Our Friend, Irina

What a great surprise! Last week we read on the Clute's blog that Irina, the adoption coordinator for CHI in Vladivostok, was in the US for some business and vacation. We had hoped that we could have an opportunity to see her while she was here, and we were pleased to have that opportunity come along yesterday. We got together with Irina and a couple of her friends at the Pitman's house. It was so wonderful to visit with this dear lady who does so much to bring families together. We will always be grateful to her and Lana for all that they did for our family in Vladivostok. We were so happy for her to see how well our children and the Pitman children are doing. These children are so remarkable in how they adapt and grow with language and attachment in such a short amount of time. It's fun to see Irina's reaction to those changes as well. We were disappointed that Lana couldn't be with her on this trip, but we hope to see her again someday when we take the boys back to Russia to see where they came from. Enjoy the rest of your trip, Irina, and thank you for bringing our family together!

Love,

Joel, Clarion, Slav & Sergei

Fun, Sun & More

Hello again! Here we are in the lovely month of May. Time is passing so quickly but as the title of this blog suggests we are having plenty of fun and sun with the boys.


The boys have really been into superheroes and goofing around as the pictures below suggest. They keep us on our toes but also in stitches! They also really love dogs. Not only Dodger and Dandy but the other dogs in the neighborhood too. They love taking walks and seeing which canine friends they will run into. (A favorite lately has been an adorable golden retriever named Ferdie) It has been really nice to see them connecting with the children and their families in the neighborhood as well. Spring has really seen them having fun with their friends.


They both continue to make great strides and we could not be happier with how they are adjusting in their first year here in the USA. Slav is excited about his last two days in preschool this week. Joel recently went with him to "Donuts with Dad" and Slav was thrilled to show off his classroom to his papa. He has brought back some wonderful writing from preschool and I see such growth in him.


Sergei has taken his ABC's to heart and can spell his name, Slav's name, and "Stop" (from watching the stop signs as mama drives) He still loves to read books with Mama and Papa. His coloring has become much more controlled as well. I see good growth in him as well.


They seem very confident and independent and want to do things "all by self." Of course, this is good and sometimes not so good. We have our struggles but are grateful for the gift of family. Slav and Sergei are tremendous blessings to us and we will be forever grateful to everyone who supported us through our journey to adopt them. Enjoy the pictures!

Love,

Joel, Clarion, Slav & Sergei

Zoo Day

Greetings Everyone! We've had some very nice weather this week and have been wanting to spend a few hours at the zoo again. Our friends, the Pitmans, are on spring break this week, so we got together for a half day at the zoo. We didn't see all the animals, but we all had a blast and were tired out after a few hours of walking. If you've never been, the St. Louis Zoo is great and general admission is FREE! Here are some pics from the day...

Congratulations to the Overstreets who had a successful court hearing today in Vlad! Here's hoping that many of you who are waiting will receive referrals and court dates soon! Blessings to you all!

Sincerely,

Joel, Clarion, Slav & Sergei

Christ is Risen!

Christ is risen! He is risen indeed! Alleluia! Easter greetings to all of you. We had a wonderful weekend rejoicing in the goodness of God in Christ, first as we pondered His passion, then as we rejoiced in His glorious resurrection. Here are some pictures...

After about 40 attempted pictures, we finally got a good one. The boys have their moments where they are at each other's throats, but the above photo of them definitely shows their true feelings for one another. After being apart for more than a year in Russia, they are so happy to be together and to be part of a family. And we're thrilled that God chose us to be their parents! For all of you who are still waiting for referrals or for court dates, we know the waiting is hard, but it's so worth the wait. Hang in there. Keep the faith. Our prayers are with you. God's richest blessings to you all!

Love,

Joel, Clarion, Slav & Sergei

CHI Easter Open House

Greetings everyone! It has been so long since we have done a blog post. Time seems to be flying by as the days get warmer and longer. Things here at the Fritsche household are going extremely well. It is amazing how time and experiences knit a family together. Even though it has been only seven months since Slav and Sergei have joined us, Joel and I can hardly remember life without them.

Slav is doing so well in preschool. His teacher even stopped me as I dropped him off and mentioned how wonderful he was and how happy they were that Slav was there. I smiled that "Proud Mama" smile. My boy is just amazing! He is also dealing with losing some teeth and has had his first forays into the world of the "tooth fairy" (He LOVES the dollar store!)

Sergei is also growing and maturing right before our eyes. He is really working on following directions and being helpful. He and I have recently spent a lot of time reading "blooks" He knows all his ABC's and is very inquisitive about the things we discover in books. He is never far from my side and we have plenty of good laughs together. He is so unstoppable. Nothing gets him down.

Joel is done traveling for work for awhile, so we are very glad that our family will be together for a few months. A couple of weeks ago, Joel travelled to Seattle for work. He was able to see the Greens, the family we met in Vlad on our first trip. Rich, Helen and their son Roman took Joel on a whirlwind tour of Seattle. Roman lived in the same baby home as Sergei. What fun to keep in touch with all of the wonderful people we've met through the journey of international adoption!

Yesterday we went to Children's Hope International to join them in an Easter celebration. It was so wonderful to see how many children have found families through this agency! We know the families that we saw weren't even a small percentage of the people that Children's Hope International has helped. Praise God for CHI!

While we were at CHI the boys got to color some Easter pictures, hunt for Easter eggs, see the Easter bunny, marvel at a REAL fire truck, and play with a huge parachute. They had such a fantastic time! We also enjoyed talking with other people who have adopted children. It is so neat how everyone has their own story and every story is unique. This is one reason we have enjoyed looking at blogs so much.

Speaking of blogs and blog friends, we want to wish the Overstreets a happy and safe journey as they head to Vladivostok to pick up their son. He is in the baby home where Sergei lived. We are so happy for you! God be with you! Say Hi to Lana and Irina for us!

Being at CHI and reading other adoption stories has given us pangs of nostalgia that we aren't in the adoption process anymore. It was such a big part of our life for 2 and 1/2 years. We are looking forward to the day when we can adopt a sister for Slav and Sergei. My sister is pregnant and the other day Slav said " Mom, where' s your baby?" I said "You and Sergei are my babies." We know it takes planning and saving on our part for our family to grow. God's timing is perfect and we pray that should it be His will our family will grow once more in the not to distant future.

God's Blessings to you all as you ponder Jesus' passion this Holy Week. Here are some family pictures. Enjoy!

Love,

Joel, Clarion, Slav, and Sergei

Six-Month Celebration

Hey Everyone! Today is the six month anniversary of our court date. On August 25th we nervously sat down in the courtroom in downtown Vladivostok with Lana, our translator. We answered questions about our boys, our jobs, our finances. About 45 minutes later we were declared the parents of Slav and Sergei. What a day! What a celebration we had that evening! We continue to praise and thank God for the wonderful gift of family and for all those (all of you!) who prayed for us and encouraged us through the journey of adoption. To God be the glory!

Today we celebrated the six-month anniversary of our court date in a very special way. We're out in Los Angeles visiting family and we decided that today would be a perfect day to go to Disneyland. So off we went! We could've spent several days here riding the rides and having fun, but we managed to do as much as we could in one day. We all had a blast! The boys got to meet Mickey Mouse and everything! What a day! What a celebration! We're so thrilled to be a family!

Our six-month post-placement report went very well. One of the social workers from our adoption agency came over earlier this month to do the home visit for the report. We had a great visit with him. He was impressed with how well the boys are doing, especially their language skills.

We recognize the importance of following through with the post-placement reports and are happy to let our Russian friends know how well our boys are doing. Our prayers go out to all of you who have been affected by the recent list of home study agencies which were blacklisted because they supposedly didn't follow through with post-placement reports. We pray that all will come together and that your adoptions will proceed without difficulty. We pray also for your children who are waiting to be united with you. May God continue to keep them in His tender care!

Below are some pictures from our special day today!

Love, Joel, Clarion, Slav & Sergei

Book Tag

We've been tagged, first by the Overstreets, then by the Gebhardts.

The rules:

1. Grab the nearest book.

2. Open to page 56.

3. Find the fifth sentence.

4. Post the text of the next 2 to 5 sentences, along with these rules.

5. Don't dig for your favorite book, the cool book, or the intellectual book. Pick the CLOSEST!

6. Tag five (or more) other people to do the same!

The nearest book is "Exploring Exodus: The Origins of Biblical Israel" by Nahum M. Sarna.  (I was doing a study on the Exodus last week and the book is still laying next to the computer.)  Here's the excerpt:

"By restricting his petition to this limited and reasonable item, rather than demanding the wholesale and permanent release of the people, Moses might succeed in outwitting the pharaoh.  The immediate and outright rejection of even this modest request exposes the true nature of this monarch. No wonder, then, that the divine proclamation to Moses introduces a note of caution. The one called to be liberator of Israel is forewarned of the implacable obduracy of the king of Egypt.  Moses must be prepared at the outset of his new career for a long series of disappointments and failures in his dealings with the pharaoh."

We tag:

1. Rich & Helen

2. Cindy

3. Bill & Meghan

4. Carolynn & Steve

5. Concordia Blog Cabin (Alison or Kyle, you better do it or else!)

Snuggling fun and snow

     Hello everyone!  As we get ready for a visit from the social worker we think about the fun that we have had with the boys the past few days.  The snow makes for great snuggling weather and a lot of fun outside.  It has been really great to watch the boys enjoy the snow.  Sledding, snowball fights, and building a snowman are just a few of the wonderful memories we will keep from the past few days.  

     Things have been going extremely well and we continue to be blessed as a family.  Slav and Sergei are such eager, sweet, loving boys who are always up for some fun.  It is such an adventure being their parents.  

    Slav has really taken to school well.  He knows his teacher's name and is getting to meet new friends.  Sergei usually gets to practice helping mom at the store or some other such activity while Slav is in school.  He needs the practice of behaving well in a public place.  Slav has healed from his oral surgery wonderfully.  His mouth looks and feels so much better.  Both boys have grown some and gained weight since their last doctor's visit so we are grateful for health.   

     Other than the fact that all is going well we don't really have much to report.  Joel has a very busy few weeks coming up with travel and preaching. Clarion is looking forward to their trip to California to visit her sister and family.  The boys are looking forward to finally meeting the last of their cousins.  Let's hope they are ready for us!  

     God's blessings to all!  We pray everyone is well as we delve deeper into 2009!