Speaking English in the Supermarket - and You Can't Stop Me!!

Admittedly, yesterday was a very rough day. We waited all day (inside) for our facilitator to call us about going to visit Nastya at the orphanage but the phone never rang.  Finally we phoned him and learned that he was tied up with paperwork and we would not be able to visit the orphanage. It was a reality check that it is a privilege to visit with Nastya while we are here, but the goal is to adopt her so that we can take her home and visit with her ALL THE TIME! And unless you’ve been through an international adoption, it is impossible to imagine the paperwork that is involved. I cannot imagine that an adoption could be accomplished without the knowledge and guidance of someone with experience.

So, we were bummed out and a little psychotic from being cooped up all day in a place that is unfamiliar to us and, frankly, has some characteristics of which we are not fond (was that pc enough?). There is an odor in the kitchen that I find terribly offensive (I don’t know what it is and I am still in the process of trying to identify and eliminate it) and I, therefore, did not eat for…well…a few days. Feeling very compromised physically & emotionally, the sun started to set and I, quite honestly, began to feel a bit panicked. At the same time, Richard started looking for the peanut butter (aka: the only thing keeping us alive) and you know what happened next………..missing, nowhere to be found, gone, vamoose….shoot me now L.

God heard my cry but did not shoot me now like I’d asked. Instead, the phone rang. IT WAS AN AMERICAN VISITOR WITH THE GIFT OF PEANUT BUTTER!! I am not lying!! That is how good God is!! I didn’t even eat the peanut butter. But I totally enjoyed a visit with an amazing brother in Christ! Hurrah! Possibly, I am not going to die after all.

So I got a good night’s sleep on the worst bed on the planet and woke up with new resolve!

We visited with Nastya for a few hours. She is still in the infirmary with an upper respiratory infection, so she is kind of isolated from the other kids but we are able to visit with her. And one of her friends comes and goes into her temporary room in the infirmary quite freely. Her friend is such a sweet & sassy lil’ thing and it breaks my heart that no family is coming for her and her three younger siblings. I can’t bear to think of what may become of these four children…

About Nastya, despite being sick, she is on cloud nine! She is eager in her efforts to learn English and we are able to communicate much better than we did over the summer. She is a complete delight and we cannot wait to have her for our own!

After our orphanage visit, we went with our American friend to the local supermarket where there is also a restaurant/cafeteria and we had pizza. It was DELICIOUS and I think I ate more today than I’ve eaten in the two weeks I’ve been here!!  We walked all around the supermarket talking in English. It was AMAZING and FUN! And Richard got chocolate ice cream. So it looks likely that we will survive after all.

Our paperwork is progressing. We are awaiting our court date for our son but are hopeful and expectant that it will be toward the end of next week. And then are hopeful for Nastya’s court date early the following week. As of right now, both timeframes seem to be reasonable to hope for.

I previously mentioned we may travel outside of Ukraine for some respite during the mandatory waiting period but we’ve thought better of the idea. First of all, if I leave, it is concerning that I would not come back and secondly, we would have to endure the trip to Kyiv and back unnecessarily. I know they would put us on the train again & that might solidify us going coo-coo.

We continue to appreciate all of your thoughtful comments of support and your prayers. They are uplifting during this time that is far more challenging than I anticipated. Sometimes I feel bad that others seemed to have enjoyed themselves more than we are. What can I say? This kitchen stinks, the bathroom stinks, (I don't know...) *everything* stinks! I don't know why... And the cleanliness here is not to our (ok, *my*) standards… The list goes on. BUT I am moving past these issues. Ok, that’s not completely true. I am learning to accept them. Ok, that’s not completely true either. I’m turning into a srubbin’ bubble queen!!!!!!!!!!! *That’s* completely true. I hope the sweet lady who owns this apartment is not offended. I am trying my hardest to find a happy medium but it is easy to get carried away with the soap!!!!  Why am I here???????????