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| Wednesday, September 20, 2006 |
| 2 Months |
Well, the boys have been American citizens for 2 months now! In some ways, it doesn't seem like it has been that long. In other ways, it seems as if they've always been here. I still look at them in amazement. They just fit in so perfectly.
Yesterday we went to the Oklahoma State Fair. I couldn't wait to take the boys and see their faces when they saw the rides and the shows. They had a blast!! We ate first and then took a ride to the top of a "space needle" type thing that went 300 ft. into the air and looked out over Oklahoma City. They loved it! Afterwards, we went into what is called the Agtropolis building. It is a building just for kids that shows different aspects of Oklahoma ag. They have cattle, pigs, sheep, goats, bunnies, roosters and chickens. They have incubators that show different progressions of a chick hatching, up to the chicks themselves. Then they learned to be farmers. They "planted" seeds in a sandbox and "watered" them. Then they picked apples from a tree, hoed potatoes from the ground, picked pumpkins, and gathered eggs from the hen house. They put all of their "produce" in a basket and then went to the Farmer's Market where their items were weighed and they were given a "Farmer for a Day" badge, a pretend five dollar bill and some real seeds for the future. The boys thought it was fun, although I'm not sure how much they understood.
Afterwards, we walked some, rode some little tractors around some hay bales, went to the Mutual of Omaha's Wild Adventure exhibit, and then off to the rides. The boys couldn't get enough. They wanted to ride a fast car ride but didn't even come close to the 42 inch height requirement for that kiddie ride. They had to move to the slower moving, less exciting cars. They were not real impressed. They met the height requirement, but it didn't meet their thrill requirement. All of the other riders appeared to be about 2 years old. After they rode several rides, it was on to the "big people rides" for H. She chose a lovely spinning, going upside down, and every other direction ride. I am always the chosen riding companion. I used to love these kind of things, but the older I get, the less my equilibrium is liking them. The girls also rode a roller coaster. Then it was off to the pig races and a cinnamon roll to finish off the day.
The boys had a great time until it was time to leave. The half mile walk back to the car was awful. D had one boy. I had the other. Both of them were pouting and eventually screaming and crying. It was nearly impossible to strap them into their car seats. I got several nice hits and then a swift kick in the face. I had the shoe print on my face to prove it. I'm sure they were exhausted and probably overstimulated.
Overall, progress has been tremendous over the last few weeks. English has really taken off! I think they have always understood a lot of what we say, but hadn't ventured much on their own. They have finally started trying it out for themselves. In fact, we are getting more and more phrases, not just single words. Every day they amaze me! Last night at E's soccer practice, D found out that one of the players had a mom that speaks Russian. She asked them their names in Russian. The boys replied with their English names! That shocked us! We use their Russian names as much as their English names and so do they.
We are still having color mix-ups, but are doing better. They have about learned to write their names. They form all of the letters, but I don't think they could just write it if I told them to. There have been less and less discipline issues overall. We are fighting one issue with L pretty hard. (Did you know that giving someone the finger was worldwide? We didn't, but now we do.) This battle has been difficult, but we're tackling it, slowly. Our other children have been fully indoctrinated.
The bwins are becoming more and more attached to all of us. The boys are like 3 little peas in a pod. Where the boys used to click off sometimes and ask for just the two of them to do something, now they alway include J in their requests. One of the family activities they love the most is going to church. They ask for it constantly. They do well in their class there. They love home. They bring up the dietsky dom whenever they see an old rundown building, but have no desire to go back. They have made that very clear. In fact, fear enters their eyes if you bring it up.
They have both gained weight. L is up to about 27 pounds and El is close to 27-1/2. They are both healthy eaters. Their ribs aren't quite as evident as before. Sleeping is going well, no more night terrors. We're still battling some potty issues, but it's evening out. Overall, I think the transition is going fairly well. I still hurt for those left behind, but am so happy for the ones that are home with us. They are little miracles! They wake up running to Mamka for morning hugs and go to sleep with Papka holding their hand. The in-between is filled with toys, fun with brothers and sisters, lots of food, and a whole lot of loving. What more could we ask for? |
posted by 6blessings @ 3:48 AM  |
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| 6 Comments: |
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They look very handsome in their new clothes! That is great that you got a nice shower for them.
I relate to your experience of the kids being difficult after you have just tried to do nice things for them (i.e. take them to the fair). Or its the too much birthday, or whatever. Sometimes I think- I was trying to make it a good experience and look how awful it turned out. But it isn't true because I always find out later that those are some of the best memories they have and in their minds it was great.
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It sounds like things are going so well - overall. The fair sounds like lots of fun and frankly after a full day at the fair I'm usually so tired and cranky that I want to kick, scream and cry too.
I'm glad they're putting on weight, that's wonderful. I'm so glad you're still posting and keeping us up to date on the life after coming home. I know it's got to be hard and we're grateful!
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Sounds like things are going as well as they can. The fair sounds like it was a lot of fun (except for the kick in the face, of course).
Your boys remind me so much of my Vladimir. Vlad Was such a tiny thing he couldn't ride the go-karts or water bumper boats at the park. It was almost insulting for him to ride the "baby" rides.
And as for giving the finger? Oh yeah. Every time I pulled out the camera Vlad's finger would pop up as if springwired. I'd tell him no, and he'd just do it more. Ignoring it worked better than anything (but I didn't have 5 other kids here to view it). Vladimir seemed to think it was funny.
Do your boys drop garbage wherever they go? Vladimir would just drop things wherever he was -- in the house, outside, in stores, at the park. He wasn't misbehaving; it's what he thought he should do. He looked at me strangely when I'd pick things up and throw them out. He was good about it by the time he left, but I still think he thought it was odd.
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They are precious! YOu all are so blessed. Thanks again for sharing a day in the life! You have such a wonderful family.
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They are really doing well. I am glad they are putting on some weight and picking up English. The rest will fall into place soon enough.
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Wow. You have gone from medical issues to a wonderful shower to the state fair. What a week! I still cannot believe how small they are-2T. It is amazing how well they fit into your family. Only God can work things that well. It was heartbreaking when I read about L's endoscopy. The only thing I kept thinking was that at least he knows you come back. He might be alone for 20 minutes but not for 3 weeks. That has to speak very loudly to him. Anyway, K loves to read your blog, and she wants to say hi to Ed an Z.
Tere
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They look very handsome in their new clothes! That is great that you got a nice shower for them.
I relate to your experience of the kids being difficult after you have just tried to do nice things for them (i.e. take them to the fair). Or its the too much birthday, or whatever. Sometimes I think- I was trying to make it a good experience and look how awful it turned out. But it isn't true because I always find out later that those are some of the best memories they have and in their minds it was great.