One step at a time...

Yesterday started beautifully! It was St. Nicholas Day in Ukraine, so Anna ran upstairs with a paper in Russian saying, "Happy St.Nicholas Day". Alyona jumped out of bed and hugged Anna. That was the first time they have hugged. When Perry picked up the kids from school the first day she arrived (after she slept till 12:00) they gave a wave to one another in the school office. Anna has tried to physically get close, but is just not brave enough to 'put herself out there'. So the hug was great. They opened small gifts and YES, both she and Anna got the $2.88 "A" necklaces that Alyona had been eyeing the day before. (There were only 2 so Abigail got Alice in Wonderland).
We got the kids to school and a friend offered to watch Abigail so Alyona and I could try day 2 of shoe shopping. We found the perfect, gray and black pair of sparkly flats. As we walked through the Christmas aisles gazing, she said a word. She really only ever says, "thank you, yes, no, and let's go'. The universal word of all teenage girls..."Justin". And there it was a Justin Bieber ornament! Nothing says Christmas like that! I explained (probably without her understanding) that I would bring her back once that thing was marked down, and she could use her Christmas money to buy it!
We then started a long road trip to pick up some kids I babysit on Wednesdays. I had not planned ahead, she was hungry. So, we went to Mc Donalds. Another universal concept. We NEVER go to fast food (or any restaurant really). They are only for travelling or dress up like a cow days. I let her get the largest regular coke and was hoping all the empty calories would stick. She also got a cheeseburger and fries. Another word came out of her mouth, "yummy".

Honestly I wasn't sure how babysitting would be with her here. It was AWESOME! She loved "Katra" and walked around after her as she toddled about. Somewhere along the way, she has seen how to love/treat a baby. She held her on her lap and bounced her feet together. She put 2 bows in her hair and enjoyed a banana with her.
We helped out at Anna's school and that was natural and fun. We got Nathan out early and were all heading to the parking lot when Alyona noticed I was carrying a lot of things. So she took Nathan's backpack, put it on and started chasing him around. It was the first time I have felt her appreciate the gift our children are. She was enjoying them. So far, that was my sweetest memory.

When we approached our driveway, she said, "grand ma". Who was home watching the little kids so we could help out at the school. Everything was so great. Our time together was fun and natural. I love watching little kids just talk and play with her like she understands them.

That night we went to church. This was the first time she would see her original host family. It was inevitable. I knew she would really want to see them. It was hard. Really hard. They were probably the first family that has ever shown her that kind of love. She cried and hugged them tightly. My heart ached. Mainly because I was DYING to know what she was thinking and because we want that kind of connection with her. I find I often assume her thoughts, but really have no idea since with her history she has a completely different lense through which she views life. To the host family's credit, they sat at 3 different tables and loved her without misleading her. They did a great job of balancing interest in her and us. Again, I felt the Body of Christ. As I looked around the room friends cast me knowing glances. They knew this was hard. They were praying for us. They gave us space. We all just carried on like this was normal. I know we are loved. One faithful step at a time...people! That is what we are doing. I could imagine our social worker saying, "THAT IS AWESOME THAT SHE IS ATTACHED! SHE CAN ATTACH! Relationships take time! This is great!"
That night after the kids were in bed Perry and I prayed. What a rich time of sitting on the couch laying it all out before the Lord. Confessing trying to get ahead of Him. Trying to let Him lead and us follow. And last night, I slept. A sweet, peaceful, night's sleep. He is so faithful to us!