URGENT!!

Please take a few minutes to sign this petition asking that the White House get involved in helping to overturn the Russian law banning adoptions by American families.  President Obama needs to step up... his office has been silent over this whole issue which affects so many.... the numerous families who consider a child across the ocean their very own even if they have yet to meet them in person... the families who have held their child in their arms and loved on them, promising they will be back soon to bring them home... the families with scheduled court dates and the families who have already passed court and only need to go back to bring their child home.  And of course the children.  The children who's only chance of having a loving family is through international adoption.  ALL Russian orphans who have been available for international adoption were already passed over by Russian families.  Already rejected twice- first by their birth family and second by their own society.

Putin wants to encourage more Russian families to adopt, and I think that is wonderful.  Yes, more Russian citizens should step up and care for their own.  But this will not affect the children with disabilities.  They will be lucky to get all the *healthy* orphans into adopted families let alone those with disabilities.  We are literally their ONLY hope.  I signed this petition, grateful that my daughter is home with me. All kids deserve families no matter what country that family lives in. So many people out there have the mentality of "shouldn't we care for our own before someone else's?"  I try not to get too preachy, but this subject is very personal and I can't help it.  If this adoption crisis urges more families to adopt domestically- that is FABULOUS.  Yes, there are always children out there, near or far, who need families.  Thankfully, here in the United States, we don't have dilapidated orphanages that are so decrepit that the volunteers going to help choose to bathe down in the river instead of the disgusting bathrooms.  Yes, this is what the ROOF volunteers resorted to when they first began working in Lina's former institution.  It was one of *those* institutions, but thankfully ROOF has turned it around quite a bit.  But even with all the great opportunities ROOF is providing- NOTHING takes the place of a loving family.  We saw that through our own eyes bringing Lina home.  Please take a moment and read my friend Tesney's experience HERE.  Tesney adopted little Kirill from the same region our Lina was in- they both were even in the same baby house.  But Kirill was transferred to a different institution... one not fortunate enough to receive any help aside from the bare minimum from the Russian government.  I hesitate when I say "bare minimum" because it isn't even that.  My heart breaks for the children still trying to survive there, and I count my lucky stars that Lina was not transferred to this institution.  PLEASE read her story:  http://oureyesopened.org/2012/12/618.html

Americans are the children's ONLY hope.... they are struggling to survive when they should be living life.  Please PLEASE sign this petition, and share it with others to sign too.  Share it on Facebook, share it on Twitter, share it anywhere you can!!  Hundreds of children's lives depend on it, and our government should be doing more to communicate with Russia and urge them to make changes.

https://petitions.whitehouse.gov/petition/help-americans-save-lives-russian-children-through-adoption/3Vr3YCtX

Wrapping things up....

I'm feeling ready to finalize this blog.... It's difficult walking away as it holds so many precious memories along our journey to add our precious daughter to our family.  This blog will remain here, but I will not be posting here much at all.  I may include a few of Lina's milestones, but I'm finding it quite difficult to keep up with one blog let alone two.  I will be combining my advocacy efforts along with my family blogging on my Ramblings and Reflections blog- please be sure to add it to your bookmarks or follow by e-mail if you so prefer!! http://amysramblingsandreflections.blogspot.com/

I know this seems like a random time- why now?  Why in the middle of Angel Tree.... right before Lina's first Christmas at home.... I am simply overwhelmed with busy schedules and need to cut back where I can.  It's the little things that count, right?  I feel like I'm totally letting down my readers by posting so infrequently, even if I don't have the biggest crowd out there.  Y'all still mean a lot to me! :)  

Willow is doing great on the Angel Tree- thank you so much to all of you who have donated to her fund!! We raised a few hundred dollars through the Auction for Angels which was awesome.  As of today her Angel Tree grant is at $757.30!!  Just $242.70 to go!!  We can do this!!

I just realized I never posted sweet Willow's updated photo!  Isn't she such a doll??  

Our family finally got our Christmas tree this past weekend and today was decorating day.... Little Willow's ornament is proudly hung- isn't she darling??

I apologize for the crappy cell phone pic.... I can assure you it's adorable! You can have one of your own if you simply donate $35 to her grant!!  While this ornament is precious, I know she would look so much better in the arms of a family.  Praying that family finds her SOON.  

I'm super excited- packaging up my ornament from last year to send to her forever family coming to get her!!  Sweet Jessa was my Angel Tree child last year, and y'all rocked it then too- we met her goal and then some!    

From my Ramblings & Reflections blog in January:

I want to thank everyone who contributed to Jessa's Angel Tree fund!! I was completely astounded that EVERY child on the Angel Tree reached their goal!! YAY!!! The last day, New Year's Eve, was a huge rush of excitement as kids' funds were just exploding. Jessa's final Angel Tree fund = $1,194.26 with a grand total of $1,329.26 available toward the cost of her adoption!! As I packed her ornament away with all my others, I said a quick prayer that she find her forever family before I hang her ornament on my tree next December.
And my prayer was answered!! :))  Well even though she hasn't met them yet technically. ;)  Her family is still early in the adoption process- please keep them in your prayers that all goes smoothly and they can bring her home soon!  I'm sure they would appreciate a little love in their FSP as it is currently at only $195.  

Praying there will be a family for me to mail my ornament of Willow to next year!!  Have a blessed holiday season each and every one of you.... and keep following on Ramblings and Reflections! xoxoxo

Auction for Angels- ENDS TOMORROW!!

Hurry and check those bids!! The Auction for Angels ends tomorrow, Nov. 30th at 11:00 PM Eastern time!!  There are 15 items to benefit Willow- just read the descriptions on each photo to see which child benefits from each item.  Willow's items total $305 right now- with all these items going well below retail value!! A couple items don't have ANY bids yet!!  These would make fabulous Christmas presents- please go check them out!! Simply leave a comment with your bid amount on the appropriate photo.  After the auction ends, payment instructions will be sent.  All payments are TAX DEDUCTIBLE!! :) Happy Shopping!!!

It's Angel Tree Time!!

Angel Tree officially starts TODAY!!  As many of you know by now, My little Angel Tree cherub this year is sweet Willow, residing in Lina's former baby house for the next few months.

I say few months because Willow turns 4 in March.  That's when she will leave the baby house and be transferred to the orphanage for older children with disabilities... the institution.  I saw the progression of photos from Lina's time in the baby house to her time in the institution, and there was definite change.  After transferring to the institution, her spirit seemed crushed.  Emotionally she was absent.  She had no one in her life who loved her best.  No one to give her a random snuggle or to comfort her when she was hurt or didn't feel well.  Nothing. Just her own two fingers to suck on for comfort, her own self to rock back and forth when she longed for someone to rock and soothe her.

We were able to break Lina free from those walls and provide these things to her, and Willow deserves the same.  Right now her pitiful little grant sits at less than $100.  I do have to say- it has sat at $64 for what seems like an eternity, and I went to double check as I am writing this post- and she has received her first Angel Tree donation!!! THANK YOU to whomever donated to little Willow!!!  Her grant is now $95.50- my goal as her Christmas Warrior is to raise her grant to $1,064- adding $1,000 to what her grant was before the Angel Tree started.  Can we do it?  YES WE CAN!!

There are a few ways you can help!  If you want to make a flat out donation to Willow's grant, you can donate here:

I will be putting her donation box on the side of my blogs, or you can also visit her Reece's Rainbow page directly HERE.  If you donate at least $35 you will receive a Christmas ornament with Willow's picture!

Another way you can help: shop for yourself!!  I will continue to donate my Tastefully Simple commission to Willow all through Angel Tree season.  With Willow's first Tastefully Simple party- we raised $75 for her!! I will be adding that to her grant shortly. :) Also- there will be an online auction going on for several Angel Tree cherubs, and Willow is one of them!  When you browse through the auction items, read the entire description to see which items benefit which child.  The auction will begin November 15th so keep posted!!

My sweet angel from last year has a family coming for her, and I continue to pray I will have the same luck this year as well. :) Let's get that grant moving so we can help Willow find her forever family!!

6 month Gotcha-versary!!

Can you believe it's been SIX MONTHS already since Lina's Gotcha Day??? Yea, me neither!!  Yet at the same time, it feels like she's always been here.

Making that long trek to Pskov seems like a very distant memory...

Pskov's beautiful Kremlin on the Velikaya River.... This city dates back to the year 903 AD.  The Trinity Cathedral was founded in 1138 and rebuilt in the 1690's.

I'm not sure what this little building was on this side of the river, but it was cute. :)  The railing behind this little building had padlocks all around and I knew it had to signify something....

I asked our translator and she told us that when people get married, they place a lock on the rail to signify their love being locked forever, and they then throw the key in the river.  We had noticed several were shaped like hearts and many had initials and dates inscribed, so we figured it was something to that effect.  Love it!

I wish we had been able to do more sight-seeing in Lina's hometown.  Our first two trips were extremely cold so we weren't really able to do much walking around.  Gotcha trip consisted of running around completing paperwork and collecting Lina's documents, spending one night, getting her the next day, collecting more documents and paperwork, and taking the train back to Moscow.  No downtime at all!

Our lovely hotel, the Rizhskaya, aka the Rizky ;) with the teeny tiny rooms but very yummy food in the restaurant

the breakfast buffet

a sampling of the dinner menu 

(stole a few of these images from some fellow Pskov families as Mike is doing work on the desktop where I have access to all my pics)

....and the train back to Moscow... oh the lovely 12.5 hour overnight train ride where we got very minimal sleep, and I acquired some food poisoning just about each time I ate their food.  Didn't eat on the train the last trip!

at the train station ready to depart Pskov with our tired, tired girl who had been snoozing in the car

in Moscow running more errands, when she really started to bond with us <3  Oh how you have grown and blossomed since we left your hometown.  Love you, precious girl!

Glimmer of Hope

Things have been quiet here on this blog as I have been anxiously awaiting an update from Marina in Pskov.... She has still been trying to track down Lina's biological family so she can purchase and deliver our donation to them.  For those new to our story:  all Russian orphans with special needs in particular receive something similar to a disability check and they each have their own bank account run by the Russian government and handled by the orphanage director.  It is customary to donate a large portion back to the orphanage.  We handed over our donation (Lina had a rather large account since she was collecting money for 5 1/2 years), and then Marina contacted me, asking if it would be ok to split the donation into three- one portion going to Lina's former institution, one portion going to a baby house in desperate needs of funding, and one portion going to help her biological family as they are very poor.  We were honored and excited to be able to help in so many ways!  Both orphanages have received their share, but Marina has had trouble contacting Lina's biological family.  It is common for families to leave their home for the entire summer to stay with family elsewhere, but she was hopeful that they would return when the school year began in September as Lina has a school age sibling.

Well Marina contacted me September 25th to say she still has not been able to contact the family.  She asked if she should continue trying or just send us back the money.  I replied to of course continue to try to find them.  And then a ray of hope.... I had done a little investigating on my own and was able to find two of Lina's siblings online.  I am not contacting them myself, but passed on the information I found to Marina, hoping it would help her in her search.  I am still waiting to hear back.  Hopefully she doesn't think I am some sort of stalker finding this information!  I just really really want to pull this off- our plan is to donate a refrigerator full of food to them and know it is much needed.  Marina will also share photos of our family and updated photos of Lina, and tell them a bit about our family.  She will also ask if she can take photos of them to share with us, which I am really hoping for.  I would love to be able to give this piece of Lina's heritage to her.

In the meantime, I am still raising funds for sweet Willow as well as another Reece's Rainbow angel- Aisha. Aisha's Christmas Warrior contacted me to hold a Tastefully Simple fundraiser for her and I was ecstatic to add her to the fun!  I would love to add more, so anyone looking for a fundraiser for their cherub PLEASE let me know!  All you do is share the link and get people to order, and your child will earn 20% of the total for your party.  If you wish to purchase and donate to Willow, click FIND HOST at check out and enter Amy Livingston as the host.  If you wish to donate to Aisha- her party has NO orders yet!! :(  Please enter Teresa Gorman at check out.  Both parties close on October 15th- just 6 short days away!!  I have a personal goal to reach $1,000 in sales by then, and so far have fallen $243.89 short.  Please help me help these sweet girls!  I did have a party for sweet Xenia whom her parents will call Kenzi- we were able to raise $70 toward her FSP which I will be donating shortly as soon as I get the money transferred. :)  Also, an added perk- those holding TS fundraisers will still earn the typical host rewards- free products and added discounts. ;)  And you don't have to be in the adoption network to hold a party either- you can hold a party simply to earn rewards for yourself and do some holiday shopping!  My Tastefully Simple site is found HERE for any orders you are interested in placing.

And after all that yapping, I will share Lina's portraits we just had taken this past weekend.  :) In the past I have always taken my kids for individual portraits around their birthdays to track their growth and all that fun stuff.... but with four kids it's becoming more and more difficult to keep up with!  I never got to take Justin for his portraits back in June, and was holding out for our adoption session we had at a local mill, but then was disappointed in the portraits and didn't order any.  Lina's birthday came last month and now Evan's is approaching in a couple weeks, so I've decided to just get EVERYONE'S pictures taken at the same time and be done for the year! ;)  Sooooooo.... here's our Lina girl!

And my favorite...

Oh how I hope we can share these and many others with your biological family so they can rest assured you are well cared for and LOVED. xoxoxo

New ventures

Well... for Mommy anyway. ;)  I will be winding down posts on this blog regarding Lina and will be sharing her progress on our family blog, so please make sure you follow us over there!  I'm not ready to say goodbye to this one quite yet though, and have the strong need to keep advocating for the ones we left behind.  Those children now have names and faces, and not a day goes by that I wish we could have brought them all home too.  Thinking about them itching themselves to sleep at night as they are covered in scabies and fungus.... thinking about how they must still endure the awful abuse at night.  Remembering how starved for attention they were when we walked into the room.... EVERY child deserves a family.  Every. One.

We're tapped out and going back isn't an option for us, but that doesn't mean we can't still help.  We still have contact with our facilitators in Lina's former region, and we still have Reece's Rainbow.  We were blessed to have found much support through the Reece's Rainbow community as well as through our friends and family, and I have the need to pay it forward.  You may recall my sweet friend Noel held a Tastefully Simple fundraiser for us, and we were able to earn $400 toward our adoption.  Yes, adoption is expensive, but that's a good chunk of change!  We were also able to earn a substantial amount in free products, and with that I bought the largest gift basket they make to offer as a prize in our giveaway.  Our Tastefully Simple fundraiser was a HUGE success, and I want to pay it forward by doing this for other families and waiting children as well.

So I did it.  Something I swore I'd never do (just like I swore I'd never own a minivan and swore I'd never fly to Russia)... I signed up as a Tastefully Simple consultant.  Yes, I hate cooking.  But you know what? These products are perfect for people who enjoy cooking as well as people like me who despise it! :) Add water and cook? Yea I can do that.  Add a bottle of beer and bake? Heck yea I can do that!

No, I did not start this venture to add income to our family.  As much as it would help, I need to help these kids get HOME.  I will be donating the majority of my commission (holding a small part to cover myself for taxes) to Reece's Rainbow families and waiting children.  I have two parties going on right now- one for sweet Willow who is in Lina's former baby house:

Willow's grant is a measly $64.  We can do better than that!  I have also signed up to be Willow's Angel Tree Warrior, so come Christmas time I will be pushing extra hard for her.  I pray she finds a family before she is transferred to an institution.  Right now she's in an excellent baby house headed by an amazing director.  Not a day goes by where I don't wish we could have found Lina sooner, before she had to experience this transfer.  I can't imagine how traumatic it has to be for these children.

The second party I have going on right now is for sweet Kenzi:

Her Mommy and Daddy traveled to meet her for the first time a few months ago and fell madly in love.... and the judge in their region is not making things easy for them.  And... Kenzi needs heart surgery.  Expenses have been piling up with all the extra hoops they are having to jump through, and currently they need $3,500 more.  

If you wish to help Kenzi's family, during check out on the Tastefully Simple website, click "Find Host"- and enter Priscilla Morse as the host.  Select her party and Kenzi will get 20% of your total.  If you wish to help Willow's grant, enter Amy Livingston as the host, and 20% of your purchase will go to Willow.  Easy peasy!

If you love Tastefully Simple products as I do and wish to keep reordering products, please think of me and order from my site.  I'm not currently doing in home parties, but if you'd like to hold an online/catalog party I'd be happy to hold one for you.  You will still earn all the regular host benefits and I can even hook you up with samples to have your own little taste testing party.  You can let me know which child or family you would like me to make a donation towards, or I can simply add my commission to the current fundraiser.  It always feels good knowing you're helping someone else along the way, doesn't it?  

Happy Birthday, Lina!!!

Hey, you say you have something to tell me?

ooooooooooo it's something special??

It's my BIRTHDAY?

Not sure what this birthday thing is you talk about, but I GET TO BRING COOKIES TO SCHOOL FOR SNACK???? WOOOOOOHOOOOOOO!!!

Is this day really here?? Is my babygirl really home to celebrate her birthday?? Hard to believe one year ago we were holding our big Birthday Bash fundraiser to raise money for Lina's adoption. We were still submitting paperwork to complete our homestudy, all the while dreaming of traveling for the first time to meet her. We did not know her actual birthday until we received her official referral just a couple weeks before traveling in November; we just knew it was sometime in September.

And now she is HOME celebrating with her family for the very first time. I don't know if the orphanages ever acknowledged the children's birthdays or if Lina even knows what that is. Wondering how she will handle all the attention from family and friends as we celebrate both her birthday and her Baptism this weekend. We haven't had any big holidays to celebrate yet since she's been home, so this will be interesting to see! :) We've had a few family birthday parties to warm her up a bit to the occasion.

Since Lina really has no understanding of the English words "Happy Birthday", we pulled up Ms. Google Translate to help us wish her a Happy Birthday in Russian. Yea, we played the audio several times trying to pronounce it correctly ourselves, and then we gave up and played the audio for Lina to hear herself. ;)

Happy Birthday: С Днем Рождения pronounced "S Dnem Rozhdeniya" - try saying that 10 times fast! Try this link if you'd like to hear Lady Google say it for you. Lina did smile when we played it for her, so we are thinking she may understand what it means... but still don't think she knows what all she's in for this weekend. ;)

Today at preschool we brought cookies to celebrate the big day. :) It's sometimes difficult for me to remember she is actually turning six years old.... She is attending a 4 year old preschool program, still about the size of a 4 year old just going into size 5 clothes, and developmentally she's about at the level of a 3 year old on average. We're still waiting for all the official assessments through the schools so I will keep you posted on all that.

Of course I forgot to snap a pic of the class birthday book- we completed pages with photos of Lina and listed all her favorite things... it was super cute. I did snap some pics of Lina throughout the rest of her day at school:

Listening at storytime

making a special birthday crown {that she only kept on for about 5 minutes}

playing in housekeeping

and making a craft- a self portrait :)

So, Polina Mae... you really are home, and you really are OURS. You captured Mommy and Daddy's hearts the first time we met you, and we're blessed to call you our daughter. Sure, your brother and sister may squabble with you from time to time as most siblings do, but they still tell us how much they love you and are so glad you are home with us too. Happy Birthday, precious girl, we love you SO much!!!

First purchases made for the Warm Shelter baby house with our auction money!!

I shared this on our Facebook auction page but wanted to post it here too.... because YOU help make a difference in the lives of these orphans!!  I am THRILLED we are able to continue helping the children in Pskov as it is much needed.  Our auction was a HUGE success- bringing in over $1,500!!!  We had two plans to get the money to our facilitator in Pskov... Plan A: send funds to one of the board members of the CRA (Congress of Russian Americans) who can transfer the money directly to our facilitator in Pskov.  We transferred a smaller amount first ($200) to be sure it all went through successfully before transferring the entire amount.  Our Plan B was to send funds with our trusty adoptive family who made purchases for us a couple months back and brought the goodies to our facilitator to deliver to the orphanage.

Well the money was overnighted to our contact in the CRA on a Thursday and the money was in our facilitator's hand in Pskov that Saturday!! WOOOOOHOOOOOO!!!  She recently delivered her purchases to the orphanage and shared this note:

Yesterday I went on the market and bought warm things there (in the market of a thing usually cheaper, than in shops). It is overalls and jackets for autumn and winter and some small things for the rest of money. When I told to the hostess of things that I buy it for a orphanage, she gave me one more overalls free of charge. Today I was in the Warm shelter and gave all things. [The nurse] was very glad and surprised that all things new and beautiful. She told that inhabitants of Pskov often bring absolutely old things. The personnel doesn't want to offend people, and thanks them. But then they doesn't know what to do with these things - after all for small children important to observe hygiene. Your things certainly were pleasant to all. At first we considered it with the personnel . Then just children woke up and all started to try on clothes with pleasure. (Though then children were a little afflicted, as they hoped, they are going to conduct for walk). Laura, excuse that I not always do everything quickly. I haven't enough days off, but I want to make everything whenever possible better. For example, if I bought things in shop near to my house, they would be more expensive almost twice. One overalls there cost nearly 3 thousand rubles, and I could buy thus only two and several trifles. And in the market I bought four sets (moreover the fifth get as a gift), hats, a little knitted trousers. I am very happy with result and it was pleasant to me to see pleasure and gratitude of children and the personnel. [The nurse] wrote the small letter. There it is written approximately so: 

From office the Warm shelter: By us it is received from [our facilitator] warm clothes for children. With huge gratitude to all philanthropists - now we can walk with children in a cold season. Thanks for your kindness and understanding! 09.05.2012. 

And once again I thank you - you and all donors is such good fellows!

And below is a photo she shared of the children excitedly trying on their new clothes :) I did blur it for privacy reasons.

We will be transferring the rest of the funds from the auction as soon as we hear back from our CRA contact as he was just leaving for vacation when the first amount was transferred.  And now that we know we can transfer the money easily, we will be holding more fundraisers for the Warm Shelter baby house! :) I will keep you posted!

Be on the look out for a post tomorrow... since it will be LINA'S BIRTHDAY!!!! :)  You can read all about her first day of school HERE. 

5 months ago today, a judge said "Da."

Exactly 5 months ago today, Mike and I stood nervously in a Russian courtroom and poured our hearts out to a judge and prosecutor about how much we loved Polina and were prepared to bring her home and make her ours.  Wow... has it really been 5 months?  Seems like just yesterday I was envisioning missing court and being sent to a Russian hospital instead, yet it feels like Lina has always been a part of our family.  I really have to try hard to remember what it was like without her, just like it's difficult remembering what it was like having just one child! :)

We bring Lina places like to Evan's playgroup, over to friends' houses for playdates, and out and about on everyday errands, and no one would know she was not born to our family, aside from her big chocolate brown eyes in contrast to our blue and green eyes.  No one would know she has only been my child for just under 4 months as she has an EXTREMELY strong bond to me as her mama.  No one would know English is her second language, and that she has only been exposed to it for less than 4 months as she understands and follows simple directions, and has a large signing vocabulary.

Yes, we still have our obstacles.... Lina still has a difficult time getting through dinner as she despises vegetables and most meat.  It can take her over 2 hours to get through dinner- and that's eating a pretty small amount.  We have found that she does like ketchup, so that's been our saving grace for the meat department.  For veggies- when I'm desperate I will give her one of those little fruit/veggie squeeze pouches you find in the babyfood aisle.  I need to invest in a juicer or start making smoothies- any advice in this department would be wonderful as I have never made either!  I think she'd do better if she could drink it instead of having to chew- she just gets so lazy with chewing when she isn't motivated to finish.  She will take forkfuls and forkfuls and just hold it in her cheek pocket like a little squirrel, but refuse to chew, hence making dinner a 2+ hour long process.  I am not comfortable letting her up from the table when she still has food in her mouth, and she has literally sat with the same mouthful of food for an hour, chewing once every minute or so.  Painstakingly SLOW.  We've tried enticing with treats afterward, but she will often lose interest and just opt to get down without getting her cookie or ice cream.

Our other big obstacle has been the little Russian souvenirs she came home with from the orphanage that were living in her skin.... the scabies.  Lina herself has been rid of the scabies for a few months now, but apparently she passed some of the lil buggers on to Justin unbeknownst to us.  Long story short- I have been taking Justin to the doctor since June for this unknown rash that wouldn't go away and kept spreading to different places and getting worse- scabies was totally off the radar since this was after we finished treating Lina and myself for them.... The pediatrician's office (multiple staff members) were attributing it to some sort of allergy/eczema and tried several different creams and oral medications.  I finally got sick of this and took him to the dermatologist who quickly diagnosed it as scabies.  And wouldn't you know it- I got them again too.  And to sweeten the pot- both Justin and I are allergic to the cream to treat the scabies.  Justin had a much worse reaction than I did- the poor thing was covered from the neck down in eczema and his hands broke out in blisters- looking like he had chemical burns.  We are still treating his poor hands and feet from the reaction, and the dermatologist gave Justin and I an oral medication to take instead of the cream for our second and hopefully last treatment against the scabies.  Praying this does the trick!!

For our next steps- Lina was recently screened to qualify for special education services through the county schools, and will begin further testing next week.  We're hoping to have her enrolled in the special education preschool class by October.  She will begin preschool 3 mornings a week at a local Christian preschool in September, and we plan to send her to the special education preschool the other two days a week so she can receive the bulk of her therapies there.  Lina is going to need a LOT of speech therapy- that is her biggest weakness right now.  Her fine motor and self help skills are excellent, and gross motor skills aren't too bad either, though she could definitely use some work there also.

We recently had a family photo session through Red Thread Sessions, and to say I had high expectations is an understatement.  I have seen countless *perfect* photos on their site as well as many other photographer sites and wanted that perfect photo of my very own.  Sadly, I didn't find out about the Red Thread Sessions until the hot summer hit Maryland, and we were all absolutely miserable in the scorching heat.  Lina was drenched in sweat, Evan was constantly running in the opposite direction, both Evan and Lina took a spill on the pavement at one point or another and scraped their knees... and it just went downhill from there.  You can find a sample of our photo session on their site HERE.  I'm thankful I got the family photos from church! :)

Lina's first family portraits

This will be brief- just wanted to share our first family portraits with Lina! These were taken for our church directory- we will be having more done tomorrow at an outdoor location which I'm SUPER excited about.

Also please check out our auction if you haven't done so already- we are up to 63 items! New items keep trickling in, and several items still don't have bids yet- starting bids are LOW!!  All profits are going to the Warm Shelter baby house in Pskov, Russia. 

https://www.facebook.com/WarmShelterAuction

Warm Shelter Auction is LIVE!!!

Giving y'all a heads up- the auction we've put together for the Warm Shelter baby house in Pskov is up and running!! Bidding began yesterday afternoon and they keep pouring in! :)) As of this morning we were already at $480!!  I can't wait to surprise the staff there yet AGAIN with much needed donations! :)

As I wrote previously, the Warm Shelter baby house had a generous donor in Germany who was providing much needed funds for ongoing supplies.  Unfortunately, they have lost this donor and are in danger of closing without continued supplies.  These are good people doing the best they can for these little ones, and it would be so wonderful to continue funds and supplies as we can.  You can find our first round of donations HERE.

We are up to 55 items in our auction!!  Several items still don't have any bids yet- please check them out!!

Sharing our story

I was graciously asked to share our adoption story with a DS parenting group up in York, PA and jumped at the opportunity!  While public speaking certainly is not my forte, I do enjoy sharing our story and how God pieced all this together.  I was also SUPER excited to meet Susanna Musser- mom to Verity and little Katiebird.... AND... I got to meet Katie herself!!  She was such a joy to watch as her mom held her and shared her story as well- we were the only two speakers that evening.  I requested to go first as our story was just a drop in the bucket compared to what Katie went through.  There wasn't a dry eye as Susanna shared their compelling story.

Many commented how they would have loved to have met Lina, but I wasn't feeling brave enough to bring her.  While Katie sat contently on her mama's lap the entire time, Lina would be all over the place! :)  Maybe another time we will make it up to a meeting to introduce her while I don't have to focus on speaking at the same time.

If you are unfamiliar with Katie's story, please go to Susanna's blog: http://theblessingofverity.com/  Her story will move you like no other.

In other news- now that I have my speech out of the way, I am going to start putting together our auction to raise money for the Warm Shelter baby house in Pskov.  We have an awesome assortment of items and I'm super excited!! Big thanks to all that have donated!!  I do need photos for all items ASAP so I can get them all posted and ready to go.  Also, any help with starting bids would be great too!

To give you an idea of what an online auction looks like on Facebook- go check out my friend Jennifer's auction which ends tomorrow- hurry up and bid before it closes!! She has a LOT of amazing things too and is on her way home right now from meeting her two girls for the very first time.

https://www.facebook.com/AuctionForWillisGirls

Happy Weekend, y'all!!

Update on Baby House Fundraiser

In talking with other adoptive mamas who have become real pros at the fundraisers- I'm opting to do an online auction instead of a Giveaway.  I am hoping to get 50 donations to auction off and raise money to purchase items in country for the baby house.  Our same mama adopting from Pskov who graciously brought our donations to Marina on her first trip agreed to do the same when she returns for court in a few months.  She will carry the cash with her and purchase diapers and other baby items in Pskov and meet up with Marina again to hand them over.

So far I have about 21 items- and they are FABULOUS!!  We're not even halfway to our goal yet though, so if you have anything you would be willing to donate- whether it be an outfit your child outgrew before they really got to wear it, or any household items/decorations/craft items in new or like new condition- I'd be forever grateful!!  Baked/jarred items work also- anything you'd be willing to ship!  Please send a photo along with a description if needed to me at kaylinsmommy@gmail.com.  If you have a website to include I would be happy to put that in the listing to promote your business.  Thanks so much!! Spasibo!!

Donations delivered to baby house!

Marina delivered our donations yesterday and sent me this letter this morning:

Dear Amy!
Yesterday in the orphanage everything was remarkable!  I brought your donation and things which were brought by [other adoptive mama].  I made small posters about you.  I placed your photo with the signature about your family.  And nearby I wrote, "For the Warm Shelter! With love from friends!" (you will see on my photos).  As a result on your donation we bought only medicines- we decided that this is most important.  Many children in the orphanage have neurologic and other serious diseases.  Drugs for these diseases are very expensive- almost each packing costs from 1 to 2 thousand rubles, and it is necessary for children constantly.  I and my husband had to go round many drugstores to find it because of the high prices many drugstores don't keep such drugs in a large number.  In some it was can buy only some remained ampoules to collect at last the whole packing.  But I did it with pleasure, and when I said that it is the help from an American family for the orphanage, workers of drugstores became even more benevolent.

In the orphanage just in a corridor workers started to ask us what we bear, and I explained to all that it is the help for them. Sergey, the head, was glad and confused at the same time.  He asked on you, and was touched by that people whom he never met are ready to help, having learned about the need.  He conveys to you huge thanks!  Sergey as the doctor, especially suffers from shortage of drugs.  It is heavy for it when he knows that the child needs treatment, knows the drug which can help and has none.

So, your help is very necessary and timely.  I am grateful to you that I could take part in such good business. The administration of Pskov also transfers you gratitude words!

Elena, the director of your orphanage, already took a part of money too (By the way, you managed to send photos to her?).  While she didn't tell me, on what it will spend.

Now on turn of purchase for the biological family.  But representative of guardianship is in holiday still.  And I don't decide to go to this family alone.  There the difficult situation, people hesitate of they act, the poverty. If I come one, it will be probable unpleasantly for them and can confuse them.  Therefore I wait and I will tell you at once.

And here are the photos of Marina with Sergey- the poster that Marina made of our family, and the donations of medicine:

Marina sent a similar letter to the other adoptive families who donated gift cards for the parents traveling to purchase items and hand deliver them to Marina for the baby house.  Those photos are below:

I am putting together a Giveaway to raise more money for this baby house, as their need will continue and these supplies will only last so long.  If you have any items you'd like to donate- hand crafted items, new electronics, gift cards in any amount- it would be greatly appreciated.  Please leave a comment or e-mail me ASAP- I won't publish your comment but will make a personal note. Thank you!

And I got my own little present from the family currently in region- I asked the mama to speak with the director and ask if she had any photos of Lina from when she lived at the baby house.  She is going to mail me the photo of Lina by herself, but the director had just shown her the other photo, so she snapped a pic of both to show me.

SO CUTE!!! I have asked said adoptive mama to try to find out about when these photos were taken so I can figure out about how old she is in them.  Some of my readers who follow other families who have adopted from this region may recognize the little blondie sitting next to Lina also. ;)

2 months home!

Last Thursday marked 2 months home for Lina!! Woooohoooooo!!  She continues to thrive and bring smiles to our faces daily!  We were extremely busy last week with our Down syndrome camp- you can read all about it HERE and HERE- make sure you read both parts- LOTS of pictures!!  Lina did extremely well, especially with all the animals they had on different days!  It was funny though- as camp progressed, she grew a little more clingy to me each day. By the last day she didn't want me out of sight at all!  She had fun, got to know her buddy, though did begin pressing more and more buttons as the week went on.  She tried to bolt several times, refused to put her shoes back on after the bounce house- little things that mama had to put her foot down on.  We have found that Lina needs firm and consistent discipline.  No, she doesn't need time outs very often, but there need to be clear boundaries, and if she needs correcting it must be done immediately and with a firm voice and stance.  If you are too "nice" about it and are too much of a push over she will walk all over you.  I truly believe she craves the firm boundaries and feels more safe when rules are enforced, and I'm wondering if that is why she became more and more clingy to me as the week went on.  Her buddy was super sweet though, had the patience of a saint, and didn't mind chasing after Lina countless times! :)

Another little update- my friend adopting from Pskov is at Lina's former baby house right now and hand delivered my letter and photos!! She reported back that the director was "so happy" and received my e-mail- hoping she will reply back! :)  Also, tomorrow Marina will be bringing the items purchased from our donation to the baby house in need.  She will bring along photos of our family so they can see who the donations are from. :)  Marina also received a heavy box full of donations from the mama visiting Lina's former baby house- a group of families who also adopted from Pskov sent Walmart gift cards to this mama to purchase items the orphanage needs and handed them off to Marina to be delivered.  She agreed to do this again on her next trip(s) over, but instead will bring cash with her to purchase items in country since it was pricey to bring an extra box on the plane.  I will keep you all posted if you care to donate- and I plan on coordinating a giveaway to raise money also.  If you have any items or gift cards you'd like to donate to the giveaway please let me know! :)

Medical updates- Lina had her appointment with the pediatric opthalmologist and received the all clear.  Doctor said she is far sighted but does not require glasses at this time. He had me worried since he put the little metal frames on her and was putting different lenses in for her to look through- I thought for sure she was getting glasses!  We also heard back from the endocrinologist and Lina does need to begin thyroid medication.  She goes back in a few months for more bloodwork and a follow up appointment to see how she's responding to the medication.

Lina also had her first dentist visit last week (told you we were busy ;) ) and Dr. Kevin was most impressed! She has little to no tartar buildup and no signs of decay!  He didn't do anything more than look in her mouth at this first visit since it was all new to her etc, but she will go back in a few months to attempt her first cleaning. :)

That's about all for now- catch ya on the flip side!

Phone dump :)

Finally got around to uploading pics off my phone so figured I'd share them all with you! :) First a little update about our awesome opportunity- regarding the baby house in need:  I am teaming up with a mom who personally adopted her sweet little cherub from this particular baby house.  She was quite saddened when she learned they lost their funding and are in danger of closing.  We have both been in contact with sweet Marina in Pskov and have received some info with a contact!  Praying this all comes together- if it does, we will be holding a few fundraisers to donate more money for much needed supplies.  Keep your eyes open for more info in the future!

Another little update regarding Lina's baby house- I wrote previously about how I was trying to contact the director there to let her know Lina has a family and hoping to connect some of the dots from Lina's past and how we have no clue where Lina was her first year of life since her parents signed her over at birth, yet she wasn't admitted to the baby house until she was over a year old.  I found out another mommy who is headed over to Pskov within the next couple weeks to meet her little one for the first time (SO exciting!!)- is adopting from this very baby house!! As soon as I finish this blog post I am going to type out a letter to the director of the baby house and mail it to this awesome mama along with some photos of us and Lina to give the director.  I'm praying the director will e-mail me back and provide any info she may have.  Keep your fingers crossed!!

And now, on to the phone dump!!

I could fill my phone each time Lina plays dress up with the laundry basket.  This girl will put on as many clothes as she possibly can no matter who's they are- yes Evan's clothes included.... heck she has even tried to put on her babydoll's clothes! LOL

Dancing with Dollie to Leap Frog Fridge Phonics :)

Yep, more clothes...

Outside fun with the sibs

Trying to get three swinging kids in the same pic is near impossible!!

Trying to catch Lina's smile on cam is also quite a task- she flashes a big smile, but by the time the camera flashes it's long gone! 

Enjoying some leisurely reading in the car after getting 4 shots at the doctor's office :(  Thankfully she got over it pretty quickly! <3

Paka for now!