Done!

Hello Everyone! (Happy Birthday 65th Dad!)

Great News ... Everything is finished and we are heading home tomorrow! The boys and I went to the embassy today and were given their visas!

It has been a long week! On Sunday, I returned to Ukraine from London. I spent most of the day flying and then all night on the train from Kiev back to Kharkiv. I arrived in Kharkiv a few hours later than expected and so Monday was very rushed.

I first had to go to the court to pick up the final document allowing me to take custody of the boys. The court is located nearest to Jack so I went to get him first. He was anxiously waiting for me. He changed his clothes while I signed papers. The whole orphanage seem to be a buzz with what was happening. Several older boys were coming by to shake Jack's hand and wish him luck. Once the papers were signed we headed downstairs to give our regards to the director and say goodbye. As we were doing so, Jack's entire class came out to see him off. I took a picture of Jen with his class and their teacher. As I snapped the photo, I was struck by each little face that was smiling with joy for Jen; but I also saw a little other something in each face that made me acutely aware that each of them need a family to love them as well. A bittersweet moment if I ever had one. We hopped right in the car because we had to hurry to get Slava and make it back to the train. A few of the boys ran after the car, dragging their sleds, and yelling, "Paka! Paka Jenya!" Translation: "Goodbye! Goodbye Jenya!" It was a very emotional picture out the back window. Once we drove out of the gate, Jack leaned back against the seat, tilted his head back, closed his eyes, and let out a huge sigh.

When then drove the 90+ minutes or so to Slava's orphanage. There was a lot of traffic and it took us longer than we'd hoped. This was disappointing because the director of Slava's orphanage is probably the warmest and most loving person I've ever. I had hoped to spend time with her that wasn't rushed and all about business. Her story is truly inspirational and I wanted to learn more about her.

When we did finally arrive, Slava was waiting. He also changed clothes. I signed papers. The representative at the orphanage gave Slava some instructions about behaving himself and then said a blessing over him. We then went down to the director's office. She had 2 books about Ukraine and the specific region they lived in for Slava to keep as a reminder of his heritage. We hopped in the car and raced for the train. We made it with a few minutes to spare.

Since arriving back in Kiev, the boys have had physicals, gotten vaccinations, and we've had three trips to the embassy. Now everything is done! Tomorrow we are heading HOME! And not a day to soon.

Thank you for all your prayers. God's sovereignty, faithfulness, and grace have seen us through these past several weeks! Please pray for our safe travel home. We are looking forward to seeing you all SOON!

Sorry there are no photos. Technical difficulties! The boys chose the top three songs for the playlist.

We Are A Family Of Six!

We are now a family of six! We are so joyful and so thankful! We are also so exhausted!

Thank you all for all your prayers! It was a very long day! We left the apartment just before 11 a.m. and we returned just before 11 p.m.

The court itself was quite a distance from the apartment and there were stops to make on the way. It took some planning to get all of us there. Most of the cars here are the size of a Civic or smaller. There were the four of us to be driven, our facilitator, each of the boys, and each of the boys' inspectors. All of those coming were doing so from five separate locations, the farthest being about and hour and forty-five minutes from the court house.

On the way to court we stopped for lunch and had a very pleasant surprise! As we were eating, Slava's driver called to say Slava was hungry, he had been taken out of school before lunch. So, the driver dropped him off with us to eat! He was dressed in a suit with a button up shirt. He looked absolutely adorable! He couldn't understand why we were all so taken by him in his suit. It turns out he wears this suit to school everyday! We had a good time at lunch and he rode to court with us.

Once we arrived we waited in the halls for a bit. Jen arrived with his inspector and the director of his orphanage. Jen had a huge smile on his face when he came through the door and he was so happy to see Slava. This was the first time they had seen or talked with each other since the hosting trip last summer.

The court proceeding was set to begin at 3:00 but didn't actually get going until 3:40. There were three parts to the proceeding: a pre-court hearing in which our petition was read aloud and all the parties present were identified; next was the court session itself in which the jury joined, everyone was re-identified, we were told our rights, our petitions were re-read, all the articles of law pertaining to our petitions were read, we were asked a few simple questions like what we were asking the court to do, why we wanted to adopt these children, how many times they had been in our home, why we were asking for the waiting period to be waived, etc. Then the boys, individually, were invited into the courtroom and asked to state his name, birth date, was asked if they knew us, and they asked who we were. Jen's reply to "Do you know those people?" was, "Yes." His reply to, "Who are they?" was a nervous but hopeful "They are my mom and dad, I think." It was very sweet. Then Slava hurried in and just about knocked the podium over because he tried to step up on the layered, pedestal base. Everyone laughed. He spoke loudly with a huge smile and stated that he knew us "Very well" and that were "Tony ... and Susan ..., my parents." The judge then asked if anyone was against our petition to adoption or had anything they wanted to say. Then the judge, her secretary, and the jury left to make their decision. The wait was at least an hour.

When the judge returned she re-read everything, then stated that our petition to adopt was approved and that our petition to waive the waiting period as it pertained to paperwork was also approved, then she read the decree stating such. Everyone then left the court room and the boys and the others left the courthouse. We waited down stairs as our facilitator and the judge finalized the decree. We didn't leave the courthouse just before 8:00 p.m. The drive back was very slow because we were on a rural road with no street lights, it was wet and foggy, and visibility was probably less than a quarter mile at best.

So, all that and you never got the answers you wanted, right? Like are the boys with you now? When are you coming home? How come there is not a picture of the six of you posted? Here are your answers ... We will be allowed to take custody of the boys on the 24th after we stop by the court house and pick up a document that says the 10 waiting period has been satisfied. We don't know yet when we are coming home. We are still doing documents, making decisions, and then we will make our travel arrangements. We did take a picture of the six of us after court, but Tony left with the facilitator at 6:30 this morning to begin collecting all the necessary documents to proceed (the official court decree, birth certificates, social security papers, passports, etc.) and he took the camera.

We will keep you posted!

Less Than 24 Hours Til Court!

Can you believe this?! We were sitting at a stop light and there it was! We knew this would be the picture for today's post.

For those of you who took a stab at guessing where the picture was taken from the last post ... McDonalds!

So, court is less than 18 hours away now. We are so thankful for all that has transpired so quickly. Well, so quickly if you only look as far back as the last week! We have no idea what to expect. Our facilitator will arrive back from Kiev tomorrow morning and she will walk us through how things proceed. One thing we do know already, God is in control. Another thing we are fairly certain of is that Tony and the girls will not make it back in time for school and work as originally scheduled. Apparently, we are in a region that requires both parents sign for passports, and passports cannot be requested until after birth certificates have been received, and ..., and ..., and ..., etc. But, God is in control! And, by the end of the day tomorrow, we will know a whole bunch more than we do today. Thanks for hanging in there with us this far. It is getting exciting!

Several of you have asked us how the boys are doing, do they know, what they're thinking, and so on. Yes, they know! They will be with us in court tomorrow. (That would be something you could pray over. I am sure there will be a lot said about them, their birth family, etc. that they will have never heard before and could be painful for a child to hear. We will probably know very little of what is said given the language it will be said in. Also, there will be questions asked of us as well, questions parents usually don't answer with their children present. So, pray the Holy Spirit be in control of all that transpires; what is asked, what is answered, who hears what is asked and answered, ....)

Back to your questions about the boys. The boys are doing very well. Slava seems very cool and collected about the whole thing. He is very smiley, clumsy, and loving as always. Jen is anxious and excited out of his mind! He is constantly counting days on the calendar. At our last visit he had a lot to ask, some to say, and he was a little giddy. He asked for more batteries for his camera and he asked for our address to give to his friends. He also said when we get to California he wants to play soccer. He is clearly making plans to leave and arrive!

We are also making plans to leave and arrive! It seems our favorite past time has become conversation about what we will eat when we get home. McDonalds and Italian will not be on the list (nothing personal Altamuras)! Mexican with plenty of chips and salsa will be first! Fried chicken and mash potatoes will follow! Erin insists Top Ramen will remain, she is alone one this one. Panda, Taco Bell, and Quiznos have all been mentioned. Someone mentioned a full Thanksgiving dinner although the conversation quickly became more about the pie that follows the traditional dinner (yes, that is a hint Mom!).

Love to all of you! Please keep sending us emails. We love hearing about what is going on with you guys!

The Scoop

Hey Everyone!

Sorry it has taken us so long to post something new. The past week has been full of uncertainty. We just didn't really know where to begin or what to say. But now .... things seems to be getting very exciting!

Here's a recap.

Last weekend we went to visit the boys and to the circus, as planned. We enjoyed both!

Monday, it was back to work. We began driving from government office to government office to collect documents. We had expected that by the end of the day we would have everything we needed to move on to the next step in the process. The day ended quite differently though. At about 5:30 p.m. we sat in an inspector's office waiting for our driver, facilitator and the inspector to return from the prosecutor's office. A short time later our driver and the inspector returned, but no facilitator. We drove the inspector home and then the driver gave us a note from our facilitator. It said she had left urgently to Kiev. We had no idea if this was a personal emergency or something related to our case. At about 11:15 that night, the phone rang and we found out that she had left because she had a serious health issue which she didn't yet feel ready to disclose. There were going to be some tests done and she would know more later, probably on Wednesday after noon.

Tuesday, we stayed at the apartment and did laundry, schoolwork, and read. We were of course also wondering how things were going to unfold the next day.

Wednesday, we did most of what we had done Tuesday, except Tony and Natalie decided to take a walk. Late that afternoon we received a couple phone calls. We were heartbroken to find out that our facilitator most likely has cancer. We were shocked. She is a wonderful, young, married gal without children. We think the cancer isn't life threatening but does certainly bring with it a possibility that she will not be able to conceive children. She will be beginning treatments Monday. Please keep her in your prayers.

Thursday, our new facilitator arrived. She also is a wonderful, young, married gal. She got right to business Thursday putting in an 16 hour day even on the heals of the 10 hour train ride. We stayed at the apartment as she raced all over the region gathering documents. We met up with her for a late dinner (at a new to us restaraunt, thank goodness!) and she gave us the scoop. We felt immediately that we were going to really like working with her.

Friday, she went one direction and we went another. By the end of the day we finally had all of the documents we needed to move on to the next step of the process. There are just a few loose ends that must be taken care of over the weekend and then sent on. Our facilitator returned to Kiev Friday night to spend the weekend with her husband and son, and to create the necessary petitions for us to move forward.

One person we haven't told you about is our driver! He is FANTASTIC! He is a very kind, gentle, and considerate person. Each day he takes us anywhere and everywhere. Often while we are waiting in some office he will go buy treats for the girls. Anything we mention we want or need he gets for us, maps for Tony or a protractor for Natalie, he is on it. Also, he stays with us when we go into stores or to the bank. He is always looking out for us! He has gone far beyond what you would expect from "a driver." While we spend today and tomorrow doing whatever we want, he will be driving to all the same offices picking up the outstanding documents and then getting them to Kiev. We are talking 100s of miles of driving each day. Our only complaint is that he will never eat with us! We invite him every meal, he always says no!

This morning, we have heard from our facilitator. Our papers have been submitted in Kiev! What needs to happen next is that the boys' official health reports and vaccination records must be added to our file first thing Monday morning. Then, we need approval from the office in Kiev no later than Wednesday morning so that we may proceed to court Wednesday afternoon. Otherwise, we will have to wait another week to go to court.

So, that's the scoop on us. Keep those emails coming giving us the scoop on you!

The posted picture was taken during Tony and Natalie's walk on Wednesday. We think you might be surprised to hear where they were when they took it. Before we tell you, any guesses?

The Top 10 Things We Like About Ukraine

Sorry guys ... no pictures today! We slept in this morning and then played board games and cards with Slava. It was actually a very stress free day. We enjoyed it!

Tonight we were brainstorming all the things we like about Ukraine.
Here is our top ten:

10) Dessert at Kofines (the most beautiful and tasty crepes you've ever seen)
9) Bakeries one after the next (fresh breads, pastries, cookies, and fancy desserts)
8) Snowy, Birch tree forests
7) Statues, monuments, & parks a plenty
6) Beautiful churches (huge steeples)
5) Wearing your favorite sweater 3+ days in a row is expected!
4) English menus
3) Nice people
2) Emails from home!
And The #1 thing we like about about Ukraine:
1) We are safe, warm, fed, and exactly where God wants us! (We hope you are too!)

So Far, So Good

This picture comes from our long drive to Wednesday's appointment. Along the way we did get to see a few things we had never seen before, like frozen lakes with people ice fishing on them. The black dots on the posted picture are people fishing on a frozen lake. We apologize that many of our pictures are so-so. Almost all of them are taken through a car window.

Turns out, our destination was the village where the boys were born and had entered the system. This was kind of an unexpected detail. We were very excited to see that many people in the village were riding bikes! That, combined with the fact that most of those employed in this village work for farms or dairies, seemed providential. Go Aggies! Perhaps we will be sending a son or two (or daughter or two) to UCD as a 4th generation Aggie!

The appointment itself went well. Thank you for your prayers! We received a favorable recommendation and the necessary documents. While these are influential, the final decision will not be made until we go to court. There are still some outstanding documents to be obtained before we can submit an application requesting a court date. The process is sure slower than we'd like; however, we don't have any reason to believe that the eventual outcome will be anything less than what we have our hearts set on. The next big, important appointment will be on Monday.

We are finished with paperwork appointments for the next few days. Tomorrow we will visit one of our guys and Saturday we will visit the other. Then, on Sunday we think we will be going to the circus! We'll keep you posted. We'd love to hear what all of you are up to as well!

We are so thankful for the all the great friends taking this journey with us. We are indeed blessed!

Some Funny Things & One VERY Important Thing

Okay ......

We will let you guess who took this picture.

Hint: Do women look at Google maps and then take pictures of what they see on the screen? (He wants to be able to remember where we were!)

Just some funny things about this place.

There are no shower curtains; big, nice tubs with hand held shower massagers, but no shower curtains.

Some parents push their children in strollers. Many more pull them on little sleds. Its pretty cute.

The women here love boots! Boots that go up to their knees and have a 4 inch heel. They wear them with absolutely everything, mini skirts, jeans, whatever. It is now a game for us to watch for a woman not wearing boots. Natalie wants some, of course, for her 6th grade graduation. (Not gonna happen.)

Bedazzle Mania! Everyone wears jeans here! And not just jeans but glittery, rhinestoned, multi-zippered, very tight jeans.

Many middle aged men carry purses/man bags. We have noticed the bigger the man, the smaller the purse; the smaller the man, the bigger the purse. Dan, Brian, Mark: not to worry we have room in our suitcases to bring each of you one! Would you like a pair of jeans as well? Sam, what about you?

Out the window of our apartment is a gym. In the evening, the girls watch the women do aerobics and mimic them.

There are stray dogs everywhere! The girls have a count for each day.

Only flat sheets, no fitted sheets.

There is a show on t.v. that we think must be Ukrainian Idol.

There is no maple syrup here.

They sell beer in vending machines on the street (less than $2 a piece).

To lock a door the key must be turned three times. You should leave the key in the door horizontally so that no one can push the key out from the other side.

Today was a better day than some of the others. We did some paperwork at the "Inspector's Office." Then, we got to visit and play games with Jen.

Tomorrow will be an important day. We will be going to an office about two hours away to speak with the person who will grant or deny the disconnection/separation between the two younger boys and the older brother. This is the deal maker or breaker.

Thanks for your prayers and emails! We love hearing from you!