A"sign"

We left our apartment this evening to take a stroll and I said as we turned the corner from our alleyway to the street that there was a rainbow somewhere, I could just feel it. We looked up in the sky but did not see anything. With each step and turn we looked all around and still nothing. Not to my surprise when we reached a few blocks up I turned to peer at the sky again and there it was, a rainbow, just as I knew. It's a sign!

Tomorrow is the day

The sun shined brightly and lit up our room early this morning. Before long Jess and I were up and out. Our main goal today was to keep busy, walk the city, and make it to the SDA to channel positive energy for tomorrow. I silently stood next to the building and asked "Kiska" (we refer to our child as this) to reveal herself/himself to us tomorrow around 3pm when we are at our appointment. "Please wait until the exact time that we are in our meeting so that we can find you," I said. We are trying very hard and need to see your file tomorrow. Please don't be scared little one...we promise to love you, protect you, keep you safe, and we promise you will never go hungry. Your Papa loves dessert so there will be plenty of that too! Jess stood close pleading to "Kiska" too. He is sure that our little one is ready to come out and play. Tonight we anxiously await trying desperately not to let the anxiety creep in.
We walked along the open market across the way from the SDA and bought a few souvenirs. I really wanted to buy this beautiful handmade Ukrainian blouse but the asking price was $71 American dollars. I figured I should wait until Sveta returns and ask her to help me negotiate. Funny, those of you that know me would never imagine that I would be asking someone else to negotiate something for me! I will definitely return home with one of these blouses. They remind me of an embroidered shirt from the 60's...totally groovy!
Closing today with sincere gratitude to all of our friends and family and thanking you for sending us your good thoughts and positive energy for tomorrow's 3pm appointment. Thanks to all of you who have recruited your "peeps" to help us with this too...it's making a difference!
So many questions and thoughts fill our mind about tomorrow, the time to sleep will not come fast enough. We were reminded yesterday by dear friends that we have each other and that everything is going to work out exactly the way it supposed to. Sleep tight Kiska, tomorrow something good is going to happen!

Weekend

The sound of rain hitting the building kept us in bed this morning. It was nice to sleep in.
Jesse cooked a great breakfast and we took it easy until the afternoon. Back to our coffee cafe place just up the street. Did not feel like going to far because of the rain. Thought about buying an umbrella but never did. Ordered lunch/dinner at the coffee place. We had a delicious cesars salad and a chicken and tomato pannini. I was craving iceberg lettuce. There is no problem finding cabbage here, but lettuce is difficult. The best thing about our outing was dessert! Jess has been eye-balling this scrumptious dish for a few days now and finally broke down today. We indulged in what they call pancakes. We know it as a crepe. The one Jesse ordered was filled with warm chocolate nutella, hazelnuts, and raisins, with powdered sugar sprinkled on top and to finish it off there was white and dark chocolate syrup drizzled all over it. OMG...I looked at Jesse after his first bite...he was in heaven! It was by far the best thing we have ever had! At some point today Jesse looked at me and said, "I have never in my whole life wanted a weekend to go by so fast!" That is pretty much the way we are feeling. Have a big day planned for tomorrow to walk the city and keep busy. Heard from Sveta just awhile ago and her plan is to catch a bus from her hometown tomorrow evening around 9pm. That will put her back in Kiev on Monday morning around 6am in time for our second appointment.

HAPPY BIRTHDAY POP'S

This blog is dedicated to my Father who turns 86 years old today. Happy Birthday from the Ukraine.
My sisters and I have always referred to him as "Pop's" He is my Pop, my loving friend, my inspiration, and my "Hero!" He is a man of his word, extremely loyal, and absolutely trustworthy. I always knew he would protect me and keep me safe. I have always believed that he is the wisest man I know. His undeniable intelligence is one thing he did not pass on to me. I can ask him a question about anything ie...World History, Art, English Literature, Mathematics, and he will give me the answer, whether it is correct I do not know...but I believe him! He is ridiculously generous with his money, time and knowledge. When you are in his presence you can not help but feel his gentle soul. He is well rounded-a forward thinking man who stands up for what he believes. He is not afraid to voice his opinion even in an arena where others may feel different. He has always stayed true to himself- this he did pass on to me. He taught me that each of us can make a difference, that in times of adversity one can find the strength within to swallow the darkness and move on. My Pop's grew up in an orphanage from the time he was 5 years old. Under the worst circumstances he found good in others who weren't always so nice, and made the best of what he had. He grew up with no "real" role models but despite that he is an amazing husband and father. He raised along with my Mother 4 loving daughters, all who would say that he is the most successful man they know. His success is reflected in the way his children feel about him. All of us would say he is our outstanding Pop's...our dear friend...our 'HERO"
I hope that one day I am as incredible of a parent to my child as he has been to me. Happy Birthday-I love you!

Now to Jess and I for a moment...yippee we are online for the first time in 24 hours. Apparently the apartment owner did not pay his bill. Glad it is rectified. Yesterday we braved the grocery store alone using our Ukrainian ATM card to pay. The strange thing about the grocery store is you are not allowed to carry anything in the store except for your purse. If you have any other belongings there are lockers to put them in. Our feet took us to downtown where we even ventured into shops. Today we visited an old Synagogue in the middle of Kiev. Jess put on a yarmulke and we were given permission inside to walk around. Once inside we both stood quietly and prayed. Neither of us told one another what we were praying about but my guess is it was for the same thing. Ordered my first latte without Sveta and the waitress brought me an espresso...good try! Returned home after the rain got in our way.
Our 2nd appointment is scheduled for 3pm on Monday...positive energy our way!

Waiting

Active morning playing cards, cleaning our apartment, including sweeping and mopping the floors. Took a long walk to the SDA in the afternoon to see if our second appointment was posted. When we arrived there were several facilitators and people around. Some I am sure were there for their first appointments and others for the same reason we were. Jess and I both recognized people we had seen before. Our appointment is Monday but we do not have a time yet. We will know by the afternoon on Friday. I saw an Italian woman (who I saw the other day at the SDA) sitting on a bench waiting for her facilitator. I am sure she was waiting to hear about her second appointment too. As I watched her I imagined she must be feeling what I am. The uncertainty, and stress of the experience. Dreaming of her little one whom she does not know yet. Wishing and hoping that her second referral is the "one." Reaching to her limits to find the strength to wait more to continue to believe that it is all going to work out. I wanted her to look at me to see that she was not alone. I too am feeling the same way, in the moments that passed, both of us, her and I, trapped in our own worlds and feeling alone. I wish her all good things and that she is united soon with her child.
Sveta took off for a few days to her home town to visit with her child and husband. Before going we asked her to write down a few important things for us ie...decaf coffee, pizza with mushrooms and onions, and hot tea. That way we can venture out to this cute coffee house by our apartment and know what to ask for. We will be fine walking around the city since we have familiarized ourselves with it the last week and going to the grocery store will be a piece of cake. Chocolate is on isle 12!
The language barrier is the hard part. If we could understand the letters it would make it easier but the Cyrillic alphebet takes talent to decifer. The few Russian lessons I took have helped me a wee bit but not much. We do have Igor's aka..."Ricky Martin" phone number should we need a driver. I forgot to mention in the earlier blogs that Jesse named Igor, Ricky Martin. It took me some time to see it, but now I do. It is in the structure of his face and around his eyes. Of course Igor got a total kick out of it when we told him who he looked like. He does not speak or understand any English so it will be quite interesting for all of us if we need him.
Looking forward to a night alone with my hubby-

Refusal letter submission

Arrived at the SDA around 9am. Sveta submitted the proper paperwork but then was told that the copy of our Dossier would not be sufficient that they needed our original. So back to the apartment to pick up the correct paperwork and back to the SDA. She was surprised by this and said it is something new, that the other facilitators were questioning it as well.
Had to go to the bank, grocery store and take care of a few other things. We were told to call the SDA at 4:30 pm today to find out when our 2nd appointment will be which we did, however they did not have any information for us yet so we are waiting...you would think we would be used to waiting but today was hard! We should know something in the next day or two. Decided since we are here for alittle while we should cook instead of eating out each day. Plus my waist can't take anymore greasy potatoes...at least for a few days.
Doing our best to stay positive but like I said today was a tough day...very overwhelming.
Tomorrow is going to be a better day!

Holiday

Our day began with a bowl of corn flakes, yes you can get them here in the Ukraine.
We took it easy for the most part. Sveta and I dragged Jess with us to the nail salon. Figured I could use a manicure. While we were there Jess decided to find out how much a hair cut cost . For just $16 he could get a cut wash and blow dry, so he went for it. The best part was the girl that cut his hair! She was hot! He is thinking about going back tomorrow! Something good happened today...our washing machine is broken and Sveta called to notify the property manager who sent over the apartment owner. He took our laundry and washed it all and then brought it back to us. Yes it was wet, but clean...works for me!
Just got back from a traditional Ukrainian dinner. The lovely restaurant was in a local park not far from our apartment. As we walked thru the park to get there we passed hundreds of men sitting around tables playing chess...chess is a very big game here and boy are those men serious. Dinner consisted of salad, meat, potatoes, and a crepe like apple dessert called "mlinzi"... Superb!
Back to the apartment in order to wake up early to make it to the SDA to drop off our paperwork. So glad tomorrow is Tuesday.

More Ukrainian tid-bits
It is bad luck to pick up a coin from the ground
It is bad luck to throw your trash away in the evening
It is bad luck to wash your floor right after a person leaves your house