Hello, I am a Rhonda, a newbie. Well, I am a newbie at adoption.com. However, I’m not a to the Russian adoption process. We recently brought our son, Clyde (age 2) and our daughter, Bonnie (age 4) home to Alaska from Khabarovsk, Russia. Our kids have been home with us for a month. It is amazing how much our lives have changed in thirty short days! We’ve enjoyed the awesome experience of getting to know our children and seeing the world through their eyes.

I have been trying to find a way to introduce myself that won’t put everyone to sleep. So, I’ve written a list of top ten list of things about me.

Drum roll, please.

10. I feel that if any item can fit in the dishwasher, it is dishwashable. (Is dishwashable a word?)

9. We have been through failed fertility treatments, including IVF.

8. I live in Alaska and I hate cold weather.

7. My children are not biological siblings, but they were in the same groupa in their orphanage.

6. Our Russian adoption process took two years to complete, because it was held up by reaccreditation for eight months.

5. I have been married for eight years to my husband, who is a flight paramedic in the rural village areas of Alaska.

4. I am a serious caffeine addict.

3. I think being a mother is much harder than I expected, but it’s also more joyous than I could have imagined.

2. I am an accountant during the day, and a blogger, a mother, and a wife by night. (But, not necessarily in that order.)

1. I feel that Russian adoption is a difficult journey, but in the end, it’s the most amazing feeling to look at your children and realize they are miracles.