Sunday, August 27

The drama continues here in Pyatigorsk. One of the couples here found out, as we were walking out the door to go to our respective orphanages, that a grandmother of their child came forward to adopt the child. You see, there are 16 cases of Americans abusing/killing their adopted Russian children; so when a relative hears "American" they quickly come forward, take the child for two, three, maybe four weeks and then send him or her back to the orphanage. Relatives feel the children are better off in the orphanage than in America. Russians don't hear the good stories that involve forever families, unconditional love, and nurturing. These abuse cases stay on the news five times a day for a month, but hundreds of success stories never make it to the news. So R and C were off to other orphanages today to find a son. Y arrived at my orphanage today. I told her days ago that there was a child for her there and sure enough, after visiting three different orphanages, she met her son, D.

Today was busy, but one of the best yet! I was able to spend some alone time with K and A. We played outside and I discovered K will be a pretty good tennis player. Get ready, L. She loves Maria Sharapova and she was excited to know that there is a poster of Maria in the children's TV/game room at home (some of you may remember my touch of femininity to L's "man room"). I gave K her CD player and A her cassette player - they were more than excited! A listened to her nursery rhymes and Bible songs all day. She is beginning to see consistency in my nature, so she doesn't go overboard to get my attention. She has gotten better at playing and being content about the fact that I am there to stay. K and I worked on her homework - she can already write her first and last name, knows her ABC's and 123's, and is working on colors and her teachers' names.

I did spend a lot of time with the other children, as well. I brought soccer balls, badminton sets, and paddles and balls for them. I brought American magazines (thanks, Traci) for N, who is 17. She loved them and so did all the other teenagers. It amazes me how much they enjoy learning about our culture and our language. One of the boys keeps asking me if America is beautiful and if I have a car. They don't see many cars in the village. It was so hot outside so we decided to go in; it was somewhat cooler, but with no A/C, there was not much of a difference. Five or six of the girls (whom I am getting SO attached to) learned about American money and luckily, I had enough coins to give them all one or two (they were in the bottom of a bag - I don't even know why I had them, but the girls were so grateful). I wrote down all of their birthdays and told K we would send presents on their special day. She was so excited as these girls are her closest friends. There is one, especially, that has gotten so attached to me and I to her. She is K's best friend and they are always together. She is SO precious! I wish I could beg someone in my hometown to adopt her. I wish I could take them ALL! Ir, K's best friend, got really upset today when I had to leave. Now, I just kiss her bye and say "zaftra". I don't know what we'll do on Thursday when we face the possibility that we may never see her again. I can't explain how precious these children are. One of the five mothers, Y (who has visited four-five orphanages in three days), says she's never seen an orphanage like ours. The children are so well-behaved, polite, respectful to adults and each other. They are all cute and loving and healthy. I am reminded every day how thankful I am to the director and caretakers for creating such an excellent environment and being such great role models. The children obviously are treated well, as each child has a great relationship with the caretakers.

The older girls served me tea this afternoon and it was incredible. They are great hostesses and have been taught well. We had cookies and hot tea (yes, in 100 degree weather) and it was delicious! K and A joined me and I have such wonderful pictures of our first tea party! The children were so proud to give us their candies and cookies during the day. They have hearts of gold and I can't imagine how sad I will be when K, A, and I have to leave them. When I have to go, they just gather around, walk me to the gate, and send me off with hugs and kisses. I wish I could express to them how much they've touched my life. To go through what they have gone through and still have such beautiful, caring, and giving hearts shows me the dignity, strength, and grace these children have.

To my bloggy friends who are in various stages of the adoption process - I know it seems as if I am in my own happy little adoption world. But whether you are thinking about adoption, waiting for a referral, deciding on a referral, getting ready to travel for trip one, preparing for court, or enjoying being at home with your children, I haven't forgotten about you. You all are in my thoughts and prayers.

To everyone back home - Thanks for your continued support, thoughts, and prayers. I miss you!