Okay it is COLD and WET for us in Texas - not a fun combination. We are just not used to this weather and I can't say I like it... I know this is nothing compared to many places - but at least in some places there are fun things to do related to the cold - like snow instead of rain! All right - I'm done complaining. On the other hand, we've had good excuses for hot chocolate, lots of card games and reading books :)
We are actually choosing to go to much colder conditions in March!! We are so excited to go skiing (with the kids - even Ben gets to go) in Colorado for spring break with my parents and my sister's family - Allee and Jadon can't wait. When we took them for the first time last year, Jadon began campaigning that maybe God was telling us to move to Colorado forever and Allee began saying that she might find a college in Colorado. So I guess they don't mind the cold at all! We are going to drive 18 hours to get there so that should be an adventure all in itself :) Am I really smiling about 18 hours both ways in the car - I may have a different emotion halfway home...
On another note, I am so proud of Allee. I have watched her start a very challenging new school this year with all new friends (who have all known each other for many years). She took it on like she does most things in life - with courage and hard work and an incredibly positive attitude. She worked so hard when the homework was new and different last semester and even made honor roll the first trimester. And she did it all without hardly a word of complaint. Sometimes I was more overwhelmed than she was and she would just tell me "It's not that much Mom" It was a lot at first and she inspired me with her attitude. Now she's got the hang of it. She is gifted with being super smart but more importantly she just is a hard worker and doesn't get discouraged easily. Anyways, I was just thinking about what a gift my sweet girl is... she is such a joy to us!
Wednesday, January 23, 2008
Thursday, January 17, 2008
A Few Updates
We did get news from our agency that Nastya made it back her home and with ALL her belongings! Thank you for praying. We have all missed her greatly this past week. It is hard because we have not yet found a way to call and don't have any contact with her. We have put together our first care package and hope to send it next week but even something like that we are still learning what you do to go about mailing to Ukraine (affordably :)). We are very excited to have connected with a missionary group that visits her orphanage I think weekly, and we may be able to send things through them. What a blessing to have these missionaries working with these kids and to be able to see the effect they have had on this child. Everytime Nastya talked about them while she was here, she would just light up and it was clear from things she said and wrote that she truly knows that God loves her and prays to Him on her own initiative. It is wonderful that these people have poured love and hope into the lives of children who have so few who care about them. And so neat to see that while Nastya may not fully understand why they do what they do, she does feel love from them and believes that God loves her.
In the other news - we have just been busy playing catch-up with work and school and basic housework (piles were taking over and those who know me well know that is bad...:-o ) We are getting back into the daily routine after a great break from school and more structure. It was a nice break but good to be back into the "groove".
It is also a time of reflecting and praying for God to lead us to what He wants in this. We trust Him. This time with Nastya has changed us in some fundamental ways... we are trying to take some time to process it all... We have become more grateful for the incredible blessings we have been given - our family and extended family top the list. Of course we are always grateful for the people in our lives, but it deepens the reality that it is a blessing and a gift and we can't take these people and this time for granted. We do know that we are blessed beyond what we can comprehend and don't want to miss the joys of each day!
In the other news - we have just been busy playing catch-up with work and school and basic housework (piles were taking over and those who know me well know that is bad...:-o ) We are getting back into the daily routine after a great break from school and more structure. It was a nice break but good to be back into the "groove".
It is also a time of reflecting and praying for God to lead us to what He wants in this. We trust Him. This time with Nastya has changed us in some fundamental ways... we are trying to take some time to process it all... We have become more grateful for the incredible blessings we have been given - our family and extended family top the list. Of course we are always grateful for the people in our lives, but it deepens the reality that it is a blessing and a gift and we can't take these people and this time for granted. We do know that we are blessed beyond what we can comprehend and don't want to miss the joys of each day!
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
On Her Way to Ukraine...
Tonight we put the sweet girl who we have come to love deeply on a plane to New York and then to Ukraine. They said it would be hard - I had no idea it would be this hard. A week ago it would have been hard - now it was nearly impossible. I cling to knowing that God loves her more than we do, that He is with her, that He goes before her and before us.
This past week has been so precious. We hit some emotional roadblocks with her about halfway through last week. Things had been going great and then seemed to get more difficult last Tuesday or so. I think she was unsure about whether she could trust that we really loved her, and we still felt a bit distant although comfortable with her. Then this past Friday - after the t.v. filming - somehow (several close friends were praying I know - thank you!) things turned around and she really let down her guard. She began to open up to us emotionally. It's hard to explain how we could know that when we couldn't talk with her, but we have found that words are not as necessary as we might have previously thought and that body language and actions and a few attempted words in another language can speak volumes. This past weekend and this week have been especially precious and we are thankful for each moment. We have come to love her so much and it is difficult not to think of her as our daughter. But God is in control and we know that He is able to do all things and that He is good and loving. So we trust that His plans are perfect for our family and for Nastya. We pray that He would give us grace to trust Him and to clearly see His plan in each step.
Today and yesterday Nastya was very specific about what she wanted to do. And she was clear that she did not want Allee to go to school but to stay home with her - they have had soooo much fun together. It was bittersweet to see her relishing each moment. She had a glorious time riding her bike at my mom and dad's, feeding the horses one last time, taking a long bath (two actually), fishing for minnows with a net (the reason for the 2nd bath), and getting her back scratched. She also ate as much fruit as she could hold and plenty of sausage :) She kept asking to take back food to Ukraine and we sent a little on the plane, but of course she couldn't really take much with her. We hope to send a care package soon.
Please pray specifically for Nastya's belongings as she travels back to Ukraine. She loves her baby doll and her photos and several other items. She had been asking for photos and was delighted this morning to receive a book full of tons of pictures of all her adventures and favorite moments. We packed a suitcase of clothes and things too. Pray that she is able to keep up with her carry-on backpack and that her checked bag will make it intact to her orphanage.
Well, that's about it. We go to bed tonight incredibly grateful for this precious time that we have all had together. Thank you to each and every one who have been praying for us and encouraging during this time. It has been all the more special and fun to be able to share it with you.
Jeremiah 29:11 "For For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD , "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
This past week has been so precious. We hit some emotional roadblocks with her about halfway through last week. Things had been going great and then seemed to get more difficult last Tuesday or so. I think she was unsure about whether she could trust that we really loved her, and we still felt a bit distant although comfortable with her. Then this past Friday - after the t.v. filming - somehow (several close friends were praying I know - thank you!) things turned around and she really let down her guard. She began to open up to us emotionally. It's hard to explain how we could know that when we couldn't talk with her, but we have found that words are not as necessary as we might have previously thought and that body language and actions and a few attempted words in another language can speak volumes. This past weekend and this week have been especially precious and we are thankful for each moment. We have come to love her so much and it is difficult not to think of her as our daughter. But God is in control and we know that He is able to do all things and that He is good and loving. So we trust that His plans are perfect for our family and for Nastya. We pray that He would give us grace to trust Him and to clearly see His plan in each step.
Today and yesterday Nastya was very specific about what she wanted to do. And she was clear that she did not want Allee to go to school but to stay home with her - they have had soooo much fun together. It was bittersweet to see her relishing each moment. She had a glorious time riding her bike at my mom and dad's, feeding the horses one last time, taking a long bath (two actually), fishing for minnows with a net (the reason for the 2nd bath), and getting her back scratched. She also ate as much fruit as she could hold and plenty of sausage :) She kept asking to take back food to Ukraine and we sent a little on the plane, but of course she couldn't really take much with her. We hope to send a care package soon.
Please pray specifically for Nastya's belongings as she travels back to Ukraine. She loves her baby doll and her photos and several other items. She had been asking for photos and was delighted this morning to receive a book full of tons of pictures of all her adventures and favorite moments. We packed a suitcase of clothes and things too. Pray that she is able to keep up with her carry-on backpack and that her checked bag will make it intact to her orphanage.
Well, that's about it. We go to bed tonight incredibly grateful for this precious time that we have all had together. Thank you to each and every one who have been praying for us and encouraging during this time. It has been all the more special and fun to be able to share it with you.
Jeremiah 29:11 "For For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD , "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."
Friday, January 4, 2008
Famous!
Well we made tv today! Or at least our pictures did :) But Nastya and the other four kids all were on live television along with our friends Becca and Craig Hill and our translator - Laura. San Antonio Living had them all on their show today to raise awareness about orphans and the possibilities to help. Oprah, Good Morning America - here we come! It was a great time for the kids, and the adults really enjoyed seeing a tv station at work. If you want to watch the show just go to http://www.woai.com/ and click on "SA Living" (one of the headings at the top) Then look down and click on "watch SA Living" and ours is, of course, Ukraine Orphans. Afterwards, we all enjoyed a nice lunch and encouraging conversation by the River Walk. There have been so many blessings through this time, but one of the biggest has been the precious friendships we have made with these other host families. These ladies have encouraged me and prayed for me and it is incredibly comforting to all be in this together. It is so wonderful to be able to talk with ladies who have such a strong faith and who are right in the middle of the same joys, fears, struggles, and hopes. And they are just fun to hang out with too!
Sunday, December 30, 2007
Where Do We Go From Here?
Great Question! For those of you that we have not been blessed to talk with in detail about this experience, I hope to somehow capture some of our thoughts, prayers, hopes, revelations, a little of what God has done thus far through this time.
Knowing Nastya has already changed us all a great deal in our thinking and in our perspective about life. We have absolutely loved having her here. It has not all been easy, but it has certainly been full of love and joy. If she is blessed by us even one iota as much as she has blessed us, then I know her heart is full. It has been so amazing to see this timid, pale, exhausted child blossom into such a loving, outgoing, radiant, happy little girl. Our days have been filled with running and playing outdoors, loving on the pets, riding bikes (did I mention she did this for the first time and learned in about 24 hours?!), riding horses, and just more normal stuff - cooking, cleaning, watching movies, playing games, and just being together. We have all fallen in love with this child and are already grieving that she has to return in a short time. We are praying and asking God to faithfully reveal His perfect plan for our family. We know that His plan is absolutely perfect and He promises to reveal it to us. It is such a strange place to be in. Before Nastya walked off the plane, orphans were just people that others worried about, just stories I've read about in countless books and blogs, just the lives children lived before they were adopted by friends we know, just statistics that were hard to comprehend. So many, such sadness. But now there is one. One who is in our home. One whom we have grown to love and care for deeply. What does that mean?
We know that God brought this child here for this time. We also know that in the past when we have been faced with huge decisions, we have diligently sought the Lord to give us direction. Every time He has been incredibly faithful to lead us in the paths He has for our family. Would He forsake us now? No. I can rest in that assurance. I know He says to me, "Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things that you do not know" Jeremiah 33:3. And He says that He is our Protector, our Saviour, our Shepherd, our Strength, and that His grace is sufficient for us. I rest in this truth. I know that God has protected us from some stupid, bull-headed decisions in the past - such grace! He has saved me when I did not deserve it - He called me to Himself. I was the one who was lost in my own sinfulness and did not even know I needed to be saved, and He dramatically got my attention and caused me to know His lovingkindness and His grace and to know Him personally. To call Him Father. To call Him Lord. To call Him Saviour. You ask - why is all this relevant now? Well it is relevant because the Lord did not walk away from my mess and He did not think I was too risky or too imperfect or too messed up to bother with saving. No - He loved me when I was disobedient and didn't really care what He thought. And it is relevant because I want (only by the grace of God), to do whatever His will is. I wholeheartedly believe that we would all choose His plan for our lives if we could see the whole picture from His perspective. I believe that He loves me perfectly, that He is wholly good, that He is omniscient, and that He is able to all things. So I know I can trust Him to not only have a perfect plan but to reveal that plan. And I know that I can trust Him to give me the grace and the strength to do whatever He calls me to do. Last, I know that He does call me to lay down my life just as Jesus modeled. I struggle with that and this has caused me to see my own selfisness. Selfishness, you say, but you are hosting an orphan...how could you be selfish?! Oh but I am! I have seen my own selfishness more clearly this week than I have in a long time! I am and when I think about our future and the changes adopting this child may bring, I think about selfish things. I think about ease of life, vacations (with and without my children), not having the financial burden of another child, etc, etc, etc. Oh and how I don't want to see that selfishness, but it is there and I just pray and ask God to give me the grace (undeserved) to have His love and His joy. I believe there is joy in sacrifice and servitude. I have been blessed to experience that joy this week. And please don't think I'm saying that vactions and different pleasures in life are bad - they are great and I hope to have a lot of them!! But I don't want to love them so much that they drive my life. But again, God is faithful and gives the grace to love when it is easy and when it is hard, because He gives us His love.
So all that to say, it is summed up much better in God's own words, and this has become a regular prayer of mine this week.
Colossians 1:9-11 "For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy"
Really read this verse above - it is such awesome, peaceful truth. We ask you to pray with us that this would be true in our lives! In all this, I have said I believe all that I have said above before now, but wow - this time with Nastya and considering adopting her along with all the fears, concerns, unknowns, sacrifices and possible obstacles involved in that decision - we really have to decide to trust God, to trust this truth, to rest in His love and power. It is a unique time and we look forward to seeing His plan revealed one step at a time.
Knowing Nastya has already changed us all a great deal in our thinking and in our perspective about life. We have absolutely loved having her here. It has not all been easy, but it has certainly been full of love and joy. If she is blessed by us even one iota as much as she has blessed us, then I know her heart is full. It has been so amazing to see this timid, pale, exhausted child blossom into such a loving, outgoing, radiant, happy little girl. Our days have been filled with running and playing outdoors, loving on the pets, riding bikes (did I mention she did this for the first time and learned in about 24 hours?!), riding horses, and just more normal stuff - cooking, cleaning, watching movies, playing games, and just being together. We have all fallen in love with this child and are already grieving that she has to return in a short time. We are praying and asking God to faithfully reveal His perfect plan for our family. We know that His plan is absolutely perfect and He promises to reveal it to us. It is such a strange place to be in. Before Nastya walked off the plane, orphans were just people that others worried about, just stories I've read about in countless books and blogs, just the lives children lived before they were adopted by friends we know, just statistics that were hard to comprehend. So many, such sadness. But now there is one. One who is in our home. One whom we have grown to love and care for deeply. What does that mean?
We know that God brought this child here for this time. We also know that in the past when we have been faced with huge decisions, we have diligently sought the Lord to give us direction. Every time He has been incredibly faithful to lead us in the paths He has for our family. Would He forsake us now? No. I can rest in that assurance. I know He says to me, "Call to Me and I will answer you and show you great and mighty things that you do not know" Jeremiah 33:3. And He says that He is our Protector, our Saviour, our Shepherd, our Strength, and that His grace is sufficient for us. I rest in this truth. I know that God has protected us from some stupid, bull-headed decisions in the past - such grace! He has saved me when I did not deserve it - He called me to Himself. I was the one who was lost in my own sinfulness and did not even know I needed to be saved, and He dramatically got my attention and caused me to know His lovingkindness and His grace and to know Him personally. To call Him Father. To call Him Lord. To call Him Saviour. You ask - why is all this relevant now? Well it is relevant because the Lord did not walk away from my mess and He did not think I was too risky or too imperfect or too messed up to bother with saving. No - He loved me when I was disobedient and didn't really care what He thought. And it is relevant because I want (only by the grace of God), to do whatever His will is. I wholeheartedly believe that we would all choose His plan for our lives if we could see the whole picture from His perspective. I believe that He loves me perfectly, that He is wholly good, that He is omniscient, and that He is able to all things. So I know I can trust Him to not only have a perfect plan but to reveal that plan. And I know that I can trust Him to give me the grace and the strength to do whatever He calls me to do. Last, I know that He does call me to lay down my life just as Jesus modeled. I struggle with that and this has caused me to see my own selfisness. Selfishness, you say, but you are hosting an orphan...how could you be selfish?! Oh but I am! I have seen my own selfishness more clearly this week than I have in a long time! I am and when I think about our future and the changes adopting this child may bring, I think about selfish things. I think about ease of life, vacations (with and without my children), not having the financial burden of another child, etc, etc, etc. Oh and how I don't want to see that selfishness, but it is there and I just pray and ask God to give me the grace (undeserved) to have His love and His joy. I believe there is joy in sacrifice and servitude. I have been blessed to experience that joy this week. And please don't think I'm saying that vactions and different pleasures in life are bad - they are great and I hope to have a lot of them!! But I don't want to love them so much that they drive my life. But again, God is faithful and gives the grace to love when it is easy and when it is hard, because He gives us His love.
So all that to say, it is summed up much better in God's own words, and this has become a regular prayer of mine this week.
Colossians 1:9-11 "For this reason we also, since the day we heard it, do not cease to pray for you, and to ask that you may be filled with the knowledge of His will in all wisdom and spiritual understanding; that you may walk worthy of the Lord, fully pleasing Him, being fruitful in every good work and increasing in the knowledge of God; strengthened with all might, according to His glorious power, for all patience and longsuffering with joy"
Really read this verse above - it is such awesome, peaceful truth. We ask you to pray with us that this would be true in our lives! In all this, I have said I believe all that I have said above before now, but wow - this time with Nastya and considering adopting her along with all the fears, concerns, unknowns, sacrifices and possible obstacles involved in that decision - we really have to decide to trust God, to trust this truth, to rest in His love and power. It is a unique time and we look forward to seeing His plan revealed one step at a time.
Friday, December 28, 2007
Wow! It's hard to know where to start - I am waaay behind again in keeping up with the blog. It's been a little crazy with Christmas and being at my parents' and learning Ukrainian :) I could write a post with all the following titles:
"Nastya Meets, Rides, and Loves Horses"
"Nastya Meets, Rides, and Loves Horses"
"We're Famous!!" (we made the front page of our local paper and will soon be on tv!!!)
"Nastya Learns To Ride a Bike for the First Time!"
"Determination", "Strong Will", "Loving, Sweet Spirit", "Fearless"
"Christmas Joys"
"Many Questions...", "Lost In Translation",
and my current favorite from today - "Ukrainian Girl Meets Texas Cactus!!!"
Well, in my mind I have written the blog entries that go with each of these blog titles - they are all amazing stories. But I don't think I have the time to write them all! I'm too busy with the next adventure right now. And I desperately need sleep!
Hopefully tomorrow I will have more time to elaborate. In the meantime, thank you for your prayers. And thank you to our family for you love and support. God has poured out grace on us all through this and we are blessed by the assurance that He will continue to do so and will lead us the paths He has for us. Glory goes to Him - great things He has done and will continue to do. If you are led to, continue to pray especially for wisdom for us and that we will clearly hear His voice in decisions and grace to love this child with His everlasting love.
"Many Questions...", "Lost In Translation",
and my current favorite from today - "Ukrainian Girl Meets Texas Cactus!!!"
Well, in my mind I have written the blog entries that go with each of these blog titles - they are all amazing stories. But I don't think I have the time to write them all! I'm too busy with the next adventure right now. And I desperately need sleep!
Hopefully tomorrow I will have more time to elaborate. In the meantime, thank you for your prayers. And thank you to our family for you love and support. God has poured out grace on us all through this and we are blessed by the assurance that He will continue to do so and will lead us the paths He has for us. Glory goes to Him - great things He has done and will continue to do. If you are led to, continue to pray especially for wisdom for us and that we will clearly hear His voice in decisions and grace to love this child with His everlasting love.
Thursday, December 27, 2007
Happy 6th Birthday to My Sweet Boy
It is hard to believe that my sweet Jadon can be six!! Well not hard when I see how big he is and most of all how mature and kind and loving he is. I LOVE this boy! I thank God for him - he brings me so much joy and I am so thankful that I have the privilege and awesome responsibility of being his mom. We celebrated with cake and ice cream and singing. Then he opened his favorite gift of all - a bb gun. He has been asking for one since he was around four and is so proud to be old enough to have a "real" gun now. He and his Daddy practiced shooting targets all afternoon and had a great time. He is learning all about responisibility and caution and gun safety and just having a blast putting holes through targets!
I love Jadon's heartbeat - he has had such compassion and love for Nastya, kindness to Allee and Benjamin, and a desire to obey us and to obey the Lord. He is a gentle, sweet boy and it has been wonderful to watch him grow and mature this year. Thank you Lord for creating Jadon just the way You have and placing him in our family!
Saturday, December 22, 2007
A Picture At Last!
We're still having technical difficulties but we took this one on Allee's camera. How cute is she ?!? More pictures later! The other lady in the picture is Laura (Larissa in Ukraine - our translator. We are so thankful for her!
Today Allee had a lesson in learning Russian/Ukrainian and Nastya learned English. Laura is sweet to so patiently teach them! Allee is cracking me up because she is trying to say everything in Ukraine but mixes it up all the time and she also puts some type of Ukrainian accent into her English :) Too funny! Only Allee... :) But communication is getting better.
Nastya just still seems pretty reserved with us - I guess that is expected - when I hug her she is so hesitant to hug back. I think she's just unsure of us still because she is very affectionate with Laura and they only met on the airplane here. But she is obviously very verbal and it really upsets her when she can't communicate. So of course she is more comfortable with Laura because they can talk. If any of you reading who have done this - any advice is welcome!!! But overall I think it's going well and Nastya seems very happy to be here.
Friday, December 21, 2007
She's Here!
Nastya finally made it to Texas around midnight last night! She is a precious, sweet girl with a gentle, shy smile. It was a rough start, but is much better now! I want to be real on here about things - so here goes...
Let me back up at bit and go through the events of the night. We (all of us hosting) met a kind woman named Leslie at a restaurant to talk a bit before the plane arrived. Leslie has hosted the same boy three times and was having him come again for Christmas. She hopes to adopt him - please pray for the obstacles to be overcome for this child to have a family. So we all talked about her experiences, which was enlightening since this is new for the rest of us. It was a very nice time and eye-opening in many ways.
So after several cups of coffee :) it was finally time to go meet the children at the airport. We stood anxiously waiting for them to come down the escalator to the baggage claim area. Finally we spotted them, but my first thought was - "Where's Nastya?" Then a cute little blond with a shy smile was walking right up to me - she must have seen my picture, and I finally recognized her. She looks so different from the picture, partly because her hair has grown out a lot. Most of all though, she is about as tall as my six year old son even though she is nine. I kept thinking maybe she isn't really nine but we confirmed that she is. It breaks my heart to see the reality of malnutrition - you can know the facts but to see it - it is truly overwhelming. Although I expected her to be little for her age, Zach and I were both shocked. So to be honest, the first meeting was a bit awkward. I hugged her and spoke a little of my Ukrainian phrases. She timidly said "hello". She smiled the whole time but neither one of us really knew what to say and just took a lot of pictures and smiled. I looked around and watched the other children meet their host families. We had Oksana (6) with Becca, Oksana (6) with Camille, Sasha (9) with Roxanne, and Sergey (8) with Leslie. The six year olds were a little more open to hugs, etc, but - as you would expect the older girls were a little more reserved. So we soon met the translator - Laura -asked a few questions (my list had been forgotten for the moment), and walked to our car. On the ride home Nastya would talk a bit, I would talk a bit, I tried out a bit of the Ukrainian phrases I had learned and most of all we were just all tired.
We finally arrived home and she was excited to see our bird and hesitantly toured the house with me. I told her it was time to put on her pajamas and realized she had TONS of layers of clothes. Is this how they pack for the kids?!? Seriously - she must have been burning up on the plane. So we got into bed and I read her a book and told her "dobranich" - "good night". She began to cry. I told her it was okay and tried to figure out what was wrong - but figured she was just overwhelmed and overtired. The crying continued quite a awhile until finally she fell asleep around 4:00 in the morning. Come to find out (later today) she had not slept in almost 24 hours! It was very difficult to see her upset and I felt so sad for her. I can't imagine how frightening it is to fly halfway across the world to a family you have never met who has a different language,customs, sounds, environment, everything!
We both slept until close to 9:00 on Friday and then had a nice breakfast. I am glad to see that she eats well! We then called the translator and explained it was time for a bath. She was a little unsure but ended up totally loving a big bubble bath. I found a bit of clothes that fit her and we headed to Becca's (where Laura - our translator is staying). She started to relax and played and talked with Oksana awhile.
We then went to Target! There were 4 adults and 7 kids all looking through the clothes and piling stuff into the cart! I chose a few things out of the pile that she made that I thought she needed. To make the shopping trip even more chaotic :), Zach arrived with Allee, Jadon, and Ben. They were so happy to meet her - Ben ran up and gave her a huge hug - it was so precious. She became a little overwhelmed because she didn't know what they were saying, but our sweet translator stepped in and helped. Laura ended up going back to our house and we all played in the backyard with the dogs. Nastya absoulutely adores the animals - the 2 big dogs, the cats, the bird - the pets have really helped her to feel comfortable. She loves to jump on the trampoline, drive Ben's little motorized car, swing, run - it is so wonderful to see her enjoying playing. I am so thankful for the gorgeous weather we have had thi week! I think she is much more comfortable with us all now and is doing great learning some English words. She seems to be very smart and certainly knows how to play Uno as she beat us all last night! Leslie L. - I'm glad you mentioned on your blog that there a few different rules that they use for Uno in Ukraine :)
Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us. The Lord is answering those prayers. I have had peace through all of this even though it's been a bit crazy and I know that's from God. Keep praying - especially that Nastya will feel comfortable and loved and that we can be able to communicate! I would love to know her thoughts!
Okay, that's it for now. I won't always be so wordy - I just didn't want to forget these things and haven't had a moment to post until now. I forgot to mention that I dropped and broke my camera just before we went to pick her up at the airport. I am using my mom's camera but need to get the cable to download. I promise pictures soon! Nastya loves the camera and has taken lots and lots of pictures!
Let me back up at bit and go through the events of the night. We (all of us hosting) met a kind woman named Leslie at a restaurant to talk a bit before the plane arrived. Leslie has hosted the same boy three times and was having him come again for Christmas. She hopes to adopt him - please pray for the obstacles to be overcome for this child to have a family. So we all talked about her experiences, which was enlightening since this is new for the rest of us. It was a very nice time and eye-opening in many ways.
So after several cups of coffee :) it was finally time to go meet the children at the airport. We stood anxiously waiting for them to come down the escalator to the baggage claim area. Finally we spotted them, but my first thought was - "Where's Nastya?" Then a cute little blond with a shy smile was walking right up to me - she must have seen my picture, and I finally recognized her. She looks so different from the picture, partly because her hair has grown out a lot. Most of all though, she is about as tall as my six year old son even though she is nine. I kept thinking maybe she isn't really nine but we confirmed that she is. It breaks my heart to see the reality of malnutrition - you can know the facts but to see it - it is truly overwhelming. Although I expected her to be little for her age, Zach and I were both shocked. So to be honest, the first meeting was a bit awkward. I hugged her and spoke a little of my Ukrainian phrases. She timidly said "hello". She smiled the whole time but neither one of us really knew what to say and just took a lot of pictures and smiled. I looked around and watched the other children meet their host families. We had Oksana (6) with Becca, Oksana (6) with Camille, Sasha (9) with Roxanne, and Sergey (8) with Leslie. The six year olds were a little more open to hugs, etc, but - as you would expect the older girls were a little more reserved. So we soon met the translator - Laura -asked a few questions (my list had been forgotten for the moment), and walked to our car. On the ride home Nastya would talk a bit, I would talk a bit, I tried out a bit of the Ukrainian phrases I had learned and most of all we were just all tired.
We finally arrived home and she was excited to see our bird and hesitantly toured the house with me. I told her it was time to put on her pajamas and realized she had TONS of layers of clothes. Is this how they pack for the kids?!? Seriously - she must have been burning up on the plane. So we got into bed and I read her a book and told her "dobranich" - "good night". She began to cry. I told her it was okay and tried to figure out what was wrong - but figured she was just overwhelmed and overtired. The crying continued quite a awhile until finally she fell asleep around 4:00 in the morning. Come to find out (later today) she had not slept in almost 24 hours! It was very difficult to see her upset and I felt so sad for her. I can't imagine how frightening it is to fly halfway across the world to a family you have never met who has a different language,customs, sounds, environment, everything!
We both slept until close to 9:00 on Friday and then had a nice breakfast. I am glad to see that she eats well! We then called the translator and explained it was time for a bath. She was a little unsure but ended up totally loving a big bubble bath. I found a bit of clothes that fit her and we headed to Becca's (where Laura - our translator is staying). She started to relax and played and talked with Oksana awhile.
We then went to Target! There were 4 adults and 7 kids all looking through the clothes and piling stuff into the cart! I chose a few things out of the pile that she made that I thought she needed. To make the shopping trip even more chaotic :), Zach arrived with Allee, Jadon, and Ben. They were so happy to meet her - Ben ran up and gave her a huge hug - it was so precious. She became a little overwhelmed because she didn't know what they were saying, but our sweet translator stepped in and helped. Laura ended up going back to our house and we all played in the backyard with the dogs. Nastya absoulutely adores the animals - the 2 big dogs, the cats, the bird - the pets have really helped her to feel comfortable. She loves to jump on the trampoline, drive Ben's little motorized car, swing, run - it is so wonderful to see her enjoying playing. I am so thankful for the gorgeous weather we have had thi week! I think she is much more comfortable with us all now and is doing great learning some English words. She seems to be very smart and certainly knows how to play Uno as she beat us all last night! Leslie L. - I'm glad you mentioned on your blog that there a few different rules that they use for Uno in Ukraine :)
Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us. The Lord is answering those prayers. I have had peace through all of this even though it's been a bit crazy and I know that's from God. Keep praying - especially that Nastya will feel comfortable and loved and that we can be able to communicate! I would love to know her thoughts!
Okay, that's it for now. I won't always be so wordy - I just didn't want to forget these things and haven't had a moment to post until now. I forgot to mention that I dropped and broke my camera just before we went to pick her up at the airport. I am using my mom's camera but need to get the cable to download. I promise pictures soon! Nastya loves the camera and has taken lots and lots of pictures!
Wednesday, December 19, 2007
24 hours to go!
I can't believe the time has finally come, but in just a few hours (4:3o am here in Texas), all the hosted children will board a plane in Kiev and fly across the ocean to New York! They will then go through customs and board their last flight that will take them to varying communities in the United States. There are five children and two escorts flying to the airport here, and we will be picking them up very late at midnight tomorrow. I imagine they are excited and nervous and soon to be very tired from a long journey! Much of the same ways we are feeling too! I have no idea whether to expect Nastya to be exhausted from the travel or wired from all the stimulation of new experiences. But we will soon find out!
Today has been an interesting and emotional day. Let me give some background information. I am incredibly blessed to be able to be a part of a few moms at my childrens' school who meet on Wednesday mornings to pray for our children, their teachers, and the school. It is truly a privilege to pray with these ladies and to be able to come to the Lord together and pray for each others' children. We always come away encouraged from spending time talking to our Lord and Father and laying our concerns, requests, and joys before Him. And to know that He has heard our prayers and to often times see Him at work in our lives - it is one of the best parts of my week. The format that we follow is from Moms In Touch International, and anyone can start a group!
All that to say - one of the moms heard that we were hosting and wanted to host also, but she didn't think that she would be able to do so until after the deadline. But then last Wednesday, I got a call from our agency asking if there was anyone I knew who could a little girl whose host family was unable to host at the last minute. I knew this family would love to host and they got all their paperwork together, told their children (one of whom is sweet friend of Allee's), and began praying for their hosted child (a nine year old girl named Alena). We have been so excited that it all worked out and spent a good portion of our prayer time, praying for these girls and their time with our families.
About 30 minutes after leaving the prayer time, Roxanne (Alena's host mom) called me with the heartbreaking news that Alena was not able to come. Her orphanage had some type of illness going through it and even though Alena was not sick, the orphanage was quarantined until the children were well. This affects Alena and 7 other children who were planning to come. We are so sad for their disappointment and are hoping that each one of them will be able to come in the Spring hosting trip. Roxanne was of course very sad as well and we were all a little confused about why all this had happenned this way. Well about an hour later I recieved a call that another child - Sasha - had all her paperwork ready to go but suddenly needed a host home. (I never did get the full story on why.) Anyways, Roxanne and her family are now excited to be hosting Sasha. We will never know why this all happenned this way, but I do know that God is control and has a purpose in how all this is happenning. We will continue to pray for the disappointed children who are unable to come this Christmas. But we are so excited that Sasha is able come. It is going to be some fun girl time for Allee, her friend, and these two Ukrainian girls to all get together!
After I recover from being up WAY late tomorrow night, I will post how the arrival goes and hopefully some pictures! Please pray that all goes smoothly with such long travel and that Nastya feels very comfortable and loved with our family and that we are able to communicate what is needed.
Today has been an interesting and emotional day. Let me give some background information. I am incredibly blessed to be able to be a part of a few moms at my childrens' school who meet on Wednesday mornings to pray for our children, their teachers, and the school. It is truly a privilege to pray with these ladies and to be able to come to the Lord together and pray for each others' children. We always come away encouraged from spending time talking to our Lord and Father and laying our concerns, requests, and joys before Him. And to know that He has heard our prayers and to often times see Him at work in our lives - it is one of the best parts of my week. The format that we follow is from Moms In Touch International, and anyone can start a group!
All that to say - one of the moms heard that we were hosting and wanted to host also, but she didn't think that she would be able to do so until after the deadline. But then last Wednesday, I got a call from our agency asking if there was anyone I knew who could a little girl whose host family was unable to host at the last minute. I knew this family would love to host and they got all their paperwork together, told their children (one of whom is sweet friend of Allee's), and began praying for their hosted child (a nine year old girl named Alena). We have been so excited that it all worked out and spent a good portion of our prayer time, praying for these girls and their time with our families.
About 30 minutes after leaving the prayer time, Roxanne (Alena's host mom) called me with the heartbreaking news that Alena was not able to come. Her orphanage had some type of illness going through it and even though Alena was not sick, the orphanage was quarantined until the children were well. This affects Alena and 7 other children who were planning to come. We are so sad for their disappointment and are hoping that each one of them will be able to come in the Spring hosting trip. Roxanne was of course very sad as well and we were all a little confused about why all this had happenned this way. Well about an hour later I recieved a call that another child - Sasha - had all her paperwork ready to go but suddenly needed a host home. (I never did get the full story on why.) Anyways, Roxanne and her family are now excited to be hosting Sasha. We will never know why this all happenned this way, but I do know that God is control and has a purpose in how all this is happenning. We will continue to pray for the disappointed children who are unable to come this Christmas. But we are so excited that Sasha is able come. It is going to be some fun girl time for Allee, her friend, and these two Ukrainian girls to all get together!
After I recover from being up WAY late tomorrow night, I will post how the arrival goes and hopefully some pictures! Please pray that all goes smoothly with such long travel and that Nastya feels very comfortable and loved with our family and that we are able to communicate what is needed.
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