The gang is in Kyiv...with passport in hand!

A bit of good news to pass on to everyone...Rachel, Ali, and SRCJ headed to Kyiv yesterday (Friday) in a caravan of taxis with the two other American families in town. They all arrived safely after a multitude of extra stops between Khmelnyts'kyy and Kyiv due to one of the young ones fighting a rough bout of carsickness and getting sick over and over and over...yuck! Fortunately, Rachel said that Clark had a blast in the car and was no problem at all, which is a tremendous blessing considering the marathon airline flights that await them!

But in Kyiv the plot thickens...(stage direction: ominous music begins playing softly)

So everybody heads to Kyiv without passports for any of the children...just more promises that the passports could be picked up in town. No sooner did they arrive than they found out that the passports were on their way to Khmelnyts'kyy and probably passed them on the highway going the other direction!!! (stage direction: ominous music reaches a crescendo) But never one to be troubled by logistical problems, the mysterious Mr. X. hires a courier to chase them down and return them to Kyiv, where they arrived this evening, Saturday (stage direction: angels begin singing Hallelujah chorus).

Now, parents, children, and passports are all safety together in Kyiv, where our gang will head to the U.S. embassy on Monday to begin their final paperwork and visa applications. I almost hate to say anything yet, but it looks like everyone will finally get to head back to the States by mid-week. Rachel and Ali are still having the time of their lives but are also ready to be home after so long apart. Clark is probably totally confused and wondering why he gets to talk to Papa everyday on the phone but hasn't seen him in two weeks. Between my Air Force training this year and our adoption trip, we've all spent more time apart than we ever did on active duty--so much for stability, ha!

Anyway, in honor of the safe return to Kyiv, here are some pictures we took way back in mid-July when we first got to town. These are from our day-long walking tour of the center part of the city of Kyiv and reflect, in part, what a wonderful city it is. Enjoy...

Kyiv Photos