Day 3 - A New Level

Mama is tired. TIRED.


I have reached the level just after exhausted. I underestimated how draining it would be to have another "little" one around who needs so much of me. I'm not saying I have regrets- not saying its not rewarding... its just a new level of tired. Maybe it will get easier as we find some sort of rhythm. Somehow when I prayed that I wanted to be poured out for another I overlooked the "poured out" part. I'll be honest, there was a moment today that I sat in the quiet of the garage and just sat realizing how much I miss "normal". But it was just a piece of my day, and the rest of the day made it worth it. There is too much to write so I will stick to the highlights.


Our communication is getting better as we picked up more Ukrainian and she picks up more English. Or maybe she is just becoming confident enough to say words that were already familiar from her classes- I don't know. Unfortunately now my kids are talking to me with charades and I am answering them in broken Ukrainian and broken English. The low point of the day would have to be when the boys had a fight that actually went Aiden: "Net!" (no) Gavin: "DAH!" (yes) Aiden: "NET!" Gavin: "DAH!!!!" Net! Dah! Net! Dah!   I mean... REALLY?! Come on. Of course, I am writing the transliteration because they have a different alphabet, but you get the picture. If you ask me a question right now I might say "Dah" or I might say "yes". At this point I might say "si!" (not even either language, and not even a language I speak). . 


We found out a lot more about Vika's story. It isn't pretty, and it isn't going to get shared here. Sorry. It isn't my story and I am having trouble processing it myself, but I am feeling very protective of her. And her story is hers.  I’ll only share this- that her Papa died when she was two. I share this because if you know me then you know I have this thing about Papas being super important in a girl’s life. And because it puts the rest of this post in much better perspective… and the whole point of writing this is so you can see it with me through my eyes


I also learned what foods she likes. And I learned that she REALLY likes Justin Beiber - (you can go ahead and mark that as another low point, haha)! Just kidding. She actually LIKES to try new foods. And speaking of foods... Nana (Babuska!) came over today to meet Vika and bring the kids some cupcakes. Cause that's just what our Nana does.

Our Nana happens to make especially good cupcakes. Vika liked them, and even after she had been off playing came back to ask me how to say "the cupcakes were very, very good" to my mom. 

Gavin thought they were good too. 

He said "I'm just staring at them." But I was sure if I turned my back he would have another. We are suppose to flee from temptation, Gavin. Flee. 

So what happened after Nana left tickled me so much that I was sure it was going to be the highlight of the day. I was asking Vika what she wanted to do while she was here. Other than her dream to learn to ride a bicycle, what other dreams did she have? What experiences did she want to have while in America? She thought a minute and then motioned “swim”. Yes, a friend had already offered to have us over Saturday to swim, although I doubt she has ever seen a pool like the ones we have here. I pressed on… “what else, Vika?” almost wondering if I was pushing it and she would start to ask for things we can’t make happen. Suddenly her face lit up and she had clearly thought of something. She started reaching for the computer and frantically trying to type something into the translator (which takes FOR-EV-ER when you are using an American keyboard for another alphabet)! The translators only work halfway so its usually like playing wheel of fortune… you guess to fill in the blanks for words that don’t translate correctly (or at all). Something about Papa. Mama, please. Papa intelligence something…. Blah blah blah. Hmm, that can’t be right. I asked if she wanted to see Papa’s work? No. She must want to know something. Finally I guessed correctly. You want Papa to teach you to cook? YES! This is hilarious for a couple of reasons. Mostly because Brian made fried rice yesterday. If you know Brian, you know he only cooks fried rice or grills. (Well, there are rumors he cooks well when I am gone but plays dumb to avoid working an oven… but I digress). She typed into the computer with all of the excitement of a kid on Christmas morning. She wanted Papa to teach her to make the hamburger. Please, Mama. Please. So I explained Mama is actually the cook in the family and we had to cook the chicken before it went bad. But, tomorrow Papa would make the burgers and teach her how. Christmas morning, folks. The girl loves her some hamburgers. Tonight, I let her help and she was so excited to help. Actually eating the vegetables was just ok…. let’s just say it wasn’t a hamburger.  

So I laughed so hard about all that I was sure it was the highlight. But the next highlight was on a new level. They say a picture is worth a thousand words, so I will let it speak for itself. When I first looked through the lens I had to put it down a second and pull myself together because I got so choked up.

No words. 

So proud of Isabella, too for cheerfully sharing her bike. And her Papa. :) 

This guy is always there to provide some comic relief.

 They played outside until after dark. Some neighbor kids came over to see Kayla and Vika played basketball with them until I insisted they all come in and shower. I need to reinforce bedtime. Our day felt so packed even when I intentionally made it a day at home. Packed, and poured out. I guess you've gotta call that a good day.

"With God all things are possible."