Lazy Family Day

Today was our first full day with Peter home since Dzintars arrived. It was fantastic to have the whole family together this morning! We played outside nearly all morning. The boys played soccer together and took turns being the goalie! Dzintars seemed to really enjoy his time as goalie and was pleased that even with my hardest kicks I only managed to score on him twice. Then he requested more baseball! I was surprised to learn that he has actually played baseball in Latvia, it's such an "American" sport I was expecting him to have been exposed to it. But he loves it, in fact I think he likes it even more than soccer! And despite having to use a toddler size bat and wiffle balls he still had a blast and launched a few balls over the fence! Luckily the house next door is vacant at the moment and it's easy to go over and retrieve the balls. We'll definitely have to get a larger bat and take him to the park or batting cages one day! If anyone local has baseball stuff they don't mind lending us for the next 5 weeks I'd really appreciate it:) Some friends gave us tickets to the Dodger game on Monday night and now that I know he loves baseball so much I'm sure he's going to be thrilled!!

My studly soccer stars!

Making playdoh creations with Kaelyn:) He's so sweet to the kids! 

He called me to his side and began miming to me. I wasn't quite sure what he was miming and I've learned from this blog: Babe of My Heart post by another hosting mama never to say YES unless you are 100% certain you know what the mimes are in reference to! We finally figured out he was asking for a rake to rake up the thousands of avocado leaves on the grass! He set to work raking the leaves and was SO PROUD of himself when he was done! He came searching for me in the house to show me what he had done!! His translator told me later that he loves to help with the yard work at the orphanage, luckily for him Brennan also loves collecting leaves and depositing them into the trash can! They are a match made in heaven!

Thumbs up from our new gardeners!! Anyone want to hire them?

He's starting to look to Peter more, now that he's had some time with him. They had fun playing sports together this morning and then Dzintars opened up the Latvian version of facebook and You Tube and showed Peter and Brennan pictures from his orphanage as well other things in Latvia. He also showed them pictures of his adult sister. We know from his bio on New Horizons that he was recently very disappointed as she had promised to take him from the orphanage and yet she doesn't even visit him. I can not even imagine how much that hurts his heart:( We have yet to ask him any questions about his past, or how long he has been in the orphanage and for now I think that's okay. He's just starting to bond with us and trust us so those conversations will come in time!

Several chaperones come over with the hosted children and we are required to have the kids call them at least once a week. His chaperone Aija is so, so sweet and is being hosted in Georgia. We spoke with her yesterday to sort out the cat allergy mess and she called again this morning to check on him. He told her he'd had bad dream last night and was still a little upset by it but she was able to calm him down she said. Tonight when I asked him what it was about he said it was about Latvia:(  Please pray for him, that he wouldn't have any more bad dreams and that if he does he will feel comfortable enough to wake us up to comfort him. If Brennan and Kaelyn have bad dreams at night they call out to us and we go to them, I'm saddened that he didn't feel he was able to do that as well. But assume that it's because at his orphanage he'd have to fend for himself after a bad dream as well.

The kids have been asking to see Madagascar 3 but we put it off so we could take Dzintars with us!

I'm so glad we did. Before we even entered the actual theater he looks at me and says "Stacey, America" and gives me a thumbs up!! I thought my heart was going to burst!!! He has the sweetest temperament. We'd learned earlier in the day that he likes to help and after the movie he asked via google translate to help make lunch! So I got him all the supplies to make some good old PB&J sandwiches for him and the kids! He did a great job! I might have a new sous chef to help me out at dinner time!!

I'm definitely going to become a professional Wii player while he's here! He loves playing and asks throughout the day to play one of us. So far his favorite seems to be Mario Kart. He'd never played it before but is getting better and better. I can tell he's got a competitive side, but in a good natured way. He's clearly proud of himself when he does well but not at all hard on himself when he drives right off a cliff!! He's also super patient when Brennan asks to play with him and Brennan's games go on forever because he just can't seem to get the hang of staying ON the road.

He's my little sidekick, I'm his comfort zone for now and even if he's with Peter he'll usually come seek me out after a short while. We've been told it's harder for these kids to learn to trust men, they've either had negative experiences with their biological fathers or just not much exposure to men in the orphanages. We'll definitely be seeking out some male bonding activities just for the two of them this summer! But for now, I'm happy that he's bonded well with me and he's starting to trust Peter and look to him for his questions.

After the littles napped today we headed over to Peter's parents house for some swimming! We knew from his bio on the New Horizons site that he didn't know how to swim and that proved true. I don't think he'd ever been in a pool before, most of these kids haven't. But he was so happy to give it a try! At first he was a bit reluctant to put his face in the water, but once I showed him the goggles and how to blow bubbles out of this nose we were all good! We had a blast throwing the "torpedo" toy back and forth, tossing water footballs and beach balls and jumping into the pool. I showed him how to kick, how to use a kickboard and how to use his arms, he loved it. He willingly tries everything and is so happy to watch and copy me! I just love this kid!! Today I got a glimpse into my future of parenting a teen boy and it was just so much fun!!! We brought our waterproof camera and he really enjoyed having his picture taken under the water. He'd never swam with his head under the water before today and he dove right in and gave it his all! I'm so proud of our boy! Here are some pictures of our swimming fun! 

On Tuesday he starts his private swim lessons with Head Above Water and he is going to LOVE it! I'm pretty sure his swim teachers are going to love him as well, he's so eager to learn and an all around fun kid to hang with!!

A Precious Gift

When Dztinars arrived at the airport he pulled out this big box of chocolates and handed it to us as a gift! Seeing as how it was nearing midnight we thanked him and decided to crack open the box the next day. I could tell by the weight of the box that it wasn't a full one, but still fully assumed there were in fact chocolates in it! Wouldn't you?

The next day however when the kids came home from school they were asking to have a piece of Dzintars chocolate. He seemed to know what they expected to be in the box and tried to tell me that wasn't the case. When we cut the strings off and opened the box we found this little treasure instead.

A beautiful handmade treasure he'd made just for us! Then he turned it over to reveal the sweetest little note ever.

It reads:

Dear Family!

I am very grateful to you that you invited me to stay in your home. Thank you!!! I really want to learn the English language!

Dzintars

He truly is such a sweet boy and we are so blessed to have him in our home! His artwork now hangs in the kitchen right beside all of Brennan and Kaelyn's creations! 

A FULL Day of Fun!!

Whew! We've packed in quite a lot during our first 24 hours with Dzintars. Despite his flight not getting in till nearly midnight we decided to wake the kids up and take them along!! Don't they look cute waiting for him??? They did great! Not a whine or whimper from either of them! They were so excited!!

Our first "family" photo:)

He's pretty quiet and shy and speaks only five English words (yes, no, thank you, your welcome and toilet). Google translate has become my new BFF!! The language barrier hasn't phased Brennan one bit. He jabbered away at Dzintars all the way home from the airport and ran around the house trying to show him everything last night when we got home! When it came time to explain how the shower and bath tub work and what bottles were for what the ENTIRE family decided to join Dzintars and I in the bathroom (I think even Bentley the dog was in the bathroom with us). Poor Dzintars was probably terrified we were all going to stand there and watch him bathe:) Seeing as how most Europeans don't bathe as frequently as Americans we're pretty stoked he was willing to take a shower on his very first night (and again tonight as well, yay!). After a shower and a little TV he headed off to bed.

The moment he stepped out of his room his buddy Brennan was by his side! They played soccer, baseball (they tooked turns pitching and hitting, and Dzintars was surprisingly good at both), blew bubbles, tossed a football and a blow up beach ball! It's safe to say Brennan is LOVING having a big brother around! Kaelyn had a bit of a hard morning, she kept standing at the door saying "Play with me Brennan! Play with me!" Poor girl just got replaced as favorite playmate. At the moment she's quite smitten with Dzintars, the girl is BOY CRAZY I tell you! Which basically means she'll throw flirty eyes at him and smile but doesn't want to get too close.



After the kiddos were at school Dzintars and I headed to Target to pick up a few needed items and try and find some snacks and fruit that he would actually eat. I'm sure we were a sight to see in Target, me holding everything in sight up to him and trying to figure out if he liked it. We even bought some Target popcorn...which was all he wanted for lunch. Nice try buddy. Once he saw me eating a PB & J he decided to eat the one I made for him as well. We also picked up a Crayola "Story Studio" pack at Target. It allows you to create your own comic book character (similar to creating your own Mii when playing Wii) and then insert it into a comic book story. He LOVED doing this! It was fun creating the story and characters together. Then we printed it out and he set about coloring it! He's quite a detail oriented guy. He spent nearly a half hour coloring and only did this one page!

Up until this point of our day there were lots of silences and he wasn't saying anything to me unless I spoke to him first. He finally started opening up when I showed him the Wii and we battled it out at Mario Kart! It was clearly his first time playing it, as evidenced by the way he frequently drove his cars right over the cliff, but he took it all in stride and smiled often. I'm pretty competetive and while I don't play Wii often I know the courses on Mario Kart well enough to come in in the top three. Personally I don't mind losing as long as I'm not getting creamed so for his sake I decided to tone down my skills and follow his car right off those cliffs! I didn't let him beat me every race, but I made sure I was at the back of the pack with him and truth be told sometimes I drove off those cliffs on accident because I was too busy watching him smile as he played:) He must have liked playing it because he asked me to play it again in the afternoon!

Seeing as how it's Friday night we decided a trip to the Monrovia Street Fair was in order. Serious FUN was had by all! First stop was pizza. Then the boys hit up the bounce house obstacle course! Dzintars LOVED LOVED LOVED this! And Brennan was so excited to do it with him! They had a blast, he smiled the entire time! Pure joy! I was so happy to be able to tell him we get to come again next Friday!!

This is my favorite picture so far:)

He'd has his eye on the ponies while waiting for the obstacle course, so we headed over to find out if he was still within the size limits to ride! Luckily he was! It was his first time on a horse! We love the family that runs the pony rides, such sweet people and they were more than willing to allow him a ride even though he may have been a teeny bit big:)

From there we headed to the "Bubble Guy"! After seeing how he reacted to bubble blowing at the house this morning I was certain this would be a hit and it was. The "Bubble Guy" is quite the character, if you live in Monrovia you know what I mean, but once we explained that Dzintars knew no English he was super sweet as he demonstrated how to properly use a "bubble baseball mitt" to catch bubbles. He had a blast catching and popping bubbles, it's the simple things that just delight him! The ones our American kiddos have been experiencing practically since birth! Once again, I'm thankful that the Street Fair occurs weekly and we'll be able to enjoy the "Bubble Guy's" antics all summer long.

We then headed over to Miss Cindy's toy store (Dollmakers Kattywompus). Brennan showed him how to play with the trains and Dzintars gleefully explored the battery operated toy cars. He pushed every button and smiled every time the wheels turned, sirens blared or horns honked! He kept calling me over "Stacey, Stacey!" to show me just what he was doing. So precious! Miss Cindy knocked our socks off by making all three kiddos balloon swords which was a huge hit!! Balloon sword fights are awesome!! And a great ice breaker for a nervous kiddo to boot!!! 

Once we explained to Miss Cindy that Dzintars was from Latvia she went and retrieved a flag pin for him and pinned it on him. Declaring him an official American boy:) He was so PROUD of that pin, he immediately called Brennan over to show it off! Miss Cindy is so, so good to not only my kids, but every kid that comes into her store! She knows my kids by name and just loves on them weekly. We are so blessed!

We finished our Street Fair trip with Coldstones. Our first ice cream trip of the summer. We'll definitely be doing that again. Yum.

We found some time for a few more balloon sword fights once we got home too!

We've had a great first day. The only slight issue has been the way his nose increased in stuffiness and his eyes became redder by the minute. Finally mid afternoon he called me over and pointed to his nose and I just knew we were in trouble. I'd already inquired via google translate if he might be allergic to cats or dogs. He'd said no, but clearly that wasn't the case. Maybe it got lost in translation??? So I dialed up the New Horizons translator and told her what I suspected was the culprit then handed the phone back to Dzintars. He told her he'd been exposed to cats at school occasionally and had this same reaction. And that while he was inside our house he felt this way but when outside of the house he felt fine. UH OH! Such a bummer and honestly one of the few fears I had about hosting because really what are our options?? We hit up the on call doctor for New Horizons and she recommended some over the counter meds but I really can't see them helping enough to keep him from being completely miserable for the next 5 weeks. I feel terrible for him:(  Still not sure how we're going to combat this problem! If anyone wants to take in two soft and cuddly indoor cats for the next 5 weeks (or forever) please let me know! 













The "A" Word

With Dzintars arriving in less than a week I thought it was time to cover a very important topic...the "A" word!!

What might the "A" word be you ask???

ADOPTION!! 

New Horizons for Children is NOT an adoption agency. They are a hosting program only and any mention of the word adoption jeopardizes their program. And while it is true that 65% of the children who are hosted this summer will go on to be adopted by families in the United States it is not beneficial to the children for adoption to be discussed in their presence. The ONLY thing they have been promised is a summer in America, they are essentially going on a 5 week vacation to another country, that is it! They all know they will be returning to their own countries once the 5 weeks are up! The only thing worse than a child living in an orphanage, is having hopes raised that their life is going to change, they will be adopted, and then they are not. More often than not, children who are told they are being adopted, or being led to believe this, are the same ones WHO ARE NOT EVER ADOPTED.

We may NOT talk to Dzintars about any aspect of adoption; or mention the possibility, the concept, the thought process or any form of the "A" word in his presence and we ask that you respect this rule as well. We are not planning on adopting Dzintars, but we have agreed to be his advocates and we hope and pray that a family would step forward and adopt him!

You may THINK the kids do not understand any English but they may have actually pick up on
various parts of conversations. We've been asked to be super proactive in letting others know this rule before we run into a problem (hence this blog post).

In the past, slip ups have occurred in the following ways and have really caused heartache:

• In the concept of discussing a pet's "adoption"...a child heard the word, and didn't realize it was in relation to a pet, but thought it was for him! It wasn't. 
• When attending a church service, the pastor was so excited to welcome the hosted children present, he asked for church members to pray that each child would get adopted. 
• When a mom was driving down the road with music playing, she thought her hosted child couldn't understand, so she called someone and discussed adoption of the child. The child heard and soon spread the "news" to others at group events that they were all being adopted. 
• In discussing the joy of personally being an "adopted" child, a parent was trying to share a personal experience, but the child misunderstood and thought it was about him/her. 

Please help us protect Dzintars from disappointment. We know he really wants a family as he's told his orphanage director as much, but part of our job as his host family is to protect him from heartbreak. 

If you or someone you know is interested in possibly adopting Dzintars (or any other child that is part of the New Horizons hosting program) they can contact New Horizons directly at www.newhorizonsforchildren.org or at the very least shoot me an email that I can read when he is not around!

We appreciate your help in this matter! Feel free to share our blog link with others you know who may be interested in Dzintars or the New Horizons hosting program!

Seventeen More Days!!!!

It's hard to believe we are so close to meeting Dzintars! Only 17 more days till he arrives here in California!! We've received his official flight information and his plane arrives in LAX just after 12 am on the 28th of June. We really want to have the kids there with us to greet him when he arrives, but with his arrival time being so far past their bedtime we'll have to see.  We're looking forward to meeting him and sharing our summer with him!

We're busy seeking out fun teenage boy activities to do with Dzintars while he's here. After sending out many emails to various museums, zoos etc. We have been blessed to have tickets donated for our entire family for The Discovery Science Center as well as two tickets to the Aquarium of the Pacific . Sadly Disneyland turned down our request...we expected as much, but figured it never hurts to try. After all Walt Disney was adopted!

We also have his Dental and Eye exams donated by local doctors! Yay! Hopefully he'll only need the exams and not any dental work or glasses!

Now that we're just weeks away from meeting him it's time to start getting things prepared for his arrival. Brennan will be moving in with Kaelyn while he's here so that Dzintars can have his own room. We've bought him a few pieces of clothing and a swimsuit (for his lessons generously donated by Head Above Water ) and are hoping to get most of the rest of his clothing donated once we know what his sizes are.

We still have a small amount of money we need to raise in order to cover his additonal flight from the East Coast to California. If you'd like to donate money to help cover those costs you can safely do so by visiting our Active.com site . Those funds will go directly to Dzintars airline fees.

One other thing we've been asked to provide him with is a Bible in his native language of Latvian. We've yet to purchase one, but have our eye on one on Ebay, we need to get on that as it's coming directly from Latvia. If you'd like to bless Dzintars by purchasing a Bible for him please let me know and I can pass along that information for you!

We covet your prayers at this time. Many older caregivers in Eastern Europe have a former Soviet Union mentality and are very skeptical of Americans and why we'd want to host their children. It is unfortunate that they feel this way and even more unfortunate that they feel the need to pass these fears onto the younger generation, especially those about to embark on the hosting experience. Dzintars has been fortunate enough to have personally met some Americans through a church that "adopted" his orphanage and organized a mission trip to deliver gifts during Christmas so hopefully he won't be coming over with unnecessary fears. But if we stop a moment to put ourselves in his shoes, he's bound to be a little fearful. He's leaving everything he knows, coming to a new country where people speak a language he doesn't know and while we chose him and have been praying for him for months, he will not be told about us until he arrives at the airport to come to America. Please pray for a smooth transition for all of us!!