The picture on the right has nothing to do with this blog. I just liked it. My cat, Jenks, decided to throw himself away... curled up in a trash bag.

This is the same cat who attacked me because I smelled like a Hamster.

This blog contains a list of different phrases that you will run into with Ukrainian Adoption.

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• appointment - Family will receive an appointment date and time. They will go to the SDAPRC in Ukraine on this date and will receive their referral. The appointment is only for 1 hour. Normally the family will be show 3 to 5 children who match the families's request (siblings, single child, deaf, Down syndrome.. Yes, families travel to Ukraine to adopt special needs children. The family can ask questions. Ask for the orphanage to be called for more details.)



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• blind referral - First they blindfold you and then spin you in a circle.. Wait that is a different game. Blind referral means you travel to Ukraine before you are referred to a child. You have to met, evaluate the child and accept/deny the referral fairly quickly (within hours/days of meeting the child).

• bribe - When this phrase is mentioned on an email list expect a flame war. A common differentiation made between bribe and expedite fee.... You pay someone to act illegally. You pay an expedite fee for someone to work faster. I will be blogging on this later in the week.

• dossier - Collection of papers that prove you are acceptable adoptive parents. It can take 3 or 4 months to complete a Ukrainian dossier.

• expedite fee - You pay someone to work faster. For example the Ukrainan government has up to 30 days to process a passport. Once you completed your Ukrainian adoption you must get the child's passport. Are you willing to wait 30 days? Some people think there is no difference between bribe and expedite fee.

• facilitator - If you were building a house, this person would be your general contractor. This is the person who makes sure you receive the correct services. They hire the translators, driver, power of attorney that are needed for your adoption. Everyone has to use a facilitator in Ukraine. Adoption agencies are illegal in Ukraine due to a baby selling scandal in the 1992/1993. Don't confuse this with US facilitators who match birth parents and adoptive parents.

• groupie - Someone who is interested/part of the Ukrainian adoption community. This started showing up in 2000 on email lists.

• Minister for Family, Youth and Sport - SDAPRC department is part of this Ukrainian Ministry/Department. Sometimes Ukrainian adoption information updates can be found by googling this Ministry's name.

• NAC - Ukraine has a centralized adoption authority. National Adoption Center was the Ukrainian government adoption department from 1996 to April 2006. The last appointments were completed March 2006 and all the adoptions were finalized by April at the latest. They processed all Ukrainian adoptions; domestic and international.

• **newbie - Typically this is a person who has decided to adopt from Ukraine, but hasn't completed a Ukrainian adoption.

• **oldie - A family who has completed a Ukrainian adoption. An oldie becomes a newbie when they start their next Ukranian adoption.

• referral - This is another word for child/children. During their SDAPRC appointment, the family agrees to visit specific child/children. If they decide to turn down the referral, they start over with another SDAPRC appointment.

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  referral letter - After the appointment is completed a family must wait for the SDAPRC to complete a referral letter. This gives the family permission to visit the child at the orphanage.

• registration number - This is gold. Once your dossier is filed and accepted at the SDAPRC you receive a registration number. Once you have this number you are on your way to getting an appointment.

• SDA or SDAPRC - Ukraine has a centralized adoption authority. Ukrainian State Department for Adoption and Protection of Rights of the Child is the new Ukrainian adoption department. It took over from the NAC. SDA started processing domestic Ukrainian adoptions in July 2006. Ukrainian adoptions by international families started in September 2006.

• specialized - If you are sent to a specialized orphanage translate this word to disabled. Not all the children in these orphanages are disabled. I adopted my darling daughter Natasha from the Green Forest Special Needs Regional Baby Orphanage. My daugher had crossed eyes.

**I wonder if "newbie" and "oldie" comes from Cathy Harris' support group. I checked and these phrases were first used on Adoption_from_Ukraine email list in 2001 by Cathy Harris families. I adopted via Cathy Harris and her support email list was using these phrases in early 2000. Now these phrases are used by the Ukrainian adoption community.