Smiles and Tears

Today begin with a short walk. We stopped to sit on a bench and entertain ourselves by watching people get pulled over. Here, cops stand along side of the road and pull people over randomly. Hey, it beats America’s Funniest Home Videos!
We began the visit with taking Wyatt outside. We now have shed the sweatshirt layer. He is still loving the Snugli. After about 45 minutes we headed to the music room where we did the same stuff as usual…a little of the Leapfrog toy, a little of the books, a little of the keys, and of course the banging on anything we can find. We also played with a stuffed horse, which eventually went into the mouth. Our translator decided he is a true Kazakh man because of his taste in horse. Our coordinator came in late in the visit and it stressed Wyatt out! He is not used to men (only Jason). When our coordinator first came in, Wyatt just stared him down….couldn’t keep his eyes off of him. But once he got close and tried to tickle him, Wyatt wasn’t having it. Immediate tears. We had to include this picture! On a very positive note, as we were leaving the baby house, we saw a new mother walking out of the head doctor’s office. She had just found her baby. After looking at him briefly we realized this was the first child shown to us. We are so happy that he has found his family, as we would have wondered about him forever.
After the baby house we went to the Astana Market for lunch. We had a sampling of foods…burrito of random items, pilaf, chicken, salad, dumplings and topped it all off with some ice cream. The only downside of the whole experience was the absence of forks and napkins. From there we went on another walk (yes, our lives are sooooo exciting) and then back to the Mary Tyler Moore Show. We have now finished those DVD’s as well.
The night concluded with a trip to meet Jenn and Pete out for some cappuccino and then off to Shymkent for some beers. They are leaving Saturday night for home. We’ll be having our last hurrah at Buharah Friday night. We are so excited for them.

One Week To Go

It is officially one week from our court date, May 2 at 10:00 am. It was the President’s decision that the May 1 holiday will only last one day. It could have been up to 3! We were obviously thrilled it is only one. Wyatt was full of smiles today…that seems to be the norm now. Wyatt has found that he can prop himself up on a bench bang his hand on it for fun. It’s the little things in life, huh. We played inside for the first hour and then headed outside. We tested out the Snugli and it seems to be a hit with all of us. I can already picture us walking though the farmers market on Saturday mornings. As far as Wyatt’s layers today and yesterday, he has been dressed a little on the heavy side, but not as bad as usually… not even enough to sweat. It was about 70 today and he had on a onesie pj outfit, pants, a sweatshirt, a jacket, boots and a light hat. We probably could have done without the sweatshirt, but hey, at least no scarf!!

After the baby house we came home for lunch, watched TV for a while and went for a long walk…from 1:30-5:00. We walked to the Tree of Life and by the President’s House. We sat on the benches in the park-like area in front of the President’s house for a while. It was beautiful outside and there was some music playing so we decided to just chill for a bit.

After our walk we came home, ate dinner and went to Astana Market to get some Pepsi Lite. Of course, we had to walk through the bakery. And if you walk through the bakery, you have to try something. So, we got a little individual sized pie filled with a type of frosting that was equivalent to an extremely large pixie stick. We are not sure what it was, but we do know that is has quite the reaction when mixed with Diet Coke.

70 and Sunny

Outdoors!!

Today at the baby house began with 1 hour of outdoor playtime. It was around 70 degrees and Wyatt was (believe it or not) appropriately dressed for the weather. Because of this, he enjoyed the day outside for the first time since we met. The remainder of our 2 hour visit was spent in the playroom. He enjoyed the time there (as did we) playing in the ‘jump-o-lene’ and with the balls. He also pulled himself up to the wooden bench so that he could slap it for about 10 minutes. He really enjoys making noises.

We went for a 3-hour walk with the translator this afternoon. We enjoyed walking through the amusement park and down the river to a very peaceful park where we sat and talked (and were eaten by Volkswagen-sized mosquitoes).

The rest of the evening will consist of scratching our new mosquito bites and watching DVDs.

Beware of the Gypsy Beggars!

Not the best weather today, chilly and spitting outside. However, that didn’t effect Wyatt’s day. He greeted us with smiles and played hard. We shared the playroom again with Isabelle and her mom and grandmother. Isabelle and Wyatt love this since they can play with each others’ toys. We don’t so much love it, since when they are playing with the toys, we are playing “how can we keep that out of your mouth?” We lose that game every time. At the end of the visit, Jenn and Peter came for their bonding time with their boy, Jack. That’s the 6 of us in the picture above.

After the baby house, we came home and read a little bit and walked to the Astana Market shops. We bought cakes that are traditional around the holidays. They look like giant cupcakes. Unfortunately, the frosting isn’t layered on like the good ole’ American cupcakes…can you figure out who is writing this, Jason or Michelle? This weekend is their Easter, so the cake came in a basket with eggs and a little pie-like dessert. The cake tasted similar to a breakfast pastry. The pie had a familiar taste, but we couldn’t put our finger on it…maybe citrus custard. Around 3, we met Jenn and Peter out for lunch. We originally planned to go to the Astana Market to introduce them to Jason’s best friend, Mr. Pilov, but due to the weather, we went to the old faithful, Shymkent. Well Michelle had beet salad, “nyet (no) mayonnaise” (which ended up being shredded beets) and noodle soup with meatballs. The use of mayo is impressive here…squirted over about any salad, served on the side for potatoes, rice, etc. And a visit to Shymkent isn’t complete without their bread…yum! After lunch we headed to Pucha and Astana Market shops. We didn’t buy anything this time, just window shopped.

Now, it’s about 7 pm and we’re hanging out watching Moonstruck. Tomorrow we’re heading over to Jenn and Peter’s apartment. They’re cooking us lunch and then we’re going to play some cards and the PS2 they brought. It has been a blessing having another couple that we really enjoy hanging out with here. Unfortunately, they will be leaving after their court date which may be at the end of next week.


Today’s Kazakhstan Cultural Lesson:
We told our coordinator and translator about our doorbell ringing and people knocking at our door yesterday. No biggie, they only rang it twice and knocked a few times. Nothing compared to the cops! Anyways, they told us, again, not to open the door to anyone. They said how there are lots of beggars that could be coming to the door asking for money (little do they know, we may be doing this by the end of May, ha ha). But these are not your average, run of the mill beggars. They were talking about gypsy beggars. Beggars that will hypnotize you and then make you give them all of your money. Due to your hypnotic state, you may not remember this occurring until days later. Interesting. Too bad for them that they can’t hypnotize you to open the door; it seems as if they may make a little more that way.

No baby house tomorrow since it’s Sunday. At home, we live for the weekends. Here, everyday is a weekend and we dread Sundays. Not for long!

It's a Date

Last night, we met Jenn and Peter at the Chelsea English Pub (just 2 blocks from our front (and only) door). The décor was very nice/authentic appearing. The prices were nice for the proprietor. A few beers and 2 sandwiches left us a tab of $40US. The food was good, but no better than meals we’ve had here for 75% less. The Chelsea does; however accept credit cards, has English menus and an English speaking staff. After dinner, we ventured across the main street (Avenue of the Republic) to the Arbat (also referred to by the locals as the “good hamburger place”) for dessert. Dessert was good and the environment was very casual.


Today’s visit with Wyatt was a good one. He was very playful and adorable. The caregivers brought him to us about 20 minutes late because he was actually eating today. Then, they picked him up from us about 15 minutes early. In just a few weeks, he’ll be all ours.

Humoring Ourselves

As I type, I realize we may have hit an all time low. We thought playing a full game of war was bad…we are now completing a full episode of America’s Funniest Home Videos. If that’s not bad enough…it’s in Russian. The worst of it all, is that we think it’s funny. Okay, that show is over and A-Team just came on. We are in for a fun afternoon!
We were in the playroom today which makes the 2 hours fly. We played with everything and Wyatt was full of smiles again. He has begun to make a new face, as you can see in the pictures. Our coordinator took our dossier to the court and we are currently waiting on our court date. We hopefully will find out later today or tomorrow.
After the baby house, we came home to finish the soup from yesterday. Tonight we are meeting Jenn and Peter out for some dinner. I think we may try the Chelsea English Pub. We’ll let you know how it is in tomorrow’s post.

One Milestone Down

The official bonding time (14 days) is complete. We are now officially waiting for a court date. From there we will have a general idea about when to book flights home. Right now we’re thinking the end of May.
Wyatt was happy again today. We were in the music room was a little on the warm side (86.5 degrees to be exact). We learned that he LOVES soccer. We started rolling the ball first, with him sitting with Michelle and Jason rolling it to them. Michelle stood him up and swung him so he was kicking it. He was a trip. Cracking up every time! We had to take turns because our arms were getting tired from swinging him. He would get so excited, he’d bounce between kicks. That absolutely wore him out. After a diaper change…no tears, only a little whining today… he fell asleep in Michelle’s arms.
From the baby house we went to Buharah for lunch. Michelle had a salad with apples, peas, black olives, yellow peppers and a little olive oil. The salads here on not lettuce based. They are usually fruits, veggies, eggs, meat or potato (or a unique combo of any or all of those) with mayonnaise or salad/olive oil. Michelle also had Lagman, but prefers Shymkent’s. Jason had pilaf (still prefers Astata Market’s…by far) and a beef kabob. Of course, we had some of their awesome bread.
After lunch we came home for our usual TV/nap time. We have completed the Sex and the City series and are now on to the Mary Tyler Moore Show. Jenn and Peter have loaned a few seasons. Neither of us has watched it before and are really enjoying it. We’ve finished one of the disks already. After the nap, we headed to the Ramstore, where a young employee, Ardek and Jason are now on a first name basis.
Now, we’re ready to enjoy some chicken noodle soup and back to Mary Tyler Moore!

Happy Days Are Here Again

We had a much better day today. From the minute he was brought into the room, Wyatt was full of smiles. Was it because we saw him yesterday? Was it because his clothes matched? Was it because he wasn’t dressed like it was 20 below? Or was it because we were in the playroom with no indication that we would go outside? Whatever it was, we don’t care…our boy was back!
We played the entire two hours today...going from the ball pit to the blow up trampoline, to his toys on the floor, to the tambourine (Robers’ girls, that’s a tribute to you!!!); he was a mover and a shaker. He’s beginning to imitate us more and blowing raspberries is the new cool thing to do. There is one new behavior that has been consistent for the past 2 days…crying when we change his diaper. We’re not exactly sure why he does this all of a sudden, but we think it may be due to the fact that he doesn’t want to lie down and stay still for those few minutes. And, the new parents are exactly the speediest of all diaper changers.
After the baby house, we walked to Camobar (the Russian Café). Jason stuck with his old faithful goulash and chicken pancakes, while Michelle branched out and tried the chicken stewed with fresh veggies and rice. It was another tasty lunch, as it always is there. After lunch we headed to Astana Market to pick up some groceries, you know, the typical pop, oatmeal and milk that expires next year. We headed to the deli and were trilled to see that we could by the noodles that are in the Lagman soup that we love. We bought a package and will be experimenting with those tomorrow.
Tonight we’re lying low, watching some TV and cooking some spaghetti at the apartment. Looking forward to tomorrow…our last day of the official bonding period.

Some like it hot...Some don't!

The big man was not happy today. Let’s analyze why this could have been. After all, the high is 80 today and the sun is shining. Mom and Dad are happy as can be in tee shirts enjoying the great weather. Then there’s Wyatt…in one pair of pink pants, one pair of purple pants, one pair of plaid shoes, one white short sleeved onesie, one grey hooded sweatshirt, one blue light weight jacket (the one we bought him yesterday so he wouldn’t have to bundle up in a snowsuit) and to top it off, one red winter hat. Could it have been the clashing outfit? Could it have been because we didn’t visit him yesterday? Or the fact that he may have needed sunscreen…never mind, the sun couldn’t even touch his skin though all of is clothes! The poor guy was not enjoying life outdoors, so after a while we headed in. The playroom was locked, so we went into the music room. It was pretty warm in there, so we popped open a window and stripped Wyatt down to cool off. He played well for a while and then got a little tired and whiny. His nap is at 12, so this usually occurs around 11:30. Once we picked him up and held him, he was fine, so as usual we gave into this request. We’ll take a smile anyway we can get it.

After the baby house we went back to the Amstel tents that we ate at yesterday for lunch. Jason had the exact same thing as yesterday. Michelle branched out and tried something new…surprise, surprise (don’t worry, no tongue this time). It was huge piece of very thin flatbread with sliced chicken, pickles, carrots, a french fry or two, ketchup, and a mayo or sour cream sauce. There may have been some cabbage or something else in there as well. It was wrapped up like a burrito and heated in a panini-like grill. It tasted pretty good, however now after reading what all was in it; I can see that you may think it sounds a little on the weird side.

It’s now 3:30 and we are off to go for a run along the river walk. The weather is supposed to go back down to the 50’s tomorrow, so we are going to enjoy this weather while we can. Then tonight, we’re going to meet Jenn and Peter out for a drink at the North Wind English Pub (connected to the Ramstore/Astana Tower).

Happy Easter/Pussy Willow thing Day

No visit today, as it was Sunday.

Yesterday, we agreed on a meeting point for lunch with the translator and coordinator at 1:00. We decided to eat under the Amstel tents outside of the Astana market (our new favorite grocery, et. al.) We each had a beef sheshlik (kabob) each, Michelle started with a cucumber-type salad, Jason had the Uzbekistan rice pilaf (plov here in KZ). All of the food was incredible…the best food we’ve had yet!

After lunch, we walked couple of blocks from the Astana market to “Pucha” a 3-story children’s-only shopping mall. We bought Wyatt a ‘stolen from a Chinese factory making Gap clothes’ Gap lightweight jacket. The jacket may have been hot, but the prices weren’t. The jacket was a somewhat-reasonable (although clearly not discounted) $20US. We are hoping that the caregivers will allow him to wear this outside as it is forecasted to be 80 F tomorrow. We’d hate for him to have a snowsuit on when he could reasonably wear a swimsuit.

After that, the coordinator went home and the 3 of us walked down the river. We sat down on a park bench along the riverwalk. A few minutes later, a group of 7-10 ten year olds were hanging out within earshot of us, speaking Russian of course. The translator kept us apprised of what they were saying. They new that Michelle and Jason were Americans, but were unsure of the translator as they’d only heard her speak English. The loser of the Rock, Paper, Scissors game had to come ask us what time it is to see if the translator could answer. She did, and the ½ the kids that lost the bet moaned in disgust…evidence that ten year olds are the same regardless of their hemisphere of residence.

Yesterday, Michelle discovered that the Astana Market has boneless, skinless chicken breasts. So we prepared them for dinner, walked back to the Astana Market for dessert (which like most desserts here was not very sweet), found a park bench, sat a spell, and back home (de moy).

Happy Easter! Today was Easter here at the Russian Orthodox Church and as a sign of new life/Spring parishioners were given blooming pussy willow branches (kind of like Palm Sunday in the US).

Tomorrow we’ll see Wyatt at 10. Here’s hoping for no snowsuit.

Good Weather!

Saturday’s are bittersweet for us. We are glad to cross another day off, but a little sad that we won’t be visiting the big man the next day.

Today brought beautiful weather. 70 and not a cloud in the sky. We get to the baby house at the usual time and see that everyone is outside working to keep the property surrounding the house (including wonderful playgrounds) in shape for Summer.

We are to take Wyatt outside for the first half of the 2 hour bonding period. He was a bit overdressed, but not the usual snowsuit, so no complaints. After about 20 minutes, we were approached by the caregiver that was upset that we weren’t wearing masks when we visit him. She was upset because although he was clad in winter wear complete with adorable snow boots and stocking cap (read toboggan in Kentucky), he was not wearing a scarf. So our apologies to Wyatt for risking frostbite and hypothermia.

After the hour o’ sweatin’ outside, we went into the play room….it was probably 80 degrees in there, but at least no snowsuit was required. Wyatt played very well today. According to the other caregivers, he had eaten in the morning, his first morning meal in 2 weeks.

Wednesday is our last day of bonding. At that point, our coordinator is able to begin working with the authorities on a court date. In Astana, standard procedure is for court to take place no sooner than 10 days following the official bonding period. After court, a 15 day waiting period, then to Almaty for a visit with the US Embassy where they will process Wyatt’s citizenship paperwork. Roughly 3-5 days after arrival in Almaty, we will depart for Amsterdam. From Amsterdam to Detroit. Upon arrival in Detroit, Wyatt will become a US Citizen and then on to Lexington…we may never leave home again.

After the babyhouse, we came home for a couple of hours before departing for an interesting restaurant. The restaurant was very nice, had about 8-10 tables and a large window which looked out into the horse riding ring. That’s right; at this restaurant one could eat and ride horses without leaving the property. The meats at this place were cooked on a hibachi-type grill (one for the restaurant, not per table). It also had a firing range where our coordinator took Jason to fire off a few rounds with a Soviet rifle (never once hit the target, but it was an experience nonetheless).

En route to the restaurant, our coordinator pointed out the car in front of us. The car had Minnesota license plates…long drive, eh?

5 more days of the Bonding Period

Today’s visit was one that we will never forget. We spent the first hour of it outside on the playground. About 10 minutes into our visit, the older group came outside to play. These children were about 3-4 years old. It all began with one girl coming up to us full of smiles and taking our camera. After the caregiver told her to give it back, she did so and ran back to her group, still smiling. This girl was a trip. Watching her on the playground was hilarious. She clearly ruled the roost. I was with our translator and Jason was rocking with Wyatt on a swing. I look to him and see him with 2 little girls and Wyatt. I go over to see what is going on. We cannot understand them, they cannot understand us, but we just all “played” for a few minutes. Then our translator asked Jason if he could pick one of them up and spin her around. Wow, let the games begin!!! There was a line. Jason, ready to puke from dizziness, was the hit of the party. He came back and joined Wyatt and me on the bench. There was one girl in particular that couldn’t help but be by Jason. She went back to him again and made it obvious she wanted on his lap. After about 10 minutes of playing on his lap, her caregiver told her to get down. She obeyed, then gave the puppy eyes and cried. It worked for her and up she was again. About 5 minutes later, it was time for us to go in. Once again, a little bit of our hearts were left with that group. It is important to know that not all of the children we see are available for adoption. Some may still be on the national registry, some may have biological families that occasionally visit (enough to keep their parental rights) and some may be in the process of being adopted. We will never forget those two little girls and pray that they all find wonderful homes.

After an hour of outside play, it was time to go to the music room and play with the big man. He was talking and moving around like crazy. He was even beginning to pull some chairs down in the music room. We have realized we have some baby proofing to do when we get home! A woman from the Ministry of Education was supposed to witness the bonding process but was not able to make it today. We assume she will be joining some time next week, since our official 14 day bonding period ends next Wed. Yeah!!!

Dinner tonight was at the Oasis which was a very nice (and inexpensive) place about ½ a block from our door. It accepts credit cards and has at least 2 English menus.

Leave the baby and go away!

Today, we took Wyatt outside. The good folks at the baby house recognized that it was nearly 60 degrees out today, so Wyatt wasn’t required to wear his scarf or hood. Just the -50 rated snowsuit. We were outside nearly an hour before it was time to go in. Not one step in the door our translator interprets “She is telling us to leave the baby and go away”. After a couple of minutes of discussion between the head nurse and the translator, we learned that a television station was coming to do a story of some sort about the baby house and our presence would become a story about us. So, we walked out to the street haled a Taxi (more on that below) and went to the Shymkent Café (photo above) for lunch with the translator. Something interesting about this trip to Shymkent…after paying the check we noticed we received all of our change, minus 50 tenge, plus a pack of gum. Jenn and Peter told us that this also happened to their translator once. If they don’t have exact change, they give you something that costs about that much. Sometimes they give matches, I guess we were lucky with the gum! The visit with Wyatt was 1 hour shorter than the typical 2 hours, but we’re hoping Wyatt doesn’t hold a grudge. We’ll find out tomorrow.

After lunch we came home, watched “The Bourne Identity” (okay, Jason watched the movie, Michelle slept through it). Then we met the translator and went for a long walk around the river and through the amusement park. We stopped at the Astana FC to find out when opening day of the Astana professional soccer team was (May 6). At the end of the walk, we found an incredible market adjacent to the Mall near our apartment. It has a full bakery (with breads and sweets), a deli, a liquor store and a grocery. We went to look and left with bags of bread, sweets and salads. The new food for the day…salad (not lettuce, its mixed veggies with a vingarette) with cow tongue. Jason won’t touch it, Michelle’s review, “it’s actually not bad.” We will be back, but probably opt not to purchase the salad with tongue. Unless of course, we have any takers out there, I’m sure we could bring some home!

Taxi

Taxi rides in Astana are no different than hitchhiking except for the part where you pay. You simply stand near the street with your arm out (sans the thumb up). A car will stop and pick you up (not a taxi, but just some guy who’s going the way that you wish to go). You ask if he can take you to your destination. If he agrees, you then negotiate a price. If he doesn’t agree, he drives off and it’s not long before the next one stops. We’ve taken a cab on only a few occasions (never without our translator, and only when the driver/coordinator is working on our behalf at another location). The translator has requested that we not speak prior to her negotiation of the fare as it is typical to charge foreigners a premium price. We went a few miles (10 minutes tops) for 3 dollars today.


Russian lesson:
Excuse me: iz vin eet ya