More About Our Boys

Eli and Fletcher are 4 and 3 years old, respectively. We're adopting them from Eastern Europe through Reece's Rainbow. While we won't have a solid travel date for a while, our *best guess* is that we'll be going to get them in June. Still, this is only a guess.

The information we have about them right now is limited, but I'd love to share what we do know.

Both Our Boys
Fletcher is front left, and Eli is the tall tyke in back.

This above shot is very recent. Weeks old, I've been told! Hence, why they look older than the pictures they were listed with. Aren't they so handsome and grown-up looking?
They live together in a "baby house", which is an orphanage for children ages 0-5. They're in the same group as well, so they share all meals and play time together. While many of the orphanages in EE are very poor, we've been told that this is a fairly nice facilities. For this, we are VERY grateful. They currently speak Russian, and while we do plan on learning some of the language to ease the transition, most children become fluent in English within mere months of being home.
On Reece's Rainbow they're listed as "David", and "Cody". However, these are neither their birth names nor their future American names. They're simply random pseudo-names given to them by the organization for privacy. We will be keeping their birth names for middle names, and might post them later, but for now are choosing to keep them private.

Eli

My sweet, sweet Eli.
(Well, probably Eli... his name is still under review. He might end up being a Benjamin. To cut down on confusion, we'll settle on Eli for now though.)
This little boy captured my heart from the moment I laid eyes on him. At 4 years old (5 later this summer) he was older than what we were initially considering. Still, I kept returning to his picture again and again. I couldn't pull myself away.
His description broke my heart; "...tender, serious, calm, less demanding than other children..."
Less demanding? ...of time? ...attention? ...love?
While so many of these children sell themselves to the camera with big personalities (um, Fletcher much?), our sweet Eli always appeared to be so sad and broken. Or was he simply at peace, knowing we'd one day find him? At times he just looked lost in the sauce... whatever it was, his sweetness and kind heart still shone through in every picture, and I knew he needed a family to love him.
Several nights in a row, I dreamed about this little boy holding my hand and calling me mama.
All who've met him attest to his sweet and shy nature. I can't wait to learn more about him.
He has brown hair and blue eyes, and compared to the other children his age, is very tall. As most of these children are extremely small, we estimate that he might actually be average sized for his age.


Fletcher

Fletcher... such a cute boy, and those CHEEKS! We have so many pictures of this little guy, due largely to his big personality. Everyone who's met him tells me he's all boy, and is not particularly shy. I really look forward to getting to know him and making him a part of our family.
We haven't been told so specifically, but we believe he has chronic sinus problems that need attention. In 90% of his pictures, his mouth is open and he appears to have a shiny (er... snotty) film beneath his cute little nose. Poor baby always looks like he has a raw nose!
While I don't know much else about him, he seems to be so full of life, and I can't wait for that energy to fill our home! My husband needs someone as wild as he is, and I have a feeling that Fletcher and his Papa are going to become the best of friends.

As I mentioned previously, we're adopting through Reece's Rainbow, a non-profit adoption organization. They primarily help find homes for children with Down's Syndrome, but they have also branched out to help little ones with other special needs.
Our family profile and adoption fund can be found here, and 100% of donations go to our family's adoption. If you're in a financial position to help contribute, PLEASE let me know if you do decide to donate! We had someone donate $100 the other day, and I have no idea who they were. Preferably, we'd be able to properly show our gratitude to those helping us bring these beautiful boys home.