How all this is going to work??

Many have emailed and asked about what happens once we get in country so want to post some information as we know it. First of all, we will not be alone. There will be a coordinator in the country working with us and taking care of our needs during the trip. This coordinator is our translator, arranges travel (transportation, housing), makes the appointments with orphanages and arranging for medical examinations of the child we select.

(Note: Throughout this Blog you will notice me using the term "orphanage" which we do not do in the U.S. In Europe they still call their institutions orphanages. We are being Politically Correct)

As you already know, we have an appointment on March 3rd with the central adoption authority in Kiev. Essentially how the process works is that we will go to this first meeting and be shown photos and information about children that meet the criteria we desire. We put on our adoption paperwork that we are open to whether the child is a boy or a girl, but specific in that the child be healthy and at or under the age of 3 years old. This age group is in high demand so there are fewer children available for adoption.

At the central adoption authority meeting we will review the information about the children we are shown. The coordinator can not be present for these meetings. They provide a photo, age and medical report. Once we select one of the children, we then travel to the orphanage where the child is located. There are many orphanages across the Ukraine, so the trip may be short (car or train) or long (airplane). We just don't know until we select a child where we have to go.

Once at the orphanage, we have a meeting with the director to discuss the child and their background. After this we get to meet the child. I have no idea how we will make a decision on the spot, but this is what we will have to do. If we "like" the child, we will then have our personal physician to an examination to verify the medical report and check any other concerns we may have. If everything checks out we.......? I guess we say we want to adopt the child. IF something is something medically wrong or the situation with the child and choose not to select the child, we have to make another appointment with the central adoption authority and go back for another appointment. This appointment usually happens in a few days, but who know.. (We hope to get it right the first time)

Once a child is selected, we stay in the region with our coordinator and get to visit the child during this period. The coordinator sets up a court date and works through the paperwork. This takes a couple of weeks from what we understand. We go to court and have the adoption approved,

We then travel back to Kiev to attaining a birth certificate. In the Ukraine, unlike other countries, we get to leave the Ukraine with a birth certificate that states our names as the parents of the child, which is very nice.

Lastly, we go to the US Embassy and obtain a visa for the child to travel back to the US with us. I believe their citizenship becomes official once they arrive in the US.

We have many details to fill in, but will get these questions answered with our agency in January. We will keep you updated.

Lastly, we realized that this will be our first and last Christmas together alone. Zach and Lauren will not be here, and we usually are with one or the other sets of parents. From 2008 on, there will always be little feet with us in the house! Very special!

Merry Christmas!