One Month and Waiting

Everything went as planned and the new physicals are notarized and apostilled. I checked them over carefully before walking out of the Index Department in Springfield. We also got an email from TOL assuring us that the 17c had been corrected and explaining that misspelling is a problem when documents are translated in Bulgaria. We are supposed to be receiving a "Placement Agreement" that is needed to meet Hague requirements soon which should be the next step and sometime we have to submit the I-600 to DCFS and the Department of Homeland Security in the US...we just don't know whether that happens before or after court. I hope Daniel and Kay (coordinators with our agency) aren't easily annoyed with all of our questions...I sent another email today to find out what happens next.

It has been a month now and I can't remember what it feels like to pick Gracie up. I keep watching the videos and looking at the pictures, but she seems really far away. This trip really changed my perspective. Before we went to Bulgaria, I was really worried about her health, but it is funny how watching her run with her elbows out and climb up the slide changed how I feel. Now I wonder how she will transition...I imagine that she will be excited for a few weeks like I feel when I go on vacation...everything will be new, interesting and distracting. Hotels, restaurants, the grocery store, taxi rides, two airplanes, toys, a new home, family...but after a while she will probably just want to go back "home" to the familiarity of the orphanage. She has been blessed to be in one place (besides the hospital) since she was 8 months old...She knows the children, the "aunties," her bed, the food, sounds, and daily schedule. Everyday has been like every other for her. The orphanage is her home. I'm sure she will long for her little bed, the sound of her best friend, Emanwewe, speaking a language she understands, the playground, and the comfort of knowing from experience that her needs will be met. I can't even imagine how hard it will be for her to suddenly be thrust into a world where no one understands her simplest wishes. She is too young to grasp the long term benefits of adoption and all she will know is the immediate reality of being powerlessly swept away by strangers.

I hope someone is explaining "family" to her and looking at the picture album that we left. Maybe she will grow to "know" us by seeing our faces with hers. Hopefully, since Emanwewe is being adopted by her Bulgarian parents, Gracie will come to understand that she will be leaving with her mommy and daddy, too. I pray that God is preparing her heart to join our family and taking away her fears during this time.

I hated the idea of taking two trips during the Bulgarian adoption process, but now I think it actually has given us time we all needed. Time to really consider Gracie as a person, instead of just a vague idea. Time to prepare for a huge life change. Time to appreciate the tremendous gift we are being given. Thank you God for always being right on time.

Paperwork Woes

On August 18, Mark and I got our physicals redone, so that there wouldn't be any chance that they would be beyond the 6 month expiration when they go to court. Getting these processed is an ordeal. First, we both had physicals (the fourth ones in 2 years), then notarized the signatures at the bank, then drove them to Springfield to the index department for an apostille. Well, when I copied the documents to express mail to Tree of Life, I noticed that the apostille numbers on the two documents were identical...which means they are wrong. So, I called Springfield and found out that if they take the stapled apostille pages off the documents and correct them, the staple holes in the documents could cause officials in Bulgaria to doubt their authenticity. Terrific. We have to redo the physical forms. So, when my students are in PE at 10:00, I will pick up the new letters from the physician's office. During lunch from 11:00-11:30, I will have the documents notarized. Then I will fax a copy of the documents to Springfield so they can begin processing the apostilles. After school, I will drive to Springfield to have documents processed, and hopefully arrive before they close at 4:30. Then, if they are right, I will express mail them to Oregon tomorrow.

Then when I checked my email I found a new document from Tree of Life, a 17c, had arrived in my inbox! The next step is underway, but the notarized document from the agency has our name spelled wrong again. Somehow, either in Oregon or Bulgaria, they think our last name is Duhnam. It was incorrect 8 times. I hope that this can be easily fixed and that it won't hold up the process in court.

I know everything will work out...I just want it to work out FASTER!

Sick

It has taken a long time to update the blog because I have been sick and Mark is a hunt and peck typist. I think I had a sinus infection and according to the nurse a gall-bladder attack...but who knows what was in some of our food this week. The flight home was miserably long, especially when you don't feel very well. It was so nice being picked up at the airport (thank you Tom) and being on the ground. My sisters were amazing to have dinner waiting for us and Mark was an ironman driving home with just a Mountain Dew to keep him awake. I have only been awake for about 6 hours in the last two days and finally ate some broth and crackers without feeling horrible. Yes, I called the doctor and will be in there tomorrow if I am not feeling much better when the antibiotics are finished.

Rila Monastery and Boyana Church

Our driver, Calem, picked us up to take us to a monastery in the Rila mountains that is about 90 km from Sofia on Saturday since we were not allowed any more visits. We thought this was a good opportunity to learn a little bit more about our daughter's heritage. The drive took us through winding roads and small villages. We noticed that crops were grown in patches about the size of our house, homes all had vineyard trellises covering their small yards, car lots existed in the middle of nowhere, and horse drawn wagons and modern farm machinery were all part of the landscape. Bulgarians take pride in making their own rakia, wine or brandy, which is why vineyards were everywhere (we even noticed a grape trellis at the orphanage.)

The drive to the mountains was beautiful once we got out of the traffic jam of the city. The Rila Monastery, where we were visiting, was established in the 10th century by St. Ivan of Rila (Sveti Ivan Rilski) and is a source of national pride as it has endured fires and Ottoman oppression. The Rila Monks are credited with preserving the Bulgarian language and history. The Church of the Nativity is the central building and the frescos and gold covered wood carvings of the interior are unbelievable. Since photos were not allowed inside the church, check out this website to see the interior. http://www.rilamonastery.pmg-blg.com/Gallery_church_en.htm Another point to note is that our daughter's orphanage name, as listed in the documents, is St. Ivan Rilski children's home, so the orphanage was named after the Orthodox saint who established this monastery.

After leaving the monastery, we stopped at a roadside restaurant and ate on an open umbrella-covered patio. The fresh trout lunch was caught in the mountains and despite having the head and tail attached, was very tasty. The owner, a native Bulgarian, chatted with us and was very interested in where we were from since he had lived in Chicago for several years.

When we returned to Sofia, our guide took us to another national treasure that recently opened to the public, Boyana Church. According to our guide, who was an Art teacher for three years, Bulgaria was under Turkish oppression during the Renaissance, so they did not actually experience the Renaissance in Bulgaria. However, discovery of this church shows that local Bulgarian artists in the 11th century demonstrated artistic styles of detailed portraits prior to the emergence of this form of art in other areas. Basically, he believes that the Renaissance period actually began in Bulgaria. Our guide was very proud of this church and its meaning to the country.

The Rila courtyard

One of the frescos.

The Church of the Nativity.

Fresh trout for lunch.

Boyana Church