She Feels Like Home

Today was very exciting and exhausting. Igor took us to the Ministry of Education where we were officially given our referral. I was expecting it to be more like a courtroom, but it was in a regular office, much more informal than I expected. After that, we were off to the orphanage. Reagan has grown so much since the pictures we were given in August, but her eyes looked exactly the same so we still recognized her. She was scared of us at first, but we won her over with Gerber puffs and some toys we had brought. We were able to spend over 2 hours with her. It didn’t take her too long to get used to us and want to play. Finally seeing her smile and laugh was an incredible experience. By the end, she wanted me to just hold her so she could snuggle into my neck. We were told that with the number of caregivers to children that the kids are rarely, if ever, held. I hope she felt the sense of home with me that I felt with her.

After she was taken back for her afternoon nap, we met with the head doctor to learn more about her history and to ask any questions. The orphanage was nicer than we expected although we only were allowed to see a waiting area and one music room. The pictures here are of the outside of the orphanage and the music room where we spent our time today.

Everyone has been wanting to see pictures, but from what I understand, we are not allowed to post pictures in any public forum (blogs, facebook, etc.). So sorry! We’ll have to wait until our second trip after court. For now, just trust me when I say she is adorable!!