I will bring your offspring from the east,
And from the west I will gather you.
I will say to the north, Give up,
And to the south, Do not withhold;
Bring my sons from afar
and my daughters from the ends of the earth,
-Isaiah 43:5-6
For those who haven't already seen our announcement on Caitlin's feed, we would like to introduce Stoyanka Grace Kirsch! Caitlin and I are currently in Sofia, Bulgaria, and she has been with us for almost a week now. We are overjoyed to finally welcome her to our family after years of prayers and preparation, and we are especially thankful that she is already smiling and laughing with us as she adjusts to the first of many transitions over the next several months. We are also extremely grateful to everyone who has supported and prayed for us throughout this long adoption journey.
There have been a few things that have happened since Caitlin's last update, so I'll try to hit the high points. After matching with Stoyanka last October, we got to have five virtual meetings with her over Zoom, and then we had to send a bunch of paperwork to Bulgaria to confirm the adoption. Then we waited for several months, during which we didn't have any direct contact with Stoyanka. Fortunately, we were able to receive some photos and updates from her foster family via our adoption agency. Finally in mid-February, we learned that the judge reviewing our court case in Sofia had approved our adoption, which meant that Stoyanka was officially our daughter! We were also notified that our travel dates for this pickup trip would be late March, so we had about six weeks to prepare.
Fast forward to last week, Caitlin and I arrived in Sofia around midnight last Friday after a long planned layover in Munich. Since we had barely slept much in the previous 30 hrs, we ended up sleeping about 12 hours straight and getting up at 1 pm on Saturday. We spent that first afternoon/evening walking around the surrounding neighborhood and park, and enjoyed our first delicious Bulgarian meal at подъ липите, one of the oldest restaurants in Sofia, which is only about a five minute walk from our flat.
On Sunday we took a walking tour around Sofia with Free Sofia Tour. Our tour guide Vasil was funny and knowledgeable, and we learned a lot about the rich history of Sofia as we saw many famous landmarks and buildings that have been well-preserved over the centuries. We topped the day off with an incredible meal at Izbata Tavern, which was a generous recommendation from Free Sofia Tour. Then we went to bed early to prepare for the big day on Monday.
At 7 am on Monday morning, our translator Mihail and our driver met us at our flat, and then we drove 2.5 hours to Nova Zagora, where we got to physically meet Stoyanka for the first time! We were blessed to briefly meet her foster mother, who clearly took loving care of Stoyanka since she was placed with her family at 28 days old. She also gifted us with an album of photos from Stoyanka's time with her family, which is especially precious to us and Stoyanka. We were able to give her a couple small gifts, along with a card that Mihail graciously translated into Bulgarian for us. We also got to meet a couple of the social workers who helped facilitate our virtual meetings with Stoyanka in October, so it was great to meet and thank them in person. All in all, our time in Nova Zagora was short and sweet, as we headed back to Sofia within an hour. But we had an extra passenger on the way home!
Stoyanka was surprisingly calm to leave with us, although it was evident that she was feeling some grief too. She sat quietly in her car seat for the first few minutes, but she was willing to interact with us. She got sick when we stopped for lunch, which ended up being an amazing bonding opportunity for her and Caitlin since Caitlin got some smiles from her during cleanup, and then she was content to sit and sleep with Caitlin the rest of the way back to Sofia.
When we arrived back in Sofia, we had to stop by the immigration office to submit her Bulgarian passport application (she will get a US passport later after she immigrates to Colorado). There was quite a line outside the office, but Mihail and one of his co-workers were able to quickly get her in and out by explaining it was an application for an adoption. After that, we were back at the flat, and we had the rest of the afternoon to play with Stoyanka.
We were pleasantly surprised to see how well Stoyanka interacted with us immediately. She was smiling and laughing as she tossed a ball with Caitlin. She held Caitlin's hand as we walked through the nearby park, and she let Caitlin carry her when she got tired. She initially called Caitlin "Kaki" like her sister in the foster home, but she quickly transitioned to calling her "Mamo/Mommy" and me "Daddy" before the end of that first day. We're still in awe of how God has answered our prayers for Stoyanka's transition!
The last week has been so sweet as we've gotten to know Stoyanka better. She was pretty calm and quiet for the first day or two, and she still can be when she's tired or she's in an unfamiliar place/situation. However, she has really opened up when we're in the flat. She is very expressive and silly, and she doesn't hesitate to express her opinion. She is very proficient at saying "Ne Ne Ne!", especially when she wants Daddy to stop dancing. At one point, we were video chatting with Gideon, Miria, and GiGi back home, and she and Gideon had a ball making silly sounds at each other.
She loves cucumbers, tomatoes, and bread. She really enjoys drawing, especially making circles on blank paper, but she likes drawing in Mommy's notebook too. She has an eagle eye when it comes to spotting devices that have been left within her reach, and she especially loves "Masha and the Bear", which she calls "Bao Bao" (We were warned by her foster mom, but didn't fully realize the extent of her addiction to Bao Bao until she made a beeline for the Kindle as soon as she entered the flat for the first time). She loves to go for walks, and she can walk so much further than we ever anticipated. On Tuesday, we walked into the city to buy a stroller since our umbrella stroller got smashed on the flight over, but she still has yet to sit in the new stroller (Doh!). She loves baths, but hates washing her hair.
Stoyanka has bonded to Caitlin very quickly and always wants to hold her hand while we are walking. She will ask Caitlin to carry her when she gets tired, and she likes to snuggle while she watches a show. She is not a big fan of Daddy carrying her or holding her hand yet, although she will make exceptions, like when there's a step up where we can swing her together. She will also let me carry her when it means bringing her to Mommy on another floor of the flat. However, we have had some good one on one time playing with blocks or her growing multitude of stuffed animals. She has been co-sleeping with us this week since she doesn't like being left alone, and we've been accommodating that for the sake of bonding with her. She is a bit of a squirmer, but the snuggles are great!
We have a couple more days here in Sofia before returning to the States. We have our final visa interview at the US Embassy tomorrow, and then we'll take COVID tests and receive her final adoption paperwork on Tuesday. Then we have to leave our flat at 4 AM Wednesday morning to begin the long trek back home. Caitlin and I are looking forward to being back with Gideon and Miria and introducing them to their new sister, but it's going to be a lot of scary change for Stoyanka in a short period, so please keep her in your prayers.
I get to spend another 4 weeks at home with everyone before returning to work, so we are hoping it will be a sweet time of bonding as we transition to being a family of five. It will be a little while before we introduce Stoyanka to everyone in person since we want to focus on her bonding with me, Caitlin, Gideon, and Miria before we overwhelm her with the village of friends and family that have loved and supported us through this journey. We are excited to share her with you all, but we also ask for patience as we ease her into the new life that awaits her in Colorado!
