Where do you begin in sharing the best news ever! Today we met the three cutest kids this side of the Urals. After consulting with our international adoption (IA) pediatrician we are accepting the referral and proceeding with the adoption of Peter, Paul and Mary.

Our day started at 0-dark 30 packing and repacking toys to take with us. Not knowing their ages and situation made that more difficult. But as we drove the two hours to Peter and Paul’s orphanage we learned their ages and names. Once inside we met with their doctors and caregivers who shared their medical and social histories. Then came the fun part – playing with the boys. It was clear that they were brothers and Paul was doing his part as the older brother with his arm protectively around Peter when we first met. But a few tickles by Nancy and the fun broke loose. Though they were shy at first Nancy and I soon were on the floor rolling those self-powered cars back and forth to Peter – who just turned 4 and Paul who turned 6 this past fall. After watching them race around the play room we proceeded to blow bubbles at them and then laugh as Peter tried catching the ones that his older brother was making (though with a missing front baby tooth it was a bit of a challenge). As they left for naps they both waved and Paul asked if we could come back tomorrow and play while little Peter blew us a kiss good bye! We now didn’t want to leave at all.
We then left and drove another 30 minutes to Mary’s boarding school. We first met with her caregivers and got her medical and social history. As that was winding down, in walks the cutest little girl with this white lacy ribbon in her hair. She walked over to the sofa we were sitting on and she shyly was introduced. Small talk and inside intel told us that the doll we had brought from home would be just the ticket to break the ice. When Nancy pulled it out of the day pack her eyes lit up and she beamed a wide smile. She held the doll and stoked her hair. Though she admitted she liked reading more than most things she clearly loves that doll and soon decided to call her Sophia. We had learned that her favorite color was pink and again Nancy’s instinct hit the nail on the head because we were able to pull a pink purse with a cat on the side out of the day pack which she thought that was wonderful. We then introduced the bubbles and what a hoot that was. Before we were done Nancy and I were on the floor blowing bubbles with her and making quite the mess of things! She played with those bubbles quite a while in between showing us the school’s Barbie and Ken dolls and a clock to demonstrate that she could count and match the time on the wall clock to her clock. Next we relived our oun childhood as Mary proceeded to name and eat all the animals in the animal cracker box. Towards the end she willingly shared the last two with Kevin. It was great to see her close the box and proudly put it in her new pink purse. As we wound things down she gave us each a hug and as we walked down the hall she reached out and took both our hands. As we left she gave me a hug and Nancy got both a hug and a kiss. It was a great way to end a stellar day in Siberia.
But, the fun was not completely over. We still had to travel 2.5 hours back in driving snow and bitter temperatures. Midway back our driver veered off the road into a dimly lit road side truck stop of sorts (it reminded me of the Ice Road truckers show on TV). We pulled up in front of one of those charcoal cooking stands that they tell you not to eat at (but our driver knew the place well) . Well, we did eat and it was very good and gave us another slice of local life here in Siberia. Upon arrival at our hotel we typed up all the notes we had been taking all day and emailed them to our IA doctor back in New York. That consultation, which ended just an hour ago, revealed that the kid’s issues are typical of international adoptions and at present don’t amount to anything that we can’t work to resolve and remedy.
Tomorrow we will return to visit more with the kids and to finish the referral acceptance paperwork. We will then leave Kemerovo on Friday morning to return to the US on Sunday. Your prayers have been with us and felt each moment of each day and we thank all of you for your love and support.
Stay tuned as we learn more about the children and our next steps…