Friday, November 30, 2007

Natalya


This is her! Natalya was given the thumbs up this morning by my international adoption doctor, and by this time next month she will be my daughter. Born on October 18, 2006, she is 17 pounds and is ? (I forget) inches long. Natalya was a good weight when born, but now she is a little skinny. The caregivers say she is so long that she is destined to be a model J More importantly, she is an inquisitive and happy little girl. When I arrived at the babyhouse this morning, all of the kids in her room were still in their cribs, but she was the only one standing and she let out a laugh when the caretaker and I walked in. Actually, I think she fancies herself a little bit of a clown—she likes to act silly and crack herself up. She has a funny, almost-toothless smile (I keep thinking she looks like my grandmother without her dentures!), wispy blondish brown hair and big brown eyes. And she is always checking out what is going on with the other kids, what they are doing or what toy they are playing with. Even when I was feeding her lunch, she still wanted to know what was going on with the others. By the way, I haven’t settled the issue of her name yet. Natalya is a name I like and had briefly considered months ago, so I may keep it or incorporate it into her full name, but that’s going to have to wait for now-- only one major decision per day!

All of the families are now in one large room for visitation. We head to the babyhouse twice a day, from 10am to 12pm and from 4pm to 6pm. Everyone spreads out a blanket to establish “their” play area, but by the end it is a little bit of a shambles as everyone moves around. There are 7 babies 14 months and younger, 3 two year olds and a 5 year old boy, plus 4 other children who traveled to Kaz with their parents to meet their new sister/brother, so it can get pretty hectic. In between sessions at the babyhouse, we usually hit the nearby shops for baby gear or to get groceries. (We just came back from a store actually that is like a Best Buy, but bigger and with triple the selection, and when you buy something they actually test it for you in the store before you leave to make sure it is in working order). The downtime is also computer time and if you are very lucky, nap time. Sleep is the thing I miss most about home!! I am sleeping about 4 ½ hours per night so far. I am so exhausted you would like a full night’s sleep wouldn’t be a problem but by 3:30am or 4am, I am wide awake. I am told that it takes about a week to settle in, so I am looking forward to that day. The hotel is comfortable; my room is pretty big and overlooks a pretty park. There is a bowling alley, so another couple and I took advantage of that last night—it was the perfect way to shake off a pretty stressful day. Sunday all of the families are going to the circus, which should be fun.

More tomorrow!

Thursday, November 29, 2007

First trip to the baby house

It's done! The first day at the baby house has come and gone and I met a number of beautiful children. There were two 4 year old boys, who I was not approved to adopt (and who are older than I was looking for).. I also met two 2 year old little girls, one of whom is being adopted by the couple I traveled to Kaz with. Then there were the babies.. I met three infant girls, two who were 8 months of age and one who is 13 months. Let me tell you-- this is hard! I am visiting with 2 of those girls-- an 8 month old named Medina and the 13 month old, named Natalya. There was some pressure to make a quick decision, but those of you who know me know that is not physically possible for me. I am the girl who visited Home Depot for months before deciding on bathroom fixtures-- this is a little more important that a pretty sink :) Anyway, this afternoon the pressure eased off, but I will have to give answer soon. I am just waiting for the adoption specialist I am consulting with to look at the info and photos I sent her. Until I have made a choice, I am going to hold off on posting a picture of either girls..

It's dinner time now.. I've avoided the horsemeat until now-- even though they might have tried to slip some into a breakfast pastry I had today :)

Sonya & Brent-- I found Nicholas today.. Medina is in his room.. He looked great, very active and smiley. Natalya said you had spoiled him though-- and now it was the "poor nurses" who had to handle him.. By the looks of it, it isn't that tough a job at all. I'll get you pictures when I can..

Later..

Wednesday, November 28, 2007

It is the craziest thing-- I'm in Kazakhstan!

Sorry it took so long to post-- this is the first time I have gotten anywhere I could use my computer.

I have finally arrived in Karaganda!! It is Wednesday night here as I write this (probably won’t post until tomorrow though), and we have just come from the airport, with a quick stop off at the grocery store. There is a couple from Albany who I traveled with from JFK, and today in Almaty, we met up with another family from Chicago. Tomorrow morning I will go to the babyhouse for the first time and hope to have details about the baby for all of you in a day or two. I know that’s all you are interested in at this point, but for the heck of it, I’ll tell you a few of the highlights of my trip.

The flights were not too bad. I got about 4 hours combined each “night” on the planes. The leg between JFK and Amsterdam was very crowded and I was pretty well squished into my seat with my big puffy jacket and all my junk. I had taken soooo much in my carryon and purse and pockets, that I was literally weighed down, and keeping it all in check was a losing battle. Luckily, once I got to Amsterdam, I was able to stow it all in a locker while I took a canal tour of the city. Amsterdam was pretty cool—the architecture is beautiful and all of the buildings have these big windows that allow you to look right in. The homes looked like museums or art galleries! And seeing it all by boat allowed me to see a lot I wouldn’t have by simply walking up the street, so I was glad I decided to do it. Speaking of which, does everyone but me know that Amsterdam is surrounded by canals, like Venice? There are traffic signs and everything on the canal walls. And houseboats! Lined up and down the canals are approximately 2500 houseboats-- some ramshackle, some with all of the grandeur of the QE2. Many of the houseboats were also covered in plants and flowers—I have no doubt in the spring/summer, they are gorgeous. Oh,yeah—and when I got to the train station, it was as if I had been dropped into an episode of the Amazing Race. There was an episode a couple of weeks ago where the teams had to find 2 matching bikes in a sea of bicycles. Let me tell you, that episode did not do justice to exactly how many bikes there are in Amsterdam, particularly around the train station. It was staggering—and a little dangerous if you forgot to watch out for bike traffic J

The trip from Amsterdam was uneventful. I had more room, but ended up getting less sleep than the night before. We hit Almaty about 7am this morning and went straight to the hotel and I crashed. I can’t tell you too much about the city— I only saw what was between the airport and the hotel, and it was dark and foggy when we arrived. What is amazing about Almaty is the mountain range that overlooks the city. It was so hazy that the mountains did not look real—they looked like they were a painted backdrop.

I only have a couple of pictures so far—nothing worth posting. They don’t allow pictures to be taken at the airport, where we were looking at the mountains from. And in Amsterdam, I left the camera in the locker by accident, so none from there either. Ha! So far, there’s no real proof that I am here, is there? J Better get those pics of a the baby soon!
I’ll post again as soon as I can

Saturday, November 24, 2007

My mother and sister are trying to re-name the baby!

By the way, as this trip becomes imminent, there is a movement afoot to change my names! Really just the girl's name.. My mother is obsessed with the name Maura-- she will be happy if anyone we know names a baby Maura.. Personally, I like the name Maura, but I knew a Maura years ago and the name is now ruined for me for all time. My sister came up with a nice idea: since the baby will be a Christmas baby in a way (I go to court Dec. 23rd), so she suggested the name Noelle, which I think is very pretty. After 9 months of calling the baby Niamh or Daniel, will the baby really be named one of those names? Noelle would make the issue of spelling a whole lot easier..

50 hours and counting!!


This is my visa, the little slip of paper that's going to get me into Kaz.. I don't know why the photo is coming out so blurry-- I just hope it's not a bad omen! Or just a sign that I completely deficient when it comes to anything technological. I'm spending the evening setting up my (Debbie's :)) computer, and practicing loading photos.. 'Cause one week from now, that's all anyone is going to want to see :)
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Monday, November 19, 2007

Numbers! We have numbers!!

I'm going, I'm going!! The numbers came in today, and on Monday, November 26th, I'm leaving on a jet plane!!! I'm taking a KLM flight, departing JFK at just after 10pm on Monday and arriving in Almaty on Wednesday morning, just before 6am.. Shoot, now I have to figure out what I still have left to do!

Friday, November 16, 2007

Possible delay!

Bad news today: the numbers issued to traveling families needed to get my visa were not received by the Kazakhstan consulate in New York this week. During the course of the week, it was decided that my group was leaving on Monday, Nov. 26th (instead of arriving then), but now that date could be up in the air too :( because no number, no visa-- no visa, no travel. The only good news: my agency has gone into high gear trying to get the numbers issued, and hopefully this will all be resolved on Monday.

Monday, November 12, 2007

Some things you just don't send out to the cleaners!


The things we do for love..




If anyone has been watching me for the past week or so, they would think I am a little bit off my rocker :) One night last week, I wandered around the apartment taking pictures of myself with a little hippo my sister gave me for the baby. It was all very "America's Next Top Model"-- without Tyra deciding my fate.. A tip for those "models" who are still working on some of your photos--shoot from above, chin down (to eliminate some of those extra chins!) Tonight, it just gets a little funnier: I am ironing my money! And for some reason, the money is curling instead of getting flatter. I would say maybe the iron is too hot, but there just isn't a setting on the dial for "Silk, Rayon, Ben Franklins".

Wednesday, November 7, 2007

Ready, set-- wait some more (and Christmas shop :))

Okay, you would think that since I got the news last week that I finally was going to Kaz I would have been running around doing all sorts of tasks vital to my departure. The irony is, I haven't been able to do most the preparations that I have left! No LOI yet, so no specific dates yet-- so I can't make my plane reservations yet. I tried alerting my credit card co. that I would be traveling, but their approval for international charges is only good for 30 days, so I have to do that again right before I leave. I can't even put a hold on my mail yet, because to do it online you have to do it within 14 days of your requested hold date.

My 2 accomplishments over the last several days? I did a lot(!) of my Christmas shopping, and I had my phone consult with Dr. Gail Farber of Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. For anyone who is reading who is not going through the adoption process, Dr. Farber is a pediatrician that specializes in treating adopted children. During the first couple of days after I meet my baby, I will send Dr. Farber photos and as much information as I have on the baby's medical history and she will be advise me on the baby's general health, development and any potential problems she foresees. In addition, she will advise me on more practical matters, like feeding and techniques for promoting attachment. The discussion talk was very informative, and now I have at least one major thing accomplished. By the way, Dr. Farber was very clear in her explanations and very patient with my questions, so anyone who is still trying to decide on an adoption specialist definitely check out the CHOP program. Here is the link: http://www.chop.edu/consumer/jsp/division/service.jsp?id=73553

So that's as far as I've gotten. My "travel meeting" is scheduled for tomorrow, so I hope to have more information after that.

And one of these days, I really should open up one of the books in my now vast "Learn to Speak Russian" collection.. That I could start right now, but I am avoiding!

Friday, November 2, 2007

Drumroll, please...

I got my dates!!! I am expected in Kaz on November 25th (maybe the 24th-- the agency hasn't seen the LOI yet).. So on Thanksgiving or the day after, I am getting on a plane! Which plane, I don't know yet-- still have to work out all the details.. But now it's time to get working on the rest of my "getting ready" list..

Thanks to everyone who is leaving advice and good wishes in the comments-- it is great checking in and finding everyone's messages!!