We spent two days traveling - two nights with no sleep! - and now we are home!
Court went well, and we are now the parents of Charles Gabriel Andreev Meyer!
On Tuesday, our facilitator and translator met with us before court to tell us what to expect. Apparently, in our region the judge is quite thorough. Then we sat in the hallway for about an hour and a half before we finally got started, an hour late. We were actually hoping we'd start late, because then we would get asked fewer questions because the judge would be in a hurry! In the courtroom we the judge, 2 jurors, the secretary, prosecutor, social worker/inspector, baby house representative, our facilitator and translator, and us. I was very nervous! It went smoothly though. I was the "speaker", so I stood and talked about our family, our home, and why we wanted to adopt Charlie. One juror asked us about our home, one asked if Brennan was our biological or adopted son. The prosecutor asked why we wanted to adopt, because we were so young and could make more biological babies. (We got MANY comments about how young we are during the whole process!) The baby house rep and the social worker talked about Charlie's records and the fact that no Ukrainians wanted to adopt him because of his health conditions. The judge and jurors left to make their decision, and everyone else left too, because they knew the judge would say yes! And he did, of course! He came back in and announced his decision, told us good luck, and that was it. The whole thing took about 40 minutes, and that includes a lot of formalities at the beginning. Our translator said "You just gave birth!" :)
After court, we went to visit Charlie, then got on the train to Kiev. It's really hard to sleep on the train, but I set my alarm just in case. I set it for half an hour before we were supposed to arrive. I did fall asleep somewhere in the early morning, but about 20 minutes later someone was knocking on our door! The train lady handed us our tickets back, but didn't say anything. Ken started to get ready to go, but I looked at the clock and saw we had an hour and a half left. I was mad because I had finally fallen asleep and then was woken up for no reason! I snuggled back in and tried to go back to sleep, which was impossible. The train started slowing down, which was weird because I thought the next stop was Kiev. Suddenly, I remembered that I had never changed the time on my phone for daylight savings time! So, we WERE about to stop at Kiev! There was about 5 minutes of frantic packing and getting dressed. We were ready when the train pulled in! Our driver was waiting for us outside and helped us order breakfast at McDonald's. We stayed there for about two hours, and then drove to the embassy and sat in the car for another hour. By then it was 9am and we could go to our appointment in the embassy. Finally, we made it to the airport! I was not looking forward to the airport. I always cause trouble because of my pump. I usually get a pat down and they swab my hands and pump. But I don't speak Russian or Ukrainian, and so I didn't know how I was going to make it through security! If I hide my pump well enough, I can go through metal detectors, but in Ukraine they had the body scanners. The security woman did not speak any English and had no idea what a pump was! At first she thought it was a phone, and told me to put it through the xray machine. I showed her where it was connected to me, and she had NO idea what to do with me! She called another guy over and they stood there examining my pump and trying to figure out what to do! Another security officer saw what was happening and asked me, "Insulin?" I nodded and she yelled something at the first two workers, and told them to let me through! So I made it through alive. :) Next time, I am going to have a card with me that says "I have a medical device" or something like that. I can say "diabetic" and "pump" in Russian, but that doesn't help when they don't know what a pump is! At least now I know that the word for insulin is...insulin. Hopefully that will help next time!
We made it home around 1:30am. We picked Brennan up from my mom's house in the morning. He was so happy to see us! At first he was confused and overwhelmed, but that only lasted about 30 seconds. He kept sitting in his daddy's lap and looking around with a HUGE smile on his face. He didn't want to sit with me very much, but I was expecting that. After awhile he would run over to me, back up into my lap, sit for about 6 seconds, then run back to his daddy's lap! He did that a few times, and then he brought a book over to me to read, so I got a little more snuggle time that way. Brennan has been SO happy today. He keeps smiling at me for no reason at all. I think he's pretty happy that we're home. :)
Thursday, March 31, 2011
Monday, March 28, 2011
Adventures in town and Court tomorrow!
I am not a very adventurous person. I'm just not. I like familiarity and routine.
Ukraine is waaay out of my routine!
I've been having a blast though. It helps that I have my brave husband with me! Lol! On Saturday we went on an adventure. After visiting Charlie, we took the bus all the way down to the middle of town, to Sovetskaya - the shopping street. No cars are allowed on this street and it is lined with shops. In the middle is a park, and if you keep walking down you will get to the river. We walked down to the river before and did a little shopping. We found Cat in the Hat in Russian! This time, Ken wanted to eat at a restaurant. For him, that's no big deal, because he will eat whatever the waitress brings him! But for me - yikes. My Russian is not good enough to say, "I don't like pepperstomatoessaladsourcreamonionsredsauceketchup and not too many spices, please." But, we went anyway. We had a hard time actually getting INTO the restaurant (there were 4 different doors!) and the hostess already thought we were nuts. When we got the menus, I didn't recognize anything except a page of salads - which I don't like! I probably would have found something, but the waitress came and I couldn't explain to her that I needed more time. She spoke enough English to ask us "Meat? Fish? Salad?" We said meat, and she pointed to something that sounded like steak kabob. So we went with that, even though I don't like 98% of kabobs. Turns out it was NOT a kabob! It was some sort of steak (we assume) coated in onions and something green, and wrapped in a thin tortilla. I ate most of it, and it was pretty good! On the way home we bought a bunch of pastries from 2 stands. At one of them, Ken bought something that he thought was a sweet pastry, but it actually had meat inside! We also got some delicious apple pastries. It was a nice way to spend a Saturday, all in all. (There you go, Mom ;) )
Charlie has been very tired the last two days! Sunday was daylight savings time over here, and I think Charlie is tired from adjusting to the time change. We take time out from playing to relax, but Charlie doesn't relax well. He's interested in every little thing that he can see or hear! Just like another little boy I know! (Brennan!) I hope he sleeps on the plane. I can see this going poorly, lol!
We brought a few toys with us from home for Charlie. His favorites were the touch-and-feel book, a ball, and a plastic book that talks. He loves slamming the pages of the plastic book; it makes such a satisfying noise! A few days ago we had the book lying next to us on the bench, and Charlie discovered that if he kicked it, it made noise! He thought it was hysterical. He's very interested in his feet, and we encourage him using them. You can tell they haven't gotten much use. His legs are mostly limp noodles, although his toys wiggle when he's excited! The ball has been a lot of fun because Charlie is fascinated by the fact that when he drops something, Mama picks it up! We cheer for him when he throws it down to the ground, and he likes that too. It's hard to play with the ball in the hallway, where there's always people walking by, so we took our measuring tape and made a loop through the ball. Now we just sit on the bench and pull the ball back to us! Some may call that lazy, I call it ingenious. :)
Tomorrow we have court. It is scheduled for 2pm, but they always run late. Today we signed some paperwork in preparation for leaving (since Ken won't be coming back with me), and tomorrow our translator will go through everything with us and tell us what to expect in court. Our facilitator asked the judge today if everything was prepared for tomorrow for a smooth process, and the judge replied, "If I don't die!" So we should have a smooth day! After that, we will say goodbye to Charlie, then hop on a train to Kiev! Our flight leaves around noon. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed then wake up and see my little boy. :)
Ukraine is waaay out of my routine!
I've been having a blast though. It helps that I have my brave husband with me! Lol! On Saturday we went on an adventure. After visiting Charlie, we took the bus all the way down to the middle of town, to Sovetskaya - the shopping street. No cars are allowed on this street and it is lined with shops. In the middle is a park, and if you keep walking down you will get to the river. We walked down to the river before and did a little shopping. We found Cat in the Hat in Russian! This time, Ken wanted to eat at a restaurant. For him, that's no big deal, because he will eat whatever the waitress brings him! But for me - yikes. My Russian is not good enough to say, "I don't like pepperstomatoessaladsourcreamonionsredsauceketchup and not too many spices, please." But, we went anyway. We had a hard time actually getting INTO the restaurant (there were 4 different doors!) and the hostess already thought we were nuts. When we got the menus, I didn't recognize anything except a page of salads - which I don't like! I probably would have found something, but the waitress came and I couldn't explain to her that I needed more time. She spoke enough English to ask us "Meat? Fish? Salad?" We said meat, and she pointed to something that sounded like steak kabob. So we went with that, even though I don't like 98% of kabobs. Turns out it was NOT a kabob! It was some sort of steak (we assume) coated in onions and something green, and wrapped in a thin tortilla. I ate most of it, and it was pretty good! On the way home we bought a bunch of pastries from 2 stands. At one of them, Ken bought something that he thought was a sweet pastry, but it actually had meat inside! We also got some delicious apple pastries. It was a nice way to spend a Saturday, all in all. (There you go, Mom ;) )
Charlie has been very tired the last two days! Sunday was daylight savings time over here, and I think Charlie is tired from adjusting to the time change. We take time out from playing to relax, but Charlie doesn't relax well. He's interested in every little thing that he can see or hear! Just like another little boy I know! (Brennan!) I hope he sleeps on the plane. I can see this going poorly, lol!
We brought a few toys with us from home for Charlie. His favorites were the touch-and-feel book, a ball, and a plastic book that talks. He loves slamming the pages of the plastic book; it makes such a satisfying noise! A few days ago we had the book lying next to us on the bench, and Charlie discovered that if he kicked it, it made noise! He thought it was hysterical. He's very interested in his feet, and we encourage him using them. You can tell they haven't gotten much use. His legs are mostly limp noodles, although his toys wiggle when he's excited! The ball has been a lot of fun because Charlie is fascinated by the fact that when he drops something, Mama picks it up! We cheer for him when he throws it down to the ground, and he likes that too. It's hard to play with the ball in the hallway, where there's always people walking by, so we took our measuring tape and made a loop through the ball. Now we just sit on the bench and pull the ball back to us! Some may call that lazy, I call it ingenious. :)
Tomorrow we have court. It is scheduled for 2pm, but they always run late. Today we signed some paperwork in preparation for leaving (since Ken won't be coming back with me), and tomorrow our translator will go through everything with us and tell us what to expect in court. Our facilitator asked the judge today if everything was prepared for tomorrow for a smooth process, and the judge replied, "If I don't die!" So we should have a smooth day! After that, we will say goodbye to Charlie, then hop on a train to Kiev! Our flight leaves around noon. I can't wait to sleep in my own bed then wake up and see my little boy. :)
Saturday, March 26, 2011
The Charlie I've Always Known
What a sweet little boy God has found us!
For months, I've been looking at the one picture we had of Charlie, dreaming about what he might be like, how big he might be, how he was doing. Being here has been entirely surreal. This dream I've been dreaming can't possibly be real. But it is, and he is, and he's wonderful. Charlie is exactly what I expected, even though in many ways he isn't. I know that's not logical! It's hard to explain. He's just Charlie, he's the Charlie I've always known, even though I've only "known" him for a little over a week. He's the Charlie my heart has always known.
For the first 2 or 3 days that we visited Charlie, we were strangers to him. We were all right, in his book, because we brought fun toys and paid attention to him. He preferred to lay on the floor, because that's what he was used to, and he was quite happy there.
But now we have a different Charlie. A Charlie who is excited to see us, who reaches for me when we come to visit. Now, when we lay him down to play, he fusses and gets upset. He prefers to be held! So we hold him - who can deny a child who's been waiting 3 years to be held? We'll spoil him til he's rotten, and by then he'll be ready to crawl and then walk anyway, and won't want so many snuggles. His nannies have held him, of course - but that's nothing compared to a Mama Snuggle.
Today as Charlie's nanny was getting him ready for our visit, she could see the excitement in Charlie. She turned to another nanny and told her, "He understands - it's his Mami and Papi."
Yep, Charlie, we're your Mami and Papi. And we love you!
For months, I've been looking at the one picture we had of Charlie, dreaming about what he might be like, how big he might be, how he was doing. Being here has been entirely surreal. This dream I've been dreaming can't possibly be real. But it is, and he is, and he's wonderful. Charlie is exactly what I expected, even though in many ways he isn't. I know that's not logical! It's hard to explain. He's just Charlie, he's the Charlie I've always known, even though I've only "known" him for a little over a week. He's the Charlie my heart has always known.
For the first 2 or 3 days that we visited Charlie, we were strangers to him. We were all right, in his book, because we brought fun toys and paid attention to him. He preferred to lay on the floor, because that's what he was used to, and he was quite happy there.
But now we have a different Charlie. A Charlie who is excited to see us, who reaches for me when we come to visit. Now, when we lay him down to play, he fusses and gets upset. He prefers to be held! So we hold him - who can deny a child who's been waiting 3 years to be held? We'll spoil him til he's rotten, and by then he'll be ready to crawl and then walk anyway, and won't want so many snuggles. His nannies have held him, of course - but that's nothing compared to a Mama Snuggle.
Today as Charlie's nanny was getting him ready for our visit, she could see the excitement in Charlie. She turned to another nanny and told her, "He understands - it's his Mami and Papi."
Yep, Charlie, we're your Mami and Papi. And we love you!
Thursday, March 24, 2011
Court date!
Our court date has been set for Tuesday, the 29th. It's later than we were hoping for, but the end is in sight! After court, we will take the overnight train to Kyiv and fly out that afternoon! Then I will return on April 9th to finish up the process and bring Charlie home!
Now I know why all the other adoptive parents compare this to groundhog day! We do the same thing everyday. We get up late, usually go somewhere in the AM (walking, shopping, etc), visit Charlie in the afternoon, and watch a movie at night. In between all that, we read, use the computer, and do word puzzles. Real exciting, eh? It is getting a little redundant, but the excitement of being in a different country is still good enough to keep us going! Well, for me anyway - Ken is QUITE happy to lay around reading all day! :)
Charlie recognizes us now, and often he seems happy to see us. We only visit him for about an hour and a half per day. During the morning visiting hours, he's sleeping. In the afternoon, our visit is wedged between nap and snack times. The last few days, we've taken Charlie outside and we slowly walk around the baby house a few times before playing with him inside. It's really nice when we get a room to ourselves to visit with him, because we can lay him down on the couch, and we can take off some of his clothes when he gets too hot. Other times we play with him in a long hallway. There's benches and toys for this purpose, but he can't play with any of the toys, and he can't sit up properly on the little benches. So, he just sits on our laps and plays with whatever little toy we brought for the day! There's a sort of faux-jungle gym set up at the end of the hallway, and he likes banging the swinging rings around. They make a great noise! But this really wears him out! He doesn't last very long doing any sort of physical activity. Plus, he's always sweating through his clothes, and I think being that hot makes him sleepy on top of everything else! He's usually wearing three shirts, overalls, tights, and socks. Often the nannies insist on a sweater too. Ok, enough of my babbling, I know you are here for the pictures!
Now I know why all the other adoptive parents compare this to groundhog day! We do the same thing everyday. We get up late, usually go somewhere in the AM (walking, shopping, etc), visit Charlie in the afternoon, and watch a movie at night. In between all that, we read, use the computer, and do word puzzles. Real exciting, eh? It is getting a little redundant, but the excitement of being in a different country is still good enough to keep us going! Well, for me anyway - Ken is QUITE happy to lay around reading all day! :)
Charlie recognizes us now, and often he seems happy to see us. We only visit him for about an hour and a half per day. During the morning visiting hours, he's sleeping. In the afternoon, our visit is wedged between nap and snack times. The last few days, we've taken Charlie outside and we slowly walk around the baby house a few times before playing with him inside. It's really nice when we get a room to ourselves to visit with him, because we can lay him down on the couch, and we can take off some of his clothes when he gets too hot. Other times we play with him in a long hallway. There's benches and toys for this purpose, but he can't play with any of the toys, and he can't sit up properly on the little benches. So, he just sits on our laps and plays with whatever little toy we brought for the day! There's a sort of faux-jungle gym set up at the end of the hallway, and he likes banging the swinging rings around. They make a great noise! But this really wears him out! He doesn't last very long doing any sort of physical activity. Plus, he's always sweating through his clothes, and I think being that hot makes him sleepy on top of everything else! He's usually wearing three shirts, overalls, tights, and socks. Often the nannies insist on a sweater too. Ok, enough of my babbling, I know you are here for the pictures!
"Save me, Papa!"
The hallway where we visit
It's 50 degrees out, but Charlie still needs a snowsuit and hat. :)
The groupa's playground
The ladder to nowhere
Lounging
Watching the food cart go by!
Picture Post
Independence Square, Kyiv
Our friends who showed us around Kyiv!
View of the Dnipro
This is outside the SDA. Across the street you can see the little shops where you can buy souvenirs. The green, white, and red sign is the Italian restaurant that has an English menu.
Church right next to the SDA.
Our train cabin. That's pretty much how big it was!
SUPER yummy cookies! They're wafers with filling, but our facilitator calls them "waffles".
Salt in a cute little box
This yogurt is SO good. I wish I could take a bunch home with me!
Sunday, March 20, 2011
Getting the hang of it
Yesterday when we visited Charlie, we had a room all to ourselves, which was really nice for the three of us to get to know each other. It's strange when all the nannies are watching you, and they can communicate with your child but you can't. So it was nice to be alone! He took a few minutes to get used to us again. We brought a touch-and-feel book for him, and he LOVED it. There are two pages that are scratchy textures, and he liked those the best. We showed him how to feel them and his little fingers went crazy! Then he figured out how to turn the pages too. He could have played with that all day! When he is with us, he has to do a lot more work than he is used to, so he got pretty tired out! At one point he just wanted me to stand and rock him, so we did that for awhile. Charlie is so curious, he checks out everything in the room and wants to touch everything!
Yesterday I got homesick for the first time. The first few days we were here, we were so busy, and everything was so new, that I never really felt homesick - besides missing Brennan. But now our days are very slow. I wanted so many things - to kiss Brennan, to speak in English, popsicles, to be able to go to the store and find what I need, to not be so dependent on other people. But today was a better day. We did great going all over the city on our own, and I even found Tide at the store! It's the little things that help. :)
Today we tried going to the orphanage on our own. Our facilitator had shown us how to use the buses yesterday. So, today we went down to the bus stop to try it out. There are 4 buses we can take, and we got on the first one that came. We paid, got comfortable, and the bus turned down the wrong road! We were quite worried, but figured the worst that could happen is we'd ride the whole circle and get back off at our original stop. The bus did eventually get to our stop, but we were coming from a different angle so I didn't notice until we were past. So we got off on the next stop and walked back. When we left the orphanage, we decided just to walk back. We stopped at a market on the way and got a bag full of snacks! We had plenty of food at our apartment, but we're really snack people. (We've been eating more chocolate than either of our mothers care to know about!) We got a large bag full of things - milk, popcorn, pop, cookies, pastries, etc. - for only about $12! This is one thing about Ukraine that I love! We made it home with no problems. At one point we were worried because nothing looked familiar, but I found a street sign and we were on the right road!
Charlie seemed excited to see us today! As far as we could tell, anyway! We got a bunch of real smiles today, which was wonderful. He's warming up to us! We brought his favorite book, which he liked, and he loves our camera. A lot! He is really interested when we play with his feet! He has good upper body strength, but his legs pretty much just dangle. He doesn't put weight on them at all. We'll be trying out a few foot/leg games with Charlie to see if we can start building some muscle!
Yesterday I got homesick for the first time. The first few days we were here, we were so busy, and everything was so new, that I never really felt homesick - besides missing Brennan. But now our days are very slow. I wanted so many things - to kiss Brennan, to speak in English, popsicles, to be able to go to the store and find what I need, to not be so dependent on other people. But today was a better day. We did great going all over the city on our own, and I even found Tide at the store! It's the little things that help. :)
Today we tried going to the orphanage on our own. Our facilitator had shown us how to use the buses yesterday. So, today we went down to the bus stop to try it out. There are 4 buses we can take, and we got on the first one that came. We paid, got comfortable, and the bus turned down the wrong road! We were quite worried, but figured the worst that could happen is we'd ride the whole circle and get back off at our original stop. The bus did eventually get to our stop, but we were coming from a different angle so I didn't notice until we were past. So we got off on the next stop and walked back. When we left the orphanage, we decided just to walk back. We stopped at a market on the way and got a bag full of snacks! We had plenty of food at our apartment, but we're really snack people. (We've been eating more chocolate than either of our mothers care to know about!) We got a large bag full of things - milk, popcorn, pop, cookies, pastries, etc. - for only about $12! This is one thing about Ukraine that I love! We made it home with no problems. At one point we were worried because nothing looked familiar, but I found a street sign and we were on the right road!
Charlie seemed excited to see us today! As far as we could tell, anyway! We got a bunch of real smiles today, which was wonderful. He's warming up to us! We brought his favorite book, which he liked, and he loves our camera. A lot! He is really interested when we play with his feet! He has good upper body strength, but his legs pretty much just dangle. He doesn't put weight on them at all. We'll be trying out a few foot/leg games with Charlie to see if we can start building some muscle!
Friday, March 18, 2011
The Big Day
We met Charlie! He is adorable!!
On Thursday, we picked up our paperwork at the SDA. We stood outside for an hour waiting, and this huge pack of dogs wandered by! There were about a dozen of them. I really looked like a tourist as I exclaimed over them - but we were in a tourist-y area, anyway :). After we got our paperwork, we stopped at our apartment to finish packing and get our luggage. Niko took us to the train station. He's such a great guy - he took us onto the train, told us where the bathrooms where and how to lock the door, and told the train lady (not sure what they are called?) to take care of us. The train was really exciting, for about 20 minutes. Trains are LOUD. I did not get much sleep! So I have gone a full week without a full night's sleep. Two of those nights I only got about an hour of sleep. I am worn out! On our next trip, I am definitely bringing something to help me sleep!
We got off the train, in the hail, at about 5:45AM. Our facilitator was on the same train, and tired too - but man, she's a little ball of energy! Our facilitator and driver are a husband/wife team. They are very nice! We were dropped off at our awesome apartment for a quick nap, and then we were off to meet the social worker and inspector! I am not sure which was which, but we met with one lady first. She asked us if we had children, biological or not, and a few more simple questions about ourselves. She then said that they were very impressed with our decision*, and we were off to the next office. I'm pretty sure this one was the inspector. She did some paperwork (it's never-ending), there was lots of exclaiming over how young we are (our facilitator couldn't stop mentioning it all day!), and then the inspector came with us to the orphanage. We met with the orphanage director, who read us Charlie's file and let us ask questions. We found out his birthday is in August, NOT April, like we thought! Then, FINALLY, we walked through the long hallways to meet our son!
Oh, he is tiny! He has grown and developed a lot in the last year, which our facilitator (Sasha) said no one expected him to do. I said it was because he had a mama praying for him! He's now somewhat sitting on his own, and tries to walk around in the walker. He's grown in length, but he's still far too skinny! He has tiny fingers and ankles! It was so surreal to be holding him - I kept squeezing him all over to make sure he was real. Occasionally, I let Ken hold him too. :) Charlie wasn't too excited about us at first, but he warmed up quickly. He especially liked Ken. He snuggled right in! Charlie is very curious. He watched everything around us, and noticed every time someone walked in or out of the room. It was snacktime while we were there. Charlie watched everyone's snacks come out and his little mouth started going! When his nanny finally came over to get him, his whole face lit up as soon as he saw her and he threw his arms up to her! Last week, they started spoon-feeding him (he is 3, remember) and he did NOT appreciate that! He wanted his bottle! We had such a good time with him. He makes silly faces and copies what we do, so he's a lot of fun!
The inspector observed s for awhile, then left. Our facilitator asked us if we needed time to think about it, or if we were ready to say yes to Charlie. I said YES, and she said "You don't have to answer, I can see it on your face!". She said she had to ask several times to be sure we were sure, and said people would be asking this a lot. A recent action by another family in this region has made them hesitant, and she said we might get this question a lot. But we are sure. We've dreamed and prayed and waited for so long, how can we turn him away?
We did some more paperwork at the notary's office (different than a US notary), and we're waiting for the inspector to do her report stating we are the best family for Charlie. Sasha said, "Of course you are the best family - there is no one else. There is no line for Charlie!" No one wants a little boy like Charlie. But we do! I wish we could just walk out of that orphanage with him, but it will be almost another month before that happens.
Ok, now what you really want - pictures!
On Thursday, we picked up our paperwork at the SDA. We stood outside for an hour waiting, and this huge pack of dogs wandered by! There were about a dozen of them. I really looked like a tourist as I exclaimed over them - but we were in a tourist-y area, anyway :). After we got our paperwork, we stopped at our apartment to finish packing and get our luggage. Niko took us to the train station. He's such a great guy - he took us onto the train, told us where the bathrooms where and how to lock the door, and told the train lady (not sure what they are called?) to take care of us. The train was really exciting, for about 20 minutes. Trains are LOUD. I did not get much sleep! So I have gone a full week without a full night's sleep. Two of those nights I only got about an hour of sleep. I am worn out! On our next trip, I am definitely bringing something to help me sleep!
We got off the train, in the hail, at about 5:45AM. Our facilitator was on the same train, and tired too - but man, she's a little ball of energy! Our facilitator and driver are a husband/wife team. They are very nice! We were dropped off at our awesome apartment for a quick nap, and then we were off to meet the social worker and inspector! I am not sure which was which, but we met with one lady first. She asked us if we had children, biological or not, and a few more simple questions about ourselves. She then said that they were very impressed with our decision*, and we were off to the next office. I'm pretty sure this one was the inspector. She did some paperwork (it's never-ending), there was lots of exclaiming over how young we are (our facilitator couldn't stop mentioning it all day!), and then the inspector came with us to the orphanage. We met with the orphanage director, who read us Charlie's file and let us ask questions. We found out his birthday is in August, NOT April, like we thought! Then, FINALLY, we walked through the long hallways to meet our son!
Oh, he is tiny! He has grown and developed a lot in the last year, which our facilitator (Sasha) said no one expected him to do. I said it was because he had a mama praying for him! He's now somewhat sitting on his own, and tries to walk around in the walker. He's grown in length, but he's still far too skinny! He has tiny fingers and ankles! It was so surreal to be holding him - I kept squeezing him all over to make sure he was real. Occasionally, I let Ken hold him too. :) Charlie wasn't too excited about us at first, but he warmed up quickly. He especially liked Ken. He snuggled right in! Charlie is very curious. He watched everything around us, and noticed every time someone walked in or out of the room. It was snacktime while we were there. Charlie watched everyone's snacks come out and his little mouth started going! When his nanny finally came over to get him, his whole face lit up as soon as he saw her and he threw his arms up to her! Last week, they started spoon-feeding him (he is 3, remember) and he did NOT appreciate that! He wanted his bottle! We had such a good time with him. He makes silly faces and copies what we do, so he's a lot of fun!
The inspector observed s for awhile, then left. Our facilitator asked us if we needed time to think about it, or if we were ready to say yes to Charlie. I said YES, and she said "You don't have to answer, I can see it on your face!". She said she had to ask several times to be sure we were sure, and said people would be asking this a lot. A recent action by another family in this region has made them hesitant, and she said we might get this question a lot. But we are sure. We've dreamed and prayed and waited for so long, how can we turn him away?
We did some more paperwork at the notary's office (different than a US notary), and we're waiting for the inspector to do her report stating we are the best family for Charlie. Sasha said, "Of course you are the best family - there is no one else. There is no line for Charlie!" No one wants a little boy like Charlie. But we do! I wish we could just walk out of that orphanage with him, but it will be almost another month before that happens.
Ok, now what you really want - pictures!
*They are impressed with our decision not because we are doing anything impressive, but because many people - Ukrainian and American alike- cannot understand why a young couple who already have a perfectly normal, healthy boy would want to adopt. Especially a child with special needs, especially one like Charlie. I usually hear either "You're crazy" or "You're an angel". I am neither. I just love my son.
Wednesday, March 16, 2011
SDA appointment and exploring Kyiv
Last night I did not sleep much at all. I woke up at 2 am and didn't really get more sleep until around 6am. So when Niko called this morning and said he was almost here, I was far from ready! I wasn't even dressed! So, in the rush, I forgot several important things, like my camera!
Niko had some papers to pick up, and then we went to our appointment. The SDA building is near beautiful St. Sophia Cathedral, which was founded in 1037! It is in the old part of town, and we were surrounded by gorgeous buildings and churches. The SDA, of course, is in a random side door, with a teeny waiting area at the bottom of the stairs. It looks a little shady, until you go upstairs for your appointment. Our psychologist/social worker was a very sweet young woman. She took a long time to find Charlie's file and had to look in several books. In the meantime, our facilitator started arguing with another lady, and I was getting nervous! Eventually he looked at us and said, "Not about you!" and I could relax. When we got Charlie's profile, there were three younger photos of him! Oh, he's so cute! Of course, I had forgotten my camera AND replacement photos (sometimes they let you take the baby photos if you give them new ones), but one of the photos was shoved under my coat. Literally. So we have an adorable pic of Charlie, I think he is about 2yrs in it.
After we officially accepted the referral, Niko told us to go shop while he did paperwork. There's a bunch of little street shops set up near the SDA building, with lots of great souvenirs. We picked up a bunch of things, and then I was freezing, so we headed back to the car. Our facilitator, S, told us Niko had left to go make copies. Oooookay! S saw how cold I was and took us for tea. We said we didn't want anything, but he ordered us something anyway - they were like crepes, with chocolate and nuts. We were there for awhile and then went to buy train tickets. By the time we were done, it was 1pm and our friends were waiting for us at our apartment. We took them out to lunch and had a blast! They helped us find what food to eat in the cafe and then we walked down the Main Street to the Dnipro River. HERE are a bunch of photos of some things we saw today. The picture of the river is the view we saw. It was much better in person, of course. If you are coming to Kyiv, you need to find your way to Independence Square! It's beautiful. If you turn right out of Friday's, you will hit the main street. Turn right onto main street and if you walk about 20 minutes, you will hit the river. Look for the grey rainbow and head towards it! You will pass the Parliament buildings on your left, too. Unfortunately, we didn't have our camera, but our friends took lots of pictures so I will put them up when I get them!
Our next step is to pick up our paperwork tomorrow after 4p, and then our train leaves around 7p. On Friday morning, we will FINALLY meet Charlie!
I have to share something that may shock you: I really like the food here! I know, it's surprising! For those of you who don't know, I don't like a lot of foods - pizza, tomatoes, mushrooms, spices, peppers, a lot of veggies, sour cream - a lot of these things are common here! I choose my foods carefully, but the ones I have had are really good! Everything has a stronger flavor than in the US - things like cheese and bread are tastier. Mmm, and the chocolate, of course!
Niko had some papers to pick up, and then we went to our appointment. The SDA building is near beautiful St. Sophia Cathedral, which was founded in 1037! It is in the old part of town, and we were surrounded by gorgeous buildings and churches. The SDA, of course, is in a random side door, with a teeny waiting area at the bottom of the stairs. It looks a little shady, until you go upstairs for your appointment. Our psychologist/social worker was a very sweet young woman. She took a long time to find Charlie's file and had to look in several books. In the meantime, our facilitator started arguing with another lady, and I was getting nervous! Eventually he looked at us and said, "Not about you!" and I could relax. When we got Charlie's profile, there were three younger photos of him! Oh, he's so cute! Of course, I had forgotten my camera AND replacement photos (sometimes they let you take the baby photos if you give them new ones), but one of the photos was shoved under my coat. Literally. So we have an adorable pic of Charlie, I think he is about 2yrs in it.
After we officially accepted the referral, Niko told us to go shop while he did paperwork. There's a bunch of little street shops set up near the SDA building, with lots of great souvenirs. We picked up a bunch of things, and then I was freezing, so we headed back to the car. Our facilitator, S, told us Niko had left to go make copies. Oooookay! S saw how cold I was and took us for tea. We said we didn't want anything, but he ordered us something anyway - they were like crepes, with chocolate and nuts. We were there for awhile and then went to buy train tickets. By the time we were done, it was 1pm and our friends were waiting for us at our apartment. We took them out to lunch and had a blast! They helped us find what food to eat in the cafe and then we walked down the Main Street to the Dnipro River. HERE are a bunch of photos of some things we saw today. The picture of the river is the view we saw. It was much better in person, of course. If you are coming to Kyiv, you need to find your way to Independence Square! It's beautiful. If you turn right out of Friday's, you will hit the main street. Turn right onto main street and if you walk about 20 minutes, you will hit the river. Look for the grey rainbow and head towards it! You will pass the Parliament buildings on your left, too. Unfortunately, we didn't have our camera, but our friends took lots of pictures so I will put them up when I get them!
Our next step is to pick up our paperwork tomorrow after 4p, and then our train leaves around 7p. On Friday morning, we will FINALLY meet Charlie!
I have to share something that may shock you: I really like the food here! I know, it's surprising! For those of you who don't know, I don't like a lot of foods - pizza, tomatoes, mushrooms, spices, peppers, a lot of veggies, sour cream - a lot of these things are common here! I choose my foods carefully, but the ones I have had are really good! Everything has a stronger flavor than in the US - things like cheese and bread are tastier. Mmm, and the chocolate, of course!
Tuesday, March 15, 2011
We're here!
We finally made it to Kyiv last night. We spent nearly 30 hours travelling, including a 10 hour layover in Munich. I don't know ANY German, but luckily everyone spoke English!
Our flight arrived at about 10:45pm, then we took a shuttle to the airport. We stood in a line for passport control for a loooong time before the workers even got there. After we were through, we found our driver, Nico. He's a pretty neat guy! He took us to a store that was still open (it was about midnight) so we could change money and get food and water. He actually did some of the shopping for us, grabbing things off of shelves and saying, "You need bread I think. Here is butter!" Lol. We finally got to our apartment around 1 AM and were able to Skype with Brennan (and my parents!) right before his bedtime. He really wasn't sure what to think! He'd been watching a Youtube video (Veggietales!) and suddenly Mama and Daddy were there! He did sign mama/daddy at one point, but mostly he was weirded out.
Today we are relaxing and exploring. Tomorrow morning we have our SDA appointment, and then meet some missionary friends for a late lunch. Thursday afternoon we will pick up our paperwork and take an overnight train to Nikolaiv and meet Charlie!
Here are some specific prayer requests:
- Safe, smooth travelling
- A quick, smooth adoption process - no snags or paperwork issues!
- That we have court on or before Friday, the 25th. This is entirely possible, but not guaranteed. It's really important for the timeline we want - one that will best allow my sister to accompany me back to Ukraine, AND allow me to be with Charlie on his birthday!
- That the 10-day wait will be waived. This is NOT at all likely, and is almost impossible. But, I figured I can always ask God - won't get it if I don't ask. :)
Tired :) 
Our flight arrived at about 10:45pm, then we took a shuttle to the airport. We stood in a line for passport control for a loooong time before the workers even got there. After we were through, we found our driver, Nico. He's a pretty neat guy! He took us to a store that was still open (it was about midnight) so we could change money and get food and water. He actually did some of the shopping for us, grabbing things off of shelves and saying, "You need bread I think. Here is butter!" Lol. We finally got to our apartment around 1 AM and were able to Skype with Brennan (and my parents!) right before his bedtime. He really wasn't sure what to think! He'd been watching a Youtube video (Veggietales!) and suddenly Mama and Daddy were there! He did sign mama/daddy at one point, but mostly he was weirded out.
Today we are relaxing and exploring. Tomorrow morning we have our SDA appointment, and then meet some missionary friends for a late lunch. Thursday afternoon we will pick up our paperwork and take an overnight train to Nikolaiv and meet Charlie!
Here are some specific prayer requests:
- Safe, smooth travelling
- A quick, smooth adoption process - no snags or paperwork issues!
- That we have court on or before Friday, the 25th. This is entirely possible, but not guaranteed. It's really important for the timeline we want - one that will best allow my sister to accompany me back to Ukraine, AND allow me to be with Charlie on his birthday!
- That the 10-day wait will be waived. This is NOT at all likely, and is almost impossible. But, I figured I can always ask God - won't get it if I don't ask. :)
Waiting in Munich - this is how empty it was for most of the day!
Our bedroom
Another bedroom view
Bathroom - the washing machine is to the right
Kitchen - the door in the back leads to a small enclosed porch
Another kitchen view
View from our porch
Chocolate! 11.87 = $1.50 USD
Cereal/Muesli
M=M, Ю = yoo, C = s, Л*= L, И = ee.
Myoosli. Now you know some Russian!
*(same letter as on the box, both are used)
Wednesday, March 2, 2011
We're leaving soon!
We got our travel date! We were told yesterday that our SDA appt was on the 18th. I was okay with that, but disappointed it was on a Friday (that means we'd have to wait until Monday to pick up our referral and wouldn't meet Charlie until Tuesday). This morning we found out that our appointment is actually the 16th! So we will be leaving on the 13th, which is so close! I have a week and a half to get ready! There's so much to do! I am so excited. In just a couple of weeks we'll finally be holding our little boy! Who is REAL, by the way. Ok, he's been real the whole time - but now that we actually have a date that we are going to meet him - Wow! It's actually happening! We've been looking at his little face for months and we're finally going to get to hold him! Luckily, time is flying by!
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