Ground Hog Days

One of our new friends who is adopting from the same orphanage termed the days waiting for your court appointment as "Ground Hog Days".  This was a movie with Bill Murray several years ago where everyday was the same for him and it happened to be ground hog day.  Our days are not quite that monotonous, but close enough the analogy is fitting!  Thank you Dave Funk for warning us!

We spent the morning Monday shopping at "Air-Mart".  This market was far bigger than we thought on our last visit.  You can buy anything from shoes, clothes, hardware, toys, bikes and anything Wal-mart might carry...but they only typically have one size or just one of each! 

Our trip to the orphanage was another frustrating one.  The language barrier continues to be 90% of our issue.  Maria's caretaker (who is great but new to the job) was having Maria complete her homework.  Kelly and I tried to stay out of the way until she was done, but Maria had no interest in completing it...so we sat and waited in the staircase outside the rooms during most our visit.  We finally left...her frustrated...we were frustrated... the caretaker frustrated.  We called Tanya and she explained that while we were there, the children are told they can spend time with "Mama and Papa" and do not have to do homework.  We think the new caretaker did not understand this process.  It wasn't until we left already that we fully understood Maria's frustration...she was told by her main caretaker that she did not have to do homework while we were there and we were making her complete it.  Tanya said she would go today, Wednesday, with us to straighten it out.  We are praying for a better day with her today.

We ate dinner last night with two other couples that are in town going through adoptions from the same orphanage.   We spent several hours talking and enjoying each other's stories.  It was a much needed break and pseudo therapy for all of us I think!  The United States never seemed so small as three couples who live in three different parts of the states felt like neighbors!

We did not hear from our kids at home until night time as they did not get a chance to call before school.  Brooke and Nicholas talked to us via skype right after school while Mark and Jake called the cell phone after Cross Country practice...they ran 2.8 miles yesterday!  Great job boys...sorry Mom and Dad were half asleep when we talked!

Today, Wednesday, September 14, would have been my oldest brother Ray's 52nd birthday.  The Lord took him unexpectedly last year.  My sister-in-law Patti, my nephews and my parents are in my prayers today.  We all miss my brother terribly and I am sad that he is not here with us to experience this journey.  Ray loved family and Maria will miss knowing Uncle Ray the way the other kids did.  We love you Bro and this day is for you!

Back to explore Air-Mart's offerings...

"where are the bling bling jeans??"

Maria took out the bubbles that we sent back with her during the summer...

Enough pictures Daddy!

Waiting on the stair case for homework to be completed

Trapped, delirious, and still waiting...

Still waiting...Kelly driven to drink from a bag...

Work out whenever, where ever...dips to kill time while still waiting...

Dinner with Kevin, Stephanie, Darci and Dave... Great fellowship eating unknown food!

We finalized our return trip home last night.  We fly back on Tuesday, 9/20 and arrive back into Atlanta at 4:05pm.  We will go straight to dinner to celebrate Mark's and Sandy's birthday.  Kelly will return to Ukraine on 9/27, if all goes as planned. to pick up Maria and have her home one week later.  God continues to work...

Monday - Court Date Set

We were given our court date this morning - Monday, 9/19 at 11:30am with a more agreeable judge.  Though it was a relief to get a date, we were not happy that it is a week away.  It was a tough morning for us as we walked downtown, realized we had seven more days here and contemplated our options.  We both miss the kids very much and would like to see them but know that one week is not long enough to fly home and back for court.  Mark's 12th birthday is Tuesday 9/20 and we decided that we will pull out all the stops to make sure we are home for his special day.  Details forthcoming but we may have a long car ride on Monday afternoon versus a train ride...it will make for an interesting post on next Tuesday!

We had a short visit at the orphanage this afternoon.  We watched Maria practice a dance program she is performing in.  I have attached a video and a photo.  She had to complete her homework so we did not stay long in her room today.  She wasn't very happy that we left but she wouldn't listen to Katie, her caretaker, while we were there...let the parenting begin!

Kelly received word tonight that we had to delete any photos posted on facebook or in this blog that do not have Maria in them.  I guess it is an issue with the director of the orphanage to have kid's photos posted.  Going forward, we will try to make sure she is in all the photos we take.  If you have tagged any of the photos and put them on your page, please delete.  For all those on their way, beware of this newly discovered rule!

Maria and the rest of her dance class rehearsing what we think is the entrance of the performance.

The Weekend

Saturday we were blessed to be able to take Maria and Kiril out of the orphanage and to lunch for 2 hours!  I asked them if they had ever been to the town and they said no - which is tough to swallow given the campus is two blocks from this area.  We took them to our prefered pizza spot (by default) and ordered pizza and chocolate crepes.  Maria is a picky eater and it took a while for us to find something she would like.  Kiril, on the other hand, found a lot of different things he liked (better increase the food budget Stephan)!

We bought the kids ice cream cones after lunch and then walked back to the apartment to show them where we were staying.  The two hours went by fast but we had them back on time.  We have learned to be very respectful of the rules at the orphanage.  These are their children up until the court signs the papers.  We left the orphanage around 4pm and Maria was not happy...partly because she was required to nap from 3 to 5pm and we were her ticket to stay up and play!  We were so tired, the nap time rule seemed like a really good idea at this point in the day!

Our kids at home were busy this weekend.  Mark rode bikes with Larry around the hills of our neighborhood in the morning...not something he normally tackles!  They all then spent the day with Mark and Pam Romano visiting a snake exhibit as well as spending time at their house.  They took a hike (got lost), rode ponies and played air soft.  Larry and Sandy said they were worn out when they returned to the house.  Thank you Mark and Pam for helping on our journey...we are blessed with great freinds!

Sunday morning and late afternoon were spent outside at the orphanage.  I played "American Football" with some of the boys while Kelly kept them busy on the bars and playing cards alongside Stephanie.  In between the morning and afternoon visits, we went downtown to have lunch at a restarant with Kevin and Stephanie.  We had fun getting to know them better and eating lunch outside.  We picked the restaurant that had Pepsi logos all over the tables and chairs...couldn't go wrong with a Pepsi pour!  I continued to be amazed at the faith and passion of the couples God has put on our path.  We have met some amazing people that He is using in such a big way!

End of the week - Emotional Roller Coaster Ride Continues!

Tanya went to the courthouse on Friday to put our petition into the computer lottery system.  She has been telling us all along that the judge we are assigned is very important as their are 2 "bad judges" and 2 "good judges".  

We were taking our time getting ready on Friday morning when Tanya called and said she needed to speak with us urgently and we had to go back to the notary.  When I asked what was wrong, she said in her Russian accent, "not good for you - need to explain in person."  It turns out that we were assigned not only the bad judge but the worst of the four.  He is extremely detailed and painfully thorough from what she knows.  It took the last couple that he handled 2 1/2 months to get a court date.  As perspective, the couple here with us now, Kevin and Stephanie, received the good judge and was assigned a court date on this Thursday.

Tanya pulled our paperwork off his desk (she knows the system).  She explained to us that we will have to resubmit on Monday and pray that we get assigned the correct judge.  If not, we will resubmit every day until the selection is correct.  However, we are praying that God's plan is to get us assigned correctly on Monday and receive a Friday 9/15 court date.  This is the best case scenario and will allow us to fly home on Sunday 9/18.  As I have been posting, being away from the kids has been grueling.  This extra day delay is extremely frustrating and yet another challenge.  The news was especially hard on Kelly and made for a rough day.  We know that through God, all things are possible so we have faith that getting the right judge in the lottery will happen Monday!

We spent time at the orphanage after school and enjoyed playing cards with Maria and the other kids.  I brought the computer over and had the translator program running so we were able to better communicate with the kids.  They enjoyed typing words into it as well and hearing them said back in Russian.

We spoke to the kids at home for a long time on Skype.  They had a good Friday at school.  Jake and Nicholas, unfortunately, didn't make the finals in the cooking contest this year...they are our top chefs though and I cannot wait to taste Jake's chili and Nicholas' Shrek ice cream when I get home!  Mark finally got Skype on his new iTouch so we have a direct line to him now.  Nicholas and Brooke enjoy the text function a little too much on Skype - we have had to limit use during our conversations!

We love you kids!

Traveling in line as a group to go eat dinner.

Thank you to all who have been sending us notes via email, facebook and comments on this blog.  We are grateful for great family and freinds!  Keep the messages coming as we don't get to talk to many people over here...our Russian is not getting any better either!

From Mariia (Masha) to Maria Grace Leggiero

On Thursday we had to sign the petition for the courts.  We received a call in the morning from Tanya and she asked what middle name were we going to use for Mariia and if we wanted to ask her before we decided...she needed it in a five minutes!   I have always liked the name Grace for a girl.  Given the events earlier in the week, it also was fitting.  We petitioned the court to adopt her as Maria Grace Leggiero.  We also decided to use one "i" versus the two we have been to make it a little easier once she is home. 

After leaving the notary office, we went with Kevin and Stephanie to a large open market.  I have affectionately named this area "Air-Mart".   We spent a few hours browsing through the market and Kelly bought an industrial strength hula hoop for Maria to use with her friends.  This thing is made of metal and hopefully will not become a weapon at the orphanage!

We are not allowed to go to the orphanage until after 4pm on school days.  When we did finally show up Thursday night, Maria seemed to be much more relaxed around us.  She has started to let her guard down and be more affectionate toward us both.  I think though the meeting on Wednesday was very stressful, it allowed her to see that we were fighting for her and gave her a say in the process.  I am sure someone with a psychology degree could tell me what this means but we are just glad that she has begun to realize what all this means!

Air-marts finest hula hoop!

We got back on Thursday and the kids were all doing chores sweeping the playground.  No excuses when she gets home about doing work around the house!

Just Pictures...

Monday night we brought some crafts for the kids to do...

Tuesday morning we found a very nice park on the river to clear our heads

The kids completed the crafts and were showing off their work on Tuesday night

Enjoying the sunshine in the evening... pretending to be a deep thinker!

Kelly in front of the kids entrance to the orphanage.  A very popular spot.

Street outside the orphanage

Mariia wanted to see me swing with her..I couldn't hang on too long!  Brooke will be a much better swing partner when we all get home!

AWESOME!

I heard a pastor preach how the word "awesome" should really be reserved to use only in reference to God.  I actually have tried to stop using the word except in reference to God because it made sense.  Today we can honestly say that we witnessed the word Awesome in its fullest! 

Kelly and I were truly in Awe as we sat before a board of nine Ukrainian directors who thanked us for our kindness toward their children and after several questions honored our request to adopt Mariia and for her brother Kiril to be able to go with the family he wishes (The Charbonneau's).  As you know, we were told our odds were not favorable that this would happen...however God could care less about odds!

Thank you for all who prayed so hard for us and we are humbled by the amount of messages we received from those supporting us in prayer.  God heard those prayers and His will was done today!

I am sure some are curious as to the events that transpired as not many have been through Ukrainian Social Services so I allow me to back up now that credit has Rightfully been given...

(this is long but many have asked)

We woke up this morning feeling settled in the fact that we had done our part.  We were still nervous and a little scared (okay a lot scared) but had to leave it Upstairs at this point.  Today was ironically the day that the group from New Horizons for Children was stopping here at the orphanage to interview the Christmas hosting children.  Our appointment this afternoon was not until 2pm, so we walked over to the orphanage in the late morning to visit the team.  Upon entering the orphanage, we ran into the director of NHFC, Lee Anne.  She greeted us and then told us some very upsetting news about the program.  It appears that the orphanage director decided to severely limit the kids participating in hosting this session partly because of our "case".  This was and still is very concerning but we understand that we really are only a part of the issue.  For protection of the program, I will not go into details.  I will say that the positive side is that the program has been a little too successful in getting people involved and interested in adopting orphaned children from here...many kids have found forever families in America.

At this point, Kelly and I thought we hit a new low in the valley.  We walked back to the apartment and received a call from Tanya soon after we arrived.  She said they now wanted both children to attend the meeting and face the board.  We were taken back as this seemed crazy and almost abusive.  Dazed but faithful, we met Tanya and rode to the office.  The kids were already there with one of their caretakers.  Mariia and Kiril were obviously scared...not sure what was going through their young minds. 

Coincidentally, another American couple was at the office for an appointment with the board as well.  Kevin and Stephanie just arrived from Kiev on the same train as we had last Friday.  It was great to have another couple (yet again) there with us that we could actually communicate with.  They are adopting a 13 year old boy who they hosted as well through NHFC.  All of us crowded outside the office door along with a few other Ukrainian couples.  They called Mariia and Kiril in first with out us.  They returned five minutes later and then we were called in with out them.  Some of the questions:  What is your job?  How old are you?  Do you live in a house or apartment?  Do you have a swimming pool (not sure if this lady was looking for a vacation spot or uncovering a safety concern)?  How do your kids feel about Mariia?  Will you make a strong effort to keep Kiril and Mariia in contact (need a place at the Jersey shore next summer Stephan)?

The board was very non-threatening and quite friendly overall.  After we got done with our questions, they sent us out and then called everyone back into the room to tell us of their approval.  It was emotional for all involved.  Kiril was especially brave and mature way beyond his years.  Stephan and Noelle should be proud of their future son!

We left the building and prayed with Kevin and Stephanie standing at the steps leading to the building.  I was in Awe...can say it no better way!

We spent the rest of the evening at the orphanage with Mariia.  We got to know Kevin and Stephanie better over pizza - a food poisoning free approved meal. 

Jake, Mark, Nicholas and Brooke all spoke to us on Skype tonight.  They just got back from school and it was great to hear their voices and see their faces.   Nicholas and Brooke were getting ready for crazy hair night at AWANA.  Mark said is was a hang out night since he didn't have much homework to do and Mom is not there to drag him to the gym.  Jake is helping at AWANA and only had a few problems of math to do - his favorite subject! :)  We continue to miss them very much!  As tough as the last 72 hours have been emotionally, not being with them for over a week now has been a constant drain.  Please continue to pray for them and also for us as we still have another 10 days or so here... Mama really misses her babies and this is a long time. 

We should have much less drama to post going forward and I will once again try to focus on pictures. 

God is Awesome!