Packing , Packing and More Packing !!

The last couple of days we have been packing and trying to get organized. We have read so much on chat boards from previous travelers to "pack light"......but how does one pack light for below zero weather?? We will need to dress in "layers" in order to keep warm, but all those layers are making the bags heavy!! HA! We had planned to just take one bag each to check, but as we kept filling them up with more and more stuff (for the children and the caregivers, along with our own many layers) we were sure they would be over the weight limit!! So we decided to add a couple of extra bags. Now we look as though we are moving there!! Our agency director told us that the gifts for the caregivers are really for the second trip, but that if we wanted to bring a few gifts for them this time that it would be a nice gesture. So......we are just bringing some lotions and soaps and pen and pencil sets. We have a few pencils for the boarding school and some toothbrushes for both the baby home and the boarding school. Wow....I cannot believe we are finally taking off for Russia in the morning!! For so long things were just at a standstill for us.....and now everything is at breakneck speed!!