Happy 4th Gotcha anniversary, Dariya!

Four years ago today we were able to whisk this sweet girl out of her orphanage forever.   Our lives continue to be blessed by her sweet spirit.

It is so amazing to look back on her life.

From the girl who didn't know how to open a book at 3 1/2 to the girl who is reading and loving books on grade level.

From the girl who didn't know what a family was to the girl who gets up every.single.morning and hugs each family member and says,  "Good morning, insert person's name."

From the girl who preferred to sit and play alone to the girl who is talking about and playing with friends independently.

From the girl who had never heard of Jesus to the girl who asks to pray every day and is excited for church, JAM and VBS.

From the girl who never attended school to the girl who LOVES going to school and loves her teachers and friends.

From the girl who wouldn't accept comfort and love to the girl who willingly asks for hugs, snuggles and comfort when hurting.

It is fun to continue to watch her soar.  She is like that caterpillar turning into a beautiful butterfly. Each day she opens her wings just a tad bit more in order to fly higher.

We celebrate everyday we have together but today, we will enjoy a little extra celebration.


We love you Dariya and are so glad God brought you into our family.

For those of us who have followed her journey, we still have contact with Dariya's birth dad, Sasha. He is now remarried and enjoys all the pictures and videos that we share with him.

Happy 7th birthday, Dariya!!!!

Dariya,

I can't imagine life before you came along,

You are the music to my dance and my song.

I am meant for you, and you are meant for me,

the one I love forevermore.

Undeniably.

I love you so...

Marianne Richmond

These words are in a book that my brother and sister in law had made for Dariya this Christmas.  We read in nightly and the final page with these words couldn't be more true.

I can't remember life without Dariya.  She has been with us now longer that she was at the orphanage.   Our lives have been so blessed with the addition of her in our family.  Celebrating her today is just the icing on the cake.

I still get tears in my eyes every Sunday afternoon when I watch her dance her heart out.  She has come so far and continues to soar daily.  

Dariya, we are so proud of you, we pray that your life always is blessed and that God's path is clearly laid before you.

Happiest birthday Dariya.  

You wear 7 well!

xoxo,

Mom, Dad, Aidan & Alayna

We did it!

If you have been following us since Dariya came home you know what a traumatic thing the dentist visits have been for her.

Three years ago at her first visit they seriously didn't touch her and she was screaming the place down.  But, slowly, slowly, slowly she has come around.

I made a book of what we do at the dentist a couple years ago (pictures were of Aidan at one of his appointments).  The girls still love reading that book and get it out often.  About two weeks prior to a scheduled checkup I let the girls know we are going and we begin practicing.  The girls LOVE to play dentist and let us clean their teeth so I was hopeful that this time they would both do great.

I also took Grandma along to sit with one girl while I was with the other!  PRICELESS~

I have to report that BOTH girls did fabulous!  They let the hygienists clean their teeth and put a fluoride treatment on.  The attempted xrays but the film was just too big for the girl's mouths yet so we opted to skip it this time.  Poor Dariya was gagging on the film touching the back of her throat.

Alayna's adult teeth are popping in on the bottom where she has lost her baby teeth, but no molars coming in yet.

Dariya has an adult tooth coming in on the bottom behind her baby teeth which aren't budging yet. Shark teeth!  Looks just like Aidan's did at this age hmm, anyone see orthodontics coming up? She STILL hasn't lost a tooth and will be 7 in a couple weeks.  She however, has 3 of her 4 six year molars already.

Thankful the appointment went without a hitch.  Thank you Grandma for the back up.

See you in 6 months Dr. David!

Recovering well

Surgery went well for both girls.

Alayna just had tubes placed and Dariya had tubes and an adenoidectomy.  Alayna came out of surgery second and was quick to wake up and ask about Dariya.  Dariya was still sleeping in the bed next to Alayna and was very groggy after anesthesia.

Late Monday night Dariya had a rash on her face and was breathing like she was Darth Vadar.  Not sure what she was allergic to but, thankfully after rest, benedryl and an advil she was back to her normal self.

Overall they have had an easy recovery and are definitely hearing better.  They both rang in the New Year at 6pm  (English time Zone) and were too tired to party any longer.

Today Alayna decided their doll's had birthdays so we had to have a tea party to celebrate.

Hoping they get rested and back to 100% before school starts again on Tuesday.

Kindergarten field trip

The kindergarten class held their annual field trip and ventured off to the Weston Red Barn Farm. 

Jason even got the day off and so both of us joined the girls for a fun filled day on the farm.

Unfortunately, my camera ate the first 50 pics I took so here are a couple from the end of the tour.

We were able to visit all the farm animals and learn about them, pick a pumpkin and have a picnic lunch before returning to school.

Both girls had a great time.  Although Dariya got rather grumpy about an hour before lunch as it was her normal lunch time.  But, once fed she was back to her happy go lucky self.  Just don't forget to feed her.

Alayna was looking very tired at lunch so we opted to have the girls skip the bus ride back to school and ride with us...this was within minutes of pulling away.  

My what a fun day we had.

Step Up for Down Syndrome

The afternoon of October 19th couldn't have been a nicer day for our annual Step Up for Down Syndrome.  

We had a blast celebrating the girls, seeing our old friends and making new ones.  

A huge thanks to all those that came out and /or supported our team.  

We appreciate you greatly.

 

School day pictures

Friday was picture day for the girls.

Alayna usually gets a great shot with whomever the photographer is but, Dariya is a harder target.  She hasn't quite mastered the "looking at the camera and smiling"  look yet.

I took the girls outside for a few pics before they headed off to school hoping to get a good picture of each of them.  Alayna had about 20 great ones, while poor Dariya didn't have a single one that I would hang on the wall.

Sisterly love...oh, how I love these two!

How is kindergarten going?

The girls have been ready for kindergarten all summer.  

Of course, as a mom you worry (even for me who isn't typically a worrier) a bit over whether they will succeed in this new situation.

I am pleased to tell you that the girls have successfully made the transition and are thriving in their regular kindergarten class.  

They came home with "Purrfect" first day papers and have continued to have great days, minus one day where Dariya pushed Alayna and Alayna pushed someone else.  We quickly rebounded and are back on track.

They love their teachers and going to specials (computers, music, art, PE, and library) each day.

They are very tired even with just the half day in the afternoon.  Dariya is usually asking to go to bed during dinner each night. ;)

We pray that their year continues so well and that they make many new friends. 

Alayna usually talks about the names of everyone in class and so far all we have heard about is teacher names.  It is awesome that she has all those down so quickly but, I am praying for a nice friend for each girl to rise to the surface.

Feel free to throw a daily prayer their way.  Thanks!

And they're off to kindergarten

I have to admit I was putting Alayna to bed the other night and was praying for school, teachers and their transition and I had a little tear in my eye.  Alayna quickly noticed and asked if I was ok. Yes, sweet girl.  I just can't believe my 4 pounder is now 5 and off to elementary school.

Last Wednesday morning, Amy Allison, the director of our DSG held a Down Syndrome 101 class at the girl's school and met with the whole staff and administration to in service them about ds. Awesome!

Thursday night we attended back to school night.  The girls were thrilled to meet their teacher, Mrs. Thompson and look around the school as Aidan gave them the official tour.  They both did very well considering the whole 500+ kids plus families were in the building looking around.  It is a bit overwhelming even for us parents.  The staff all greeted the girls so kindly and by name!  YAY for ds 101 the day before!

Monday afternoon we went to kindergarten open house where the girls were able to spend 30 minutes in their classroom and put all their supplies away.  Super thankful to their special education teacher, Mrs. Sickel who arranged for us to go 30 minutes earlier than open house for everyone else so that the girls could spend some quality time getting to know Mrs. Thompson and the classroom without distraction.  Bless her, she is very kind with the girls.

Alayna wanted to greet everyone and Dariya was ready to head home shortly after we arrived.  So typical for them both.  I know it will take a few days for them to get into a routine but, prayerfully they will transition very well.

I went ahead and let them ride the bus today and they were thrilled to get on and away they went.

No stopping us now.

Kindergarten or bust!

Wordless Wednesday: Thankful for washable markers and girls!

Happy gotcha anniversary!

Today we celebrate getting Dariya out of her orphanage THREE years ago.

I can't even believe that it has been that long.

She delights us everyday with her sweet smile and loving spirit.

I am so thankful that God took us on that journey to Ukraine.

My life is crazy most of the time but, I wouldn't have it any other way.

I love you dearly, Dariya!

Also, 13 years ago my sweet Englishman immigrated to the US.

I am extremely blessed and can't imagine life without either one of my foreigners!

God has put our family on the bench for adopting (suck it cancer) but he still calls us to help orphans.  I still think about those sweet children that we visited with each day while we were visiting Dariya for those 5 weeks.  Those faces still etched in my mind forever.

I can't physically save each of them but, I still can pray and donate to orphans.

We are helping our local church friends, Nancy and Todd Bartelt bring home their sweet Vera from China. We pray that you will honor Dariya by donating to the Bartelt's today.
To go to their tax deductible Reece's Rainbow link click  here.  

Every dollar counts and they still need to raise about $16K and will be traveling as early as July 30th!  So PLEASE donate today!

Dariya's gotcha day video still makes me cry!

Happy 4th of July!

We hope you have a safe and happy 4th!

Thanks to Nancy Pfeifer for the adorable outfits!

Three years ago today...

We stood in a hot Ukrainian courtroom and appealed for this sweet girl to be ours.

Here is my original post if you haven't seen it.

We are so grateful for her in our lives.

I really can't remember life without her.

She has grown so much and jumped over so many hurdles.

I still get teary eyed when I watch her dance or read as I know she would have never had those or nearly any opportunities in Ukraine.

Happy adoption day, Dariya Joelle!

We love you to the moon and back.  I am sure there will be ice cream to celebrate tonight!

If you would like to honor Dariya, we would be thankful if you Follow this link to our friends Todd and Nancy Bartelt's Reece's Rainbow FSP and make a tax deductible donation.  You see Dariya played a little part in their adoption story....we love how God weaves that tiny thread between us all.

Access dance recital

The girls had their annual dance recital this afternoon.

Alayna was very excited.  Dariya, however was grumpy and got very overwhelmed in the waiting to go on stage time.  Like fall on the floor and cry, Dariya.  Seriously?

She pulled herself together enough to join Geb's harem!  He is crazy good with the ladies!

Once distracted and on stage both girls did a great job.

It was fun to see how far they had come since starting dance last year.

We are so thankful to the volunteers who give up each Sunday to come and work with our girls!  They are a huge blessing.

For any locals, the girls will be dancing Sunday June 8th at 1:30-2ish at Old Shawnee Days.  Come out and have some fun with us.

Goodbye preschool

School is out for summer!  Well, besides esy ;)!

The girls have successfully finished pre K and had their celebration and certificate ceremony on Wednesday.

The kids sang two songs and our girls did a great job (video at the bottom).

It was so cute to see them dancing and singing with their class.  Inclusion works!

We are grateful but sad to say goodbye to all the preschool teachers.  Ms. Juanita, Ms. Brenda, Ms. Jana, Ms. Corey have had the girls for 3 years now!  That earns you all gold medals and a place in our hearts.

Bless Ms. Corey's heart she gets to follow the girls on to their elementary school!  YAY!

We are also thankful to Ms. Heather, Ms. Marti and Ms. Julie for working with the girls during their preschool days.

Our girls love school and I credit that to the awesome teachers that they have had thus far.

You can't miss the girls front and center!  Alayna dances the whole way through and Dariya is signing along with the music.
Enjoy!



Look out kindergarten, here we come!

Wordless Wednesday: Dancers...sisters

Wordless Wednesday: Who needs toys when you have a dog bowl?

Kindergarten transition IEP success

I know to many folks with kids with special needs the mere mention of an IEP conference makes the hair on the back of their necks stand up, their stomach get queasy and their head pound.

For me it doesn't.  

Maybe it is my special education background.  I have been on the other end of the table so many times writing and discussing IEP's with parents and I know my intentions were always good.  I loved teaching and loved seeing kids soar.  

Or maybe it is my positive attitude that the girl's team wants the best for them.   They are great people who are in education to make a difference and we are blessed that they certainly have made a difference in our girl's lives.  We might not always agree on every detail but, I know they want the best for my kids and push them to do their very best just like we do.

Our conference went fabulously well as it always does.  I always bring a little treat, not because I have to, but because I used to be a special ed teacher and I know how much work goes into just the paperwork let alone working with my girls every day!   We began by showing the video I made and then stating our goals for the girl's lives.  The team loved the video!  I highly recommend making one for your own IEP conferences especially when transitioning to a new school.

The girl's case manager, Ms. Juanita always provides me a copy of the IEP the week before so I can review it.  I am a total visual learner so need to read it myself before the meeting to have input.  If your case manager doesn't provide this I would ask for one before your meetings.  I usually email her any questions/ comments/ additions or deletions I have so that those can be included in the IEP.

We were able to meet the girl's special educator and speech therapist for kindergarten as they joined us for the meeting.  We also are blessed with a down syndrome guild representative in our school district.  This is a teacher from our district who has attended the workshops provided by our guild so that they can be a down syndrome advocate and resource.  The district staff invited her and she was a great resource adding great tips and ideas for the girls like using peers more to motivate Alayna. 

The girls will probably be in the same kindergarten class.  We asked for half day, separate classes.  However, so many parents requested full day kindergarten that it looks like there will probably be only one section of half day kindergarten.  

They will each have 30 minutes of daily pullout special education instruction, speech 3 times a week, occupational and physical therapies 1 time each a week.  The rest of the time they will have push in services of either a special ed teacher or para being in their inclusion kindergarten class.  

We are excited and nervous for the beginning of elementary school for the girls.  The girls are ready and super excited.

We know that our girls are in great hands with excellent teachers and therapists.

Beyond blessed...

Kindergarten transition

Today is our kindergarten transition IEP's for the girls.  Wish us luck.

Here is the video that I made for the meeting.

Busy but fun weekend

April seems to be crazy busy for us between church, school, piano, soccer, dance, recitals, birthdays and everything in between.  We are booked solid.

This weekend was no different.

Saturday morning the boys headed to Aidan's soccer game while the girls and I took in the Easter egg hunt at our church.  It was a beautifully sunny day for being outside!

One girl was hopping over to maul hug the bunny while the other one was a little standoffish.

They soon got to business harvesting eggs.  There were hundreds of them!

My child who usually doesn't care for sweets too much decided to plop down and investigate a York peppermint pattie.

One taste and she was in heaven...she decided the hunt was over she was going to chow down on the treats!

Alayna decided hunting eggs wasn't fun enough so decided to practice her dance moves!

Once Dariya was cut off the chocolate she decided to throw a fit cry a bit.  

Dominic to the rescue!  He is a peer model in their pre K class and also is in Sunday school classes with them.  He said, " Come on Dariya" and away they went to the play set, happy as can be!

Is this the cutest?

I told his mom to expect a double date for prom.;)

Sunday brought church, a dance competition for the girls and more volunteering at church for Aidan and I, some birthday shopping for the soon to be 11 year old (more on that later) and another soccer game that thankfully, darn the bad luck was canceled due to the thunderstorms ;)

I love that I caught Dariya in mid jump!  So cute!
Both girls LOVE dancing and love performing!

The crowd always goes crazy when the girl's dance troop comes on.

We are blessed to have such a great set of volunteers to work with our girls.

What a busy but, fabulously fun weekend we had.

We hope your weekend was super fun too!