More Hanna-isms

As Hanna talks more and more, we hear more funny little things come from her.  Here are some of our favorites:

Stoodle - stool

Speegellilli - spaghetti

Bleh-wee - belly

She also is much more interactive with the family.  When Oleg came down for breakfast one morning, he was in a bit of a foul mood.  Hanna says, "Mama, WHAT is Oleg's PROBLEM?"

I said, "I don't know.  Why don't you ask him?"

The she says, "Oleg, WHAT is your PROBLEM?"

His answer, "Be quiet, Hanna!"

Funny girl!

New Summer Schedule

Well, those kids in school finished a couple of weeks ago.  We took a "chill" week, then everyone had a week of camp.  Now we're into "real" summer - both activity-wise and weather-wise.  Whew!

So today we started our summer routine, and I must admit it went pretty well.

So here it is:

7:30 - Little girls up; breakfast; read aloud (today it was Winnie the Pooh); letters, numbers, pre-reading activities, calendar with Lena (Hanna watching, practicing)

9:00 - Big kids up; breakfast; start their lists

• Read for 30 minutes or more
• Math assignment
• Reading/Spelling lesson
• Chore for the week
• Vision Therapy (Oleg)
• Read Aloud - The Hobbit
• Literature activity - The Hobbit

5:00-ish - Afternoon Clean Up

They must complete their lists before they can have computer time (on computer days) or play with friends.  They can take as long as they like to get it done well, but they are restricted by my time as well.  Some activities they need me, others they don't.  So they must budget their time.

Like I said, it worked well today.  Hopefully it will continue to work well - more often than not!

Easter 2012

Our second Easter together and our first in our new home.  This year we decided to add some decidedly Ukrainian elements to our celebration.

We dyed eggs in traditional colors, and we made paska and poached pears. Grandma Johnson was with us to celebrate.

First Anniversary of our Gotcha Day

Today we mark the arrival of one year since we got custody of the kids.  It will always be a special day for us.

Here's the link to my post from that day:

Gotcha Day

Just to remind you:  My brother John went with me to pick up the kids.  Cliff had work, and the girls had enough international travel and were with Gramma and GrandDad.

One Year

One year ago today a Ukrainian court officially made us a family of 7.

You can read about our court day here:  Court Today

A lot has changed in a year.  All three kids have grown significantly.  Their English gets better every day.  It has been amazingly quick and amazingly slow.  Times of intense difficulty and times of pure bliss.

One Year Ago:

Today:

More Truth from a Different Perspective

A friend shared this on Facebook this morning.  It complements my post from December 20th, so I thought I'd share the link here as well.

Don't Carpe Diem