Wednesday, October 30, 2013

More pictures
















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Lyla update

My goodness it's been a crazy few days. Our drive did not go so well, Lyla just wasn't breathing well. But then she perked up so we went to the beach as planned. She did not have lots of energy so we only stayed a little while. I didn't like the way she was breathing again so I called Dr. Marx. He told me to take her to the ER. WE DID!!! I can't say enough amazing things about this hospital but I will save that for another post!!!

Lyla was admitted and her testing and surgery was cancelled. We are just playing it day by day to see when we can head home. We will return in December. I have absolute Faith that this is His plan!!! I have such Peace!!!!

Thank you for all the prayers and positive thoughts!!!!! You all help get us thru these crazy times and we are so grateful!!!!!
















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Saturday, October 26, 2013

Here we go!!!

Leaving in just a few hours to head to Boston, MA!!!  I can't even believe it!!!

Just about 20 minutes ago my sister said, "Why don't you bring one of the boys with you and then fly them back?"  The reason she said this is I have been FREAKING out!!!  I mean BAD!!!  Lyla is having a hard time breathing and she just doesn't travel well.  So if she gets upset, I am stuck in the front driving unable to help her right away.  We are driving through the night and I was scared thinking about stopping anywhere with her.  Just me and her in a parking lot at 3 am!!  Oh - So Not GOOD!!!



Well NO WORRIES ANYMORE!!!  Even though we had talked about the idea of having one of the boys going with me and flying them home we decided we just couldn't afford it.  Well!!!  A wonderful - incredible man that works with my brother in law in Boston donated $100 to our family!!!  CAN YOU BELIEVE IT?????  The ticket was $136!!!!  Just bought it - just a few minutes ago!!!  I can't even begin to tell you the relief I feel!!!  It's like going from complete despair to jumping around like a 5 year old on Christmas Morning!!  Really, I'm not exaggerating.  I WAS A MESS!!!  NOW I AM FANTASTIC!!!!  I am so GRATEFUL to my brother in law for sharing Lyla's story and for his co-worker to be so moved that he would donate $100!!!!  I am also so GRATEFUL my sister brought this up!!!  WOW!!!  Can you say "HELLO GOD"!!!  Just Amazing!!!!!


So Conor is going with me for the drive - THANK YOU CONOR - and then he will fly home Monday night!!!  OH THANK GOD!!!!!!!!!


Our first stop is Boston tomorrow morning is to pick my sister up.  Then we will go to Plymouth.  Heather and I grew up in Plymouth, right down the street from the ocean.  We are bringing Lyla to the beach for the first time.  She is going to LOVE it!!!  The reason I know this is because she LOVES Wind!!!  HA!!!  She really does!!!  Lyla also LOVES water - any kind!!  So the BEACH will make her so very happy!!!  I just know it!  I have to admit, I am hoping that healing ocean air will help those lungs for surgery.  It's a WIN WIN!!!



Lyla's testing starts Tuesday morning at 7:30.  All day!!  Then Wednesday she will have her cardiac catheterization, a ct of her chest and an echo all done under sedation.  I will meet with the Doctors after those are completed and they will tell me the plan for Wednesday.  WOW!!!

 Please keep Praying for our Princess!!!  I know that every PRAYER has been heard and answered!!!  Or we wouldn't be here now, heading to Boston - the BEST OF THE BEST!!!!  NO WAY!!!!  Thank you!!!  We are forever Grateful to each and everyone of you that has sent a prayer up for our girl!!!

I will keep you all updated!!!  Thank You Again!!!!!  LOVE TO ALL!!!!!!


I don't think anything could stop this girl!!!!!!! 

Wednesday, October 16, 2013

19 CRIBS

Each time we visited Lyla in the orphanage she was in the infirmary. 

One day we brought diapers, diaper rash cream and chocolates to the groupa that we knew had some special needs children.  The caregivers were so appreciative.  They asked us if we wanted to see Leeza's crib.  I was shocked honestly, I had no idea this was her regular groupa.  I assumed I guess that she was always in the infirmary.  I was so grateful that they had offered us a chance to see where she slept most of her nights for 3 years.   I got my camera ready.

We followed four caregivers to a back room.  It was dark and so quiet.  One of the nanny's went to a crib in the corner, I followed her passing 3 cribs to my left on the way.  There it was!!!!  That was the place my sweet beautiful daughter slept!!!!    I took some pictures and I think I was just a tad bit out of it since I had no idea what was going on behind me.  I just kept picturing Lyla in that crib, Thanking GOD that she wouldn't have to ever lay there again.  I must of snapped out of it because  I  noticed movement to the left of me.  I looked over and there was a beautiful little boy with Down syndrome in one of the cribs I passed.  It must of been his nap time, although he wasn't sleeping but he was so very quiet.  I realized there was a little one in the crib next to him as well.  Not asleep, just staring at the ceiling.  Just laying and staring!!!

I was not even close to being prepared for what I would see next.  HOW DID I NOT KNOW??????

I turned around realizing Dave wasn't next to me.  So I looked for him!!!  I couldn't believe what I was seeing.  I really couldn't.  My mind and my heart could not make any sense of it. 

FIFTEEN CRIBS!!!!!!!!  A CHILD IN EACH!!!!!!!!!

I entered a room that I thought was empty!!!  Quiet and Empty.  I honestly thought the children were out on a walk.  I WAS SO WRONG!!!!!!!

I had to hold on to the empty crib next to Lyla's because I felt my knees giving out.  Why was I in a room with SEVENTEEN children and it was so incredibly QUIET???????  Oh those poor beautiful children.  The tears were streaming down my face.  Our beautiful translator noticed that I was struggling and said to me "this is the room for the laying down children".  Oh my, she was right!!!  That is absolutely all these precious children were doing - LAYING DOWN!!!!  Not a peep, not any movement!!!  Just staring at that disgusting ceiling.  IT WAS AWFUL TO WITNESS!!!!!!  The playback of the realization is something I see at least once a day, sometimes more.  I am sure it will be something I see for the rest of my life.  Reminding me!!!!!

I would say these children ranged in age from 3 to 6 years.   One was 12 months.

Dave had been visiting with each child as I was off in la la land staring at Lyla's crib.  I still, one year later, can't believe I didn't know what was going on behind me. 

Dave and I went to each crib.  We visited with each child.  Holding their hand.  Caressing their face.  Showing them as much LOVE as we possibly could in such a short amount of time.  The caregivers told our translator that they were happy we were not scared of the children and that we cared for them.  We spoke to each precious one.  I don't even know everything we were saying.  Some of the children were terrified of our touch at first.  You could see the  fear in their eyes wondering what was going to happen.  Most of the little ones warmed up almost immediately.  Every one of them was soaked.  SOAKED from head to toe!!!  Some had two or three bibs on for reflux.  Some smelled absolutely horrific.  I was able to sit in a rocking chair with three of the children, one at a time and just rock and sing to them.  I kissed, I hugged and I told them how much GOD loved them!!!! 

Dave too was allowed to pick up some of the children and just hold them tight.  Allowing them to feel a fathers LOVE!!!  A Beautiful LOVE that I PRAY to GOD they one day will experience and it will be FOREVER!!!!!

I HATE THAT DAY!!!!!  and I LOVE THAT DAY!!!!!!  I was BLESSED to spend a moment with each of those children and I will cherish that for the rest of my life. 

I did not got to the evening visit that day.  I was physically sick!!!!  Even though I had been to two different orphanages countless times for our visits, I just never realized.  Even now, as I write this, I check with Dave to make sure I am telling the truth.  I mean how could this really be???? 


Crib #5 WAS Lyla's crib!!!!! 

Here is the post I wrote that day:  http://luckytolovelyla.blogspot.com/2012/08/one-day.html

Tuesday, October 1, 2013

Taylor's Update!

Hello everyone!  This is Taylor, Summer’s oldest daughter, and I am bringing some updates to you!  

From March to September 2012, I was living in Ukraine with my husband, Kostya.  Unfortunately, due to visa issues, I had to return to U.S.A. to apply for a marriage visa, as well as update my social security card, etc.  

From September 2012 to February 2013 I worked to get all of my documentation up to date, get the right amount of funds, applied for my marriage visa, and was finally able to return to Ukraine.  The original plan was to have Kostya come to U.S.A., but unfortunately that is easier said than done.  It would have been up to two years before I was able to see him again!  That is too much and far too long!  

In December 2012, I started to experience some medical issues.  I had a blind spot in my eye and experienced a migraine with vision loss.  My doctor thought I may have had a stroke, so she did blood work for clotting disorders and I also got an MRI.  Thankfully, I didn’t have a stroke and the blind spot was from “Yellow dot Syndrome”... which is pretty much an unexplainable build up that just happens sometimes in young, healthy women.  However, in my blood work they did find that I have a blood clotting disorder; Protein S Deficiency.   And thank God for that! My doctor told me that women usually discover they are Protein S deficient after repeat miscarriages/stillborns.  Yikes! 

I was exhausted from trying to figure out how to get my husband and I together and from the medical madness.  Thus, I decided to go the easier route to simply return to Ukraine and to figure everything out, together with my husband.  After returning to Ukraine in early March 2013, Kostya and I found out we were expecting in April 2013, due November 27 2013.  I thank God for learning about my deficiency because had I not, I would have never known, and the possible outcome makes me sick to my stomach.  God works in mysterious ways!  

After finding out, we decided I would spend my pregnancy in Ukraine and give birth here.  Some how, we don’t even know how, a Ukrainian family got our phone number and contacted us wanting private English lessons.  This was perfect because they just wanted to come to our home, rather than me having to go anywhere!  Kostya also found a full-time job a week after he graduated from his University in March!  I don’t want to jinx anything, but we have been so lucky… and I am so, so thankful.  

We were able to find a high risk OB/GYN and found ways to regulate my blood clotting through aspirin.  Ironically, Ukraine doesn’t even have a test to identify Protein S Deficiencies.  For awhile I was having a hard time trusting my doctor and I was battling food cravings.  I am happy to say those have been my only problems!  Medical care is certainly different in Ukraine, however I have lived to tell the tale.  

We were living in a rather small apartment, and there was no way we would have been able to add one more person to our family.  We always loved our friend’s apartment and always said if she were to ever move out that we would have to live there.  Well, she wasn’t going to move out, but her neighbors with the same apartment did!  We could not believe it!  Our friend called us and we didn‘t even know what to say.  I am thinking we should go for the lottery, but I don’t want to tempt with our fortune just yet.  

I cannot believe that in 8+/- weeks, my husband and I are going to be parents to a little girl, named Evelyn!  We are so excited and don’t see our lives going any other way.  What would I have been doing these past 8 months in Ukraine if I wasn’t always on the internet talking to other expecting moms and worrying about my pregnancy?  I don’t know!  I don’t see how I could have been doing anything else.  I can honestly say I am not afraid at all to give birth and I welcome the experience! 

After Evelyn is born, we will apply for her American citizenship, and hopefully her and I will return to U.S.A. in January 2015.  From there we will apply for Kostya’s immigration, as we would then qualify better, and hopefully have our family together by 2016.  But who knows?  My plans seem to plan themselves and leave me out of the loop… thank goodness!