We're here...

Well, we made it. The flights were long and tiresome but were uneventful and successful...meaning they got us here in one piece...and our luggage made it too. Lucas was GREAT on the plane. He was able to sleep for about 4 hours. However, his pillow (that would be me) was not quite so fortunate. When we arrived at the airport in Kyiv, we had some difficulty at customs...OK...I had difficulty at customs. Apparently, I am quite capable of completing a complicated adoption dossier 4 times, but I seem to have some difficulty with filling out a simple customs form according to the instructions. But, we made it through. We were met by our lovely translator and our driver. Our translator's name is Luba and she is very nice and is very experienced in adoptions so we feel we are in great hands.

We are staying in an apartment overlooking a street vendor haven. It is a great location (though quite expensive) and we are very comfortable. We spent the evening last night looking for a grocery store and ended up going in the opposite direction of where we needed to go (this seems to be a theme for us as you will soon read). But, we found our way and got water and juice and went to bed early (which was really late for us from our time zone). I tried to get our laptop hooked up to the internet but wasn't successful so that is why you have had to wait so long for an update...we couldn't find an internet cafe until now.

We woke up late and left the apartment at about noon to explore our area. We were particularly looking for Independance Square. Well, as luck would have it...we went in the opposite direction and spent 4 hours (YES...4 hours with a 4 year old) walking all around Kyiv. We did see a McDonalds...which I will tell you felt like the heavens had opened up and the angels were singing...we were starving. Nothing like the big M to make you feel at home...well...except...it was CLOSED!!! But we wouldn't let that get us down. We found our way to a tram that would take us back up the long hill that we had come down in our travels. Lucas charmed his way into the company of 3 sweet young ladies. 2 were from Arizona...in Kyiv to teach English for the summer, and the other was Ukrainian whom they had met through their youth group. Anyway, Lucas sure can pick up the ladies. And speaking of ladies...apparently I packed way too many clothes. It seems clothing is optional for the female population here, or at least the amount of material is kept to a minimum at all times. I feel quite frumpy in my kacki's and t-shirts. My attire screams "tourist" at every turn. Oh well, Lucas seems to enjoy the sights...and I dare say my husband is too. Can't say I blame them though. I've never seen more beautiful women in my life. Breathtaking really.

Well, after partaking of a sparse ham, bread and cabbage perogi's for dinner (I wanted potato and cheese but somehow that got lost in the translation...imagine that!), we decided to try to find an internet cafe. On our journey we came accross St Michael's Basilica and were moved by the sheer glory of it. We each lit a candle and enjoyed the silence. We then decided to keep walking and low and behold...Independence Square!! For the love of Pete...we found it!!! It is a mecca for tourists and natives alike. There are beautiful fountains and one you can walk in. Lucas loved that one. So here I am, we finally found an internet cafe so I could update you all. I told Chris that you would all be mad at me if I didn't update soon.

Our appointment at the SDA is tomorrow (Wednesday) at 3pm. Please pray that all goes well. We have waited for this appointment for 2.5 years and now that it is here, we are feeling the pressure. We will update you as soon as we can. We are meeting Sveta (our translator from our last trip) tomorrow night after our appointment. We can't wait for her to see Lucas. She is so special to us and we can't wait to see her.

Anyway, the boys are telling me they want to go to McDonalds (which incidentally, there is one here in Independence Square..yeah!) so I'd better go.

Miss you all and love to everyone. Keep those prayers coming (and you might want to add a little side prayer for us and better senses of direction...A. Monie...that means 2 candles)

Love,
Lisa, Chris & Lucas

Too cute...

I was heading to bed and Lucas (apparently too excited to fall asleep in bed) fell asleep on the stairs waiting for us to come up. I couldn't resist posting this.

We are "go for launch"

We are leaving tomorrow (Sunday) at 3:30 pm. We will arrive in Kyiv at approximately 1pm Monday (local time). We are ready...the bags are packed, the house is clean, the dogs are being spoiled as we speak (thanks Nancy!), and all that is left to do is get a good night sleep. Lucas's last words to me before going to bed tonight were "I'm so happy to be going to Mycraine". I can't imagine not bringing him with us. I would be a wreck right now if I had to leave him here and not see him for up to 6 weeks.

We will try to get our laptop connected to the internet in our apartment, but if we are unsuccessful we will update from an internet cafe. If you don't hear from us, it's because we can't find a connection...not because we don't want to talk to you all...haha.

Please keep us in your prayers. We are very excited...and scared...and nervous...and delighted all at the same time. We can't wait to get there.

Talk to you all soon.

Lisa, Chris & Lucas

Not long now...

Only 8 days to go. All that is left to do is pack! Lucas's suitcase is done and we plan to have ours packed by the end of the weekend. This is a different concept for me because I'm usually a last minute packer, but making sure we have everything we need for 6 weeks in Ukraine is an exercise in organization, patience, and compromise. Do I really need that travel iron?...you betcha! There are certain sacrifices that need to be made to ensure I don't have too many wrinkles...it's all a matter of priorities. Since we will likely have to handwash our clothes (we can't count on having a washing machine in our apartments), wrinkle reduction is a major issue for me...haha. I figure my quirks all balance out. I'm not a germaphobe, I don't mind using the squat toilets that are popular in Ukraine, the bathrooms on the train don't gross me out too badly, and I don't mind sleeping on sheets with a low thread count...but by golly I'm not about to wear a t-shirt with wrinkles in it...that's just uncivilized! Ok, perhaps a travel iron IS a bit on the "you've got to be kidding me" side, but I've come to terms with the fact that I have some issues and it's just easier to accept them than to...well...actually deal with them. Chris has learned to accept them too...when I showed him the newly aquired, dual voltage, compact travel iron, he actually said "Oh, what a great idea". That is why our marriage works...he knows just the right thing to say!

Lucas's surgery went very well. He was so brave and he could hear perfectly after he woke up. We were also brave...not a tear was shed by mama and daddy. I'm so glad it is over and my baby can actually hear me whispering. Well, it's actually been a difficult adjustment for us, since we had gotten into the habit of having conversations (usually about him) while he was in the room. Now he says "what are you saying about me??" or "stop talking about me". I guess selective hearing only works on his terms...not ours. Nevertheless, we're thrilled to have his hearing back to normal.

I will post again next weekend before we leave.

Lisa

Happy 4th of July

We had a wonderful (and wet) time at the Kingwood 4th of July parade this morning. Lucas was so excited to see the police directing traffic and the fire trucks leading off the parade. He even asked one of the firefighters if he would come to his birthday party...it was funny. The parade is comprised of local businesses, teams, groups (scouts, Masons, churches etc...) and they all throw candy, toys or beads from their "floats". It was rainy most of the time but that was better than the usual Texas July day of 1000 or so degrees.

We are leaving for Ukraine in 18 days and we are taking advantage of the time to clean out closets and do some much needed maintenance to the house. Well, actually I'm making the "honey do" lists and Chris is marking them off one by one as he completes them...haha. He is off work until after we return so he is using his time (or rather I am using his time) wisely.

Lucas is having minor surgery on Friday to put tubes in his ears and to have is adenoids removed. He has had fluid in his ears for quite a while and it isn't clearing on its own. He has 35-45% hearing loss because of it...which explains why we have to repeat everything 3 times and his most used word is "huh?". The tubes should help make the flight a little more pleasant for him as well. I'm not looking forward to sending my baby into surgery...no matter how minor the procedure...but I will handle it like any self respecting nurse would...I'll probably bawl my eyes out! Oh well, at least he'll be able to hear clearly again.

Lisa

PS: Shelley, we look forward to meeting you on the 25th at the SDA :)

One month to go...

Well, our preparations are going well. Only 31 days left until we leave for Ukraine. Yes, I am most definitely counting! I actually don't have a choice because Lucas asks me everyday "How long now till we go to Mycraine?" To which I answer with the days remaining, in which he responds "Is that a long time?" (his sense of timing is non-existent, which can be both a good thing and a bad thing...depending on the situation). I respond with "Yes, but not as long as yesterday". He doesn't seem to like this response because he usually heaves a big sigh and says "Ahhh (insert whine here), it's taking a long tiiiiimmmmme!" Yep, 4-6 weeks in Ukraine with a 4 year old who has no concept of time...what fun!! We're actually looking forward to spending family time together (all 3 of us) since we rarely have days off together. We plan to do more site seeing in Kiev (Kyiv) than our last trip. We have requested an apartment in downtown Kyiv so we will be within walking distance to some of the churches and monuments that we didn't have a chance to see last time (not that we would have wanted to walk around much in the freezing temperatures in January/February 2004).

The process has changed a little from last time so I'll attempt to list the steps as it is understood these days:

• We will arrive in Kyiv (the official translation for Kiev was officially changed to Kyiv) on July 23. We will be met by our facilitator Vlad. He will get us settled into our apartment where we will stay for approximately 4-5 days.
• Our appointment at the SDA (State Department of Adoption and Protection of Children's Rights of Ministry of Ukraine of Family, Youth and Sports...I dare you to try to say that in Ukrainian...haha) is on July 25th.
• During our appointment, we will be shown files of children available for international adoption. They will show us any where from 4-10 files...depending on whatever criteria they use to determing who gets to see what and how many. There seems to be no rhyme or reason for this but, as with everything involving a Ukrainian adoption, we just go with the flow.
• We will choose a child to visit from these files. The files include medical history, family information if known, and any other pertinent information that is known to the SDA.
• After making a decision, we will wait ("wait" being the ONLY thing we can be sure of in Ukraine) for the SDA Director to sign a permission letter for us to travel to the region to visit the child. This typically takes anywhere from 1-5 days.
• We will then travel to the region via train, plane or automobile...depending on where the region is located. Ukraine is roughly the size of Texas so we could end up traveling to a region 12 hours away.
• When we arrive in the region we will have to get permission to visit the child from the person...who gives permission in these cases....haha...I can't remember what their title is.
• After we secure the permission, we will visit the orphanage. We will meet with the Director of the orphanage and/or the orphanage physician. They will give us a more detailed description of health and history.
• We will then (FINALLY) meet the child.
• We will make the decision to adopt or not to adopt. If we choose not to adopt this child, we would then travel back to Kyiv and await another appointment (5-14 days) and start all over again. This, of course is not a path we wish to travel but it is a possibility.
• If we decide to adopt then a whirlwind of paperwork ensues and a court date is scheduled usually within 2 weeks.
• During the wait for court, we will visit our soon to be child daily and begin the attachment process.
• When we finally go to court, the child will be declared legally our child....BUT...there is a mandatory 10 day wait. This period cannot be waived so we will continue with whatever our daily routine is.
• After the 10 day wait, we will be issued the court decree. We can then obtain a passport and an amended birth certificate listing us as parents. This can sometimes take 2-3 days...sooner if we're lucky.
• Once we have all the documents in hand, we can travel back to Kyiv.
• In Kyiv, we have to get our child a physical at a clinic for the US visa.
• We will then have an appointment at the US Embassy to obtain a visa for our new child to enter the US.
• We are then free to travel home...yeah!!!
• When we arrive in the US, our child's passport will receive a stamp signifying US citizen status.
• We will then meet all of our family and friends who are waiting at the airport to welcome our new child home (hint....this is the best part of the trip so anyone that can make plans to be there, we would love it!!)
• Then we take our child home and start our new life together...and we all live happily ever after...well, after we recover from jetlag that is.

That is how it will basically happen. There's alot of details and unknowns that will occur but we'll keep y'all informed as it happens.

I can't wait!!!

Lisa

Photos

I thought I would practice posting pictures so I am proficient when we are in Ukraine. Here are a few recent photos of Lucas.