Saturday, December 19, 2020

It's nearly midnight but I must post an important update.  Two days ago, on Thursday, December 17, our adoption of Nicole became final!  Nadia took court documents that say Nicole is officially our daughter, and then picked up a new birth certificate, which she dropped off with the Ukrainian passport application.  It was a busy day for Nadia and our facilitator Alla, as they drove all over the city, and we've learned Kyiv traffic can be very significant.

Then yesterday, the big day finally arrived, and we brought Nicole from the orphanage to our rented apartment in Kyiv!  After arriving at the orphanage, we met briefly with an administrator and a couple of doctors, who seemed happy to see Nicole going to a new home, then we wrapped her in a nice, warm winter snowsuit (or "kombinazon" as Nadia calls it) and carried her to the car.  When we arrived at the apartment in late afternoon and laid her on a bed, the boys were so excited and wanted to play with her.  We warned them to be very careful with this delicate, beautiful girl, so they gently held her hand and lightly stroked her hair.  Mark, who is nearly 5 years old, seemed especially happy and a warm smile lit up his face as he sat next to his sister.  It was a really wonderful and somewhat surreal feeling to have Nicole with us, after this long journey that began in early 2019.

In the past 24 hours, we've been so pleased to have Nicole here.  Nadia has been feeding her exclusively through the mouth, as the feeding tube was removed, and Nicole seems to have accepted this method of getting nutrition, although it's a bit of an effort for her to swallow the soft baby food Nadia prepares.  She slept well last night, and woke early this morning at about 6:30.  We took her outside for a short walk this afternoon, and the weather was pleasant with no wind and a comfortable temperature.  Nicole seems very relaxed in the bathtub, and she enjoyed her first bubble bath this evening.  Now, she is sleeping peacefully with Nadia, and we all need rest after a couple of busy and exciting days.

I forgot to mention that I took the boys out for a while this afternoon to the center of Kyiv, where we walked around Maidan square and went to the jellyfish museum!  That was a nice way to spend 30 minutes, then we returned to the apartment.  We hope to see a little more of the city tomorrow, or just spend time at one of the many playgrounds.  Then, if all goes well in the next few days, we'll board a plane next weekend and fly home.  Stay tuned for more updates!

I certainly must take time to say a great big THANK YOU to everyone who has contributed to our fundraising effort, and many have contributed today.  This has been a wonderful experience, and ALL donations are making it less stressful for our family, as they will help us pay credit card bills for our flights home, as well as other expenses we have incurred along the way.  Your support is so important and necessary for our adoption of Nicole, I can't think everyone enough.  Please wish us luck as we enter the final week of our visit to Ukraine!