Welcome to the 2019 Goerlings!

Hello Again,

Wow, 3 years have gone by since our last update. Since then, we have had another beautiful biological little girl and moved to our current home. We have graduated 3 more students from our homeschool with another due to graduate this year. We have become a foster family having welcomed 23 children into our home and lives. We have said goodbye to family members and hello to others. We now have a Son-In-Love and a married daughter. We still follow the same God....He is the same today, tomorrow, and forever.

And we are adopting from Ukraine again. God has called us to 4 siblings that we have started to work to bring home. We are all excited AND nervous.....but mostly excited. We have never met them but am in contact with their best friends' adoptive parents.

Welcome back to our roller coaster. Hope you have fun and enjoy it right along with us.

 

 

 

Goerling Family 2016 (minus Ethan who lives in another state)

Hi Everyone. It always seems like we are doing update posts. So, this one is not going to be called an update post. No, that one is put to bed. This is a brief, yes a brief. Not like underwear, but like an informal catch up on information. Totally not associated with that other word. So, without further ado, the new Goerling brief:

We have been in our current home for three years and are very much liking this part of the country. We still love our church and have made many homeschool friends through an American Heritage Girl troop that we have been a part of AND a new co op that we joined last year.

Our family has grown in size again, we are up to 15 people with a new addition due in October. We DID bring home a daughter and two sons from that other beautiful country almost two years ago. They are adjusting well now and our family is better for having them. They were all teenagers when they came home so it has been quite different compared to bringing Alina and Vitaly home.

Jessica (new daughter) and Phoebe graduated from high school this past weekend. We are so happy for them, they both worked hard and are glad to be done. Jessica has decided to go to the local community college to study cosmetology. Phoebe is taking a year off to decide what she wants to persue (or to decide which country she wants to take over because we are sure she will rule a small country someday). They are both beautiful young women (no, we are not biased, they REALLY are BEAUTIFUL) who know the Lord.

Everyone else is doing well. What can I say, I am trying to keep this brief, er ....I mean short.

There is always a flurry of activity or something going on. Our family is big and we love it. There are times when we question our sanity or what God was thinking. But mostly we LOVE where we are. So, that said....I hope to write more soon. To share some of that insanity, um..I mean LOVE.

ciau,
Mary

Guess Where

We are?  ......Unfortunately, due to technical difficulties, no photos....




Anyways, We're back in Eastern Europe visiting one of our favorite countries hoping to bring home some more beautiful children.


We had our appointment with the government agency and were approved to visit and start the process to adopt three siblings, two teenage boys and their older sister; we've got our paperwork but don't get to travel to see the kids until Tuesday next week.  They are at camp and won't be back until Monday; so we will take the next couple of days to see the local scenery and try not to be impatient waiting to meet them.  Pictures tomorrow if I can figure out what's wrong with this machine.

BLOGGING IS REALLY HARD

Hey Everybody,

Stay tuned for more; we're just about to start another big adventure and will keep you all updated...

Love,

Tom, Mary, & Family

Hi Everyone!


We have been in AL for almost a year now. We have wonderful neighbors, a great church family, and fun new homeschool friends. Not to mention an adoption support group!

Ethan is getting ready to graduate from HS at the end of May. Some days I find it hard to believe that is has been so long, other days I'm ready to move on. :) I know that he is ready to move on to. He is excited about starting the next chapter in his life.

Phoebe will be a junior in the fall. She has found a college down here that she really likes, so I think we'll have to go and visit it. Phoebe is also enjoying writing right now and has collaborated with Lee.

Leanore has been busy writing. She has several short stories and a novel in the works. Phoebe and Lee also perform in our church's 4D drama group where they perform drama's set to a song.

Sophie, Holly, Trudy and Liberty enjoy the co op that we go to once a week, Wednesday night church, and playing outside. Sophie likes reading to the other kids.

Trudy and Vitaly have recently taken the training wheels off of their bikes and are now accomplished two wheel bike riders.

Vitaly is now homeschooled, we took him out right after the Christmas break. He is doing really well and enjoys being schooled at home. He is learning to read and doing very well in math.

Alina still goes to school and is doing well there. She has a lovely teacher and aides. She continues to do well with eating and pretty much has a set meal plan with variations for dinner. She is doing really well with toilet training lately, I think she has just hit a spot in the road where she wants to go. Determining when she needs to go can be tricky, but we're working on it.

Libby is almost two and funny as can be. Her favorite song seems to be "What does the Fox say". To watch the video she will say, "Fox say?" She still is not left alone too long, someone is always trying to play with her, sweep her up and love on her or chase her around.

Tom and I are doing well. Tom is set to retire in January and is looking forward to it. Now we are just waiting to see where God will direct him next. I was able to go to a Homeschool conference in Nashville last weekend and feel energized about another school year.

Family pic as of fall 2013...there is an empty spot  or two. :)
 

We are heading back to Alina and Vitaly's home country to adopt again. It has been almost three years since they came home. Prayers would be appreciated as that country is in turmoil right now. We have come to love that country and it's people and pray good things for them. Our paperwork is there, we are just waiting on a date to go. Everyone is excited :)

Sophie's 10th birthday, we went to a Stepen Curtis Chapman concert.
 

UPDATE POST!!!!

Here it is, short and sweet:

Dad's back from his long term away job, YAY!!! We missed him sooo much.

we moved the family to AL,

Baby Liberty is now 1 year old, and has started walking..

Vitaly did great in school....all of the staff was sad to see him go. Apparently he was the equivelant to a rock star at his school, everyone knew him and liked him.

We survived and thrived with another year of homeschooling, grades for this year are as follows..12th, 10th, 6th, 3rd, 2nd (2), 1st, K and toddler. :)

Everyone is adjusting well to our new home. Surprisingly well. Thank God. Although Vitaly is getting restless, he misses the structure of school. :)

Biggest news::: Alina is now eating food!! She went to a feeding clinic for 5 weeks right before we moved and there, thru God's grace, she began to eat. She now eats most of what we put in front of her (pureed or soft foods, working on chewing next) and has started drinking juice and milk.

We now have a four legged member of the family, Cocoa "Van Doom". She is super sweet, just what we need.

We are on the road to adoption once more, working to bring home the young man that spent last summer with us. We can't wait to make him our son. Prayers would be appreciated.

Now, onto pictures.....okay, later. I have to figure out AGAIN how to post them. Ugh! Technology, I love you. :) Really. Maybe. I barely know how to turn my phone on. If it is so smart, why can't it do what I want it to do before I try? Hmmm.
Mary