"Masha is sitting on my lap as I write this … SHE IS OURS!"

That was the first line of an e-mail scores of Southern Illinois residents received Thursday morning from an excited Sharee Langenstein, who has finally, after a nearly three-week battle with governmental red tape, completed the adoption of Masha, a 4-year-old Russian girl in need of medical treatment.

"We had court yesterday morning and afterwards we had to go to a couple of government offices to get our paperwork going, then we went out to lunch with the social worker and baby home director from Kuibyshev," Sharee wrote. "After that, we ran back to the hotel to hurry and pack - they wanted me to go to Kuibyshev to the orphanage that night! That's when Mike (husband Mike Langenstein) and I parted ways so that he could fly to Moscow in time to catch his Delta flight home today (Thursday)."

During the past 19 days, the Langensteins have been embroiled in an international game of red tape and nerves as they've tried to complete an overseas adoption and take custody of Masha, a Russian girl in need of surgery. The Langensteins, who live in Murphysboro, are both attorneys and had visited with Masha at an orphanage in December and thought they had cleared all the necessary obstacles to ensure a speedy trip to Russia to finalize the adoption.

A hold was placed on the adoption by Diane Francis, an employee with the United States Citizens and Immigration Service in Chicago, on Jan. 31, the day the Langensteinst flew to Russia to begin the adoption process. A heated exchange between Sharee and Francis about the way the case was being handled prompted Francis to put a hold on the adoption. The Langensteins received word last Thursday the hold had been rescinded and the adoption process could proceed.

Sharee said she went to the orphanage in Kuibyshev to get Masha on Wednesday.

"She was in shock at first, but after I changed her clothes - she got to wear the pink dress I promised she'd wear home from the orphanage - she started helping me hand out gifts and she liked that very much," Sharee wrote. "The farther away we got from that place, the happier Masha became. By the time we got to the hotel, she was laughing and playing with me, and once we were in the hotel room, she started to talk."

Sharee acknowledged in the e-mail that there will be a modest language barrier to overcome.

"We hadn't heard her say more than two words before but here she was pointing to the pictures of our house saying "dom" (home) and trying to say her sisters' names," Sharee said. "She's also saying a lot that is unintelligible to me right now, but I'm sure we will figure each other out soon."

Sharee said her plans now call for her to remain in Russia through the weekend and then complete paperwork at the Russian Embassy Tuesday. She said depending on the ticket situation, the soonest she and Masha will arrive in Murphysboro is next Wednesday.

The Langensteins are the parents of three children, 8-year-old Sarah, 4-year-old Kayleigh and 17-month-old Delaney. They adopted Sarah in China in 2003 when she was 5. A polio survivor, Sarah is partially paralyzed on the right side of her body. Masha has scoliosis (curvature of the spine), which is impeding her breathing. Sharee says that Masha will need surgery after arriving in Illinois.

writeon1@shawneelink.net

(618) 525-4744