Back to the SDA

Today we did a little sightseeing, found a little market and bought a few groceries. Every simple thing you do here is an adventure and sometimes makes you feel really dumb. We are also getting lots of exercise, walking up and down hills. We are staying at the top of a hill close to the SDA. The mall etc, is at the bottom of the hill in independence square.
We went to get our referral at 4:30, that was a strange sort of process. The news now is that Vlad is after all in Ladyzhin and Artem is at another place, not Boyarka. We will be traveling tomorrow but the plan is not clear yet until Alex talks to the people he needs to talk to. I hope to see at least one of the boys tomorrow, I will try to send pictures.

SDA Appt.

Today we had our appointment at the SDA. As with most Ukrainian adptions we ran into some complications. First our facilitator was arguing with someone who then agreed for us to keep our appointment. They were having trouble locating the files, but finally were able to. There is good news and bad news. The good news is neither boy appears to be at Ladyzhin, which is a very bad institution. It seems that Artem may still be in the baby house in Boyarka and Vlad was transferred to another institution about 60 miles from Kiev. Being in different orphanages complicates things. It was hard to know exactly what the situation was because Alex mostly kept saying "don't worry you guys" only with a real heavy Ukrainian accent. We get our official referral tomorrow and may get to see them Friday. We should find out a lot more tomorrow.

Kiev is ...confusing

It is a little confusing to not be able to speak to the natives, or read the signs (although quite a few speak enough english to help). We are bravely venturing forth in our big adventure. In fact we ate at a Ukranian McDonalds today, how is that for brave!! OK so maybe I'm working up to bravery. Daniel that statue was one of the first things we saw coming into Kiev. It is huge! Right now we are at the post office that stays open 24/7 and internet costs about 6 Grivnias a 1/2 hour. I forgot to bring all my email addresses with me so I will call Mary tonight with our phone number. All incoming calls are free.
Our flight to Kiev was good except I was randomly picked out to be searched, then when she felt my adoption cash I was invited behind the curtain to show her just what I was packing. It worked out OK and the official even winked at me when she let me go. Brad/Dad did fine for the flight.
Our SDA appointment is tomorrow at 12:00. Alex our facilitator is picking up at 11:30. Oh yea, they are crazy drivers here. The weather is very nice and no snow!!
Joy, sorry we missed you, but happy to hear you headed home even if it was without a stroller. We will just have to meet another time.
I'll let you know how things go toomorrow.

Hello from Amsterdam!!

I love flying, although it does get a little cramped. I had a window seat and loved the view. They fed us a lot and since I was very hungry, it was very good. I watched Martian Child, which I thought was and appropriate movie for the occasion . We have a 6 hour lay-over here and since it is the middle of the night for us we would like to take a nap, but I would hate to not wake up and miss our flight. I've been checking out the shops and drinking very expensive coffee. I bought some flower bulbs to plant at our new house when we get home. I forgot to pack my adapter in my carry-on so I am about out of power. More later.

Soon on our way!

We will soon depart for Ukraine! We leave a week from Sunday. This weekend my daughter, Anne, is visiting and helping me pack my bags for the trip. We space bagged donations I have been collecting for months. It fills a checked bag and weighs almost 50 pounds. Better check with the airline to see if this is going to fly.

Seventeen Days Until Take Off

Our plane to Ukraine leaves Minneapolis at 3:30p on Feb., 24th. It has been a long time coming, now that it is within sight it seems to be approaching rather quickly.