It is offical....as of 3pm today we are offically the parents to Olena. It was quite the experience but thankfully everything went well. Jason and I held it together pretty well. Gene on the other hand was a nervous wreck. He pulled through though with flying colors. At the beginning of the session the judge asked who wanted to speak first and I volunteered which was a blessing in desguise because he asked several questions that Jason would have for sure bloched!! He asked why are you adopting, why Ukraine, how do you know she will have a good and fair life in the U.S., why are we not adopting domestically, will she be able to be President?? yes he did ask that. I could hear Jason now...because my wife said....maybe we should ask my wife....my wife never mentioned this to me, I am not sure?!! but it did go well and when I was done he asked Jason to stand, asked him the basics such as name and place of employement, then asked if he agreed with all of my answers - easy enough! After answering questions for about 40 minutes he left the room to consult with the other officals for about 5 minutes, they came back into the room and gave some long speech in Ukrainian which I understood meant "yes you are now the parents of Olena". Amazing how the both of us could sit there and listen to him and actually understand what he was saying. We both had huge smiles on our faces and so did the other people in the court. He then came and shook our hands and told us Congradulations and Best Wishes. Finally it is over.
We will now have a 10 day waiting period which will end on December 9th, unfortunately that is a Saturday so we can't do much, but we should be able to take Olena from the orphange on Sunday. Complete her passport and new birthcertificate on Monday and Tuesday, leave for Kiev on Tuesday night and arrive on Wednesday morning, then a few more days completed immigration and having a medical evaluation, then HOME!!! I am hoping to be able to leave a day or two earlier and fly out on the 15th or 16th. Every day counts even if it is just one day, I am leaving as early as possible. I miss my family, my dogs, my cats, my house, my bed....everything!!!
After court we went to Dixie BBQ and met up with one of the other families. Jason and I ordered Tbones steaks and were salivating at the table at just the thought of some good beef. Boy were we surprised. We got some type of meatloaf thing covered in a sweet BBQ sauce, still good but not what we were dreaming about. Guess the tbone will have to wait until we are back home! We finished off with some good icecream though so that was a treat.
That about covers it all. Thank you so much to everyone for your support and prayers. We made it! We couldn't be happier and we can't wait to share the joy with all of you. Now it is just a matter of waiting everything out and starting the count down until we go home. Love and miss you all.
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Wednesday, November 29, 2006
Only one more day until court! We will be sitting down with Gene today and going over some of the questions that he may ask us and what type of answers we should give. He seems pretty stern so this outta be interesting. In less than 24 hours we will offically be parents ~ WOOHOO!
We go to court at 1pm and it should only last about 1 hour. There is 1 other American family before us and one after us at 4 pm. Both families are adopting little girls from Olena's groupa.
Yesterday, Jason and I did some reading on the internet about toddler behavior during adoption and the tantrums. It seems to help quite a bit. Our afternoon visit went fairly well. She just really loves to be in control ~ but then again what 2 year old doesn't? We went shopping today and bought some clothes, a jacket, and 2 of the cutest leather boots. They were $6 a pair, that was a heck of a deal so I had to buy both! One pair is pink and the other are brown. We also went to the baby store and bought a new sippy cup with a one way valve. That will make things much easier on us. The one we bought from the flea market a few days ago, leaks when tipped up side down and she finds that very funny :O) The translator had to go deliver some paperwork to the orphange this morning so we decided to go in and see her for a few minutes. We have not been going in the morning so she was very surprised and OMG did I get the biggest hug ever. She squeezed my neck so hard and screamed in my ear, then gave me a big kiss. That was great!!! Nice to know that for once I was liked better than daddy!! She did have a few fits during the visit but we got past it but then when we left she was ticked! She had a screaming melt down so the caregiver snatched her up and took her into the bathroom. It is so hard to leave when she is like that. Hopefully this afternoon things will go well again.
I forget to mention we got to go bowling on Monday with the other 2 families...we had a good time. They have a fairly new bowling alley and Jason did very well. He was very proud of himself. We also got to go have lunch at a resturant that is a strip club by night. Interesting huh? They even sat us in the "VIP" lounge. It was a huge leather sectional with one big table and a bar. They even had strobe lights and a disco ball. However they didn't turn it on for us. Owell. Jason said that is where they must get the lap dances!! how do you think he knew that? anyway the food was good and we all had a good time. It was nice to be able to go out and have a conversation with several people who speak your language!!!
Well time is up so I must go. I will be sure to update you all after court tomorrow. Wish us luck and please pray. I believe we might need all we can get. Love and miss you all.
We go to court at 1pm and it should only last about 1 hour. There is 1 other American family before us and one after us at 4 pm. Both families are adopting little girls from Olena's groupa.
Yesterday, Jason and I did some reading on the internet about toddler behavior during adoption and the tantrums. It seems to help quite a bit. Our afternoon visit went fairly well. She just really loves to be in control ~ but then again what 2 year old doesn't? We went shopping today and bought some clothes, a jacket, and 2 of the cutest leather boots. They were $6 a pair, that was a heck of a deal so I had to buy both! One pair is pink and the other are brown. We also went to the baby store and bought a new sippy cup with a one way valve. That will make things much easier on us. The one we bought from the flea market a few days ago, leaks when tipped up side down and she finds that very funny :O) The translator had to go deliver some paperwork to the orphange this morning so we decided to go in and see her for a few minutes. We have not been going in the morning so she was very surprised and OMG did I get the biggest hug ever. She squeezed my neck so hard and screamed in my ear, then gave me a big kiss. That was great!!! Nice to know that for once I was liked better than daddy!! She did have a few fits during the visit but we got past it but then when we left she was ticked! She had a screaming melt down so the caregiver snatched her up and took her into the bathroom. It is so hard to leave when she is like that. Hopefully this afternoon things will go well again.
I forget to mention we got to go bowling on Monday with the other 2 families...we had a good time. They have a fairly new bowling alley and Jason did very well. He was very proud of himself. We also got to go have lunch at a resturant that is a strip club by night. Interesting huh? They even sat us in the "VIP" lounge. It was a huge leather sectional with one big table and a bar. They even had strobe lights and a disco ball. However they didn't turn it on for us. Owell. Jason said that is where they must get the lap dances!! how do you think he knew that? anyway the food was good and we all had a good time. It was nice to be able to go out and have a conversation with several people who speak your language!!!
Well time is up so I must go. I will be sure to update you all after court tomorrow. Wish us luck and please pray. I believe we might need all we can get. Love and miss you all.
Tuesday, November 28, 2006
HOME SICK!!!
I think the title sums it up....we are so ready to come home. I have had enough of Ukraine living! but our little angel is worth it and we have to stay about another 2 weeks. We found out this morning we have court this Thursday at 2pm - at which time we will offically become the parents to Olena Victoria Warchol. We have decided to keep her name instead of changing it to Sofia as originally planned. She just doesnt look like a Sofia.
However she has not gotten any better. The tantrums yesterday were horrible, in fact she made me sit in the hall and cry because I was ssssooooo frustrated but the darn little devil is so cute when happy! I know she is confused and probably very frustrated too so all we can do at this time is just deal with and let her vent. I can't wait to get her home, it will make things so much easier to deal with. We only see her for about 2 hours a day and when those 2 hours are bad it makes us feel awful! Looking at the calender we should be home around the 15th of December. We have a flight scheduled to return on the 17th but if I can manage to switch it and leave a few days earlier we will be! I will keep you posted and we hope to see you all soon!
However she has not gotten any better. The tantrums yesterday were horrible, in fact she made me sit in the hall and cry because I was ssssooooo frustrated but the darn little devil is so cute when happy! I know she is confused and probably very frustrated too so all we can do at this time is just deal with and let her vent. I can't wait to get her home, it will make things so much easier to deal with. We only see her for about 2 hours a day and when those 2 hours are bad it makes us feel awful! Looking at the calender we should be home around the 15th of December. We have a flight scheduled to return on the 17th but if I can manage to switch it and leave a few days earlier we will be! I will keep you posted and we hope to see you all soon!
Saturday, November 25, 2006
2 weeks and counting!
We have been here 2 weeks today and we are missing home - yet we know we still have at least 2 1/2 weeks to go. We are doing to best to keep our spirits up. Things went well with the judge yesterday, we met his requests and hope to have a court date by Wednesday of next week. We are waiting for the SDA to complete our permission and once we get that back we can take it to the judge to get a court hearing. Olena is doing as well as expected. We have learned not to take our bag of goodies because she gets too upset if she does not get what she wants as soon as she wants it. She also has a great set of lungs!!!! She screams about everything!! OMG!! Screams when she is mad, and screams when she is happy. So pretty much she is always screaming!!! I am not sure how much longer the other two families are going to put up with us! LOL! We all sit in a room together away from the rest of the groupa and their two little girls sit in their laps, cuddle and are so sweet. Then there is our monster...she climbs on the tables, jumps off the chairs, steals everyone else snacks and of course screams. We love her of course ~but I am not sure how much the others think her screaming is cute:O) At least she's vocal. She is starting to speak a little bit more English. Most of the time if I tell her an english word she will attempt to repeat it. She says mommy and daddy though I don't think she realizes what it means. She knows I am momma and Jason is poppa and she does call us that regularly! And there are no more problems with going to poppa....she LOVES poppa very much and lately has perfered him over me. He throws her in the air and swings her around - while she screams - so he is much more fun than me! I am a little worried about the plane ride home, she is such a busy body and the high pitch screams might cause a problem!! this outta be a fun experience!
But a few milestones over the past 10 days include...letting us know when she needs to be changed, she knows to say "rah rah" when shaking her pom poms, when counting she knows when it is three - I say one, two and she yells three...then I finish, when she wants cookies she says yum yum, when thirsty she stands in front of Jason and licks her lips (which I must say is hilarious), and she smiles when I pull the camera out!! She is so much fun and she really makes a bad day good! I wouldn't change a thing about our decision but she is the craziest of the bunch!
We will post again in a few days! Good luck to those who are traveling soon!
But a few milestones over the past 10 days include...letting us know when she needs to be changed, she knows to say "rah rah" when shaking her pom poms, when counting she knows when it is three - I say one, two and she yells three...then I finish, when she wants cookies she says yum yum, when thirsty she stands in front of Jason and licks her lips (which I must say is hilarious), and she smiles when I pull the camera out!! She is so much fun and she really makes a bad day good! I wouldn't change a thing about our decision but she is the craziest of the bunch!
We will post again in a few days! Good luck to those who are traveling soon!
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving!
Hope everyone is enjoying there holiday turkey. Though we are very thankful for being here with our daughter we are homesick today and wish we could be at home with her and everyone else. Things are starting to get tough....it looks like the honeymoon is over! She is starting to react to all of these changes, she is throwing tantrums, and has been physically abusing us!! Not quite that extreme but you can definately see the changes. I know all of this was going to happen but it is a lot tougher when you are actually here trying to deal with it....it breaks our heart.
We were hoping to go to court next week, but today when Gene met with the judge there seems to be a problem with some of the paperwork so we are hoping that he is able to fix it. If not, we might be here for awhile :O(
Don't get us wrong ~ we are very grateful for everything and everyone is doing their best to make this a speedy and low stress procedure but we are ready to come home and start our lives with Olena! We will keep you posted about the paperwork, we should know more once we get back to the flat and talk to Gene!!
Hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving - and we miss you all!
We were hoping to go to court next week, but today when Gene met with the judge there seems to be a problem with some of the paperwork so we are hoping that he is able to fix it. If not, we might be here for awhile :O(
Don't get us wrong ~ we are very grateful for everything and everyone is doing their best to make this a speedy and low stress procedure but we are ready to come home and start our lives with Olena! We will keep you posted about the paperwork, we should know more once we get back to the flat and talk to Gene!!
Hope everyone is having a wonderful Thanksgiving - and we miss you all!
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
The paperwork
Hello!! our paperwork is finally in Kiev. This means that the SDA will approve it and also complete a permission letter for us to go to court. According to our contacts in Kiev we should have it all back by next Wednesday. Our translator met with the judge today briefly because he wants to try and find out when we can go to court but the judge had a hearing and asked him to come back at 5 pm tonight so hopefully we will have some more news by tomorrow. Gene is hoping that we will be able to go to court on Thursday!
So tomorrow is Thanksgiving...of course we have much to be thankful for but we will miss spending it with our family and enjoying the great dinner. I bought what I thought was a turkey today from the market but found out later that it is really a chicken so it looks like our thanksgiving will be with chicken instead..oh well!!
Olena is doing great. As everyday passes she is getting more comfortable with us. She is going to be a handful though. She has been very wild the past few days! When we are there, she runs around screaming (with joy) when she sits on our lap she loves to act crazy and swing her body back and fourth which has lead to many headbutts to the nose and lip. Yesterday she got me square in the nose and Jason too, then this morning she got me in the lip!! We have a lot of training to do. She also thinks it is sooooo funny to smack us in the face! oh boy she is a wild one, let me tell you!!!!!!
As for my last post on her size...she is much smaller than I thought. I was for sure that she would wear an 18 months but I tried my outfit on her the other day and it was huge so it seems she will be wearing a 12 months for a few weeks, at least until we get her home and she grows a little. She loves to eat and has a great appetite so we shouldn't have any trouble putting some weight on her. Everything else is going good, we are missing home but we are still having a good time. We walk to the orphanage everyday which takes about 35 minutes and it looks like we might be loosing a few pounds, the clothes are getting a little big. But it is not like we don't have some extra pounds to spare~LOL!! it is also starting to get cold now so it looks like we might see winter before leaving.
Well that is it for now, we will post again soon. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! and eat some Turkey for us! Love and miss you all!
So tomorrow is Thanksgiving...of course we have much to be thankful for but we will miss spending it with our family and enjoying the great dinner. I bought what I thought was a turkey today from the market but found out later that it is really a chicken so it looks like our thanksgiving will be with chicken instead..oh well!!
Olena is doing great. As everyday passes she is getting more comfortable with us. She is going to be a handful though. She has been very wild the past few days! When we are there, she runs around screaming (with joy) when she sits on our lap she loves to act crazy and swing her body back and fourth which has lead to many headbutts to the nose and lip. Yesterday she got me square in the nose and Jason too, then this morning she got me in the lip!! We have a lot of training to do. She also thinks it is sooooo funny to smack us in the face! oh boy she is a wild one, let me tell you!!!!!!
As for my last post on her size...she is much smaller than I thought. I was for sure that she would wear an 18 months but I tried my outfit on her the other day and it was huge so it seems she will be wearing a 12 months for a few weeks, at least until we get her home and she grows a little. She loves to eat and has a great appetite so we shouldn't have any trouble putting some weight on her. Everything else is going good, we are missing home but we are still having a good time. We walk to the orphanage everyday which takes about 35 minutes and it looks like we might be loosing a few pounds, the clothes are getting a little big. But it is not like we don't have some extra pounds to spare~LOL!! it is also starting to get cold now so it looks like we might see winter before leaving.
Well that is it for now, we will post again soon. Happy Thanksgiving to everyone! and eat some Turkey for us! Love and miss you all!
Monday, November 20, 2006
Another day!!
Not too much to post since last time but things are still going well. Today the translator went to the Municiple Council and they said that our paperwork would be ready tomorrow morning. Once this is completed it will go by train to Kiev, signed and sent back....then we can go to court. That is the day we are truly waiting for because then once our adoption is granted it is 10 more days then we start to head home.
Last night was a lot of fun with her....she is quite the little pistol. Her favorite game with daddy is lets throw something on the floor and watch him pick it up!! LOL!! What a sucker...he falls for it everytime. She has the greatest laugh I cannot wait until you can all hear her!!
We made a lot of progress this morning with Jason, she did not willing come to him but if I handed her to him or he picked her up she did not argue. This is a great breakthrough. I also heard her cry for the first time today and it was very hard. I started to cry too!!! The caregiver gave her to me and she buried her little face in my chest and laid there. It was very sweet. She is going to be a real lover, she likes to be cuddled!
Today we will go the flea market and buy some pull ups or diapers because she is having some accidents, I am also going to start looking for a few things like a coat, socks, shoes and maybe another outfit. I did bring one and I am very happy because I think it will fit. The other family tried some clothes on their daughter so in comparison I am almost positive she will wear an 18months. Now I just got to figure out the shoe size and we will be good.
Thanks for all the wonderful comments you guys are leaving. It is awesome hearing from all of you and it has even made me cry! (Yes I am emotional these days) I can't wait to get home and see all of you again! Lots of love as always. We will check in again tomorrow.
Last night was a lot of fun with her....she is quite the little pistol. Her favorite game with daddy is lets throw something on the floor and watch him pick it up!! LOL!! What a sucker...he falls for it everytime. She has the greatest laugh I cannot wait until you can all hear her!!
We made a lot of progress this morning with Jason, she did not willing come to him but if I handed her to him or he picked her up she did not argue. This is a great breakthrough. I also heard her cry for the first time today and it was very hard. I started to cry too!!! The caregiver gave her to me and she buried her little face in my chest and laid there. It was very sweet. She is going to be a real lover, she likes to be cuddled!
Today we will go the flea market and buy some pull ups or diapers because she is having some accidents, I am also going to start looking for a few things like a coat, socks, shoes and maybe another outfit. I did bring one and I am very happy because I think it will fit. The other family tried some clothes on their daughter so in comparison I am almost positive she will wear an 18months. Now I just got to figure out the shoe size and we will be good.
Thanks for all the wonderful comments you guys are leaving. It is awesome hearing from all of you and it has even made me cry! (Yes I am emotional these days) I can't wait to get home and see all of you again! Lots of love as always. We will check in again tomorrow.
Sunday, November 19, 2006
Baby "O"!!!!!
Sorry we have not written in a few days...but let me bring you up to date.
We went to the Black Sea this Saturday and had a great time. But it was VERY cold. Of course as you all ready know we have been having great weather but the one day we decide to go to the Sea it is freezing. We had a good time anyway. The drive took about 1 hour and we got to see a lot of the country side and it was beautiful. We even had an excellent lunch!!
Every day is getting better with Olena. As each day passes she is getting more and more use to us and it is a great feeling. It is also getting harder everyday to leave her. Unfortunately we only get to spend a couple hours each day with her but it is the best few hours of our lives. She is even starting to pick up a little English. Jason and I love to tickle her because she is VERY ticklish and her laugh is adorable....when we do we say "tickle tickle tickle" so last night while we were there she was running around mimicking us and she would lay in front of the caregiver and say tickle tickle tickle.....it was hilarious. Yesterday was a great day at the orphanage. We spent a lot of time with her and the other children as well. They are all so sweet and just want to be loved. We hugged many of them and played. They were also very interested in the camcorder and camera...that was something very cool to them.
Olena has also learned that momma and poppa's bag always has goodies. The past few times we have went there to see her she is more interested in seeing what is in the bag for her. This morning poppa had the bag with crackers so she actually sat on his lap for the whole time we were there. It was great and I know that he loved it! She is still a little nervous around him but it is getting better each day! She'll do anything for food! I doubt we will have any problems getting her to eat!
The caregivers in her groupa are wonderful too!! They play games with the children and have story time. They are all so smart - it is wonderful to see. We really had a great time getting to know all of them.
Oh... and Thursday night she was very quiet but she must have been tired because she had me hold her while she buried her face in my neck and fell asleep. Jason and I were beside ourselves with joy. It was a great and very emotional moment. I cannot help but to wonder why not every family does this. We have been so blessed and I would never change a thing about this entire trip. We are really going to miss it when we leave.
The food is excellent too!!! We have had our share of Ukrainian food and it has all been great - especially the borscht. I am definately going to get that recipe. Even Jason has been open to trying everything and he loves it! Gene has been too great for words to express. We all have so much in common and we are having a lot of fun! He is very kind and has a HUGE heart! I can't say enough how much we love it here. Don't worry we do miss all of you too but it should make you feel good knowing that we are happy and probably have never been happier. The country is filled with so much culture and beautiful people (Jason loves the women too) They dress a little skimpy compared to American women, even in the cold weather, but I must agree they are all beautiful!!! We are hoping to come back in a few years and Gene has welcomed us into his home so we will have a good place to stay.
Another family arrived this morning to the orphanage for another girl in Olena's group. That makes 3 little ones getting a forever family. It is so great! Now if we could just take home the other 15 I would be happy!! Maybe another year or so ;O) wink wink!!!
Friday, November 17, 2006
One week away from home...
Today makes one week since we left home...one week since sleeping in a comfortable bed!!! The one thing I do not like about Ukraine! The mattress' are very thin and very hard. However so far everything else is perfect!
We got to visit Olena (FYI - pronounced O-LAY-NA) yesterday afternoon and again this morning. Yesterday we got to take her outside to play which was nice. They put so many clothes on these children when they go outside it reminds us of the little boy from the Christmas story. We are in southern Ukraine and it is very warm here. Kinda like being south at home. It has been in the 50-60s and we packed clothes for the North Pole - most of the leaves are still on the trees to.
This morning we went to see her again, but she was pretty reserved. We had a banana in our bag which she quickly discovered was something wonderful. She loved it. One of the other children in her groupa had a family visit her today - hopefully she too will get a momma and poppa! They are all so precious, I pray for the best for each and everyone of them.
Today Gene is running around getting some paperwork settled to send to Kiev. He told us that we will need to send some documents to the adoption center by train, wait for it to come back, then try to get a court date. He has not given us any estimates yet - I think he is too nervous to get our hopes up, but my guess is that we should have court by the end of next week. Once we go to court and the adoption is "approved" we will have to wait 10 days (a mandatory waiting period) then back to Kiev with Olena. She is not allowed to stay with us until this 10 day period is over. During this time we will continue to visit her 2 times a day...this will give her a chance to get use to us! I looked at the calender last night and if everything remains "kink free" we should be home by the week of December 10th.
That is all for today. I will post again over the weekend - we are going to try to go and visit the Black Sea so that should be nice. Take care everyone and we miss you all!
We got to visit Olena (FYI - pronounced O-LAY-NA) yesterday afternoon and again this morning. Yesterday we got to take her outside to play which was nice. They put so many clothes on these children when they go outside it reminds us of the little boy from the Christmas story. We are in southern Ukraine and it is very warm here. Kinda like being south at home. It has been in the 50-60s and we packed clothes for the North Pole - most of the leaves are still on the trees to.
This morning we went to see her again, but she was pretty reserved. We had a banana in our bag which she quickly discovered was something wonderful. She loved it. One of the other children in her groupa had a family visit her today - hopefully she too will get a momma and poppa! They are all so precious, I pray for the best for each and everyone of them.
Today Gene is running around getting some paperwork settled to send to Kiev. He told us that we will need to send some documents to the adoption center by train, wait for it to come back, then try to get a court date. He has not given us any estimates yet - I think he is too nervous to get our hopes up, but my guess is that we should have court by the end of next week. Once we go to court and the adoption is "approved" we will have to wait 10 days (a mandatory waiting period) then back to Kiev with Olena. She is not allowed to stay with us until this 10 day period is over. During this time we will continue to visit her 2 times a day...this will give her a chance to get use to us! I looked at the calender last night and if everything remains "kink free" we should be home by the week of December 10th.
That is all for today. I will post again over the weekend - we are going to try to go and visit the Black Sea so that should be nice. Take care everyone and we miss you all!
Thursday, November 16, 2006
2nd day visit.
We are still doing great. We finally got settled last night in our flat about 6:00pm and boy must I say...we are staying in the Hilton!!! It is gorgous. It is a lady that the Director of the orphanage recommended. I guess she usually rents her flat to Italian Families but adoptions have been very slow in this region over the past year so she was very happy to accommadate us. The flat is awsome. We even have a bath tub!! WOOWHO!! I sat in there so long yesterday I looked like a 80 year old woman when I got out :O) It is very clean, very beautifully decorated and very comfortable. It has 2 bedrooms so our translator is staying with us as well.
Today we got to visit Olena again and this time she came running to us!! It was a great feeling. Our translator had the caregivers put us in the sleeping room so that we could be seperate from the other children and spend some time alone. She even let Jason hold her today!!! We got many great pictures and even came here today to try and download them but unfortunately we were not successful. The guys who worked here said that I need the disc to download the program and I did not bring it!!! Sorry guys. I know that you are all probably swearing at me right now, but I promise this is not on purpose!!
Oh and I am now band from the orphange!!! Just kidding, but I did make the caregivers mad already!! It was time for us to leave and for Olena to eat lunch I tried to have her sit in her chair she stumbled and put her hand right in the bowl of soup, spilling it everywhere!! Needless to say, they were not very happy with me!
I think she is finally starting to realize who Jason and I are. Yesterday she called Jason Papa and today she ran to me calling me momma. Gene is now dada (which is Uncle.) She talks a little, but I am sure she knows more, because today she was babbling about my camera and the light on it. I really wish you guys could see her...her smile will make you melt! Her caregiver told us yesterday that she is very clever. Today while playing with her, it seems she will have quite the attitude if she finds it necessary. We might really have our hands full! We will be able to see her again this afternoon after 3:30. Hopefully she will not be grumpy. Yesterdays afternoon appointment was not as much fun because she was crabby! but now that she knows a little better perhaps it will go smoother. We are going to walk over to the flea market and buy her a little toy! Yes we are going to spoil her already!
We found an internet cafe literally a 2 minute walk from our flat so will promise to post daily. Thanks for all the support. Reading your comments made me cry today. If she only knew how many people already love her.
PS: Becky....her birthday is January 20th!!!! Thought you would like that.
Today we got to visit Olena again and this time she came running to us!! It was a great feeling. Our translator had the caregivers put us in the sleeping room so that we could be seperate from the other children and spend some time alone. She even let Jason hold her today!!! We got many great pictures and even came here today to try and download them but unfortunately we were not successful. The guys who worked here said that I need the disc to download the program and I did not bring it!!! Sorry guys. I know that you are all probably swearing at me right now, but I promise this is not on purpose!!
Oh and I am now band from the orphange!!! Just kidding, but I did make the caregivers mad already!! It was time for us to leave and for Olena to eat lunch I tried to have her sit in her chair she stumbled and put her hand right in the bowl of soup, spilling it everywhere!! Needless to say, they were not very happy with me!
I think she is finally starting to realize who Jason and I are. Yesterday she called Jason Papa and today she ran to me calling me momma. Gene is now dada (which is Uncle.) She talks a little, but I am sure she knows more, because today she was babbling about my camera and the light on it. I really wish you guys could see her...her smile will make you melt! Her caregiver told us yesterday that she is very clever. Today while playing with her, it seems she will have quite the attitude if she finds it necessary. We might really have our hands full! We will be able to see her again this afternoon after 3:30. Hopefully she will not be grumpy. Yesterdays afternoon appointment was not as much fun because she was crabby! but now that she knows a little better perhaps it will go smoother. We are going to walk over to the flea market and buy her a little toy! Yes we are going to spoil her already!
We found an internet cafe literally a 2 minute walk from our flat so will promise to post daily. Thanks for all the support. Reading your comments made me cry today. If she only knew how many people already love her.
PS: Becky....her birthday is January 20th!!!! Thought you would like that.
Wednesday, November 15, 2006
First I will start by saying the train was great. What a wonderful experience. We have never been on a train so we were like a few 5 year olds and got very excited. Though it was an 11 hour ride it went pretty quickly. We of course tried to sleep but only managed to get about 4 hours.
Anyhow. We are here in the region of Myckolayv - it is known as the ship building city of Ukraine. During Soviet times this was where all of the Military ships were built. It is not as busy as Kiev (thankfully) but it is beautiful. There are of course some very poor areas, which really is a reality check of how people here have to live.
Oh and by the way....We met Olena!!!! I know that is what all of you were waiting for. Funny story though....we met a different Olena first. We were taken into a room where we were introduced to this girl who was NOT happy to see us. She started screaming and did not want anything to do with us. I was very nervous and felt very bad. But something was not right. Her eyes were blue and she was very big. I told my translator that she was much bigger than I was expecting?? Then all of a sudden everyone realized that this was not the right girl!! Boy was she probably happy. So off we went to the other side of the orphange where we walked into a room with 20 tiny children sitting at the table eating their lunch...with spoons that we would use for serving. The director pointed to her and said "there Olena!!" I start to bawl my eyes out. She was ABSOLUTELY perfect. I looked back and Jason and Gene were crying too. We were invited to come in and sit down where we watched all of them finish their lunch. It was very hard to see them all sitting there. I wanted to bring them all home. So sweet and innocent...just looking for a mommy and daddy. All the while Olena kept staring at the 3 of us. She knew we were there for her. After everyone ate they cleaned her up and told her to go see her momma and pappa. Surprisingly she came right to me and put her arms up for me to pick her up. All we could do was stare at each other!! She warmed up a little and we started to play on the floor with her. She is still a little nervous about Jason but that is expected. They do not interact with many men if any at all. But we were tickling her and she was laughing away. She is such a happy baby and boy is she tiny. She is VERY ticklish and loves to laugh. She even hugged and kissed me and let me rock her while she put her head on my shoulder. We of course couldn't stop crying. Thankfully Gene was thinking because he was snapping pictures like crazy using his camera phone. We only got to stay with her for about 30 minutes because we could not disrupt her schedule and it was nap time. We will be allowed to visit her again this afternoon after 3:30.
The orphange is very nice and very clean! The staff also seems very sweet. No pictures yet and we still do not know if we will post any because it may not be possible, but we will see what we can do.
We will try to post again soon. Love everyone and please welcome Olena Victoria Warchol to the family!!!
Love and miss you all.
Anyhow. We are here in the region of Myckolayv - it is known as the ship building city of Ukraine. During Soviet times this was where all of the Military ships were built. It is not as busy as Kiev (thankfully) but it is beautiful. There are of course some very poor areas, which really is a reality check of how people here have to live.
Oh and by the way....We met Olena!!!! I know that is what all of you were waiting for. Funny story though....we met a different Olena first. We were taken into a room where we were introduced to this girl who was NOT happy to see us. She started screaming and did not want anything to do with us. I was very nervous and felt very bad. But something was not right. Her eyes were blue and she was very big. I told my translator that she was much bigger than I was expecting?? Then all of a sudden everyone realized that this was not the right girl!! Boy was she probably happy. So off we went to the other side of the orphange where we walked into a room with 20 tiny children sitting at the table eating their lunch...with spoons that we would use for serving. The director pointed to her and said "there Olena!!" I start to bawl my eyes out. She was ABSOLUTELY perfect. I looked back and Jason and Gene were crying too. We were invited to come in and sit down where we watched all of them finish their lunch. It was very hard to see them all sitting there. I wanted to bring them all home. So sweet and innocent...just looking for a mommy and daddy. All the while Olena kept staring at the 3 of us. She knew we were there for her. After everyone ate they cleaned her up and told her to go see her momma and pappa. Surprisingly she came right to me and put her arms up for me to pick her up. All we could do was stare at each other!! She warmed up a little and we started to play on the floor with her. She is still a little nervous about Jason but that is expected. They do not interact with many men if any at all. But we were tickling her and she was laughing away. She is such a happy baby and boy is she tiny. She is VERY ticklish and loves to laugh. She even hugged and kissed me and let me rock her while she put her head on my shoulder. We of course couldn't stop crying. Thankfully Gene was thinking because he was snapping pictures like crazy using his camera phone. We only got to stay with her for about 30 minutes because we could not disrupt her schedule and it was nap time. We will be allowed to visit her again this afternoon after 3:30.
The orphange is very nice and very clean! The staff also seems very sweet. No pictures yet and we still do not know if we will post any because it may not be possible, but we will see what we can do.
We will try to post again soon. Love everyone and please welcome Olena Victoria Warchol to the family!!!
Love and miss you all.
Monday, November 13, 2006
Now we have a minute
I know that we already posted today but now we have a little more time so we thought we would check in again while we have the time.
As you already know we are having a great time. We have met 3 other American Families and had dinner tonight with them at an awsome Italian resturant. Don't worry we tried the Ukrainian food at lunch. Both times the food was excellent.
Our apartment is small but HORRAY it has a washing machine so we have been able to wash all of our clothes.
We have train tickets to leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm and we will arrive in region at 6am. I have heard that the train is quite the experience!!! We tried to fly but there are no flights there....which our translator was very happy about. We found out he does not like planes. We are still very excited and can't wait to meet little Olena.
Yesterday was tough because we were alone all day and did not have phone service. Though I must admit we did pretty good. We managed to make it to the market and buy food for lunch and dinner. We have been told not to leave the apartment after dark but so far we have felt completely comfortable walking around - besides it is pitch black by 5pm!! Tonight we were able to see a part of the city that we have not seen yet! It is AMAZING! The lights and the buildings are unbelievable. I can't explain enough how great it is to be here. Well worth the wait! Everyone has been very kind to us too.
(Don't worry we are fighting off the tears too!!) We both thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts. And we hope you know that we are going good.
Mom and dad I know that you are probably worried since you haven't heard from us but we will do our best to call as soon as we can. We will probably not be able to post for a few more days being that we will be traveling and will need to locate an internet cafe in region. Hang tight...Gene said that the post office allows you to make long distance calls so if necessary we will go there to get in touch.
That about sums up our day. We love you all!!
As you already know we are having a great time. We have met 3 other American Families and had dinner tonight with them at an awsome Italian resturant. Don't worry we tried the Ukrainian food at lunch. Both times the food was excellent.
Our apartment is small but HORRAY it has a washing machine so we have been able to wash all of our clothes.
We have train tickets to leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm and we will arrive in region at 6am. I have heard that the train is quite the experience!!! We tried to fly but there are no flights there....which our translator was very happy about. We found out he does not like planes. We are still very excited and can't wait to meet little Olena.
Yesterday was tough because we were alone all day and did not have phone service. Though I must admit we did pretty good. We managed to make it to the market and buy food for lunch and dinner. We have been told not to leave the apartment after dark but so far we have felt completely comfortable walking around - besides it is pitch black by 5pm!! Tonight we were able to see a part of the city that we have not seen yet! It is AMAZING! The lights and the buildings are unbelievable. I can't explain enough how great it is to be here. Well worth the wait! Everyone has been very kind to us too.
(Don't worry we are fighting off the tears too!!) We both thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts. And we hope you know that we are going good.
Mom and dad I know that you are probably worried since you haven't heard from us but we will do our best to call as soon as we can. We will probably not be able to post for a few more days being that we will be traveling and will need to locate an internet cafe in region. Hang tight...Gene said that the post office allows you to make long distance calls so if necessary we will go there to get in touch.
That about sums up our day. We love you all!!
Now we have a minute
I know that we already posted today but now we have a little more time so we thought we would check in again while we have the time.
As you already know we are having a great time. We have met 3 other American Families and had dinner tonight with them at an awsome Italian resturant. Don't worry we tried the Ukrainian food at lunch. Both times the food was excellent.
Our apartment is small but HORRAY it has a washing machine so we have been able to wash all of our clothes.
We have train tickets to leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm and we will arrive in region at 6am. I have heard that the train is quite the experience!!! We tried to fly but there are no flights there....which our translator was very happy about. We found out he does not like planes. We are still very excited and can't wait to meet little Olena.
Yesterday was tough because we were alone all day and did not have phone service. Though I must admit we did pretty good. We managed to make it to the market and buy food for lunch and dinner. We have been told not to leave the apartment after dark but so far we have felt completely comfortable walking around - besides it is pitch black by 5pm!! Tonight we were able to see a part of the city that we have not seen yet! It is AMAZING! The lights and the buildings are unbelievable. I can't explain enough how great it is to be here. Well worth the wait! Everyone has been very kind to us too.
(Don't worry we are fighting off the tears too!!) We both thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts. And we hope you know that we are going good.
Mom and dad I know that you are probably worried since you haven't heard from us but we will do our best to call as soon as we can. We will probably not be able to post for a few more days being that we will be traveling and will need to locate an internet cafe in region. Hang tight...Gene said that the post office allows you to make long distance calls so if necessary we will go there to get in touch.
That about sums up our day. We love you all!!
As you already know we are having a great time. We have met 3 other American Families and had dinner tonight with them at an awsome Italian resturant. Don't worry we tried the Ukrainian food at lunch. Both times the food was excellent.
Our apartment is small but HORRAY it has a washing machine so we have been able to wash all of our clothes.
We have train tickets to leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm and we will arrive in region at 6am. I have heard that the train is quite the experience!!! We tried to fly but there are no flights there....which our translator was very happy about. We found out he does not like planes. We are still very excited and can't wait to meet little Olena.
Yesterday was tough because we were alone all day and did not have phone service. Though I must admit we did pretty good. We managed to make it to the market and buy food for lunch and dinner. We have been told not to leave the apartment after dark but so far we have felt completely comfortable walking around - besides it is pitch black by 5pm!! Tonight we were able to see a part of the city that we have not seen yet! It is AMAZING! The lights and the buildings are unbelievable. I can't explain enough how great it is to be here. Well worth the wait! Everyone has been very kind to us too.
(Don't worry we are fighting off the tears too!!) We both thank all of you from the bottom of our hearts. And we hope you know that we are going good.
Mom and dad I know that you are probably worried since you haven't heard from us but we will do our best to call as soon as we can. We will probably not be able to post for a few more days being that we will be traveling and will need to locate an internet cafe in region. Hang tight...Gene said that the post office allows you to make long distance calls so if necessary we will go there to get in touch.
That about sums up our day. We love you all!!
The angels are flying!!!
We just got back from our appointment at the Adoption Center. I honestly cannot say enough good stuff about how well it went. The staff was EXTREMLY kind and they gave us many choices. They had preselected 5 girls for us to look at and I must say that they were all beautiful and it was a very tough choice. All the girls were between the ages of 1 - 3 years. Jason and I did not take much time chosing. Both of us agreed pretty quickly which one we wanted to meet. She is so beautiful!!! and had the happiest smile on her face. Sorry to say mom, but she has big brown eyes and brown hair. Looks like dad's and my dream were pretty accurate. It was a very hard choice though...I am getting emotional just writing this. Maybe I can talk Jason into coming back for that blonde hair blue eyed one!! LOL! We are very happy right now and have perma grin on our faces.
We are taking a train to meet her tomorrow to a region called Myokiv (spelling???) near the Black Sea. The region is known to be an easy one, and will take us about 12 hours to get there by train. We will leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm. She is 22 months old, one of the youngest in the group of 5 we were shown. Her name is Olena! and I can't tell you enough how cute the picture was!!
I am so sorry we have not called yet. We told the translator today that it is imparative that we get a phone card to call home so hopefully within the next couple hours we will be able to call.
Things are going good don't worry about us. We have a GREAT and very kind translator, his name is Gene! We ventured out on our own yesterday and went to the market and even cooked dinner. Jason was a little nervous but did good in the long run. The one crappy thing is the bed! lets say we are sleeping on a piece of wood with lots of blanket.
Weather is chilly though warmer today. It snowed yesterday but melted on the ground.
*Jennifer if you could print this and call you dad and read it to him, we would really appreciate it.*
Thats all for now. I will post again once we are in region. Hopfully they will have an internet cafe.
Oh and the buildings here.....OMG they are the most beautiful things that Jason and I have ever seen. We are truly having a great time.
We love you all and keep the prayers coming. So far they are all being answered! Hugs and kisses to everyone. Talk to you soon.
We are taking a train to meet her tomorrow to a region called Myokiv (spelling???) near the Black Sea. The region is known to be an easy one, and will take us about 12 hours to get there by train. We will leave Kiev tommorrow at 7pm. She is 22 months old, one of the youngest in the group of 5 we were shown. Her name is Olena! and I can't tell you enough how cute the picture was!!
I am so sorry we have not called yet. We told the translator today that it is imparative that we get a phone card to call home so hopefully within the next couple hours we will be able to call.
Things are going good don't worry about us. We have a GREAT and very kind translator, his name is Gene! We ventured out on our own yesterday and went to the market and even cooked dinner. Jason was a little nervous but did good in the long run. The one crappy thing is the bed! lets say we are sleeping on a piece of wood with lots of blanket.
Weather is chilly though warmer today. It snowed yesterday but melted on the ground.
*Jennifer if you could print this and call you dad and read it to him, we would really appreciate it.*
Thats all for now. I will post again once we are in region. Hopfully they will have an internet cafe.
Oh and the buildings here.....OMG they are the most beautiful things that Jason and I have ever seen. We are truly having a great time.
We love you all and keep the prayers coming. So far they are all being answered! Hugs and kisses to everyone. Talk to you soon.
Saturday, November 11, 2006
We're in Amsterdam!
We are finally over the long flight and arrived in Amsterdam at 9am this morning....3am for you guys. Airport is nice but very big. We had to walk well across the entire airport to find out that we cannot sit at the gate until they are ready to board. Each gate has it's own security check point and they are all enclosed in glass!! so we had some time to spare and decided to check in with everyone. Our flight leaves for Ukraine at 12:35 and we will arrive in Kiev around 4:30. The flight here was great! We had great seating and video monitors in the seats so we could listen to music, watch movies and play games. We slept a good part of the last half of the flight so it went pretty smooth. Hope it goes that well on the way home with the little one :O)
We just wanted to check in and let everyone know that we are doing great, and so far, everything is looking on the bright side. We will post again probably tomorrow from Kiev.
We just wanted to check in and let everyone know that we are doing great, and so far, everything is looking on the bright side. We will post again probably tomorrow from Kiev.
Thursday, November 09, 2006
Last night home
Well this is it. Our last night home as just husband and wife. I am sitting here collecting my thoughts for the first time all day and I think it is finally starting to sink in. The moment we have been anticipating for 2 years is finally here. We are going to become a family.
For the past 2 years all I kept thinking was how excited I was going to be at this moment. I got such anxiety just thinking about it....but, strangely enough, during these past 2 weeks I have been calmer then I have been since this whole process started. I guess I just don't find a reason to be scared or nervous. I have learned and studied so much about the adoption, Ukraine, what to expect, what could go wrong... all I have done is prepare!! I am ready -
For the past 2 years all I kept thinking was how excited I was going to be at this moment. I got such anxiety just thinking about it....but, strangely enough, during these past 2 weeks I have been calmer then I have been since this whole process started. I guess I just don't find a reason to be scared or nervous. I have learned and studied so much about the adoption, Ukraine, what to expect, what could go wrong... all I have done is prepare!! I am ready -
We leave tomorrow evening and will arrive in Ukraine, late Saturday afternoon. I will do my best to post Sunday. If for some reason, it is not possible, I will be sure to post Monday night and let you know all about our appointment.
Thank you to everyone who has helped us along the way - now the real journey begins and I am happy to be sharing with all of you!
Tuesday, November 07, 2006
HOLY COW!!! 3 days and counting. Though I must admit I am still having a lot of trouble getting myself to believe that it is finally happening. NO nerves, no emotional breakdowns yet...nothing! I have been so busy making sure we have everything and making sure the home front is being well taken care of.
The dogs are my main concern right now! I am so worried that they are going to go into depression when we're gone, then to come home with a baby is going to stress them beyond belief. I just keep praying for the best and a smooth transistion. Family and friends are doing great with helping out, but I know that no one is going to care for and spoil our "babies" the way we do!
I am a little worried about the husband too. He is stressing big time! I am doing my best to reassure him that we are going to have a good time and to just relax and enjoy the time we will spend there. I have a feeling that he might experience a bit of culture shock.
This is going to be a big change but it is only going to last a few weeks, then we get to come back and continue living in our comfort. If all of the Ukrainians and our daughter can live their lives there, there is no reason why we can't handle it for a month. I know that this is not a trip to Tahiti but I am really looking forward to it. This is truly an once in a life time opportunity!!
I will be sure to post again before leaving.... just think, 1 week from today I should be posting you the details of the daughter we will be getting ready to meet! FINALLY!
The dogs are my main concern right now! I am so worried that they are going to go into depression when we're gone, then to come home with a baby is going to stress them beyond belief. I just keep praying for the best and a smooth transistion. Family and friends are doing great with helping out, but I know that no one is going to care for and spoil our "babies" the way we do!
I am a little worried about the husband too. He is stressing big time! I am doing my best to reassure him that we are going to have a good time and to just relax and enjoy the time we will spend there. I have a feeling that he might experience a bit of culture shock.
This is going to be a big change but it is only going to last a few weeks, then we get to come back and continue living in our comfort. If all of the Ukrainians and our daughter can live their lives there, there is no reason why we can't handle it for a month. I know that this is not a trip to Tahiti but I am really looking forward to it. This is truly an once in a life time opportunity!!
I will be sure to post again before leaving.... just think, 1 week from today I should be posting you the details of the daughter we will be getting ready to meet! FINALLY!
Thursday, November 02, 2006
Can you believe we leave next week? It is so strange to finally be able to say "next week"!!! I am a little behind schedule and still have a ton of things to do. But I have the weekend and
Tuesday is my last day at work so I will have 2-3 full days to get things done.
I have still managed to stay relatively calm. The only thing I can think of, is that it just has not "processed" yet or I am just so prepared after waiting for 2 1/2 years that I know everything is going to be o.k.
Everyone has been so supportive...it is good to know we have so many friends and family cheering us on! I truly think we are going to have a good time...cold weather, no hot water, lack of toilets, lack of heat and great Vodka!!! What else could you ask for? LOL!!!
On a serious note, we will lack a few of the luxuries that we have here but we're prepared. One of the girls at work the other day said "who the heck goes to Ukraine?" and I said "WE ARE!!" and we are going to have the time of our lives.
Tuesday is my last day at work so I will have 2-3 full days to get things done.
I have still managed to stay relatively calm. The only thing I can think of, is that it just has not "processed" yet or I am just so prepared after waiting for 2 1/2 years that I know everything is going to be o.k.
Everyone has been so supportive...it is good to know we have so many friends and family cheering us on! I truly think we are going to have a good time...cold weather, no hot water, lack of toilets, lack of heat and great Vodka!!! What else could you ask for? LOL!!!
On a serious note, we will lack a few of the luxuries that we have here but we're prepared. One of the girls at work the other day said "who the heck goes to Ukraine?" and I said "WE ARE!!" and we are going to have the time of our lives.
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