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My husband and I, the Dynamic Duo, have been married since 2003. We've weathered the storm of chronic disease (diagnosis 2006), infertility (diagnosis 2007), turning 30 (2006/2007 respectively) a first adoption (2009) of a tender hearted, compassionate Ukrainian BIG boy (born 2006), who has told us he'd like a baby sister, baby brother, big brother, and REALLY big sister. We recently completed our second Ukrainian adoption journey, which brought us a daughter (born 2005). We'll see what else God brings our way!

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Dream Land

Well, we made it here without incident. I expected to walk off the plane in to another world, but it wasn't as different as I thought. We are in the process of getting a phone, since my husband's international phone doesn't work here.

The trip: We flew out of Detroit at 10:15pm. I expected the almost 8 hour flight to Amsterdam to be boring and monotonous, but it was really nice. Northwest has a TV for each passenger, and you get to pick whatever you want to watch. I watched two movies, then tried to rest. It was fun! We even got to our gate a full 30 mins early! We caught our next flight in Amsterdam to Kiev. Just an FYI if you're flying in the area...they had security checkpoints at every gate! At least that we saw...but it was very efficient. We were a bit delirious at this point and took a few goofy pictures...I'll have to upload them later. Flight in to Kiev, no problem. Even a bit early. The airport is a bit intimidating. You ride a bus to the main building, and then go to a booth with a Ukrainian officer, who was very serious the entire time. We tried to fill out the claims form, but were told that we didn't have enough money to claim, so we went straight through.

We were met by our facilitator, Anna, who has been absolutely wonderful. She is very cautious with us, and patient, which is a big credit to her :) She showed us the mall and some of the Square, but it started rain/snowing, so we stayed inside most of the time. We had our first Ukrainian fast food...I had what we call perogis...potato...Mmmmmm. My grandmother used to make them from scratch. Mmmmmm.

The culture here is a lot different than I expected. There is a big European influence here, and you see it in the younger generation. I see a lot of jeans, tight pants, boots, boots, and did I mention boots? Women wear every color, and style of boot imaginable. You can tell this is an international city. I've heard a British Accent, and some sort of Asian language. We're near Independence Square, which has lived up to its reputation. It's beautiful! And very busy all the time. The metro has stops here, and forget about going anywhere during rush hour! (OK, that's really just a big city thing). Oh, and I almost forgot to mention that they speak a combination of Ukrainian and Russian...some sort of mix.

We're on our own for the first time, and plan on being back pretty early tonight. We'll probably watch a movie and hit the hay. Tomorrow is our big day, and I'm pretty nervous about it.

Prayer Requests:

1. That Dave's cold doesn't linger much longer.
2. Wisdom for tomorrow
3. Safety for us and our things

8 comments:

Chalklette said...

Hi! I'm a blogger too and have adopted from Ukraine, Lugansk region (thru Cathy Harris). Good luck with everything...trust your translator, trust me! :) If you get a chance go eat at Boodmo...really good huluptsee (i don't know how to spell it, it's a cabbage roll) and vereenikee (perogi to us). Remember, don't drink the water, not even to brush and the library has very cheap internet access!

Anonymous said...

Thanks so much for the update Natalie. We are glad that the trip went well and that you arrived safely. We will be praying for tomorrow...such a big decision to make.

Vince , Shelly and Maddie said...

Good luck tomorrow!

adopting2fromUkraine said...

So glad you made it safely! See, I told you they wear jeans;) It is hard to explain Kiev to someone who hasn't been there. It wasn't cold this time last year when we were there.

The potato pierogies you ate are called Vah-ren-ah-kee. I loved the round ones with meat in them called 'Pel-ah-meh-nee' MMMM!!

Best wishes on your appointment!

June

The Nasts said...

so glad your there can't wait to hear tomorrow's update

Conethia and Jim Bob said...

Yeah you made it without incodent!! That is one big accomplishment over. The SDA was very open on Monday and I am praying that your first appointment turn out as great as our final one has. Many blessings coming your way.

Wonder around the city a little. It is an amazing place to be, if not only to see all the boots :)

Monika said...

We have been praying for you, and your appointment tomorrow. We are happy to hear that you made it safe. I think we will also fly out on the same flight you did.

Our appointment date is April 7th, so we are panicked to get everything done by next weekend!

Kathy Barr said...

Hey there Moser family! I am praying for you this evening. Here are two verses I am claiming for you both as you pick out a picture/s of your new child/children...Isaiah 30:21 and Psalm 32:8. Love you guys. Can't wait to hear more news.
Kathy Barr