Friday, June 19, 2009

Alexism's....

These are just some of the things Alex says or has said. I wish I had a recorder so I could play back and write about more of the funny things he says but I tend to forget the exact phrasing and/or just remember he said something funny but can't remember what it was. Anyway, here is what I can remember tonight.
When ever you are getting ready to go anywhere:
"Where you go?
When ever you get back from somewhere:
"What you did do?"
After you've watched Alex ride the rip stick for five minutes and you turn away right when he does something he really wanted you to see:
"You no looka me!"
When he wants to know if he should start the dishwasher:
"Dish ina shower?"
When you holler for Alex and ask where he is he'll say:
"Me upstairs!" (And he's always downstairs!)
When you leave his room at bedtime without hugging him-because he is mad and has his back turned to you and refuses to look at you-he will start crying. Then if you walk back in and ask what is wrong, he will say:
"You no hugga me!"
When you tell him it's time for his daily bath he will usually argue and say:
"Me no swetty!" and swipe his forehead.
When you take him to the hair salon for a haircut and the lady is rough and cuts his hair too short:
"Me no happy hair."
When Devree call's him a girl because he's being a tattle tell and a big sissy he'll cry to you:
"Devree talk me girl!"
When he asks about the kids going to their various camps:
Autin (yes I am spelling it the way he says it) walken? (I think he's saying walking and he's referring to hiking?)
When you take him to the out door pool and he LOVES it, he'll tell you on the way home.
"Me fun day. America relly, relly good!"
And when you tell him to hang up his wet clothes on the front porch after swimming, he'll hang up his wet towel, strip his swim trunks off right on the front porch, pull his shirt down to cover his front appendage, run up the stairs with his bare bum showing and make his sisters squeal & scream!

Thursday, June 18, 2009

Well, the laptop I took to Ukraine that crashed is never to live again.
However, I did get the hard drive pulled off and everything transferred to my desk top and have been able to post my two missing post and upload my pictures. If you're interested here are the links.
Orthodox Easter Sunday
Easter Weekend Pictures
Saying Goodbye to Ivan & Snezhana
Misc. Ukraine Photo's



Tuesday, June 16, 2009

Week in pictures....

The trampoline finally arrived so here's the assembly....

More assembly-then I came out and read the instructions and things went much smoother!

The first jump session-no it wasn't that hot but obviously everyone needs to work on their tan's!

Rylee my acrobat and Alex my skeleton catching air!

The start of a flip-looks more like a head hitting the mat at this point but she did make it all the way around.

Rylee's FIRST solo kitchen experience. No Bake Cheesecake.


Our shoe shopping trip!
"If the shoe fits wear it!" is Rylee's motto but NOT mine when it comes to FOUR inch heels!

Devree posing with her sucker and flip flops!

Tutoring Pictures....

Greeting each other at the curb...


Sitting around the "tutor" table...


Tutoring...

Last week the Rast girls, the Bunch girls and Julia, Sodebergs daughter all came over for our first tutor session. The last time I had seen all these children together they all were orphans in unclean clothes with unwashed faces living in an institution that kept them clothed and fed and warm but offered them little else.
How it warmed my heart to see their shinny clean faces, coordinating outfits and cute hair bows in their hair. When I was around the kids in the orphanage I tried not inhale deeply as to not catch any whiffs of what odors may be wafting from their little bodies and hair so I reveled in the ability I had to breath deeply around them and give them all tight hugs and welcome them into our home.
It got a little crazy, and praise to our tutor, Miss Katie for surviving the 1st day. We had six Ukraine children sitting around a table and the volume got louder and louder until we as Mom's had to step in and lay down some ground rules.
Alex was of course out numbered five to one so I'm sure he can't wait for Lawrence's to bring home their boy (or boys) to help even the boy girl ratio-of course we'll have Lobo's and Benson's girls to keep the girls numbers up but we can't wait until they're all home safe and sound and learning English together.
It was wonderful to talk to Amy, Julee and Leslie and compare notes, give suggestions and mostly just know that we all have struggles and challenges.
We were planning on a trip to the park for lunch but because of the dreary day we changed to McDonald's with the indoor playground. We picked up one more girl, Bill and Lezlie Strader met us there with their daughter Julia. So we had seven Russian speaking children and mine and Julee's home grown children making our grand total ELEVEN children running around McDonald's.
My Rylee and Julee's Emmy hit it off and Rylee can't wait for next Thursday to play with her new friend during the two hour tutor session. (During Tuesday's session where Alex has it one on one with Miss Katie-Rylee just hung around listening so having Julee's kids there was really nice to keep Rylee occupied!)
It's quite a drive for Julee & Amy and a big sacrifice for Leslie with her hectic work schedule to be there but I think it was therapeutic for not just us but our children as well.
I do wish I could have understood Russian if only for the first half hour to hear what the children were saying to each other about their new lives here in America. Were they saying good things? Bad things? Comparing parenting techniques? Giving each other advice?
I got two pictures that I'll post but forgot to take my camera to McDonald's. Julee let me snap some pic's on her camera but I never got the kids all rounded up for a group picture-I"ll have to be more diligent this week.

Monday, June 15, 2009

Whine Flu....


I found this today and it's for bloggers that don't blog so much now that their children are home for the summer.
Besides being a prisoner, I'm not blogging as much because I'm too busy following my friends blogs that are now in Ukraine. Best of luck Lobo's, Lawrence's and Benson's. (I swear I check on them five times a day!)
I am also not blogging as much as I've just been so crabby. I don't know if it's the incessant rain or being trapped in my house with five sick children or the fact that James is working an extra week next month and home for a big six days during July-and I'm just not looking forward to that, or what but I'm just a crab.
Yes, I did say my kids were sick. Unofficially they might have swine flu but I probably shouldn't have told them that as now they think they might be dying. Each has their own symptoms. Austin: runny nose, fever and can't do anything
Kambree: Hacking cough, fever, very tired
Devree: Fever, runny nose, and very sleepy
Rylee: Cough, later on fever, nothing sounds good to eat except chocolate chip cookies
Alex: fake cough when he thinks I'm watching, fever for one day and today sneezing and he woke up with "my rely, rely hurt" and pointed to his throat on Saturday.
So Saturday everyone laid around in the family room, medicated, sleeping, watching TV and trying to act sicker than each other. We made it to church Sunday only to take the three girls home after sacrament meeting.
Today, everyone seemed almost back to normal except Rylee who waited five days before having a fever but is now outside jumping on the trampoline with everyone else.
My incredibly smart sister-who works in the medical field unofficially diagnosed them with swine flu as that's what is going around. It's just a flu like many other flu's except there is not a vaccine for it. Not that it matters to us, we're not flu shot people anyway. Swine flu is only deadly to the weak and old so I think we'll be safe. (Personally I think it should be called whine flu as that is what my children have been doing!)
So this is crabby Wendy, prisoner of summer, mother of whine flu kids reporting...over and out!

Friday, June 12, 2009

My Mechanic's....

This is how James and Alex spent one day this week....


I had to drag Alex away to sign up for the reading program at the library, promising we'd be back in 20 minutes. He kept asking me the time at the library and saying "Me help Dad."

James was so impressed with him. He even showed James a part he had forgotten and was able to pull apart the whole mechanism for him so they could re-do it. James is pretty sure he could do this repair on his own now-don't ask me what it was-something to do with the 4 wheel drive.

Last night Alex asked James if they can fix the motorcycle. I think that's the plan for today. It's funny, Alex doesn't want to RIDE the motorcycle-like Austin-he just wants to fix it!

Wednesday, June 10, 2009

Moments...

Some moments throughout the day are smooth. Alex is happy, cheerful, willing to learn, grateful, sweet and I have hope and promise that he'll soon be able to communicate with us.
I have moments of "I am so glad he is ours" and moments of knowing this is so right. It is during these moments that I blog. My nice warm and fuzzy moments.
Then there are other moments....
where he cries because he can't do his time tables as fast as Rylee
Moments when he pouts & walks off when he doesn't win at Wii or every other single thing he plays at.
Moments he won't go to scouts or a friends or even want to go support his new family members at recitals and programs.
Moments he cheats at card and chess games.
Moments he disapproving sniffs at the food I've prepared, wrinkles up his nose and pronounces "Me no eat!"
Moments he stomps into the bathroom or bedroom when asked to comb his hair, brush his teeth or change his clothes.
Moments he hides in his closet and refuses to come out when he's in trouble for disobeying and or being unkind.
Moments he barks "no" at everyone or answers with an abrupt and unhappy voice and/or grunt.
Moments he despises taking a bath every day and chooses not to dry off with a towel but puts his pajamas on over his wet skin which consequently become plastered to his body.
Moments he makes a big deal out of tiny injuries and grimaces with fake pain sounds and whimpering if you touch him the wrong way.
And moments he pretends to be sick and exaggerates coughs or sniffles.
It is during these moments that I have to remind myself to TAKE A MOMENT and try to see things from Alex's point of view.
I bet there are moments that...
he is tired of eating all this foreign, weird looking food that is so unfamiliar to him and his taste buds.
Moments he wishes his new mom wouldn't make him eat green vegetables and/or try everything on his plate.
Moments he feels the need to win at everything to win approval and respect from those around him.
Moments he gets so tired of hearing English in his ears.
Moments he is unsure if we're laughing at him or at something else.
Moments he wishes he could tell us how he feels, what is wrong or just have a two sided conversation.
Moments he wishes his new mom would let up on his regular bath schedule or personal hygiene habits.
Moments he wishes he could forget about learning English and catching up in one summer what other children his age have figured out over eleven years.
Moments he wishes his mom wouldn't sit him at the computer translation program to talk about trust, poor sportsmanship, being kind etc.
Moments he wishes he was an only child instead of sharing his new found parents with four other siblings-who have been with these parents from birth and share memories, relationships and a past he has no part of.
Moments he misses his half-brother half a world away and the only loving relationship he has ever known up until now.
Moments he wonders if he'll ever understand English, ever be able to banter with his family and friends.
And moments he wonders if he'll ever feel like he fits and belongs.
When I think about the moment's Alex must or may have, it makes my moments of complaint seem so inconsequential and trivial.
I just need to remember at this moment that I am the mother, he is the child and these moments both his and mine and both good and bad will not last.....



Look...Alex & I are on the flyer!


Tuesday, June 9, 2009

Ugh...scary....Austin got his learners permit!

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