Festivals, Fishing, and Frolicking

Day 2 of the Children's Festival was much like day 1, only Ben was much more comfortable with the whole thing.  He laughs so easily and has such a good time playing games with other kids.  We caught a moment where a couple of Babushkas were chatting in the shade.  (see below)  

The Americans who put on the festival invited us to have "shashleek" (barbeque) by the river this evening.   It should be a tasty event!

Yesterday we had another visit with Ben by the river.  For lack of a fishing pole, Ben found a big stick and managed to land a piece of plastic...can't wait til we can get him a worm on a pole!  

He seems to be very proud of his crafts,  and holds on to them carefully.  We have learned that Ben has a plastic bag of his treasures on his bed and a few things on a small shelf.  That's about it, so when he has something to add he tries not to lose it.  Maybe that's why he's always curious about what we have in the backpack when we come!

Giles and Ben do the "chase" game, and Ben has said that mama can't run as fast as either papa or him...little does he realize how quick his mama can be when necessary!

The last few pictures are of our flat.  There's a TV but we don't use it.  The kitchen is pretty small so the frig is in a different room.  But it is quite comfortable.  

We've heard about all the rain in Bethlehem!  It's been clear and warm here for the last 2 weeks...we're not really bragging, just wanted to tell you about the weather. :-)

Take care all!

e

Enjoying the Festivals

We excursioned on foot to see the 300th anniversary celebrations today.  The vendors rivaled the Bethlehem Arts Festival (sort of) and actually it was very pleasant to stroll down a cobblestone, tree lined street, with vendors on either side ready to sell you their wares.  

We visited Ben this afternoon and, coming earlier than usual, we found him completely asleep on his bed.  Apparently this was naptime for all, as all the children in his room were asleep as well.  

After multiple attempts to rouse him, he finally realized we were there and put on a big smile.    We crossed the street to the playground where they were having the Children's Festival put on by a Calvary Chapel Church in the area.  They had stations of activities: crafts, face/arm painting, singing, games, and a Bible lesson.  

Ben loved the games most of all...oh, and of course the clown.  Yesterday he was not sure what to think of her and today she was his best friend!      

Then back to the flat, but not before a little marozhnaiya (ice cream.)  :-)  Giles and I agree that Ukraine ice cream beats ours in the US hands down.  (Especially the blueberry!)

The Court Says Yes!

Greetings from Paltava!  The street pictures below were taken in Paltava, where we are currently staying and visiting with Ben.  It is a beautiful city and we are just in time for their 300th anniversary of the famous Battle of Paltava which, in case you didn't know, was fought in 1709 between Sweden and the Russian armies of Peter the Great.  The weekend promises to be eventful with reenactments and celebrations.  

We traveled 1 1/2 hours to Gadach  today to attend  and petition the court for permission to adopt Ben.    The courtroom was small and most of the time the judge read the documents out loud.  He did ask us a few questions, like, "Do you have a house? How will you support this child?  Why did you choose Ukraine? " All very appropriate questions.   The judge didn't wear a black robe...too hot we suppose.  Poor Giles was roasting on this 95+ degree day in his formal black suit and tie!  

So the court officially gave us permission to adopt Ben (Yay!) and told us (as is the law) that we must wait 10 days.  Then we can finish the paperwork and bring him home!

The car rides to and fro consist of passing lots of trucks, dodging potholes, slowing for cows, and passing scooters ridden by babushkas.  

So we celebrated after returning from Gadach by walking across the street to the air conditioned supermarket and picking out some readymade salads and main dishes (like Wegmans :-).   I thought I picked out chicken but it was fish!  Bleeeaahh!  Oh well, the skinny cat who lives in front of our flat got a tasty snack. 

Today after the court decision,  we told Ben (officially) that we love him,  that we will be his parents forever, and that he would be coming home to America with us.   He was pretty shy but he seemed to understand.

Then, he just wanted to feed the birds.  :-)  So we went across the street bought more bread and had a nice time.  A clown appeared out of nowhere and invited us to a children's program tomorrow so that should be interesting. 

 

Birds n Bubbles

Another full (and hot!) day has come to a close.  It must have been 100 degrees today.  ( We are thankful for a nice air conditioner in our flat.)

Ben wanted to take us outside to different place today (he likes to lead) and he was just giddy when we received permission to go!  There was a small playground across the street and he took us there.  We played with bubbles , played soccer, and Giles was hoisting him up to the high bar again and again.

The he asked if we could feed the birds.  We bought some bread (and a chocolate that he picked out for himself) and had a great time fattening the flock.

Ben is so happy when we come that he can hardly contain himself!  It is so amazing for us to see this bonding take place so fast.  It is such a special thing to watch a child who knew that he had  no family, to realize that now he has a family.  It is truly unbridled joy.

Greetings !

Giles and I haven't had access to the internet for a few days  so now you will get our updates!

Our little boy's name is Benjamin Victor Baker.  :)

His Ukrainian name is Victor (Veetya for short) and his American name will be Ben.  Everyone who knows him tells us what a good boy he is and smart too!  We have seen this for ourselves as we visited him 4 times in the last 2 days.  He is already calling us Papa and Mama.  We have been doing puzzles and card games with him.  Giles helped him to build a  lego helicopter too.  He loved it!

We were in a room  visiting with a Ben yesterday (the TV was on).  I went over  to turn it off with the remote  and couldn't for some reason.  Then up comes Ben saying, " Oh Mama, you can't do it, I will turn it off for you."  Then he picks up the other remote and turns it off.  We have an interpreter with us most of the time we are with him right now to help with communication.

Today we went outside to play with a variety of balls.  Every boy loves a ball...it's a universal language.  We also ate ice cream (another universal language.)   Then we went to a nearby river where he was thrilled to see fish and frogs!  Giles chased him down the path (at Ben's bidding) --when he was caught there would be squeals of laughter.  He loves for Giles to play spaceship...he gets a ride up to the ceiling...so Giles gets his daily workout.

We are in a different flat now, one that has internet access...that sometimes works. :-) This one has a mall across the street with a nice supermarket.  There is also a toy store around the corner  which has a good variety of toys and games.  It's interesting to see a Scrabble game in Russian!

The Ukrainian food we've had has been excellent! We go to a cafeteria style restaurant each day (nice to see what you are ordering, i.e., you're not surprised with something like spreadable pork fat) and the price is reasonable.

We can't say enough good things about our Ukrainian coordinator, Zhenya.  He helps us with even the smallest details.  He has spoken with the judge and has scheduled our court date on Friday.  Once we have the court meeting, we, by Ukrainian law, must stay 10 days.  Then we can return to Kiev, get our paperwork done there and then come home!

Feel free to email us.

Good news Part 2

We realized we had more time here in the cafe...

We are located in the town of Hadach which is 4 hours east of Kiev and staying in a beautiful 4 room flat. Our flat is a 5 minute walk from the orphanage where we will go each day to visit. The orphanage director owns the flat and has been gracious to us...even offering to cook our meals. (Can't say no to that!) The food here is heavy on pork products and full fat dairy but is otherwise quite good. .... The borsht here is excellent.

Zhenya, our coordinator is terrific. We can't say enough good things about him. He is helping us with everything we need.

Now a bit more about our little guy! Before we even met him we heard good things about him from people in Kiev and everyone who knows him here as well. He's a smart little fella with a great personality, has a winning smile and plenty of energy. He is even learning some English already.

We plan to be here for the next 2 weeks while paperwork is being completed, then back to Kiev for more paperwork. (Are you starting to get the idea that they like paperwork here?)

Blessings to all...

good news!

A lot has transpired in the past 48 hours (has it only been that long?). We've been without internet access during this time (i.e. unable to use laptop), but finally made it to an internet cafe where we have a few minutes to fire off a quick update.

The big news is that we found a wonderful little boy that we had the chance to spend some time with yesterday. He just turned six and has a great disposition, an inquisitive nature, and loves people. We are staying in the same small town where the orphanage is located (about 4 hours from Kiev), and plan on visiting with him each day for the next 2 weeks while the paperwork gets completed. If all goes as planned, we hope to make him part of our family!

Much more to say (as well as pictures!), but that will have to wait until later.

Busy Day at the SDA

We had an interesting appointment at the State Department of Adoption.  

We will go to an orphanage a few hours outside of Kiev tomorrow to visit a child.     

The remainder of the day today was spent sightseeing and enjoying some ethnic Ukrainian food.  (The borscht was great!)

The pictures are of the center of Kiev and the inside of our flat.

Until tomorrow...

Our first days

Our thanks to Barb and Rob who took us to the

airport yesterday!

We had good flights and an easy time at the Kiev airport where a driver was waiting to pick us up.  

The streets of Kiev are clean and the architecture has a european flavor.  We are staying in a cozy flat in a quiet neighborhood in Kiev.   I ( Deb) am  enjoying using my Russian to purchase food items !  We did, however, enjoy McDonald's for our first meal. :) (The americano coffee is very high test!)

Today we met with our Ukrainian coordinator,

 Zhenya,

 and he explained all of our activities very well. 

 We are so pleased to be working with him. 

 He was an orphan himself and has a real heart

 for the orphan children here.  

Our appointment with the State Department of Adoption is tomorrow,  We are excited to get things rolling!