Day 39

After a long but not so bad train ride from Kramatorsk to Kiev, we immediately went to visit a doctor who gave his diagnosis of the girls. The physical wasn’t really necessary as the blood work was current and we know that “everything” works. But he did recommend that we continue on with the medicine that Kaitlyn had been taking. This information we only learned the other day. The orphanage doctor explained that she had stopped taking medicine for the benign seizures back in August but the neurologist report said that she had been taking another medicine since October. I don’t know why we weren’t told that and why they didn’t make sure we had it when we picked her up. At first we weren’t going to give it to her because we didn’t know what would come about with any side-effects. The doctor stated that she had been taking it long enough so we shouldn’t see any side effects. When we get back to the States, we will see if she really needs it. From what we can gather, they give her this medicine because of her temper tantrums but what 4 year old doesn’t have them? To be safe, we will keep her on it but to be perfectly honest, while on and off the pills – which she is very accustomed to taking so it seems she really was taking them – we don’t notice any difference in the behavior or any side-effects. But while waiting, a Ukrainian that spoke English commented on how well Kaitlyn speaks Russian. I thought that was cute.

We then proceeded to the Embassy with the doctor’s information, the birth certificates, passports, and court decree. It was just a matter of getting permission to bring them to the States and making sure that they didn’t have a criminal record. In fact, they even have an adoption department. We appeared around noon, was asked to come back at 3pm for an interview (which was not really an interview at all - just signing the forms and vowing that the information is accurate), and 30 minutes later we had their VISAs! By the way, all they did was add a section to their Ukrainian passports. Yulia couldn’t believe how fast it went. It generally takes two days for even a rushed request and we had it within 4 hours! That’s how God works. Now if the airline could bump our flight a day early!
We also learned some news about the couple we met from Nebraska. They were the ones who were adopting a young child with Down’s Syndrome. We had also heard that there was a couple who traveled to Crimea and was almost done with the 10 day waiting period when the prosecutor applied for an appeal! This was the same couple! Apparently some of the oblasts (States) in Ukraine are becoming increasingly more difficult to adopt from. But I couldn’t imagine going that far and then having to face an appeal. The process works like this: during the 10 waiting period, someone could contest the adoption; say a biological parent or family member, or the prosecutor. They only have to notify the court of the desire to appeal and they have another 20 days to actually submit the request. This means that the potential parents are either in country up to another 20 days or have to return. This is financially stressful for most parents seeking to adopt. In Russia, it’s worse. Parents are not allowed to say the entire time and must travel 3 times during the whole process. On top of that, hotels and other businesses are capitalizing on the parents by charging more.

We are back in the same apartment as before but the cable modem has disappeared. We could ask for it but by the time we would get it, we would be on the plane to America. Sarah’s face lights up when she hears that word. She got real excited when she got her VISA but they both have a hard time accepting the fact that we have to wait until Saturday. I hear ya, kiddo, I hear ya. But now the girls are 100% legally ours and nothing can stop us from bringing them home. Once we get there, we need to notify the Ukrainian Embassy (by mail) and re-adopt them in Raleigh. This way, their birth certificates are localized, though the birth place is the same, and if we ever need replacements we don’t have to fly to Ukraine and visit the vital records department.

Unfortunately, I had to discipline Sarah today. She has quite a loose tongue and even when it is in Russian, you can figure out what is being said. But it worked out… it was hard but really it was no different than what I have done with the boys. In the end, she knows that we love her. It’s important to be consistent and fair with everyone. Sarah has a lot of influence on Kaitlyn. They have a special bond since they both speak Russian. It helps them to cope with the changes and gives them a sense of security. We just need to make sure that Kaitlyn knows that we are her parents. Kaitlyn has a hard time using a toilet, though she will sit on it she won’t always go “pee’sit” and “ka’keet” (I don’t have to translate, do I?) but she will on a bowl. Yes, a bowl. Many children in orphanages use them and she is quite proficient at it. At least Sarah doesn’t need it and maybe once we get home, the potty seat (which we can’t find here) will help her transition. Even despite the discipline, parenting the girls is easier than it used to be. Every day, it gets easier but then we also face new issues and you just can’t prepare for those.
We also learned that the girls really do rely on mid-day naps. From 12-3pm, they take their nap. Today, we had to wake them for the Embassy “interview” and it was hard; kinda like having to wake up Noah. Yulia commented on how much Sarah and Nick look alike. And since Nick looks like Jenn, it gives Sarah bit of common familiarity on looks. Kaitlyn doesn’t look much like her sister but I think that if folks saw us altogether, we’d look like we had 4 biological children, just that the looks mixed well.

Oh, and by the way, I think we have another swimmer in our family. Sarah loves the water and in the huge tub that we have here, she was trying to literally swim. With her upper body strength, I bet she could water-ski. If my in-laws are reading this, they are getting excited right about now. But if we could just convince the girls to let Jennifer comb their hair…