Day 15

Sunday, April 25, 2010. Today was a very nice, relaxing day. We went to the supermarket and stocked up on water and nuts, plus some ice cream and bubble gum for the kids and their friends. We hung out for a while with them and took a lot of pictures. We met Katya, the girls’ roommate. They told us that when they leave, Katya will be the only one left in the room. Our hearts were breaking at how sad that is to be left behind.

We got her story. Katya is one of 4 siblings here at the orphanage and is a very pretty, shy girl. She is 13 years old, has a brother and sister who are 15 and 17, and a younger sister who is very small. We met her older brother, Roma, who is a sweetheart and very good with all of the other kids. He likes to practice speaking English. Katya went on the hosting program last year, but it was not a good match for her. Something in my heart told me to take pictures of her and her siblings so that I can show them around and tell a bit about them. So far, we have only met her one brother, but we hope to see her older sister and younger sister soon.





Natalia explained to us today some Ukrainian customs. Apparently, you are not supposed to smile at a child when the parent is around- it is considered bad manners and “wishing ill” on the family. You are also not supposed to say “hello” or “good morning” to anyone in passing. In fact, they look at you as if you just landed from Mars if you even appear to be doing anything more than scowling. We wondered why no one seems happy here. Odd customs that we don’t understand, but when in Rome…

All of the people from the convention left, which is very nice since the halls are quiet once again and the cloud of smoke has lifted. We went back to dinner tonight at The Golden Palace and had another great meal in our own private room. We had a bottle of wine with dinner, a bottle of vodka that we brought back to the room, and a beautiful dinner for three in a private room… all for the low price of $80 USD. Can’t beat it! Even transportation costs here are cheap- 10 Grievnas will take you across town (equal to about $1.20).

Tomorrow, we should hear from the court about our appearance date. We can’t wait to get confirmation! We want to spend our 10 day waiting period in Rome, so as soon as we get our court date, I can book our tickets and hotel.

Some photos of the girls, their friends, etc...

Day 14

Saturday, April 24th, 2010. This morning, we went for breakfast and the place was filled to the brim with people. We managed to get a table, luckily. We didn’t have much to do, so we hung around the hotel a lot and went to see the girls in the afternoon for a bit. Kristina was in a bit of a funk, I think because she really wants to be able to leave the orphanage with us and go to a restaurant. She really wants ice cream, so we will try and bring her some tomorrow.
At night, we could not eat at the hotel because it was closed for the private company party. We tried to go to Salvador Dali again, but the only part of the restaurant that was open was the smoking section (Yuk!), so we walked over to Eden instead. It was closed for a wedding party, so we took a taxi to a new place called “The Golden Palace”. This place is fantastic! The food is healthy and delicious. The service is wonderful, and it is inexpensive. The do not have an English menu, but Natalia did a great job of translation. They even serve sushi, which is pretty good according to Natalia (we learned our lesson in Kiev and didn’t even attempt it).

Who says that Ukraine doesn't have great food? The Golden Palace is great!

Day 13

Friday, April 23, 2010. Nastya picked up our paperwork from the train this morning at 5am. She submitted it to the SDA in Kiev with no problems, and it was accepted! This is a big deal because it is not always accepted if something is “off”, such as a signature that is not exactly as in someone’s passport, a smudge on the paper, a date that is incorrect, or the officials just happen to be in a bad mood that day.

Also, our Interpol report is in, which is the International background check that says that our criminal history record is spotless in every country throughout the world. This is great news because if it were not back yet, we would have to wait (sometimes weeks) to receive it before we could be issued a court date.

If all goes according to plan, our SDA approval could be given as soon as Monday the 26th or Wednesday the 28th, meaning that our court appearance could be as soon as Wednesday the 28th (if we get SDA Approval on the previous Monday). According to both of our Facilitators, most likely our SDA will be approved on Wednesday the 28th and our court appearance will be scheduled for Thursday the 29th… we will get the official court date on Monday… and then the countdown begins…

We will have a 10-day waiting period from that point. This period is intended to allow any relatives to contest the adoption and step in to accept responsibility for the children. Natalia has already gone to the birthplace of the girls to look for anything that could hang up our process (including any issues with birth certificates or passports) and found nothing. She believes that everything will move smoothly for us. Court day counts as Day 0. On Day 11, we receive the court decree that makes Anastasia and Kristina our official daughters! That day is considered “Gotcha Day” in the world of adoption. From the point, we will be running around for the following 2 days getting their new birth certificates and passports before taking a flight to Kiev. We will be in Kiev for approximately 2 or 3 more days so that we can get the girls’ medicals done and all of the US Embassy paperwork. If these things happen with no kinks, we should be flying home on May 15th! We gave the girls the good news and they were thrilled!

Lunch today at "The Chalet" Brewery and Restaurant (no English menu):





We had a rather interesting experience at the hotel in the morning. We were having breakfast, there were several free tables around, and a Ukrainian woman came and sat down right next to us at our table and ordered her breakfast. She didn’t say a word, and in fact, Jerry asked if she spoke English and she did not. She stared a lot, but didn’t say anything. It was very strange. We asked Natalia about it (maybe some strange Ukrainian custom?) but she even thought it was weird. Later in the day when we returned from the orphanage, a large group of people came in from a candy company. I think they were having a convention of some sort. The place was packed! We couldn’t have dinner at the hotel, so we went out instead.

A pro-Communism sign of Lenin that reads "How Do You Like Living Under Capitalism?"



Some random shots (The one of Kristina looking angry is because she was going through ice cream withdrawls):

Day 12

Thursday, April 22, 2010. There wasn’t much to do today since it rained most of the day. We had breakfast early, and then went for a little walk. There are some beautiful streets here, lined with trees that are just starting to bloom. There are a lot of apricot trees that are so pretty with their white flowers, and they smell so good!



A little before 2pm, we headed to the train station to send the documents to Kiev. The train station was small, and only a 15-20 minute ride from our hotel. Natalia gave the documents to an officer on one of the cars, and Nastya will pick it up from her when the train arrives in Kiev at 5am tomorrow morning.








We were only able to visit with the girls for about an hour today, but it was nice. They can’t wait to go home. They are very excited and keep asking us about the timeline, when we have court, when we will be allowed to take them out of the orphanage, and when we will finally get to go back as a family.

Larisa invited us over to her home for dinner this evening. We went with Natalia, and met Larisa’s husband and son. They have a nice, quaint apartment here that is within about 5 minutes drive from the orphanage. Larisa must have been cooking all day- she had quite the spread on the table. Her husband broke out the rare, expensive bottle of Russian vodka which was really smooth. We toasted every 5 minutes or so, which is a Ukrainian tradition according to them.

Larisa’s husband has quite a talent with languages, his English is very good! We did not have a communication problem at all. They are an extremely loving, caring family. They showed us photos of their wedding, and of when he was in the Soviet Army. Then we looked at photos that Larisa had taken in California when she was chaperoning the girls on the hosting program. It was a wonderful evening. We feel very honored that they opened their home to us and shared such a fantastic experience.