I think humor is an essential component of life.

I wrote a blog this morning about some Ukrainians who had their chickens and turkeys destroyed. Some local birds had tested positive for H5N1 and every domestic bird in a 5 kilometer radius was killed by the men from the government.... You know the ones. They were covered head to toe in green fabric and probably didn't have a sense of humor.

And then I got this very funny story on turkeys. Turkeys just keep... more

H5N1 has been found in a small village in the Sumy Oblast. This is near the Ukrainian/Russian border, so you can believe the Russians are paying close attention. The village of Pisky is small (about 500 households) and isolated. So I bet folks are thinking the chickens/turkeys got H5N1 from wild birds.

On June 12

An operational group of the Emergencies ministry..... [arrived] as soon as the information on the epidemic was received

From: All domesticated fowl in Pisky to be... more

Picture: Green Forest Orphanage's rehabilitation donkey (c) Life2Orphans.org

Yesterday's blog (SDA Rumor and Ukrainian Orphanage Stories) I mentioned the Green Forest Orphanage's rehabilitation donkey. My daughter Natasha lived in this orphanage for several years before I adopted her from Ukraine in 2000. She was 3.5 years in 2000 and they... more

First the old rumor.. The SDA was suppose to open to adoptive families today. It didn't. No one is surprised. Staff is working at the SDA building. I have hopes that it will open to adoptive parents in July. (sigh...........)

I wrote about becoming a volunteer coordinator for my daughter's Ukrainian orphanage 2.5 weeks ago. I am working with the Life2Orphans charity, which is based in the United States.

I just realized that I didn't share my stories... more

I really appreciate Scottish football fans now. :) They can do amazing things. Stevie Carr and Mark Strachan have created a new Scottish charity called The Dnipro Appeal.

Stevie has a series of emails that explains how this charity came to be.

Here are some news article on the charity.

22 Nov 2005

FANS who raised thousands of pounds for an orphanage in the Ukraine are to set up their own charity to ensure long-term support for the children.

The idea of helping the orphanage, on the outskirts of the city of Dnipropetrovsk, came from... more

The Ukrainian Heritage Weekend at Soyuzivka Resort happened this weekend; June 16 to June 18. Families had a chance to talk with the Ukrainian Embassy staff. I sent a list of questions with a friend who went to this weekend. I am patiently waiting on some of the responses. :)

But here is what I can share....

First is the Faces of Ukrainian Adoption. If you don't have high speed internet access,... more

I blogged about Ukraine losing their World Cup match to Spain. The first excuse offered was that they didn't listen to their coach. Then it was suggested that Ukraine lost because of the boiling hot weather of 86 Fahrenheit.

Then Ukraine's defender Vladislav Vashchuk said it was the frog's fault that Ukraine lost.

UKRAINE have found someone to blame for their dismal performance in the 4-0 thrashing at the hands of Spain - the frogs in a lake near their team hotel.

"We... more

Here is what I am reading about Ukraine right now.....

I have been following the Crimean protests against NATO (U.S.-Ukrainian military exercise). But I hadn't realized that President Bush was going to visit Ukraine until the visit was canceled.

President George W. Bush’s June 13 visit to Baghdad may have been the top of the news, but his cancelled visit to Kiev, Ukraine, only made the inside pages. The Kiev “postponement,” announced June... more

Ukraine isn't the only country experiencing an adoption slow down. Russia' law requiring adoption agencies be registered NGOs has created problems for some families. China is also experiencing a slow down.

Lisa adopted 2 boys from Ukraine and is now trying to adopt a girl from China. She tried to adopt from Romania but was a month away from getting a referral when Romanian adoption was shutdown.

Here is what she says about waiting.....

I feel this dreaded sick... more

I thought that I had found most of the interesting Ukrainian adoption books. Well.... I found a few more.

Starting with a classic. I cannot believe that I failed to mention this one. It is a great book for adoptive families that are just getting started and exploring their options. It is used as a reference book for many adoptive families.

The Russian Adoption Handbook: How to Adopt... more