December 1, 2005

It has been a long time since the last post and our lives have completely changed. We have our precious Connor home and we are finally a family. The holiday season is going to be so special this year.

On Friday October 14 the court decree was finalized. We did not see Connor all day because we had to get several documents done in order to prepare for his travel to the US. It was a long and exhausting day. We went to the court house first to get the Judges signature on the court decree. Hiccup number one--typo. We had to wait because after they corrected it, they had to hand sew it together again (they don't use staples). Next step was to get the original birth certificate from the orphanage from the director. Hiccup nuber two--the director had car problems and we had to wait for her to arrive. We then had to travel to Connor's birth city to get a new birth certificate issued. It was about 50 to 60 miles away. That part actually went pretty smooth. The next step was to go to the Notary and get all of our documents notarized. This was the longest step. By this point it was almost 5:00 and we had to go to the passport office yet. Luckily, the passport office knew we were coming and stayed late. Hiccup number three--They could not fit Connors Ukrainian spelling and English spelling all on one line. So, we had to take the e out of Alexander and spell it "Alexandr" because there were not enough spaces. Whatever, we were just so happy that we got everything accomplished in one day so we could pick him up the next day--SATURDAY, OCTOBER 15, 2005

CONNOR'S GOTTCHA DAY!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Wow!!! An amazing day! We got to the orphanage around noon (a preset appointment since it was Saturday and the Director came in just for us). We went to the directors office and signed some papers and then we went down to Connor's group. We walked in and I saw him and he saw us. I went over and picked him up and hugged him and Darren filmed. I was so emotional and started crying (Cry #1). The caretakers changed him into clothes that we had brought and he came out and waived goodbye (paka) to all the other children who were sitting on their potty chairs. He had no idea of the significance of the moment. The caretakers gave him hugs and then we walked out with him....... He was ours................................ Amazing.

He soaked everything up in the car ride back to the apartment. His eyes were as big as saucers.
He ate a lot of cookies in the car. We got back to the apartment and spent time with him in our small room. He had to check out everything. For the most part, our translator left us alone. It was frustrating because she talked to him and got more of a response because he understood her. We wanted to get him home so this was not the case anymore. He did not take a nap that afternoon. He finally fell asleep about 7:30 or 8:00.

We left for the overnight train ride at about 9:30. Connor woke up but did not cry. I held him in the car. He fell back asleep on my shoulder (Cry #2). He of course woke up to check everything out in the train station and on the train. He was very curious. It took him awhile to settle down but he eventually did. We had a sleeper compartment. It had 2 cotts and a small table in the center. Connor slept on my side for most of the trip. It was hard because I was laying on my side and every time the train jerked I felt like I was going to fall out of the cott (since I was on the edge giving Connor all the room he needed). He did wake up for a while and cry. We finally got him settled down. Darren layed him on his chest--a beautiful sight to see--our child peaceful on his daddy's chest (Cry #3 for me--cry #1 for Darren). We were awake for the dawn arrival into Kiev......Happy to be that much closer to home on our long journey........

In Kiev we stayed in the same apartment as the first leg of our trip. The landscape had changed. The leaves were gone and people were inside out of the cold and rain. It was very chilly in the apartment that first day. We asked our translator how to turn on the heat and we were told that it is centralized and should come on that evening. Thank God it did. The things we take for granted in America--adjusting our own temperature in our homes.

Connor did really well in Kiev. He was good for all of the car rides (a lot of "cookas" were eaten) and all the running around we had to do. Connor had to get a medical exam before a visa could be issued for his travel to the US. He screamed and kicked like we had never seen before. He was fine after we left the Drs. office. I guess the most satifying thing about Connor was the immediate change in his behavior once he was with us full time. He was more content and happy. Even when we visited him in the orphanage he did not seem like a happy child. He was always happy to see us but it was just different. How profoundly all of our lives have been affected by each other........ We feel so lucky to have him.

There are so many details of our trip making it impossible to condense into a blog. Darren thinks he should write a book. The last days in Kiev were eventful. We had issues with our bank cards not working (yes it would have been smart to inform the bank we were going before hand..da....:) and negotiations with our facilitator on settling our final bill (Darren hitting his hand on the table expressing his view adamently--we actually made a good team--good cop/bad cop). We can laugh about everything now... Our scrabble skills have greatly improved--so be warned.

Our long trip back to the land of the free (oh how we love this country).............................
We left the apartment in the wee hours of the morning on Thursday, October 20. Connor woke up at 2 AM that night--he was probably feeling our anticipation. It was unnerving at the airport in Kiev. We didn't know where to go and the ticket counter was still closed. We finally figured it out and made the plane to Munich. Connor was very good on the take off. The landing was not so good. Since he was over 2, they told us he had to be buckled in and he wanted to be held. As soon as we touched ground I unbuckled and held him. For the next 2 legs we decided to lie about his age and say he was under 2. He is small for his age anyway.

We thought that he would probably sleep most of the 9 hour flight back to Chicago. Wrong. How does a 2 year old stay up that long? He was jibber jabbering and playing most of the flight. He finally fell asleep about an hour and a half out of Chicago. Darren and I were about ready to pass out!! It felt so good to be on American soil. I asked Darren if he was going to kiss the ground. We both wanted to.

As soon as Connor went through customs he automatically became a U.S. citizen. I told him that this is a very significant moment. Like he had a clue.. The anticipation about seeing our families and them meeting Connor was growing every second of our trip back. The flight to St. Louis was on time. Thank you God. As I stepped off the plane with Connor in my arms it was almost impossible to contain my emotions. Here we are......finally.....

We saw everyone standing outside the terminal waiting for us with big signs and jubilation. What joy!!!! Hugs! Kisses! Tears! Connor's acceptance almost immediately to his extended family!!! Like he already knew them! He was so exhausted but he went to Grandma and to everyone. He even got in the car seat without a hitch.. Everyone came over to our house afterwards. There was a welcome home sign in the front yard. As soon as we got out of the car the tornado siren went off.... How appropriate... A little tornado had just arrived to stay at the Daley household!

It was so incredible to be home. Incredible doesn't even begin to express how good it was to step foot in our home... Everything was ready for us. Our refrigerator and pantry were stocked, Connor had a bunch of new toys and the house was warm and welcoming. I spread my arms out and felt so thankful for what we have. That is the second best thing that came out of the trip....

I knew that Connor's room had been decorated and put together with love by so many hands in our family, I could not wait to see it... We walked up and it was perfect...beautiful... that room exuded love....just what I felt for everyone. We are so lucky to have such a great family.... Tears of joy!! I was overwhelmed...

We had pizza and everyone played with Connor. It wasn't too long when everybody left--respecting our extremely jetlagged bodies. Pure joy.... I have never felt this way before....

We put Connor to bed that night in his own bed and we went to sleep in our own bed...How good it felt!!!!!!! Our lives are changed forever... Thank you God. We are so blessed.