SDA Appointment and News

Post 2 - April 26, 2011

Hallelujah for sleep!  Jason and Thomas were asleep last night very early.  I started out sleeping on the sofa (there is only one bed) but about midnight we all ended up in the same bed together.  I was right in the middle of my two men!!!!

We just returned from our SDA appointment.  Having previously completed one adoption this process seems so strange to me yet, in actuality, it makes more sense than Guatemala did.  We were downstairs at the SDA office at 9:45am waiting with Nastya, our coordinator.  They called us upstairs at exactly 10:00am.  We went into a very small office with Masha (sp?) and sat at a table (Masha couldn’t be more than 28 years old!).  Anyway, she pulled out Vika’s file and showed us the three pictures of her.  They were all so pitiful.  In one her head had just been shaven…looked like she was 9 or 10.  In the other two she was in clothes much too large for her - in one of these she was in a boy’s suit.  They went through her file and it was confirmed that she does have 2 older brothers and 2 younger ones.  This matches what Vika told us when she was with us.  One older brother is an adult and on his own.  One younger brother, Denis, is 5-6 and has been adopted by foreigners.  We hope to learn more while we are here about what country he lives in (maybe the US) and maybe one day we can find him.  The youngest brother is her half-brother and still with mom just as she said.  Some new information and, hopefully, not a complication…Sergei, her other older brother is 17 which means she has to be ‘separated’ from him before she can be adopted.  The inspector’s office (similar to a psychiatrist/social worker in the states) can do this with some extra paperwork and they obviously did this to allow Denis to be adopted, so we are hopeful that this is just a formality.  However, sometimes they can talk to the older sibling and require them to agree to allow their sibling leaving the country.  Typically this would only happen if they are in the same orphanage, and they are not…he is currently in a trade school somewhere in the country.  While it was a little surprising to us to learn this at the appointment I know that God is in control of this situation so I am choosing to not worry about this.  It breaks my heart for him and I am hoping to find a way for her to see Sergei before we leave the country. 

We were able to get the details of the court order terminating her mother’s rights.  My only comment about what we learned is that it was not exactly what I expected.  Vika’s story to us was correct…her father did die and her mother left her.  But after hearing more of the circumstances I can understand her very deep (negative) feelings about her mother.  I was sitting there just wanting to get to her and hug her.  I didn’t want to cry sitting in that office, but I certainly felt like it. 

We also received very conflicting medical reports about Vika.  One report states “healthy”, but another mentions a “chronic respiratory issue”, another mentions a “learning delay”, while another mentions a “heart issue”.  I will tell you that for a second I was sitting there saying to myself, “WHAT??”  Then The Spirit reminded me that it doesn’t matter.  This is our daughter.  There is nothing they have told us in that room that would matter.  So we declined an independent evaluation before making a decision.  There will be plenty of time to figure all of this out at home with the best medical care available, if she needs it.  In my soul I feel that she is basically as healthy as she could be in her situation.  I do believe they are right about one thing.  I believe she does have a “heart issue” – a broken heart issue but one that will be immediately treated with so much love and compassion!

As we were about to leave we were asked if we would like to see anymore files of other children.  Jason, who had been silent up to this point suddenly spoke with a firm NO!  Then he said to Nastya and Masha, “I mean this will make 5.  We can’t have anymore children.”  We all laughed!!!  He knows me too well…I would have sat there all afternoon looking at children if he (and they) would let me!

So we are free today and tomorrow.  We are headed out now to eat lunch and find somewhere outside for Thomas to play (there is NO grass here anywhere!!!).  Then we will stop by the store to buy food to cook our own meal this evening!  We love to cook, but I especially enjoy doing it in such a foreign place!  Tomorrow Nastya has a city tour lined up for us and then we go back to the SDA around 4 to pick up our ‘Permission Papers’ that allow us to travel to the Region for Vika.  We will fly there tomorrow night.  Plans now are to stay in a hotel in a small town about 30-40 mins away from the orphanage Wednesday night through the weekend.  We will get to be at the orphanage each day.  Next week, however, I will stay at the orphanage with Thomas while Jason makes a business trip to France.  Oleksandr, the orphanage Director, has invited us to stay there the entire time, but with all 3 of us here we will probably stay in the hotel for the first portion of our time there.  I had been praying that it would be a possibility to stay there with her and it looks like it will be!!!  I am so excited to be there with Vika and all of the other precious children I know we will meet!  Also Nastya said it appears that Oleksandr is really going to be quite flexible about allowing us private time with her for walks, etc. which a lot of the other orphanages don’t allow. 

We are so thankful for the prayers – we feel the support halfway around the world.  Please continue to pray for a speedy court date and no complications with her older brother.  Also, please pray for Vika and for any visits with family she has in these last few weeks.  I ask for wisdom as we help her handle this very difficult part of the process.