Finally I figured out how to post photos. I wanted to get some of the ones from summer because it was truely the best summer for Oksana so far. She experienced all the fun things related to fun in the sun, it was so memorable. Please continue to keep her in your prayers as we move closer to her operations.

Fun In Virginia

Happy 6th Birthday Oksana

As we watched the ball fall, we sang Happy Birthday to our darling Oksana. I know I was suposed to get photos on to update everyone so tonight I hope to do just that. It has been a year of blessings and surprises, some not good, but through it all life goes on. So we focus on the positives and try not to dwell on those things we cannot change.
We started the New Year by going to the doctors who are getting the information together for the surgeries. They preformed a test to see how much nerve damage has occurred to her hand. She has lost 80% function and muscle to her right hand and are now considering an operation before anymore is lost. The test was very painful for Oksana. It required putting 1 inch needles into the muscle in her back and along side her spine, with no anesthesia. She was so brave. She was up most of last night in pain from the test that was done earlier in the day. We will return to see what the team says on the 24th of Feb. so please pray for some positive news.

It has been awhile, Wow! How time flies

It has been two weeks since our visit with the Neuro surgeon who is following Oksanas condition. Every three months we go have some xrays taken and meet with several Doctors. Each time we hear" we will continue to monitor her and see you back in three months". This time it was different. The head of the team decided that we need to start the operations. We knew even before she came home this day would come, however the reality of hearing it is time was overwhelming. I have decided that I will keep regular posts so whoever wants to follow and pray can. The operations are complicated and very risky. There is a very real possibility that she may have paralysis. They told me the first surgery will be done in two parts, the first lasting 10 to 12 hours and the second being done within a week following the first one. It will take 6 months to get all the doctors and tests completed to have her ready as well as having a feeding tube put in next month to allow her to gain the weight she will need. She has been here for a year and two months and has only gained 11 ounces. She is so smart and is very aware of all that is going on around her, nothing gets past her. Her foot and leg has been going numb almost every day for about 6 months now. The doctor said this is one reason we need to get going before something more severe happens. We are trusting in God as we have throughout this entire venture. As her mom I would lay my life down to ensure her to get through this safely however I know that it is God who has a plan for her and whatever it is He has instore for her, I cannot change, He loves her more than I ever could. It was God that protected her at birth and God who kept her safe when her birth parents left her to die and it was God who gave her to me. His will for her life will be done, please pray for her, our family and for wisdom and gifted hands as they do these operations, she has to be okay, she wants to be a balerina, she has to be able to dance.

2 months this Sunday!!!

Sorry it has been so long since my last post. We have been very busy settling in and trying to adjust to all that is happening around us. Oksana has settled in so nicely. Our other children say that it feels as if she has always been here, how amazing it truly is. We had many doctor visits and appointments at the hospitals and next week we meet with the surgical team at Shrinners Hospital to determine what operations will be coming up in the fall for her. Each day she says more and more in English and teaches us more and more in Russian. It is funny to spend a day in our home. Friends of the children come over and greeet her with a Russian Hello and will leave knowing a few more words in Russian. She is not at all shy and very confident. She thinks she is the boss most of the time and is training us well. I can not believe that in two days it will have already been two months since we took physical custody of her, time flies. Look for new photos in a couple of days.

HERE ARE THE PHOTOS

Sorry for the delay I will update all later.

SO GOOD?/NO! GREAT TO BE HOME!!!!!

Yesterday was a very long day.... It started with a phone call that the translator who was going to bring me to the airport and see us through customs, broke her arm and it was swelling so she had to go to the doctors. She arranged for someone else to take us but this person practically left us at check in. Me, Oksana two large luggage bags and two carry on's. Once my luggage went through x-ray I had to get on a line to register and process the bags. Well the man told me to enter in one line so I did. Well this very large older gentleman started going off in either German or maybe Russian, anyway since I am not good in either I played dumb like most of the Russians I have encountered this week did and continued to walk. He got louder and I said I speak english.. His response a negative one was ignored by me, then his wife pushes her luggage cart right into me and Oksana. Oksana was definitely hurt a little, well you know the saying about a lioness protecting her cub well out of no where A reation simular to that saying surfaced and I physically grabbed her shirt and yelled, thats my baby you just ran into, maybe stronger words, I just reacted. To date that was the rudest act I was involved in. Then I see security and I feared getting in trouble for touching someone after all I was in Russia, well she saw it and came to my defense, then I got to customs and encountered another individual who was as anti-american as I have seen, she starts questioning me in Russian and I respond very little and English. Her face was an expression of Discust and now she is questioning Oksanas paperwork. Imagine my stress and I have not even made it to the plane as yet. She wanted me to give her the originals (they are only to be opened by US immigration) So I said NO! She called to someone else who was actually human and within 40 minutes I was on my way to the plane.. Then boarding the woman tried to rip by boarding pass out of my hand and have me sit in a different seat. Well the problem was earlier this week they cancelled Oksanas flight and I had to pay again for new tickets. I made sure we had window seats Better to keep a small one occupied, and now she was telling me I can't have the seats even though My boarding pass says I have them, My advise Never FLy Aeroflot. I think they hate Americans.Long story short all the fuss even though I was in the right meant nothing and we did not get to sit in the seats designated to be ours. Was the plane full? No.. Was my original seat available ? Yes, anyway at least I was on the plane. I did however let Oksana play with the call button for the first 2 hours, hey what was I to do? She had no window to look out of, not my problem, Spiteful? Yes.. I am only human.Once in flight I realized how sad it was to have run into so many unhappy people so full of misery in less then 2 hours in one day.All in all Oksana did so well having to sit on a plane for ten hours. Unfortunitely she would not fall asleep and then passed out 42 minutes before the plane landed. That meant waking up this little one who I then had to carry along with my carry on and her play bag. She refused to fully wake up and I had to manage getting out the documents for cutoms while carrying her. I figured with all I had accomplished this week I guess I could do this as well." All things through Christ" rang so true this week. What a feeling walking to get through customs on American soil, and being able to walk right up to a customs agent and after 5 minutes hearing "welcome back and congradulations" words to bring tears to my eyes. I somehow managed to get her to walk and was able to get our luggage and get through to the exit where Darius and Three of our four children were waiting for us. Balloons, Flowers and a teddy bear and how blessed I felt at that moment, I somehow felt like I was returning from war.. I was finally home....