Kharkov Ukraine Day Four: Progress

James is wielding the virtual pen this evening.

So, today I awoke with a headache and simply did not feel so well. So, I went back to sleep for several more hours. That seemed to do the trick. I awoke in the afternoon feeling much better, thankfully in time to go with Mary to visit M, K, and R.

Today's visit went rather well. We brought a Frisbee with us as well as a bead craft kit and some Legos. I started throwing the Frisbee around with M while Mary sat down to do some crafts with K. Some of M's friends came over to throw the Frisbee around with us as well. Sadly, for the first forty-five minutes or so, R did not even come out to see us. We started to get worried since she has been so shy during our previous visits. However, when she did come out, she was not shy and closed off like she had been previously. R immediately joined Mary and K in doing crafts. After a while, M wanted to build the Legos and K joined him enthusiastically. While M and K started the Legos, R picked up the Frisbee and asked me to teach her how to throw it. That was a very pleasant surprise. Maybe I'm not so tall this round. Soon, R was tossing it back and forth with me and racing me to try and get to the Frisbee first when we threw it over the fence (accidently, of course). Mary says that we might have a Daddy's girl on our hands...

Near the end of our visit, we sat down with them and talked about adoption. We explained how our family works and some of the things that they can expect if they agree to adoption. When we asked if they had any questions, M and K said no but R asked a couple of really good questions. So, today felt like some major progress with R. She opened up to us far more than any previous visit and now seems genuinely interested. Mary and I pray that it holds. These are great kids and we would love to have M, K, and R join our family!

Tonight we rested a little, enjoyed a dinner of pelmeni, and talked with our children back home. Praying that tomorrow we can continue making progress and move closer to coming home.