Elton John Won't Be Adopting His Own Tiny Dancer

Orphan steals the hearts of music man and his longtime partner on charitable trip to Ukraine, but the country's adoption laws stand in their way

UPDATE: Looks like baby won't make three for Elton John and David Furnish.

A Ukrainian official has put the preemptive kibosh on any plans the pop icon may have had to adopt a 14-month-old HIV-infected boy named Lev.

Family, Youth and Sports Minister Yuriy Pavlenko told reporters that Ukrainian law requires adoptive parents to be both married (same-sex unions don't count) and under the age of 45 (John has considerably more rings around his trunk at the ripe old age of 62).

So, two strikes and he's out.

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Elton John might be expanding his brood.

The "Your Song" singer visited Ukraine with his AIDS Foundation on Saturday and found himself taken by a 14-month-old boy who lost his parents to the disease.

"David always wanted to adopt a child and I always said no because I am 62 and I think because of the traveling I do and the life I have...wouldn't be fair for the child," John said of his longtime partner, who was along for the trip.

So why now?

"Having seen Lev today, I would love to adopt him. I don't know how we do that but he has stolen my heart. And he has stolen David's heart and it would be wonderful if we can have a home. I've changed my mind today," John lovingly exclaimed.

This new outlook can also be attributed to the recent loss of John's close friend and keyboardist, Guy Babylon.

"It broke my heart because he was such a genius and so young and has two wonderful children," continued the showman. "What better opportunity to replace someone I lost than to replace him with someone I can give a future to."

(Originally published on Sept. 12, 2009, at 10:23 a.m. PT)