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Tomorrow is the big day

That's Mr. Olajuwon to you

Our youngest Charolette (just two) calls her big brother Maksym - Hakeem.

So it turns out that with five kids one is always awake.  Saddly the blog suffers for it.  (tear).

When a needy person stands at your door, God stands at His side

Becky's sister, Dana again. The quote above is a Hebrew proverb and the truth of it is magnified through the Ukrainian orphans who are in the US visiting and looking for their families. The group of orphans that were here last year are just now coming back to the US with their forever families. I am amazed at how each child has ended up with the family that was right for them, and each family has ended up with the child that was right for them.

So many of these adoptive families (including Becky and Kevin) said they were only hosting, there was no way they could adopt. There wasn't enough room, money, time etc. But they knew their kids when they saw them in this group of orphans. I hope that everyone reading this will take the time to come to one activity with this new group of kids and just open their hearts to the possibility that their child might be there.

On to my favorite quotes from R and S, the two orphans who are staying at my home and are looking for families:

I took the boys to the grocery store to buy food for their lunches and told them they could buy whatever they wanted. Every time we put something in the cart R (who speaks English) would say, "Dana, this is so much. This is so much to eat for lunch." I kept telling him we could use the food for multiple lunches but I think he was afraid I expected them to down it all in one night.

I asked the boys if they wanted to buy anything for someone back in Ukraine, R said he wanted to get something for his girlfriend and S got a huge smile on his face and yelled out, "Babushka!" He wanted to buy something for his grandma! Who can resist a 14 year old who wants to buy a present for his grandma?!?

My 14 year old was super impressed with the way S downed Tabasco sauce so he sent me out to buy "Insanity Sauce", which is made with super hot ghost peppers. My son Carter and a couple of his friends tried a drop on their finger and their eyes almost popped out of their heads. R tried a drop and had the same reaction. S tried a drop and then spread it over his chicken! His eyes were watering and he downed three glasses of water but he was bound and determined to eat that sauce.

R was eating a candy and he said to me, "In Ukraine they say the woman loves chocolate. In America does the woman loves chocolate?" My 9 year old yelled out, "Yea, that's why in all the movies the lady gets a big heart filled with chocolate. If you don't give her that she won't love you."

Yesterday (the 24th) R said to me, "Today is the day the man with the long beard walked far. He had a golden (makes a motion of hammering something into the ground) - that happened in Utah." Well, he may have had Brigham Young hammering in the Golden Spike but I still think he had Utah history down better than most Americans!

I asked both boys if they had ever had Pop Rock candy. R said no and S (with his very limited English) pointed to his mouth and said, "Yes, fireworks." Great description!

These are GREAT boys and would be a great addition to the right family. There are 12 other children in this group looking for their families - boys and girls of all ages. Thanks for all the love and support (and donations) for Becky and Kevin, now that Sergei and Max are here I can barely remember our family without them! We hope we can bring the same joy to another family.

Just Call Him Dimples

As you can read in the post below we are currently hosting two boys from different orphanages in the Ukraine. R and S. We actually had the chance to have S stay with us for a few days when he was here last year. He spent most of his time with a family who wanted to adopt him but was ultimately unable to complete the adoption process, leaving him as the only kid from last year's group who did not get adopted.

We adore S and have been writing him throughout the year so we were thrilled when we found out we got to have him in our home again. S is 14 and will turn 15 in April. He is a sweet, funny boy and is willing to go along with anything we plan. He is darling and has deep dimples. He loves the outdoors and anything in the mountains.

He gets along great with our teenage sons and all their friends and is also really good with our two younger kids. He would fit easily into almost any family configuration I can think of. He wants to please and is always helpful  . . . we will miss him TONS when he finds his family.

If you want to meet S or any of the kids who are here you can attend any of the activities that are planned for them or host them in your home. Contact Rob Jolley at 801-259-7034.

Meet our Future Attorney - R

Becky's sister, Dana here! My family is currently hosting two boys, R and S, from the Ukraine. The boys came over with the same group that brought over Becky's boys last summer, and like Becky's boys these boys are looking for their family.

Let me introduce you to R. R and S are from different orphanages and didn't know each other when they got here. R speaks English - well. He taught himself after visiting the US several years ago. Because R has the advantage of speaking English he is able to translate for S. R takes this responsibility seriously and has gone out of his way to make sure that S understands everything that is going on.

R is 15 and is big for his age (though not as big as my 15 year old). He is great shape and seems to be a natural athlete. He is motivated, as evidenced by his ability to teach himself English. He has big plans for the future - he wants to go to college and law school and he is willing to do the hard work to get there.

In addition to being a great translator for S, R has been amazing with our younger kids. I expected he would get along well with our 17 and 15 year old and he does, but he is also darling with our 11 year old daughter and 9 year old son. He is especially cute with our son. He plays with him, encourages him and even prods him to make better decisions and listen to his parents.

R would be an amazing addition to any family, though I would love to see him in a family with some little kids. I am certain he is a success story just waiting to happen.

If you are interested in meeting R you can attend any of the events the kids will be at over the next three weeks to meet him. You can also host him in your home. The family that adopts this boy will be a very lucky family! Contact Rob Jolley at 801-259-7034 for more information on any of the kids.

Pass it on after reading

Please take a moment and pass on the link to this post - today!  You can help to unite a child with their mother and father with a simple Facebook link, Twitter tweet, or email forward.  Something small like that was what lead us to our boys.  We know the kids in the pictures below - ask us about them!  The letter and details follow below...

Friends, Colleagues and Clients,

Last year I sent you an email about a group of Ukrainian orphans that were coming to Utah in hopes of finding their “forever” families. They arrived last summer on July 18^thand by the time they returned to their orphanage 21 days later 10 of the 11 kids who came had met families who were interested in adopting them, including three siblings who did not travel here!

Opportunity for More Miracles! – Kids Arriving in Late July!
We are bringing 15 more children from Ukraine to Utah this summer to find adoptive families on July 19. I am looking for volunteers to help with their visit. I am looking for potential adoptive families, host families, Russian translators and volunteers to help with their visit here in Utah.

If you know of a family who might be interested in adopting one of these kids, hosting one of these kids in their home, translating for these kids or volunteering during the visit, please forward this email to them TODAY and have them contact me via email (robjolley@msn.com) or call me at (801) 259-7034.

Better yet, please forward this email to your email contact list and Facebook friends. The more people who see this email the more likely that potential adoptive families will be contacted. Even if you don’t think one of your contacts would be interested, please send this email to them anyway. They may know someone who might be interested. You may be a link in the chain of a child finding a family!

More Details
We expect them to be arriving in Utah on July 19th and staying until the morning of August 12th.

Adoptive families do not need to live in Utah. Two of the families from last year were from other states.

The list of kids who will be traveling here includes children from the same Ukrainian orphanage as our daughter. Five boys and five girls, a brother and a sister, and two siblings groups whose youngest sibling is not old enough to travel: two sisters (older one is visiting), and two sisters with a little brother who is too young to travel. The ages of the kids traveling here range from 6 to 16. The majority are over twelve. Two files are attached which contains a list of the kids coming and their photos. The list also contains sibling groups who aren’t traveling but are also looking for families.

The Incentives for Action: Both Positive and Negative!
The benefit of this kind of hosting program is that the kids who are coming here have been hand-picked by our adoption facilitator in Ukraine and the orphanage directors as the children most likely to adapt and bond to an adoptive family. A prospective adoptive family gets to spend time with the child here in the US. in the comfort and convenience of their own home. All members of the family can participate in sharing their lives for a few days with their guest. Hosting a child is a unique way for a family to make an adoption decision!

While there is a wonderful cause for celebrating when a child finds their forever family, life continues to be a grim existence for most orphans. The statistics can remind us what can happen “when good people do nothing”. As I told you last year:

· Ukrainian orphans "graduate" from the orphanage system at the age of 16.

· Many of them, after they graduate, will become homeless and alone and lack the education necessary to provide for themselves.

· 10% commit suicide by their 18th birthday.

· 60% of the girls will end up in prostitution.

· 70% of the boys will enter a life of crime.

· Only 20% will find work.

· These are the kids that human traffickers target and exploit.

· Typically, after the age of 5, a Ukraine orphan only has a 20% chance of being adopted.

However, over 80% of the children who come to the U.S. on hosting programs like the one we did last summer meet families who adopt them!

As you can see from these statistics, the future of orphans is very bleak if they are not adopted. Please consider taking a few minutes to broadcast this opportunity to your network of friends! Just imagine the satisfaction you would feel to help a child meet their forever family!

But equally important, the families that adopt these children will have a life-changing impact upon their own lives as well. This has been the case for my wife, my family and me. We are so grateful that we found three of our children through similar hosting programs!

Thanks!

Rob Jolley

And Then There Were 16 . . .

Guest blogger Dana here. (Becky's sister). Becky has big guilt from not blogging but she also has 5 kids so I thought I would help her out. We just got back from our family trip to Bear Lake and Max and Sergei brought the grand kid count to 16! Becky and Kevin are great, patient, funny parents and the girls are FABULOUS. Here are some cute things about the boys:

-Max calls Sergei "Sir-la-gear". I am going with the phonetic spelling because I have no idea how to spell it correctly. It is one of those longer-than-the-real-name nicknames and it is cute coming out of Max's mouth. (Becky and Kevin do not think it is cute coming out of Max's mouth in the middle of the night when he is looking for his brother but I do :)

-Max does crack. Max is tall but SUPER skinny. He cannot keep a swimsuit pulled up to save his life.

-Sergei has a little obsession with BMWs. Whenever we see one he points and says, "Sergei's car." Whenever he sees a junky old car he points and says, "Dana's car." He thinks it is hilarious.

-Even more hilarious to Sergei than pairing you with an ugly car is pointing at your shirt and saying "ketchup" and then getting you in the chin when you look down. This was also the most hilarious thing to his mom Becky until she was like 30 years old - the apple does not fall from the tree.

-Max LOVES pop-its. If you want to win him over bring him a box of pop-its. Best 39 cents I ever spent.

-Somewhere in the Ukraine there is a tall, skinny teenage boy that took good care of Max. Sergei is always Max's favorite but a close second is any tall teenage cousin. We have a lot of teenage boys in the family but he is especially drawn to my oldest son, Harrison, who is 6'4". When he couldn't have Harrison he was very happy to have my girlfriend's son Chris, who is about 6'3". If neither of them were around he would settle for Caden or Carter, who measure less than 6' but he was happiest when he could find his "bolshoi cousin" (big cousin). This is a lot of pressure for a family where the average height is 5'2".

-We had a pull up contest at the cabin. Sergei won. He killed it. He can also do flips off of a picnic bench. It makes me want to throw up.

-Every time we left to go somewhere Sergei would say, "My mom is slow." Already annoyed by his mom - :)

-I was telling Suzy and Pearl a story in their bunk bed one night when Max climbed onto the bed. He stared Suzy down and said, "Hi Suzy". This was not a friendly hi. It was a brotherly challenge. Suzy just stared back. Max upped the ante. Teeth clenched, "Hi Suzy." I turned to Suzy and whispered , "Just say hi." She stared him down again and finally said, "Hi Max." It was hilarious! Sibling rivalry knows no language barrier!

-Our friends, the Baughs, let Sergei drive their jet ski (with me on it). Sergei LOVED it. He told Kevin he didn't like "Salt Lake", he liked "Bear Lake".

-Sergei and I were on a bike ride and I thought it was a great time to work on his English. Every time we passed an animal I would ask him the animal's name in Russian. He would tell me and I would then tell him the English word. We were working with a limited number of animals but since repetition is the mother of all learning I would do this every time we passed a horse, cow, dead frog etc. I would also do the animal sounds. After the third time of me pointing and saying "cow", Sergei looked at me and said, "I know!" That is the universal teenage language for "shut up" (which Sergei is not allowed to say :)

-I am training Sergei to say I am his number one aunt. At the lake he said my uncle Mike was his "number one aunt." My uncle gave him a dollar for that little betrayal and did not punish him for making him into an aunt. I will probably end up buying him a BMW just to win this position - my aunt greed knows no bounds - watch out Mike!

We love our new nephews, cousins, grandsons and we are grateful to everyone who helped get them here.

Boys are boys!

I again apologize for not posting sooner....for every parent who has had a colicky baby or a child that needs less sleep than the parents....you are my heroes! We are fine tuning our sleep schedules and feel confident will get it down soon. Maksym LOVES his big brother and struggles being away from him even for the moments his eyelids are closed. Sergei loves him right back but I think he is ready to be the big brother and not the Dad any more. Now if we can just convince Max!

We are having a lot of fun over here. The kids all love each other and play great together. Charlotte is wondering why we waited so long for brothers...she loves to wrestle and chase! Max and Charlotte are perfect match-up for wrestling....Charlotte age 20 months weighs: 32 lbs and Maksym age 6 weighs: 36 lbs. He is very gentle and careful with the girls...Charlotte, our little rough-neck, not so much!

We had our first doctor appointment for the overall check-up and I couldn't find the boys weight on the chart Dr. Lindgren had printed for me....he pointed that it was marked but was almost off the page because they are so thin! These boys need to gain some weight but other than that have a pretty good bill of health.

We are getting settled and the boys and girls are realizing this is forever...we are so happy to be together. I will share a very personal and touching moment...Sergei has started me calling me "Mom". He has always called me Becki and just a few days ago he called for me, "MOM!" I try not to grin ear to ear and buy him a pony on the spot but it is pretty hard. It is pretty awesome to say the least. He is a good boy...14 for sure but still a good boy. My vacuum smells like maybe he cleaned up milk with it and he did wash my car with my kitchen mop but again, he is 14. Before you think I have him slaving away over here, he is trying to earn money so he can buy video games!

Our little Max can melt you with his face and smile. He likes to play and is active and strong. He is a good little helper and will eat ice cream after breakfast, lunch and dinner (usually I would say no but the kid weighs 36 lbs!)  Suzy, Pearl and Max are like peas in a pod....nice having them so close in age because they all like to do the same things. Park, bike rides, ice cream breaks and pool.  We are living it up the summer of 2012! We are playing and working out a few tantrums (less and less as time goes by) while Kevin works and works and works leaving just enough time to help put all 5 of the kids to bed. Mom...I will never figure out how you did it....I LOVE YOU!!!

I know many of you are praying and thinking of us daily, thank you. We need it! We are settling in and feel your prayers wrap around our little family like a huge hug at the end of each day. We love you all so, so much. Still pretty surreal having all of children under one roof....God is great!

This is right...

We have been home for six days as a family. Every night I say I am going to update the blog but it just doesn't happened, sorry for the wait! We are so happy...happy isn't even the right word to describe it. Joy, complete, whole, peaceful, right. My heart feels right. We are all together. We belong. We fit. it took so long but here we are together reading bedtime stories, going to the park as a family, leaving notes and pictures under each others pillows and finding the word "Femeli" aka: "Family" written on scrap pieces of paper around the house...this is right.

We have our uphill challenges for sure but just being together makes everything else seem easy. Our sweet Sergei gets shy and lonely for Ukraine. It is hard not to talk to him in Russian, I know he misses hearing his own language, his friends, his culture. I went into his room late one night and he was sleep talking in Russian...I would have killed to understand what he was saying! He has been the father to Maksym his whole life, we have two Papas at our house right now, Papa Kevin and Papa Sergei. We will be slowly reestablishing roles for everyone. Maksym emotionally has been put through so much during his 6 years of life. He is adjusting but has 2-3 tantrums a day lasting about an hour which Sergei feels pressure to calm him down. It is hard for them both. It is Maksym's way of saying "What the .... just happened to my my life people and why is this lady always talking funny to me?!" I hear Sergei getting up several times in the night to check on his brother...Papa Sergei. Sergei is one good kid. He has a great friend Alex who lives in Provo, Utah who he knows from the orphanage. It is a gift having the Gardnier family in our life...WE LOVE THEM SO MUCH!

We got home and started introducing the kids to one family each day. For those who do not know us, we have a HUGE family. That seemed to be too much for the boys and we really needed to focus on our little family. We needed to show Max that families are special and that this little group of people will always be here, always. We stopped taking calls and emails (SORRY) I just could not make it to my computer or phone fast enough! Every night someone falls asleep after me and Kevin and every morning someone wakes up before us, with a few night wakings in-between. We are pooped but so, so happy.

Suzy, Pearl and Charlotte have been kind, loving, patient and overall just great sisters. They love their brothers who often times drive them crazy. The kids are getting along and they really do love each other. Kevin was back to work Monday, we have our family pool pass, annual aquarium pass and bikes for everyone so we are keeping busy...Kev and I are the only ones who seemed utterly exhausted at the end of the day.

Our sweet neighbors/ward have had hot dinners at our house every night...enough for 50 kids instead of 5! We are so grateful. Each meal is made with love...we know it. The recipes are family favorites and they have been wonderful to put it lightly.

As we focus on bonding with Maksym and establishing family roles you might not see too much of us but slowly we will get out to see everyone. We know you are all DYING to meet these boys...you brought them to us and they are just perfect. Perfect to us...even if we do not have any doorknobs left in six-months. Boys ARE different...Dana and my friends with boys have been saying it for years and they are right. Different but great!

I am letting Sergei decorate his own room....call me crazy but he deserves it. I was trying to talk him into his name above his bed....I of course got two thumbs WAY down for that one. Hey a Mom can try right!?

More in a few days...five kids in the backyard waiting for some fun!

There are no words...

My sweet and wonderful brother-in-law captured our moment. To all of you who made this miracle happen, there are no words...

Well crap...THEY ARE EARLY!

7PM, 7PM,7PM,7PM

They are on the plane!

Just recieved word from Kevin....THEY ARE ON THE PLANE! No false alarms this time! They will be landing in SLC on Delta flight #2333 at 7:21PM

For all your prayers, love, cheers, donations, tear of happiness, tears of heartache...thank you, thank you., thank you. I cannot count the number of miracles we have seen since we started this adventure. Each and everyone of you have made this happen, thank you.

Just Kidding! Arrive at 7:20pm

Dang it! Flight was missed due to customs...arriving at 7:20PM...Don't hate us...I am as sick as you are about all the back and forth! Again it is standby so check the blog before you walk out the door!

Delta arrival 7:20 MN to SLC Flight #2333

ARRIVING AT 4:20!!!!!!!!!!!!

IT IS HAPPENING! Kevin, Sergei and MAx will be arriving in SLC, UTAH at 4:20PM

Flight #2029

SEE YOU THERE!Bring your camera because I don't have one!

I am bawling...souts in my yard putting up 50 American flags, thank you, thank you, thank you.

KEVIN CALL ME!!!!

TRAVEL UPDATE!!!!!

DELTA shows Kevin and the boys on the standby list to arrive in SLC at 4:20PM
Still not firm that they will make the flight but it is sooner than I thought! Will keep the updates coming! Sorry so crazy!!!

Flight #2029  Arrive MN to SLC @ 4:20 PM

Kevin call me...dead phone? BORROW SOMEONES!
XOXOXOXO

Am I dreaming? KEVIN LEFT AMSTERDAM!

Travel Update:
June 2, 2012 - Saturday Kevin and the boys will land in St. Paul, MN at 10:25AM!
There are two flights he might be able to catch home today:
Flight #2333 Arrive SLC @ 7:21 PM
Flight #1553 Arrive SLC @ 9:00 PM

We will update the SECOND we know when they get their seats! I think this just might be the best birthday....EVER!!!!

Stuck in Amsterdam

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NYCFTmU2dCc&feature=youtu.be

I know I did not post this right, but it is a short video of the boys in Amsterdam. Hopefully their first and last overnight visit! They have a few flights they are going to try to make...still crossing my fingers they are home on the 2nd...could be the 3rd, 4th or 15th of June at this point  :( . I feel like they have entered a black hole...so close but so far away!

Well Shoot....

Boys made it out of Ukraine but are stuck in Amsterdam. EVERY flight with EVERY airline is overbooked. Good news....no great news, the boys found a hotel inside the airport where the don't have to pass customs. That hotel is worth its weight in gold (which is what they charge). I will update later on arrival day once we have a flight! Happy they have a place to sleep. Boys, go get some dinner, run up and down the terminal to get the wiggles out and get some sleep! LOVE YOU!

LEAVING UKRAINE!

It is 12:05 AM on Friday, June 1st  in the US. It is 9:05 AM on Friday in Ukraine. Kevin, Sergei and Maksym catch their first flight out of Ukraine in 40 Mins. I am sick (with excitement and stress)! Pray hard that they make all their flights which are all stand-by.

A little Delta employee angel ,who does not love the spotlight, but who I can't let go unmentioned, listened to a little voice who prompted him to call my Dad. He called out of the blue to see, if for some reason, he needed FOUR Delta standby ticket...anywhere. He has put in HOURS of time and energy to make sure every flight plan goes as smooth as possible. His kindness and support saved us thousands...literally thousands, in flight cost. He has held our hand and  has given us great advice along the way. I have taken his repeated advice and am asking you to do the same, please pray for a safe trip for all three of my boys....lets get them home!

(I am sure Kevin is rolling his eyes because I don't know what kind of airplane they are on and just used some google stock footage...love that man!)

6/1/2012 Depart 9:40   AM Kiev, Ukraine

6/1/2012 Depart 11:30 AM Amsterdam - cutting it close I know....the boys can't get stuck here because Max and Sergei cannot leave ANY airport without a VISA. A 6 year year old and a 14 year old having a slumber party with their Dad in an airport terminal sounds fun for a Pre-teen movie but in real life, it would be a horror movie, yes there would be dead bodies.

6/1/2012 Arrive 3:40 PM St. Paul, MN.  Stay the night and get much needed wriggle and sleep time. Sweet Veronica will pick the boys up from the airport and will use her sweet Russian-speaking skills to let everyone vent about the last 12 hours on an airplane. THANK YOU!!!

06/02/2012 Depart 2:25 PM St. Paul, MN - After a much needed rest and wiggle room...

06/02/2012 ARRIVE 4:20 PM , Flight #2029

IN SALT LAKE CITY, UTAH U.S.A.

Shut the front door....it is my 34th birthday to boot!

See you all at the airport if you are up to it, we will be in hibernation mode after that.

XOXOXOXO

WE ARE CRASHING THE SALT LAKE AIRPORT

Attention all people who love Becky and Kevin! Becky and Kev have graciously invited all of us to be at the airport when Max and Sergei arrive home. We are excited to have a BIG crowd. I am sure Kevin and the boys will be exhausted but this is a great chance for us to see the big homecoming before Becky and Kevin head home with their little family to get settled in.

I have a big suprise for the boys and Kevin so if you will send me an email at dana@equityutah.com, or comment here and let me know that you are coming to the airport and HOW YOU ARE RELATED TO MAX AND SERGEI (friend, aunt, cousin, etc.) that would be great.

It looks like they will be arriving some time on Saturday - when we have more details I will let you know. Can't wait!

UPDATE: It is looking like it may be Monday before Kevin and the boys make it home. The homecoming date is a moving target but we will keep you posted. If you think you may make send me an email or comment here. . .

Kevin...don't scream

Dramamine: check.
Medical Exams: check.
US Embassy Appointment: tomorrow.
Rearrange flights: Booked, as in SOOOO booked but we don't have seats.  Might have to wait to leave Ukraine until Monday JUNE 4th.
Arrival day: Good question!

Puke is lame...

The boys are OUT of the orphanage....FOREVER!!!! That is the good news...the bad news: Sergei puke the two hour drive to the airport, puke for the entire 90 min flight to Kiev and puke on the drive from the airport to the apartment in Kiev. They haven't even left Ukraine yet....poor Sergei...poor Kevin. Maksym is doing good but it sounds like they not be here on June 1st, maybe the 2nd. I will let you know as soon as I know more!

Official Day: 34 , Kevin gone 37 days

Memorial Day...yes, of course I cried...did you even need to ask? As we sat around the graves of those we loved and miss and gave thanks for all the US soldiers and their families, I was overwhelmed with emotion. We live in a country where we have freedoms and rights, were you really can make it. Men and women serve and sacrifice so our families and children are safe, so we remain free. I looked at my cute brother RJ and his beautiful wife (my super-sis Lisa) and family and am so grateful for all they have given. Grateful to my sister in law Alane, who has served our country with her whole heart since she was just 18. Gregory, who serves with so much honor, I am honored just to know him. A good boy who has grown to be a great man. To my Grandpas and Grandma Merry who served our country and who are in heaven now, still watching over and protecting my family. To all the soldiers who served, left their families, have broken hearts and whose families have suffered because of your service, thank you. It is your sacrifices that make this country great. It is your service that gives me the freedom and power to adopt these sons of mine. Sergei and Maksym become official citizens of the United States of America as soon as their feet touch US soil this Friday. I could not be more excited or more proud for them to be citizen of this great nation. My grandpa Bud Sobieski was on the beaches of Normandy on D-Day. He saw the thousands of dead “boys”, our US soldiers, on the sand and in the water, who gave everything they had for this country. My grandpa told my mom he was an “undecorated, unrecognized solider, just a regular solider.” To all the “boys”, men and women who serve our our great Nation....you are not just a soldier, you are our heroes.

Kevin and the boys leave the orphanage today, finally. Get birthcertificates and passport and stay overnight in Doneske. Tomorrow they complete medical exams and go to the US Embassy to complete more paperwork. Sleep in Kiev that night and wake at 4AM on the 31st to take the four airplane rides and one overnight stop in MN before they make it home to Utah, USA on June 1st , home of the brave and land of the free!

One last night...

I have some shopping to complete today.  The last of the gifts and their gift bags must be ready for tomorrow morning when we say dahs-day-vhan-YA to well – everyone.  I find everything on the list but when I get back home to set the clock on the desk pen set I discover that the battery is dead.  I go back to the store but they don’t sell batteries just pen sets with clocks in them that need batteries.  I try four other stores (two in the big four story mall) but no luck.  Giving a gift that isn’t working seems lame so I call up Alice for some advice on where the battery might be found.  Turns out I’ve been walking past a watch shop for four weeks that is right next to Natalka (okay pizza GREAT WiFi) and that watch shop has the battery – thank you Alice.

Gifts are go

So it seems that everyone is getting a gift of thanks from us as we all finally leave Ukraine except nothing for Alice.  So I gave her the bike.  I am a little sad about losing the bike but not knowing that I even had a bike Alice had mentioned that she really wanted to get one someday.  I can’t pack the thing and it is too big for most of the kids at the orphanage so it seemed fitting.  Please be safe!

I brought everything to the orphanage for the last visit just in case there was anything that Sergei or Maksym really wanted to do.  I was hoping that we could just kick the ball around and do some flips with as many kids as possible.  Last day that they will be about to do any of that with these kids.  Thankfully that is exactly what Sergei (and Maksym after his nap) had in mind.  Great day.

It is hard these last days to see Big Volva – there are not words.


I drop off a gift for the couple that I've been buying ice cream from in the park - they've been very nice.  On the way back Daniel from the AK-47 pellet shooting tent stops me on his BMX bike to say good bye.  That was nice of him - I ask him why he isn't manning the tent today and he says there is a holiday.  Now if I knew any Russian I could say what the holiday is.

Our remaining schedule now that the waiting period and holiday are both over looks like this:  Birth certificates then to Donest’k for the one day RED passports for Sergei and Maksym.  Then Wednesday to Kyiv with the possibility of an embassy appointment same day (maybe) – work that magic Sasha.  We also have a doctor’s visit but we could be done and ready for a plane home by Friday or Thursday if all of the above goes really fast like it did for the Gardiners.  Saturday day is our boys and girls Mama’s birthday so let’s shoot for that!

If I don’t post for a bit know that it is because we are getting it DONE.

Triple post! (три в одном)

May 25^th – Mud soccer

A front has moved through Mariupol and so the heat and sun has been replaced with cool (almost cold) and clouds.  I get a late start to the orphanage – I seem to procrastinate the start of the days few events.  Waiting too long to go to bed then waking up later then I could and then rolling down the hill late.  This also means that I’m leaving the orphanage later than five.  Once I get there and we start playing it makes it easy to want to stay.

Just before landing

We start today in the bird room to give the other family some time together in the book room.  Even with the cold and the staff warning Maksym of the cold he convinces Sergei to get him some pants and a long sleeve shirt so that we can go outside and try out some more time with the soccer ball.  Denis and Luca join us as does Big Volva.  We kick the ball around and Luca plays keep away from all of us – he is very good a juggling the ball and moving one way while getting the ball past you in another direction.  Volva (not big but Miller) gives Maksym a ride on the back of the bike using the bike rack for a seat.

Soccer field and basketball court
(I made Denis get in a photo)

All too soon it is time to go plus it has started to rain again.  Back at home I go for a walk in the rain to try out the pizza place’s WiFi next to the town McDonalds.  Verdict – it is slow.  I do find the local UPS partner in town.

A shot from overnight

May 26^th суббота

I had big plans the other day about going on the Bike Day ride this morning in Mariupol.  I guess I should start by going to bed early.  It was that or the cold or the low online turnout (three people) but I missed the ride.  Next year for sure.  I do make it to the orphanage so bonus points for managing that.

Today is the day of the computer – online games and saying hi to friends who come in to visit.

Kindle has worked with with Maksym and friends (Luca here)

On the ride home I take Lenin all the way down the hill and riding back up on a parallel street I find the city museum.  It is right around the corner from the hotel (the new hotel across from the apartment, the hotel whose name I don’t remember and I refuse to walk to the window right know to find the name out).  Just know at this point that there is a museum and that it closes at four.

May 27^th Destroy after reading

Pentecost Sunday – up early for the bike ride to Mass at Mary Mother of God across town.  Midpoint of the ride I get a flat tire.  Go home or go forward?  Go forward!  I start by walking because I have a lot of time still before nine o’clock.  So east I walk and walk and walk and then walk some more.  Blisters on my heels so no more walking.  I am now riding my bike around Eastern Europe with a flat rear tire and making an incredible racket because of the back rack is jumping all over the place.  I get lost, almost leave Mariupol, and get chased by at least three packs of wild dogs.  I feel like I am finally Ukrainian.  I’m late for church but in time to stay.  The babushkas can sing.  I know Alleluia and Peace by with you and it is enough.

The road to Ahrobaza from the other day

Now back outside on the east side of town I should just call a cab or better yet Sasha – the man needs a day off for once and besides I’m soooo Ukrainian right now (or so I think).  Ride the bike home.  So I’m riding home (and remember I’m a bit east of my home street) when somebody yells my name twice.  Well once is just your imagination but twice well I had to look.  It is Luca one of the older boys from the orphanage!  He’s the one with the sweet soccer moves.  Anyway I say hi and show him my awesome rear tire and then back down the street rattling along the way.  That is one tough tire – 30km on just the rim and the tire and the sidewall still looks brand new.  Can I just say that I was happy to be home in the apartment – thank you Lord!

Off to the motorcycle shop where I bought the bike last week to have the flat fixed.  I should have the tools to do this myself but I don’t have the patch kit and there are no quick releases on the Azimut.  Constantine is there again (he put my pedals on the bike last time and knows a little English).  So this place doesn't have spare tubes, just bikes (and motorcycles and tillers).  No problem as my new friend Motorcycle Sasha (also from the shop and not to be confused with Driver Sasha or Kiev\Facilitator Sasha) knows where another bike shop is in Mariupol that carries tubes.  Why do I call this Sasha Motorcycle Sasha?  That’s right because he has a motorcycle.  And because he and Constantine aren’t sure that I’ll find the place on mine own.  The right solution – get on the back and let Motorcycle Sasha take you there.  Heez YEAH!

Mariupol at 65kph is so choice.  The kph makes it sound even faster.

All of this cost me two Cokes and a beer.  I’ll pay that every time.

I guess I should say something about the day’s orphanage visit since that is the whole reason I am here.  No fear I did make it down the hill.  Things were quiet today for the most part – most of the time it was just the three of us out back kicking the ball around.  Sergei and I got in a good game of one on one on the ‘basketball court’ with a little help for Sergei from Maksym.  Sergei won both games – the first 8 to 11 and the second something like 20 to null (see above dude I am starting to get a little tired).

I didn’t take any pictures today.  I just wanted a day where we could hang out and kick that ball around like it was just any other normal day so it was nice to take a little break from the moment capturing.

Alright I hear the Hare Krishna band coming up Lenin – time to head to the park for a tiramisu ice-cream bar from the Ukrainian\Polish couple in the blue tent on the left.

Sweetest couple in town are at the blue tent

(Happy late Mothers Day MOM)

Day 30 of adoption, Day 34 of Kevin being gone...

Don't let me buy a vinyl machine...

This is a post I should have commissioned Katherine Ward to write for me. She is a true poet and could bring my emotions to paper, evoke tears and she is an editor so my Mom would not shake her head at my grammar and spelling. Katherine has a real job, so hold on, because I am just going to go for it on my own...

I landed in Salt Lake Monday, exhausted but so happy to have my feet on US soil and to be in the same country as my girls. My stomach was in knots making the drive home to where Suzy, Pearl and Charlotte were waiting for me. A huge banner hung across my front door to welcome me home, which my mom painstakingly had the world, my plane and my travel route marked out. (Mom, you rule and OCD is a gift.) I walked in and held my beautiful daughters, smelled their hair and touched my face to their soft skin...it had been so long. They held me tight and held no grudges for me leaving...their sweet hearts just wanted to know where their Daddy and brothers were.

(Birthday envelope invite...yep, I cried. My sweet neighbors love us)

My house was clean... NO...sparkling! I had no idea my floors and windows could ever look like that! My lawn mowed and edged, my fridge and pantry stocked. My sisters, Mom and Grammy Pammy had organized every cupboard, installed every target closet shelving system you could buy and loved my baby girls each and everyday with their whole hearts and then a little more. I was speechless, touched, overwhelmed. Every piece of laundry was clean and put away...not even one dirty sock...if that doesn't make a girl cry with joy, nothing will. We skyped with Kevin and I know his heart was heavy not being there with his girls. He swallowed his tears and gave the girl “googley eyes” on the TV to make them laugh.

I am so grateful, so grateful for all that we have, so grateful we have you in our lives. Our parents, sisters, brothers, aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews. Friends...dear friends, old and new, neighbors and all the strangers we have not met, who are not considered strangers in our hearts. If I could wrap my arms around you all, I would. I cried as I hugged Suzy's Pre-K teachers, Mrs. Knudsen and Mrs. Tatum on the last day of school, they have touched our lives just as each and everyone of you has. You love us, all seven of us, unconditionally, with your whole selves, with your open checkbooks, with your open arms with your prayerful hearts, with your words, spoken and written, of encouragement and love. You love us and I cannot write the the words; love, gratitude, thanks, touched, moved, overwhelmed, enough to convey the feelings in my heart. My heart is so full, my chest literally aches. (No Dana...it is not a medical thing...)

(Charlotte getting ready for her two brothers...Bring it!)

I cannot read a quote or a sappy saying without thinking of all you who have literally changed seven lives. CHANGED, you have changed our lives. You have brought children into our arms that have always belonged... from an ocean away. Our daughters have been protected both physically and spiritually, by host of angels in heaven and on earth during all of this. Thank you, with no other words and tears running down my cheeks, thank you.

As I read quotes pasted on Facebook pages and slapped on every little decorative board from Harmons to Target, I stand there, read it, cry a bit (no matter where I am) and think.... “Wow, that is a good one, I should have that laminated for the house.”

“What lies behind us and what lies before us are tiny matters compared to what lies within us”

“In any situation, the best thing you can do is the right thing; the next best thing you can do is the wrong thing; the worst thing you can do is nothing.”

“You must be the change you wish to see in the world”

and the list goes on and on....don't let me buy a vinyl machine.

I read these and I think of all of you. I wish I could list you each by name but the list is too long. From Grandpa John who maintained the yard and picked up the groceries, Aunt Robynne who empied Costco and hand delivered it to my door, to all my neighbors who brought flower, desserts (Emily...never make me those cupcakes again, I ate all 6) clothes and toys. To all of you and all thoses in-between, thank you.  Thank you for changing our lives, loving us and praying for our family, thank you for making this dream come true. Six more days until we are all together. Please pray and then pray some more for completed paperwork, safe and calm travels. (Max is 6 and has never been in a car before...four plane rides might be a little rough) Love you all!

Lost Churches of Mariupol or Stalin’s dynamite

From a book I was reading back home on martyrs of the Ukrainian Catholic church there were approximately 80,000 churches in Ukraine before the October Revolution.  Today there are fewer than 8,000.  I don’t know of that surviving ten percent what number are government buildings or museums.  From reading through Old Mariupol and walking around town I’ve discovered three of those churches destroyed during the Soviet times.

Church of Mary Magdalene

Church of Mary Magdalene is now Theater Square and the public gardens.  This is the high point along Lenin Avenue where the road splits with the public garden in the middle.  Now there is a nice fountain, a classic theater building built in 1960 and then an open square.  Becky and I often finished our nights here either shooting an AK-47 pellet gun or getting an ice cream from the Polish\Ukrainian couple in the blue tent.  The park has a little carnival atmosphere every night as long as there is no rain.  There are karaoke machines, punching\kicking bags, and even a hammer thermometer.

From Old Mariupol: “Years have gone out to build a new church. Three chapels crowned this magnificent temple. The main limit was in honor of Mary Magdalene, right in the memory of the Protection of the Blessed. Mary, left - in honor of St. John the Baptist. According to the recollections of old residents, were kept in the church altarpieces icon of the Savior's time, and an old, beautifully embroidered shroud. The yard was in 1897. In the same memorable year in October, arrived in Mariupol Bishop Simeon, bishop of Ekaterinoslav Taganrog "in order to survey the church and the school district of Mariupol." October 16, 1897 Simon consecrated the new temple of the Holy Equal of the Apostles of Mary - Mary Magdalene and the Divine Liturgy celebrated. It also held all-night vigil, and the church took its full life. The next day, October 17, his Eminence was consecrated by Chief Simeon limit of Mary of Magdala, the church and the Divine Liturgy.” [sic. Google Translation]

The above picture shows the Church of Mary Magdalene looking west and up Lenin Avenue from where the Cathedral of St. Ignatius Harlampy would have looked over the Kalmius river port area.  It would have been sometime around the end of the nineteenth century.  Our adoption apartment building is a third or less way up the hill on the left side of the street with the black roof (maybe I think).  These two churches would have made for nice anchors between the harbor area where the city was founded and the high point of the growing city.

Sometime in the year 1934 the church was dynamited by the state.

The square today

Cathedral of St. Harlampy (СОБОР СВЯТОГО ХАРЛАМПИЯ)

From the Hotel Continental

From Old Mariupol:  “The main altar was consecrated in the name of the martyr Harlampy, right aisle - in honor of the miraculous icon in the name of the Great and George the Victorious, and the left - in the name of Saint. Nicholas, taking into account that "the saint is venerated Russian parishioners." This temple was the largest in the city, accommodating more than five thousand people. [sic. Google Translate]

From St. Catherine's Church

The cathedral was destroyed in 1930.  In its place is now an eight story government building in the Soviet style “DOSAAF - Voluntary Society of Assistance to the Army, Air Force and Navy, the aim of which was in Soviet times, promote the country's defense and the training of workers to defend the Fatherland. Among the inhabitants of Mariupol building now bears the same name, although at present there are offices of various organizations.”

Older file photo of the present building

“In the original draft it was supposed to be a four and is said to builders, extended in a straight line: thus, they say, would be cheaper for its construction. When the project has shown the first secretary of Party Committee V.M.Tsybulko, he said, after some hesitation, he asked: "What used to be on the site, where you're going to put the house of the military-technical school?" They showed him the pre-revolutionary postcard with a picture of the Cathedral of St.. Harlampy. "You see, the architects of the past knew how to decorate the city, and your work only brings boredom. Make the main avenue of the city began with a perceptible building high-rise. " If after this conversation, and there was eight-vertical box with two wings of four stories each.”

Looking down Lenin Avenue

Church of St. Catherine

The Church of St. Catherine (originally St. Harlampy) was the original Greek church that later became the Catholic church in Mariupol..  Buried there was Metropolitan Ignatius the man who led the Greeks in the Sea of ​​Azov, on the eastern custom, in a sitting position.  Before destroying the church the tomb was opened and the chair removed display in a museum.  Another interesting note at the start of the report from Old Mariupol is the mention of the church cornerstone:  “On the hottest day in 1780 a tireless Metropolitan Ignatius laid on the site of a former Cossack Palanca Center (Catholic) church for novoustroennogo Greek society.” [sic. Google Translate].  Maybe I can find out more about the Cossack and the Catholic references.  St. Catherine can been seen in the below to the left by a block or two of the larger St. Harlampy.

From the Cathedral bell tower

In reading about the construction of the larger and newer Greek Cathedral to St. Harlampy I have figured out the above Catholic reference.  This church was first built Greek Orthodox but was transferred to the Catholic community of Mariupol once the new Cathedral (just a block away) was constructed.  Until 2004 when Mary Mother of God church was established there was no Catholic church in Mariupol.  In Soviet Union the few churches that weren’t destroyed or turned into state run museums were limited to private worship.  No ministry work like hospitals or orphanages as that was all moved to the state.  Does any of this sound familiar at all back the US today?

Both chruches are visibile here
Photo taken from the general direction of our apartment but south off Lenin

Kaplichka

From the gardens (park) near the fountains

There isn’t much on Old Mariupol about this church but from the photo I can tell that it was just across the street from yesterday’s Church of Mary Magdalene and today’s garden fountains.  In background of the photo you can see Mariupol’s Winter Palace the Hotel Continental (left) with the pointed corner roof and the cathedral at the bottom of the street.  That hotel is kiddy corner from the building where our apartment it looks empty today.  In 1932 kaplichku (chapel) was destroyed, because "it hampered the movement of the toiling masses."

West from the fountains today