Strike

We had another sweet talk with Ija, Dzintars chaperone, yesterday. He's only required to check in with her once a week and had just talked to her the day before but after his fun at Knott's he asked to call her again. I obliged. Can you imagine having such a fun and exciting experience and not being able to truly share it with anyone around you because they do not understand your language? I sat and listened as he happily jabbered on and on about the roller coasters and his first day of soccer camp. Then I got on the phone with her and she proceeded to tell me that having a family has always been one of Dztinars dreams, he talks about it often back in Latvia and he is just so happy here with our family. She said he is living out his dream! And then she thanked us for having such an impact on his life and allowing him to experience family life this summer. Hosting has changed this young man, he's more confident, and he's full of joy and laughter. She can hear all this over the phone lines. I tell you this because often people wonder what impact hosting can actually have on a child. They seem to think that it is cruel to allow them to experience life in a family for a few weeks and then send them back to an orphanage. I desperately desire for Dzintars to be a permanent part of a family, but should that not be part of God's plan for our sweet boy I know that his time here has had a great and hopefully lasting impact on his life!  

Today was day two of soccer camp for Dzintars. He is just loving it! I'm still so thankful that he is having this experience and so is he! I have to sit on the far side of the field where our four year old is playing, so I don't get to see each and every thing Dzintars is doing. But Coach JJ tells me he is all smiles out there!! 

Another "hat trick" for Dzintars today. For those of you that don't speak "soccer" that means he got three goals in a single game.

We spent the afternoon at the bowling alley with the Ellis boys! We just can't get enough of those boys and everyone in our house seems to go thru withdrawls after only a day or two without seeing them.

It is clear from this picture just how much he loves these boys! They have had such an impact on him this summer! So thankful for boys that will accept him and include him in things despite the fact that they can't even communicate with him! I've said for years (long before Brennan was born) that if I ever had sons I'd want them to be just like the Ellis boys! Thanks for proving me right guys! Well done Paul and Mary Ann, these are some seriously amazing young men you are raising!

I have a friend who often starts her facebook status updates with "I know my God is real..." and then proceeds to write how she sees God working in her day. Well today I have my own...

I know my God is real because with all the waitresses in all the restaurants we could have eaten at tonight we chose the one with the Russian speaking waitress! So far when we have eaten out I've ordered for Dzintars. Today, I decided it was a good opportunity for him to practice his English. So I informed the waitress that he was learning English and then proceeded to help him say his order in English.  She could have written down his order and moved on, but instead she kindly asked him where he was from. When he said Latvia she told us she was fluent in Russian but did not speak Latvian. Good thing Dzintars speaks both. She so sweetly conversed with him back and forth the rest of the night! He was SOOO happy to have a "real" conversation with someone. He told her how he liked America very much, that Latvia was nice but it has problems and he preferred America. It was also a great opportunity to share about New Horizons as she asked how it was that he came to stay with us. She was a great waitress, it didn't phase her one bit that every time she came to bring another basket of fries or extra napkins that Dzintars wanted to strike up a conversation. She engaged him every single time and I was so grateful!! She truly made his night! I was so grateful in fact I called her manager on the way home and told him just how fantastic she was!

Some people would call it a coincidence, but not me. It was a special gift just for our boy from the Lord. He spoke to us mainly in Russian the rest of the evening. I'm fairly certain he likes teasing us in this way, he knows we cannot understand a word he is saying, but he wants us to get an idea of he's been feeling the past three weeks. So he babbles on and on in Russian or Latvian all the while smiling at our inability to understand him. Such a character that one!!