Missing D

It doesn't seem to matter what I do, something will remind me of D. I miss him terribly. His trip to our home with the Russian Orphan Lighthouse Project was only 8 days, yet it seems as though he has always been part of our lives. We had alot of fun cooking together so every time I'm in the kitchen I wish he was there cooking with us. He loved being in the kitchen, exploring the refrigerator and mixing. He's also a great potato peeler. He loved playing Wii games with Timothy and my neices. So we all missed him extra yesterday while we were playing together. Every time we eat ice cream we're reminded how much he loves ice cream. D also loved to try new things. Often, Timothy will say, "I wonder how D would like doing this?" There are even some things that we start to do, then we say, "No, let's wait until D and V are here to do this with us."

I've never been one to wish away days because I believe every day is important. But, I must say I really long for the day that D and V are home, the day when we are all together.

I wonder how they spent Christmas. How are they doing in school? Is their English progressing faster than our Russian? Are they enjoying the snow? Are they warm at night? Did V enjoy the blanket present D picked out for him while he was here? What will we cook together for our first meal as a family?

Soon we will be done wondering. They will be home.

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas to all! We hope you enjoyed your celebration of Jesus Birthday and enjoyed being with family and friends. We had a wonderful time of celebration with family. Christmas Eve we took dinner to PaPa's house (David's Dad). We celebrated with him and my Uncle Roger. David worked Christmas Day so we went to visit him at the office. Then we all went to my brothers for more festivities. PaPa and Uncle Roger were introduced to Wii boxing and had quite a time trying to beat the boys. I'll try to figure out how to add photos soon.

Meet Russian Orphan Anton B.

We're very excited to be hosting again with The Russian Orphan Lighthouse Project. Anton B. will arrive at our home on January 9, 2009. We'll be excited to share his adventures with you. If you know anyone interested in adopting please let them know so they can meet the precious children on this trip to Tulsa. Following is a blogspot that tells about all of the children. You can also follow that blog to hear about the children while they are here. Make plans to see the evening program also.
http://russianorphanlighthouseproject.blogspot.com/2008/12/january-trip-progress-was-boosted.html

Blogging Fears

Perhaps it's my own fears that are keeping me from writing on this blog thing. For one thing everything I've ever written has had to be proofed and overanalyzed multiple times before being seen by anyone. That obviously won't work if I'm ever going to put anything on this blog. So I ask your forgiveness for typos, misspelled words, and blatant incorrect grammar. I'm going to write away without fear of your judgement of my mistakes. Second is the weirdness that everything I write can be read worldwide by anyone and everyone. That is completely mind-boggling to me. So to get over this fear I'm going to pretend that I'm just writing to those of you that have been so supportive. You are friends that I appreciate very much. Thank you for your support and prayers. Please keep holding me accontable to getting D&V home. Julie

Six Weeks Ago Life Changed

Six weeks ago today life suddenly changed. On that day we agreed to host a child on the first Russian Orphan Lighthouse project in Tulsa. Nine days later D arrived in Tulsa with five other children. Never did we realize how attached we could quickly become to a child from around the world. It was an incredible 10 days that led to our pursuing adoption of D and V.
We have never blogged or shared our lives in any way online so sharing this way is a little bit of a challenge. We're overwhelmed in many ways at the support, questions, and interest that this venture has generated. Many have suggested this as the best way to let all of you know what is happening so here we go with our family blog. Thank you to everyone for the support. We really appreciate all the thoughts, prayers, and interest.