Spending time with the boys.
Social Service Office.
Same office, different view.
Playing video games.
The lobby of the Orphange.
David and the boys, awww.Thursday, October 7, 2010
Pictures in no particular order.
Spending time with the boys.Social Service Office. Same office, different view. Playing video games. The lobby of the Orphange. David and the boys, awww.
Day 5
Well, we made it through another day, whew!
Seriously I don't know who issues driver's licenses here, but someone sure needs to lose their job. If Disneyland could create a ride that would allow you to experience sitting in the back seat of a car and driving full speed, while dodging potholes, people and dogs it would be a huge attraction. Goodness gracious it's absolute craziness. David tells me to just keep my eyes closed and put my hands in my pockets and to just breathe slow and deep while in the car.
We were able to sleep in a bit this morning, which was nice, even though I am still waking up way too early. Anyway, we had planned to visit the boys around 2pm, but about 1pm or so Oksana came into our room and mentioned we needed to leave immediately to go and sign MORE papers, sheesh the paperwork is also outrageous, but it is a necessary process which will get us one day closer to getting the boys. We went to the courthouse, but on the way we were told the judge was on vacation and it would be a miracle if there was another one there to sign our papers. We finally arrived, barely, and guess what? There was another judge that just happened to be there working, in fact Wendy, Oksana mentioned it was the same judge that signed your paperwork. YAY! We KNOW our Heavenly Father is guiding us through this whole, amazing process.
Afterwards we headed over to the Sanatorium, found the boys, which by the way they were wearing the exact same clothes and smelled just the same as they did the day before, so if the pictures look as if they were taken all on the same day, trust us they weren't. I can't hardly wait to scrub them clean and brush their teeth, ohhh. We had a few hours to spend with them and they mentioned they would like to get something to eat, so pizza was the choice made by all. While walking to the pizzeria we passed a huge crate of beer bottles, Ruslan mentioned that they use the bottles to keep warm at night. They fill them with hot water and put them around their little bodies to keep warm. Yes, it just about broke our hearts when we heard this and Ruslan could tell, so he quickly replied, "it's okay mama, no problem." They really try to diminish their living conditions, such amazing young men. Finally we arrived and ordered the boys pizza, "yummy, yummy," was all Bogdan kept saying. They devoured their pizzas and they were good sizes too. We didn't think they were going to be too hungry in that they had just eaten their afternoon lunch, but apparently their lunch consisted of 7 small, hard apples...yummy, yummy, not.
We then took them to the super market where they played a couple of video games and it also got us out of the cold. While there we bought them a little bit of chocolate to eat later and as we were checking out Ruslan asked if we could buy one more piece for his friend, he mentioned this friend of his "protects" him from the bigger boys and he wanted to get him a little something to thank him. Can you believe it? My mother hen instincts kicked in and I wanted to have him tell me who these boys were and trust me THEY would need to "hire" protection, if you know what I mean. But of course I didn't say this or act on it because it would only make their situation worse. We then walked back home through the maze of apartment buildings and trust me if you ever got lost in there you would never make it out alive, so scary and confusing. We dropped them off, gave them big hugs and then went and waited for our driver, George, to pick us up.
We ended up going to the wrong pickup spot so we turned back around and passed the Sanatorium again where we noticed Ruslan outside with a group of boys, he came over to the fence and greeted us, but was very aloof. Oksana mentioned afterwards that he has to put on a "tough" persona, because the other boys are more then likely jealous of him and his situation so he needs to act like it is no big deal. If he were to be too excited they would have to "humble" him. You could tell that he wanted to be close to us even through his tough exterior, it was hard to walk away.
We arrived back at the apartment and I fell asleep for a few hours and now I am wide awake, darn it. I want to get on a solid sleep schedule that David seems to be on with no problem. Oksana, our facilitator, went back to Kiev tonight, but we still have Oksana, the translator, with us. She and I are becoming close friends, I absolutely adore her. Before Oksana left she mentioned that the judge signed our paperwork and we are scheduled to be in court on the 18th of this month so it looks as if David will be able to make his flight home on the 21st. Apparently there is still TONS of paperwork that still needs to be finished before court, so please pray that it will all be processed and signed before the 18th. THANK YOU!!!
We love and miss you all more then you will ever know. THANK YOU for your prayers and words of encouragement, besides being with the boys it is the highlight of our day to read your comments. Thanks to those of you who have our children, we know they are safe with you, man do we miss them. Loves to all!!! Kisses!!
Seriously I don't know who issues driver's licenses here, but someone sure needs to lose their job. If Disneyland could create a ride that would allow you to experience sitting in the back seat of a car and driving full speed, while dodging potholes, people and dogs it would be a huge attraction. Goodness gracious it's absolute craziness. David tells me to just keep my eyes closed and put my hands in my pockets and to just breathe slow and deep while in the car.
We were able to sleep in a bit this morning, which was nice, even though I am still waking up way too early. Anyway, we had planned to visit the boys around 2pm, but about 1pm or so Oksana came into our room and mentioned we needed to leave immediately to go and sign MORE papers, sheesh the paperwork is also outrageous, but it is a necessary process which will get us one day closer to getting the boys. We went to the courthouse, but on the way we were told the judge was on vacation and it would be a miracle if there was another one there to sign our papers. We finally arrived, barely, and guess what? There was another judge that just happened to be there working, in fact Wendy, Oksana mentioned it was the same judge that signed your paperwork. YAY! We KNOW our Heavenly Father is guiding us through this whole, amazing process.
Afterwards we headed over to the Sanatorium, found the boys, which by the way they were wearing the exact same clothes and smelled just the same as they did the day before, so if the pictures look as if they were taken all on the same day, trust us they weren't. I can't hardly wait to scrub them clean and brush their teeth, ohhh. We had a few hours to spend with them and they mentioned they would like to get something to eat, so pizza was the choice made by all. While walking to the pizzeria we passed a huge crate of beer bottles, Ruslan mentioned that they use the bottles to keep warm at night. They fill them with hot water and put them around their little bodies to keep warm. Yes, it just about broke our hearts when we heard this and Ruslan could tell, so he quickly replied, "it's okay mama, no problem." They really try to diminish their living conditions, such amazing young men. Finally we arrived and ordered the boys pizza, "yummy, yummy," was all Bogdan kept saying. They devoured their pizzas and they were good sizes too. We didn't think they were going to be too hungry in that they had just eaten their afternoon lunch, but apparently their lunch consisted of 7 small, hard apples...yummy, yummy, not.
We then took them to the super market where they played a couple of video games and it also got us out of the cold. While there we bought them a little bit of chocolate to eat later and as we were checking out Ruslan asked if we could buy one more piece for his friend, he mentioned this friend of his "protects" him from the bigger boys and he wanted to get him a little something to thank him. Can you believe it? My mother hen instincts kicked in and I wanted to have him tell me who these boys were and trust me THEY would need to "hire" protection, if you know what I mean. But of course I didn't say this or act on it because it would only make their situation worse. We then walked back home through the maze of apartment buildings and trust me if you ever got lost in there you would never make it out alive, so scary and confusing. We dropped them off, gave them big hugs and then went and waited for our driver, George, to pick us up.
We ended up going to the wrong pickup spot so we turned back around and passed the Sanatorium again where we noticed Ruslan outside with a group of boys, he came over to the fence and greeted us, but was very aloof. Oksana mentioned afterwards that he has to put on a "tough" persona, because the other boys are more then likely jealous of him and his situation so he needs to act like it is no big deal. If he were to be too excited they would have to "humble" him. You could tell that he wanted to be close to us even through his tough exterior, it was hard to walk away.
We arrived back at the apartment and I fell asleep for a few hours and now I am wide awake, darn it. I want to get on a solid sleep schedule that David seems to be on with no problem. Oksana, our facilitator, went back to Kiev tonight, but we still have Oksana, the translator, with us. She and I are becoming close friends, I absolutely adore her. Before Oksana left she mentioned that the judge signed our paperwork and we are scheduled to be in court on the 18th of this month so it looks as if David will be able to make his flight home on the 21st. Apparently there is still TONS of paperwork that still needs to be finished before court, so please pray that it will all be processed and signed before the 18th. THANK YOU!!!
We love and miss you all more then you will ever know. THANK YOU for your prayers and words of encouragement, besides being with the boys it is the highlight of our day to read your comments. Thanks to those of you who have our children, we know they are safe with you, man do we miss them. Loves to all!!! Kisses!!
Wednesday, October 6, 2010
Pictures of day 3 and 4
In front of the Social Service office.
Escalator down to the subway, it's such a looooong way down.
The Lavra.
The Lavra.
View of the river and part of the Lavra.
Lavra
More Lavra.
Lavra
More Lavra.
Day 3 and 4
We were going to go to the LDS temple yesterday morning, but due to mixup in translation we ended up visiting the Greek Orthodox Church, oops. The lavra was amazing. Spent the morning walking the grounds and then the afternoon touring Kiev, well the tour was a long and as far as our feet could carry us. I seriously believe we walked a good 15 miles yesterday. Our final SDA appointment was scheduled for 4pm and after a car ride we will not soon forget we finally arrived. While were waiting the Hales arrived and it was so nice to see them, they are a wonderful couple and all seems to be going great for them also. Afterwards, we headed to the train station, which again was an experience in and of itself, seriously everything is quite the adventure here, even a simple train ride. George picked us up at the station and brought us here to Constantines' apartment, it was about 12 am when we arrived, so it was very difficult to see the city so when we woke this morning I was anxious to see where we would be living for the next little while. Our apartment consists of two bedrooms, one bathroom, living room and kitchen and Dnipro seems like a sad, cold city. No one smiles. Wendy warned me of the potholes, our potholes back home our nothing compared to what we drove around and over today, pure craziness.
After a quick breakfast this morning we went to the social service office and was it ever cold inside. These poor women are wearing layers of clothing and trying to keep themselves warm, Oksana, our translator, mentioned that the government "decides" when the heat will be turned on and this year the day will be October 11th, but the schools and hospitals will have there heat turned on October 4th, so in the meantime everyone tries to stay warm. Unbelievable. Anyway, after signing more paperwork we then went to the Orphanage, YAY!! Apparently the boys are both in the sanatorium, which is actually a good thing for us, they are more lenient there and will let us visit the boys more often and even let us take them for a few hours after their studies and lunch are over. No words can describe our reunion, just know that it will be an experience that both David and I will NEVER forget. They look good. Just a little scraggly and a little smelly, but oh, they look good to us. They took us to a small room where we are were able to finally talk and hold each other. Ruslan would not leave my side, he was constantly holding my arm he had to always be touching me. Bogdan was the same with David. After just a few minutes it was as if we had never been apart.
(James and Winnie they asked how you both were and they mentioned how they were excited to see you both again. Ruslan told the orphange director that his big bother was cool and this little sister was fun. They have really missed you both over the past year. Oh, and they also asked about Oliver.)
After our visit we needed to get more documents signed so we headed out AGAIN avoiding more potholes along the way.
Oh, the names the boys chose for themselves are Bogdan Joshua Moore and Ruslan Edward Moore. Ruslan didn't like any of the names we suggested, they were too difficlut for him to pronounce and the ones he suggested I did not like either, they were the names of WWF wrestlers. He wanted his name to be Ruslan "BIG" Moore and I quickly shot that one down also. Finally, he decided upon Edward, which was a name we had not suggested, but ironically it is David's father's middle name and NO he is NOT named for Edward Cullen, but he will still go by the name Ruslan and Bogdan will now be Joshua or Josh and trust me it is the cutest thing ever to hear Bogdan say his new name. These were the names they wanted and we felt that they should have the opportunity to choose, except I had to take away their freedom of choice when it came to the WWF names.
Anyway, we are excited for a new day tomorrow and spending time with the boys. We love you all and are still completely amazed and honored that we are able to take this journey together.
After a quick breakfast this morning we went to the social service office and was it ever cold inside. These poor women are wearing layers of clothing and trying to keep themselves warm, Oksana, our translator, mentioned that the government "decides" when the heat will be turned on and this year the day will be October 11th, but the schools and hospitals will have there heat turned on October 4th, so in the meantime everyone tries to stay warm. Unbelievable. Anyway, after signing more paperwork we then went to the Orphanage, YAY!! Apparently the boys are both in the sanatorium, which is actually a good thing for us, they are more lenient there and will let us visit the boys more often and even let us take them for a few hours after their studies and lunch are over. No words can describe our reunion, just know that it will be an experience that both David and I will NEVER forget. They look good. Just a little scraggly and a little smelly, but oh, they look good to us. They took us to a small room where we are were able to finally talk and hold each other. Ruslan would not leave my side, he was constantly holding my arm he had to always be touching me. Bogdan was the same with David. After just a few minutes it was as if we had never been apart.
(James and Winnie they asked how you both were and they mentioned how they were excited to see you both again. Ruslan told the orphange director that his big bother was cool and this little sister was fun. They have really missed you both over the past year. Oh, and they also asked about Oliver.)
After our visit we needed to get more documents signed so we headed out AGAIN avoiding more potholes along the way.
Oh, the names the boys chose for themselves are Bogdan Joshua Moore and Ruslan Edward Moore. Ruslan didn't like any of the names we suggested, they were too difficlut for him to pronounce and the ones he suggested I did not like either, they were the names of WWF wrestlers. He wanted his name to be Ruslan "BIG" Moore and I quickly shot that one down also. Finally, he decided upon Edward, which was a name we had not suggested, but ironically it is David's father's middle name and NO he is NOT named for Edward Cullen, but he will still go by the name Ruslan and Bogdan will now be Joshua or Josh and trust me it is the cutest thing ever to hear Bogdan say his new name. These were the names they wanted and we felt that they should have the opportunity to choose, except I had to take away their freedom of choice when it came to the WWF names.
Anyway, we are excited for a new day tomorrow and spending time with the boys. We love you all and are still completely amazed and honored that we are able to take this journey together.
Monday, October 4, 2010
My nasty blister. Note to self, do not wear Sunday shoes to SDA appointment next time.
Church building up and around the corner from our apartment.
Downtown Kiev, Sunday evening. 
Our messy bedroom. We were way too tired to truly unpack our suitcases.
Living room.
Living room and kitchen.
Stairwell to our apartment. Notice the dust on the handrail.Second day in Ukraine
Our scary, two-man elevator to our apartment.
Just returned home from the SDA appointment, which was much less frightening then we had anticipated. We sat around a small table which hit David and I at our knees, they asked a few questions, showed us pictures of the boys, gave us brief backgrounds on the boys and then we were done. We don't want to get our hopes up, but it looks as if we may be able to adopt the boys simultaneously, we have an appointment tomorrow at 4pm for another interview where they will give us our final approval.
I am ashamed to say our first official breakfast in Kiev was a quick dash to McDonalds. Here we are in this beautiful city, with different foods everywhere and we eat at McDonalds. We will venture out later in hopes of finding some authentic Ukrainian food. Any suggestions from those of you who have gone before us?
Every few minutes David and I mention to one another how amazing it is that we are on this journey together. That he and I are actually walking the streets of Kiev. We are humbled and honored to be a part of it all.
I am ashamed to say our first official breakfast in Kiev was a quick dash to McDonalds. Here we are in this beautiful city, with different foods everywhere and we eat at McDonalds. We will venture out later in hopes of finding some authentic Ukrainian food. Any suggestions from those of you who have gone before us?
Every few minutes David and I mention to one another how amazing it is that we are on this journey together. That he and I are actually walking the streets of Kiev. We are humbled and honored to be a part of it all.
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