California single mother adopts both children from foreign orphanages

By Josh Grossberg
Daily Breez

Their mother had died of cancer. Their father had beaten one of them so savagely that he caused permanent brain damage. Sent to separate orphanages in their native Kazakhstan, Marat and Alyana Zhaparov had little hope of ever seeing each other again and no promise of a happy life.
No promises maybe, but now the sister and brother have a chance. When they finally met again
after two years Wednesday at Los Angeles International Airport, they barely recognized each other. She's now 8 and he's 3, no longer the baby she remembered. Excited but overwhelmed, they shyly smiled and touched each other.

And as they hugged tentatively, their new family watched and cried with joy.
"It's been a long time, a long time," said Laurel Melograno, a single mother who is adopting both children. "So many times I thought it would never happen."
Life isn't starting over only for Marat and Alyana. It's a new beginning for the Melogranos, too.
Melograno and her two children, 16-year-old Sofia and 12-year-old Jay, first met Alyana two years ago, when they hosted the girl for the summer in their Hermosa Beach home as part of the Summer Miracles program organized by Kidsave International. The group, which seeks to raise awareness of the plight of children in orphanages, matches foreign kids with families in the United States.
Once Melograno decided to double the size other family, she shook up her life in other ways. So she sold her South Bay home and bought a small farm in Santa Barbara County, where the children can live a quiet life tending to some of the goats she now has.
"I had to make a change," she said. "I wanted them to have a nice place to grow up."
The story started during Alyana's first visit when she told Melograno about her little brother.  Melograno quickly decided to adopt the girl, but couldn't stop thinking about the boy. After making phone calls and writing letters, she tracked him down and learned some grim news: If he didn't receive medical attention soon for his swollen brain, he would die.
She brought the boy over last year and took him to doctors. They told her that one of the
hemispheres in his brain was nearly destroyed, but after an operation and many hours of therapy his condition has greatly improved. While he still walks with a limp and has trouble using one of his hands, he's a happy boy with a quick smile who turned out to be very bright and alert.

Alyana. meanwhile, was back in Kazakhstan, languishing in the orphanage and waiting. Melograno went to visit the girl several times, but it took her all this time to finalize the adoption so the girl could return.
"She spent two years not knowing if she could come home," Melograno said. "She's had so much loss in her life, it's unbelievable."
Friends, family and even adoption agencies told Melograno she was taking on too much, but once she met the children, she knew she had to act.
"Everybody told me to walk away," Melograno said. "But I knew that if I walked away, he would die."

Adjusting to the new family was easier for Sofia than for Jay. But he quickly warmed up to Marat's smile and is teaching him all sorts of bad habits. Marat, whom the family calls "Matt." likes to say "shut up," a phrase he learned from his older brother.
"I'm so excited," Sofia said as they waited for Alyana at the airport. "I haven't seen her in over a year."
As the family settles into a routine, Melograno realizes there will be plenty of rewards and challenges. Marat receives physical therapy several times a week and Alyana must start school soon. But she knows she's doing the right thing.
"They will have a lot of love and a family," she said. "I have a feeling everything will be OK."