Happy Russian Christmas!

It was a pleasure and privledge to attend Living Hope Church's Russian Christmas celebration today, in Centerville. We were invited to the special service, as the church supports missions in Ukraine... Russia's next-door neighbor. We know quite a bit about Ukraine as it's border is near the city in Russia, where we adopted Karis from (Bryansk). Our coordinator, in Russia, was from Kiev, Ukraine and was taking college courses there while working with us. Additionally, we became all too familiar with the Ukrainian train, as we accessed it going to and from Moscow.

We enjoyed a fabulous lunch, all Russian-Ukrainian food, the majority prepared by our very good friends the Stefaniuks. Who would have ever guessed when I met Marisa Stefaniuk, a fellow mom at our wonderful school, that we would have so much in common, a couple of years into our friendship. Quick explanation... her husband has Ukrainian roots; Marisa, as a young girl, traveled to Russia on a missions trip; and a few months after she and I met at a local coffee shop, to discuss our writing hobbies, my husband and I were led to adopt from Russia. So glad God put Marisa and her family in our path. I wonder what more we have in common, after the events of today.

Speaking of today, we learned about an organization called World Light Foundation. www.worldlightfoundation.com President and Founder, Natalya Skala from Ukraine now living in America, spoke and celebrated Christmas with us. She was a true light indeed. We, also, heard about a hosting program the church is involved with which brings Ukrainian orphans to our area, each summer, for about three weeks.

So now... what does God have in store for our family? Being present at today's festivities was no fluke. Our family's busy schedule actually permitted it. It's time to seek prayer... time to ask God what He has for us in 2012. I'm quite certain it's not another adoption, but I would never say never, if that's what He was asking.
Whatever it is, I'm sure it will be exciting. Stand by for updates...

So, for more about Russian Christmas... a good explanation from http://russian-crafts.com/customs/christmas.htm

Thirteen days after Western Christmas, on January 7th, the Russian Orthodox Church celebrates its Christmas, in accordance with the old Julian calendar. It's a day of both solemn ritual and joyous celebration.

After the 1917 Revolution, Christmas was banned throughout Russia, along with other religious celebrations. It wasn't until 75 years later, in 1992, that the holiday was openly observed. Today, it's once again celebrated in grand fashion, with the faithful participating in an all-night Mass in incense-filled Cathedrals amidst the company of the painted icons of Saints.

Christmas is one of the most joyous traditions for the celebration of Eve comes from the Russian tradition. On the Eve of Christmas, it is traditional for all family members to gather to share a special meal. The various foods and customs surrounding this meal differed in Holy Russia from village to village and from family to family, but certain aspects remained the same.

An old Russian tradition, whose roots are in the Orthodox faith, is the Christmas Eve fast and meal. The fast, typically, lasts until after the evening worship service or until the first star appears. The dinner that follows is very much a celebration, although, meat is not permitted. Kutya (kutia), a type of porridge, is the primary dish. It is very symbolic with its ingredients being various grains for hope and honey and poppy seed for happiness and peace.

Once the first star has appeared in the sky, the festivities begin. Although all of the food served is strictly Lenten, it is served in an unusually festive and anticipatory manner and style. The Russians call this meal: "The Holy Supper." The family gathers around the table to honor the coming Christ Child. A white table-cloth, symbolic of Christ's swaddling clothes, covers the Table. Hay is brought forth as a reminder of the poverty of the Cave where Jesus was born. A tall white candle is place in the center of the Table, symbolic of Christ "the Light of the World." A large round loaf of Lenten bread, "pagach," symbolic of Christ the Bread of Life, is placed next to the Candle.

The meal begins with the Lord's Prayer, led by the father of the family. A prayer of thanksgiving for all the blessings of the past year is said and then prayers for the good things in the coming year are offered. The head of the family greets those present with the traditional Christmas greeting: "Christ is Born!" The family members respond: "Glorify Him!" The Mother of the family blesses each person present with honey in the form of a cross on each forehead, saying: "In the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, may you have sweetness and many good things in life and in the new year." Following this, everyone partakes of the bread, dipping it first in honey and then in chopped garlic. Honey is symbolic of the sweetness of life, and garlic of the bitterness. The "Holy Supper" is then eaten (see below for details). After dinner, no dishes are washed and the Christmas presents are opened. Then the family goes to Church, coming home between 2 and 3 am. On the Feast of the Nativity, neighbors and family members visit each other, going from house to house , eating, drinking and singing Christmas Carols all the day long.

Merry Christmas (again) all!

Basketball Beginnings

Today marked another first for Karis... her first-ever basketball game! We were so proud of her, and when it was over, she said, "That was fun!" Oh, and her team won... BIG!

The Merriest of Christmas-es!

December 25, 2011 was Karis Yulia Kahrs' first Christmas... EVER. No joke. At 12-years-old, Karis learned that Christmas is Jesus' birthday. Her 5-year-old sister, Karrigan, was the first to tell her. Karis, also, had never been given a present, wrapped in paper, with a bow on top, until this year.

The photos posted, don't need captions...it's obvious the pure,
child-like joy this precious soul felt, for the very first time. She was thrilled with every gift she received, and we couldn't have been happier to help make her dreams come true. And at the end of the day... it wasn't even the gifts that mattered. She just wanted to climb into my lap and be held, to tell me what a great day she had with her new family.

(Click on the photos below to enlarge. Karis' expressions are priceless!)

One year ago today!

Written December 6, 2011

It's hard to believe that one year ago, today, we met our daughter, Karis Yulia, for the very first time! I remember very clearly... we left our hotel in Bryansk, Russia and walked across a parking lot to the Ministry of Education where we were told why "Yulia" was in the orphanage. I remember tears falling, because although we hadn't met her yet, she was our daughter, and we couldn't bare the thought of anyone hurting her.

After leaving the ministry, we loaded our suitcases into a small, beat-up, smokey-smelling taxi. Our regional coordinator guided the driver to Zhukovka, 45 minutes away from Bryansk. The roads were literally sheets of ice, as Russia doesn't clear them during the winter months. None the less, the driver speeded down the road, as if it were a normal, dry day. Kevin and I clenched the seats infront of us, silently praying we'd make it to the orphanage alive, all the while, counting the make-shift graves along the side of the road. Others' fates hadn't been so lucky.

Kevin wiped frost from the window of the taxi as we entered a little village, all so he could begin taking video of Yulia's current "home". The village was like nothing we had ever seen before... small little houses everywhere with big, ornate fences, people pushing wheel barrels in the snow, horses and wagons in the street, and many, many fur hats! The music playing on the radio really awoke our cultural senses (or lack of)... a combination of polka and techno set the tone. And then... there it was. The orphanage we had imagined for nearly a year stood infront of us, eery and old. As we drove up, it appeared as an institution from the 1940s... pillows stuffed in the windows to keep the rooms warm.

We entered and walked up the first flight of stairs to the orphanage director's office, lugging our packed-full suitcases. Kevin entered the office first, and I heard him say in an almost disbelieving whisper, "Ah, there she is..." I looked up from the suitcase, and sure enough, the little girl whose picture we'd been staring at for 10 months was sitting right infront of our eyes! My first impression, she was so small! Her face was so sweet. She looked at me with the most priceless expression... it was a seeking, happy, nervous, relieved look, all in one! I can't imagine how she was feeling, because it was difficult to process all of the emotions I was feeling. Immediately, I went over to her, yet was hesitant, not wanting to scare her. I did what my instincts told me though, so I bent down to give her a hug, and to my surprise, she hugged me back and followed that hug with an incredibly sweet smile. Yes. Yes indeed... she was our daughter.

December 6, 2010 will always be... a beautiful day in our family's history.

Thanksgiving blessings

The Thanksgiving feast began, and delight was on Karis' face! It was the meal she had been waiting for and inquiring about for 7 straight days after learning about it and the Thanksgiving holiday, at school. When asked her favorite Thanksgiving food- she spoke with conviction... "The turkey!"

It was surreal watching her, as she sat at the dining room table, surrounded by our family... our daughter- a living, breathing soul who brings so much joy to our lives, daily. Last year at Thanksgiving, she was merely a dream... a photo on the refrigerator.

Also, last year, at Thanksgiving, my sweet sister announced she was pregnant. (Her first.) This past year, she and I enjoyed the ups and downs of pregnancies together- her's biologically and mine, pregnant through adoption. How blessed we both are now that our "harvests" are in, in the form of two new additions to the family... Vivienne Lucille and Karis Yulia. What can I say, except, we are blessed... our family is over-flowing with abundant blessings!

Giving Back

"For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand, that we should walk in them." ~Ephesians 2:10

Last year, at this time, Kevin and I were invited to Russia, to meet our daughter "Yulia" for the very first time. We began preparations including obtaining visas and packing, as if we were going on a missions trip. It's hard to believe it has been a whole year. And, that it took three trips to Russia before it was all said and done. And now, we reflect...

~By Emily
As Thanksgiving is amongst us, it's a great time to reflect on our blessings. After seeing Russia, three times, I am grateful... and thankful. I'm grateful Kevin and I saw what we saw. I'm thankful we have our daughter now and the adoption process is over. I'm grateful to live in a country where the air feels light, and smiles are abundant. I'm thankful that after spending several days in an orphanage, my heart is forever changed. I'm grateful that God pushed me to the point of shutting down both mentally and physically. I have a different outlook on life now and know first-hand that people CAN die from a broken heart. I'm thankful that as a result of being stuck in a very small village in Russia, where I had no translator, I managed to find food and feed my daughter and I. (And toward the end of my stay, the lady who ran the village market, finally felt comfortable with my presence and smiled at me. Mainly, because every couple of days, I blew through her stock of Coca Cola - my ONLY American comfort!) I'm grateful, that my daughter and I now share a very strong bond, as we witnessed each other in our weakest moments. I'm thankful that when we weren't able to get on our stand-by flight to come home to America, God helped us find (without an English translator) a hotel which we stayed in, in Moscow, for two nights. I'm grateful that I now understand... I am strong. And I'm thankful God will use that new-found strength to do more in His kingdom.

It took a few months. I didn't want to look at anything that had to do with Russia. I felt almost "traumatized" when we returned home. I thought I might need to speak with a professional. I couldn't, at all, appreciate the experience. I had nightmares the first couple of nights home. I was exhausted and confused about where I fit into my life, as if I didn't have an existance before the trip. On top of all of that, I had to put a smile on my face when our new daughter was around, as if nothing was wrong with me. There was A LOT wrong with me. I had to pretend though so that she could get adjusted to a whole new world. But in my world, how could I mesh into my former "American lifestyle" after seeing and living the pain, darkness, loneliness, and hopelessness a little village, in Russia, was built on. I was depressed, there's no doubt. So, why did God show me all of that? Well, I understand now. He showed it to me and allowed me to live it, to grow me in the area of... compassion. I already had compassion for orphans, but this was much deeper. He showed me despair to help me better understand and connect with the family who Kevin and I share a child with. In other words, I can't be angry with Yulia's birthparents or grandparents. I CAN be disappointed with their choices for how those choices hurt our little girl, but on some level, I can now understand why they made some of the choices they did. And without knowing Christ, there absolutely is NO HOPE of them ever digging out of their holes. Thankfully, God took mercy on the beautiful child who is now our "oldest" daughter, and we believe he has a very big plan for her life. Out of all of the sweet faces at Zhukovka, for some reason, HE chose our daughter's sweet face to appear to us on the internet, later resulting in her adoption. The pieces are now all starting to come together...

So, the next stage of the adoption... helping others. After 5 months of Karis Yulia being home, I can now appreciate the experience. It took that long for me to be able to look at photos of Russia again. I am healed mentally, and I know that God is nudging me again. He was gracious to give us the 5 months to adjust and ease into our new family roles. He was faithful to give us a child who is a very good girl and is bonding with us, eagerly. For His faithfulness, I will continue the work He has... touching those closest to Him- the orphan. All of us, as his children, were once orphans but received our "adoption papers", the moment we invited our Father, into our hearts.

It was a pleasure and a privledge to help coordinate a fundraiser for a local family adopting from Russia... the Burnsides. It was held last weekend, at a local church, and it was a huge success. One of the highlights was watching our daughter, Karis take part in it. The irony- a former orphan helps raise funds to bring another orphan home to a loving family. The fundraiser was also a great teaching opportunity for Karis. We want her to know a generous heart, just as we've tried to teach our other two. I believe she understands the concept, as she spent four hours, painting fingernails- her contribution to the fundraiser. It was truly heart-warming, and I know her Father in Heaven was looking down, smiling.

I am so thankful our family is being used and isn't staying stagnant. I'm glad we can see the BIG picture in a corrupt world. I'm glad that our efforts are bringing new friendships into our lives. And, I'm glad it's Thanksgiving, because we have sooo much... to be thankful for.

New book- MUST HAVE!

http://journeytothefatherless.wordpress.com/about/

I'm very much looking forward to the release of this book, as Kevin and I are friends with the author and his family. They have been instrumental, helping us with our own adoption journey, and we have deep respect for them not only as people but adoptive parents.

Please take a look, and pass the word on. Each church needs a copy of this for it's library, and each adoptive family or prospective adoptive family would benefit from a copy.

What's exceptionally special about this book is that the proceeds go toward a grant program to help families adopting. Many of us know how tremendous that financial burden is.

Ordering instructions are on the website. Please contact me if you have any questions.

Emily