Being there, for the next one

At the four month mark and we have our first chance to help the next one down the rabbit hole. Heidi received an e-mail from a recently returned parent with a 9 year old girl from Russia. (To get the flavor of how far we have come you need to look at the good old days back on the 9th of February)

Stress, frustration, need for support came across loud and clear, and that was just the e-mail. We where forced to review in our minds our first week. Wow, what a flashback! The kiddie Olympics complete with the hand to hand child wrestling, Mattress toss, Door kick and down the street kinder sprint. Those where the days!


We headed to the store for some barbecue supplies and the newly minted family came over for a chance to meet, greet and speak our respective languages.

The kids paired up and had a chance to compare pasts and stories as did the the parents. Masha was indispensable at shedding light on some minor mysteries and the elders compared experiences.

Masha is helping with a little respite time for Mom and the little girl gets a chance to relax a little and ask some questions. As time goes on we see the kids unwinding, acting and trying to make sense of this crazy world they have found theirs selves dropped into.

This little girl is doing great, and our kids have set the bar mighty high on histrionics. Its nice to serve as an example, one way or the other.

Erik

Well another week under the keel.

The kids, as an average continue to improve. More English words slip into their usage. We have not been pushing them to speak English in our times together, leaving their classmates and teachers to do the heavy lifting. Friday was a day off for me and Heidi took a pass to run around town a little. Oil change for the car and we swung by school for the Asian Cultural awareness presentation. We watched two of the kids participate in class presentations in the cafeteria. We continued our parents play date by getting pedicures and meeting Masha and the kids at the Smithsonian Sculpture garden for the. Jazz in the park series.

The kids discovered the fountain in the center of the park. And about15 seconds to discover the copious quantity of tossed change on the bottom. My solution to the possible problem of them completly destroying the parrent child economic ballence was to tell them it was okay to scoop up the coins, as long as they toss them back out in the center of the huge fountain.

So at 1100am on Saturday, two hours into inflatable pool operations in the back yard. One mild touch of hypothermia (poor Sasha, he has about a half cup of fat in his whole body), one damp cast and three kids watching cartoons to warm up for a few. Now, hot dogs in the backyard with a afternoon trip to the "world" corn hole (bean bag toss) competition by our church on the national mall. Then we plan on going off to COSTCO to pick up Sasha's new glasses. Its been so cute, he has been asking for them every day since we learned he was blind as a bat past 5 feet (like Papa). Good times in the District. Love to all, the three Cossacks et al. Erik

Sent: Thu May 21 14:14:43 2009Subject: Fw: Tanya at doctor's office - check out her new friend!

So Tanya had a friend hang with her at the doctor's office today while we were determining if she has asthma. She is a real trooper at doctor's office and this is her fourth facility (including the civilian ER visit a week ago with her broken arm from the zoo).

- she gets to go get the arm looked at and casted finally at Andrews AFB next Tues (gotta love the hurry up and wait mentality of these places) - referrals, wait for referral to get reviewed,then wait for call or them to answer the call to get the appt, then get on the list for the next appt...

We are still figuring out what she has (with her congestion in her lungs) - but the initial x ray from a couple of months ago was looked at by the pulmonary doc at Walter Reed this AM and showed some concern, enough to go from the nebulizer to a steroid inhaler treatment for the next month.

Tanya definitely prefers the waiting rooms with the cartoons playing and truly enjoyed the last doc she saw this am as he had all kinds of fun light up and noisy toys to play with. He had a very positive and fun attitude just like the tech that ran her through the breathing through the tube machine which, thanks to Masha, she did better each time to get the reading and info for the doc to look at and evaluate. So back to work all and regards to you for a great rest of the week!

:) -Heidi

Tanya get down from there!

For those of you who may have been following this blog for a while you will remember the fears and panics of December, the Triumphs and near Tragedy of January (1 February Post), and the Chaos and Confusion of February (Operation Squirrel). You will be able to see just how far we have come since we first met these little Cossacks (a term of endearment, I assure you)..

As I sat in the E.R. Last night, I was going over it in my mind all the progress. Friday we had our first ever parent teacher meetings, three of them. All the teachers where very happy with the kids behavior in class and their progress academically:

Ms Kane, Tanya's Kindergarten teacher. Is very happy with her socialization and determination to complete assignments. She let us know that her school assigned speech therapist is practicing with a translator so they can give Tanya a detailed assessment of her speech issues.

Christina's Ms Gu, her second grade teacher, has done wonders giving her confidence at trying assignments and has turned her into a little art factory. We are fast running out of flat surfaces to take her output. She has made great improvements at becoming more of a child and less of a prisoner sworn to escape.

Ms Ratchford, Sasha's third grade teacher, told us about his buddy/competitor from class, who is also in an ESL track. They are always trying to out do each other and both have taken to the classroom computers very well. Of course its hard to get them off of them.

So the week of school, dance class and soccer practice culminated in the Friday, school holiday/parent teach conferences. We, of course can do nothing simply:Heidi and I jump on our trusty Vespas and go to work and appointments in the morning.

Masha keeps the kids engaged around the house.

Noon the parents disengage, slip into telephone booths and head to school for our first ever Parent/Teacher meetings with our capes flapping behind us.

Masha jumps in the trusty Mazda 5 to take the three little Cossacks in tow to the National Zoo for the afternoon.

The simple plan was to meet at the world famous Ben's Chili Bowl for dinner.Heidi and Masha would take the kids to the Movie on the grass our church was sponsoring at Lincoln Park. I would just scoot over to Georgetown University to attend Sagar's graduation reception (a grad student friend from India).

Well, best laid plans of mice and men... So Tanya manages to fall playing at the Zoo. Masha, the calm adult in the family, stabilizes the situation and calls me about the ouch'ie. We decide to keep to the script and meet for dinner.

Over french fries and chocolate shakes, we determine the little hard head did do a number on her arm and even after a half hour of icing it, is still swollen. The reset plan sent Masha and Tanya in the Van and myself, scooting, to the E.R. At George Washington University hospital (a familiar place thanks to the pioneering work done by Masha, on her adventures).

Our Friends, the now engaged Clinton B. and Jennifer (look at that ring!) B. Swooped down to rescue the marooned Heidi, Sasha and Christina on the corner of 12th and U street NE, we had left them at. Mama provided a motorcade feel on the trip back to the house before showtime.

All was well, the break was a clean one of the radius, just below the wrist.The movie was Madagascar II, enjoyed by all. The Hospital adventure ended early enough to make the Volcano scene and closing credits.

Flexible Papa, at your service

Pasta Party

here are some of tonight's photos, we went to an Italian restaurant and we had several big breakthroughs!

Tanya asked for Pizza, a first!

Christina, and Sasha had spaghetti with sauce (first time they did not put a few drops onto it, we had asked for it on the side by but it came smothered) and tried the pizza, and Christina gave Tanya some of her spaghetti with out a fight. Then they all used Parmesan cheese too! I just about fainted.

All this happened after Heidi left Masha and I at the table to run off to an author reading and book signing event.

I just put them to bed after wrapping Heidi's mothers day present.

Tomorrow, soccer for S and C, Train Day events at Union Station and a Bounce house Birth-day party for a classmate of Tanya's. all before 6pm. wow! did I mention panic flower buying and the dog groomer too!

Love this family life!

Papa in Charge

Find the Cossack, round two!

If its Picnics, it must be summer!

The kids are doing very well this weekend. Two BBQ's in two days, they seem to be able to take what dish out to them, including Ice-cream.

The first Picnic of the weekend was the year end one at Georgetown for the American Friends Program. Both Heidi and I had been paired with international students, Leslie from Paris for Heidi and Sagar from Hyderabad for Erik. Since the beginning of the adoption Odyssey we have been very neglectful friends but it was very good to see Leslie at the event.

On the way to the car the kids found a bunch of college students playing bean bags on the grass (the place had more sunning co-ed on the lawn than leaves in the fall). They started watching, then caddying stray bags and in 10 minutes they had control of the game.

Its a good thing Tanya is so shy and demure (that's a joke by the way), this is her own photo shoot style. Sasha and Christina both try out the football for the first time.

Many firsts this weekend, like most; bean-bag toss (Corn hole as the NCC's call it), Frisbee and the afore mentioned "football of the American variety".

Summer time, and the living is easy...of course its not "Summer" summer time yet, but its 98 degrees at Haines point Park for a Church BBQ, so close enough!