Still in Kiev...

Preeviet!  We are still in Kiev.  Actually this is our last evening here as we head out to Maripol near Donesk tomorrow afternoon to settle in to our new apartment (at least until we get our bearings).  We have possibly located a little girl that we are going to go to the orphanage to gather more information about the true possibility of bringing her into our family.  The news is getting brighter but as we are learning there is never any certainty here in Ukraine.  This is both what makes it fascinating and terrifying.  Kind of like life in general.  Since we have no new information to share I wanted to share some pictures of our experiences in Kiev.  Of course we have pictures on phones and cameras so forgive any mishmash that occurs in future blogs jumping back and forth.

To start here is a map of Ukraine.  Right now we are in Kiev, the capitol and will be flying about 1.5 hours further east to Donetsk and then driving about 2 hours to Mariupol.

Following I am going to attempt to recreate our time here with photos and captions.

Rob and I in front of the Ministry where all adoptions are overseen and St. Andrews Cathedral.  Our first apartment was right up the hill from this spot.  This was the first afternoon when we arrived.  As you will see in later pictures it was snowing and the snow coupled with the beauty of the city created the impression of being inside a snow globe.  It is so surreal it is like being in an Epcot exhibition.

This is St. Micheal's Cathedreal (Michalevsky) I am not sure I got that spelling correct...most of what we are learning is verbal and definately things get lost in translation.  Rob and Susan our facilitator are posing in the center of the square right up the hill from our current apartment.  Next blog will let you visit a Ukrainian apartment.

Here is Susan and our translator Diana in the same square.  Diana has been as awesome as Susan and Alexander Ivanovich who you will be introduced to in future blogs.  Diana was with us during our meeting with the ministry and really helped us advocate for ourselves during this meeting.  She has also shared with us what it was like growing up in Ukraine during the fall of communism and Chernobyl.  Diana has a very special place in our heart.

Susan and Rob in front of the stairs to St. Andrew's.  Susan has been instrumental from beginning the process back home to making our journey as smooth as possible.  She has not only been our fearless leader but also an amazing hostess while in Kiev.  Her experience and understanding of the country have made this trip truly magical.

Arriving in Kiev.  As you can see we are a bit jet lagged but more than a little excited to have arrived at our destination and to be at least in the same country as our angel baby.  Thank goodness for the English subtitles...with the time differences and non stop travel pure Russian would have been difficult.  We are slowly learning how to read important signs or at least use context clues to figure them out.

Stay tuned for blogs that will introduce you to the cuisine and local market in Kiev, our apartment and some other photos of our stay here.

Dobrey Nochee, Pakah!  (Good night and bye)

Update on our journey...

I just want to reach out and share an update regarding our journey and how things are progressing.
We had our meeting with the Ministry in Kiev but are waiting for more information and next processes before we even know anything solid regarding an adoption.  It has been a unique, sometimes emotional but always love filled adventure toward growing our family.  Of course, we will post information as we get it and appreciate all the support we are receiving from home.  Susan, Diana and Alexander Ivanovich from adoptionservicesinternational.com have been instrumental in moving the processes and contacting the appropriate ministers regarding documentation and the legalities of everything associated with our situation.

I will post some photos later this evening documenting our experiences in Kiev.  Please check back in a few hours and we will bring you in on living in Kiev over the past 5 days.

What a long strange trip it's been...

And this was the last time we will ever leave our home as a couple without our girls.  This was taken by Willy our limo driver on the way to JFK airport.  Anyone that we spoke to prior to leaving knows how much difficulty we had in packing.  How does one pack to go away for one month with one medium size suitcase?  Exactly like our advisor told us to.  After being here just two days we have a shipment to go back to the States.  Third floor walk ups are just one reason you pack as light as possible.

How not to pack for a month in Ukraine:

We arrived at JFK in plenty of time to make it through security, get undressed and redressed as required by homeland security and enjoy a bite to eat and drink before boarding our flight on American for Heathrow, London.  It has been nearly 20 years since I made that flight across the pond.  Boy does it get rough sleeping in the center seat when you are as amped up as I was to get this party started!  We got there no worse for wear and Rob was quite refreshed and totally excited to be that much closer to meeting our angels...

We wanted to make sure we got a jump on jet lag and not let it get the better of us...so we decided to start sight seeing immediately.  We rented a car and after trying out every round about between the airport and the Marriot Heathrow we dropped off our bags and started toward Stonehenge and Bath.  It was exciting for me to share with Rob something I loved that he had not seen before as I have been graciously able to be shared so many of the amazing things Rob has experienced and loved and shared with me.  Stonehenge was truly a spiritual experience as the energy there is just something to be felt.  The fact that it was considered an ancient sight to the Romans when they invaded England puts in perspective how truly amazing this place really is.  The fact that the tools used to build it were animal bones makes you wonder about the ingenuity of man to be able to move these enormous stones hundreds of miles and  them in such a way that we were able to visit it still visibly standing in 2012.

Bath was beautiful and the Christmas lights and spirit permeated every nook and cranny.  We had our pub dinner of sausages and fish and chips with a good strong ale and that completed our one day tour of England.  Early then next morning we were off for Kiev.  Still as excited but maybe a little tired.  When we landed in Kiev, 4 hours later it was sleeting and very windy.  For all our pilot friends, it was amazing to see, or not see as the case was, amazing piloting skills of our pilots landing in a 300 foot ceiling of hard IFR and gusty winds...

We were greeted at the airport by Susan Kibler and Alexander Ivanovich, the wonderful folks from adoptionservicesinternational.com .  We were brought to our apartment and it was identical to the pictures we were sent.  The only way to explain our first impression of Kiev was that it was like being dropped in a snow globe.  The beauty of the city is surreal and coupled with the snow and reason for our visit made it magical.  After two days here the only thing equal to the beauty of the city is the beauty of the people inside and out.  Here are a few pictures to share what we can of our experience so far.

In this picture is Susan Kibler and Diana, our translator from adoptionservicesinternational.com .

Tomorrow morning at 10am Kiev time is our meeting with the Ministry to choose our girls.  Positive energy and thoughts are appreciated :)  We will post the results of the meeting tomorrow.  

Pakah!

Somewhere over the rainbow...

Preeviet (Hello in Russian)!Somewhere over the rainbow....in a far, far away land a special angel lies.  I can not believe that in 7 hours we will be on our way to meet our family addition!Not a whole lot to share right now but the emotions are overwhelming and I am the sole person awake in this quiet house on the greatest Saturday morning of my life.  The only Saturday to out do this will be next Saturday when we will have met the sweet souls that are waiting to complete our family.  Until then I will be busy finishing the photo cards and book to introduce the girls to their family, home and neighborhood.  I keep putting off the dreaded job of finally stuffing way too much in one little suitcase.  Once that is done...I guess I just have to remember to breathe and try to remember every emotion and observation along this journey of a lifetime.  Please know that this blog is for our family and friends but mostly for our family to be able to remember  every detail of everyday.  So in advance, thank you for being a part of this personal story of how our family became.Bakah!