A Tigger-ific Tuesday!

So, now we finally come to Tuesday (have I teased you enough? lol).  Just be prepared, because there are very few pics- we didn't take many because we were so busy. 

The day started with breakfast at the hotel with Magda and then we all piled in a taxi to the regional adoption center for our meeting with the director and the case worker for A.  Of course, we were a bit nervous, but the taxi driver had a little Yorkie on his lap who was cute as a button and that helped diffuse any nerves.  Dogs rock! 

Several bumpy roads later, we arrived at the regional adoption center which was again in an older looking building.  It was attached to what was or had been a police training center (I think), but this separate building was now what served the needs of the older, eligible adopted children in foster care.  We went in and again were led to an office with a desk, chairs, and a couch.  Case was with us, but was happily oblivious to everything while playing "Angry Birds", lol.  Both the director and the case worker were wonderfully nice, lovely women and we liked them right off.  Magda greeted the director very warmly and it seemed like they were good friends (which we thought was good).  Apparently she and the director have known each other a long time but the lady had changed her name and Magda didn't know it was her until we got in the room, lol. 

Basically, they ran down A's history, asked us what we knew- which is pretty straightforward- and didn't really get into much that was new to us.  They asked us why we felt called to adopt in Poland and asked about Brian's Polish history a little, but otherwise that was it.  Magda and the ladies then started talking for a bit, during which Brian and I just kinda sat there.  The weird thing was I got the feeling they weren't talking about us anymore, just chatting.  I said quietly to Brian, "Do you have any questions for them?" and he said, "Not really".  I agreed, so we just sat there trying to look calm and cool, but probably looking confused, lol.  Magda then seemed to realize we were still there and laughed and said to us "Oh, I'm sorry!  We are just talking about parenting and the foster care system here etc.  We were also catching up because we haven't seen each other in a while.  We aren't talking about you so don't worry."  She is a hoot! The case worker slipped out for a bit while they continued catching up, and then when she returned, it was "go time"!  We got a lovely goodbye from the director and when Case spoke to her in Polish, she loved it! 

We left and went back to the hotel and we loaded up Magda's car with our luggage.   The funniest part was that Magda was absolutely sure all the bags would not fit, but she definitely underestimated Brian's ability to figure out how to fit the most crap in the smallest space (years of experience at work there, let me tell you, lol!).  Of course, he got it all to fit and we were off on the 40km drive to the smaller town A lives in. 

The little town is very quaint and picturesque- right out of a storybook.  We checked into a cute little B&B right off the main town square and then headed over to A's foster home.  Along the way, Magda kept telling us she didn't not know what to expect because the foster system is newer to Poland.  Her personal opinion is that she hates it and thinks the orphanages do a much better job in not only preparing the children for adoption, but also in general care and services such as physical and speech therapy.  She said she had never been to this foster home but she has seen others that really concerned her so she could make no promises.  All I could think was "Great.  Thanks for putting that thought in my head.  Like we aren't nervous enough?"  lol

When we pulled up, we were pleasantly surprised- as was she!  The house was nice, had 4 levels, and was in a cute little neighborhood of about 10 houses, all cute and kept well.  We walked down the driveway and rang the bell.  The foster mom answered and Magda went in first, paving the way as it were.  The case worker followed and then us.  The foster mom was very nice and extremely gratuitous.  The house was clean, bright, and there were cookies and coffee or tea laid out for all of us on the dining room table, complete with doilies and china.  Secretly, I think we all heaved a sigh of relief.  We sat down around the table and did the preliminary introductions etc.  The foster mom then asked if we wanted to meet A.  We said yes, of course, and she called to him.  And like any boy, we heard him before we saw him, lol.  Little footsteps running down the stairs.  When he appeared (after jumping the last two stairs to the bottom- typical boy), the first thought we had was that he was adorable and exactly what we hoped for! 

He has beautiful lighter blue eyes and sandy colored hair, which is almost the exact color of Case's.  He is a little on the small side, but not too bad (he probably looked worse than normal because he was next to Case-zilla who is 5'2"! lol).  Most importantly, he was clean, his clothes were clean, and he was well-fed.  He was smiling and happy and said "Dzien dobry!" when he saw all of us, smiling big.  We said it back and smiled too.  Magda introduced us to A (as what, I have no idea), but she made a special introduction of Case, and A seemed to like that.  Within minutes, he gestured to Case to come with him up to his room to play computers.  Talk about comfortable! 

We then visited more with the foster mom and Magda filled her in on us and other details and we asked questions back and forth.  I think she was a little suspect of us at first; but at the same time, that made me glad because that just meant she was being careful regarding who was coming to possibly adopt A.  I would have been the same way.  You cold tell she soon felt very comfortable with us and we were all chatting about our lives, through Magda of course.  The case worker also joined in and after a while, they again were talking about other things unrelated to us.  I guess we had passed muster, lol.

We asked if we could go up and see what the boys were doing and the foster mom smiled and said "Tak", enthusiastically.  The other areas of the house were clean as well when we passed through.  They had a big screen tv, a computer for the kids, and there was custom woodwork and tile work throughout the house.  It may sound petty, but these were all good signs to me because they obviously not only kept a nice house and the kids were well-taken care of, they were able to have some luxury items too, meaning they only doing it for the money or depriving the kids.  We went into A/s room and he and Case were playing on the computer.  Rather Case was watching him play, but that was ok to start.  He talked like crazy to both Case and us about the game etc, but since it was all in Polish, we didn't understand most of it.  Still, what we did notice was this: he manipulated that computer board like a pro and had good hand-eye coordination and fine/gross motor control while playing the various games.  He could also carry on conversations and would sit to play the game in a chair.  He eventually let Case play in a 2-player game and they did great together!  We also noticed that his room was neat, clean, and things were cared obviously cared for.  All good signs. 

We stayed to play for about 15-20min and during that time he even felt comfortable enough to sit on my lap.  It was very sweet.  He is a very friendly child and I think because the Magda and the foster mom introduced us, he was ok with us; but we will have to watch that and make sure he isn't too friendly with strangers. 

We then went back downstairs and he came with us.  We then gave him the stuffed Tigger we had brough with us.  I'm telling you, after meeting him, Tigger could not be more appropriate! lol   Magda explained to him we had brought it for him all the way from Disneyworld.  While he seemed to like Tigger (or Tygrys ["tigger-ish"]as he called him), he wasn't too sure about it and seemed unimpressed that it came from Disney.  Tough crowd (just kidding), lol!  

He did however let Brian pick him up before we left and seemed to like that alot.  Remember, Brian is 6'4" so I'm sure it was totally fun!  We stayed for about 2 hours total and then left to go back to the hotel for lunch and to change into more comfortable clothes (since we were still dressed in our clothes from the meeting in the morning).  Magda left to take the case worker back to the regional city and said she would be back later and we would go for another visit in the afternoon.  Magda was staying in the same hotel as us and was there everyday for all our visits except the last one, which was awesome. 

So, the three of us headed out in search of lunch and luckily found a pizza place about a block away (which was like 100 yds away, lol).  It was a cute little place and the owners made the pizzas totally by hand and cooked them in a real wood-burning oven.  It was great!

 

 

 

And yes, this is a picture of the whole place, lol!  Told you it was quaint!

After lunch, we met Magda back at the hotel and then went back for another visit from 3:30-5:45pm.  During this time, the other kids that the family fosters were home from school as well (they had kept A out of school that week.  He is in 1st grade so he didn't miss much).  They have a total of 5 children living there, including A- a 12 yr old boy, and 3 sisters ages 5, 8, and 10.  They are all still awaiting parental rights being severed so they can't be adopted yet.  Turns out the foster parents have 3 grown boys of their own who live in town as well and they truly are fostering these kids out of the goodness of their hearts- we couldn't ask for a better situation for A! 

I'll tell you what, if we could we would have applied to adopt all these kids by the end of Tuesday. They are all sweet, well-mannered, friendly, and get along with each other great.  They seemed happy and content; however the foster mom said they want families of their own, especially the 12 year old who they have cared for for 6 years!  His parents won't agree to give up their rights and its been a mess I guess.  I'm just so thankful he and the sisters are in such a great foster home where they are cared for so well. 

Needless to say, they were all fascinated by us as well and I think the older kids kinda understood why we were there.  They all showed off a bit and even put on a "talent" show for us, with A leading the way signing and dancing.  It was very cute.  Also, Tygrys was in attendance- a very good sign! 

The foster dad came home from work during this visit too and we got to meet him for the first time.  What a great guy!  Brian talked to him (with Magda of course) while I was up playing with the boys and he said it went well.  The foster dad is a master stone craftsman and even made the monument for one of the cabinet members that died in the Smolensk plane crash last year (he was from that town originally or something).  He is also A's legal guardian so it was really great to talk to him and let him ask us questions too. 

We finished the visit about 5:45 because Case was getting hungry and I didn't want to overstay our welcome, if you know what I mean.  We said our "Do widzenia"s (Brian even got a hug) and headed back to the hotel with Magda.  We asked her how it went and Magda said, "It went great!  They really like you! And A likes you too!".  We were thrilled!  She really didn't have much advice for us and said we were already doing everything we should be.  She filled us in on various other things the foster parents and she chatted about while we were playing with A and the kids (nothing earth-shattering), but otherwise things went well. 

Later, we met Magda for dinner in our little hotel and it was really good (we sprang for dinner because, well, she is awesome and provided us with so much entertainment during the day and meal! lol).  When Case ordered "zimno melko prozse", Magda applauded him!  It was fun!  The best part of all is we didn't just talk about adoption stuff during dinner; we talked about all sorts of things from travel, to kids, to religion, to politics, to health care, to how things are the same and different in the US and Poland.  Magda was quickly becoming a treasured friend as well as our interpreter and that was so cool. 

We parted company and made plans for breakfast and to go back for similar visiting times the next day. Brian, Case, and I then headed up to our little room with 3 twin beds all in a row, which looked like it was out of the movie Annie.  We watched a little more soccer (of course) and then some BBC news on tv, got online with the free wifi (holla!), and Case wrote in his journal for school about the day.   We all then fell asleep fairly quickly and so closed the chapter on a day where our lives changed and our family grew.  It was a good day  :)

Next time, another visit and our stroll around town!