We can’t believe it has been six months since we arrived
back in the USA. Our entire family
has grown in so many ways. Yes, we
have added two additional children to our family by adoption and also a son in
law, Greg, who married our second daughter Mariah on May 4th. Our family is growing and soon we will
be adding an additional son by adoption as well. We hope to bring him home in the next few months.
Just to update everyone on our newest additions progress in
the past six months here is a recap of where we started:
Eliyanah came to us from a highly special needs orphanage in
Krivoy Rog, Ukraine. We picked her
up on December 19th.
She was not potty trained at the time and had no understanding of a
family or what a mom and dad were.
She struggled with so many things when she came to live in her new
home. The entire family was very
overwhelmed at first in caring for Eliyanah and trying to meet her needs. We had difficulty communicating with her since she did not
know the English language or even her native language. She was like having an emotionally high strung two year old. We had many successes along with several setbacks. It was one step forward and three steps backwards.
Kevin Michael was in the city of Dnepropetrovsk,
Ukraine. Kevin weighed about 10
lbs when we first saw him at 7 months old. He was like holding a 2 month old because of his size and
his movements. Kevin’s medical
conditional would require him to have surgery as soon as possible. We picked him up from his orphanage on
December 23rd and were told to not expect him to survive the flight
home.
We think it would be more appropriate to tell you all the
things that Eliyanah has learned while being home (We will forget to list something I'm sure). We are now moving forward without moving backwards (this is a success) She is now potty trained!!!! Physically she has learned how to run,
jump, crawl, throw a ball, skip, and even make a basket while playing basketball with the kids.
Emotionally she is adjusting to being a daughter, sister and friend to
many. She is now understanding emotions. (happy, sad, scared) She gives hugs to just about everyone and talks to whomever she meets. She knows and understands
many English words and recognizes people and animals. When we have guests over it is Eliyanah that introduces
everyone in our household by saying their name. She calls for her mama and daddy often when she needs
us. She is now saying sentences
instead of just one word when she wants something (we are working on all her
sounds as she doesn’t yet have them all correct). She has learned how to be a sibling as well (she can hold
her own with the other kids). She
has learned many good habits as she can say “thank you, please, and
welcome.” Eliyanah also can
produce an attitude when she wants to. She has learned to stomp her foot like Amber when she
gets into trouble or is upset with us.
This beautiful, smart little girl is now officially a part of a family
and enjoying her childhood. We are amazed at the progress she has made and know
she will continue to grow and excel to her full potential!!!
Kevin Michael is thriving in our family. His heart surgery was a success and at
his past two checkups there has been no sign of his previous pulmonary
hypertension. This is great news
for him as he continues to grow stronger every day. He now weighs 18 lbs and can sit up all by himself. He rolls all over the floor and
is pushing up on his hands. He
will put weight on his legs now when you hold him upright. Kevin has a smile and laugh that will
light up a room!!!! His joy is
contagious!!!!
Just look at these faces and smiles this is what adoption is all about!!!! Please know
that our lives are not perfect or that we are not without times of struggles, but the blessing of
following God’s direction in adopting these children was the best thing that has happened to our
family. We have seen some amazing
things only God could have done in our lives. We are thankful for everyone who continues to pray for our
family and for all of those who have financially supported us during this
time. THANK YOU!!!!
If you would please continue to keep us in your prayers and
if you can financially support us again we are moving forward with another
adoption. Lisa will be the
one traveling this time to bring home our son and we expect her to be traveling
in the next few months. We still need to raise approximately $22,000 to be able to complete this adoption.
Financial (tax-deductible) donations can be made by clicking
the Reece’s Rainbow link on the right of our blog post. Once again THANK YOU!!!!
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