Visit Two

We arrive to the meeting room shortly before Lera & Oleg. They seem happy to see us again. They are in the same clothes from yesterday. I read that many Russians will wear the same clothes for a few days before washing them. The kids immediately pull their new gifts from where they left them yesterday. We are told that all things are shared, they have nothing that is only theirs. I expect that these toys we brought them will be left at the orphanage when we take the kids home.

We are dressed a little more casual today. I have on Capri pants. I sit to play w/ Lera on the floor. I notice her eyes glance over to my legs & then she returns to playing. I wonder if she finds it odd that I am not wearing a skirt. In the villages, people dress much more traditionally than in Moscow. Most women wear dresses or skirts. Many have scarves on their heads tied under their chins. It seems popular to have long hair either braided or pulled back in a bun.

As we play w/ Lera & Oleg, the other ladies sit to chat in Russian around the table. It's a little nerve racking to feel like people are watching your every move & commenting about it. After a half hour, we are told that it's time to talk at the table. We have a list of questions that we would like answered. The orphanage doctor is here today. We ask the questions, wait for translation, listen for the answer & then wait for translation again. We have never received any actually paperwork on Lera & Oleg, everything has been verbal. I write as fast as I can. There is so much information at once. I don't want to forget anything. One day, my kids will ask me about these things. Dates are given for a number of things which will help us later try to piece together their story. There are a few times when answers are vague & we push. Every detail will be important to them as they grow older. At this point, I am unsure what paperwork we will receive , if any, as far as their original files go. 

One important detail we are able to clear up is Oleg's age. We were told originally that he was 4. From our video, we were able to translate his month of birth & realized that he was 5. Yesterday, we were told at least three separate times that he was 4. Today we clarify his birthdate. It's quiet. I mention again about the confusion about the birthdate. It's quiet. Finally, someone says that he is now 5. Corbin & I talked about this later. We really do not feel that they were trying to mislead us into believing that he was younger than he really was. I believe that unfortunately, he had a birthday shortly after they prepared the referral paperwork & it was just overlooked. It makes me sad that our little boy turned 5 & no one noticed. I'm unsure if he knew he had turned 5 either.

Soon after our visit ends. The kids give me a hug & Oleg gives Corbin a hug. Lera is still unsure about Corbin & shys away. We were warned before visiting that many of the children are weary of men. Most of the adults they see are women. The kids stand next to each other w/ big smiles on their faces as we take one last photo. It's hard to walk away from them. I know we will be back. I know they are taken care of here. I know the staff loves them. I also realize that they would not be ready to come home today. They have had fun w/ their visitors, Suzanne & Corbin. I'm sure that they have some idea about what is going on. I'm sure there must have been other kids who had visitors & they came back to adopt them. But, for today we are just visitors who came to play w/ them & bring them toys. Tomorrow we will sign the papers to petition the court to adopt them. One step at a time.