[amyfk]

Hi,

I agree with what Sak before me had written. I am an adoptive mom of a Russian-born girl, aged three. I dont know much about her birthparents but her birthmom is supposedly Roma and i dont know anything about her birthfather.
My child has olive skin and in the wintertime can pass for caucausian but in the summertime she is bronzed colored. She has medium brown hair and big brown eyes, on which she gets complimented a lot.
With the exception of occasional childhood antics, she is a very good kid and she is very intelligent. I dont suspect any FAS/FAE etc. At the babyhome the orphanage doctor said that it's not normally in Roma culture for the women to drink alcohol.
Of course, you have to feel comfortable with raising a child who may not look likeyou. My daughter often passes for my biologica child. I get this statement a lot. I have black hair and brown eyes. I am Jewish. Whether you feel comfortable or not is something you have to think about.
A friend of mine adopted a son from Russia and supposedly he is of Roma extract too. While he has the bronzed skin, his hair is dirty blonde and he has hazel eyes. I dont know if he is totally Roma.
I am assuming that many Roma children are put up for adoption in EE because there is a stigma against the Roma. Due to this I think many live in isolated communities and many are unemployed. That is supposedly the case with Joanna's birthmom.
I own a book called " We are the Romani People" by Ian F. Hancock. I felt the book was informative and I got quite a bit out of it. The one thing I felt though was that the literature was somewhat of a scholarly nature and not always an easy read for the layperson. It is a good start however.
IF you have any other questions feel free to PM me.
I wish you best of luck in whatever direction you choose for your future family.
Amy K, NJ