The sequence of events, for a disabled Ukrainian six-year-old reared in an orphanage, could have been mistaken for a fairytale replete with inspirational Americana. The Barnett family of five from Indiana had just grown by one, welcoming into their home Natalia Grace, a young girl with a rare form of dwarfism who’d briefly been adopted by another American couple after leaving her native Ukraine. When that arrangement didn’t work out, the Barnetts stepped in, flying to meet Natalia at a Florida adoption agency before whisking their new daughter off to Disney World.
The photos from that trip to visit Mickey Mouse and friends, taken in the spring of 2010, show a smiling Kristine and Michael Barnett alongside their three sons and Natalia, the tiny Ukrainian beaming and seemingly tossing up her hands in delight.
