Mayra Graduates and Victor turns 6!

Two big events in the Passanita household lately have been the graduation of our Mexican daughter, Mayra, from Liberty University in Lynchburg, VA and Victors 6th birthday.
Mayra has worked very hard and very diligently the past 4 years to earn her bachelors degree in Government. When she came to America as a foreign exchange student 6 years ago we had no idea how much she would impact our lives. We had only made a 3 month commit to house her as Travis's Spanish teacher hadn't found anyone to house 2 of the girls. We hadn't thought about doing it because we had a teenage boy so having a teenage girl in the house hadn't crossed our mind as being feasible. Well to make a long story short our 3 month commitment has turned into 6 wonderful years of so many blessings I count count them all. Mayra is just as much one our children as the others are; we just have to share her with her other family in Mexico. It was a great blessing for her mom to be able to join us to go to her graduation. The ceremony was just like any graduation and had all the fanfare of it all. It has been amazing the spiritual journey she has made though. She was catholic when she came here but made a decision to accept Jesus into her heart and be water baptized after the first year here and learning through church and youth group. God has shown up in so many ways for her as a result of that through finances and opportunities that could have only been Him because we never thought there was a chance that she would be able to attend and pay for college after the first year. But through it all she has a very strong faith and is on fire for the Lord and has a desire to live her life in accordance with whatever plan He has for her. Amen and Hallelujah!!!! What a blessing to us and to the boys she has been and continues to be. She has a job right here in Williamsburg and so we will get to enjoy having her home and watching the next phase of her life unfold. We are truly the lucky ones to have her in our life.

Victor (Veecha) Turns 6 Years old!

He is still such a peanut but he has such a big personality. He wanted to be superman on his birthday so I thought about it for a minute and decided that would be OK. We went about making a costume out of the pajamas we got him and he marched off to school as the happiest little superhero in the world. Words could not describe the excitement he had for his birthday. He had been looking forward to it for quite sometime and particularly after he got to attend Vanyas little party at school. Soooo we did the whole cake and ice cream thing in his class and also had a game of "put the S sticker on the superman" as well as had some bubbles to blow outside and the infamous balloon pop race. He was totally exhausted by the end of recess that day and wanted to come home when I left but I made him stick it out. He got some wonderful presents from the grandparents and I think the highlight of the day was the police and superman outfits he could don.

Rob and I got to take him out by himself for his special birthday dinner. He wanted to go where he could get sushi (of all things for a kids to like) so we went to the sushi bar at the Japanese steakhouse we have here. He got to watch the sushi chefs make his sushi and we ordered what is called a "love boat" which has a combination of different types of sushi on it. I am not a fan of raw fish so my selections were limited but Victor liked EVERYTHING! He was so excited he fell off his chair and landed on the floor. He rubbed his head and got up and then laughed! Most of the people around us did as well.

Afterwards we took him for ice cream at Maggie Moo's (local fancy ice cream parlor). He is pretty simple with his tastes and wanted a 2 scoop cone with chocolate and vanilla. He enjoyed every bite all over himself and the table etc etc. You only get to turn 6 once so we let him enjoy himself and just cleaned up after. There was a water fountain outside and he asked to throw in a penny. We told him he could make a wish and then throw it in. He didn't care much about hte wish part he just wanted to chuck the coin in and see ifhe could get it into the top part. I think it acutallt went all the way over the fountain. We didn't hear anyone scream so we assume he didn't hit anyone. He always love to smile for pictures so he posed by the fountain for as many pictures as we would take. Good thing for a digital camera!

Once we got home he was so tired but when I offered to rock him in the rocking chair for a little bit he immediately took me up on that offer. He isn't usually one to cuddle for too long so I was excited he wanted to do that. We sang "Jesus loves me" and I got to add how special he was and that Jesus must have loved us too in order to give us such a wonderful son. To that he simply said," Well of course He does, He loves everyone. I'm sleepy, can you put me in bed now." And that was that. His smile really paints the whole picture and he will be a man of few words but I think he knows how much he is loved and wanted and for that I am grateful.

Mama mama mama

Mothers Day

What an awesome day for me! The first Mother's Day with the boys was sooo special. Just seeing their little faces as they raced up the aisle at church to give me their flower brought tears to my eyes (and half the congregation as well). They were so proud to have a mama to give it to. They also participated in giving out the others flowers to the other mothers whose children weren't there to do it.
They each made special things for me at school. They had such a hard time not telling me ahead of time or giving things to me ahead of time. They are all very giving.
Vanyas class had a little mothers day tea where the kids got to serve us some food and show us their specials treasures they had made. A potpourri sashe with a cute poem and a painted clay dish that was crafted with his own hands. It is red with hints of yellow in it; perfect for holding paper clips and other small bits of things. All of these in a bag with painted pink hearts made with a sponge and the words," Happy Mothers Day Love, Vanya". He said," Hey look, everybody has a mama here" with a very surprised voice inflection. I think he was a confused by that but quickly moved on to showing me how he could dress up to be a doctor. He proceeded to go around and check everyone ears with the play doctors kit. You never know, he might just be a doctor one day.
Veecha made a card with a poem in it that described things about me (some of which were true and others I think he copied from someone else). He also gave a coupon for Vacuum cleaning so it should be interesting to see how that will work. He grew a plant at school and made a picture to go around the pot that had a sun and flowers and clouds. All red and blue crayons but very cute. He was so excited to give his things to me that he wanted to open them himself since I was clearly taking too much time to get into the bag. His smiles and kisses warmed my heart.
Yuri also had made a book with my attributes in it like "She always makes cookies and sometimes she washes clothes but mostly she likes to play computer." Interesting perspectives they have about things. Yuri had colored a paper teapot very nicely and all within the lines and colored with typical colors for the eyes, mouth etc.. On the inside it had a tea bag and said: "Whenever I stress you out just sit back, relax and have a cup of tea". He really thinks and puts extra effort into things he gives to other people and particularly things for me. He makes sure to add that he will do things for papa on his day but today is just for mama. He also gave me a coupon but his was good for grocery shopping. I wonder what he would come back with if I sent him in to grocery shop? Hhmmm. He also made a pendant out of a large safety pin with small safety pins that he had strung beads on to look like a heart. He really likes to draw and make hearts of all kinds and loves to give them to me. I treasure every one and have worn my pin twice already and make sure to tell people he made it for me. He just beams when I do that. That's what it is all about.
So here is how the day went (I knew you would want the whole scoop babushka!) In the morning I got up and had to be at church early so Yuri went with me as he was already up and dressed. He helped me put thing on the bulletin board at church for the orphan ministry we lead. After that we shared a dreamsicle smoothy from the cafe there we have there since he was a good helper. Rob got the other boys ready and fed them and brought them with him. I got lots of hugs and Happy Mothers Day greeting from so many people who knew this was my first mothers day with the boys. At the beginning of the service they had all the mothers stand and receive a flower which you heard about above. Toward the end of the service Rob got up and said he would text me with further instructions. I was a little caught off guard since that was little vague and was during the ending prayer. Of course my phone rings with my message so everyone heard it go off since I forgot to put it on silent. It read "Meet me and the boys at Peking, Afterward go home and relax and we will have a special homemade dinner tonight". Sounded good to me! He had picked the boys up form their classes at church and we met at Peking for the Chinese buffet (one of my favorite places). And a nice surprise was that Travis showed up just as they were arriving as well. He had gotten up early to come home and celebrate with me. I was feeling pretty special and even shed a few tears of joy on the way to the restaurant. They came bearing more gifts! Woohoo. I even got to go first to the buffet and actually got to eat my food while it was still hot. Rob and Travis took care of the boys' needs and everyone behaved fairly well (we are making progress!). After we all ate I got to see what was in the bag! I got a wonderful card from my wonderful husband who wrote that I was the light of his life (yep, he's Italian and flattery will get him everywhere) and the boys card said that I wasn't just their mama I was the one who held their hearts. Wow! I got a digital picture frame to put all the pictures on so I could see all their cute expressions all the time. They each also got me a really good kind of chocolate. Then to top it off I got to go home and not have to do anything! And then after a fabulous meal that Rob made of pasta alfredo with chicken and mushrooms, Travis did all the dishes and I got to go take a bubble bath BY MYSELF. Rob gave the boys a bath and got them all ready for bed and then sent them in one at a time to kiss me goodnight. How handsome they looked with their hair all brushed and because I had a candle lit bath (yep, my man knows how to spoil me) their faces just glowed as they said Happy Mothers Day and I love you, mama followed by multiple kisses and smiles. I can still see each of their faces as they came in and can't help but think what wonderful kids God has blessed me with. Mayra had gotten home in the mean time and we watched a little TV together as we often do and then it was off to dream land full of special memories of a great day. Even though they each present their own challenges, I couldn't ask for more loving kids and a great husband to call my very own.
A very happy mama mama mama

Rangers and Yankees

Well the baseball season is well underway and Yuri and Victor are doing great. Our little slugger cheers and practices until he is old enough to play.
Yuri's team is called the Yankees and he mainly plays first base and he is at the top of the batting order. He is playing machine pitch which is where a machine is fed by the coach and guarantees the same placement for everyone. He was just as thrilled to get all his new baseball stuff as he was when soccer started. The excitement for us is to watch him light up when he knows it is time to go put on his baseball uniform and go to a game. They now require them to provide their own batting helmets and we found that he must have a bigger head then other 7-8 year old's because his helmet just looks enormous. He is a strong hitter and really "gets" the game so far.
Victor's team is the Royals and they are a hoot to watch! He is playing tee ball and gets a kick out of just being able to swing the bat and actually hit something (mostly the stand but occasionally the ball too) It is like watching the bad news bears but is very entertaining and he loves getting out there and running for the ball wherever it may land. I do have to admit that he is one of the more well behaved kids and the team. Something we are pretty happy and grateful about. His helmet just bounces up and down as he runs and he has perpetually has a smile on his face whether he hit the ball or not as well as if he got out or not. It's nice to see that he is a good sport and plays very nicely with the other kids.

Now as for Vanya, this one I believe will be our biggest challenge. Sweet, loving, outgoing, well coordinated and often times very humorous Vanya has some very sneaky and precocious actions and words. He is good at whatever sport he tries and commands an audience wherever he is as well. Travis got a kick out showing him how to hold a bat and was pretty shocked when he whacked the ball on about the first try and it went about 25 feet. He enjoys going to his brothers games and loves to cheer for them even when they aren't up to bat or even in the game. Of course he asks at each and every game when it is his teams turn. With him if he hasn't asked the same question 50 times then he hasn't decided to accept the answer the first 49 times. We aren't sure if he just doesn't understand what we said or if he is just waiting for us to get thoroughly worn out and give in. We were hoping by now that that would have subsided but as he has learned more word he simply talks more. He is a real joy most of the time and his hugs are truly genuine but the other side of that is that when he doesn't get his way it is fairly unbearable for all. So at our house "if Vanya ain't happy, ain't no one happy". We are still working on that. That little face is so expressive it really make it hard not to just crack up when he is being so totally serious about why he does not want to take a bath or why he should have another lollipop from the bank lady.

Since the baseball schedule is so odd it seems as though we are going some where or doing something almost every day and it is different every week. It is great to see all the kids progress throughout the season and for our guys they just enjoy being there and playing. Everyone has a hard time believing that less than a year ago they spoke no English and have never played an organized sport before. They really have come a long way and although there is quite a bit more work to do with all of them we are very proud of thier progress in sport and school and with their social skills. I wish we could learn things as fast as they do! I think God does that by design!
God is ever faithful to give us the strength and wisdom to take care of these guys and love them the best way we know how. Most of the time when I have run out of patience for the day, Rob has enough left to make sure no one has perished from being in time out. It works the other way as well so we are glad that it works that way because when we have both exhausted our energy and resources for the day at the same time it makes for a very difficult day for all. Thank you God for meeting us where we are and for giving us such wonderful gifts in the smiles and giggles of our boys!

Mama mama mama

Spring break

What a great time we had on our recent trip to Florida with the boys. Since it was spring break we decided they needed to have that experience of a long car ride to visit family. It actually went quite a bot better than we had expected and the boys did a pretty good job in the car. Yuri even lost another tooth! That makes number 4. Of course the DVD player was in hyper drive but was soooooooo nice. We all survived and are all still speaking to one another.

On the way down we stopped by to see Rob's brother, Jason and our nephew Marco. We all had a fun time on their 4 wheelers. It was one of the highlights of the trip.

After spending the night we made it all the way down to Sarasota to see Babushka and Ama (great grandmother who is 98). We were pleasantly surprised that there was plenty of room for all 7 of us in her 2 bedroom condo. She had done a magnificent job of putting things away. Probably because we told her that our little demolition crew would love to help her get rid of a few things. She showered the boys with lots of love and attention as well presents. A day didn't go by when she wasn't surprising them with something else "to keep". Good thing we had a car top carrier. She got them straw hats and stuffed animals and candy pops with a basketball game on top as well as lots of other things.And no, babushka did not get her black eye from the boys thank goodness. She just had an eye infection that hasn't healed all the way yet.

By far the most fun was at the pool and in the ocean. They all did such a good job of swimming and they built some sand castles and had fun collecting all kinds of shells.

It really didn't matter if they were broken or not, they just picked up everything they saw. We'll have to work on the selection process criteria another time. Until then our car will be waited down with their treasured seashells. We did a little shopping and also got to visit with family that we hadn't seen in a while. The boys got to meet their cousins Connor (5) and Ana Lauren (3) and of course they all made friends at the pool.

Friends that we had met in Ukraine, the Harris's, came from Ft Lauderdale to swim with us for the day with their daughter Sveta. That was really nice to visit with them since conversations on the phone are a little difficult at our house with the additional voices in the background. This way all the kids were having so much fun in the pool that we actually got to chat uninterrupted for a while. Woo hoo!

At the end of most days the boys were totally wiped out and on several occasion went straight to bed with very little dinner because they fell asleep at the table or asked to go bed instead. (Perhaps we will move to Florida!) After several relaxing and fun filled days we were back in the car headed to Clearwater to see our good friends the Rahns with their daughter Yana who were also in Florida visiting family.

We went to the beach and playground area there and had a great time and got a little more sun. We went to Crabby Bills seafood place for dinner and then headed North toward Atlanta.
We stopped somewhere along the highway about 4 hours north of Clearwater in the wee hours of the morning. We slept for a few hours and then took advantage of the free breakfast and then continued north to see our friends the Lambeths. We met them in Ukraine at Sonechko baby house in Zapporyzhzhia where they were adopting their daughter, Haley (formerly Nastia). What a great time we had with them. Vanya and Haley had a grand time together but I don't think either of them recognized each other because they were in different groups because Vanya is a year older. So they grew up across the hall from each other their whole lives and then got to see each other again in their new lives with a family. Pretty cool. The boys got to go fishing in their back yard and we went to a really fabulous pool/gym that had indoor slides and water spouts. They even had a family showering area. I had never seen one like that where the whole family could have a little room with a shower and changing room and then there was a locker area for all the stuff. It was really nice to visit with them as well after sharing such a long and interesting process with them. We spent the night with them in their newly remodeled basement and felt like royalty with our own bathroom and everything.

The next morning we had to head out early to make it up to see my cousin Collen (frequent comment writer while we were in Ukraine). The windy mountain road was not real fun and we had a little car sickness going but we made it in time for church. The boys did a great job when it was time for children's church they got up and went with all the other kids. Even Vanya went with the help of Colleens mother, Anita, who was selected by Vanya to escort him. Yea, he is pretty diplomatic and used his charm to ask her to go with him. He said, "OK, you go with me" as he put his hand on her lap and smiled. After church we were so blessed by the luncheon that Colleen,Anita, and our other cousin Penny had put together for us. The fried chicken and macaroni salad and broccoli salad and coleslaw and all the fixins were there. We even got treated to freshly baked cookie and ice cream. We got to use the youth room that had a pool table, air hockey table, and lots of room to play. Again, we felt like royalty, and were honored that our extended family had gone to all that effort and made things so nice for us as we were passing through. We hadn't gotten to see them in so many years. I think Colleen was in college and she is now a few years older than us. That was a real treat.
We then headed back toward home and made it all the way home by 1:30 that morning in time for Rob to sleep for 3 hours and then get ready for work. We squeaked every last hour out of that vacation. Of course we are still paying for it now.

Does the Jesus know the Easter bunny?

Pretty good question, huh? The boys had a wonderful Easter and are still trying to answer that question and it was pretty interesting to listen to them try to explain it to each other. "Well of course, Jesus knows everyone" "Nuh ugh, only Mama and Papa know the Easter bunny" "Well I haven't seen the Easter bunny so maybe no one knows him except superman" "Jesus is in charge of Superman too, you know". Precious conversation on the way to church that Sunday. Pretty easy to tell the comments went in order of age 19, 7,5,4. It was really nice to have Travis home from college to spend Easter with us and get to go to a few of the boys activities. They loved having their biggest brother there to watch them and play with. I think he might have enjoyed it a little as well.

Vanya was in a little Easter performance at church and was the hit of the show. Take a listen; Hollywood watch out! In case it isn't readily apparent, he was the E in Easter and his line was "Jesus died for Everyone!" He was flirting with the little girl next to him the rest of the time while he tried to sing with the other kids but still keeping his eye on mama right there in the front row smiling at her little man.

Easter this year was such a joy and the excitement on the boys faces as they waited at the top of the stairs to come hunt for their baskets (which they had no idea about) was priceless. They were excited that the Easter bunny had come but weren't quite sure what that meant for them except they were pretty sure it had something to do with candy. We had decorated eggs with Yana and Fran a couple of evenings before which was so much fun. They had colored Easter bunnies and at school and learned about the resurrection of Jesus at church and now it was time for the Easter bunny to finally come and for Jesus to rise from the dead. Trying to explain that one was pretty interesting as well. Then we all got dressed up for church and the boys really like getting all dressed up so it was fun. Then off to church we went where they got multiple compliments on their spiffy outfits which always brought big smiles to their faces as they were soooo proud of themselves. After church we went over to our friends house for Easter dinner and some R&R. Not so sure they called it that though with 3 very active little boys running around their house. They have 3 girls who are 22, 19, and 13 so boys are foreign to them and what a difference it is. Darryl got worn out throwing the ball, breaking up the wrestling on the trampoline and stopping the swings from going completely over the swing set. Christine and Rob and I had wonderful conversations with each other and her parents. Christine was so sweet and put together little goody bags with aggs adn candy in them for the byos and made a wonderful dinner which was nejoyed by all. After a very long day and loads of sugar we packed up 3 very cranky boys and headed home for the nighttime rituals. After that we were exhausted and went to bed as well. No sugarplums but content in the knowledge and love of the Lord that we were able to show our children today. The Lord is risen indeed, hallelujah !!!

Mama Mama Mama