June has come in like a lion and has stayed that way! I haven't blogged much because truthfully my days have consisted of basically nothing but projects, chores and every day life.
Jason fractured his ankle about 4 weeks ago while at work, so he has been on medical leave. With him being unable to walk I was responsible for taking over his chores too....oh my was I busy busy busy! Thankfully, he is able to walk on it now for short blocks of time and at least help out with a few of things I get too busy for. But it is nice having him back in the mix!
I have decided to still continue with school over the summer I have changed things up a bit so continuing through these next 3 months shouldn't be a problem. I have veered away from trying to make our days too much like "school" It didn't work for us and I realized that I was trying to do everything that I "disliked" about the idea of a classroom. Olena is a very kinesthetic learner and her sensory issues present different challenges everyday so we have to be flexible. We basically learn throughout the day and do whatever comes to us. I do pick a Unit/Theme, which we "study" for 3 weeks. I get about 15 books from the library that coincide with the theme, I usually find 1 or 2 educational movies, a few work sheets and a couple of "projects". Some days we use the computer or I make her write. She loves learning this way, and really does soak herself into what we are learning that week. I sometimes panic a little at the idea of Oh My Gosh is this ok? and I know that there are those who don't agree but my daughter is brilliant so I must be doing something right! I have had several people tell me how smart she is, and I love the idea she LOVES learning. I don't force anything on her anymore. If she doesn't want to do it, we don't, but since changing our approach over the past 2 weeks I found she hasn't complained or whined about anything I have asked her to work on.
Next on the news line...adoptions from Ukraine will come to a halt on July 11th. There is no timeline when it will resume. There are currently 139 Americans that are registered that will not not be able to proceed with their adoptions. Chat boards are buzzing with a few rumors of course but I am sure it will be at least 2 years before things are up and running again. The shut down during our adoption was 11 months and there was a "plan" in place. This time around the SDA will close but there is no established unit to take it over. Did I freak? actually no, surprisingly. I know I have to trust Him, so I am just gonna keep moving forward and eventually this family will grow, one way or another! or maybe it will be just the 3 of us. I am still happy so I can't complain.
I don't even have any new pictures to share. I haven't dared pull out the camera :) LOL! I will surely have to document this week so that you can see what I am laughing about. This girl dresses like nothing I have ever seen - she came out the other day in a size 5 halter sun dress that she called her Waldo dress (red/white striped) she was swimming in this thing it was so big; it was hanging from around her neck like a rag. She had a pair of tiny white shorts with pink and purple hearts, a pair of pink socks pulled up her calf, and purple crocks. We ended up having to run up to Home Depot and boy did we get a lot of smiles. She was just as happy as a bumblebee skipping through the aisles. All I could think of was how she looked like one of those orphan street kids but she insisted she LOVED her dress. (Tonight I fixed that problem and made some alterations to the dress so it will fit her better.) Another thing is that she is constantly dirty. And not just a little dirty, COVERED! from the second she hits the back door in the morning. She is such a busy and dirt loving girl! I'll pull the camera out tomorrow and we'll have Olena fashion week!
Time to call it a night. Thanks for checking in on us!
Jason fractured his ankle about 4 weeks ago while at work, so he has been on medical leave. With him being unable to walk I was responsible for taking over his chores too....oh my was I busy busy busy! Thankfully, he is able to walk on it now for short blocks of time and at least help out with a few of things I get too busy for. But it is nice having him back in the mix!
I have decided to still continue with school over the summer I have changed things up a bit so continuing through these next 3 months shouldn't be a problem. I have veered away from trying to make our days too much like "school" It didn't work for us and I realized that I was trying to do everything that I "disliked" about the idea of a classroom. Olena is a very kinesthetic learner and her sensory issues present different challenges everyday so we have to be flexible. We basically learn throughout the day and do whatever comes to us. I do pick a Unit/Theme, which we "study" for 3 weeks. I get about 15 books from the library that coincide with the theme, I usually find 1 or 2 educational movies, a few work sheets and a couple of "projects". Some days we use the computer or I make her write. She loves learning this way, and really does soak herself into what we are learning that week. I sometimes panic a little at the idea of Oh My Gosh is this ok? and I know that there are those who don't agree but my daughter is brilliant so I must be doing something right! I have had several people tell me how smart she is, and I love the idea she LOVES learning. I don't force anything on her anymore. If she doesn't want to do it, we don't, but since changing our approach over the past 2 weeks I found she hasn't complained or whined about anything I have asked her to work on.
Next on the news line...adoptions from Ukraine will come to a halt on July 11th. There is no timeline when it will resume. There are currently 139 Americans that are registered that will not not be able to proceed with their adoptions. Chat boards are buzzing with a few rumors of course but I am sure it will be at least 2 years before things are up and running again. The shut down during our adoption was 11 months and there was a "plan" in place. This time around the SDA will close but there is no established unit to take it over. Did I freak? actually no, surprisingly. I know I have to trust Him, so I am just gonna keep moving forward and eventually this family will grow, one way or another! or maybe it will be just the 3 of us. I am still happy so I can't complain.
I don't even have any new pictures to share. I haven't dared pull out the camera :) LOL! I will surely have to document this week so that you can see what I am laughing about. This girl dresses like nothing I have ever seen - she came out the other day in a size 5 halter sun dress that she called her Waldo dress (red/white striped) she was swimming in this thing it was so big; it was hanging from around her neck like a rag. She had a pair of tiny white shorts with pink and purple hearts, a pair of pink socks pulled up her calf, and purple crocks. We ended up having to run up to Home Depot and boy did we get a lot of smiles. She was just as happy as a bumblebee skipping through the aisles. All I could think of was how she looked like one of those orphan street kids but she insisted she LOVED her dress. (Tonight I fixed that problem and made some alterations to the dress so it will fit her better.) Another thing is that she is constantly dirty. And not just a little dirty, COVERED! from the second she hits the back door in the morning. She is such a busy and dirt loving girl! I'll pull the camera out tomorrow and we'll have Olena fashion week!
Time to call it a night. Thanks for checking in on us!
Comments
O sounds adorable. Can't wait to see you all in August! That's only 2 months away:)