An early Christmas present

Here's something we've been anxious to post since we returned! Way back in the August 27th entry, we mentioned that the FIFA world cup for women was in Moscow, and that several soccer teams stayed in our hotel. The boys met a large contingent of the Nigerian and Chinese women's national soccer team and won their hearts!

One of the most special connections was with Ngozi Onwuka, a Nigerian journalist covering the games. She was extraordinarily sweet to the boys, and they flirted with her every time we passed her group in the lobby. We've been emailing back and forth with her since our return, and she just sent us this awesome picture:


It is a scan of a negative, so you might want to click on it to see a larger version. In the forefront is the captain of the Nigerian team, and Ngozi is hiding behind Carson. Our camera was on the fritz, so this is the only visual evidence we have of that amazing day. We were basically cooling our heels in the hotel, afraid to explore much of the city with two little orphans in tow. So these very sweet women made our day much more pleasant.

Can't wait to share this with the boys when they are old enough to understand: not only did you come from an orphanage half way around the world, but before we brought you home, you chilled in the Moscow Marriott with the Nigerian and Chinese national women's soccer teams!

The most heartfelt wishes of a happy and safe holiday season for you all. We'll let you know how our exciting, crazy first Christmas goes! Here's a quick shout out to our Kras Connection, the Parracks, who this week celebrated their one year anniversary of "The Call." For details, check out http://www.parrackfamily.blogspot.com/.