Gotcha Day!

Today is what's know in the adoption world as "Gotcha Day."  It is the day we picked up all the kids.

The court decree took longer than we expected - about an hour longer.  Then we ran to the orphanage to get Lena and Oleg.  We changed their clothes, said some goodbyes and jumped in the car for the 2-1/2 hour trip to Tarutena to get their birth certificates.

The kids were great in the car.  They ate every bit of food I had with me.  Once at our destination, Zhenia went to see about the birth certs, and John, Vitaly, and I entertained the kids (and some locals, I believe).  We also got to experience the closest thing I've ever seen to a Mexican bano (Cliff knows what I mean).  I signed for the birth certificates, and we were on to get Hanna.

Once in Bilograd Dnistrovsky, we stopped at the notary to start the petition for passports and then went to the orphanage.  The director was lovely as usual and very happy that we were taking Hanna to be part of our family.  The big kids were AWESOME with her.  Lena is already "Little Mama," playing with her, holding her hand, brushing her hair, feeding her.  And Oleg is terrific with her, too, doing many of the same things.  Before leaving town, we finished at the notary and then got on the road for Odessa.

By the time we arrived in Odessa it was too late to get the tax numbers and start the passports.  Vitaly's car started having some problems, but he made sure he got us to Odessa.  Zhenia found us a reasonably priced flat near the city center, so we dropped our bags and headed for McD's.  Oleg said they had never eaten there before, so tonight was the first time.

Oleg ate his cheeseburger and fries, filched a few fries from Hanna, and ate at least half of Lena's cheeseburger before he said he was full.  Lena refused the cheeseburger but ate all her fries and a few of Hanna's.  Hanna ate all of her cheeseburger and most of her fries before she started playing with the fries by taking them out of the box and putting them back in the box.

From McD's, we did some shopping - diapers, pacifier, sippy cup, toothpaste, and a few other essentials. Then the boys left us girls at the flat to get ready for bed while they went to the grocery to get us some food for tomorrow.  Lena LOVES her pajamas - Tinkerbell.  Hanna was actually quite helpful in getting herself dressed and ready for bed.  I decided NOT to try bath, brushing teeth, etc. tonight.  Everyone is exhausted, and I thought it was better just to get sleep.

While the guys were gone, I tried to get Hanna and Lena to settle down, but Lena was too excited by her new clothes and trying to "help" with Hanna.  Once John was back, he took over with the girls, and I settled on the couch with Oleg and the computer.  Emma had sent me an email, so I responded to her and caught up on some other email stuff.  Next thing I know, Oleg is reading my emails out loud to me and actually doing quite well.  When we got to one from Cliff, he read it to me, read my response, and then I asked him if he wanted to say something to Papa.  He did, so I typed it for him and sent it.

The internet quit working, so I checked on John and the girls.  Lena was snoring but Hanna was still wide awake and really fighting sleep.  I really thought it could go either way, but I suspected that we might have trouble with her.  She did not have her nap this afternoon and was WAY past tired.  As I type, we are about 2-1/2 hours into trying to get her to sleep.  It is John's turn now.  Lena has barely moved since she went to sleep.  Oleg is asleep, too.  Looks like a long night for John and me.

Somehow I got here without a camera.  Thankfully, Zhenia has  taken some great pics today, so I will post when I get a chance.

I think it may be time for me to go give John a break.  Wish me luck!