All of the Ukrainian kids got to go to a ranch in Heber. Ut. One of the families getting ready to go to Ukraine to finalize their adoption hosted the group. The horse's name is Max. (Yuliya's red pants and orange shirt, by sheer contrast, would have been easy to spot had she gotten lost in those mountains.) :-) While there, she found 'Inna', her best friend. We brought a bike for Yuliya to ride and she attempted to teach Inna how to ride it. It was hilarious to see such effort. At the same time, we felt bad that a little girl of who had never been on a bike before. By the way, Inna's host family is also trying to adopt her...we pray that they can adopt her. Here they both are being a little nutty...
On a rainy spring day many years ago in Ukraine, a young mother took her 6-year old daughter for a walk. Stopping on the steps of a building, the mother told her little girl she was going to get an umbrella. She turned and walked away, leaving the little girl alone. That was the last time this little girl ever saw her mother. The building was an orphanage where the little girl has been ever since.
In the fall of 2007, the little girl came to America to our home as part of a hosting program (www.saveachild.cc). For 3 weeks, our family gave her love, a warm home, a soft bed, filled her tummy with good food, and blew her kisses at bedtime. We fell madly in love with her, and she with us. Then, on a sad Nov. 3rd, she had to return to Ukraine. Her last words were "When are you coming to get me?"
Her name is Yuliya and this is the story of our journey that brought back this Little Ukrainian Angel to our family...
"We express support of the married mothers and fathers who adopt these children. Children are entitled to the blessing of being reared in a stable family environment where father and mother honor marital vows. Having a secure, nurturing, and consistent relationship with both a father and a mother is essential to a child’s well-being. Adoption is an unselfish, loving decision that blesses the child, birth parents, and adoptive parents in this life and throughout the eternities. We commend all those who strengthen children and families by promoting adoption.”
October 4, 2006
"Adoption is truly a gift. It is a gift from our Heavenly Father. It is a gift of life, a gift of love. Adoption is a principle with a promise. It is a blessing for me; it is a blessing for you...It is a gift of life...and a gift of love that blesses all of us." -Mark A. Peterson, 8 March 2005
“I expect to pass through this world but once. Any good therefore that I can do, or any kindness that I can show to any fellow-creature, let me do it now. Let me not defer or neglect it, for I shall not pass this way again.” (The Home Book of Quotations, sel. Burton Stevenson, New York: Dodd Mead and Co., 1935, p. 1493.)
“With the Lord, families are essential. He created the earth that we could gain physical bodies and form families. He established His Church to exalt families. He provides temples so that families can be together forever." Elder Russell M. Nelson, Of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (Ensign, November 2001, page 69.)
1 comments:
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