Interview & First Visits

What a draining 24 hours!! We arrived at our hotel at 9:45 a.m. yesterday and had a chance to shower, eat a little, and take a nap. At 3:45, we were picked up and taken to the department of education for our interview.

We waited for awhile in a tiny room and then all of us (the 3 families, translator, driver/attorney) were taken into a large room with 2 women and a man seated behind a desk and table. They welcomed us and then started right in with the questions. They wanted to know about us: where we are from, jobs, family, why Kazakhstan, etc. Andrew and I started the group. We answered the questions (they especially liked my teeth!) and then were asked what type of child we would like to adopt. We stated that we would like to adopt 2 boys between the age of 6 months and 24 months, one needing surgery. They told us no. They said we could only adopt 2 siblings. Then they said that our paperwork only said one. We sat in stunned silence as they moved on to the next lady. They began to interview her and then stopped and came back to us. The social worker and the other female interviewer were talking back and forth. They asked if we would be interested in a child with a cleft. We said yes! They told us that they thought that would be good since I’m a dentist. :) They said the paperwork was not fixed but they would make a call a try to get it fixed. We went from shock and sadness to thrilled in a matter of minutes! It’s still not for sure but we trust it will work out.

After the interview they took us to the baby houses. Yes, this is still Friday! We were very surprised to be able to meet the boys the same day we arrived. We also were super tired which made this day tough and long. We were so excited to see them but had been going for so many hours.

We met a 14 month ol first and he cried the whole time we were there. Today was better; he is still shy and cries a little and is afraid of Andrew but he was observing everything. He did not want any of our toys (or any toys at all!). He only wanted me to stand and hold him and really liked me to sing to him. He seems healthy and is a big boy! He is gorgeous. The 12 month clothes we brought fit great.

We met the boy with a cleft at the 2nd baby house. He was happy to see us and very responsive. He has the chicken pox right now – they treat it with a grass green medication that looks like magic marker. So they brought him in with green spots all over his head! It didn’t matter…he is still beautiful. He is extremely tiny. The 12 month clothes are too big. He seems very alert and bright but is just really small. They said he is healthy - just the cleft. He was just as happy today and loved playing with the toys!

We will be visiting each of them for 1 ½ hours/day. We were hoping to see each of them 2x’s/day but instead it will a longer visit 1x/day. Tonight we will see the first boy again – that will not be our normal schedule but we feel like continuity is crucial for him. So this morning, we saw both, tonight we will see him, tomorrow we will see him 10-11:30 and the boy with a cleft from 5-6:30. Please pray that this time with them will be building good family bonds. I can’t imagine how scary it must be for them. I don’t think either of us had thought about that very much. Please pray for us – it is so exciting but also overwhelming! We have a long road ahead of us. We are delighted to see God’s work and provision. Keep in touch – we love getting all the messages.