Our daily routine

We have been here four weeks and have finally received word this morning that we got the "good judge"...Praise God....and that we 'should', 'maybe', hear tomorrow about our court date. So we will be sure and keep you informed.

Meanwhile, here are a few photos (some of which I stole from the internet), which document our daily routine.

Every morning at about 8:30 we walk about a mile to the McDonalds by the main metro station. So you know, this is only a picture stolen off the internet which explains why the people are wearing coats and not summer clothes. In fact it isn't even the real McDonalds but a random Ukrainain McDonalds that I googled.

And we meet the Whites, who are also here adopting and are on about the same time schedule as we are. The Whites got the good judge too by the way, so you can rejoice with them as well! :)

We walk to the Metro, not to be confused with the Women's bathroom, which starts with an "M" looking character but is not really an M.

We buy 2 blue tokens for 1.7 grivnas each, which is the equivalent of about 50 cents per person round trip to and from the orphanage. We put our tokens in the slot and ride down a very, very long-like the longest escalator I have ever seen escalator-about 8-10 stories deep---into the ground.

You will notice these lit up signs everywhere. These are ads that we are forced to see every day. Here is an ad for example for what I assume is a bridal store or diamond store. Something about this advertisement gives me the creeps but I can't quite put my finger on what it is.

We shove our way onto the metro. I learned from experience that if it is really crowded, it is important to make sure you have your arms around the right guy, if you know what I mean. Ooops.

The orphanage is about 7 stops away so the metro is a great place for people-watching. It is fun to watch teenagers, babushkas, lovers, old men, and peddlers who sell anything from aspirin (I think) to bandaids, to flowers, to CDs. One guy was trying to sell me a CD to teach me how to speak english. How funny is that. We have seen people with dogs, a man with a monkey, see-through clothing. One day we saw a woman get her shoe stuck and then unstuck in the door. We saw a man hobbling on crutches asking for money, with his feet severely turned in, but once he got off the metro his feet miraculously turned straight again! John wasn't fooled but he sure fooled me!

We cross the Dnieper river where sometimes we see interesting sunbathers on the beach.

On the very last stop of the metro, we get out and walk about 1/2 mile to the orphanage where of course we play with the children during visiting hours.

When visiting hours are over, we go back home and eat lunch of most commonly ham sandwiches and chips, or pasta. Today I made homemade salsa which John is enjoying a lot with a Ukrainian version of tortilla chips.

 We wait for some kind of news from our facilitator about court or any other interesting adoption development.

Then John works while I socialize on the internet, research homeschool curriculum, take a nap, read a book, etc.

It's been such a blessing to have other adoptive parents in town to meet up with for dinner. One evening we ordered pizza and had everyone over for a game of cards.

Then we enjoy this beautiful sight from our 15th floor apartment before we go to bed.

So we can get up in the morning and start it all over again...