Court

Today was our court hearing in Poltava. We felt pretty calm actually, but a little nervous as we didn't know exactly what to expect. After we arrived, we were told to wait in the hall because the judge said he didn't want to hear our case today. He said there was a mix up on the schedule. Let's just say, Natasha is the best negotiator there is! Things went well in the hearing. It took about an hour. They asked Ray more questions than I thought they would. He was great! The Inspector of the town gave us a glowing recommendation. Iryna from the orphanage was equally complimentary. The prosecutor was also in favor. As the judge pronounced his decision there were many tears shed. There wasn't a dry eye in the room-except the judge, although you could tell he was very happy. The Inspector came up to the girls later and told them how lucky they were. She admonished them to be good for their new parents and told them, "I know everything! I will be watching you all the way from Ukraine". She was a lovely lady, and you could tell that she was really happy for all of us. I didn't know if it was proper or not, but I hugged everyone. As we were riding home in the taxi, Polly called. I asked her if she could keep a secret. She assured me she could. I said, "O.K., let me give the phone to your sister." I handed the phone to Angelina and it was fun to hear them talking. Angelina said,"I love you Polly", and tried to cover her smile with her hand. She gave me back the phone and Polly said, "So what's the secret?" I said,"Polly, I just said I was going to hand the phone to your SISTER." She said, "Yeah". I said, "Polly!" She said, "Yeah,(long pause)Oh! Oh! OHHHHH!" I told her to have a good day and that I loved her. In all fairness to Polly, she sets her alarm clock at 6:00 so she can call me. We sure miss everyone at home, but the time is going quickly here for us. I'm not sure I'll feel the same way as we are now required to wait for the mandatory 10 day waiting period. After that, there is more paperwork to do, so as of yet, we are still not certain about our return date. We will keep you posted though. The picture is of the girls with Iryna outside the court building. The other is the kids eating dinner at our apartment. It was a good day!