Leaving on a Jet Plane

Okay, I know, that was a really cliche title, but we are!  I can’t believe I am writing our last note before we leave for Ukraine. I feel like time is moving very quickly. We spent Saturday as a family enjoying our time together, running a few errands, eating lunch at our FAVORITE restaurant, and when I started writing this Dan and Tim were watching the Gators play football. (Wasn’t exactly the game they’d hoped for, but that’d be a totally different blog.)

We've received many questions lately about how this process works in Ukraine, so I thought I'd try to explain it.
     We leave Orlando Sunday afternoon and will land in Kiev Monday afternoon. (Please pray for safe, smooth flights and that our luggage arrives with us!) We'll be met at the airport by our translator. He will get us settled into our apartment and help us buy phone cards (we’ve borrowed a cell phone, but have to prepay for the service), groceries, etc. We have no official business on Tuesday, but he has promised to take good care of us and show us around Kiev. I’ve been spending some time with the Rosetta Stone Russian language software… I guess I will find out really quickly how well it worked. ;-)
     On Wednesday morning at 11:00AM, we have our appointment at the SDA (Ukraine's State Department of Adoptions… like a nationwide DCF). That’s 4AM EST for you early birds… if you happen to be awake, we covet your prayers. This is a VERY important meeting that can set the tone for the rest of the trip. We will meet with an official there who will show us files of children who match the recommendations in our home study. We are praying for one or two girls (if there are two they’d be sisters) ages 6-9… maybe a year or two older. We are asking the Lord to make it crystal clear to us which child(ren) we are to meet. We know God is completely in control of this entire process and we are trusting him to direct our every step. From the files we are shown, we request a referral to meet the child(ren).
     Depending on the timing of when our referral is issued, we will travel to the region where the girls' orphanage is located on either Thursday or Friday. (We have no idea where it will be… it could be 2 blocks away or it could be a 15 hour train ride.) Once in the region, we meet with the regional director, then the orphanage director, and then meet the child(ren). We will have up to 4-5 days to decide if they are the right fit for our family, but have been told most families know almost right away. (Our heart’s desire would be to receive the right referral the first time around. If it is not a good match for our family, we are allowed to request a second SDA appointment in Kiev, but that would add a week or two (or more) to our timetable.) We will be able to interact with the child and have a medical exam performed if we’d like. Once we decide to proceed with the adoption, our translator notifies the SDA and a court date is scheduled. At court, the judge will grant our petition to adopt and declare us to be the parents. However, following this verdict, there is a mandatory 10 day waiting period during which appeals can be made. Appeals are very rare, and we don't anticipate any problems, but we still have to wait... unless God has other plans.
     This is the point in the process when we think I (Kathi) would come home... maybe around 12/29. Ukraine celebrates Christmas on January 7th and no official business takes place from 12/31-1/10, so depending on how the 10 day wait falls on the calendar, Dan may stay to complete the process or come home with me and make a second trip. If he stays, he would likely be able to visit the orphanage for a few hours each day to play, bond and get to know the child(ren) better. However, because of the holidays, our ten days could easily become 15 or more. We’re trusting God that he will guide and direct us when it is time to make that decision, too.
     After the waiting period is over, we (I should probably say Dan and the translator at this point) go to the city where the child was born and get copies of the original birth certificate. These will be exchanged for new birth certificates that state the new names and list us as their parents. There are a few other documents we'll need to obtain, and then we will apply for the girls' Ukrainian passports. Once all the paperwork is in order, we get to pick up our children from the orphanage! We will have to provide full sets of clothing for them, since all the clothes (underwear and shoes included!) are the property of the orphanage. I expect there would be a little farewell party with the girls' classmates and caregivers, and then we'll leave the region to return to Kiev.
     In Kiev, each of the girl(s) will have a medical exam as required by the US Embassy for their visas. The next stop is the US Embassy for visas and immigration paperwork. Finally, once that is all set, everyone gets to come home. Timothy’s little sister(s) automatically become American citizens as soon as their plane lands on US soil!

So that's the super-simple (although still not very short) version of a very detailed and complex process… an adoption process that has been described to us by families who have been there as “walking on jello.” Please continue to pray that the Lord would have His hand on each and every step!

We expect to have internet access in Kiev and hope to have it in the region as well, but only God knows. We’ll do our best to keep you posted and love to get your encouraging messages.