"Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart... That's true strength." – Author Unknown
I said when I got home that I was not going to be like all the other bloggers out there and not post. Well, I am sorry: 1) for ever saying that; and 2) I may be even worse than some of them! We have had so much going on since we have gotten home. Let me fill you in some on the life of Kristina and Karen. Oh, and, yes, Papa and myself!
The day after we got home we were up bright and early so I could get Kristina's clothes washed, as we had to go shopping. She only came from the orphanage with ONE outfit. I had bought two more outfits over there, but after traveling to Kiev, then home. she had nothing clean. Christopher originally had plans that Saturday, day and evening, but he changed his plans to spend the time with his new sisters. That thrilled them. I know he would have rather done something other than shopping, but he was a trooper. Then we went for Kristina's first American dinner out. We had to work at figuring out what she might like. I would say if I had to do that again I would print some menus with pictures or find some in magazines and put a book together. That night was another night of good-byes. Christopher was leaving at 4:00am for Valdosta, GA. For those of you who don't know, Valdosta is nine hours away. I had not seen him in eight weeks; and he is to be gone for ten more weeks. I DO NOT LIKE THIS. We all miss him.
Their second day home we went to church. We go to a rather large church, with about 2500 people in attendance on a Sunday morning. Tim leads an 8:00am Sunday School class, so the girls & I were up and ready to go. They sat in back of the class and colored. From there we met a friend from Ukraine; and they all went to Sunday School together, then on to kid’s church. They seemed to have a good time. Afterwards, we went and ate lunch with Grandma & Grandpa, then they had a blast playing on the Wii. A quick trip home to change clothes, then back to “big peoples” church for evening service. In one day they spent more time in church than they had in several years, or possibly all their lives. When we went to go back to church on Wednesday night Kristina was not so happy with me at all. At least not until she found out her friend would be there; and she would be going roller skating afterward. We all had a good time; and lucky for Papa and myself, no broken bones. She has gotten much better at going to church. The girls went to Vacation Bible School last week and had a great time. They both made a few new friends and that is good.
Karen had her 10th birthday on June 2nd, which I thought would be a good thing. I have learned that holidays may come with baggage. She woke up that morning to her room having been decorated by Kristina & I. She then had a meltdown. She cried on and off most of the day. At times quite hard. Later that night we finally learner that when she was younger her parents forced her & Kristina to smoke. Then, after she went to the orphanage, she got sick was put into the hospital. The doctor told her because she was bad and smoked she would die on her 10th birthday. All I can say is it is a good thing God brought me home. If I had been there I might have had to find that doctor and beat him up! We also found out the night before Karen's birthday that Kristina did not know when her birthday was, so she could not understand why we bought a bike for Karen and not her. We showed her on the calendar when hers would be, but I am still not sure she understands. That weekend, we had a combined birthday party for Karen and my mom. We had food, fun, swimming & fellowship along with several Ukrainian friends.
Sunday, the 13th, some of our friends from church gave the girls a welcome shower. We now have Barbie dolls & Polly pockets coming out of the toy box, and lots of clothes so we won't have to buy many when school starts. YEAH!!! Mom even got gift cards to go buy the not so fun things to, e.g. pajamas & under garments. It was such a blessing.
We also had our first doctor appointments. They went well. Kristina is right where she belongs on the charts. The situation is not as good for Karen. She is only in the 10th percentile for weight and 25th percentile for height. But when I look at pictures of her next to Grandma she is at least taller than that. We have had to revisit the doctor as both girls have also caught their first official colds. Too much time in the pool. Four to five hours a day can get you sick if you are not sleeping enough. Next week have their first dentist appointments.
I have went back to work, which I think is a good thing. My mom and dad are keeping the girls for us while I am at work. They love going out there. Grandpa takes them for tractor rides and sometimes even lets them drive. Today, Kristina told him she wanted to drive by herself. Thank goodness Grandpa told her, “No.” Both girls have their own little tents and furniture set up under them. They can't wait to get there each day. They have my dad wrapped around their little fingers. So much so he will let them do most anything they want as long as they won't get hurt. The hard part is the kids from other countries are so different than the kids from here. They think much, much differently. You must always think at least three steps ahead of them.
I have had some good days and some not so good days. I feel like a lot of times I am not going to get this mother thing down. It is a lot different than doing it with the children who were born to you. They grew up with your rules and understand you at all times. They may not choose to listen, but they at least understand. If God had told me how hard this was going to be I am not sure I would have signed up for this. I suppose that's why He didn't tell me. I already didn't listen to Him once. "Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart... That's true strength." – Author Unknown.
It seems like I fall apart a lot. I have not figured out this food thing yet. Kristina will eat about anything we put in front of her, and Karen will hardly eat anything. Some days it feels like I am fighting a losing battle, but it is better than when we first got home. I speak and get the looks of, “Who cares? I don't want to listen to you, so I won't.” Then, getting them to understand why they are in trouble is rough. It will get better. I have never been one to give up, so I must dig in deeper with the Lord. I will say, since Tim left me in Ukraine I have had a hard time finding time for my Bible study; and Satan will use that to destroy what God is trying to do good in these girls lives. I went for a walk tonight for the first time since I got home and spent 3 miles walking and talking to Him about my feelings and how to get my life back to where He wants it to be. Now I will see if I am obedient to Him. It is just finding a new normal. My fear is we will find it, then school will start. So we’ll have start over again. These girls are not big on change.
Lynn
I said when I got home that I was not going to be like all the other bloggers out there and not post. Well, I am sorry: 1) for ever saying that; and 2) I may be even worse than some of them! We have had so much going on since we have gotten home. Let me fill you in some on the life of Kristina and Karen. Oh, and, yes, Papa and myself!
The day after we got home we were up bright and early so I could get Kristina's clothes washed, as we had to go shopping. She only came from the orphanage with ONE outfit. I had bought two more outfits over there, but after traveling to Kiev, then home. she had nothing clean. Christopher originally had plans that Saturday, day and evening, but he changed his plans to spend the time with his new sisters. That thrilled them. I know he would have rather done something other than shopping, but he was a trooper. Then we went for Kristina's first American dinner out. We had to work at figuring out what she might like. I would say if I had to do that again I would print some menus with pictures or find some in magazines and put a book together. That night was another night of good-byes. Christopher was leaving at 4:00am for Valdosta, GA. For those of you who don't know, Valdosta is nine hours away. I had not seen him in eight weeks; and he is to be gone for ten more weeks. I DO NOT LIKE THIS. We all miss him.
Their second day home we went to church. We go to a rather large church, with about 2500 people in attendance on a Sunday morning. Tim leads an 8:00am Sunday School class, so the girls & I were up and ready to go. They sat in back of the class and colored. From there we met a friend from Ukraine; and they all went to Sunday School together, then on to kid’s church. They seemed to have a good time. Afterwards, we went and ate lunch with Grandma & Grandpa, then they had a blast playing on the Wii. A quick trip home to change clothes, then back to “big peoples” church for evening service. In one day they spent more time in church than they had in several years, or possibly all their lives. When we went to go back to church on Wednesday night Kristina was not so happy with me at all. At least not until she found out her friend would be there; and she would be going roller skating afterward. We all had a good time; and lucky for Papa and myself, no broken bones. She has gotten much better at going to church. The girls went to Vacation Bible School last week and had a great time. They both made a few new friends and that is good.
Karen had her 10th birthday on June 2nd, which I thought would be a good thing. I have learned that holidays may come with baggage. She woke up that morning to her room having been decorated by Kristina & I. She then had a meltdown. She cried on and off most of the day. At times quite hard. Later that night we finally learner that when she was younger her parents forced her & Kristina to smoke. Then, after she went to the orphanage, she got sick was put into the hospital. The doctor told her because she was bad and smoked she would die on her 10th birthday. All I can say is it is a good thing God brought me home. If I had been there I might have had to find that doctor and beat him up! We also found out the night before Karen's birthday that Kristina did not know when her birthday was, so she could not understand why we bought a bike for Karen and not her. We showed her on the calendar when hers would be, but I am still not sure she understands. That weekend, we had a combined birthday party for Karen and my mom. We had food, fun, swimming & fellowship along with several Ukrainian friends.
Sunday, the 13th, some of our friends from church gave the girls a welcome shower. We now have Barbie dolls & Polly pockets coming out of the toy box, and lots of clothes so we won't have to buy many when school starts. YEAH!!! Mom even got gift cards to go buy the not so fun things to, e.g. pajamas & under garments. It was such a blessing.We also had our first doctor appointments. They went well. Kristina is right where she belongs on the charts. The situation is not as good for Karen. She is only in the 10th percentile for weight and 25th percentile for height. But when I look at pictures of her next to Grandma she is at least taller than that. We have had to revisit the doctor as both girls have also caught their first official colds. Too much time in the pool. Four to five hours a day can get you sick if you are not sleeping enough. Next week have their first dentist appointments.
I have went back to work, which I think is a good thing. My mom and dad are keeping the girls for us while I am at work. They love going out there. Grandpa takes them for tractor rides and sometimes even lets them drive. Today, Kristina told him she wanted to drive by herself. Thank goodness Grandpa told her, “No.” Both girls have their own little tents and furniture set up under them. They can't wait to get there each day. They have my dad wrapped around their little fingers. So much so he will let them do most anything they want as long as they won't get hurt. The hard part is the kids from other countries are so different than the kids from here. They think much, much differently. You must always think at least three steps ahead of them.
I have had some good days and some not so good days. I feel like a lot of times I am not going to get this mother thing down. It is a lot different than doing it with the children who were born to you. They grew up with your rules and understand you at all times. They may not choose to listen, but they at least understand. If God had told me how hard this was going to be I am not sure I would have signed up for this. I suppose that's why He didn't tell me. I already didn't listen to Him once. "Anyone can give up, it's the easiest thing to do. But to hold it together when everyone else would understand if you fell apart... That's true strength." – Author Unknown.
It seems like I fall apart a lot. I have not figured out this food thing yet. Kristina will eat about anything we put in front of her, and Karen will hardly eat anything. Some days it feels like I am fighting a losing battle, but it is better than when we first got home. I speak and get the looks of, “Who cares? I don't want to listen to you, so I won't.” Then, getting them to understand why they are in trouble is rough. It will get better. I have never been one to give up, so I must dig in deeper with the Lord. I will say, since Tim left me in Ukraine I have had a hard time finding time for my Bible study; and Satan will use that to destroy what God is trying to do good in these girls lives. I went for a walk tonight for the first time since I got home and spent 3 miles walking and talking to Him about my feelings and how to get my life back to where He wants it to be. Now I will see if I am obedient to Him. It is just finding a new normal. My fear is we will find it, then school will start. So we’ll have start over again. These girls are not big on change.
Lynn
