Monday, November 10, 2008
Sunday, November 9, 2008
5 PM Outing
5pm OutingOne thing that is hard to adjust to is the winter darkness. When Kharkov “fell back” doing the time change, it started getting dark around 5pm! Now, dusk starts falling around 4:30pm and by 5pm, it is pretty dark. I took a few pictures of Canaan out on
the playground, around 5:30pm! So, we will be playing and running errands by the light of the lamps for a while. The worse part is that some places are very poorly lighted. For example, there are no lamp lights in David and Olivia’s courtyard. So when we walk there after dark, we just have to guess whe
re the roads and sidewalks are and hope we don’t fall too hard in the big holes and cracks that litter all the roads and sidewalks! I feel like I need headlights on my stroller! One thing we will be getting soon for the stroller is reflectors, so that we can be seen by cars! The shortest day of the year is on December 21st, so I imagine we will be seeing more darkness until then. One thing we found helped in Moscow was having plenty of inside lighting; we scatter lamps around the house and turn them on to give a sense of brightness to remind us that it is not time to start getting ready for bed yet!
Friday, November 7, 2008
The First Two Years
Dougle and I gathered these pictures, that are just of Canaan, during his first two years of life with us. We thought you might enjoy seeing pictures of our cutest boy as he grew up over the past two years! We thank God for giving him to us and pray for many more years together with him! And, we look forward to soon adding Max to our family in February!
Enjoy!
Enjoy!
Wednesday, November 5, 2008
Two Years Old
Two Years Old!
Hello all. This post is coming a few days late, due to some illness in our family. But we are happy to announce that we have been parents for two years now! I mean, we are happy to announce that Canaan Kirt is now TWO YEARS OLD! Canaan turned two on Thursday, October 30th. We had a party planned for that evening, however Mommy and Daddy (and Uncle David) were too sick. We were thoroughly disappointed in having to postpone the party, but we were able to have a party on the following Monday night! I hope you enjoy all the info and all the pictures from the party!! And a thank you to everyone who sent gifts to Canaan, as well as a BIG thank you to Liv and Dave for bringing them to us!!
Also: this slideshow is a little long, so don't feel obligated to watch!
Proud “Academic” Accomplishments
Alphabet: Canaan can say all the letters of the alphabet, though he still skips “W” most of the time. He also can recognize almost all the letters if written for him. He has recently started to sing his ABC’s, though he won’t do it by himself, he always requires the help of everyone who is present when he performs. We will have to post a clip of this soon too; it is too cute.
Numbers: Canaan can count things, like the steps as he goes up or his cars he lines up, 1-10. Though he hasn’t been inclined to saying the number 7, he has finally started to recently. He can also recognize all the numbers 1-10 when written.
Colors: Canaan can recognize the 10 basic colors: red, blue, yellow, green, orange, purple, white, black, brown, and pink. In fact, he loves to talk about everything using these color words!
New Words
The past few months have brought an onslaught of all kinds of new vocabulary. While Canaan tries to repeat so much of what we say, whether he understands it or not, I try to just include the words that he says on his own, not just words he randomly repeats. I know I won’t be doing this much longer, since his vocabulary seems to be increasing by a word or two every day, but I know certain people who hold him dear to their hearts like to know what all is new. One thing, it is interesting to look at some of the new words and see what types of new discussions we’ve been having lately: for example the verbs hit, throw, bite, bump, hurt or a few nouns like oven, timer, and microwave! And, since there are so many, I won’t put his pronunciations for all of them. Most of them are the word, just without the first letter (he’s been leaving off first letters these days), or they sound similar to the word, to the trained Mommy ear! So, here are his newest words in the past month that I can think of, though I am sure I am missing a few:
Verbs: line up, blow nose, hit, throw, bite, bump, hurt, see, hide, have it, sing, walk, open, broke, watch, clean up, crash, fly, paint
Nouns: train (not just choo-choo), plane (not just air), fire truck (not just truck), tracks (train tracks), legs, arms, hands, mouth, face, pants, shirt, jacket, board, ladder, oven, timer, microwave, oatmeal, towel, shampoo, room, piece, page, crayon, careful
Prepositions: (he loves prepositions)- next, around
Adjectives: dark, messy, other,
Misc: oops, bless you
New Favorites
So, here are just a few favorite phrases or activities that Canaan has recently.
Peas and Corn- For the past week, whenever we ask Canaan what he wants to eat, he always replies with “Peas, Corn.” He loves most vegetables, while having a distinct dislike for all fruits, except for eating a banana and drinking orange juice. If his yogurt comes with tiny bits of fruit pieces, he spits them back out at us!
“Mommy play you.” This is a cute phrase he says all the time these days. He hasn’t got the correct personal pronoun yet, but he has been more and more frequently asking that people play with him. So, whoever is the coolest person in the house (Chi, Auntie, or Uncle David always top Mommy and Daddy if they are around), then he will be tugging on their pant leg and asking them to “play you” (with me)!
“Na-Nan have it.” This new phrase, though just a couple days old has been used frequently. He has discovered a way to express that he wants something and we should give it to him to see!
Crayons- Coloring with crayons is a new favorite pastime. Sometimes it is just carrying around the crayons that he likes so much. But he loves his crayons. Since arriving in Ukraine, I have had a hard time finding crayons, which is strange to me. I have looked just about everywhere I go, but have only managed to find them in one store! But, I did find some great crayons for little hands. They are small, but fat, and have no paper on them, which tended only to get in the way before. Many times Canaan will pull his crayons out of his box one by one, make two circles or lines or scribbles with each one, and then put them down on the table in a nice, neat line. He will go through every crayon like this, making a few strokes and then putting it down in line with the rest that have been used! He is so funny like this! He also likes to group the colors, pulling out the four shades of blue crayons, choosing to color with the two shades of yellow at the same time, etc. It is so cute and funny to me!
Playing with Friends- Since we now have our teammates near us, we have been spending time with them recently, as well as trading off babysitting, etc. Canaan has taken note of this and wakes up most mornings wanting to “Go Chi’s house” or “See Auntie, David.” He loves his new friends and buddies and likes to play with them! This, I myself like as well. Though at times getting together young 2 and 3 year olds can take a lot of work for the mommies, since they are still having to teach their little offspring how to share and how not to hit, it is also very nice and rewarding to see them playing happily together and chasing each other playfully through the house! Of course, Aunties and Uncles are the best too, since you generally don’t have to worry about those issues with them!
Hello all. This post is coming a few days late, due to some illness in our family. But we are happy to announce that we have been parents for two years now! I mean, we are happy to announce that Canaan Kirt is now TWO YEARS OLD! Canaan turned two on Thursday, October 30th. We had a party planned for that evening, however Mommy and Daddy (and Uncle David) were too sick. We were thoroughly disappointed in having to postpone the party, but we were able to have a party on the following Monday night! I hope you enjoy all the info and all the pictures from the party!! And a thank you to everyone who sent gifts to Canaan, as well as a BIG thank you to Liv and Dave for bringing them to us!!
Also: this slideshow is a little long, so don't feel obligated to watch!
Proud “Academic” Accomplishments
Alphabet: Canaan can say all the letters of the alphabet, though he still skips “W” most of the time. He also can recognize almost all the letters if written for him. He has recently started to sing his ABC’s, though he won’t do it by himself, he always requires the help of everyone who is present when he performs. We will have to post a clip of this soon too; it is too cute.
Numbers: Canaan can count things, like the steps as he goes up or his cars he lines up, 1-10. Though he hasn’t been inclined to saying the number 7, he has finally started to recently. He can also recognize all the numbers 1-10 when written.
Colors: Canaan can recognize the 10 basic colors: red, blue, yellow, green, orange, purple, white, black, brown, and pink. In fact, he loves to talk about everything using these color words!
New Words
The past few months have brought an onslaught of all kinds of new vocabulary. While Canaan tries to repeat so much of what we say, whether he understands it or not, I try to just include the words that he says on his own, not just words he randomly repeats. I know I won’t be doing this much longer, since his vocabulary seems to be increasing by a word or two every day, but I know certain people who hold him dear to their hearts like to know what all is new. One thing, it is interesting to look at some of the new words and see what types of new discussions we’ve been having lately: for example the verbs hit, throw, bite, bump, hurt or a few nouns like oven, timer, and microwave! And, since there are so many, I won’t put his pronunciations for all of them. Most of them are the word, just without the first letter (he’s been leaving off first letters these days), or they sound similar to the word, to the trained Mommy ear! So, here are his newest words in the past month that I can think of, though I am sure I am missing a few:
Verbs: line up, blow nose, hit, throw, bite, bump, hurt, see, hide, have it, sing, walk, open, broke, watch, clean up, crash, fly, paint
Nouns: train (not just choo-choo), plane (not just air), fire truck (not just truck), tracks (train tracks), legs, arms, hands, mouth, face, pants, shirt, jacket, board, ladder, oven, timer, microwave, oatmeal, towel, shampoo, room, piece, page, crayon, careful
Prepositions: (he loves prepositions)- next, around
Adjectives: dark, messy, other,
Misc: oops, bless you
New Favorites
So, here are just a few favorite phrases or activities that Canaan has recently.
Peas and Corn- For the past week, whenever we ask Canaan what he wants to eat, he always replies with “Peas, Corn.” He loves most vegetables, while having a distinct dislike for all fruits, except for eating a banana and drinking orange juice. If his yogurt comes with tiny bits of fruit pieces, he spits them back out at us!
“Mommy play you.” This is a cute phrase he says all the time these days. He hasn’t got the correct personal pronoun yet, but he has been more and more frequently asking that people play with him. So, whoever is the coolest person in the house (Chi, Auntie, or Uncle David always top Mommy and Daddy if they are around), then he will be tugging on their pant leg and asking them to “play you” (with me)!
“Na-Nan have it.” This new phrase, though just a couple days old has been used frequently. He has discovered a way to express that he wants something and we should give it to him to see!
Crayons- Coloring with crayons is a new favorite pastime. Sometimes it is just carrying around the crayons that he likes so much. But he loves his crayons. Since arriving in Ukraine, I have had a hard time finding crayons, which is strange to me. I have looked just about everywhere I go, but have only managed to find them in one store! But, I did find some great crayons for little hands. They are small, but fat, and have no paper on them, which tended only to get in the way before. Many times Canaan will pull his crayons out of his box one by one, make two circles or lines or scribbles with each one, and then put them down on the table in a nice, neat line. He will go through every crayon like this, making a few strokes and then putting it down in line with the rest that have been used! He is so funny like this! He also likes to group the colors, pulling out the four shades of blue crayons, choosing to color with the two shades of yellow at the same time, etc. It is so cute and funny to me!
Playing with Friends- Since we now have our teammates near us, we have been spending time with them recently, as well as trading off babysitting, etc. Canaan has taken note of this and wakes up most mornings wanting to “Go Chi’s house” or “See Auntie, David.” He loves his new friends and buddies and likes to play with them! This, I myself like as well. Though at times getting together young 2 and 3 year olds can take a lot of work for the mommies, since they are still having to teach their little offspring how to share and how not to hit, it is also very nice and rewarding to see them playing happily together and chasing each other playfully through the house! Of course, Aunties and Uncles are the best too, since you generally don’t have to worry about those issues with them!
Monday, October 27, 2008
Daddy's Little Helper
Well, I don’t know how helpful a two year old can be, but Canaan sure 
enjoyed his “job” of being Daddy’s helper as he re-assembled his little table. Canaan was right in the middle of things from the beginning, digging through the wooden pegs and screws, collapsing the chairs as Daddy was fitting them together to screw together, and standing in the middle of the table as it lie upside-down on the floor, waiting for the legs to be screwed on!
As you can see in the picture, he did give Daddy some screw
s, sometimes as needed. He got out the hammer and hammered next to Daddy as he was screwing. We did find one job that was perfect for him: dropping the screws in the holes for Daddy. He put them right side up and everything- the perfect job! And in the end, Canaan and Dadd
y enjoyed using the table by coloring together on it. Canaan has really gotten into coloring more these days. He still doesn’t understand anything about staying in the lines; however, he used to only draw vertical and horizontal lines, but now he draws circles and will sometimes do some concentrated scribbling. Mommy is very proud!
We can’t believe we will have a two year old soon! Time flies, but we have really tried to enjoy every moment God has given us so far with Canaan, and pray for many more years with him. What wonderful gifts God gives us in children!
enjoyed his “job” of being Daddy’s helper as he re-assembled his little table. Canaan was right in the middle of things from the beginning, digging through the wooden pegs and screws, collapsing the chairs as Daddy was fitting them together to screw together, and standing in the middle of the table as it lie upside-down on the floor, waiting for the legs to be screwed on!
As you can see in the picture, he did give Daddy some screw
s, sometimes as needed. He got out the hammer and hammered next to Daddy as he was screwing. We did find one job that was perfect for him: dropping the screws in the holes for Daddy. He put them right side up and everything- the perfect job! And in the end, Canaan and Dadd
y enjoyed using the table by coloring together on it. Canaan has really gotten into coloring more these days. He still doesn’t understand anything about staying in the lines; however, he used to only draw vertical and horizontal lines, but now he draws circles and will sometimes do some concentrated scribbling. Mommy is very proud!We can’t believe we will have a two year old soon! Time flies, but we have really tried to enjoy every moment God has given us so far with Canaan, and pray for many more years with him. What wonderful gifts God gives us in children!
Tuesday, October 21, 2008
New Friends
Canaan and Chi 
have hit it off together. As I mentioned in my last post, they have enjoyed playing together and with each other’s toys! 
Though they are both at the age (2/3) where sharing and playing well together 
is still being learned, overall they are doing well! 
When we leave the house, Canaan always asks if we are either going to the playground, Chi’s house, or Auntie and David’s house! Speaking of Auntie and David, they packed for Ukraine, determined to be the most popular Aunt and Uncle around! They brought books, puzzles, toys, truck plates, sippee cups and more to make 
their home a place our kids wouldn’t want to leave! 
In addition, they 
brought a super cool Thomas the Train pop-up tent!! When they broke that out today, the kids were delighted as they climbed in and out of it and played together!
We have a nice playground that is just right around the block from our apartment. It looks very new. I have a few pictures of when Grand-Dad Kirt was here and he and Livia and David were all playing with Canaan on the playground. There are also some pictures of Canaan playing with Chi (Malachi Hindman- our teammates 3 year old son) that are taken in our living room, so you can see a bit of it that way until we get a video posted. They both like playing with trucks (Daddy too!) an they also had fun with the little closet. There are also some pictures of the choo-choo tent that is at Livia and David's and the fun they were having with it
On another note, Canaan is having to learn how to act around babies, which is a good thing since we will have our own new bundle in February. Silas, the Hindman’s youngest son, is about 9 months old. He crawls around and mainly watches the big boys play. However, the other day when Chi and Canaan were playing chase, he was blocking a doorway that Canaan wanted to get through. Not knowing what to do, Canaan took the toy train in his hand and hit Silas over the head. Mommy saw it and he immediately was taken to the bathroom for some discipline. Then, about 10 minutes later, he did it again! After another round in the bathroom with a talk about being gentle with babies, he started making wide circles to avoid going near Silas. This was not encouraging to me. On the way home, he told on himself to Daddy, “Hit baby choo-choo, No!” And later that evening he was reminded of it again, “No hit baby blue choo-choo.” This morning he again reiterated this to us. Today as we had church and fellowship with everyone, he did well, and there were no more hitting incidents! Hopefully he will learn how to be gentle and play more with Silas. We have already been praying that we will do well with Canaan, as he will have to adjust to a brother, as we welcome a new baby into the family, and we are keeping up with these prayers as the time draws nearer!
have hit it off together. As I mentioned in my last post, they have enjoyed playing together and with each other’s toys! 
Though they are both at the age (2/3) where sharing and playing well together 
is still being learned, overall they are doing well! 
When we leave the house, Canaan always asks if we are either going to the playground, Chi’s house, or Auntie and David’s house! Speaking of Auntie and David, they packed for Ukraine, determined to be the most popular Aunt and Uncle around! They brought books, puzzles, toys, truck plates, sippee cups and more to make 
their home a place our kids wouldn’t want to leave! 
In addition, they 
brought a super cool Thomas the Train pop-up tent!! When they broke that out today, the kids were delighted as they climbed in and out of it and played together!
We have a nice playground that is just right around the block from our apartment. It looks very new. I have a few pictures of when Grand-Dad Kirt was here and he and Livia and David were all playing with Canaan on the playground. There are also some pictures of Canaan playing with Chi (Malachi Hindman- our teammates 3 year old son) that are taken in our living room, so you can see a bit of it that way until we get a video posted. They both like playing with trucks (Daddy too!) an they also had fun with the little closet. There are also some pictures of the choo-choo tent that is at Livia and David's and the fun they were having with itOn another note, Canaan is having to learn how to act around babies, which is a good thing since we will have our own new bundle in February. Silas, the Hindman’s youngest son, is about 9 months old. He crawls around and mainly watches the big boys play. However, the other day when Chi and Canaan were playing chase, he was blocking a doorway that Canaan wanted to get through. Not knowing what to do, Canaan took the toy train in his hand and hit Silas over the head. Mommy saw it and he immediately was taken to the bathroom for some discipline. Then, about 10 minutes later, he did it again! After another round in the bathroom with a talk about being gentle with babies, he started making wide circles to avoid going near Silas. This was not encouraging to me. On the way home, he told on himself to Daddy, “Hit baby choo-choo, No!” And later that evening he was reminded of it again, “No hit baby blue choo-choo.” This morning he again reiterated this to us. Today as we had church and fellowship with everyone, he did well, and there were no more hitting incidents! Hopefully he will learn how to be gentle and play more with Silas. We have already been praying that we will do well with Canaan, as he will have to adjust to a brother, as we welcome a new baby into the family, and we are keeping up with these prayers as the time draws nearer!
Saturday, October 18, 2008
Xarkov, Ukraine!
We arrived in Xarkov late Monday night- just 24 hours later than planned! I am writing a long saga about that, but it is on my computer at home and we don't have internet at the house yet. Hopefully I will try to post it soon. We have been trying to catch up on some sleep, settle in, buy necessities, etc. My Dad has been a tremendous help so far, as he helps with Canaan and does so many of the little things that we just run out of energy for! Things have been running smoothly. David and Olivia arrived on Thursday, as scheduled, with no problems. So, our team has been complete for about 2 days now! What a feeling!
Having my Dad here also helped with the transition for Canaan. He is doing very well, though he is a bit more tired than usual from the two days of past midnight bedtimes that we had when we were trying to get here. Overall, though, he is doing well. He has had a blast with Grand-Dad, who has been his best friend! They would get up early together and read all the books that made it here (most of our things will hopefully arrive on Monday, Lord willing)! They played with cars and trucks together, Grand-Dad held his hand as he rode in his stroller around town, he ate on Grand-Dad's lap, he insisted on holding Grand-Dad's hand during the mealtime prayers, and so on. They had a blast together. Sadly, Grand-Dad had to leave early this morning. He flew to Moscow where he will fly to Houston and then arrive in Lubbock Sunday night. He arrived in Moscow without problem and was picked up by our dear brother, Alexei and taken care of today by his family! They are such an amazing family. Grand-Dad starts classes back up bright and early Monday morning, so hopefully the return jet lag will be an easier transition than that on the way here! Thank you for coming and helping Grand-Dad!
Tomorrow we plan to have our first church service as a team. We will meet at Liv and David's. It will be nice for us to have a service in English, though we enjoyed all our times with the church in Moscow!
We will continue to keep you updated as we have opportunity. Hopefully within a week we will get internet at our apartment, so it will make it easier to post blogs and pictures. We love you all!
Having my Dad here also helped with the transition for Canaan. He is doing very well, though he is a bit more tired than usual from the two days of past midnight bedtimes that we had when we were trying to get here. Overall, though, he is doing well. He has had a blast with Grand-Dad, who has been his best friend! They would get up early together and read all the books that made it here (most of our things will hopefully arrive on Monday, Lord willing)! They played with cars and trucks together, Grand-Dad held his hand as he rode in his stroller around town, he ate on Grand-Dad's lap, he insisted on holding Grand-Dad's hand during the mealtime prayers, and so on. They had a blast together. Sadly, Grand-Dad had to leave early this morning. He flew to Moscow where he will fly to Houston and then arrive in Lubbock Sunday night. He arrived in Moscow without problem and was picked up by our dear brother, Alexei and taken care of today by his family! They are such an amazing family. Grand-Dad starts classes back up bright and early Monday morning, so hopefully the return jet lag will be an easier transition than that on the way here! Thank you for coming and helping Grand-Dad!
Tomorrow we plan to have our first church service as a team. We will meet at Liv and David's. It will be nice for us to have a service in English, though we enjoyed all our times with the church in Moscow!
We will continue to keep you updated as we have opportunity. Hopefully within a week we will get internet at our apartment, so it will make it easier to post blogs and pictures. We love you all!
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