Boy am I glad I'm in Ukraine

Let's just say I had a better day yesterday than Nellie, and yesterday was no fun until I got to see Anya.  I got a chance to chat with some other families here and explain to them in person what I meant in my semi-cryptic posting yesterday.  But then Samuel grabs my hand, and leads me down the hall.  I yell back, "I'll tell you about it later".  Three year old's do run the world, ya know.  He heads upstairs to the big kids area, where a kid is sleeping on the couch.  Samuel loves to explore, so he did, until he started getting near the computer and stuff he should not be in.  After a couple Nyet's from Dad, we were out of there.  He travels down the hall to the small tyke room, which is clean and pristine.  The tots were outside, meaning Samuel had free reign to all the toys.  He pointed at a high cupboards, which I found out had Kinex in it.  He loves Kinex, but he had to learn what was a safe way to play with them, so he heard a couple more Nyet's.  Nellie and I have toys ready for Samuel in the apartment, all age appropriate and toddler proof (Nice having a wife who has 21 years child care experience).

I spent two full hours playing, goofing around, and building sand castles with Samuel.  He and I have our own language, and he is a great at mimicking behaviors.  I love his laugh and his giggles.  Even putting on his outdoor clothes was an opportunity for more laughs and giggles from the little guy.

I don't want to put pressure on him, or raise expectations, but I think this kid could be borderline brilliant.  His visual queues, apparent total interest in engineering, and the speed by which he catches on to things is amazing.  Maybe every parent sees this in their children. 

One positive sign from Samuel is he will cry when he gets a boo boo.  The tots get pretty aggressive with each other, but seldom do you hear a cry for attention.  Samuel realizes Mama and Papa will attend to him if he cries for us.  We learned this is very important in our books on parenting adopted children.  Today, Samuel falls on some dirt, and cries out, and upon examination, shows  a barely visible scrape.  I kiss his hand and ask if that made it better.  He says no and points specifically to a small area on his pinky.  Kiss do-over ensures, and he smiles, because he is all better. 


Sasha (a Church worker who visits the orphanage on Sundays) invited Anya to Awana at his Church, and Igor gave his blessing, so I took her.   This was the wrong day to not bring the camera.  It was totally delightful.  Sasha even asked me to lead the large group story time...what an honor.  I am an Awana leader at my church, Grace Fellowship in Brooklyn Park/Champlin (Nellie is too).  They have an amazing Church.  I was in awe of God's amazing gifts in these talented Ukrainian brothers and sisters. 

Thanks for your prayers.  I am asking God for wisdom as to His best plan for incorporating Anya and Samuel into our downtown Kiev home away from home.