for something else.  They were only for a 5 week stay too!  This time seems like a lifetime though.  We are truly ready to come back.  Thom keeps saying that there is alot we can do on those days.  He even said that it will be a great chance to show the kids their culture before they leave.  Can you believe that he is the optomistic one?  So I know that this will be a blessing and that God has something good in store for us...it will just be a bit longer before we can come home.  AT LEAST WE WILL HAVE ALL 5 OF OUR KIDS WITH US!!!!

We love you guys and miss you terribly!!!

Love from the Hobbs family