We learned today that our dossier was submitted! So my first question when I heard that was "What does that mean?!" I know Ukraine back and forth but I had no idea what that meant for Bulgaria. Well, the next step is the verbal referral. Verbal referrals are always issued on Tuesdays. We will probably hear tomorrow if can get our referral this Tuesday or if we will have to wait for next Tuesday. After the verbal referral it will take about 3 weeks for the Minister to sign off on it and then we travel! Something a bit different about Bulgaria compared to Ukraine is that we have flexibility in our travel. In Ukraine you are given a date for your SDA appointment and that is when you travel...no matter what. In Bulgaria they will give us some options for travel and will work with us to find a good week for us to travel.
In other adoption related news, we met the $4000 match for our grant one whole month early! Our first trip is now funded and we are only about $3000 or so from being fully funded! Now let's go get that girl!
Thursday, February 16, 2012
Wednesday, February 15, 2012
The joys of boys
If you don't have boys in your house I have to tell you that you are really missing out! If the video that I showed you in an earlier post didn't give you a taste of what life with my boys is like, let me show you what my boys do with snowmen!
This snowman tripped coming up our front step and fell apart....
This poor snowman wasn't looking where he was going and smashed into our house....
This guy is swimming away from snow sharks!....
And this guy walked right into our back door trying to come in. He manages to freak us out every time we glimpse that way before we realize what it is!
And that is how you do snow...boy style!
This snowman tripped coming up our front step and fell apart....
This poor snowman wasn't looking where he was going and smashed into our house....
This guy is swimming away from snow sharks!....
And this guy walked right into our back door trying to come in. He manages to freak us out every time we glimpse that way before we realize what it is!
And that is how you do snow...boy style!
Wednesday, February 1, 2012
Walking Progress
It's the first of the month again and time for another CP Connection blog! Today I want to show a bit about Oksana's walking progress.
I don't have video of how she "walked" when she came home but I do have this picture. She basically used her knees as her feet. She could move around amazingly fast like this!
Here is Oksana approx 2 months after arriving home practicing walking with her walker.
Here she is when she started walking independently. This is just under 2 months after the walker video. I can't get over how wide her gait is.
Here she is walking about a year after the video above was taken! What a difference! This is some of her best walking since she knew I was video taping. You should know that on a regular basis she does not walk like this but it gives you an idea of how far she has come!
I don't have video of how she "walked" when she came home but I do have this picture. She basically used her knees as her feet. She could move around amazingly fast like this!
Here is Oksana approx 2 months after arriving home practicing walking with her walker.
Here she is when she started walking independently. This is just under 2 months after the walker video. I can't get over how wide her gait is.
Here she is walking about a year after the video above was taken! What a difference! This is some of her best walking since she knew I was video taping. You should know that on a regular basis she does not walk like this but it gives you an idea of how far she has come!
Thursday, January 26, 2012
You may call it backtracking but I call it progress...
As some of you know I've fought for a long time now to get Oksana some help walking. Can she walk independently? Yes. Having said that, walking long distances or in crowds with her is a nightmare. We were told at the MRI that she has brain damage that affects balance. As I see more and more kids with CP learn to walk I can definitely see how different she is in the area of stability and balance. All kids with CP fall but Oksana is out of control and all over the place when she walks. She can control it but it takes so much effort. Put her in Target with people walking all over the place and bright things everywhere you look and forget it. So like I mentioned before, Shriners recommended putting her in a walker during those times.
I called her PT when this happened just to bounce it off of her and she thought it was a great idea. She talked to me a bit more about situations where it would be appropriate and situations where it was unnecessary. At that time school was only briefly mentioned and I honestly can't remember if we labeled it under unnecessary or didn't label it at all. All I know is using it at school was never put on the table. Only a few days later I got a letter from her. She wanted to know if we might possibly consider letting her use that walker at school ONLY for long distances in the hallway. She cited a number of reasons including that she falls a lot, kids bump into her and she loses balance, she is all over the halls and has trouble walking straight, etc, etc, etc,. She confessed later that she was unsure how I would react. I told her she didn't know me very well then because my reaction was "HALLELUJAH"! After all this time someone FINALLY sees what I see and they aren't making their decisions on how Oksana should walk based on spending 2 hours a week with her in a controlled environment and then expecting that to be how she walks 24/7. Apparently she had a walker in a storage closet that she pulled out for her and she said it was great. To start with, she noticed that the kids were so much more aware of her and are very careful around her. She also said that when she walks without a walker her gait, form, and control go out the window because she is working SO HARD to just stay upright. YES! That's exactly right! She said using this walker gave her a great chance to practice correct gait and form....something she hasn't had for a LONG LONG time since we ditched that last walker. She also mentioned that it gives her some independence since she can get a basket for it and carry her lunch box, library books, etc.
So as of right now we are still waiting on the walker I ordered, and who knows how long that will be, but until then she has the loaner to use at school. Like I said in the title, you may look at this and think we are backtracking with her but I call it progress. She's finally getting what she needs to be able to function in the world around her.
I called her PT when this happened just to bounce it off of her and she thought it was a great idea. She talked to me a bit more about situations where it would be appropriate and situations where it was unnecessary. At that time school was only briefly mentioned and I honestly can't remember if we labeled it under unnecessary or didn't label it at all. All I know is using it at school was never put on the table. Only a few days later I got a letter from her. She wanted to know if we might possibly consider letting her use that walker at school ONLY for long distances in the hallway. She cited a number of reasons including that she falls a lot, kids bump into her and she loses balance, she is all over the halls and has trouble walking straight, etc, etc, etc,. She confessed later that she was unsure how I would react. I told her she didn't know me very well then because my reaction was "HALLELUJAH"! After all this time someone FINALLY sees what I see and they aren't making their decisions on how Oksana should walk based on spending 2 hours a week with her in a controlled environment and then expecting that to be how she walks 24/7. Apparently she had a walker in a storage closet that she pulled out for her and she said it was great. To start with, she noticed that the kids were so much more aware of her and are very careful around her. She also said that when she walks without a walker her gait, form, and control go out the window because she is working SO HARD to just stay upright. YES! That's exactly right! She said using this walker gave her a great chance to practice correct gait and form....something she hasn't had for a LONG LONG time since we ditched that last walker. She also mentioned that it gives her some independence since she can get a basket for it and carry her lunch box, library books, etc.
So as of right now we are still waiting on the walker I ordered, and who knows how long that will be, but until then she has the loaner to use at school. Like I said in the title, you may look at this and think we are backtracking with her but I call it progress. She's finally getting what she needs to be able to function in the world around her.
Wednesday, January 25, 2012
Dossier EN ROUTE!!!
2 blogs in a day again...what's wrong with me?! Well of course I couldn't go to bed without sharing that our dossier was completed and mailed today! It should arrive in Bulgaria on Friday and that puts us about 8 weeks from meeting Anya!!! Happy, happy day!
Crazy boys
Oksana is often full of adventures and various doctor's appointments which makes for pretty good blog material but I want to take a moment to share a bit about my boys. I shared with you at Christmas time that Clayton has a passion for video production. He and Evan love to make many different types of videos but their favorite is infomercials. They make up various items and create a commercial for them. They made this video yesterday and I thought you would enjoy getting a peek at the boys at their best ;):
Now, be sure to comment because you should know that Clayton will pester me hourly asking if anyone has commented yet ;). He's sitting here laughing as I write that because he knows it's true!
Now, be sure to comment because you should know that Clayton will pester me hourly asking if anyone has commented yet ;). He's sitting here laughing as I write that because he knows it's true!
Sunday, January 22, 2012
Future Container Store employee
2 blogs in one night! I must be on a roll. Make sure you don't miss my attempt at being crafty in the blog before this!
As you know Oksana has obsessions. Balls and balloons are always there and are probably the most intense. Others come and go. Firefighters are losing their intensity now and I've seen her develop a new love for containers. Really anything that you can hold things in. She loves to carry around her balls and balloons along with other various objects. Her two favorite containers are plastic grocery bags
and ziploc bags
She will take multiple plastic grocery bags and she will sometimes wrap each item in a bag (or 2 or 3) then put them all in another bag (or 2 or 3). She calls them Target bags no matter where they come from! The ziplocs are also great for holding things and it's even better if you can get a few items in it and then blow it up so it's like a balloon! While those are her primary containers she will use anything she can find. Like boxes
or little plastic containers that are the perfect size for some rocks
The other day we were at a doctor's office. They had a nice little basket on the table with brochures in it. She had found a container! Before I could blink she had those brochures emptied out and she was ready to fill her basket! I guess I need to teach her to say "Welcome to the Container Store!". Then again, maybe that wouldn't be a good idea. She'd spend her whole check as soon as she got it!
As you know Oksana has obsessions. Balls and balloons are always there and are probably the most intense. Others come and go. Firefighters are losing their intensity now and I've seen her develop a new love for containers. Really anything that you can hold things in. She loves to carry around her balls and balloons along with other various objects. Her two favorite containers are plastic grocery bags
and ziploc bags
She will take multiple plastic grocery bags and she will sometimes wrap each item in a bag (or 2 or 3) then put them all in another bag (or 2 or 3). She calls them Target bags no matter where they come from! The ziplocs are also great for holding things and it's even better if you can get a few items in it and then blow it up so it's like a balloon! While those are her primary containers she will use anything she can find. Like boxes
or little plastic containers that are the perfect size for some rocks
The other day we were at a doctor's office. They had a nice little basket on the table with brochures in it. She had found a container! Before I could blink she had those brochures emptied out and she was ready to fill her basket! I guess I need to teach her to say "Welcome to the Container Store!". Then again, maybe that wouldn't be a good idea. She'd spend her whole check as soon as she got it!
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