Today we went to the orphanage and, on our sixth day in Ukraine, finally got to see Katya again. We had a nice visit with the orphanage director and some of the caretakers. We showed them photos of Katya’s time with us, as well as pictures of many of you who are reading this. While we were there, Katya also gave us a tour of the orphanage and showed us the room she shares with three other girls. The kids at the orphanage don’t have a lot of possessions, but the people there are working very hard to take care of them.
As a part of her day, Katya had to write a letter stating that she wants to become a part of our family. Her letter, along with the other documents we have prepared over the past several months, is submitted to the court as a part of our petition to adopt. This all seems like a lot to ask an 11-year-old to think about, but she happily wrote her letter today. Hopefully we will have our court date very soon.
Thankfully we will be able to spend some time with Katya while we await our court date. To celebrate being together again the three of us had traditional Ukrainian food for dinner (borsch, zrazy, and verenecki). As always, it was delicious! Katya then completed her day with a well-deserved, relaxing bubble bath.
We still have a lot to accomplish in Ukraine before we can bring Katya home, but we are finally together. Now, when we go out to celebrate our next milestones, we will need a table for three.
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| Cafeteria at the orphanage |
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| Katya sitting on her bed. She shares this room with three other girls. |
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| Katya and her very important letter |
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| Enjoying some bubbles after a long day |
Glad you are getting to spend time together and have some fun. I like hearing more about the food. (What are zrazy and verenecki?)
ReplyDeleteVerenicky that my grandma made were cheese filled and fried perogies with a mild white gravy....... I don't know what you guys had, but I know there are tons of variations. We are so happy for you guys. Katya is just beaming in all the pictures!
ReplyDeleteWe are so happy for your family! Katya looks so happy and soon she will have the " forever " family she deserves . Stay strong and enjoy these wonderful moments as you build on your family and strengthen the love you already have for each other. We pray that the remainder of your process will continue to go smoothly . Btw: have the chocolate souffle for dessert at the Donbass... It is delicious!
ReplyDeleteoh my gosh! i just found your blog - we adopted our 2 ukrainian daughters from makeevka and stayed in donetsk while there! our daughters have 2 older brothers and one was in an orphanage in donetsk - it's got to be the same one, looks like a palace when you first go in? he may still be there, i think he would be 16 now...i would love to compare notes with you!
ReplyDeletei agree with the comment on the donbass palace - i loved their public bathroom! as well at teatime there too. have you tried "cherry pizza"? its near the dome market. also in that area is a wonderful christian church that meets in the building that hosts the Ukraine bible college.
i'm so excited for you and your adoption! i look forward to following your progress!!