Tuesday and Wednesday

Tuesday – We had a good afternoon with V and her friends (aka “groupa” or roommates). All five girls were there today and all seemed happy and interactive with both of us. V said she shared the candies we gave her yesterday with her roommates as well as the boys and the caretakers. We’ve been impressed with how non-materialistic she is… she often asks us to save something (like stickers or candy) for the next day and always shares. Even the first day we met her, we only had a few pieces of candy for each girl and she wanted to give hers to me. Today we gave V the choice between playing Uno or making friendship bracelets (a small kit we brought from home). She and her friends were very happy to try out the bracelets, but we all realized in not too much time that it wasn’t a very interactive activity. We (the girls included) decided to play Uno again and they would finish the bracelets on their own. We’re beginning to see more and more of each girl’s personality every day. The boys were absent again today (not sure if they truly were napping or in another part of the building) which made it much quieter and less chaotic. Actually, there was one boy ready to make a bracelet with us. He was about to choose the colors of thread he wanted when a caretaker realized he was with the girls and sternly called him away. He dutifully jumped up from the table and ran out.

This is the door is where we enter the internat.

The streets are clear of snow, but there was a reasonable accumulation out in front of the orphanage where Sasha waits for us in the car. Ah yes, how could I forget this part?! At the entrance of the orphanage there are 5-6 steps with a steep ramp next to them… way too steep a wheelchair. There were two teenage boys using the ramp as an ice slide. They would slide/skate down the ramp then run back up the steps and do it all over again. Kids are kids wherever you go. On the way back home we stopped for dinner at the pizzeria and Nastiya helped us order. No pepperoni here, just salami or ham. They also have black olives, mushrooms, tomato slices and a few things I don’t recognize. (I know that’s not really significant, but my online friends who are preparing to come to Ukraine will appreciate knowing they won’t starve.) We were back in our room by 6:30. We don’t have a fridge, but at these temperatures who needs one? We opened the window and put Dan’s “Coke Light” out on the ledge… just like Christmas in Massachusetts! No room in the fridge or freezer? Put the extra food on the porch.


Wednesday – It is not even 5:00, but already as dark as midnight here. I cannot get used to the fact that we are wrapping up our day as all of you are just getting started. Our driver picked us up at 1:00 today and we got to visit with V and a few of her friends. When we arrived the children were all lined up in the playroom practicing a song with their music teacher. She was seated on the lone sofa playing an accordion and directing their singing. It was a shorter visit today because our driver needed to drop us off by 4:00 and take some documents to Donetsk. I assume there must be some sort of courier service that runs on the train. There’s really not too much else to tell. I haven’t played this much Uno since I used to babysit my eldest niece and nephew and they’re both in their 20’s now. We had Nastiya (our teenage translator) ask the kids about discipline and what happens when they disobey, they all said “nothing.” We don’t really believe they are always perfectly obedient, so the addition of discipline into V’s life may come as quite a shock. We will also ask a caretaker the same question and see if she gives the same answer.


THE PROCESS - We've gotten a few questions about the timeline and the procedure from this point forward, so I will do my best to summarize.
Victor is in Kiev and submitted our papers to the SDA. They have 7 days to process them and have been taking the full time lately. If they return the papers in 7 days, that would be 12/23. Victor will pick them up and take the overnight train back to us for court on 12/24. The 10 day waiting period doesn’t start until we have court and that makes our 10 days end during the January 1-10 holidays (New Year's is a HUGE holiday here and Christmas is not celebrated until 1/6). Once we receive the court decree (typically after 10 days) it must be taken to the town where V was born. (The same place we went for the paperwork about the older brother.) Their vital records office will issue a new birth certificate that indicates we are her parents and changes her name. Once the birth certificate is received, we request a new passport. One of our big praises when we came to this region was that they "still make passports the old-fashioned way." I don't really know the difference between the old way and the new way, but have been told it saves us 4-5 days processing time. I think that finishes the in-region portion of the trip. There will, of course, be a farewell party of sorts for V and her friends before she leaves the last time. Somewhere between now and then we have to do some shopping. When she leaves the internat, she leaves everything behind, even her underwear! We'll need to buy enough warm clothing, etc. for her to make it home. The journey then goes back to Kiev via the overnight train. In Kiev, she must have a medical exam at a specific place authorized by the US Embassy and then it’s the US Embassy's turn to do paperwork. Dan and I did not need visas to come to Ukraine, but V will need one to leave. She is already legally our daughter at that point, but not a US citizen until landing back in the states.