Merry Christmas 2011

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Merry Christmas! It is surreal to write this Christmas letter while listening to my children squealing with delight as they play together in the background. After almost 2 1/2 years, Galina "Hope" is finally home and we are enjoying our first Christmas together as a family! We have been home 6 1/2 weeks and everyone is doing great!

Galina has adjusted incredibly well! As I've talked with other families who have adopted from Russia and the professionals at Children's Hospital, I am realizing that she is an exceptional child considering her start to life. She has been learning English at an incredible rate and already understands almost everything we say. I am astonished each time she speaks and I hear new words come out of her mouth! I have learned a lot of Russian to help with the transition and we are communicating very well, mostly because of her ability and desire to learn. Benjamin has learned a bunch of Russian, too, which has helped so much ... both kids are just amazing! Chad, on the other hand, has had a little harder time with the Russian language, lol, but he has been doing great, too. Galina understands him nonetheless and adores her Daddy and his silly antics! :) Many people have asked if we are calling her "Galina" or "Hope." Since she was 2 1/2 when we met and almost 3 when we brought her home, we felt it was important to keep her name, so we are calling her Galina for the most part. "Hope" may be incorporated as a nickname later, but if you see her, please call her Galina. She will have no idea what you are talking about if you call her Hope! :)

Benjamin has been enjoying having a sister very much. Just ask him and he will tell you, it's nice to have a sister! It is obvious just by watching them together that he truly loves and enjoys her. He had a little difficulty adjusting at first, which is to be expected, but we did our best to provide a "best case scenario" for him. Thanks to wonderful social workers and our agency, his mom and dad were equipped to help and one of the most important things he got to do was to travel with us to Russia for 3 weeks and to meet his new sister there. He was able to visit her on her turf twice a day for 2 weeks, going "home" (back to the hotel) alone with us each day while we were in our 10 day waiting period, which helped with his transtion a lot. Then we had another week together in "neutral" territory (our hotel in Moscow) before going back to his real home (in the U.S.) and having to share a home, parents, cats, toys and, well, everything in life, with this new little person. He is such an amazing boy and we could not have asked for a better transition for BOTH of our children. They are doing remarkably well and it just gets better and better every day!

As for us, well we are just delighted to have another little person to love and share life with. Galina is a delight to be around. She is funny, smart, talented, affectionate, obedient, kind, gentle and just a sweet, sweet girl (and she can hold her own with a big brother who likes to sword fight, lol). We could not be happier with her or with Benjamin. They are both wonderful children and we are so happy and proud to be their parents. We are so thankful to have them both!

Christmas is a time of year to be thankful and reflect on the goodness of God and the gift of LIFE he gave us in his Son, Jesus Christ. This year we are celebrating the arrival of "Hope!" There are many people, however, who are hurting because of the loss of a loved one, a broken relationship, health problems, financial problems and many, many other difficulties. It's easy to focus so much on our own joy and happiness that we forget those who are hurting around us this time of year. Our hearts are especially close to those who are grieving the loss of a loved one as five years ago we faced the most difficult Christmas ever: the loss of our precious daughter, Abigail. If you know someone who is missing a loved one this Christmas, please call, send a card or visit and remember to mention their loved one's name and genuinely ask how they are doing. You are not reminding them of their loss. Trust me, they remember. Instead, you are touching a place in their heart that needs to be touched at Christmas and all year round. Please reach out to those who are hurting around you and let them know their loved one is not forgotten:

How To Console A Grieving Friend During The Holidays

We pray for blessings and give thanks for each of you this Christmas, especially those who helped make the dream to bring Galina "Hope" home a reality. It is said that it takes a village to raise a child, but for us, it takes a village to HAVE one! We are forever grateful for everyone who has walked with us on this long journey to Hope and pray that you have the Merriest of Christmases and a New Year that is full of God's richest blessings for your life!

Much Love,
Chad, Emily, Benjamin & Galina "Hope"
And remembering ^Abby^ always ...

God's Grace Adoption Ministry Matching Grant

Dear Friends & Family,

We are excited to inform you that God's Grace Adoption Ministry has approved us for a $2,500 dollar-for-dollar matching grant. That means GGAM will match any contribution made on our behalf up to $2,500 total dollars (which means we could receive up to $5,000 towards our adoption). As our community of friends, family and others interested in helping respond, the funds are matched and earmarked for our family. Although our adoption has been finalized and Galina "Hope" is now home, we are still paying thousands of dollars for expenses incurred on our second trip to Russia and adoption fees.

Because it is funded through GGAM, your contribution is tax-deductible and makes a perfect choice for year-end giving. Even if you are unable to give personally (many of you have already given so much), please forward the letter from GGAM (above) to anyone you know who may be interested in supporting us and/or international adoption. Every little bit helps!

For more information, please visit www.ggam.org.

Blessings,
Chad & Emily

Galina "Hope" Renee Werner, finally at home with Kaya the "coshka" :)

One Month

We have been home for just about a month now and Galina "Hope" is doing great. She has had all of her testing at Children's Hospital and we are awaiting results. In the meantime, she has learned many words that she can say in English and many more that she understands. Her comprehension is amazing! We have also continued to learn many words in Russian as a family to help us communicate with her better and, as a result, everyone is adjusting quite well. Benjamin knows more Russian than Chad at this point and it is quickly becoming his second language. We are so proud of him ... he has been such a great big brother!

On the advice of the international adoption specialist at Children's Hospital, we have been keeping Galina's world "small" to help her to anticipate and understand her new world better. Keeping visitors at a minimum, making sure the calendar is not full of activity and providing as much consistency in our schedule as possible will help her to develop trust and create an environment where she feels secure as she learns what to expect from daily life and attach to her new family.

After spending a few weeks alone with "just" us, she has met all of her grandparents and has begun meeting aunts, uncles and cousins in small groups in preparation for our family gatherings over the holidays (we wanted her to see each person at least once before seeing them all together at Christmas). Our doctor felt it would be best to focus on family relationships first and wait awhile longer to introduce friends outside of family. This will give her a chance to bond with them first, which is something that normally happens over time for children who are born into families. Here is a great article about helping an "older child" adjust (any child over two years old at adoption is considered "older"). It may help explain some of the things we are doing to help Galina in these first few weeks and months.

10 Tips After Your Older Child Is Home

We would like to thank everyone for understanding the boundaries we've established for Galina as I know there are many of you (and your children) who are super excited to meet her and disappointed to have to wait some more! We are super excited for you to meet her, too, and it is just as hard for us to say no when all we want to do is share her with everyone who has prayed for us and waited along side us for her to finally come home! It will be worth the wait to give her the best possible start to her life with her new family.

"I Met My Granddaughter Today"

Written by Galina's Nana Sherry ...

There she was getting out of the van with her Mother, Father, and her brother Ben. They were a Family! She was real! Here was the granddaughter we prayed for and wanted for  so long...she was standing right in front of us. I saw the joy come over my husband's face as if to say...This is the day that the Lord has made! We had prayed for this day to come and now here she was sitting with her Mother, across the table from us in a restaurant in Cincinnati Ohio; across the ocean from her birthplace in Russia. Praise be to God!! The wait was over, the promise fulfilled!!  Emily and Chad's long awaited little girl was here, in the safety of their care and loving arms. Their precious Ben's little sister!!!

I never knew one fair haired  little girl could touch my heart like my own daughter had at the same age, until I met Gallia Hope. They are so much alike, in so many ways. The shy little smile and frown all in one. The sweet little golden ponytails bouncing as she moves. Gentle, obedient, and very particular to keep her things neat and close to her. Unusual for such a little girl, wanting to do things all by herself! Traits I've seen in another...at that age. So dear!! Watching her clutch her mother's hand and wanting only her...ah, I remember !!

I prayed for my daughter to have these moments with her own little girl... fixing her hair, playing dress ups and dolls...revisiting all things girl...ruffles, sparkles, and lace...all things peaches and cream! All I could think of was how God's promises are true...and beyond our imagination...and how wonderful she is...my Emily's little girl...Galina Hope!

Loving Thoughts From...Nana Sherry

"We witness a miracle every time a child enters into life.
But those who make their journey home across time & miles,
growing within the hearts of those who wait to love them,
are carried on the wings of destiny and placed among us
by God's very own hands".
--- Kristi Larson

A Mama for Galina: Celebrating Adoptions

This was posted today on our friend, Eileen's blog ...

A little blond left her place in line, skipped over to me and announced, I have a mama. With that, she rejoined the other children.

I had just arrived at the orphanage, home to 100-some abandoned little ones and was chatting with a caretaker of the oldest group. The children were lined up, waiting to go outside when the little cutie, probably not even 3, broke out of line to tell me her happy news. This was Galina, I soon learned, the little girl who was being adopted by a lovely family from southwestern Ohio.

It's every orphan's wish, you know, to have her own mama. And now Galina was going to have a mother and lots more ~ a daddy and an older brother too. Galina's adoptive mother, Emily, had tracked me down weeks earlier, connecting before she and her husband would come to meet Galina. As per Russian adoption procedures, foreign adoptive parents make two visits. On the first visit, they meet the child; on the second, they complete legal and medical requirements and then take the child home. So then in early September when Emily and husband Chad made their first visit to Russia, we were able to connect in person.

Come mid-October, I was in the US and en route from Akron to Nashville, would be passing near the area where Chad and Emily live, so they invited me over for lunch. The family would be leaving days later for their second trip to Russia. And big brother Benjamin, above, would be traveling with them!

Lucky me, by the time I returned to Russia in early November, Chad and Emily were still in town, wrapping up their three weeks in country. Here we are near their hotel heading out for pizza. In the photo, from left is Linda, Galina's bubbly new grandmother, my Russian friend, Roma, Galina with her parents, Emily and Chad, and her older brother Benjamin, plus Yours Truly.

How fun to celebrate together that Galina was part of this family. Benjamin had waited five years for a sister! Chad and Emily told me about Abigail, a beautiful little girl they lost at birth in 2006. So now every one is happy. And so grateful. And, at long last, Galina has a mama of her very own.

Adoptive parents are heroic! Over the years, dozens have come through town and they're so impressive with their resourcefulness and high energy. They also can use financial help. Last I checked, parents who adopt from Russia spend something like $35,000+ to get their child. And then they've got to feed and cloth the little character. If you long to be a part of an adoption, why not consider adopting an adoptive family? Just ask them how you could be of help ~ and consider writing out a check.

Pure and undefiled religion is this:

To look after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself unstained by the world.

(James 1:27)

Welcome Home "Hope"

Thank you to everyone who made this day possible! We are so blessed!

Love,
Chad & Emily

Coming Home at Last!

We went to the U.S. Embassy this morning and "Hope" had her Visa approved, so we are all clear to make the long journey home. We leave tomorrow! Can't believe this time in Russia is coming to an end. So many wonderful moments, people and memories! Can't wait to share them all. Next post will be written in the good 'ole U.S. of A. Pics to follow! :)