Meet the Grandparents

Today was our day to meet Nastiya's Grandparents. We were a little nervous and although Matt had already taken pictures of them, we weren't sure what to expect. We met Nadya at the Garrett's flat and we all took a taxi down to the orphanage together. Nadya doesn't appreciate the walk to the orphanage, so we usually take a taxi if she is with us. When we arrived, the grandparents were already there waiting. All I can really say is they were completely sweet and it broke my heart.

The Grandmother hugged us and the Grandfather hugged me, and shook hands with Brian. She was talking to me, but Nadya was in the directors office, so I had no idea what she was saying. Nadya came in with us and the Grandmother told us that when Nastiya learned we were coming, she was very happy. She had told her grandparents that we were happy and that we loved each other, at which point Brian rolled his eyes. I asked Nadya to assure her that we loved Nastiya very much and that we would take good care of her.

I also asked her if she wanted to tell me anything about Nastiya's life when she was young. She told us that Nastiya's mother was an alcoholic and that she passed away in 06. The father has a broken spine and can barely walk. She was Nastiya's main caregiver until social services came, and she was happy because the orphanage was a better place than where Nastiya was at that time. She got teary when she was telling me this and I wanted to cry with her. I can't imagine how hard it would be to let your granddaughter go to another country and know that you may not see her again. We promised to send letters and pictures, as they do not have a telephone. We also agreed to come to their home on the Sunday before we leave for Kiev to say goodbye. At that time we will bring them gifts and Brian and I will try to leave them a little money.

They had brought us some pastries, champagne, and vegetables from their garden. It was completely humbling to see that they had brought us what gifts they could. They spent some time with Nastiya after that, and then Brian paid for the taxi to take them back home. We then spent the afternoon playing with Nastiya and we have decided that it is time to take the electronics away for a little while, as that is all she wants to do while we are there. Then when we try to take them back, we get to play tug a war with her. Tomorrow we will bring crayons, coloring book, and we are going to try to find some legos so that we are doing something together.

The Garretts also got told that today was their last day to have Anya out of the orphanage, so we will be going down together, and could play some games and do some activities with the girls together. Aimee bought some nail products, I had brought some with me from home, so we will try to paint some nails.

After our exhausting afternoon, Brian and I took a nap, then we went to meet Matt, Aimee, and Nadya for dinner. Then we came back, watched a movie and crashed again. This seems to be the agenda for each night here in Mariupol.