Apartment Visit and Circus

Wow, today was full and we are so tired!  We visited the orphanage for a couple of hours and then, with a sudden and happy change of plans, we brought the kids home to our apartment for a couple of hours before heading to the Simferopol Circus!!  There is a lady who has been kind to Lera and Vitalik over the past year or so, and she invited us all to meet her at the circus.  It was a very kind offer, but since she did not have a car, it required a LOT of cooperation from our driver, who, as I have mentioned before is a remarkably kind man and genuinely loves these kids! 

Bringing them to the apartment for a little visit was an awesome treat.  Each step from the car to the apartment felt special...pushing the coded buttons to unlock the outer door to enter the building, watching Eugene turn the key to enter the apartment.  They loved the apartment and thought everything about it was special from the pictures on the wall to the white dishes in the cabinet.  We had a bountiful snack together of summer sausage, cheeses, apple slices and bread.  Vitalik stood at the table and cut the meat and cheeses, arranging it neatly around the edges of a plate.  When he finished, he washed and put away all of the items he had used. 

We showed them the clothing we brought for them and let them choose an outfit for us to bring on Tuesday when we picked them up.  Lera was, of course, very happy to have a stack of new clothing, and liked many (but not all!) of the things we had brought for her.  Girl's clothing is REALLY hard to select and properly fit without said girl being present to approve the fashion and the fit, so I didn't expect her wardrobe to be exactly right , but she was definitely very happy and found something cute to wear on Tuesday.  She went ahead and began wearing a pair of sweet sparkly flower earrings that were included in her goodies... they looked very pretty on her of course!  She was also really pleased with her new little zipper pouch that holds her brand new toothbrush, toothpaste, and mouth wash.  I pray that we will all (on some level) always know to be thankful for such luxuries!

Vitalik's wardrobe was a total slam dunk!  Everything fit well and was totally to his liking.  (At any age, shopping for boys clothing is just a million times easier than girls!)  He tried on clothes and said things like, "Good!  I happy!" while I sat on the bed and clapped.  He had so much fun thinking about which shirt to choose for Tuesday and gave a lot of thought to whether he would wear the black socks or the white ones, asking  for every one's input.  What a joy to have such tough decisions to make!   After making all of the selections and stowing the excess clothing in the suit case, he paused and said with sincerity, "Big Thank You!"  Eugene gave him a big hug and said, "You are welcome...We love you!"  It was awesome!

The circus was a real treat too of course.  It was a round big-top with fountains, bright lights, lots of gymnasts in cool costumes, performing dogs, a jumping bear, trapeze artists, and an amazing strong man!  During our time at the apartment, we helped the kids prepare gift bags for the driver and their lady friend whom we met at the circus.  They were very happy to be able to present gifts to the people who have been so kind to them.  After the circus, we were all pretty wiped out, and we took the kids back to the orphanage and said, "Da Zavtra."

So now we sleep!