Charles and Lauren taking a break from ice skating

Vitalik and Lauren having a little fun ice skating at Mohoney State park :)

Thanksgiving dinner with the family

I hope everyone had a nice Thanksgiving. We did, but it was very busy. My dad and brother
came down from Grand Rapids, Michigan for a week. Vitalik enjoyed his first turkey leg. He was
so funny, he ate every bit of meat on the bone. There was nothing left on that turkey leg. He
tryed many new American dishes. He liked cranberry sauce, fruit salad, but turkey the best.
We all enjoyed our family time together.

Joshua and Lauren are getting better aquinted with Vitalik and a little more comfortable. You
know their bonding when they start a wrestling match on the floor. They are acting more and
more like brothers and sister.

Vitalik started school on Monday. He started the language program at our local high school. He will go there for a semester. He is already doing real well. He can read and understand more
than I thought. His English is improving every day. The only issue I have right now is getting
him out of the bed in the mornings. We are working on that one!! He is also able to take weight
lifting class and choir. He is enjoying those classes. His teacher is a straight shooter and makes
the students do their best. she communicates with me almost daily. I think that is important, especially in the beginning. He is learning very good work ethics.

I am amazed how God is changing our lives. What a great adventure :)

Blessings,
Jeri

Our first family photo!
Vitalik, Joshua and Lauren having a fun day at the Omaha zoo.
Vitalik and Montie having some quality time.

Hello,

I thought it was time to blog again. It has been a quick 2 weeks.

Vitalik and I have been back 2 weeks tomorrow. The first 5 days was the jet lag and enjoying charles, Joshua and Lauren. As far as Vitalik, He is adjusting pretty well. He plays basketball, football and rides his bike a lot. He is also enjoying the Xbox games and computer. He laughs and jokes around with us on a regular basis. Josh and Lauren have been amazed at how athletic he is. The first day, they all immediately went outside and played together.

He will start school on Monday. We went to the Doctor and Dentist this week. He is ready to go. He will be learning English the first semester, after that, he should be in regular classes.

As you can imagine, I am very happy to be home :) I am looking forward to a little rest. I haven't stopped!

I am posting a few pictures.

Blessings,

Jeri and Charles

4:30 PM Friday

Jeri just informed me that she is back in the US (Minneapolis) and waiting to go through customs! They will be back in Omaha tonight arriving @ 7:50 on Northwest. Finally!!!!

One Day Delay ;-(

Jeri got to the airport this morning and when checking in found out the travel agent had booked her return flight for Friday, not Thursday. After spending a few hours there seeing if there was any way to get on today's flights she could not, they were booked solid. She confirmed she is on tomorrow's flight, same time, so she and Vitaliy will be home Friday night instead of tonight. We are thankful that it is only a one day delay. Thanks for all your prayers and support!

Charles

COMING HOME!!!!

Everyone,

Sorry there have been no posts to the blog for over a week. Jeri was moving from place to place, the internet service where she was staying was not working, then she had passport issues and scheduling flights to Kiev, etc........ I just spoke to her this morning (Wednesday, 5 pm in Kiev). She arrived in Kiev Monday night after getting Vitaliy's passport late Monday afternoon. Apparently many of Vitaliy's friends from the orphanage all came to the airport to spend time with him before he flew to Kiev. Their flight was delayed so Jeri said they talked for almost two hours with them before they had to leave, I'm sure that was tough but Vitaliy must have felt very supported to know how much he means to his friends @ #4.

Yesterday she visited the embassy and then went to the doctor's to get the medical clearance. She went back to the embassy this afternoon and as of about 20 minutes ago got the visa she needs to return home tomorrow!!! She will be leaving Kiev first thing in the morning Thursday and flying back via Amsterdam to Minneapolis to Omaha on Northwest, I think she said her flight # is 6884 and arrive Omaha @ 7:52 PM. I know she is looking forward to being home with the kids, it will have been 7 weeks she has been away from them on Friday.

When we started this journey I had a lot of misconceptions about the adoption process in Ukraine. It is longer, more difficult, more expensive, more everything. It will test your faith beyond anything you can imagine. Be prepared!!! Having a good support system will mean more to you than you will ever know. Friends in Omaha made this possible for our family, without all of them (and the list is so long it says much about the people in this community) we could not have done this. A special thanks to Laura and Terry F. and their family, they blessed our kids with their guidance and support while we were gone. In Odessa we had help from many, including Michelle M. and Tanya and Paul B., to name a few. Everyone has been just teriffically supportive, and back here I know of many, many families and friends who kept us in their prayers - they really worked and were answered!

So, tomorrow we will end one journey and begin another as Vitaliy joins our family. I know Jeri will want to post when she gets back, so look for it in a couple of days. Also, I want to let other family's know that the support we got from our facilitator (Oleg's team) Natasha/Natalia was incredibly professional and supportive. We were truly blessed to have her as our advocate in Ukraine throughout all the challenges we faced. She is an amazing person.

Finally, Thanks God! You saw us through this like you said you would.

Charles