Here are some pictures.  Will post a half dozen videos and commentary during this week!

Hi there!!!  Sorry it has taken so long to post the commentary!!!  Karina and I are doing wonderful!  We have many more good days then bad - in fact we have really no bad full days these days…..instead there are just portions of days that can really be classified as less than pleasant.  And that is true with all children so I would have to say that we are both fully adjusted at this point. 

Karina is a bundle of energy.  She loves loves loves the pool.  We have been many times and by her second visit she was already jumping into the four foot section of the pool while holding my hands.  She is such a daredevil….just plain fearless.  We also visited Blackberry Farms for the 4th of July after the parade.  The majority of the pictures below are of Karina enjoying Blackberry Farms.  It is the perfect size for a four year old and she loved the carousel, ponies, train ride, tractors, and animals.  We will def be going back. 

Karina is learning so many words.  It is amazing how many new words she picks up every week.  She is counting to 15 and we are working on being able to get to 20.  She can identify about 1/3 of her letters.  She is able to tell me the names of about three different colors, red, yellow, and purple.  We are working on the other colors orange, green, and blue.  The colors have been the hardest so far.  She has learned how to ride a big girl bicycle with training wheels and loves it!  Just this past week she has learned the difference between jumping and hopping and can now do both.  She can sing the letters of her first name and can say her full name first and last.  I want to teach her to say her address soon.  I am so impressed with her achievements!  In fact, as I was typing this we just had a discussion about hard and soft and after a few good examples she went running around the room touching things and telling me if they were hard or soft….the tv was hard, her blanket was soft, the floor was hard, her chair was soft, etc.  My favorite was when she ran over to me and touched my calf and said, “hard mama” and I moved her hand to my belly and said, “soft”  Very funny, 

Areas that were problems now either are not problems or are much less problematic.  Her eating is still very good.  We have figured out that she def does not like corn, tomatoes and broccoli.  But loves cucumbers, romaine lettuce, and carrots.  She will eat seafood salad, steak, chicken, soup, rice, potatoes, and so much more.  She really is a good eater and I have been very careful to not let her have much in the way of processed sweets.  For the most part she eats fruit as dessert and snacks.  Raisins, apples, bananas, mango, strawberries, blueberries, watermelon, cantaloupe, grapes, kiwi, oranges, pears, you name it if it is a fruit she loves it.  Maybe about once every two weeks (usually on an outing) we will get an ice cream or something like that.  I was wondering if I was being too restrictive until just this past week when she was at the pool with a friend who decided without my consent to give her a couple of ice creams.  She was difficult and whiny (saying she wanted ice cream) during meal times for the next four meals.  So clearly avoiding the sugar and junk food items except occasionally is good for her and good for me.  Nap time is not an issue at all anymore.  She may whimper a little when I tell her it is time for nap but she will go and take off her shoes and get the books and lay down.  And it is good because I can tell she really needs her nap.  She is so refreshed when she gets up from her nap and with all the good food she is eating she is growing like a weed.  Learning to leave a place that she wants to stay at, is gettting better.  About 80% of the time she will come away with no problem, or will be unhappy about it but still will listen.  Still about 20% of the time she will pitch a fit.  I have learned that it is good to make sure I always allow enough time for her to fully enjoy something - if it is the park I never take her unless I have 35 minutes for her to play at least, 2 hours for the pool, half a day for the Children’s Museum and the zoo, etc.  Then as it is getting close to time to go I will give her updates that we have to leave in five more minutes, etc.  If I am pretty sure she will pitch a fit I get in range and grab her hand so that even if she is unhappy I can still steer her toward the exit and the car.  If I can’t get in range and I can tell she is considering not listening I begin asking her if she wants her bath, books, and bicycle.  When she says yes I tell her she has to listen.  I am confident that her behavior in this area will continue to improve as she learns how to deal with disappointment and frustration better.  It is hard to not feel compassionate as she is sobbing that we have to leave the pool….but of course I keep telling myself that these emotions are a part of life and learning to deal with them is just as important if not more important than learning about your letters and numbers.  Bedtime, which was only an occasional problem a month ago, is not a problem at all now.  We both know the routine and I stick to it like glue.  In fact, when I forget something Karina reminds me.  The only thing I can think of is that occasionally Karina will wake up much earlier than usual.  I usually will hear her playing in her room with the dog and that is okay.  But if she wakes up more than 45 minutes earlier than her earliest normal time I will call from my room that it is too early and she must get back in bed right away.   I am all for rising early but no way are we getting up at 4:45 or even 5:30 for that matter. 

The first picture is of Karina waiting to go to her Saturday morning gymnastics class.  Don’t you just love that belly?  I have said this to her so many times that recently I needed some clothes and we were wheeling the cart into the Kohl’s dressing room and as soon as I took off my shirt out of her mouth comes….”look at that belly.”  I laughed and shushed her at the same time.  Anyway, she loves the gymnastics classes and in a few weeks when this one ends (it is a Mommy and me geared for 2-3 year olds) I will sign her up for the four year old class - the one without Mommy.  Hopefully, she will listen well to the teacher and play well with the other kids.  Our park district does not allow parents to stay in the class with the kids as it is a distraction.  I will of course be peeking through the window at her though.  I want to use this class as an experiment to see if she is able to be away from mom, pay attention to the teacher, and interact well enough with the other kids.  If the answer is yes then I know she will do well in preschool.  I was worried in the beginning when we were still dealing with pinching and hitting issues that if I sent her to preschool and she did this to any of the kids there she might get asked to leave and not come back.  I didn’t want that to happen since having a disruption like that I imagine would be traumatic and wanted to make sure she would behave and be able to refrain from those behaviors in school before putting her in the mix with other kids.  Will report back how the independent class goes in the future. 

I have realized that Karina is so cute and has such a great personality and so many quirky adorable mannerisms that it would be very very easy for her to grow up and be spoiled rotten because I have noticed that so many adults seem charmed by her and give in to her because she is so cute.  I am so glad that as her mom I can cherish the cute things about her but ensure that she grows up emotionally healthy.

Hi everyone!  I don’t know if anyone is still here with me but I thought I would take a minute and give you an update on how Karina is doing.  For Memorial Day we both flew to California to visit Karina’s Poppa and Nonie.  Karina loved the airplane ride there and Mommy survived it!  ; )  While there we experienced great hospitality and stayed at Poppa and Nonie’s beautiful house.  We went up to Brentwood and picked cherries (pictures included) and spent a day in San Francisco seeing sea lions, eating seafood, and strolling underneath the Golden Gate Bridge.  Karina got her first taste of Iranian food and loved it!  She had Iranian ice cream and loved it even more.  Karina really enjoyed her time at Poppa and Nonie’s and just yesterday she was strapped into her car seat play talking on her toy cell phone to Poppa and Nonie.  She had a three minute conversation with them….about what I do not know but it sounded important. 

Karina HOT NEWS Announcements:  she can sing the entire alphabet song on her own, she can print the capital letter A, she can recognize her own name printed on paper, she can recognize about 5 different letters, she can count to 10 and if I ask her how many of some thing is there she can count out the items, she knows about 4 of her colors and is learning shapes.  She loves to watch Kidsongs videos and can sing a half dozen nursery rhymes word for word, loves her Sesame Street DVDs and likes Elmo, Big Bird, Cookie Monster and all the gang.  Karina probably says close to 60 English words now and probably understands about 75% of what I say to her.  We have passed the two month mark of my having custody of her and things are much better.  She is going to bed much more easily and after we have done our bedtime routine I am able to kiss her goodnight and go downstairs and she goes to sleep easily.  Nap time is better too but every once in a while she will still fight it.  She has learned how to be gentle with the dog and absolutely adores Honey.  She is becoming more relaxed around men and just yesterday started waving hi to everyone in the grocery store that we passed….now I just have to train her to wave to the cute single men and I will have a great ready made ice breaker.  LOL…   :  ) 

I am doing much better - in the first few weeks Karina was the one adjusting - by the third and fourth week home I was the one needing to adjust because I was so exhausted that it became hard to enjoy Karina and I would say I was def experiencing some PADs(post adoption depression)….now I have been able to catch up on my sleep, Karina is testing me less and less every day, and I have been able to really enjoy her company.  I am amazed at how hard the process was from the point of leaving for the first trip to actually about a week ago.  Even with all my research I could not have guessed how hard those four months would be….I knew that I would be exhausted at the point that I was to travel….I think every PAP should be aware that usually by the time you have done your first trip you are physically exhausted (from the global treks), financially exhausted (money doesn’t grow on trees baby), mentally exhausted (forms forms and more forms), and emotionally exhausted (the original wait, the highs and lows of the first trip, the culture shock) and so by the time you make your second trip and they hand you your child you are at a low point in all areas - a time when you need your energy the most.  I think that this might explain the PADs (post adoption depression syndrome) that most (65%) international adopters of older children experience.  But I am glad to say that those feelings have become fleeting and I am hoping that I don’t backslide and we both can move forward on to bigger and better things.  I would say that Karina is fully attached to me at this point and that she understands what I mean when I say Karina and Mommy semya (family) fsegda (forever).  Hope you enjoy the pictures will try and post again in July after we have both experienced her first 4th of July!!!

Hi everyone!  Well, Karina and I have made it to almost the end of the first month together.  The first two and a half weeks was bumpy but that is behind us now.  Karina has about 50 English words that she can say at will if asked and uses consistently about 30 different English words on her own without prompting.  This Friday, Karina and Mommy will spend three hours at a Kindercare daycare that is about seven minutes away from my office.  I ended up nixing my first daycare choice and went with one that seemed cleaner, more geared towards learning and had a nicer open classroom setting.   Hopefully, all will go well and Karina will get to spend four hours a day playing and learning with other children.  This will most certainly speed up the process of her learning English.  I am concerned about her switching languages and getting fully caught up with her peers in all areas in time for kindergarten next year in August.  She is so smart that I don’t want her to be behind because I didn’t give her the opportunity to learn as much as possible before then. 

This last weekend Karina and Mommy had some serious fun.  The weekends are made for fun and at least one day of the weekend I try and make sure we go on a great outing together.  This weekend it was Brookfield Zoo.  Karina had a blast and so did Mommy.  Here are some pictures of that.

And then there was video:

Then here are some other pictures and video Mommy captured of Karina at work with Mommy.  She was dancing to her musica one day, dressing up to the nines in thrift shop clothes another day, so much fun.

 Then there was last weekend at the Dupage Children’s Museum.

Karina and I are having a great time.  The testing continues but on a smaller scale and Mommy has finally adjusted fully to having a little one around all the time.  Things are going great and I know they will only improve as Karina realizes that this is home for good now and forever, and once her English is better and her and Mommy can really communicate more thoroughly.  Amazingly, I am already contemplating going back for #2.  Clearly I have completely forgotten all the “labor pains” of #1 and / or the first go around made me insane.  ; ) 

Well Karina had a very fun weekend.  So did Mommy.  On Saturday, Karina and Mommy were pretty laid back - we stayed inside and played and watched Leap Frog Videos and ate lots of yummy food.  Then at about 10:00AM our puppy dog (sabaka) came home (dom) and we were a bit uncertain of this new creature.  We made unhappy noises every time the puppy dog got too close.  So Mommy put puppy dog in the kitchen where Karina could lean over the dog and child gate and see her and pet her if wanted.  A whopping 20 minutes later the same cries were heard but this time it was because Karina wanted the puppy dog to come out there to see her.  I picked up puppy dog and put her in the living room with Karina and puppy dog was immediately hugged and kissed on the snout.  Puppy dog or as Karina says it Pupee Dock has been the recipient of at least a hundred hugs and kisses since that point - in the car Karina asked me several times —eta moi sabaka?  eta moi sabaka?  Which for you single language folks is —- It is my dog?  It is my dog?  Very cute. 

Then on Sunday the fun got ratcheted up as Mommy treked out to Target for a trainer potty seat to put on the big potty and a corresponding step stool.  Then on the way home we stopped off at a new park.  Karina made use of all the slides, swings, and ride on toys.  Then there was nap time - always a fun time at the Sharify residence - sarcasm galore.  After nap time Mommy and Karina got dressed to go over to our friend Tara’s house and since we were about an hour and a half ahead of schedule we stopped at an amusement park that was set up in the local strip mall.  I figured Karina could try the carousel….and it was a sure fire hit.  She smiled on the outside but only I could feel, as I held her around the middle, her little abdomen trembling with excitement.  She was absolutely buzzing.  So many things that happen during the day that I want to yell out to passing strangers about - even here on the blog you have only gotten to hear about 10% of them - there is so much i would be writing all night about the things that happened during the day to keep everyone totally up to speed.  So after the carousel - we were not happy to have to get off - Mommy was dragged over to some raceboats - and lo and behold Karina wanted to ride them and was okay that Mommy stood on the outside of the gate.  I have some pictures and videotape of this.  Then Mommy and Karina rode together on a big swing like ride.  Fun fun fun  ….. then Karina kept pointing to a ride called the Frog Hopper - Mommy wasn’t too sure but Karina led me right up to the gate…since she was the only one on it the ride attendant said she would stop it if Karina was scared….but no the kid loved loved loved it.  It went like 20 feet in the air and she was laughing and laughing the whole time.  So now Mommy won Karina a stuffed Nemo and with that Mommy thought the amusement park was done but Karina kept eyeing the kiddie roller coaster.  When Mommy tried to walk past the kiddie roller coaster a very perturbed Karina let her wishes be known….folks…..I thought I adopted a little girl but obviously I got a daredevil.  Again, Karina was the only one on the ride and the attendant said he would stop it if she was afraid.  And again she wasn’t afraid at all.  She laughed and laughed through the whole ride.  I kid you not.  Unbelievable.

After our detour to the strip mall amusement park we headed off to Tara’s house.  There her daughter Shelby who is almost three and her son Zachary who is one were willing playmates and Karina and them had such a great time.  Several hours of play play playing.  Shelby would call to Karina……come here Karina come here….I told Tara I would do free babysitting in exchange for the free English lessons for Karina from Shelby - I have posted pictures and videotape of the fun, fun, fun.  What a great weekend.  Karina is listening more and time outs are less.  Yippeeee!!!!

Well Karina and I arrived back into Chicago on Monday, April 21st.  The trip involved three plane rides and was pure torture.  Karina slept for about 2 1/2 hours during the time we left Almaty until we arrived back at the O’Hare airport.  I would not wish a trip this long with a toddler on my worst enemy.  Karina could not get comfortable even when I stood up in the aisle to let her sleep on both chairs.  There was crying and screaming and that was just me.  I kept waiting for the other passengers to ask us to get off the plane while still in mid flight.  We visited the bathroom on four different occasions on just one flight just to diffuse the sound.  Those bathrooms are small but they come in handy as sound proof booths when dealing with a cranky crabby overtired munchkin.  At one point I actually was contemplating staying in the bathroom for the duration of the flight.  Then around Detroit I am sure the women in the airport bathroom were going at record speed just to avoid having their eardrums blown out by the temper tantrum that was being thrown by Karina over having her clothes changed.  Boy can that girl pinch.  Sounds awful but I can’t really be too upset because it is an extremely long and tiring trip that by the end has me feeling like kicking and screaming so I guess I don’t expect a four year old to be able to do any better.  Anyway, we finally made it into Chicago and we dragged our tired carcasses to baggage claim.  We came down the escalator and there was my Dad taking pictures and Bill and Dana Spyker waiting for Nora.  I was pretty exhausted and there were tears all around.  Karina was a little reserved because of all the emotion.  It was very nice to be home and wonderful to retrieve my one checked bag (the other had not made it out of Detroit) and head towards my car.  We drove home and once home Karina found the big drawer in the living room filled with toys.  My Dad went to pick up some food for the two of us as I got some juice and an apple for Karina.  By the time my Dad came back there were toys spread high and low.  As we ate our dinner Karina proceeded to use her medical skills and new doctors kit to give Poppa a number of injections to which his response was pitiful crying and her response was the sweetest cutest belly laugh.  I remember hearing Karina laugh at the baby house and it was very sweet - in fact I have several videotapes of it.  However, since being home I have gotten to hear her true laugh - a laugh that I did not hear at the baby house - it is the wholehearted laughter of a baby and is so engaging it almost moves me to tears to hear it - it is a true belly laugh.  I will post a video tape soon of it and you can see and hear for yourselves.  That night after my father left Karina and I went upstairs and I changed her into pajamas.  As I was pulling on the top she grabbed my face with both hands and planted a soft kiss on my nose.  I could tell she was relieved to be off the planes (even though she def enjoyed the takeoff and landings) and able to sleep in a horizontal position.  We settled down nicely and she fell asleep.  I have been putting Karina in pull ups since leaving the baby hosue but the fact is she hasn’t had one single accident yet.  She has slept really well and we are slowly adjusting her waking pattern so that she gets up a bit later each day since 4:00 AM is a bit early for Mommy.  The very next morning Karina and Mommy went to our first American park.  It was an incredible experience.  The look on her face when she realized that it was a park was priceless.  The playground equipment had six slides and countless other fun things to experience and her face as she discoverd each one was one of the best things I have every seen.  Honestly you can’t imagine the animated expression she normally has on her face - when you add something new and exciting she is so facially expressive it makes you feel good inside all over.  She played for about 45 minutes and then finally was ready to leave.  We went back home but I could tell she was raring to go - trusting my gut I decided to drive us to the office to see Poppa and maybe get a chance to check out the pile of work growing on my desk.  Well she handled it all so well that we ended up staying until 4:00 pm.  All the attention of six adults was focused on her and I think she drank it up.  She played with her toys (including the huge house that was a gift from my sister - Karina loves her house and has dragged everything inside and used the foam mat pieces to create a sidewalk in front of her house)  in the big center room of our office and would occasionally run into an office and show off her toy to whoever was there.  The cuteness factor has been ratcheted up significantly at our company now.  Karina has eaten at home so far - eggs, bacon, muffins, croissants, melon, apples, pears, Kix cereal, etc. etc.  She has been an absolute doll with only a few post airplane ride meltdowns…mostly at nap time since she doesn’t want to leave the fun of the office even for a minute.  We went to the office again on Wednesday and again she was great.  I am very happy that having her here is working out - I am able to get work accomplished and hopefully in a few months she will start her half days at the Montessori Day care that is an eight minute walk from my office.  Last night she slept in her own bed - with Mommy laying down beside her for a while and I am sure she will be able to go down by herself in another week.  Last night my father took us to dinner and Karina had her first ice cream.  It was a hit.  So, all is well and wonderful here.  I grow more in love with my silly goose Karina every day and still can’t believe she is mine and I get to enjoy every future day with her.  I am very lucky, very happy, and feel very fulfilled.  Being a parent is just as hard as I imagined it would be but the neat thing is that it is even more wonderful than I ever imagined it would be.  Here are some pictures of the last few days. 

Well on Friday Karina and I didn’t have to be anywhere until 2:15 when we had our Embassy appointment.  So we woke up nice and slow.  Karina started the morning off with a Dora sippy cup full of strawberry flavored milk.  I would like to say that it was not as good as ours but I would be lying.  It was so creamy - and it was only 2% milk.  What do they do to our milk that makes it taste so different?  Are cows really that different in Kazakhstan?  Every time I sink my teeth into something in Kazakhstan that we have in the US and it is significantly and substantially fresher and better tasting I get angry.  The bread is so fresh - i will never buy store bread again - never - it is ruined for me.  There is a bakery right around the corner that has a little market attached to it.  We get milk, juice, yogurt, water, etc there.  Friday I got four of their little bakery items - there were like 40 to choose from so i think i was being rather reserved.  Folks they were delicious - only took a bite out of each one - and you can taste that they have so much less sugar in them…stil they are sweet but not overly so - it isn’t necessary and they are about the equivalent of five bites - perfect amount - satisfies your sweet tooth and isn’t filled with preservatives - and i bet you when i get home i will still have lost 3 or 4 pounds again even though i am def eating every meal - it is a crying shame that the FDA the very institution entrusted with the power and control over our food and drugs seems to not be doing the job in our favor.  I believe that now.  Okay i will get off my soapbox now.

Anyway, we woke up slow and by the time the breakfast buffet was ready Karina had already had quite a lot of food out of the fridge in our room.  But we went down so Mommy could eat and  she managed to make room for a few more items.  I must have some Italian Mother in me because every time she eats I want to stuff her to the gills with nutritous food.  Anyway, then we went back upstairs and got ready to go gouloo.  Which means for a walk outside - we went about the equivalent of one block and once again Karina stopped cold - i hated to do it but I used the “okay then see you later” trick where I waved to her - don’t like to use that since abandonment issuses are not what i want her to have - but I had to get her moving and preferably without making a holy scene in the alleyway.  We walked to the bank to exchange some US currency for Tenge.  On the way back we saw a children’s store and Mommy spent more than half the Tenge she just got on a beautiful sweater, two dresses, a pair of shoes, a stuffed Sabaka (dog) and a musical piano (oh the noises it makes - who had the bright idea to buy her that?  oh yeah it was me - but she really really enjoys it and played with it for nearly an hour straight  - so - oh well) Then we came back to the hotel and played with our new toys and modeled our new clothes.  Much fun was had.  Mommy got a new hairstyle and Karina spent at least ten minutes repeating back the names of animals out of her baby’s first word book - very impressive - she would point to the 10 or so pictures in the book and have me name them and then repeat them back then she would pick two she liked a lot  - one was penguin and hippopotomus - and she would point to one and i would say the word adn then the other and i would say the word - and this she would do like ten times over - you could tell she was learning the words.  After about an hour and a half of play we decided to go to the market again for some more milk and yogurt - we walked over and saw a painted horse and Karina wanted Mommy to pick her up high while she pet the horses muzzle and flank - so darn cute. 

At noon i put Karina down for her nap and there was some unhappiness but soon she fell asleep.  She will twirl her hair with her finger as she is falling asleep and lately she will grab a handful of my hair and twirl it in her fingers while she is drifting off.  At 2:00 Mommy went into the bedroom to wake Karina up but before she could do so Karina’s little eyes blinked open and she was ready to get up and play.  Mommy had her get dressed and put on her coat and we went down to the lobby to wait for the machina (car) to take us the Embassy. 

Nikolai picked us up on time and we drove to the Embassy.  Once there we walked toward the building and it was a fvery good feeling to be going anywhere officially associated with the US.  We met up with Oleg and the baby nurse and the every cute Nora!!!  She was a bevy of smiles today and soon we were escorted through the lobby and the metal detector and up the elevator to the room used for the US Embassy.  We had to sit and wait there for a few minutes.  While waiting they set Nora down and she went darting from one side of the room to the other - like a bullet - karina ran up to her and took her hand and they ran around the room until we could all catch up to them - it was funny - and Nora saw karina’s baby doll and karina who is sharing so much more than ever before kissed Nora on the cheek and patted her head and gave her her baby doll - for a few minutes anyway!  Then we were called up to the counter and handled our paperwork with a very nice guy behind the bullet proof glass who congratulated us all.  At one point while waiting Karina got to look out the window - we were on the 15th floor so this elicited quite a lot of oohing and aaahing.  Then we were done and out we went.  Back to the hotel for more playing and more Leap Frog video - let me just say that I am now singing “the A said aaaah” in my head for about the last six hours - and it doesn’t bug me yet - so what is wrong withe me - today Karina sang out loud very loudly too I must say the ABC song with me four different times - and she sings BINGO - it is so darn cute to hear her saying it with her accent.  Can’t wait to show off our new talents to grandpa on Monday when we arrive at the airport!!!

So i have posted pictures galore - i appreciate all the nice comments about the last post but let me tell you i cannot even begin to capture the cuteness in words or phots - video does a better job but live and in person is megawatt cuteness….so bright I just gotta wear shades!   ; )

NORA ALERT - I almost forgot to mention the cute thing that Nora does now - i guess the caretakers at the orphanage taught Nora to blow kisses.  Her version is putting her hands splayed out on her face over her eyes and then throwing them wide open when you make a kissing sound - she was doing all day today - in the car at the embassy so darn cute.

Well the computer access has been less than optimal for sure.  You can have the best computer in the world but if you have no access or slow access to the Internet it doesn’t matter.  I know you all have been patiently waiting for news so I have typed it all up for you to read.  There is news in here for Dana and Bill Spyker about Nora and for Jill about Ella.  Last time I was able to really post was from the Almaty airport on my in to Ust.  So let’s start from there.

Monday, April 14th

My plane from Almaty to Ust was on time!!!  Yeah!!!  I was only charged $60 for the extra baggage which I think is pretty good since I had about three times the allowed weight with me.  I took two suitcases full of items for the baby house, clothes, toys for all ages and sizes.  I also took with me a large bag of new items for the babies from Kathy Giles.  When I left one baby room three babies who had nothing in their cribs when I came in that room were shaking their new key rattles thanks to Kathy!!!  Many happy babies in Ust that day!!

I also took two mobiles.  Not the cutsy kind that matches a wallpaper border but the kind that really promotes  eye development.  The head doctor was thrilled with these and even though the babies have mobiles of a sort they don’t move and they are homemade types for the babies.  If you are going to the Ust baby house please consider buying one of the Sassy brand (I am going to make a sep page for what the Ust baby house needs and can use most for future visitors – or their family and friends that want to send something small along to these babies)  mobiles which you can find for like $18 at Walmart.  Don’t forget to bring along a strip of batteries too!  Anyway, that is what comprised most of my luggage and I am glad I didn’t get charged a ridiculous amount.  So once I landed in Ust…it was a fast flight.  I was greeted by Alma and Bulat, my coordinators.  It is amazing how happy I was to see both of them.  They are wonderful people and I am very sad that Kazakhstan has to be so far away.  It amazes me that at one time we as Americans would have seen these people as our enemies and them us….when all along we are really so alike….makes you fully understand that war is a tool of government and politics and the average people that are caught in the middle are no different then you, your family, your neighbors.  So sad that the fact of distance makes us feel so different and removed.  It is an illusion for sure. 

I was picked up along with all of my luggage (poor Bulat) and taken to the Shiny River Hotel where I was greeted by my favorite two front desk ladies…so friendly!!  I got checked into the same room I was in last time.  After settling in and doing some unpacking I went upstairs and knocked on the Ruley’s door.  Matt and Suzanne are as nice in person as they seem online.  We talked for a bit and then I went back to my room to finish unpacking and get ready for the afternoon visit with Karina. 

At 3:45 I was picked up to go to the baby house.  When I got there I went up to Karina’s room.  She was sitting at her little table and eating her snack.  I of course was hoping for a scene right out of the storybooks….LOL.  Poor little girl looked surprised to see me…almost as if she wasn’t sure it was me or not.  So I squatted down and blew her kisses while she finished her snack – did I mention she likes her food?  After about three minutes she finished and got her apple slice and came to see me in our familiar play area the cloak room.  I handed her a soft baby doll that has buttons and snaps and zippers and Karina smiled and took the baby – we played with the baby for a few minutes and then she promptly opened up her cubby and we took up where we had left off playing with the play doh and dollies, and crayons.  I could tell by the end of the short visit she had warmed up to me again but I think for future parents of older children mainly toddlers and preschoolers – you should expect them to have regressed a little bit when you arrive back for the second visit.  I knew that it would only be a matter of time before she was back to her ebullient self and I was right it was the next day!!!   But you will have to read on to hear about that!  :  ) 

Near the end of the visit we went outside and played on the wooden play set that during my first trip to Kazakhstan in February was buried under two feet of snow.  Karina sat on the one swing and I pushed her.  She loved this!  At one point she let go and fell backwards – Mommy nearly had a heart attack – and bumped her head – not even a small cry came out of her….  Still I brushed her off and hugged her and kissed her head.  Then we tried the small slide.  It is such a small modest play set and even though it is carved by someone who is obviously very skilled it has only a single swing and a smallish slide that the kids can really play on…the cheaper metal swing sets sold at Walmart have more.  Anyway, Karina had a good time and after a few minutes we ended up going inside because the wind was blowing dirt into our eyes.  Once back inside Karina put her toys back into her cubby.  Then she grabbed her new dolly and said Paka after giving me several kisses.  I picked up my bag and was taken back to the hotel.  Once I arrived back I realized that the very next day I would have a little girl in my hotel room and I had nothing in the fridge.  I grabbed my purse and walked to Daniels where I bought juice, milk, string cheese (stringy like ours but much better tasting, really yummy), yogurt, bread, butter(so unbelievably creamy – you can still practically hear it mooing – why can’t we buy butter that is this fresh?), bottled water, apples, pears, bananas, and wafers.  As I was shopping, I saw Matt Ruley heading towards me.  They had seen me walking towards Daniels when they were heading back towards the hotel.  The Ruley’s finished shopping and we all walked back to the hotel to drop off our grocieries.  Then the Ruley’s, Anne and her son Brady, and myself walked down to Pizza Blues for dinner. 

Tuesday, April 15th

On Tuesday the 15^th, Alma and Bulat picked me up and we headed to the baby house.  I brought with me all the clothing and toy donations separated out by age group.  I also brought Karina’s going home outfit with.  When I got there we handed out the items (I went into Ella’s room and she was standing up by the toys at the railing and looked really happy and healthy Jill  !!!!!  I was only able to be in the room for a minute so I couldn’t do anything like get a picture of her.  So sorry Jill but she looked very smiley and happy!!)  and then I dressed Karina in her new clothes from underwear all the way to her new coat.  There was much excitement over the new clothes and in particular she loved the tennis shoes that blinked when she walked.  When she was bundled up tight we waived goodbye to the other children and said one last paka paka and headed down the stairs.  I put my briefcase in the car and Karina and I went to the playground to use the swing and wait for her sister.  A few minutes later Alma came walking towards us with a very lovely lady named Olga.  Very pretty and young Olga handed me three pictures of Karina as a baby and I was so happy it was hard to not shed a few tears.  I so much wanted to have a few pictures of Karina when she was a baby so that she can have them when she is older.  Olga went and hugged Karina who seemed to realize that this person was someone special.  Olga gave her a candy bar and a juice box and Karina went to sit down and eat it.  Olga and I exchanged contact information and I told her that I would send pictures and letters each two months and if she was able to set up an email address that I could send her more pictures on a regular basis.  I asked her about her baby and she said that she has a 17 month old baby girl.  She also asked if it was okay for her to send letters to Karina and I said yes and that if it was easier to send them in Russian that I would have them translated to English in the States.  Anyone out there have any ideas about finding an inexpensive way of getting them translated?  I was thinking talking to a University about hiring a student to do it for some extra spending money.  Anyway, to make a long story short Karina’s sister is a wonderful person and I could tell how much she loves and cares about Karina.  As we were pulling away from the baby house Olga who had walked a bit off into the distance turned to wave one last time and I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for her to say goodbye.  I wish that there was some way to experience the joy of this with no repercussions but the truth is that generally speaking the path to adoption is littered with varying degrees of human suffering.  Whether it is the child that suffered some form of neglect before coming to the baby house, the parents that for one reason or another lost their child, or the sister that chooses to suffer to give her sister a chance at a life with more possibilities.  It breaks my heart to think that money, or lack thereof, is the cause for so much of this suffering.  It is funny because over the years I have evolved so much in terms of my thinking about money and what its true worth is.  Before coming to Kazakhstan I felt that money had no control over me anymore.  Having it or not having it was no longer an issue for me – it could not ever be my master again.  And the more casual I got about money (not saying I am spendthrift but saying that I don’t let it worry me) the more money flowed to me like water.  Now after Kazakhstan I think I actually have contempt for it.  It truly is just paper after all and yet it has so much power to affect and inflict so much pain on people all over the world.  I wish that my daughter and my daughter’s family had not been at its mercy.  Even as I am typing this my heart goes out to Olga and I know that I will be praying that she will not feel too much sadness and that the flood of letters and pictures and drawings I will send her will make her feel somewhat better about her loss and my gain.  I don’t know that it will be but I really hope so. 

After we left the baby house we returned to the hotel.  And for the first time I was alone  -  without anyone supervising me -  with my daughter.  It was lovely.  Karina inspected the new toys that I brought and was very excited about the five outfits I had brought for her.  She held up each item for me to see and made appreciative noises accompanied with big smiles.  Then we got out the juice and the milk – she had some of both – and we brought out the yogurt which was a huge hit – and we got our first stained shirt – blueberry yogurt – but Mommy saved the day and washed out the shirt with the hand soap at the hotel – and as a result we got to put on another cute shirt with a kitten on it.   All in all, Karina had milk, juice, yogurt, bread and butter, string cheese, and a pear.  It was so cute at one point she handed the pear back to me and made an I’m full noise that was very easy to understand.  She also became a master of turnign the lights on and off and is very enthusiastic about flushing the toilet.  Now if I could just find her a job where those were the two main duties and let me tell you – I could retire!!!  We watched part of a Leap Frog video about letters that my friend Lundie gave me and it was a serious hit!!!  At around 2:00 I put her down on the bed for a nap and lay down with her.  She didn’t stay down for long and for about 10 minutes Mommy and Karina had a wrestling match titled KEEPING KARINA ON THE BED.  She has a habit of laughing when she knows she is doing something wrong.  It is hard to keep a straight face but then again it is amazing that I am being firm with her and she is just laugh laugh laughing in my face.  But I knew from looking at her eyes and having seen her yawning that she needed a nap so Mommy persisted and after a few minutes of crying Karina quieted down and fell asleep.  I watched her sleeping for about an hour.  It is a wonderful feeling to just sit there and watch her breathe in and out and look at her angelic sleeping face.  And yes I took some pictures of course. 

When she began to wake up I lay down next to her and as her little eyes opened I smiled at her.  She spent the next ten minutes stroking my face and hair and giving me kisses on the cheek.  Very sweet.  Once we got up we went downstairs to the lobby where we found the Ruley’s and Anne waiting for Alma.  Karina and Suzanne were rolling a ball back and forth to each other and Karina was laughing up a storm.  Then Alma arrived so Brady (Anne’s 5 year old son), Karina, and myself  continued playing ball until we were told by the security persons to stop.  Buzz kills!!!  Let me just say that I experienced a kid’s party at this hotel where like 20 children were running through the lobby screaming and shouting for like three hours….so whatever….  Anyway, Karina and I went upstairs to our cramped little room and a few minutes later the Ruley’s called and we decided to go to the Donor Kabob Café.  Karina got to play in the plastic house (not as nice as the one my sister bought for Karina, wait till she sees it!!!) and then she even got into the ball pit.  At first she was just sitting at the plastic table just checking out the other rambunctious children but with a little encouragement and assistance from Mommy she gladly went to play.  Before you know it our time was up and we headed back home.  Karina was pretty bushed by all the activity and went to sleep without a fuss.  Mommy was pretty bushed too and she went to sleep without a fuss as well. 

Wednesday, April 16^th

I woke up about four AM and after about a half hour of staring at the sleeping angel next to me I got up and proceeded to begin packing us up.  Soon the angel’s eyelids were fluttering and I lay down next to her and watched her wake up.  Another round of affectionate hair and face stroking ensued.  After a nice round of Mommy rocking Karina we got up and started the day.  First we went downstairs and had breakfast at the buffet.  Karina waited patiently as I got her a bowl of oatmeal which she ate up – and she had a plate full of the cut up hot dogs and potatoes and a glass of apple juice.   I was glad when she pushed the plate away from herself and indicated she was full.  I ate like a new parent – fast and between cutting up her food and blowing on it – LOL.  When she was done we went upstairs and I packed up the rest of our things.  Since it was a nice day we walked over to the shops in front of the bazaar  and picked up a slew of batteries for the baby house and two screwdrivers so they could use them in the mobiles I brought.  On the way back we saw a vendor selling sunglasses.  I reached for a multi colored pair for Karina but she went for the purple ones.  Too funny.  She put them on and I paid.  She wore them back to the hotel and has been carting them around ever since.  She even started pushing them up on top of her head like she saw me do all the time at the baby house during my first trip.  It is a hoot to see her with her sunglasses pushed up on her head.  I kid you not I walk around the office like this all the time.  I can’t believe she picked it up from me and how fast.  So we went back and I  lugged our suitcases downstairs to the lobby and that was the first chance I had to use the computers where I posted a few sentences on the blog.  A few minutes later I was picked up by Alma and Bulat.  We drove to the baby house where Alma had to stop to pick up baby Nora…the Spyker’s daughter.   A few minutes later out came Alma with a bundled up Nora in baby blue looking like a little angel.  Alma got in and we drove to the airport.  Dana and Bill – Nora was as cute as can be and totally calm – in fact she smiled all the way to the airport and was so relaxed in Alma’s arms.  She stared at Karina and Karina stared at her.  Very sweet – Karina was kissing Nora’s arm and showing her her baby doll.  We got to the airport and found out our plane was delayed for about a half hour.  Soon it was time to board the plane.  We walked out on the tarmac and Karina pointed out all the planes parked about.  Very calmly she climbed the stairs to the plane.  We walked to the back and found our seats.  She sat down and we buckled up – soon we were moving and she kept asking is this a plane?  Very cute.  I expected her to be afraid but not at all.  She was ready for the adventure.  We took off and still no fear.  Soon they were bringing the food and Karina as usual was ready to eat.  She didn’t want much of the meat in the meat sandwich but she gladly found the two chocolates and ate them both up.  Nora drank her bottle nearly 75% of the trip and then stood on Alma’s lap and banged on the chair in front of her.  She was for the most part just chilling out and was so relaxed in Alma’s arms I thought for sure she was going to fall asleep.  At one point Nora was reaching for Karina’s favorite baby doll and Karina let her have it.  It was a hoot.  Nora was kissing and shaking the baby doll like crazy.  Dana and Bill you must get a soft baby doll with real looking face.  She loved this doll.  It was so cute.  She kept trying to kiss it but it was more like a sucking on the face of the doll.  Very cute.  I wanted very much to take a picture of Nora on her first plane ride but Alma informed me that I couldn’t take a picture on that plane.  However, I did take a few shots of Nora and here they are- the first one is waiting for the plane in the airport, the second one is after we arrived in Almaty and during our visit to the SOS clinic for our checkup.  A calm and happy Nora  went through her exam but I think that there must have been some crying over the pin prick for the HIV test because Karina was not pleased by it.  Anyway, Nora is happy and healthy and heading your way guys so get ready for your bundle of joy – and boy is she cute!!!

After the plane ride we landed got our luggage and made our way out to Nikolai who hauled us to the hotel.  I was supposed to have a reservation but they couldn’t find one for me so I was driven next door to what I was told was a new hotel.  It cost about double and I was not too happy until we got into the room and I saw it was a two room suite – plenty of room for moving around with a little girl.  The bad part was there was no Wifi and the business center had two old computers, no way to hook up your computer, and ready for this DIAL UP!!!  Igor another coordinator helped me to fill out the paperwork as Karina kept herself busy by emptying out her suitcase full of toys and clothes.  She pulled out each item of clothing and showed it to Igor and Mommy – then she put it away in the drawer.  There was about 15 documents to fill out and by the time we were done Karina had emptied out the whole suitcase.  It was a hoot watching her show her pajamas to Igor.  Once Igor left we watched a bit of the Leap Frog tape and then headed to bed.  Karina was more than ready to go to sleep and so was Mommy.  As we were getting undressed Karina noticed the tub in the bathroom.  She made a bunch of gestures and comments in Russian.  I decided to fill up the tub and watched her expression.  She looked excited and I was thinking – she wants to get in.  I stripped her down and started to pick her up but she hesitated and backed away – so Mommy decided to show her it was okay – I got in and splashed the water and she looked at me a bit suspiciously for a minute but was overcome with the desire to splash water too and she eventually leaned over the edge and motioned for me to pick her up.  I picked her up and set her on her feet into the tub and she looked at me a bit funny for a second and then sat down.  It took about two seconds for her to decide she loved the tub.  We sudsed up a bit and she laughed and laughed like I was tickling her as I tried to soap her down.  We played drop the soap and find it for about ten minutes until I started to worry about her getting cold.  I pulled the plug  out and picked up a wet wiggly baby in the towel and dried her off as she giggled.  I really enjoyed rubbing sweet smelling baby lotion onto her arms and legs for the few seconds that she let me.  Then we used the hairdryer to dry her hair.  And she kept picking up strands of it that were still wet and telling me to dry that spot.  Very cute!!!   Finally, I got her in her jammies and lay her down to sleep.  She went down pretty well and I fell asleep pretty darn fast myself. 

Thursday, April 17^th

I woke up early and while Karina was asleep got a chance to run down to check my email.  I did this for about ten minutes and felt guilty the whole time.  I sent off an email to my sister to post some news in the comment section and to let my dad know that I was alright.  Then I went upstairs and waited for Karina to wake up.  She got up and we went downstairs to the breakfast buffet and she had potatoes, milk, bread rolls, rice and hot dogs.  She didn’t like their juice which was a citrus type.  I ate once again like a new parent – fast and without really noticing what was in my mouth.  Maybe I will lose weight this way?  We went upstairs and brushed teeth and got dressed in a great new outfit.  I felt guilty the whole time she was smiling because I knew that we were heading  to the clinic and a finger pick was coming up.  We got picked up at 9:00 and in the car was Nora and the nurse taking care of her while she is here in Almaty.  Nora was looking good and happy.  We drove first to the photographer to take new passport pictures because something was wrong with the first set we had taken.  Karina got it on the first take and so did Nora.  We then walked (it was snowing at this point) back to the car and headed to the clinic.  We went in and Karina was instantly captivated by the toys in the waiting room – more guilty feelings – we were called in and Karina was weighed and her height was measured and her temperature taken.  She was very agreeable.  Then we were called into the nurses room and the nurse instructed me to hold her on my lap and capture her legs between my legs and hold her arm still for the finger prick – poor baby- I don’t think the finger prick hurt so much as did the sight of the blood and the squeezing of her finger  - that is what elicited all the crying.  But I made a big deal about the bandaid and she seemed fine in a second and was glad to go out and check out all the neat toys in the waiting room – then finally we were called upstairs and the very nice female doctor checked Karina’s ears, eyes, throat, heart, and lungs and it was too cute because the entire time Karina was having a running conversation with the doctor.  At the end of the two minute physical the doctor said – Mmmm….your child is clearly healthy…with a grin meaning that there could be no doubt since she had such a chatterbox.  After we got home Karina was overly tired and didn’t want to climb the stairs but since I had my hands full there was no way I could carry her….and to boot some workmen were working in the stairwell making it difficult for us to get up the stairs….to make a long story short Karina decided not to walk, then she slipped on the marble stairs and fell down – I cursed a bit because I was angry that I was having to climb over these guys in the stairwell and my child just fell.  Obviously, I needed a nap.  The workmen I think got the point – cursing in English is probably not that different then in Russian the tone is the same – they got out of my way so I could pick up Karina and we made our way upstairs.  After we got upstairs I put Karina down for a nap and she went down pretty well which means she must have just been tired and had enough excitement and finger pricking for the day– and therefore less cooperative.  I took the time during her nap to type up this long winded post.    So now you know the facts!  But here are some of the things I left out like – watching Karina open each drawer in the hotel room and peek inside and look at me like it was Christmas, have Karina feed me raisins and then come have me feed her raisins back – she particularly liked having me eat them like I was a lion…after each raisin she would kiss me on my cheek, having Karina fix my hair and put in scrunchies boy can that kid pull hair but she got all four scrunchies into my hair and I have to say it didn’t look that bad, I think she spent about two hours today fixing my hair, who knew I would get a child and a hairdresser at the same time?  Having Karina kiss and hug her baby doll and then bring the baby doll to me to have me kiss and hug her baby doll.  Having Karina decide when we were coming back from the market that she was not walking any further and having me bribe her with an a wafer cookie – man how the mighty have fallen, having Karina get upset about something – don’t know what it was and sitting in the corner pouting, having Karina get very excited and waving and saying bye bye each time the toilet gets flushed, having Karina run around naked this morning while I was trying to catch her, having Karina undress her baby doll before her nap and then putting her baby doll to sleep next to her, having Karina take a wet wipe and start cleaning the TV and the shelves – holy cow can that girl clean!!!   The cleaning crew here at the hotel could take a lesson from her – I don’t think the TV had been wiped down in a while – of course we had to wash our hands after that.  Watching Karina sleeping and realizing she was whispering in her sleep in words in Russian.  There is so much more – I am a bit worn out by the constant activity but know that it is more than usual and will taper off a bit but in all honesty I am enjoying it all very much and even though today I couldn’t wait for nap time to arrive I still was waiting impatiently by the bedside when it was time for her to get up.  She is a sweet, stubborn, funny, curious, smart, active baby and I am really enjoying having her with me full time ….Finally.  I just found out that I will be getting into Chicago on the 21st at 5:38 so I am feeling better about having a solid end date.  Will write more when I get a chance and the computers are operating at a decent speed and I can spare a few minutes away from the munchkin.

Folks I am so sorry it took so long to post.  I have Karina and all is well.  Today I fly with her to Almaty and check into the Hotel Kazzahol which has WiFi in your room so I will be able to write when she sleeps.  If I don’t pass out with her first.  Boy do toddlers keep you busy!!!  I have pictures and stories to tell as soon as I get a chance I will do so.  She is wonderful….I am wonderful….everything is wonderful.  I will be more detailed soon!!!

Can you believe it?  Well so here is what has happened up until now.  I got to O’Hare airport and of course my flight was delayed.  I was supposed to leave at 7:55 but ended up leaving at 9:00, so not too bad.  The flight was pretty decent - not packed so I had no one sitting next to me and in the third seat (aisle) there was a nice guy that helped me stow my luggage.  I actually got to sleep a decent amount on that flight and woke up feeling pretty good. 

Arrived into Amsterdam (KLM) and found a luggage cart and put my two items on the cart and pushed it around the great airport getting the lay of the land.  I originally had a 8 hour layover there but since my flight was behind over an hour it got shortened down to about 6 hours.  Made the decision to take an Excursion Tour into Amsterdam during the layover…paid $40 Euro for a three hour tour (sounds like Gilligan) and got to see windmills, canals, tulips, the city of Amsterdam, etc.  We stopped at a tourist trap where they show you how they make wooden shoes…I bought a small pair….and some wooden tulips, and a little windmill.  It was nice.  I took a bunch of photos and will post them.  Then came back to the airport and had still two hours to go until I looked at the departure board and found out….yup you guessed it….the flight was delayed an hour.  So with three hours to go I went upstairs to the Airport Spa and spent another $22 Euro for a 15 minute neck and back massage.  However, the masseuse was busy so they had me sit in a massage chair for about 20 minutes until she was done….I didn’t complain….I did as I was told. 

After the massage I went and found something to eat (sushi - dry) and then realized that my flight had begun to board.  Got on the plane and found out it was really not a full flight - got the two seats to myself and got to sleep a very decent amount.  Landed in Almaty, found my luggage on the carousel, got them all on the luggage cart and then found Igor my friendly coordinator who helped me get my cart upstairs and then handed me my round trip ticket to Ust and Karina’s one way ticket back from Ust.  Took about five minutes - shook Igor’s hand and said paka, paka. 

That left me with 5 1/2 hours to blow in Almaty - which is where I am now.  First I went to the drugstore and asked for something for a headache - because I had one - let me tell you I took half of one and in five minutes the head ache was gone - I don’t what was in it but it worked very well.  Then got a bottle of water and a bar of Kazakh chocolate - put it in my suitcase - then watched some CaspioNet TV and then noticed a sign on the wall that looked like it could be for Internet Access.  Walked over to the coffee shop and plugged in and hey - Wireless Access - in fact there might be Access in the airport in general not just the coffee shop - haven’t tried it yet.  So here I am drinking some of my favorite juice and eating a jelly donut (not like ours - more bread less sugar but still good) and blogging! 

I am hoping that this flight leaves on time.  If it does not then that will mean all three flights were delayed.  Man I hope if that is the case that all the delays happen now and not when I have Karina with me.  Anyway, I am going to go and try and figure out how to say - This suitcase is full of donations for the orphanage - in Russian in the hopes that they do not charge me an arm and a leg for my overage because I have a lot.  Oh well - it will be worth it if they do anyway.  If this flight does leave on time then there is the chance that I could get into Ust in enough time to go see Karina for the afternoon visit at 4:00 - I am supposed to get into Ust at 2:35 but chances are it will also be delayed.  So in that case it would be tomorrow then.  Either way I can hardly believe that I am in fact here at last and that this day has come at last.  Can’t hardly believe it at all.  On the last plane I looked down at the empty window seat next to me and thought, “When I am on my way back Karina will sitting here with me.”  Part of me still didn’t believe it.  I guess I will have to see it to believe it!  I promise to take pictures for proof!! ; )

I am going to upload a few photos of Amsterdam for your pleasure.