June 17 Sunday, a day of rest and visiting some friends from our Kiev mission trip that fall.
June 18 We had Robbie's official immigration medical exam done, and filed the adoption paperwork at the U.S. Embassy
June 19 Almost done!! We say good-bye to Ukraine (for now!) and fly to Warsaw, Poland. I can't believe we completed everything so quickly-- I miss home and want to get Robbie settled into a routine, but I still want to stay and visit our wonderful Ukrainian friends...
June 20 Jumping through the final hoop in Warsaw! For some reason, the U.S. Embassy in Kiev doesn't issue entry visas, so you must go to the U.S. Embassy in Warsaw. Although we had been to court and were legally Robbie's parents, he still wasn't a U.S. citizen, so he needed a visa to enter the U.S.A. as a legal alien. Does the paperwork ever end??!
June 21 Back in the U.S.A. ! We left Warsaw at 7 AM (which meant checking out of the hotel at 4:30 AM!). We had about a 4 1/2 hour layover in Zurich due to some unexpected delays. Thank heavens for the airport's play area and free snacks in the Business Class lounge. (Hint: if you can afford a splurge for business class, esp. on the way back, DO IT! The extra comfort and service both in the air and in the terminal is worth it !) We arrived at Dulles /Washington DC at
5 PM (that's 11 PM Warsaw time!) Thanks to a new law passed in February 2001, internationally adopted children of U.S. citizens become U.S. citizens as soon as they reach American soil. We dropped off our pack of adoption paperwork at the INS office and got Robbie's temporary "green card". Then Ron's brother drove us home (another 2 hours, whew!) where we had a "Welcome Home" party with Ron's parents, brother and family. We are exhausted but blissfully happy to be a complete family now. |
