Day 16

Another "lazy" day at the Shoup house.

We must have tired Vladik out yesterday with all that fresh air and sunshine... he slept until after 9 this morning!  Of course, Joe and Kyle were both up by 6:30, so as usual, the rest of us ate breakfast without him.

French Toast Sticks were on the menu this morning-- I had to open a 2nd bag in order to fill his hollow leg.

It was cool this morning... unseasonably cool... so while I was waiting for Vladik     to get up, I pulled some weeds in my flowerbeds, sprayed Round-Up on the ones I couldn't get, and finished spreading the last of the mulch. I'm glad that job is FINALLY done. I'm going to have a lot of daylilies, as well as some Orientals and Asiatics that need divided this fall so if anyone is interested in my splits... let me know.

     The small remaining pile of mulch, that I think my SIL is going to take, was turned into a makeshift bike ramp for the boys this morning. They rode over that thing for well over an hour-- and they went back out after supper to ride some more.The mulch pile has compacted about 6" from where it was. :-)

They helped bale for a while after lunch, and then came inside and we watched              "Apple Dumpling Gang."  There's enough slapstick kind of humor that it held Vladik's attention, even if he didn't understand what was being said.

Sidewalk chalk, bubbles, squirt guns and supper later... and they're all back outside riding bikes... on the swing... playing tag.

A friend of mine from church has offered to take professional photos of Vladik.    Thanks, Rachael!!!!  A good head shot, I'm told, is INVALUABLE as we begin to advocate for him. For families who are interested in adopting, a really good picture makes a strong first impression. If they like what they see, maybe they'll choose to read the short bio I wrote about Vladik and his time here so far. From there, maybe a visit. Who knows?!

Vladik and I continue to have our best bonding time at night--after Joe and Kyle are in bed, while we work on his English. And we get SO much more done without any interruptions. I don't know if I posted this before, but he told me that he didn't have an English teacher at school... that all the English he knew was self taught. The alphabet, sounds, numbers to 10, quite a few words, and a very few phrases. He REALLY wants to learn, and he's working diligently to become more fluent and more comfortable in what he already knows. I'm proud of his effort, and pleased that I'm able to help him.