Meeting Vi

Because I know this is what you came for:

 Our first picture!

And here is how we got there.

This morning got off to a slow start. We had to go sit in a very old office building and wait in the hallway for a little over an hour because our referral had to be signed by someone important ti give us official permission to visit.

It got signed, and I was given a brief interview as to why I wanted to adopt, why was my husband (who was sitting right there) not adopting with me (his training schedule won’t allow him to be here for court) and why we wanted to adopt a child with special needs.  Our translator did a fantastic job of making me sound good, and our form got signed.  We also shared our photo book, which never fails to impress.

Someone from that office had to come along with us for the first meeting, to write an official record of our daughter’s information or something.  But first we had to drive almost all the way to the orphanage and sit outside another office building while this lady went in a did MORE paperwork.  By this time it was 11:55 a.m. and we were told we would get to see our girl “very briefly” as it would be nap time at noon.

When we arrived at the orphanage, everyone was friendly and smiling.  We were taken in to the director’s office, with our translator and one of the orphanage doctors.

The director had a large file, and began going of our daughter’s history.  Clearly, that is private information, which I will not share. But it was good for us to hear and to know. The only thing I can share is that she has cerebral palsy, which affects both of her legs.

About 5 minutes in, the door opened and someone pushed our girl in the door and shut it.

She was stunned. It seemed she had not been made aware of what was happening or why, and she regarded us quizzically at first. We were stunned.  The picture had turned in to a person! My mind was literally swimming, I could not remember a.single.word. of Russian. I couldn’t remember how to greet her, or how to tell her she was absolutely gorgeous, or how to say I am your Mama.  Nothing. Just complete shock.

Our translator offered to take a picture of all of us. 

Then I remembered I had a Disney princess doll in my bag to give her. I pulled it out, and she smiled.  I asked if she wanted to sit on my lap, and she did.  The director and doctor began talking again, but all I could do was stare at the sweet, brown pigtails swishing in front of me. Her little hands turning the doll over, as she began to speak a little bit.  She began to realize what was happening.

We were there FOR. HER.

Our sweet little Vi.

She looked up and asked me “What is your name?” in Russian.  I told her “Lora. Mama.”  She looked straight to Dean, “What is your name?”  He told her “Dean. Papa.” She looked to the director and smiled “Mama! Papa!”

Everyone was absolutely beaming, and perhaps had just a glint of tears in their eyes.

“I kept asking for you!! Mama? Mama? Mama? When will you come??” she said, according to our translator.

They told us she was very kind, communicative (pretty sure this is code for "dramatic"!) and "has a musical ear."

They asked if we had any questions. I couldn’t think a coherent thought if I tried at that point. They said we could visit for a little and we stood up. I asked her to take Papa’s hand, and she did. Still smiling. They walked down the hall, hand in hand. She knew just where we were going. The room, where the children who have a Mama and Papa go to play. The room where she must have seen so many friends go to play before being adopted, and now it was HER TURN to go in.

 She was talking ten million miles a minute. She told us her whole name. She grabbed a small push toy and started running with it, to show us how strong and fast she was.  After a few minutes we pulled out our photo book and she was absolutely enthralled.  She stood in front of me as I turned the pages. The first one of Dean and I she shrieked “MAMA! PAPA!” My little bit of Russian started coming back as I pointed out her brothers, sister, dog, and cat. She tried out each of their names in English. We had a picture of her house, she shrieked again “I LIKE that house! I want to go live THERE! And then I won’t come here ANYMORE!” she said confidently. “Where are the beds?” she asked. I didn’t take pictures of the bedrooms. The translator told her. “Well,” Vi said, “I won’t be sleeping anyways, I will be too busy running around!”

To say this child has spirit doesn’t do her justice. To say she has spunk is an understatement. To say she is brilliant just doesn’t quite cut it.

She. Is. AMAZING.

Nothing can stop her. She walks, runs, jumps up from sitting on the floor. She stumbles and falls, but gets right back up. 

She took the book from me, and looked at it on her own on the floor. When she was done, she kissed Mama and Papa on the front.

We had to go do some paperwork, so we said goodbye.  The director told us at that point that Vi had knocked her front teeth out recently by falling.  She had expressed a great deal of concern that her Mama would come and not want her because she was missing her teeth! She apparently had told them her teeth needed to hurry up and grow in so her Mama would come get her!  Does that break your heart as much as it breaks mine?

When we were leaving the director kept saying “Thank you, Thank you, Thank you.” Thank you for coming. Thank you for coming for Vi. Thank you for being her family. Somehow it didn’t seem right. I wanted to thank HER, for loving Vi, for caring for her all this time when no one else would, for making sure she would be still amazing and full of her sweet spirit when we finally found her.

We were able to come visit again at 4 p.m., this time without our translator.  Vi seemed tired and quiet at first, she must have just woken from her nap. But she quickly warmed up again, and was off and running. We raced the push-cars. She rode the horses. She found a blue ball and threw it to Papa, to Mama, and laughed like it was the best game she had ever played in her life.

We stayed two more hours.  In that time she was already learning a few English words, like “Kick it!” to the ball.  She is definitely catching on to our English faster than we are catching on to her Russian! But she doesn’t get frustrated she just keeps right on talking until we get the message, whatever she is trying to tell us.

She L.O.V.E.D. my camera, and once she saw how to work it she took about 200 pictures herself! She thought it was so great, to take pictures of Mama and Papa, and even turned it around to take pictures of herself! We would show her the pictures and she would laugh and laugh and shout her name.  She took pictures of all the toys, and of every photo in her photo book. She wanted Mama to make faces, and would laugh hysterically when I stuck my tongue out.  She sat in my lap several times, and gave me hugs and kisses. The camera took quite a beating, so we may not have too many more photos of visits since she was so obsessed with it I am sure if we take it out for future visits it will be all she wants to play with!

One of my biggest concerns was that Vi would have a timid personality, and get run over metaphorically speaking by the big personalities in our house. However, that worry was completely unfounded! She is so strong, so determined, so full of life and laughter and LOVE.  Her bright blue eyes and her great tooth-less grin slay my heart.

She is absolutely, without a doubt, Our Girl.