A Home for Lily

Looking for Lil?

2010-08-23T08:38:00.000-05:00

I think the time has come to put all the follow-up posts about Lil on our family blog. After all, she's been with us over a month & is a full-fledged part of our family now!

Visit The Zoromski Chronicles
to follow Lil with her family!

Updates

2010-08-21T11:39:00.000-05:00

Lily's been a very busy girl since we brought her home! After we've cleared up her infected throat & ears, she's been doing great. She's still not much for drinking, but she's definitely getting better about it.

Dentist - 1 cavity, needs thorough cleaning; will do under sedation this fall. She wasn't thrilled about this visit, but she let him look in her mouth. She HATES when I brush her teeth - she prefers to do it, but then she's really only brushing her tongue.
ENT - some concerns about tonsils, they are HUGE ... just watching them for now.
Audiologist - hearing is GOOD! Yay!
Cardiologist - we knew Lil had an ASD (hole) that was repaired. She apparently also had a VSD (hole in a different place) that healed on its own, probably when she was a baby. We didn't know she had a valve repaired (stitched) during her surgery, and this mitral valve has a bit of back flow.

What does that mean? For now, she looks good. She had an EKG & an Echo (she's such a trooper & good listener!) The cardiologist started her on a low dose blood thinner, to help the blood flow easier, with the goal of preserving the life of that valve. Otherwise, in the future (5, 10, 20 years) she may need another operation to repair or replace that valve.

We really lucked out that there are pediatric cardiologist locally, and they're very highly regarded by parents we know. Way back when we first committed to Lil, a friend of mine connected me to Dr. S via email, and she was wonderful about answering my questions as best as she could. This heart stuff is all new to us, so any extra information was very valuable.
Physical Therapy - Lil is very, very flexible, there's a lot of laxity in her. She's got flat feet, and gets around just fine, but she's not super steady. The PT recommended we get supports for her feet that she can wear in her shoes - so far, so good. We've got them, and we're working on getting her used to them, but that takes getting her to keep her shoes on!

It cracks me up to think that the first time I took her shoes off in our apartment she kept putting them back on ... now I can't keep shoes on her! When I buckle her into the van, before I close the door, she's got her sandals kicked off.
Eye dr - when we first met Lil & started visiting her, Brian told her, "You're going to look so cute in glasses!" She's noticeably farsighted - turning one eye in when she tries to focus. Yesterday, my mom & I brought Ruby & Lil to the eye doctor. Ruby was fine & doesn't have to go back for 2 years, but Lil got a prescription for glasses & will go back in 6 months. Hopefully we'll get to order new glasses for her early next week - an eye doctor office in a nearby town carries the Specs 4 Us which is a line of glasses specially made for people with DS, so we're going to check those out.

One of the best parts is we were able to do all this locally so far!

Cutie got some bangs!

2010-08-20T10:19:00.001-05:00

Another Adoption!

2010-08-18T14:14:00.001-05:00

(It's not our adoption, but I bet I got your attention, didn't I!?! ...
Mom? Are you okay? I hope my mom didn't faint!)

When we were in the midst of our travels this summer to bring home Lil, I received an email from my friend, Jill. She & her husband had decided to adopt a little boy from Reece's Rainbow! I couldn't be happier for them - or for the little guy who will be joining their family.

They have 5 children at home already, but felt moved to adopt - and this will be their first child with Down syndrome. If you'd like to read more about how they came to the decision to adopt, please hop on over & visit her blog. She shares not only how they made the decision to adopt - but also how reading about little Miss Ruby really opened the way. I've always thought part of being Ruby's mom was to just get her out in the world, so people can SEE that DS isn't scary, that kids don't "suffer" from it. I'm so touched that our family is a small part of their story - and I'm super excited to get to meet Elijah when he comes home!

Now, you might remember when I had a blog auction for Lily last winter, my friend's daughter made some items (swaddling blanket, crocheted kitchen set) for the auction. That is this same friend - and her daughter, Sarah, is making items to sell & raise money for Elijah's adoption. Sarah is amazing - she recently turned 12, and she has such a heart for orphans and helping others.

Please visit Sarah's new blog, Handiwork for Elijah, and know that any purchase you make will help offset the costs of bringing this sweet little boy to a family.

Elijah, coming soon to a family near me! :)

Please click here if you'd like to make a tax-deductible donation for his 'ransom'!

My annoying passport

2010-08-18T13:38:00.000-05:00

If someone were to ask me what I had to share from our experience ... well, Reece's Rainbows volunteers had all sorts of advice for us, and I'd highly suggest you pay attention & read all the material they send you. They send it for a reason!

But, personally, my number one tip would be make sure your passport is updated! My passport had my maiden name on it - and when we got married, I sent it in for a name change (which is free) instead of getting a new passport. This was fine, but it was such a hassle & slowed us down, REPEATEDLY.

My tickets were always booked in my married name (of course!) and so a look at my passport - they don't match! I was constantly having to flip it open to the end & show the addendum. Even in the US airports, they were caught off guard by this. Then, as the adoption progressed, my passport wasn't matching up with Lilya's new name on her birth certificate, and it was harder to explain with the language barrier. Luckily, it was never a serious issue, but just a constant little annoyance.

It was worse at the end, because I didn't have Brian with me - so if I hand over my passport at the airport, they'd look for my ticket under my maiden name ... and then I was trying to bring a child with a different last name out of the country ... like I said, it went fine in the end, but it was just unnecessary stress on my part. I should've gotten a new passport when we started the adoption!

Lil says Signing Time

2010-08-17T08:13:00.000-05:00

1 Month Home

2010-08-16T22:44:00.001-05:00

I can't believe Lil's been home for a month! It seems like we just got off the plane ... and yet, it feels like Lil's been a part of our family for ages.

While we did paperwork and planning for Lily, it sometimes seemed so outrageous & unreal - like, how would we really ever manage to bring this person to live with us? And now, here she is, the little girl who started out as a photograph and is a blooming, growing, amazing little girl - and we are so lucky to be her parents.

It's really hard to wrap my mind around sometime, that we crossed the world to get a child - and this gem of a girl was unwanted?

This little girl, who was actually in a very nice orphanage and well cared for - is literally blooming in front of us. Her language - oh my gosh! She's got many signs now, thanks to Signing Time DVDs, and a handful of English words she says regularly.

Also, funnily enough - she's started answering our questions with a very solemn, "Da," which is "yes" in Russian. While we were in Ukraine, she never once said "Da" ... but now, she not only understands our simple questions (Do you want more cereal? Are you ready to sleep?) with appropriate verbal answers! Even if sometimes those answers are in Russian!

Lil got some great gifts from friends & family for her birthday and for coming home.

She had to put this new shirt on right away - and she's warming up to baby dolls.

Sisters at breakfast
Lil's still not a big drinker, but she likes milk in her cereal. She's also finally accepted a sippy cup like Ruby's, and she's willing to drink more now. She still prefers milk - and that's fine with me!

Lil loves balls - and now has 2 new ones of her very own!

and I did make her a cake on her actual birthday, even though we'd had cupcakes on the weekend. I couldn't NOT make her a cake - it was her first birthday she ever celebrated!

I really like this picture of Lilya & her Papa...

and here, too - with big sister & big brother!
(Ruby was across the table, I couldn't get them all into one shot).

Really, Lily is just doing awesome. There have been rough spots -- like giving Ruby a push or following the cat around while holding its tail like a leash -- but nothing extraordinary. We didn't really know what to expect once we got her home, but we can safely say she's exceeded all of our expectations. Ruby and Lily are also becoming more and more aware of each other -- the last time they had a bath together, they even gave each other kisses (which is a big improvement on the bath before that, when Lily accidentally threw a toy at Ruby's head). Lily's so happy to be here, and to be with her brother and sisters. Ruby's always been a shining star of happiness in our house... and now we have two.

Updates coming soon ...

2010-08-15T23:43:00.000-05:00

But for now, just know that we're happy & all adjusting well!

Lil's not quite so hesitant around men anymore - she's figured out that she loves being tossed up in the air, and grandpas are super for that! (She's met all 3 sets of her grandparents now!)

Lil with my dad, Boppa Bob

We went to a family party in Michigan this weekend with my dad's family, and she did so well - we are continually amazed at how well she's adapting, and how quickly she seems to be learning & changing. She's still our little miss sunshine, but she's coming out of her shell even more, and we couldn't be happier with her!

6

2010-08-13T08:21:00.001-05:00

It's pretty wild, but we now have two 6-year-olds in our home! Lil turned 6 yesterday, and it's one month until Braden's 7th birthday.

I'm so, so, so very happy Lily was home with us for her birthday!

Months ago, Braden said we'd need to have 6 cakes for Lily, since she'd never celebrated a birthday before.

We compromised with 6 cupcakes!

This was this past Sunday - so Daddy didn't have to worry about just getting home from work & Nana & Nice Wolf were here for dinner.

Lil had no problem blowing out the candles!

Chocolate cupcakes? Lily approves!

I have more I want to say - about opening presents, about making her a cake yesterday, too, because it was her ACTUAL birthday, and when I asked Brian if I should make her a cake even though we had cupcakes, he said, "Starr would say she needs one," and he was right, so I had to go get a cake mix (Starr is my cousin, who knows all the birthday rules).

BUT, life is busy, so this is it for now. And even though we're busy? We're HAPPY! It's a good life, this life with 4 kids.

At the Beach

2010-08-06T11:12:00.001-05:00

Braden had swimming lessons the past few weeks at a local beach, and Lily & Ru & I bring him, and watch him swim. Lil at first wanted nothing to do with the sand, but when she figured out it was the way to get to the water ... well, she tolerated it just fine, then.

We went as a family to the beach this past Sunday - Lil's first official trip to do more than wading & watching - and she loved it. She absolutely LOVES being in the water (and only fell in face first once, but I plucked her right up & she went on playing).

We also had a picnic dinner, and it's like Lil's been with us forever.

This look is called: What? I'm eating. Stop taking pictures!

Good news!

2010-08-06T11:01:00.000-05:00

The Urbans have their two new children home, Joseph & Zoya!

The Whites have their three new children home, Peyton, Jessa & baby Mimi!

We are just thrilled for these families! It's special for us - we've seen many coming home stories through Reece's Rainbow, but these are families I met in real life, and these children I've hugged - they're from the same orphanage as Lilya!

And the excitement doesn't end - The Harpers will be heading over to meet their two new sons next week! That orphanage will be a completely different place after this summer ... and 8 children will be American citizens with families to love them!

Our Trip Home

2010-08-04T08:59:00.000-05:00

I keep meaning to tell our story about coming home ... partly because my dad keeps reminding me I meant to, and partly just for my own memory keeping. I feel like it might get long & rambly though, so I added a bunch of pictures, in case you'd like to skim & just see Lil's cute face!

That Friday was a very long, stressful day of waiting. We were told 'Uncle' Niko (our driver & sometime translator) would pick up Lil's passport, take us to her medical visit, and our embassy appointment would be at 2:00. I packed a bag to be out all day - and we sat & waited. I called Niko at 11:00 - he said he'd call when he was on his way. After 1:30, he finally called to tell us he was on his way. My heart sunk - I figured we'd get to the medical, and have to do the embassy on Monday.

When we got in the car around 2:00, we raced to the medical exam. Niko told me that our embassy appointment was changed to 3:00, so we could still make it, if we hurried. I was skeptical, but hopeful...

The medical appointment was super speedy and brief, and we left there very close to 3:00 ... luckily, for once, the 2 places were on the same side of the river, and we made it there relatively quickly.

The Embassy is a little strange - it's an office building, nothing fancy, but it can feel like an oasis. In all the foreignness, it's like walking in from the heat into an air conditioned building - it's very refreshing to walk in & know there are Americans there to help you (and the Ukrainian people who work there are super, too). The embassy stop was brief - they had all our paperwork ahead of time & just needed the medical papers from the doctor & Lil's passport. They printed her visa for emigration right into her passport, and we were on our way.

I was pretty stunned, but it was all done! I emailed Brian to let him know, and he emailed me back right away, asking if he should call the travel agent. Originally, we were unable to get tickets out on the weekend (without either being stranded in Chicago late Saturday, or taking 4 or more flights to get home, through unfamiliar airports ... say what you will about Chicago, but I know that airport well).

And so in a matter of an hour or so, I went from leaving on Monday, to leaving the next morning! Now, on Monday, we would have been sharing our first leg of the journey from Kiev to Germany with some friends from back home who were on a mission trip - how cool that would've been! And even though I wanted to take Lil to do some sightseeing that weekend ... we ditched our plans & headed home. Thank goodness, too, because she ended up so sick that weekend.

I called to talk to Uncle Niko about our ride to the airport, and then our facilitator called to clarify that we were leaving earlier, and to say good-bye. That's when we found out Niko would also be driving another family to the airport at the same time! Remember when I was blogging about fundraising for Freddie? Well, his new family was going home (without Freddie, as they still had to wait for paperwork), so Lyndi, her husband & her son would be on our flight to Germany!

We got up at 3:00am & were picked up at 4:00 - our flight left around 6:30. It was a loooong day!

In the Kiev airport
I picked up this little stroller in the Darnytsia shopping district for 300 hrivnas (about $40)

on the plane, playing with Lyndi's Carmex

A man switched seats with Lyndi, so she sat next to us & across the aisle from her family ... I told Lyndi I was very impressed with how helpful the Reece's Rainbow team is, because she was my stateside helper for my paperwork, and now she's helping me fly Lil home - That's full service!

Look! We're in Germany!

We had like a 7 hour layover in Germany - and so did Lyndi's family. It was nice to have company, and entertainment for Lil...

playing ball w/Jordan

I'm pretty sure the kids scared the Germans - look at all the glass, and they're throwing a ball around!? But it was a very soft little ball.

Checking out our plane
Oddly, this plane had all its bathrooms downstairs. There was a section in the middle where there were stairs, and several bathrooms down there. Lil was not thrilled about the stairs, but she braved them a couple times.

Good-bye Europe ...

Hello, America!

The overseas flight to Chicago was LONG & stressful - Lil was sick (note she's not wearing the shirt in Chicago that she started the day in). It was a very long day, she wasn't feeling well (we found out a couple days later she had a throat & ear infection) and I think she was a little motion sick - after all, she'd barely been in a car before, and here we were flying for hours on end.

We had seats that had permanent arm rests between them, so I couldn't easily snuggle her up to me, but I made her a little nest on her seat & tried to keep her as comfortable as I could. The flight attendants were very kind, but there wasn't really much they could do for her, either.

It was such a relief when we finally landed in Chicago! We rushed through customs & immigration, bought some yogurt, banana & water & headed to the terminal for our local flight. Lil was perked up so much once we got on the ground!

It was tricky having the stroller, and our flight was leaving from a very small terminal downstairs (because we had to walk outside to the plane, too). When we got off the elevator at our departure terminal, there were 4 flights leaving from this one little room, packed with people. Lining the hallway from the elevator to the desk was a whole group of adults with Down syndrome! It was a Special Olympics group, and I thought it was a wonderful welcome home.

We weren't seated together on our flight home, but luckily a man agreed to change seats with me, rather than babysit Lil ;) And that flight was wonderful (it's only about 40 minutes long) - and then we were HOME!

I know Brian blogged about meeting us at the airport already, and this is long enough ... but boy, was it great to be home!!

Medical Updates

2010-08-03T21:50:00.005-05:00

Lil is SUCH a trooper. I keep telling people she's Little Miss Sunshine, and she really is (most of the time). She tolerates new stuff really well, and is getting better every day at communicating her needs. She's figured out signing 'potty' will get me to drop what I'm doing & take her to the bathroom - and half the time I lose her on the way there, as she'll run off giggling & make me chase her. And, as I chase her for the umpteenth time, I try to remember how much I love that little silly independent streak she's got blooming!

In the past couple days, she's had several appointments - yesterday was the pediatrician for a well-child / new patient exam complete with neck x-rays & bloodwork. Today was the dentist & ENT, along with the audiologist.

Her ears are good, her hearing is good, her tonsils are large, but probably not a real issue - just something to watch. Her neck x-rays (something that is checked for all kids with Down syndrome) were good, and won't need to be repeated. The bloodwork that has come back so far is all good - thyroid, CBC - good!

Next week we're off to a checkup with the cardiologist, and later this month the eye doctor. We're moving forward quickly on our to-do list, and so far, so good!

Our biggest struggle with Lil is still getting her to drink, but even that is slowly improving. VERY slowly, but it's something.

Signing

2010-08-02T18:24:00.000-05:00

We've been signing with Lily since we met her, and she's been watching Signing Time DVDs with Ruby since she came home. She's very, very good at mimicking - I have to watch that I don't move my hands too much when I talk, or she'll associate my words with my actions.

When I comb her hair in the morning, I tell her she's pretty & I sign pretty - then I usually take her to the mirror so she can see her hair. Then I do the same for Ru.

Today my mom & stepdad came to visit - and they brought their dog. Well, the dog was of huge interest (and she was pretty suspicious of it at first, but not scared) - and after she pet the dog with Nana's help, Lily turned to me & signed, "Pretty."

That was the first time she had signed it spontaneously, so I wasn't sure if it was because she pet him and thought his fur was like hair? But then - we went to speech with Ruby & we were looking at a wall hanging. I was pointing out pictures & naming them, and I said, "Butterfly - pretty!" And she signed, "pretty."

She's doing so well!

Special Guests

2010-08-02T07:56:00.001-05:00

When we first committed to Lilya, we heard about Bella's family. Bella came home a year ago, from the same orphanage where we adopted Lil from. Bella's mom, Paula, was so helpful for us - sharing their timeline and experiences. When they brought home Bella, they had met Lil & had pictures of her. It was so reassuring & wonderful to actually be able to email with someone who had not only been there, but had met our girl in person!

I was so excited when we found out Bella's family would be traveling through our state and they were able to stop by for a visit! Lil had been home for about a week when they were traveling through.

Bella & Lilya weren't in the same groupa at the orphanage, and who knows if they remember each other - but it was still such a treat to get to meet Bella & her family, and to see the girls together in the US!

Bella & Lilya

Bella, Lil & Ruby

Lily looks so tiny in these pictures, but part of that is due to the couch. She's really not smaller than Ruby. She's not that much bigger, but she's not smaller.

Our Ukrainian girls!

Bella's big sister, Elizabeth, was in Ukraine last year with her parents, and got to hug Lily on her birthday. It's so nice to know Lil wasn't completely alone on her special day.

It was such a special treat to get to meet their family - and I'm so thankful for all they've shared of their experiences, with us. AND, I'm so very happy they were able to see Lilya, live and in person, here in the US, with a family. I'm very thankful for their part in our adoption, and look forward to seeing them again as the girls grow older.

Lil's Dress

2010-07-29T16:12:00.000-05:00

Lilya's "Gotcha Day" dress was made for her through an etsy shop - LolahPOP vintage baby. I love her dress, I think it's absolutely beautiful, so I wanted to share where we got it, if anyone was looking for something a special handmade dress!

I absolutely love the Matryoshka Russian Nesting dolls fabric!

Hats & Shoes

2010-07-29T09:16:00.000-05:00

I know in the laundry room picture, Lil had put her hat on - but really, she hasn't been wearing one outside. At all. (Don't tell the Ukrainian nannies on me, please!)

Also ditched - shoes. In Ukraine, they wear shoes all the time. They go in from playing & change to indoor shoes / slippers. That was difficult for Lily the first day - I took her shoes off at our apartment, and she kept putting them back on. Now, she's barefoot as much as possible - at her request. We put shoes on to go somewhere, and as soon as she's buckled in her car seat - she ditches her shoes (Thanks to Ruby for teaching her that trick!).

And check this out - Lily sitting on the floor!!

Visitors

2010-07-27T15:40:00.000-05:00

Last week, my dad & step-mom (Boppa Bob & Grandma Jean to the kids) came down to meet Lily!

Lilya was happy to meet them, but didn't want my dad to hold her - she's still just not used to many men.

Ruby, however, has no qualms at all about Boppa holding her!

And ... time to go back to Mama!

Some Answers

2010-07-27T08:59:00.002-05:00

Here are a few answers to some of the questions we received ... let me know if you have more! This really helps me get a blog post up! I know there are still a few I haven't addressed, but this is long enough for now.

Does she ever cry?
Lilya DOESN'T cry - she makes the saddest face, like she's terrified, but no sound comes out. She makes this face when I try to cover her with a blanket and she doesn't want one, or when the nurse is checking Ruby's throat & Ruby's crying. Like I said, she looks absolutely terrified, and it's quite sad to see. She simply does not have the experience to know what response crying brings. I don't know if at the orphanage they told them to be quiet, or if they ignored cries and children learn that crying does no good. Either way, it's pathetically sad.

Is she able to understand anything you are saying? Has she picked up any words?
Lily seems to understand much of what we say, and she's picking up signs very quickly - especially signs about food. The girl loves to eat! And she really does seem to understand much of what we're saying - her frustration level has been very low, which is wonderful.

Has she tried to say the other 3 kids names?
Not yet, but she does say Mama & Papa. She sings in the car, wagon, stroller - and she'll babble & giggle to herself in bed as she's falling asleep, but she doesn't have a lot of English words yet.

As for adjustment / sharing mom & dad with the other kids:
She's lengthening her hold on me - she used to follow me around all day, and now she'll wander into the other rooms & explore without me. It's nice to know she's secure enough to roam around on her own, and she still looks so happy to see me when I walk into the room. It took a day or two, but she's warmed up to Brian again, as well.

If I had to guess, I'd say it's been more of a change for Ruby & Braden than for Lily - Lily's used to sharing adults with a group of kids. It's still my plan to keep Lilya home with me for at least this fall - we're talking about school for 2nd semester, starting in January.

How is Lily doing?
Overall, I think she's going great! She's a super good eater - bananas are a favorite. She's still not drinking very much, but we're working on it. She really only likes to drink milk, and sometimes we'll warm it for her. Now that her throat infection is better, she's much more willing to eat, which is such a relief.

Lily's sleeping in our room in a toddler bed, and she's doing great. She goes to bed without fuss, and I stay in the room reading while she falls asleep, so she doesn't get frightened. So far, the only bedtime issue we have is she really, really dislikes being covered up with a blanket - odd, but not such a big deal.

She's also really good about going potty - we're still using Pull-ups, because I don't want her upset by an accident and figure we can take our time. Most days, though, she'll wear the same Pull-up all day and keep it dry, which is fantastic. She's also figured out (like Ruby) that signing "potty" will get you to the other side of the baby gates in our house, and so it's fun to go potty, for something different.

I'm actually pretty amazed by how well she's doing. She doesn't show any signs of grief or missing her orphanage - hopefully the extra attention and family setting are enough to keep her happy & content. It was hard at first when she was sick, she was miserable and she just wasn't her usual sunshiney self, but she is once again and we couldn't be happier!

* * * * * * *
Jill, The hardest thing for me through this was all the unknowns. It was hard to wait patiently and never know if the next step would be in 2 weeks or 2 months. We did everything we needed to do as fast as we could ... and then we'd have to wait. I tried to have big goals - when I knew we could have her home sometime between May & August, I kept in mind that we wanted her here by mid-August, for her birthday.

It was hard watching other families get to Ukraine & go home with their child in a matter of a few weeks in country - and it took us 2 months total to do that. Not that I'd begrudge another family a speedy adoption, but it was hard to watch sometimes. My thought then was we aren't in this for a quick adoption, we're in this for Lilya's adoption ... and that really helped.

Once we got to Ukraine, I thought it would be unbearable to leave her & go home ... but it wasn't. It wasn't easy, but we knew she was in a good place and well cared for and she'd be fine until we got back to her. So, even though it takes longer to adopt from her orphanage, there were certainly advantages - like peace of mind.

And MoonDog ... when you're ready to move your clan to Wisconsin, I'm happy to help you house hunt! :)

If you missed it, Brian posted a video on our family blog the other night, Ruby & Lily dancing. So cute!

Where was I?

2010-07-25T13:21:00.000-05:00

Does anyone have any questions for me? About the adoption in general, or Lilya, or anything?

One Little Red Balloon

2010-07-24T14:53:00.000-05:00

When we were in Kyiv, one of our last evenings in town, we went out to dinner with Sherry & the Heims. After we ate, we were also lucky enough to meet up with 2 other Reece's Rainbow families currently in the city.

While we were visiting, two teenage girls walked by - and one handed the balloon she was carrying to Lily. The balloon had the name of a restaurant on it, and it was probably no big deal to the teenage girls ... but to Lil? It was the greatest thing ever!

This balloon was her favorite toy for the next couple days at the apartment. I wonder if she's ever had a balloon of her own to bat around & play with for hours on end before? She loved it so much, Brian & the kids made sure they brought along a few balloons to the airport when they picked us up.

People have asked if anyone treated Lil differently or looked at her strangely, having Down syndrome in a city where it's not commonly seen. And I'd say generally, nope! Everyone ignored her the same as they ignored Sherry & I - it's a big city and people aren't particularly friendly to strangers, but mind their own business.

The one exception was when Sherry & I went to the Mandarin Market. It was Lil's 2nd trip there, and she really enjoyed looking at everything from her stroller. However, to get out of the Market, we had to go up the escalator, so we'd pop her out of the stroller. As we came out of the market, there was an older woman sweeping up. She saw Lil and said something to us - but in Ukrainian, so we don't know what she said. She then got on the escalator in front of me, and didn't take her eyes off of Lil. She was so interested in her, in a very kind and gentle way. It must be hard in a society where the services are few to keep a child like Lilya - and there are probably many, many people who are missing a family member.

Lily loves to GO!

2010-07-22T08:07:00.001-05:00

I can often find Lily in our laundry room, putting on her shoes & hat, waiting for our next outing.

This is Lily's expression in so many of pictures of her, she's saying, "Hiiii!"

For a little girl who had never been in a car seat & rarely ridden in a car, she loves both. In fact, I could tell when she was feeling better by the singing coming from the backseat a couple mornings ago. It was such a relief to hear her little voice again that I called Brian at work & left him a voice mail of her singing.

Lil is feeling so much better! The antibiotics are helping clear up the infection in her ear & throat, and she's eating again with a great big appetite. Drinking is still iffy, but still such an improvement.

During the day, she's my little shadow, rarely moving far from me. Each day she's exploring a little further and finding new things to look at & play with. We are so happy to have her home, she's wonderful and curious and dear!

Monroe has a $20,000 grant!

2010-07-20T11:19:00.000-05:00

Monroe (12)

BOY, Born February 4, 2005

SIGNIFICANT RISK, PLEASE ADOPT ME SOON!!

Monroe is a sunshine of a little boy! He is already 5 and blessed to still be at the baby house. He needs a family right away!

From a missionary who visited with him in June 2010: I met with the doctor in his Groupa House who brought me back to meet him. The Head Doctor wanted me to meet the children who needed equipment. While measuring him for a chair, she explained to me what was more important was that he get a family. He will be traferred in six months to the worst institution, restrained in a crib in a dark room. She broke into tears! Monroe has spastic cerebral palsy in all four limbs and is globally delayed. He is able to recognize the voices of his careworkers and understand simple directions. However, due to his spasticity he is unable to do much of anything. No speech. With therapy he can improve but will always have limitations. I measured his head circumfeence and once home will check with a doctor regtarding whether ir not he is microcephalic as well. I will try to gather more information on him today. His temperament was sweet and his eyes twinkled. He needs a family fast!

From an adoptive family who visited with him in June 2009: Monroe has CP. It appears that he is unable to use his arms and legs and is not sitting up on his own. He has the most beautiful smile and I don't think there is much of a cognitive delay. He loves to be held and his whole face lights up when you come near him."

*** Monroe has an incredible benefactor who has offered a FULL GRANT of $20,000 for his adoption. He is facing imminent institutionalization, and will regress quickly once he is transferred. Families who are qualified (www.reecesrainbow.org/newfamily.html) to adopt internationally and who are approved to adopt a significantly delayed child should contact Andrea for more information. This is a very fast program and it is very possible to have him home before the end of 2010! ***

Only families with at least one parent under age 50 can adopt Monroe from his country. Must be a heterosexual married couple.

MORE PHOTOS AVAILABLE

I have $20,000 in my grant fund towards the cost of my adoption!

A New Day!

2010-07-20T07:23:00.000-05:00

Lily was in bed by 7:30 last night. Her toddler bed is in our room for now, so we can keep an eye on her - especially helpful since she's been getting up in the middle of the night, poor little jet-lagged girl. I turned off my reading light at 8:00, and woke up a few times to check on Lil, but she slept right through the night until 6:00!

I woke up around 5:30, and when I noticed at 6:00 that she was awake, I said, "Hi, Lilya," and she sat up with her arms outstretched for me & a big smile! It's amazing how fast those antibiotics have begun to work, and what a difference they're making for her.

We really believed something more was going on than just adjustment, she truly is such a pleasant, dear girl, and seemed just miserable the past few days. Hopefully she'll continue to get back to her sunshiney self! She's actually giggling right now, playing with some Little People on the trampoline - and that's such a great sound to hear!

Lily Update

2010-07-19T22:20:00.000-05:00

Sorry for the lack of updates lately, but it's been busy here! Michelle and Lily are still recovering from the time change... and Lily still isn't feeling well. Michelle took her to see our wonderful pediatrician, Dr. B, today and we found out that Lily has not just one but two infections: an ear infection and a throat infection. She's now on an antibiotic for both, and hopefully will be feeling better soon.

Our current thinking is that when Michelle picked Lily up from the orphanage last week Monday, Lilya was already sick. She hasn't been herself since Michelle picked her up. We thought at first it was nerves (and still could be to a certain extent) but now the way she's been -- not eating or drinking much, not always the usual, happy self we knew at the orphanage for weeks on end -- it seems much more likely she's been sick for the last week, with at least one or both of her current infections.

The kids have been absolutely great with Lily, even if she's been too sick/tired to do much of anything. Ruby absolutely loves to show Lily new toys and even share her food. Karly has been playing with Lily when she's up for it, rolling balls back and forth. But Braden has been the most involved of all. Today, when Lily was feeling her worst and laying on the couch, Braden brought over toys to cheer her up. He played with a balloon, hitting it to her and getting her to laugh and hit it back -- her laugh is something we haven't heard much lately. Braden even kept her distracted enough that I could give her some ibuprofen for her fever without her even protesting, and he did the same thing again when it came time to take her first round of antibiotics. Good thing -- she hasn't been handling medicine time very well otherwise.

Occasionally we see glimpses of the Lily we know, like when Michelle was driving the kids around in the van today and Lily started to sing, like she does when swinging. And Lilya is such a quick learner with sign language... even not feeling well she's been learning and using a whole bunch of signs: eat, drink, milk, banana, cereal, watch (as in "watch TV"), please, and a few more I can't think of right now. She really enjoys watching Baby Signing Time, and picks up signs very easily from there.

It's quiet here in the house now -- Michelle and Lily went to bed before 7:30 (Michelle hasn't been feeling well today herself). Everyone here has been missing some sleep lately, as Lily is not only not feeling well but is still adjusting to the time change in a big way. Here's hoping everyone's well rested tomorrow, and the antibiotics kick in fast for Lily. In the meantime, here's a whole bunch of pictures...

Rocking at bedtime Sunday night

Ruby and Lily played a bit in the sand during Braden's swimming lessons today

This double stroller has already been invaluable for Michelle

Our little toy house is Lily's current favorite place to play

She still loves to color

This was our first full day together -- as you can tell from her expression, Ruby wasn't quite ready to share me yet.

Lily loves borrowing Papa's phone and listening to some Russian music I put on there

Ruby snuck in a one-armed hug (she was also sharing her book with Lily a little bit before this)

Lily's Home!

2010-07-18T06:24:00.001-05:00

Lily and Mama arrived at the Appleton airport last night around quarter after nine, and Papa, Karly, Braden and Ruby were all waiting to greet them. I'll let Michelle fill you in on the journey itself (she's sleeping right now, while I'm with Lily while she explores her new home).

She got sick on the transatlantic flight (likely motion sickness), but right now Lily's doing well. She still isn't drinking a whole lot yet but she's happy and very curious about her new house.

A few pics from the airport...

Ruby really, really wanted to give Lily a hug but Lily was a little shy last night.

We brought some balloons with, which were a big hit with Lily.

Lily and Braden, playing with balloons while we wait for the luggage to show up.

Flight Change!

2010-07-16T11:16:00.003-05:00

We are going home SATURDAY!!! EEEKK!

Dear Papa,

2010-07-15T23:57:00.000-05:00

Your Ukrainian Princess Lilya would like an iPod Touch. She loooooooves Auntie Sherry's.

(in fact, if Auntie Sherry's gets any more oatmeal on it, she might need a new one, too!)

Lil's doing very well - she ate most of a bowl of oatmeal, so I think her belly is feeling better. The past couple days she was just picking & nibbling at food (except yogurt - always room for yogurt!) She even drank some milk without my interference.

I was concerned about how potty trained she actually is, but she's been doing fabulously! I have been keeping pull-ups & diapers on her since we're not home, but I'm confident she'll be able to ditch the diapers when we get home (at least during the day).

We've been signing a little with her, and yesterday I asked if she wanted "more" and she signed, "more, please" - she put 2 signs together without prompting! I was so impressed!! She may not speak a lot yet, but she's very, very communicative.

Today's agenda:
Our team will pick up Lily's Ukrainian passport at 9:00, and then we go to a medical visit for her American Visa, then on the embassy at 2:00 to get Visa paperwork. We NEED the passport to do the other 2 visits, and it's in town we just weren't able to pick it up yesterday. And we NEED all three of these items to travel home - so here's hoping it's all done today & we can keep our flight home on Monday.

Lilya Update

2010-07-14T15:37:00.001-05:00

I'm so proud of Lily, she's been handling everything so well - and it hasn't always been easy. We spent the better part of Monday & Tuesday driving around in a hot car, and she's hardly ever been in a car before. She's really enjoyed checking out the apartment & taking baths & going for walks in her stroller around the city.

She loves baths - after her first bath with me, she spent about 15 minutes combing her bangs. So sweet!

We watched a little TV, the Nature channel. Lil says, "Arf, arf" when she sees a dog ... or a giraffe, or a rhino, or a penguin ... pretty much everything but a cat or bird gets an "arf, arf" from her.

Lil loved digging in my purse, but she kept trying to abscond with my passport, so I had to take it away!

I can't even begin to say how much time she's spent in front of these mirrors - usually, she's singing & dancing to herself. Yesterday she did a major inspection of how her legs looked as she moved them up & down. It was adorable - and probably something she's never really had a lot of opportunity to do before, watch herself moving around.

* * * * * * * *

I wrote the above last night or the night before, but the Internet has been spotty. Then last night, Lil was up in the middle of the night, throwing up. I was thinking it was something she ate, but she may have had a little fever, too - she was feeling much better after some Tylenol today. Whatever it is, I'm exhausted.

I'm struggling to get her to drink - she's pretty much refusing all liquids from me, even before she got sick. It's a challenge, but we're working on it.

It's finally starting to sink in, that this girl with me is LILYA - the girl from the picture in my computer so many months ago. It's actually happening, and this girl in the stroller with me isn't Ruby, but Lily! She's adorable and loving and charming and stubborn and wonderful, and I can't wait to bring her home to her family!

Gotcha Day!!

2010-07-12T15:18:00.000-05:00

Today was Lilya's "Gotcha Day" - the day she left the orphanage!

I'm very tired, and there's an adorable girl who will be 6 next month sleeping away in my bed, so I'm trying to be quick so I can join her. After a bath - which she enjoyed very much and obviously it wasn't a new experience for her - and putting on her pjs, she looks the part of a little American girl. I have pj pictures, but they're still on my camera ... and it's in the bedroom, so those will have to wait.

THANK GOODNESS Sherry White was willing to come with me today & be our official "Gotcha Day" photographer!

One of Lilya's caregivers, the orphanage director, the orphanage lawyer, Lilya & mama

showing Lil how beautiful she looked in her dress - she loves mirrors and her reflection

When we were first visiting, it seemed as though Brian took a picture of me & Lil every day as soon as we were out of the orphanage. It's hard to believe that this was the last time we'll walk out those doors.... it still doesn't seem real!

Lil enjoyed riding around in the "machina" and was such a good sport about the fact that we were driving & driving for a very long time. We had to get her passport picture taken, and that is a whole post in itself sometime, complete with a funny little video. When we went to apply for the passport, however, we found out we were at the wrong office, so we'll go again in the morning & apply.

The Ukrainian passport can take several days ... and I need it to start the embassy paperwork, which takes 2 days. Here's hoping we can get it all done this week so I don't have to change my tickets again. I've got to catch a break with this paperwork eventually, right?!

I always thought I'd have something really profound & deep to share on Gotcha Day, and I really don't. It's too new and hasn't really registered yet. It's overwhelming and scary and I wish I spoke fluent Russian ... but every time Lily leaves a room & comes back to where I am, she gets excited to see me. EVERY time. With that kind of enthusiasm, I'm confident we'll be okay. I am really looking forward to getting home, and introducing her to her brother & sisters!

Tiny Lil Videos

2010-07-11T15:02:00.000-05:00

Lilya says, "1, 2, 3" in Russian and then gestures for me to throw the ball.

and then actually throwing the ball up in the air:

Sunday, possibly Lilya's last day at the orphanage

2010-07-11T14:58:00.000-05:00

Today was a quiet day at the orphanage - weekends are pretty low-key. The big excitement for me & Lil was the fact that we had a stalker - a frantic red squirrel. It was creeping me out, running around us, and then stopping to stare ... and it's not like we had anything to feed it, we were playing with play-doh on a bench.

See? CREEPY!

Lil would wander off a little ways, then turn around & run back to me. I got several wonderful greetings today!

Lil on the swing

Tomorrow, hopefully our paperwork will begin moving forward again, and I should be able to pick up Lily ... I know things can always change, but I'm cautiously hopeful. And honestly, pretty nervous - I've never been a full-time parent in Ukraine before!

Lily on Saturday

2010-07-10T10:19:00.002-05:00

I went to the orphanage with the Whites this morning to visit the kids. Today was their son Peyton's third birthday - what a lucky boy! He got a whole family for his birthday - a mom, dad, 4 big brothers & 2 younger sisters! I'm so happy for them, they're such a lovely family.

I had another nice visit with Lily today!

I had Lily try on the shoes I brought her today, and to my surprise, they barely fit her. I will try to find another pair when we go shopping tomorrow, otherwise these are decent enough for her to wear for a week.

Lily's so sweet coloring in Mama's notebook - I love how she rests her chin on her arm.

This is the little table where we often color & play with play-doh. On the other side of it is the parking lot where we play ball.

New Travel Plans

2010-07-09T16:10:00.000-05:00

For those of you who care (Mom, Dad), my trip home with Lily has been rescheduled. We couldn't book a flight home next weekend, so we'll go home on Monday, July 19.

As always, that's subject to change, too ... but that's my plan, for now! :)

Other Families

2010-07-09T06:27:00.002-05:00

I don't know if I've blogged this, but this trip I'm staying with another family here to adopt. They are actually in the apartment Brian & I had for court, which we liked a lot and it has a great location. It's so nice not to be here alone!

They are adopting from Lilya's orphanage, too - they are bringing home 3; 2 beautiful little girls with Down syndrome and a dear little boy with some limb differences and the cutest chubby cheeks I've ever seen!

I find it amazing that when Brian & I were here for our first trip, over that 3 1/2 weeks, we met ONE other Reece's Rainbow family. The last trip we met a couple more, and this time, there are several families here or passing through or coming soon. I can't even describe what it's like to hang out with these families. They are all lovely, and even when you first meet, I find I have so much in common with them through our adoptions.

The Whites (who I am staying with) and the Urbans (who are adopting two from Lilya's orphanage & we met when we were here for court) - both families have court this afternoon! That's FIVE more children who will be going home in a matter of weeks to families of their very own. Isn't that amazing? Send them a little bit of good luck for smooth sailing today, okay? Court can be more than a little nerve-wracking, but it's definitely worth it at the end of the day.

It is HOT!

2010-07-09T06:06:00.001-05:00

Lil was pretty quiet today, probably from the heat. It was scorching hot already when I got to the orphanage around 9:30.

When I arrived, Lily didn't see me at first - she was seated at a picnic table outside with her groupa, and they were all drinking from cups. Another boy saw me & said "Lil-la, Mama! Mama!" and one of the caregivers said something, too - that Lilya's mama was coming.

Well, as soon as Lil saw me, she knocked the boy seated next to her right onto the ground & his drink went flying! She plowed right over him, to get to me. I felt bad for the little guy ... but can't complain about the greetings I get from my dear Lilya!

Brian, look at this:

She went up all on her own today!!

She had obviously never even attempted it before Papa helped her while we were visiting, and she was very unsteady & nervous about it. Now? She's got it down!

There's a very nice young music teacher at the orphanage who speaks a little English. She stopped by to visit today, and I told her I'd be picking Lilya up on Monday. It must be so bittersweet for these ladies who have cared for these children for so long, to see them leave for homes so far away.

Anyway, that's why she's wearing a bunny hat - the music teacher had them with her.

and snacking on a couple crackers Mama brought along.

When I brought Lilya back to her groupa, I brought her to one of the caregivers who speaks a few words of English and I told her, "3 days, dasvee danya (goodbye) B***** (orphanage name), Mama and Lilya" and she put her hand on her heart and said sadly, "Ohhh, I understand." It makes me tear up every time I think of taking her away from everything she's ever known, and I hope they know we'll take excellent care of our little Lil.

Long day of chasing paper

2010-07-08T15:39:00.001-05:00

This morning, I was picked up & we went to the orphanage to pick up Lily's birth certificate. Our mission was to take it to the registration office and get a new one, with her new name & new parents listed on it. HOWEVER ... this task should've taken an hour, yet it took us about 6 hours. We were told that although Lil was born in district P (I forget the names) we needed some documentation from district D, where court & the orphanage are. So, we head back across the river, arriving at the correct office at 1:00 - lunch time. I had a nice bowl of borsch for lunch & visit with our driver, a very interesting man, and about 2:30 or so we were back on the road. When we got back to the original office, we sat & sat & sat. A Ukrainian woman kept talking to me, even after I told her, "Ya nee pah-nee my-oo" (I don't understand) and "Engleeski!" (English). She nodded in understanding, then continued asking me questions! At least it was entertaining!

Finally, we were handed the new, official birth certificate! But by then, it was 5:00. We raced through heavy traffic across town, to our next stop. We need to change Lily's tax ID number (comparable to a social security number back home). This is a step that takes 1/2 an hour out in the regions .... BUT, this is Kyiv, so things are more complicated. We went to the main central building for this agency, and they need more time to process it, since they have to get approval from the district. I'm not sure I fully understand, but this step that normally takes 1/2 an hour, will be done on Monday.

Once we get the new tax ID on (hopefully!) Monday, I can then pick up Lil & take her to the passport office to apply for her Ukrainian passport.

Hopefully we will get her passport by Thursday, then I can finish up her medical exam & the embassy paperwork and bring her home!

Tentatively, we'll be heading home on Saturday.

It would be appropriate ...

May 17 - our SDA appointment, officially matching us with Lilya
June 17 - our court date, making her our daughter
July 17 - bring Lil to her new home

Works for me!

And since it was just kind of thrown in there - I want to point out, when I pick Lilya Joy up on Monday, I'm planning on keeping her!!!!!!

We have the court decree!

2010-07-07T11:46:00.000-05:00

The facilitator was going to pick me up at 2:20. I called her around 2:45, since I hadn't heard from her and she said she had to go to the court for something, so she was there & would pick up the decree for me. If she needed me, she'd call & send a car to pick me up.

So I waited ... and waited .... and fell asleep. I had a crazy dream about Brian telling me to call the facilitator, and I was trying to explain how I couldn't call now, because she was rehearsing for a play (???) and I was all agitated, because there were little tiny red spiders running around the room & I was trying to kill them. I asked Brian to bring me the handvac so I could vacuum up the spiders -- and the phone rang. The real life phone, not the dreaming of spiders phone.

It was our facilitator - and she has our court decree!!

HOORAY!!

We talked a little bit about what comes next ... tomorrow, we have to get Lilya her new birth certificate & get the paperwork started for her Ukrainian visa (it'll take a few days to get the Visa). Then, she said I'd be able to pick up Lilya either late tomorrow or on Friday.

WHAT?! I was so unprepared for that!

So .... it could prove to be a very interesting week, indeed!!

Lily on Wednesday

2010-07-07T05:37:00.003-05:00

My beautiful girl was waiting for me - as soon as she saw me walking up the path she called out to me excitedly, and ran to meet me - arms in the air, hands waving. It's the best greeting EVER, I tell you.

She was dressed up so pretty today, in a little sundress - size 4T!! That's great!! I remember before we met her, I was expecting she was only a size 2T. I ordered her an Etsy dress for "gotcha day" when I pick her up for good from the orphanage, and I ordered a 3T (and she offered to make it a little longer, which I'm so thankful for after seeing Lil in this 4T).

Lily on the little merry-go-round

We played ball for at least half an hour - maybe longer. She really has a great attention span. She would say one, two, three! in Russian, and then motion for me to throw the ball up. I'd throw it up, we'd watch it bounce, then she'd run to get it.

A few times, she put a hand on the ground for support while picking up the ball. She didn't like the dirt that would stick to her hand, so she'd come to me with her little hand out - and I would wipe the dirt off & kiss her hand. She'd giggle, and as we went on I was wiping & kissing her hands about every third time we tossed the ball.

It's fun stuff, having a mama around to wipe your hands, even if they're not actually dirty every time!

The nice young music teacher stopped by as she was passing by, and Lily borrowed a puppet from her bag.

Silly Lily with Mama's sunglasses

After this wonderful visit, my next stop for today is to the court to pick up the decree which makes Lily our daughter (dochka) officially, forever & ever!

I've been calling her Lilya-dochka while we play ... I really wonder how much she understands about what's going on.

Lily!

2010-07-06T09:20:00.000-05:00

Today, I went to see my sweet Lilya! The caregivers knew I was coming today & had her dressed up pretty for Mama! As soon as we entered the grounds, her caregiver pointed her in my direction and she was so excited! Truthfully, I was pretty excited myself! She ran to me with her arms in the air and her little hands waving - I scooped her up, and she clung to me like a little tick for the whole first part of our visit. Not that I minded in the least!

It was wonderful to see her again.

Now, hopefully tomorrow the court document will be picked up, and we can start Lily's paperwork ... she's coming HOME!

Tomorrow is another Lily Day!

2010-07-05T13:26:00.002-05:00

I'm safe & sound in Kiev - but a little tired! I've got big plans for tomorrow, to go see my daughter, Lily!!!

Stay tuned for pics, coming soon!

Leaving Today!

2010-07-04T09:00:00.000-05:00

I'm heading out late this afternoon. I can't wait to see our DAUGHTER, Lily, again! I plan on visiting her right away on Tuesday. With the time change, it'll be about dinner time on Monday when I arrive, and so I won't have time to visit her that day.

Wednesday I can pick up the court decree and get moving forward on all the paperwork I need to get Lily home. YAY! It's so surreal - I'll be able to bring Lily HOME!

Lil Money

2010-07-03T22:50:00.001-05:00

Yesterday, as we were cleaning up after dinner, Braden was still sitting at the table, and chatting about Lily. Out of nowhere, he referred to her as "Lil Money." It cracked us up, and Brian said (quietly, to me), "It's more than a 'lil' money to get her home!"

So ... Lily has a little rapper nickname already! It's so funny the things Braden comes up with. Tonight, Braden told me he was excited for Lily to come home - but worried. What if she didn't like him right away, like Ruby did? We talked about all the fun things he wants to show Lily when she comes home - how to play soccer, how to put Legos together, how to play Hot Wheels.

I can't wait to get Lily home, so she can meet her big brother and her sisters!

Zhora / Levi

2010-07-01T13:47:00.003-05:00

While playing with Lily at the orphanage, we've noticed another little boy in her groupa. This little boy we knew from Reece's Rainbow, and he just blew me away - watching him scamper around on the little toy cars, well, he's very physically able, and cute as can be!

I told Brian that when we get home, we need to start fundraising for Zhora, because he needs a family. He'll do so well with a family!

And then, I received an email. The family that was adopting Charlie, another little boy in Lilya's orphanage, was considering bringing home Zhora, too. We were THRILLED!! Not only did Zhora find a family, but a family that will be able to bring him home in a few months!

But, adding another child to their family won't be cheap, and there's a little iPod giveaway going on to help raise funds for Zhora's family. When Zhora comes home, his name will be Levi - and we're so happy for him and his new family!

Click here for more

details!!

News

2010-06-30T22:37:00.000-05:00

Our facilitator emailed me today to apologize - she found out she can't pick up the court decree at all this week. The courts are closed for a report period, which they have every few months, and so the earliest it can be picked up is July 7.

That's okay - I'm still going ahead & leaving on the 4th. I'll arrive on the 5th, get to visit Lily on the 6th, and get started on the paperwork on the 7th. I was hoping we'd get the paperwork done super quick and move our tickets home up a few days, but that probably won't happen now.

Still - it'll all be worth it to get our girl home!!

My 3rd Trip

2010-06-29T16:15:00.002-05:00

My 3rd trip will be next week - I'll be flying out on July 4th, arriving on July 5th. I don't know how long I'll be there - but this time, I'll be staying until the paperwork is complete and I will not be coming home alone! This trip, my daughter Lily will accompany me back to the US. (How much fun is that to say? "My daughter Lily"!)

I can't wait to go - but I am glad I've had these extra days at home to get caught up on things. I felt so FRANTIC last week and unprepared ... and I feel much calmer now, although I miss our little Lilya terribly.

_______________________________

Throughout this adoption, the Reece's Rainbow people have been super helpful with so many of the details - including helping us get our paperwork situated for our dossier. Lyndi was my stateside helper - She's adopting Freddie, who is 15 years old. Well, they've hit a little snag in their adoption preparations; it seems as though Freddie isn't living in the same country he was born in. He's still able to be adopted, but there are now unexpected additional fees they need to pay to get his paperwork finalized, now that they're dealing with another country.

If you can, please consider donating - they're leaving this weekend!

Grab This Button

Pretty in Pink

2010-06-26T12:59:00.000-05:00

It really helps a lot, knowing there are 2 other families visiting their children at Lilya's orphanage right now, and keeping an eye out for our girl!

Best Laid Plans ...

2010-06-25T12:29:00.000-05:00

Due to a holiday in Ukraine and only being able to pick up court decrees in Kiev on specific days, I'm delaying my trip a week, and not flying out this Sunday as planned.

I don't have new travel dates yet, but am working on it. It just didn't make sense for me to arrive on Monday and then pick up the decree on Friday. Plus, after we get the court decree, the next step is to get Lily's birth certificate changed - and that office is always closed on Mondays.

So, our facilitator should be able to pick up the court decree for me on Friday, and then we can work on the rest when I get there the following week.

It all makes logical sense to wait ... but it's not easy! I'm really missing Lilya & looking forward to seeing her again!

10 Day Wait

2010-06-21T07:55:00.002-05:00

We are finished with court, and really feel like we didn't have anything especially sensitive that would make us keep the blog private anymore, so I made it public again this morning.

We are on day 4 of our 10 day wait, post-court. This wait gives time for an appeal to be filed, should anyone be so inclined. Brian & I are home, Lilya is still in the orphanage, and we should have her home with us the first week of July or so.

We've been asked why our process has taken so much longer in country than other families ... really, being in the Capital city, the courts are just busier. We were fully prepared for this going in, that it might take 7-8 weeks to complete the in-country process.

And we're okay with how things have gone - we didn't get into this because we wanted a fast adoption. We started this process because we wanted another daughter - and, Lily is definitely worth the wait, as far as we're concerned!

Happy Father's Day to my wonderful husband

Brian playing with Lil after court ... he doesn't usually visit her wearing a tie :)

Sometimes, Lil just snuggles right into me - it's wonderful! And then she's off to play again ...

Happy 4th Anniversary, Reece's Rainbow!

2010-06-19T17:56:00.000-05:00

Make video montages at www.OneTrueMedia.com

Good-bye again, Lil

2010-06-19T06:26:00.000-05:00

Brian is home safely, and I got to talk to our kids on Skype last night! It was so good to hear their voices & see their faces.

People are sometimes confused why I stayed 2 days longer than Brian, but I did it for 4 hours - 4 additional hours of visiting Lilya, before leaving her behind once more. This time, though, I leave her as her legal, official Mama, and I know I'll be back in about a week to finish up the process & bring her home!

Lil wasn't overly thrilled with her new hat, but it did stay on better. And, I did tell her that when she's an Americana, hats will be optional!

Check out my summertime gal! shorts & a t-shirt!

We'll just never mind that it's got a mock turtleneck and she's wearing a tank top underneath...

She was super today. SUPER! She led me around, I followed. She was extra snuggly, too, which I didn't mind one bit.

The Urbans showed up to visit Joseph while I was there with Lil. Lil went right to John & asked him to pick her up - it's obvious she's missing Brian & thought she needed to spend time with a papa, even if it was Joseph's papa.

Lilya & Joseph swinging together

Did you know there are at least 7 kids coming home to America this summer from this orphanage? Isn't that just amazing?

Then it was once again time to let her go. She went in with her groupa for lunch, even though she didn't want to leave. She kept turning around & waving to me - her nanny was very kind & would let her wave, then gently get her going towards the building again.

I had my translated note that said I am going home, back on June 28 - I hope they'll reassure Lilya while I'm gone that she is someone's daughter, and her Mama will be back for her soon.

I've said it before and I'll say it again - I can not wait to get her home, so we can be a family, together.

Apartment #3

2010-06-19T05:54:00.001-05:00

The apartment we have for this trip is our best yet! It's small but actually has ROOMS with walls, and it's in a really good location. Also - it's on the first floor; no urine-soaked, tiny elevators to content with!

The view from the front door - the fridge is in the hallway, and the bathroom is at the end of the hall.

The other hallway, the bedroom at the end (with my unmade bed, oops!) and one of our two TVs ... not that we even turned on either of them.

The living room - with a couch and 2 chairs, and the other TV. Also, there's a door you can slide closed.

The kitchen has a door you can close, too. The kitchen is very tiny (hence the fridge in the hallway)

And the far right cabinet holds our washing machine!

Visiting Lil

2010-06-18T06:17:00.001-05:00

Brian is on his way across the Atlantic, but I'm staying through the weekend to have more time with Lily. I headed over to see her this morning, and her groupa was still inside. I went in to get her, and found her dressed in the latest wild getup - a shirt, an undershirt, a sweater, and no pants. Shoes and hat, too, of course. Seriously - I couldn't figure out WHY she had no pants on! All the benches & toys are made of wood, and I've had to pick a sliver out of my hand after a morning visit.

When her groupa came out, all the kids were wearing shorts ...and I realized, I think Lilya's shirt was supposed to be a dress, it was just very short!

VERY short dress, indeed!

She had adorable socks on, and it took me a while to realize why that was catching my attention; I'd never seen her in socks, she's always worn tights!

We swang - we sang - we colored & climbed.

Look how pretty Lily's hair is! She kept throwing her hat.

She was so happy to see me again & settled into playing nicely. She was testing me a little more than yesterday, walking away, throwing her hat, and once she was even throwing sand. Maybe she was wondering where Papa was? Maybe she's worried I'm leaving again, which I am and I feel awful about. Maybe it's a little payback for having been gone so long? Mostly, I think these few minor issues were just caused by the fact there were extra adults walking around which distracted her, and not having Brian around to tag-team with. Normally, if she heads off, I can go after her & he can pack up whatever we'd been playing with.

She's a very good, very sweet girl, and we roamed the grounds more than we usually do; I didn't want to sit her on the wooden benches too much (where we usually color) because she didn't have any pants on!

A self-portrait of the 2 of us ... hmmm...

I think I see now why Lily kept throwing her hat!

We noticed the strap was broken yesterday, I picked up a new one for her on the way back to my apartment today.

Lilya Joy

2010-06-17T19:59:00.001-05:00

Our twins were born just over three years ago. Ruby Lyn was tiny and solemn, Lydia Eve was born still. Both girls had Down syndrome, which we didn't know in advance ... and so DS was overshadowed in our house, by loss.

Ruby was Brian's Grandma's name, and my gram was Evelyn. My middle name is Lyn - so, Ruby was our top pick girl's name, and she'd be Ruby Lyn. When we found out we were having twins, we split my gram's name, and that's why Lydia's middle name is Eve.

We had talked about adopting - someday. Maybe a baby. And then we saw Lilya's picture, and read her bio - a twin, abandoned at birth for having DS, while her "healthy" twin went home.

We realized someday was now, and we had to give her a family.

Lilya is just such a beautiful name, and it's HERS. She's able to say her name, she knows who she is. We figured we'd keep her name, that small part of her heritage - and we can call her Lily for short.

Her middle name was more elusive, however. I wanted to give her something short like Ruby & Lydia's middle name ... but nothing really stood out. Then one day, I went to the grocery store, and when I came home, I told Brian how I almost told the bagger (really friendly older guy) at the store about our adoption. And I'd told the ladies at the pharmacy.

It was like when we were expecting twins, and I'd drive through somewhere, and want to say, "Thank you! And I'm having twins!" It was totally inappropriate, but everywhere I went, I wanted to share our good news.

And starting this adoption for Lilya, it was that same feeling we'd had when I was pregnant with our twins - that complete sense of Joy, that you just want to share with everyone.

And Lilya certainly is filled with Joy - we can't wait for Braden & Karly & Ruby to meet her!

Few More Pics from Adoption Day

2010-06-17T19:19:00.001-05:00

My internet is in & out, so I'm trying to get a few pics up while I can... Lilya did SO well at our first visit back. She was so incredibly excited and thrilled to see us - we think she may have missed us!

Our traditional 'just outside' picture

I love this picture - Lilya looks so much like her new little sister, Ruby!

I've said all along that Lil looks like Ruby, with Karly's coloring. It's going to be hard to tell which of our children is adopted, if people don't know us .. although, the one who speaks Ukrainian might be an obvious first guess for a while ...

Lilya was fine with Brian from the start, he didn't have to work on getting her to warm up to him ... although he did have to share her with Mama quite a bit.

We were all just so happy!!

Content, hanging on Papa

And thanks to the presence & thoughtfulness of Charissa Urban, we have a picture of the 3 of us on adoption day, as well! (Thanks, Charissa!)

Officially a Zoromski!

Brian is on his way home to our motley crew back home, and I stayed behind a couple extra days to visit Lilya (and I'm so glad I did - I can't imagine leaving her right now, after the reception we got yesterday).

When I leave here on Sunday, I'll be heading back in a week (after the mandatory 10 day waiting period, in case anyone wanted to appeal the adoption) to finish her paperwork & get everything set to bring her home!

Home, home, home - doesn't that sound wonderful!?

Was Lily happy to see us?

2010-06-17T15:24:00.002-05:00

I believe the correct term is ECSTATIC

We have no doubts - she definitely remembered us!

The Adoption's Final!!!

2010-06-17T02:41:00.001-05:00

We just left our court date... And Lily is now officially our daughter, Lilya Joy Zoromski!

It was a nailbiting affair... The judge was upset that the orphanage director hadn't brought the correct paperwork. He then proceeded with the court hearing, asked us what our petition was, and then a few minutes said we need to leave while he deliberated. Everyone with us was shocked -- he didn't ask us any questions and we were out in about 30 minutes! We didn't know if it went well or not, and then he called us in, and after reading a long statement, said the petition was "satisfied" and we're now Lily's parents!

It's a rush -- lots of nerves followed by relief, and now we're off to another paperwork appointment. But this afternoon we'll definitely be able to see Lily and tell her she's ours!!

Nervous, in Ukraine

2010-06-16T09:48:00.001-05:00

We arrived safely, and amazingly on time, since we sat in Chicago on the runway for 3 hours yesterday, waiting for the winds to die down.

We're settled into our apartment and know the area we're in, so we feel like we have a jump start. There are so many less unknowns this time!

Here's hoping court goes well tomorrow & Lilya becomes an official Zoromski! AND, since court is in the morning, we hope to visit Lilya tomorrow, too! YAY!!

Today,

2010-06-15T07:01:00.002-05:00

we are flying out again! We'll be in Kiev tomorrow, court on Thursday!

Woot!

We can't wait to see our Lilya!

A glimpse of Lilya!

2010-06-12T14:05:00.003-05:00

The Urban family went to Berizka today, to spend some time visiting with their new son - the adorable, dark-haired Joseph - and on their way in, they saw a little girl, watching them from afar, our Lilya!

This cracks me up - the weather has changed so much that in a week, they went from dressing the kids in sweaters and tights to taking them out to play in undies (and hats, of course!)

This totally made my day! Thanks, Charissa, for the picture! I can't wait to go back & see Lilya!

Little bit of news

2010-06-12T07:45:00.000-05:00

Our court hearing is schedule for 9:20am on Thursday, June 17.

We didn't know the time, until yesterday - and first thing in the morning is great news; we should have time to go visit Lily in the afternoon and tell her we're her new parents, officially, forever & ever!

Doesn't mean she'll understand what we're saying ... but we can still tell her!

Video: Lily "Tickles"

2010-06-10T18:03:00.000-05:00

I was politely informed that my lack of posting since we've returned home is hard for some of our readers to deal with, after the consistency in which we posted from Kiev ... so, hope this helps tide you over (you know who you are!)

We love to watch the videos we have of Lil, so we thought we'd post more while we're home...

I love this little video of Lily, for so many reasons!

We miss her, and it's a treat to be able to watch her
Her laugh!
She copies what I'm doing - actions and words (which is great for speech, since the language barrier is a concern for us)
Her outfit? The most ridiculous of all that she wore for us - that dress doesn't really fit her - and she's still just too adorable.

There was some concern...

2010-06-10T14:27:00.000-05:00

about my hair, when we previously posted this picture on the blog:

so I thought I'd show you, this is the culprit:

From Home

2010-06-08T08:52:00.000-05:00

We're home, safe & sound; we've been home since Saturday. Saturday was my birthday, and it was my birthday for 32 hours, with the time change! We're enjoying our other children, who are now done with school for the summer! Brian has returned to work, and we're getting ready already for our return trip(s) to Ukraine.

We're so grateful to my mom & stepdad - they came up from Florida to watch our kids for an unspecified amount of time, and I don't know what we would have done without them. It was so nice not to have to worry about the kids - we knew they were in good hands, and we were able to talk to them on Skype almost every day (except for Karly, it was harder to fit in Skyping with her, on school days).

Next week, Tuesday, we'll head back - my lovely cousin will watch our children for us. This trip will be a breezy 4 days! Well, 4 days for Brian; he'll fly home on Friday, and I'll come home, alone, on Sunday. Then a week later (after the 10-day-wait) I'll fly back to finalize all the paperwork - and that trip, I'll bring Lily home with me for good, and we'll stop gallivanting around the globe for a while.

So, she should be home with us in early July! That meets my goal of having her home before her 6th birthday (August 12).

It's taking longer than most adoptions do in Ukraine, but we knew ahead of time that Kiev is a slower region - their courts are busier, for one thing. It's not a surprise, how long this is taking. It would have been a nice surprise to get things done quicker, but it didn't happen. That's fine with us - we aren't in this for a fast adoption, we're in this for Lilya's adoption.

In the meantime ... we miss this little bug, and can't wait to get her home with us, her forever family.

Lilya swinging with Mama

blowing bubbles with Papa

Lily Day 17

2010-06-04T07:51:00.000-05:00

Today, we went to visit Lily like we usually do ... like we have, rain or shine, weekday or weekend or holiday for the past 2 weeks. Today was our 17th day in a row, going to see her sweet little face and hear her dear little voice singing.

We said good-bye, and this time, we didn't say "zaftra, zaftra!" (tomorrow, tomorrow!) like we always do.

Instead, I pulled a note out of my pocket to show the caregivers - I had written, "We are going home. We will return, court June 17" in Ukrainian, thanks to google translator. And then, I cried.

Lily loves to stand up here with Papa's help & watch the cars go by - she's going to love going out into the big world beyond the orphanage fence!

They were very happy to let her keep the photo album we brought her, the one we look at with her sometimes - the one with her "sim'ya" - her family.

We gave her big hugs & she went off with her groupa, inside for lunch & a nap ... and I hope she'll be happy and content until we return in a couple weeks. We know she's well-cared for and adored where she is, that's a huge relief for us, as we leave her behind to go home.

Brian & I will fly out again on June 15, arrive on June 16 & have our court date on June 17. Brian will fly home first thing on June 18 ... I'm going to stay until Sunday, and fly home then (the 20th). Knowing how things can take so long, I didn't want to risk being here and not making it to visit her before we go home.

Then, I'll return home for the 10-day-wait, and come back to finish her paperwork & bring her home!

And soon - as soon as we can get every step completed, dot every i & cross every t - this little girl will officially be our daughter, forever & ever.

Court

2010-06-03T09:27:00.001-05:00

We heard about our court date! It's on June 17th, in two weeks from today.

So... we are going home this weekend, to see our kids back home. Then, we'll come back for a short trip the week of the 17th for court, and go home for the 10 day wait. Yes, that's 3 round trips for me!

Tomorrow, we have to go say good-bye to Lily for 2 weeks, that's going to be so hard! I hope she's still so happy to see us, when we show up again. We're excited to see our kids back home, but it's going to be so very hard to leave Lily.

Umm.... anyone free to watch 3 adorable children the week of June 15??

Video: Lily's Bird Impression

2010-06-03T07:40:00.002-05:00

Lily does this nearly every day and we finally got a video of it... it's her ridiculously cute bird impersonation and hand sign, which she does pretty much every time we see a bird:

Ukraine Word Games

2010-06-03T07:31:00.000-05:00

One of the best things Michelle and I decided to do before our trip to Ukraine was to learn the Cyrillic alphabet. Both the Russian and Ukrainian alphabets are based on the Cyrillic alphabet, and you run into signs in both languages in the country. The two languages are similar (just 8 letters are different in Ukrainian) but, as our Ukraine guide book puts it, the languages are different enough to have co-existed for nearly 1,000 years. By the way, we heartily recommend the Bradt guidebook on Ukraine to anyone looking for a good book on Ukraine before you travel -- here's a link to it on Amazon.com.

Not only does knowing the alphabet help us sound out and pronounce words on street signs and menus, but it's turned into a fun little word game for us. As we walk and drive around, we find that sometimes you're able to sound out a word that's actually just an English word, spelled in Cyrillic letters. Every time we find one it's like we "win" -- the sign makes complete sense to us.

When one gets to Ukraine, one word that's seen very frequently is "PECTOPAH". In Russian and Ukrainian, a P makes an R sound, and an H makes an N sound, with the other letters in that word being similar to their sounds in English. So PECTOPAH is pronounced RESTORAN... and it means RESTAURANT. It's an easy word to pick out and once you learn it, you see it everywhere -- especially in Kiev, where there are many, many restaurants.

This is one of our favorite early "wins" in our Ukraine Word Game: "MICTEP CHEK" is pronounced "MISTER SNACK". The phrase below it is pronounced "sandvich-bar", or "sandwich-bar." There are a lot of Mister Snack sandwich bars in Kiev. And that word for "bar" is seen often as well, since that means a bar or tavern like we have in the US (Mister Snack sells alcoholic drinks along with snacks and sandwiches).

This is an example of a sign that looks purely Russian at first glance, but when we sounded it out, it gave us a very American phrase: "CEKOHD XEHD" says "SECOND HAND" -- it's an ad for a second hand goods store.

Sometimes it's just fun to see American items, like this poster for the latest Shrek movie, since the words usually translate pretty literally. Note that the W-looking letter in "WPEK" (pronounced "SHREK") has little Shrek ears, like the "S" does on English-language Shrek posters.

Another common word that sounds like the English word: "TAKCN" is "TAXI".

Knowing the alphabet helps us in our grocery shopping too -- the word that starts with an "M" and ends with a "3" is pronounced "mayonnaise".

You can sometimes find English on signs, but the translations often lead a bit to be desired, and are often more comical than useful. Our lawyer (who speaks English, Russian, Ukrainian, French and Spanish) laughingly pointed out the ridiculousness of the above sign, saying that "TO LET" looks and sounds an awful lot like toilet. He asked if that's what is listed on signs in the US that are for lease, and we laughed and said no, they usually say FOR RENT or FOR LEASE.

And sometimes the English signs are just ridiculous -- the slogan on the above COFFEE.COM sign is "Enjoy Coffee Beans!" which makes us laugh every time we see it.

Lily Day 16

2010-06-03T06:54:00.000-05:00

Today, it was in the 70's - not as hot as yesterday, but still, pretty hot in the sun. And guess what!? Lily had on short sleeves! For the first time ever, she got to show us her arms! But the ever-present tights ... well, they were still present.

And she showed us Mama's nose & eyes, too.

This Papa guy isn't half bad!

Lil found this little broom and did some sweeping.

Walking over a play bridge, with Papa

Yesterday, Lily wiped out while playing with us - twice. Both times, she just got up & carried on. We've seen this with other kids playing, too - if they fall, they get themselves up. If they cry, there's no coddling ... it's sad, but it's reality - no mommies to kiss a hurt. It's another thing we'll have to teach her - she doesn't have to handle hurts alone, that's part of what parents are for! Her current favorite reason to have parents? So they can cart you around like a pack mule.

Also, Lily has a perpetual song she sings, it's a lot of "La la la ... la la la" and it's stuck in my head today. Lily's very own little theme song - and she thinks it is so funny, when you sing it back to her, and sing, "Lily!" at the end of the La-la-las.

Lily Day 15

2010-06-02T08:04:00.003-05:00

Today, it is officially HOT! We got to the orphanage at our usual time, and Lily's groupa was already outside, they had eaten 2nd breakfast outdoors.

Lilya was so excited to see us, and came running with outstretched arms!

We played a lot in the shade today, because even though it was hot, Lily had on 2 shirts (one long-sleeved), a dress, and tights. Luckily, one of our favorite tables to sit at has a nice breeze and lots of shade...

For the first time, we broke out the play-doh...

Lily liked it; she would pull a small piece off & hand it to Papa ... then repeat.

We looked at the photo album of home - and watched some videos of Ruby & Braden dancing, on Papa's phone. Lily loved the videos!

We've been here longer than we anticipated, but in the end it'll be worth it, to bring this little girl home to join our family. She's already become quite content with us, and she calms down considerably faster than she did initially. I think she's starting to get it, that we're not just some random people coming to play with her, but that we're HER people.

Also, now that it's June and hot, our visiting hours have changed from 10-12:00 to 9:00-11:00.

Lily Day 14 - A Festival!

2010-06-01T07:43:00.000-05:00

This past weekend when we were visiting Lily, the director told us about a "festival" on June 1st - the children would be singing & dancing, and while we normally visit at 10:00, this began at 9:30, so we had to be early. No problem!

The music room was decorated...

And the kids showed up in shorts & tees - the first time we've seen Lily's legs, since she's always wearing tights! That's our Lily in the red shirt & green shorts.

Lilya was so well behaved - we knew when she was coming down the hall, we could hear her singing the whole way. She went right to her seat ... and it was a while later that she noticed us. It was so cute, her eyes got HUGE (think Roger Rabbit popping out cartoon eyes) and then periodically she'd run over & jump onto my lap & I'd have to coerce her back to the group. It was so sweet, though - she was so excited to have us there!

Look! We finally got a group picture of the 3 of us!

No Court Date ... Yet

2010-05-31T13:46:00.000-05:00

We did not get our court date today. We found out our case was not assigned to the judge that our team spoke to last week, we have a different judge. We've been told we should find out our court date on Friday - and it should be scheduled for next week.

We're a little frustrated by the unknowns. If court is a couple weeks out - we'd like to go home & see our other children. Right now, our tickets home are booked for Saturday ... hopefully we'll find out SOMETHING on Friday, so we can either fly home this weekend, or rebook our tickets after court.

We miss our kids at home, a lot. They're being spoiled & loved by Nana & Nice Wolf (what the kids call my mom and step-dad) - but I'm sure they're ready for a break, too. And yet it's hard to plan our trip home, because this first trip home - we won't have Lily with us. I'll have to come back for her - after court, and after the 10-day waiting period.

We knew going in to this that it was a long process, and we're ready to stick with it - Lily is our daughter, and we're going to bring her home. It will just be wonderful when we get more of a plan...

Lily Day 13

2010-05-31T06:44:00.000-05:00

We're still waiting to hear when our court date will be ... but we did go visit Lily as usual, this morning!

She swang...

she played ball with Papa ...

she walked on the bridges with Papa...

and we sat a table (with a roof) and colored, when the rain poured down.

Several of the groupas were outside when it started to rain - we didn't have to worry about what to do, do we have to bring her in? They all settled into the play pavilions to wait it out, so that's what we did.

It's funny - Lilya wants nothing to do with the other kids when she's out playing with us. When the little ones from her groupa see her outside with us, they get excited; they point at her & yell, "Lil-la! Lil-la!" and she just ignores them.

Cars on Sidewalks

2010-05-30T07:41:00.000-05:00

A while back we mentioned how it took a while to used to cars driving on sidewalks here in Kiev -- and a couple people asked for pictures.

The pictures below are from a big sidewalk off one of the main streets in Kiev, Kreschatyk.

Kiev is an old city that wasn't designed for cars, so it's rare that you see actual parking spots, let alone a parking lot or garage. Instead, people park -- and drive -- right on the sidewalks.

This is a pretty common sight -- two cars, with little room to maneuver, attempting to enter and exit a sidewalk area, while people just walk right between them.

Riding in a taxi here can be harrowing. To put it in United States terms, it's like the traffic congestion and layout of Los Angeles (especially at rush hour), with cars barely moving in a spread-out city, mixed with the death-defying, high-speed, fast-turning driving of New York City taxi cabs. Except EVERYONE drives like an NYC taxi driver, not just the taxis.

Practically every driver you see is talking on a cell phone, pretty much no one wears phone headsets, and nobody (except the frightened Americans in back seats) wears seat belts. We see a minor traffic accident every day we're driven around... it makes us very happy to get back on the sidewalks (even if we have to maneuver around cars) and use the subway to get around as much as we can.

Lily Day 12

2010-05-30T07:17:00.000-05:00

Our twelfth visit with Lily, and she remains as happy to see us as we are to see her everyday. We really just want to take her home, so it's hard thinking that we've been here for over 2 weeks and we're not even halfway to getting her to the US (court will hopefully be this week, followed by a mandatory 10-day waiting period, then followed by about 10 days of more paperwork (birth certificate, visa, etc.) and travel before she's home.

Lily loves to give Mama a hug after climbing up these cool little ramps.

A couple days ago we tried a juice box to see if Lily can drink from a straw and didn't have any success. Today, though, she noticed our water bottle on the side of our backpack and got it out... we helped her take some drinks and she did an awesome job with it!

Lily loves being tall enough to touch the leaves of the trees.

We call this Lilya's "thinking tongue" -- it comes when she's concentrating hard, like when she's attempting to get a container of bubbles open on her own.

Lily Day 11

2010-05-29T08:28:00.000-05:00

I'm glad we're numbering these posts - otherwise I'd have a hard time believing that this is our 11th visit to Lily! I didn't mean to number them, it just started out that way & I kept going...

This has also become another tradition of sorts - a picture with Mama as soon as we get outside! We're always so excited to begin our time together!

The "orphan-chic" wardrobe is starting to get to me - yesterday? ADORABLE! Today? Well, this dress obviously doesn't fit her. But look how sweet her hair is done up!

We've got Lilya almost as well-trained as Ruby - applause for everything!

Today, Daddy spent a lot of time bent over like this, helping Lilya on the big playset - going up & down the bridges.

It doesn't seem too comfortable, but I don't think he minded too much, since this was his reward:

Lily's Info

2010-05-29T00:45:00.000-05:00

When we first committed to Lily, we got some basic information about her. When we went to the orphanage for our initial visit, most of the information they shared with us was very similar to her bio on Reece's Rainbow.

We found out her heart surgery was done in October 2009 (which we knew she had surgery last fall) and following surgery, she had pneumonia AND bronchitis, poor little sweetheart! Since then, we know she's had more energy, and she's grown - she's about a size 3T now, and we were expecting her to be smaller.

One new thing we've learned on our own - Lily has a palmar crease on one hand, just like Ruby!

Also, Lily's eyes are listed as blue, but they're quite unique; they're outlined in a beautiful blue, and the inner part is a hazel/brown mix.

She has beautiful eyes!

Lily Day 10

2010-05-28T12:56:00.001-05:00

Alternately titled: We must have really missed Lily, because we took 47 pictures today!

Don't worry, I'm not blogging all of them! It was a little stressful for us, having a shortened visit yesterday, and then missing our morning visit today, because of paperwork - but, it had to be done!

It was a beautiful afternoon, and just perfect for some playtime outside. Unfortunately, the director was already gone for the day when we got there, so we didn't get a cardio report, but we're not worried. She just saw the cardiologist in March, and everything was fine then.

She was just as happy to see us! She was in a super good mood ... I mean, she's always in a good mood & happy to see us, but she was also extra content today.

We played catch with Papa (and got distracted by some birds)

Blew bubbles & chased bubbles

We've never played on this playset before - and it was a little challenging for Lily, so Daddy went up to help her. The bridges were tricky, she wasn't very confident, but she did really well.

It was fun to watch, it was like a trust exercise - and she had no problem with Papa helping her. She was really working hard!

We also did some serious coloring ... played in the sand ... swung on the swing ... all kinds of fun!

Today, our covert operation was, "Can Lily drink from a straw?" and the answer is: nope. We brought along a juice box, and she had no idea what to do with the straw. I showed her how, she just put the straw on her tongue. I gave it a little squeeze, and she wasn't interested. Oh well, we'll work on that later, I just thought that would make our eventual trip home a little easier, if I knew she could handle a straw.

No visit yet today

2010-05-28T04:48:00.000-05:00

This morning our phone rang - our driver was going to pick us up, take us to sign a paper are the social worker's office, and then he'd take us to the orphanage for our visit with Lily. We met him at 8:30, got to the social worker's at 9:00 - and then waited for over 2 hours for the social worker to get back from court.

When she did arrive, she only needed us to sign one document! It's from the social worker's office, giving us permission to go to court, so it was important and needed to be turned in by 1:00 today, so there wasn't anything we could do but get it done.

This social worker wasn't the same one who went to the orphanage with us. She was very kind - she had to call someone to see if they needed an original or copy of the document, and she made sure Niko (the driver) told us that everything was fine - and after we were finished, she thanked us for adopting a child with special needs. She was familiar with our file and was happy we were adopting this little girl.

This adoption stuff is definitely not for impatient people. A whole lot of "Hurry up & wait!"

So, we missed the morning visitation time with Lily, so we'll go this afternoon. Hopefully the director will still be there and will be able to tell us how Lily's cardiology checkup went yesterday, too.

Lily Day 9

2010-05-27T04:20:00.003-05:00

We had a short visit with Lilya today - after some very confusing conversations (mostly in Russian) we were told she had a cardio visit. We wanted to go with - but that wasn't possible (they had a car pick up 2 caregivers & 2 children, Lilya & a baby).

It was confusing, since the one caregiver put Lilya in a stroller (we've NEVER had her in a stroller) and mimed that she was going to walk her somewhere. Then another caregiver told us we could take her out to play ... and not 15 minutes later the first caregiver came & got us ... and made us play close to where they were waiting for the car.

I tell ya, one of the best phrases we learned was, "Yahnee pahnee my-yoo" I don't understand! - so at least we can tell them we don't understand, instead of nodding along like fools. Eventually, the director came out, too, and we called Yulia to translate & made sure we were all on the same page. We will get a report tomorrow, of how her heart is doing. (She had heart surgery in Oct 2009).

On the plus side - we got to see Lilya when we normally do, so this is still routine for her (but she left after 45 minutes, instead of us playing for 2 hours). And she LOVES riding in the car, so she gladly hugged us good-bye & climbed into the car.

And then as an added bonus, we found some cool souvenirs for Karly & Braden on our way back to the apartment!

We bought a new coloring book for Lily today on our way to the orphanage, but she dug around in Papa's backpack until she found the Sesame Street one.

We were so happy for even the small amount of time we had with her today!

Mama can beep noses, too!

Whirlwind!

2010-05-26T13:28:00.000-05:00

It was a crazy wild day running around all afternoon, and frankly, I'm beat. So, instead of telling you the story, I'm going to take a short cut to the end.

We'll find out our court date on Monday. Our paperwork was registered at the court, and the judge is going to have the date for us on Monday. Our facilitator said we will most likely have court next week.

That would be wonderful - we need to get home & see our kids!

(After court, there is still a 10-day waiting period, and then about a week for getting Lily's paperwork in order to bring her home ... at this point, our tentative plan is for us to go home after court, and then I'll come back alone after the 10-day wait).

Lily Day 8

2010-05-26T06:19:00.000-05:00

The weather here is so much like back home - one day sunny & warm, the next windy & chilly. Today it's in the 60s and windy. But at least it's not raining and we got to go outside for our visit! Lily was all bundled up in a nice warm coat & a hat that actually stayed on her head, so she was ready to play!

We walked around for a while, but there were extra people at the orphanage & Lilya was so distracted by the men doing yardwork and the cars in the driveway that we finally had to lead her to a more isolated spot. She swung for a little bit - and then we pulled out a new toy:

Felt Farm!
We picked up a felt farm at a shopping center; Lilya really liked it ... I think. She would take the pieces out of the baggie, put them on the board ... and then put all the pieces back into the baggie. She did this about half a dozen times, while we kept pointing out animals to her.

Again - coloring! We let her dig in Papa's backpack & pick what she wanted to do - color!

Papa put some Russian nursery rhymes on his phone to play for Lilya - she thought that was the best! She was so intrigued, she just climbed right up onto his lap. Sometimes she forgets that she's still being shy around him.

Walking around - Lilya directing Papa which way to go.

She's definitely more comfortable with us. And even though she's still very happy to see us, she doesn't get all worked up & over-excited like she did the first couple days. However, that also means she's testing us a bit more now & then, and she's certainly going to be a 'flight-risk' when we get her home. We're thinking we might need to fence in part of our yard, so she can safely play outside...

Video: Twinkle Twinkle

2010-05-25T09:53:00.000-05:00

A couple days ago, we learned that Lily seemed to know the hand signals for "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" -- and today we learned why: the kids listen to a CD that has various children's songs, in Russian, Ukrainian and English.

Here's Lily doing "Twinkle Twinkle":

Lily Day 7

2010-05-25T08:31:00.000-05:00

It was a rainy morning here in Kiev, which means our two-hour visiting time with Lily was spent entirely inside. It's not easy to keep a five-year-old entertained when you can't walk around outside! We spent some time looking at photos and coloring, but then our morning was saved... by bubbles.

Lily loves to look at the photo book we brought with, pointing at each person (Mama, Papa, Karly, Braden, Ruby, plus grandmas & grandpas) and hearing us say each person's name.

Just when it seemed like Lily was getting bored with everything we brought with today, one of the caregivers -- an incredibly nice young woman who speaks a little English -- brought over some bubbles for Lily to play with. We actually had brought some with in our backpack, but weren't sure we could play with them inside -- now, it's good to know we have a green light!

Lily loves trying to catch the bubbles on the wand

The Metro (Subway)

2010-05-24T12:29:00.000-05:00

Riding in cars in Kiev is sometimes kinda scary! And the traffic is INSANE - we saw a few minor accidents on the road the first few days we were here. It was a very long ride out to the orphanage by car - and not always pleasant, since the traffic can be so crazy.

The real reason we looked into riding the Metro, however, was so that we could get around on our own & see more of the city. We were hoping to visit Lilya twice a day at first, but we realized that would probably be too much for her, so we haven't started that yet. We could, though - we can see her from 10:00-12:00 & 4:00-6:00.

But we really didn't want to have to take a long taxi ride to the orphanage, get a driver to pick us up - and then repeat again that afternoon. So I asked around to see what we could do for 4 hours inbetween visits ... and we found out the Metro station is near the orphanage.

The taxi ride is 50 hriven, the Metro ride is 1.7 hriven ... 1.7 hriven = 22 cents!

The Metro station nearest the orphanage is actually one of the easiest ones for us to have started with, it's the end of the red line, the Livosa station. Also - it's above ground! 6 stations of the red line are actually above ground, and the rest of the Metro is underground (this is because Kiev is built on the river valley - some of it is lower than the rest). It's a very scenic ride, going right over the Dnipro River!

If you want to see where we ride - Wikipedia has a good map. We take the red line from Livosa (about a mile from the orphanage) to Kreshchatyk (Kresh-chat-ick), which is in Independence Square, and very near where we live.

The first time we took the Metro home from the orphanage, we got off the train and turned right (Yulia told us to go right) and the escalator is seriously about 1/2 mile long. It moves very quickly, and takes 3 minutes to get to the top! Apparently the station before is a mile underground. At the top of the escalator, is a round room, very colorfully & beautifully tiled (and intermittently the station plays this little instrumental tune that sounds like Harry Potter music to me).

This is the Metro station entrance on Kreshchatyk:

You go in, buy your plastic blue token, go down the escalator, and go right, & that's the red line train to Livosa. It's the best bargain in town, for 22 cents a ride!

Brian & I can go to the orphanage & back for less than a dollar! Also, when you get off the Metro at Livosa, there are many vendors set up there - that's where we've bought Lily's new ball, and Brian's new sunglasses the past couple days. You can buy everything from produce to newspapers to underwear and toys. It's pretty impressive, and fun to browse as you walk by.

Video: Lily Puts on a Show

2010-05-24T11:17:00.000-05:00

Lily climbed a small jungle gym today and put on a show, enjoying her reflection in Papa's new sunglasses:

Lost in Translation

2010-05-24T10:53:00.002-05:00

So... if it's raining, we can't come in?

Lily Day 6

2010-05-24T07:20:00.000-05:00

Today is a holiday in Ukraine, so there were noticeably fewer people on the metro when we went to see Lily. We've got a nice routine going - we leave the apartment by 9:00, wander through the marketplace at the metro stop near the orphanage ... and arrive as close to 10:00 as we can at the orphanage.

Once again, Lilya was so happy to see us - she was supposed to be getting dressed, but she quickly left her chair and came over for hugs. Today, she is wearing the wildest outfit yet - and her old hat, not the new one - but I didn't want to delay things, so we gladly took her hands & whisked her outside!

Today, it is HOT and sunny!

Hugs for Mama!

These little play ramps are all around the yards - a ramp on one side & a few steps on the other. Lily really likes these - and we think they're great therapy! Plus, she likes to give Mama hugs at the top.

Papa helped Lilya climb this, and he stayed with her - she stood there until her legs started to shake. Definitely need to work on her stamina and coordination when we get home, but we do know she's strong and determined.

Then, Lilya was wearing Mama out! It was so hot, and she was trying to break out of the orphanage grounds through the gate - she was just so busy!

So we found a shady spot & brought out the coloring book for the first time...

Definitely a favorite! She colored for half an hour, until it was time for us to go. We all sat on a bench, and she let us color on either side of her - she really was sharing very nicely, and every so often she's trade crayons with one of us. It was a very calming activity - for all of us!

Look at her cute hair - it's so soft and fine; just like her sisters!

After we left her (once again, HARD, she didn't want us to go) - we took the metro back to our apartment & did some grocery shopping & went to lunch. Braden, I bought some salad! (Goodya Salat?)

Videos: Lily Says Her Name & Spins

2010-05-23T11:48:00.000-05:00

Here's a couple short videos from today's visit.

First, Lilya shows off how well she says her name:

And here's Lily as she enjoys being spun around:

Lily Day 5

2010-05-23T11:24:00.000-05:00

Every day, it gets harder and harder to leave Lily when our visiting time is over. She doesn't want us to go, she clings to me. I have to peel her off of me, and hand her over to a waiting caregiver.

We are so lucky she is in this baby home, and that's she's been allowed to stay there for so long. The caregivers are so kind and understanding, and reassure her that mama & papa will be back tomorrow. Today, a caregiver from one of the baby groupas opened the window & waved to Lilya, asking her about her mama. Everyone seems so happy that Lilya has a family, and they've been so great about getting her ready as soon as they can for our visits.

And after our visits, Brian & I ride the metro home (more on the super cool subway later!) and we roam around for the rest of the day. It's hard - we miss our kids back home, and we want to get Lilya out of the orphanage.

Today, Lilya was excited to see us again - and we brought her a new hat!

We're making silly faces, because we're inside so the flash went off (Lily's not a huge fan of the flash ... but in this family, she'll have to get used to it!)

She was so excited to have us to play with again!

We also picked up a small ball at the market when we got off the metro this morning - it was well worth the 14 hrivnas (less than $2) and she played catch with papa on one of these paths for a long time. She has a really good attention span!

She was testing us a bit more today than she has - if she ran down the path, would we follow her? Yup.

Near the end of our visit, she was looking very tired, but sat contently on my lap and looked at the photo album of our family. Again - she has such a nice attention span!

Paperwork Process

2010-05-23T00:24:00.000-05:00

Just to let you know where we're at in the process - our paperwork is ready! Our dossier is all set, our referral went well, the notarized applications were done, and the social worker has approved of the adoption, as has the orphanage.

Monday is a holiday in Ukraine, so on Tuesday or Wednesday our paperwork will be taken in front of the judge as a preliminary step to us going to court - and so, after that happens, we should be given our court date!

Now, because we are in the Capital city, court could be further out (like, a few weeks) and then we'd have to come home for a while. We're hoping it'll be within a week or so, the earlier the better, as far as we're concerned! After court there is a 10-day waiting period, and then we work on getting Lily's paperwork together, to get her home!

We can not wait to make this little girl our daughter, officially & forever! She is absolutely going to fit into our family - the kids are going to love playing with her! - and we have no doubts at all that this is exactly where we need to be.

Videos: Lily Blows Bubbles & Sings

2010-05-22T08:41:00.000-05:00

We've got two videos from today's visit.

We brought along some bubbles today and were surprised to find how good Lily is at blowing bubbles all on her own. In this video (and the next one), you'll hear Brian and I talking a lot, sometimes saying a couple Russian phrases (we learned them and mix them in with the English phrases to make sure Lily knows we're encouraging her):

Mahl-ah-dyets! = Good girl!

Oh-chin ha-ra-shu! = Very good!

And here's Lily on the swing again, this time showing off a couple more songs, including one with clapping:

Lily Day 4

2010-05-22T07:31:00.001-05:00

Another visit with our girl! Today there were fewer staff at the orphanage, since it's a weekend, so we walked upstairs to her 'groupa' to find her. (Sherry, she's in groupa 6!)

She has a little cookie treat in her hand, we get there right after second breakfast.
Her hair was pretty punk today, adorable as ever! I still need to find out how to say, "Please don't cut her hair!" in Russian... and those pigtails made it a challenge to keep her hat on, but we tried to stay in the shade a lot (especially since we had a sweater for her, too!)

Lilya was happy to see us & gave me a hug, but she was a bit more hesitant with Brian today than yesterday. That's okay - he's a patient guy!

Papa brought out the bubbles - and before he could even blow them, Lily wanted to blow them. From a therapy perspective, this is a great skill! It shows oral-motor strength.

And since she blew bubbles (and chased them ... and blew them ...) for about half an hour, we're guessing her lungs are pretty healthy! We plan on taking her to a pulmonologist when we get her home, she had the untreated heart defect for so long, that can sometimes cause some lung damage; also, last fall after her heart surgery she had bronchitis and pneumonia.

Here she is showing off her OT skills, she could put the wand into the bubbles no problem! Someone has obviously blown bubbles with her before.

She swung & sang for us again!

She found a ball in one of the play huts outside ...

and inside the hut, with the measuring tape. I finally managed to measure her a bit - I'm definitely calling her a 3T! And I predict she'll be a 4T after 6 months at home.

She's getting so much more noticably comfortable with cuddling. She looooves when we carry her - although I think it irks the staff some. BUT, she needs to learn part of having a Mama & Papa is getting help with things & lots of attention...

She was pretty tuckered out after all our playing today, and I sat with her on my lap & sang to her for a while, which she loved. Then, as we were bringing her back in, she latched her hands around my neck and snuggled in.

She's definitely a keeper!!

Video: Lily Sings

2010-05-21T11:06:00.000-05:00

As soon as Lily started swinging today, she started singing. We've got a bunch of short videos of her singing and in this one you can hear her voice the best. We're surprised how deep her voice can be (especially compared to Ruby's high-pitched voice)!

Also, in her hands you can see a little chocolate bar treat that she brought out with her, and ate soon after this video was made. It's definitely a favorite -- we're planning on picking up a few for the (long) trip home!

Lily Day 3

2010-05-21T10:33:00.001-05:00

This morning, we headed to the orphanage - our facilitator sent a taxi to pick us up & bring us there. We only had to wait a few minutes until our girl showed up, walking down the hall with 2 adults & 3 other children back to their groupa room. We found out their schedule, and they usually have lessons in the morning.

They told us we could take her outside ("Garden."), and gave us her hat & sweater. It was a nice day, but here, they really keep the children very bundled up, so that's why we have short sleeves & she's got a sweater on. Her hair was in adorable pigtails - but they made it hard for her hat to stay on.

When Lilya first saw us, she ran over & gave us each a big hug (which, to be fair, she pretty much tries to hug everyone). But she did seem glad to see us (she gave Brian a hug right away, after being leery of him for most of the visit yesterday) - and she was definitely reluctant to leave us when the visit was over.

Lilya still loves for us to pick her up - over & over we pick her up, then she wiggles down. Then again, it's "up!" or holding her hands up & stomping at us.

Daddy & Lilya

When we first went outside, the first thing we did was go to this swing - the minute she sat down & I started swinging her, she started to sing! It was so darn cute! In fact - video coming soon!

Other cute things she did: she noticed birds in the grounds, said something (bird in Russian, I assume) and made a little sign-like motion for bird. A dog walked by outside the fence, and she started barking at it! She ate the little treat she has in her hands in the picture above, and even though it was messy she took nice little bites and did a pretty good job not getting it everywhere.

We have permission to go see Lily two times a day, from 10:00-12:00 & from 4:00-6:00. We can wander the grounds with her as we please. We had planned on visiting her twice today, but after this morning, we changed our plans and told the staff we'd be back tomorrow.

In the almost 6 years of Lilya's life, she has never had a visitor at the orphanage. And now, for the past few days, we've been coming in and giving her lots of attention, 2 adults, all to herself! Wednesday we were there about 20 minutes with her, and yesterday it was a little over an hour. Today, we had a full two-hour block of time, and we could tell she was beat! She was so sleepy at the end, and just couldn't decide what to do - she was overwhelmed and tired. She was still adorable and sweet, but we don't want to put too much on her, too fast.

So, even though we had planned on seeing her twice today, and we want to spend time with her - we thought maybe she needed a break, and for us to take things slowly. We'll have plenty of time in the days, weeks, and years ahead to spend as much time as possible with her.

Sobering

2010-05-21T07:19:00.000-05:00

These are the cute little pictures the orphanage lawyer gave us on Wednesday. She pulled them out of Lilya's file and handed them to us - she said they had updated pictures because they were updating her file for transfer, she was getting too old to stay where she is any longer.

Lilya is 5, she'll be 6 in August. It's a huge amazing gift that she's been able to stay where she is for so long. There are also 2 little boys with Down syndrome at this orphanage who will turn 6 in a few months, and their families are coming for them this summer, too! Thank goodness.

Where would she go if she were transferred? Who knows - wherever there was a bed for her. It would be an institution, and it wouldn't be anywhere near as nice as the place where she's living now. Where she is now is so nice; it's clean and the people are caring and we feel so lucky that Lily's had such wonderful care.

(There's a little boy - Zhora - in Lilya's groupa who is 3 and still needs a family - he's a DOLL!)

Silly Lilya

2010-05-21T01:03:00.000-05:00

You know how when you were a kid, and your mom would tell you to stay in your room, and you'd keep one foot in your room & lean waaaay out into the hallway - and when your mom would say, "I told you to stay in your room!" You could say, "I AM in my room! Look at my foot!"

This is all hypothetical, of course.

Anyway. That's kind of what Lily is doing here! She was in this little area off the hallway with us, but when people would walk by, she had to go check it out. Now, obviously, we couldn't tell her to stay with us, we don't speak enough Russian! But she would carefully place one foot and lean into the hallway for a peek.

It was so adorable!

Other fun things we learned Lily can do yesterday: Lily can JUMP! and she can hop, from a squatted down position! When she saw a picture of a car she made a "beep" noise, and when she saw a cat, she "meowed!"

She sang a little song & dance for us yesterday, just burst into a little song! It was adorable. When I told Yulia how Lily had been dancing (it was very deliberate, placing her heel on the floor, toe in the air) Yulia got her to repeat the dance with her (must be a Ukrainian dance) and then had Lilya play a pat-a-cake type game with her.

She is an absolute mimic - copying our facial expressions, staring at our mouths when we speak.

I was curious, since the staff seems to love hearing her say her name - did they encourage her to say other words? But I think a large part of that is they want her to show Mama & Papa what a smart girl she is. And she does say, "Lil-lee-YA!" so beautifully! She obviously does know other words - we just don't speak the language. But she's smart and clever and so receptive to trying to new words (and trying out signs!) - I'm pretty sure she's going to be just great!

Video: Lily Wants Up

2010-05-20T14:57:00.000-05:00

After Lily warmed up to Papa, she enjoyed being lifted up. We decided to make it into a learning game, trying to get her to say "Up," which she does in the video below. She also shows off her attitude -- the sigh-like sound she makes is her version of rolling her eyes in frustration, and she decides to start a new game at the end of the video.

Lily Day 2

2010-05-20T14:22:00.000-05:00

This adoption process takes PATIENCE. Lot of patience. Like, when your facilitator tells you to be ready by 8:30 for an appt - and then she calls you at 10:00 & tells you she'll be sending a driver to get you soon ... patience! Each step takes time, and we're glad we have a team here who knows how to manage all the steps.

So, this morning we had to go meet one of our facilitators, Yulia, at the notary office (which was like going to a county clerk's office) and they had prepared 2 documents for us to sign - they did all the work, we just had to go there & sign! The papers were our official applications to adopt; one went to the social worker, one to the orphanage.

Paperwork comes first, unfortunately (but better in the long run) so we missed the morning visitation time with Lily.

We did make it over this afternoon! When we got there, she was still finishing her meal and we had to wait for her - but she soon came out all dolled up with the most adorable hair-do! It was raining, so we had to play in a little sitting room in a hallway, but we managed just fine.

Lily was happy to see us, but still pretty leery of Brian - at first.

We looked at books & pictures of our family

Lily was SO antsy & excited for the first 15-10 minutes. She wanted to sit on my lap, but then she couldn't sit still and would get all excited & hop down - then hold her arms up for me to pick her up again. I know she wanted to be held, but being held for a long time is possibly not familiar for her.

She was so cute! At one time, she broke into a little song & dance, it was adorable!

After a while, Lilya focused on my camera, and wanted to see the pictures in it. We looked at pictures, and she immediately was pushing buttons (she took some pics of Brian).

She wanted to see the OTHER side of the camera!

And then Brian used his phone to take a picture of Lilya looking at the camera with me - and that was it! She instantly was over any hesitation she had with Brian.

Looking at pictures on Papa's phone
(In Ukraine, parents are Mama & Papa)

She was fascinated!

Brian & I joke that Braden's going to be an expensive child as he gets older because he loves technology - it seems Lilya will follow her big brother in that regard.

Money

2010-05-20T06:50:00.001-05:00

I posted about traveling with money & the exchange rate when this blog was private - when we went public again, I deleted this post. If you're interested, email me and I'd be happy to share.