New Website for Blog

Due to laws in our new host child's country, we've moved our blog to a Wordpress site which allows greater privacy controls.  The new site is www.homesforhearts.us.  Some posts there are password protected, if you'd like to follow along just email orphans@teamyoo.com and we'll send you the password.

Chaperone Hosting

The summer hosting season is about to start and we're expecting around 200 children to arrive in the United States.  In order to do this, P143 relies on chaperones to escort the children here and then be available for translation and any other issues that may arise while they're here.  The chaperones are adult volunteers with some experience in the orphanage.  Some are orphanage directors, others are full time employees and others just volunteer in the orphanage.

While they're here, we need families to volunteer to host them.  There is no cost for this, we just ask you provide a place for them to sleep (even a couch can work) and treat them like a visiting relative.  They don't need to be catered to, but we do want to make their time here as enjoyable as possible.  It's a wonderful opportunity for you to experience a bit of a different culture, and help these children find homes.

If you're interested in hosting a chaperone, we ask families to commit to a minimum of one week, and are looking for hosts from June 12th - August 6th.

Children Still Need Families for Summer!

Where are the swimming families with a heart for orphans and/or Ukraine? U622 MAK is only 12 yrs old who told us he loves to swim and would love to try competing in a swimming contest this summer! We still have a space reserved for him on the plane to arrive June 15th, but we are clearly running out of time since he is still UNCHOSEN and will be forced to cancel his reservation soon.

PLEASE help us SHARE with any swimming families who might consider hosting a child from Ukraine this summer with Project 143! http://www.projectonefortythree.org/pre-registration
There are many other children as well. Please preregister on the site to take a look at all the waiting children!

A New Chapter

Things just keep changing. We were intending to host another Ukrainian child but fell in love with a girl from a different country in Eastern Europe instead.  "E" is an adorable 12 yr old girl who's story is heartbreaking. She's been hosted 4 times before (since 10 yrs old) and never been invited back or adopted. In her interview for summer she asked why no one picked her for winter hosting and why no one ever wanted her.  She said that she liked all her host families and told the interviewer that she really wants to be adopted and someone came to adopt her once but she was sick and couldn't go (not true, but this is the story she tells because the real story "no one wants her" is too painful).

There's nothing bad about her. I spoke to her last host mom and the mom said she's a wonderful girl with a heart full of love who desperately wants someone to want her.  She is described as "strong-willed, independent and active".  That's code for - argues a lot, wants to do things her way, needs to be kept busy.  But those are all things I'm okay with. She's been in an orphanage or group home since she was a year old, those are survival skills.  And sometimes those "tough" kids are some of the most resilient if you take the time to work through some difficulties.

Here's the other things about her though - she loves little kids and is incredibly nurturing. She loves animals, especially horses (which finally gives me an excuse to get a horse someday). She's a hard worker and loves to be helpful, she's smart, caring.  She can be a "super girly-girl" but also a bit of a tomboy and is very athletic.  She really seems like a girl who would fit in wonderfully around here and we can't wait to meet her!

We were initially intending to wait and commit a little later down the road, but "E" just seems like an incredible kid but also a kid who can't emotionally handle another rejection and we want to protect her from that if possible. She's absolutely adorable, but that often means people who aren't prepared for "tougher" kids fall in love with the cute one and then are overwhelmed later.  There's no guarantee that we're right for her, but we do have a lot of experience parenting children which other people rejected so we feel that we may be "E"'s best shot.

Of course, that does bring us to the one difficult part of hosting - finances.  The organization just changed their deposit policy to require a lot more up front - we owe $1500 within a week!  I understand their reasoning, some people were backing out at the last minute, but that's still quite a bit to come up with in a short time.  So my continual plea - if you're considering hosting then please do, that's top priority!  But if you can't host yet would like to help an orphan, we'd greatly appreciate your tax-deductible donation.  You can go here to donate and it's applied directly to our hosting account:

https://www.razoo.com/story/Homesforhearts?referral_code=share

Thank you!

Could You Host?

Could you host a child for a month? Most people have never considered the question, but I'd like to ask you to take just a minute and contemplate it.  One month of your time can completely change a child's life!  Perhaps you're interested in adoption - this is a great way to see if your family is a good match for a particular child.  Or maybe adoption isn't an option for you, that's okay too - you can advocate and help the child find a forever family.  Or you can take a child who is unable to be adopted and show them what life is like in a family for a little while.  Or perhaps you can't host at all but could help fund a grant for a family who is willing but unable to afford it. Or you could share this post with everyone you know and help to spread the word.  No matter where you are in life, there's something you can do to help an orphan.  And I can promise you that your life will be changed for the better.

The requirements are pretty simple. You must have 1 parent able to be with the child most of the time, they need a bed and a loving home. They can share a bedroom with another child. You can be single or married. There are no age limitations. You can have other children in the home or the host child could be your only one. There is a cost of roughly $2750 to host a child but that cost is fully tax-deductible and many families are able to fundraise for that amount.  Additionally, some children have grants available to partially offset the cost.

The children range from 6 years to 16 years old. There are boys and girls, single children and sibling groups of up to five.  You can look at pictures and information about the children, then discuss your family with a volunteer prior to committing.

The summer photo listing is now available. Go to http://www.projectonefortythree.org/pre-registration/ and register to see the children.  It's free, there's no commitment or obligation. But just maybe you can help to save one child.

Thank You

Before

A wise man once said that it takes a village to raise a child. These words were very much apropos regarding hosting our Natasha.  This is our thank you for everyone who opened their hearts to Natasha and made her stay such a success.

The world works in very odd and mysterious ways. I am fairly involved in the adoption and foster care community, yet had never heard of orphan hosting. Then a friend of mine shared a post on Facebook about it, she herself had never hosted but had heard of the program from a different friend of hers who had, and she helped to spread the word.  Without that one Facebook share, Natasha would never have found her future family.

Project 143 is an amazing organization run primarily by volunteers. Two of these volunteers spent several hours on the phone with me learning about my family and trying to find a great match.  Obviously, the results speak for themselves. Once matched with Natasha, the volunteers were always available to talk and discuss what to expect and how to deal with issues.

The other initial hurdle was, and always will be, money. We have not regretted a thin. The money spent to bring Natasha over to us was worth it. It was not inexpensive and it felt odd asking for help funding this endeavor, but the generosity shown by all was so touching.

We were also able to make new friends and reconnect with past clients of all things. We were introduced to another homeschooling family who had actually adopted a daughter from Ukraine four years ago and they opened their home to us. That day was especially memorable because Natasha finally felt a bit more comfortable and tried to speak English for the first time.  How can you top memories like that?

We also had not one, but three past real estate clients who were Ukrainian! When Marine spoke with them about Natasha, he said it was one of the most fulfilling conversations he’s ever had. They were all eager to talk, give advice, cook Ukrainian meals and shop for Natasha. How wonderful it is to be able to just relax for a bit and speak your native language with someone and know that they understand your culture! It was also helpful to us that they could tell us more about Natasha and break down some of the cultural barriers that existed to that point.

After

The ways that others helped her are incredible. Children’s Dental Center donated a free exam and cleaning (no cavities!), Wendy Schutt donated her excellent photography services (those awesome professional photos on FB are from her). Friends took her shopping for clothes, gave us discount coupons for bowling and donated a gift certificate for a manicure (teen girl heaven).

The most wonderful aspect of this is all the awareness that has been generated. We’ve been contacted by strangers, past friends and acquaintances who want to know more and are interested in helping. Not all can host or adopt a child, not all can afford to donate, but all can help in some way and are united by their caring, compassion and innate ability to care for children they have never met.

Because of this experience, I’ve now joined P143 as a volunteer coordinator and will assist in recruiting and matching families for future hosting sessions, and will of course be bringing back another child this summer to hopefully help find a family. As I look at the amazing difference between when Natasha arrived and when she left, and then contemplate her future with a family who loves her I cannot wait to see how many more children we can help experience that same joy.

Good News!

Well, Natasha is back to Ukraine and we’ve had time to reflect on our experience.  Our goal in hosting was to bring a child here for Christmas to provide them the experience of life in a family and offer them some hope. We had said from the beginning that our primary goal was to connect that child with a potential forever family.  We were open to that family being us, but truthfully the logistics right now would have made that difficult (finances + travel with 3 small children + foster child in school).  So we kept the door open, but said in an ideal world we would be the conduit for Natasha to meet a family who was right for her. 

We did the best we could to introduce Natasha to potential families, but being the first time we’d done this, we weren’t quite sure what we were doing.  When we were about 3 days away from her return I became incredibly stressed wondering what was going to happen.  And then something amazing did.  Our friend Clio Bushland told me that she was really drawn to Natasha and were contemplating if she would be a good fit with their family!  It truly is amazing how things work out.

   

So Natasha will be returning to spend the summer with Clio.  We will still get to see her, but I think Clio’s family will be a much better fit than ours.  Natasha did well here, but she’s definitely more of a city child than country, and I think would prefer not having preschool age children begging for her attention all day.  She kept talking about how much she loved to dance so Clio already has found a dance studio for her to attend!  It’ll also be nice for her to have a chance to be the oldest child, I think she’ll really have a chance to shine.

We were able to meet up with Clio’s family one last time before Natasha left and on the way to meet them I told her they’d be hosting her for the summer.  They helped us pick out some new shoes and a backpack for her return.  It was wonderful to be able to pack knowing that she was returning and that we would still see her.

We will be hosting a different child for the summer – more on that to come!

Going Back

Natasha could barely sleep the night before departure and woke up earlier than I had ever seen her. She spent the morning doing girly stuff with Hailey, like makeup and hair and giggling and… yeah, girly stuff.  I witnessed some very sweet moments exemplified by our very own Hailey as she hurriedly got ready for school. She made some hot cocoa for Natasha and then gave her a gift of hot cocoa to take home to Ukraine as well.

As Hailey started going out to the end of our driveway, Natasha looked at me and I nodded to her and she followed Hailey out. Mind you, it was about 10 degrees outside and even though she's from Ukraine, Natasha does not like the cold.  But I saw Natasha follow her out and stand with her while they waited for the bus. When they saw that I was trying to take pictures of them from afar, they both started gesturing and goofing off at me. Teens.

For the rest of the morning, it was mostly making some last minute prepwork. Marine made Natasha some French toast and bacon and she ate more than I’ve seen her eat in awhile.  When Natasha learned that only Michelle was going with to the airport, she was definitely disappointed. I wish our boys were a little bit older so that we could make these types of trips together but that long of a ride just would not work for them.

We had packed the night before so everything was ready to go. She was allowed one suitcase and one backpack.  We had a lot more clothes than she could possibly fit (thank everyone!) and we were required to return everything she came with regardless of condition so a fair amount of space was given over to her winter coat.  The good news is we were able to keep things for summer (more on that at the end).  I kept wondering how much of what I was packing would be hers to keep and how much would be community property.  On one hand, I know the other kids need things too so it's good if they can all take advantage of it, but on the other hand it would be nice for Natasha to have some nice things that are really hers.  

My boys all got hugs and kisses from Natasha and took multiple pictures with her. Two year old Remy couldn’t quite understand that Natasha was leaving to go home. He’s very empathetic and senses everything. He knew that there was something amiss. Weston was a trooper as usual and promptly asked when the next teen guest would be coming. I guess our home has had a revolving door of teenagers, huh?

As for Marine, he received the longest and tightest hug he has ever received from Natasha by far. He's not one of those types of guys that thinks crying is for losers, but he made sure not to anyways. He didn't want the last image Natasha sees of us (at least for awhile) to be sadness.

The ride down was okay but she wasn't too talkative which is certainly understandable. It was hard to figure out what to say.  The one thing that was constant was "bad Ukraine, no airplane, go home." It was half joking at first, but when we got within sight of the airport became quite earnest.  It was tough because she is only 13 and although she kind of gets it, I don't think it makes sense to most kids (or adults). She's stuck in an orphanage there in the middle of a war zone with 500 other kids, shares a room with 6 other girls and needed to pack extra soap to return with.  Here there is a family (or two) who enjoys having her, no war, and the ability to meet basic needs and have a few nice things too.  Why not stay?

We tried to make a few more good memories and stopped for lunch at an Indian restaurant (I had to make Marine jealous, we both love Indian food).  There was a minor hiccup though when Natasha accidentally left her iphone in the restaurant and I had to drive back (we were only about 5 min down the road though). Natasha was particularly hard on herself over this, repeatedly telling herself “dura, dura”. This means “stupid” in Russian. It was almost like she was afraid to do anything at the end which might cause us to not like her as much.

We got to the airport and met the other families.  The kids were fairly happy to see each other but not as much as I'd expected.  I kind of thought they'd be comparing clothes and forget the host families but that wasn't the case at all.  Natasha stayed right by me until the end. We took photos and there were a lot of hugs, she tried to smile in the beginning, but as we got closer to departure time she started crying. 

When the actual departure occurred, it happened FAST. One minute everyone was hanging and relaxing in the gate and then the chaperone said time to go and everyone had to move quickly. I was going to Facetime Marine, my parents and the other important family (coming up) but had to settle for a quick voice call to Marine as I walked along with them towards security.  The ending was heartbreaking.

And just like that, Natasha was on her way back home across half the globe.  But there's more to come...

Last Day

Today has been a bittersweet day for all of us (Marine's writing today). As the clock keeps ticking down, I try to figure out what is going on under that way too mature and innocent face of Natasha. Michelle and I have been reading all of the posts on social media from other host families and seeing the angst and sadness and happiness and everything in between that they are experiencing as departure deadlines approach. Much like any other experience in life, the feeling that is occurring cannot be reproduced/explained/described unless you go through it personally. In four short weeks, this beautiful girl has wormed her way into the fabric of our lives and we are the better for it, not her. Imagine, this Project 143 is an avenue to enrich the lives of orphans from a war torn country and it’s us, we of the first world problems, that are fuller of heart and mind.

Today, Natasha had one final day with Michelle, just for a little while, one on one. They got to act like girls and get some nails done at a salon (thanks Poppy!). Natasha initially wanted some really long add-on nails that just weren’t appropriate. Apparently, Euro styles are a little different, hah! Eventually, she chose a vibrant blue with flourishes and designs. I can’t help but see the little girl in her when I peek at her new manicure and think that it reflects upon her personality.

Michelle and Natasha then met up with a friend who wanted to help her go shopping for some last minute items (thank you Clio!) at Target. I learned this a long time ago, but if you ever want to raise the spirits up on a girl, take her shopping and pay attention to her. Natasha was in shopping heaven for the second night this week and got herself some nice items to take home.

Once home, Michelle and Natasha spent a good chunk of the evening hours packing her suitcase (exactly 50 lbs) and letting her spend some time on Facebook. Apparently, Natasha actually has no internet at her orphanage and we've limited it here after the initial issues but are now letting her on Facebook so she can have a permanent connection with people she met here. 

Michelle spent a good portion of the night downloading as many pictures as she could into a flash drive and ordering more prints from a Walgreens that they’ll be driving by on the way to O’Hare in the morning.

The boys made sure to give hugs and kisses to Natasha before bed and she got photos with Stephen before he left for work in the morning. As is her usual routine, Natasha gave an airy and quick “good night” to me and went upstairs for her last night in our home. I spent the next few seconds in introspection and wondered what the next few months would be like for her. 

Michelle (as usual) was a rockstar and we have some plans in place for Natasha. The language barrier broke down as the weeks passed by, much like the emotional wall that was initially in place. It’s definitely not perfect right now, but I know that based on the connections we’ve made that there will be some stress as we worry about her settling back overseas. I can’t imagine how she must feel.

In the morning, Natasha and Michelle will drive together to Chicago for departure. I wish I could go along as well, but the boys need to be watched over and the ride would be just too much at this age. I am not sure how everyone will act as they realize she is leaving our house for “home”. The boys are resilient, they are somewhat used to teens coming and staying with us for extended periods of time. I think Hailey will miss her quite a bit and wish Natasha was still here messing up their room :). I will probably hold back some tears but get caught up with taking care of the boys and the house. It’s Michelle, the one that Natasha has bonded to the most (heck, she even looks like her daughter), that I predict will have the hardest time. Not exactly a shocking statement since she’ll be the one who is going to drive to the airport and stand in the terminal as Natasha gives her accented “good-bye”.

There will be a void left behind, but one that will be filled quickly because Michelle is already busy making plans to make sure that Natasha is taken care of. A mountain of tasks could be on Michelle’s plate, but if she has the chance to better the life of a child, she’ll add to the mountain. She has since she was a teen, she has since she was in her twenties, and she will do so for the rest of her life. That is the stuff that my wife is made of, and that is why I believe all will turn out well for our Natasha.

Thanks to all that have been along for the ride.  We'll update more in a couple of days when we are sure of the future plans for her.

Skating & Friends

It was a COLD day and we were in the end stages of planning for Natasha’s departure. I had Marine go up to her room in the morning and ask her if she wanted to go ice skating one last time with the family. Initially, Marine asked her without the translator app and got a definitive “No.” Marine decided to try one more time using the app and it started translating out loud as he was walking up the stairs to her room. Before he even got to the top, she had heard the translation and yelled out “YES!” and was bounding out of bed. Marine said that he had never seen her get up so quickly!

So we bundled up the family and headed out to Capitol Ice Arena and it was another hit. Something about being on the ice just resonated with her I guess. We got some wonderful pictures of her and Ky (she LOVES that baby) and then headed on over to Aldo Leopold for Weston’s class. Because it was getting to crunch time, I had no problem letting her hit Facebook and start getting some friend requests done. It’s kind of amazing (and a little sad), but she gets very excited everytime anyone “likes” a photo of her. She’s not usually the most engaging with Marine (still a little gunshy around men I think) but immediately started jibber-jabbering with him when she realized he had liked several of her pictures.

As an added treat, we all went out for dinner at Biaggi’s to meet up with Mike and Anastasia (Ukrainian friend). As a side note, I was reminded why we don’t go out to restaurants with little kids anymore, hah!

Anyways, Natasha’s eyes lit right up when she saw Anastasia. We had arrived at the restaurant a little earlier than the Tubbs Family and I spent about ten minutes arranging seating so that Natasha and Anastasia and I could talk while Marine could converse with Mike and Hailey could help with the kids. Well, you know what they say about the best laid plans… As soon as Natasha saw Anastasia, she jumped up and grabbed a chair and drug Anastasia down into it. As I watched Natasha talk non-stop with Anastasia, it struck me as dissonant how well she spoke to another adult and held up her end of the conversation (even though I didn’t understand a thing) and how young she really is. We also spoke with Mike for quite awhile and I can’t help but be thankful for great people in this world that show care and compassion for others like the Tubbs family. There wasn’t a dull moment and the girls talked the entire time and the end of the dinner was most definitely emotional. By this, I don’t mean any loud histrionics. Natasha just doesn’t roll that way. But there was definitely a heavy feel during the moment. Nonetheless, the dinner was a success and it really couldn’t have gone any better.

We capped the night off by having Hailey and Natasha start sorting out the nuclear bomb, I mean, their room and the clothes for packing. The idea of Natasha actually leaving us is starting to hit harder. I was really stressed because I didn't know what the future would hold for her but that miraculously changed late tonight when I received notice from not one but TWO families who are interested in maintaining contact with Natasha and possibly more.  Can't give too many details yet, but I'm hoping that I will be able to put Natasha on the airplane with some very good news and some hope!

Learning More

We've learned quite a bit more about Natasha's situation over the past few days since we've been around some Ukrainian friends more and she was able to talk to them without a language barrier.  Again, very impressive how resilient she is considering all she's been through.

She's from the region of Ukraine that is actively involved in the war with Russia.  Natasha told our friends that her city was being bombed and that she spent a lot of time praying until all the orphans were evacuated to a different city.  Her brother is still on the other side of the border so she doesn't get to see him but apparently he's very protective of her and tries to guide her (he's 20 yrs old).  In the summer the orphanages close so if the kids aren't in a summer hosting program or camp then they're turned out on to the streets to fend for themselves.

We met up with Anastasia (Ukrainian friend) who told us that Natasha is very smart and well-read, and in fact that she was able to talk to her about some books they'd both read. Unfortunately, Natasha told me that she doesn't go to school often and no one there cares whether or not she goes.  But our girl has aspirations! She wants to go to college to be a choreographer and she likes her chemistry class because her teacher is really good.  There aren't a lot of rules in the orphanage, everyone kind of fends for themselves, yet she's been pretty good about following rules here.

I've been able to find out a bit about her circumstances at the orphanage. So, she has absolutely nothing of her own.  We're not sure exactly how many kids are there because they keep adding more kids as they evacuate other orphanages caught up in the conflict.  Natasha shares a room with 6 other girls and all of the clothes are shared between them. I would like to say that they share clothes and all the other things, but they really don't have other things :(.

We went shopping at Walmart today to get supplies for her to take back.  We're allowed to send one suitcase weighing no more than 50 lbs. It took 2 1/2 hrs to get through Walmart with her!  She's very sweet & appreciative of everything. You would think that knowing this is her last chance to buy anything she'd be asking for everything in the store, yet she only asked for a few items here and there. I tried to balance between getting things she needed and things that would just be nice.

So, sad story. I had heard that another girl from her same orphanage was sneaking bandages from the host family and packing them so I asked Natasha what she thought they needed.  She wanted sponges to clean, laundry detergent and soap. We decided the detergent would be too heavy but got the other items.  Most of what we got was necessities - underwear, socks, notebooks for school, toothbrushes, pencils, scissors, etc.

A big thing that she told Anastasia she wanted was "American makeup".  The kids who are picked for hosting are looked up to by the others so returning with American makeup and clothes is a big ego boost for them (which is sadly needed). Again though, she was happy with whatever she got. As much as I would have liked to buy her the best of everything, we decided to buy cheaper items so we could get more for her (plus we're starting to save for the summer hosting program). She asked for lipstick, got one and was super happy (most teens would have said "can I please get two?" believe me, I know).  She had also asked for a pair of earrings and was thrilled with a $3 pair.

This girl is very sweet and empathetic. She also got a shirt for her brother & her chemistry teacher as well as chocolates for the orphanage director.  I think the shirt for her brother cost me $7 and she was thrilled.  It's such a chance from most of my past foster teens who are often only satisfied with brand name items. (She would like a pair of Nike shoes though, so we're going to try to find some tomorrow).

When we got to the checkout, I had picked up a set of "N" monogram earrings & necklace - intended as an airport surprise but I forgot to hide it. I had also printed out 160 pictures of her time here with us.  She was so excited and happy when she saw those, she couldn't believe I had gotten them for her.  In the hosting training they cautioned us to not take the kids shopping early on in the hosting as it could set an expectation of "rich Americans" who would always buy things. So I listened, but she was so happy that part of me wishes I had taken her sooner. Live and learn.

Home Stretch

Sorry for the delay in updates everyone. It’s been somewhat hectic, but that’s pretty much the norm. On to the show!

On Friday, we pushed/pulled/dragged Natasha to Vilas Zoo because we thought that she would enjoy it and it’s one of the major attractions of our fair city. I think that Ukranian zoos must be very different.  She originally said "I don't want to go see a bunch of animals in little cages".  First response: “No”. Second response: “No.” Oh well…

So we drive to the zoo and find it blissfully empty of other patrons. But that might’ve had to do with the rather chilly wind and rain… in January. Anyways, we slogged through the weather and marveled at the animals enjoying their natural climate, like the lion, and the camel – um, wait.

However, Natasha really started getting into it when she started spotting the big cats and other large game animals. We found out a cool secret (that probably every other Madisonian knew); when there’s inclement weather, you can get a much closer look at the animals because they’re in their shelters and there isn’t much in between you and them. The giraffes were especially cool. There were some epic Natasha selfies.

We also held our bowling party for others to meet Natasha on Saturday. I think the girls were in junk food heaven with all the pizza, soda, nachos, fries and onion rings they could handle. I think I could smell the grease emanating off of everything! But it seemed to be a success. We had friends come over and stop by, some people we met for the first time, and overall it went very well. For a short spell, Natasha refused to mingle or chat with some of the people who wanted to meet her, instead asking to speak with other Ukrainians that she had met previously. But, as usual, she turned it around. I will say that her ability to adapt and strive to be better is enormous.  It's got to be overwhelming to be constantly meeting new people who speak a foreign language.

Oh, by the way, her English is a lot better than even she lets on. She’s gotten comfortable enough where she has a great time making fun of Marine in Ukrain-glish. It’s fun to watch and hear.

A short, sad episode occurred at the end of bowling. Grandma and Grandpa Hoksch visited us as well and at the end, they went to say their goodbyes to Natasha because most likely they wouldn’t be seeing her again before she departed. The enormity of it hit her hard and she held on to Grandma for several minutes. I can’t even imagine what’s going on in her head.

Things looked better today because it combined two of her favorite hobbies: shopping and speaking to other Ukrainians. We went to West Towne today to get her some more clothes and meet with Anastasia and Mike. They started chatting instantly and had a great time just doing what everyone else in Madison must have decided to do today. Parking was unreal. But overall, a good time was had.

This week, we hit the home stretch. I definitely enter it with a lot of emotions. We’ll be heading out together as a family to do some more activities and try to prepare her as much as possible for the flight home. I definitely wish we had hosted her during a different time of the year, even though she loves snowball fights. Summer in Wisconsin is a great time of year. But I’m still glad for the time we’ve had with her. Til tomorrow…

School

Sorry I missed yesterday’s post, it was an eventful and late day.  We decided that on Wednesday Natasha would accompany Hailey to school for the full American high school experience (I assume that involves lots of texting and selfies). As posted previously, we planned Natasha’s clothes the night before (thank goodness for that, we’ll get to that soon) and made them go to sleep early.

Marine woke up early with the baby (as usual) and because I always plan for the worst, I had him check on the girls to make sure that they were bright eyed and bushy tailed and wouldn’t miss the bus. If by bright eyed and bushy tailed you mean, unconscious and out cold fifteen minutes before the bus was coming, then yeah, great, winner winner. Marine flipped the switch, yelled out an alarm to wake the dead and finally got a mumbled “Are you kidding me? It’s seven?” from Hailey. Marine said that he had never seen the girls move that fast before. Hailey took charge and got Natasha going (we were a little worried that she assumed that the bus would just idle and wait for her) while Marine stood at the bottom of the stairs and did his best impression of a NASA countdown official.

Ultimately, the girls got off to school on time, wearing suitable clothes, with iPod and cellphone translator in tow.

Their school day ended up being a little long, since Hailey couldn't find Natasha in time for the bus (not sure why) so they stayed after to study for chemistry with the teacher.  (Her chemistry studying happened to involve a boy she has a different kind of chemistry with...).  However at least they were with the teacher, so I ended up picking them up on the way to youth group and just let it go.  They did have a great day together at school, used up the batteries on both phones with their non-stop pictures and Natasha's first words when I picked her up were "Hailey, school, me, tomorrow?" .  Everyone had a great time at youth group, we all went home, didn’t have to clean up after dinner and it was a good night.

Thursday was a good day for Natasha. Earlier in the week, we had driven past the state capitol building and she was excitedly gesturing towards it. So, after taking her to the Realty Exec office for a meeting, she and I ditched Marine at work and toured the Capitol. Natasha was really excited for something the rest of us take for granted! She ran around taking selfies, exploring everything and all in all had a great time.

When we went home, she then decided to cook for everyone. Natasha made this great hot dish using hot dogs, eggs, spices and potatoes. Don’t know what it’s called, don’t know how to make it, can barely describe the taste, but it was a hit!  We did have another episode of "I want to chat with my boyfriend on VK" but when she realized it was not going to happen she got over the issue much more quickly than before.  Off to the zoo tomorrow!

Bedtime Stories

Life in our household is never dull, that’s for sure. Today is usually the day that Weston goes to his Aldo Leopold nature class to hang with his peers and I brought Natasha with as well. The plan was to go to the class, get some shopping done, come home, eat some sushi and have an uneventful, peaceful evening.

Hah.

For those who have been reading along with us on our journey, you’re aware of the issues Natasha’s Ukrainian version of Facebook has been causing. Although who am I kidding. Social media for teens in general, regardless of nationality, is the devil.

While we were at Aldo, I took Natasha’s phone to hook her up to the wifi there and immediately noticed that the internet restriction had been disabled. I’m assuming her eagle eyes were able to spot our passcodes entered every time we used our own phones. So, I ended up having to re-entering a new passcode, much to Natasha’s displeasure. Initially, she was trying to do a cute protest but when she realized I was serious, the storm clouds rolled in again.

Natasha definitely was unhappy and spent the time sulking.  That wasn't too much of a problem though since I had a conference call to be on anyway at the time.  We made the ride to Willy St (grocery store) and I was expecting a continued dark cloud but once more, the resilient, strong side of her came out again. At the store, she turned her mood around and started talking to me about trying to make a dinner for us and what type of ingredients to get. Everything seemed fine. Did I mention that she’s thirteen years old?

Once we got home she learned that Hailey had decided to limit Natasha's use of Hailey's makeup (Hailey had been generously sharing, but decided some boundaries needed to be made). Natasha was generally argumentative about everything after that point.  Eventually she called the Ukrainian chaperone and decided to sit outside in the cold to talk on the phone. We figured that she needed some time away from us so that was definitely fine. 

It was a continued up & down mood and I think there were a lot more issues than internet restrictions.  She's only here for another 10 days and this is about the point that reality sets in and kids start getting stressed.  Ultimately, Natasha skipped dinner with the family and had some fruit instead. Hailey informed us that Natasha was on a diet, but one that consisted of avoiding all meat and snacking on Hailey’s chocolates!

Tomorrow, Natasha gets to accompany Hailey to her school but we needed to make sure that Natasha wore clothes appropriate for an American high school, and not something that’s accepted in European circles so that resulted in continued debate.  Again, I don't think the clothes were the issue.  She's just having a tough time with everything.  

Eventually, I called a different translator who is a bit more of  a mother figure.  They had a long conversation and the translator told us that Natasha really wants to have a close conversation with us but using a translation app on her phone doesn't really allow for that.  She's worried and struggling with a lot of things back home.  We decided to set a Skype appointment with the translator for tomorrow night to have a good conversation.  After that, Natasha really turned it around once more. She actually ended the night by coming into our bedroom for our nightly storybook reading to the boys. We also have a video to share of her reading Llama Llama Red Pajama to us! It was admittedly very adorable.

Updates tomorrow regarding her trip to Hailey’s school!

Back to Work

With the beginning of the New Year and it being a Monday, we all experienced the same thing: getting back to work. And with that, Natasha was off with me to my realty office and to meet pretty much the entire company since it was the first business meeting of the year. Many thanks to grandma Cheryl for watching over the Legion of Doom aka Weston, Remy & Ky since Marine also was off with clients for the day.

Natasha went over very well with all of the fellow agents in the office. It was a great way for her to be exposed to what a business-like culture looks like in the states and to introduce herself. She was bubbly, happy and kept trying to steal my coffee. Bad Natasha! She got to hang out with some of the other agents and see what I did for a living (which to her, probably looked waaaay boring). But the alternative was to sit at home with the kiddos and play referee all day.

At one point, Marine popped into the office and we decided that he would interview Natasha for a blog post on our business page. It was pretty funny watching her as she kept hearing her name bandied about between Marine and I while we discussed what type of questions to ask of her. When informed that she would be in front of a camera, a very clear “NO” came out of her several times. She was so cute! She actually thought she had a choice! But in all seriousness, she did a great job, she had a great attitude and it looked like Marine had a lot of fun pretty much talking the entire time. 

Overall, it was another good day. Natasha and Hailey helped (ie made dinner again) for everyone and we had some good moments together bonding over Facebook late in the night. 

Ukrainians!

I’ll start today’s entry by stating the obvious: teens are an interesting bunch. No matter how much you plan, how much forewarning is given, sometimes the results are the same. We’re not dealing with adults here, so it’s always taken with a wink and a nod, but… grrrr! The night before, everyone was informed and knew that church was on the schedule and we’d be leaving at about 9:15am. Marine went up to wake the girls a few times to no avail. Finally, Hailey came lumbering out of her slumber and got ready quickly. At about 9:07am, Natasha was finally routed from the floor (where the girls decided to sleep for the night for some unknown reason), grumpily put on too much makeup and sauntered downstairs. We ended up making it to church on time, but it was another mini-battle.

We got home and got to our Sunday cleaning. Natasha sat on the couch and thought she was good there, but was quickly corrected. She chose to improve her attitude and did do a great job dusting.  While Marine went to meet some real estate clients, grandpa and grandma came over. Natasha completely turned her attitude around and she and Hailey spent the afternoon getting clothes ready for our evening activities.

Our first stop was Weston’s hockey game where we met up with some past real estate clients, one of whom also was Ukrainian! Natasha and Anastasia spoke the entire time and Natasha must have been in sugar heaven because Anastasia brought some old country sweets with her. It was a great time had by all, with Weston flopping all over the ice rink, Marine skating around “coaching” the four and five year olds (he calls it herding cats), little Ky asleep on mommy’s back, and Hailey… um, I’m not sure what she was doing.

After the game was over, we said our goodbyes and visited yet another former client who had prepared a traditional Ukrainian dinner for us. Thank you so much Sam and Olga! The moment Natasha walked in, she and Olga hit it off and we don’t think they actually stopped talking the entire time. Great food, great conversation, and oh yeah, Olga and Sam have a 15 month old daughter that our dear Ky thought was absolutely fascinating. Something about babies causes mesmerization for our dear little one.

We definitely wish we had better understanding of Russian, because we just found out via Olga a few tidbits about Natasha we didn’t know about. Apparently, choreography is a future career she is extremely interested in? Never knew. And, of course, because we’re dealing with teens, we had to correct a few bits of information that Natasha said to Olga. Remember folks, there’s always more to a story than what a teen tells you. Always.

But we said our goodbyes, Marine learned a new recipe called “golubtsi” that he’s going to try making and we raced home to put the kiddos to bed. All in all, despite some of the bumps, it was a good day.

Photos & Friends

So, today was a pretty interesting day with Natasha. She’s doing really well within the household again now that she has Hailey all to herself once more. It seems like she just needed someone to connect with more consistently. Go figure, thirteen year olds.

We did have a bump in the road later on in the day. We had scheduled a photo shoot at a local park for the family, but focusing mostly on Natasha. The curse of the pretty dress reared it’s head again! Hailey did a great job getting clothes ready the night before for her and Natasha, but as departure time got closer, Natasha started rebelling with the clothes choices. The rest of the family was wearing classic tones and suitable winter wear. Natasha ended up trying to wear a red dress and absolutely refused initially to go with anything that went with the rest of us. We heard lots of “No” upstairs but we eventually put our foot down and got her to change. Unfortunately, her demeanor was pretty sullen for most of the car ride to the photo shoot site. We ended up getting our chaperone/translator on the line to speak with Natasha and found out that (as with most things) this attitude stemmed from boyfriend troubles… again. We weren’t even sure when she had a chance to get onto Ukrainian Facebook, but Hailey informed us that Natasha did so when we visited Marine’s parents the day before. This just goes to show that teenagers can be motivated when they want it bad enough.

We ended up going to our old standby… Starbucks. After everyone got treats and caffeinated, the mood in the car brightened up considerably! We showed up to the park, our photographer met Natasha, and she immediately jumped out of the car without her coat and started giving some glamour poses out. She’s a natural. I will say that it was only then that we noticed that the eyeshadow had been applied a little heavy. It reminded us how much Natasha had been forced to grow up but also left pretty much to her own devices. We were able to get some great family pics the rest of the time but the sun decided to set and it felt like an evening in January in Wisconsin. So we left for a friend’s house.

We were welcomed in to Paul & Clio’s home for dinner tonight. Paul & Clio are a wonderful couple with three awesome children. They were very excited to talk to Natasha and definitely are spreading the word about finding an adoptive family. Our three boys had a great time there, including little Ky. He thought it was very exciting to see another 7 month old boy and kept trying to investigate.

We did find out that Natasha was a huge dog lover! Paul & Clio had recently welcomed a retriever puppy named Teddy into their home and I think if Natasha could have done so, she would have committed a dognapping. Once in a while, Paul had to let the puppy out the backdoor into the frigid night, and Natasha quickly followed. She also couldn’t get enough of Paul & Clio’s 7 month old. I tried to snap a picture of her bouncing that baby boy on her lap but was too late! Hmmm, Natasha is like the perfect test subject for TV commercials; she loves babies and puppies J.

We ended the night watching her run out in to the cold and having a snowball fight with Paul & Clio’s 9 year old. It is amazing sometimes watching her vacillate between being just a kid who likes to run outside and a teen who has grown up too fast and realizes that there are a lot of important things happening in her life right now.

New Years

Yesterday we spent the day home, no night on the town with 3 little ones!  We took down the tree and Christmas decorations and then the girls did a much better job of keeping themselves occupied.  They spent the day playing with the guinea pig and then giving each other a makeover.  

Natasha has been a little frustrated since she got her haircut, she doesn't feel like she knows how to style it right. I'd love to help her but I'm really not all that great with hair either so I had asked Hailey to help her out.  Hailey is fantastic at that sort of thing!  So 2 hrs later, Natasha came bounding down the stairs to show off her makeover - hair, nails, makeup (not my first choice for a 13 yr old but a battle I'm choosing not to fight) and some fake glasses that Hailey gave her.  

Today we went to visit Marine's family for New Year's.  New Years is a big thing on the Korean side - much bigger than it is for most Americans so we usually spend Christmas with my family and New Year's with his.  Works out pretty well.  Of course, since the baby just doesn't like to travel we only drive long distances on his nap so were back home by 5.  Just in time for our Friday pizza & movie night.  Tonight we opted for the cartoon Tarzan which Natasha loved.  It's easy to follow along and get the humor even without understanding everything.  

Oh, and while we were visiting for New Year's, Marine's brother offered up his photography skills to get a great headshot of Natasha.