Happy Holidays!!

Well.... Christmas has come and gone! It's hard to believe that you spend over a month preparing for a holiday that sorta seems to last only an hour! Santa came and left way more presents than he should have! We'll have to get him on a better budget next year! haha! The kids had a great Christmas eve, where they opened presents from their Nana and Grandpa, as well as exchanged presents with each other (thank God for the Dollarstore!). They actually did pretty well buying for OTHERS instead of for themselves! They both put some thought into the gifts this time! We just hung out the rest of the night and then everyone went to bed. The kids and I made cookies for Santa earlier in the day - then set those out, as well as carrots for the reindeer on the deck - then everyone went to bed. (with the exception of the two elves that had to go retrieve the goodies and "quietly" put them under the tree!
Christmas morning was a test of patience for the kids - as they had to wait until everyone was showered and breakfast was done - BEFORE they got to tear into their loot! Both boys got lots of stuff they wanted and needed! They were both very thrilled! Little O received alot of ELMO items (big surprise there!) She sort of got the hang of it! She was happy and loved all her gifts!
We think back to a year ago - when we were recovering from jetlag, only being home 2 days from Ukraine with another little person! We are so blessed with our family! All of our kids have blossomed over the last 12 months. We are very lucky!

Here is our wonderful dog, PJ! He is the official "bow" collector! He always has to be part of the action - or sitting close to be part of the action! He turned nine this year and is doing great! He acts more like a 2 year old dog than 9! We all loved him dearly! Santa of course never forgets him!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all!

Cell phone travels!

The cell phone is with Donna and Mike! They are in Dniprpertrosk, Ukraine. They found a beautiful little girl - Juliyana!
Congrats to you on your little angel!

opening cards!

Little O is opening a birthday card from Nana and Grandpa!

Gotcha Day - and BIRTHDAY!

Here is not so little O on Dec 18th - our official "Gotcha" day!
Here are the gruesome threesome the evening of big A's winter concert! He looks like he is going to sign important papers or something! They all looked very nice (at least for the picture!)
Here is the birthday girl in her tiara! Going to town with the fried ice-cream!

Boy! What a busy busy busy last few weeks!

We celebrated our one year "gotcha" day with Olya yesterday - well - that's when it was, but we really didn't do anything! Monday was her third birthday! She was VERY excited! She got some really nice gifts and had a fun time! We took her to our favorite Mexican restaurant for dinner and fried ice cream! She got to wear the sombero! That sort of bewildered her - but she is a trooper! She also got TWO kittens for her birthday - spoiled? Ummmm maybe! Actually they are "family" cats! We adopted a brother and sister kitten from the Humane Society. The hubby was getting tired of being "catless" - Pj, our beloved dog was not so happy with the decision! We named them Lyger (not a lion or a tiger) and Rex - aka Rexi, since she is a she! So far they are doing everything kittenish! They are fun and seem to have made themselves right at home!

We went to the boys winter concerts last week. I have to say that I don't remember my elementary concert ever being that BAD! Let's just say it was one of those "can't wait until its over" sorta things! Yes - I know - you're supposed to cherish these times! UGH! Little O had a hard time sitting through it - like the rest of us - so I can't blame her for acting up!

Another big step this month was that little O started preschool! She attends a developmental preschool at the college. She goes 3 days a week from 9-11am. She also gets her speech therapy there while she is at "Owa's schoo" (that's how she says it!) She totally loves it and asks every day if she is going! She is the only girl in her class - ah the princess syndrome yet again! The other amazing thing is how much she has grown in the last month and a half! She is now finally wearing her 2T pants and 3T shirts! Not that long ago - her 12 month pants were just right! She is starting to wear on my back as well!

On the Ukraine front - there are lots of families in our group that are either in country or getting ready to travel! Exciting news! It brings back alot of fond and not so fond memories of our trip from a year ago! My friends, Donna and Mike are actually using my Ukrainian phone on their trip and the totally awesome part was they were staying in the same flat we were in while we were in Kyiv! I talked to them a few days ago on the phone and it was in the middle of their hunt to find a flat in their region. Donna calls me back at 4:30am this morning and chats away! Poor thing forgot about the time difference! haha! It was awesome to hear from her and knowing that they found their little girl makes me so happy! We know how hard the waiting can be for those folks who are still in the process! The holidays make it tough - but we know that things happen for a reason and it just takes time and patience!

We are gearing up for the visit from the BIG guy in red! It has been a challenge - as big A is starting to become a (gasp!) non-believer! So - hiding the presents was a challenge! Hopefully he will keep the faith a bit longer! Little J (can't believe I have not mentioned him yet!) is ready! He still believes and can't wait! He wonders if the reindeers will poop on the deck again this year (don't ask - and yes - it was true (rein) deer poop!) Little J has been doing really well! He has his moments (don't they all!) but he is still the 2nd easiest to parent!

I'll do some more catching up in a day or two!

Thanks for stopping by!

Amy

One year ago today!

Today is considered our one year anniversary of the "metcha" day! One year ago today - we met our little O. After surviving an awful overnight train ride - where we got very little sleep, we were still dealing with the jetlag issue and a ton of anxiety from our recent SDA appointment - we made it to Zaporizhzhya, aka the Detroit of Ukraine!

We traveled from the train station to our flat (which we stayed at for 3 weeks) and then went to the city hall to get permission to go to the orphanage. After we received permission - we drove to the orphanage. We spent over an hour or so waiting for the doctor to talk about our referral with Dr. Yuriy. After hearing about test results and early development and all her health history - we were taken to the groupa room.

In they brought a screaming little girl who wanted NOTHING to do with blocks or toys! After answering questions and watching her attempt to complete the tasks asked by Dr. Yuriy, she promptly feel asleep!

We left the orphanage to have lunch and be "debriefed" by Dr. Yuriy on his findings. After a few hours of lunch and discussions - we made the choice to bring this little girl into our family!

It is hard to believe that you can sum up that life changing day into a couple of paragraphs!

Above is a picture of her when we first met and then the picture taken today. 7 pounds, 4 inches (of height) and 5 inches of hair later! She is a completely different little girl!

Cutie pie!

Here is a little video of little O! Her speech is getting a bit better - and man is she a cutie!

Fall fun!

There is not too much new to share - except cute photos - which are never ending around here!

A and J are enjoying school somewhat! J loves school! A would be more than happy if there was no such thing! Soccer has about a month left. Both boys really enjoy soccer and it is a great outlet for some of their energy! A few weeks ago, Alex got a new, bigger motorcycle - and J got the hand me down (since he is still learning!) and little O got a new-to-her Barbie jeep! Problem is - we can't keep the boys OUT of the Barbie jeep! Little O usually insists that J drive her around - which he totally digs! Such a princess!

We did have a small tragdedy last week, our beloved (using that term loosely!) attack rooster, Nakey, finally went to the great coop in the sky. We are not exactly sure what happened - and the two canine witnesses are not talking! Nakey was fairly old for a rooster - at least 5 years and he was one tough cookie for only weighing about 2 pounds! Yet - all who knew him never turned their back on him! He will be missed!

Little O has been doing awesome! She is growing too fast! She is now in her 24 months pants! UGH! She will be THREE in December - which is so hard to believe! She is an angel! We are getting ready to gear up for Halloween - which will be interesting because she is really scared when her brothers wear masks or disguises! haha! It may be a long (or really short!) night!

We'll post some photos of the costumes a little later!

Here are a few cute ones to enjoy!

The first is "Dr. Olya" She IS a specialist in all Sesame creatures! The second is her holding some of her favorites!

Video from the Fair!

Had to share the bull riding from the Fair! Look out Ty Murray! Here comes Big A!

Back to School! YEE HAW!

I was amazed that I got a picture! This was seconds before Jason chickened out on this ride! Lucky for him his brother was able to get the Carnies attention to get him off before it started! Poor kid was in tears! Big A stayed on and loved the ride!
3 overly anxious parade watchers had their seats positioned for the best angle to obtain candy!
We think that our little girl enjoyed the parade! She sure looks happy!

Little O has NO FEAR of animals! Here she is trying to make nice with the geese at the fair!

Big A is showing off the picture he took that he entered in the fair!
Little J shows off his butterfly art that he made and entered in the fair. He got a blue ribbon for it...
Each and every goat and sheep was greeted and pet at the fair! She was really cute walking by each pen saying "HI GO" (meaning goat!)
A and J went on the Sizzler... it was one of the few rides that Little J would go on.... he is still a chicken! Big A - no chicken here! He even rode the mechanical bull!

FINALLY! The gruesome twosome are back to school! Even little O seemed happy to see the school bus pull away! But - to recap the end of summer... we did go to the County Fair over the Labor Day weekend. Both boys entered some things in the Fair this year, so it had a little more meaning for them! A few art projects, some baking projects, A Lego disaster, a photo that Big A took, and some jointly harvested tomatoes from Nana and Grandpa were entered. The boys got a few blue ribbons and some great ideas for next year!

Little O enjoyed her very first county fair! She had a blast! Well, minus that major meltdowns when it was time to strap into the stroller to leave! She even played a few games! Each animal she could reach, she had to touch! We had to draw the line around the geese and chickens!

We also went to the parade. The boys are pretty quick on the draw when it comes to snatching all the candy thrown out! Little O picked up on that FAST! She had a blast watching all the horses in the parade.... except the ones with Indians on them! She was a little leary! The clowns spooked her too!

All in all, the weekend went a bit too fast!

It is hard to believe that Big A is in 4th grade already! Little J went into 2nd! Neither one of them had any back to school stress the night before - which is a good thing! I am glad to get back on a normal schedule! Hope that everyone had a great summer too! Pretty soon we will have some soccer pictures to post! Here we go again!!!!!!

Love,

Amy and family!

ps- JennT - ya just gotta email me - the folks are not THAT email literate!

pps - JennH - have the dates for the TX gathering been decided?

Summer fun!

Our little Rock Star! Why do batteries have to last soooo long! The barbie guitar is driving us nuts! But, man is she cute when she wants to rock out!

Little O gets a lift from her Papa while we waited for the ferry in Seattle. She had a great time on our weekend away! (well, except for sleeping at night! ugh!) She loves the water and being around it. (unfortunately) She has no fear of water!
"C" may be for Cookie - but it is also for CUTE! Here is princess O in her FAVORITE Cookie Monster shirt! She took a short break from beachcombing to look super cute!

The great hubby took this one! This one gives me nightmares! Little O was playing in the Teanaway river - which was about 5 inches deep or so where she was walking. I swear he took this picture literally the second she slipped. The river was sort of deceiving with sand stone in areas - and there was a small groove where she slipped and literally went under and the current took her about 3 feet before I could grab her. Luckily I was only a few feet from her when it happened - then I slipped as well and went down - so we were both drenched! You would think that it was scare her..... NOPE - she wanted right back in!
Little J and his gal-pal Abigail playing in the Teanaway!

Alex, Jason, Olya and I on the ferry, Puyallup. We were heading to Bainbridge Island. It was Little O's very first ferry ride - as usual she did awesome! No fear whatsoever! She actually likes the feeling of the wind whipping thru her hair!

We went to John Wayne Beach in Sequim. The boys were hunting for little crabs under the rocks. Of course, Little O had to be right in there! Little J, our future "Jeff Corwin" was all over the place hunting down creatures! Big Al was not as excited after he kept getting pinched... he liked to find them, and yell to his brother to come get them!

It's really hard to see in the picture, but she is holding a little tiny crab.. she enjoyed carrying them around in her hands, until she got pinched! She really loved going to the beach!

Just a quickie update....

Big Al and Little J are doing really well! It's hard to believe that they will be in 4th and 2nd grade in two weeks! AMAZING how time flies! It amazes me that they are actually growing up! Though I know that they will miss some of the carefree summer playtime - I know that I won't miss them while they are at school! haha! In many ways I wish we had year round school here! 3 months off is just toooo long! Soccer will be starting in about 2 weeks as well - which means we will be extremely busy until November! Labor Day weekend, the boys will be exhibiting some stuff at the fair, and of course spending their hard earned chore money on games and rides and lots of fair food - and getting to spend that time with their Nana and Grandpa and uncle Steve!

Little O had her final post-op hearing test. Looks like the tubes are working and she has on track ear development. So that is a really good sign! All we need now is the speech help! She has grown leaps and bounds! She is so spoiled as well! Everyone who meets her, just loves her! She is still very much addicted to her Sesame Street pals - which is better than some of the alternatives!

Jen H - we gotta get O and Zoey together somehow! Get me dates of that Texas reunion, who knows! Jenn T - thanks for the comment cous - but I need your email address, the old one does not work!

Hope that everyone enjoys the rest of their summer!

Summer stuff- end of July

Well... It looks like summer is half way over! Geez what a relief! I can't wait for the boys to go back to school and drive other people nuts! haha - though it has not been THAT bad, it has been close!

I just got back from Vegas a few days ago.. and I am more than READY to go back! It was a girls only vacation - and more fun than I could have imagined packed into three days! It was also my first time leaving O! I was really worried about her - well and John too, since he was stuck in charge! Little O and the boys got to spend some quality time with their Nana and Grandpa, who are completely worn out from the experience! The kids all survived, John too... and we are getting ready to start a new week with NO school for the boys! So, I am trying to plan some fun things to go and do that can be considered partly educational! We did have a rough weekend... our little kitty, Bob passed away due to an unfortunate freak rollover accident (the propane guy flattened him!) but we are thankful that it was quick as Bob was a sickly kitty and was probably not destined for a long healthy cat life. We also attended a memorial for John's former brother in law, Russ, who passed a Memorial Weekend in a jeep accident. We are deeply saddened by his loss, and find comfort in the fact that he is up jeepin with the big guy and left this life doing something he loved.

An quick update on little O's ear surgery.... looks like she is healing nicely! We can tell that she is hearing better, as she is trying to say alot more words and actually tries to sing a bit (she's no Mariah Carey - but it's darn cute!) We are hoping that she will start to pick up a few more words in the next couple of months! She is still growing like crazy and eats like a horse!

Little J also passed a major milestone in the last week... he finally learned to ride the Honda 50 without any help! Up until this point, his fear has overcome his ability to ride - so he did not want to learn.

More pictures coming!

Ahhhhhh - summer is here!

Yesterday was little O's very first 4th of July! She was not impressed! She watched two or three little things go off on the ground and wanted nothing else to do with it! See why below!

A few exciting things have happened in the last few weeks....

We had our first camping trip of the season. So O had her first away from home sleeping experience - needless to say - I got NO sleep and dear hubby got a few minutes more than me! It was a tough night! Hopefully we won't have any more trips like that in the near future! The best part about the camping trip was playing in the river! O LOVED it! Getting her out was the challenge!



The temps have been in the 100's for the last two days... and today we had our first "fire" of the season. Luckily - it was quickly contained - and not so lucky that it was half a mile from our house! UGH! Thankfully, we were upwind of the fire. We are not having any luck with any type of water games either! We bought of those great pools that is big enough for the kids to actually swim in - nope - no section level enough for us to set it up! I have bought numerous squirt guns that either work the WHOLE time (like running the whole time) or don't work at all! I bought a pool today that I found that none of our pumps will inflate! Geez Louise! I can't stand taking the kids to the local "swimming" hole - it is more like a pond - and way overcrowded! Oh well! It's still July - and only going to get hotter!
Both boys are in summer school for 3 hours a day (ahhh 3 hours of sanity for me!) and they seem to be doing ok.. it is really important to us that both boys keep up their skills - as one of them has a really hard time learning as it is - and retaining the info is a challenge in itself! Some days I really wonder WHAT he learns in school - if anything...though I can't complain too much - since there is no way in hell that I would attempt to homeschool him! There are days though when I think that I could probably do it myself (those days are limited and it is probably after more than one margarita! haha!) I know that after seeing things that we could have done "better" with the boys - little O will be a challenge regardless!

We also found out that part of little O's speech problem has to do with the fact that she can hardly hear! We have been taking her to the ENT (ear.nose.throat) Dr for a few weeks to get the wax sucked out - now that they can finally see an eardrum - they determined that it is not moving and most likely it has fluid behind it. So - next week we have to take her in to the hospital for some outpatient surgery and to get tubes placed in both ears. We are really worried about how she will handle it! That is going to be a long day indeed!
We hope that the other families who were in Ukraine around the same time - and those with little ones the same age as little O are enjoying the changes they are going thru and loving every minute of it! Watching these kiddos grow and change and florish is an amzing journey in its own! (Jen - love Zoey's LOOOONG hair!)
We'll give another update after the surgery - hopefully all goes well!

Six months???!!!??? Already???

It is so hard to believe that little O has been with us for six months already! She is such an amzing little cutie pie! She has gone through so many things in her short little life so far - it is hard to comprehend how many "firsts" she has had since coming home!

Just physically, she has grown in size and weight. Her language skills are slowly improving. She is a brave eater and will try most everything at least once! She has learned to RUN, brush her own teeth, spit (not the best one!), call India or Japan on the phone, throw her shoes at me when I drive, turn the tv off, drive her brothers crazy and last but not least how to open and close doors! Her hair is getting longer and almost to the full pony-tail point! (yay!!!) And she is getting her "summer" hair color! Her 12 month pants are starting to get a little short and her feet have grown out of her Ukrainian shoes.

It is so amazing that this little orphan and has turned into such a beautiful and sweet angel!

We are thankful every day that we were so lucky to have things turn out the way they have! We think about how right around the day she was born, our very first set of paperwork was sent to Ukraine - and how we were lucky she was just made available for adoption right before we arrived. She is the perfect fit to our family! Apparently people think that she looks just like me - I am hoping that is a compliment! (haha!) But, never the less - she is our little angel and we all just love the dickens out of her!

Today marks the 6 month anniversary of the end of our 10 day waiting period in Ukraine. On Sunday, not only will it be Father's Day, but also O's 2 and a half birthday! So - we will get a little celebrating for both them!

What a ride it has been!

The joys of Spring!

Ahhhh - what a beautiful time of year! Flowers blooming, winds are blowing, baseball games starting, soccer practices continuing, Scout activities, baby bunnies and chicks running about, and the car getting over 100 miles a day - just around town and back, numerous times! haha!
We have been busy busy busy - go go go for the last month! A and J both started baseball and games just started a few days ago, A is also on a select soccer team, both boys have Scouts and all the activities that are going along with that!
I just can't imagine doing it all AND having a two year old AND having a job.... yep - after MANY years I finally "retired"! I would say after 17 years with one company, I am allowed to use the word retired! SO - in my new position/career as a domestic engineer - I am trying to still get things in a routine and trying hard to get all those "I really need to get this.... done" projects! It is SO not as easy as I thought! I almost want to go back to work to make it easier! haha!
Little O and I have a good time during the day though... she is so such a little angel! She of course has her beloved tantrums and screaming spells - but over all she is just precious! She loves ALL animals and wants to pet them, regardless of the animal wants her to or not! She loves to HELP you do whatever it is that you are doing, regardless of if you want her to or not! (though she is GREAT at loading clothes into the dryer!) She is a very effective little communicator too! Her vocabulary has grown, though not significantly.... but she can name the Sesame Street monsters - no problem! Her favorite show, obviously Sesame Street! Not much else will hold her attention! O is making some little friends, and enjoying interacting with them. She is very independent and likes to take off to do "her thing". She has adjusted to everything SO well... we feel really lucky that she is healthy and getting along. Her hair has really grown, she has gained weight, and her clothes that we bought in Ukraine are finally starting to get a little tight! She is not a very picky eater and likes to try new things (even if it is only once!).

Both boys are keeping busy with sports and school activities - we are excited in some ways that school is winding down - though summer school is just on the horizon! Little J broke his collarbone about 2 weeks ago, so he is running around with a sling on! Hopefully all will heal fine and he can return to baseball in about a week! He is tired of being the "bat boy"!

Above is a picture of O and me - all dressed up to go to a big birthday party! Her very first large "social" gathering! Considering she was the only toddler with about 100+ adults - she did really well and seemed to enjoy herself! Needless to say - on the hour long drive home - she threw up all over her party dress and car seat! Ick! Oh well!

Enjoy your spring!

You'd never know!

On our little field trip to Seattle last week, we got an actual good picture of all three with the Olympic Mountains in the back! The kids loved seeing all the otters, seals, fish, etc! We have lunch at Ivars and the boys got to feed some of their fries to the seagulls!
Thank goodness Spring Break is over! It was a long week!

Sick and Tired/Tired and Sick??

Tis the season???? It seems that we have been lucky enough to each have had some sort of cold or illness consistantly in the last month or so! UGH! You know its bad when you have to start shopping for cold medicine at Costco! haha! Hopefully, we are on the downhill slope...Little O has been the one battling the ickies currently! She is NOT a very pleasant patient!

Spring has finally come around and brought the cold wind off the Cascades - so it might look nice and sunny outside - but dang if its not darn-right chilly with the wind chill!

The boys have been finishing off half days of school for conference week. Next week is Spring Break... I don't know if I am ready to take on all three for a whole week! As long as no one is sick - I should make it!

Little O has been doing really well, considering she has been sick. Her tv show of choice is Sesame Street. She will watch the Elmo videos OVER AND OVER! It is so cute when she will come up to me, pat my leg, point to the tv and say "melmo!"... that is her way of telling me to get that movie on! Since the weather has improved, we get to spend more time outside, which she totally loves! She calls all the chickens and the lone duck - "quack quacks" and will follow them around. She loves the horses and calls to them when she is outside... then she waves at them. She loves to help me feed them, so she can pet them. We have been tempted to put her on Little J's pony when she is feeling better...

Here are a few more photos... and a photo of all three of the crazy kids together!

For the love of Big Bird!

Yesterday Little O got a wonderful surprise! Her very own Big Bird sweatshirt! She loves the characters of Sesame Street! She is so cute in her little yellow bird suit! She tries really hard to pronounce it - but it sounds more like "ba - balm" and Elmo is "melmo"... she just loves looking at the things she has with Cookie, Big Bird and Elmo! It's about the only thing that she will watch on tv - even if it holds her attention for about 10-15 minutes!
Everyone has been getting better this week - as the cold has been handed off from one to the other! Little O has a bit of it now - but she is a little trooper and the cold does not slow her down! Last night the boys had their Blue and Gold banquet for Cub-Scouts... Little O really enjoyed running all over the place and getting into stuff... Due to her cuteness, she gets away with alot of stuff! Things are going well while we sit here and watch the snow fall and hope for spring! All that Groundhog stuff is a load of crap!

Happy Valentines Day!

Happy Valentines Day!
The last few weeks have been really stressful for everyone - but we got through it! My wonderful Ukraine "bug" finally reared its ugly head and I came down with the flu as well as a wonderful cold! Nothing like being sick for the last three weeks! O has been doing great ! She has a loving and sweet personality that is just so contagious! It is like she has been with us all along! Her brothers enjoy her and play really well with her - until she destroys their stuff! The dog has a terrific new partner in crime when it comes to food! She was evicted out of our room when I came down with the flu - and she has been doing great in her own room!
Some days I find it hard to believe that this beautiful little girl is ours! We are very blessed to have her and thankful that things worked out how they did! This year - she is our very special little Valentine!

Week Four!

We have had a fairly good week so far! Hard to believe it has been a month! O just got her official social security card! Yea! Now she can get a job! haha!
O has been testing the waters a bit this week! She had a major meltdown on Wednesday when we went to storytime at the library... she did NOT want to leave! I had to carry her out of there kicking and screaming - it was quite pleasant! Then, for the first time - she did the "you can't strap me in" thing in the car seat! Quite pleasant as well! Oh well! Her comprehension of language had really improved, but like any 2 year old - the word "no" is pretty much ignored! She can be really demanding of your attention at times - it is almost funny how she will walk up and pat your leg wanting to tell you or show you something....She is slowly learning the names and words for certain things... she has been trying to say her brothers names, and she is sort of close - but an outsider would not be able to figure out what she is saying! She continues to harass poor PJ the dog, the chasing him around with laundry baskets and her wagon has worn his patience out! He likes to get up on our bed to "hide" from her - since that is the only place she can't get to him!
Yesterday, she got to spend the day with her cousin, Georgie, who is 3 1/2... they did ok together.. the beginning was tough, as she is not used to someone who refuses to let go of her toy when she screams! Unlike her brothers, her cousin was fine with the screaming and would carry on as if it was nothing!
We are working on her bedroom, still trying to decide if we will leave her in a toddler bed, or move up to the big bed!
Overall - the month home has been good.. it has gone fast! We are thankful for our littlest angel! She has made the last two years plus of waiting finally seem worthwhile!

More sights and smells....

Upper left:
We affectionately called him "Libka-man"! At some point - we learned many years ago that "leeb-ka" was a fish. Every day about 10:30 or so - he would set up his little table with these HUGE, smelly carp! It stunk so bad! Every day we passed him! Usually, there was a cat sitting at the bottom of the table - just waiting! (though the fish were probably 3 times the weight of the cat!) A would get grossed out! Needless to say - he ate little or no fish on this trip!
Upper right:
From one smelly site to another! Ahhhh - the marvelous internet cafe! It had a very fragrant aroma that just begged you to run out and gasp for fresh air! There were about 12-15 computers inside, and from about 11:30am on - they were constantly filled with young men playing interactive video games online! And you think dial-up is slow! You can walk a letter somewhere faster than you can send it from here! Thankfully, it was pretty cheap at $1 USD for an hour!
And finally - this photo of A in front of the Ministry of Youth and Sport - aka - State Department for Adoption - aka the SDA or National Adoption Center in Kyiv!

a few more.....

Upper left picture is in front of the outdoor play "shed" for sake of a better word, that O's group was assigned. She was in group 19,20. During the winter though, the children did not really play on the outdoor playgrounds. Outdoor time was fairly brief and mostly they were bundled up in sixteen layers and walked around the grounds, which was something we did alot of!
Upper picture is in front of O's building. This building was not the main building, but the back building. O's group was on the second floor.
Ahhhh - the picture to the left! We had court on December 8th. If you were following the blog previously, you would have read the "cage" comment! Well..... bring on the cage! This was in the courtroom as you walked in. We really thought it would be funny to put A in it - but did not want to push our luck! haha!

Photos from Zaporizhzhya

Not the best picture! But -it gives a general idea! This picture was taken about 9am... about a block from the orphanage, and near the internet cafe, every morning they would start lining up the glass bottles from (I assume!) the night before! They were probably paid 1 ko-peck (about 1/20 of a cent USD) for each - depending on the size and brand! By the end of the afternoon - it would be completely lined full of bottles! At first we thought it was a great idea seeing that there was always garbage everywhere. Later, we started noticing how many people would hang around the dumpsters at the apartment building we stayed at. As soon as you dumped your garbage, there was usually someone nearby heading over to go through it. It was really sad. It really did amaze us that you would be walking around at 8 or 9 am and men would already be chugging away at a beer on the street! But, after a month - we were not even fazed! haha! We did buy a bottle of the beer, just to try - and it was pretty good... STRONG but good!

Photos- Kyiv

Here are a few quite belated photos from our first few days in Kyiv! The first one is a litttle obvious to what it is! A really loves McD's!
The second is in the St. Michael's Monastery. We have photos of A and Little J in front of this from 5 years ago! We tried to revisit a few sites that we went to back then - just to show A!
The weather did not cooperate much while we were in Kyiv - it was foggy the whole time... so many of our photos are not very pretty! But, it is an absolutely beautiful city! The buildings and cathedrals are amazing! It was unfortunate that we did not have the time to see more!
More photos coming!

Week 3 completed!

Well - though it feels like 3 months, it has only been 3 weeks since coming home! O is doing great, considering she and I are still getting over some funk that we probably brought home with us! She survived her first visit to the dentist and doctor, got her finger stuck in the lab - but no tears until she was all done!
She is exploring more and more each day... I don't think that she many fears at this point! She has determined that our dog, PJ, must be some sort of toy! She will chase him around the house by pushing an empty laundry basket! PJ will get stuck in a corner or smaller room and be trapped! Poor thing! He has been pretty patient with her so far! She likes to pet him and wag her finger at him and say "no-no" when he tries to take whatever she is eating!
This morning - the box of Cheerios dropped out of my hand and half the box spilled on the kitchen floor! Obviously - PJ was very excited and started to clean up the mess... but O was FURIOUS that he was eating HER cereal! After she was done with breakfast, she got down on the floor and found a few that he missed!
O wants so badly to go outside and explore, but it has been too dang cold here! She has pet the chickens a few times (not sure the chickens are sure WHAT she is yet!) and she loves to look out the windows at things.
Two nights ago, my wonderful husband said that he missed Ukraine! I almost fell out of my seat! He was the one who just wanted OUTTA there as soon as he got there! I know what he means though.. and I agree with something that AmyW posted on her blog awhile back....
You get into the lifestyle. It is so much simpler than ours here. You have alot less to worry about - your apartment is small, you don't have alot of trinkets or crap covering shelves, you own alot less clothes (and do less laundry!), you walk EVERYWHERE, you tend to eat less (since you don't know WHAT you are eating!) and things just seem alot more laid back! I have to agree with him that there are days when I wish we could switch back to the more simple life!
Ukraine recently started accepting adoption dossiers again - the first time in about 8 months and so there are lots of families who have been emailing asking about our experience... I can sum it up as this... It is like nothing you have ever done before, and your journey will be different than anyone elses doing the same thing! Each person has their own expectations, opinions and lessons learned, but one thing is always the same and that is you will have a wonderful story to tell and share when you get home!

Ahhhhh - another week down!

Officially - we have been home two weeks now! Feels like 2 months one minute and 2 hours the next! We have been enjoying a "real" winter! Cold weather, ice and snow! A and J are back in school, which is a life saver! O and I have been hanging out during the day - trying to get things done, running around town - the fun stuff!
We were fortunate to have Uncle Steve come over during New Years and celebrate a mini-xmas... the kids loved it! Got to watch the Seahawks actually WIN a game, and lit off snow fireworks!
Little J is VERY happy to have us home! He is not too excited about having a new-roomie, that being brother A! O is still bunking with us - drives us a little batty, but it is probably best for her for awhile! She has good nights and not-so good nights!
O has been enjoying all the sights of her new home... making nice with the dog (that she totally adores now!), trying to figure out what the horses are doing, wanting SO bad to pet the chickens, being mad at the ice when she slips on it, and meeting new people! She has been very resilient and takes everything in!
She has finally calmed down in the car seat - but will panic when everyone is getting out and she is last! She has not said too many understandable words yet - but she is pretty effective with her non-verbal communications! Her understanding of English is pretty good considering!

Again - thanks to everyone who has sent us congrats emails and kind words! They were so great to read while we were gone!