Day 10 and Counting

Monday, May 15

Another great day in Kazakhstan. We had our translator over to discuss some obedience issues with the kids that we just could not quite explain through our limited Russian language skills. Nastya has been an invaluable tool for us. It went pretty well but Sasha was not real happy about it. It seems kids don’t usually have much parental supervision and children as early as 6 or 7 wander the streets at will. This will be a huge change for Sasha and Stella who have had so much independence even at the Orphanage. We had lunch then went to town to try to find a computer game place, like an arcade, that Sasha said they went to often when they lived in Karaganda. When we got there it was closed down and another shop was in its place. We then walked around the area of town they used to live in and went to play at the playground of their former school. It has been really warm here lately and today was no exception.

After that we went back to the park in town that has a few rides, ice cream and drink vendors, and shish ka bob stands. We all rode a big swing ride similar to the one at Six Flags that spins in a big circle. The kids wanted to ride a second time so they did while we watched and took pictures. After that we walked over to the lake there and the kids took their shoes off and played in the sandy area there making sand mounds and wading in the chilly water. They found a floating log about 3 feet long in the water and enjoyed each picking up one end and tossing it back in. They were supposed to not get their jeans wet but…they got nice and wet to say the least for our journey back to the apartment via the Karaganda bus system, which gives you a real feel for the people here. At that time of day it is crowded and hot. We are the last stop or the first stop at the bus system which is good because you know when to get off. We have not tried the bus alone without a translator yet. We are getting our bearings though. Sasha prefers the taxis over the bus. He does not like to walk the 5-10 minutes to the bus stop. He has been suffering from sinus headaches and we need to find some Tylenol sinus or something.

We met with our lawyer and Marina, our coordinator here after dinner. They had all the paperwork for our court date which takes place on day 21-23. We are on day 10 in the process and they cannot file the paperwork until we are through day 14 of our bonding period. We have asked if the court date could be moved up a bit and they are not sure if that is a possibility but they will ask. If we could just pick up a day here and there it would make a big difference in when we get to come back. Please pray with us that we will have favor in the process. It was explained to us that if the judge moved it too much that he is checked by other higher judges and they will accuse him of being bribed and that would not go well for them. So sometimes their hands are tied.

Marina says there has never been a waiving of the 15 day waiting period in the history of Karaganda adoptions. They even had a girl that needed brain surgery recently and was scheduled for it and they would not waive the waiting period. It is during that time that they investigate the child’s history to make sure there is no claim or other siblings. We believe we can still be the first to have it waived or shortened. PLEASE pray in agreement with us for this.

After that we went through all the questions that the judge could ask us in the interview.
Stuff like how will we discipline, would we ever give them up, how will we keep their heritage, etc… Garrett answered that we wanted them to keep their language and said in Russian that “He speaks a little Russian”. The ladies in the room lit up like a Christmas tree and got very excited and chattered in Russian. They all agreed Garrett needs to speak Russian to the judge and the interview could be over like that because of him being impressed with him. Apparently that is huge!

We feel like we are somewhat prepared for what is coming. Everyday is a lesson in flexibility. To God be the glory!