GOTCHA DAY!!!!

Good Morning!

They call it "Gotcha Day" the day you actually take your kids out of the orphanage to go home. That's what yesterday was for us!! And what a wild ride it has been!

Wednesday was easy, running a few errands in Kiev and then even time for a nap and working remotely online for a while. A nice day of rest, which I really needed!

We arrived via train in Kharkov at 6:30 am on Thursday, had breakfast at the McDonalds by the train station, and were to the passport office by 9:00. By 10:30 we had applied for Irra's passport and they promised to have it for us today!! It was so fast as to be almost unbelievable. Here we've been working on getting this crazy passport since early December and Halya works in out in less than one ane a half hours! She's wonderful!

Then we picked up the inspector from Child Services and went to the orpahange. The director greated me with a hug bear hug. He wounldn't let me go! He had been expecting us, and was really really happy I was there. The inspector gave him the paperw I needed to sign to take custody of the girls, and he made a big show of kissing them. He said they had been in the middle of a visit by the local authorities and they had to hide the girls, since they were not really supposed to be there. Having me finally take them is a big item off his plate!

The girls however, were not expecting us yesterday and were a little shocked that they were leaving - right then. It took a while to get them packed and all the good byes said. It was really difficult to say good bye to Tonya. I pulled her aside and told her that we loved her and that God loved her and we would keep praying for her. She said that she wanted us to know that she had chosen not to come only because she was afraid and not because she didn't like us. I understand perfectly and told her that. It was a huge step for all of us yestday and a little scary for both the girls and me. Halya asked me on the way home "can you believe it, they are finally yours" and I had to say no, that it was still hard to believe. It still seems unreal. This is the beginning of end of the adoption, and the beginning of a new life for our entire family!

By then it was almost dark and remember that there is snow on the ground and the roads are slippery. We managed go get back to the main roads with only a little trouble. We had 6 people piled into a car that seats 5 and the roads were really bumpy. Vika got a little overwhelmed by the excitement and the motion of the car (and for some reason she never had lunch, never did find out why) so we had to pull over twice for her to get some fresh air. We finally made it back to McDonalds and had dinner. Why is it that I never eat McDonalds in the US but always in Ukraine? :) We then tried three different hotels before finding one in downtown Kharkov and getting settled about 9:00. It was so nice to be able to clean up and get some sleep!!

Vika is rooming with Halya and Irra is with me this morning. She's watching Joyce Meyers on TV while I type this - a good sign!

I was a little startled at what they girls packed. Very few clothes, Irra only brought the boots she was wearing and a pair of flip flops for shoes. They brought a few stuffed animals and other personal things, and a few clothes, but they easliy fit into the suitcase I left for them in September. I'll have room to put some of my stuff in with theirs and condense the amount of carry on luggage we have. It's sad that their entire lives fit into that suitcase with room to spare...

Got to run. We have to go back to the orphanage for a little more paperwork, then to get the passports, and I'm going to try to reach my friend Oleg and maybe we can see him today. Then the train back to Kiev tonight.

Hey, Beth and Mary, where is the Ukrainian Bible Society that you told me about? Irra has a Bible in Ukrainian but I want one for Vika before we go. We visited a bookstore on Wed and I got them a couple of books to help learn English but couldn't find a Bible suitable for teens.

Thanks so much for everyone's prayers and support. I can't wait to get home and introduce you to our daughters!!

God is SOOO Good - All The Time, God is Good!!

Blessings,

Sheri, Irra and Vika

PS - Laurie and Erika, the girls loved the video you sent!!