"To bestow on them a crown of beauty instead of ashes, the oil of gladness instead of mourning, and a garment of praise instead of a spirit of despair." Isaiah 61:3

The Burckhard Family

The Burckhard Family

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Day One.....We Are Here!

We are finally here.... Praise God! Our travel to Nathan's country went very smoothly!

After taking me what-seemed like weeks to pack, Kevin got done in 10 minutes. I am not kidding! Just a hour before we were to leave, he put his things in his suitcase and was ready to go! Am I the only one or are your guys like this too?

And, look at this big guy...told him that he couldn't go along because he would put my suitcase weight WAY over the 50 lb limit.... :)

Ah well, we were packed by 10:00 am and headed out for our flights about two hours away in Bismarck. (It was $700 cheaper to fly out of Bismarck.) Our first flight was Bismarck to Chicago. Then, Chicago to Munich (8 hours) and then Munich to Belgrade, Serbia, this morning. Love the tiny "Coke light and spork"...
We arrived in Belgrade at 12:30 p.m.----we are 7 hours ahead of our Central Time zone. Jasmina, our facilitator and her nephew Dushon met us at the airport. The only hitch in the whole day happened when we went to collect our one checked bag...what are the odds that someone would have a "Jeep" suitcase just like ours?!!! After a few minutes, we were able to track down our suitcase which was accidentally taken by another American young man. It would have been kind of funny to see his face when he opened "his" suitcase to find it full of little boy clothes and toys!

Daddy in front of the Belgrade airport....

After getting us settled in our apartment, Jasmina walked us around the neighborhood and introduced us to a Serbian food called burek. Serbian round burek is made from layers of dough, alternating with layers of other fillings in a circular baking pan and than topped with a last layer of dough. We got a one slice with cheese filling and one with meat. We called it "Yummy!" Daddy indulging....
Some delicious chocolate "for the kids"..... the Smilies are great! (Hey, we had to make sure they were OK for them to eat!)

Our apartment is very nice. Let's just say, it has nicer appliances than we have...

After a three hour nap, we are ready to go out for a bite to eat. And, no surprise to those of you who know Kevin....he is watching hockey on the American ESPN channel. "da, da, da....da, da, da!"

Please continue to pray for us as tomorrow we go to the Ministry to get Nathan's referal and then we will be travelling to his city to meet him!

Love you all..... Paula & Kevin
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13 comments:

  1. And patiently waiting...February 16, 2011 at 1:04 PM

    Wonderful!! Glad you made it safely!! Food is great!! :) Can't wait to see you with your little guy! :) Still praying!

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  2. malefytfamilyFebruary 16, 2011 at 1:51 PM

    These pictures bring back floods of memories! I can still smell the smell of that apartment and the smell of the orphanage elevator if I close my eyes. I am so joyous over you meeting your new son. We loved being in Serbia - especially the burek!

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  3. MamaFebruary 16, 2011 at 4:46 PM

    We stayed in that apartment too! :) Just so you know....the Chickenita place (I think that's what it is called) right down the street is pretty yummy and easy to walk to and we even found someone there who spoke English. And if/when you need a taxi, there are a bunch of them by the intersection around Chickenita. (When you go out of the apartment, go right...it's about 2 or 3 blocks maybe) :) Have fun!! Oh, and tell Jasmina that her little Vlado is doing so great! I think he was born to be an American.

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  4. The McEachernsFebruary 16, 2011 at 5:09 PM

    So exciting! I had no idea you were going so soon! Can't wait to see pics of the little guy!

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  5. StephFebruary 16, 2011 at 5:23 PM

    Wow! Seems like I just followed your journey to Bella. May God continue to bless you on this journey.

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  6. Rich, Andrea, Reece & OwenFebruary 16, 2011 at 5:51 PM

    Paula, my cats love to hijack our suitcases too! That is too funny. Andrea

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  7. Sandie FlanneryFebruary 16, 2011 at 7:02 PM

    Best of luck getting your new son! Hope all goes well for you!

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  8. The Spicer FamilyFebruary 17, 2011 at 3:07 PM

    Paula!!! You're there!! It seems like this has gone so quickly...hope the rest of the process goes quickly (for you, not just for me!). Absolutely can't wait to see pictures of you with your precious boy!!! Jill

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  9. travcatFebruary 17, 2011 at 4:11 PM

    So excited for you!! Praying you have a wonderful first visit and a safe trip.

    Catherine
    http://wronginalltherightways-travcat.blogspot.com/

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  10. MamaPoRuskiFebruary 17, 2011 at 10:05 PM

    Congratulations! It looks like fun so far! Praying for your process and that you can be a light in dark places as you go! God Bless!

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  11. elizFebruary 18, 2011 at 12:38 AM

    praying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! (((HUGS)))

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  12. KarlaFebruary 18, 2011 at 2:31 PM

    Wow! That seems so fast!! Glad you made it there! What's the temperature like??? Looks pretty nice!

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  13. NDMomFebruary 19, 2011 at 4:23 AM

    Thank you everyone for you comments and especially your prayers!

    That's so cool that some of you actually stayed in the same apartment. We are in Nathan's birth city right now, but will return to the apartment for the last 6 days or so to finish up in Belgrade. The weather has been pretty nice considering it was blizzarding in ND! 40's or so....

    Thanks for your encouragement! Love, Paula

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