Unforgettable day

May 26, 2011, I will never forget the day!!  It was the day we had been waiting for and dreaming about for so long.  The sight of our daughter barreling around the side of the orphanage yelling "mama, papa"!!  She literally jumped into our arms.

 This was not the only unforgettable moment of the day.  The real surprise came when we started dealing with the director.  One year later and I still find it hard to put into words.  Well, I actually did put our experience into words many times as I was writing this post but then decided to delete it.  The whole experience was just so wrong. 

Thank God that our daughter never has to walk through these gates again. 

One Year Ago Today!!

One year ago today we were at the SDA looking at the file and signing the paperwork to adopt our daughter.  After 15 months of waiting for this moment, we couldn't believe how fast and simple it was.  I think our entire appointment was only 20 minutes long.  We waited longer for our driver to pick us up from the apartment.   Fast forward one year and I am now trying to find 20 minutes without interruptions to write this blog.  I think Grace must say "mama" every five minutes..., but I wouldn't have it any other way.

One year ago yesterday

One year ago yesterday we received our SDA appointment.   Our dossier had been submitted on March 30th and almost a month had passed without an appointment.    We couldn't help but be a little nervous because the SDA was changing ministries and there were rumors of them shutting down temporarily.   Our facilitator kept telling us not to worry; but she had submitted another family's dossier on the same day as ours and they had received their SDA appointment 10 days later.   I knew God was in control of this situation and His timing would be perfect.., but I still checked my e-mails every 30 minutes.

Finally, early on the morning of April 27, 2011 we GOT IT!!   I literally had to stop the car when I got the call.  I started crying and shaking.  It is one of those "I will always remember where I was moments".   

P.S.  Not that my opinion matters, but I hate this new blogger layout.

Orthodontist fun

From the very beginning, we learned that Grace does better in new situations and with changes if we discuss it way in advance and take baby steps.  She goes into total fear mode if we spring things on her.  So we had been talking about her needing braces for several months now.  We made an appointment  with an orthodontist over Spring Break just for an estimate of the cost and a time frame of how long.  The whole time they took x-rays, pictures and measurements Grace was very cooperative but a little quiet.   Then the doctor sat down with us to go over a plan of treatment and we all lost our voices.

First, Grace will need a tongue thruster because even though she doesn't suck her thumb to fall asleep somehow before morning it will be in her mouth.  Next step, will be a metal expansion rod placed in the roof of her mouth.  Step number three will be a metal rod placed diagonally from top teeth to bottom teeth to move her jaw forward.  She then will have braces for approximately 2 years and then a retainer.  We knew she had an overbite, but never noticed that she has an open bite too.  If she puts a straw in her mouth, her front teeth are not even close to touching.  Most of her problems are from years of sucking her thumb.  The orthodontist said if she started now and had all of this done her jaw and everything will move relatively easily and quickly.  But if she waited until later in life it would require surgery and the breaking of bones.  We told Grace we wouldn't rush her but we probably needed to start this summer as it is going to require a lot of appointments for the first few apparatuses to be put in.

She never said a word in the orthodontist's office but started to cry the minute we got in the car.  Our little toughie who always acts like she doesn't care what others think said "I already talk funny and now people are really going to laugh when I talk with all of that in my mouth".  "I am going to look so ugly".

After she calmed down a little,  she said very quietly "mama, I am sorry I sucked my thumb..., I just couldn't go to sleep in Ukraine"  "I fall asleep now".  It sounds like such a simple thing for a child to do.., fall asleep; but not for these kiddos.  They have had to live on high alert for a long time and all the time.  When we first got Grace home, she would toss and turn forever before falling asleep.  Even after she had been asleep a couple of hours if I would tiptoe into her room to check on her she would bolt up and "say what do you want"  "what's wrong".  Ten months later, she falls asleep in about 5 minutes and I can walk in her room, kiss her little face and tell her I love her and she doesn't even stir.  What a blessing!!

We are still working on making all those orthodontists appointments.  She now is trying to convince us that her teeth are really straight and they do touch in the front.

So, so proud of her

Not quite 10 months ago, we were sitting in the orphanage director's office and listening to her describe our soon to be daughter.  Her words of warning to us were "she does not like school and she is not a good student".  She then ask if we were sure we wanted this child because there were many other "good girls/students" there waiting to be adopted.  We assured her that God had called us to Alona and no other child. 


Part of her statement was true, the little girl we brought home didn't like school and was very far behind academically (and still is).   We decided to home school her for 6 months and then in January enrolled her in school.  The school has been really great at working hard to get her caught up and Grace has been working so hard at school.   On top of the homework, she has had to compete in a Speech meet and a Science fair.  The momma in me wanted to scream "are you kidding?".  Do you know that this child only knew a handful of English words in June and didn't even know our alphabet.  Grace on the other hand never said "I can't do it".  Two weeks ago she got Honorable Mention at the Speech Meet and she/we were thrilled.  Last week we got her first report card and she made the A/B Honor Roll.  Today she got a blue ribbon on her Science Project and a medal for top in her grade in the Life Science category.  Next Friday she will represent her school and compete in the area meet.  After the awards ceremony, 3 of the judges came and told me what an awesome job she did of presenting her project and that she knew the answer to every question they asked her about her project.  All of this from a little girl that a few weeks ago had never heard of the word hypothesis, didn't have a clue what it meant and couldn't even pronounce it.

This makes me want to hop on a plane and go tell her director "you had already given up on this girl and look at her now".., 10 months later.  Yes, Grace is stubborn and can be so frustrating at times; but we love her so much and are so, so proud of her. 

I say all of this because there are so many orphans out there like our Grace, just waiting for a family and someone to say "I believe in you".   Even more importantly, they are waiting for someone to tell them about Christ and His love for them.

March 30th.., a special day

What a special day March 30th was and is.  We have been home 9 months today and one year ago today our adoption paperwork was submitted to the SDA.  

March 30, 2011 we were sitting on pins and needles all day waiting to hear from our facilitator.  We didn't get a text until 3p.m. our time -- 11p.m. Ukraine time.  It was short and sweet..., everything went fine, dossier accepted.

The funny thing is looking back I had the SDA pictured as this big building full of very stern looking government officials.  It was almost the exact opposite.  We went in a side door, up a narrow staircase and met with a casually dressed very young woman (maybe mid 20's).  She was very stern looking but our appointment was short and sweet.

Fast forward, March 30, 2012..., as I look back over the last nine months it has sort of been the same scenario.  I had it pictured one way and it has been the almost total opposite.., short and mostly sweet:)

Eyes open

Grace is going to freak out when she comes home today and sees the puppies eyes open.  She has been asking about 5 times a day "when are the eyes going to open?"  It is about the first question she asks when she wakes up and again when she gets into the car after school. 

I don't know what we would have done if Grace had not been a dog person.  She is about a nuts as I am over our puppies:)