All Are Precious In His Sight

The Journey Continues…

2012-03-07T21:47:00.001-06:00

Whew, I’m now caught up to “real time”! There are two posts today (if you get this via email, there will be 2 posts in one email). So, here’s the continuation of the boys’ journey home…

Monday morning, March 5, my hubby and I decided the best course of action was to take the boys to Dell Children’s Hospital to have their labs drawn, urinalysis, and whatever else they felt necessary after meeting the boys. Our pediatrician and the hospital at Dell had both recommended outpatient services to meet the boys’ needs, but both boys simply were not eating or drinking sufficient amounts and were becoming more and more lethargic. We felt the best path for everyone would be to take the boys directly to the ER and go from there.

We were so grateful for our one full day at home with all of our kiddos together before having to pack up again to head to the hospital. I was able to get all of our suitcases unpacked, all of the laundry caught up, and felt a peace about leaving, knowing things were organized, and we’d had a chance to love on all our kiddos before heading back out for an indefinite amount of time. So, so, so glad we didn’t go straight to the hospital from the airport because I treasure that one day together as a family (Sunday).

When we got to Dell ER, it was C-R-O-W-D-E-D!!!!! We prayed for favor, and we received it when they called us back much more quickly than we anticipated. The ER doctor was so very compassionate and fabulous. He was educated in refeeding syndrome, which was our main concern.

The boys waited so patiently in their stroller. The ER doctor ordered blood work and a urinalysis on each boy. We were positive Conner would have tons of issues and Cooper would be just fine, so imagine our surprise when we were told that Cooper’s blood sugar (glucose) level was at 30 and Conner’s was at 58 (normal is 100-120; 30 is usually comatose/seizures/convulsions/profuse sweating). Cooper showed no signs, other than lethargy.

Needless to say, both boys were admitted without reservation for extreme malnutrition, dehydration, and further testing. After 9 hours in the ER, the boys were given separate rooms on the main floor (after Cooper’s blood sugar stabilized). Dell only has private rooms, so they required each boy to have their own private room. My sister came and stayed overnight with Conner while I stayed with Cooper. My husband went home late that night to stay with our kids at home.

Cooper had continued fluctuations with his glucose levels overnight, but by morning things stabilized once they figured out the correct rate and mixture of IV fluids, being mindful of refeeding syndrome with electrolyte changes occurring too rapidly. Conner did fine through the night.

Tuesday morning was a flurry of activity as MANY specialists got to work evaluating the boys. First, both boys had echocardiograms to check for any heart problems, which is common in people with Down syndrome.

In Ukraine, we had been told by the SDA (department of adoption) officials, as well as by the orphanage doctor, that Conner had two heart defects. We just didn’t know the severity or exactly what type of defects.

Imagine our utter elation to be told by the cardiologist that NEITHER BOY has a SINGLE HEART ISSUE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Abundant praise and glory to our Jehovah Rapha, who healed Conner’s heart. Glory be to the Lamb!!!!!! Someone left me a Facebook comment that they could just imagine our Princess Chrissie interceding with prayer for Conner’s heart to be healed so that we wouldn’t have to live through another open-heart surgery. We were prepared to do have Dr. Porisch and Dr. Kupferschmid (Chrissie’s heart docs) take care of Conner’s heart, but having Jehovah Rapha provide His healing is abundantly better than our earthly team of docs (whom we LOVE). Whatever gives God the most glory, we’re in. This positive (and shocking) report filled us with so much joy, elation, relief, and praise that words are simply not adequate.

Via Facebook, I asked for prayers that the hospital staff would allow both boys to share a room, as that would be better for all of us. By Tuesday afternoon, we’d received approval for both boys to share a bed for the day. Hallelujah!

Having both boys in the same room allowed my sister to go home and I was (am) able to attend to both boys since they’re together at all times. This is such a huge blessing and answer to prayer!

By Tuesday evening, many of the test results were back and we had more answers and more plans in place. Cooper has hypothyroidism (and has started meds for this), he’s anemic, and he’s hypoglycemic. The endocrinologist said she believes the hypoglycemia is due to severe malnutrition, which will slowly heal as Cooper begins to receive adequate nutrition, so we should see less fluctuations within a few months, with hopes this will disappear within a year or so.

Conner’s labs and all test results have SHOCKED us. God’s hand is all over this tiny boy. It looks like everything is fine with him, other than being severely malnourished!!!! Everyone is shocked by this because he’s so very tiny and fragile…literally just skin and bones. He’s been surviving on less than 300 calories per day, yet his organs are still functioning, he’s not anemic, and everything looks to be OK for him! As I said before, whatever God chooses to bring Himself the most glory, we’re all on board, and there is no other explanation for this glorious report than the hand of Jehovah Rapha. May He receive all the glory and praise for this miraculous report for Conner!

Both boys needed to have feeding tubes placed (NG tubes, inserted through the nose into the stomach to deliver liquid nutrition to the boys) in order to begin slowly healing from severe starvation and malnutrition over a 6 year span. The nurses got the NG tubes in both boys (not without a fuss!), but then both boys became overly OBSESSIVE with getting those tubes OUT of their noses.

Cooper’s IV infiltrated, so we had a minor catastrophe. (The IV went bad and the IV fluids went into his hand and arm instead of into his vein.) It took about an hour to get a new IV in, after many sticks and tries. Poor guy!

The fight against the NG tubes didn’t lessen, so we ended up having to re-tape all of Cooper’s tubing since he destroyed it with his plight to remove it. Conner pulled his tube out of his nose several inches several times, so the nurses decided both boys needed mitts securely fastened to their hands to help prevent the boys from pulling their NG tubes out. We had a constant battle on our hands for a few hours after the NG tubes were placed late Tuesday afternoon, but then the boys fell asleep for the night, in the same bed.

We were so grateful that the night nursing staff agreed to allow the boys to sleep this way the entire night.

Both boys slept soundly Tuesday night (well, Conner woke at 4AM when they did vitals and never went back to sleep, but he was quiet and content in the bed until 7AM). By morning, both boys were much more tolerant of their NG tubes, praise God!

The doctors and nurses have had a difficult time determining which boy is which, so we labeled the boys gowns clearly. Everyone says the boys look like twins. We don’t think they look anything alike, except that they both have brown eyes and Down syndrome.

Wednesday was a good day for the boys. They tolerated their new feeds well. They’re on a pediatric formula that is being introduced at a very slow rate. They started off receiving 5ml/hour, with instructions to increase the feeds every 24 hours, increasing in increments of 5ml per day, as long as their blood labs are good each day, not showing any signs of refeeding syndrome. So far, so good!

The boys had physical therapy Wednesday afternoon, and bless her heart, Conner’s PT accidentally pulled out his feeding tube…entirely. She was so sorry, but Conner was so excited!!! He stood up and laughed and came to life!!!

Cooper has been trained at the orphanage to pee and poop on the toilet, but he was also still in a diaper. Since being in the hospital, Cooper hasn’t been peeing or pooping…not in his diaper OR on the toilet. We’ve found that the only time he’ll pee is when he’s in a DEEP sleep, then he lets it all out, soaking through his regular diaper, with another larger diaper over it, plus saturating his entire bed. LOTS of urine!!!

Matt bought a potty seat for Cooper since the hospital doesn’t have any. I sat Cooper on it Wednesday afternoon, after he’d held his urine in for TWENTY HOURS!!! I requested prayer via Facebook, and shortly thereafter, Cooper did his thing. He was SO PROUD of himself when he PEED on the potty!!! YAY, Conner!

Cooper pulled out his feeding tube Wednesday night, but was cooperative when a new one was dropped (placed). Both boys are slowly gaining strength as their bodies are finally getting some nourishment.

Conner seemed like a total livewire Wednesday afternoon. He stood in his crib several times, reached out to people to hold him, laughed several times, and seems so much stronger than he was even Wednesday morning. He still has such a LONG way to go, but it’s so encouraging to see strength restored. He still won’t accept anything by mouth, but we don’t have to worry about forcing anything now since he has his feeding tube, which is such a relief for all of us.

Cooper is eating by mouth, but not enough calories or nutrition to restore him, which is why he has the feeding tube with nutritious continual feeds filling his belly.

The plan is that the boys will need to stay at the hospital until Monday, March 12, at the minimum. The boys must reach their feeding goals (set by the nutritionist and dietician), and since their tube feeds can only be increased at the slow/safe rate of 5ml’s per day, it will be a while until they reach their goal.

They also have to be monitored continuously for signs of refeeding syndrome, which can only be detected via blood work. That has to be caught early to avoid death, so the hospital won’t release the boys until they’re sure that they’re no longer at risk of refeeding syndrome.

Both boys will go home with NG feeding tubes for an undetermined amount of time. Matt and I must be trained in “dropping” (placing) the feeding tubes, as we’ll be responsible for this in our home. We’re still waiting on a few tests to come back on Cooper, but so far, everything looks good, other than his hypothyroidism, anemia, and hypoglycemia, and, of course, malnutrition on both boys. Everything seems very manageable, and our stay at the hospital has been filled with compassionate, wise caregivers. We feel so very blessed to be here, even though our preference would be to be HOME as a family. That will come soon, and for now, we are praising God for His mercies, which are new every morning.

Thank you for praying and encouraging us along this journey. We’re grateful for you.

First {and only} Day Home

2012-03-07T12:53:00.001-06:00

Our transition HOME…continued…

Since we got home around 11PM Saturday night, the boys didn’t go to bed until 2AM Sunday morning (March 4). They slept well in their new room (they share a room), but Conner woke at 6AM and wasn’t interested in sleeping. He “sang” (he’s started making humming sounds that resemble singing) for a while, then we brought him into our bed with us. He hung out in our bed (awake, singing, content) until 8AM, then we all got up and started our first day as a family.

Kiefer and Ella are infatuated with their new brothers. They spent the entire day carrying the boys around, trying to play with them, loving on them, giving them tons of attention. I continue to be overwhelmed with the love God has bestowed upon our family. It’s nothing we can take any credit for; it’s truly all God. Our kiddos just enjoy relationship. Every time God has delivered a new child to our family, He knits all of our children’s hearts together as friends and playmates, in a way that gives Him all the glory, as it’s most definitely not anything we are capable of creating.

I didn’t ask the kids to pose for these photos. This is what we were blessed with Sunday morning. Kids loving on their new siblings. All.Day.Long. Such a blessing!!!

We decided to get dressed after breakfast and take the boys outside to enjoy the gorgeous sunshiny Texas day. Conner’s so tiny that we couldn’t find any clothing that fit him properly. His waist is about a 6-month size, but his length is about an 18-month size, while his age is 6 years 7 months. So sad.

These pants are an 18-month pant with the waist adjusters cinched up as tightly as we could get them. We still could have fit two Conner’s into this pair of pants!!! The length was good, but the waist just swallowed him up!

As I was changing Conner’s clothes, one by one, the other kiddos started to gather around, trying to help, sharing hugs and kisses and love.

Kiefer (age 3) commented on how small Conner’s feet are. The smallest shoe we had was an infant size 4, which literally fell off his feet. We put the shoes on anyway, then Kiefer and Ella wanted to compare their feet sizes. Conner (age 6) is on the far left in the photo below, Kiefer (age 3) is in the middle, and Ella (age 7) is on the right.

We took the boys outside for some sunshine. They were so very lethargic, but still hung in there remarkably well.

Daddy started tickling Cooper and roughhousing with him (which Cooper LOVES), so I captured some smiles on camera.

We tried getting Conner to smile, but were unsuccessful. He was just so lethargic, he didn’t want to do anything but cuddle. Sweet boy.

Neither boy wanted to eat or drink Sunday. We were able to force enough fluids to sustain them, but felt that a visit to the hospital would be in place for the following day, Monday, March 5.

Mattie helped me bathe Conner Sunday night, and she was shocked to see how tiny he is without clothes.

Conner fell asleep in Mattie’s arms shortly after his bath, so we laid him down around 7:30PM. Cooper fell asleep in Mattie’s arms around 8:30PM. Both boys slept through the night, with Conner waking Monday (March 5) around 6AM again, ready to snuggle in Mommy and Daddy’s bed.

Then we developed a plan for the boys’ care…

…to be continued…

Traveling HOME…from Kiev to Austin!

2012-03-06T17:36:00.001-06:00

I’m going to enter a few blog posts soon to try to catch up on recent events that I didn’t have a chance to update in “real time”. Let me start with our trip home, from Kiev to Austin.

We were picked up at Tara’s apartment in Kiev at 4:45AM Saturday, March 3, and headed to the Kiev airport for our 7:20AM departure to begin our journey home.

Our facilitator found a driver with a van that had space for the boys to stay sitting in their double stroller, which worked perfectly. (They don’t have car seat regulations in Ukraine.) We arrived to the Kiev airport and didn’t have any problems getting checked in. We requested wheelchair assistance for the boys so that we wouldn’t be required to take them out of the double stroller. I HIGHLY recommend all traveling families with special needs kiddos (or even babies) request this service. You don’t have to use the wheelchair (you can use your stroller), but you’ll be assigned an associate who will escort you through special lines, avoiding stairs (following the wheelchair paths), which is such a blessing.

The boys were quiet and cooperative for our first flight, which made things so much easier on everyone. I had given both boys some Benadryl to help ease their transition anxiety, but it had NO effect on the boys. They’re used to heavy narcotics at the orphanage for 6 years, so the Benadryl literally had zero effect, but the boys did well regardless.

Bye-bye Ukraine!

Conner didn’t sleep a wink on the first flight, and Cooper slept for about 10-15 minutes.

We routed through Vienna, Austria, this time. We got into the airport via the awesome wheelchair assistance program, feeling very grateful for this service. A special handicap access van picked us up on the ground (everyone else loaded onto a bus for transport into the airport), and drove us directly to our exact gate location.

We stopped at the first coffee shop for a cinnamon roll, and while standing in line, I heard someone say, “LORRAINE PATTERSON!!!!” I looked around and saw 2 women waving, who I didn’t recognize. I asked who they were and the first mom said, “Shelly Burman”, and then I totally knew who that was! It was Carrington’s mom, who was also adopted from Ukraine March 2011, and spent 5 weeks in a Texas hospital upon her arrival home. (Carrington (with Down syndrome) was 3 at the time of adoption and weighed 11 pounds.) Shelly was traveling with another Reece’s Rainbow mom, Jenny Sousa Brown, who is momma to 17 kiddos (at home). Both moms are adopting multiple special needs children from that horrid orphanage in Bulgaria who I urged you all to donate toward medical care for the children there. What a crazy God arrangement to have these precious women just happen to be walking by the same café in Vienna, Austria, at the exact time that we were standing there!!! These women (and Shelly’s daughter) were on their way to Bulgaria to meet their newest children for the very first time!

The next flight was from Vienna to Washington DC, a 10 hour flight. Neither boy slept on this long flight, even with the arsenal of meds the doctors in Kiev recommended. It’s really hard to compete with narcotics, so nothing that I had in my possession even touched the kids. At.All. Conner was quiet and content (extremely lethargic), and Cooper did well, for the most part, although he was much more restless and vocal. Neither boy wanted to eat or drink anything, so that was stressful for all of us because we knew they were dehydrated.

About halfway through the flight, Cooper began holding his head and fussing. We figured he had a headache from dehydration. I felt his heart and he had a CRAZY fast heartbeat (tachycardia). It continued to race wildly, so I started blowing in his face to try to break the pattern, hoping he’d gasp for air. This is what caused my mom to die unexpectedly Dec. 23, 2011. Tachycardia can also be a sign of refeeding syndrome.

Cooper started sweating profusely, so I took off his blanket sleeper. He was moaning and crying and fussing, very loudly. He refused the pureed baby foods I brought with me, refused water, and was inconsolable. We asked the flight attendant to bring us a real glass filled with milk because that’s what the boys were accustomed to drinking from (real glasses) at the orphanage. It took a while for the flight attendant to bring it, so that was a super stressful time, but once we got the glass of milk, Cooper CHUGGED it more quickly than I’ve ever seen him drink. Shortly after that, his heart rate began to slow down, and he stopped sweating profusely. Within 30 minutes, he was back to normal. (In hindsight, now that we’re at the hospital in Austin and have discovered Cooper’s issues with hypoglycemia (glucose levels of 30 when normal is 100-120), that Cooper probably had glucose levels in the teens during this scary episode on the plane.) Praise God for keeping Cooper alive!!!

You can see the sweat on Cooper’s head in the photo above. I took that picture after we’d gotten everything under control. We left his blanket sleeper off for the rest of the plane ride. Cooper sat in his seat, surrounded by pillows, watching the iPad like a king.

Cooper fell asleep for a few minutes while sitting up, resting his chin on the pull out table/tray. We couldn’t believe that neither boy slept on this 10 hour flight!!! We pushed fluids (using the real glass with milk) to keep the boys hydrated, but we could see that both boys were totally dehydrated, despite our best efforts.

We oh-so-gratefully arrived in Washington DC, and had to resist the urge to literally kiss the ground, thanking God for setting us on American soil!!! We were greeted by a very kind wheelchair assistant, who told us that if one of us would sit in his wheelchair, while the other pushed the stroller, he could get us through customs with no wait! Matt hopped in the wheelchair and strolled to a special customs agent (the one normally reserved for airline crew) with no wait. It took all of 5 minutes to get through customs! The officer took Conner’s and Cooper’s sealed Embassy paperwork, opened it, stamped things, kept the paperwork, welcomed the boys to America, and sent us on our way. Beautiful welcome to America!!! Land of the free! God bless America, oh how grateful we are for thee!!!

We bought the boys some Washington DC shirts, changed them into cotton PJ’s (still hoping these boys were going to sleep the rest of the flight/travel and hop into bed once we got home). We found a family restroom to change the boys, and I just want to cry every single time I see precious Conner without clothes to camouflage his skin and bones.

Once on American soil, our boys were doted with attention, smiles, greetings, and love, so much so that it became amusing to us. We couldn’t walk 2 feet with the boys without someone making a comment about how precious the boys were. Total strangers were coming up to us to ask if our boys were twins, telling us how precious they were, asking for their story, and on and one. What a stark contrast to what we experienced in Ukraine once we had the boys in our custody. We didn’t really recognize the difference in treatment from strangers until we hit American soil. Night and day. Our hearts were beaming with sunshine to experience such love and acceptance in America, yet grieved by the rejection and horrible stares we received repeatedly while in Ukraine. Lord, please open the eyes and hearts and minds of all the countries and people who do not know, understand, or believe that ALL children are a blessing of the Lord, a reward from Him. Blessed is the man whose quiver is full. ALL are precious in His sight.

Since the boys hadn’t slept in about 20 hours, they finally sacked out in the double stroller, just before we boarded our last flight.

Matt sat down in his plane seat, holding Cooper, who stayed asleep, and within minutes, Matt exclaimed, “HE’S PEEING ON ME!!!”

Cooper had held his urine for so long (this is a pattern now) that when he finally fell into deep sleep, he let his urine out and SOAKED completely through his diaper and ALL OVER Matt, to the point that urine was dripping off Cooper as Matt held him out, away from Matt’s body. Fortunately, we had a change of clothes for Cooper; unfortunately, we didn’t have a change of clothes for Matt.

Fortunately, both boys slept the entire plane ride from DC to Austin (4 hours)…and…fortunately, Matt and I did, too!!!

Look how teeny tiny Conner is. Here he is curled up in the airplane seat. A 6 (almost 7) year old should not be able to fit this comfortably, with room to spare, curled up in a small airplane seat.

Upon our arrival at the Austin airport, we were surprised by a greeting from our sweet adoptive friends, Mark and Whitney Allen, along with a photographer with the San Antonio Express News, Lisa. Lisa has documented all of the Haitian adoptions from the orphanage where our Naomi came from. We’ve always requested low-key airport welcome home’s, respectfully asking friends and family to wait and greet our kiddos once they’re settled in and bonded with our family, but it was a sweet surprise to see Mark and Whitney waiting for us with huge smiles, while Lisa (the photographer) documented the first Welcome Home for the boys.

My sister and her family greeted us as well (and they delivered our vehicle to us so we could drive home). Lisa (the photographer) asked if she could come to our house to document the boys’ firsts there as well. We agreed, and I can’t wait to see her photos. She emailed me just a few of them, but her photography is so candid, I’m grateful to have these moments documented by such a talented photographer.

Lisa stayed until 2AMish, photographing all of the children meeting their siblings, first feedings at home, brushing teeth, and bedtime. Our kids were delighted to love on their new brothers, even though it was so very late when we got home. Kiefer (our 3-year-old) stayed up until 2AM as well; he just couldn’t stand to go to sleep before the boys. He was such a big helper, entertaining his new brothers, helping feed them, carrying them around like he’d gotten a new puppy. The depth of joy and love that God gives our children for their siblings touches my heart so deeply that words cannot begin to describe how I feel to witness such genuine love, a love that comes fully from Him, unlike any love we can produce ourselves.

We love because He first loved us. Praising Him for loving us, choosing us, adopting us. Grateful for the opportunities He’s given us to extend a similar love and adoption to those kiddos He’s chosen for us. Praising Him for all things.

…more to come soon (hopefully)…first day home…hospital update…stay tuned

At the hospital

2012-03-06T00:36:00.001-06:00

I'm emailing a quick update from my phone to let you all know that Cooper and Conner were both admitted to Dell Children's hospital today.

Cooper had a blood sugar (glucose) level of 30!!! That is normally a comatose level, but Cooper was awake, alert, interactive...pretty much his normal self. He had some other issues with his blood work, indicating the need for endocrinology to run a battery of tests. Won't have all of those results for a few days because some of the tests had to be sent out since the hospital lab couldn't analyze some of the tests.

Cooper is our healthier of the two boys, so this was quite a surprise to us!

Even more surprising is that Conner's blood work appears to be fine!!! He's our tiny, frail lil guy who we were sure would be the one to be admitted (and he is), but, according to his lab work, he's in much better shape than Cooper!!!

A variety of specialists will begin assessing the boys during the day shift today (Tuesday) to address the variety of issues and figure out what all is going on with each boy.

Thank you all for praying. We'd love for this to be a speedy process so we can get home and bond as a family. Grateful for American medical care, grateful for understanding and compassionate doctors and nurses, grateful God has sustained these boys and granted us the privilege to be their parents.

Sent from Lorraine's iPhone

Heading to Hospital

2012-03-05T12:03:00.000-06:00

We arrived into Austin late Saturday night, and, based upon advice from our pediatrician's consult with Dell Children's Hospital, we decided to go home instead of going straight to the hospital.

We decided today that it would be best to visit Dell ER to get labs, urinalysis, etc. on both boys, so we're currently driving there.

Please pray for educated staff (in refeeding syndrome), for wisdom with all specialists, and proper and compassionate care.

We're so grateful we were able to spend a day with all of our kids at home yesterday. Both boys have done well, just very lethargic and most likely dehydrated. Eating tiny amount of puréed baby cereal and that's it.

I'll try to update later. Thanks for praying.

God Bless America!

2012-03-04T02:59:00.000-06:00

We are HOME!!!!! It's almost 3AM, and after 24+ hours of travel without rest, I'm exhausted!

At the advice from Dell Children's Hospital, as well as our pediatrician, we will wait until Monday morning to have blood labs on Cooper and Conner to determine if they need to be hospitalized or if out-patient care can be given.

For now, we are praising God that both boys are hydrated and doing well. We're most grateful to have our entire family together again!!!

Thank you all for your prayers, encouragement, and support! I'll keep updating the blog as things develop. So grateful for all of you!

Pictures of Redemption

2012-03-03T13:27:00.001-06:00

Redemption! What an amazing feeling to have our two newest treasures FREE from captivity, in our arms, on the path to help and healing!!! As we are flying home with two tiny boys, who shouldn't be the size of infants when they're almost 7 YEARS old, I wanted to share with you precious photos of redemption. Many of these children (photos below) are from Ukraine, many have Down syndrome. I have no doubt that Conner and Cooper both will follow in the footsteps of what you see below, with all glory to God, our Jehovah Rapha.

I’m pleased to share with you today my friend, Adeye’s, recent blog post (with her permission). Click HERE to see the original post on Adeye’s blog. Here is the cut/paste version of Adeye’s post:

From Adeye: I am so excited to share today's post with you.
For the last week I have been bringing to your attention a situation which, very sadly, is not spoken of very often--a situation which, I'm sure, has broken your hearts as much as it breaks mine each and every time a dire situation such as one of these is brought to my attention. Sometimes there truly are no words. The pictures are terribly hard to look at! The images leave us feeling so desperate to do something--anything--to help. Very soon I will share ways that you and I can do just that...do something!

But today is a different kind of post. Today I want to show you all what redemption looks like for children such as these...the ones abandoned in the back room of an orphanage, the ones forgotten about, the ones not worth feeding, the ones living in dire poverty, the ones with no value, the ones no one wants.....
The least of the least of these!

If a picture is worth a thousand words...
These are worth a million!

This is Dusty. Adopted from the same orphanage as our girls just nine months ago--weighing just 20 pounds when he came home and was admitted straight into hospital for malnutrition.
Today, only ten months later, Dusty weighs over 30 pounds! I have been so blessed to meet Dusty in person, and to watch him develop and grow. He is a little miracle boy for sure.

Meet sweet Gabe. Home for just eight months! Weighing just 21 pounds at six years old when adopted. He was left in a crib his entire life. He only took his food pureed from a bottle, hated touch, and could hardly sit up on his own. Weak and malnourished, he needed to be rescued!
Today...a healthy, blossoming, growing boy who loves life!

And beautiful Carrington. Adopted in March 2011 and taken directly from the airport to the hospital. Carrington was nothing but skin and bones--weighing only ten pounds when she came home. Doctors told the family that Carrington's organs had already started shutting down and she had just 24 hours of life left in her.
But God...! Just look what He did! Today, almost one year after coming home, Carrington is healthy and thriving--weighing in at 27 pounds. Glory to God in the highest! Another little miracle.

And darling little Belle. Adopted at almost three years old and weighing only 15 pounds. Belle knew nothing but a life confined to a crib...until her family heard the call and said, "Here we are, Lord! Send us!"
Today...just 13 months later she is a happy, healthy little toddler who weighs 26 pounds.

I know that so many of you followed Katie's amazing journey home. Sweet, little, teeny-tiny Katie. Rescued just three months ago--hanging on by a thread in a faraway orphanage. God had big plans for this angel! Katie also went straight from the airport to the hospital--weighing a measly 10 pounds 9 ounces at nine years old!

Oh, but just LOOK what a difference family makes!

Today...Katie is doing incredibly well. She is a healthy weight for her height and is growing before her family's eyes. She now weighs nearly 23 pounds! What an absolute JOY Katie is to her family!

Ah, handsome boy! Rescued from Africa two years ago--weighing 15 pounds at five years old-- having seizures, asthma attacks, aspirating on his food, and with zero hope! He received no medical care and was in terrible shape--living on borrowed time, bedridden. But God had plans for this lovie too...and He sent a very special family to rescue him.
Today...seven years old and doing so, so well. Weighing 43 pounds, he is the light of his parents lives! Redemption.

Meet beautiful Kori. Adopted at almost eight years old and weighing in at a mere 16 pounds! Lifeless, sad, circles under her eyes, and in very poor condition. But God could not leave her like that...He knew that her life had purpose and a destiny. And so He reached down from heaven and gave her a miracle....a family to call her own.
Today...a picture of health! Healthy, happy and growing in every way. Adorable!

This little lovie is Victoria. Adopted only eight months ago. She was tiny, desperately unhappy, and painfully thin. Also confined to a crib and literally starved. Victoria was another little one who spent her first weeks on U.S soil being treated for malnutrition in the hospital. She only weighed 14 pounds.
Today....what a huge difference! Victoria now weighs 26 pounds and hardly even looks like the same child. There is a light in her eyes and she knows she belongs.

Oh, my sweet, sweet Julia! How I love this little angel. Julia was the first child I ever advocated for here on my blog. I met Julia in Hailee's laying room in Ukraine. Each day I would go into the room and cry tears as Julia smiled at me through the bars of her crib--lying in a puddle of urine, unable to even sit up, wasting away, languishing. You can read Julia's story here. Diagnosed with a very rare disorder, she needed to be rescued!
Today...Julia has been home for 10 months. I have been so blessed to watch this little girl--left lying in a crib 24/7--blossom and grow into all who God has created her to be. She has gone from a 15-pound little girl who was so malnourished, to a 30-pound beauty in such a short space of time. Julia has astounded us all with how far she has come.

This precious young man is Judd. Adopted from the same orphanage where my friend, Julia, adopted their Aaron from. You only have to read Julia's testimony to know what life was like for this boy for so many years. Awful! Judd was so full of sores and scars when his parents got to him...
Today...all gone! He is healing in every way, is healthy, and is such a delighful little boy. Redemption has come to him too.

And then there's one of my best friend's daughter, Lily. I remember standing in the airport just 18 months ago waiting to see Lily come home. Lily was born with a very complicated and life threatening heart condition. She was given very little hope of survival in her birth country. By the time Rachel and Chris reached Lily, she was blue from lack of oxygen and hanging on for dear life. She too was admitted into the hospital as soon as she got home.

Lily is a walking miracle. She has amazed us all with how far she has come. Her heart condition is still very serious, but Lily has been given the best of care from top heart doctors and she is finally at a point in her growth and health where open heart surgery can be done. I know her family would greatly appreciate your prayers as they journey toward Lily's heart surgery soon.
How well she has done!

And finally, there's our own miracle girl. Adopted 21 months ago. Hailee weighed 14 pounds the day I finally got to her in the orphanage. She was almost five years old. She spent her entire life in a crib--rocking endlessly, biting her fingers, hitting her head on the bars of the crib until the sores bled, grinding her teeth until all that remained were stumps, drugged with an adult tranquilizer to make her sleep, and was fed a diet of only broth. Hailee lived in what's known as a "laying room"--a place for the neediest of special-needs children.

Words cannot even describe what a blessing this little lovie has been to our family. As she heads toward her seventh birthday, she is now weighing 27 pounds and is doing well. She is learning, growing, and making us smile each and every day.

People often comment on how fortunate Hailee was to be rescued. And yes, she was, for she would surely have died if they had transferred her to a mental institution around her fifth birthday. But the greatest blessing of all has been for US, her family. We simply cannot imagine life without Hailee in it.

And so I ask you...is anything impossible for the Lord God Almighty? Anything at all? Is there any life which He cannot redeem and turn into something so wonderful, so glorious?
No!

I believe that every single child deserves a family to call their own! Even the ones such as these--the ones so often hidden away in dark places and forgotten about. Each one of these children's lives displays the Father's glory--His ability to reach down from heaven and redeem. His miracle-working power in their lives is so tangible, so absolutely magnificent.

HE IS MIGHTY TO SAVE THE ORPHAN!

Blessings!!!

2012-03-02T13:47:00.001-06:00

So many wonderful blessings today! Conner woke this morning with a full wet diaper (praise God), and he was also HUNGRY and THIRSTY!!! Conner moaned and sang and crawled around for a while after waking, then crawled over to the high chair (when he saw Baby E getting ready to eat) and expressed that he was ready to EAT. Conner shocked us all as he eagerly ate a full bowl of finely pureed and watered down oatmeal with mashed banana and milk. Then he saw Tara with a glass of milk, and he squawked and squawked, showing us he wanted some, too. So, Conner drank a large glass of milk.

He wanted more of everything, but I was so concerned about refeeding syndrome (as well as Conner vomiting!), we only allowed water for a couple of hours after his big, huge meal. Conner ended up with a belly ache after filling that tiny, shriveled, empty tummy so full, then he crashed out next to Matt on the couch. All of this happened before Cooper even woke up for the day!

Matt moved Conner to his tent bed, but he cried, so he laid down with him on the big bed, where Conner slept soundly, comforted by his Daddy.

Then I woke Cooper up, fed him breakfast (same thing as Conner), and then we all got ready to go to the US Embassy for our appointment. We were picked up at 12:30PM, stopped by the medical examination office to pick up our sealed medical reports, then headed over to the US Embassy. We were concerned we wouldn’t make it there in time to get our visas because traffic was so bad. Our appointment was at 2PM, but we didn’t arrive until 2:30PM.

But, it all worked out just fine, praise God. After getting approval through security to proceed into the Embassy, we opened the doors to the visa and immigration office to hear a family say, “Oh, look, it’s Cooper and Conner!” We were a bit surprised, but then this mom said she’s following us on Facebook, and she and her family were adopting a girl they’d hosted this past summer. There was also an American man adopting a boy that he and his wife had hosted this past summer as well. This boy reminded me SO MUCH of Vlad…same age, same hair/eye color, same mannerisms…he really looked and acted like Vlad’s twin. It felt a bit bittersweet to watch this boy in action, as he reminded us so much of Vlad. In fact, I saw this boy at the medical examination office yesterday, and this boy ran up to me and said, “Hello” in English, with confidence. I actually thought he was Vlad at first glance, but didn’t get a chance to talk to the boy because we had to go. Matt met us in the parking lot yesterday at the medical office, and he commented that he saw a boy who looked like Vlad. Then we run into this boy at the Embassy. Just sort of strange. Wonder what God’s up to with that?!?!

Anyway, things were easy-peezy at the Embassy. Out of all of our international adoptions, this was BY FAR the best and easiest Embassy visit. They had me sign papers that technically should have been signed yesterday when Matt went for the first visit, then they told us to wait up to an hour for the visas to be put into the boys’ passports. 25 minutes later, the visas were ready and we were leaving the Embassy! HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!! All glory to God, as this timing is truly a miracle with all of the complications and delays in Kremenchuk with the passports!

This photo shows the new American Embassy in Kiev (the big building behind Matt).

Our facilitator and her husband gave the boys traditional Ukrainian shirts as a special gift for them to remember their country. I was SO excited to receive these because I REALLY wanted to buy some for the boys, but hadn’t had a chance to get them. THANK YOU, NINA AND DENIS!!!

We were praising Jesus for this day, for all He’s brought us through, for choosing us to be the parents of these precious boys, for sustaining these boys and giving them life, for Conner’s increased appetite today, for delivering the boys’ passports and visas, and for getting us on a plane to Texas Saturday. Conner and Cooper may not realize the value of those little blue books, but we sure do!!!

Then Baby E (Tara and Jonathon’s baby) joined our boys for the photo festivities, adorned in her traditional Ukrainian dress and floral headpiece. Such precious treasures who gave us many laughs as we tried to photograph the 3 of them!!!

We’re SOOOOOOOOOOOO excited to be going to Texas tomorrow (Saturday). Please pray for safe, easy travel, that the boys would be content (and quiet) travelers, that the boys’ health would be stable, and that we would not have any delays or issues. Our pediatrician is working with the hospitalist at Dell Children’s Hospital to develop the best care plan for the boys. We are waiting to hear back from him (should know something within a few hours), but right now, we’re getting packed up and ready for bed. We’re getting picked up at 4:45AM, so we’re going to try to snooze some before our big day (24 hours) of travel.

Thank you all for your prayers, encouragement, and support. We’re so grateful for you!!!

From Kremenchuk to Kiev…to Austin!!!

2012-03-01T13:55:00.001-06:00

Wednesday, February 29—Leap Day—, we eagerly packed our belongings and waited for our “mini-bus” (Ukrainian for mini-van, a rare vehicle in Ukraine) to pick us up to take us to the boys’ orphanage so we could spring them out of that place and into forever freedom!

Matt’s shirt was very fitting for the day…James 1:27, LIVE IT! (We purchased this shirt from my friend, Shelley, who sold these as a fundraiser for her most recent adoption.)

Our wonderful driver, Sasha, who has become a trusted friend to us while in Kremenchuk, came to the hotel to tell us goodbye. He arranged for a friend of his to drive us to Kiev in his mini-bus (mini-van).

We climbed in the mini-bus, with plenty of space to spare, waiting to fill two more seats with our precious new sons.

We arrived at the orphanage around 2PMish and went straight to our boys’ groupa/room. The caregivers had kept them up from nap time, with anticipation of our arrival. The caregivers removed the orphanage clothing from our boys, and quickly dressed them in the clothing we brought for them.

With tears in their eyes, the caregivers hugged us and kissed us and thanked us for adopting Conner and Cooper. We thanked them for loving our boys, and we left a new vacuum cleaner for the groupa/room, as their old one had broken. This was the caregivers’ main request when we inquired about what we could do for them. One of the caregivers bowed on her knees and kissed the ground when we left the vacuum cleaner. The two caregivers are very kind. They were so thankful they were able to tell Conner and Cooper goodbye, then they hugged us again and cried as we exited. (Summer, if you’re reading this, they told us to tell you hello and to give Gavin their love!)

We went to the orphanage secretary to sign required final paperwork to take custody of the boys. She asked us to email photos of the boys, and she also presented us with the boys’ baptismal certificates and small crosses they’d been given when they were baptized. (We had no idea they’d been baptized here.)

We got the boys into the mini-bus and began the journey to Kiev. They don’t use care seats here, but both boys traveled extremely well. Neither one got car sick. Yippee!

We drove through McDonald’s (for Matt and me because the boys can’t have new foods yet due to the deadly risk of re-feeding syndrome). Matt and I were so hungry by this time. One day we’ll be able to feed our boys anything and everything. Hopefully soon!

Staring out the window at FREEDOM!!!

Conner only slept about 20 minutes total of the 4-hour trip, but he was a very content traveler. He just sat in my lap or stretched out over me most of the ride.

Beautiful sunset, beautiful boy.

Cooper was all over the place!!! Thank God for the iPad!!!!! He watched movies 95% of the ride, which helped him with his spider monkey tendencies!!! He’s like a bouncing ball…everywhere!!!

So precious. Cooper loves his Daddy.

We were greeted by our friends in Kiev: Tara and her baby E (her hubby was resting), who welcomed us (again) into their amazing apartment. Tara purchased food for the boys and had everything all organized for us. Such an awesome provision from our Lord.

We used the double stroller to contain the boys, as their apartment isn’t quite baby-proof yet. Cooper and Conner LOVED sitting in front of the TV, watching a channel called Baby TV.

The boys had their first real baths (they only get wiped down at the orphanage). Conner wasn’t quite sure of it, but Cooper LOVED it. He splashed crazily and got all of us covered in water.

Then, Matt noticed something brown floating in the water.

Oh, no! Tell me it isn’t! Conner, come with me, quickly!!!

Sometimes you just have to laugh. Yep, it sure was…POOP! From Cooper. Over and over and over again. Poop, more poop, and more poop. My precious husband just asked us to take care of Conner so he could take care of the poop. Over and over and over again. He didn’t even allow me to switch jobs when I offered. Gotta love that man!!!

So, we (Tara and I) laid Conner on the bed to lotion him up, only to discover this is what Conner looks like when lying down.

Break my heart. This boy is TINY, just skin and bones. He desperately needs medical intervention and prayers. He refuses to eat/drink…not even water. Nothing, no matter how delicious it is, absolutely nothing by mouth! No bottle, cup, straw, spoon…nothing. Conner doesn’t know how to chew, so everything has to be pureed, but even straight yogurt with no chunks makes him totally gag. He refuses to swallow, to the point of tears, along with gagging and tantruming. (See more at the end of this post on this issue.)

Here’s a picture of Cooper’s club feet, which we’re really sad to see all of the bruises/scars on. Looking forward to seeing God’s leading on having Cooper’s feet repaired in Texas. Once they’re repaired, we have no doubt Cooper will be running all over the place!

The boys went to bed their first night out of the orphanage without a peep, and they both slept GREAT in their PeaPod tent beds (thanks to the 2 moms who gave us these…they’re AWESOME!).

Matt and I stayed up late completing forms for the US Embassy interview. Our awesome facilitator had everything printed out and organized for us, we just had to fill in all the answers/info. There were at least 50 pieces of paper, probably more, because we’re adopting 2 boys, non-related.

The boys slept until 8AM Thursday, without waking in the night. Hallelujah! We’ve been amazed to see how well they’re transitioning into family life. We got them dressed into real clothes immediately because the thought of letting them linger in pajamas made me nauseated, since that’s all they’ve ever known…never changing out of their pajamas, lying in a crib 24/7.

Look how Cooper sits!!! He also sleeps like this, only prone, with his feet pulled up beside his body. Looks crazy painful to me, but it’s his favorite position!

Cooper allowed us to feed him breakfast (baby oatmeal with pureed banana), but Conner refused to eat or drink anything. Matt headed off to the US Embassy for our first appointment/interview, so Nina (our facilitator) helped me take the boys to their required medical exam. Both boys did great during their exams, and no problems/issues (such as TB) were found that would keep them from entering the US. Praise God!

After the medical visit, we went back to Tara’s apartment and never left for the rest of the day/night because we spent the entire day and night trying to figure out how to best meet Conner’s needs. With the concern that he could die from dehydration, but could also die from refeeding syndrome if we forced Pedialyte and/or other carbs/foods/sugars into his system, we had to figure out what the best approach to keeping him hydrated would be.

It’s a very scary balancing act on our part because of the huge risk he has for death due to refeeding syndrome. It’s very important that he not have any change in his diet, with extra precautions not to increase his caloric intake, carbohydrate/sugar intake, or nutrient intake. He cannot have IV fluids or a feeding tube (wouldn’t want to attempt getting that in Ukraine anyway) because the sudden change in electrolytes can cause death.

Refeeding syndrome is very serious, and even in hospital settings, if the staff don’t know what they’re doing, the patient can suddenly die due to heart failure (or a host of other things that come on suddenly, even in a hospital setting). It’s been really hard to get accurate information because so many people have been told different things and recommend different things.

Our excellent, not-your-average pediatrician (whom we adore and fully trust) did a lot of research and collaboration with a team at Dell Children’s Hospital in Austin (which would be our closest hospital) regarding Conner’s risk for refeeding syndrome. (Actually both boys are at risk, but Conner is super high risk due to his heart condition and the fact that he’s about 7-10 pounds lighter than Cooper.) We were told to not give Pedialyte or push foods if Conner doesn’t want to eat because that could kill him before we can get him home. It would be better for Conner not to eat if he doesn’t want to (as long as we can keep him hydrated with water) because if we change his diet, his caloric intake, his carb intake, sugar intake, nutrient intake, he could suddenly die, most likely of heart failure.

Conner already has a heart defect, so he’s at extra-high risk. After many hours of prayer and research and collaboration with other moms who have been through this (particularly Katie’s mom, whose case is similar to Conner’s, though Conner isn’t as severe as Katie was), we’ve decided to stick with the advice of our pediatrician, which coincides with what Katie’s team of doctors recommended for her trip home.

We will offer Conner the same foods that he was fed at the orphanage, in the same quantity, by the same method, at the same times. If he refuses food/liquids by mouth, we will force 3ml water via syringe into Conner, every hour. (This is tricky because we have to physically restrain him, squeeze his cheeks, put the syringe of water as far back in his throat as we can get it, then blow in his face while squeezing his cheeks until he swallows it.) Conner didn’t have any urine output for the day, until around 6PM when he finally had a big ole wet diaper, praise God!

We booked our tickets to fly home Saturday, arriving into Austin at 9:15PM!!!!!!!!!!!! HALLELUJAH!!!!!!!!!!!!!! We booked them with faith that the boys’ visas WILL be ready tomorrow (Friday) at 2PM. Please keep all of us in your prayers, especially Conner. We are praising our Abba Father for getting us this far, praising Him in the storm, praising Him in the rainbows, praising Him in all things, at all times. Thank you, Father!

Prayer Needed

2012-03-01T06:11:00.000-06:00

I haven't had time to update the blog, so I'm emailing this quick update from my phone. We made it to Kiev, passports were ready this morning (PRAISE HIM!!!), we had our first US Embassy appointment, completed the medical exams, and everything is on track for the boys visas to be ready for pick-up Friday afternoon so we can go home Saturday!!!!!

Conner (age 6 years 7 months) is in pretty sad shape (see photo). He is so tiny, skin and bones. He is refusing all food and liquids. He won't drink from a straw, cup, sippy, or bottle. We're using a syringe to force water down his throat. Please pray that he'll hang in there and we can get home Saturday to get him medical help. He's happy, just won't eat or drink. :-(

I'll give a more detailed update with more pics when I have a chance. Thanks for praying!

…In the Arms of an Angel…

2012-02-29T13:00:00.000-06:00

Adopting Conner and seeing first-hand the condition he’s in (he’s so much tinier and more fragile than Cooper) has really opened our eyes to a new level.

You know that really sad SPCA pet advocacy commercial with the song “…in the arms of an angel…” playing in the background? You know, the one that shows all those sad pet faces, many locked in cages? The one that makes you want to stop everything, sell all your belongings, and donate your savings to save a pet today?

Well, this is that post for orphans in a particular orphanage in Bulgaria. I don’t have the sad song playing in the background, but you can just imagine it.

The pictures tell the same story that those sad pet pictures tell in the SPCA commercial, only those sad pets are treated like royalty compared to these children.

I’m not exaggerating. Look at the photos yourself. I’ve seen this first-hand. We’re springing a child from his orphanage today who is in the same shoes as many of the children in the photos below.

This is reality, folks, like it or not.

But today, you have a chance to do something!!! Just like we want to respond with immediate help when we see that sad SPCA commercial, instead of changing the channel or flipping to the next blog, DO SOMETHING.

Here’s your chance. Please click HERE to see this post on the author’s blog. My friend, Shelley, gave me permission to copy and paste her post here. Shelley is the woman who helped us adopt Chrissie, so she holds a very dear place in my heart. Shelley is also an amazing orphan advocate and adoptive mom who has put together a way for you to make a difference today in the lives of these poor mistreated, neglected, abused children.

I pray you’ll read this post in its entirety and be moved to action today. Let the Church arise! We have the opportunity to donate and help place these children…in the arms of an angel!

Here’s Shelley’s post, copied and pasted with her permission:

Help provide medical care to orphans

At the age of 9 years and 7 months, Katie weighed 10.5 pounds.

When she was admitted to the hospital, testing found that she suffered from Severe protein-energy malnutrition with related severe anemia, severe osteoporosis, multiple spinal compression fractures; scurvy; atrophic skin.

What caused these condition?

For 9 years and 7 months, Katie had lived in an orphanage in Pleven, Bulgaria where she was systematically and purposefully starved to keep her small, weak and unable to do anything but lie in her own urine and feces. She was fed only liquid, a mixture that contained very little sustenance. The liquid was fed to her out of a glass beer bottle that had a huge nipple on top so that the liquid could be forcibly shoved down her throat.

When Katie’s mama arrived at the orphanage to adopt her, she was allowed to hold Katie and feed her. However, the reality for the TWO HUNDRED AND FORTY other children that live in this orphanage is that on a daily basis, they are all fed this liquid while lying flat on their backs in a crib. If they choke, the liquid runs down their mouths or into their lungs. They are not picked up and burped. They aren’t even sat up so that they can eat properly. The children are in such weak and poor conditions, that they don’t have the strength to sit up when they are choking.

As a result, children DIE because they drown in this liquid that is aspirated into their lungs or are suffocated by the vomit that refluxes back into their mouth that they are unable to clear from their throats themselves due to their weakened condition.

Just this week, while the steps were being taken for this blog post to be publicized, another child from the orphanage in Pleven died.

These are not assumptions on my part,
these are the cold hard FACTS of life in this orphanage
and they have been recently legally documented and reported to the Bulgarian government.

Katie is now home in the United States with her family and she’s receiving proper medical care.

However,

There are 240 other children in that orphanage that still need help. The Bulgarian government has been made aware of what is happening at this orphanage and an investigation has been launched. Official documents have been filed and action is being taken throughout different branches of the Bulgarian government as I write this.

While the government works on the legal side of holding those in charge responsible, something must be done to help the children.

Pro. Lilova, head of the pediatric team at Tokuda Hospital in Sofia, Bulgaria provided medical care for Katie, so that she could make it safely home to the US and to a hospital here. As a result of seeing Katie’s condition, Pro. Lilova has volunteered her services FREE OF CHARGE to provide medical care for the remaining children in Pleven, starting with the ones in the worst conditions.

Three children are currently in the hospital receiving treatment from Pro. Lilova. (the faces of all orphans have been blurred to protect their identity). Here is what the testing has revealed so far:

On January 12th, 11 year old “V” weighed 12 pounds and is 29 inches long

“P” is 15 and a half years old. She weighs 18 pounds and is 34 inches long

Both girls are suffering from a multitude of health problems as a result of the starvation and dehydration that they’ve experienced their entire lives, including evidence of multiple broken bones that were left untreated over the years. They are already suffering from osteoporosis as children due to nutritional deficits.

There are MANY more children that need medical intervention, like little “K”, who is turning 5 years old in April. He lives in a room ALL ALONE because he’s been in “isolation” for 2 years now because he got sick as a baby. Those toys you see in his crib are because this photo was taken by the family in process to adopt him on their first visit with him

and 5 year old “L”, who has a kidney condition that has been left untreated and her body is beginning to swell from the excess fluid build up. Her little feet are so tiny that 3-6 month baby shoes fall off of them

I can’t show you the appalling photos of the rashes and scars that these children have from lying in their urine and feces. Many of them have their entire backside and groin areas covered in rashes and peeling skin. One visitor to the orphanage said that the children often lay on mattresses without sheets. If there is a sheet, it’s wet with the child’s urine and the child is forced to just lay in it all day. None of the children had blankets in their beds.

Here is an observation from one mother who visited her child there earlier this month. Her daughter is 5 years old, fits into a size 1 diaper and the 6-9 month clothes that were taken for her to wear are too big:
”She cannot sit at all. She can barely hold up her head. She has NO MUSCLE tone AT all. She can not even get her knees under her to try and get to her hands and knees but instead her legs just lay out to the side. I did see her role over one time. She hates the food that is fed in the bottles with the big nipples. She would toss it and then it would be stuffed back in her mouth. This would repeat over and over. I tried to hold her to feed her and the staff made me lay her down flat on her back. The food is a horrid smelling milky substance with this cottage cheese like pieces that come out with the liquid. They do not hold any of the children and do not burp them at all. They pick the children up by the arm and then lay them down the same. One boy was choking on the bottle and finally the worker picked him up and got his mouth and throat cleared. I wonder what would have happened had I not been in the room?”

Make no mistake, the child described above is not in this condition because of some type of special need or medical condition that prevents her from doing anything. She’s in this condition due to NEGLECT and STARVATION. While the majority of the children in this orphanage have some degree of special needs, it is NOT their special needs that have put them in such dire condition.

HOW CAN YOU HELP THE CHILDREN?????

Pro. Lilova has volunteered to travel from Sofia to Pleven to visit the children in the orphanage and to attempt to come up with some plan to provide the medical care that all of the children living there are in need of. While she can volunteer her services as a doctor, there are other expenses that are incurred in order for these children to receive medical care:
1.) Transportation costs to get the children from Pleven to the hospital in Sofia for medical testing and treatment
2.) Expenses to pay for an orphanage staff member to stay in Sofia while the children are hospitalized (this is required under Bulgarian law if the orphanage insists on sending someone and this orphanage has insisted that a staff member be present)
3.) Special formula and other nutritional feeding supplements so that the children can begin to be fed properly without the risk of re-feeding syndrome.

An account has been established in Bulgaria to hold donations specifically for the medical care for the children of Pleven. All expenses will be properly documented and all medical testing, findings, and treatment will be made a part of the child’s permanent medical file, should the child be adopted. There are currently at least 17 children from this orphanage that have families in various stages of the process to adopt them.

A fund has been established through Eli Project so that tax deductible donations can be made to the Pleven medical fund. ALL money donated will be sent directly to the account that is established in Bulgaria and the funds will be used for the transportation and medical expenses related to the care of the children.

If you’d like to donate toward the medical care of the children, you may do so from a direct bank draft or credit card via Paypal by using the chip in below. All donations are tax deductible in the US.

*None of the photos from this post may be copied or otherwise removed/used in any way without the expressed written consent of the blog owner. All the faces of children who are still legal orphans and residing in this orphanage have been blurred to protect their identity. The Ministry of Justice and the State Agency for Child Protection in Bulgaria are in the process of investigating what is happening to these children, now that they've been made aware. Legal channels have been followed to report the neglect and this fund is strictly to provide the much needed medical care that the children need NOW. The Bulgarian government is aware that medical care is being provided and all the medical reports will be available to them during the course of their investigation. All medical care provided with the use of these funds will be provided under the supervision of Prof. Lilova.*

Katie, who was mentioned in this blog, is now home and thriving with her family.

You can follow her journey on her mom’s blog, found here.

He Does All Things Well

2012-02-28T13:09:00.001-06:00

We received word today that both boys’ passports will be ready Thursday!!!! Praise Him; He does all things well!!! Our awesome facilitator has come up with a fabulous plan that will get us back to Texas Saturday!!!

Tomorrow (Wednesday) we will spring the boys from their orphanage forever!!! Yes, February 29, Leap Day, will be our official “Gotcha Day”! That seems very fitting for this adoption, since there have been so many unusual twists and turns, it seems very appropriate that Leap Day would be our Gotcha Day!!! This has definitely been a leap of faith!

We have our adoption interview with the US Embassy in Kiev (for the boys to receive visas to come to the US) Thursday at 10AM; however, the passports won’t be ready for pick-up until Thursday morning in Kremenchuk and Poltava. So, our facilitator (did I mention how awesome she is?) arranged with the US Embassy for us to have our interview anyway, and our facilitator’s husband will pick up the passports in Kremenchuk and Poltava for us! He will fax a copy of the passports to our facilitator so we can at least have that.

The boys will have their medical exam (required by the US) Thursday at Noon. We’ll use the faxed passport copies for that, as well, and then pick up the infamous sealed packet (internationally adopted kiddos must enter the US with a sealed packet from the medical examiner…the packet must not be tampered with in any way, not even peeked at by the adoptive parents!) once we have the real passports in hand.

If Cooper had it his way, he’d have his face about 3-5” from the iPad at all times. Yes, we plan to have his vision checked.

We’ll go back to the US Embassy Friday afternoon at 2PM for the final interview/approval, where we’ll obtain the boys’ visas, and then we’ll be cleared to head to TEXAS!!!!!!!

We’ll take the first flight out, which will be Saturday morning, and that will put us in Texas Saturday night!!! It’s about 30 hours of travel, but with the 8 hour time loss going into Texas, we’ll still arrive in the same day that we leave Kiev!

So, we ask for your prayers to continue. Pray us HOME!!! To God be all the glory, for He does all things well.

Strength Will Rise…

2012-02-27T12:36:00.001-06:00

…as we wait upon the Lord!

When we grow weary in this wait, we fix our eyes upon Him and persevere in His strength through the trials of this adoption. Many people believe that when obstacles appear in a journey God has called one to, it is a sign that this is NOT God’s will.

We beg to differ. For us, obstacles are a sign that we’re on the right path, and Satan hates it!!! Satan throws fiery darts, trying hard to defeat us, trying hard to deter God’s will, but our God is mightier and will triumph over evil. The path will not be easy, there will be trials, but we are to persevere in His strength, without waiver, without doubt, without fear. When we are weak, He is strong. Strength rises as we wait upon the Lord!

This morning we were greeted at breakfast by a group of men from Nepal who are staying at the same hotel as us. It’s rare to see Apple products here in Ukraine, so when we sat for breakfast and heard all kinds of iPad/iPhone noises we were familiar with, we realized the men weren’t Ukrainian. The men are attending a Ukrainian helicopter flight school that is just down the street. They asked why we were here, and we explained about our adoption. They asked why we chose Ukraine, so we were able to share with them God’s hand in this adoption. They laughed when we told them God chose Ukraine for us, signifying they’re not accustomed to hearing such things. We pray God planted a seed in their hearts that will hopefully be watered and grow into an understanding of the Gospel.

We walked with a few of the men outside to show them the location of the yummy pizza restaurant down the street, and when we opened the door, HUGE snowflakes slowly drifted across the sky. BEAUTIFUL!!! One of the men jumped up and down with excitement and exclaimed, “This my first time snow!!!” They got out their iPads to take photos. So fun to see grown men so giddy about snow.

As we drove to the orphanage, I had a little revelation sparked by the snowflakes. The flakes were so large (at least 1” each) that we could visibly see the unique patterns of each flake. Thousands of flakes fell, each and every one of them different than the one before. Seeing before my very eyes the variety of snowflakes, not one of them the same as the other, reminded me of God’s goodness, His creativity, His ability, His miracles.

It seems impossible for millions of countless snowflakes to fall from the sky without one single replica, but then I thought about people. From the beginning of time, God has created billions of people, not one of them the same as another. Only our God could be so creative. Only our God could have such ability to never, ever replicate His creations. Each and every one of us is unique, created in His image, yet distinctively different than any other person He’s ever created. Truly a miracle.

And so, as the snowflakes fell, I marveled at the beauty of God’s plan, His design, His ability, His creativity; captivated by the beauty of His creations.

Captivating!

I wished so much that I had taken my “real” camera with me on this trip, but thankful for my iPhone camera regardless. I tried to capture the huge flakes (in the photo above) that piled up on the orphanage pathway. Incredible.

The flakes were so large and fluffy that they looked like cotton on the bushes!

As we entered the orphanage doors, I felt extra grateful for His marvelous creation of Cooper and Conner. Distinctly different than any other of His creations, masterpieces of our Creator. Captivating.

Conner seemed to have more energy and better spirits today, praise God. Yesterday afternoon, we were seriously worried about him living long enough to get to Texas to get medical care, but today he perked up and restored our hope!

We prayed fervently today that the Kremenchuk/Poltava officials would have mercy upon Conner and Cooper by granting their passports TODAY. We eagerly awaited a phone call from our facilitator to let us know what decisions were made today.

Well, one passport was granted, but one was not.

The situation is so complicated, but I feel great peace knowing that the One who called us to this task holds all of this in His hands. He is sovereign over every single detail. He will work all things for the good of those who love Him and are called according to His purpose. (Romans 8:28)

All of the complications are due to the way we submitted our dossier, with a request for Matt to adopt as a married individual (without me) so that I wouldn’t be required to travel to Ukraine in case Selah (our baby) was hospitalized. It ends up that I’m here in Ukraine and have been present for every step of the process with the boys, but because our dossier was submitted with this request, all of the paperwork is different.

The Poltava region and city of Kremenchuk are very strict with the law, but their understanding of the Ukrainian law (which seems to be constantly changing!) is inaccurate. However, getting them to educate themselves properly is a problem! Our facilitator is working hard to get the issue resolved, but her hands are tied to a degree since she has no authority over the passport officials. Our facilitator has handled numerous married individual adoptions without a single problem, but this region is not educated on this type of adoption since it’s the first one of this type…ever.

Needless to say, Cooper’s passport should be issued tomorrow, BUT not Conner’s. 1 down, 1 to go!!! Please keep praying that the officials would issue Conner’s passport as well. If we can just get both passports, we’ll be able to go to Kiev for the US Embassy interview and medical exams, get the boys’ visas, and then head HOME!!!!!!!!!! If we are able to get both passports tomorrow (Tuesday), we could get home this weekend, as originally anticipated.

Our kids at home made a paper chain to count down the days until we would be home. This really helps the little kids have a visual of when we’ll return. Based upon the timeline of the last 2 American adoptions from this exact same region, we should be home this Saturday, but that is all dependent upon the passport issue. We *have* to get both passports in order to go home!!!

Strength will rise as we wait upon the Lord. Come on, prayer army, keep lifting this situation up to the One who is able! I can’t wait to watch His Strength rise up!!! Claiming Victory, in Jesus’ mighty name, the Name above all names!!!

First Church Outing!

2012-02-26T12:54:00.001-06:00

We had the privilege of taking Conner and Cooper to their first Ukrainian church service this morning!!! We went to the church that our American/Kremenchuk missionary friends are affiliated with. What a blessing it was to share the testimony of our sweet boys with the Ukrainian congregation. Several people were in tears, and I pray God opens the eyes of His people, breaking all of our hearts for the things that break His.

Sitting in church.

The boys looked so cute in their little vests. I can’t wait till we can put clothes on them every morning when they wake instead of leaving them in sleeper PJ’s all day.

Watch to see Conner stand up on his own. :-)

We got the boys back to the orphanage in time for lunch, then went back for our afternoon visit. Conner was SOOOOO lethargic this afternoon. We’re really concerned about him. He’s just completely bone thin, and we’re realizing he doesn’t like ANYTHING in his mouth. Not food, drink, sugar, spoons, cups, straws, toothbrush…NOTHING. I really don’t think he’s eating anything. I’ve seen him at meal times in his groupa, and he never wants to eat. They try to force him to eat by shoving a gigantic serving spoon of food down his throat, but he lets it all just dribble back out, not swallowing anything.

We have been squirting tiny amounts of yummy, sugary liquids in his mouth to see what he does with it (trying to get ready for when we are on our own with taking care of these guys), but he just lets the liquid dribble out of his mouth. He’s started crying when we put anything in his mouth…doesn’t matter what it is. He cries real crocodile tears. I just don’t know how in the world this teeny tiny boy is alive. Well, of course I know…it’s God, all God, but seeing how this boy won’t swallow anything makes me realize how much more of a miracle it is that he’s alive. Just praying the boys’ passports will be ready SOON so we can get these boys home before it’s too late for Conner!!!

On another note, one of my favorite friends shared how she signs a special song to her son daily. (Hi Bonnie!) I LOVED this idea, so we created two songs for Conner and Cooper. I won’t video these because I can’t sing AT ALL, but I wanted to record the words here, as a record for the boys. We chose to create “piggyback” songs (where you sing words to a familiar tune), and we chose to stick with simple words/simple message since the boys are just now being exposed to English.

Conner’s Song (sung to Frere Jacque)

Conner Christian

We love you

You’re His chosen treasure

Yes you are

Cooper’s Song (sung to Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star)

Cooper, Cooper

You’re our guy

We love you and

Jesus does, too.

You are smart,

You are strong.

You are chosen and

You belong.

Cooper, Cooper

You’re our guy

We love you and

Jesus does, too.

See, these aren’t masterpieces, just simple truths sung to familiar tunes. Cooper crawls into my lap over and over and places his head on my shoulder for me to sing his song to him. So precious.

On the Texas home front, the report is that several of our kiddos are sick. Selah stayed up all night, too. Not good. We started Selah on some sleep medication when we were in town last, after we learned that she most likely has a sleep disorder due to her brain malformations. She used to take Keppra (an anticonvulsant she was put on as an infant because she had seizures), but we removed her from Keppra when she turned a year old because she had been seizure-free for 10 months (praise God). Well, that’s when she really started having trouble sleeping, so we finally realized the Keppra was acting as a sleep medication for her (common side-effect). We decided to try Clonidine to help Selah sleep, but, so far, it’s not working. We haven’t built up to her maximum dosage yet (taking it slowly), but so far, we’re still fighting major sleep issues. It’s really hard when I’m not home because I can’t help. Being up in the night for hours on end is hard, but it’s even harder when tired teenage girls have to stay up all night with the baby. Meribeth is sick, so Mattie stayed up all night with Selah, then woke Parker and Sawyer at 8AM to take over. Please keep our Texas kiddos in your prayers!

Oh how I pray for a miracle to happen with the boys’ passports. With Conner being so lethargic and so many sick kids at home, we really want to get back to Texas. We pray God will be glorified through this, trusting in His sovereignty, believing that if He chooses to keep us in Kremenchuk longer than expected, He has a purpose in it. Claiming His promises, encouraged by His Word, held in His hands, grateful for His faithfulness.

We Will Praise You in This Storm

2012-02-25T12:46:00.001-06:00

I woke up this morning not feeling well. I don’t know if it was due to allergies or a cold, but after a night of not sleeping well, I started the day groggy and wishing I could crawl back into bed. I had taken a Zyrtec in the night to help me sleep (and hopefully battle the allergies/cold symptoms I was having), so my brain felt like mush for much of the day. (Allergy meds knock me out!) When we walked out the door of the hotel, the rain and cold hit our faces. What a dreary day, yet, we will praise Him in this storm.

We got to the orphanage this morning only to discover that we had forgotten the key to the playroom. I thought it was in my bag, but apparently I had moved it to a different bag that we’d used the day before. So we sat in the dark hallway, just outside the playroom, holding the boys. Cooper watched a little Barney on the iPad while Conner engaged in several games of chase, crawling away, wanting to be chased and snatched up by Mommy or Daddy. We will praise Him in this storm.

I left both boys with Matt in the hallway so I could look for someone who might have a key to the playroom. After knocking on many doors and showing them my iPhone Google translated version of my plea for a key, I finally found someone who unlocked a different playroom that I didn’t know existed. It’s right next to the boys’ groupa, too!!! So, I went back and got Matt and the boys, and we headed over to the new-to-us playroom, where we had been instructed to take our shoes off and not touch any of the electronics. We will praise Him in this storm.

I noticed this light fixture in the playroom.

Just yesterday, I was telling our friends here about all of the interesting light fixtures in Ukraine. I need to start taking photos to document the variety of eclectic light fixtures they have here! A reminder of light in darkness. We will praise Him in this storm.

We returned the boys to their groupa for lunch, only to discover that the caregiver who was present on the black eye day from trip 1 was back. My heart sank as I handed Conner to her. I prayed for God’s protection over both boys in our absence. She was actually very kind today. She asked what time we would be back, then told us goodbye. We will praise Him in this storm.

We went back to the brick oven pizza place for lunch. That’s when I received a phone call from our adoption facilitator, Nina, and it wasn’t good news. She explained that there’s a problem with both boys’ passports. It’s complicated to explain, but basically the local passport offices are not willing to issue either boys’ passport because their birth mothers are still listed on their birth certificates, so the local offices believe it’s illegal for them to issue the passports since I’m not listed. The reason I’m not listed is because we filed our dossier with our home study requesting that Matt adopt as a married individual (as opposed to us adopting together as a married couple) because I was afraid I wouldn’t be able to travel with Matt. Our baby, Selah, was scheduled to have the second phase of her skull reconstruction in November/December 2011, which was the exact same time that we thought we’d be traveling to Ukraine. So, to play it safe, we decided to have Matt adopt as a married individual, which meant that I wouldn’t be required to travel to adopt if it turned out that I needed to be at the hospital with Selah at the same time as the adoption in Ukraine. (Clear as mud?!) We will praise Him in this storm.

Anyway, it turned out that Selah’s surgery was postponed and that it’s a possibility that she might not even have to have phase 2 of her skull reconstruction (praise God!!!). This meant I would be able to travel with Matt to Ukraine. While at our SDA appointment, we requested they allow us to adopt as a married couple (the usual method of adopting in Ukraine) since I would be traveling with Matt. The SDA refused to accept this request since our dossier had been originally submitted with Matt adopting as a married individual, not with us adopting together as a married couple. We even submitted notarized approval from our social worker requesting this change, but the SDA said we would have to start over with a new dossier and new SDA appointment (which would mean months of delay) in order to change to adopting as a married couple. So, we decided to keep the approval for Matt to adopt as a married individual and proceed with the adoption in this manner. We will praise Him in this storm.

Well, apparently the region of Poltava and city of Kremenchuk have never had anyone adopt in this manner (with one parent adopting as a married individual). When a couple adopts in this manner, the birth certificate of the adopted child must list the one adoptive parent’s name (in our case, Matt would be listed as the father), but it mustn’t change the other parent’s name (in our case, the birth mother’s name stayed the same because I’m not legally adopting the boys in Ukraine, only Matt is). This has caused EXTREME confusion and problems in this region since they’ve never processed an adoption like this here. We will praise Him in this storm.

The Poltava region is REFUSING to issue both boys’ passports because I’m not listed as the birth mother on the birth certificates, even though this is legal in Ukraine and the Supreme Court has already written a letter stating this is within the law. (That was the error on the adoption decree originally…I was listed as the birth mother.) Anyway, this problem hasn’t been able to be resolved, so we are asking for your prayers that the Poltava region and city of Kremenchuk would issue both boys’ passports this Monday, Feb. 27. We will praise Him in this storm.

Nina, our facilitator, asked us to keep her in our prayers, too, as she is going crazy trying to get this issue resolved. It’s extremely difficult to get anything done in Ukraine, much less when there’s not a clear understanding of the law in cases that are not considered normal/ordinary/usual. Of course that would be our case!!! Ugh!!! We will praise Him in this storm.

Would you please storm heaven’s gates on behalf of our boys? We know God has mighty plans for these boys, and we know Satan wants nothing more than to keep these boys in captivity. We will praise Him in this storm.

My sister reminded me of the verse God showed her months ago to pray for our family with regards to our Ukrainian adoption.

2 Chronicles 14:11:

"O Lord, there is none like You to help, between the mighty and the weak. Help us, O Lord our God, for we rely on You, and in Your name we have come against this multitude. O Lord, You are our God; let not man prevail against you."

This is a great comfort, and there are so many more verses God has shown us to comfort us. We know He will prevail, we know this battle is His, we know He loves the boys more than we do. We know these things, yet we are impatient. We so badly want to get these boys home. We so badly want our family to be reunited, to be whole, to be in the same house together. We will praise Him in this storm.

God’s timing is always perfect, His plans are always better than our own. We cannot fathom the why’s, but we trust wholeheartedly in the One who holds us in the palm of His hand. We will praise Him in this storm, just as Paul praised God when he was thrown into prison. Our Father is victorious, may He be glorified through every second of this adoption, even when we are impatient.

We saw something today we have not seen here before:

Wheelchair ramps at the pharmacy near our hotel!!! In a society where handicapped/special needs people are kept out of sight, in institutions, it brought a big smile to my heart to see a wheelchair ramp in this city!!! We will praise Him in this storm.

Our evening visit with the boys involved a surprise visit from another groupa! They came to the playroom to actually play!!! That’s the first groupa we’ve seen visit the playroom. What a blessing!!! Even though both Conner and Cooper had snotty noses and seemed to not be feeling well this evening (making me wonder if I might possibly have caught a cold from the boys, instead of allergies), we felt so privileged to hold them, rock them, sing to them, brush their teeth, expose them to learning videos, rejoice in watching Cooper start to communicate as he watches learning videos, and be present as another groupa came into the playroom to PLAY!!! Yes, oh yes, we will praise Him in this storm!

Hair Cuts & Dental Visits

2012-02-24T18:03:00.001-06:00

When we arrived at the boys’ groupa this morning, there was a lady in the room giving another boy a hair cut. We realized that today was hair cutting day for the boys’ groupa, so Matt and I discussed whether or not we should have them cut Cooper and Conner’s hair. I’ve heard many stories of children who have been adopted from orphanages who are completely terrified of having their hair cut due to traumatic experiences with hair cuts in orphanages. Most orphanages keep the children’s hair (both boys and girls) buzzed to prevent lice infestations, so hair cuts are done quickly with so many children to line up and buzz.

We prefer buzz cuts on boys anyway, so we decided to ask the hair stylist if she would go ahead and cut our boys’ hair. We felt watching this experience here in Ukraine in their groupa where they’re accustomed to hair cuts would give us an idea of how our boys will react to future hair cuts.

We were so pleasantly surprised by how well our boys did! Neither boy squawked much, they both sat still and waited patiently while the stylist buzzed their hair. The stylist wanted to leave a mullet for both boys, but we showed her Daddy’s buzz cut, as well as photos of our boys back home who have buzz cuts, and she reluctantly obliged. That kind of made me giggle because it was perfectly fine for the rest of the orphanage kids (boys and girls) to have buzz cuts, but since our boys are now part of our family, they naturally assumed we wouldn’t prefer buzz cuts. Oh well, we love the buzzes the boys got, and hopefully the boys will continue to tolerate hair cuts as well as they did today!

We played with the boys in the playroom until lunch time. They have a new inflatable bounce “castle”, which wasn’t very bouncy, but we tried it anyway. Neither boy knew what to do, even with our assistance, but one day, we’re sure they’ll love bounce castles!

We enjoyed lunch at the brick oven pizza place (Italiano Vero) with our new American missionary friends, Jennifer and Jon. They helped coordinate dental visits for our boys for teeth cleanings, so after lunch, we headed back to the orphanage with our translator friend, Sergei, to pick the boys up and take them to the dentist.

This picture has nothing to do with my post, but this bare bush caught my eye outside the orphanage today. It has berries on it, and somehow it stood as a metaphor for life in this cold, barren place. Life. So grateful God has kept our boys alive, even in this cold, barren place. Our berries on the bush.

I’ve heard from many people that dental care in Eastern Europe is phenomenal and inexpensive, so we wanted to take advantage of this opportunity for Cooper and Conner, especially since they’d be able to understand the language here and not be thoroughly confused with English-speaking dentists in the US.

Waiting patiently at the dentist’s office.

The aquarium in the wall at the dentist’s office. Cooper much preferred the TV! That boy sits silently, mesmerized by the TV (no matter what is showing), but as soon as the TV goes off, he squawks.

Both boys did great at their dental visits, although Cooper has a lot of cavities and gingivitis, according to the dentist. Conner’s teeth looked healthy. The dentist gave us a prescription for a liquid to rub on Cooper’s gums to help the inflammation and gum disease.

Conner waiting patiently for brother to finish with the dentist.

We’ve been really amazed by how well the boys are doing on outings. They haven’t gotten car sick or vomited at all (knock on wood!), and they’re handling lots of new stimuli really well. We’ve also been surprised to see several Ukrainian people reach out to our boys to talk to them, smile at them, etc. Since most, if not all, children with Down syndrome and other special needs are kept in institutions in Ukraine, most Ukrainians don’t ever see special needs children in public. I was concerned that our boys might get ugly stares, but, so far, I’ve been pleasantly surprised by the kindness people have shown us.

We just feel so very blessed that God chose to bless us with these precious treasures, and we pray others will see our boys as the amazing masterpieces of God that they truly are.

Boys 1st Excursion!

2012-02-23T12:55:00.001-06:00

Today the boys had to go to the Kremenchuk police station to be “scanned” for their passports. This basically involved taking a photo of each boy in the police station, where they would create an electronic file for each boy that would be transferred to Kiev and Poltava to verify the passports for both boys.

We took clothes to the orphanage for the boys to wear, along with snowsuits. We brought clothes in size 18 months and 24 months. The 18 month clothing was a little big for Conner, but snug on Cooper, so I think Conner will wear a 12-month and Cooper will wear 24-month. The caregivers helped us dress them (Cooper wasn’t very patient with this!)…I’m not sure they’d ever had real clothes on (they have always been in pajama sleepers when we’ve visited). We brought soft house-shoe booties for both boys since Cooper has club feet (and wont’ fit in regular shoes) and Conner isn’t walking yet. Well, Cooper’s booties fell off within a few minutes, but Conner kept his on. They were SO CUTE in their clothes and snowsuits, all bundled up. They wore OshKosh overalls with plaid shirts underneath. Of course the caregivers had them keep cotton shirts and tights on under their other layers. Both boys were sweating by the time we reached the police station!

To our knowledge, the boys had never been outside the orphanage (most likely not even outside of their groupa/room)! We were a little concerned about how they’d react to this new experience, but both boys did really well, especially considering they’d never seen trees, snow, cars, strangers, nor had they ever felt the cold air, felt the bumps of potholes in the roads, sat in a vehicle. So much to experience outside those orphanage walls!

First time outside the orphanage.

Neither boy got car sick, although Conner had lots of burping and tummy gurgling, he never vomited, praise God!!! Cooper was quite vocal most of the time, but he never acted fearful, so that was good.

In the car/taxi, Cooper wanted to sit up tall on Matt’s lap so he could ~~lick~~ see outside the window. Conner was a calm little cuddle bug, perfectly content in my lap, relaxed as can be.

First time in a car/taxi!

At the police station, the boys waited patiently for their photos to be taken and paperwork to be completed. Cooper loves to be played with (tossed in the air, tickled, etc.) while Conner prefers to sit calmly and observe everything going on around him. Both boys LOVE to throw their hats on the ground. Well, throw ANYTHING on the ground for that matter! They just think it’s hilarious to grab ANYTHING and quickly toss it onto the ground and giggle.

Cooper giggling with Daddy at the police station.

The passports are supposed to be ready for pick up Tuesday, Tuesday, Feb. 28. Please pray this happens on time! Our awesome facilitator was able to get us an appointment at the US Embassy Feb. 29, with confirmation that the boys’ visas will be available the afternoon of March 1, IF AND ONLY IF everything goes according to schedule here in Kremenchuk/Poltava with the passports.

Cooper wanted two hats.

Nope, just one hat, Daddy’s hat.

On second thought, maybe no hats would be best.

FYI, Conner’s hat is a 3-6 month, while Cooper’s is a 4T!

The boys’ appointments were smack dab in the middle of their groupa’s nap time, but both boys held up really well, even though Conner appeared to be quite sleepy. We were very proud of both boys. After all of the paperwork was finished, we returned the boys to their groupa, where the caregivers immediately undressed the boys and put their orphanage clothes back on. They totally knew what they were doing. I had been wondering if we’d just leave the boys in their new clothes, but apparently not. We hugged and kissed the boys goodbye, then went back to our hotel for the night.

Because our dinner last night consisted of this (see video below)…loud music that kept us from being able to converse with one another, we opted for room service tonight. We didn’t realize they offered this for the same price as dinner at the restaurant. We enjoyed our room service (I had chicken Kiev and Matt had an omelette), and we’re looking forward to visiting the boys tomorrow.

Our very loud dinner at Hotel Kremin Restaurant. :-)

Ahhhhhh, room service!

Nighty-night!

First Visit in 23 Days!

2012-02-22T11:55:00.000-06:00

This morning we went to the notary to sign the official petition to take the boys to America.

After signing the petition, we got to visit the boys!!! We were so excited to get to see them again. 23 days is far too long to not visit or have any contact with them. Here’s the video from our first steps into the boys’ groupa/room:

Footage from our first steps into the boys’ groupa after 23 days of not visiting.

The boys remembered us!!! Cooper immediately crawled to us, and Conner began making noises in the play crib. (Conner doesn’t usually make sounds!) Both boys hugged us tightly. Having their fingers wrapped around our necks melted our hearts. Oh how we love these precious boys!!!

We only got to visit for about 10-15 minutes, but it was so worth it, no matter how short the visit. The boys felt so light after being home and lifting Selah and Kiefer. They literally felt like we were lifting play dolls, not 6-year-olds. I’m so curious to see how much they weigh.

Here’s another short video I took as we sat with the boys in their groupa for our short visit. We had an appointment with the orphanage director, so we had to hurry with our visit, but it was just so good to hug and love on Cooper and Conner. So blessed by these sweeties!

Cooper and Daddy reuniting after 23 days of not visiting, sitting on the couch in the boys’ groupa.

We spent the afternoon completing more paperwork. Many of you have asked when we’ll get to take the boys out of the orphanage for good. The answer would normally be right NOW, but our boys are in a little different situation due to their high risk of refeeding syndrome.

Refeeding syndrome is best explained HERE, but, in a nutshell, our boys can die in a matter of 3-5 days if we introduce different foods/nutrients/calories into their diet without close monitoring with blood tests and the assistance of medical personnel trained in refeeding syndrome.

We don’t know the exact weights of the boys, but they’re both severely malnourished. They are both 6-years-old, but the size of 12-18 month olds. Conner is the smaller of the two boys, and he probably weighs between 12-14 pounds. Cooper probably weighs around 20-24 pounds.

Because both boys are at such high risk of developing refeeding symdrome, our pediatrician recommended we keep the boys at the orphanage until the very last minute to reduce the risk of refeeding syndrome. Any change in the boys’ diet can cause refeeding syndrome, and death can occur rapidly (as well as seizures and other issues), so the less change in their diets before we get to the US (where we have medical care to deal with this) is best. Our pediatrician is working with our local children’s hospital and nutritionist to develop a care plan for both boys once they’re in the US, but for now, the safest place for the boys to remain is in the orphanage where their diet will remain the same and be consistent with what they’ve known for 6 years.

As hard as it is for us to leave the boys in the orphanage when they could be with us, we know this decision is in their best interest. Of course it’s in our nature to want to feed the boys healthy food and do what we feel would nurse them back to health, but in reality, what we want to do would most likely end up killing them!!! Isn’t that crazy?!?! To think that feeding them healthy food could give them seizures and heart failure boggles my mind, but knowing this is truth helps me feel peace in leaving the boys in the orphanage until it’s time to go back to Kiev to get the required medical exam and visit with the US Embassy to receive approval and visas to travel.

So, for now, we will continue to visit the boys twice/day at the orphanage while we wait for their passports to be processed and available for pick-up. We’re told the date we’ll be able to pick up the passports is Tuesday, Feb. 29, the day we’ll spring the boys from the orphanage, pick up the passports, and head to Kiev. We’ll have to spend 3 days in Kiev, then the boys should have visas to head back to Texas! We can see the light at the end of the tunnel, praise the Lord!!!

Please keep the boys in your prayers that they would not have issues with refeeding syndrome, that their transition would be smooth, and that we will be united in Texas as a family SOON!!!

Thanks for your prayers, support, and encouragement!

Final Trip, Day 2

2012-02-21T12:48:00.001-06:00

We slept well last night, our first night in Kremenchuk. We’re staying at hotel for this final trip, which has a restaurant (and breakfast is included in the stay), so we woke groggily at 8:30AM (Kremenchuk time…8 hours ahead of Texas time) and got ready for the first day of the final paper chase.

Our hotel is directly across from Lenin Square in Kremenchuk.

We went to the hotel café for breakfast, and were surprised to see how much food came with the various options. We could select from three options, each with a variety of items we would not normally find on a breakfast menu in the US. Things like caviar and cabbage salad (cole slaw). We opted for option 1, which included fried eggs and bacon, among other things. I don’t care for eggs much, so I gave mine to Matt (who said they were superb). I like my bacon crispy, and this bacon was pretty much raw. I asked them to cook it more (using Google translate), and the waitress seemed really confused. Either they don’t eat crispy bacon here or Google translate told her something other than what I intended. Needless to say, the cook attempted to cook the bacon again, but it still wasn’t really cooked when the waitress delivered it. Oh well. I purchased a Snickers bar on our way out instead.

That’s bread, butter, cheese, and red caviar that came with breakfast Option 1.

At 10:15, our favorite driver, Sasha, came to pick us up, along with our translator (our facilitator’s husband), Denis, so we could start on the required first steps on the final journey toward bringing our boys home.

The first step was to get both boys new birth certificates, listing us as their parents. We stopped at the Kremenchuk City Hall to get Cooper’s birth certificate (he was born in Kremenchuk), but had to wait a few hours because the chief was gone (and only the chief is authorized to make these changes).

City Hall décor.

Shortly before 2PM, Cooper’s new birth certificate was ready, so we headed off to Poltava, Conner’s birth city, to get his new birth certificate.

Matt and I snoozed during the 1.5 hour drive to Poltava. Our bodies don’t yet know what time it is! The process was much faster in Poltava, and after waiting in the car for about an hour, Conner had a new birth certificate, too. Yippee.

Then it was off to the tax office in Poltava to apply for passports for both boys, which only took another hour or so. Then back to Kremenchuk where we ate yummy brick oven pizza for dinner.

Now we’re back in our hotel room. We didn’t get to see the boys today since we were gone all day, but we’re hoping tomorrow will allow us time to visit them. (We are only allowed to stop by the orphanage during set visiting hours.) Our translator needs us to do more paperwork at 9:30AM, which we’re not sure how long will take, but we’re sure hoping to head over to the orphanage after that. We’ll keep you posted!

PS Selah slept through the night last night and Sawyer no longer has fever. Hallelujah! Thanks so much for praying for all of us and supporting and encouraging us. We’re so grateful for you!

We're Back!!!

2012-02-20T16:11:00.000-06:00

After 30 hours of travel, Matt and I are finally back in Kremenchuk, Ukraine. It's almost midnight here, but I wanted to let you all know we made it here safely.

We had some crazy turbulence on one of our flights that made Matt and I both nauseated for the rest of our trip, and we usually don't get plane sick. But that same flight (Washington Dulles to Munich) was such an empty flight that almost every passenger was able to stretch out across 2-3 seats, which made the 8 hour flight more comfortable (minus the turbulence).

We had a 4 hour layover in Munich, so we decided to rent this really cool nap cab! It had a bed inside with relaxing music. We only rented it for an hour, but it was so worth it (although I still felt like I was bouncing around on a turbulent plane!). :-)

The 4-hour car ride from Kiev to Kremenchuk always feels risky. We are far too familiar with brief escapes from head-on collisions with 18-wheelers while our tiny car tries to pass other 18-wheelers in the ice and snow. We bottom out a lot hitting pot holes at 60mph, and we often slide on the ice, sometimes swerving off the road. It's alway a relief to arrive safely and step out of the Ukrainian NASCAR race!

Tomorrow will be a day of paperwork as we begin the final steps to bringing our boys home. We don't think we'll be able to visit the boys because we'll be completing required tasks all day, but if we get done in time, we'll definitely head over to the orphanage to hug on our lil men whom we miss dearly!

Please keep all of us in your prayers. Sawyer (our 11yo) developed 102F fever shortly after we left Sunday, and Selah decided to party all night Sunday night (which means Mattie and Meribeth are exhausted). Ella melts down regularly when we're away, and Asher really needs the consistency of our normal routine. Oh, and I strained a muscle in my shoulder. No doubt Satan continues to throw fiery darts the closer we get to rescuing our boys, but we cling to our Hero, as this battle is His, and He is mighty to save, our Protector and Provider. Praise Him!!!

Counting the Days

2012-02-17T06:35:00.000-06:00

Just two more days until we head to Ukraine to begin the last part of the process to get these two cuties home! We’ll be leaving Sunday, Feb. 19, for Ukraine, and we can hardly wait to wrap our arms around Cooper and Conner.

Please pray that our judge really does return to Kremenchuk Feb. 20, and that he corrects the error on the adoption decree the same day. This must happen Feb. 20 in order for us to begin the necessary steps Feb. 21 toward bringing these boys home. There are a number of things that must be done in Kremenchuk, and the very first step can only be done on Tuesdays, so that’s why it’s vital that the adoption decree get corrected and completed Monday, Feb. 20.

Based upon the timelines of the last two American families who adopted from Kremenchuk, we will be in Ukraine a total of 14 days for this final trip. Of course, we’re praying it will go faster, but both of the two prior families spent two weeks there on the final trip, so we’re expecting the same timeline. Praying that it’s not any longer than two weeks, that’s for sure!!!

I need to do a post about refeeding syndrome and the risks for our boys, but I don’t have time right now. If you’re interested in learning about this, just google it. Our boys are at high risk of refeeding syndrome, particularly Conner (the smaller boy), so please keep them in prayer that they’ll be just fine without any refeeding issues. I’ll share more about it when I have more time.

Thank you all for praying and supporting us. We’re so blessed by you!

147 Million ANSWERS

2012-02-16T06:20:00.001-06:00

God woke me up yesterday morning very early, way before my eyes were ready to open. Even though I really wanted to, I just couldn’t go back to sleep. The words, “147 million answers” kept scrolling through my mind, as I tried to drift back off to sleep.

I wondered why that phrase was in my head. Then I realized what God was trying to tell me.

There’s a current ministry, 147 Million Orphans, that helps raise orphan awareness. Suddenly the words, “147 Million Answers” meant something to me.

There should not be 147 million orphans, there should be 147 million ANSWERS. With 147 million answers, there would BE NO ORPHAN CRISIS.

A friend asked me the other day what we can do to help the orphan crisis. The answer is SO EASY, yet not enough families are willing to make this choice…ADOPT.

If every Christian family adopted just ONE orphan, we would not have an orphan crisis. Do you understand that? The answer to the orphan crisis is right before us. 147 MILLION ANSWERS. ADOPT. We should become a part of the solution. Answers to the question of how to solve the orphan crisis. Our answer should be YES, I will adopt.

Many people say not everyone is called to adopt. You know, I’d like to beg to differ on that one. Sure, there are people who are simply not eligible to adopt, but how many people hide behind the excuse that they’re just not called to adopt? What about James 1:27? What about all the verses about caring for orphans? What about all the injustice scriptures?

How many wonderful, ELIGIBLE Christian families are out there making excuses when they could actually become a part of the solution by answering with a YES, I will adopt?!?! I believe there are AT LEAST 147 million answers out there…147 million ELIGIBLE Christian families who could simply say yes to adoption, yet they’re choosing to take the easy way out by ignoring the orphan crisis, believing that adopting just one child won’t make a difference.

YES IT CAN!!! If every eligible Christian family adopted just ONE child, we truly wouldn’t have an orphan crisis. Yes, there would still be orphans in countries that are closed to adoption, but even then, if the Christian families within those countries would step up and adopt, even those closed countries would have fewer orphans.

The answer to the orphan crisis seems so easy. It’s right before our eyes. 147 million ~~orphans~~ ANSWERS.

Won’t you join the movement? Become an ANSWER to the problem by saying YES to adoption!!!

And if you don’t know why I’m begging you to become a part of the 147 million ANSWERS, just click HERE to read my friend, Adeye’s, post. A massive awakening is what is needed to open the world’s eyes to the way orphans are living day in and day out. Help spread the word. Open our eyes, Lord.

Let’s start a revolution. 147 million ANSWERS. Join us. Adopt a child. Step out of your comfortable life, open your heart, your home, your family. Your heart will never be the same, and that’s a good thing. Click HERE if you don’t know where to start.

An orphan is waiting for you to say YES today. 147 million answers. Join the movement. Be the solution. Yes, adopting just ONE child really can make a difference. Imagine 147 million Christian families saying YES. 147 million ~~orphans~~ ANSWERS. Amen!!!

EDIT (2/16/12 at 9:35AM): This post has been up only a few hours and I'm already hearing complaints about how expensive adoption is, how people can't afford it, etc. First, let me say, aren't you glad Jesus didn't make excuses when God commanded Him to hang on the cross for us? Aren't you glad He didn't say it would cost Him too much? He was willing to give His very life for you and for me, no excuses.

Second, let me say, yes, I know first-hand how expensive adoption is. No one likes the expense. All of us wish it were more affordable. There's nothing we can do to change the expense related to adoption, BUT there are solutions to this excuse, and that's literally all that is...an excuse to not pursue adoption. If you really want to live out what Jesus has called all of us to do (in James 1:27, along with a host of other scriptures), you will commit to being a part of the solution without any excuses. Adoption via the US foster system is usually free or very low-cost, so there goes the excuse that adoption is too expensive. Also, if God steers you in the direction of international adoption or private domestic adoption (via an agency, not via foster system), yes, there will be expenses that seem impossible to meet on our own, and, on our own, we won't be able to come up with the required ransom. BUT GOD!!! He WILL meet the need. He is our Jehovah Jireh, our provider. Even when the task seems impossible, we have to remember that everything is possible with our Father. He has no problem raising the ransom. Most of the time, it doesn't come in one simple gift, but through prayer and perserverance, commitment and hard work, you will see God provide in unfathomable ways. I've experienced it first-hand, and most adoptive families will share the same thing. Jehovah Jireh always provides. That's just who He is.

So, please don't make excuses. Just say YES, the same as Jesus said YES to us. Be one of the 147 million ANSWERS, not excuses. YES! YES! YES!!!

Unfailing Love

2012-02-14T11:24:00.001-06:00

Praise Jesus for being our One and Only True Valentine! Praise Him for His unfailing love!

John 3:16 “For God so loved the world,that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.

Romans 5:8 but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

Romans 8:37-39 No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Galatians 2:20 I have been crucified with Christ. It is no longer I who live, but Christ who lives in me. And the life I now live in the flesh I live by faith in the Son of God, who loved me and gave himself for me.

1 John 3:1 See what kind of love the Father has given to us, that we should be called children of God; and so we are. The reason why the world does not know us is that it did not know him.

Another Travel Change!

2012-02-10T10:34:00.001-06:00

We were just notified that we will NOT be going to Ukraine this Sunday, February 12, as originally planned.

Our facilitator found an error in our court adoption decree that must be corrected before we are able to proceed. Unfortunately, our judge is the only authority who is able to correct the error, and our judge is currently traveling abroad. (Our amazing facilitator even consulted with the Supreme Court of Ukraine to try to get this issue corrected, but nothing can/will be done until our judge returns to Kremenchuk and corrects the mistake he made in the decree.)

Our facilitator is working to find out exactly when our judge is expected to return to Ukraine. She said it will not be prior to February 20.

We know God is sovereign over this change. As hard as it is for our human flesh to fathom this delay, we fully trust in God’s sovereignty. God has HUGE things in store for Cooper and Conner, and Satan is relentless. Our Abba Father loves these boys even more than we do, and there is not one day that passes that is not within the sovereignty of God, which gives us great peace in the absence of understanding.

Please continue to pray for protection of Cooper and Conner, for them to remember us and our love for them, for them to know in their spirits that we ARE coming for them. We will not leave them as orphans, just as our Father has not left us as orphans (John 14:18). Pray that our judge returns to Kremenchuk quickly, and that he corrects the problem quickly.

More Than Enough

2012-02-09T06:53:00.001-06:00

The Patterson Family, 2012

Many thanks to Anastasia for making this video of our family and ministry.

Matt and I have been home just over a week now, and it’s felt so good to be with our Texas children. Gosh, how we missed them during our 25-day Ukrainian stay. But our family doesn’t quite feel complete since our newest sons remain in Ukraine, waiting for the mandatory 10-day post-court wait to pass so we can complete the adoption process and bring our boys HOME!!!

I think our bodies/brains have finally adjusted to the 8-hour time difference, but it’ll all change again in a matter of days since Matt and I will be heading back to Ukraine this Sunday, Feb. 12. Our bodies/brains will once again need to adjust to being 8 hours ahead of Texas time. We’ll have to once again walk away from 9 lovies in our home in Texas. We’ll have to once again travel 30+ hours to get to our newest lovies. When compared to what Christ has done for us, our little sacrifices seem so miniscule, yet so overwhelming at the same time. While we wrestle with the many requirements of international adoption, we rest in the peace that He is more than enough.

Thank you, Jesus, for always being more than enough. Thank you for providing abundantly for our family. Thank You for all those You have raised up to support us in this journey, for those who have prayed (and continue to pray) for us, for those who have donated, for those who have provided meals, for those who have faithfully loved us and encouraged us (and continue to do so) on this path. Thank you, Jesus, for your many reminders that indeed, You are more than enough.

We made it!

2012-02-02T03:40:00.001-06:00

It's 3:30am Texas time, and after 30+ hours of travel, I'm crawling into my oh-so-comfy bed. Hallelujah, we're home!!!

5 of our kiddos stayed up to greet us and visit into the wee morning hours, I got to rock Selah to sleep in her middle-of-the-night wakefulness (who, BTW, was not happy about her mommy leaving her and she showed her feelings to me clearly!), and now my mommy heart is overflowing with joy and gratefulness. I'm so thankful for each of my precious lovies. They are such blessings.

Many thanks to Stephanie for picking us up at the airport at such a late hour (as well as filling in as Mom, Dad, teacher, ranch foreman, and chauffeur in our absence), and many thanks to everyone who abundantly fed our kiddos while we were away! The meals were a great blessing to our kiddos; they've talked and talked about all of the fabulous food!

We will be in Texas for 10 days, then we'll head back to Ukraine for another ~10 days of paperwork and then Conner and Cooper will come HOME!!!

Please continue to pray for God's protection of Cooper and Conner in our absence. Matt and I could also use prayers for our adjustment to the 8 hour time difference. That's one of he hardest things about international travel for me. My brain and body just don't seem to want to give up and/or gain 8 hours!!!

Thank you all for your support and prayers. We are grateful!

Day 16: It’s Official!

2012-01-31T05:13:00.001-06:00

On our 16th day in Kremenchuk, our 23rd day in Ukraine, we attended our court hearing in Kremenchuk. Present were a male judge, two jurors, a prosecutor, a representative of the orphanage, the local inspector (similar to a social worker), our facilitator, and, of course, Matt and me. After about 30 minutes of questioning and required procedures, with the agreement and recommendation of our adoption by all persons present, the judge took a 30 minute recess to consider our petition to adopt.

While we waited for the judge’s final decision, both of the jurors thanked us for giving these boys this “unique opportunity”. One of the jurors, a man, teared up and had to turn away to dry his eyes. It was a touching moment, indeed.

After 30 minutes and 3 power outages, the judge returned to declare that he approves Matthew and Lorraine as the adoptive parents of Conner and Cooper Patterson!!!

We still have to wait 10 days for the final adoption decree, but we were officially approved to become the adoptive parents of our two newest lovies! We’re so excited and grateful to God for this opportunity.

We’ll go back to Texas for the 10 day waiting period, so please keep Conner and Cooper in your prayers that they will be protected and loved upon during our absence. We left both with a soft blanket (which we’ve slept with since we’ve been in Ukraine so the blankets would smell like us) and a soft photo album so they can remember our scent and our faces.

As hard as it will be to leave these boys here during the mandatory waiting period, we are very excited to love on our other kiddos who have been patiently waiting on us back home.

Praise God for His abundant provision during this time. We couldn’t have done it without you and our Father!!!

We’ll leave you with photos of our precious lovies, Conner and Cooper:

A favorite photo:

Court on Day 16

2012-01-30T11:42:00.001-06:00

Tomorrow, Tuesday, will be our 16th day in Kremenchuk and our 23rd day in Ukraine. We are finally having court!

Our adoption facilitator picked up the required adoption documents from the SDA Monday night. Because the docs were not ready Monday during the day, we were unable to have court Monday, but we now have a scheduled court time of 10am Tuesday, January 31. Praise God!

Our facilitator is 99.9% sure the judge will NOT waive the required 10 day waiting period following court, but we are still asking for the judge to consider this. If the judge won't waive it, we'll go back to Texas for 10 days while Cooper and Conner remain in the orphanage. Then we'll come back to Ukraine after 10 days to finish the process, which will take approximately 10 more days, and then we can finally bring our sons home!

The orphanage director assures us the boys will be well taken care of in our absence. She was very kind and genuine in our meeting Monday morning, and she is personally meeting with all of the caregivers as well. We are grateful for God's provision and protection.

Day 14

2012-01-29T23:28:00.001-06:00

The blog report from Day 14 will be published sometime after court, and after our meetings with the orphanage director.

We are scheduled to have court today (Monday) at 2pm. Please pray the papers are ready at the SDA by 1pm so they can be faxed to our judge in order to have court at 2pm.

Pray for mercy and justice.

Thank you!

Sent from Lorraine's iPhone

www.AllArePreciousInHisSight.blogspot.com

www.BossYourHeart.com

Day 13—Hallelujah!

2012-01-28T13:52:00.001-06:00

Conner’s bed sores have been HEALED!!! Today is Day 13 of our stay in Kremenchuk, and in less than two weeks, sweet Conner has gone from this:

Conner on Day 4

To this:

Conner on Day 13

“For I will restore health to you and heal you of your wounds,’ says the Lord”, Jeremiah 30:17a

We’re praising God for His healing of Conner’s bed sores. Please join us in thanking our Jehovah Rapha!

Day 12 Adventures

2012-01-27T14:42:00.002-06:00

The sweet caregiver was gone when we got to the orphanage this morning. Our facilitator explained that the caregivers work 24 hour shifts. Needless to say, the caregiver today wasn’t so kind.

Conner vomited again shortly after our entry into the playroom. Even with video time, calm play, etc., when he’s rapidly force-fed prior to our arrival, it comes back up shortly thereafter.

We had a quiet morning with the boys, but it didn’t stop us from having lots of good bonding time. Holding, singing, rocking, and simply loving. Matt and I treasure these times greatly.

Here’s video from our morning visit:

I video’d Cooper’s transition from the playroom back to his groupa room. He was very tame in this video, the quietest walk we’ve had thus far. Here’s the video:

Then, when we entered the boys’ room, the “caregiver” asked if I wanted to feed Cooper. I reluctantly agreed, for fear that I’d be expected to force-feed him with the swiftness that the “caregivers'” do. Well, my attempt was an epic fail. The caregiver handed me a PIPING hot bowl of soup, which she had mashed just prior to handing it to me. I stuck my finger in the soup to test the temperature, and it was so hot it burned my finger. So, I tried to let it cool. The caregiver hollered at me, and I tried to explain it was too hot. She picked the bowl up off the table, put it in my hands, placed my hands and the bowl under Cooper’s chin, then took the ginormous serving spoon and placed it in my hand. I put a small amount of soup on the spoon, then blew on it, trying to cool it before letting it touch Cooper’s mouth, but in the process, Cooper grabbed the bowl and spilled some of it in his lap, burning him. I hopped up to try to get something to clean him up as he cried, but the caregiver planted herself in my chair and force-fed Cooper the very same bowl of steaming soup. Cooper ate it. Poor dear, he doesn’t even seem to mind. He’s been conditioned to this type of feeding, burning hot or not. Matt video’d it:

We kissed the boys goodbye and hurried out the door, our hearts once again burdened for the condition these children live in, day in, day out, while we have the freedom to walk out of that prison and eat what we want to eat, how we want to eat, when we want to eat.

We had made a lunch date with the American missionaries we were connected with in Kremenchuk. We ate at a lovely restaurant overlooking the beautiful frozen river. And we were able to eat what we wanted, when we wanted, as slowly as we wanted, surrounded by sunshine and joy. It just seemed ~~a little~~ a lot unfair, but we have the hope that one day soon, our boys will also have this freedom.

While at lunch, our facilitator called to notify us that the paperwork was NOT ready at the SDA, but she spoke with our judge here in Kremenchuk, and he agreed to hear our case Monday at 2PM, as long as the paperwork is ready Monday at the SDA. Our facilitator’s husband will travel from Kiev to Kremenchuk Monday morning, and our facilitator will go to the SDA Monday mid-day to check on our paperwork. (The SDA usually gives these papers out around 1PM on M/W/F.) If our facilitator is able to get the papers Monday, she will fax the papers to the judge in Kremenchuk. (It’s about a 4 hour drive from Kiev to Kremenchuk.) Our facilitator said it is very rare that a judge will agree to this, so we feel blessed that our judge is allowing this. Now, just pray that the paperwork really is ready on Monday or we won’t be able to have court!!!

After lunch, we went back to our new friends’ apartment, where they made fresh juice using their new juicer. We enjoyed visiting with them until it was time to head back to the orphanage for our afternoon orphanage visit.

We experienced a delightful surprise when walking the boys to the playroom. For the first time in our 12 days here, we saw a sweet caregiver of a different groupa who was utilizing the hall space by allowing her kids to ride bikes and scooters up and down it. Hallelujah! Here’s the video:

We had an uneventful evening visit, which seemed to go by in a flash. We played, sang, and captured some videos of the boys, then it was time to return them to their room. We’ll never get over seeing kids in their cribs, crying out for someone to help them, only to see the “caregiver” roll her eyes and walk away, throwing her arms up in despair. Oh how I wish these children would ALL have a family, or, at the very least, kind and loving caregivers who would meet their needs. If you ever have the opportunity to go on a mission trip to an Eastern European orphanage, particularly one that houses special needs kids, I highly encourage you to do so. It will change your life. And your heart.

PS. Happy 14th birthday, Mattie. We are so proud of you. Always have been, always will be. We love you!

Day 11, A Lesson in Trust

2012-01-26T12:10:00.001-06:00

Matt purchased some Muesli cereal mix at the grocery store, along with some milk, to try for breakfast. The container of milk has a cat on it. Leche de gato? Me, I’m sticking with Snickers.

We started the morning with 20 minutes of video time, with hopes that Conner wouldn’t vomit. He didn’t. Woohoo! Today was the first day that the really nice caregiver has been back since our very first visit, so she’s been gone for 10 days. I’m not sure why, but I was SOOOOOOOO happy to see her back today. She loves the children and does what is best for them, and I’m so grateful that God has placed this special caregivers in our boys’ lives. She even had one of the blind boys out of his crib, allowing him to walk around the room and play with toys on the floor. Kudos to this God-sent woman. We are so very grateful for her.

Today was the first day that both Conner and Cooper haven’t had a lot of gas, belches, burps, etc. I wonder if it’s associated with the sweet caregiver? Perhaps she feeds them more slowly than the other caregivers do? I’m not sure, but there was a definite difference, and now that I am thinking back, the very first day we met the boys, they didn’t have a lot of gas or reflux. In fact, I recall another American mom asking us on our second visit if we’d noticed a lot of reflux with our boys, and at that point we hadn’t, but perhaps that’s simply because the sweet caregiver feeds them slower. Hmmm, interesting to consider.

Cooper has really gotten to be a handful. He can be so very sweet and loving and kind and gentle, and he can have loads of fun with tons of giggles and laughter and joy. But when he decides to hit, Cooper SMACKS us HARD, without warning for the most part. It’s usually sporadic and unpredictable, but many times it’s while we’re playing with him. Other times he’ll crawl up behind me when I’m playing with Conner and whack me. (That I could understand if he’s jealous and doesn’t know how to express it.)

We’ve been diligently working with Cooper on trying to teach him not to hit, and there are many times he does very well. Then there are times that he just blindsides us and starts to laugh just before he knocks us upside the head. He never hits Conner. Just the two of us. I’m trying to figure it out. Any thoughts on this?

Conner is a sweetie, always. He never hits. He’s a snuggler. And he LOVES to laugh. He loves to horseplay and roughhouse, and he even giggles when he watches us play with Cooper. It’s such a delight to see him blossom before our very eyes.

This video (directly below) documents how much trust Conner has developed over the past 11 days. It’s quite miraculous. I laid him, face up, across a bouncy ball (hippety-hop), and he got so relaxed he almost fell asleep. The first time I ever tried to set him on a ball, he FREAKED out, terrified. Now he LOVES to lay on the ball on his tummy and be rolled back and forth, cracking up the whole time. This was his first time to be in this position on the ball. I didn’t think he’d like it. I really thought he’d be scared. I was shocked to see how much he trusted me and how relaxed his body got as I moved him in various ways on the ball. I was thinking it would be a good physical therapy position to stretch his spine (since he never gets to move about freely), but never did I think he would act as if I’d just given him a one hour massage! Wow!

Conner’s level of trust got me to thinking about really, I mean really, trusting our Father. If Conner can trust me so fully in only 11 days of relationship, how much more should we trust our heavenly Father? The One who cares about us so much that He knows the number of hairs on our heads. The One who promises to meet our needs more than those of the sparrow, whose needs are met daily. The One who has never forsaken us. The One who has never broken a promise. Why is it that we sometimes lack trust in our Father? I pray this video of Conner will remind me to ALWAYS trust my Father, even when the view seems upside down and out of focus, full of bumps and twists and turns. He always knows best, and in His hands, I am always safe, loved beyond measure, chosen and treasured, forever and always, no matter what. Thank you, Conner, for choosing to trust, and thank you, Jesus, for being the One to teach us that it’s safe to trust when we put our trust in You, for you are faithful and will never let us down.

OK, back to our visits, which seem so short now. The boys expect us. They reach for us. Conner has begun expressing his excitement vocally upon our arrival to his room each day. Cooper automatically crawls to Matt and puts his hands in the air to be picked up. Conner is usually in the playpen, and he stands up and reaches for me the minute Sasha announces our arrival. (BTW, Sasha appeared to be ill today. He was crying, first time I’ve seen him cry or be upset in any way. I still went over to him and held his little hand, which made him smile. He seemed to be feeling better for the evening visit.) We play in the playroom, basically doing the same types of things day in and day out, still rejoicing that the boys get to have freedom and love twice a day, but longing for the day we’ll be able to have them in our home where they can experience freedom and love forever.

Matt must carry Cooper on his shoulders when travel between the boys’ room and the playroom. When he tries to carry him in any other way, Cooper slaps Matt and makes all kinds of horrible noises that make it look like we’re hurting him.

This is the boys’ room. There are toys on the floor when the sweet caregiver is present. (Never are there toys with any of the other caregivers.) That’s Sasha sitting at the little table. He’s looking back over his shoulder at us, smiling. Love that boy!

Click HERE to watch the videos from today, or I’ve posted them below, whichever works for you.

Day 10, Not the News We Were Praying For

2012-01-25T12:29:00.001-06:00

Super sad face. Our facilitator notified us today that the person within the SDA who must prepare our paperwork for the head minister of social policy to sign has been ill and was not able to prepare our paperwork; therefore, it has not been signed. Which means we cannot have court until next week.

We were praying that we’d be able to have court this week so that we could be home this weekend. We’re missing our Texas kiddos tremendously. Mattie’s 14th birthday is Friday, and we were really hoping to make it back to Texas Saturday, but that’s not possible now.

We must still pray that the paperwork is ready by Friday so that we can have court Monday. The SDA has designated M/W/F as days for this type of paperwork, so the next available date for our facilitator to check on our paperwork is Friday. If it’s ready Friday, court will be Monday. If it’s not ready Friday, then we’ll have to wait until Monday to find out if it’s ready then.

It’s really hard to sit in Ukraine and wait on people to simply sign paperwork, but I trust God’s sovereignty in the timing of everything. Yes, He is sovereign even over paperwork in Ukraine. While we had really gotten our hopes up that we’d be home this weekend to love on our kiddos, we’ve chosen to boss our hearts through this disappointment and realize there could be much worse things happening. This is just a delay, a delay God is sovereign over, even when we can’t wrap our piddly brains around it. He’s carried us through much tougher things in this life, He’ll get us over this hump as well.

Our morning visit with the boys began with Conner vomiting all over Matt. Poor little Conner. Precious boy has some severe digestive issues with his being so rapidly force fed. I almost threw up five different times after Conner vomited. It was a MESS. This occurred within minutes of getting to the playroom. There was no horseplay or roughhousing going on. Matt had just sat down with Conner, and he was holding him face to face, gently cuddling. Next thing he knew, Matt was COVERED in vomit. I smelled it, then saw it, then started gagging and couldn’t stop. Praise God I didn’t vomit. Those who know me already know that I “don’t do” vomit. Seriously. That’s one of the only things I just seriously cannot handle. The sound, sight, and smell…oh, it makes me gag just typing about it.

Anyway, Matt had to wear his vomit-covered shirt for the entire morning. I was seriously thanking God for letting it be Matt and not me because we would have had to cut the visit short if I’d have had that on me. I couldn’t have done it. I barely made it through with it being all over Matt.

Needless to say, we had a very quiet, low-key, non-active, no-horseplay morning with Conner.

Cooper, on the other hand, was a live wire today! He’s really coming out of his shell, and he’s no longer drugged, praise God. He’s started teasing us and trying to “get” us. (I’m posting videos at the bottom of this update.) Cooper is STRONG, too, and he’s really smart. He figured out how to position his body to get the most strength and maneuvering when trying to yank me off the incline mat. Such a cutie!

After our morning visit, we went straight back to our apartment so Matt could shower and ~~wash~~ sanitize his vomit-covered shirt. We ate lunch at the pizza restaurant, then decided to take a nap. Sounds like the dream life, doesn’t it?!?! Not so much when you’ve eaten at the pizza place countless times and long to be home with your lovies more than napping.

After our nap, we heard the disappointing news regarding our paperwork and court, then we headed back to the orphanage for the evening visit. Cooper enjoyed various iPad apps (it was our first time to bring the iPad), and he absolutely LOVES watching kiddie videos on it. Conner really doesn’t care about videos or games. He just wants to play, which is great. After about 20 minutes of iPad time, we turned it off and fully engaged with both boys. Lots of fun, and no vomit, hooray!

Cooper, Conner, and Mommy playing together.

Cooper and Conner hanging out.

Day 9 Update

2012-01-24T13:04:00.000-06:00

Above are a couple of videos from today. Click HERE to view all of the videos from today.

There’s been lots of beautiful snow here in Kremenchuk over the last few days. Big, soft flakes without it being too unbearably cold. Well, looks like the beautiful weather is going to get a bit nippy within a few days (see forecast photo above). That’s a Fahrenheit forecast, too. Yikes!

We had two good visits with the boys today. They're progressing so much in such a short amount of time, it's absolutley amazing. Only Jesus. Oh, and we’ve added baby powder to our arsenal of odor maskers, along with a can of ladies’ spray perfume that is kept in the playroom at the orphanage, so the two of those, along with brushing teeth at the beginning of each visit, is really helping us to not gag when we play with the boys due to their orphanage stench.

We know it is NOT their fault that they smell so atrociously. We do not want their scent to make them feel like we don’t love them, so we persevere through it, and when we gag, we pray we don’t vomit. But today was different, with the help of the perfume and powder. MUCH better. SOOOOOO much better, to the point where I didn't have to change my clothes when I got back to our apartment. We’ve discovered it’s very common for special needs children in Ukraine to smell badly. It’s also very common for them to have a ton of gas. Burps, belches, reflux, vomit, and, yes, it all comes out the other end, too.

Speaking of, Conner pooped during our morning visit, and the smell was too much for Matt and I. We returned him to his groupa to have the ladies change him. He must have parasites, as it reminds me of how Kiefer’s stools stunk so badly (and he had Giardia). Since we didn’t have plastic gloves, we felt we shouldn’t touch Conner’s poop, seeing as how I just got rid of E Coli and have no more antibiotics. Anyway, the caregivers were kind and changed his diaper after Matt returned Conner with poop, but in the communication breakdown, Matt thought they told him to leave. He thought they were bringing Conner back to us. After about 15 minutes of no Conner, a caregiver came into the playroom and asked us a question in Russian, which, of course, we couldn't understand. So, I followed her back to the boys' room, where Conner was sitting in the big play crib. :-( They saw me, then told me they wanted to wipe his face. They took him into a back room for a while. He came out in new clothing and smelled delightful, so I grabbed him and headed back to the playroom to finish our morning play time.

Oh, I’ve added disposable gloves to my packing list for trip 2 (the trip where we’ll get to take the boys home).

It probably sounds really sad that I’m talking so plainly about the smell of the boys, but those who have adopted special needs children from Eastern European countries completely understand what I’m talking about. I’m not saying it to be mean, we absolutely know it’s not the boys’ fault, and we know they don’t want to smell that way. It’s just a fact, and I’m journaling our time spent with the boys, so I’d like to document that today we finally found a trick that is helping us cope with a smell we’re simply not used to, nor do we want to get used to. It’s a smell no one should ever have to smell, and we cannot WAIT to get these boys home where we can begin daily hygiene in all areas, from body to oral to laundry.

I’m just delighted that today’s visits excluded our gagging! I am constantly reminded at how putrid I must smell to our Father, with all of the sin in my life. I am grateful beyond measure that my Father has never turned His nose up at me. Ever. Thank you, Jesus.

We discovered today that Cooper LOVES to watch the Baby Einstein videos I have on my iPhone. I had downloaded those for Selah such a long time ago, then discovered them again today. Cooper will sit for as long as we’ll allow, staring at the screen. Conner could care less.

This made us think that Cooper might need glasses, which is common for people with Down syndrome. Cooper prefers to have his eyes about 5 inches from the screen. Of course that might just be because he’s never seen videos, but we’ll be getting both boys’ vision checked shortly after we get home.

Speaking of “iAnything” apps, if any of you reading this have young children with Down syndrome, what are your child’s favorite iPad apps? I’m starting to think about preparation for getting our boys home. I think it’s going to be quite a challenge to travel for 20+ hours with these two boys, so I’d LOVE to hear some pointers. Cooper is VERY vocal when transitioning. It sounds like we’re hurting him when we travel through the hallway at the orphanage. They say he’s non-verbal, but he is VERY vocal. Since he LOVED the Baby Einstein videos, I thought maybe he’d enjoy things on the iPad. Not sure though that I could get him to not turn the iPad off if it required him to touch the screen to interact with early learning apps, etc. Just not sure what he can handle yet, but I’d love to hear recommendations.

I've also been thinking about sleeping arrangements for trip 2. Our facilitator told us that in Kremenchuk, the 10-day waiting period is never waived, so, as of now, we are planning to return to Texas after court and be with our children during the mandatory 10-day waiting period following court in Kremenchuk. Then, Matt and I will return to Kremenchuk to finish the adoption process. That will most likely take about 10-12 days, and the boys will be with us for probably most of that time. Both boys are used to sleeping in cribs, and our apartment is a one bedroom with a full-sized bed. I was thinking about trying to get lightweight “pop-up” portable beds for the boys so that we don’t end up with miserable, sleepless nights. I saw THESE on Amazon, but wondered if anyone has ever used these or if anyone has any recommendations of a lightweight, easy to pack travel bed/crib.

I’m also thinking we’ll want to take a double umbrella stroller for airport use mainly. I doubt Matt and I will be able to carry the boys (even in a Moby carrier), along with all of our luggage. Any recommendations on inexpensive double umbrella strollers?

Also, for those who have adopted special needs kiddos internationally, if your kids were on a “mush” diet, what did you feed them while you were still in country and what about while traveling the 20+ hours back home? I’m considering trying to take those baby food pouches with us, thinking those would be perfect for the boys, but maybe it’s not worth it. Maybe I should just find food locally while in country to try to keep their diet the same?!?!

I’m going to have a lot to gather and prepare for once I’m home, but I’ll also have 9 kiddos to love on and be available for during my 10 days in Texas, so the more I can prepare for in advance, the better.

Any other tips, advice, recommendations from you veterans? I’d LOVE to hear them!!!

Oh, an update regarding court: We’re waiting on the head minister of social policy to sign our paperwork. After he signs, the SDA will be able to give our paperwork back to our facilitator, and then we can have court. The SDA only returns this type of paperwork on M/W/F. So, we’ll find out tomorrow (Wednesday) if our paperwork is ready. If it is, we can have court either Thursday or Friday of this week here in Kremenchuk. If the paperwork isn’t ready tomorrow, we’ll have to see if it arrives Friday, which would make court the following week.

Please join us in praying the paperwork will be ready Wednesday. We’re eager to get home to our lovies who’ve been without Mommy and Daddy for 16 days. Too long!

Day 8, A Call to Action

2012-01-23T11:41:00.001-06:00

Today I’m going to focus on something other than our visits to see the boys. Although, I do have to mention that Conner took his first steps, independently, today!!! We captured some of his steps on video, along with our usual daily videos, which you can view HERE.

Today I’m going to focus on how YOU can do something about the orphan crisis. How YOU can make a difference. How YOU can help bring a smile to a lonely, forgotten, neglected orphan.

Lots of people will say that we should just give up because we can’t save the world. That would be the easy way out. We CAN change the world, one life at a time. It’s not easy, but every single one of us can play a role in helping orphans, some way, some how.

Adopt. Help another family adopt. Sponsor an orphan. Sponsor an orphanage. Pray for orphans to find forever families and to be lovingly cared for and provided for until then. Start an orphan ministry at your church. Educate others about the orphan crisis. Become a foster parent. Volunteer with children in your community who are at shelters or have aged out of the foster system. Contact a Christian foster care agency and ask how you can help if you aren’t able to become a foster parent. Go on a mission trip to visit orphans and serve at an orphanage. Advocate for orphans. Support orphan care. Volunteer to help a family who has adopted. Spread the word. Ask God to open your eyes, to break your heart for what breaks His, to show you the role He wants you to take in living out James 1:27.

There are so many organizations out there that help orphans. Pray about which one you’d like to get involved with. Research. Ask for references. Check references. Make sure the agencies are accountable and have high integrity. Find the place where God wants to use you and dive in.

If you feel called to adopt, ask God to lead you to the agency and/or child He wants you to adopt. He will show you. He will lead you. He WILL provide. There are so many excuses for not adopting, but most of those are just that: excuses. Stop making excuses and start taking action. Little lives, precious treasures, are waiting for you.

In Texas, it is free to adopt via the Texas foster care system. They also provide free in-state college tuition, as well as Medicaid for all children adopted through the foster system. And, if the child has special needs or fits into a special category defined by the Texas foster care system, the state will pay you a monthly stipend, even after you’ve adopted from state care, as long as you negotiate this prior to the adoption finalization. (We’ve never adopted via the foster system, simply because God hasn’t arranged this for our family, but there are many successful adoptions from state foster systems.)

Foster parenting is an amazing way to live out James 1:27. Children in foster care desperately need loving, stable, Christian families to love on them, guide them, and train them up in their foster journey to a forever family. It takes a very special person to foster parent. Could this be you?

Many of you have asked about Sasha. From what I can find, he is not yet available for international adoption. I am going to make it a mission of mine to find him a forever family, but first, he must be available for international adoption. That’s something that must happen here in Ukraine, and it usually involves someone persevering through the paperwork. I’m praying for God to provide that someone who is willing and able to get Sasha listed for international adoption. Once he’s available, I will share more info about him. He has the longest eyelashes and the most bubbly personality of any child in our boys’ groupa. He’s a gem, that’s for sure.

On our blog, we have a link that lists a variety of ways you can help orphans. It’s under the tab “Adoption Resources”. Click HERE to access it. There are FAR more ways to help, this is just a collection of resources I can personally vouch for. I’m going to copy and paste that page here, so you don’t even have to click to view the contents of our resource page. I’m making it as easy as I can to help you find a place/way to plug in.

Don’t give up on saving the world. Just start one child at a time. Your investment of prayer, time, and resources will make a difference. I promise.

Here’s my cut/paste version of our adoption resources page, followed by some photos of today’s visit to the boys.

Adoption Resources

Here are a few of my favorite resources for adoption.

(Click on each title to visit the website for each resource.)

Please add your favorite resources in the comments section at the bottom of this post.

Helpful Literature Before You Adopt:

(or once you're in it and need some help!)

The Connected Child (book by Dr. Karyn Purvis), a MUST-READ for ANY family wanting to adopt or for those who have already adopted and want/need some help! This is THE BEST adoption book out there!!!
Empowered to Connect (Dr. Karyn Purvis, Michael and Amy Monroe join forces to give parents a TON of resources and helpful info about adoption/fostering, attachment, what to expect, how to handle things, etc.). Extremely helpful info and support for adoptive families!
Institute of Child Development at TCU (Dr. Karyn Purvis), Lots of info for helping kids from hard places/adopted kiddos.

Click HERE to learn the rules and requirements to adopt from ANY country. This is an AWESOME site, sponsored by the US government, so the information found here is accurate.

Sites that Might Lead You to Your Kiddo(s):

Eli Project
Reece's Rainbow Home Page (Non-Profit Special Needs and Down Syndrome Adoption Advocacy)
Rainbow Kids (you can sign up to receive email updates, newsletters, and you can even specify which ages/types of kiddos you're willing to adopt and receive emails about kids who fit into your criteria)
CHASK (special needs adoption of babies in the US, plus disrupted adoption re-homing)
Hope for Orphans (Love the founders of HFO, lots of great info, particularly helpful for those wanting to start an adoption ministry in their church)
Together for Adoption (T4A) (lots of helpful all-around adoption info)
Domestic Adoption Info (info from a bloggy friend)

Adoption Gear/Fundraising:

147 Million Orphans (fun adoption gear; each purchase feeds a child)
Adoption Bug (lots of great fundraising t-shirts and gear!)

Adoption Grants/Funding:

Lifesong for Orphans (adoption grants and other helps)
Show Hope (Steven Curtis Chapman and family: adoption grants and other info)

Agencies/Foundations:

Lutheran Social Services (domestic and international adoption agency that we used and were pleased with)
Bethany Christian Services (domestic and international adoption agency that we used and were pleased with)
Family Link (Central Texas Christian foster care)
The Zoe Foundation (helping save babies from abortion and other domestic adoption opportunities)
Charis Orphan Care and Adoption Ministry (Central Texas mission to save babies from abortion and other adoption mission info)
Mother Goose Adoptions (domestic adoption agency working in all 50 states)

Help for Families Parenting Seriously RAD

(and other diagnoses) Kiddos:

Families by Design, Nancy Thomas with Attachment Parenting. Tons of helpful info for MAJORLY challenging kids (RAD, ODD, Bipolar, Tourette's, ADHD, etc.). Life-saving help and encouragement for those who are seriously considering disrupting an adoption!
Empowered to Connect (stay connected, don't lose heart, there's a community of support here for you!)
Institute of Child Development at TCU (Dr. Karyn Purvis), Lots of info for help with "challenging" kids
The Connected Child (book by Dr. Karyn Purvis), This is THE BEST adoption book out there and it will help you understand your child's actions. It's not the child; it's their history that they had no control over. They didn't choose to be abused, neglected, abandoned. Help them heal.

Other Ways to Help Orphans (without adopting):

Just click HERE to read a list compiled by another blogger
Back the Blocks, support a big adoptive family serving in Guatemala:

www.BigFamilyMinistry.org

And now, I’ll share a few photos from Day 8 in Kremenchuk:

BTW, Ukrainian hot chocolate is melted chocolate with an almond or two in it. Didn’t know that.

Day 7, Sweet Redemption

2012-01-22T12:26:00.002-06:00

Hallelujah, today we saw Cooper and Conner after not being able to visit them for two days due to our illnesses. Both boys remembered us and were excited to see us!

We were ~~a little~~ a lot disheartened upon our entry into the boys’ room. The weekend caregivers were not expecting us. We actually thought for a moment that they must have taken the entire groupa to another room, for it was dark and still and oh so quiet. Sasha wasn’t sitting at the table either, where he’s been each and every time we’ve visited. I wondered how we would find the groupa if they had taken a little field trip within the building.

I stepped into the room to find both caregivers sitting quietly in the corner, engulfed in the newspaper, holding it up so that they had no idea we were there. All of the children were in their cribs, silent. It was 10AM. My heart broke for the children.

When we said hello to the caregivers, Conner and Cooper perked up and both of them started making all kinds of excited noises. Prior to this visit, Conner hasn’t ever made any vocal noises in his orphanage room, only in the playroom. Even Conner was chirping and begging us to come rescue him.

Both Conner and Cooper were in the play crib, along with Sasha, but they weren’t playing, they were lying down, completely silent, in the dark, being ignored and surely told to make not one noise. Silent.

The caregivers must have thought we *might* come for the boys because I don’t think they would have put them in the play crib if not. The play crib is a square “crib” that has a hard wood “floor” to it. It’s basically to contain the kids in a small area, and keep them off the real floor. It’s not a comfortable place to lay. In fact, Sasha tried to sit up when we reached for our boys, and he had a large red wound to his head where he’d been lying on the flat, hard surface for so long. The red mark resembled a fresh burn or severe slap, about 5 inches long by 3 inches wide, on the side of his head, directly where he’d been lying on it. My stomach hurt seeing him. Oh how I wanted to take him with us. I reached to softly caress his face, and his eyes rapidly shuttered, fearful that my hand might be a slap instead of a caress. Shattered heart of mine, walk away, there’s nothing I can do.

The caregivers did not change our boys’ clothes, nor did they put them into “play” clothes (another sleeper on top of their other layers). They simply stuck jackets on the boys as we held them. (They don’t need jackets, we play indoors, but that’s the way things are done here.)

As I turned to exit the room, I got a whiff of vomit. I almost vomited. After being extremely sick (with E Coli) for 2 full days, it was only by the power of God that I did not barf all over that floor. The stench was horrendous. I quickly exited, clutching Conner closely to my side, desperate to escape.

We walked rapidly to the playroom, with both boys making all kinds of noises, shouts of joy, cries of freedom. Oh how it broke my heart that they missed this opportunity to escape for two full days.

I set Conner down in the playroom so I could take my boots off (a requirement to enter). When I went to pick him up, the same stench of vomit entered my nostrils. I gagged, but again, by the grace of God, didn’t vomit.

I noticed that Conner’s pajama sleeper (which he’d never been changed out of) was covered in vomit. Both boys have severe reflux, most likely due to being force fed mush so rapidly at each meal, so most likely that’s what was all over Conner’s pajamas. Reflux is worse when left lying flat, and it seems that’s all Conner’s done since we haven’t visited in two days, so there’s no telling how long he’s sat in vomit-saturated pajamas. The smell is atrocious.

Matt decides to remove the vomit pajamas, leaving Conner in his underlayers. Today, under his pajama sleeper, he only has on one pair of pajama pants and one shirt. The underlayers are also wet, but they don’t reek the way the pajama sleeper does.

Both boys’ breath is also atrocious. Really, their whole bodies reek, from head to toe. After being sick ourselves, the stench is nauseating. I pray for God to help us both get through this visit.

Then I’m reminded that I, too, am an atrocious, stinky, vomit-covered sinner who also must make my Father want to hold His nose and run the other way. Yet, He doesn’t. He stays close, no matter how rotten I smell, no matter how disgusting my breath is.

Jesus, give me the strength to do the same for these boys on my first day out. I am weak, but He is strong. Father, I need Your strength.

Then, sweet redemption. We praise our Father for blessing us with an hour of good play, great strides, and the scent of His sweet redemption.

Click HERE to view the videos from our morning session.

We went from gagging to laughter and love. Praise God for sweet redemption. Our boys don’t mean to smell badly. They don’t mean to have horrible breath. They don’t mean to be covered in vomit. Nor do they deserve to live a life like this. They are meant to blossom, to have warm baths with running water, to have oral hygiene, to have clean clothes, to have fresh diapers. They are meant to be chosen. They are meant to be loved. Thank you, Jesus, for showing us the need, and for choosing us, lowly sinners, to meet the need. We are blessed to have the privilege to love these boys, to choose them, to adopt them as our own, just as He has done for us, regardless of our stench. Oh how we praise Him!

Cooper crawled across the floor and positioned himself between Conner and me.

After our glorious morning visit with the boys, radiant with His redemption (watch the videos…the boys had regressed since we didn’t come for two days, but by the end of the morning visit, things were back to “normal”), we had to return the boys to their room for lunch. Sasha was still lying in the hard play crib, in the same position, and, yes, he still had the mark on his head. We had to say goodbye to our boys and Sasha, then head out to meet our driver.

We were exhausted. This was our first trip out after being ill, and our strength and energy was sapped. Completely gone. We stopped by McDonald’s for some “safe” food (believing it won’t make us sick), then headed back to the apartment where we took a 2 hour nap!

It was time for our afternoon visit before we knew it, so we headed back out to visit the boys. We were pleasantly surprised to find that both boys had been changed into different clothes, and it appeared that Cooper had been given a sponge bath. Praise God, the smell of sweet redemption. Oh, there’s nothing like it. Thank you, Jesus!

After a morning filled with vomit vapors that Jesus graciously masked for us, He blessed us with an evening visit of clean boys who no longer smelled atrocious, even their breath smelled better. Sweet redemption.

Both boys were outgoing and active during the evening visit. We took both boys into the ball pit to play, and Cooper was much more active and outgoing than he’s ever been. He was not drugged, his eyes were not closing, he was not groggy. Redemption! Sweet redemption!

Cooper crawled across the ball pit many times to switch laps between Matt and I. Whoever wasn’t holding/playing with Cooper would have Conner. Then Cooper would decide to make his way across the pit to toss Conner aside and crawl into the other person’s lap for some lovin’. It became apparent (after many times of doing this) that Conner was being bullied by Cooper. One time, Cooper took Conner by his head and face and yanked him out of my lap, with no warning. We realized then that we need to be vigilant about protecting Conner and teaching Cooper soft touches. We’ll have a lot of character training to focus on for a while. But, it was good to see Cooper becoming alive, active, alert. Sweet redemption.

We took video of both Conner and Cooper at the night visit, but somehow Conner’s video must have gotten deleted from my iPhone. Anyone ever had that happen? It’s not showing up under my photos where it would normally be. It was a sweet video, showing Conner ~~giggling~~ cracking up with Matt, followed by his vomiting on Matt’s arm. Maybe it was meant to be deleted. The vomit was caused by all of the roughhousing that Conner loves so much.

I know this photo is blurry, but I had to use it because it’s the only still-shot I got of Conner (because Cooper kept attacking the iPhone!). And, because the video of Conner got deleted, I wanted to include this photo of him.

The evening visit was up in a flash, and when we returned the boys to their room, an additional caregiver was present. She was very kind. Sasha was sitting at the table, so happy. Every single child was in the play crib. Every.Single.One. Not one child in a crib. The lights were on, the atmosphere was happy. Sasha was laughing and giggling and chattering up a storm. Sweet redemption.

Thank you, Jesus.

Day 6 Update

2012-01-21T12:18:00.001-06:00

We still didn't get to visit the boys today (Saturday). :-(

Matt and I are both still not feeling well, but we are improving. We hope to be well enough to visit the boys tomorrow (Sunday).

We wonder if they'll remember us. We only visited them 4 days before we got sick, so it'll be interesting to see their reactions upon our next visit.

We have a major praise to share: Selah slept through the night last night!!! Hallelujah!!!

Thank you all for praying, and please keep the prayers coming for all of us to be fully healed and be reunited as a family SOON!

Day 5 Update

2012-01-20T14:17:00.001-06:00

We didn't get to visit the boys today. :-(

Matt and I were both sick, sick, sick. We're both on Z-packs, and by the end of Friday night here, we are finally improving. Praise Jehovah Rapha for healing.

Mattie was up with Selah most of the night last night. Selah was inconsolable and had 101 fever. She saw our pediatrician Thursday, and he couldn't find anything wrong with Selah besides a red throat. He did a throat culture and it was negative, so he suspected she just has a virus.

After Selah's sleepless and inconsolable night (the inconsolable is out of the ordinary), plus several middle of the night phone calls from Mattie, we decided to call Selah's neurosurgeon at 8am to see if they wanted to do a CT scan to check her shunt for any type of malfunction, including overdrainage.

With a shunt baby, you don't get to sit around and wait when it comes to fever and inconsolability. The neurosurgeon's nurse advised us to take Selah to the ER and she called in orders for a CT scan and shunt x-ray series.

My amazing friend Carrie (Rowan's mom) rearranged her day so she could take Selah to the ER. Out of all my friends, she's the one with the most wide array of hospital experience. Rowan has a shunt, too, and he's spent more days in the hospital than not, so it was a great comfort to me that Carrie was taking Selah to the ER. Mattie went as well, so Selah was in great hands with that team!

After about 5 hours at the ER, it was determined that Selah's shunt is fine. Praise God! The neurosurgeon's nurse said shunted kids will have higher pressures in their heads when they have fever, making them more uncomfortable. We're not exactly sure what the cause of Selah's sleepless and inconsolable night was, but we're praying for a better night tonight!!!

It's hard to be on the other side of the world, period, but with a sick kiddo at home, it's even harder. Plus, being sick ourselves adds another challenge.

There's nothing too hard for our Father. The suffering Jesus endured for us means even more when we think we might have it bad. Our "suffering" is incomparable.

Praying all of us will be well soon, and that we'll be able to visit our boys SOON! I pray their caregivers give them extra lovin' when we're not able to visit. I thank God for the team of caregivers God has organized in Texas who are surrounding our family with His love by being His hands and feet. Thank you to all who have generously and abundantly provided meals, thank you, Carrie, for taking Selah to the ER, thank you, Stephanie, for holding down the fort, and thank you to our kids for doing an amazing job in the absence of Mom and Dad.