Getting on a Routine. . . With Guinea Pigs!

Finally . . . after 2 months in America, we are finally beginning to get into a regular routine. Going to school helps a lot. The girls must get up at 6:00am (they are not morning people, so this time is a little painful). They must be in bed with lights out no later than 10:00 (this is also hard because they are bouncing every evening and finding every excuse possible to get out of bed and delay the process - much like preschoolers). But, thankfully, it's happening!!

The girls showed noticeable improvement in attitude and helpfulness this past week, as well as strong determination to do well in their schoolwork. So, they earned a very big reward. They had been asking us all summer if they could get a guinea pig. We told them we would wait and see how things went, and see if they earned the privilege of having this kind of pet. Well, after the demonstration of great attitude, work ethic and helpfulness, the time was right this weekend. On Saturday we bought 2 guinea pigs, a large cage, bedding, a guinea pig house, food, water bottle, and food dish. That all set us back a pretty penny, but the response and reaction of the girls has been priceless.

Zhanna named her guinea pig "Poopsik." That means something like "baby" in Russian. Ella named hers "Bob." Just plain, old "Bob." They love their babies, and worry and fuss over them. They enjoy nothing better than to watch a movie in the living room and hold their babies all wrapped up on their laps. Ella frets over Bob because she says he sneezes and acts sick (we have never heard him sneeze). She asked her dad if guinea pigs get headaches. She doesn't want her baby to suffer in any way. They are both very loving and attentive "mommies." They love animals, anyway, and to have the responsibility for the total care and feeding of their own pet is a good lesson in empathy. They are developing a gentleness through caring for these guinea pigs. We're enjoying watching their loving natures come forth.

School continues to go well. It is quite challenging, but the girls are "hanging tough" and rising to all that is expected of them. There is a lot to do, but they seem determined to do their best and to make good grades. Last week they were to have a health test on Thursday. I studied with them until about 9:30 on Wednesday night, when Ella hit the wall. She put her head down on her arms and wouldn't even talk to us. We told her to go on to bed. She went into the bedroom, got in her bed with her clothes on and covered her head with the blankets. She wouldn't budge or even respond to us. Zhanna got her pajamas on and went to bed, as well. We tried to reassure them that they were working hard, and not to worry. Just do their best. Their teacher and everyone else would understand. We kissed them both goodnight, and turned out the lights.

After about 10 minutes Mark and I noticed the light was on again in their bedroom. We went in to find the girls quizzing each other on the health test material. Bless their hearts! The material was challenging for them - all about the circulatory sytem. Words like "plasma", "capillaries", "varicose veins", "ventical", "atrium", "aorta", etc., etc. In addition, they had to label the parts of the heart, and be able to match the description of the parts of the heart with its function. It would be a challenging test if you had known English your entire life, but to have to learn how to say many new and extremely difficult words, as well as understanding their meanings is like an extreme sport or competition. But both girls persevered.

Mark and I worked with them about another hour. They finally felt satisfied and were able to sleep. They next morning they woke up early and got ready and wanted us to quiz them again. They took the test at school that day and both got an "A." We were so proud of them!

Yes, we are all working hard through the week, but thankfully, the weekends have been restful. We were able to sleep in on Saturday and rest on Sunday. The girls actually spent the afternoon with some of the young people from church, eating pizza, and playing "guitar hero" on the Wii. They had a good time, and Mark and I got a little break. It was good for all of us.

God is so good, and we are well aware that He is at work in the hearts and minds of our beautiful daughters. He is at work in our hearts and minds, too. We are learning and stretching and growing. We praise Him for all things . . . especially sleep!

God's blessings,
Dawn and Mark