Home!!!!!!

We made it home into Newport News Airport at 9:38 pm, Friday. Ohhhhhhh, what a wonderful site to see. Tim and Charlene Quiram along with our youngest Abby and their youngest Ethan standing there with balloon and flowers. God is Good!

On 08 Nov, we were able to get Erin's passport completed in Zaporizhzhya and caught the 7:30 pm train to Kiev. We arrived in Kiev at 6:00 am a little tired but excited to be almost finished. We were greeted by the Sense driver who took us, along with Victor, to a little apartment in downtown Kiev. We said our goodbyes to Victor and he headed home. Yulia, our project manager, stopped by at 9:00 am and we hit the road for Erin's med exam. It went smoothly at a local medical center. Erin had to get a Hep B shot which cost $75 usd. Bev recommends that families give their child some motrin or pain reliever prior to the med appointment in case they have to receive shots. Erin's arm hurt for a while. We got the med forms done then stopped by the Sense Offices for a few minutes. Then we were off to the Embassy. Yulia marched us right up to front of a very long line at the security gate since we had US passports. We went right in (Point: they do not allow cell phones inside so just leave it with your driver or project manager).

At the Embassy, we went to the "American Citizens Service Center" window and told them who we where. Yulia had already made our appointment so they were ready for us. We had already filled out most of the forms that Yuri gave us when we first got to Ukraine but some things we didn't know how to answer. The Embassy people where very nice and helped us as needed. We finished the paperwork and where out in about 45 minutes. We then had to wait for them to tell us our visa was ready from Erin. The reason you do not get it immediately is that Erin's picture had to be run through the national data base for approval. This could take only 4 hours but we were told it could take a day. So we where off to check on airline tickets during the wait.

Well, to make a long story longer, we waited with a lot of prayer and sure enough Yulia called to say the driver was on his way to pick us up to get Erin's visa. Gary arrived at the Embassy at 5:10 pm. They closed at 5:00 pm....But, he checked with security and the lady managing our package was still there and she let him in to pick it up. Good thing too as they where closed on Friday due to the US holiday. The embassy gave him the passport and a big envelope that must remain sealed and given to US customs upon arrival to America. Gary then headed to the travel agency and was able to get tickets via Ukraine Airlines through London Gatewick and Atlanta to home. We got up at 5:15 am in Kiev on Friday and hit the road for the airport.

At the airport, we checked in with passport control. They asked to see the court decree then stamped our passports and we were off. The flight was relatively pleasant but long (of course). We got into Atlanta to check into US customs at around 5:30 pm est. We must say that is was a very nice experience. Gary was very proud of is fellow Homeland Security employees as the Customs officers where very nice. The first gentleman at passport control was great and told Erin, "Welcome to the United States of America Erin. You are now a US citizen". She understood completely and just gave a great big smile. We were then directed to the main USCIS desk. We put Erin's envelope on one of 3 desks then waited about 15 minutes to be called forward. The officer was very nice. He told us that we needed to get Erin's social security number as soon as possible and that the formal USCIS approval package would get to us within 45 days. He then stamped a few things on Erin's passport/visa and congratulated Erin on becoming a US citizen and we where off to our connection. We would recommend that you have a minimum of a 2 hour layover at the airport where you check into customs. It took us about 75 minutes to get our luggage, through customs, recheck baggage and to our connecting flight. All while absolutely worn out.

Anyway, we all slept like rocks last night and are planning a little catch up rest today before starting the next phase of our lives with our new family.

We will continue to update on Erin's progress periodically.

To All: From the very bottom of our hearts we thank you all for your kind notes of encouragement, thoughts, and most of all your prayers. God's hand was so very evident during this entire process which start with the visit of 2 little girls last December. All of your help has been crucial to making this all happen.

Thank You!!!!

Miracle of Lights

Today we finished the process in the oblast of finalizing the birth certificate and getting Erin's passport. We are now at an internet cafe awaiting to take the overnight train to Kiev at 7:30pm. We weren't looking forward to the train ride but after thinking that we might have to take a 12hr. bus ride back, the train sounds wonderful! Yesterday was an awesome day of experiencing God's hand in our journey.
We left around 7:50am for the 21/2 hr. drive to the oblast in Zaporizhzhya yesterday and arrived to find out the director of the Vital Statistics wasn't in. Victor asked if we could go ahead and fill out the paper work and wait for her return. She was supposed to come by 1:00 but didn't arrive until almost 2:00. If we didn't have our signed permission to obtain a new birth certificate, then we would upset our whole schedule due to the American Embassey being closed on Friday. We finally were handed the paper work and ran to the taxi to ask if Vova could get us back to Berdanysk in time to get to their Vital Statistics before closing at 5:00pm. Vova didn't let us down and we arrived just after 4:00 but as we walked in we realized something was wrong. There were no lights on and the person in charge of helping us had a candle and told Victor that the lights weren't to come back on for 3 Hours! (this could have delayed us 3-5 days) Immediately, the lights turned on. As the lady looked, Beverly put her hands together as in prayer, looked up and said, thank you Lord! Victor then told us to keep praying because she said that if they didn't stay on she would not finish the birth certificate. We sat in the lobby and prayed for the Lord to KEEP THE LIGHTS ON. HE DID! We were able to get the new birth certificate and called the director to ask her to wait for us to come to the orphange to get our daughter. She said she would stay as long as we needed her to. It was an emotional goodbye for all of us. Erin, Vica, classmates, teachers and the director. The director gave us her awards and her transcripts. She also gave her a gift of a Ukrainian cookbook so that Erin could cook Ukrainain foods for us.
We haven't been successful in getting a flight out over the weekend but will definitely be heading home no latter than Monday afternoon.
Thank you again for your continued prayers.

Early Birthday Celebration for Victoria

(L to R: Dave, Kathie, Vika, Erin, Gary, Beverly, Nicky, Elliott, & Oles the facilitator)



We spent Friday climbing stairs at the hotel as the power was out from 8-4. Evidently this was a city shut down for some reason. We even spied a generator running outside a local shop so they were prepared. Being on the 11th floor of the hotel has given us a wonderful view of the Sea of Azov and of a lighthouse on a hill beside which sits the orphanage. On Friday, by the 2nd trip up the stairs, we might have considered trading the view. It did give us some exercise after all the great food we are eating and thankful for the small dark elevator when it’s working.

Our taxi driver, Vova has been wonderful and at his suggestion we are now sending the 4 children in the taxi each way instead of paying round trip. Elliot who turns 16 tomorrow is very responsible and they all seem to have the skills to get around town on their own. Actually, we have told Erin what we need and she either translates when Vova picks us up or she calls him for us. She has also helped us shop and order our meals.

We were invited to lunch with the director of the orphanage on Saturday and enjoyed a wonderful meal. Afterward she gave us a tour of the classrooms and shared with us areas she would like to get help improving. We saw the rooms were very clean and orderly yet sparse in their content. There is an Internet room that one prior family who adopted has kept running although due to some boys getting in without permission and using all the minutes up for the month, the Internet is only used under supervision. Other concerns were broken windows, a leaky roof and mold in the auditorium, lack of chalkboards that were usable and of course the toilets. (Holes in the ground with footmarks on which to stand) We also discussed things that could be done to help with the English class such as sending games to help teach facts about the US and English as well as other teaching aides. We promised to get the word to others and to see what we could each do to help. The donation that we gave with the help of our friends will be used to improve the medical area. They will take a storage area and open it up into the medical area and use it to give the children treatments that build up their immunities.

Today we celebrated Victoria’s 13th birthday early (December 16th). We surprised her with a cake and gifts at the café during our afternoon meal. Later the children were treated to a movie with Oles. We think it was an American movie, which most are. It will be funny for them to hear the real actor’s voices when they come to the states instead of the dubbed Russian ones.

Victor returns tomorrow after an all night bus ride from Kiev. We will be meeting at 7:30 am and then off and running to get the birth certificate and passport completed and on our way to Kiev if everything goes well by Wednesday. We have an appointment with the American Embassy on Thursday so the schedule might make it hard for us to blog. Gary also noticed today that all his emails where gone off the Cox server. Might be that someone at home opened up his Outlook and downloaded it by mistake or something is going on with the Cox system. Who knows? So once again, if you sent an email recently (03-05 Nov) and didn’t get a response from him please send it again. Thanks.

We covet your continued prayers through the days that follow and we once again give thanks for the Lords protection and care through this remarkable experience. (Erin has faith. Her suitcase has been packed for the last two days!)

Studying English

On Tuesday we received permission to allow the girls to have a night away and to stay with us at the hotel. (We would recommend bringing PJ’s as they are difficult to find for the children. - You can purchase shoes, coats, jeans, warm-up suits, and sweaters here.)
They made up the sofa sleeper in our suite (Erin showed us how it worked) and we watched a purchased movie in Russian with English subtitles. We munched on sunflower-seeds (very available here as you are surrounded by fields on your drive in.) The girl’s favorite things here at the hotel are eating in the café (they love the ice-cream) and taking bubble baths in our over-sized bathtub.

After breakfast on Wednesday, we ventured to a local bookstore to find English books for the girls. Erin was able to work with the store clerk to determine which books would be helpful for her. She is able to read from her school English 8 book to us but we aren’t sure how much comprehension follows the reading. She does very well at ordering and communicating for her parents whenever we need her help. She is one smart cookie! She and Victoria found several books to help them and we also purchased a couple of posters for her. One of the posters has the National Anthem of Ukraine and the other is a detailed map of the country with facts included. We spent much of the afternoon working on the new workbooks. The one problem they have to work on is the addition of articles- they aren’t used in speaking Russian so when and where to add them is confusing. We were impressed on how long and how hard they chose to work on the new books. We hope this determination will help Erin as she adjust to her new life.

For those who will follow us here is a list of items to include in your packing that have been helpful to us:
• Bring a candle. The air quality is very difficult to get used to here with smoking common and strange odors coming from the vent in the bathroom.
• Toilet paper is available of varying degrees of quality but bringing some Charmin to go has been helpful. The typical paper is the quality of crate paper. (There is a 24-hour grocery on the first floor of the mall here) Women’s supplies and other necessities are available there. We commonly pick up a couple 5-7 liter bottles of water which last the two of us about 5 days- (even the locals don’t drink the water here). Snacks- fruit and sweets are very available. Juice is also plentiful with many great choices. Cheese and sausage and yogurt make great snacks as well.
• Books to read, a DVD-or computer that plays them, easy to teach games for the children. (UNO, cards, BINGO…)
• Jeans are good to wear but all dark colors. Men especially wear dark colors. Wearing layers if it’s cold- sweaters, (men and women) with T-shirts under them.
• Tennis shoes are ok- but comfortable black slip-ons for men and boots for women are very common. Hats are available and commonly worn. (not ball caps)
• Bring hand sanitizer; it isn’t available here.

Hope these suggestions help.

Thank you again for your encouragement and prayers as we continue towards the final steps of our journey.

Touring and Shopping While We Wait.

Erin at the Berdyansk “Wishing Chair” (Oles the Facilitator/Translator in the background)

So let’s see, what’s going on? Well since the court hearing, Victor our facilitator has gone home for some well deserved time with his family. He started working with us 3 weeks ago after coming directly from his facilitation work with the Williams who just adopted a boy named Vasa. Victor only had 20 minutes with his family before hitting the train with us to Berdyansk. The good thing is that the Dave & Kathie’s facilitator just returned from some time off for a wedding and has been helping both families as needed. That said we are feeling a little more comfortable on our own too. Gary has managed to have the right Russian words when needed and Beverly seems to be able to figure out Russian signs and labels. Give us another 10 years here and we would fit right in ;-)
We have been having a great time with Erin, Vika, and Olga (the Henry’s [we pray] soon to be daughter) and Kathie & Dave and their 2 boys. We’ve ventured out into the crowded market place to pick out some new cloths for Olga from her State-side Mama and Papa, wandered around the waterfront, and took a taxi trip to the beach point about 20 minute down the coast. We were walking to the boardwalk on Saturday and passed by the Vital Statistics building where it was wedding day. One after another wedding was taking place and as the wedding party would come out of the building, a man played on an accordion out front. Then some of the wedding parties would walk the rest of the way to the beach for photos. There were cars lined up with double gold rings on top and decorated with flowers. Of course the children weren’t as impressed as their American mama’s and papa’s. There were at least 5-6 going on at the same time and the women were all dressed to the 9’s.

We know that some of the prospective parents heading to Berdyansk soon (we hope) might want to know the routine for picking up the kids each day so here it goes.
The biggest piece is that you must visit Galina the Director at the orphanage to ask permission. Once given, your facilitator must write a statement of protection in Russian basically saying you are responsible for their safety and safe return at 6:00 pm every night. She has been good about one letter working for the entire weekend since she doesn’t work on Sunday’s. Once you sign the letters then you are good to go. We show up at around 10:15 and the kids are usually waiting for us. Get in the taxi then go do whatever we want until 6:00 pm. For us that usually means some time in our room relaxing and having a few snacks, then touring or shopping, then a big late lunch usually in the hotel restaurant at around 2:30. They can eat again at the orphanage at 7:00 pm after they return but they are usually too full after the lunch. Once they are back at the orphanage they we usually just hit the Internet café or just crash for the rest of the day. This week is a little different as the kids have school off for the entire week. We have to return the orphanage this morning to ask permission to have them for the week and do the same letter again but it will be nice to have them almost up until the day we leave. Great timing by the school system we think.
That’s about it for now. Victor returns on Monday morning to start the going home process with the court decree. We are hoping to be on a flight on 10 or 11 November home but everything is booked right now. Victor has been working with the airlines and has us on a stand-by status but we do have confirmed reservations on Monday, 13 Nov. Please pray that something opens up for the weekend. We miss our family back home and have been away from them long enough. But we are still trusting God’s timing.

Also, a big Thank You to all who have posted to this site. We always look forward to reading your words of encouragement each day. We are so blessed by such a great family and wonderful friends.

Celebrating the Court Decree allowing Irina Labanova to be adopted and her name changed to Erin Taylor Bruce!

We were successful in receiving the documents from Kiev by (bus) early this morning and at 12:30 we picked up Elana, the orphanage lawyer and Erin to take them to court.
Erin sat on mama’s lap and we held hands during the court hearing. It was a less formal environment then American courts but Victor said that just depends on the city. The judge was an older woman and smiled at us before she entered the room. The guardianship city representative and the lawyer for the orphanage were the only people who spoke other than the young prosecutor who only briefly gave her agreement to the adoption. We were questioned individually by the judge about ourselves and asked whom do you want to adopt? Are you materially able to care for her-send her to school etc? Mama was asked if she wanted to add anything and she just stated that they loved her very much and would promise to keep her connected to her Ukrainian roots.
Afterwards Erin was asked to stand and explain how she felt. She told them about staying with us in the US and how she already had a good relationship with her new brother and sisters. She said,” they have already done more for me than my own family has ever done”.

After hearing from all the interested parties the judge asked us to step out of her office and in about 10 minutes we were asked to return for the rendering of her decision. We all stood as she read through the formalities and when we finally heard her agreement after a lot of legal wording, we all heard the decision with great emotion. Now we start the 10 day wait (appeal period).

After court we took Erin to get her passport photo made and then we went to do our petition for a new passport with the notary. (We have been very happy with the notary we have used as she is very friendly and seems to be genuinely happy for us. She is also convenient to the hotel.) This was done in preparation for Victors return from his trip home today until the 6th so that we will be prepared for our trips to the oblast on the 6-7th to finalize the birth certificate and the passport. Our last step in the process before heading back to Kiev for the medical exam and exit visa.

HINT of the day: Don’t send out your laundry with the hotel here. A bag of clothes cost us $64. Victor found a laundry a couple of blocks from here where you only have to pay 5grh a kilo. Our laundry was gone for 3 days and came back damp and Kathie and Dave’s were ready at the laundry the next day having been dried in a dryer.

Thank you for all your continue prayer support. We can actually feel God’s presence with us as we have taken these almost unbelievable steps in the process of adoption. We are so grateful for all that have been in this with us both in prayer and in helping us with our children at home. You have only to look at the smile on Erin’s face to know God already has great plans for the newest member of our family.

Fun At the Orphanage

We have traveled to the orphanage in the afternoons for the last couple of days. The children are in classes until lunch around 2:00 pm and the director asked that we keep them in school. We usually stay until around 5:15 until it starts getting dark. We come back to the hotel and order our dinner early as it seems to help the café to have it all prepared at once. We are getting to know the staff here and the cook comes out for the occasional check to see if we like her dishes. She said we had to try her banana and honey cake and she was right, it was the best we’ve ever had.
On Monday we were able to take Erin up to Victoria’s room to hang out with her and some of her friends. We were able to talk to Olga (friends of ours are adopting her) and we are going to ask permission to take her shopping over the weekend. We played UNO and then danced to a little portable radio that Victoria had. They especially loved Mama and Papa dancing together. (We wish we could remember those steps from our dance lessons) Gary has also entertained the children with his various talents. He juggled and made coins disappear and talked in Donald Duck in Russian to them. He has become quite popular with the children.

Yesterday we were happy that Erin was released from the infirmary and able to go back to her own room. She still has an occasional cough but was well enough to play outdoors with us. The weather was beautiful-sunny and 60+. We brought a kick ball from the states that our daughter Abby wanted to give the orphanage so we found someone to pump it up and the girls gathered a couple of teams together. Beverly explained the game is popular in schoolyards all over the US and gave Victor the run down on how to play. Victor then explained it to the children. We made bases on a large cement volleyball court out of a piece of concrete used for chalk. As the game proceeded more and more children came out to watch and eventually we were able to coax them into the game but they first insisted to sit and observe until they understood the rules. Gary is feeling the exercise today from the long hours of play. We have no doubt that this game will continue long after we are gone but we are curious to see if the rules are adapted to become “Ukrainian kickball”!

We have had both girls bring us a friend and ask if we could find a family for them. We talked with them and told them we would write to them and maybe we could find other families to communicate with them. It just about breaks your heart to hear these requests.
One girl is 11 and has been in the orphanage for 7 years. One is 13 and had both her parents die.

Today we should hear if our project manager in Kiev- Yulia, was able to successfully get our papers for court tomorrow from the SDA. (it is suppose to take 5 business days from when they were turned in) If she did then they should arrive by train tomorrow am in time for court. We ask for continued prayer as we trust that we’ll go to court tomorrow. (The girls were pretending yesterday and Victoria was the judge.) We know that the Lord still is in charge and we trust Him in this next step.

The Girls Looking “Clauss” (Cool) In their New Outfits

We were able to take the children out of the orphanage on Saturday and again today.
To do this we first had to meet with the director and sign a paper of responsibility. She was so concerned that the children not get colds so she made them each wear a hat and take one of her supply of handkerchiefs with them as well as made us promise not to buy them anything cold. The thinking here is that cold foods and drinks could encourage an illness when the weather is cold.

We went to the big outdoor market, which the children hadn’t been to since entering the orphanage. Some of them know the market from when they had to live on the streets. So it was exciting to see their faces as they were shopping. They are normal children as their likes and dislikes were clearly evident as we looked for shoes, a coat for Erin and jean outfits (very popular here) for both girls. We followed them as we wandered through the maize of venders to a little shop (one of the few indoors) that had just the right jeans jackets and pants. They were so cute modeling their outfits and insisting on wearing them home afterwards. (The director told us that they could take to the US anything that we had bought for them either here or in America.)

After the market we returned to the hotel. Our room was a big hit as they flopped right away on our big bed with the curtain around it! They were hungry so we went to the café and had what is common here to do- a large mid-afternoon meal and very small dinner. They ate until they were stuffed. When we were all finished eating- you truly get your meals fresh as the cook takes them as they are ordered and sends them out in that order so one person is just getting their meal as everyone else is finishing. (Victor said the way around this is to make your order ahead of time before you come to eat.)

We went back to the room and Victor brought us some Russian cartoons to watch. The funny thing was that the girls wanted to take a bath in our large bathtub (there are no bathtubs at the orphanage and only get a shower every 3 days) so the adults watched the cartoons while the girls locked themselves away in the bathroom for a bubble bath! Afterwards, they asked mama to blow dry and style their hair just like she did when they were in the states. They also enjoyed playing in mama’s makeup while they were having their hair done. They were gorgeous and delighted in modeling their hair and makeup to papa who now needs to be ready to protect his beautiful girls both here and at home.

All and all it was the perfect day except for missing the rest of our family. That is probably the most difficult part to being in this process. We appreciate all our good friends who are caring for our children and pray that we will be together as soon as possible.
God has been so gracious to us and we are thankful for his grace and mercy as we continue our journey.

We Continue to Give Thanks!

Our Thursday was marked first by the good news that our paperwork was successfully submitted to the SDA on Wednesday. We give thanks for each step made on track to take Erin home as soon as possible. She asked us “when we can go on the plane to home”. She didn’t hold back her disappointment when Victor explained the time it will take before we get to finally go. It is easy to understand her frustration but we hold on to the hope set before us and walk it as patiently as possible.

There is a great outdoor market here with anything you could want to purchase so we ventured out to purchase Beverly a warmer coat. We ended up finding a fur coat. Kathie and Dave went along with Gary and Beverly. Victor came to translate for us, as Olis, their facilitator, was finishing up their documents to take on the train to Kiev Thursday evening. We are blessed to have facilitators who are friends and will tag team for us as they take turns making trips home.

Erin was still in the infirmary at the orphanage with a case of bronchitis so we decided to give her until the weekend to get better before taking her out on a shopping trip. It is suppose to warm up to the 50’s then. Erin’s friends, including Vica were visiting her so we played “YOU KNOW” otherwise known as UNO with them and they taught us some hand games. Gary also entertained them with his various noises and his disappearing ping-pong ball trick. They especially like his Donald Duck- in Russian. Gary’s reputation continues as “Superman” as we have heard from the hallways during our visits, children yelling “Superman” as they run by.

We also talked with the director as Vica has decided that she wants us to try to adopt her. Her paperwork was turned into the oblast (like the county seat) sometime in July so it would probably be another year before we could adopt her. She talked with the director in front of us and told her that she was sure this time. We will continue to pray for the Lord to make the path straight if this is his will.

There are so many children in the orphanage from 16 down to little ones that just wave and smile when you walk by and all of them so deserving of parents. They look at you with such a longing in their eyes. It will forever permeate our hearts these faces of abandonment and loss. Some will shyly tell you their stories and it breaks your heart to hear what they have been through. Our hope is that we can somehow be a voice for them in years to come.

Thank you for your love and continue prayer support. Our daughter Brittany called last night to tell us that her thyroid is causing more problems. Please pray with us for her.

PS If you sent us an email and we haven't replied please try again. Our outgoing email has been problematic. Our apology for the inconvenience.

Another Good Day!!

Things went well again on Tuesday. Victor was working all day long to get the final signatures and stamp on our documents. He did it just in time to head to the train to have them sent to the SDA. If Yulia is able to successfully submit them to the SDA today (Wednesday) then we have a tentative court date of 26 Oct already set with the court here. That would probably put us home following the waiting period and the work back at Kiev on or about 10 November. That would be great. Given those timeframes, we have decided that we will just stay here during the waiting period. It will give us more time with the children at the orphanage too. Nancy and Jean/Jim were so very right when they told us that a piece of our hearts will be left here. All these kids are so wonderful and you just see the hope in their eyes that someday a family will come for them.

One of the amazing events that happened yesterday was when Victor came by with Erin’s final medical determination. Apparently, Erin has some hyperthyroid issues that are not of any real problem now but that they are required to tell us about. Victor thought us a little strange when we were a little excited about this. The excitement was more of amazement to us. That was because only about a year ago our oldest daughter Brittany was diagnosed with pretty much the same thing. While we where going through this medical issue with Brittany, we where just wondering why this was all going on given the really rough year we had already had with Beverly’s beloved Mother and Gary’s Uncle both passing in February/March 2005. Looking back, we see God preparing us to be just the right family for Erin. We fully understand now what the issues are with the thyroid and are very well equipped to handle them. Wow!! Might seem simple to some but to us it was just amazing to see God’s hand at work.

It’s a bit rainy and cold here now but nothing extreme…Yet. Bev is thinking about buying a thicker coat but we are hoping to be able to take Erin with us shopping today or tomorrow so we’ll see. We’re going to pick up a few items that some families have asked us to get for their prospective children and will probably go to the orphanage at around 2:30 pm after the kids have finished school and had their lunch. Dave and Kathie will most likely be there too. It’s been wonderful having them right along side us. They are such great people.

Thanks to all of you for your thoughts and prayers. Please keep them coming.

A Successful Meeting with the Inspector!!

All went extremely well this morning. We got up and headed to the Inspectors Office right across the street from our hotel this morning. Victor talked over a few things with her then we caught a cab to the orphanage. The Director (Galina) met us in her office at the orphanage along with another official from the Berdyansk inspector’s office and we got right down to business. She reviewed Erin’s (Irina’s) history which was nothing new from what we already knew from the SDA but was of course still very sad. One of the unique questions we received before Erin came in was “Would you have adopted if you hadn’t met the girls?” We had to answer honestly that we probably would not have but it has always been something in our hearts since long ago when we saw the plight of the Romanian orphanages after the fall of the USSR. We just couldn’t afford it then.

Once done with our questioning, they called for Erin to come in. She came running in with a big hug and kiss for both of us and then plopped herself down on Bev’s lap. What a wonderful moment for us. She is truly a beautiful and sweet young lady girl just like her soon to be sisters (Zach, You’re great too but didn’t want to lump you in with the beautiful/sweet part. You’re handsome and nice ;-). Then they went straight to “THE” question…Do you want these people to be your Mama and Papa? She didn’t hesitate to tell the inspector “YES”. They also asked if she had had any contact from her sister or mother. She said no. The Inspector said, “Well, now your going to have 2 sisters and a brother that will love you”. What a vote of confidence from the inspector. Everyone in the room just kept smiling throughout the meeting. It was really very pleasant. After that, a nurse came in and reviewed her medical record. She is very healthy.

Following the 30 minute meeting, they went straight to work on the paper work and we hit the road with Erin, Victor, and a school nurse from about 10:00 am to 3:00 pm on medical exams. Now, this is something different according to the Victor. It used to be that one doctor pretty much took care of most of it but now you have to get an OK from each of the different specialist then it all finalized by the head doctor. Victor went to work for us running all over town to ensure all the boxes where correctly checked and that we got it completed correctly and quickly. He was amazing. We are very glad to have him.

Some have asked about costs. Here’s a very quick break down:

Lodging at Berdyansk Hotel - $38 for a double up to $75 for a very nice suite. The double up to suites have little refrigerators. You need to pay for your facilitator and yourself- 2 rooms each day.

Taxi: From hotel to orphanage - $1 each way. We did spend about $20 today for our taxi which was with us most of the day even waiting outside the various buildings while the exams went on. But that is not a normal taxi day.

Meals - Breakfast comes with both rooms and it’s a lot of food. Usually good enough to get you through lunch too. Meals range for the 2 of us and our facilitator at around $15-$20 total but of course it depends on where you eat. The hotel restaurant is very nice and relatively inexpensive.
Food/groceries – You can buy enough water and snacks to last about 5 day for less then $20 easily. You can buy almost anything with the exception of hand sanitizer so bring some. You can even have your laundry done but it’s fairly expensive at around $21 for approximately 20 items.

Internet café (in the lobby) – $1-2 per hour. There is a hotel Wi-Fi connection on the 10th floor which costs $2 per hour. I can pick it up on the 11th floor but it’s a weak signal.

Anyway, tomorrow is a fairly calm day. We hope to just spend some time with the kids while Victor works on getting the final inspector decision and paper work to Kiev by tomorrow afternoon. He’s also already writing the petition asking for the court date so that it will be ready too. If the paperwork is delivered to the SDA in Kiev by Wednesday, it takes 5 working days to get it back. Victor is hoping to get our court day within the next few days once the paperwork returns but you never know. Of course the ever present 10 day wait follows the court date.

Please continue to pray that things go smoothly and as quickly as possible. God is truly at work here. It so awesome to see. Also, pray that all these great kids get families some day. They are all so sweet and just want someone to call their own. It’s just heart breaking.

We love you all.

Sunday in Berdyansk

We spent the morning getting a walking tour of the city from one of the teachers from the orphange that we had met in America. Her name is Sphetlana (?) and she shared a ride with us on Friday back to the city from the orphange. The city is beautifully situated on the sea with a large port to one side and a city water front park in the middle. There is an amusement park and water park in the area as well. (closed for the season) There are many statues to take pictures in front of here. One is a "wishing chair" in which you sit to make a wish. We also sat on a large fish named Boo to get our picture taken. There is a beach and many were fishing from the shore.
We had coffee and hot chocolate (very sweet) and some snacks before catching a ride to the orphange. (Kathy and Dave came in from the overnight train just before we left the hotel)
Please pray for us tomorrow as we will meet at 8:00am with the inspector who will then go with us to the orphange to see how we interact with Irina- who picked out her name today-Erin Taylor Bruce. We thought she'd want to keep her first name but she changed her mind and asked to become Erin. We know alot of nice Erin's and Taylor is a special name to us too so it seemed to work out.
Blessings.

All is Well in Berdyansk

First of all, sorry that we haven't blogged in a while but the server was down when we tried. Our train was due to leave Kiev in the middle of a soccer match- Ukraine versus Scotland. Traffic was at a stand still everywhere so our angel roomates helped us carry our suitcases the mad dash to the train station with our facilitator- Victor. We couldn't have made it with out these new friends who shared our apartment our last night in Kiev. The train was everything and more that our friends said it would be just like going back in time- oriental carpets on the floor. Narrow compartments. Great chia (tea) and snacks. The bathroom- well imagine going while riding a horse! We arrived to Zaporezia (sp) around 7am where we took a fun taxi ride for 2-1/2 hours to Hotel Berdyansk. We saw lots of sunflower fields, wheat fields, cows, goats and geese along the way. The landscape is beautiful. The hotel is nice with an internet cafe in the lobby. Our room- well we splurged for a few days and took a suite with a large tiled bath/ draped surrounded bed and sofa area. The view of the water and sunset as well as a lighthouse are worth the $ for now. On Thursday we immediately went to work with Victor processing paper work. The down side to Irina being in Kiev is that some work will be delayed until Monday which sets us back a few days to get our paperwork back to the SDA in Kiev on Wednesday.( they only accept it on MWF) We stood in several lines and signed several documents. We made arrangements to visit the orphange with the inspector on Monday. Irina will have her physical on Monday as well. Well we thought that our Friday would be a restful one. We started out
shopping in the market for a few items and we bought some DVDs to watch with Victor. (American with Russian subtitles) We were able to go with Terri and Nataliya's group here with CBN to the orphanage. It was interesting meeting the group traveling with them as they film. We were invited to lunch and were able to see the newly purchased transitional house on the way back to the orphange. It was exciting to see the dream coming true for the aging out children to have this opportunity to study and become equipped after leaving the orphange. They are busy with remodeling it. We watched as Terri did a short film segment on it. We latter met Nataliya's cousins for a big dinner at their house. Great food and fellowship! (Nancy- Galina was there with Tonya- she's beautiful. Bev showed her your picture.)
Our sad part of the day was seeing Vica. She is confused about her choices after seeing us about what to do. She wants us to adopt her but she doesn't want to upset her grandmother. The Lord will work it out if it is meant to be. We may be back in a year if things change.
To those who had sent along cards to their kids- all are safely delivered and many smiles were seen! Terri and Stan, you should recieve a letter. Olga promises to write to you- Jean and Jim.
She gives Bev a big hug everytime she sees her! She would love for you to come visit after Christmas. We saw Roman and he smiled real big and called Gary "Superman"- see previous blog for explanation. Roman has a good memory!
TO OUR Family and those watching our kids, WE LOVE YOU> WE MISS YOU WE HOPE AND PRAY ALL IS WELL> Irina and Vica say hello to all.

Saw Irina In Kiev Today

We got to see Irina!!! She was in Kiev on a field trip on a big river boat. After calling the orphanage inBerdyansk, we found out that she wasn't there and that she was in Kiev. Our Sense agency helper (Yulia) "just happened" to know the lady that ran the tours and hooked us up. Irina was soooo surprised to see us. It was as wonderful as we imagined it would be. We also got to see the Henry's sweet little girl Olga and she gave us a big hug too.

We are heading to Berdyansk via train tonight at 8:30 pm and should bet to Berdyansk at around 1030 tomorrow morning to start process. Irina will return to the orphanage on Friday so we'll get to see her then.

Please keep the prayers going!! They are really working!!

First Step Complete

We just finished our appointment at the SDA. We have some good news and some sad news to report. The sad news is that Victoria is not registered and is not available. It will be sad to see her and yet we know we have done everything we could at this point.
The good news is that Irina was born in Berdyansk according to her paper work. We found out some other news about her but mostly just sad information about her young life. We should be able to have our referral picked up by Yulia tomorrow around 5-6pm. We hope to fly to Berdyansk either just after that or early on Thur. It will be wonderful to see both girls and to know we are not going to have to wait for our power of attorney to travel to Russia to get a birth-certificate.
We are sharing our apartment tonight with an adopting mom and her mother. She is returning for the two siblings of her son who is 6.

Our love to all. Thank you for the prayers.

We Made It!!!

We are here!!! We got in right on time at 1:20 pm Ukraine time. We flew from Dulles to Vienna to Kiev on Austrian Airlines. It was a very nice flight and they fed us a ton of food. We actually ran into work friends in the Dulles airport. It was Joe Rodriguez and Susan Finley. Joe and I have worked together in the USCG and Susan is a contractor for UNITECH and we have worked together in the past. They flew to Vienna on the same flight and then were off to Odessa. It was a nice surprise.

Upon arrival, here's a great tip, USE THE VIP SERVICE!! It was absolutely amazing. As soon as we stepped into the main terminal among the hundreds of people, a man came up and produced a big sign with our name on it. We raised our hand and off we went like a whirl wind. We had to be out of the airport and into the car in about 15 minutes luggage and all. Wow!!

As we exited the airport customs area, we were met by Yulia and the driver. Yulia is a lovely young lady that speaks wonderful english. On the race down the freeway to the apartment we talked about the next few days and she helped us understand what should happen.

We got to our apartment at around 2:30 pm. It is...hmmmm...different. Accomodating though. The only scary thing is the ride in the very old elevator to the 12th floor but it was better then walking the stairs. The apartment has 2 bedrooms, living room, bathroom, kitchen and balconies all around.

Yuri picked us up at around 4:40 pm with his girl friend. He shocked us in that he is so young. 28 years old. He's a nice guy that speaks suberb english. We went out and exchanged money at the grocery store. We then picked up a few items at the store which pretty much had anything you would need...including a cell phone. We bought a basic one that we will give to the next family going after we get home.

After a tour of the city, Yuri took us home. We tried our best to stay awake but Bev was out by 0730 and I went shortly thereafter. We slept 13 hours straight.

Our appointment is at 2:00 pm on Tuesday. For those that are up at 7:00 am EST, please remeber us in prayer.

Anyway, we are off to shop a little and buy me some shoes. They broke at the Dulles airport and it was like wearing flip-flops the rest of the time. Then we have plans on eating dinner with the Funero's who just arrived today.

To our friends and family; We miss you all very much already and think of you often.

Brittany, Zach and Abby, If you're reading this just know we love you and we are doing fine.

Tim Q., Stop eating my peanuts....;-)

We're Heading Out!!

We are on our way. We leave tomorrow, 07 Oct, from Richmond, at 10:33 am. We are all packed for the most part. We've tried to pack light but don't think that's working. Stan & Terri recommended bringing our own pillows so we've squeezed a couple in.

Gary has packed his "Superman" t-shirt to wear under his business shirt when we get to the orphanage. It comes from a joke he played on the girls while they were with us last December. We took them to Wal-Mart for groceries and walked by the men’s tie section. There was a tie with a big superman symbol on it and they instantly said, "Superman!!". Gary said, "Da" pointing to himself "Ya Superman" (I'm Superman). They got big eyed then pointed back and said, "You Superman??! No, you babushka (grandmother)”. That was the point that Gary knew these girls will fit right into our family. We have been joking with them about that occasion over the last 9 months.

We received a letter from Irina this week. She has no clue that we are coming. She just tells us how much she loves us, misses us and how she wants us to keep sending her stories about our lives. We can't wait to tell her ourselves. If all goes well with the SDA on Tuesday we may have a chance of seeing the girls late Wednesday or Thursday, 11/12 Oct. We're sure it will be an emotional event. We just wish we knew what Victoria is thinking.

Well, we hope to be bringing good news from Ukraine soon. We'll try to update as soon as we get there.

Well, we've been working at it since last December 2005 but after the long wait we now have an appointment in Ukraine on 10 Oct 2006. We know we are blessed to receive this appointment since there are so many wonderful families that have waited even longer.

We depart on 07 Oct and arrive in Kiev 08 Oct via Vienna. Once there, we start the real rollercoaster ride of the actual process. We ask for your prayers in the hope that it will go relatively smoothly but are ready to fight for Irina and Victoria if we have to. Irina (left) is 13 years old and Victoria (right) is 12. They stayed with us while visiting last December as part of a singing group. We fell in love with them immediately. They are truly wonderful children. Unfortunately, We called Victoria a few months ago and she told us that she felt she should stay to take care of her mother who lives locally and is an alcoholic. Although her mother doesn't have "rights" to Vika, we want to honor her wishes. That said, we are still going to work through the process in case she changes her mind. We can't imagine how difficult this is for a 12 year old. So very sad. But we are trusting in God to work this out one way or another.

We will be traveling just 2 days ahead of the Schweickert's who have their appointment on 12 Oct so we are glad that we will have friends going through this with us.

We will try to check our email and this blog site as often as possible.

Thank you all for your support so far and your prayers and support in the future.