Winter

Today is a snow day! The first of the year. Not too dramatic but a big deal for these parts.

Just one week ago we were at the beach enjoying sunny (but very cold) weather.

Deiana really wanted to have her picture drawn, and was willing to sit still to have it done! It turned out really cute.

When at the beach we must ride the merry go round! It was a nice get away. Grampa joined us and that made it extra special.

I am looking forward to feeling better soon. We have all been sick but I ended up with pneumonia after several weeks of illness. Hopefully a healthy spring for all!!

3 Great Years

It has been three years since we adopted Deiana, and it really seems like she has been ours forever! She has changed and grown up so much!!

Random Thoughts

Not much exciting going on this January, just the usual routine. Deiana's main focus is school and friends. School is a great social outlet for her and hopefully she is learning something in the process! I have been working on reading with her at home because I don't feel she is progressing as quickly as she is capable. We have cut back to just speech therapy at school and probably more private work this summer.
We are looking forward to a couple beach trips this winter/spring and a trip to Mexico in May. It will be Deiana's 3rd time to Mexico. We didn't go last year (Disneyland instead) and we really missed it.
This time of year we also start to reminisce about Ukraine and the whole overwhelming, life changing experience. Three years ago today was the day we sat in a small room in the SDA in Kiev, Ukraine and saw a tiny picture of a newborn baby with a cleft lip and wondered, is she the one??
She certainly is.

End of the Year Review

We had a pleasant Christmas this year, but of course not the same without Mimi. We tried to simplify the gift giving in the family this year and it turned out fine. Santa still brought plenty of gifts for the "kids". The tree dried up quickly so I took down all of the decorations earlier than usual. Ready to start a new year.Deiana, looking cute as ever and posing for a picture. Jon had his birthday just before Christmas. With all going on this year we didn't have a really big celebration, and we won't mention his age as we are posing as much younger parents!

Deiana is always practicing gymnastics. She goes to classes 4 hours a week and is on a "pre-team". They work on perfect hand stands all the time, and I guess its working! Gymnastics has been good for burning energy and learning to focus! I will do a better post about gymnastics with pictures soon.

For Deiana the new year brings more gymnastics, maybe softball and soccer, orthodontics, possible bone graft surgery (gum line), and hopefully a couple vacations for all. Stay tuned for the fun. Happy New Year to everyone.

"Fake" Santa?

Deiana and I were shopping at a little strip mall when a Santa stepped out from a store. Remember Deiana LOVES Santa and we just spent an hour and a half waiting in line to see him and give him her list. This is all new to me as her brothers never wanted to see him, they just mailed their lists. Jeremy never believed in Santa because even as a toddler it did not seem logical to him.
Anyway, she yelled "Santa!" and ran up to him. He said "hey what are you getting for Christmas?" She stepped back, looked at him sideways and said "don't you already know?" He tried to make up some lame excuse, but she was already sizing him up. He had some sort of ID badge hanging off him and she was checking it out. She then reached up and tugged on his beard and said "you're a fake!" As we walked away I explained to her that there are many extra pretend Santas around because the real one is so busy. She said "Its gonna be hard for me to believe him now" She really does get more like Jeremy every day.

Santa Clause

Getting ready for Christmas this year has been very bittersweet. Most of my Christmas decorations were given to me by my mom so even decorating was difficult. Nothing will be the same and we will have to adjust to new ways of doing things.

Deiana is very excited about Santa this year. She has been carrying around a (small) list in anticipation of seeing the big guy. However a few days ago she woke me up to say she had been thinking about something. She said "I'm going to ask Santa to bring Mimi back" I told her that while it was a very nice idea I was sorry but that was not possible, Santa did not have that ability. She said "But he is magic mommy, you never know"

She begged all day to see Santa. I knew the mall would be horribly crowded but she was not going to be talked out of it. Deiana made a new friend in line (or partner in crime) so she was occupied.... actually overstimulated.

Oh well, after an hour and a half wait we made it to the front. Deiana happily sat on his lat and gave him her list. I didn't hear what they were talking about, but I did hear her ask Santa if he had

"powers".

We are thankful to have Deiana's enthusiasm and energy around us to keep us going.

Mom, we miss you dearly and you will always be in our hearts.

Devastating News

I am so sorry to have to report that my mom, our dear beloved "Mimi" has passed away. She was just recently diagnosed with liver cancer, originating in the common bile duct. Even though she was very ill for a short time, the cancer was advanced and rapidly progressing. She fought until the end and we took her home to be with family and friends.

Mimi was the center of our family and everyone's biggest supporter. There are no words to describe this painful loss.

We are thankful we enjoyed so many wonderful times with her. She and Deiana developed a close relationship in the 2 1/2 years they had together. Mimi delighted in everything Deiana did and said, and she would talk about her to anyone who would listen. Deiana has been very sad without Mimi and has been talking about everything they did together. She made up a little song, "Mimi is so pretty, Mimi is so nice, I love Mimi, I want Mimi to come back to life."

We'll love you forever mom.

Halloween

Deiana had a fun Halloween dressed as a purple and black witch. We did the usual jack o lantern carving and trick or treating. We get no trick or treaters on our street so we go elsewhere to see the action. This year we went with our neighbors, Deiana's good friend. The weather was awesome and we got an abundance of candy. Luckily we have no school today so we could sleep it off this morning!

Soccer Finale

We have just one more soccer game before the season is over. We had a great year and only lost one game. All of the girls on the team are about the same skill level so there was lots of action. Deiana is definitely one of the most intense players and you can see it on her face. These pictures were taken by one of the dads on our team. None of the girls on the team go to her school, and they are all older, but they are a good group and we hope to play on the same team next year.

Fortunately there has been good weather this fall and only two games in the rain. Wish I could get some brothers to come out to see a game!!!!

Jeremy is currently living with us and he takes Deiana to daycare before school on mornings I am at work. This is a huge help to us. Jordan is working and going to school full time so we don't get to see him very much. He is roommates with his cousin Megan. Deiana is at school each day from 7:30 to 3:00. She LOOOOOVES school!

Constantly Changing

Deiana is constantly changing so I am trying to keep up with pictures of her. My talented friend Debbie took these beautiful pictures, and there are more to come.

You may not be able to tell by the pictures, but its hard to keep her still enough to get a great shot!

Not quite ready to be a fashion model, more likely star in an action film. She has the drama queen part down pat.

Medical Update

For those who are interested, Deiana had surgery on her ear today. She had one retained ear tube that has been giving us problems for months. It has been constantly infected and apparently had tissue growing around it, abnormally. The other ear in which the tube fell out over a year ago is just fine. So they had to remove the tissue and patch the ear drum.
We were lucky to get a nurse today that I have known since second grade. Along with the fact that I work at the hospital, we had great VIP service.
Each surgery gets a little harder though, because Deiana is older and more aware of what is going on. When she gets nervous she gets more and more talkative. Before they took her back she asked the anesthesiologist (an older man) if he knew the chicken dance!?
Later, before we left she was doing the chicken dance with him and the nurse manager!
I told him he didn't give her enough anesthesia.
She is resting just fine at home now.

Look Who is Seven!!

Its hard to believe but the beautiful Deiana is now 7 years old. We celebrated with a family BBQ and many nice gifts. Her trampoline was her gift from us, but she got many more nice gifts.

She specifically requested a cake with a rainbow.

Happy Birthday sweet girl, we love you.

Soccer Girl

Deiana is in her second year of soccer and having a great time. She is playing with girls one year older but she has no trouble keeping up. She is actually pretty aggressive but so are several other girls! We have easily won our first two games. The first game was against a boys team! Here are several pictures, none too great, but you can spot the girl with the pigtails. Hopefully the weather will be dry because Deiana still does not like to get wet in the rain, left over from her Ukraine days! Go Grasshoppers!

First Day of School

Tuesday was the first day of first grade! Deiana was very excited and just a little nervous. She has been talking about missing her friends and teacher from kindergarten lately. This year she is in a different school with only a couple friends from kindergarten. We have to get up much earlier than we ever have, so this will be an adjustment. The bus will pick her up and drop her off right in front of our house. When I took her to school the first thing she asked her teacher was "will we have any homework?"

She came home happy but did say she liked her kindergarten teacher better because she was more fun. She said "my new teacher is nice but not so much fun, she likes books too much". I had to break the news to her that school can be fun but the purpose of school is to learn. Tough lesson, life isn't just about socializing and having fun!

Beach Trip: Bike Riding

We spent one day on our beach trip bike riding. It was a beautiful, warm in the sun, cool in the shade day. The we were at Fort Stevens Park, which has many bike trails. Deiana has had limited bike riding experience, but she does quite well. She just needs some work on hills and stopping. We rode for a couple hours without stopping. On her little bike she has to peddle at least twice as fast as we do, but its only fair since she has twice as much energy....at least.

The end of another fun and relaxing beach trip. Now back to school!

Beach Trip: Horseback Riding

We had a great time horseback riding during our beach trip. Deiana got her own horse and loved it! She was asking a ton of questions before we left, and talked and talked during the entire hour excursion. I did confess to one person that only two years ago she was non-verbal, and Russian was her first language, so its hard to tell her to stop talking now. There was another little girl about 8 or 9 on the trip who did not say one word the whole time.....I can't imagine.
I forgot my camera this day, but met a very nice young woman from Seattle who offered to take pictures and email them to me. Here they are and they are great!

One horse rolled over and its rider had to jump, and another horse hopped around and threw a woman off. But no one was hurt! Deiana had a great time and was unfazed by the excitement.