It's been awhile!

Haven't posted on here in so long!  I have heard that blogs sometimes get deleted if they go too long without any activity so this is my attempt to prevent that.  I'm hoping this year's project will to be to turn it into a book of sorts so that our family will have these memories...  Maybe I'll even start blogging again someday soon :)

Very HOPEFUL News!!!

Have you been praying???

Because it seems that God is at work in Ukraine. We just got some great news that sounds very positive regarding adoptions remaining open!! The Cental Law Administration of the Parliament of Ukraine has released a statement that they are rejecting law to close adoptions. This just happened today.

We are waiting for more details but from what we have been told, Parliament cannot go against this decision and 4313 should be rejected. I will post more when I get more details - I think I might be able to get a translated copy of the decision. We continue to pray and praise God for this very hopeful news!!!

HELP Keep Ukrainian Adoptions OPEN!!!

There are always those in the Ukraine government who are working to shut down international adoptions. This movement has recently gained momentum and a bill has already passed once! It will be voted on once more and if passed, it will become law!!!

Our facilitator feels that this will not happen until Spring but that it is a strong possibility at that point. When I think of children that I know, who have families coming for them in the Spring (they aren't available until then), I can't help but do something. Some of these children have been waiting for years and are just about to go home. Oh Lord, please change the hearts of those who will make these decisions.

Please read this link below for the details on what is going on.

http://www.nogreaterjoymom.com/2010/11/their-lives-depend-on-it.html The only thing that we have heard differently (and from a very reliable source who is Parliament) is that it will definitely not happen before February and maybe even later...) So we have time NOW to make a difference.

Here is information reposted from http://littleboydove.blogspot.com/2010/11/adoption-awareness-way-you-can-care-for.html

Even if you don't feel the call to adopt, you can get involved in orphan care. And here's a simple way to get involved today...

By now, most of you have probably heard about the decision in Ukraine to go forward with a vote to halt international adoption until an inter-country agreement is in place. Please take a moment to write to your senators & congressmen, then encourage your friends and family to contact do the same!


Below you'll find a letter that you can use, or write your own.
To send a letter to your congressman:
https://writerep.house.gov/writerep/welcome.shtml

To send a letter to your senator just click on the state and follow the link:
http://www.senate.gov/general/contact_information/senators_cfm.cfm

Please help us get the word out!!
________________________________________________________

Dear (name),

I am writing to you today regarding a VERY urgent situation. Many families in the US are currently in the process of adopting children from orphanages in Ukraine. Most of these children are older or disabled. American families adopting these children offer them what may be their only opportunity at a normal and productive life free of crime, prostitution, or institutionalization due to illnesses that are treatable in the United States. I personally know one of these families.

On November 3, 2010, the Ukrainian parliament voted to proceed with voting on legislation that would halt all international adoptions until inter-country adoption agreements are in place (see the State Dept. announcement at http://adoption.state.gov/news/ukraine.html) . At this point, all that is needed for this to become law is one more vote in Ukrainian parliament and a signature by the Ukrainian president. This could happen any day. If it does, many families and innocent children will be greatly affected. I personally know one of these families.

I am writing to you to urge you to act quickly on this matter by 1. Contacting your Ukrainian cohorts and requesting a consideration of revision of the law to allow adoptions to proceed while the agreement is being drafted (as was done in Russia) and 2. Work with your colleagues in congress to begin drafting this agreement so that it is ready to go in the event the law passes.

Thank you for your timely consideration of this urgent matter!

First and foremost - PRAY!!

And second - please take a few minutes to contact your congressman and senator. Use this letter, or change it to make it fit your situation - whether you have adopted or just know someone who has or who is in process. Thanks guys!

A Heavy Heart

My heart is heavy for so many today. But for a few in particular. I could (and will soon) do a post on the incredible miracles that have taken place, resulting in so many new adoptions that have been recently completed or that are in process. We now have a pretty large number of Ukrainian American children living in our community!! I used to dream about this happening and I am so exciting to see it becoming a reality. More on that later!

But today my heart grieves for those left behind. Those who feel that they have no hope. Those who are hurting and aching for comfort and love but have none. Those who still ask, "Why not me? Is there anyone who wants me?" And these are not questions I made up - these are questions that children looked at us asked. Just yesterday my friend was asked these very questions once again by a friend of the child that she is adopting.

It sure was a whole lot easier when I didn't know these kids names, hobbies, person

alities, strengths, weaknesses, fears, hopes, and dreams. It was easier when they were more removed from me personally.

But it wasn't easier for them.

So I will rejoice with every one that finds his or her way home. And I will continue to pray and advocate for those still waiting. And perhaps there is more that God is calling us to do to love these children. I am quite certain that our work is not done just because we have adopted.

Please read this very powerful post and consider what else God might have for you to do in ministering to those who desperately need hope.

http://www.nogreaterjoymom.com/2010/11/reckless-abandon.html

It is Orphan Awareness Month - my prayer is that we would all be not only more 'aware' of the crisis that surrounds us, but also be increasingly active and involved in offering hope and love.

Potts Academy

Okay so I really can't believe that it is already November!!! My last post summarized school last year and now we are almost to Christmas break of this one!! How time flies...

This year the Potts Academy has added to it's numbers :) I couldn't be more excited about my sweet new student! Galina joined our homeschool just before the year started and she has been a true delight to teach. I sometimes just catch myself staring at the three of them sitting at my kitchen table in disbelief. I can barely fathom that just over two years ago they were all three in a classroom in Ukraine together and now they are in a small town in Texas learning together in English. I can't help but continually be in awe of God's incredible tapestry in weaving our lives together. It may appear messy at time, but is sure is breathtaking when we get glimpses like this.

Although Galina has known English for a year less than my girls, she has caught right up and even skipped a grade level of math so that she could be in the same math book that they are doing. The first month took some extra work, but now it is me that is being blessed by her presence and participation in our learning. The four of us have the greatest discussions and sometimes the giggles get a little out of hand, but most rewarding is to see how much they are learning and how quickly they are all progressing now. And their precious prayers during our Bible and prayer time often bring me near to tears. Their hearts are so tender for those who remain orphans and for those who are hurting and they are so filled with thanksgiving and awareness of what God has done in their lives. They get it, and it is beautiful.

Equally miraculous - I am truly loving teaching. I thought that I couldn't wait for this season of my life to be over and that I would just push through until I could put them in school. And who knows - that may be what we end up doing. But somehow in fighting to learn how to teach and what to teach, I have come to find so much joy in it!! God really does have a sense of humor :)

WooHooo!! Survived another year of Potts Homeschool!

This is a bit of a delayed post but I am trying to catch up on some posting that I've meant to do - so much I want to document so that I don't forget... We shall see how well that happens - great intentions but I get too busy to post!



Actually it was a great year for us and I just wanted to post about what Katya and Nastya have learned this year. I am always pretty shocked when I look at how far they have come. And I am always surprised when I realize that I have actually taught them some stuff!! Who would've thought that I could teach?

Seriously, it was hard and a lot of days I just wanted to quit. I was exhausted many times this year, but we kept pushing forward toward the goals we had set for school, and it is very satisfying to not only reach them but exceed them. And the girls - they are just about the hardest workers I have ever seen. They pushed themselves and me even more than I would have planned. Because of their diligence, they are getting closer and closer to truly being on grade level, which is something that I wasn't sure we would ever reach.

Here is a short summary of their accomplishments this year!! We celebrated on our last day by going over this list and then I awarded them certificates of excellence, character awards, and gave them the medals that they had earned for completing Memory Master through Classical Conversations (an incredible task of memorizing a TON of stuff - see below)!!


Look At What You Have Accomplished this Year!!!

• Finished MATH Level 3, Finished Saxon 5/4, Halfway Finished Saxon 6/5
• Learned all 8 parts of speech and how to diagram sentences with noun, verb, adjectives, adverbs, prepositional phrases, and article adjectives
• Learned over 300 spelling words
• Improved Speech through daily Speech Practice
• Completed over 100 daily grams learning lots of grammar rules/alphabetization/etc along the way
• Improved Reading Levels; completing McCall Crabbs A&B and half of Book C
• Developed Beautiful Cursive Handwriting and learned verses at the same time!
• Read lots and lots of books in English and Ukrainian
• Rosetta Stone Practice for writing/typing/spelling in English



Also learned a great deal of science and social studies through Paces curriculum and through science experiments at Classical Conversations

• Classical Conversations:
• Memorized: (all of this to earn memory master)
o 160 Timeline Cards
o 100 Science Facts
o 100 Geography Locations
o 24 History Sentences
o All Math Facts and important formulas
o English Grammar including parts of speech, prepositions, helping verbs, and more
o Latin Noun Endings
All US Presidents
• Gave over 20 presentations and learned how to organize information and to speak clearly in front of a group of people


Kayta earned the character award for Diligence and Nastya earned the character award for Compassion.


Way to go girls - I am one proud mom!!

Twice Adopted

Last weekend, the most beautiful thing took place. Katya and Nastya were baptized. The fullness of what has happened in their lives is really the most incredible thing ever. And you know what? We are not responsible for it. Not even a little bit. It is NOT because of us that our daughters now have eternal hope, joy, love, and peace in their lives. Nope - we could never have accomplished something like that because it is outside of our abilities to do so. Instead, we have been privileged to be a part of the wonderful story of their adoption into our family and into God's family forever. We followed God on this crazy adventure of adoption that He called us to and gave Him the little we had to offer (and believe me, it was only a little), and He has truly done big things in it.

Eighteen months ago God made them our children forever. Zach and I, with much fear of doing it all wrong, began to teach them about God's love for them. Sometimes it made them furious at first. When I would tell them that He saw them as beautiful girls whom He had created and loved since before they were born, tears would stream down their faces as they shook their heads in disbelief that they could be so lovable. When I would tell them that God had been with them even when their lives were literally hell on earth, they slowly began to see how even in the midst of abandonment, severe hunger, verbal and sometimes physical abuse, God protected them in so many ways. He sent caring people who were angels to them to care for them. A young teenage girl took them under her wing and would feed them, bathe them, house them, and just be a friend when their Ukraine family would not or could not do these things. And eventually they were removed from this terrible situation and placed into an orphanage with some truly caring people who helped them to begin healing from all that and preparing them for what was next in their lives. When I would tell them that He loved them so much that He didn't want them to do things that would hurt their bodies or minds or spirits, it often resulted in anger or rebellion at first. When I would tell them that certain videos, music, magazines, immodest clothes, etc, was hurtful for them, there was major resistance to my authority or God's authority in their lives.

We could tell them all these truths about His love, but it was with a heart of fervent prayer. Prayer that God would reveal Himself to them. We could say the words but it was only God who could really open their eyes of understanding.

But then, the truth of God's love and grace began to take root in their lives. The resistance that we had seen (more in one than the other) began to melt away, and they began to see God's incredible love for them and that He had always loved them. They began to see that this world is hopeless and broken and that the only hope that any of us has is in His power in our lives to turn our ashes into beauty and our darkness into light. They began to know and experience, deep down inside, that His love is real and complete and they began to experience the healing that can only come from our Lord. And He more than answered our prayers. They began to seek Him on their own and to receive the truth that He began to reveal to them. We began to see their lives transformed as they surrendered to His love.

And so, it was with great joy that on this past Sunday, Zach had the incredible honor to baptize Katya and Nastya in the San Marcos River. It was a beautiful symbol of the new life that they now have in Him and how it is their desire now to share His love with others and to live their lives for His glory. They are not only our daughters but now our sisters in Christ.

I just stand in awe of how God has fulfilled the vision that He first gave us of what He would do in their lives. Thank you Lord. To You alone be the glory!!

He has done and is doing what is impossible. But nothing is impossible with Him.

Isaiah 61:3 To console those who mourn in Zion, To give them beauty for ashes, The oil of joy for mourning, The garment of praise for the spirit of heaviness; That they may be called trees of righteousness, The planting of the LORD, that He may be glorified."

And as if this day wasn't sweet enough as it was, it gets even better! Their sweet friend Galina who was adopted recently into the family of our dear friends (see previous blog post for this

amazing story), was baptized by her father on the same day. She has the sweetest faith in the Lord and we are so thankful that she too has been 'twice adopted'.

A Story Needing to Be Told...

Oh this is so beautiful and so amazing and something that only God could have done. I will always look at this and just truly think, "Who but God?!?!"

My heart just swells a little more each time I think of what God has done here and the great thing is - I get to see the results so very often!!! All praise to Him for the story I am going to attempt to do justice to.

When we were in Ukraine, our hearts were broken over so many children that we came to love and that we had to leave behind. The Lord has since worked in some amazing ways in allowing us to continue to minister to those children. We have been blessed to be a part of hosting trips and humanitarian aid to our girls' orphanage. We are delighted that several of those children are now being pursued for adoption. But one in particular grabbed my heart and just wouldn't let go.

From the moment I saw this one little girl, there was something about her that pierced my heart and I just loved her. We soon discovered that she was the best friend and classmate of our daughters. While in Ukraine waiting to adopt our girls, Zach and I talked and prayed about what we could do to help her. As we got to know her we were broken over her story and drawn by her precious, sweet spirit. We inquired about possibly adopting her ourselves but that door was quickly closed as she was not yet available. We prayed about starting the process again and going back for her but every time we prayed about it we did not feel a leading in that direction but yet still a love and a burden for her. At the same time, without discussing it, we both felt a strong sense that she belonged in the family of our dear friends, Camille and John. We were excited about the possibility of her being in their family but didn't really think it was possible because they were in the process to adopt a little boy through the foster care system while we were in Ukraine. We were sure that they would not be adopting again any time soon. Eventually the burden was so strong that we mentioned it to them.

They prayed and God revealed to them in some pretty incredible ways that they were to pursue sweet Galina. It was so clear and He also revealed His provision for their adoption of her. So, they began adoption paperwork and hosted her for the summer. Galina dared to open her broken heart once more and dared to love and to be loved. Last summer was an unbelievably sweet time to see how perfectly this child fit into their family. All those watching just stood in awe of how perfectly this child fit into their family - she looks like them, talks like them, her personality is like them, she was made to be their child. And we just rejoiced in seeing our daughters reunited with their dear friend on the other side of the world and in seeing this child that we had come to love finding her home.

Just after this past Christmas, Galina came home to her forever family. Who but God could have placed these children, Nastya, Katya, and Galina, into the perfect families for them? And He knew from the foundation of the world that they would be taken from the other side of the world and placed into these families. And before doing so, He gave the added blessing to these families and to these children that these families would be close friends and ministry partners? What a delight it is to raise and even educate our Ukrainian daughters within the friendship of our sweet friends.

What absolute joy it is to see Galina Lilly in her family.

Forever.

The night Galina came home forever...

Hosting Pictures! Finally!

Here are all the girls (from Ukraine and those in the host families) after a spa day. They had so much fun being treated like the princesses that they each are and getting haircuts, styles, and make-up!




Allee and Nastya had so much fun in the limo that was donated to take the kids to the spa event.
Nikita was so proud of his dragon!

Kolya (in the middle) was able to celebrate his birthday with his host family.

Sveta, Alexandra, and Vika are ready to show off their skills at ice-skating! We were treated to a night at Schlitterbahn Christmas.

Where Did Three Weeks Go?

The 17 Ukrainian children that Charis Orphan Care and Adoption Ministries brought to Texas for Christmas have now safely returned to their orphanages. But although they are gone from us for now, what has happened in their hearts and in the hearts of those who were involved with them cannot be returned to what it was. All involved have been changed. This trip was short but for some reason it was extra special. God did incredible things through this and we just give Him all the praise and glory for what has taken place. Many hearts have been moved on behalf of orphans - those specifically that came as well as the needs of orphans in general. Many if not most of our host families are pursuing adoption. Wow! And the children - they were filled up with love, fun, memories, gifts, family time, and we pray the presence of the Lord in the host homes. We pray for each one of them, that God will continue to water the seeds that were planted and that not one good plan that He has for them would be lost. My heart aches for several in particular. At the same time I am filled with joy at the gift of being involved in this ministry. Loving orphans has been a joy mingled with pain like nothing else that I can describe. It must be just a small taste of the love and joy and pain that our Father pours out over us.

In Fall 2006, Zach and I went to a Hope for Orphans conference. The opening was a short video with Steven Curtis Chapman and his daughter about hidden treasure. Then our speaker asked us all if we wanted to be blessed. He then said to simply get involved with what God cares about, to join Him in His work, to love what He loves.... I didn't really get it then. But I get it a little better now. Blessed we are to love our own children as well as those who remain fatherless. These 17 children have blessed me and all those involved with them in ways that are incredible. Is it all easy? Of course not - it is incredibly hard sometimes. And I have shed more than a few tears due to the sheer amount of work, the emotions, the pain. But strangely enough - the joy comes through the pain - through seeing God do what only He can do - in hearts, in circumstances, in incredible details that have caused me to just stand speechless as I just see Him at work. And I know it is all Him.

Want to get involved? Visit our website, email me for more info, consider hosting this summer, pray, give, etc, etc.

Charis has some exciting new things on the horizon...

Here are our girls from the salon day! What fun this was!!

Lots of more pics soon - The Salon and Limo Day, Ice Skating, Face Painting, and much more!!

Ukrainian Christmas in Texas

What an incredible joy it is to have these precious children here!!!! Before Christmas we had a big party complete with lots of food, outdoor fun, games, gingerbread house decorating (although most were too busy to get to that) and of course Santa. Thanks Kyle family for organizing this!! It was a blast for all of us!

Sweet little Bogdan meeting Santa and learning to ride a bike.
And here is my Katya - Santa must have told her something good was coming!!!Allee, Liza, and Nastya getting a quick hug from Santa. Liza is part of the host group and such a cutie :)

Here's Anna!

Katya enjoyed spending time with her friend Sveta - they had not seen each other in 13 months!!

Tanya lovin on little Madeline

The kids were mesmermized by Santa reading a book. I think he really might be the real deal... real beard, white bushy eyebrows, a bag full of goodies... I don't know - if kids can come from Ukraine then maybe this Santa really came from the North Pole. Our translator had a few requests for Santa - an iPhone, a Surburban, and world peace :-)

What a cutie! This is Kolya - and cute yes but see that glint of mischief in his eyes... He'll steal hearts for sure :) Well for that matter - won't they all?!?

Yes in fact they have...

Ukrainians to Texas - MIRACULOUS JOURNEY

I have always wondered what it would be like to be a character in the show 24. Zach and I got a little addicted to 24 while in Ukraine. But the last four days, I feel like I have been in one of the episodes with a new and difficult encounter every few hours. It has been intense folks!!



To begin I will tell you the happy ending of the story! - Between last night and today 16 Ukrainian orphans landed in Texas and joined their host families for what should be three joy filled weeks. And I am telling you - God must have some super big plans for this trip because Satan was all over trying to stop it from happening.



So backing up to last Wednesday, we found out that our main chaperon in charge of bringing all the host children was in a car accident and was not going to be able to travel. She is doing fine now from what we hear but was not up to traveling after her accident. So, the scramble began to find a new escort who met the criteria of someone we knew or had excellent references, had an open visa already, and was able to take off work and leave with only a few days notice. Incredibly, God provided the perfect person for the job - we would find out later just how much this specific person was truly needed for the trip. You can imagine the craziness of contacting people in Ukraine about this, changing airfare tickets, letting our host families know of the situation, etc, etc. It seemed pretty dramatic but was nothing to what the next few days had in store!



Sunday at 5:30 am Ukrainian time (9:30 pm TX time) 16 children and four adults boarded a plane in Kiev. They then arrived in Frankfurt where one precious little boy had some type of allergic reaction or asthma attack or something and suddenly couldn't breathe very well. It got worse and the German airport medics came running. They pulled down the poor child's pants and gave him an epinephrine shot and a suppository in the middle of the German airport. Bogdan does not improve and enter the ambulance. The boy, along with our new replacement escort, who just "happened" to be a doctor, were whisked away to the German hospital in Frankfurt. The rest of the group (including Bogdan's terrified brother Andriy) was left with no way to contact them or know what the situation was due to the communication problems. My friend was calling me through this giving me the frightening updates. Another grave dilemma was that Ukrainians are required to have a visa to enter Germany and it was uncertain whether they would be allowed back in to the airport when Bogdan recovered.

I, on the other side of the world, was shaking and crying out to the Lord on Bogdan's behalf and that of the rest of our group for over two hours not knowing what the situation was. This was from 1:30 am to 3:30 am TX time. I suddenly knew that Bogdan was okay as clearly as if the Lord had whispered it in my ear. I had heard nothing but began praising God for his healing and for putting him and the escort back on that plane with the group. Not 15 minutes later my phone rang and I heard that he was indeed breathing normally and was boarding the plane!!!

Miraculously Bogdan seemed to be healed quickly of whatever it was that was causing him to be unable to breathe and they quickly allowed him and the escort to return the airport and board the plane. One of the main reasons this was allowed was because the escort was a doctor!! Who but God knew that we needed to have a doctor escorting the children!! Can you imagine the drama that was in the airport for all the kids including the boy's big brother!?!

So at this point our group was split into two groups - half coming to Denver and half to Chicago and then all ending up in TX. Great plan except that mother nature intervened. The flight that Bogdan and the Ukrainian escorts were on was stuck on the runway for three hours before takeoff. Needless to say they missed their flight and any others that might have gotten them to TX that night from Denver.


We had 8 hours or so to figure out what to do when the plane landed. I spent countless hours trying to find flights for them and calling airports but things were beyond crazy due to the winter storm on the east coast. Nobody would help me even when I occasionally reached an actual person at the airport.

As I was praying for intervention and I remembered that there was this awesome group of people somewhere around Denver who had adopted from Ukraine. I follow their blogs and had become friends with Kari over the past year. They also bring groups of children for hosting in the summer. I thought that perhaps they might be able and willing to help with our group. I don't know them well so I just emailed Kari and hoped that maybe she would get the message and call back. Within 30 minutes my phone rang and she immediately offered to house them, feed them, meet them at the airport, whatever!!! Wow!!! I was so overwhelmed and grateful. Then a short time later she put me in touch with Felix Roge. Be SURE to read his side of the story - you will cry and laugh at the same time!! He just 'happened' to be heading up to the airport anyways around the same time our group was landing. He got there earlier and started working with the ticket desk on their behalf and was able to work a miracle to get them ALL on a direct flight to Austin the next morning. If he had not been there it would have been a mess beyond my imagination, and two Ukrainian men caring for 10 exhausted children would have had to try to figure this out on their own in a foreign country. It would not have been good. But again, God already knew and provided. THEN, Felix drove them in his 15 passenger van to hotel (which we found at an incredibly low rate and was perfect for them with a very helpful staff), got them settled and headed home. In the morning he headed back to the hotel, fed them all breakfast, and maneuvered his way with this large group through the packed, crazy airport. It was quite the adventure and MANY disastrous situations were avoided. He got them ALL on the plane and off to TX.

Thank you doesn't even begin to cover it Felix, Heidi, Nadia, Julia, Kolya, Kari, and everyone else in CO who stopped your busy lives in the middle of Christmas season to help out people you have never met. We are so grateful!! And most of all, thank you Lord for making all those connections and going before us to prepare for the needs of our group.



And so it was much rejoicing this morning when we met the group (who all had a good night's sleep in the hotel) at the airport in Austin. It was an amazing thing to see the children join their host families and the joy on both sides.



At the same time we had our other group coming in from Chicago. They too missed their flight due to weather but since there were already American adults in the group, it was not as critical of a situation. They were exhausted beyond comprehension when we welcomed them last night at midnight to Austin. It was filled with joy though as my girls welcomed two of their best friends, Tanya and Galina. They had not seen Tanya since we left Ukraine and it was a beautiful, emotional reunion. So awesome. Galina was here this summer but it was amazing to see her back. We LOVE those girls and so excited to see them with their host families!!



We have had wonderful reports of their first day here and all of them are doing very well. More updates will be coming as we have lots of Ukrainian Christmas fun coming up!



There has been MUCH more drama on top of all the travel issues - yes it is true. Some of it we just can't share on a public blog but it has been a crazy and very emotional week. The incredible thing has been that as the pressure has increased, God's grace and strength has increased tenfold. I have barely slept since Wednesday night (remember I have also been at dance rehearsals every night until 11), but God has given me and Becca and Camille and our husbands and children just incredible grace and provided people at every turn to love these children. It is not about us and we give all the glory to Him. Thank you Jesus.



Pictures coming...

Kateryna Ballerina

Katya has been preparing to perform in The Nutcracker. She auditioned in August and got the part!! She is truly gifted at dancing, but we were uncertain how she would do because she really only had training in jazz type dance and not really in ballet. She was given two parts (a mouse and a polichinelle) and she has risen to the challenge! We love her dance studio and she has been SO blessed by the friendships that she has made as well as the excellent but gracious teaching of her instructors! Thank you Ballet New Braunfels and all of you families who have encouraged her in dance!

So this week she has had practices every night until around 11:00. It is pretty intense but the final productions this weekend were worth every bit of the effort. It was a beautiful and very professional performance and I was just overjoyed to watch my little dancer just shine up there. And just filled with joy and loving every minute. On the way home last night she started crying and said that she was so happy that God let her do this and made her able to dance and just how much she loves to dance. What a wonderful thing that Katya has been a part of all this. We have seen her grow in her confidence, socially, emotionally, and physically through this semester of dance.

Orphan Sunday

We just wanted to share that we were incredibly blessed this past Sunday. You probably know that it was adoption Sunday and I have been thrilled to hear about so many churches using this opportunity to share testimonies of adoption and about the many other ways that people can minister to children who are suffering without their physical and emotional needs being met.

Our family has a new church, and while it was not one of the reasons that we initially joined this church, it seems that God has moved us there because of a shared passion. Many people at the church are passionate about orphans and adoption. This Sunday, my good friend's husband spoke about adoption - both the adoption of children and our adoption as children of God. It was awesome. Then we were invited up to tell a little about our journey to bring our girls home, and our girls were interviewed. They did such a great job - it is powerful to hear them speak about what they can now see that God has done in their lives. We were just filled with joy to give all the glory to God for what He has done in their lives and ours.

So if you are wondering more about our journey or about adoption, just go listen!!

www.livestream.com/riverstone. Click on menu and then video library -- Nov. 8th.

CELEBRATING ONE YEAR HOME!!

WOW - This time last year we were shell shocked, tired and there was truly 'no place like home' for all of us :) It is hard to believe that one year ago Katya and Nastya barely spoke English, I was clueless and terrified of homeschooling, our kids didn't really all know one another that well yet, BUT we were finally together as a family!!

What a year it has been! We have seen God knit our hearts together and deepen strong bonds among our children. Our girls have learned what it really means to be a family. They have learned what love really is. We have seen the healing that has taken place in their hearts as they have come to know the safety and unconditional love of their family and of their Lord. I have learned how to depend on God and see Him provide in ways I never thought imaginable. I have learned that I can do way more than I ever thought possible. I have also learned that I really like teaching :) I have learned that my husband really is the greatest husband and father that a girl could ever hope to have. What a beautiful thing to see that our daughters have truly become daddy's girls.

Tonight we celebrated with borscht of course (it's starting to feel like this is a regular dish in our menu and I think I actually really enjoyed it tonight)! We also had some good "Russian Black Bread" and veriniki (otherwise know as pot stickers/dumplings). We invited my parents and sister's family over, gave them their cards that the girls had made, and enjoyed a yummy ice cream cake. It was a very special, fun, and laid back celebration!

I just must point out here that in this picture below you see an Ethiopian, now American, eating Ukrainian borscht :) And lovin it! They don't get much cuter than you Bennet!

We decided to copy Melanie Hall's wonderful idea to celebrate by thanking all the people who helped make it possible for our girls to be adopted. Thanks Melanie for such a wonderful idea. The past few weeks we (the girls and I) have been writing letters to people who were important parts of their adoption. It has been incredible to look back over their journey home and see how many people God put in our lives and theirs to make it possible. Each one had a role - some prayed (perhaps the most significant role of all), some helped financially, some helped practically (free meds, childcare, documents, preparing our house, etc), some loved our girls before we could, some walked us through the legal process in Ukraine (thanks Natalia), some translated at crucial moments, some encouraged us when the future looked scary and overwhelming, and the list goes on and on. Truly this was not a journey we have walked alone - we have had one blessed part - to be their parents but so many of you reading have had a crucial role as well. You may not all get a card but if you have prayed, encouraged, or any of the above - THANK YOU!!

And then above all else, we have been awed once again as we have reflected back and thanked our Lord for what He has done. He is so amazing and I just can't begin to describe how sweetly we have experienced Him walking through this journey with us, just holding us by the hand and leading us one day at a time. Oh Lord, all praise and glory goes to you. Thank you for the gift of our Ukrainian daughters.

"For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever"

Romans 11:36

God must have special plans for little Sasha...

Incredibly ALL the money has been raised for Sasha's adoption by the Norenes!! And her medical care is already being prepared for when she comes home. AND Jennifer has found a Christian University in Donestk to stay at and feels much safer and less alone. It blows my mind how people's hearts were moved to support this child's adoption in such an enormous and timely way. People who have never met Sasha or Jennifer or John were moved to donate generously. What an incredible blessing to see God provide.

Here is an update from Jennifer~

Good news! My computer is fixed! A kind man at the university has fixed the cord and provided the adaptor I needed. My adaptor was not working with my computer. So this is great news! I can skype now for free and not depend on cell phone for communication so much! My attorney is on her way to Kyiv to file papers, court on Thursday here in Donestk. Tonight Sasha was testing me with her behavior and we left on somewhat grumpy terms. When I was walking away from the orphanage, there she was in the window waving at me as if to say, "I am sorry Mama". You can imagine it is difficult to teach, reign in a very active bright little girl, when I can't speak her language...and she is pretty bright, so she wants to get away with everything (ravage my bag, eat all the candy, etc. teach ME Russian instead of learning English) Tomorrow we are going to start working on English we will need in the next few weeks as we prepare to travel to the US. Thanks for continued prayers, thank fully God has supplied ALL we need, even more. This is a huge blessing and testimony to step out in faith. I guess I was foolish to come without every need met, but my love for this little girl compelled me and I believe God met me in that. Matthew scriptures on DO NOT worry and one day's worries at a time, come to mind. Those were precious scriptures to me before this trip as well as Jeremiah where he speaks of God's faithfulness **despite setbacks**. Setbacks don't mean ANYTHING to God when you walk in His will. He has not abandoned us even when it looks like we are in the enemy's camp and the Light is turned off. The light is NOT off! God is faithful, He comes through! We are to really have child like trust in God. Foolish to the world for sure. (I wish I remembered this always...today is a good day!) God even pushed me to see that worry is disobedience. We are to trust, no matter what. Tough words I know! I am overwhelmed when I think that not only has God supplied all we need here, but he has already begun supplying the BEST medical are the US has to offer through Family Life ministries connectinos who heard of our adoption. They also were responsible for hooking me up with Donestk University to stay - a secure Christian environment. All because of Grace Adoption Ministries. Aloha Ministries, and so many individuals who gave probably more then they could by faith. He is truly not interested in what we can acccomplish on our own but what He accomplishes through us if we will only trust Him! More tomorrow friends, many many thanks and hugs from Donestk, Ukraine! Jennifer

THANK YOU so much to each of you who have prayed and donated - both have been powerful in this time!! Keep praying and I will update about her process!

URGENT Need

I want to share with you about an extremely urgent situation and ask for your prayers and for your assistance if you feel led to do so.

A mutual friend of ours, Camille's and Becca's (the three of us that started GRACE Adoption Ministry) is currently in Ukraine trying to adopt a precious little seven year old girl named Sasha. Sasha has rheumatoid arthritis due to a serious illness that she had when she was younger. She also has some type of heart condition. The current steroid medication that she is on is not being monitored well and has caused her to swell up quite a bit. She needs medical attention as well as a family. Our attorney, Natalia, who handled our adoption, met this child and promised Sasha that she would help her find a family. Natalia sent Sasha's picture to Camille who later sent it to the Norenes. John and Jennifer Norene of New Braunfels felt called to this child and committed to pursuing Sasha's adoption. However, they have, in this time of a very difficult economy, lost their jobs/business and had financial setbacks. They continued in faith to pursue Sasha's adoption and received the invitation to go to adopt her much quicker then they anticipated. They had to leave quickly because Sasha is being kept at the younger-child orphanage only for a short time and then will be moved to an invalid orphanage - which I can not even begin to describe the horrific stories I have heard about those places from missionaries who have visited them. To save money and so that John could continue in his new job, only Jennifer was able to travel, with faith that God would provide for her to adopt this child at each step. She left with only enough for a fraction of the adoption and many fundraising efforts still going on. It seemed as if several grants were only days away from coming in but apparently they have not. It is really a difficult situation. Our attorney is discounting her fees as well but there are many legal costs involved in an international adoption.

Basically, if Jennifer and John do not receive several thousand dollars within the next few days then they will not be able to take the next necessary steps to adopt Sasha. Jennifer is in Ukraine and has been spending time with her. Jennifer is struggling deeply with the uncertainty of it all, culture shock, and loneliness. Sasha does not have much hope as a disabled orphan in Ukraine if she is not adopted. She will soon be sent to an orphanage for invalids and it is a very hopeless, bleak outcome at these type of institutions. She is in need of $6500 at least to complete this adoption and I am not sure if that includes their tickets back home. Incredibly, just since emails went out about this tonight $3000 of that has been raised - in literally less than an hour.

I want you all to know that I do not do fundraising well - but I truly believe that Sasha's life is at stake and I have seen people come together in amazing ways to do what seems impossible. However, my intention is not to convince every reader to donate but to be aware of this and to pray and ask the Lord if He would have you help in some way. Perhaps it is to give and perhaps it is to pray. Jennifer, John and Sasha need both!

You can go to our ministry website www.graceadoptionministry.com and to the donate section. It will let you donate through paypal. Please send me an email too stephaneep@hotmail.com so that we know how much is being given and can immediately let Jennifer know due to the very time-sensitive issues and decisions that have to be made.

Here's Sasha...

Happy 11th Birthday Anastasiya Joy!!!

On Saturday, we celebrated sweet Anastasiya's 11th birthday!! It was such a special day and we just praise God for her life and that he made this precious child our daughter. We love who He created her to be and have been privileged to watch her grow and blossom this past year. We love you so much baby girl!!!

We woke up early Saturday morning and took her the cake that we had made. She was already awake, but knew she had to wait in bed so that we could 'wake her up' with the cake :) She has that tradition down!! It was such a fitting cake complete with horses of course...

This picture looks like the horse is jumping through flames.

Soon after that, we ate breakfast and opened presents. She loved every minute and just as she was opening the gift that her godmother, Alla, in Ukraine had sent, we received an email message from Alla. She was asking if we could call so that she could wish her a happy birthday.

We were able to 'see' Alla and some of Nastya's best friends via Skype. They were able to talk for quite awhile and it was very special to her that her friends were thinking about her. We enjoyed 'seeing' them as well!!! What a wonderful blessing Alla has been to my girls and to so many others who are in the orphanage. She is truly an angel to them and they feel such love from her.

Back to the present opening - Nastya had a bag in it with a little card that told her 'sang' the chicken dance and read that her surprise went 'peep, peep' and was awaiting in our bathroom. Yep she got baby chicks for her birthday! And according to her they were "the very best gift in the whole world!" She has been begging for us to start a coop and asked if she could pleaaaaasssee have it for her birthday but she was completely surprised.

Here she is with her peeps...

Yes - that is six chicks in my bathroom... They have now been moved to her room and will soon be moved out to the soon-to-be-built chicken coop. In the meantime - they might just be the most loved little chicks that ever existed.

Finally we had borscht for dinner. It again received the Ukrainians' stamp of approval. This time I did use a food processor for the veggies - way better plan!! We talked about our favorite things about Nastya ~

Allee - "That she is adventurous and loves the outdoors."

Jadon - "That she loves animals"

Katya - "That she is beautiful and such a good sister"

Ben - "That she always plays horses with me"

Zach - "That she was funny and kind hearted"

Stephanee - "That she is compassionate and tender hearted towards both animals and people who are hurting. And that she is always joyful and has such a positive outlook on life."

Those just barely scratch the surface of all the things that we love about our sweet girl. She brings so much joy and laughter and love to our family.

What a gift you are to us, Anastasiya Joy.

Happy Birthday Baby!

Officially One Year

One year ago today, we stood before a judge in Ukraine and he pronounced Kateryna Grace and Anastasiya Joy as our daughters. Wow!! How quickly the year has flown by but how it seems that they have always been our children. This year has not all been easy but the JOYS have far outweighed the trials and we stand in awe of what God has done. We plan to actually celebrate their one year adoption on November 2nd - the day we came home and were finally all a family. So be looking for many more thoughts as we get to that date. But I just had to mention this significant day... Thank you Lord. Great things you have done.

One Year Ago...

We were in Ukraine and had just recieved our referral at the SDA!! What a sweet time that was. Oh, how I am aching to go back. I am really begging Zach for us to figure out a way to go and visit the kids and to take the girls back for a little visit in the next year or two.

The nostalgia has been incredibly strong the past two days and I'm sure all month I will be reflecting back on our trip. It seems crazy to me though to think that our girls have not been here much, much longer.

More reflections soon...