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View Full Version : GREAT LINKS FOR UKRAINE & BEST WEB SITE FOR UKRAINE INFO



mama2be
10-07-2003, 01:40 PM
I've searched and searched but so far this is the best info I have found...very specific and easy to read.
I was told to avoid the gal listed to do NC home studies and am thrilled with the company I contacted...but outside of that this info looked TOP NOTCH and very accurate.
http://www.adoptukraine.com/index.html

I AM GOING TO PUT SOME INFO I HAVE FOUND IN THIS THREAD...I HAVE BEEN ASKED FOR A LOT OF INFO AND IN ALL HOENSTY THERE IS SO MUCH THAT I REALLY CAN NOT PASS IT ON INDIVIDUALLY AND GET THRU THE PROCESS...BUT I DO HOPE THAT THE INFO I PROVIDE CAN GIVE AN EXCELLENT "COURSE" AND RESEARCH INFO ...LITTLE QUESTIONS I CAN MAYBE ANSWER BUT THIS IS SO TIME CONSUMING...I HOPE THIS HELPS!!!!

mama2be
10-07-2003, 06:53 PM
Anyone interested in adoption from Ukraine I've done a lot of leg work these past few days...let me know and I will post some info.
I've copied some 200 pages of info and have it in a folder...

I'd rather post to a public place so I'm not emailing info back and forth all day, but let me know...

I think I've found:
"the best facilitator"
"the best translator"
"the best person to take papers to the Embassy and send on to Ukraine"

an awesome Homestudy group here in North Carolina

And several folks journals and time lines on the what they did, how , when etc...

So if anyone is interested in an Independent Ukraine adoption with faciliator help then let me know and I'll share my knowledge here...
It is lengthy and only want to do it if there is a request for it...

malie
10-07-2003, 08:10 PM
Another resource to add to your list (although I won't say it's the best international adoption clinic) but Duke has an International Adoption Clinic if you ever have medical information that needs to be reviewed.

http://www.dukehealth.org/childrens_services/adoption_services.asp

Cathy Zalenski is the current BCIS (formerly INS) officer in Charlotte that deals with orphan petitions. Although you still send things attn: Orphan Petitions officer not to her directly

mama2be
10-07-2003, 09:34 PM
Thank you for that info...Duke is in our neck of the woods (50 mintues away) so that is great to know :)...

Thank you!!!

Kimberly H
10-08-2003, 05:31 AM
Thank you, thank you, thank you! I had no idea Duke has an adoption clinic.

Kimberly H
10-08-2003, 05:32 AM
Neve, be sure to look for a Yahoo Group too. You'll get tons of info and I'm sure there is more more than one.

I belong to about 8 ChinaAdopt Yahoo Groups. ;D

mama2be
10-08-2003, 07:36 AM
That's where I actually got a lot of my info...I have noticed that you have to read them well becasue I think there are a of "ads" in the messages...but the truth comes out once you start taking notes on what is said etc...

I agree a great place to start atleast!!!

mama2be
10-10-2003, 12:32 PM
http://www.frua.org/chat_main.html

http://groups.yahoo.com/group/Adoption_from_Ukraine


I have done most of my research on the yahoo boards...I have found that many of the participants are "in the biz" but you will see some of the "customers" (family who have adopted or want to adopt) and their experiences...

Note names that they drop as "facilitators" and you will start to get an impression of who you want to go thr.

There are four facilitators that I have heard good things about:
I will post those under a facilitator link :)


.

mama2be
10-10-2003, 01:00 PM
There are I think about 4 well knowns in this arena,

There is a Cathy Harris who is highly respected and has helped many many people. From what I see she has helped the most number of people, she lives in the States and has adopted many children. She is quick to respond and she helped a local gal and her adoptions. She evidently has a great communication with her clients in that they have like a yahoo group to support eachother
www.ukraineangels.com



There is a guy named Oleg who lives in Ukraine (and I think is Ukraine) and does have a gal named Amy who helps him here in this country. Oleg seems to have alot of connections (in my research)...I have decided to go with him. BUT I THINK IT BEST THAT IF INTERESTED FOLKS LOOK INTO THE OTHERS TOO...I THINK I AM NERVOUS RECOMMENDING SOMEHTING SO IMPORTANT AND THAT I CAN NOT PERSONALLY ATTEST TO.
http://www.geocities.com/adoptukr/




This group was also recommended to me, with favorable remarks
www.hiskidstoo.org

This is a DR's site he has adopted and evidently offers to help, but I think you still need a translator
http://www.UkraineAdoptionHelper.com

mama2be
10-10-2003, 01:10 PM
He has gotten back with me with each question...I have to be honest I don't really know where he fits into the equation too much...he is the one who sends your Dossier to embassy and to Ukraine and checks that everything is accurate I beleive.
www.documentman.com

Jeff Doyle is his name
I don't know if he is Ukraine specific or does other countries too

mama2be
10-10-2003, 01:16 PM
I REMOVED THEIR LAST NAME, BUT I HAVE GOTTEN SEVERAL TESTAMONIALS...IF YOU GO ON THE YAHOO GROUPS AND ASK FO RHTEM THEY ALL SEND THEIR STORIES...THIS ONE JSUT HIT ME THE MOST, AND REMINDED ME OF WHAT TO EXPECT!!!!


We are David and Aprill. We have three biological children who are now 15 (John David), 11 (Elizabeth) and 7 (Michael). We have always wanted more children and were thankful to find the Ukrainian program as our first real hope of adding to our family. We had approval for three children and wanted to adopt two girls and a boy under 7. We traveled the first time in April 2003 when Ms. Parienko was the director. We adopted two children (biological brother and sister, ages 7 and 5, Joseph and Emily) in May 2003 from Simferopol, Ukraine using Luda who works on Vlad's team. We could not stay any longer at that time to find our third child because the director at the AC was leaving and things were in chaos there. So we went back in July 2003 to Simferopol and adopted another little girl who is also 7 (Morgan) from the same orphanage who was just coming available. Joseph and Emily have been home almost 5 months now and Morgan has been home almos!
t 2 months.
>
> We have never really written our whole story because since we have been home with the children I have devoted every minute I can to my children and I haven't wanted to take time away from them to spend on the computer. I also have had a hard time just sorting through all my feelings and knowing what to write.
>
> I want to try now to briefly summarize what I call the good, the bad and the ugly from our experience. This is in no way everything that happened to us but I do want to share what I feel like is the most important and the things I wish I had known before I went.
>
> The GOOD! Our children are wonderful! I cannot say enough good things about my own children and also the other children we met in Simferopol. We spent a lot of time visiting and playing with all the children at the orphanage there in Simferopol. The director could see that we just really loved all the children and she let us spend time with almost all of them there, which we've heard is unusual to get that privilege. We also took pictures for the director of children who would be coming availabe soon. She saw that we enjoyed taking pictures with our digital camera and asked if we could help her get these pictures done for the AC and we really enjoyed doing that for her. I can say without a doubt there are many wonderful children there who would be an incredible blessing to anyone's life and family. They are all happy, healthy, full of personality and love, and the small amount of kindness and attention we gave them was repaid to us with the most wonderful hugs and !
smiles and we couldn't believe how loving they all were. They all quickly picked up a small amount of English and enjoyed talking to us as much as they could.
>
> There will always be a part of my heart there with the ones I couldn't bring home and I am still trying to figure out how I can go back and adopt again. Our own children have had really no adjustment problems. They are learning English very fast and have tackled their new lives with enthusiasm and courage and they are all my little heroes. Everyone who comes in contact with them feels blessed and can't believe there are wonderful children like these who have no homes and are stuck in institutions. They have no behavior problems and are favorites of their teachers and at the top of their class in school already. They are just a joy to be with. If you're reading this and thinking this sounds too good to be true, I just have to say again that it is true and they are just wonderful children and there are many more like them. I will say that one thing to consider in adopting an older child is the length of time in the orphanage. Ours had only been there about a year and!
a half and I think that is one thing that has helped them in learning to live in a family now and have no attachment problems, because they weren't in the orphanage very long. That was good advice we got from our doctor before we left, that the less time in the orphanage the better as far as attachment goes.
>
> The BAD: Ukraine, how can I say, is a very depressing place to me. When we arrived on April 18 it was the end of winter there and things were very bleak and gray and ugly. There are many suffering people there and it is hard for me to be surrounded by that and be able to keep my spirits up. There is a sense of hoplessness that I have never encountered before. It is a very oppressive, paranoid, fearful place and no one there is helpful or kind or cares at all what you're trying to accompish or if they can help you. If anyone had tried at all to help us, we could have found our third child while we there the first time and wouldn't have had to turn around and go back in two months. But there is so much fear about trying to help anyone that the orphanage directors won't even talk on the phone to each other about children that are available. And the AC is the ultimate unhelpful place. We now know for a fact that there was a child available at the other orphanage in ou!
r region where we were that I'm sure we would have taken, and we tried so hard to get someone (the AC, the orphanage director, our translator) to check on that while we were there but they wouldn't. So we ended up going back in two months which of course added greatly to the expense of our adoption.
>
> The only cheerful places we went while we were there were the orphanages we visited. The children were so happy and beautiful and glad to see us. Our time spent with them will always be very precious to us. And all our good memories of Ukraine are of the children. I have to say that the people on our team were helpful as much as they could be and they did everything we needed them to do with determination and perseverance with almost no concern for themselves. But to get anyone else to do anything you need done you might as well bang your head against the wall. They could care less if you need to get home or back to your life. So please don't go there expecting anyone to care at all about your schedule or need to get home or if you accomplish what you came to accomplish.
>
> THE UGLY: The adoption business there is very corrupt. We had read every story we could read before we left and knew there was some corrpution and baby selling. But what I didn't really understand before I went is why there are no healthy babies available to independent adopters. The babies who have no diagnoses are sold to agencies for peole who are paying "big money" as my translators told me. The healthy babies that we independent adopters are able to get are the ones that are missed by the people pulling out the healthy babies to sell because they might have a diagnosis that would bother some agency people. I mean this in no way to offend those people who have adopted healthy babies whose diagnoses turned out to be nonexistent. I am very happy for you. But I believe that anyone who has any hope of adopting a healthy young girl (or maybe even boy) will have to pay extra money above the normal $4500 that is the stated fee, and that option of paying more to get th!
e child you're looking for may or may not be available to you, depending on your translator and their contacts. I have to speak from my own experience and the information that was given to me by my translators. I am not making this up.
>
> I feel like the biggest mistake I made in my adoption process was not speaking to my regional translator personally before we arrived in Ukraine. They are the ones who work in the system day to day and they are the only ones who have any clue as to what's going on behind the scenes. And the information they gave me when I was there was nothing like I had read in any story on this group. I could give specific examples, but let me say that they told me of corrpution on many levels, from orphanage directors to AC personnel to even regional officials who go into orphanages and pull out the files of healthy babies to sell to their agency contacts. It is very ugly stuff. When we got to Ukraine and found out these things it really floored us. It is much more pervasive than I could figure from what I read, and that is why I want to really state it as clearly as possible to all waiting to go so you won't be stunned like we were.
>
> Another thing that was heartbreaking to us is how younger siblings are adopted away from the older ones I'm sure because they can be sold and the older ones can't. Our children had a younger sister who was adopted away from them and it is so hard for them and us to understand why she couldn't come to their new home and grow up with them. Although the AC told us she was adopted by Ukrainians, our translator thought she was probably sold for "big money." A group of three siblings is exactly what we went there looking for and she would have been the end of our search if she had been left with them. So for all you hear about them not separating siblings, that's bull if the younger one is young enough to sell. Also, we were told by the American consulate in Kiev that by Ukrainian law our children are entitled to know where their siblings are. But the AC will not give us that information which makes us believe that something illegal took place. And we are trying to figure!
out how to get that information for our children to have so if they ever want to find their sibling they can.
>
> Also, the AC did not even have the information that the last child we adopted had three other siblings. She told us that herself. The orphanage director told us her baby brother had died but we have no records of that so we are not sure. And the older brother and sister who our daughter really cares for we can't even find out where they are or why they are not on record at the AC. We were promised that information by the orphanage director while in Ukraine but we still can't get it from her.
>
> I hate to sound so negative, but I do feel like it's important to be honest with people who are about to go to Ukraine so they won't be so stunned by the corruption like we were. But to help clear some of the negative out of the way I have to really encourage people to consider children who are not babies.
>
> As hard as it is to find a healthy baby, it is easy to find a healthy, wonderful child who is not a baby. And they are so deserving of good homes and good parents. And if you let yourself get out of the competition for a baby, you will have such a pleasant experience finding a wonderful loving child who will appreciate a home and a mom and a dad. And I have to say that a child who is old enough to know what it means to be without, and then to have a home and a mom and dad who love them, it gives them a depth to their character that most people will never attain. And I am so excited to see every day what they are doing with their new lives and I know they will have a wonderful future and will bring great joy to those who love and know them.
>
> And if anyone is bothered by anything I've said here, please don't waste your time fussing at me. It won't change my experience or what I know one bit. I won't respond to anyone who wants to tell me I didn't experience this. If there is anyone who wants more information from me, I will try to help you in any way I can. My only desire now is to help find homes for all the wonderful children that most people don't consider because they're over 2. If anyone reads this and ends up going to Simferopol and adopting, let me know because I probably have pictures and video of your child in the hundreds of pictures we took there and hours of video, and I would love to share that with you. I know how important it is to get any earlier pictures or info about children we adopt.
>
> I sincerely hope I have in no way discouraged people from going to Ukraine and adopting. Please go and give a wonderful child a good home. You will be truly blessed. But I just really wish someone had been completely honest with us before we went. We were told by our translators not to spread information and I have really been hesitant about what to write. There is much fear there about spreading information, and maybe that's why no one had spread this kind of information to us before we went. But I believe that truth shines light, and it will take a lot of light to lift the darkness in Ukraine. As long as there is darkness, evil can thrive.
>
> Best wishes to all as we look for our children!
>
> Aprill and David

Kimberly H
10-10-2003, 08:00 PM
Neve,

The bad parts of that story are the main "real" reasons we avoided the former Soviet countries. We heard over and over and over how people were asked for more $$ after they arrived, they had to spend more time in-country, etc. At the adoption seminar offered by our homestudy agency, we spoke with 3 families who'd adopted from Russia, Georgia and one other Soviet country and they all had some kind of similar story.

More importantly, we felt our daughter was in China. If you feel your child/children are in Ukraine, then you need to go. You're doing the right thing with research, research and MORE research.

mama2be
10-12-2003, 06:29 PM
For some reason I do feel like my children are in Europe...maybe because I grew up there for 7 years!!!... and we think we'll live there or Australia in about 4-5 years...

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:32 PM
Awesome info on Ukraine, traveling there etc.. Lonely Planet makes great tourist books and this is some great info on the country in general.
http://www.lonelyplanet.com/destinations/europe/ukraine/get.htm
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:42 PM
I think this site has some excellent info, this also seems like a facilitator of sorts, I have planned to hire a gentleman named Oleg to help us, but if something were to fall thru with him I think this compnay might be who I would use. I am impressed that somewhere I saw they will answer questions and help even if you are not signed up with them 9I might be wrong but think I read that somewhere).

I found thier explanation of forms to be the best, and their cost outlined to be the best. I also think this is the site that has a map of the regions and from their stats have "ranked" regions on how they work with you and how the judges work there.
http://www.adopt-sense.com/fees&forms.htm#FEES

This site is full of info...I liek that they had forms you could use as a template.
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:45 PM
http://www.irs.gov/taxtopics/page/0,,id%3D16260,00.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:47 PM
http://www.vitalchek.com/

Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:55 PM
This is hands down the best group I interviewed in NC, infact i'd steer folks very clear of one gal I interviewed with another agency that was affiliated with a "ministry". This is a very important choice, some folks feel like they have to stress, get every spec out of their lundry room etc...hire someone who treats you with respect and not like they are god (and many do treat you this way from what I have heard). One gal I interviewed actually said she does not approve anyone for 2 children because she thinks it is more than folks can handle. This same gal literally tried to talk me out of adopting due to Tristan's age...I feel like I'm a big girl and can decide what I think I cant ake on. Keep in mind she idd not voice these opionions to me becasue she knew us and concluded that she voiced these within a minute on the phone while I interviewed her. Interview your social worker...they play a very important part in the fate of your adoption...do not hire anyone that you are intimidated by...
I LOVED THIS CREW AND WOULD BET YOU WOULD LOVE THEM
http://www.nathansonadopt.com/index.php
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 10:59 PM
Filled with facts about Ukraine
http://www.cia.gov/cia/publications/factbook/geos/up.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 11:03 PM
http://www.wunderground.com/global/stations/33345.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 11:06 PM
http://www.adoptivefamilies.com/articles.php?aid=679
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 11:26 PM
I really liked this guy!!! He gave me some fantastic rates when we thought we were going to travel as early as April 2004...I like that he is an adoptive parent and thus understands the politics of adoption travel.
Highly recommed and he is mentioned often on the boards!!!
http://www.rowlandent.com/who_are_we.htm
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 11:32 PM
I can't edit the post since my user name has changed, but wanted to say when I wrote this post that was the best site I had found at the time, but now it is not. It is a great site but not the best, so please follow this thread to see other sites I recommend and know that there are others better than that one, though that one is still bery good...

"adopt-sense" seems to me to have the best info I have found to date...that info is below...
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-06-2003, 11:42 PM
I am looking for the web site that offers such a service, but this is insurance that will fly you out to more established countires if you are in need of medical assistance. I would highly recommend this from what I have read. Cars are not as safe there, tragic accidents do happen, and one female was killed in an accidnt over there when they flew over to adopt (an American under Kathy Harris' team). Evidently if you don't ahve the money to be treated etc... they might not treat you in their hospitals and then if your life is involved you might not get the technology to treat you...so get this!!!!
I will update when I find the info :)

YOUR INSURANCE MIGHT COVER THIS...CHECK FIRST...
http://www.medjet.com/
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

Melanie
12-07-2003, 12:18 AM
Neve, I want to thank you for sharing all of you research, as I too have always felt there is a child waiting for us in the Ukraine. I just hope we can afford to find them someday.

Kimberly H
12-07-2003, 09:32 AM
VitalChek - Used 'em, loved 'em, HIGHLY recommend 'em! If they're not sure what you want, they actually CALL you. Great find, Neve!

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-07-2003, 10:37 AM
Your post made my day, it assures me that sharing the info (even though my typing skill so lack and as I re read them I see so many typos that I don't have the strength to fix)is time well spent.

I am so glad that it helps. I have found the message boards that I mention above to be painful. You can get good info, but there are to many people who plug their facilitators as if their last breath is decided on who others use, and it makes me wonder with each advice i read what the agenda is. It is filled with attacks over the simplest thing, and when one asks a question EVERYONE PMs you so not to get attacked or for some reason to not share publically. So this info that I have supplied here is literally a lot of hours of research and info I pegged as good. Many on these other boards are so passionate about getting children out that they turn on eachother and every word spoken...it has broken my heart to read what some of these well intentioned folks are doing to eachother. So I would love to see our resources here grow among our community that we have.
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-10-2003, 10:48 AM
This site is owned by a man who also is a facilitator...if I didn't mention him above as one of the 4 or 5 hear about often I will go up and do that, he has a great reputation from what I can gather.

BUT he does a lot for the orphanges and he has a "gift shop" set up...
these prices look wondeful to me
http://www.hiskidstoo.org/store/index.php?cPath=22&sort=2a&page=1
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-10-2003, 01:34 PM
http://www.amotherslovefundraising.com/pages/854514/index.htm
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

stillplayswithbarbies
12-10-2003, 03:13 PM
also check with your H.R. department at work. Some companies pay adoption expenses. My husband adopted my son from my first marriage, and we got reimbursed 100% from his company for everything we paid out of pocket.

He also has the option of selecting a legal benefit that is sort of like an HMO for legal things, and for $12 a month, that covered the lawyer fees 100% for the adoption.

...Karen
Jacob Nathaniel Feb 91
Logan Elizabeth Mar 03

Melanie
12-10-2003, 05:16 PM
No kidding? The company pays adoption expenses? I had never thought of that...what a wonderful company. Dh's company is excellent...I'm going to ask him if he'll check.

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-10-2003, 05:58 PM
typing one handed...
yes ask them, many now a days will give several thousand towards...I think it is awesomw Karen that your DHs did that!!!! Nice to know there are such friendly pro family companies out there...
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

Melanie
12-10-2003, 06:02 PM
How about $15,000? LOL! Dh said he remembers something about it, but he's too busy to check today...that'd be really nice though...maybe take 10 years off of the plan. ;-)

Melanie
12-10-2003, 06:50 PM
I saw this today when looking fo a poncho...LOL

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2876511353&category=15788

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-31-2003, 10:49 AM
I might have mentioned this site before, but it is worth repeating, this person is on my yahoo group and she appears to document everything which can show you price, forms, frustrations etc...

This has been one of my favorite sites to go to to get info
I have cut and pasted it from a page where she list many links...and not the home page...

http://ukraineadoption.bravehost.com/links.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
01-02-2004, 08:38 PM
I foudnt his story to be very interesting and thought provoking. They did a great job documenting their story...I honestly felt like I was there as I read!!!
http://www.zooid.com/valente/index.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
01-04-2004, 11:57 AM
filled with accurate info!!! bookmarked directly to adoptions for you.
http://usinfo.usemb.kiev.ua/amcit_adoptions_eng.html
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

Melanie
01-05-2004, 03:16 PM
Thanks Neve, I found the chart on that site I'd been looking for. It's rather short, but obviously that doesn't mean I still won't look for a child that I can help anyway.

NEVE and TRISTAN
01-09-2004, 04:58 PM
Rumor is there are alot of diagnosis thrown on the charts of children in Ukraine...many are found not to be "true"...and many need to have diagnosis on the charts just to get on the books for adoption...so I jsut foudn this mentioned and thought it good to have on this thread...

A very good resource for common medical diagnoses in Ukraine (and Russia) -
the soviet terminology and what it means here - is www.orphandoctor.com (Dr.
Jane Aronson's web site).

Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
01-25-2004, 03:09 PM
http://www.nchomestudy.com/Adoption_Resources.htm
Neve
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
02-24-2004, 07:11 PM
since Ukraine signed the Hague convention our dossiers no longer need to get aposilled in DC/Chicago, thus saving about $1,200 and time. Dossiers get apostilled now only at the State level...huge news
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
02-24-2004, 07:14 PM
Looks like down the road we all might even save more in that they are looking to issue Visas in Kiev in the future thus no need to travel to Warsaw to the embassy and stay at expensive hotels...rumors abound some as early as May...and one said 2006, so who knows, but getting Visas in Ukraine would help a lot.
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
02-24-2004, 07:17 PM
Last week a meeting was had at the NAC that claims they will not let folks adopt more than one unless siblings!!!!...this appears to be taking effect instantly. There might be ways around it for I have served several different things from several different sources...

I've heard no two from different regions
no two unless siblings
no two under 3 years old

So don't take this as the gospel BUT know this might be an issue...
I will update as details come forward...
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-09-2004, 02:29 PM
I was just reading my Adoptive Families mag and saw that Packmates
www.packmate.com
gives adoptive parents a discount on their bags.

You pay $2.00 each instead of the regular $7.50. You must order at least 15 bags
and the "Adoption Special" is only available by telephone order. 1-800-432-7517

I was going to use ZipLock bags but figure that if this company is reaching out
to the adoptive community then I will reach back. :)



Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

Kimberly H
03-09-2004, 09:53 PM
Neve, you have to be a member of that Yahoo Group to read the message. Sorry!

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-10-2004, 09:56 AM
I cut and pasted the thread...:)
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-10-2004, 10:42 PM
You can be kept informed of any updated info from the Embassy in regards to adoption in Ukraine by emailing this address below the paragraph...
BELOW IS FROM THE EMBASSY
We will include your e-mail address in our distribution list so that
you can receive all of our official notices regarding international
adoption process in Ukraine. Please send us a quick e-mail if you
would like to unsubscribe from this list. You can also register with
us when you arrive in Ukraine so that we can have your contact
information.

Sincerely,

American Citizens Services
Consular Section
U.S. Embassy in Kiev, Ukraine
tel: 38-044-490-4422
fax: 38-044-236-4892
e-mail: adoptionskiev@s...
www.usembassy.kiev.ua

Kimberly H
03-10-2004, 10:57 PM
Neve, GET THE PACKMATES! They're a huge hit in the ChinaAdopt community and the discount was actually started by a ChinaAdopt parent. The Packmate folks just want a photo of your baby to put on their brag wall.

We loved the Packmates and I'm using them to store some of Mia's out of season clothes now. They were a breeze to use and we brought empties to use for the clothes we bought in China too. You won't be sorry, especially with the thicker things y'all might have to bring. We shrunk Mia's snowsuit that she came to us in into a bag the thickness of a couple of t'shirts AND they were sealed up to be washed at home as we didn't want to entrust them to the hotel lobby and they were a little stinky.

On a totally separate note, I'm thinking a lot about going back to China for DD#2...I think I'm insane since we're a LONG way from paying off the expenses of Mia's adoption, not to mention the whole family won't fit in one car, the girls would have to share a room, we'll never get to vacation or have "play" money again... ::sigh:: I just feel like I'm not done.

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-10-2004, 11:25 PM
I'm LOL...youu sound like me, I know once i travel I'll get hooked, you'll see on covers of magazine all frazzeled with 19 kids :)...

I think sharing a room is a wonderful idea for the kids anyway!!!!
Can you just have your dossier updated and travel again this year????
The good news is the tax credit atleast when it comes to factoruing in the real cost.

I don't know if you are up to it, but I suspect you live only about 2 hours from us, I'd love to meet your family!!!!
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-12-2004, 11:09 PM
These statements must be in your home study
Summary: The following statements MUST be included the summary:
>
> 1. The adoptive parents have never had a court-appointed guardian.
> 2. The adoptive parents have never had their parental rights
> terminated in a
> court of law.
> 3. Minor children are the first to inherit if both parents die at
the
> same time.
> 4. Adopted children have the same inheritance rights as biological
> children.

Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-14-2004, 04:43 PM
Ukraine facilitator who works closely with my facilitator Oleg!!!!
Keep in mind many of these diagnosis on here are VERY treatable here in the USA...and Shriners is mentioned alot as a source to give the medical care 100% free!!!!

Amazing stories of children who would have been left "to crawl on the floor of orphanages for "damaged" (their words not mine) children" who are now running, jumping skipping etc...

http://www.geocities.com/milesjazzy/
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

Melanie
03-22-2004, 12:48 PM
Neve have you seen this?

It seems like an interesting thread, I don't know anything of the boards, otherwise. I stumbled upon them entirely by accident while looking for parenting quotes. LOL.

http://forums.adoption.com/t136138.html

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-22-2004, 01:37 PM
Thank you...I recognize many of the members on that forum. It looks good for anyone who is adopting to have bookmarked, but the Ukraine one seems to have few "replies" so maybe a newer community.
I think it is great to refer to and have on hand, but for those wanting more input and replies also see the two forums mentioned in the earlier posts on this thread...

Also anyone using Oleg (my facilitator) we have developed our own Yahoo group with a good amount of posts and support.

Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
03-29-2004, 11:15 PM
No more having ot go to Warsaw and staying at expensive hotels and over night on the train to fly out...

U.S. EMBASSY IN KIEV TO BEGIN IMMIGRANT VISA PROCESSING FOR ADOPTED
UKRAINIAN ORPHANS ON APRIL 19, 2004

Beginning April 19, 2004, the U.S. Embassy in Kiev will start
processing immigrant visas for orphans adopted by U.S. citizens in
Ukraine (immediate relative visas - IR-3 and IR-4). Previously, upon
completion of the Ukrainian adoption, all American families had to
travel to the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland, for issuance of the
immigrant visa to their child(ren). The opening of adoption immigrant
visa processing in Kiev should represent a significant savings in
terms of time and resources for American families.

This change does not alter the nature of the immigrant visa process
for adopted orphans, which is initiated by an American citizen filing
a petition I-600A (Application for Advance Processing of Orphan
Petition) with the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Service.

The U.S. Embassy in Kiev will be among the first U.S. Embassies
worldwide to obtain the most recent immigrant visa technology -
machine-readable immigrant visas. Although the documentary
requirements for the orphan immigrant visa will remain virtually
unchanged, the actual immigrant visa will be put in the child's
passport. Accompanying documents will be hand-carried in a separate
packet for presentation to immigration inspectors at U.S. ports of
entry. The only change for parents will be that a frontal facial
photo of the child will now be required in addition to the three-
quarter photo.

Prospective adoptive parents who plan to complete an adoption in
Ukraine after April 19 should contact the U.S. Embassy in Kiev to
confirm that the I-600A approval notice (a Visas 37 cable) has been
transferred from Warsaw to Kiev. Telephone numbers: (38-044) 490-
4422; (38-044) 490-4079; fax: (38-044) 236-4892; email:
adoptionskiev@s....

The U.S. Embassy in Warsaw, Poland, will continue to process
immigrant visas for children adopted in Belarus, Latvia, Lithuania
and Poland.

Additional information on U.S. immigrant visa processing for adopted
children is available at
http://www.usembassy.kiev.ua/amcit_adoptions_eng.html.




Disclaimer: THIS ADOPTION INFORMATION IS BASED ON THE LATEST GUIDANCE
THE EMBASSY HAS RECEIVED FROM THE NATIONAL ADOPTION CENTER OF UKRAINE
(NAC). IT IS PROVIDED FOR GENERAL INFORMATION ONLY. QUESTIONS
INVOLVING INTERPRETATION OF SPECIFIC UKRAINIAN ADOPTION LAWS SHOULD
BE ADDRESSED TO FOREIGN LEGAL COUNSEL OR YOUR ADOPTION SERVICE
PROVIDER.

PLEASE NOTE: Even though we communicate regularly with officials of
the National Adoption Center of Ukraine, they do not always notify
the Embassy in advance of changes in Ukrainian laws or the Center's
procedures. Sometimes the first notice we get of a change is when it
is reported to us by adoptive parents or their representatives.
Please help us help you - if you receive information that contradicts
what we have posted, let us know (adoptionskiev@s...). We will
then follow up with Ukrainian adoption authorities and update our
information, as appropriate, for the benefit of the entire adoption
community. We appreciate your help.


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

egoldber
05-20-2004, 11:44 PM
bump

NEVE and TRISTAN
05-21-2004, 01:42 PM
http://www.criminalsupersearch.com/

I called them so that I don't have to put my credit card info into the computer...
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
05-21-2004, 01:55 PM
I have with no hesitation chosen Oleg to be my facilitator. Between the time I started this thread and now I have done a lot of researching and journal reading and am impressed by the expereince that folks seem to have under him. It's not just about the children etc... but I have witnessed that things seem to run real smooth under him. I suspect this could be due to a very low if any turn over in his staff. As you read his journals you see the same names over and over, inother words his translators and team stick with him and you get to know them, and about them in these journals.
Others might have 40 facilitators and translators working under them. They all get the job done but I did want to add why I chose Oleg and am thrilled with my decision.
www.geocities.com/adoptukr/ is how to get intouch with him.

We have started a Yahoo group of his clients, past and present, so we have a safe haven to communicate among eachother in the process. This has been a huge help to all of us!!!!!
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-21-2004, 03:46 PM
Recommended on the boards
http://langintro.com/rintro/first.htm

Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-24-2004, 03:38 PM
For the most part this might be Ukraine Specific or even NC specific but I am stashing it here since I refer many adoptive parents out there to this post.


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-24-2004, 03:39 PM
First get the child's US Passport. You can download the form
here:
http://travel.state.gov/passport_services.html
Go to a post office that processes them. You can expedite or not.
You do have to send the child's Ukrainian Passport, original adoption
decree, and some other documents with the packet. So don't freak out
when they say they need to keep them. They will send them all back
with the new US Passport. Both parents have to appear or you have to
have a signed/notarized form from the other spouse. Directions are
on the website above.

Once you have the child's new Passport, go to the Social Security
Administration in your area for their Social Security Number. You
can download the form and complete it before-hand. The form is here:
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/online/ss-5.html
Take the adoption decree from Ukraine, their Ukrainian and US
Passport with you. I *think* both parents have to go for this as
well. If you do this BEFORE you have the US Passport, they will
enter the child in the system as a legal immigrant which means that
they will not be eligible for Social Security benefits down the
road. If you did/do this before the US passport, you just have to
back in AFTER you have the US Passport and they will change the
child's status. Crazy, I know, b/c they are US citizens already if
they came in an IR-3 Visa. But that's how it works. It's a case of
the Soc Security Administration not knowing how/what BCIS is doing.

Next, register with the Ukrainian Consulate in Washington, DC. This
is supposed to be done within 30 days of returning home. But if you
choose not to expedite their US Passport, you will not make this
deadline. No problem. Just email them (adoption@u...) and let
them know that you are getting their US Passport and will complete it
as soon as you receive it. You complete the form here:
http://www.ukraineinfo.us/consular/adoption-registration.html
And send it with their Ukrainian Passport to the Ukrainian Consulate
in Washington, DC. They will send the Ukrainian Passport back to you
in a week or so with a stamp in it. I suggest you use a courier like
Jeff Doyle or Fed-Ex it in. If you enclose a return Fed-Ex envelope,
be sure it is one that has an account number, not one where you bill
the credit-card. They won't mail it that way.

For those of you returning since January, you will receive the
Certificate of Citizenship automatically within a few weeks of
getting home. No need to do anything. Those of us who adopted
before January, we get the honor of applying and paying for one. =)
No.....I'm not bitter much!
For those of us who must apply for them, here is the info:
http://uscis.gov/graphics/formsfee/forms/n-600.htm

Then you can decide whether or not to re-adopt. It is not required
by NC. But many people do and it is probably a good idea to do it.
You do NOT have to have an attorney to do this. You go to your local
Clerk of Court and get the form or see the link beloew. You complete
the form and submit it with what is required on the form to your
Clerk of Court. You do have to have a "Court Report" from a
homestudy agency. This typically requires you to have (and pay for)
a couple of post-placement visits and the preparation of a court
report by your homestudy agency. Said Homestudy agency sends
the "court report" to the Clerk of Court, and within a few weeks,
they send you the signed/completed petition. And then you get info
from Vital Records about how to get the NC Recognition of Foreign
Birth (birth certificate). You do not have to appear in court. It's
typically just an administrative procedure. I think it is $40/child
to file the petition in the court. Check with your homestudy agency
as ours charges quite a bit to do the post-placement and court
report. We will probably go with another agency for our re-adoption
stuff for this reason. We have not re-adopted yet, but that is the
process as I understand it based on my research and talking with
others. Here is a link to the petition for the court:
http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1800-ia.pdf


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-24-2004, 03:39 PM
First get the child's US Passport. You can download the form
here:
http://travel.state.gov/passport_services.html
Go to a post office that processes them. You can expedite or not.
You do have to send the child's Ukrainian Passport, original adoption
decree, and some other documents with the packet. So don't freak out
when they say they need to keep them. They will send them all back
with the new US Passport. Both parents have to appear or you have to
have a signed/notarized form from the other spouse. Directions are
on the website above.

Once you have the child's new Passport, go to the Social Security
Administration in your area for their Social Security Number. You
can download the form and complete it before-hand. The form is here:
http://www.socialsecurity.gov/online/ss-5.html
Take the adoption decree from Ukraine, their Ukrainian and US
Passport with you. I *think* both parents have to go for this as
well. If you do this BEFORE you have the US Passport, they will
enter the child in the system as a legal immigrant which means that
they will not be eligible for Social Security benefits down the
road. If you did/do this before the US passport, you just have to
back in AFTER you have the US Passport and they will change the
child's status. Crazy, I know, b/c they are US citizens already if
they came in an IR-3 Visa. But that's how it works. It's a case of
the Soc Security Administration not knowing how/what BCIS is doing.

Next, register with the Ukrainian Consulate in Washington, DC. This
is supposed to be done within 30 days of returning home. But if you
choose not to expedite their US Passport, you will not make this
deadline. No problem. Just email them (adoption@u...) and let
them know that you are getting their US Passport and will complete it
as soon as you receive it. You complete the form here:
http://www.ukraineinfo.us/consular/adoption-registration.html
And send it with their Ukrainian Passport to the Ukrainian Consulate
in Washington, DC. They will send the Ukrainian Passport back to you
in a week or so with a stamp in it. I suggest you use a courier like
Jeff Doyle or Fed-Ex it in. If you enclose a return Fed-Ex envelope,
be sure it is one that has an account number, not one where you bill
the credit-card. They won't mail it that way.

For those of you returning since January, you will receive the
Certificate of Citizenship automatically within a few weeks of
getting home. No need to do anything. Those of us who adopted
before January, we get the honor of applying and paying for one. =)
No.....I'm not bitter much!
For those of us who must apply for them, here is the info:
http://uscis.gov/graphics/formsfee/forms/n-600.htm

Then you can decide whether or not to re-adopt. It is not required
by NC. But many people do and it is probably a good idea to do it.
You do NOT have to have an attorney to do this. You go to your local
Clerk of Court and get the form or see the link beloew. You complete
the form and submit it with what is required on the form to your
Clerk of Court. You do have to have a "Court Report" from a
homestudy agency. This typically requires you to have (and pay for)
a couple of post-placement visits and the preparation of a court
report by your homestudy agency. Said Homestudy agency sends
the "court report" to the Clerk of Court, and within a few weeks,
they send you the signed/completed petition. And then you get info
from Vital Records about how to get the NC Recognition of Foreign
Birth (birth certificate). You do not have to appear in court. It's
typically just an administrative procedure. I think it is $40/child
to file the petition in the court. Check with your homestudy agency
as ours charges quite a bit to do the post-placement and court
report. We will probably go with another agency for our re-adoption
stuff for this reason. We have not re-adopted yet, but that is the
process as I understand it based on my research and talking with
others. Here is a link to the petition for the court:
http://info.dhhs.state.nc.us/olm/forms/dss/dss-1800-ia.pdf


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-24-2004, 03:44 PM
I asked two questions
do we come home with court decress translated????
and does re adoption qualify for the readoption

I will ask Oleg to assure I get these items

Hi Neve,
I don't know, but I would ASSUME that readoption would
also qualify for the tax credit. It is still an
adoption related expense and in some states it is not
optional but required thus the Federal Government
would have to reimburse for it. In my case my
adoption expenses were much more than the $10,000
credit so we didn't even figure it in.

As for your other question, not only CAN you come home
with a translated court decrree, you SHOULD come home
with EVERYTHING translated. We used RPF and they made
us this great folder with sleeves for each document.
Each document had the Stamped Ukrainian version of it
stapled to an English translation of it that was
notarized there. They gave us 4 or 5 originals of
every single document. These documents include:

1.) Original Ukrainian Birth Certificates
2.) New Birth Certificates issued in Ukraine with you
as the Parent
3.)Birth parent Parental Termination of Rights Court
papers
4.)A Statement from the orphanage stating there has
been no visits or phone calls or letters inquiring
about the child for at least one year prior to your
adoption
5.)the Ukrainian Adoption Decree from the Court
6.) Certified copies of your child's Medical Records
7.) The statement you sign at the US Embassy in Kiev
stating that you are aware of and acknowlege and
accept the "health problems" (and then you list them)
of your child. This is called The Acknowlegment of
Health Problems of Adopted Child
8.) We have copies of our invitations to travel from
the NAC
and then in the last sleeve they included as a benefit
to us info in English on the New Citizenship Law for
Foreign Born Children Adopted by US citizens and other
info on Registering at the Consulate and getting a new
American Passport and clearing Immigrations in the
states.

Some of these documents you need to file for your
Re-Adopt so it saved us from having to copy them and
have them notarized here. They also had our
daughter's front and side 2x2 pictures done for her
Ukraine passport, green card, readoption papers, CofC
application (if we so choose) and her US passport.
There was like 6 pictures of each view of her in the
folder so we never needed to have them redone for
anything.

This folder is very complete and kept everything
together both the Ukrainian version and English
version which made it easier for us when passing
through immigrations etc. We still keep it up and
have added copies of our Consulate Registration,
Annual Reports and Re-Adoption paperwork. We also
keep our daughter's Green Card, Passports, and SS card
in a protected sleeve in this folder. If ever there
was a hurricane and we needed to run, this sacred
folder is kept inside our fireproof box with other
important documents and has everything in one place.

Since I have not adopted with any other facilitator, I
don't know if a "handy dandy notebook" LOL is
customary, but for us, RPF was a Godsend in MANY ways
up to and including the paperwork!


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
06-24-2004, 03:47 PM
About the paperwork, you are off to a good start. Did you receive a
certificate of citizenship? If you have that, then you don't really need
the US passport now unless you plan on traveling with your daughter. The
Certificate of Citizenship and the US passport serve the same purpose, to
prove your daughter is a US citizen. If you have one of these take this
with you to get her social security number and she will be registered then
as a citizen and not a resident alien. If you get the SSN before you have
proof of citizenship, then your child will have a SSN but will only be
recognized as a resident alien. This can be changed on their SSN record
when you get either their passport or Certificate of Citizenship.

Then you will want to do your registration with the Ukrainian Embassy. You
will need to send in their Ukrainian passport and original Ukrainian court
decree, both english and Russian versions with the Embassy seal showing that
it is a legally recognized US document. Make sure and copy this for
yourself before you send off the original. Jeff Doyle will handle this for
you for a small fee and he will make sure your passport and decree don't get
lost in the shuffle in Washington. He has the form I believe on his
website. I'll have to look it up or I believe someone posted his website
recently when we were discussing Visas. He handles those for people too.
You were probably given the form for the registration of your daughter when
you were in Kiev at the Embassy.

That is all you have to do now as far as paperwork. I'm sure you have added
Madeline to your family health insurance and then the other thing we did
that some people might not think of is add our new children on as
beneficiaries to any life insurance or investments you have that have to
have beneficiaries listed.

The next paperwork you will have to do will be your annual report and that
is due at the anniversary of your court date in Ukraine. File that at
whichever consulate handled your registration. It is by state and you can
check the website of the Embassy of Ukraine to see which location handles
your state. That form is also on the Embassy of Ukraine website and will
need a few pictures to go along with it. It can even be done by e-mail now
with the pictures as attachments. Also it is a good idea to send a copy of
your annual report to the NAC in case you think you ever will adopt again
because they don't get notification that you have filed these from the
Embassy here and unless you have annual reports on file they don't want to
approve you to adopt again.

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-16-2004, 11:06 AM
here ae the instructions on registering your little princess with the
Embassy. You may want to wait for her Certificate of Citizenship before
obtaining a social security number, so that she would be listed as a citizen
and not permanent resident there.

http://www.ukremb.com/consular/adoption-registration.html


Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-17-2004, 03:24 PM
http://travel.kyiv.org/map/
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-17-2004, 10:19 PM
A description of the process
said well-

With a population of over 50 million people, Ukraine is the largest of the former Soviet Republics. An area rich in history, the inventions of ancient Ukrainians are still contributing to the modern world – the first time man went horseback riding happened there about 6,000 years ago, about which time trousers were also invented in Ukraine. The oldest known map (dating to about 10,000 B.C.) in the world was also discovered in Ukraine. More recently, Ukraine received international notoriety when a nuclear reactor at Chernobyl experienced a meltdown.

Today, many parents are choosing to adopt internationally from Ukraine: In 2002, 1,106 children from Ukraine were adopted by Americans. There is only one legal adoption agency in Ukraine – the government-operated National Adoption Center in the capital city of Kiev. The Adoption Center is the only organization which may legally show photos or files of available children and help you identify a child for adoption. According to Ukrainian law, a child must be at least 14 months old before international adoption is allowed. The children available for international adoption in Ukraine live in orphanages.

What’s Involved in Adopting a Child From Ukraine

The international adoption process in Ukraine is a bit different from the processes of other countries: Ukrainian law does not allow pre-identification of children for international adoption. So, unlike other countries, you will not receive a child referral before traveling. Instead, you will be invited to travel to Ukraine after your dossier and paperwork have been received. Once in Ukraine, you will be shown several children and it is up to you to choose which child to adopt.

The National Adoption Center, a part of the Ukrainian Ministry of Education, is the only legal Ukrainian authority for adoptions. It maintains a database of children available for both domestic and international adoptions. The National Adoption Center is involved in the international adoption process from the moment prospective parents apply for registration until an adoption hearing is held in court. The National Adoption Center has a policy of direct contact with prospective adoptive parents. Applying parents must send their documents directly to the National Adoption Center. The National Adoption Center will communicate with facilitators only after an application is filed. Translators or interpreters are not available on the staff of the National Adoption Center. Callers or visitors have to speak either Russian or Ukrainian, or have their own interpreters. Ukrainian law does not allow outside adoption agencies to operate or locate a child for adoption in Ukraine. Adopting parents can operate independently or employ facilitators to assist with the translation and interpretation.

Prospective adoptive parents must first register with the National Adoption Center. The National Adoption Center processes the documents submitted by the adoptive parents and enters them into the database within ten days. Once an application is approved, the prospective adoptive parents will receive an invitation to visit the National Adoption Center. When adopting parents arrive in Ukraine, the National Adoption Center shows them information about orphans available for international adoption within the parents’ specified age range. The National Adoption Center then issues a letter of referral to allow the prospective parents to visit orphanages to meet, select, and establish contact with a child.

Once the National Adoption Center issues permission for prospective parents to visit orphanages, parents may go and meet a child, check medical records, and establish personal contact with a child. After prospective adoptive parents identify a child they wish to adopt, the file for the case is presented to a judge in the region where the child is from. (Note: The power to approve or deny an adoption rests solely with an individual judge.) The judge’s decision to approve (or deny) the adoption is based only on a review of the documents pertaining to the adoption.

The judge’s decision usually is announced and issued on the same day as the hearing, and adopting parents must attend the hearing. However, unless the judge grants an "immediate execution," the decision does not take effect for one month. (Such waivers are granted only when there is clear evidence that a delay could endanger the child’s health.) During this one-month period, the adoption can be appealed. Once the decision takes effect, the new adoptive parents are granted parental rights and legal responsibility for the child.

In a Nut Shell: The Low-Down on Adopting From the Ukraine

Children Available: Healthy toddlers, both boys and girls, from 15 months of age. Older and special needs children are also available for adoption from Ukraine.
Parent Requirements: Married and single people may adopt from Ukraine.. The difference between the age of the adoptive parent and adopted child must be at least 15 years (although this requirement can be waived for the adoption of a child with special needs). .
Travel Requirements: Travel is required to adopt a child from Ukraine. One or two trips may be required, with trips lasting from two to six weeks.
Time Frame: After your dossier is received, it takes an average of eight to twelve months for child placement.
Number of Children Adopted by Americans in 2002: 1,106
Additional Information: The children available for adoption from Ukraine are in orphanages. No child referrals are given. Instead, adoptive parents are invited to travel to Ukraine where they meet with several children who match the family profile. The adopting parents then choose the child they think will best fit with their family. Annual reports and dual nationality (maintaining the child’s Ukrainian citizenship) are required until the child is 18 years old



Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-22-2004, 12:17 PM
http://www.medjetassistance.com/
Neve
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan
AKA "mama2be"-forgot password
and Baby Boy Tristan born @UNC
Feb 25, 2003
Brother to 3 pups "gees" and 2 kitties

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-30-2004, 12:58 PM
http://www.usatoday.com/weather/climate/asia/ukraine/kiev.htm

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
***********************************
EDD with #2 March 18, 2005
heartbeat and "looking great" so far
************************************
Traveling in Jan insearch of the rest of our family-adopting in Ukraine
***********

NEVE and TRISTAN
07-30-2004, 05:02 PM
http://www.tifft.com/Ukraine_people.html

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
***********************************
EDD with #2 March 18, 2005
heartbeat and "looking great" so far
************************************
Traveling in Jan insearch of the rest of our family-adopting in Ukraine
***********

NEVE and TRISTAN
08-07-2004, 01:29 AM
I only recently signed up to join the yahoo group birthparentcontact. It's for people who've adopted internationally who are considering, are in the process, or have contacted birth families of their adoptive kids. I have a whole new set of reading to do!

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
***********************************
EDD with #2 March 18, 2005
heartbeat and "looking great" so far
************************************
Traveling in Jan insearch of the rest of our family-adopting in Ukraine
***********

NEVE and TRISTAN
08-20-2004, 08:35 PM
posted by Lloyd

I just got back last month. As we are in Italy, we carried EUROS and Dollars. I
had a small shoulder holster pack that I carried the money in and my wife pinned
hers under her clothing in 2 small cotton bags. We were paranoid after reading
all the US entries into safety and keeping money in money belts, part in your
shoes, some in bags pinned to your underwear, maybe a few bucks under your
toupee, etc. As you have learned, you have to give a big portion to
your"translator" upon arrival. We did not pay ours until we had our NAC appt and
had found our daughter in the lists. By the way, our translator wanted Euros
from us because they are worth more than dollars. Now, EVERY STORE, SHOOPING
MALL, VENDOR, RESTAURANT that we visited, wanted local currency (Hrivnia). You
can exchange dollars for local currency at any of the money Kiosks that seem to
be every 100 yds up and down the streets. Beware, the more touristy the area,
the lower the rate. If I were doing this all over again, I would just exchange a
$1000.00 at a time. That way I would always have local currency ready. I also
used my VISA card to purchase items at the Dept Stores, malls, etc with
absolutely no problem. When I returned and checked my VISA account the charges
had already gone through and at a better rate than regular exchange at the
Kiosks. Everywhere else I have travelled in Europe, it has often taken months to
get the charges through to my account and often when the exchange rate was less
favorable. So, just use common sense. Do not flash huge wads of money. Do not
step out of the Kiosk and then count your money. Exchange your money at Kiosks
that give the best rate (after all you are going to be in country for a while),
do not be afraid to use your credit card at the larger Dept Stores, etc. Plus,
the only place we gave dollars to anyone was the" Internat", the "Coffee Fund"
for the doctors that examined our Alina and to "Expedite" the passport in one
hour. Plus, if you are going out into the country, I would highly suggest
getting your dollars exchanged in Kiev so you will have enough local currency
for trains, taxis and hotels. After the first 2 weeks, we started leaving our
cash in our apartment (Hidden) and took only what we knew we would need. Plus,
everyone was friendly, courteous and helpful. We were mainly in Kiev but never
saw anything that made me afraid that we would be robbed or otherwise bothered.
Unless of course it is just because I am 6' and 260 lbs. LOL

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD #2 3/18/05 as of 8/10 things looking "great"
*Traveling in Jan insearch of the rest of our family-adopting in Ukraine IF INS gets us paperwork intime (cross fingers)

NEVE and TRISTAN
08-29-2004, 01:12 PM
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
I don't know if this is too general a question but as a potential adoptive parent I'm wondering if there are suggestions along the lines of
"If I knew then what I know now then I'd have..."

Any thoughts


my wisdom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 02:00 pm:

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This is going to sound crazy but...I am actually glad I was as ignorant as I was when we adopted our son because otherwise we wouldn't have him now! If I knew then what I know now we would have used a different agency which in turn would have led us to a different region and a different destiny. Our agency didn't have great connections and our adoption took forever. We put up with a lot of ridiculous issues and just about anything that could go wrong did.However, in the end, we adopted the most wonderful child. We definately learned from it but we wouldn't change a thing! Life is funny that way!


same here
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 02:14 pm:

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I was going to say, that I would have adopted sooner, but if I had changed anything, I wouldn't have my beautiful son.


control freak
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 03:38 pm:

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I would have not worried about trying to control anything, because you just can't. It is useless to plan too much or structure too much around your own ideas. Adoption happens when and how it happens...kind of like giving birth naturally


kaybee
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 03:54 pm:

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I agree with freak. I wish I had just gone with the flow and enjoyed the experience more.


jen
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 04:12 pm:

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I with freak and kaybee, I wish I had just gone with the flow a little better!


virtualtwins
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 04:25 pm:

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The post by "My wisdom" could have been written by me. I didn't know about this forum, which was good, because I would have done things differently and not had the wonderful child that I have.

Sometimes, ignorance is bliss!


SeeMore
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 04:45 pm:

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I would have gotten there earlier to spend a few days in the countryside, and St Petersburg.


kaybee
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 04:50 pm:

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I think we should all plan a trip back together so we can make these wishes come true someday.!


My feeling
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 05:53 pm:

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I would have done an independent adoption!


Bama Mom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 07:40 pm:

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There is nothing we would have done differently in either of our adoptions from Russia except spend some extra time in Moscow on our return from the second adoption. We can't wait to return with our children one day and we wish we had spent more time sight seeing and I wish I had bought more souvineers.Other than the fact that if I changed anything we would not have our two special angels, if I had started sooner we would do it a third time.


LoveBeingMom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 07:44 pm:

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I would have relaxed and enjoyed the sites in Russia more. I would have worried less about "every little move" my daughter made..wondering if it was attachment, alcohol or neurologically related (She's fine!)

I would have bought TONS more souvenirs while in Russia. Tons more...


LoveBeingMom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 07:45 pm:

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LOL Bama Mom - we posted at the same time..and said almost the same thing!


manon
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 08:08 pm:

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I would have realized my daughter was wailing because she was missing her outdoor play time!!!


NJMom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 08:27 pm:

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I would have talked to my son's caretakers more and taken more pictures of them.

Gotten a good, valid mailing address of the orphanage and asked their preference for sending donations.

I would have relaxed more with my son in those few months home.

I would have hired a babysitter to give myself more breaks in those first months home.

Gotten the address of the homestay where we were and not thought that I could just get it from the agency when we got home. (To send a Christmas card)

Gotten a picture of my son's sleeping area. (I felt it was too pushy to ask. Since then, I got one from someone who went to the same region, and my son was transfixed when he looked at it - after 2 years home)

Tried to get a baby picture of my son. We adopted him at 18 mos., maybe there was a picture of him in the system?


LD
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 08:40 pm:

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I wish I would have had our coordinator take us by the hospital where my daughter was born and taken a picture of it. I wish I would have asked if we could get a duplicate copy of her birth certificate so I would not be freaking out about losing her one and only birth certificate in the mail (when sending off for Passport and Certificate of Citizenship).


manon again
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 08:49 pm:

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LD, I agree with you about wishing I had taken a photo of the hospital where my daughter was born. I also wish I had asked the facilitator to take me to the address that my daughter's birth mother had listed as her address (the Russian social worker said that it was an abandoned house and that the neighbors did not know of her), so that I could have taken a picture of that too.

I wish I had been brave enough to give cash to the caregiver who seemed the most interested in my child's well-being. I was afraid of getting in trouble.


control freak
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, August 26, 2004 - 11:27 pm:

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I also wish I had scheduled more time to really see Moscow on the first trip, on our way back through. We scheduled that for our second trip instead and our baby was so unhappy that we could not enjoy it like we would have liked to. We wanted photos of her at the sights, but they were not worth it because she was so miserable and was crying for days and of course, we were then miserable too.

As for souvenirs, I bought so many! And you know what? You can buy some of them off of ebay from Russian sellers, I have found many things that I wanted to buy duplicates of, right there on ebay for pretty good prices, considering. They aren't as low as the prices in Russia, but hey, they are traveling a long way!


Billysmom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 04:14 am:

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...asked to see where my child slept. No offer was made, and I was too afraid to ask (didn't want to come across pushy). Also, more photographs of just Russian life, scenery, the hospital he was born in, birthmothers address. Everything was so rush, rush I felt that asking to do these things would be seen as silly American.


DisruptionGal
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 04:31 am:

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I would have chosen China or Korea.


wondering
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 05:38 am:

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Wow! This is great. We've already picked up quite a few things we'd not thought about...

Can some of you expand even a little on your comments e.g. I would have chosen China or Korea... why?

Keep up the comments please


Jeannie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 06:59 am:

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I would have asked everyone for copies of my son's records from the orphanage until I got a copy. Everyone I asked assured me I'd get a copy, but guess what? It didn't happen.

I would have started on attachment parenting immediately instead of waiting to see how he'd do. By this, I mean I would have immediately put him back on a bottle for comfort at night instead of struggling with him to let me hold him in the rocker like I did my bio kids at night. I would have insisted on feeding him while he was still in starving mode. I would have started with holding time earlier before he had the chance to think he could get away with pushing me away from him. I think that delay made it ultimately harder for me when we started attachment parenting.


stay home
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 07:05 am:

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I would not have gone back to work. From an attachment perspective, it was the wrong choice for our family.


Mom2two
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 08:30 am:

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Probably stayed in Russia throughout the 10-day waiting period after completing the court process. Too much jet lag having to go back and forth.


AngelaW
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 09:14 am:

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I adopted an older child...

I wish that I had relaxed more during the first 6 months home And that I had thicker skin and didn't take every comment by my mother/sister-in-law as a criticism.

I wish that I understood my/my daughter's legal rights in terms of education. My daughter needed language therapy which the school system illegally refused to provide. I should have fought them.


mybaby
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 10:17 am:

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I agree with the posts about seeing my son's room and bed in the orphanage. I regret not asking while we were at the orphanage. I would have loved to have pictures for him someday. I would have asked to meet some of his caretakers and find out any information that I could about him. Some people even have letters written by their children's care givers.

While we were at the MOE the director showed us a baby picture of our son on the computer screen. I should have asked right then and there if we could have a copy of it. We have plenty of pictures of him 15 months and older.


ann
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 10:19 am:

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Great post! Thank you, everyone, for sharing your experiences!


kb
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 10:34 am:

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I would have learned more Russian and asked more questions about the birth mother. I hadn't thought about getting a picture of the hospital but now that she has so many questions about her birth it would be nice to have. I didn't ask about a baptismal record but when I sent a letter to the detsky dom later they did send it to me. I too wish we could have relaxed and enjoyed our second trip more but it was just a few weeks after 9/11/01 and everyone was nervous just getting on planes and going to embassies, etc. I also would have left photos of us with our daughter between trips with Russian words to describe them. I would take a lot more pictures of the other kids in her groupa and get all their names - the care givers too.


Don't Look Back
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 10:41 am:

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Well, I have always been "brilliant in hindsight" but realize that everything happens for a reason and takes us down the path that we are eventually all supposed to be on. So for me, thank goodness I found my little girl and I don't care to look back and wonder about the "what ifs". The best thing we can do is provide insight to those who are just starting in the process, in the hopes that their journey will be smoother than what some of us have experienced.


asil
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 10:41 am:

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I wish I would have believed everyone when they said to be patient and that everything happens for a reason.


mg
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 11:13 am:

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I have enjoyed reading everyone's comments. I especially like the idea of getting a picture of the hospital where your child was born. I am thankful we were able to take a picture of where he slept.
We had a wonderful experience, and the only thing I would have changed would have been to use a local travel agent or someone you are familiar with. We used a travel agent that was recommended by our agency. She had handled travel plans for many adoptions and was Ukrainian. We wish we had used someone that was easier to communicate with -- we couldn't get her to understand we would be willing to pay more to fly on a airline with a good reputation for assisting families, comfort, etc. Her only concern was to save us money. We were not very experienced in world travelling, and would have also liked to have had more time between flights on the way home. We ended up missing our flight home from JFK because of the lack of time we had to get through customs, etc., but enjoyed SO MUCH spending the night in NY to rest and start out the next day refreshed. Again, God was in control and knew that we needed some rest.


GreatTime
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 11:38 am:

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As we have just returned from our first trip 2 days ago I can honestly say that I would not change a thing. St. Petersburg is the most wonderful, exciting city, great food, great hotel, great people and can't say enough about the sites! The weather was perfect, the baby home was better than we expected and our son is wonderful. Spent four days with him (4-5 hours a day, broken into morning and late afternoon) and saw everything else when not at the baby home. We took about 8 rolls of film at the baby home (2 rolls a day plus video tape) and another 8 rolls for sightseeing. The pictures are wonderful and we feel we really captured a true sense of our experience for our family friends back home. Our agency is wonderful and very organized and this helped with the entire experience. I researched for 4 months early this year on agencies and which regions we would want to or prefer to work with and I have to say that all of that time and energy spent preparing was well worth it. Now its on to prepare for the 2nd trip to bring our son home!


wonderful
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 11:43 am:

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one of the reasons why i asked the question was to see if there were common themes reported so that I could put together some sort of list to act as a reminder (photo of orphanage etc) or warning (be patient) etc etc that might be useful to us and to others....


MomX2
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 11:44 am:

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The first months home I wish I hadn't worried so much that every little thing my kids did or didn't do was a sign of FAE, PTSD, SID, attachment problems....

(I have to laugh at myself remembering going into their rooms at night to look to make sure they had well-defined philitrums - and they'd been home six months!)


letzlannie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 12:32 pm:

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I agree with many posters: I would have taken more pictures of general scenes. I got the sights of Kiev, but now miss that I didn't get ones of the babushkas on the highways or even one of the parking lot in Kremenchuk where I made my decision that he was the one.

Leslie


to greattime
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 01:08 pm:

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To Greattime: Sounds like your trip #1 was a success. What agency did you end up using after doing your research? Also, what factors led to your final decision? Was there something that helped you make that final cut?


would have
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 03:05 pm:

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I would have bought more souvineers. I would have purchased that $30.00 painting from an old woman on the street who stated that her husband painted it and they sell his artwork to help feed themselves. At the time, we had spent so much money on the adoption, travel, etc. Looking back, $30.00 was nothing to us and a lot to them. Plus I would have a piece of artwork that was not woth a lot monatarily, but a lot emotionally.

I would have taken A LOT more pictures!!! Snap up tons of rolls!!! It is such an important part of your life. I would have also developed every roll that I did take in Russia at a nice photo shop, not Sam's club. It would have been worth it!

Those first few months home I would have worried less about cleaning the house, making dinner, doing laundry and concentrated only on my baby.


justme
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 06:58 pm:

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I would have thought more carefully about accepting a referral whose mother was an alcoholic.


Just One
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, August 27, 2004 - 08:57 pm:

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I would have asked more questions at the ophanage, to try to get just a bit more info. I would REALLY like to know something about my daughter's first 8 months before she came to the baby home. Where was she? Who cared for her? Her first 8 months are blank, but somebody had that info.


two
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, August 28, 2004 - 01:05 pm:

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I would have adopted two children at once and would not have to re-do everything again for another adoption now. Ugh!


Jeannie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, August 28, 2004 - 08:34 pm:

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I would have bought more souvenirs on our first trip instead of waiting for the second. We had more room in our luggage and more time on the first trip; on the second we only had about 30 minutes worth of souvenir shopping, mostly at the airport.


Neve
Unregistered guest
Posted on Sunday, August 29, 2004 - 09:00 am:

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GREAT THREAD!!!!!
I have enjoyed it as much as anything I have read to date. Thank you for asking and thanks to those who shared!!!!

A must read for all yet to travel I think!!!







Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/18/05 as of 8/24 kicking and moving arms via sono, very active.
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine, I171A from INS has arrived, dossier to Ukraine next week!!!!!!

NEVE and TRISTAN
08-29-2004, 10:54 PM
Written by a mommy who I have enjoyed reading her threads and advice. Adopted siblings and going back for more...

For older kids like this, in addition to toys and art supplies they can play
with and use, be sure and take some things you can use for early English
learning. If you have some things with you, you can make a lot of progress
on this even before you are home. For instance, take a good set of ABC
flash cards. Find some that have the letter and a good color picture of a
word that starts with that letter so you can introduce the sound the letter
makes, maybe with the name of the picture also written out in English, and
on the back maybe the lowercase letter and possibly another picture. A good
ABC book with the same type color pictures and words that start with that
letter so you can introduce the sound the letter makes would also be good.

We also bought and took with us the Hippocrene Illustrated Picture
Dictionary in Russian/English (got this from Amazon.com). This is a great
book and we used it extensively with ours while we were spending time at the
orphanage. It has great simple pictures with the written Russian, complete
with pronunciation key, and then the name of the picture in English. Our
Joseph was already reading in Russian and he would read the Russian and I
would read him the English and soon he would be saying the English with me.


Also take plenty of paper, crayons (couldn’t find those there) and a
Magnadoodle for practicing writing. Our kids learned their new names and
were writing their names in English within days. From there you progress to
writing other things, mama, daddy, dog, cat, home, you see what I mean. By
the time we were home they knew a lot of their ABCs and some letter sounds,
some names of common things, and we never really had much of a language
issue at all once home. Of course lots of hand signals and "show mama" once
we were home, but never any frustration, anger or tantrums from being
overwhelmed.

We explained to them while with our translator that it would be a while
before we understood each other, but to be patient with mama and daddy and
try not to be worried or scared and just know that everyday things would get
easier and easier, and that we would always take care of them and love them
and they would never have to worry about anything. They seemed to
understand this and took it to heart and I know it helped us through those
first few weeks. We did let our children know before they came with us
though that we would expect them to try hard to learn English and to do
everything we asked them to do, and that we would be the very best mama and
daddy that we could be for them and that we would have lots of fun together
and have a wonderful life. They understood and agreed and have lived up to
it, probably better than I have in some ways.

But I do think it is important to let your older children know that they
will have responsibilities right off the bat in your relationship, that you
are not there to let them just run wild and do anything they please, that
that is not a realistic picture of how life really works, that being part of
a family, besides being wonderful and lots of fun, also has its share of
responsibility, and that it's important they understand that and not think
it will be all fun and games and everything done their way and exactly how
they want all the time, that they will be expected to follow your rules and
treat you with respect, but that you also will respect them and not ever ask
them to do anything unless it is for their good.

That is very important, that your children know right away that as their
parent it is your responsibility to love them and always do what is best for
them, and that you will, and even when they don't understand that it is for
their best, they will need to trust you and know that EVERYTHING you do is
because you love them and want what's best for them. They will see this
love in everything you do for them and they will learn to trust you and do
what you say as they see that in everything you do you love them and put
their needs first.

Sorry, didn't mean to get into my whole philosophy of parenting, but I have
seen a lot of people come home with children without having those
expectataions and "ground rules" in place while you have a translator to
help you, and then chaos breaks loose once they are with their kids by
themselves and they have no way of making themselves understood and it
causes major stress for the parents and the children. So just wanted to
give you a heads up on the kind of talks we had with our kids while at the
orphanage that I believe really helped their transition and so much so that
we have had zero issues to deal with. If I hadn't lived through it myself I
wouldn't believe it either. But your children, especially the age you are
talking about adopting, really need to be in agreement with these things and
understand that is a part of being adopted before they agree to be adopted.
And we did ask our children if they wanted to be adopted and live like that
in a family, and they all said yes, thankfully.

My Ukrainian children are some of the best behaved, most respectful kids I
have ever known, almost more so than my bio kids. I really belive it's
because we set the ground rules from day one and we have lived by them in
mutual respect and love and it is absolutely working. I have made more
mistakes with my bio kids through the years just from ignorance,
inexperience and over-indulgence than I have with my Ukie kids and now I am
having to go back and try to correct some of the dumb ways I have dealt with
my bio kids through the years. They are much worse at pushing me around,
whining, complaining to get their ways, not living by the house rules and
thinking they can get away with it, I think you get the picture.

But, back to your question, as far as toys, you will be able to find simple
things to play with in Ukraine at all the markets there are toy booths. You
might want to take a few action figures (if you are considering boys).
There is nothing in Ukraine of the quality you can get here. The few we
took we left there and the kids at the orphanage had never seen such, such
as Spiderman, Batman, Ninja Turtles. The boys LOVED them. The ones you buy
in Ukraine are the dollar store type that fall apart quickly.

For girls, the same nicer quality toys you might want to take, and just buy
the simple things there. But do take a magnadoodle and some crayons. You
won't find those there. Also white board books and markers are nice because
they can be erased and used over again. Your visit time at the orphanage
will be a great time for doing art, writing and drawing and coloring. For
Morgan, since I knew specifically I was going for her, I packed her a
backpack here in the states before we left with "her" things, toys, art
things, her own hairbrush and some hair clips and such, some lip gloss, some
sparkly nail polish and nail stickers, simple card games, but her favorites
were the beautiful colored pencils and stencil set, nice new crayons (she
had never seen) and balloons and inflatable beach balls. Those were great
for playing with inside when we couldn’t go out.

Let me know if you have any other specific questions. Boy, this brings back
a lot of memories of our time at the orphanage. Take lots of balloons to
pass out for all the kids to play with. They are easy to pack and we took
hundreds and gave them all away. They can either be blown up and tied for a
ball or left to be blown up again and again and used as an "airplane". We
also blew up quite a few and just tied them around the orphanage for
decorations. I never saw these for sale in Ukraine. Also Uno cards would
be good for older kids, help in learning colors and numbers.

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/18/05 as of 8/24 kicking and moving arms via sono, very active.
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine, I171A from INS has arrived, dossier to Ukraine next week!!!!!!

NEVE and TRISTAN
09-17-2004, 12:04 PM
Recommended by Cristin

Ruslan has someone in the US named Anna that coordinates things for him. Her
email address is "A Sternad AT aol.com" She will send you an email with info
about her and about Ruslan and a list of references. She will also ask some
questions about your adoption so that Ruslan can give you an accurate quote
or even an idea if he thinks he can find the birth family. I'm very sure
that the info he provided is accurate because the pictures he sent are
amazing how much this family looks like my daughter. He is also very good
about finding out exactly what information (if any) about you that you want
passed on to the birthfamily. At the end of his report he even summarized
for us his opinion from meeting them if he thought there would be any risk
in further contact with them. We have been extremely pleased. And the whole
thing cost less than a single consultation with a us investigator would have
cost.
Good luck,
Cristin

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 IT'S A GIRL
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine 1/05

http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
10-02-2004, 10:25 AM
Can't endorse these people but just found their site and they translate minutes of meeting that the NAC has and seem to be pretty familiar with the NAC as far as listing secretary name etc... to date have found no such site with so much info on the NAC

http://www.adoption.com.ua/ucn_update_reports.html


Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 IT'S A GIRL
* DOSSIER SENT TO UKRAINE-siblings

http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
10-02-2004, 11:56 PM
Wish I coudl take credit for this great list but I stole it from the files section of one of my boards. I do not know the person who wrote it but enjoyed it a lot.

Here are the questions to ask at the orphanage
(Medical Questions)
§ (What vaccinations have been administered to the child? For example, polio, diphtheria, tetanus, chicken pox, measles, tuberculosis, other?)
§ (Does the child have an [official] Medical Card?)
§ (What tests have been done on the child? HIV, Hepatitis A, B, C, others?)
§ (What known medical problems does the child have? Allergies, heart condition, other?)
§ (Typically, what happens when the child is ill? How does s/he behave?)
§ (Did any of the vaccinations, tests, treatments or operations leave marks on the child’s skin?)
(Questions about Food)
§ (What foods does the child like? hate? avoid? Which cause allergic reactions?)
§ (What menus are generally served? In the summer? In the winter?
§ (What are the recipes for the child’s favorite Russian dishes?)
§ (What has the feeding schedule been? When does the child breakfast? have lunch? dinner? etc.)
§ (How much food is given to the child at each meal?)
§ (Were the children ever given treats? What type of treats? When or why were they given?)
(Questions about Daily Activities)
§ (What times does the child usually get up?)
§ (When does the child bathe? [morning, evening, how often])
§ (How are the children bathed [tub, shower, with a sponge])
§ (Please describe how his/her hair is washed.)
§ (Can the child brush his/her own teeth? If so, when [morning, night, both]? Does s/he need assistance brushing?)
§ (When does the child go to the toilet? How often does s/he pee [piddle, urinate], poop [go #2, defecate]? Is there a schedule?)
§ (What are the child’s routine responsibilities? How is the child handling them?)
§ (If the child is school age, when and where does s/he go to school?)
§ (When are play times?)
§ (What are play-time activities? [games, outdoor play, etc.])
§ (When is naptime? [go to sleep? wake up?])
§ (What time does the child go to bed at night?)
(Developmental Information)
§ (What educational toys has the child used?)
§ (Is the child familiar with different shapes, colors, letters, numbers?)
§ (What is the child’s emotional development?)
§ (Does the child prefer to have a favorite toy or blanket with him/her?)
§ (What are the child’s favorite songs, lullabyes, games, activities?)
§ (If the child is in school: What is the child’s reading level? Writing level? What are the child’s favorite subjects? Can I obtain the child’s workbooks?)
§ (When did the child begin [by him/herself] to roll over? sit? crawl? stand? stand without help? pronounce sounds? talk? smile? etc.?)
§ (What type of discipline is the child used to?)
(Behavior)
§ (Is the child generally active, quiet, reserved, noisy or busy?)
§ (Does the child have any known fears, problems, concerns, worries?)
§ (Does the child behave differently when ill, scared, etc.?)
§ (Is there any special way to comfort the child when s/he is sick, tired or scared?)
§ (Is there any special way to get him/her to sleep, eat, nap, wash, etc.?)
§ (How does the child act when left alone?)
§ (Does the child get along with other children? grown-up men? grown-up women, animals [housecats, dogs]?)
§ (How do caregivers feel about the child?)
(General Questions)
§ (Does the child have any religious training? Was s/he baptized? Are there any religious records?)
§ (Does the child have any travel experience?)
§ (Are there other important events in the child’s life history?)
§ (What is the child’s ethnic background?)
§ (What can you tell me about the child’s parents?)
§ (Why is s/he in the orphanage?)
§ (How long has s/he been here?)
§ (Is anyone from his/her family known? Where do they live?)
§ (Has anyone visited the child?)
§ (Does the child have brothers or sisters?)
§ (Do you know of any physical or artistic characteristics in his birth family?)
§ (Can you tell us if you learn of anything about his birth family’s history or if you learn of brothers or sisters?)
§ (Would you be willing to include in the child’s file information that we provide in case a birth family member wishes information about the child? If yes, what information do you suggest? To whom would you give the information?)
§ (Is it possible to maintain contact with his/her best friends from the orphanage?)
Another List
§ *How long has he been in the orphanage?
<<< Records will show this.
§ *What is his family history?
<<< Records will show who the parents are, that is all, not family medical.
§ Are his parents and any siblings still alive?
<<< Record may show this, but if the parent has died since the child was put in the orphanage they do not know this.
§ Does he ever talk about his previous family life?
<<< They probably would not know this, as they do not spend that kind of time with the children. i.e. private conversations.
§ Does he have strong memories of his birth family?
<<<They would probably tell you, to ask the child yourself.......
§ *Does he have any medical conditions?
<<< Records will show this, but even then they could be incorrect.
§ Is he particularly susceptible to colds, flu, etc.?
<<< When one child gets a cold in the orphanage, basically many of the rest do.......
§ Is he currently taking any kind of medication?
<<<Unless the child is in the hospital (which you would not even see them), antibiotic are rarely given to the children.
§ Has he ever taken any medication? If so, how didhe respond to it?
<<<< May be in medical record, doubtfully.
§ Are there any medical conditions in his family background that are known?
<<< May be in medical records, doubtful.
§ *When was his last medical examination?
<<< In medical records.
§ *Has he been immunized? If so, for what?
<<< In medical records, but we got all our kids reimmunized when we returned to the states.(Get all innoculations on file.)
§ How does he behave when visiting a doctor?
<<< Probably won't know this.
§ Has he seen a dentist? If so, how many times?
<<<< Orphans do not go to the dentist, at none of the ones I have EVER seen, many people do not, as the quality and cost are both a factor.,
§ What is known about his dental records?
<<< None
§ How did he behave when seeing the dentist?
<<< None
§ How is he emotionally/temperamentally?
<<< Records may show this, but you watching he/she with the other kids will probably be the best indicator.
§ *What is his daily routine (waking, meals, naps,bedtime, etc.)? (Get times of activities.)
<<< Caregivers will give this.
§ *Does he know how to dress himself, bathe/shower, and brush his teeth without any help?
<<< Caregivers will give this.
§ Does he have any sense of modesty?
<<<None
§ Is he bathroom trained?
<<<Children begin this at 1 to 15 months (see our photos of my last trip, babies are being trained), unless the child has a problem he/she will be trained by 2 yrs. old. BUT many have accidents.
§ *Does he have any bedwetting problems or accidents?
<<Caregivers will know this.
§ *Does he make his own bed or do any kind of household activities at the orphanage?
<<< Absolutely, all children have jobs and MUST make their bed, if they are old enough.
§ How are his motor/coordination skills?
<<< watch the child and judge for yourself
§ Has he ever ridden a bike? (probably not)
<<<NEVER, they do not have bikes at orphanages. His Kids, Too! purchases tricycles for the little ones, and the older kids rides those. I have NEVER seen a bike at a Boarding School (for older kids)
§ What does he typically eat every day for each meal and
§ snack?
<<< EVERYTHING they will give him. Food is so little, children lick their bowls and plates, 'snacks' as we think of them do not exist. This is why children eat so much after being adopted. It is very important to regulate how much your child eats, as they will get sick, due to too much food.
§ What are his favorite foods?
<<<Children in orphanages eat ANYTHING they are given, so children do not have favorite foods, as they are very hungry most of the time.
§ What foods does he dislike?
<<see above
§ What are his favorite things/toys/activities?
<<<Life in an orphanage is somewhat scheduled and kids love to go outside and 'play' /walk around. Some facilities have few toys, that is why we provide toys for them. All kids love blocks, dolls, basically whatever they can find, as toys are few.
§ Does he have an attachment to any of his caretakers?
<<< depending on the age of the child, most definitely.
§ How does he get along with other children?
<<< watch and child and judge for yourself.
§ Has he formed any strong bonds with any other children at the orphanage?
<<<usually children have one or 2 kids they form a bond with, BUT all all depends on the age of the child.
§ How does he respond to changes in his routine?
<<<From my experience, not real well. Change needs to be gradual, but the biggest change, right off the bat, will be being out of the orphanage, and all the 'freedom'.
§ Has he ever reacted violently or in a disruptive way to changes in his routine?
<<<Orphanages rarely change their routines.
§ How does he react typically when meeting strangers?
<<< Since you will be a stranger, this will be a good gauge for later....
§ Does he tend to trust/distrust adults he doesn't know?
<<< (?)
§ Has he had any schooling of any kind in the orphanage?
<<<Depending on the age of the child, there is NO schooling for younger children.
§ Does he know any numbers and letters?
<<<Children are not taught this, but depending on the age, they may know this. At the age of 6 they COULD go to school, depending on where they live, orphanage or Internat, they may or may not go to school.
§ Does he have any consciousness of his nationality? <<< (?)
§ Does he know anything about the USA or American things?
<<<Depending on the age, Yes, Americans have lots of money, beautiful homes, etc.........
§ Has he been baptised? If so, is there a Certificate of Baptism on file?
<<<This is an interesting question, and was brought up at my meeting with the director of an orphanage in Donetsk. She relied to the person who asked, (as it was not me), that an 'orphanage is a place where we care for children's physical needs, not spiritual........if the child is adopted, that is the role of the parents, not ours, to make this decision for them.' I personally, totally respect this director, and her comments on this. BUT some children have been baptized prior to entering the orphanage, depending on their age.
§ Does he have any experience of religion? << see above.
Other Information
§ (Please give us the names, addresses and phone numbers of: caregivers in the orphanage, doctors, manager/helpers [facilitators], other contacts that might be useful later.)
§ (Would any of the caregivers like to write a letter to the child for when he’s old enough to read it?)
§ (Is it possible to get a picture of the author of the letter, photos of child’s friends?)
§ (When we send letters and photographs about the child, is there anything in particular that we should tell you about his life?)
§ (Is there something that we can do [either ourselves or with the help of others] for the orphanage? Can we help the orphanage somehow?)


Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 IT'S A GIRL
* DOSSIER SENT TO UKRAINE-siblings

http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
10-03-2004, 12:03 AM
the abovew was posted on the Eastern European thread...this one on the Ukraine specific thread. I am certain many overlap but thought I'd capture them all here.

In open forum there is this thread and I thought it would be nice to start a Ukraine one:

Can some of you share what you would have done differently in your Ukraine adoption ( research, choices, paperwork , travel, so on & so on ) for those of us waiting it would be so nice know.


hindsight
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, August 30, 2004 - 07:42 pm:

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Used an agency. Learned Russian.


Would have.....
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, August 30, 2004 - 07:53 pm:

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Packed plenty of Tylenol and hand sanitizer!! (you cannot get these in Ukraine)


hummmm
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, August 30, 2004 - 07:57 pm:

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- adopted 2 instead of 1
- tried to find BM's address before leaving country. we have her name on birth certificate
- given more to the orphanage
- taken more photos of her bith place.
- asked orphanage more questions, like, did they meet the BM. Can they contact the BM and let her know her baby (that's still hard to say) was adopted and is loved. Can we be contacted if there is a sibling.


doublevisa
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, August 30, 2004 - 08:42 pm:

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I would have gotten a double entry visa instead of a single.
bring alot of toliet paper.
a converter- more movies-
black running shoes
taken more photos-


Letzlannie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2004 - 06:16 am:

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- Taken more photos of everything!..asking our escorts to slow down so that I could get countryside shots and a few more in my son's hometown.
- the opposite of many, I would have left the computer and movies at home and used the extra luggage space for more things from Ukraine
- booked hotel space in Amsterdam somehow!
- turned to go through that odd holy-looking arch even though a lot of people (pilgrims) were going through..it turned out to be the Lavra and we missed it while taking a long walk


Shelly Fisher
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2004 - 06:26 am:

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I would have shopped at St. Andrews street BEFORE heading out into the region. I had purposely decided to shop there "on the way OUT" and wound up only being able to hit two booths because the kids were hot and tired and hungry and over-stimulated. You DON'T want to miss that shopping experience, so go there asap in case you just plain can't later on!


virtualtwins
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2004 - 07:10 am:

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Asked the orphanage if they had ANY pictures of my son before we picked him up. I'd sure like him to have pictures of himself before 6 years old.

Otherwise, nothing. We had a great stay, adopted an adorable boy, met a Ukrainian couple who have turned into dear friends (we've already seen them since), and we value our time there as a wonderful family adventure.


Hannah at OACC
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, August 31, 2004 - 08:10 am:

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I wish I had...
* adopted all 4 at once instead of making 3 adoption trips over 2+ years.
* taken both digital pictures and video each trip. I have only video of my first adoption, only regular photos of the 2nd, and only digital photos of the 3rd.
* learned more Russian
* spent more time with the caregivers learning about my children's early childhood


truth
Unregistered guest
Posted on Wednesday, September 01, 2004 - 06:14 pm:

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chosen Russia


ukr mom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Wednesday, September 01, 2004 - 07:30 pm:

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--not given away all our children's cold medicine (when our son got a cold, we had nothing left--we did not find any kids medicine there!)
--try not to feel so bad about the kids we didn't choose to adopt
--not take an overnight care ride from Kiev to Warswaw--I would have taken the plane
--tried to find out more about my son's birth family, especially his birth brother. My son's BM is deceased and the translator thought it was weird that I wanted to find out where she was buried and maybe visit the burial site, if there was one. Now I wish we had pushed harder on this!


to Truth
Unregistered guest
Posted on Wednesday, September 01, 2004 - 08:21 pm:

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where did you adopt from and how was it?


?'s
Unregistered guest
Posted on Wednesday, September 08, 2004 - 07:18 pm:

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OK, I am suprised one person would have gone to Russia instead, and one who went indy would have wanted an agency instead? What would that advantage be? No agency help in country, so what?


It's Clear
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, September 09, 2004 - 07:16 pm:

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Obviously that person had a failed adoption in Ukraine!


hmm???
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, September 09, 2004 - 10:21 pm:

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What makes you assume it failed?


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 10, 2004 - 12:52 am:

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I would have...
...brought more comfortable "hanging around in very hot apartments and hotels" clothes like jeans, shorts and short sleeved t-shirts.

....brought my facilitators gifts. They did such a GREAT job for us and when I went shopping in Kiev for them I just couldn't find anything suitable that they probably didn't already have a hundred of already.

.....used the VIP service at the airport. We got slammed with hundreds of dollars in "duty tax" over used children's clothing which we were donating to the orphans.

....brought more motion sickness pills for the rough rides in the back of cars driven by Mario Andretti wanna-bes.

Cristin


cannotwait
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 10, 2004 - 09:54 am:

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Cristin-
I have planned on bringing alot of used clothing over as well. What is the VIP service? Would that make a difference? Is there a better way to get the clothing over there? Were the clothes appreciated or was there something else you would suggest bringing to the orphanage?
Thanks for the info.


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 10, 2004 - 11:01 am:

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Cannotwait,
The VIP service is a service at the Kiev airport that will have someone personally escort you from the plane to the front of the line and through customs. Its been said its the thing to do if you have items with you that might be questioned as taxable...ie wine, facilitator gifts etc.

The clothing was appreciated but the things they really were rabid over and disappeared within seconds of us presenting them were the infant & toddler meds (ie tylenol) and the diaper rash ointment. Also they were REALLY in need of shoes (especially tiny 2 & 3 toddler size) and tiny coats (6, 9 & 12 month). The kids in my daughter's orphanage shared one coat per room (so they didn't get to go outside much) and also about 3 or 4 pairs of shoes for all the kids.
Cristin


jb to Cristin
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 10, 2004 - 05:22 pm:

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Cristin,
I know this is off topic but... Would it be better for us to purchase items, like shoes, in Ukraine? It seems it would be cheaper (so we could get more for our money) and we wouldn't have to lug it over there, and our dollars would be spent in Ukraine where they are needed.

Or is this impractical due to lack of time/ availability?

We won't travel for a while and I keep having to restrain myself when I see a sale because I thought I would buy stuff there. But maybe that's not a great plan?
JB


donations
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 10, 2004 - 05:49 pm:

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We took 2 large suitcases of donations (clothes, socks, shoes, vitamins and misc baby items) , but fudged our estimate at customs a little, we didn't pay any duty on our items. We bought everything at 75% off sales or more over many months. I would shop for quality vs quantity, these clothes will be worn and washed many, many times.


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, September 11, 2004 - 03:18 am:

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I personally couldn't find shoes that small in Ukraine and even in the Netherlands when I returned here. They had baby type crib booties in that size but not walking shoes. My daughter had to go shoeless til we made a trip to the states and then bought a pair at target for 9$. Then when we were in Paris she lost one of these and I had to have shoes shipped to me again from the US.
Cristin


UKR mom
Unregistered guest
Posted on Sunday, September 12, 2004 - 01:02 am:

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I would have brought *way* more toilet paper, couldn't seem to find it anywhere. Also, more snacks and more books for downtime!

Our hand sanitizer was a life saver....


Baby items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 10:43 am:

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There is a store across the street from TGIF- it's like a mini mall several stories high (I forgot the Name however it's on the corner the bottom floor had light fixture, beauty items however when you go up to the third floor (stairs) there a large area that sold childrens / baby, toddler shoes, baby items, toy store, sock store, Ukrainian clothing, Baby clothing, etc...I'll check the net to see if I can find the name. But it is there with reasonable prices like wal mart,
We did also go into a speciality store for children, watch out the prices are astronomical.
It was a gucci type children store, beautiful clothing though.


NYU...
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 11:14 am:

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Yes, it is a great mall!! It is called NYU That's what it reads on the upper front enterance. It was right across the street from our apartment, so I will never forget it! It was very convenient, and a lifesaver when my husband realized he did not have t-shirt to wear under his dress shirt and suit 2 hours before our appointment!!


not NYU..
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 11:26 am:

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I am sorry, I had second thoughts on that so I went back an looked at pics we took in Kiev and saw that the the name is actually.. UYM!! I guess i did forget, as many times as I looked at it out our window I didn't think I would. Not
only did they have everything, the women were VERY helpful and accomidating and would help out alot by pointing to what they thought you were wanting.


Baby items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 01:37 pm:

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Yes that is it UYM. Our apartment was down the street from McDonalds area. Every morning we'd walk to the center. Lots of underground malls.
There were festivals and every weekend they'd closed the main street down so that people can walk the street. There were many people who sold things on the street and sang, played instruments, danced, etc..for money...one time they had a beautiful parade of people across the world...with beautiful dresses...Thanks for the information...Id completely forgot the name.


your welcome!
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 02:23 pm:

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Your welcome!! I'm glad I could be of some help to someone We returned in May with our 22 month old son, who is now almost 27 months ( Gosh, the time is already flying by so fast). I think I know where your apartment was. It sounds like where we stayed for the first night until they moved us to the other place, it was a really nice apt.


Baby Items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 02:50 pm:

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We were there in April and stayed until The last week of May...Our son is now 19 months old. Our apt was nice. Did you go to Obriens to eat. We did every Sunday before Church. It was nice to watch TV, read paper and have good ole American Breakfast - Everything was in English.
Yes time is flying by very quickly for us too.


your welcome!
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 04:16 pm:

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Wow! We were also there in Apr and May! We arrived in Kiev on Apr. 12 and left on May 14th. We never did eat at O'Briens but we did frequent the McDonalds and TGIF a couple of times. TGIF's was nice, they all accomadated us Americans very well And we enjoyed the good old American food too! We ate at the Ukranian cafeteria that was nearby a few times too, although I can't remember the name of it. I will ask my husband if he remembers. Our translator insisted on taking us there. Although it was pretty good, it just gets to be too heavy of food to eat all the time. When we got to the region ( we were there for 21 days)we ate at a really good pizza place and also a nice restaurant where we sat inside a gazebo, and also of course the McDonalds! We adopted our son from Simferopol (Crimea). Where did you adopt you son from?
You know, we may have crossed paths. We remember seeing a few amercan couples while in Kiev that were clearly there to adopt, maybe on of those couples was you?
Congartulations on your adoption success, we know that we are sooo grateful for our son. If you would like to, I'd like to talk some more, but I don't feel comfortable giving our e-mail on the board,if you would feel okay giving me yours then we could email each other privately. It is just so nice to have something in common with a fellow adoptee


your welcome!
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, September 13, 2004 - 05:04 pm:

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Fellow adopter is what I should have said


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, September 23, 2004 - 07:08 am:

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I just thought of one more...if you are very particular about your sheets or have very sensitive skin (like I do) then bring a sheet each to sleep with. Most of the sheets we encountered in hotels and apartments were extremely coarse and felt like fiberglass on my sensitive skin. Of course my hubby had no trouble with them so its only if you are very picky about your sheets.
Cristin


Modal Heaven
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, September 23, 2004 - 02:44 pm:

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Cristin - thanks for bringing up sheets. I know what you mean. I have issues with scratchy sheets myself and wanted to suggest these great new sheets from Bed Bath and Beyond. They are called Modal made from 100% beechwood - feel like silk at a cotton price ~$80 queen set. They are very luxurious and great for travel since they are lighter than cotton and dry very fast. I have no affiliation with them - just a happy customer.

http://www.bedbathandbeyond.com/product.asp?order_num=-1&SKU=104324&COL=506&RN=1 6


To Your Welcome
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, September 23, 2004 - 07:17 pm:

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Your welcome what state are you from? Were you one of the couples we met in Church??On Easter?
We were constantly walking around your area...Yes we ate at the Ukrainian resturant as well,,,the buffet type...By Sony...I don't feel comfortable giving my email address...I'd love to converse with you more about your trip as well...


To Baby Items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 24, 2004 - 09:13 pm:

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Hello Baby Items,

We are from Illinois. Where are you from? No, we were not there on Easter Sunday, we were in Paris. We opted to take a 48 hour layover there before contiuing onto Amsterdam and then Kiev.

That's okay, neither one of us feels comfortable advertising our emails, probably smart I would like to talk with you more as well !

BTW, I never thought you'd be back on!


to Your welcome
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 24, 2004 - 09:27 pm:

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Same here..I was afraid I had responded too late..Ive been busy this past week with our daughter and new son...Well guess what Im from Illinois as well...Small world....Did you go indy or agency...Me? Agency.. Are you connected with the reindeer ranch reunion that goes on each year?? BI


To Baby Items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, September 24, 2004 - 10:14 pm:

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Yes, it really is a small world! We are from southern Illinois in a city called Fairveiw Heights which is about 10 miles east of St. Louis, MO.

We went with an agency as well! No, we are not connected with the reindeer ranch reunion. What is it exactly?


Your Welcome
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, September 25, 2004 - 06:28 am:

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I'm located near Decatur...The reindeer ranch is a group of parents that have adopted from Russia, Ukraine, Kaz, etc...EE..They meet once a year at the Reindeer Ranch for the entire weekend.(Im not sure if it is just an agency event or if it is open to others. I'll check and find out and let you know. .They plan activities etc...Also I haven't been able to attend but once a month the Adoptive moms/dads (from different agency/indy) meet in Decatur for a luncheon to discuss their adoption, children, rearing, or just eating....If you're interested I can let you know about when and where they meet. Maybe we can go the same time? BI


to baby items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, September 25, 2004 - 01:50 pm:

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Hello! Sorry it took me so long to respond, we were at a birthday party for McGwires new 3rd cousin who turned 3 today.

You are only approx. 2 hours away from us! Can you belive it? Yes, I would like info. on when and where. It sounds like it would be fun


BI to Your Wel
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, September 25, 2004 - 07:54 pm:

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Give me a few days to find out when/where the the next monthly meeting. Talk to you later.
BI
I hope you will be able to attend and bring photos too.


CA tobaby items
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, September 25, 2004 - 08:10 pm:

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Okay, thanks BI
CA


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Sunday, September 26, 2004 - 11:52 pm:

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Modal Heaven,
Thanks for the link to the sheets. I'll check them out. Right now I'm a fan of Sam's cotton sheets....
Cristin

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 IT'S A GIRL
* DOSSIER SENT TO UKRAINE-siblings

http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
10-24-2004, 11:18 PM
http://www.nostalgia.kiev.ua/home_e.shtml
Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 IT'S A GIRL
* DOSSIER IN THE HANDS OF TRANSLATOR

http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
11-15-2004, 11:01 PM
Dr. Anna Gorban at the
American Medical Clinis in Kyiv


Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 Baby girl BRONWYN
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine 12-10-04
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
11-21-2004, 12:58 PM
http://www.uazone.net/holidays/christmas.html
Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 Baby girl BRONWYN
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine 12-10-04
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan

NEVE and TRISTAN
12-02-2004, 11:10 PM
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 09:43 am:

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What items did you bring with you to Ukraine that you were glad you brought or what items did you forget to bring that you wish you had?


recent traveler
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 10:33 am:

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Movies, video games, music, books, magazines!! Very glad we brought these. What we REALLY needed and did not bring Tylenol and hand sanitizer!!You CANNOT buy these in Ukraine, please don't forget them if they are something you really use and need!!!! However, they do sell ibuprofen Also, we wish we would have brought our umbrellas! We were there in April and May and it rained quite a bit.


recent traveler
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 10:43 am:

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Oh, and also a couple decks of playing cards and CROSSWORD PUZZLES!! I must have done about 100 of the circle words in one week while in the region, just "hurrying up to wait" Can anyone else relate to that ??


my2cents
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 10:45 am:

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We were there in April and May too,,,In Kiev it hardly rained...We were there for almost two months...I think it lightly rained in our area two times. However umbrellas are very expensive there. In Kiev there are alot of underground sidewalks..very safe...especially avoiding the traffic...(that is a risk in itself)...Drivers drive on the sidewalks..We brought way too much clothing...and we packed light. Bring two pants with two or three shirts. Dark colors...oh and one dressy outfit for court. I used the same dressy outfit to go to NAC, Orphanage, Court. Black pants with black skirt outfit/black jacket.
If I go again...that is what Ill do..you have to wash by hand/unless you are lucky to have a washer. (pack light you will be walking up and down stairs/in and out of vehicles/trains...buy plenty of snacks before going onto the overnight train...BRING PLENTY OF SMALL PACKET TISSUE_PLACE INSIDE YOUR POCKET for the restrooms. Toliets on on the floor and you have to squat (the only way to say it).


going2adopt
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 03:34 pm:

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Hmmm... since my2cents says umbrellas are expensive there, maybe bringing those small purse umbrellas as gifts would be a good idea. Men and women both might appreciate these!


Ukrainemama
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 06:11 pm:

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Hand sanitizer is a must, as well as lots of books and movies. I read a LOT while there, but didn't bring movies. Should have, both apartments I stayed in had VHS players.

Bring jeans. I didn't and it was ridiculous dressing up every day.

And, most importantly, bring *comfortable* shoes. Our connecting flight in Amsterdam we almost missed, and we had to RUN as fast as we could through the largest airport I imagined possible. Of course our connecting flight was on the polar opposite side of this massive airport. My feet, in my most comfy sandles I owned, were literally bloody by the time we barely made it. This is a culture where you walk everywhere. My so-called comfy sandles are good for small walks in the US. But not for the major walking you will do in Ukraine. Actually, I loved that aspect of their culture, the walking.

Also, I came down with a major sinus infection while there, and had nothing to blow my nose with. Bring tons of toilet paper and kleenex.

OH, and *antacids*! Lots of fried food over there!

Enjoy your trip. Just go with the flow and try to take in the culture. We loved our month in Ukraine. Would love to go back some day, when our son is older to show him his heritage.


mommajeane
Unregistered guest
Posted on Saturday, October 16, 2004 - 07:02 pm:

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We just got back and have gone 4 other times to Russia. One thing they don't have are wash cloths and if you use them or want to wash your child you need to bring your own. Hand sanitizers and those little packs of Kleenex--- don't use the bathroom unless you walk in with them, many don't have tolite paper or soap to wash with. We also brought an extra sheet and lite blanket-- we ended up using it in one of our apts. and some said they did on the train--- we took the overnite train and paid for bedding and it was clean and comfortable. We were able to buy very cheap puzzles and some dvds in Russian and english that we were able to watch on our portable player. Our 11 yr. old new daughter enjoyed it as well.

Comfortable shoes is another good idea-- we walked lots all the time and on this trip I had bought new shoes and that caused a huge blister I had to deal with.

It rained for a few days and an umbrella was useful-- you can buy the small ones and they don't take up much room.

A go with the flow spirit with not to many expectations helps when you travel as well. Remeber it is an experience of a life time and so worth enjoying every bit of it. Good luck.


Becca
Unregistered guest
Posted on Sunday, October 17, 2004 - 03:16 am:

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I'm back in Ukraine, picking up my two boys after waiting out our 30 days. For the first trip, we were here for 5 weeks. Bring plenty to do - books, cards, games (we bought a magnetic combo game while here, with backgammon, chess, etc). Our personal DVD player and DVDs were great to have. My only other must is the lexan water bottles I brought. In this small town finding bottled water without gas is nearly impossible - you can boil water and pour it right into the lexan bottles to cool. Perfect.

I second the umbrella. During our first trip it rained several times, we broke down and bought an umbrella. I can't remember how much it cost - around 25 gryva I think....that's about 5USD. Not too bad - and its attractive!


To Becca
Unregistered guest
Posted on Sunday, October 17, 2004 - 09:32 am:

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Becca,
Where did you adopt. Im' curious because my husband and I had opted not to take two boys
We just wanted one child- There were no children available that day -only the two boys. We have photos of one. I was hoping maybe you had adopted the same boys I could email photos to you.


packerpatriot
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, October 18, 2004 - 02:38 am:

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our must haves were motion sickness pills (stop and start driving takes its toll), cold medicine, tylenol pm, comfy cooler clothes for hanging around apartments and things to entertain (books, dvds, puzzle books whatever works for you)
Also jeans and comfortable walking shoes. We too ended up running at times.
Cristin


Rich Stew
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, October 18, 2004 - 12:45 pm:

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Hi, after our recent adoption trip, I'd like to underscore comfortable hanging around clothes and also a small sewing kit. Jennie


crafty
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, October 18, 2004 - 02:23 pm:

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Knitting, cross stitching and journal writing is great for long periods of nothing-to-do.


going2adopt
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, October 18, 2004 - 09:12 pm:

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Ooooh, I thought of something else that I have heard. You can buy diapers there, but bring plenty of wipes, as they were nowhere to be found!


Soon to be 6
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - 07:28 am:

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Are tennie shoes acceptable for "comfortable shoes?" Or does that scream "I'm American?"


yes
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - 07:42 am:

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Yes...white tennis shoes "scream" American. But if you buy black ones you should be fine.

DH wore the slip in mocs (http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=4815& cat4=1011&storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&feat=ssdpa1011) and wore those the whole time. That way he only had to pack one pair of shoes.

Remember if you will be travelling in winter to make sure whatever shoes you take are waterproof and warm. I took several magazine I hadn't had a chance to read and just left them as we went. Our translator loved them, too. We couldn't have lived without our travel size games of scrabble, uno, and skipbo.


Goingon6
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - 09:22 am:

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Ziploc bags!!! I never knew why people said to bring them, but they were so helpful. I used them for everything! They were also great to put my clothes in to make them more compact when packing.

Snacks, peanut butter, trail mix/breakfast bars. I adopted two older children and brought disposable cameras for both of them so they could take pictures of what they wanted. I also brought them little journals, one so they could write their experience and one to give their friends so they could write something to them.

I never needed the toilet paper that everyone suggested we bring...we were fine with what they had.

Hand sanitizer was a must as well as handy wipes.


2cents
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - 10:08 am:

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Goingon6,
You must not had to use the public restroom at the train station...lol...or on the train....
terrible mess...

Good ideas..


mommajeane
Unregistered guest
Posted on Tuesday, October 19, 2004 - 09:15 pm:

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We were able to buy wipes everywhere--- many of the bathrooms did not have any toilet paper at all and hand sanitizer was a must because the towels or "soap" did not look very clean. Even at the NAC and our court house there was not paper. Zip bags are great even here. We were told we really can't hide the fact that we are Americans and never felt the need to---- when we adopted from Russia we did but not in Ukraine. That was one of the plus' about our adoptions in Ukraine-- the country and people were wonderful.


Penny
Unregistered guest
Posted on Wednesday, October 20, 2004 - 03:06 am:

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Books (or other entertainment) , buy a roll of toilet paper and carry it with you ALWAYS! (the toilets are relly bad, and let me tell you, and having toilet paper makes it more tolerable.) or at least kleenex packets in your pocket. It was a Godsend more than once!
A small flashlight. You never know if the apartment you are staying with will have the light working in the hall, etc. We didn't bring one and needed it.
A travel umbrella.


anon
Unregistered guest
Posted on Friday, November 12, 2004 - 12:41 pm:

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Our trip lasted all of October. Must haves for us were:
ground coffee, and a cup filter (all they drink is instant, tea was plentiful)

ziploc bags and a few plastic grocery bags (the markets charge for them)

portable dvd player with dvds and cds (we played both while we were there, one apartment we stayed in had BBC on cable, no other english channels)

power adapter/converter for your devices (we used it with every thing we brought and had no problems)

shortwave radio (we brought a sony icf-sw7600gr and were able to get the bbc and voice of america)

any vitamins and medicines you take regularly (especially immodium, you are guaranteed to have that kind of discomfort at least once no matter how well you avoid the water) and any medicines for your child

umbrella

flashlight (we did get caught in one power failure and forgot this)

small bottle of woolight (our apartments in kiev had washers, the hotel we stayed in kirovograd did not)

books,mags,crossword puzzles

hand sanitizer

toilet paper (most places had the industrial kind you used to get at school and the orphanage we went to had none in the public bathrooms)

an extra blanket (we had a few cold nights and the heat hadn't been turned on by the government yet)

comfortable shoes (not a lot of people wear sneakers so you will stick out, we found that no matter how we dressed people just knew we were foreign)

guide books (we used Bradt's Ukraine Travel Guide,also Language and Travel to UKRAINE both were helpful)

pocket russian language book (I used Russian at a Glance and found it to be indispensable).


Stephanie
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, November 29, 2004 - 01:37 am:

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We are here now. Stuff we wish we would've brought, more movies!! Of course we will be working on our 5th week, so more movies would've been great.
Stuff we are glad we brought, laptop, money (lol) books, large-med-and small tiplock bags, EAR PLUGS!!! One flat was off a major road, the one we're in now has trollys running behind it ALL night.
You can buy toilet paper here. It's too big to pack. I am bringing home ALOT of small packs of Klenex. Well, it'll make a nice stocking stuffer,lol.
A photo album for our daughter to look at while we are not there at the orphanage.
I guess that is it. If I think of more I'll come back and let you know.


DontLikeDark
Unregistered guest
Posted on Monday, November 29, 2004 - 07:39 pm:

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I second that small flashlight. One building we stayed in did not have a light in the elevator. VERY dark and scary, especially when it would stop and pick others up.
AND in the winter some areas have rolling blackouts to conserve on power (Ukraine).


guest
Unregistered guest
Posted on Thursday, December 02, 2004 - 04:11 pm:

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Woolite, clothesline and a notebook. We had no laundry for out first 2 of 4 weeks--no way to take enough underclothes for the duration. The journal was a great stress reliever plus there is so much you tend to forget.

Neve and Tristan born Feb 25, 2003
* EDD 3/19/05 Baby girl BRONWYN
* Adopting siblings in Ukraine 12-10-04
http://home.nc.rr.com/ourbabytristan