Sunday

Damp, misty, and 38 degrees today. We're still hanging out w/ V. Lots of Uno and Rummykub. He's listening to Todd's iPod and singing along very loudly. Went back to videogame palace and McD's. He's very happy, but it's boring at our one-room apartment! We rode the Metro / subway with V's help. It seemed clean and nice, but I hear that it is a crush of humanity on weekdays.

Yesterday, he had a mini-pouty, hissy-fit about wanting a new cell phone despite the fact that it would't work in the US anyway. It hit Todd and I that the challenge of this whole thing has just begun. It kind of reminded me of the feeling when couples have an argument on the honeymoon. "Oh yeah. This is what's it's really like. What on earth have we done?" But then, it blows over, and we laugh again and play more Uno, draw some pictures, and I think how lucky I am to know this guy.

We're hoping for news about our court date tomorrow. Write us an email or comment, please!!! We're pretty bored over here! (Although I just finished Kite Runner and Jesus land right in a row. Both really good, incredibly similarly themed books. There's a literature 101 assignment in the making! Now, I'm trudging through Ken Follet's Pillars of the Earth, and disliking it, but I suppose I might as well finish it.)

Back to more Uno! We miss Jake terribly!

Saturday

Today we're hanging out with our buddy here. We went to a video game palace and blew 50 bucks very quickly. This morning we saw this dude above (see picture) swimming naked in the freezing, and I mean windy, 30 degrees, freezing Dnipro river. Brrrrrrr.......

It's great to spend time with V. He asks when we're going home every 5 minutes. He's so excited to see Jacob and talks about him constantly.

We'll head back to the apartment here in a minute and watch movies and play Rummykub.

We're hanging in there. One week down and ??? to go!

Thanksgiving

Day 6 & 7

Yesterday, we went to coffee shop and walked around some. Went to toy store and then just around the nearby blocks for half the day. Here’s an interesting scene. In the street-crossing underpass a woman is selling slabs of pork and pork fat all just spread out on a wooden table in the open air. Unwrapped, unrefrigerated, just open, handled raw bacon. (see picture)

We saw a woman digging around in the trash. We saw 3 different packs of stray dogs which are probably breeds of dog mixed with coyote or wolf. They look wild and scary, but then again, I’m always funny around animals. This country provides an even more drastic contrast between rich and poor than the US.

Met up with kids and Olena and Beth and family at a restaurant outside the city, called Zemdichoke or something like that. Took almost an hour cab ride to get there. It was a lovely restaurant, exposed beams, traditional dress on servers, kind of looks like a traditional German restaurant. There were huts around the outside of the main restaurant for parties, and we had hut #73. The food was fairly plain but very good. We had chicken with a slight hint of curry flavoring and there was a tray of beef. There was a platter of fresh cucumbers, tomatoes, and peppers. The kids got French fries along with theirs. I remarked that in the US, the entire platter of chicken would probably be one serving. It was sufficient, just that the US potions are ridiculous. It was a splurge b/c it was worth it to get to hang out w/ the kids and Olena. We didn’t have a translator, so poor Olena did the ordering for us etc. The kids made it fun though. Not a lot of high-level conversation, as you can imagine. V wore this silky-looking, almost metallic-sheened suit, and he said, his “fancy tie.” He did look fancy!!!! I’m impressed with his English. He’s been working hard since summer. He is always so happy to see us, but he’s not surprised. He knew and trusted we were coming for him, and I’m glad that he is still able to trust after being let down by the adults in his life before.

Today, we are looking at more of the same. I’d like to do more sightseeing, but it’s expensive to get taxied around everywhere, and we need to save that $ to go back and forth to the orphanage. We are sleeping in, and I’m getting to read a lot, but I can see going stir crazy with this little lifestyle we’ve created. We’re hanging in there for now! We’ll get to hang out w/ V tonight and hopefully this weekend.

We’re still on pins and needles to hear our court date. We should hear it on Monday. I will probably come home during the 10-day waiting period. I miss Jake too much.

Day 5 & 6

Pictures...1) getting whooped at chess. 2) typical Kyiv apartment building. There are just thousands of these. 3) beautiful Sasha, 4) store with name that makes us giggle everytime we see it. Yes--we are children.

Okay... the first few days were fun adventures. Yesterday and today, we can start to see how this is going to get tiresome. It gets dark here at 4:30, and I don't like to be out walking around in the dark. So, in the evenings, we've been drinking "peevo", playing gin, and watching a DVD.

Sleeping is still challenging. Advice to other families coming soon--bring sleeping pills. I'm glad to have them.

Yesterday, we met Beth and kids and Ilona for tea. Then, we walked around a lot, and stopped at a grocery store. That's it. Tonight, we're meeting Beth's family, Ilona, Olena, and Z and V for a Thanksgiving dinner at a nice restaurant. That will be fun.

This weekend, we may be able to keep V at our one-room flat with us. We have a couch-bed. We might try to find a toy store to pick up a game or two. Otherwise, it'll be a long weekend of Uno and Connect-4.

No pickle sandwich this morning for breakfast. Todd got potato pancakes with ham on top. Yum.

We're on pins and needles waiting to hear the court date.

Here are the lyrics to our favorite thumping background music here:

Thump, thump, thump

kiss me baby baby baby

touch me baby baby baby

all night all night

kiss me baby baby baby

(REPEAT X 300000)

Love you all. Thanks for comments. Boots are great :O)

Day 4

Day 4
Mainly, we drove around at Ilona all day. She is gorgeous, first off. She wore 4 inch heels and a very feminine super-model type dress and a fur coat. She was straight off the runway. In my black pants and funny colored socks and sweater, I felt like the frump-a-lump of the century. Oh well, not the point.
We went to offices and got things signed. We sat in Olena’s office, mouths agape at how fast she moves and how much she does. Her phone rang probably 18 times in the hour we were there. Ilona described how most of the work she was doing while we were waiting for copies was to allow the orphanage to accept a donation of fruit. I can imagine that many other directors wouldn’t bother.
We went to more offices, and at 2:30 back to the orphanage to visit the kids. They were so happy to get attention. They need love so much more than they need stuff. We mainly hung out w/ Lena, Luda, Vadim, Sasha, Inna, Sabina, and sweet sweet Sergei. Beth Zhenya and some other girls went off to dance and then look at Z’s confusing English homework. Some other curious kids came by to watch. We played Uno and laughed a lot. V has asked “when are we going home?” a hundred times. I wish I could tell him! Their English has gotten better than this summer.
I can finally understand how families do this again and again. I just want to take every single one of them back with me. It will be so hard to leave these kids behind. Kim-- that summer program was worth it for all of them. Every single one. To give them 6 weeks of love. They seem bored and lonely. Maybe we should start some mission trips w/ youth groups over the summer to come and play w/ the kids and hang out with them or something. I can’t get over how happy they were just to get a little love and attention. More thought and prayer needed on ideas.

To keep Todd’s 007-senses up, he’s started smoking, drinking liters of vodka, and hanging out in the dark tunnels of the city.

Whiney American cultural observations:
1) thumping bass 80’s-type music blaring EVERYWHERE, every car, every store, every restaurant.
2) driving is crazy, similar to NYC cab rides, maybe a bit riskier in sketchy weather
3) you never know if you’re getting yelled at or perhaps receiving a blessing or compliment.
4) there’s no butter w/ the bread
5) only need to shower every 2-7 days and will fit right in :)
6) a “cutlet ‘ or “kotleta” is actually minced meat of unknown origin
7) local wine = not so good

Currently on day 5. We just ordered breakfast. Todd thought he ordered a ham and cheese sandwich and got a pickle and cheese sandwich instead. We're going with the flow and enjoying the adventure of it.

Found wi fi

Day 1
The only thing to say about the 10-hour plane ride is that it was just long. We arrived an hour early. Immigration and customs went well thanks to Lonnie’s VIP service. We were tired and disoriented, so the extra $ was worth it. We’re typically proud of the fact that we’re good travelers, so we absolutely hated bringing so much luggage. Two whole bags were filled with food and gifts for the kids at the orphanage. Sergei, a very friendly driver took us to the apartment in the sleety ice. Our adoption facilitators met us there, let us in, gave us a cell phone, told us the general direction of the market, and were out the door in 5 minutes. If I had a remaining working neuron in my head, I would’ve asked a hundred questions, but I didn’t. So, we had an hour of total panic/nervousness trying to think of what we needed to do next. We reminded ourselves that Laurel said that everyone feels this the first few days. After a shower and a short nap, we met up with our faciltiator,and the other family here for tea, and everything seemed totally fine.
It’s a nice apartment, but it felt like a maze of buildings from the main street at first. Now we know how to find the grocery store, and we have landmarks so we can find it. Kyiv has just thousands and thousands of huge apartment complexes, rows and rows of buildings that are similar to our housing projects. Around 3 million people live in Kyiv. There is a lot of new construction underway, but it’s at a freeze at the moment. The Dnipro river that flows through the city is beautiful, and our apartment bldg is right on the river.
I hate not knowing the language. I’ve always been ashamed of stupid American tourists, and now I am one of them. So far, muttering spaseebo (thank you) a lot and smiling apologetically has kept anyone from getting overtly annoyed at me. Knowing the alphabet though is key.
Day 2
What a difference a good night’s sleep makes! Today started with a disappointment. We thought we would have V with us for sightseeing, but it was not the case. We had a nice tour guide and a driver who showed us the Lavre--the famous, beautiful monastery in Kyiv for a few hours. We had coffee at a traditional restaurant. Restaurants are somewhat more expensive here than in the US.
Fortunately, we got to see V at the orphanage for an hour today. His orphanage was large and a bit run-down but comfortable. V was all dressed up waiting for us. He may well have been waiting all day until we arrived around 2:30. He was just adorable in every way and so happy to see us. Lots of hugs and some tears. It’s been a hard 5 months away from each other. We gave him a new coat and shoes and some trinkets. He beat Todd at chess (big surprise), and hugged and smiled a lot. He has been learning English. I was surprised to hear many words that he didn’t know this summer. He looked lonely and vulnerable and sad. Just like this summer, he gave us gifts--stamped clay disks he made for necklaces and a coffee coaster. He is so anxious to return with us. I hate being in the same city with him and not being around him more. It’s expensive to hire a driver to go to the orphanage. We’re tied up with paperwork things Monday and Tuesday, but hope to go back to visit again on Wed. and to get extended time with him this weekend. We explained this to him, but he just called our cell phone a few minutes ago asking if we can come back tomorrow. That kid is ready to go HOME!
Since we started this process, sometimes I have waves of feeling like, “what the &^%$#@ are we doing?” when I think about where we are, and for how long, and about the money. Seeing that boy today wipes away any iota of doubt. He does not just need a better life, he needs a family. He loves us already, and we love him, and I cannot wait to all be home together.
We are much more comfortable and settled today. We found a second market that sells hot food. We bought what looked like chicken cutlets (kotleta), but it turned out to be a crab-cake tasting thing. It was good anyway. We found a microwavable Tupperware that lets us cook the rice we bought in our microwave. In a few weeks I will really miss having a kitchen, but this is working out fine for now. We like and trust our facilitators. They seem very competent and trustworthy and responsive to our requests. We’re figuring out our cell phone.

Day 3
First we slept in late. I don’t know how long Robin slept but I did not get up until 1100. We had some instant coffee and a zone bar. Then we decide to take a walk around since it was sunny and we had some time before our SDA appointment at 3:00. We also decided to take our computer and find an internet café, which we were told was close by. About 15mins later our path did not cross with an internet café, but we did find a beautiful church being restored. We then went to the market to pick up some more water and cheese. While walking out of the store our phone rang and it was Igor saying the taxi driver would be at our place in 5 minutes to pick us up. Please understand it was only 12:45, we thought we had until 2:00 to be ready. So, we scrambled back to the flat and started to change, as we negotiated an additional 20 minutes from Igor….or so we thought. In the midst of changing we heard a car horn, Robin looked out the window and it was our taxi….ugh. There were a few moments of craziness, as we thought to ourselves, we flew 5,000 miles to look like crap at our first appointment. We got ready in less than 10 minutes and we were in the cab. Robin said the driver looked like a killer, it didn’t phase me a bit, as I am acting like 007 at this point on the trip. The trip was exciting, just like a NYC taxi ride, and someone almost died. The driver just about creamed a lady on the street….wow. We finally got to the SDA and met with Igor. I asked him about the money we still owed him and offered to give it to him, but he requested it would not be wise in front of the SDA. I could tell at that point that my 007 senses were weak. We went inside the SDA at 2:00, a whole hour early. Robin & I sat on a couch in a dimly lit hallway…007 senses were back in action. Igor left the building to take a phone call, and Robin & I just said “where did he go”. Moments later a young lady came out with our folder and we fetched Igor. Being the master of no languages’ but English, I decided that I should be the one to speak. We were asked a few very straight forwarded questions about V and our family. It lasted no more than 5 minutes..5,000 miles for 5 minutes. Crazy. After the appointment we headed back to the flat and took another walk. I hate to admit this, but we ate a big mac for dinner. Man was it good. After that we went back to the flat to play cards and watch a movie. All in all, a good day….another step achieved

Pre-Trip Swirl

We're getting ready to go to the Ukraine. Beth sent us this picture of Vadim just this week. I am nervous about a lot of things, but then I think of Vadim's rib-crushing hug and smiling face, and I just can't wait to get there.

I am also overwhelmed with the tedious details, like finding boots that are somewhere near feminine that are also warm and comfortable. This is what I came up with. Jake thinks they're embarrassing. He might be right. Anyway, everyone I talk to sees how distracted I am, and I'm forgetting appoitnments and the details of life right and left while in the midst of the trip-preparation swirl.

Mainly this week, I'm thankful. We put out this website 2 weeks ago, www.savevadim.com in order to fill family and friends in about our decision to adopt, and to ask for help. We've just been amazed by the response. We've raised the money we were short in order to go get him and somehow not rack up thousands in credit card debt. I was so hesitant about asking for help, but I do now believe that more than the money, it was just a gift to see so many people care and want to be a part of what we're doing. Asking for help moved this adventure from something that Todd and Robin are doing, to something that God is doing through a big bunch of people who want to spread the love.