We leave for Kiev in three weeks!

Jeff and I are starting this blog so you can share in our adoption journey.

We leave for Ukraine (Kiev) in less than three weeks. Our flight is 8 hours to Frankfurt, a 4 hour lay over, and then a 2 hour flight to Kiev. I am hoping I can order soup at the Frankfurt airport since it is the only word I can remember from German class.

Jeff and I are hoping to adopt 1 or 2 children under the age of 5. We are flying in "blind", which means we have not met the child(ren), nor do we know if any in our age range will be available for adoption.

For those of you who are not familiar with the process of adoption from Ukraine, we fly out and meet with their national adoption agency (SDA) for one hour. Our appointment is scheduled for Tuesday, July 24th. During this time, they will show us 3-10 files on available children that meet our criteria. How many files you are shown is not consistent. I have read that some families have been shown 3 files, while others have been shown 10 files. Some families do not even get presented with children that meet thier criteria - too old, serious health concerns, etc.

You review the files presented to you, ask questions about the child(ren), and -- hopefully -- accept a referral to visit the child(ren). I have read many stories from people who have adopted and they say that when they are presented with the child they should adopt, they just "know" it is their child. If you do not accept a referral at this visit, you have to wait around Kiev a week or so for another appointment.

Once you have a referral, you leave Kiev and travel to the region where the child/orphanage is located. This can be 45 minutes away or a 15 hour train ride! At the orphange, you meet the director, discuss why you want to adopt and the director approves your visit. You then spend time with the child to determine their current health, if there is a bond, etc.

A decision is made on adopting the child and then there is a quite a bit of paperwork, a 10 day wait period and a court appearance if you choose to adopt them. This is probably the longest part of the trip (unless you have to wait for a second referral). If everything goes well, the adoption is finalized and you return to Kiev with the child(ren) to complete any remaining paperwork and fly home.

The entire process -- if it goes smoothly -- takes between 4 - 5 weeks.

Please keep us in your thoughts - we are hoping for the best possible outcome!