Pretty Word?

Tonight when I was tucking in Aleksa Lu, she confided in me that her "peeska" hurt and pointed to her Nether-Regions. It's super-rare for any Russian words to be used at all anymore, and I was surprised she didn't use the English. I told her what we call that in America, and she brightened up and oh-so-innocently said, "Oh, that's a pretty word!"

LOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL

New Tastebuds, New Shoes

The kids are turning over new leaves. What they used to love, love, love, they are suddenly deciding they don't like, hate, or don't want.

For example, until recently, the kids LOVED pickles. Remember me telling about how they'd even drink the brine? Well, they have all three decided that they don't like them anymore. I can get them to eat bread-and-butter pickles occasionally, but for the most part, they're pretty much turning up their noses to them. I'm thinking it has to do with the neighbor girl... who was *completely* grossed out by pickles. Well, she's got a different "food culture" at her house, so she probably hadn't even ever seen them before, but after that incident, our kids have decided they're ugly green nasty things.

Also, Adam is becoming *slowly* more selective as far as what he likes and how much of it. (I might have blogged this before; if so, oops! I just happened to think of it after talking about the pickels.) He doesn't like spaghetti, though he will eat it up if he's hungry. But, unfortunatly that new leaf had to be discovered when we were invited to someone's house for dinner and the hostess announced the menu. Adam (our theatrical Adam), was rather expressive in telling her how disgusting spaghetti was and how he hated it and it made him sick, etc. *SIGH* (We had a loooooong talk about that on the way home, lol!) We're thrilled he's not eating *anything* anymore, but he's gotta figure out some manners in the process! lol! (Being a mom is often Mortifying!)

Liana is on a roll as far as a growth spurt. This summer her feet jumped from a size 3 girls, to a size 6 1/2 womens! We just bought new shoes again recently, and as I was looking for shoes to fit her in the kids' section, I kept wondering where the "bigger" shoes were. I almost passed out when I realized that there WERE NO bigger kids' shoes! I got all light-headed walking over to the womens' section! She's just *too* ready for high heels as it is! WAAAAAHHHH!

Speaking of shoes, Leks can tie hers now! I broke down and bought her tie shoes for the first time ever, and she and Papa have been having nightly lessons. John has a "new-fangled" way of tying shoes that I'd never seen before, but she's learned really quickly doing it this way. I call it "Samurai-shoe-tying." I'll see if I can find a link for it later. It's pretty slick!

Where's Adam?

Last night I went into Adam's already-dark room to tuck him in. I started chatting with him a bit, and then realized he was being awfully quiet. I started patting the bed, and realized he wasn't in it! He was in the bathroom. lol! Fine, so I go off to the girls' room to tuck them in, and as I did so, John asked me what I was laughing about. I told him about Adam's empty bed and my talking to Nobody, and he laughed.

I finished tucking the girls in, and then went back to Adam's room, which was still dark. But this time, I could see that he was in bed (there was a lump!), and said "Adam! You're finally in bed for me to tuck you in and I don't have to talk to the air this time... etc., etc." Finally, John couldn't stand it anymore, and started laughing hysterically. Adam was hiding, and JOHN was in Adam's bed trying to trick me.

Both my boys sure had a fun time giggling.... Bedtime is such a riot around here!

Adam Remembers Metcha Day

Took this video of Adam today, and HAD to figure out a way to share it. I was asking him about the day he met us. Excuse my hacking and coughing though... I'm sick, you know! ;O) Enjoy! (And, for those of you still waiting for your Ukie kiddos, you might want to grab some Kleenex before you hit play!)

Proud Mama

Haven't been well. Yesterday I spiked a temp of 101.8, and wound up having to "check out" on the couch for most of the afternoon. I have to share how wonderful the kids were though...

Just before I declared myself "too sick" to not be on the couch, I had been deboning some chicken. Like a lot of it. I got about a third of the way done, and the kids decided they could take over for me. So, all three kids, headed up by Adam, quietly as mice, sat and pawed through the chicken. Then, I talked them through throwing together some chicken soup. They did it, and it was fabulous. Not only that, but they cleaned up after themselves, wiping off counters and the table, and swept the floor AND MOPPED IT. Can you BeLieve it? Not a whimper of complaint. And they all sat STILL and didn't get up and do cartwheels, or hop around, or shriek, or poke each other, or Anything! I actually dozed off a few times, it was so quiet! *Gasp*

While I was on the couch suffering in silence, (tee-hee, I'm sure my sister, if she's reading could tell you how Not Silent my sufferings usually are!), Liana pulled a book off the shelf and read me a story, and got a cool rag for my forehead. She's quite the mama, as you know! I'm so proud of her for being at the point where she can pretty much take anything off the shelf now and start reading!

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Ever since Leksa has come home from Ukraine, she and I have played "mama/sick child." She's always the mama, (or sometimes doctor), and I'm the sick child. And we have always played it in Russian. "Mama, dai menya tablyetky. Galava baleet, Mama, dai tablyetky." (That's "Mama, give me some pills. Head hurts, Mama, give me pills.") And a few other little Russian phrases that she taught me long ago when that's all she spoke. Well, now when we play that game, she can't speak it *that* well back to me, and stumbles over the words, or mispronounces them, but she still loves to play this game with me. This game was one of the key "things" that really got her to trust/love/bond with me way back when. I'm sure I must have blogged about it at least once or twice. It was pretty significant back then.

So, while I was laying there, we played that game again, only this time I really was sick. When I asked her for "tablyetky," I actually meant it! I had Leks go hunt down some Tylenol for me, and eventually, after digging good and long in my bathroom cabinets, came down with it. She also asked me about the candy that I keep in there. I asked her what on earth she was talking about, because I don't have any candy. (Though, to be honest, I really did have to stop and think if I did have a chocolate stash right now or not.) (I don't.) (Sadly.) (But chocolate chips in the kitchen cupboard work in a pinch, don'tcha know!)

Anyway, she insisted that I had candy "that makes your breath smell nice." I told her to go get it and show me since I had no clue what she was talking about. She brought me a packet of Feminine Products. Oops. Nope, not candy for bad breath, Leks. That's for something else. Of course, this "Candy" conversation grabbed the attention of the other two pretty quickly, and I had to do some fast-talking to persuade her to Put It Back Right Now. ;O)

John called me when he was leaving work to tell me he'd be home in an hour (love that city traffic!), and I told him how great the kids were. He was so impressed that he bought a "Pictionary Jr." game on the way home, and we all played it before bed last night. Games are still pretty iffy around here, and I wondered how it would go. Usually their attention span for games is pretty short, and they've really not gotten into many of them. I'm proud to say that even Leksa Lu could read the cards and draw pictures that were recognizeable enough for us girls to beat John and Adam! Wow, we played a board game (and a fairly complicated one at that!) like a normal, regular family, just as normally and regularly as you could have dreamed. I seriously never thought I'd see the day! The most complicated they've ever played is Yahtzee Jr., which is rather easy, but they still don't have the patience to sit through without somebody abandoning ship.

Anyway, I know you're wondering, so I'll fill you in. I'm feeling a little better today. ;O) Been sipping my yerba mate, and laying low. I must not look quite as sick though, because I haven't been pampered today at all! (That, or they're sick of ME whining!) They used up their TLC quota yesterday, I think! lol!

Oh, since this entry has been one rabbit trail after another anyway, I gotta share another "aaaawww" about my kids. (Hey, that's what this blog is for, right?) ;O) We got an email from a friend whose sil is adopting. In order to not lose their referral for their little girl in Korea, they needed X amount of money by yesterday. (Yes, this was legit.) I told our crew about it, and they emptied their pocket money to send them, "So Chloe could come home." They were so happy to be able to help bring home another child to their family! Very proud Mama moment. Even though they only had $6 between them...

I've got a terrific family!

United Nations Neighborhood

I don't remember if I blogged about this one or not. If I did, please just forgive my senility. I'm getting old, according to my 8yo...

A few weeks ago Liana painted two pictures for the fridge. One was a portrait of John, and the other of me. She got a bit creative though, and painted me with blue skin and a red dot on the forehead, and John was red with blue hair.

Little Rishi from across the street (whose family is from India) was over the day after she made it, and she obliviously pointed out to Rishi that she had painted me like I was from India, with a red mark on the forehead. She started telling him about India when I reminded her whom she was speaking with. Rishi is just Rishi to her. Not "Someone From India." Just the neighbor boy who is her friend. I thought that was pretty cool. Rishi never said a word. He was probably wondering why the painting of "Someone From India" had blue skin!

We like to talk about different kinds of people in our house... so, it was pretty cool that "different" was so "normal" that it never crossed her mind that her friend might "be" different. I loved that.

We've also been having fun getting to know our African neighbors better. (They are from West Africa). We've all been able to watch as the Mrs. did her daughters' hair... that was really interesting for the kids learning how different people have different types of hair, etc. We have been able to watch as they put extensions in their hair, and another time as they decided to straighten their hair, etc. Both of my girls are Completely Jealous that their friends can have long, hip-length hair overnight! I sure would have loved the opportunity to have been able to watch that stuff as a girl. We even had the mom from West Africa come over this summer and teach us how to make peanutbutter stew - which is an African dish. She dressed in a traditional African costume, and really went all out for us. It was awesome! I'm so glad we're where we are right now to be able to desensitize the kids to future stereotypes or prejudices. Right now, these are just our friends and neighbors - some of whom look a little different from us, but are mostly just the same.

Yup, I really like it where we are... great neighborhood, fabulous view, nice home... All I miss is a garden and some critters, and I'd never want to leave!

2 Years 1 Month Home!

Ok, 2 Years, 1 Month. *deep breath*

Adam. Doing great with school. Is always the first one done, and with a super attitude. "Pleasure to have in class." Helpful, kind, etc., just as always.

He's been playing in the water again. This boy sure likes his water! lol! This last month he's trashed not only his church shoes, but also his play shoes because of running through giant mud puddles. Adam needs to remember to take those shoesies OFF! lol! Ok, the mud puddles are rather normal for a boy to play in. He's also been playing in the shower though. The other day the water was running in the bathtub *forever*, and I had assumed he was going to take a bath instead of a shower. Ok, no biggie. Until I heard the shower start to run too. And it ran, and ran, and ran. I had to wake up John to go investigate. All that time the water had been running, Adam had been playing a game. "Let's see if I can take a shower only on the BACK side of myself without getting the FRONT side of myself wet." Who knows why he had needed water in the tub for that, but evidently that was part of the fun. So, after all that time in the water, he STILL needed to go back in to get himself clean!

This month we've had the chance to visit two different homes for family gatherings. Lotsa food laying around, etc. He's a food stalker. Even though there was food *everywhere* he still had to find candy that was tucked away. The first home was my brother's, and I didn't blink because the candy dish was set out on the diningroom table and it was "expected" that the kids would have some. But the second place we went, Adam scoped through the kitchen and other parts of the house looking for candy. He found gum and asked for it, but I happened to catch him stuffing suckers in his pocket that had been "put away" and not out for public consumption. He doesn't get to stuff his pockets with candy here at home, and while he pretty much left the actual FOOD alone and didn't gorge himself, etc., the candy was a different story. That was snuck. I suppose I should be relieved that he's no longer sneaking "regular" food and eating too much of that. He knows he can get "food, food" at home, so didn't worry about that. But candy we're not so big on over here, so he was in line for a second icecream cone, handfuls of m&m's, sneaking suckers, etc. I'm certainly not going to START being big on candy at home just so he'll leave the neighbor's alone. I had really thought this wasn't "that big of a deal" to him any more until this last visit with family. Obviously it still is. Whenever he finds treats from others, they are instantly better providers than we are and they've won him with one little piece of gum. Unfortunately at the same time, we've slipped a few pegs. It's hard.

We also found an electronic "noise-making" piece of a toy in his pocket on the way out. He doesn't have a lot of noise-making toys. (A baby lives at this house, so there were bajillions there). So, he not only broke it, but he extracted the part he liked and stole it.

Kinda reminds me of the dolls the girls had when they first came home. They had voice-boxes inside of them so that when you squeezed them, they said, "Mama! Papa!" Adam stole those too, and one of them he took with us to a concert and OF COURSE the thing had to malfunction and not stop saying, "Mama! Papa!" during the quietest part of the concert. I wound up sitting on it trying to shut it up. (Anyone remember that story?)

Well, anyway, it's been a one step forward, two steps back kind of a month for him. Those hands are impulsive, and they get him in trouble. Unfortunately, they often get him in Big trouble.

Liana is reading better and better all the time. She is weeks ahead in our curriculum for reading. She's in Week 26, for her readers. She has to read out loud though, as do the other two. Silent reading turns into a day-dreaming session where she/they think about what everyone else is doing, what the pictures look like, etc. She's been reading to the little neighbor girl that often comes over during the week. She LOVES playing mom, you know! She used to read to Leks, but now that she's reading on her own, Leks doesn't have patience for it and wants to read on her own. I've been meaning to go shopping for a children's cookbook for Liana. She's been really showing an interest in cooking/baking, and I *KNOW* she's get a giant kick out of having her own recipe book, especially now that she's reading so well. I used to have a Betty Crocker recipe book for kids; I don't know if they sell it anymore, but I'd sure love to get my hands on one like it! (Anyone know what I'm talking about that might know the answer to that?)

Liana just got her hair cut. It's a short bob now, and I LOVE it, even though it aged her a few years. I've been wanting her to let me lop it off that short for a long time now, and when she finally said, "OK," I got the scissors out the same day before she could change her mind.

Aleksa has just been herself. I honestly can't think of anything "new" this month for her, except she got a haircut like her sister's. Not sure if I like hers as well as I like her Liana's, but she likes it though, and that's what counts. We've been working really hard at teaching her diligence. She tends to take the easy way out of things. Like instead of putting a pile of books back on the bookshelf, she'll just flop them on the floor next to it. The daily routine has helped her a lot... I've been trying to think up other ways to teach her that it is important to take care of her stuff, and the house in general, but well, she's six. ;O) Those things just ain't important yet! Speaking of the word "ain't!" I have an Aleksa story... We were reading "Ginger Pye" the other day and she stopped me and said, "Mama, what does 'ain't' mean?" I told her it meant "isn't." She laughed and said that was a funny word. I was amazed that she didn't know it! (And I secretly was very relieved that she didn't know it what it was; I must be speaking right at least some of the time!) *whew*

Speaking of books; we have a new all-time favorite around here. We finished "Red Sails to Capri" a few weeks ago. Absolutely the best read-aloud we've ever done. Plus, I got to practice an Italian accent. It was so good that even John sat in for it, and when we finally finished the last page, John and I made a mad dash for the computer to do a Google search about what the big mystery was at the end. Talk about COOL. Capri is now on my list of places to visit before I die. We all are dying to go there after reading that book. If anyone out there likes to read to their 6-12yo kids, this is one to snag from the library.

Other than the above, the month has been busy and fun. Fall is definitely here, and it's starting to be the type of weather that makes me Love to be in the kitchen. From now til the end of the year, I love to be baking and cooking. Summertime isn't my favorite time to be in the kitchen, but I do love a cool autumn day with bread or pie in the oven or a hot soup on the stove. Fun days ahead!

Pic from July

I don't think I posted this. Getting really lazy on this blog thing... Sorry! Anyway, this is our crew on Metcha Day, July 29th, at a Ukrainian deli.

Tomorrow marks Month 25. I've been debating whether or not to continue doing "Month Home" updates... It seems like "Year 2" was such a nice round number, that saying "25 Months Home" or higher seems odd. I'd feel a little self-conscious posting something like "62 Months Home." Still, there do seem to be changes even this far into the game, so I'm really torn. Those of you still checking in after all these months though, are probably the ones that might be interested, so I dunno. The "Month" updates have been good times for me to organize my thoughts about the progress of each kid, and get to keep myself "on top" of their accomplishments, strengths, weaknesses, etc. I guess I have another day to think about it!

Stocking Up

Went to the grocery store for five things... Saw a few "sale" signs, and wound up with several cases of diced tomates and canned veggies, mushrooms, kidney beans, etc. The shopping cart was rather hard to push by the time we left...

After we got home, and I had to rearrange the entry closet to hold all the excess canned goods and invent myself a pantry. Got to thinking about my dad... He's a stocker-upper Big Time. If he sees one thing he likes, he has to have at least five of them. I sighed and said to Liana, "Liana, Mama is getting to be more like Grandpa all the time."

She sighed right back and said, "I know."

I wondered if she understood why I said that. I didn't know if she was aware of how much Pa likes to stock up... So, I asked her why she thought I was getting to be more like him.

She sadly shrugged and said, "You're getting old."

I guess I did find another grey hair today... *sigh*

Busy Month

These last few weeks have been So busy! We've had company galore, school starting up full-swing, been babysitting the neighbor girl more, and plus all these peaches, and now pears. (I canned 25 lbs of pears yesterday after school.) Tonight we're having friends from back home stay overnight. This is the second time we've had overnight company this month (by the end of Sept. it will be three times). We also had company for dinner one night, made a trip to my dad's for a Cooking Day, took a big trip to my brother's house for a family shindig Monday, and Tuesday we brought a dinner over for a family who just had a baby last week. We've actually been really enjoying all the visits very much... It's nice to feel so connected here... and that our connections to friends and family back home, have not been "completely" broken.

But, I have to say, I'm tired! lol! John had mercy on me and did some grocery shopping for me late last night so I didn't have to. I was soooo relieved not to have to go! :O)

I've also noticed just recently that the comments on this blog have not all been emailed to me like they're supposed to be. I have no idea why I'm getting some and not others, but I'm very sorry for not responding to some of them... How Rude! I'll try to be more careful to check them here instead of relying on the emails.

Growing Family

Had a big family get-together yesterday at my brother and sister-in-law's house. It was sooo much fun to see everyone. Someone snapped a picture of my family plus my dad, and I thought I'd share it since it shows how tall my son is getting! Well, I suppose it shows how tall they're ALL getting, but you know what I mean!

Peaches and package

What a busy week. Anyone out there do any canning? I never had before this week, and *whew* am I exhausted! I have a friend who hooked me up with 50 lbs. of Michigan peaches. Yum-my! But! The thing about 50 lbs of peaches is that they just sit there and start to rot unless you eat 'em, or can 'em. Well, I can't eat that many, so I had to learn how to can.

I tried a batch on my own, and they sorta flopped, so I asked a lady from church to give me some pointers and she offered to come over. I then found out that this lady is a home economist. She went to school at the U of M for it, and has had a newspaper column, done radio talk shows, etc. Ok, can I just say, I sorta freaked! lol! I'm no Martha Stewart, and yet I invited one over?!!! She's a sweetheart of a lady, and I shouldn't have been stressed out by her coming, but I have to say, my house is Spic and SPAN right now. I even cleaned my fridge and oven out! (That's pretty "whoa" around here...) ;O)

Well, anyhow, my peaches are Canned... and I have a week to learn (this time via books at the library!) how to can pears. I had 25 lbs of those delivered here yesterday. Oy.

By the way, the Ukraine package is off safe and sound. I ran out of steam for going off and mailing it when we couldn't do it "on the day" it was supposed to. (Holly, yes, I did get your package - and the postcard! Thank you so much!) (If there are any other families who adopted from Bilgorod-Dnistrovsky too, please email me... I found a cheap way of getting donations there!)