[JUNIE]

Hi!
My name is Junie. My husband and I are adopting a little boy between the ages of 1 and 4 from Ukraine in October. I was hoping that everybody with litlte boys will help me some sizing. I plan to take two or three outfits from 2T to 5T until I get there and figure out what size our boy will wear. I can buy more clothes there when we get him.
I also want to take some shoes, but have no idea what size to buy. Could everybody email me and tell me their boy's age and shoe size. I want to buy several pairs of New Balance sneakers, but I don't know where to start. Whatever clothing and shoes don't fit our little boy, I plan to donate to the orphange.
I plan to take diapers, pull ups, and little boy's underwear too. My daughter is 12 and the diaper industry has changed. Is there anything in particular I should get?
I also plan to take baby lotion, powder, fingernail kit, child's toothbrush, toothpaste, etc. Is there anything else I should take?
I also plan to take some quiet toys: books, crayons, headphones with chilren's tapes, drawing board, etc. Any other suggestions?
Should I take a stroller with me or buy one there. What about a car seat. Is that still required on the plane?
Please leave a post or private message for me with any thoughts or ideas. It is almost time to get our baby, and I need to get prepared!! Thanks!!!!

[clurock]

Junie:

First off...Congratulation!!!! I am sure you are all so excited.

I am the proud mother of two little boys, ages 2 1/2 and 16 months.

My 2-year-old wears 2T/3T (depending on the clothes). He tends to have really short legs therefore to fit his legs 2T, tops usually a 3T. He is wearing a 7 to 7 1/2 shoe size.

My 16-month-old wears 18-month/2T clothes. He wears a 5 1/2 shoe. He tends to have really long legs therefore I need to roll them around his waste, but the length works.

As far as diapers go you may not need them at all. The friends that I have who have adopted Internationally said their 15-month-old children were already potty trained (we adopted domestically so I am not sure about all orphanages). However, if you feel you need diapers my personal preference is Huggies. They seem to be padded in the front better for boys. The Pampers seem to be padded more in the middle...for girls! The pull-ups work to catch messes, but are not as absorbent as a diaper. Don't forget the diaper wipes.

I have no idea how easy to is to get a stroller over seas so...I can't help you there. However, my personal opinion (without really knowing much) is that if you have a particular stroller that you want it may be hard to find it in the Ukraine. An umbrella stroller is always easy to pack and weighs very little.

Best of luck! I hope your trips goes smoothly.

Christa

[generalmar]

I wish you all the luck!! I have 2 bio boys (ages 4 1/2 and 7). My boys have always been BIG and worn clothes twice the US size (ie. at 12 months old they wore 24 months size!). However, my husband is 6'4" tall and I'm pretty tall myself! My neighbors are average size people and all three of their children wore appropriate sizes (ie. at 1 year old = 12 mos size). For adopting kids in the Ukraine I would consider bringing clothes smaller (because of their diets there). I've read that most kids do not get a lot of protein. If you're adopting a 1 year old, I'd bring some 9-12 mos. clothes, if you're adopting a 2 year old, bring some 18mos, etc... As far as shoes...my 4 1/2 year old wears a boys 1. I would imagine that a kids 11 is probobly "normal". I would think if they are 2, buy size 4-6, if they are 3 look for 7-9, for age 4 look for 10-11.

I hope that this helps you! As far as diapers or pull ups go...Huggies will "hold more" than pull ups, however if you think a child may be already potty trained, you may want to stick with pull ups so they don't feel insulted.

Good luck!! I wish you luck, speed and sucess with your journey!

-Marianne

[packerpatriot]

I adopted a girl not a boy but thought I'd give you some idea at least. The kids are VERY small there. We wanted to adopt originally a 2-3 year old so stocked up on 18 month clothes and shoes. Well we ended up with a 17 month old girl who wore size newborn 0-3 month crib shoes but was walking (now after 5 months she is almost in a size 3) and when we got her she was wearing 3-6 month clothes (at 17 months of age) She now wears 6-9 month clothes soooo....if you are thinking older child I'd bring some 18 month stuff just in case and maybe even some 12 month stuff too and keep the shoes small also. My bio son is 4 years old and wears a size 9.5 toddler shoe.
Cristin