Today was a long day but a BIG day—the first time Yuri, Renee and Paul are together in one place! The photo above was taken outside Internot (orphanage) #4. We made the 5 hour drive to Odessa, arriving at noon. On the way, we passed through rich farm lands with black soil. The rolling fields were expansive--similar to driving through South Dakota. In Odessa, our driver spent the next 45 minutes looking for the Internot, stopping SIX times to ask for directions. (At least he stopped to ask, right?) Once at the Internot, we met Nataliya, our English speaking facilitator/translator, who will be our life-line for the remainder of the adoption process.
Yuri receives a middle name--Nataliya delivered our documents to the Internot and introduced Renee and I to the director and another official who will actually process our paper work. We had brief meetings with each official and they asked us the cursory questions. One of the officials asked us if we wanted to provide Yuri a middle name. (Middle names are not customary in Ukraine.) We asked Yuri if he wanted to keep his current last name, Sivtsov, as a middle name but he declined. Then, Renee asked Yuri if he would like “Paul” as a middle name, after Dr. Paul Becker. “Dr. Paul” has been a father-figure to Yuri during his years in the Internot. Yuri happily approved! (The other Paul, thinks it is a pretty neat deal too.)
Internot Tour--Later, Yuri gave us a tour including a lengthy stop at his classroom where we reviewed his text books. Of course, we took the most interest in his English work books. Yuri is very pleasant but also very reserved. (We do not blame him!) He was not very confident in his English and could not answer most of our questions. (No surprise.) After the tour, Renee and I hung out in “the play room” with Yuri and about a dozen other kids and watched “Open Season” in Russian. (It seems more humorous in Russian.)
New apartment--We also met up with Michelle Maly who showed us our Odessa apartment. It is quite humble on the outside but wonderful on the inside. Small, cozy, newly remodeled and very clean! It is about a 20 minute drive from the Internot. Tonight, we attempted to gain internet access, found a market to buy groceries and settled in to our new apartment.
What’s Next? We think our papers will be filed with the court on Monday. Then we wait (who knows how long?) for a court date. In the meantime, we get to see Yuri each day at the Internot. Soon, we will be able to take him off campus and visit our “home” at the new apartment or go sight-seeing.
Well, these are the highlights. More happened today than what Renee and I anticipated. We are very tired and seem to be in a dazed state of joy. We are so thankful to God for all the little and big things that have happened to bring us this far.
Yuri receives a middle name--Nataliya delivered our documents to the Internot and introduced Renee and I to the director and another official who will actually process our paper work. We had brief meetings with each official and they asked us the cursory questions. One of the officials asked us if we wanted to provide Yuri a middle name. (Middle names are not customary in Ukraine.) We asked Yuri if he wanted to keep his current last name, Sivtsov, as a middle name but he declined. Then, Renee asked Yuri if he would like “Paul” as a middle name, after Dr. Paul Becker. “Dr. Paul” has been a father-figure to Yuri during his years in the Internot. Yuri happily approved! (The other Paul, thinks it is a pretty neat deal too.)
Internot Tour--Later, Yuri gave us a tour including a lengthy stop at his classroom where we reviewed his text books. Of course, we took the most interest in his English work books. Yuri is very pleasant but also very reserved. (We do not blame him!) He was not very confident in his English and could not answer most of our questions. (No surprise.) After the tour, Renee and I hung out in “the play room” with Yuri and about a dozen other kids and watched “Open Season” in Russian. (It seems more humorous in Russian.)
New apartment--We also met up with Michelle Maly who showed us our Odessa apartment. It is quite humble on the outside but wonderful on the inside. Small, cozy, newly remodeled and very clean! It is about a 20 minute drive from the Internot. Tonight, we attempted to gain internet access, found a market to buy groceries and settled in to our new apartment.
What’s Next? We think our papers will be filed with the court on Monday. Then we wait (who knows how long?) for a court date. In the meantime, we get to see Yuri each day at the Internot. Soon, we will be able to take him off campus and visit our “home” at the new apartment or go sight-seeing.
Well, these are the highlights. More happened today than what Renee and I anticipated. We are very tired and seem to be in a dazed state of joy. We are so thankful to God for all the little and big things that have happened to bring us this far.
1 comment:
We are so excited that you got to see Yuri today! He looks so much older than when we saw him 2 years ago, ( I guess they do age). Anyway we are praying for you and enjoying the blog, Cole loves to see the pictures everyday. He is telling everyone Yuri is coming soon, EMS will be prepared.
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