Here we go!
YES THAT ABOUT SAYS IT ALL!
AREN'T THEY GREAT!?!
If you'd like to help bring home our next three, there are links on the right side of our blog to ways you can help!
Showing posts with label Anita. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Anita. Show all posts
Saturday, August 3, 2013
Trying to Get a Photo of the Five Together LOL!!!
Well I wanted a picture of the five together on their one year home anniversary. I got them all on the couch and all I could do was laugh. Keith is in CONSTANT motion. It was just funny. I decided to just take a whole bunch of pictures and share them all! Then you would all get the best idea of who they all really are. You can see how grown up Ahnja is. You can see how much Keith moves. You can see how funny Aleshia thinks Keith is. You can see how annoyed Anita is at them both and how funny Nicholas is while he watches.
Here we go!
Here we go!
Friday, August 2, 2013
One Year Update on All Five!
So here are some updates on all 5 of the kids who've been home a full year! The updated pictures were taken on July 22nd which was their 1 year home day! I took the pictures myself so they aren't "great", but you should get a pretty good idea!
So here is Ahnja's 1 year home side by side!
Here is Anita's 1 year home side by side!
Here is Aleshia's 1 year home side by side!
Ahnja is 11 now and doing amazing. She has learned English so quickly and still speaks a lot of Bulgarian too. She understands all everyday English that is spoken to her and her grammar is getting better all the time. We actually all speak some simple Bulgarian around the house (very simple because we just aren't that great, but we enjoy the words we've been able to pick up!). She has learned to write the alphabet and can tell you many of the phonetical sounds. She can write most of the names of family members (no small task around here!). She recognizes quite a few words as well! She is SO amazing. She has a sparkle about her that captivates everyone she meets!
Nicholas is 10 1/2 now. He is much more delayed and still very traumatized from his time in the mental institution there. Going into a hospital environment or even a large brick building that isn't but reminds him of his institution will leave him in complete fear. His institutional behaviors have reduced dramatically, but he still has a long ways to go to heal from all he went through. He reminds us so much of Mowgli on The Jungle Book. He just wasn't socialized. On top of that he just suffered a lot of stuff that most people will never understand in that institution. It was a "survival of the fittest" kind of environment. He isn't at all aggressive though and he can be quite cuddly. He has learned to eat with utensils and to slow down for the most part though and has come SO far!
Anita. . . oh Anita. lol She is 8 now and quite the stubborn child. If you look at her picture above the first thing you will notice is that she learned how to smile. At first she just didn't know how. Somehow or another her initial response was what you see on the left. . . no one else I know can duplicate that face, but it was her "smile". She did it every time you got out the camera. She's come so far and is saying words and phrases in English. She spoke nothing in Bulgarian, so this is HUGE! She is partially potty trained already and really just needs to learn to go on her own instead of waiting to be sent. She's able to put together puzzles and is working on preschool/kindergarten concepts in English.
Aleshia is 7 now and is our most delayed and physically handicapped child. It is believed that she did not get enough oxygen during her heart procedure that she had prior to coming to us. She can sit up for short periods of time, but it is very tiring for her. We hope that her upcoming heart surgery will give her more energy and strength. She can push to a stand in her stander or in her jumperoo, but she does not walk or really sit unassisted for any real length of time. She has said a few words though! We will learn more about the extent of her brain damage the day before her heart surgery. She has become SO much more interactive though in the last year. She laughs and interjects her personality into every day family life and we LOVE it!
Keith, well you can read about him in the last post! lol He is doing AMAZING! He is cruising the furniture and into all kinds of mischief! We figure after 5 years in that crib, he has a lot of mischief to make up for!
If you'd like to help bring our next 3 children home, so that they too can make amazing progress in the love of a family, then there are many ways you can help us to bring them home.
We have an Indiegogo fundraiser that a friend set up for us HERE that has a place to donate and even some things offered for your donation!
You can shop at our Usborne eshow by clicking HERE and get some amazing books for your family while helping our kids coming home!
You can shop at our What's in the Bible link and buy amazing dvds to teach your family about the Bible and help with our adoption at the same time as well. These are made by the creator of Veggie Tales and are so much fun, but even adults will learn something! Click HERE to go shop our site for that!
Our Tshirt Fundraiser ends on August 3rd at midnight, so you can click HERE to learn more about the amazing shirt we have available!
Thanks for all your help!!! More pictures of the 5 to come in the next post and then I'll get to pictures of the newest three from my trip to meet them!
So here is Ahnja's 1 year home side by side!
Here is Nicholas's 1 year home side by side!
Here is Aleshia's 1 year home side by side!
Once again here is Keith's 1 year home side by side!
As far as other updates on them, here we go:Ahnja is 11 now and doing amazing. She has learned English so quickly and still speaks a lot of Bulgarian too. She understands all everyday English that is spoken to her and her grammar is getting better all the time. We actually all speak some simple Bulgarian around the house (very simple because we just aren't that great, but we enjoy the words we've been able to pick up!). She has learned to write the alphabet and can tell you many of the phonetical sounds. She can write most of the names of family members (no small task around here!). She recognizes quite a few words as well! She is SO amazing. She has a sparkle about her that captivates everyone she meets!
Nicholas is 10 1/2 now. He is much more delayed and still very traumatized from his time in the mental institution there. Going into a hospital environment or even a large brick building that isn't but reminds him of his institution will leave him in complete fear. His institutional behaviors have reduced dramatically, but he still has a long ways to go to heal from all he went through. He reminds us so much of Mowgli on The Jungle Book. He just wasn't socialized. On top of that he just suffered a lot of stuff that most people will never understand in that institution. It was a "survival of the fittest" kind of environment. He isn't at all aggressive though and he can be quite cuddly. He has learned to eat with utensils and to slow down for the most part though and has come SO far!
Anita. . . oh Anita. lol She is 8 now and quite the stubborn child. If you look at her picture above the first thing you will notice is that she learned how to smile. At first she just didn't know how. Somehow or another her initial response was what you see on the left. . . no one else I know can duplicate that face, but it was her "smile". She did it every time you got out the camera. She's come so far and is saying words and phrases in English. She spoke nothing in Bulgarian, so this is HUGE! She is partially potty trained already and really just needs to learn to go on her own instead of waiting to be sent. She's able to put together puzzles and is working on preschool/kindergarten concepts in English.
Aleshia is 7 now and is our most delayed and physically handicapped child. It is believed that she did not get enough oxygen during her heart procedure that she had prior to coming to us. She can sit up for short periods of time, but it is very tiring for her. We hope that her upcoming heart surgery will give her more energy and strength. She can push to a stand in her stander or in her jumperoo, but she does not walk or really sit unassisted for any real length of time. She has said a few words though! We will learn more about the extent of her brain damage the day before her heart surgery. She has become SO much more interactive though in the last year. She laughs and interjects her personality into every day family life and we LOVE it!
Keith, well you can read about him in the last post! lol He is doing AMAZING! He is cruising the furniture and into all kinds of mischief! We figure after 5 years in that crib, he has a lot of mischief to make up for!
If you'd like to help bring our next 3 children home, so that they too can make amazing progress in the love of a family, then there are many ways you can help us to bring them home.
We have an Indiegogo fundraiser that a friend set up for us HERE that has a place to donate and even some things offered for your donation!
You can shop at our Usborne eshow by clicking HERE and get some amazing books for your family while helping our kids coming home!
You can shop at our What's in the Bible link and buy amazing dvds to teach your family about the Bible and help with our adoption at the same time as well. These are made by the creator of Veggie Tales and are so much fun, but even adults will learn something! Click HERE to go shop our site for that!
Our Tshirt Fundraiser ends on August 3rd at midnight, so you can click HERE to learn more about the amazing shirt we have available!
Thanks for all your help!!! More pictures of the 5 to come in the next post and then I'll get to pictures of the newest three from my trip to meet them!
Sunday, April 7, 2013
Hidden Treasures!!
The Hidden Treasures Auction will end tonight!!! Go check it out before it is all over. CLICK HERE TO GO VISIT THEM! Make sure to look for the quilt that I made and the Princess dress that I made that Anita is modelling for the auction!! My grandmother also made two quilts to help bring home her newest great grandchildren!! She started making quilts just so she could help bring them home, so go check it out. There is awesome jewelry, great gift cards, and lots of great items on there!!
Don't forget to look at the giveaway we have going on right now on here!! You can click HERE to see that and read about Mulligan Stew! You should go check out that blog to see pictures of Keith meeting Julia. We were in town for the girls' cardiologist. Aleshia and Keith that she has pictures of on there were both from our last adoption. Julianne was from a different adoption and was adopted from US foster care. She was our first with Down Syndrome and is the one who made us start looking around and find the 5 Bulgarian Blessings that you all came to love so dearly! Go look HERE at pictures! Check out the giveaway while you are at it there too!!!
So here are some treasures for you to see from Easter morning. These are the youngest 5 girls. :)
I recently gave you an update on Nicholas. Keith will have an update all of his own. It is impossible to show you how much he has grown with just one picture and he is in motion so much that most of his pictures have at least one part blurry! lol
Don't forget to look at the giveaway we have going on right now on here!! You can click HERE to see that and read about Mulligan Stew! You should go check out that blog to see pictures of Keith meeting Julia. We were in town for the girls' cardiologist. Aleshia and Keith that she has pictures of on there were both from our last adoption. Julianne was from a different adoption and was adopted from US foster care. She was our first with Down Syndrome and is the one who made us start looking around and find the 5 Bulgarian Blessings that you all came to love so dearly! Go look HERE at pictures! Check out the giveaway while you are at it there too!!!
So here are some treasures for you to see from Easter morning. These are the youngest 5 girls. :)
Julianne is 6
and
Aleshia is 6!
Anita is 7!
Ahnja is 11 now and Destiny will be 10 next month!
I recently gave you an update on Nicholas. Keith will have an update all of his own. It is impossible to show you how much he has grown with just one picture and he is in motion so much that most of his pictures have at least one part blurry! lol
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Christmas Pictures Any One?
Christmas pictures of the 5 Bulgarian Blessings are here and ready to share. :)
First of I'll show you the Family Christmas Picture!
Ahnja
Nicholas
Anita
Aleshia
Keith
Our 5 Bulgaria Blessings Together
Ahnja with Destiny (these two are tight)
Another family shot
I think if you look at both of the family shots, you can see the spots that 3 more little ones are meant to fill! We can't wait to get them home and are still working hard on the paperwork to get them here.
I will try to get all the kids posted on the family blog soon. Right now it is time to bake Christmas cookies!
Wednesday, October 17, 2012
Little Girls Outting
Well yesterday was Monday, which was Brent's day off. Aleshia had an appointment to follow up with our primary medical provider. I took Julianne, Anita, Ahnja, and Destiny along and got their flu shots. I was ready for A LOT of whining, but it just didn't happen. I had Destiny go first, because I knew she wouldn't whine. Everyone else just followed her lead I guess. The girls looked so cute! I put them all in matching outfits and they were so THRILLED about all having the "same" outfits. I figure I better enjoy it now, because any day some of them will start to not like it and then it will be over!
The girls were so funny in the doctor's office. Ahnja and Destiny are a hoot together always. Anita and Julianne are like two peas in a pod as well. Aleshia still isn't to the point that she can interact and join in the same way they can, but I love how they try to include her and show her things.
After the appointment I drove through McDonalds (we hardly ever do that!) and got them pies and ice creams. We took extra to share with grandparents and headed to their house. Mommom and Daddy Bill (what we've always called my grandparents since I was little) couldn't believe how neatly the girls ate and how sweet and loving they are. They were so well behaved that even Daddy Bill was talking about it! His vision is very bad now, so he thought Ahnja was me at one point. I told him that I'll take that as a compliment, because she is WAY cuter than I ever was.
After we left there, we went to Walmart to pick up a few things. We went to the Christmas aisle first. I love hearing my little Bulgarian Americans exclaim over the exciting things that we've put up here and they saw there for Christmas. We picked out some new singing Christmas characters. Ahnja and Destiny were quietly singing Jingle Bells through the store. Ahnja's English is coming along so well! They both got quieter (and Destiny quit on me), when I got out the camera to record it, but at least I got a little. I heard people talking about the "cute little girls" and "look how well behaved all those kids are". I love that they saw those things instead of noticing that 4 of the 5 kids with me had Down Syndrome. No one even mentioned or seemed to notice their "extra". I love that little extra chromosome, but I want people to see them for all their wonderfulness and then notice that "extra" blessing. :) There was an older couple in front of me at checkouts. They turned and said that they'd never seen such well behaved children. I wondered later what they would have thought if they'd known that 2 of those girls had spent time in institutions???? I wondered how many of the people smiling at Ahnja and Destiny singing got a blessing from hearing their joy of getting ready for Christmas? I wonder if any of them ever think about the children still stuck behind the walls of institutions and orphanages and the joy that they and the world are missing out on?
The girls were so funny in the doctor's office. Ahnja and Destiny are a hoot together always. Anita and Julianne are like two peas in a pod as well. Aleshia still isn't to the point that she can interact and join in the same way they can, but I love how they try to include her and show her things.
After the appointment I drove through McDonalds (we hardly ever do that!) and got them pies and ice creams. We took extra to share with grandparents and headed to their house. Mommom and Daddy Bill (what we've always called my grandparents since I was little) couldn't believe how neatly the girls ate and how sweet and loving they are. They were so well behaved that even Daddy Bill was talking about it! His vision is very bad now, so he thought Ahnja was me at one point. I told him that I'll take that as a compliment, because she is WAY cuter than I ever was.
After we left there, we went to Walmart to pick up a few things. We went to the Christmas aisle first. I love hearing my little Bulgarian Americans exclaim over the exciting things that we've put up here and they saw there for Christmas. We picked out some new singing Christmas characters. Ahnja and Destiny were quietly singing Jingle Bells through the store. Ahnja's English is coming along so well! They both got quieter (and Destiny quit on me), when I got out the camera to record it, but at least I got a little. I heard people talking about the "cute little girls" and "look how well behaved all those kids are". I love that they saw those things instead of noticing that 4 of the 5 kids with me had Down Syndrome. No one even mentioned or seemed to notice their "extra". I love that little extra chromosome, but I want people to see them for all their wonderfulness and then notice that "extra" blessing. :) There was an older couple in front of me at checkouts. They turned and said that they'd never seen such well behaved children. I wondered later what they would have thought if they'd known that 2 of those girls had spent time in institutions???? I wondered how many of the people smiling at Ahnja and Destiny singing got a blessing from hearing their joy of getting ready for Christmas? I wonder if any of them ever think about the children still stuck behind the walls of institutions and orphanages and the joy that they and the world are missing out on?
I know one thing, I AM VERY BLESSED!
If you want to visit our current Christmas Sale on Facebook, then go check it out.
Lots of neat ways to start off your Christmas.
Just click that link and it will take you there!
The money from that will help with the cost of the adoption of the next 3 Unroes!
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