Would the Orphan's Dream Come True?

Last week our family made a last minute trip to central Iowa. We'd gotten word about a horse for sale so quickly rescheduled the days events. Then we jumped in our trusty 15-passenger van for an utterly new experience. This adventure was an especially important one to Mr R and me.

You see, years ago the two of us made a promise to a Russian judge. As we went through the final step of actually going to court in Russia in our effort to adopt Kirsten, Nathaniel and Eliana, we endured intense grilling which culminated in an insanely-long deliberation by the judge. Well, okay...we probably only fidgeted on the hard wooden benches for about an hour -- it just SEEMED like forever! The judge who had intimidated us for two days from his high perch on the dais had our hearts in his hands. Many months earlier we had visited Moscow with a group of fellow Americans interested in providing homes for fatherless children living in orphanages. On that trip, we'd not only felt the Lord's calling to add Nathaniel (10) and Eliana (5) to our family. Much to our surprise, we'd also fallen in love with a 15-year-old beauty with a kind heart and a quirky sense of humor. Since then we'd spent months jumping through hoops put in place on both the American and Russian sides trying to turn the three kiddos -- who had grown up in the same orphanage -- into our children.

When the judge returned after his deliberation, he made it clear -- through our interpreter -- that his agreement to the Kirsten's adoption came with a condition. He looked us steadily in the eye. We held our breath not knowing what would come next. The judge then told us that we must ensure that Kirsten would get the opportunity to interact with horses. During her testimony in court, the judge had asked her about her dreams and goals, and he was determined that her new parents would see to the nourishment of this orphan's aspirations. We didn't know how we would keep our word to the judge. Horses had never been on our family's radar. Even so, we breathed a sigh of relief. All along the arduous path to adopting this teenager, God had been leading. He had been ever faithful when we when we repeatedly ran full force into the inevitable roadblocks that seem to be part of international adoption. So the two of us held hands and meekly nodded our agreement to the judge's condition.

In the four years since that adoption took place, the Lord has opened doors left and right for our horse lover. And, as it turns out, Kirsten isn't alone in her passion. Her sisters, Christina (17) and Faith (15), share her love of all things equine. The three sisters have bonded tightly as close friends through this shared interest. They've taken riding lessons together and volunteered at a nearby ranch that offers therapeutic riding for children with disabilities or delays.

A little over a year ago Kirsten graduated from high school. She did so with a dream in her heart. She longed to become a horse trainer. Last summer she was blessed to work as an intern on a dude ranch. She got in numberless hours of horse riding. She even learned how to heard cattle. Then in the fall Kirsten made a move to Ohio, living with Aaron and Anna for a few months. The Lord opened a door again, and she found a job she loved. She worked as a stable hand at a facility that is home to more than 40 horses, many of them trained to show.

Now Kirsten is back home and ready for the next step in this journey. She hopes to learn the Pat Parelli natural horsemanship training method. Before Kirsten can attend the school in the Colorado mountains, she has to be able to demonstrate that she has reached a number of milestones in training a horse. In order to do this, Kirsten needed a horse to train. Our dream as parents is to be able to help each of our children with a portion of the cost of their post high school education. For Kirsten, this meant we would help her buy a horse. Thus, our four-hour drive into the heart of Iowa last week.

Kirsten heard about a horse named Magic through Brittany, a friend she'd made while volunteering at the therapeutic horseback riding stable. Brittany is thoroughly connected in the horse world in the upper Midwest. With that knowledge, she enjoys playing "matchmaker" -- helping prospective horse owners find just the right animal. The looming question as we drove was would there be a fit between our daughter and this particular animal. 

When we arrived at the stable, Kirsten approached Magic somewhat tentatively. She was studying him carefully to see what traits he would exhibit. She was reading the three-year-old's body language.

While Kirsten was watching the horse, I was watching her. It wasn't long before her expression change. Her look of hesitation changed to a cautious smile, and I knew we were watching something magical happen between a former orphan and a dark chocolate horse sporting a braided mane for the special day.

A few minutes into Kirsten's contemplation, Magic's owner, John, offered to show her Magic's level of training.

He had Magic mount this "bridge" to demonstrate that Magic doesn't spook easily. Next, John mounted Magic and rode him around the arena. Our girls who are now walking encyclopedia's of horse knowledge had told us ahead of time that seeing the owner ride the horse he's trying to sell is crucial. After all, if the owner is unwilling to ride the horse, there's a good chance the animal has "issues".

Now it was Kirsten's chance to ride.

Her siblings watched with interest. Faith recorded the entire ride on Kirsten's phone for her.

While all this was going on, Kirsten's Dad and I were in the background praying without ceasing. We still know so little about horses that we were completely dependent on God to give the wisdom to know if this was THE horse. We felt a wonderful peace despite the major expense we were contemplating making. God leads and guides those understand their dependence on Him. He is faithful to help those who cry out to Him.

Kirsten dismounted and did some more thinking and praying.

And then the came the smile that told us it was time for her daddy to do some negotiating! Over the course of more than four years, God had led us baby step by baby step to this momentous occasion.

As Mr. R and John talked, I just couldn't help thinking back to that Russian court room. I couldn't help wishing that the judge could have been with us to see the orphaned child who lived without hope become a horse owner, by God's grace. Somehow I think that the stoic countenance he presented throughout the adoption hearing would  have been replaced by a grin as wide as Kirsten's.

God abounds in lovingkindness!

Thankful for Thanksgiving

Mrs. R:

As we begin to wrap up preparations for the celebration of Christ's birth on Christmas, Mr. R. and I continue to thank God for our family's WONDERFUL Thanksgiving. For a full week, we had all of our children and grandchildren in our home (with the exception of Sarah who is serving in an orphanage in Zambia). We experienced the most glorious fellowship. I took this photo on one of the evenings as some of that rich love and laughter was taking place in the kitchen.

Many Reasons to Give Thanks

Mrs. R:

Our Thanksgiving began with a time of family Bible reading this morning. We then sang a couple of hymns. With twenty of us in the house this Thanksgiving we nearly qualify as a choir.

As soon as worship time was over, an intense strategy game started at the kitchen table.

By eleven, the meal preps for the holiday feast were fully underway. Many hands helped peel the potatoes...

...but the special touch that turns them into world's best mashed potatoes is Kirsten's. When we adopted her from Russia four years ago this month, she brought with her this special skill that has blessed our family many times.

However, when Kirsten's cousin, Amanda, wandered into the kitchen, Kirsten paused in her stirring and asked if I would take a picture of the two of them.

Meanwhile, Grandpa's preparation of the stuffing was happily interrupted by a visit from Brielle and Eliana. 

As much as Brielle normally likes being kissed by her grandpa, this time the two-year-old was far more interested in what Grandpa was doing than in his show of affection. 

The dilemma was easily solved when we found a way to position Brielle as Grandpa's helper. She became the keeper of the key ingredient for our family's stuffing recipe: SAGE.

Soon it was time to open the bottle...

...and shake!!! We learned years ago that great stuffing takes a great deal of sage. This year we started passing down that learning to the next generation.

Brielle watched eagerly as Grandpa stirred in the sage she had added.

Then she added another round of the all-important seasoning as Amanda prepared chicken broth to add to the mixture to moisten it.

Next, Brielle was eager to help Grandpa stir the massive mound.

She watched intently as he got out the foil pan in which the stuffing would be baked.

Finally, she helped Grandpa transfer the stuffing into the baking pan.

They scraped and scraped to get every last bit.

Finally, the holiday masterpiece was ready for the oven.

Since she was already in position, Brielle then wanted to help Amanda by drying the dishes.

Our big girl was such a big help!

Just as I was ready to put my camera away, I saw Kirsten slide over to give her daddy a hug as he turned his attention from the stuffing to the preparations necessary before getting the turkeys out of the oven. I didn't capture the special moment in focus, but I couldn't resist posting the photo anyway.

Our family has countless reasons to give thanks to God! The Lord has been so good to us. He abounds in lovingkindness!

A Happy Hard Goodbye with One Regret

Denise:

This weekend our family traveled many hours west. We had two missions. One was to visit my parents. The second was to drop Kirsten, our 19-year-old, off for a two-month internship. In our family, we've come to love internships that take place before a young person is committed to a college major or a career. 

As I've mentioned a number of times, Kirsten left her first home in Russia 3-1/2 years ago with a passion for horses. As Kirsten moved toward the end of high school, we weren't really sure how to help her pursue her passion. Oh, how we prayed for God's leading. And He was so faithful! 

This spring, Kirsten "stumbled" upon a ranch owned by a Christian family in western Nebraska. This family provides a "wild west dude ranch" horse-back riding experience for guests who come from all over the country (and even beyond the borders of the US). While that family hosts tourists, their main emphasis is ranching. They currently have more that 300 head of cattle on their 3600 acres. Thirty-six hundred acres! That size of responsibility boggles my mind!

Kirsten will help with the care of the family's guests. She'll help with cooking and dishes, etc. She will also get the chance to participate in the some of the family's ranching. In fact, the role she took on bright and early the first morning she was there was to mount her favorite horse, Cactus, and help round up 15 stray steer that had broken through the fence and "visited" their neighbors. She got to ride for over four hours in a real, working-ranch situation. 

When we talked to Kirsten the night after her first full day, she was elated with the experience! She commented on how much she enjoyed riding horses for a purpose, rather than just pleasure. She loves the sense of purpose she feels as she teams up with Cactus to 'get the job done'.

The family is loving and kind.  They immediately began treating Kirsten like one of them. A sweet bonus for Kirsten is that they have an older teenage daughter; the two of them seem to have great chemistry. 

After this glowing report, you may wonder what the "one regret" is that I mentioned in the title. Thankfully, its a small "Oh, if only..." kind of regret. I just wish I had thought to get a photo of Kirsten in her newly acquired cowgirl hat. The one she chose at our local western store combines the sun protection she will need with serious bling that fits her personality! She looks fit to be a rodeo queen when wearing it!

Here are some pictures from our family trip together:

I took this photo during  picnic on the way to the ranch. Even though five years separate these two sisters, Faith (right) and Kirsten have developed a tight friendship. I know they will miss each other!

The ranch's 3,500 acres are located in northwestern Nebraska is far off a public road and in an area of great natural beauty. In all honesty, after living adjacent to the state for most of my life, I didn't realize such dramatically different topography and fauna existed in the state. I thought all of Nebraska was cornfields!

Here, Kirsten's siblings are being introduce by Jeff, father and rancher, to the horse Kirsten will ride--Cactus.

The boys enjoyed socializing with some of those who will be Kirsten's friends during these next two months.

We hugged Kirsten individually several times over. Then all drew together for a group hug. It was time for the rest of us to load up in van and wave our goodbyes. Kirsten will certainly have our prayers during this adventure of a lifetime!

As we drove away, we thanked God for the beautiful scenery that will surround her this summer.

Kirsten and Matthew's Graduation and Future Plans

This weekend we celebrated the high school graduations of Kirsten and Matthew. Both of these kiddos are among the nine we've adopted from Russia. Both have been home schooled since the day we brought them home.

We adopted Kirsten Nadezhda in November 2010. She has no biological siblings, although now she has a houseful of siblings though adoption!

Kirsten is the only one of our nine Russian adoptees to have started high school in Russia and finished in America, and she didn't speak any English when she arrived. What an accomplishment! We're very proud of her!

Kirsten has had a lifelong passion for horses since living with her grandmother on a small farm in rural Russia as a little girl.

Kirsten's dream now that she's completed high school is to become a horse trainer. She hasn't yet settled on which school would be the best fit for her. As she continues her research, the Lord has provided a wonderful opportunity. Kirsten will be working for about two months this summer at a Christian Guest Ranch that is also a full time cattle spread with over 35,000 acres in western Nebraska. Most of her duties will include caring for the guests who come from around the world to ride in this "old west" setting.

Photo Credit ~ Faith Reynolds

Matthew Vladislav's adoptive story is nearly the opposite of Kirsten's. He was adopted at age five way back in 2001. He was the youngest of a trio of siblings. Zhenya and Sarah are his biological siblings. They were eight and seven, respectively.

When we began educating Matthew, we were scared! He was so far behind on what we thought every five-year-old should know. The most basic concepts eluded our new little boy. We wrestled with hopelessness and projected the worst in our minds. Math was by far his weakest subject.

That was Matt then. What a work the Lord has done in this young man! Matt is now a strong academic who loves to learn. Mathematics is now his strongest subject.

Matthew plays the piano but is an accomplished guitarist. He's also a vocalist and a song writer. He just plain loves to make music!

Despite his love of music, the yearning of Matt's heart will take him in a far different direction than the music field. Since he was a little boy, Matthew has dreamed of being a U.S. Marine Officer. Like Kirsten and her plans, we're not completely certain what the immediate path to the goal should be. We'll use this next year to solidify his plans. In the meantime, Matt would like to spend at least a couple of months on the missions field overseas. We figure this will be great preparation for the rigors of military life.

When the world thinks of older orphans, they often conceptualize lost causes. Now that four of our older Russian adoptees have graduated from high school, we would like to debunk that myth. Our kiddos have met their academic requirements, and they overflow with so many giftings that a career choice for each of them is difficult. God is so good. He does heal!

Senior Photo Magic

Today I took Matt and Kirsten, our two high school seniors, out on the town to take their senior photos. I also had along the greatest crew ~ Sarah, Tatiana, Natasha and Amy. They also took pictures and hauled equipment for me as well. Sarah was a tremendous help in posing our seniors.

This morning we went downtown to an area of restored buildings and took photos with that popular urban look. Then this afternoon Kirsten's horse-riding trainer gave us the opportunity to take pictures of Kirsten with Pinch, the horse on whom she's trained for about 2-1/2 years. It's been a magical day, our family working together as a team to capture the photos that will mark the milestone of high school graduation. Pictured above with Kirsten is Tatiana (holding the camera) and Matthew (foreground).