Tales of an Adoption: Gotcha Day!

There is a term in adoption called the Gotcha Day. This is the day that the children are yours. So today was our Gotcha Day. We went to the consulate office and they gave us a very brief perhaps 10 minute interview, and then processed the paperwork. They called us up to get our Visas. I burst into tears. I do believe until that moment, I truly believed at some point in this journey, someone would come out of the woodwork - a long lost aunt, uncle, etc) and tell us that they were sorry, but we could not go forward. But it did not happen, and now we are officially the proud parents of Anna and Ruslan. And so our new journey begins!

Ok, back to summing up our last couple days in Russia.

After the embassy, we decided to take the kids to see Red Square. Thought they should see that as part of their Russian Heritage. They thought it was terribly boring. With the help of a new friend from the Hilton, we took the subway (The Metro) down 3 stops. Wow, you can not even begin to imagine the number of people that ride the subway. The subways are beautiful, and the architecture amazing. However, the pushy intensity of the commuters take a little getting used to.

We did arrive and found our way up to ground level. It was fun to see Red Square when it's warm (110 degrees (farenheit) warmer than when we were here in February.) We walked around a little bit, and then headed back to the hotel to swim. That is much more fun.

Holding an Iguana is cool enough to allow a photo to be taken.

Anna weighs about 32 pounds, and 29 pounds of that is attitude.

Walking up to Red Square

Anya's favorite form of walking. This is when she announced she was Queen of Red Square. It's good to be Queen.

Parents happy, children bored.

St. Basil's

On Friday morning, we got to sleep in. It was really nice. First time this trip we have done that.   We drove to the embassy at 10:45. Yesterday when we got to the embassy there was a huge line, people everywhere. It was a bit crazy. Guard told us that over 1000 people went through yesterday.   Today, there was hardly anyone around.   We walked up to a little room, checked in, and waited for our turn. There were 4 other families that were in the midst of adopting children.   An INS staffer came out, swore us all in at the same time, and gave us the instructions for traveling home with the children.  Learned a lot. For instance there is a draft in Russia. Should Ruslan decide to travel here between the ages of 18 and 35 there is a chance (very small) but still a chance that he could be drafted into military service. OK, then.

We were then called one by one up to the desk. We are asked to verify information, and giving some paperwork to sign. We signed the paperwork, and sat down. 10 minutes later we were given they paperwork necessary to bring our family home. Yeah!!   Another first today, a water fountain (bubbler here). That was fun. Also the first clear American phrase learned..."I'm hungry".

After that we took the kids to the Moscow Zoo to celebrate. It was really fun. We saw lots of animals and a dolphin/bulega whale show. A very nice security guard for a nearby office building taught us how to hail a taxi in Moscow. You simply hold out your arm into traffic, and then a car that looks like any other car, stops, confirms that it is a taxi and takes you where you want to go. Turns out you make more money if you do not get an incredibly expensive Moscow taxi license or sign on your roof. Our informal taxi driver, Georgi, was from Tblisi, Georgia and spoke only Russian and German as he studied in the former East Germany. A former communist party member, he was very interested in our opinion of Barack Obama, and remains a huge fan of George Bush (43 that is)! A direct quote from Georgi, "Bush good, terrorists, bang, dead!" Moscow is a wondeful crazy city.

We then went back to the Hilton, watching a little Russian language Monster's Inc. on DVD and then finished the day with a swim in the pool. Both kids put their heads under the water, and Ruslan swam about 3 feet without assistance. He was very excited about that!

We are all packed, and ready to head to America tomorrow.   This has been such an amazing trip. Everyone we have met has been wonderful!   We have made new friends, and have a new family. We have seen parts of Russia that few see, and have learned more about this incredible country. My eyes have been opened to new ways of looking at things and I feel as through I have grown incredibly in the last few weeks.   A big thank you to Zina and Judy at ECAS, and Alex, Luba, and Max on the Russian side for the all the work they have done! Also, thanks to everyone else that made this possible both in America and in Russia! We could not have done this without the support of our friends and family!

Until we get home, paka (Goodbye).