Hinkson Family Circle





Wednesday, June 25, 2014

Family Update 2014

David—In July of 2012, Dave sold his periodontal practice In July of this year Dave became fully retired after completing the transitory period of working for the new Doctor.  He was called to be the Bishop of our ward in September of 2012, which will keep him busy.   He has discovered a new talent and has enjoyed painting landscapes of places we have visited.   He also keeps busy handling the real estate holdings that will support our retirement.  We currently have some houses in Arizona, Florida, Ohio, Hawaii and other places in Utah.  ­­­­­­
Christy—Ab­solutely loves being a GRANDMA.  We have 7 sweet grandchildren.  They are the best!!  Even though more than half of the 10 children have now left home it doesn’t seem to be much less busy being the Mom.   She has also written and published some books over the past couple of years on various subjects.  She still enjoys speaking for EFY and to other groups and continues to write and produce music.  This year one of her books made it on the Deseret Book bestseller’s list.
Holly and Bryan Penrose—parents of Blake, Austin and Andrew are living in Iowa while Brian attends Podiatry School.  Brian starts rotations this next year and we look forward to them being able to move out of tornado country.  We miss them tremendously.
Heather and Joe Palmer—Parents of James and Alicen and new baby Hannah are now living in Provo, Utah while Joe attends the MBA program at BYU.  We also miss having them close and get together as often as possible.  Heather has been enjoying a new talent in Photography and promises to take a picture to post on facebook every day in 2014.   Joe and the family are currently living in Texas while Joe does an internship at AT&T.
Tyler and Janalee Hinkson—are excited to be new parents to baby Luke who was born in September.  Tyler graduated from USU this year with his MBA and promptly started a new business called Formed Fit Custom Suits.  People are loving having custom suits at a low price.   Tyler served a mission in Novosibirsk, Russia and Janalee served in Athens, Greece. Tyler and Janalee were married in the Logan temple in Dec 2011 the day after our adopted boys were sealed to us.  
Bryan and Tiffany Hinkson returned from his mission in Kiev, Ukraine the end of 2011 and was married to Tiffany Prestwich in May of 2013 in the Logan Temple.  They met in their student ward at USU and are a perfect couple.  Tiffany taught English in Ukraine for a few months.  They will continue school at USU in the fall.  Bryan is studying Engineering and Tiffany is studying Elementary Education. 
Devin—returned from his mission in Ukraine (Kiev-the same mission as Bryan)   He has mastered Russian and is trying to learn German.  His last 2 missionary companions and his mission president speak German.  He has a gift with languages.  We love having him home but are going through withdrawals not getting his letter every Monday.  We are grateful he is no longer in the unrest in Ukraine and we don't watch the news nearly as much anymore.  
Daniel—is serving as a missionary in the Vladivostok, Russia Mission.  He left right after graduation for his mission at age 18.    He kept busy this year as the dance captain of Encore (HS performing group.)  He was a manager at Mcdonalds and enjoys playing the guitar and writing songs. He was also named Mr. Skyview which is his high school’s homecoming king. He also completed his Eagle scout this year.  With his mission call we realized that 6 of our 7 sons will speak Russian and so the rest of us are picking it up too. 
Alisa—is 16 and is in the middle of Driver's ed.  She made it into a girl’s performance group called Bella Voce which keeps her busy.  She LOVES to babysit and the neighbors like her because she never charges to babysit.  She is in the Miamaid  presidency and maintains her 4.0 GPA with Valedictorian aspirations. 
Vitaliy—is 15 and also a Sophmore.  He is doing well with speaking English and has been able to maintain his mastery of Ukrainian and the Russian language.   He worked at a neighbor’s dairy and is learning that hard work isn’t so bad.  He serves in the Teacher’s quorum presidency and is working hard on his scouting goals.  He anticipates finishing his Eagle by his 16th birthday summer.
Spencer—is 12 and is learning many new things in America.  He was thrilled when his biological sister and brother were adopted to the Rast family in Clearfield..  He enjoys getting together with them and we are thrilled that they have decided to become Americans after all.  He enjoys all the things that little boys love and looks forward to scout camp each summer.  He is mastering playing the piano.
Scott—the baby of the family is now 10.  He continues to bring joy and peace to our family.  He enjoys school and LOVES playing with his niece and nephews and they all look forward to seeing “Uncle Scott.” He works a little for the neighbors walking dogs and helping in farm work.  It is amazing how fast he is growing up.



Monday, February 24, 2014

Ideas for other parents adopting older children from Ukraine


Insights on adopting the older child

 

I attended a meeting the other night with several parents who have also adopted from Ukraine. The discussion was stimulating and enlightening.  I have finally been able to formulate  a little  philosophy of what I think really works in meeting the needs of these specific children.  This is based on my experience and the ideas that are working for other parents.  I am by no means any kind of an expert, but If these ideas can prevent someone else a little bit of grief,  I will be happy.   I will try to be concise. 


There are only a few things that the kids really need:  Keep in mind that often the things they need the most are the things that they resist the hardest.  After an initial resistance period, they embrace what is being offered.  This is what I believe they really need:

 

Structure

Security

An understanding of how they will benefit.

Guidance/Frameworks for the future

Bare necessities

 

In a little more detail:


Structure
—any child or teenager that has been institutionalized in an orphanage or internat has been told what to do from sun up to sun down as they are herded from one activity to the next. They have had very little opportunity to develop skills in self -direction and self -motivation.  They may be street wise and have learned to exude an air of confidence for their own self-preservation (sometimes an overabundant amount,) but they are rarely ever able to even begin to manage a productive life. 

 

They want to be in control of their life but have no idea how to do it.  They make very little progress when they are left to their own devices to find their way in the world.  They crave the opportunity of having structure that gradually leads to skills in self- direction.  Let me illustrate.

 

We struggled for many months with our newly adopted boys.  We wanted them to bond with the family.  We were firm on some things and not on others.  We found that the things that we were strict and matter of fact about they quickly adopted and conformed to after the initial resistance.  Each time there was trouble it seemed to happen during the times of the least structure.  We decided to add more structure and voila…amazing results.  It took a little more of our time in the beginning to get the ball rolling but now that the structure is in place it is like a well -oiled machine and we feel more free than ever.  Here is a sample of a daily schedule at our house

 

6:00 am arise, shower, make their beds and their own breakfast

6:40 family prayer with parents

6:45 go to school (catch bus etc.)

 

Attend School where they work hard and maintain good grades. If the grades slip their privileges disappear.

 

3:00  Begin homework and to do their “list”  Each day they are required to read for an hour, Speak to another family member in Russian for 15 minutes and practice the piano for 30 minutes.

Dinner and evening activities

8:00 pm Everyone does their Zones (chores) and prepares for bed

9:15 Family prayer and scripture study

 

After this they report and account in writing to a parent on the completion of their list.

 

Does this sound like a rough regimen? … They have never been happier.  If only we had known this before the very painful trial and error year.  


When there are clear rules and expectations accompanied by consequences delivered in an unemotional way, progress is made.  Basically we are all here on earth trying to do the right things and our Creator gave us clear rules and expectations and when we comply we are blessed and when we don’t we face consequences.  I can’t think of a more effective model.

 

Security—We joke about sending the challenging kids back to Ukraine or to another family or to prison but for the most part, anyone who jumps through all of the hoops to actually adopt, is a pretty committed person.  The kids need to know that we are ‘All in”  we are dedicated to be there for them.  No matter what, we will be their parent and they can depend on us.  They have most likely been disappointed by adults and those in authority before and so it may take years to be able to really know true security but when they do, miracles will happen.

 

An understanding of how they will benefit.  Let’s face it the environments that shaped our adopted children were of the attitude of “What’s in it in for me.”  We were appalled when we were questioned by officials in Ukraine about our intentions in adopting our boys.  They could not begin to fathom that we would actually be taking on 2 more children out of the goodness of our hearts.  They continually were in search of our ulterior, selfish, and evil motives.  Some teachers even told the kids that we planned to sell their body parts or make them slaves or that we would get a lot of money from our country if we adopted them.  We didn’t enjoy the scrutiny but it gave us a peek into what attitudes have been surrounding our children.  This “every man for himself” and “look out for number 1” mindset is very common in the kids we bring home.   When trying to explain what we require and expect of them it makes a lot of sense to speak their language.  The sooner they see the long term benefit TO THEM  of what we  are asking them to do, the quicker they will comply. 

 

When our kids ask why we require them to practice Russian for 15 minutes a day, we sit down and explain that they have to maintain their language or they will lose it.  By being bi-lingual they will be able to get a better paying job.  We write down how much they can earn by working at a fast food restaurant  (minimum wage) and how much they could earn by using their language in a job. (about $10 to $20 more per hour)  Money talks and they listen.  When they understand that their good grades are not for our benefit but for theirs they can operate on the motivation that is already built in.  Reassure them that you are not making them go to church or learn to work or anything else for your benefit.  Tell them that you could have hired a maid for a lot less than their adoption cost.  Tell them that they need to learn to work so that they can get a good job and marry and buy a nice car and have a happy life. Make it all about them and they will finally get it.  I love a quote that says: “tell me sufficiently WHY a thing should be done, and I will move heaven and Earth to do it.”

 

Guidance/Frameworks for the future—Very few times if ever has anyone sat down with an orphan in Ukraine and made a plan with them for their future and expressed any interest in helping them reach for a successful life.  As a result they have learned to focus on the here and now.  The extent of their goal making abilities were probably learning a skill that will get them an immediate result.    Our biggest contribution could be to help them to see a future and plan and work for upcoming rewards.  


They were not born with an ability to see the long term.  They have not had any reason to believe that they would even be here long term.  They have not dared to even imagine that there is a big picture for them and we get to be the ones to break the good news.  We don’t have to do it for them and we don’t have to finance it, but we show that we really love them  when we help them take a look at  the realities of the future.  When we talk daily about the future and empower them to be in control of their own future, a whole new world will open up to them.  When we show them examples in the lives of people that they respect and when they understand that success requires long term, consistent effort and when we show them a path of possibility they can really begin to live.

 

Bare necessities—We are required to provide a roof, a bed, food to sustain life, and a few articles of clothing for our children.   There is no rule that says that parents have to finance phones, cars, electronics, video games, furniture, computer access, wardrobes, toys, college educations, entertainment, or any of the other extras for their offspring.  The truth is that most children from an orphanage in Ukraine are not equipped to appreciate things anyway.  They have not been taught to be grateful, they have only been taught to be entitled.  I think that the more basic their existence is and the more they have to “earn” the extras the more they will learn to appreciate and the more real the law of the harvest will be to them. 

 

When we adopted our boys we were disappointed that they didn’t say thank you or even seem to be grateful for the gifts we showered on them.  We expected delight but we were sorely disappointed.  One of our new sons really wanted an I-pod or an MP3 player.  We gave him one for his birthday and after a few days, he purposely broke it and told us that it was broken and that he wanted a different kind this time.  He was surprised when we decided that a replacement was not in order.

 

After quite a few frustrating experiences, we had a discussion with him about being grateful and he said that he didn’t know how to be grateful.  We had to start from square one, much like a parent teaches a 2 year old to say “Please and Thank You.”  Gratitude is a learned behavior.

 

 I think there is a lot of heartache when parents anticipate gratitude and the kids have no idea what it is and how to show it.  Now our son, who didn’t know how to be grateful, has learned all about it and is the first to thank us for a meal or  any other small gesture.

 

Use the extras as incentives to condition behavior.  Even though conditioned behavior isn’t the more highly sought after intrinsically motivated behavior, it gives the child the opportunity to feel the feelings that accompany good behavior and often conditioned behavior can evolve into natural behavior.

 

As a side note, personally I think that video games are a detriment to the development of the adopted children and that TV and media needs to be very carefully monitored.  If parents are not able to monitor TV, movies, computer usage, phone usage etc., it should not be available.  Many wayward children can trace their first negative influences to those mentioned above.  It isn’t possible to monitor what influences every child every moment and they WILL face bad influences but we shouldn’t be the ones responsible for providing it.

 

I hope these ideas make a dent in someone’s frustrating quest.  Feel free to add comments and what may be working that I didn’t mention.  Good Luck and God bless your good heart.

 
With Love,
Christy Hinkson

 

Wednesday, April 24, 2013

Family Update


Hinkson Family Update   April   2013
A lot has happened in our family in the past couple of years and hopefully this will catch up our friends and family on what has been happening in our lives.

David—In July of 2012, Dave sold his periodontal practice to Kim Cassity (a periodontist in Ogden.)  In July of this year Dave will be fully retired after completing the transitory period of working for the new Doctor.  He was called to be the Bishop of our ward in September which will keep him busy.   He has discovered a new talent and has enjoyed painting landscapes of places we have visited.   He also keeps busy handling the real estate holdings that will support our retirement.  We currently have some houses in Arizona, Florida, Ohio, and other places in Utah.  ­­­­­­

Christy—Ab­solutely loves being a GRANDMA.  We have 4 sweet grandchildren so far and 3 more on the way.  They are the best!!  Even though half of the 10 children have now left home it doesn’t seem to be much less busy being the Mom.   She has also written and published some books over the past couple of years on various subjects.  She still enjoys speaking for EFY and to other groups and continues to write and produce music.

Holly and Bryan Penrose—parents of Blake and Austin, made a big move to Iowa to attend Podiatry School for the next few years.  Brian is a very dedicated student and Holly and the boys have made some wonderful new friends in Iowa.  We really miss them but are proud of their desires to learn and grow.  Holly and Heather have become popular Mommy Bloggers with their blog entitled “We love being Moms.blogspot.com

Heather and Joe Palmer—Parents of James and Alicen are excited to welcome baby # 3 in June.  They are preparing to move to Utah Valley where Joe will attend the MBA program at BYU.   We are enjoying them as much as we can while they are in Logan. 

Tyler and Janalee Hinkson—are expecting their first baby in September and are planning to attend dental school­­ soon.  They will both graduate from USU in May.   Tyler with a bachelors and Janalee with a Masters degree.   Tyler served a mission in Novosibirsk, Russia and Janalee served in Athens, Greece. Tyler and Janalee were married in the Logan temple in Dec 2011 the day after our adopted boys were sealed to us.

Bryan is ENGAGED to Tiffany Prestwich and they will be married in the Logan temple on May 4.  Bryan returned from his mission to Ukraine in December of 2011.  They met in their student ward at USU and are a perfect couple.  Tiffany taught English in Ukraine for a few months.  They will continue school at USU in the fall.  Bryan is studying Engineering and Tiffany is studying Elementary Education.

Devin—is currently serving a mission in Ukraine (Kiev-the same mission as Bryan) and after 6 months is feeling like he can speak Russian.  He has had success teaching the people there and loves his mission.  He will be in Ukraine for another year and 2 months.

Daniel—was recently called to Vladivostok, Russia Mission.  He enters the Provo MTC on June 5.  He kept busy this year as the dance captain of Encore (HS performing group.)  He is a manager at Mcdonalds and enjoys playing the guitar and writing songs.  He just completed his Eagle scout project.  With his mission call we realized that 6 of our 7 sons will speak Russian and so the rest of us are picking it up too. 

Alisa—is 14 and enjoying being a Freshman at Slyview High.  She is a photographer for the yearbook and is on the track team competing in hurdles and Javelin.  She LOVES to babysit and the neighbors like her because she never charges to babysit.  She is in the Miamaid  presidency and maintains her 4.0 GPA with Valedictorian aspirations. 

Vitaliy—is 14 and also a freshman.  He is doing well with speaking English and has been able to maintain his mastery of Ukrainian and the Russian language.   He works at a neighbor’s dairy and is learning that hard work isn’t so bad.  He serves in the Teacher’s quorum presidency and is working hard on his scouting goals

Spencer—just tuned 12 and is learning many new things in America.  He was thrilled a few months ago when his biological sister and brother were adopted to the Rast family in Clearfield..  He enjoys getting together with them and we are thrilled that they have decided to become Americans afterall.  He enjoys all the things that little boys love and looks forward to scout camp this summer.

Scott—the baby of the family is now 9.  He is half way to the age where he can be a missionary and he continues to bring joy and peace to our family.  He enjoys school and LOVES playing with his niece and nephews and they all look forward to seeing “Uncle Scott.” 

Vacations--We started a tradition of taking each of the children on a senior trip when they graduate from high school which allows us to spend some extended time with them before they leave home and venture out into the world.    Then we felt a little cheated to not get to spend that time with our children’s spouses too and so we decided to take each married couple on a trip when they graduate from college.  2 years ago we took Joe and Heather and Devin to Italy and Czech Republic (where Joe served his mission) for their trip and then we took Holly and Brian on a cruise around Hawaii for their trip in May.  In November we went to Italy and Greece (where Janalee served her mission.) with Tyler and Janalee for their trip.  We just returned  from Germany, Austria,  Italy , France and Spain for Daniel’s trip.  In October we took a family cruise to the Bahamas.  In November of 2011 Dave and I took an anniversary cruise to the Panama canal to celebrate 25 years together.

We hope that everyone is enjoying peace and joy in their lives.  We appreciate all those who have blessed our lives through the years and been a positive influence on us and our family.  We hope our paths cross soon. 
Lots of Love,
The Hinksons

Monday, October 29, 2012

October Baby

I would like to recommend the movie October Baby for other families to watch. We watched it as a family and one of our adopted boys was really affected by it. He cried for about an hour after the movie and it really helped him to let out some of the pain that he has been storing in his heart. It is about a girl who was born after she was a failed abortion. It deals with issues like abandonment, adoption and abortion and the pain and challenges that accompany each. Great movie, stock up on tissues first.

Tuesday, March 20, 2012

Reunited





Spencer was reunited with his sister Alina and his little brother Zhenia at the airport as they arrived here in the US. They were recently adopted by the greatest family in the world (Jeff and Amy Rast.) Alina now has 2 sisters her own age and her little brother who was at a different orphanage in Ukraine.

We intended to adopt Alina and Zhenia while we were in Ukraine before. Alina refused to be adopted and the SDA would not let us see Zhenia because they said he was way too sick. They were meant to be Amy's children and luckily she listened to the promptings to go and get both of them. They are a beautiful addition to an already amazing family. We are excited for Spencer to get to see Alina and the little brother he never really knew.

At the airport, I kind of expected a running toward each other with outstretched arms, with inspirational music playing overhead, but that didn't really happen. Spencer was in a strange mood and he became really withdrawn and shy. I am sure that there is some reason that this is normal out there, but for now we look forward to their spending more time together in the future.

i am so happy that these beautiful children are safe in America in the perfect home. I am so happy that I have one more good excuse to get to visit with Amy more and one less reason to visit Ukraine :). I am so happy that Spencer doesn't have to wonder about this family members half a world away. This is a great example of a time when something very sad can turn into something very happy and right. I just luve it when we get to see those moments during our lifetimes.

Thursday, February 23, 2012

My new Political book

I just had my new book published on Amazon.com It is called:

Home Remedies for a Nation at Risk--What American Leaders could learn from American Families.

This is the link if anyone wants to see the book.

http://www.amazon.com/REMEDIES-RISK--What-American-Families-ebook/dp/B007CMS44I/ref=sr_1_5?ie=UTF8&qid=1330059388&sr=8-5

I have been excited to have this book finished and published and I hope it will do some good to help the situation that our country is in.

Sunday, February 5, 2012

Mission Call

Devin received his mission call. We are still having a hard time believing that he is going to Kyiv, Ukraine. It is the same mission that Bryan just came home from. It is the same country that our 2 adopted boys are from. He will be speaking Russian like our oldest son Tyler who went to Russia. We are starting to wonder if there is some significance in all of this. 3 missionaries in the last 4 years and they all go to that part of the world. What are chances?
Dave and I decided that it is time to learn Russian. If nothing else we will understand what the kids are saying at family reunions. We have been looking forward to going on a series of missions someday but I am kind of nervous to turn in papers after this :) JK....kinda.