Once again, I uploaded pictures in a random order but oh well! Ok, so today is Day 6 and tonight we had dinner with Oleg at a great restaurant on a river with bridges and beaches and lots of families pushing strollers on a perfectly pleasant summer evening. This followed a PERFECT day at the orphange with all the kids. More below...
This is a cute tradition - young couples will put a lock on the bridge symbolizing their devotion to each other, and then throw the key over the railing into the water beneath. It's sweet.
Lots of pictures today of our fun day with the kids...
Pasha, Oleg, Cher
Lena, Marina, Matt, Yuri, Pasha
Dema with one of the puppies
Marina and Cher with the puppies
Yuri and Dema (we fell in love with Dema - what a sweet/special boy. We need to find a family for him!!)
Lena - what a beautiful girl
Yuri took this picture of me and was quite proud of himself. He kept showing it to me.
Matt played in the lake with the kids all afternoon - there was this wooden platform they would dive off of and they were hilarious!! Matt commented on the simplicity and pureness of the joy of these kids. When he walked with them to the lake they were just so smiley and would just reach up to the above branches and pick an apricot off and eat it as they walked. They would laugh with each other and play well together. We noticed the longer we stayed there today, that the group that hung out with us got larger and larger, and it was so much fun to get to know each of these kids individually. Matt was just another one of the kids (that will come as no surprise to all who know him) and he didn't want to stop swimming just like the rest of them didn't!
Yuri
Yuri
Yuri
While the boys played soccer the girls played with a volleyball. They taught me all of these games, my favorite of which is call (translated from Russian) "Invalid Person" and was seriously hysterical. You form a circle and pass the volleyball across to anyone in the cirle, and if someone misses, or if the receiver doesn't pass it on, then that person who messed up has to "lose" a body part - like put one arm behind their back or only balance on one foot or close one eye. Pretty soon people were down on their knees because they'd lost the right to both legs, and these kids were playing the game with one eye shut and an arm behind their back - it was so funny to look around at all of them! We played some other games, too, and it was fun to see them laugh so much.
Here are the boys playing soccer. Matt and Yuri are in the center. 
4 comments:
What a fun day. Your observations about the kids is interesting. These kids find ways to find happiness in their own way, and it is genuine. It's good to see Matt jumping right in the middle of them. He seems like such a great man, and after seeing pictures of your Yuri, he is surely going to be one proud dad of his son, and a daddy for his new daughter.
Thanks for keeping us up to date. We continue to pray for your success.
What fun you are having. I didn't know that you were pregnant. What amazing people you are! The kids look great and so happy. Say hi to Oleg and Vlad for us.
Lots of Love
The Hinksons
Oh my goodness! I go camping for two days and come back to SIX entries!!
I didn't know you were pregnant either. You look darling! Congrats!
What do your new children think of the baby? Have any of the inspectors or directors said anything?
Cute, cute kids!
What fun posts! Thanks for sharing and I think we'll have to try that "Invalid" game!
W
Cher, you guys look so happy. I'm glad you've been able to "adopt" Matt so that he can have something stable and mature in his life! What a big kid...You are building a beautiful family and life. B and I send our best to you and yours. Keep enjoying these once in a lifetime moments. Can't wait to see you all! C&B
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