Adoption
is a big game of ‘hurry and wait.’ A few weeks ago, I was going a thousand
miles an hour (functioning on very little sleep) trying to submit every last
bit of paperwork to Ukraine, and now we sit and wait for weeks on end. Our
precious dossier was submitted to the SDA (State Department on Adoption and
Children’s Rights) in Ukraine and will be reviewed sometime on or after January
23rd. This means that the SDA will enter our information into their database,
(hopefully) approve our application, and then invite us to travel for an
appointment with them. It is at this appointment that we will (hopefully)
get the official referrals for Andriy and Katya. WHEEW! Please pray that our
dossier is approved. The SDA is very strict about the paperwork, so
even if there’s a tiny error or misprint, we’ll have to redo the entire
document, get it notarized and apostilled (state certified and sealed) AGAIN and
mailed back to Ukraine. Every correction is costly to our finances and our
timeline. Please pray that we receive our invitation letter in the shortest
possible time. Because of the riots and
protests going on in Kiev, we are anticipating delays in the approval process,
but we are praying for the best case scenario, which means we will (hopefully) travel
somewhere in late February.
We will
have a 2-3 week notice of our appointment. As of now, we don’t know when we’ll be
traveling, we just need to have the kids’ rooms ready and our luggage on standby.
So what does this mean? We will possibly
be seeing our little boy again and meeting Katya for the first time within the
next six weeks. The last sentence both excites and terrifies me!
We ask
that you continue to cover this process in prayers, as the enemy is hard at
work and the fear of the unknown is crippling at times. I have to be honest, I’m
worn out and emotionally drained. Roman and I both need a great amount of
courage to travel to Ukraine, a country that is currently in disarray, and deal
with the reality that many things can (and probably will) go wrong while in
Ukraine. We are praying for God to give us the peace and courage to fight
through the doubt and frustrations that await us! Please also pray for Andriy and Katya and for
God’s protection over them. We talk to Andriy every few weeks and with every
phone call, he sounds more defeated and discouraged. He can’t seem to
understand why it’s taking so long and is worried he’ll be transferred to yet
another orphanage.
As
difficult as this process is, we know it is just the tip of the iceberg. As much
as I love that God is impacting Andriy and Katya’s life and growing our
family, I have grown to accept the harsh reality that the adoption process is
just the beginning of a lifetime of possible struggles. Being a parent isn’t easy (Can I get an AMEN?!).
It’s hard work and can drive you to desperation at times. Being a new parent to
scarred, confused and broken children is a lifelong struggle, yet they deserve all the love and patience in the world! We hope we have
what it takes to follow God’s direction and help mend their broken hearts. Thank you in advance for your prayers and
support!
