A special treat...written from Shawn today!!

Today was another awesome day. We went to see Iryna at the orphanage early this morning because all the kids have more time to play on the weekend. So, we left with our driver and interpreter to pick up some fruit and goodies for Iryna and her friends. Iryna’s face lit up when she saw us. I love her smile.  We spent a good 2 hours with her today. We showed her more books and pictures of the boys. We also brought out some English flashcards and were trying to sneak in some English lessons.  When we first arrived she was cleaning her bathroom and doing her chores. Allison had a great time with her painting each other’s nails. Iyrna had a little jar of nail polish that she brought out and wanted to paint Allison’s nails.  Allison loved that. Then when they were done, Iryna wanted to do her friends nails as well.  After that we all went outside to play kick ball, play on the playground, and ride on the big fat guy’s shoulders (me). We spent most of the time outside playing like a real family. It was really great. It gave me a little taste of what it is going to be like to have my own daughter. It gave me goose bumps. This whole experience has been a world wind of emotion, but it all gets better every time I see Iryna. My favorite part is when she gets so excited just from me picking her up and putting her on my shoulders. Iryna is really starting to feel more and more like the family every day. I know this process is long but it is well worth it. I am already thinking about all the fun we are going to have with her and the boys at places like Disney, the park, and just riding bikes. Things that she has never been able to see or do. My heart longs for the things that we will be able to show and teach her. You can see in her eyes that she longs for that feeling of family, adventure, and love. I can’t wait to bring her home and to watch her grow as my daughter.

Here she is!!

We had a great visit with Iryna today. We got to take her outside and play. She loved all the stuff we brought her and didn't know which thing she wanted to play with. For now on we are just going to bring a couple items. She loved my sunglasses and she wore them the whole time. We had to ask her to take them off so you can see her beautiful blue eyes. Shawn was her best friend. She wanted him to hold her a lot and then once he put her on his shoulders, she was in love! We played on her playground and she loves this spinning thing that Shawn and I had to take turns on because we both kept feeling sick! She asked when we are taking her with us and if we were coming back. Already missing her and hate leaving the orphanage. When we were leaving she hugged me and Shawn was down the hallway throwing something away so she ran out of the room and down the hall just to give him a hug! Hope you enjoy all the pictures!

Some Ukrainian Experiences

Right now we are staying in a hotel until we find something a little more permanent. The region we are staying in is on the East side of Ukraine so we are closer to Russia. The language spoke here is Russian. So the TV is all Russian channels and of course Shawn is getting a kick from it all. Especially the MTV channel because it is all US shows but they speak Russian over top. Last night he watched the “Pimp my Ride” show and the Prank show. He laughed so hard that I even heard him while I was taking my shower. Anyone who knows Shawn knows that he has no difficulty in laughing and especially laughing loud! I hope the walls here are thick so we don’t make anyone unhappy. On the TV now is a “Biggest Loser” version and earlier was a “So you think you can dance” Russian version. I have to say, our American dancers definitely know how to dance compared to them. It was fun to watch though. Something else interesting is that the hosts and judges all look like our same people on the shows. On Biggest Loser, they do the same challenges and the same weigh-ins. They even have a nickelodeon channel and we are going to video some of the episodes to show the boys when we get home. I am sure they will enjoy it!!
The hotel has free breakfast with the stay and we were expecting a continental breakfast like ours with pastries, cereal and simple items. Well not here, they spoiled us. We had a choice of three different types; French, Ukrainian, and Greek (I think, I forget the last one). Well since we were alone, we choose French to be safe. What a meal it was. We got a wonderful cappuccino (which I needed very much since I didn’t sleep very well), fruit to start, then a cheese plate, bread and the an “omelet” which looked like a pancake but it was delicious. I could have eaten 3 of them. The café is outside and the weather is just perfect right now. Shawn and I really enjoyed our meal this morning. It was so much better than our room made meals of sandwiches (either cheese and bread or yesterday we found nutella so we got jam to go with it since they don’t have peanut butter here) and whatever snack we can find. I am loving the simple life and not having to worry about making a meal. I am just so thankful that Shawn is simple as well and is satisfied with whatever we have.
In about an hour we get to go see our sweet Iryna. I can’t wait to take pictures of her and get to visit longer. Come back later to the blog so you can see our little girl!

I know this doesn't look like much but it's a treat to us!
The cappuccino was delicious.

Here is what they call an omelet. It was very fluffy
and tasty.

I apologize if this post is all over the place but I didn’t get much sleep last night on the train. I tried to get Shawn to write today but he is sleeping as he has been doing most of this trip J

We have a daughter!! Iryna Udovycheako is the one God has chosen for us!! She is so precious and just perfect in my eyes! We went to her new orphanage today (she was just moved from her original orphanage on Tuesday). We met with the orphanage director first and he was very nice. He asked us a couple questions and then went and got Iryna. When she first came in, my heart started racing.  She came over to us right away and gave us a picture she drew. I will treasure this picture forever. It was a nice ice-breaker because we talked about what she drew. We asked her a bunch of questions and then brought out some goodies we brought her. Her eyes lit up right away and she asked if she could have one. Then she asked if she could bring the rest to share with her class. That’s my girl…already wanting to share! The visit was a little awkward but it was nice. After she left, we talked with her teacher and the medical nurse on staff. They had nothing but good things to say about her except that she had the one seizure in February, has a speech delay and was “mentally retarded”(if you know me well, you know I hate this word). None of that changed my mind about adopting her because we can work on all of that. They were still giving me doubt because we wanted to decide right away. The director showed us around the school part and it was amazing. They have the kids working on wood projects and the girls working on sewing and stitching. We have some pictures below of what the older kids are working on. We went back towards her classroom to see her again and she came and gave Shawn and I a hug right away. The girls adored Shawn and wouldn’t leave his side. They loved his watch and kept holding on to his arm. One girl pointed to herself and said “Mommy” and right away, Iryna pointed to herself and told the other girl “No, my mommy”!  We left there knowing that she was the one but we still wanted to go to her old orphanage because they know her the best and we wanted to know more about her.

After some lunch and checking in the hotel (which is not much of a hotel), we headed to her old orphanage. We met with her caregivers and started asking a bunch of questions. They confirmed that she had a seizure but it was nothing big, they only took her to the hospital to be cautious. They did say she has a speech delay but they don’t feel that she is “mentally retarded” as the paper work says. They said that she has learned anything they have given her and she loves being a leader. She is very ambitious and loves to help. The reason why she doesn’t know any of her letters or numbers is because they don’t teach that there. As you can see in the pictures below, the room was designed for children in pre-school or lower. They had it this way because most of the other children are mentally challenged and because she had low oxygen when born, they automatically think the child is going to be delayed so they label them with mental retardation. The orphanages never want to change it because they want to keep the children so they get funding. (Sounds like our school system!) The caregivers loved seeing our pictures of the boys and said that she will love having little brothers. The days before she was moved, she cried a lot saying that she didn’t want to leave because no one would adopt her at the older school and all she wanted was a family. Shawn and I both started crying! They were getting emotional as well knowing that her wishes were granted and she finally got a family! We are so exhausted from today but it was a day I will never forget. Just like when having a baby…you never forget the first time you see your child. I will never forget seeing her as she walked in the room. So beautiful and so much my daughter!

Some of the wooden creations made by the "mentally retarded"

The Wooden bowls I am in love with and am definitly bringing some home!

The 3 wonderful ladies who have taken care of our daughter for the past 3 years!

The beds she slept in at her old orphanage.

The play area on the other side of the beds. I was very impressed. Not the type of orphanage I was thinking of.

My post from the train

So as I lay here in the smoke filled train, reading the best book I have ever read “Sam’s Letters to Jennifer”, I can’t stop thinking about our little Iryna we are about to meet soon.  I am thinking about the first moments we will see her and the thoughts that will be going through her head. Will she think “who are these weirdo’s “ or will she be thinking about “are they gonna be my mommy and daddy or are they going to walk away like everyone else has because I am not perfect”?  I can’t even imagine walking away tomorrow after visiting with her and say “I am sorry, but you do not meet our expectations”. I know we have a lot of people telling us how we need to be careful and make sure she is the right one but who am I to say that she is the right one? Isn’t God in control of this whole situation, won’t he be the one who knows if she is right for us? I know He has spoken to us and I believe that he will continue to open the doors as we go along.  I am not perfect and I have been rejected many times in my life and the hurt it causes takes so much time to heal. I thankfully have been raised in a loving and supportive family who taught me to turn to God when those times arise. Iryna has not had this opportunity and God is sending us to save her from this life of having no family, no worship with Christ, a lot of pain and abandonment. Could you imagine life if all your family was taken away? I couldn’t, I know that I will always have God but without the daily love and support of my family and friends, life would be so different. Iryna is a child of God and it is time for her chance to be loved unconditionally.   When we get pregnant, we do not know what kind of child God is going to give us so why should we try to pick a "perfect" child? All of the pains and sufferings in the world are the effects of our sin. Trust in God because God is faithful even we his people are not.  “Though the fig tree does not bud…and the fields do not produce no food…I will be joyful in God my Savior” Habakkuk 3:17-19.

Shawn on his side of the train cabin!!

Me on my side. This is first class baby! (It was the only thing left with the late notice)

This was our "home" for 12 hours! Other than cigarette smoke coming through the vents all night, we had a good trip!

On our way out of Kiev

In two hours we will be heading to the SDA to pick up our referral to take to the orphanage. Then at 7pm tonight (noon your time) we will be on a 12 hour train ride to Donetsk Region. Next will be a 1 hour car ride to Slaviansk Town which is where Iryna is staying at the Nikolayevka village boarding school. Cary wrote a good point on Facebook last night that Shawn and I had never put together. "Isn't it interesting that Hurricane Irene stalled you initially but Iryna (yes a play on words here) is waiting for you on the other side. A sort of foreshadowing?" Little did she know but the Americanized way to say Iryna is Irene! And for all you American's, Iryna is pronounced, "E-ryna". We kept saying "I-ryna" and were corrected last night :) We continue to pray that this is the little girl God has chosen for us and we are less than 24 hours away from meeting her!!
Here are some more pictures we took this morning when Shawn and I ventured out in the city on our own! We even went to the grocery store on our own and almost got arrested!! After purchasing our groceries, when we walked out, their security alarms went off as if we were stealing something so the guard immediately comes over to us and in a serious voice starts talking in Ukrainian. We give him a blank look and just hand over our bag and receipt. He looks over it very carefully and starts checking every item one by one. After a couple minutes of this and sweat coming down both Shawn and I face, he allows us to go. So now we weren't almost arrested but it felt like it. Shawn said "Wouldn't that be something if our phone call home was...Um, Cindy and Tim, we are in jail and need money sent over now!" I don't think my parents would like that too much especially since the boys are already driving them crazy. We had a fun time trying to skype with them last night, my mom even asked if there was a full moon somewhere!! Okay, so now on to more pictures!

Kiev just got their first American Pizza delivery resturant! They love it!

Look what we found down the street....the Domino pizza sign holders!! We got a laugh from this.

They make and sell coffe out of the trunk of a car! Interesting.

I wasn't really taking a picture of the statue, I was trying to get a picture of the school children. Today was their first day of school and the children were all over. We were very impressed by their clothing. The boys have to where vests with coat jackets and the girls all in skirts with their hair all done and huge bows! Even the high school students were dressed to impress with ties and suit coats.

Pictures finally!!

Shawn found his jet plane!! He had to take a picture of this! This was at the Amsterdam airport.

He found more Irish . This pub was in the city of Kiev when we were walking home from dinner.

This statue is called "Mother Land" in English. I am not going to even try to write it in Russian! It's a statue at the World War II memorial in Kiev.

This is the St. Andrew's church in Kiev right next to the SDA where we had our appointment today. You can normally go into it but they have construction going on right now so they have it closed. It was such a beautiful site!

Our dinners tonight. I had a chicken, peaches and cheese pizza. I was very hesitant on the peaches part but it was delicious! I would go back in a heart beat. The resturant was very nice and we only paid $25 for three nice dinners and drinks! What a great deal!!


Karen (Owner if the Hospitality Home we are staying at), Jenny (A friend of Karen's from England), Allison and Shawn

We have been so blessed to be staying at this home. We have learned so much and have felt like we are at home!