Riga Update

I want to give everyone an update on our adoption and our stay in Riga, Latvia. We arrived on August 15 and will leave Thursday, September 8. Sintija will accompany us to the USA, and we will have to return this fall to complete the Latvian side of the adoption.

This has been very challenging, as Sintija has been in a children's home most of her life and for a good part of that, pretty much had no good supervision. (The last home in Smiltene was much better, but when she arrived, she had a lot of behavior problems that still are issues.)

Sintija will be 13 in October, but clearly is not at her age in maturity. That being said, she does have a good heart and I believe God has wonderful things planned for this young lady, and I am thankful to be a part of that whole endeavor. I believe that she will develop in time, and I have to remember that her challenging us is part of growing up (and I don't take it personally).

The trip itself has been wonderful. Old Riga, where we are living, is a beautiful place, full of very old buildings, churches, narrow, winding cobblestone streets, good restaurants and shops, and a vibrant music scene. I could not have asked for a better place to stay, and am glad we have been able to take in all of this.

We also have been out of the city on several occasions and have been to the Jurmala region three times, including two trips to the beach. (Yes, the Gulf of Riga is cold, but it is invigorating, and the beach there is fine.) This Tuesday, we went to Sigulda, which is a "tourist" town and a lovely place. Although Latvia mostly is quite flat, the Sigulda area has a number of ridges and the Gauga River, and is quite scenic.

Latvia was a "republic" in the old Soviet Union for about 50 years. The country was invaded by the Soviets in 1940, and then was a back-and-forth battleground during World War II as German and Soviet troops did what they could to destroy the country. Afterward, the victorious Soviets gobbled up the country, decimated its economy (and especially the farm economy via collectivization), and shipped hundreds of thousands of Latvians to Siberia, along with bringing in hundreds of thousands ethnic Russians.

Like the rest of the U.S.S.R., Latvia was a grim place during that era. (I remember my own trip to East Berlin in 1982, and it was not a pleasant place by any means.) The Soviets build numerous concrete-and-brick apartment buildings, using pretty much the same floorplan, and these eyesores dot the region. (Yeah, they are pretty darned ugly, really ugly.)

However, the economy has done some growing since it became independent in 1991, and while it was hurt badly during this past recession, nonetheless I still is a better place to live than when it was under communist rule. For one, it actually has nice grocery stores -- and they even sell Jack Daniels in them! I had lunch recently with a friend who lived here before independence, and the changes in shopping alone have been astounding.

Prices are comparable, at least for food, to what we pay in the USA, but incomes are well below what we make. Taxes are pretty high, and gas is about $8 a gallon. Nonetheless, the country's currency, the Lat, is doing well against the dollar. When we first arrived, we were told that the apartment owner wanted to be paid in dollars, but then we found out that the last thing they wanted was the greenback. I made a trip to the bank and switched money.

Latvia is not cheap, but it is less expensive than are most areas in Europe, and especially Scandinavia. An overnight cruise ferry arrives each morning from Stockholm, and Swedish and Norwegian tourists spill off to take advantage of the lower prices.

One thing they take in is the local music scene, which is quite good, even world class, I believe. Bands have played every night in the square next to our apartment, and almost all of them have been good to excellent. (I remarked to one person that I had to cross the Atlantic to hear good American rock 'n roll.) We also went to a concert by the Riga Dom Boy's Choir (which is world famous), and also went to a concert at the Riga Dom itself.

I have included some pictures of the trip.

This young lady is playing the Kokle, which is a Latvian string instrument.

Majori Beach in Jurmala on the Gulf of Riga

Royal Square in Old Riga from our apartment window

 Young violinist playing in Jurmala

Concert in Dom Square for Riga's 810th anniversary celebration

Update on our adoption of Sintija

This past weekend, we drove to New York City to get Sintija, who is staying with us for five weeks this summer. This is part of a hosting program that is separate from the adoption process, but plays a part in the process, no less.

Our hope is that there will be a good relationship established (and we already are off to a good start, even if she speaks no English) this summer so when (Lord willing) we are assigned to her and travel to Latvia in the fall, that things will go well. This process with Latvia is long and costly and requires three trips to the country, but so far we have managed to get to this point.

After arriving home last night, Sintija slept until about 10 this morning and was greeted by our two dogs, Teddy (the one in the picture) and Spanky. We are happy to report that this first meeting was successful!

Again, this is a long process, but I can tell readers already that we really like Sintija. She is tall for her age (12, turning 13 in October) and is a prettier girl than what we had seen in the original picture. She seems to have a wonderful, mischievous personality, shy, but at the same time ready to be part of our family. She does not yet know we are trying to adopt her, and may not know until the fall.

So, pray for us that this will turn out to be a wonderful time. Thanks to all of you who have supported us.

Update on our Lavian adoption

Sintija (who is age 12) is coming for five weeks this summer, and will arrive July 10. We are still in the adoption process. We have raised about $10,000.00. We are currently awaiting approval from US Immigration to bring Sintija into the country on a permanent basis.

We have most of our paperwork completed. We would like to be able to go to Latvia and bring her home to stay this fall, but we still need to raise money. Our most pressing need is for $5,100.00 to pay for the document translation and the Latvian attorney. After that, all of the subsequent expenses will be for travel.

Our family's pursuit of another adoption

In my brief bio sketch on this blog, I note that three of my children are adopted from overseas. My two sons are Ethiopians (now age 15) and my 11-year-old daughter is from Guatemala. I also have an adult daughter who is married and has two young children.

For several years, my wife and I have wanted to adopt another girl who is Sasha's age, but our earlier efforts to adopt through the U.S. foster care system were unsuccessful. (I could say a lot about our experience with that system, but let me just say that it gave us an education in the U.S. childcare bureaucracy, and it both was eye-opening and very unpleasant.)

Last year, we concluded that perhaps God wanted our family to remain as it was, but neither my wife nor I had lost the desire to add one more child. We recently met an 11-year-old orphan from Latvia, Dace (pronounced "Dot-say") who is up for adoption, and after much prayer and deliberation, we have decided to pursue her adoption.

Neither of us have come to this decision lightly, and we have done so only after a lot of prayer and deliberation. This adoption will require that we raise a lot of money, and that we really cut back on discretionary spending. I'll have to work harder than ever, but I believe with all my heart that it is the right thing to do.

You will see that I have placed the link to our website on this blog and in this post. If you feel led to visit our adoption blog, please do. As you can see, we also have a place for people to donate to this project, should they feel led to do so.

I will post updates from time to time. In the meantime, I ask that you pray for our efforts, as this is something we never can accomplish on our own. Thank you.