Merry Christmas...quick update

The school semester ended for my three kids on December 16.  M is only in 2nd grade, so it was basically a week long fun fest for her that last week of school.  R is a 4th grader and he did actually have a few tests.  Alex on the other hand had a full week of finals which she was very stressed about.  She studied very hard with her good friend that happens to be in four classes with Alex.  Her tests scores were anywhere from failing to passing with flying colors, but the important thing is that she finished her first semester of high school with one C, three B's and two A's.  We are so, so, sooooooo proud of her!  They return to school on January 3.  Alex will have all the same classes/teachers so she will not have to readjust to new teachers.

Christmas was absolutely wonderful.  Our younger two were up at 4AM, but played together in R's room until 6AM when we let them start opening gifts.  Since we were able to host Alex last year for Christmas, this was actually her 2nd one here so she knew what to expect as far as the excitement level would go.  Just like last year she received a new outfit as well as new products from Bath & Body Works so as soon as gifts were opened she hightailed it to the shower so she could try out and put on her new stuff.  The big gift, compliments of Jeff's mom, was a 14' trampoline.  Jeff finished putting it together today and it is a blast!  The kids love it, and honestly, I love it, too.  So much fun!  Also for Christmas I always host Christmas dinner for our family, my parents, my sister's family and friends.  We had 17 people here for beef tenderloin, ham, green beans w/bacon, butternut squash soufflé, pineapple casserole (I know that one sounds funny, but it really is good...I promise!), mac & cheese, mashed potatoes, rosemary bread & rolls and, of course, desserts.  I had made butterscotch blondies and a coconut cream pie, and Alex made a cheesecake.  It is a full day of work but I wouldn't have it any other way.  It is one of my most favorite Christmas traditions.

All in all Alex is doing quite well.  She is really enjoying her dance classes, as well as learning dances for her school dance team.  The dance team hasn't been able to perform at a game yet, but will be doing so when they return to school in January.  I can't wait to see their performance!

Family Photos

When Alex was our "host child" for Summer 2010 one of the things she really wanted done was have family photos taken.  She had no idea at that point that we were planning to adopt her, so it was really special for us to be able to have portraits taken at a studio with her as a family before she was even our daughter.  Unfortunately, that was really the last time we made it a point to take family photos.  Yesterday afternoon we headed off to a local park with camera and tripod in hand to capture our complete family.  Here are a few of my favorites...

Never too old to Trick or Treat!

Alex was very excited for her first Halloween. She picked out a costume that was entirely waaaayyyyyy too short, but was willing to wear shorts under it so it received my stamp of approval.  She helped paint her siblings faces.  I made a tulle skirt for under her dress to help "poof" it up a little...cause, you know, it wasn't short enough as it was.  The weather was perfect.  We were set and ready to go, but she was too embarrassed to go ring doorbells on her own as well as too embarrassed to go door to door with her siblings.  I really didn't want her to be disappointed in her first Halloween, so I ran home, put on black boots, leggings and a form fitted charcoal grey shirt and dug out a kitty cat mask and tail.  Presto bingo...Alex had a Trick or Treat partner and was no longer embarrassed.  (Me, on the other hand...)

All the kids had a great time, and I have had way too much candy over the last few days!

Report Cards & Homecoming Dance

First quarter report cards came home for all three kids last week.  No surprises on any of them, though, as I check their grades daily online.  Half the time I know what they scored on something before they do because the teacher enters the grade online before handing the papers back to them.  My youngest is in 2nd grade and they still don't get "real" grades, as in A, B, C or F.  They get "O" for outstanding, "S" for satisfactory and "N" for not satisfactory.  She got all "O's", which I was so happy to see.  She is one smart little cookie, but oh my goodness, she is a pill!  My 4th grader got one "C", which I was thrilled with as it was in spelling and I truly thought he would get an "F"!  That kid just. can't. spell.  At all.  He also got one "B" and the rest were "A's" so I was super proud of him, too.  And Alex... two "C's", two "B's" and two "A's".  I think I'll frame the report card and the next time she tells me school is too hard I'll knock her over her head with it!  Now starts second quarter where she is going to need to learn to manage her time a bit better as she will be *very* busy with Dance Team, the dance studio and soccer.  I really hope she can keep her grades up so she doesn't have to drop anything.

Alex had her first high school dance on Saturday night.  Two of her friends came over beforehand so they could all ride together.  It was really nice to see her with friends.  Alex looked lovely, as usual.  She was being a little bratty (or maybe embarrassed) and wouldn't pose for a decent photo, but here she is:

She said she had a good time at the dance, and it was much better than the 8th grade dance she had attended in May.  One of the girls that came over before the dance stayed the night and went to church with us the next morning.  

So far I feel like Alex is transitioning fairly well into life as an American high schooler.  It was very difficult for her at the beginning of the school year because high school is serious business, and putting the language barrier aside, it is vastly different than her school in Ukraine.  My hope for her is that she can continue to succeed in school and truly enjoy this time in her life.    

School, Just Dance & Puppy Love

Alex has had some ups and downs when it comes to school work and her self confidence.  For English Lit she had to read a book (the first of many) and write a report on it. Let's just say she was, errrrr......, resistant to doing the assignment.  In the end, after a bit of drama, she did what was required, and in typical Alex fashion went above and beyond.  Her score?  100%.  Thank goodness as now she can see that she is perfectly capable of doing it (reading & writing English) even though she isn't crazy about doing so.  She has moved on to her second book & report and is willingly reading and thinking about what to do for the report which is due at the end of October.  She scored 105% out of 100% for a project in Food & Nutrition as well as getting the only 100% on a different project in the same class.  After a rough start in Algebra she is "getting it" now and should get a solid "B" in that class and a low "A" in her Algebra support class.  Science is a definite challenge for her and the jury is still out on Health.  

Her Dance Team practice started this week (2X per week) and she seems to be enjoying that.  She also has dance class at a studio two nights a week, so she is getting lots of dancing in every week.  She wants to play soccer, too, but it is going to be a tight squeeze to get everything in.  Even though the soccer games don't start until February the required conditioning and weight training start now.  Not sure yet how that is going to all work out, but I guess we will figure it out.

She has a Homecoming Dance next Saturday and we went out and bought a dress earlier this week.  She asked it two of her friends could come over before the dance so that they could do each other's hair and makeup.  Should be fun for her.  

I finally broke down recently and told my husband that we could get a puppy.  I was the last holdout as I knew the majority of the training, care and cleanup would fall on me, no matter what everyone else "promised" to do to help.  I said nothing to the kids about it, though.  We both decided that we wanted a Black Lab.  Now, I know I am going to catch a lot of flack for this, but Jeff and I both felt it was the right decision to go to a breeder and not adopt from a shelter.  Labs are known for having a few significant health issues and we wanted to make sure that whatever puppy we chose came from healthy parents.  I realize that does not guarantee that the puppy won't have health issues down the line, but it does give us much better odds of that NOT happening.  Anywayyyyyyyyy......I found a breeder with a few different aged litters about three hours from our home.  I called my mom and asked her if she could come stay with the kids last Saturday so that Jeff and I could go look at the puppies and see if there was one we wanted.  I told the kids we were going car shopping and they couldn't go with us on the test drives.  :)  I knew we would be gone all day and I didn't want Alex to have to be responsible for R&M for that long, so that is why I had Grandmom step in.  To make this already long story a bit shorter, we both fell in love with the same puppy and bit the bullet and got him.  He sat in my lap for the three hour drive home without making a peep.  As we got closer to home I mentioned to Jeff that we could name him "Jagger", as in Mick Jagger, because he was such a rockstar.  We got home, snuck into the backyard and let the kids find us back there.  They were sooooo excited at first because they thought we were puppy sitting for someone.  When we told them the puppy was OURS they were insanely ecstatic!  We mentioned the name "Jagger" as a possible name and everyone agreed that it was perfect for him.  As of today Jagger is just a few days shy of his three month birthday.  He sits on command, retrieves like a pro, hasn't tried to eat Sushi (the cat), sleeps through the night in his crate and is awesome with the kids.  We are working on housebreaking which is exhausting (mostly mentally exhausting....not physically exhausting) and other commands.  We did have to move Sushi's food and water bowl as Jagger just won't stay out of them, but so far that is the only issue we have had with him.  All this kids love him, as do Jeff and I.  I think even Sushi is happy to have another 4-legged creature in the house!

    

Congratulations.....

....Alex!  I'm now the proud Mom of a member of the first ever dance team for RRHS!  Way to go, girl!

Home Six Months

Today hits the six month mark that Alex and I got on a plane in Kyiv to head to America.  Home!  While Alex was so happy and excited to be home she also had a lot of anxiety and homesickness about leaving Ukraine.  She really missed, and still misses, her friends.  After she started school it really hit her that this new chapter in her life wasn't going to be completely easy.  Always before when she had been here on hosting it had just been a big vacation for her.  Entering school was a harsh reality check.  She was only in 8th grade for 2 1/2 months before the summer break.  I don't think she was really all that crazy about it.  She started high school on August 1.  We are now five weeks into the school year.  Overall, she is doing amazingly well.  Her classes include: English Lit, Health, Physical Science, Algebra 1, Algebra Support and  Food & Nutrition.  Her main struggle is with taking tests.  She had never taken a test in her life before starting school in America so she had no idea how to prepare for them.  I had a conference with her English Lit and Algebra teachers as well as the 9th grade counselor.  They were awesome!  They obviously want Alex to succeed.  Her English Lit teacher ordered her an English/Russian word to word translation book that Alex can carry with her to every class.  Alex gets an hour for lunch and half of that is spent with her Algebra teacher receiving additional tutoring.  The Algebra teacher even called me this last Friday to touch base and let me know that she has seen remarkable improvement in Alex' classroom work.  Both teachers were so impressed with Alex' drive and desire to do well.  She comes into each class and sits front and center.  She asks questions and participates in class discussions.  She *wants* to do well and succeed and it shows!  So proud of this girl!

The school that Alex is going to is a new one.  Last year was its first year with students so they are still building some of their programs.  This year they are starting a dance team that will perform at half-time of (boys?) basketball games.  Tryouts begin the week of September 12.  Alex is trying out.  As her mom I want her to make the team for all the usual reasons: I think she's awesome and would be perfect for the team!  :)  But in addition to that, if she makes the team I think that will be another step for her to really cement herself into school life.  She is making friends, but it is a slow process.  Being a part of a team at school will help her to feel like she is a part of something and not out there on her own.  And if she doesn't make the team then that is just another life lesson.  She was a superstar at her school in Ukraine.  Here she has to go out of her comfort zone.  Not a bad thing, but not an easy thing!  So...wish my kid some luck, will ya'?  :)

In the last six months we have definitely had our ups and downs.  The first few months weren't easy for any of us!  Now I can say that most of our downs are typical of any relationship between a 16 year old girl and her parents!  (Me: Alex, your music is a little loud...can you turn it down?  Her: (pout) It's NOT loud!  I can barely hear it!)

Ukraine will always be her homeland.  But for all of us, her home is here!

  

Not my typical blog post

My brain is feeling a bit scrambled today, so this post might be all over the place and get a little wonky in the process.

Some things have been said to me by several people over the course of the last few weeks and I wanted to take a few minutes to write this down.  First, adoption is not for everyone.  I get that!  I know that in this blog I tend to focus mostly on the positive things that have happened throughout this process.  There are a few reasons for this, but the main one is that Alex is 16 years old, has access to this blog and I have no intention of bringing up some of the harder struggles we have *all* had because that would be an invasion of her privacy.  So for anyone who is considering adoption, especially an international adoption of a teenager, please do not use the words that I have used here on this blog as any indication of what the entire process looks like!  This blog is a snapshot.  And everyone knows you only show other people the very best photos you have...not the crappy ones where you aren't smiling, your hair is a mess and you have a huge mustard stain down the front of your white shirt.  In my opinion, Alex is pretty amazing!  But...that doesn't mean that she doesn't have struggles and moments of breaking down.  Same goes for me!  I wasn't a perfect parent to my two birth children before Alex came around, and I'm certainly not a perfect parent now.  On the flip side of that coin, I'm also not a terrible parent and adopting Alex has NEVER in any way, shape or form caused me to be a bad parent for my two younger kids.  My husband and I did not adopt Alex as any favor to her.  We didn't do it because we felt sorry for her, couldn't stand the thought of her being on her own in less than a year or even "just because" we love her.  We adopted her on paper because she was ALREADY our daughter in every other way that matters.  She IS our daughter in every sense of the word.  My two other kids aren't my "own" children while Alex is just someone we added to the family.  I have THREE of MY OWN CHILDREN!!!!!!!!!!!!  And if we were to adopt again, it would be for the same reasons.  We can't afford to just go around adopting kids because it's the nice thing to do.  So if you are reading this blog and haven't been through this process but perhaps assume that adopting is the "nice" thing to do, please let me make something very clear:  All of the people I know who have adopted (and through the wonderful world of Blogger, I know quite a few!) did NOT adopt out of the kindness of their heart.  They didn't adopt because they are saints on a mission to "save" children.  The children they adopted or are in the process of adopting aren't "lucky" children who won a family at a carnival game.  Families who adopt are simply FAMILIES!!!  So please don't label me as "nice" simply because I happen to have a daughter that was adopted.  And while I'm on the topic of labels, I'm also not crazy or stupid because I adopted.  And I wouldn't be nice, crazy or stupid if my husband and I chose to adopt again.

Moving on...I am a Christian.  I believe Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived his life as a model for all of us and then sacrificed himself so that we can have eternal life if we accept it.  I don't consider myself "spiritual" or even "religious".  I consider myself a Christian.  A follower of Christ.  I do sometimes talk about how blessed I am.  But I'm not "in your face" about it.  So I am putting it out there that, yes...Jesus Christ is my Lord and Savior.  'nuf said.

If you are thinking about building your family through adoption because it's easy, you need to reconsider.  It isn't easy.  It is beautiful.  It is joyful.  It is eye-opening.  It is life-changing.  It is NOT easy.  If it were easy, there would be no more orphans.  If you are someone who thinks people who adopt are crazy and just can't understand it, then you should think about the fact that you don't actually *need* to understand why people adopt.  You just need to accept it.  If you can't accept it, then at the very least, don't judge it!  When families adopt they DO think about how it will impact their lives.  They  DO think about how much more money it will take to add another child, or two or three or MORE to their families.  They DO think about the changes they will need to make and how those changes might impact other members/children in their family.  Sometimes things turn out just the way they imagined it.  Sometimes things go horribly wrong.  I can't say that every person who has ever adopted has thought out every single aspect of how an adoption might turn out, but I think it's pretty safe to say that nobody goes into it blindly.

*wheh*  I know this came out of virtually nowhere.  I am truly NOT trying to offend anyone, or make anyone feel bad because they don't understand the "why's" of our adoption and the choices we make.  Between some of the things that have been said to me and the things that have been said to friends of mine who have also adopted I just couldn't contain myself anymore.  If you feel like I am addressing some of the things you have said to me, well...I probably am.  Is this post because of *one* person's comments/concerns?  No.  Are these things I should have said face to face?  Probably.  But I chose to write it out instead because I *know* I am not the only person out there facing these issues.

If you are considering adopting a teenage girl from Ukraine and would like more information or to pick my brain about the process just let me know!  I won't post the nitty gritty details here, but I would be more than happy to answer any (legitimate) questions you have.

I didn't write this post because things are going badly with Alex.  Alex is doing great!  She is struggling a bit with school work now and I have a conference scheduled with some of her teachers in the morning.  She is really loving her two dance classes and is hoping to try out for the school dance team in a few weeks.  Trying out for the dance team is contingent upon grades, so hopefully she will be able to try out.  This Sunday in church the kids from the student ministries are supposed to dress up in '80s clothing.  I found a fluorescent tank top to go under a '80s-ish top.  I'm trying to find leg warmers, but have struck out so far.

end rant


   

   













     

So far, so good

The kids have been in school two weeks now.  Alex is doing well in her classes.  She is having her first math quiz today so hopefully that goes well.  She has two math classes this year, but the second class is a support class for her Algebra class.  She seems to be a tiny bit behind and may need to take advantage of the lunchtime tutoring that is offered at her school.  She gave her first verbal presentation in Health class yesterday and received 100% on that.  She is also receiving 100% in American Lit., although I believe that is just a "participation" grade so far.  Even though she hasn't received an academic grade in that class yet I am still incredibly proud of her because I know she is participating in the class and not sitting in the back row trying to blend into the wall.  She really likes her Food & Nutrition class and was the only student to receive 100% on their first project.  None of her other classes have entered grades in the online system yet, so I am not sure what marks she has received.  What I do know is that she comes home happy every day and sits right down to start homework.  I know that the classes will start to get harder the further into the school year she gets, but she has really hit the ground running and I am just soooooooo proud of her!!!  I think she will do well in school this year.  Math and perhaps science might be difficult, but she *really* wants to do well and tries so hard.

She said that the school, which is only in it's second year, is starting a dance team.  She doesn't have any information on it yet, but in her mind it is a dance team that goes on competitions, similar to what she did in Ukraine.  I tried to explain to her that it was more likely a dance team that performs at half time during football and basketball games.  She doesn't understand that many schools have cheerleading squads and dance squads and that they do different things.  Hopefully she can bring home a flier with actual information on it instead of just  reporting what she's "heard".

In other news, Alex is taking two dance classes this year.  She knows that she has to keep her grades up to be able to continue taking them.  She also wants to try out for the spring soccer league as well as the dance team that I mentioned earlier.  I'm not sure she's going to be able to do it all, but I think it's very important that she has something that is just hers and that she loves.  Her girls Bible study starts in September and she is excited about that.  She has been a bike riding maniac these last few weeks and has thrown in some sprint running as well.  I really wish I could keep up with her!

Is it bad that I am already counting down the weeks until their Fall Break?  It's five more weeks in case you were wondering.  :)  

First Day of School

I remember when Alex had her first day of American school back in March.  When I asked her how it went, she said "terrible".  Yesterday was her first day of High School.  When I asked her how it went, she said "not too bad".  Hey, I'll take it!  She went to her last class of the day, American Literature (English), and realized she had been placed in an 11th grade class!  Oops.  So, she had to have her entire schedule re-done.  She has the same classes and teachers, just at different times.

She received more information from her teachers yesterday about what supplies she would need for each class, so off to Wal-Mart we went to stock up on binders, folders, composition notebooks and loose leaf paper.  She spent about 30 minutes picking out what designs she wanted for everything.  Then we saw an end cap filled with Christian themed supplies.  She quickly ditched everything she had just picked out and selected binders, folders, notebooks and a pencil pouch with very cool graphics and Bible verses/themes.  As we were leaving the store she was talking about how much she liked her new supplies and she didn't care what the other kids at school might say to her about it.  She said she knew some kids didn't believe in God or Jesus and would say she wasn't "cool", but it didn't bother her because she knew the truth.  Have I ever mentioned what an amazing young woman Alex is?

Here she is with *most* of her school supplies.
Her backpack weighed *a lot*!

 

Here is a link to the company that produced the Christian themed school supplies:  Dayspring

High School Open House

Oopsie!

I took Alex to the Open House at her new high school this morning.  She met all of her teachers and I feel very, very good about her upcoming school year.  She will only have ESOL for one period, but her remaining teachers seem to understand her challenges with English comprehension beyond casual conversation.

While I feel quite good about her first year of high school, she is less than thrilled about going.  At one point during the "tour" she asked me how many years she would be at this school.  This is a good place to remind everyone that her education at her school in Ukraine would have ended at the end of her 9th grade year.  I told her four years of high school and I thought her eyeballs were going to actually pop out of her head.  She exclaimed that she thought it was just two years.  Now, I realize we don't talk about it every day, but I *know* I have told her that students go to high school for four years before.  I think this is one of those very important instances that she acted like she understood what I was saying when in reality she was paying no attention.  I also think she knows that *most* students graduate when they are 18, which for her is in two years.

Part of me feels a little sorry for her that this news was such a shock.  Part of me is slightly (and yes, I know this is mean) amused.  I hope think that once she starts, meets new friends and realizes that high school CAN actually be fun she will not be so upset about the whole four year thing.  If not...ughhh!  I can't even go there!

She starts high school on Monday...wish us luck and say a prayer!  :)  We're gonna need it!

End of summer vacation blues...

Alex had an amazing week being a junior counselor at camp this week.  It is a fantastic Christian adventure camp that focuses on being part of a team, challenging ones self and learning about God and His Word.  She was really able to connect with so many of the counselors there and has formed many new friendships.  She loves being there and is very disappointed that she can't do it again next week.  While the new friends and week of fun has been wonderful to watch her experience, the best part for me is that she is really making a connection with what having a relationship with God is about.  She has been "attending" church since we arrived home in March in addition to when she was here for the hosting trips, but being involved with this group of teenagers and young adults has been life changing for her.  It has been a beautiful thing to watch!  I'm very excited to see her grow in this way.

Next week is the last week of summer vacation for our school district.  The kids go back on August 1.  We have several doctor/eye doctor/dentist appointments lined up in addition to the "Sneak Peak" at the schools.    My two younger ones will learn who their new teachers will be and Alex will get her class schedule and locker assignment.  She is very nervous about going.  Every time the subject of going back to school comes up she audibly moans and starts talking about how she doesn't want to go.  I know she is scared, mostly about her reading capabilities and her English comprehension skills.  Conversationally she is remarkable.  In a classroom setting I know she will struggle at the beginning.  This is why it was so important to us that she get a few months of middle school under her belt before jumping straight into high school.  It will be a lot of work, but I know she is capable of doing it.  She just needs to start believing she is capable!

The hosting organization that we originally hosted Alex through, New Horizons for Children, is currently in the middle of their summer hosting trip.  All the kids that are in this country through NHFC will go back to Ukraine/Latvia on August 1.  I look at the kids photos on the NHFC Facebook page and think back to this time last year when we were excitedly starting the adoption process for Alex.  I know that there must be many families right now in a race to get their paperwork started in hopes of traveling to complete their adoptions as quickly as possible.  If you are one of those families reading this right now, congratulations and good luck!

If you are interested in being part of an amazing ministry by hosting an orphan from Eastern Europe, the Christmas hosting program will be here before you know it!  The NHFC team will be traveling to Ukraine and Latvia in August/September to interview children for the winter hosting program.  Keep in mind that NHFC is a hosting ONLY program!  While they would love to see their host kids be adopted, their first goal is to place these kids in a Christian home where they can learn English, feel the love of a stable family and see that there is hope for their future.  For more details on hosting a child for 4 weeks this winter, please visit: New Horizons For Children    

We are still alive...

Summer has absolutely flown by so far.  The kids go back to school on August 1, so they only have three weeks of vacation left!

So far we have:

• had Alex and my son's dance recital
• my 6 year old turned 7
• my 15 year old turned 16 (and it was also our one year anniversary of meeting Alex for the first time)
• we took a road trip to Colorado
• Alex met her great-grandmother who lives in Missouri for the first time
• Alex also met her wonderful Aunt Nicole and amazing cousins, Tess & Audrey in Colorado
• we went to a beautiful wedding in Vail, (Aunt Nicole got married so Alex also got to meet her new Uncle Mark, too!) spent a few days in Steamboat Springs and Fort Collins and drove all the way back to Georgia
• all three kids were in camp for a week with Alex being a junior counselor and the two younger ones being campers
• now we are in Florida visiting Grammy!  

Yeesh!  I have no idea why summer has flown by!  :)  And when we get back to Georgia, Alex will spend a day with the youth group at church working on a community project, then the following week she will be a junior counselor at camp again!

Alex is currently reading the driver's manual so she can take a test to earn her learner's permit.  It isn't easy reading and it has a lot of terms she has never heard before so it is taking some time.  (Fine by me!)  My hope is that this will be a good motivator for her to try very hard in school.  She is a smart girl and wants to do well, but she is also *very* stubborn and refuses to admit when she doesn't understand something.  That isn't going to be a good trait to have entering high school.

It's been a crazy, busy, but fun summer.  I'm not quite ready for school to start, but it really isn't up to me!  It's okay, though.  I love our county's calendar because even though they go back so early, they get extra breaks throughout the school year.  I love that!  Alex doesn't love it so much.  She is used to going back to school on September 1 every year.  She doesn't think getting the extra breaks is going to make up for going back so soon, but I image when that first break rolls around in September she is going to be very happy to have it!

Hopefully when school starts I can get back to blogging more regularly.  Until then I can tell you that the rest of our summer looks like this:

• finish our trip to Florida and drive back to Georgia
• Alex will participate in the youth group project
• drive Alex back and forth to camp for a week
• doctors and dentist appointments
• back to school shopping
• "Meet & Greet" at the schools where the kids meet their teachers for the younger ones and Alex will get her class schedule, locker assignment and hopeful meet a few teachers

I think next summer maybe we will stay home a little more often.  :)  I'm wiped out already!

  

Long time, no post.

Okay, I admit it.  I've been a very bad blogger.  Things are just so normal that it feels a bit odd to write about it!

We really haven't been terribly busy.  Alex had her dance recital last week and she did a great job.  She really enjoys the class and wants to take it again when the class starts back up in August.  We spent *all* day on Memorial Day at the pool.  Despite frequent re-application of sunblock we all got sunburned and spent the next four days indoors.  We celebrated my youngest daughters 7th birthday.  I took the kids on a road trip to visit family in Missouri and Colorado.  It was just me and the three kids as Jeff couldn't take time off from work.  Boy howdy is it a long drive from GA to CO!  The kids were all troopers (for the most part) on the drive so I can't complain too loudly. We are attending a wedding in CO up in the mountains so we are all very excited for that.  Alex' birthday is at the end of the month, and it just so happens that our one year anniversary of meeting her for the first time lands on her birthday!  Yep...she met  her family for the first time on her 15th birthday and gets to celebrate her 16th with her family for the first.time.ever.  My, what a difference a year makes.

And that is our last two weeks in a nutshell.  Nothing too exciting.  Just regular life.  No complaints here!  

Oath of Citizenship

When Alex stepped foot on US soil at Hartsfield Jackson Airport on Saturday, March 5, 2011 she automatically became a US citizen.  Pretty cool, huh?

However...because Alex was older that 14 when she entered the country the United States Customs and Immigration Service would not issue her a Certificate of Citizenship until she took the oath of citizenship.  Today was the day that Alex was assigned to recite her oath, along with 109 other people from a total of 45 countries.  It was definitely a long process, but pretty cool to be able to witness it.  Alex was not the only child there who had been adopted.  For these kids it was pretty much just a formality.  They were already citizens, but had no paperwork to prove it.  For the rest of the people in that room it must have been an amazing day.  Becoming a US citizen is a long and difficult process.  The people who worked so long and hard to obtain citizenship have my utmost respect.

There was one young man there, however, who apparently didn't get the memo that this was a pretty big deal.  I don't know how old he was or what his circumstances were, but he blew it big time.  He was seated in the ceremony room waiting to have his paperwork processed before the group recited the oath.  He had a baseball cap on.  One of the agents approached him and told him he needed to remove the cap.  He nodded as though he understood but made no effort to comply.  A second agent came over and repeated the request that he remove his cap.  Again, he nodded but did not comply.  At this point I thought he surely must not understand what they are asking him to do.  The second agent reported the situation to the lead agent who approached the young man and asked him to stand up so he could speak with him.  The young man stood and listened as the lead agent explained that the cap needed to be removed out of respect.  He was very calm and tried very hard to reason with this young man asking him if he understood what he needed to do.  The young man said he understood but wasn't going to remove the cap.  The agent told him he had no choice but to escort him from the building.  This person was an hour away from receiving his Certificate of Citizenship and he absolutely threw his chance away.  Over a cap.  What was he thinking?  People literally die trying to get into this country to have a better life and he had the opportunity in his hands and he acted like it was nothing.  All I can do is shake my head.

On a happier note, today should have been Alex' last day of school but she missed it due to the oath ceremony.  So yesterday was her last day of 8th grade.  I now have a rising Freshman!  And a rising 4th grader and a rising 2nd grader.  We are so excited for summer vacation to begin!  I hope I am able to hold on to this enthusiasm for the next nine weeks!

Going from Olga to Alex

I was recently reminded that I never told the story about Alex' name change on this blog.  (Thanks, Marcie!)  Some people know just because I have told them the story in person, but I thought I would share it here as well.

As you all know, before she was "Alex", she was "Olga".  Technically it is pronounced with a softer "hy" rather than a hard "g", but she didn't like it when we tried to say her name the way "they" said it in Ukraine.  (Clear as mud?)  So, Olga with a hard "g" it was.  A few weeks before she arrived for Christmas hosting I started thinking about names and whether she would want to keep Olga, change the spelling to Olya or Olha so it would be closer to the correct pronunciation or change it all together for a more "American" name.  I tried thinking of different names that suited her and the one that I always came back to was Alexandria...Alex for short.

After Alex arrived and got settled in we spoke to her about our plans to adopt her and told her we had an appointment in her country in January to start the process.  Normally we would not have spoken to her about that, but as we had our travel dates in hand we made the decision to tell her.  A few days after talking to her about that I brought up the subject of her name and asked if she would like to keep it or change it.  She quickly said she wanted to keep it.  She didn't even want to change the spelling so that people would pronounce it "more" correctly.  Of course that was fine by us and I never mentioned the name that I thought suited her.

Several days later as she was walking by the TV she heard someone say the name "Alex" on the show my two younger kids were watching.  She kept walking and got to the top of the stairs when she stopped and called down, "Mom, I like the name Alex".  I am fairly certain I flew up the stairs and told her I loved the name Alexandria for her using Alex as her nickname.  She got a little smile on her face and I told her to just think about it.  She came back downstairs about five minutes later and asked what the full name would be, and I told her.  Then she double checked that we would call her Alex for short.  I told her she could still keep Olga as her middle name and always go back to that if she didn't end up liking the name Alex after all.  And of course I told her that if she changed her mind anytime between then and when we had to fill out the paperwork requesting the name change to Alexandria Olga, that was okay, too.  She never changed her mind.

And so that is how Olga became Alex.

Alex the Warrior

We started our day *very* early this morning.  We woke up just before 4:00 so that we could hit the road by 4:30 for our 2.5 hour drive to a crazy fun obstacle course race called Warrior Dash  We were in the first wave at 8:00.  It was pretty chilly up there in the North Georgia Mountains!    Some of the obstacles included: walk/swim through a muddy lake, tire course (think football training), junkyard crawl, hurling ourselves over 4' walls and then under barbed wire X5, rope climb up a 20' vertical wall (that was a little scary...no safety net!), Cargo net climb, trail run through the mountains, army crawl through a blacked out crawl space, more trail running, horizontal cargo net crawl, sliding down a steep embankment on our tushies, mud crawl under barbed wire, another turn in the water but this time hurling ourselves over rolling logs and last but not least, jumping over logs set on fire not once, but twice (the jumping part twice, not setting the logs on fire twice!).  Did I mention that they watered the mountain trails down so we were running/slipping/falling in pure mud?  I know my list is out of order and I think I even left one or two obstacles out.  It was a *B*L*A*S*T*!  Alex wanted to do it again.  :)

On the shuttle bus from parking to the race course.

Five of us started, four of us finished.  :(  One of our
Warriors twisted his ankle on the very first part
of the run.

You can't really tell how much mud Alex
is wearing here.

She got a little scraped up on the
slide down into the mud pit.

Finished!  Notice we are in front of the first aid tent.

First School Dance in America

All dolled up and ready to go.

Results after an hour with the curling iron.

She was concentrating on not getting her freshly polished
 nails on her  dress and wasn't really wanting to smile for the photo

Look!  A dress that is a decent length!

Parlez-vous français?

Alex got to select the classes that she would like to take next year as a rising Freshman.  Apparently she feels being able to speak four languages isn't quite enough and signed up to take French.  I have no idea if they will actually let her take it or not as she will be in ESOL as well.  I am pretty sure she is exempt from the foreign language requirement, but she really wants to take French.  Crazy kid.  :)

Let's Dance!

The Fabulous Miss A had been going back and forth regarding the upcoming 8th grade dance and if she wanted to attend or not.  I mentioned dress shopping to her last night and suddenly she landed squarely on the side of wanting to go.  Funny how that happened.  :)  We power shopped our tailbones off and came home with a dress, shoes, necklace and earrings.  She still needed a shrug as the dress is strapless and I believe, per school dress code, that is not allowed.  I found a perfect little shrug this afternoon with a little help from my mom for $16.  When I got to the register it was on sale for $6!  I love little surprises like that!  Anyway, she looks adorable in her dress and I was thrilled with the length of it.  It hits slightly above her knees as opposed to slightly below her rear end like all the other dresses she tried on.  Yeesh!  And I didn't even have to push her toward that dress...it was her favorite.  Her shoes have a tiny little heel on them and she, ummm...needs a little practice walking in them.  I told her not to worry about it.  I assume that she will most likely wear them into the dance then promptly kick them off like most of the other girls will probably do and dance the night away barefoot.

The dance is a week from tomorrow.  I hope it lives up to whatever her expectations of it might be.

Routine

I know that it has been a while since I posted.  It is mostly because we have settled into a routine and there isn't really anything new to report.  :)  Alex is bringing home more and more homework which to me says her teachers are beginning to expect a little more from her.  She has a huge project for reading class that is due at the end of the month.  She has to read a book and then re-write it into an illustrated children's novel.  I can't remember how many pages the children's book is supposed to be. The book she chose is not exactly suitable for children, and she doesn't understand most of the 11 out of 278 pages she's read, so this should be interesting.  I am going to buy the book on my Kindle so I can read along with her.

Only a few more weeks of school left.  She has a dance next week at school, but she keeps waffling back and forth on whether she wants to go or not.  She does still get "homesick" for her friends back in Ukraine and I think because of that she is having some difficulty making new friends here.  Hopefully when she begins her Freshman year in the fall she will start to develop friendships here and realize it doesn't mean completely letting go of her friends in Ukraine.

On a completely unrelated note, I am sad to report that my six year old busted the Easter Bunny.  Apparently the Easter Bunny accidentally left a partially filled bag of jelly beans on my dresser and my little girl found them.  She was very quick to put two and two together.  She was actually delighted to know the truth because she realized that it was us giving her all of her wonderful Easter goodies.  Oddly enough, the Tooth Fairy nor Santa came up in the conversation.  I guess I'll tackle the subjects when they come up.

 

iPad Raffle for a friend's fundraiser! ***RAFFLE ENDED***

When you blog about your Ukrainian adoption journey you "meet" lots of amazing friends on the same journey.  One such friend completed the adoption of her beautiful daughter in December of 2010.  Their family has already started the process over to go back to Ukraine in the coming months to adopt another beautiful child.  They are running an amazing fundraiser right now where you could win a raffle drawing for an iPad!  For all the details on how to donate and be entered into the iPad raffle drawing visit their fundraising blog here:  iPad Raffle!!!

Jeff's head just might explode...

Alex came home and told me there are four different boys at school that plan to ask her to the formal dance next month.  She is off the hook from saying "yes" to any of them, though, as she is not allowed to date yet.  How does she know about the four boys?  Of course there was a different boy in her class that shared that information.  I think he was sent to "feel her out" to see if she was interested in any of these boys.

She's a little embarrassed, I think it's funny (for now) and I'm pretty sure Jeff is going to have heart palpitations.  Can you imagine if I sent the two of them out together to shop for a dress for the formal?  Hmmm...I think I just hatched an evil plan.  :)

Bwaahaahaaahaaaa!!!

Another school week down

Today marks the end of the standardized testing (GA-CRCT's) for our county.  Alex was required to take the tests which is pretty funny considering the fact she can only read/understand an extremely limited amount of English.  This is typically a test that a student would have to "pass" in order to move on to the next grade level, but because A is in ESOL she is exempt from that requirement.  I just told her to do the best she can do and not worry about what she couldn't understand.  It will be interesting to see what her scores are, but I'm expecting them to be fairly low.

Only five school weeks remain.  I am really looking forward to summer break.  We have a trip to Colorado planned for my sister-in-law's wedding in June.  I plan to drive and make a stop in Missouri for a few days so I can introduce A to my dad's side of the family.  Then in July we will go back to FL to visit Jeff's mom.  Okay, and hit the *awesome* Siesta Key beach.  :)  And then school starts again on August 1!

Alex is enjoying being able to ride her bike up to the tennis courts to watch Jeff play or even just go for a walk by herself.  She really misses her friends a lot, but she usually gets to call one or two of them on the weekends.  She has also re-connected with her Spanish host family via Skype, which is free!  (Thank goodness!)  She seems to have a complicated relationship with them.  She summed it up by saying they are great to talk to, but not to live with.  :)

Our younger two kids have been amazing with the adjustment of having Alex home.  There have been no jealousy issues and even though they sometimes get on A's nerves (they are 9 & 6...they get on my nerves, too)  she has been a great big sister to them.  I really don't think I could be any more proud of them than I am.

 

Two days is too many...

Alex continues to go to school and has adjusted well to most things.  Reading and writing in English are a great source of frustration for her, but I know it will just take time.  Her conversational English is pretty darn good at this point.  She mentioned a few days ago that the 8th grade class is taking a two day field trip to Charleston at the end of the month.  I told her to bring home the information for it and we could decide if that was something she could do.  She would never bring the info home so I ended up e-mailing one of her teachers asking for the details.  Finally Alex told me that she didn't want to go.  She said that she had just gotten her family and two days was too long to be away from them.  Yeah, that was definitely a feel good moment!

Also coming up in May is a formal 8th grade dance.  Poor Jeff was disappointed when the answer to his question, "Is this a Daddy/Daughter Dance" was "ummm....no".  I didn't know they did *formal* dances in  8th grade!  Time to take the Fabulous Miss A dress shopping.  *sniff*  This is going way too fast!!!

It's permanent...

Earlier today while we were at my mom's house Alex picked up a Sharpie and proceeded to draw on her hand.  Daddy, Uncle Greg and Grandmom all told her it was permanent, to which she sweetly replied, "It's okay".  Not too long after that she was surprised to see that the marker wasn't coming off her hand.  Everyone said that they had told her it was permanent.  I saw the look on her face and asked her if she knew what the word permanent meant.  She shook her head "no".  Oops.  Her English speaking skills are so good that it is sometimes hard to remember that she doesn't know what a seemingly basic word such as "permanent" means.

Road Trip

Alex is on her first American "road trip".  We loaded up the car on Sunday morning to drive down to Jeff's mother's home in Florida to stay for a few days over Spring Break.  After a long day of driving in heavy traffic and more that one Interstate parking lot we arrived at our destination 11 hours after we began what should have been a 9 hour trip.  Jeff didn't come with us as he needed to stay home for work, so it was just me and the kids.  Alex actually chose to ride in the back seat the entire way so she could watch movies on the DVD player with R&M.  I have a car that has a third row that can be used as storage or as additional seating.  For the most part R sat in the third row while A&M sat in the middle row.  At one point they decided it would be fun if all three of them sat together in the middle row.  That lasted about an hour.  :)

On Monday we went to the beach.  We got there early enough that we were able to carve our a piece of real estate close to the water, but it wasn't long before the beach was jam packed.  The water was cold, but all three kids ended up swimming a bit.  I chose to keep my toes on dry sand.  :)  R&M spent a lot of time building a sand castle with several other kids and Alex spent some time just catching some rays.  One very, very cool part of the beach trip was when three dolphins came very close to shore.  A&M got incredibly close to them (within 10 feet) while R stayed back bit (maybe 20 feet).  The dolphins swam back and forth in front of the kids and about 100 other people for at least five minutes before heading back out to deeper water.  Even though I was just on the shore it was still an amazing thing to see.  After the trip to the beach we went back to Grammy's house for lunch then headed up to the pool.  We were all a little sun-sucked by the end of the day.

Today it rained all day so there was no beach or pool trip.  Instead we stayed home and made earrings with Grammy and two of her friends.  Alex' earrings turned out the best, of course!  I don't think there is anything she can't do well.  Afterward we went the the movie theater to see "Hop".  I wasn't exceptionally excited about it, but the kids were.  The kids all loved it, and I didn't hate it so I guess it was a win-win.

So far it has been a pretty good spring break.  We will head back to GA on Friday.  On Saturday my mom is hosting a "Welcome Home" party for my nephew who recently returned from Afghanistan.  VERY excited to see him!

Their one hour stint sitting together in the second row.

One of my favorite memories of Ukraine

This post really should be backdated to February 3, 2011.  That was the day that we were to see Alex for the first time in Ukraine to get her official consent to be adopted.  Originally we were supposed to be there on 2/2/11, but the Inspector had gone to Kyiv for the day so we had to postpone until 2/3/11.  We should have been able to see A that morning, but the Director had gone to Lugans'k that morning so our meeting time kept getting pushed back further into the day.  We were in Lutugino all day, just waiting and waiting.  Our friends, Kelly & Scott, were at the orphanage visiting their son and saw Alex throughout the day.  At one point A asked them where we were.  Kelly told her we were just having coffee at the 999 Cafe and we would be there soon.  As soon as A heard we were just down the street she excitedly told them she would go to us and she took off running.  Keep in mind we were not allowed to see her until after our meeting with the Director.  Jeff, our facilitator Sergei and I were enjoying our coffee when Little Miss Sassy Pants comes bursting in the front door.  Amazingly enough, I wasn't the least bit surprised to see our girl breaking all the rules.  I jumped up and gave her a big hug.  It took Jeff a moment to realize it was actually her standing in front of us trying to catch her breath from sprinting to the cafe.  Our poor facilitator went completely white, eyes shifting back and forth from us to the door with the fingers of his right hand furiously tapping out a nervous beat on the table.  Her being there was a huge "no-no" and Sergei was about to have heart palpitations.  After a few minutes I took mercy on Sergei and told Alex to go back to school to wait for us.  She left and Sergei regained some of his color but he was still a nervous wreck.  About ten minutes later our little trouble maker walked back in and said she got someone to cover for her.  We let her stay about ten minutes, then sent her back again.  It wasn't too much longer before we were called back to the school because the Director was on her way.  When we saw Kelly and Scott later on Kelly looked almost as panicked as Sergei had when Alex came to the cafe.  She said when she told Alex where we were A took off so fast Kelly didn't have time to do or say anything.  Poor Kelly was scared for the same reasons as Sergei.  But all was good.  If anyone found out about her "breakout" nobody said anything to us.

The reason I never posted about this while I was in Ukraine is because you never really know who is reading your blog.  I'm still slightly nervous to post it now simply because I really don't want to get our facilitator in hot water should he be working in Lutugino again.  But, this is just one of those memories from Ukraine that always brings a huge smile to my face and I wanted to share.

Russian? Spanish? English?

Alex' "tour" of the high school on Thursday wasn't  tour at all.  It was basically a field trip to see a concert which she was less than impressed with.  :)  Oh well, at least she had a fun day.  After the field trip her grade pretty much just goofed off and played games the rest of the day.  A seems to be doing well in school as far as adjusting, making friends and communicating with her teachers.  Jeff and I met with her ESOL teacher on Thursday morning.  While A's conversational skills are great, she simply can't read or write in English well at this point.  Her ESOL teacher has communicated this with A's teachers so she is working with modifications in her classes.  Her math and science teachers are giving her printed instructions in Spanish which is very helpful.

After A got home from school this afternoon one of our neighbors and her 7 year old daughter came over the meet Alex.  Our neighbor is from Ukraine but has been in America for 19 years.  She is fluent in Russian and has taught her daughter the Russian language as well.  She brought with her something to make for Alex.  It was similar to porridge and Alex said she would have it with dinner every night in Ukraine.  I thought it was really good, too.  She also told us about a Russian food store nearby that we can check out and see if there is anything that A would like.  Can't wait to go!

We had our first post placement visit with our social worker tonight so that she could make sure Alex was adjusting to family life well.  The visit was about an hour and I was very proud of how engaged and engaging Alex was.  The visit is just part of the paperwork process of the adoption.  Not everyone has to do this, but it was part of the agreement we had with the adoption agency we used.  We will have another visit in a month.

Alex told us she wanted to get a summer job!  Considering the fact we won't even be around most of the summer I don't think it would work out, but it really surprised me she wanted to go to work.  I'm not sure why, other than the fact that her friend, C, is job hunting now.  Perhaps next summer she can look, but in the meantime maybe she can find a few families that would let her babysit.

Tomorrow is Saturday...the day she gets to call two of her friends in Ukraine.  She is truly happy to be here, but she really, really misses her friends.  To be honest, I miss her friends, too, and I was only there for a month!  It must be so hard for her, but she is holding together remarkably well.  There is actually a boy from A's school in Ukraine that was adopted along with his younger brother by a family in North Carolina.  He has been home since last fall.  They talk to each other a few times a week which I think is great.  While learning more and more English is really important, I want her to retain her Russian and speaking to friends on the phone helps her with that.  She is getting to the point that she sometimes can't figure out if a word she is about to say is Russian, Spanish or English.

Next week is the last week of school before Spring Break.  We are *all* in need of a break.  And then after Spring Break there is only seven weeks of school before summer vacation!  My, how quickly time is flying!

 

 

 

High School already?

Alex came home from school today and told me that on Thursday her grade will go over to the high school for a tour.  So cool that A gets to experience that when everyone else does.  While I'm sure some of the kids from her grade have already been in the building, it will be the first official tour for everyone.  Also on Thursday is my first parent/teacher conference for Alex.  I will be meeting with her ESOL teacher to discuss the score A received on her placement test for English as a second language.  She scored pretty low, which is fine by me because it affords her more assistance on the upcoming standardized tests that she will have to take.  Her conversational English speaking skills are quite good, but her reading comprehension and spelling skills aren't up to par.

On Sunday our friends had a "Grand Opening" event for their new store, Fido's Market (www.FidosMarket.com).  As a family we helped out with the event.  Alex had fun running all over the place and as she *loves* dogs she was in heaven getting to play with so many different ones.  We even got to see a very cool K9 demonstration which I think helped change Alex' opinion of police officers for the better.  Let's just say the police in Ukraine are a bit different that the police in America.

The Fabulous Miss A was a little tired and cranky this morning.  She didn't want to go to school and as a result dragged her feet long enough getting out the door that she almost missed the bus.  She had only gotten a few feet away from the house when the bus pulled up about 130 yards away.  She just stopped. Jeff yelled to her to RUN!  She started to run, made it about halfway and stopped again.  Jeff yelled to her to RUN! again.  She made the bus, and it's a good thing.  It would have been one thing if she had an actual reason for missing the bus, but to miss it because she simply didn't *want* to catch it just isn't going to fly with me.  A is a very good girl, but *S*T*U*B*B*O*R*N*.  I'm pretty sure that she thought maybe, just maybe, if she missed the bus she wouldn't have to go to school.

Spring break is coming up in less than two weeks.  I plan to put the three kids in the car and drive down to Grammy's house in FL.  Jeff won't be able to make it, but we should have fun anyway.  And when we come back we will be able to attend a family gathering at my mom's house for my nephew, John, who just returned from Afghanistan.  Can't wait to squish him!  :)

School Day #2

Today was a much better day for A.  She is still not able to figure out how to open her locker without asking another student for help, but that was her only issue that she told me about.  She only had math homework to do tonight and she whipped through that in about 10 minutes.  She rode the bus home and even seemed okay with that.  It was great to see her in good spirits this afternoon.  After homework her friend, C, came over and the girls walked to the park and then came back home to ride bikes.  C's mom was kind enough to have A and our 8 year old over for dinner while I took our 6 year old to Acro class.  What a great evening for all my kids.  :)

New School Blahs

A's first day of school wasn't great, unfortunately.  It was very overwhelming for her.  When kids would ask where she was from (expecting the answer to be another state) and she would tell them Ukraine that would ignite a firestorm of questions.  All.  Day.  Long.  Hopefully this week will be a good "breaking in" period and the novelty of having a new student from Ukraine will wear off by next week.  She is also worried that her teachers don't understand that her English reading/writing skills are not developed yet.  Her ESOL teacher will be testing her today to see what level she should be on.  When Alex went into her ESOL class yesterday the teacher asked if English was her second language.  Alex said no.  Then the teacher asked why she was in the class then.  Alex said it was because English was her fourth language.  Little Miss Smarty Pants strikes again.  :)  We really want her to keep her Russian, Ukrainian and Spanish skills up, but I worry throwing English into the mix is going to cause something to slide.  Thankfully she was able to connect with one of her friends from Spain on FB and she keeps in contact with friends from Ukraine so that should help keep her conversational skills fresh. 

I walked her to the bus stop this morning.  Well, I walked her almost all the way to the bus stop.  We stopped about 30 yards short and she just stood there.  I waited for her to either say something or start walking again.  I asked her if she wanted to walk the rest of the way alone (I didn't want to embarrass her as none of the other kids had their moms with them  :)  ).  Finally the bus came and she said she didn't want to ride it.  I said that was fine and I would drive her.  She was relieved and said she would ride the bus home after school.  As I dropped her off I said I hoped she had a good day, and she smiled and said she would try.

Only three more weeks and then it's Spring Break.  Can't wait!  I think we are all going to need the break!

Tomorrow is the big day!

Alex is registered for school and she starts tomorrow.  We took a tour of the school today and I realized it is even bigger than I had originally thought.  Our 'tour guide" was a 7th grader from Russia.  A is *very* nervous (read: scared) and I'm a little nervous for her.  In her school in Ukraine there were 155 students in 9 grades.  She had ten students in her class and that was including her!  There are over 1200 students in three grades at her new school.  The gymnasium alone is bigger than one floor of her old school.  They didn't have her schedule in the computer as of this morning so we have no idea what her days will look like for the rest of the school year.  I will drive her in tomorrow morning so she can get her class schedule, but I am hoping to get her comfortable with the bus schedule ASAP.  Big changes are in store for the Fabulous Miss A.

All in all I think things are going well.  Life will change in a huge way tomorrow, but hopefully she can find her groove, make new friends and start enjoying her new life as a United States citizen.  She was able to become Facebook friends with a girl from her school in Ukraine that had been adopted by a Spanish family a few years ago.  She has been able to call her two of her friends in Ukraine a few times which I think has helped with missing them so much.

I know I have been remiss in getting photos posted and I will fix that pronto!  :)

School Registration

I took Alex to school today to turn in paperwork to get her registered.  Everything looks good.  She has a doctor appointment on Monday to have her immunization records transferred to a State of GA form, and I still have to get her ear, eye & dental forms.  Other than that, she should be ready to go!  I plan to have her start school on Wednesday.  She is nervous.  Honestly, I'm a little nervous, too.  Always before she has been on vacation while in America.  School makes this whole adoption thing very, very real for her.  I know she's going to do great, but I also know it is going to be a *huge* adjustment.

Everything else is going well.  She misses her BFF, Violetta.  She has called her almost every day since we've been home.  Violetta misses her, too.  We went to the post office yesterday to send V a care package and then later in the day A received a letter from V.  I'm so glad I had our facilitator get the pre-stamped envelopes to give to V before we left Ukraine!

I can't believe we have been home for a week now.  In one way it feels like a lifetime ago that I was in Ukraine, and in another way I still feel like I am trying to get back into the loop of life at home.  My friend, Kelly, sent me a message about how she misses our cute little waitress at our favorite restaurant.  So funny, because I miss her, too, and I feel like I abandoned her by not telling her we wouldn't be back!  I know, weird.

Gym Monster

Let's just say Alex *really* liked the gym.  We are going back tonight so she can take a class.  This morning she tried a few pieces of cardio equipment and a few pieces of strengthening equipment.  Then she saw a group of people taking a "Zumba" class and just about came out of her skin with excitement.  We checked out the schedule and there is a Hip Hop class tonight she wants to take.  Later this week there is a "Latin Fusion" class she wants to take.  I think my evenings just got a lot busier!

Last night our 8 year old son had his Hip Hop class at the dance studio.  I asked Alex if she wanted to come with me, or stay home and watch her 6 year old sister.  (Jeff was out of town)  She just looked at me with a surprised look on her face and couldn't believe she had a choice.  When she was here on the hosting program she always had to be with either Jeff or me.  She chose to stay home and watch her sister.  Then, to make things even sweeter, our 16 year old neighbor wanted Alex to come over for a little while.  So...Alex went over with her sister and then all three girls came back to our house while I was with R at his class.  I think A is enjoying her newfound freedom!

Getting into the groove.

Alex and I are both still trying to adjust to jet lag.  She seems to be getting better, I seem to be getting worse.  Hopefully over the next few days things will even out and we will both be on East Coast time.

Alex asked last night if we could go for a run this morning.  I hadn't run in 6+ weeks, and she hadn't run in 6+ months.  We are different style runners.  I am very slow, but I can run for a long time.  She sprints, but for short distances.  We went out this morning for a run, made it 1.6 miles and then she got frustrated because it was hard and wouldn't run anymore.  So we walked the 1.6 miles back home.  She seems to think she can just jump right back into it without missing a beat.  I had to talk to her about the fact that there are a lot of really big hills in our neighborhood where she is used to running around the flat school soccer fields in Ukraine.  Hopefully she is willing to give it another try.  Next time I won't get so far away from home and I will remind her to slow down a bit.  I will also get her added to our gym membership this week.  I think she would really enjoy the different equipment there.

Last night she started her new dance class.  She said she liked it, so hopefully she will be happy there.  There is only three more months of class before summer break, then she can choose a different class for the fall if she would like.

I am going to take Alex clothes shopping today and try to get through the school registration paperwork.  I am hoping to get her started in school toward the middle of next week.  That should give her plenty of time to adjust without giving her too much time to get used to not going to school.  She has already been out for a week, so I don't want to wait too long to enroll her.

And, of course, she now has a Facebook account.  I helped her send out friend requests to family and friends from church/neighborhood.  We will keep a close eye on her account and we have given her the warnings about not accepting friend requests if she doesn't actually know the person.

It is still an adjustment to realize that we are actually home.  I am very glad to be home, but at the same time, I really miss Ukraine.  We told Alex we would try to go back to visit the summer of 2012 but I honestly don't know if *I* can wait that long!