Happily Ever After

It has now been a full year since Vitalik and Lera and their new parents arrived at RDU to the clapping and cheering of family and friends.  So many who greeted us were strangers to Vitalik and Lera - people whom they had only seen in photos we'd shown them.  These special people already loved Vitalik and Lera and could not WAIT to actually get to know them.  One year later, it is funny for L&V to look back on that night, remembering how these people who are now family and very dear friends were just friendly strangers who spoke an unintelligible language. 

April 9, 2011... everyone in the foreground and background were
part of the welcoming party when we arrived at RDU!

When we look at the photos together just one year later,
Vitalik and Lera look so little!

Of course, in addition to new friends and family, there were many familiar faces at the airport as well.  It was certainly reassuring for Vitalik and Lera to be greeted by the Paulson family, including David who had left their school in Ukraine just a month earlier.  And of course, the very special friends from Redline Untied, including Amanda, Bryan, Laura, and of course Adam and Eleni.  Our family is forever thankful for each of these special people who were crazy enough to bring a group of orphans from remote villages of Ukraine all the way to America, who took the time to know and love each of them, pray for them and advocate for them.  God used these special people to help us meet the children we didn't even know we were missing so that we could become the family that we were meant to be.

So now that one year has passed, I don't think any of us can imagine our family being any other way.  Life is good, crazy, exhausting, happy, noisy, funny, and just a beautiful shade of normal. 

This spring break, our family took the train to Washington D.C.  The kids found it rather embarrassing and annoying that we kept asking them to pose for photos.  We told them that embarrassing and annoying their children is exactly what all good parents are supposed to do.  :o)  Here are the photos from our trip!

Spencer and Lera on the Train to DC.

It mattered not that Eugene and I had lived there for several years
early in our married life... we looked like SUCH tourists!

The White House

The Capitol Building

The man of my dreams... and his beautiful kiddos!

At the National Archives... the line to see the Declaration of Independence
was too long for us, so we opted for jumping around on the front steps! :o)

We made them pose at every angle as we walked aroung the Capitol!

Again with the Capitol!

Heath wanted to see the Library of Congress
because his teacher's father worked there.

Mom and kiddos overlooking the mall.

After learning about Abraham Lincoln in school, Heath had
Lincoln's Memorial on his "short list" of places he just had to visit.

Riding the Metro was a lot of fun!  Especially during rush hour!

At the Natural History Museum

At the Native American Museum

Ol' Mom and Dad :o)

As one friend pointed out, this photo pretty much
sums up our life in one perfect little word!

SO NOW WHAT!?
So now that we've completed our adoption process, and we've lived through the huge thransitions and recovery that was our first year together... NOW what do we do?

WELL, WE LIVE HAPPILY EVER AFTER OF COURSE!!  Now, if only we can remember that this is what we are doing! Because, as we know, in real life, "happily ever after" is going to include some laughter and some tears, some mountain tops and some valleys. There will be good times and there will be days when we are barely surviving... and we have the joy and the privilege of living through all of these times together! 

The Cline Family - Easter 2012

So as we live out our "Happily Ever After" together, it is my prayer for each of us that we will never forget that this crazy family is a precious gift from God, and that every minute we spend together is a blessing.  I hope and pray that at least some of the time, each of us will remember to pause, be thankful and just enjoy the ride - cause when it's all said and done, life's too short to do much of anything else!  :o)

Eleven Months!

It has been eleven months since we arrived home with Vitalik and Lera and began living as a family of seven. All of the kids are doing really well, and to be honest, it is Eugene and I who are having the hardest time adjusting. It turns out that being parents to five children is a lot of work! Who knew!? We are making good progress though, and things are on the up-tick. We are trying to be intentional about remembering to have more fun along the way, and kind of enjoy the ride... and what a ride it is! :-)

School is good, soccer season is upon us again, and we are planning a trip to our nation's capital for spring break. Vitalik made the honor roll during his first semester in American schools, and if not for that pesky math grade, Lera would have as well! Here are a few photos from the past couple of months.

Coincidentally, our 11 month anniversary at home was also the one year anniversary of our court date in Ukraine. It was on this day that our adoption was approved, and we could all finally exhale and know that soon we REALLY were going to be allowed to be a family. Wow, we are so glad that is over!

Lera playing with cousin Krystin.  She loves lifting other
people, and she actually is quite strong!

Dad set out breakfast for L&V before school one winter morning.

Mom, Vitalik and Mason went on a special trip to Kentucky during a long weekend in February.  It was Mason's first trip on an airplane and we all had a good time!

While in Kentucky, we drove past Hatter Road.  This road, named
for the kids' great-great-grandfather E.P. Hatter, was cool for
Mason to see, as "Hatter" is also his middle name.

On our trip to Kentucky, Vitalik got to meet his Great Aunt Judy
and his Great Grammie LaFleur.

We spent an afternoon at Grandpa and Harmony's farm, and Vitalik got
to try out the Four-Wheeler.  He LOVED it of course!

Vitalik and cousin Chilton have been having fun working
out together whenever Chilton visits... boys!

This has been an unusually warm winter, and the Ukrainian kids have really
missed seeing snow.  We did finally get a little bit of snow one night at bedtime,
and Lera had to drop everything to run out and dance in it!

Lera has a really awesome and very sweet speech
therapist that she is seeing twice each week.

Lera enjoys working on breaking her hula hoop record. 
Her current record is over 2 hours!

Vitalik, Spencer, and Heath spend a lot of time playing basketball in the beach room.  They have invented some game in which, if you make a shot and the next person misses it, you get to kick the ball at their butt as hard as you can.  They call it, "butt cheeks"... sigh...

A team from Redline United will soon be visiting L&V's old school in Ukraine.  We are excited to have the opportunity to send letters and gifts to their classmates.  I wrote a letter to the social worker who was very special to the kids to let her know how they are doing.  Vitalik was my own personal highly-qualified translator!  I was so proud of him I could have burst!

These kids love making goofy faces for the camera!

Their ability to be silly and laugh at themselves is definitely a real gift!

Did I mention he made the honor roll?

Who could not love this face!?!

One sunny Sunday afternoon at the park.  There was more
whining than the photos reveal, but it looks like fun doesn't it!

Our gang... it's not easy, but pictures like this one
remind us that it's TOTALLY worth the effort!

Month 9 - A Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year

A VERY MERRY CHRISTMAS!

Last Year, the holiday season was all about waiting and hoping ... waiting to travel to Ukraine... hoping that Lera and Vitalik would be home for good soon.  We spent most of the season imagining how everything might look and feel to Vitalik and Lera, hoping and praying that they would be with us the next time we celebrated the holidays. 

Our five little elves!!

This Christmas, what a huge blessing it was to actually be living through the holidays with our family all together.  It was pretty cool.  We introduced Vitalik and Lera to a slew of American Holiday traditions that we all just take for granted.  They had never heard of Rudolf the Red-Nosed Reindeer or Frosty the Snowman.  They had never wrapped a gift.  They had never had presents under a tree with their names on them.  (They really loved shaking the presents and imagining what they might be!) 

They HAD watched American movies set during the holidays, such as "Home Alone" and "National Lampoons Christmas Vacation" so they had an idea what it was all supposed to look like, and they seemed to kind of delight in realizing that our family did all of these things they had seen on TV.  They really loved pulling the decorations out of the attic and making our house look all ready for Christmas.  When Vitalik saw our wreath, he said, "I have seen in pictures that this goes on the front door."  I loved having enthusiastic (and reasonably competent) helpers!  They enjoyed making and delivering gift bags for teachers and neighbors.  Since we opted to spend Thanksgiving at the beach, this was our first big family feast - we had a turkey AND a ham! 

Lera enjoys her big-boy cousins. 

Vitalik feasting on roast beast!

On the last Sunday of Advent, our family lit the advent candles at our church.  It was really cool.  Eugene and Vitalik shared the reading, and I helped the other kids light the candles.  Vitalik practiced many times so that he could be understood, and we were really proud of him as he read (with his precious Russian accent), "We light this candle as a symbol of the Prince of Peace.  May the visitation of your Holy Spirit, O God, make us ready for the coming of Jesus, our hope and joy.  O Come, O Come, Emmanuel."  I am told that it was a really beautiful moment, though at the time, I was just focused on ensuring that none of us knocked over the candles or set anything on fire! 

What a pleasure it was for all of us to get to experience all of all of these Christmas traditions during our first Christmas together as a family! 

Singing with Grandmother on Christmas Eve.  We have such a fun and silly family!

Christmas Eve - Lots of Cousins!!

Lera enjoying a new Exercise video on Christmas Morning.  The "six minute workout" is right up her alley!  I should also mention that during Christmas break, she did set a new hula hoop record of just over 2 hours!

Vitalik got lots of  cool Legos this Christmas, and enjoyed some quiet time in his room assembling them.

Spencer is getting so big!  He has had a LOT of change to get used to, moving from his old position as "oldest child" into his new role as "middle kid" with a very cool big and strong older brother.  He is doing great, and we are really proud of him.  Santa brought Spencer a  new IPod Nano, which he really loves!

Christmas Morning - Spencer and Heath introduced Lera to Webkinz.  She loved it!

This December has been unusually warm.  L&V really miss the snow that they know their pals in Ukraine are enjoying now, but the warmer weather has made for a LOT of good times outdoors during Christmas vacation, and after school.

Santa brought our family a Polar Express electric train!  We hope to enjoy it at Christmas time each year.

Vitalik enjoys experimenting with how many dum-dum lollipops he can fit into his mouth!

HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Our Toast at midnight on New Year's Eve.  If you think staying awake and reasonably
happy with this many kids was easy, please think again!  In any case, we can say we did it.

The new year has included a good dose of Ukrainian cooking.  Here, Vitalik makes "peroshki" which seems to mean fried dough stuffed with mashed potatoes.  It was so funny.  He asked if I could make some "testo" (dough) and then after I made it, he said, "It's perfect - now all I need are some mashed potatoes."   After I made the mashed potatoes, then HE made dinner! ;-)  It really was delicious!

Lera has done a good bit of cooking Russian foods in the new year, both at home, and at Aunt Tracy's house.  Here, at home, she stirs a pot of awesome "Galushki" (dumpling) soup.  We all loved it and gobbled up every morsel!

 As we look back on 2011, it has been an incredible and memorable year to say the least.  For several months now, we have been realizing how very depleating the adoption process and transition to our new family was to everyone involved.  We could not have asked for anything more from any of our five children - and we have all been thankful along the way.  Still, we have been trying to take time to acknowledge that this thing has taken a LOT out of us, and we are still recouperating. 

The new year provides a great time to be thankful for all we have already been through, and to look forward to the future with great optimism.  We are feeling like 2012 is going to be a really great year, filled with lots of fun, laughter, and love.  :-)