Congratulations Joel, Clarion, Slav, and Sergei!

Drasvoyte everyone!


It's me Roman sneaking onto mama's computer again. I'm very excited because last month my friend Sergei from Artem Baby Home went to live with his new mommy and daddy Clarion and Joel and his big brother Slav. Slav and Sergei are biological brothers who have been living apart in different orphanages.

Mama and Dada first met Joel and Clarion at the Vlad Inn in February. They were on their first trip to meet their boys. Then they had to wait a very long time ... 7 months ... mama and dada only had to wait 2 1/2 months before they could go back to get me.

We are all so happy for the Fritsche family. Please check out their blog http://www.joelandclarion.blogspot.com/ to read more about their adventures.

Love Roman

PS. I pooped on the potty today ... oh wait, that shouldn't really be in this posting. But I'm so proud, I'm telling everyone!

Wascally Woeman's Summer Adventures

Hi all,

Sorry for the rather belated blog update. We've had a very busy summer ... Helen directed the Seafair Torchlight Parade on KIRO-TV, Rich directed Portland Timbers soccer on Fox Sports, and Roman directed all his cuddly toys in a play (at least that sounds like what he's doing when we hear him chattering away to them every morning).

The Russian Rascal has been enjoying the sunny weather and has been up to all sorts of misadventures. This has been a summer of "firsts." First boat ride, first train ride, first hike, first game of peek-a-boo with an orangutan, first time running the bases, first time finger painting...and yes, first time as a passenger in the Bat Mobile!

July started off with WACAP Kids Day, an annual picnic organized by our adoption agency. There were 600 people including lots of children from all over the world (WACAP kids are from the US, China, Thailand, Korea, Ethiopia, Vietnam, Russia, Kazakhstan, and India). We met adoptive families from all those countries. Roman met a little boy who was adopted from Artem baby home in '06 (Roman came to Artem Baby Home in Feb '07). He also made a new buddy called Luke who comes from Sakhalin Island (Russia's largest island), and a twin brother and sister from Kazan (another region of Russia).

There was lots of entertainment including a magician, a huge drum set made from scrap metal, and a bubble machine. Roman's favorites were the bouncy houses and the "Tall Lady." He kept following her around with a knowing grin as if to say "I know you're not really that tall."

Later that week we went to "Day Out With Thomas" at the Snoqualmie Valley Railroad. Roman is a big fan of Thomas the Tank Engine, although he doesn't like Thomas's nemesis "Diesel" and pulls a face whenever he sees him. Helen is really happy Roman is a Thomas nut as her dad used to read her the books when she was little.

A Thomas the Tank Engine replica pulled the old coaches for a half hour ride right along by Snoqualmie Falls. Roman loved riding on a "choo choo." Although, Rich pointed out that the Thomas replica was actually the caboose and that the train was really being pulled by a diesel engine (don't tell Roman).

There were all sorts of Thomas themed activities, and Roman spent ages playing with the toy trains and track (the only thing that can keep him completely absorbed for an hour, is a train set!). He also got a Harold the Helicopter (Thomas's friend) temporary tattoo. Even now, six weeks later, he still looks at his arm whenever he sees Harold the Helicopter and wonders where his tattoo went, we'd better get him another one!

We took Roman on the West Seattle Water Taxi which runs from Alki Beach to the downtown waterfront. It was his first boat ride and he loved it! Once we arrived at the waterfront, we went for a ride in a carriage pulled by a lovely old horse. Roman really enjoyed the ride (although the horse was a bit stinky)! We then walked down to the aquarium where Roman was fascinated by the otters, and we bought him a cuddly otter to join his family of cuddly animals. We also visited the Pirate Store...Shiver me timbers!

A few days later, we ventured out on a much bigger boat, a Washington State Ferry. We went to Bainbridge Island, then visited Poulsbo, one of Helen's favorite places.

For Roman, the highlight of our trip to Poulsbo was seeing the UPS man delivering packages (we had to watch the entire process...bare in mind that we see the UPS man on our street nearly every day). He also enjoyed a visit to the Marine Life Center, although he did give us all quite a scare when he attempted to climb into the "touch and feel" pool.

We took Roman for his first hike at Twin Falls near North Bend. He absolutely loved it! We have a little backpack with a leash on it so we can let him run but keep hold of him. It turned out to be just perfect for hiking trails. He can hike and explore by himself but we have him on a tether so we can't lose him over some rocky precipice!

He has boundless energy and probably could do a ten mile hike (not us though).

One of Roman's favorite things to do, is explore Alki Beach at low tide ... there are lots of puddles and interesting creatures to investigate.

You may notice that in this picture Roman is chasing a naked girl down the beach (it should be noted that he was down to just a diaper himself by the end of the morning)

Our beach bum (no pun intended) also had fun at Alki with his friend Polina. Here they are planning to set sail for Vladivostok to bring all their baby home buddies back with them.

Or perhaps a tunnel would be faster!

Roman's latest obsession is the moon. Whenever he sees the moon he stops what he is doing, points at the sky and shouts "moon!' He then wants us to pick him up so he can be closer to it. Until an airplane goes by, then it's "airpay!" followed by "moon" once again. If he can't see the moon he gets very upset, although, not quite as upset as when he misses the recycling/yard waste truck on Mondays.

We're pleased to report that Roman has two new Russian words! Da and Paka (yes, and bye). Of course, he has understood these words for months, but this is the first time he has spoken them. As we told you in the last blog update, our friend Helena has been talking to him in Russian when we have our weekly play dates. Also, whenever we run into a Russian person we ask them to speak to him in Russian.

We've talked to a few other adoptive parents of Russian kids and found that many of them haven't considered having their child learn Russian. But to us it seems like the natural thing to do. We want him to be proud of where he comes from (all three countries). It's something we want to do for him while we have the chance; while he's still young enough that all languages come easily. If he loses interest when he's older and doesn't want to pursue it further, that's his decision. But if he is interested in learning about Russian culture and his own history, it will be so much easier if he can speak and read the language.

So far, we've met several bilingual kids Roman's age. Mostly it's English/Spanish but we've also met English/Swedish, English/Korean, English/Mandarin, and of course Roman's buddy Sebastian who will probably be tri-lingual English/Ukrainian/Russian.

The behavioral problems we mentioned in our last blog update are getting much better! He still occasionally pulls our hair and pinches, but he now prefers the "silent tantrum" (this is similar to Harry's "silent meow" which he uses when especially annoyed ... his mouth opens but no sound comes out) anyway, when Roman is made to do something he doesn't want to do he very calmly, and carefully, lies down on the ground, face down, and just lies there for about 30 seconds then gets up and goes about his business. Rich and I either ignore the tantrum or get down on the floor with him and make fun of him, this usually causes him to burst out laughing!

Which brings us almost up to date...

Earlier this week we visited Roman's Great Grandparents Harvey and Mildred in Eastern Washington. We all love visiting Harvey and Mildred (Missy would live there quite happily, she runs wild like a farm dog). Roman enjoyed petting the horse who lives across the street, and loved watching all the grain trucks and tractors.

Last weekend Roman's aunt Kathy and uncle Bill came to visit from Wisconsin. They spent a couple of nights with us, and toured around the Washington coast. Here they are with Roman on Alki Beach.

Our Rascal is almost 2 (look at the ticker at the top of the blog!) We can't believe it. We are having a special play date with the West Seattle Mom's of Tots group on his birthday. His buddy Garrett will be celebrating his 2nd birthday September 12th so they are having a joint celebration. Then in the evening we are having a small Thomas the Tank Engine party at home (well, maybe not so small, at last count there were 5 toddlers coming .... Missy and the cats had better run for the hills)! We are so excited to celebrate his birthday, it will be three birthdays rolled into one as we missed the first two.

We'll end with a list of Roman's new words, and some more pics from our trip to Great Grandma and Great Grandpa's...

Orange Juice, oatmeal, ice, blue, red, hot dog, owl, yeah (unfortunately this has preceded "yes", Rich is to blame), Kitty, Elmo (the furry red creature of Sesame Street fame), Bare Necessities (yes he actually sings that), England, Russia (still unable to say USA), Roman (pronounced Woeman), Kennedy (pronounced Kendee), Harold (as in the Helicopter), Diesel (the mean train), eyes, nose, hair, mouth, "O" and "R" (the letters) ... and not forgetting Da and Paka!

Driving Great Uncle Dick and Great Aunt JoAnn's boat.

Picking some flowers for mum in Great Grandma Mildred's flower bed.

Taking the "Retro Rocket" out for a spin out in the countryside.

Privet Will Roman Garber!

Hi, 

It's me Roman.

I snuck onto the computer while mama wasn't looking to say privet (that's Russian for "hi") to my friend and fellow Russian Rascal, Will. Tomorrow (July 1st) is his  "Gotcha Day", the day when he gets his new mommy, daddy, and big sister Addie. As I'm writing this he will probably already be back at the Vlad Inn causing trouble.

Will and I were in the same group at Artem Baby Home and slept in the same room. We got up to lots of mischief together.  

Here's a picture of Will and Addie outside Artem baby home (can you tell they have just met?). Addie is giving Will the same look girls give me when I have pulled the heads off their dolls or eaten a strawberry off the floor ... it's usually followed by them saying "Oh Woeman"

Will's mom and dad Jason and Jody are adopting both Addie and Will on this trip (wow! my mom and dad had enough trouble with one Russian Rascal). The ten day waiting period was waived for Addie, so they were allowed to take her back to the Vlad Inn after their court date. 

Please keep the Garber family in your thoughts and prayers, we hope they have a safe journey home, and one day we'll have an Artem Baby Home reunion!

The Toddler News

GOOD EVENING. I'M ROMAN GREEN

TONIGHT ON TODDLER NEWS AT ELEVEN. 

CARS, WHY THEY'RE SO COOL. YO BABY YOGURTS GET 6 NEW FLAVORS, AND NAPS, WHO NEEDS 'EM?

As you can see, Roman and his dada visited mama at work the other day (Roman is such a regular visitor to KIRO that he knows his way around and always makes a beeline for the set). He may be an anchor or weather person if his ambition to be a recycle truck driver doesn't pan out.

Actually, if Roman was reading the news it would sound like this "Hi, Caaaar. Mama, Didda, Harrrooo (Harry), Allooo (Sally), Airplane! (points in the air) Bus! No No No (shakes head).

Rich and Roman meet Helen on her lunch break every Saturday, and we go for a picnic down on the waterfront or at the Seattle Center. Then we come back to the station and Roman runs around a bit saying hi to everyone and generally being mischievous.

Seattle is sizzling at the moment...we've been enjoying some baking temperatures (in the 90s this weekend) and are having fun playing in Roman's sandbox and paddling pool. We also got a giant beach ball that squirts water. It's great to be able to play outside in our yard. Rich put up a fence and actually built a gate himself! So now our front yard is completely secure and Roman can run around to his heart's content. 

June has been a busy month for the Green family. Our Triple Nationality Boy Adventurer has been up to all kinds of mischief. He's growing like a weed (a tall dandelion) --- we haven't actually measured him but we know this because he can now reach the door knobs in our house. This has really upset Sally (one of the cats) because she's been trying to turn the door knobs for years but, unfortunately for her, she doesn't have opposable thumbs so she just can't quite get a grip on it. Roman, on the other hand, does have opposable thumbs, and on the day he woke up and found that he'd grown just enough to reach the door knobs ... all kinds of mischief ensued. Suffice to say, there are now childproof covers on all the door knobs in our house.

He is so "cool" he will only wear his baseball caps backwards, he crosses his legs casually when in the stroller, and rubs his own recipe of "hair gel" in his hair (usually apple sauce, maple syrup, and/or "Yo Baby" yogurt).

The weather for most of June was typical northwest drizzle. After some 70 degree days in May, we went back to early spring weather. Roman doesn't mind the rain though because jumping in puddles is one of his top ten favorite activities.

Some of Roman's favorite toys are his cuddly animals, particularly BaBa the penguin and Ala the mountain lion. We're not sure how the penguin turned into BaBa but we think Ala comes from us saying "it's a lion." When we first met Roman, he wasn't interested in cuddly toys but now he has an active imagination and is able to see them as "friends" Sometimes we hear animated conversations going on between Roman, Baba, and Ala. His first favorite was his polar bear which he hugged every night, but now the penguin and the lion are fairly constant companions. The lion is almost as big as him and some nights we find him sleeping on top of it! He also has two monkeys, a giraffe, a rabbit, and a dinosaur.

Helen has been working on turning Roman into a Brit. To this end, she has introduced him to Marmite. This picture shows Roman post Marmite sandwich (he likes it so much, he actually licks it off the bread (notice the British bib).

On Friday, we took Roman to Boyer Children's Clinic for a speech therapy/cognitive skills evaluation. It was actually quite a fun time for him as the two therapists were very experienced with kids and knew just how to hold his attention. We were surprised to find that he does not qualify for the early intervention program because his language skills are not delayed! What a smart little guy he is. Even though he has only been in an English speaking environment for 4 months, his language skills are on track! We had a feeling this would be the case as he understands so much of what we say and already says about 40 words. It's a bit disappointing in one way though because Boyer is an extremely well-regarded clinic and we had really hoped he would benefit from some of their classes.  It's incredible what the toddler brain can do...learn a language in just months!

In this pic you can see Roman demonstrating that his cognitive skills are on track too! Who needs toys when you've got dog food to stack?

Recently, Roman's been having some behavioral issues that have been quite difficult for us. We decided to tell everyone about this on the blog as we know there are other adoptive families that read this and it helps to know that there are others going through the same experience. About three weeks ago he began having trouble getting sleep; he wanted us to hold him, and woke up a lot during the night (when Rich was away one night, Helen had to bring him into bed with her to get him to go to sleep, he slept very well while Helen cuddled him).  At the same time he started being particularly aggressive towards us whenever he didn't get his own way; pulling our hair, pinching, and scratching us. So on the one hand, he was being very affectionate and not wanting to let us out of his sight, and on the other, he was trying to control us. This aggression has been really difficult to handle, as he actually hurts Helen and has left scratches down her arm. Sometimes he hits the poor dog too, just to get a reaction from us. 

He's still the same darling little boy who loves to give us hugs and kisses, but now he has this major controlling issue. Well, we decided to jump on it immediately and went to see a child psychologist who specializes in International Adoption. Many people might say it's just a phase and that many kids go through the same thing, but it's not the same for post-institutionalized children. We need to watch his behavior carefully so he can have a bright future and not be affected mentally by his past.

We knew before going to see the psychologist that he was letting out his frustration physically because he couldn't express it verbally (he may be doing well with language but he's not at that level yet). However, the psychologist was able to elaborate on what she felt might be causing those frustrations and gave us tips on how best to handle it. We will keep you posted.

Roman's made some wonderful friends (he's got a better social life than we do). His buddies include Polina (who's 3 and also from Primorsky Krai), Adie, Kennedy, and Anthony (who are all 2 year old chatterboxes). Dawson, Lou, Beckett, Charlotte, and Mary (who are about the same age as Roman), and Sebastian (who's 18 months). Sebastian's mom is from the Ukraine, and Sebastian is learning both English and Ukrainian. His mom Helena also speaks Russian fluently and has been talking to Roman in Russian. We're really happy that Roman is having an opportunity to hear the Russian language again. The psychologist thought it would be great for him to hear Russian and see pictures of us all at the baby home, even if it upsets him a little at first. The speech therapists also felt that it would not hurt his English language development. We're really excited at the prospect of him being bilingual and we hope that he'll be able to keep Russian as a first language along with English rather than learning it later. There are many opportunities for him to hear Russian in Seattle as we have a large Russian population, so we're hoping this will be possible.

Of course, on his list of buddies we musn't forget Devlin, Kaysan, and Lauren the 6 year old triplets who look after him most Sundays while we are working. Well, it's actually their mom and dad Carri and Don who really look after him! Roman has a great time with the triplets and their rabbit Keppler and hamster Hammy. Devlin is Roman's "older brother" figure, and Roman likes to follow him around. If you went to our wedding, you may remember Devlin as our little ring bearer (he was only 14 months old back then and had to be carried up by his dad). Thanks Don and Carri for taking care of the Rascal for us..when you already have three 6 year olds of your own, that's quite an undertaking!

We'll write more soon,

The Greens