My New Threads!

GiGi and Davis stayed home for the morning visit in order to unpack her suitcases. It was nice for Milon and I to have some alone time with Leah. We kept saying how easy this trip would be without a child! We spent the visit entertaining Leah with puffs that she has now managed to put in her mouth herself!

We went to the notary and Milon gave me Power of Attorney while he is home. Ainura brought Baursak (little donouts) for Davis that her mom had made.

Milon rescheduled his tickets to arrive home on Thursday. We are cautiously optimistic about that date!

We then went to the mosque mall and grocery store. I bought Leah a christening dress today that is very pretty. I figured it would be nice to have a keepsake from Kazakhstan that she will have been christened in. It should fit her perfectly by summer. My mom was surprised by how small the stores are. The quality of the clothes are poor and the prices are high! Davis found some friends to play with on a small slide that is in the mall. He was clueless that they couldn’t understand him! I think he was just so grateful to be around kids!

My mom and I went to the afternoon visit alone. Milon and Davis stayed behind. We wished they had come because the Russian couple that is bonding with a baby boy had her sister visiting with her 2 kids. Davis would have had a ball playing with them! Blondie said Leah is now pulling up on her crib. We haven't been able to witness this since she is restricted to the couch and all the layers of clothes! We got brave a tried outfits on Leah. We stripped her out of her 3 shirts and vest, and 3 pairs of pants! She has such heat rash all over her legs that we hadn’t seen! Milon is going to take home anything that doesn’t fit. She is in size 6-9 months, although 3-6 month pants fit her. She looks so different in "real' clothes!! We can't wait to bring her home and give her a bath! There are 4 outfits that are too small and we will donate to the orphanage.

Tonight we started happy hour at 6:00. Davis drank tomato juice while we had bloody mary's. Davis proceeded to ask each of us if were happy, since we were having happy hour! Davis said Mommy was not having a good time here because she keeps saying she wants to go home! I think everyone feels this is vacation but me!

Babushka is Here!

My mom landed in Almaty with complications. She landed and went thru immigrations and got her bags and walked thru the mob of Taxi drivers only to find no one holding her name! She was suppose to meet the translator named Kate however Kate was under the impression that she was flying Lufthansa, and my mom was flying BMI. My mom tried to call my cell phone (which I had been sleeping with anticipating her call) and it didn’t work. Turns out she didn’t know how to dial the international Plus code and I forgot to tell her! My mom finds a Taxi driver who spoke very little English who was able to bring her to the Air Astana ticket counter upstairs and help her buy a ticket to Aktobe. She sat down and waited for 6 hours until her next flight. The taxi driver was very nice and didn’t even accept a tip from her. He recognized Kate downstairs and told her my mom was waiting upstairs. Kate goes upstairs and sees my mom. She had bought a ticket for her as well. Luckily, they were able to get a refund on one of the tickets. I feel so bad that my mom had this experience in Almaty. The Almaty airport is extremely intimidating. It is very crowded and small and virtually no one speaks English. Luckily, she arrived in Aktobe safe and sound and we were anxiously awaiting her arrival. I had to use the bathroom in the Aktobe airport and here is what I found! A hole in the ground to pee over! No toilet paper provided!

We went to the babyhouse today immediately after picking her up from the airport and she met Leah. She couldn’t believe Leah’s resemblance of Milon. My mom couldn't believe how beautiful and well adjusted she is. She said she was exactly like the pictures and Leah fell asleep towards the end of the visit. We then went to the notary later in the day only to find out the notary doesn’t know how to do Power of Attorneys. We must go back tomorrow at noon when she had figured out how to do the paperwork….very scary huh!

Milon got bad news that he won’t be able to leave until the 10th at the earliest. He had already booked his tickets home and told his company when he would be back. His return trip is turning into a ever changing date!

I am really glad my mom got a glimpse of our day to day life. I have complained off and on about how nothing makes sense here and that a lot of what goes on is shady. She definitely got a glimpse today and that she had no idea what we have been going through here. You would think by now these kinks would have been worked out, but clearly they are ever evolving. If it isn’t one thing, it is something else.

Reinforcements Have Been Mobilized

I spent the day cleaning the apartment. We feel like we are newlyweds waiting for our parents to come see our first apartment! I have tracked my mom’s flights and so far everything has been on time. It is strange to feel like a worried parent of my mother! We are keeping our schedule open for the next few days because I am sure this trip will wipe her out.

Milon is trying to find the perfect mixer for vodka for my mom! We tested out the cherry juice mixed with vodka last night. Milon is trying cranberry juice tonight. Does anyone know if you can buy Snowqueen Vodka in the US? If not, he wants to bring some home. I am not a huge vodka fan even if it is made in Kazakhstan! But don’t worry, we found some white wine that I like!

We have decided because of my parents’ complete generosity that we are going to give them 2 plane tickets where ever they want to go. We still have over 150k airline miles and after we have 2 kids I don’t see us going anywhere any time soon! I still can’t believe how much Milon use to travel and how he never complained about it! Milon changed his flights and will leave Aktobe on Sunday, arriving in RDU Monday and going to work on Tuesday!

Davis and I have discovered our new addiction. Downstairs in the small convenient store they have these pancake things that are thinner than pancakes, but thicker than crepes. They are delicious and go great with the maple syrup I brought! We have eaten them for lunch 2 days in a row!

Davis has hijacked our computer. He found a game of polar bear golf that he loves. We should have brought the other computer because now we are all taking turns on this one.

Leah watched Baby Einstein today. She seemed interested and watched the entire video. Although, she got really excited swinging her arms and laughing when Tom and Jerry came on! So much for the intellectual videos.

She has 7 more nights in the babyhouse. We can’t wait to take her to our apt. We had to leave a visit early a few days ago and the blonde nanny we like waved us goodbye as we tried to hand her back. Boy, I wish we could just take her! I can’t wait to give her a bath. It’s amazing how strange she smells. She smells like a combination between potatoes and sour milk with a little sweat mixed in!

We have nicknames for all of her caregivers. I am sure they have nicknames for us as well, but it is funny to call them their nicknames in front of them! There is one called “Blondie.” She is a nurse in the babyhouse and she is our favorite. She spends a lot of time with us rambling even though she knows we have no idea what she is saying. For the most part, though it is amazing how much we do get! Then there is “Skirt lady.” This nanny is the other nurse on staff. She works when Blondie is off. She wears the same pink shirt and jean skirt everyday. She is also very nice and always gives Davis attention. Then there is “Grumpy.” This lady never smiles and always has a pout on her face. We dislike her the most out of all the nannies. Then there is “Goldie” because she has so many gold teeth! It’s all the rage here in Kazakhstan! Thanks Evi and Michel for giving us a name for her! She does seem very friendly and we all had a big laugh when she scared the mess out of Davis today. There is a door in the bonding room that makes a loud echoing noise. Davis was running after his ball by the door and she opened it and scared him to death! Then there is the “short fat one” that used to work at night but we haven’t seen this trip. We really liked her as well and she is the one that said Leah was her favorite!

We also have a nickname for one of the security guards in our apt. We call her “Newman” from Seinfeld because she looks just like him! We will try to get a picture of her! Yes, this might be mean but hey, we are just trying to have a little fun.

I am amazed how much I can write in this blog when I complain how boring our days are! I am excited for my mom to experience this adventure, because, well it is quite an adventure!

Yet Another Day

Today was another warm day even though it snowed all day! We visited Leah today and she must be feeling better because they had her in normal clothes. I motioned to the nannies if her nose was still running and they said yes, so I assumed it was another day on the couch. She is a very smart girl. She can already shake her head No, starting to wave bye bye, and can imitate clicking noses with her tongue! She loves Davis! If he is at one end of the couch, she will crawl down to him and laugh as she pulls up on him.

We explored another mall today. It is the mall on the same side of the street as the Nurdaulet but is further down. It is a big building with lots of glass! This was a mall more like we are use to! It was very nice and not crowded! We bought 3 nursery books that had Russian, Kazakh and English translations! We also saw a playland inside the mall. Davis went nuts wanting to go in but we didn’t have enough time. For those that are bringing kids to Aktobe, this is a must in the winter! The playground outside the Nurdaulet has not been open the whole time we have been here.

Our afternoon visit was cut short today because we have to go to the notary. Milon must give me power of attorney to complete the rest of the paperwork for the adoption on his behalf. Unfortunately, the notary had left for the day so we must go back tomorrow.

My mom leaves tomorrow from the U.S. I took detailed notes of what to expect at each stop for her although most is common sense. I hope her flights are okay and waiting in Almaty for 6 hours goes quickly! Milon says he wishes my mom had come with us in the beginning because she would appreciate flying by herself more! Quietness is sometimes a wonderful thing!

Milon is set to leave Aktobe on the 8th. This will work out nice because my mom and I will have a couple days to go shopping without Davis (and Milon). Let’s face it, just because we are in Kazakhstan doesn’t mean boys all of a sudden like to shop!

Some more tidbits on Kazakhstan. Everyone here sees President Obama as a good change. They all think he will move America in the right direction. We even saw a biography of Obama in the book store we were in today! It was displayed right in front of the store. I am glad we are here when Americans are viewed more favorably. I am becoming very paranoid watching CNN day and night! All that is on CNN is how bad terrorism is and the economy! I am beginning to feel like we are all going to hell in a hand basket!

You can find almost everything you need as far as food here. The only things we have not found are granola bars, mac and cheese, oatmeal (although not the flavored kind) peanut butter (although it was in Almaty), syrup and spaghetti sauce! We have made our own spaghetti sauce by mixing pizza sauce with a jar that has a picture of a tomato on it. I assume it might be tomato paste. We brought coffee, creamer, shampoo, conditioner, soap, lotions, dish detergent, washing detergent, etc but this is all readily available in the stores and I would not bring again!

Meals get kind of boring. We eat a lot of chicken. We have a few standard dishes we make. French toast, Chicken with pasta and spaghetti sauce, chicken noodle soup, Chicken fried rice, eggs with fried potatoes and onions. Tonight we are getting fancy and making Chicken Franchaise!

Our apartment does have a great location. It is in walking distance to everything. The apartment itself is big. It has a huge room we don’t even use and the 2 bedrooms works out perfectly. I love the kitchen! It reminds me of a grandma’s kitchen. There is a clothes line here and we left clothes pins. Last time we brought a lot we didn’t need like a plastic cutting board, ice cub tray, sink stoppers, funnels, travel iron, etc. The only thing we were glad we had was another sharp knife which we have donated to the apt!

This is a tip for someone bringing a toddler to Aktobe. Our stroller has been a lifeline! The grocery store and mall is too far for our 3 yr old to walk. He rides in it everyday. We also used it the entire time in the airport. The Nardaulet is not stroller friendly and we have had to carry it around that mall, but the stroller worked great in the big glass mall we went to. The market behind the stadium was stroller friendly as well. Another tip is to bring a portable DVD player. We have hooked it up to the TV and are able to watch movies on the big screen. It’s wonderful! We also take it to the babyhouse so Davis can watch movies to pass some time. Another tip is to bring a rubber ball to the babyhouse. The bonding room is huge and we play with a ball everyday. They hardly have any toys to play with in there so you really need to bring your own. We also had been bringing a blanket from the Apt to the babyhouse. The nannies said we could leave toys and the blanket in the big closet so we didn’t have to lug it around every time. We have done this and nothing has been taken.

A Beached Whale in Kazakhstan?

We only went to the morning visit today. We found out today that Milon can't leave until the 8th from Almaty because of Visa issues. This is a big blow for him because of missing so much work. Also, we are having to ask my dad to watch our dog for an extra week. This is not an easy task considering he has to go to our house twice a day to let her out!

Leah looked like a beach whale today! They had 4 layers on her today and we put her on her belly and she couldn’t move. Can you see the sweat on her head in the picture below?

It’s amazing how much fun a 3 yr old can have with a tie! He spent 2 hours playing with this tie…with the involvement of us of course!
Today was a warm day in Kazakhstan. The snow has melted off the roads and sidewalks and what is left is a slushy mess. I am not sure what the temperature was today but would guess it was somewhere in the 40’s. Big warm up from the past few days!

We spent the rest of the afternoon buying more minutes for the cell phone and going to the grocery store to stock up on the heavier items my mom and I will have a hard time carrying 1 mile! Like water, apple juice, diapers, etc. I actually went into the grocery store by myself today for practice! Rock on! I conquered my fear. Milon and Davis waited outside eating meat pies! I got everything I needed, emptied my basket, paid the cashier, told her I needed to buy 2 bags (yes, you have to buy bags here), put my groceries back into the basket, walked thru the security screener (without the basket), took the basket to the table and bagged my groceries! Now I need to practice with a lazy 3 yr old and an 11 month old in a snowsuit in tow!

I have to say Kazakhstan is a pretty interesting place. They don’t trust foreigners here! All the grocery stores have at least 2 security guards. They have walkie talkies and follow us around as we shop! Talk about feeling like a crook. I think in general they have trouble with shoplifting but because we look different and sound different, we are definitely thefts.

This trip is much cheaper than last. The Tenge is 150 to 1 dollar. A loaf of bread costs us 40 cents. I do have to say I think our grocery bill is high though! We spend on average $16 a day on groceries and go everyday! This is with buying only chicken every now and then! We have been planning out dinners (usually involves pasta) and eat sandwiches for lunch and eggs or yogurt for breakfast.

Aktobe doesn’t get many tourists here. Other than the occasional oil worker, not many people come here to visit unlike Almaty. We might be paranoid, but we don’t usually talk if we pass by a policeman or someone in an army uniform. We try to blend in as much as possible but our translator says it is very obvious we are American. Maybe it’s the backpack, lack of stiletto boots and skin tight black pants! We see the occasional Russian white person but they aren’t that prevalent….most are Kazakh.

They also freely spit on the sidewalks. There is frozen spit all over the place. They don’t even try to spit off the sidewalk so others don’t step in it!

They have a big problem with wild dogs. They are running wild everywhere. Most are limping from being hit by cars.

The stores here are much different than in the states. If you want to buy a paperclip, you buy one! There are little kiosk stores in the mall where you purchase things…no big box stores like we are use to. Everything in the stores look like it’s from Goodwill. I have no idea where they get the clothes from but they look like they are already worn and from the 70’s!

Off to make some chicken noodle soup for dinner!

Day 5 Bonding

I took a break from the morning bonding visit and enjoyed a quiet apartment. Milon is leaving on Thursday (we think) and I won’t have a break till we get home on April 3rd! I can say that the bonding visits are getting harder. We love seeing her everyday but it is very hard to bond with a child while playing on the couch. She was sweating so bad this afternoon in the snowsuit they have her in. I think they are trying to force a fever in hope she gets over a cold faster. Meanwhile, she has heat rash all over her neck and forehead from sweat. There is another Russian couple in the bonging room with us in the afternoon. They are bonding with a 5 month old Russian boy. You can see them in the background. They don't speak any English so it is hard to communicate with them.

The appeal process is proving to be challenging for many reasons. We have exhausted all sources of entertainment for Davis and Leah! On one hand going to the bonding sessions for 4 hours everyday kills the time in the day, and on the other hand they are becoming excruciatingly boring! I am not sure if only going to 1 bonging session a day would be better or worse! Today marks Day 5 of the 15 day bonding period. Oh my, 10 more days to go!

It is so cold outside that is makes really doing anything hard. We have Davis bundled up in thermals, sweatshirt, scarf tied over his face, 2 pair of gloves and a blanket on him! Today snowed most of the day although it was very light.

We walked to the market that is across the street. It was much more stroller friendly than the mosque mall. They had lots of stores on 2 levels. In the middle was fruit, desserts, and meat. All the meat was lying out on the counter with non refrigeration! Needless to say we didn’t buy any! I am still amazed none of us have gotten sick since we have been here! I did buy Leah a pair of leggings to put on under clothes to keep warm. I also bought a pair of booties to donate to the orphanage when we pick her up. I am hoping they will let me keep a pair of the ones she has been wearing in the babyhouse.

Ahh... To Speak English!

It’s Sunday and we only have 1 visit with Leah today. Our day started early as usual….5am. Davis hasn’t fully adjusted to the time change and has been getting up at 5. He is taking an afternoon nap (in the stroller on the way to the grocery store!).

After our bonding visit, we came back to the apt to do some cleaning. The bottom of Davis’ feet are black from the floor, so we spent the afternoon vacuuming and scrubbing the floor. The rag that is here has many holes in it and doesn’t appear too clean, but anything is better than the way they are!

We were invited to the Belgium couples apartment for some wonderful coffee and cake! I guess I didn’t need to lug 6 bags of coffee from the USA! They are a very sweet couple and have just gotten custody of their baby girl. She lived in the same group as Leah in the babyhouse! The nannies told them as well that Leah is a bully! It is very funny to hear this because we don’t see this when we are with her! I guess Davis will have to toughen up a little or he will get beaten up!

They have been here for 5 weeks and are much more familiar with the area. They were able to show us where things are in walking distance to our apt. Speaking of apartments, I think we got shafted in this area! They are staying in a new apt building with wood floors! It is much nicer than where we are staying and we are paying 2.5 times what they are! It also seems to me that their program is much more organized. They were even given a map of Aktobe outlining shopping, etc. We were thrown to the wolves. For instance, we had no idea there was a market place right across the street. It has fruits, vegetable and meats! We were wondering why we couldn’t find any in the grocery store!

It is good to speak with people who are having the same experiences. It gave us comfort to know that we are not the only ones sitting in Aktobe who feels like a fish out of water. And it was nice to see the end result! We saw their little girl in the orphanage and now she is in their arms in their apartment! “That will be us soon” which is a direct quote from Davis as he said to every airplane we saw back home.

We are already anxious to get back home, to get back to our daily grind, to sleep in our own beds, to be around people with whom we can speak with! We are starting to feel like mutes here! It’s amazing how isolated you can feel even when we have each other.

For those that want to instant message, we are using AOL Instant messaging. Our screen name is RMshill. There is a 10 hour time difference and we are usually on around 9-11 pm your time or 9-11 am. http://dashboard.aim.com/aim