Apr 6 - six months home already - unbelievable!!

Apr 5 - Hi everyone! It is SO hard to believe it has been 6 months since we arrived home as a family of 3! At times it feels like only last week, but mostly we feel as we've been a family forever, and Angelique has always been with us!

Since our last update, Angelique has mastered counting to 20 (that pesky # 13 kept disappearing, but is now almost always playing along with the other numbers); and also the alphabet (same with the silly letter L - really, is it a necessary letter??) Her vocabulary is constantly growing, and with her amazing memory she can recall words we haven't used in days/weeks. She sings songs all the time, and has a definite ear for music!

Angelique has discovered that Mama and Papa can also be called Mommy/Daddy, or even Nicole/Paul on occasion - she thinks this is sooooo funny!

She is wonderfully affectionate, giving lots of hugs, kisses and cuddles - ahhhhh! A also has the BEST facial expressions - no hiding her feelings for this girl! She also still loves playing with her 'babies', as well as building forts, climbing on furniture (!), washing dishes, helping Mama clean the house (yay!), and looking at books. We play outside as much as we can, and Angelique loves climbing on play structures, going down slides and swinging on swings! She's also a big helper with a shovel - yay again! :-)

Paul got her up on skates once over the winter and she did really well, and of course she wants to 'play hockey with Papa' as soon as possible!!

We'd recently set up our basement as a new play area, but then had a VERY quick snow-melt and took a bit of water in the basement - no damage thankfully, and it turned into an excuse to clean up and organize the storage area a bit more - so now the play area is even bigger! Because of this newfound space, Angelique is now able to practice riding her bicycle so she'll be ready when we can finally take it outside - very exciting! She is a natural on her bike!

We've also had a couple of fun playdates with our neighbours who also have a 3.5 year old girl - Angelique and Audrey sized each other up for a while, then everything seemed to click into place and they started playing like they've been doing it all along - it was wonderful to see!

The April session of activities starts this coming week - this time we're doing a playgroup twice/week and also an 'intro to sports' - very excited to see how it goes!

We've lined up a day-care provider who is willing to take her part-time for a few months, starting with .5-1 day/week in April and transitioning up to full-time sometime in the fall. The woman and her family have also adopted internationally which is an added bonus; their youngest daughter is also 'almost 4' and was born in Ethiopia - she and Angelique have played together once already and it was so cute!

I'm still on the job-hunt (as I'd been laid off from my previous employer before we travelled to KZ), so I'll look for something part-time for over the summer.

And BEST of all - all of Angelique's grandparents get home from their 'winter homes' this week - YAY! We will have SO much fun playing with them and being spoiled !!

Next month we'll celebrate A's 4th birthday - it happens to be the same day as Mother's Day this year - so both Mama and Angelique get to be pampered allllllll day - right Papa?!?

That's all for now - have a great month!
Take care, love N&P&A
xox

Mar 14 - 5 1/2 months home!

March 11 2009 - hi everyone! We have been doing great and having fun, hoping the weather starts to turn soon!

Well let's see..... since last month's update, we have finished our weekly playgroup and swimming lessons; both went very well and we're looking forward to doing more of these, plus another class or sport, in the April session! We are so proud of Angelique and the progress she's making, playing with other kids! It has been a joy to see, and it warms our hearts to know she is getting past her anxiety about being bullied.


We've also noticed a huge change in her vocabulary this month - not only has she started using pronouns (I, you, me, etc) instead of referring to us and herself by name, she is stringing more words together to make thoughts and sentences, sometimes very detailed ones! Very exciting! A still has her amazing memory, and recalls details of events weeks or even months past, as well as details of books we haven't read in a long while.


Angelique has started writing some letters and numbers, and 'signs' her initial on most of her drawings - too cute! She also really likes sticker books - any kind of book really - and playing with her kitchen set and her 'babies'.

We had our first babysitter experience at the house and it went really well! A huge thanks to our wonderful niece Amy - Angelique had a blast, and we got to see The Eagles in concert, which was a FANTASTIC show! Leaving her for the evening was hard (I'm sure more for us than for her, the big sucks that we are), but everyone did great!

Angelique talks and sings all the time now; she's happy most of the time while still showing her her ever-stronger personality! She certainly lets us know when something is not to her liking (!), and repeats back to us many of the words we say to her - the hardest part for us is not laughing when she tells us what to do! :-)

Hope everyone is well - we'll send another update soon!
Take care,
Angelique, Nicole and Paul

xox

Feb 9 - wow I forgot one HUGE thing A is up to!

Feb 9 - Hi again - I forgot to add in the last 'update' post that Angelique is doing AMAZINGLY well with her ABC's !!

We do the alphabet song a LOT - it's her fave song to sing, she reaches for the learn-to-read books before all others, and even recognizes some of the letters out of order, such as A 'for Angelique', P 'for Papa' and M 'for Mama'! (with a big smile!) We are so proud and impressed!

Feb 9 - while we're talking about talking...

Feb 9 - hi everyone! A weird day here in Winnipeg, as it's RAINING! The roads are sheer ice, the airport and even some schools are closed! Should stay above freezing all day today, then the rain will turn to snow overnight - so we'll see how tomorrow looks! Needless to say Angelique and I are having a 'stay-home' day....

We've been keeping lists of 'words we don't hear anymore', to help us remember the Russian and Kazakh words we had been using with Angelique during our visits and for the first few months of custody - you always think you'll remember these but even now we're struggling to recall some of them, so better jot them down now!

Here's the list we have so far (in no order), with meaning and the new English replacement word for each:

1 - Masak - Kazakh for 'cat' - Angelique now says 'pussycat'
2 - Tamak - Kazakh for 'food' - Angelique now says 'supper' (for all 3 meals, which is adorable)
3 - Quaida - Kazakh for 'where?' - Angelique now says 'horsey', which we believe is how she hears the words 'where is?'
4 - Kittap and Koitup - Kazakh (we think) for going to the bathroom - Angelique now says 'pee pee' and 'kaka' and recognizes when we say the word 'bathroom'
5 - Artanda - Kazakh for 'later' - Angelique now says 'later', 'not today', or 'another day' (but often objects with a 'no - right NOW!' :-)
6 - Ooh-itka - Kazakh for 'bed' - Angelique now says 'Angelique's bed'
7 - Paka - Russian for 'bye bye' - A now says 'bye byyyyyyyye!'
8 - Kokoga - Russian for 'hairclip' - actually we decided to keep this one as it's so darn cute!
9 - Alma - Russian for 'apple' - Angelique loooooooves apple juice, so this one changed quickly!
10- Applesin - Russian for 'orange' - if you note the similarity to the word 'apple', you'll understand why this one was so confusing we had to get her saying 'orange' right away!
11- Soo - Kazakh for 'water' - this became 'waaadaaa' back during our babyhouse visits and was Angelique's first real English word!

That's it for now - we'll add more as we think of them! Have a great day!
take care
N&P&A

Feb 6 - 4 months home!

Feb 4 8:30 am - started this post. Finished on Feb 6 2:30 pm. Hi everyone! Hope all is well and you're staying 'warm' in this ridiculously long and cold winter! We're enjoying a small break in the weather this week, getting outside more and LOVING it!!

All is good here, Angelique continues to amaze us with how much she has learned, and how much she has changed in just 4 months! She talks more clearly all the time, and is starting to put more words together to make sentences with nouns and verbs - and she does really well with please and thankyou!

The current fave activities are play-doh, having tea parties, and singing - lots of singing! Yay! A also likes Dora and The Wiggles on tv, plus of course taking care of her 'babies'.

We've started a couple of activities on weekday mornings - a playgroup on Tuesdays and swimming lessons on Thursdays - both are going great! A has taken to the water like, well - a fish! The level she started in is called 'sea turtles', reserved for 3 year olds to get them comfortable in the water - well she is now the only one in her class who will put her face in and even her whole head under the water - so I guess she's comfortable! :-) She jumps off the side and goes down the slide with no assistance, which is amazing to see!


And the playgroup is going well too - we were a little worried that Angelique would have 'babyhouse flashback' as that's what the room looks like, even to us! But it seems to be a bit easier each week, and I've managed to leave the group for a little bit longer each time - it'll be good for both of us to have a break from each other for a couple of hours! There are 9 kids there plus the teacher - they do crafts, sing songs and have a snack - looks like fun to me!

We're starting to cut back on Angelique's afternoon naps, in an effort to get her to bed a little earlier in the evenings - it's hit-and-miss so far but we'll get there!

Better run - hope this finds you well and happy!

Take care,
Angelique, Nic and Paul

Jan 6 09 - 3 months home and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Jan 6 2009 - 8 pm - Hi everyone! Happy New Year and we hope you had a wonderful Christmas! We had a blast of course, the way only a 3 year old can add fun and wonder to an already magical time of year!

December started out with prepping the house with decorations - Angelique thought it was soooo funny to have a tree 'in the house?' especially with the pretty lights! Every day she waited until it got dark outside then we made a big deal of turning on the outside lights that Papa put on the house - too funny!

We also did lots of shopping during the month, for presents and regular stuff like groceries - A has such an amazing memory and often helps Mama remember what it was we're supposed to get at the store -'what are we forgetting?' 'Ummm - bananas and bread, Mama!' You're right!

Also in December Angelique got her ears pierced as a gift from her Auntie Lise - she was sooo excited! We wouldn't have done it so young but she's actually been asking for them! She has had lots of fun showing them off, to anyone and everyone!

And we went for our first visit to Santa Claus! I was anticipating that A would be a little afraid of the big guy, but nope - she laughed at the kids who were crying ahead of us in line, and when it was her turn she marched right up, sat on his lap, told him she'd like a bicycle for Christmas and even gave him a kiss! What an amazing kid!

We talked about Santa Claus coming to the house to bring her presents and she got very excited about that too - asking every day if Santa was coming tonight? When Christmas Eve finally came, she couldn't wait - actually she thought he'd still be there when she got up - are we supposed to invite him for breakfast? And Christmas morning she had lots of fun, opening her stocking and presents - wow Santa's a good guy!

We had many family gatherings over the holidays, and Angelique is completely comfortable with her many Aunts, Uncles, Grandparents and cousins - she knows everyone by name and definitely seems to know this group of people are special to her. As she is to them and to us!

On New Years Eve we stayed home and had a nice quiet night - and the next day she said 'Happy New Year' to everyone we saw!

She talks and sings all the time now- so hard to believe this is the same child who only 3 months ago barely said a word! Actually it's impossible to believe only 3 months have passed since we came home from Almaty - it feels like Angelique has been part of our family forever!

Best wishes for a happy and healthy 2009! (and no travelling - yay!!!)
take care
Angelique, Nicole and Paul

Dec 12 - 2 month home update

Dec 12 - hi everyone! Sorry for the delay in adding an update but life with a 3 year old is busy busy busy! We are having a blast and Angelique continues to amaze us every day. She is speaking more and more all the time and now understands everything we say, we're sure of it.
We've decided not to put any more pics on the blog page, but if you're interested in seeing how she's doing please send us an email!

She sleeps great (9-ish hours at night and 1-1.5 hours in the afternoons), and is willing to try new foods, new activities etc. We've just started leaving her with family members for short periods of time - much easier and faster for me to do Christmas shopping by myself - and she has done great with these too!

A continues to enjoy her new surroundings - she's happy to go out and has fun wherever we go, but then gets in the car and says 'Okaaaaaaaaaaay - home!', which we of course think is adorable!

We have a slideshow of this year's photos on our computer monitor which is in the living room - Angelique enjoys looking at the pictures and has such an amazing memory - when pics come up from the babyhouse or at our Kaz apartment, she says 'other house' or 'Kazakhstan' - pretty impressive!

In Nov we had some (expected) dental work done, poor thing - Angelique did awesome and enjoys telling people 'one tooth off, rest all better!' We decided to do it under general anaesthetic as there was so much to be done. So glad it's over and all went really well!

That's all for now - just wanted to say Hi from all of us! Hope you're well and staying warm!
take care
Nicole, Paul and Angelique

Oct 31- Happy Halloween! 1:00 pm Friday... hi everyone - not much of an update, we're doing great and settling into more of a routine. Angelique is an amazing child - she's affectionate and happy, she rolls well with all the changes and has lots of fun in her new surroundings. We're beyond thrilled being with her!

I thought I'd take this opportunity to post a few new photos from trip #2- The war memorial in Panfilov park:

And here's our apartment:

We'll put more pics up another time, including some since we've been home!

take care and have a spooooooooky Halloween!

N&P&A

Oct 20- one month custody, 2 weeks at home........ahhh

Oct 20- Monday 2:30 pm - hi everyone! It's unbelievable to me that this is the one-month anniversary that we've had Angelique with us full-time. It seems both like it just happened yesterday, and also that she's been with us forever, it just feels so right!

We've had a fantastic first 2 weeks at home - ok well the 2nd week was fantastic, but the first week was very good too- we were so preoccupied with getting a sleeping and eating routine going that we didn't notice much else going on (LOL). Once that got settled (it took a full 8-9 days to get over the jetlag), then all has been great! Angelique is doing wonderful and seems to enjoy and have fun with all the new things to see, do, smell, eat etc.

She LOVES seeing the family, which is such an amazing feeling. We had thanksgiving dinners with both families and she was happy, playful and friendly with everyone! We've also had visits with a couple of neighbours with young kids and that has been fun. We'll start to see more friends and their families in the next while, now that we're feeling more settled.

Hope everyone's doing well and enjoying the fall weather!
take care
N&P&A

Oct 9 - home sweet home!

Oct 9 Thurs 11:00 pm Winnipeg time (yay!) Hi everyone! Well we made it home safe and sound! Angelique did great on the planes, sleeping a bit on each flight. She was restless during the Frankfurt to Toronto leg but we walked (ok she ran) up and down the aisles and it helped pass some of the time. She and Paul both fell asleep in Toronto airport (on the floor), and she barely woke up being carried onto the plane. She was completely out again before takeoff and we even had to wake her when we landed in Wpg.

Even being sleepy and disoriented, she did great with the wonderful welcoming party who greeted us at the airport, complete with signs and toys for her - thank you to everyone, we were very touched! Angelique continues to amaze us with how well she takes in all the changes - she looked at everyone in the face and smiled - we're so proud of her!

At home, Angelique looked around at everything and was talking a mile a minute as soon as everyone left - she wasn't sure about Farley at first but got over it pretty quickly and now wants to pet him all the time, saying 'Masack?' (cat?). He's doing better with her than expected, letting her pat him and not running away. We got her to sleep in our bed just after midnight and she got a good few hours, waking us at 4:30.

The last few days have been wonderful and sooo full - A sleeps in her own bed already, but only for a few hours at a time (which means so do we) and her schedule is still upside down from the jetlag (she wants to nap at night and have a long sleep during the day), but we're working on it and know it will take some time to get her caught up.

We've had lovely visits with small groups of our family at a time, and she recognizes everyone from the photos we brought with us on the trip, it's so cute! We pull out the photo album and she points to each person's picture, says their name then looks at them in person as if saying 'oh it's you, I get it now!'

Well that's all for now - off to bed........ have a great weekend, we know we have lots to be thankful for as we celebrate Thanksgiving!

take care
N&P&A

Oct 5 - one more before we leave for HOME!!!!!

Oct 5 – Sunday 2:30 pm – Still rainy and cool last few days – seems somehow fitting, feels like we’ve gone through almost every season during our 2 trips to KZ – I wouldn’t be surprised if it snowed today, just to complete the circle!

Hi everyone – we are ¾ packed and almost ready to go HOME!!! We’ll throw the last few things into the bags after Angelique goes to sleep tonight, before we’re picked up around 10 pm to go to the airport. Can’t TELL you how excited we are!!! Even Angelique is pointing to things with maple leafs on them and saying CA-NA-DA, like she knows she’s heading home too!

Too funny that you ran into Jen and Bert in Frankfurt, Kevin – we were so hoping to see you there ourselves and it sounds like we would have if we’d gotten onto the same flights they did. Oh well – next time we’re all world travelers (ya right, like I’m ever leaving home again)…..

Well as I type this Paul and Angelique are both sleeping – I’m too wound up to nap. Poor Paul was up most of the night keeping the power going (we’ll be very glad to be away from having one fuse for the whole place, and having that fuse be 100 years old). When everyone’s up we’ll go for a walk, and hope to meet up with a couple of newly arrived families from Winnipeg, for a quick hello/goodbye.

Thanks again for the comments emails and calls, they’ve really meant so much and helped us to stay strong. We are so lucky to have the family and friends that we do!

See you soon!
Take care
Lots of love
N&P&A

Oct 2 - seriously, is it really October already???

Oct 2 – Thurs 2:30 pm. Rainy and cool last couple of days but the sun just came out in the last hour. Hi everyone – we’re still here and doing great. Angelique is getting more and more comfortable with us but certainly getting bored with the lack of space and variety. We’ve picked up a couple of new things for her for the plane ride home, which will hopefully help keep her entertained- thanks for the suggestions, please keep them coming if you know of something that works!

Speaking of plane rides, we’ve confirmed that we’ll be home on Monday Oct 6 – yaaaaaaaaaaaay!!! We leave here in the middle of the night (2:00 am) and after a couple of long layovers, we’ll arrive home Monday evening.

Our friends Carole/Bernard/Sasha and Jen/Bert/Ruslan all leave for Canada tonight/early tomorrow morning – we wish you safe and smooth flights guys, we’ll miss you! We definitely hope to keep in touch with the friends we’ve made here; there’s something indescribable about the bond that happens when you experience together something as life changing as what we’ve all done this summer.

Our daily routine has remained the same –Angelique wakes us up at such ungodly hours as 6-6:30 (it’s still dark!), then we play, have breakfast, have a bath, more playing, then a nap around 11:30-1:30. Then we have lunch, play some more, go for a walk, come back and play, have dinner, more play then go to bed – Paul and I have sometimes crashed right after A does! Living in a one-room apartment (with a separate bedroom, thank goodness) has given a whole new meaning to ‘togetherness’, and we can’t wait to see what Angelique does with the space in our house! Wow! Look – another room! :-)

A couple of times we’ve mixed it up and walked in the morning instead of /as well as the afternoon, but mostly this is how our day looks. It’s been working OK so we don’t want to mess with it too much! I’m nervous about the plane rides as it will throw such a wrench into this plan, and we’ll be travelling for approx 33 hours total, but we know she’s a trooper and we’ll all start a new plan when we’re home – ahhhhhhhhh home!

That’s all for now – hope you’re having a good week! Thanks for the comments and emails, we sooo appreciate it!
Take care, lotsa love
N&P&A

P.S. Kathryn – yes please book us for a pedicure ASAP!! My toes have held up pretty well but will certainly need attention soon!

Sept 30 - still going and going.....

Sept 30 – Tues 9:30 pm – it has been cool but comfortable, rained overnight and during some of the day today. Hi everyone – we’re doing well and still having fun with Angelique, but we’re certainly looking forward to coming home! The days are getting repetitive and the poor little one is getting bored with the limited number of things we have for her to do. We’re seeing more and more of her personality as she gets more comfortable with us by the day.

We’ve discovered a few foods that she likes fairly consistently – perogies, eggs, sandwich meat and chicken always work, and she has bread after every meal which is part of her babyhouse routine – we’ve tried putting cheese or meat on the bread to make it more like a sandwich but she doesn’t like it that way. A little bit of butter is OK, or some jam, but eating it dry and walking around with it is still the preference….ummm ok!

Baths are also now a fave thing to do – such a change from last week! Unfortunately we discovered that plugging the drain to fill the bottom of the shower stall causes water to rain down into the apartment below us – oops! So we’re back to letting the water run from the tap and letting her play in that with some toys, cups, plastic bottles etc - she seems to like it just as much ... We’ll try again with a filled tub once we’re home.

A new game also started with us drawing pictures that she points to in a book – she can continue this game for hours, and it’s happened enough now that Paul and I have discovered that neither of us can draw AT ALL! Lol… We’re always trying to think of things to do to occupy her on the plane, and this could be a good one – we’ll pick up lots more paper….

We went to the local zoo a couple of days ago, at Central/ Gorky park. Just like at home, I like the idea of a zoo more than the reality – once I see the animals I just find it sad. They have some interesting ones here like giraffes, rhinos, elephants plus the regular lions, tigers and bears (oh my!). We pointed out the monkeys to Angelique and perhaps because of our game where she calls us ‘monkey’, she thought they were pretty funny. The park is very pretty, lots of open greenspace, beautiful flower gardens and statues.

Paul’s been working on changing our flights – it looks like we can't leave until the 6th, but we're still working on it - stay tuned. We’re looking forward to seeing y’all!

Take care
N&P&A

Sept 28 - the good times just keep comin'...

Sept 28 Sunday 12 noon – it was back to being beautiful out yesterday but cloudy so far today – yesterday we got to high 20’s, then it rained overnight. Hi everyone! Just a quick note to say we’re doing great – Angelique is enjoying more new things, and keeping us very entertained!

She especially loves music, which is awesome as we have music playing all the time both here and at home. She’s figured out how to stop and start my Ipod (as only a 3 year old can), and bops her head or full-body dances (swings her arms over her head) to everything from Green Day to Brian Setzer, and always follows the beat, which is a hoot. We still sing along to Bob the Builder and she knows more of the words each day – the ‘Yes We Can’ is now ‘Yep wit ka’, said with much enthusiasm!

One new thing that started yesterday (Sat) is that Angelique really started enjoying a bath, even asking to go in! Up until now she has been scared of it, and was only letting us wash her from a basin of water. So this is very exciting! She also loves brushing her teeth, and asks to do this a few times each day.

Yesterday we did a bit more grocery shopping and this time we brought home a doll, which A really enjoys – she even wanted to come straight home to play with it instead of stopping at the playground! So the rest of the evening (other than the bath), part of the night and all this morning has been devoted to playing with her ‘bebe’. Too cute!

Today we tried an earlier naptime, then this afternoon we’re headed to the big park in the city (called Gorky park, like the movie), which apparently has a zoo, indoor/outdoor waterpark and lots of stuff to see. Yay we get to be touristy again!

Thanks for all the comments talking about the strange behaviours of other 3 year olds –makes us feel a lot better!

Hope you’re having a great weekend!
Take care, lots of love
P&N&A

Sept 26 - sorry for the delay......

Sept 26 Friday 8 pm – a little warmer than it has been, maybe low 20’s in the afternoon but still very cool at night, enough that we’re turning on the portable heater. Hi everyone! Sorry for the delay between posts- it’s hard to find time to write one up- but we’re doing great and Angelique is wonderful. She talks and sings and dances all the time, and is generally a cheerful, smart and happy girl.

We’re still working on getting some consistency with her food, as one day she’ll eat something but the next day she announces it’s now ‘yucky’ – ya we’re so happy she learned that word!

Sleeping has also been a bit more challenging than it was the first few days – we’re still learning her signals for when she’s gone past the time for sleep (both for her nap and at night), so we’ve left it a bit too long some days and get rewarded with tears/ resistance to sleeping. We stay with her and sing/talk and she always drifts off.

Her fave toys are still her hair accessories (putting them on herself and on us), a musical book, sticker books and puzzles. She also loves looking at the photo albums and saying everyone’s names. Lately she has been carrying around a tube of hand cream and/or a chapstick, which is very cute. She is also now a little camera hog, posing for pictures then running over to see them on the digital camera. All the photographers in our families will have a field day with her!

Wed and Thursday we did our regular afternoon walks – once again to the Silk Way City grocery store and Thurs back to Panfilov park – both went really well and we always stop at a play structure which A really enjoys. Today (Fri) we mixed it up and did a morning walk with Bernard, Carole and Sasha – they found a nice walkway along a small creek in their neighbourhood, so we joined them and enjoyed a stroll away from the traffic noise. When we came back we had a quick lunch and put Angelique down for a nap (no resistance this time). Unfortunately this nap was interrupted 30 minutes later by our pickup to go to the notary (more paperwork). So when we got home we had an early dinner and put her into bed early, so she can get caught up on her sleep.

We may potentially have good news about when we’re coming home – we’ll know more in the next couple of days – stay tuned!

Thanks again for the comments, emails and calls- we can’t wait to get home and see everyone!

Take care
Love N&P&A

Sept 23 - hi from 'us 3' !

Tues Sept 23 8:30 pm - it's been very cool last few days - down to barely above freezing at night, and up to around 12-16 C during the day. Brrrr! Hi everyone - well we're still doing great and Angelique is wonderful! She's very smart, and certainly knows her own mind! She is speaking more and more, and her understanding of our blend of half-English half-Kazakh is impressive!

Monday we had a quiet morning then went for a HUGE 2-hour walk after A woke up from her nap - we finally got to Panfilov park which is only a few blocks away. Beautiful grounds, a play structure and one of those air-filled bouncy things for kids - very fun! They have a beautiful Soviet-style church that they say is the last remaining building in the world that is 100% made of wood, even the nails! We saw their beautiful war memorial - gorgeous is an understatement. There is an eternal flame, a tribute wall for both WWI and WWII, and an enormous sculpture of soldiers and horses - has to be 80 feet tall and just as wide! So of course we did the touristy thing and took photos....

Today we had a quieter day as Angelique is a little more stuffed up with her cold, and/or she is starting to release some of her anxiety about all the changes in her little world. She had a much longer nap today (2+ hours), plus a couple of upset times - just out of sorts from her regular self. We're hoping for an early night so she can have a big sleep and feel better tomorrow.

We weren't as adventurous today for our walk - we went to the Mothercare store (dept store) and bought Angelique a wind-breaker type long jacket, in fire-engine red! She looks mighty adorable, and I think she likes it as she didn't take it off all evening! Then we walked back and stopped at a small play structure where A played on the swings and on the slide.

We bumped into our friends Bernard and Carole on our walk, who also took custody of their daughter Sasha late last week - it feels odd to not see them every day at our visits, we miss them!

Tonight we had some dinner and played a bit, watched more Bob the Builder (now it's 'Yeop wit ka!'), and we just put her into bed. We'll see if it lasts.... she really needs a big sleep.

So now we'll flake out on the couch, not sure if I even have the energy for Tony Soprano....... have a great day!

take care- lots of love
N&P&A

Sept 21 - day 2 of the fun.....

Sept 21 Sunday 9:30 pm. Hi everyone! Wow – we can’t believe the number of blog comments and emails we received yesterday – on a weekend even – thank you sooo much!!! We are touched and humbled to think of you all cheering for us.

Well the rest of the day yesterday was filled but fun – we had pasta and meat sauce for dinner – silly me mixed in some veggies, which Angelique promptly picked out with her fingers and put in my bowl – so I guess we have some work to do with the veggies!

We played some more, then Angelique went to bed – it was an exhausting day for her! She has no idea all the changes to come of course, but all the changes she’s had so far have been pretty darn huge. Actually going to sleep was another story, mind you – after a couple of false starts and getting up for cuddles, she was asleep at 10 pm and woke up around 7 am. Not bad at all!!

Today (Sunday) has been wonderful – breakfast, play, lunch, play, nap, walk, dinner and more play – really how bad can it be?!? We’re all tired but having a blast. Paul is wondering if it’s normal that 36 hours into parenthood he has the ‘Bob the Builder’ song stuck in his head?? Angelique has been singing along too which is a scream to hear…. We always love hearing our nephews sing that song with their French accents – now we get to hear it from someone who only speaks Kazakh!
Angelique has been saying more english words, and we can get her to repeat names and words after us now which is great. She's also getting used to 'showing us' what she means if she says something we don't understand - she's so smart!

Hope you’re having a fantastic weekend – we know we are!
Take care
N&P&A :-)

Sept 20 – GOTCHA DAY!!!

Sept 20 - Saturday 6 pm. Cooler again today – jeans and a sweater weather.

Hi everyone – so we received a call late yesterday evening saying ‘yes you can pick up your daughter tomorrow morning’! WOOHOOOOOOOO! So we frantically cleaned up and put things out of a 3 year old’s reach, made some extra food and attempted (in vain) to get some sleep. We’re very excited!!!

This morning we were up early and paced the apartment waiting for 9:30. Ainuir picked us up, we bought a fancy cake as a gift for the caregivers, then we arrived at the babyhouse. The director met with us and we chatted a bit, then they brought Angelique in wearing the outfit we’d provided – tooooooo cute! We gave the cake and the rest of our gifts, posed for a couple of photos with the director and high-tailed it out of there!

Angelique was again quiet in the car, but not nearly as upset as she’d been on trip 1. Thankfully it was a short ride as there’s much less traffic on the weekends, so it took less than 15 minutes to get back.

We got into the apartment and she saw the toys we’d laid out for her (all the same things we’d been bringing to our visits, hoping they’d feel familiar), and she went right away to play with them. After approx 20 minutes she seemed very comfortable with those and some of the new toys too, then ate some lunch (chicken soup, bread, ½ an orange and some yogurt), played for a while and then had a nap.
After Angelique woke up we walked around the neighbourhood – she loves the stroller! Thanks Gretchen! Right now we’re playing with crayons and paper (from Auntie Lise), wearing multiple necklaces, bracelets and rings plus a headband, ponytails AND clips in her hair. She’s quite the fashionista -wearing a dress and jeans and tights (oops now she's in a nightgown, skirt and pj bottoms) ... She is carrying the purple backpack everywhere (from Tante Suzette), even on our walk, as well as the puppy purse from Memere. She is certainly overstimulated, but it’s worth it as we’re having so much fun just being with her and watching her! To say we’re thrilled is a HUGE understatement!!! We’re still nervous and more than a bit anxious, but over the moon happy…..

Thank you so much for your good wishes, notes and calls, especially over the last few days!

Take care, we send our love
Paul, Nicole and Angelique (finally we get to add her name!)

Sept 19 - hmmm... TGIF...!?!

Sept 19 Friday 2:30 pm - Cooler yesterday and today, low/mid-20’s. The forecast says it will stay cool for the next few days…

Hi everyone – Wednesday afternoon we went to the notary to sign some paperwork, and then walked around our neighbourhood. We found the little crafts store, which has beautiful tapestries, jewelry and paintings. We bought a couple of souvenirs, then on the walk back we discovered a few cafes close by us, and found a very cute little playpark with swings etc – this will be great to take Angelique, away from the traffic. There’s also a larger park a block away to go walking around, and the central ‘Gorky’ park is only a few blocks past that. We then had a quiet evening with Tony Soprano…

Thursday we hung out here, tidied up and did laundry, then got to see our beautiful girl! We were again visiting with Vlad and Laurel, but not Bernard and Carole this time. Angelique was quieter – we played with the musical instruments on the shelves and the bubbles, and looked through the photo albums. It was wonderful of course, and very calm … she was quite the Daddy’s girl for the first hour or so, wanting only to hang on/ sit with Paul. Awww…Then we grabbed a quick bite at home (pasta and meat sauce – yum) and went out for drinks with Bernard and Carole.

Today (Friday) we’re doing more laundry (each load takes forever), and hope to find out what’s going on with our paperwork. We’re having some delays, but still hope to get custody in the next few days – we can’t wait to bust her out of there and bring her home, at least to our temporary home. What we’re REALLY looking forward to is bringing Angelique ‘home home’ to Canada, to meet the wonderful welcoming party and for you all to meet her!

Have a great day/ weekend!
Take care
Love N&P

Sept 17 - a catchup, and a treasure hunt!

Sept 17 - Wednesday 1 pm. Weather looks nice – warm and sunny, very little wind…. Hi everyone! Well, later in the day Monday we went for an early dinner with Bernard and Carole to Bombolo’s (that place in the pedestrian mall with the misting fans). We all ordered thin-crust pizzas and they were pretty good! B&C had had a big walking and shopping day so it was nice to look at their souvenirs and catch up.

Yesterday (Tuesday) we did a bit more grocery shopping (nice to do it in little bits, for something to do), then got ready for our visit. We shared our visit room with another Canadian couple Vlad and Laurel and their little guy Mirek, as well as Bernard Carole and Sasha. Angelique was a bit shy with the new people there, but it was still a nice visit. We gave her a cut-up orange this time – she was curious about it at first (not sure if she’s had one before) but then seemed to like it which is great.

For dinner we made burgers and fries – oh we now have a new light fixture in the kitchen – Paul and Sergei got it fixed and put in the new light - yay! The burgers turned out great, I’d brought spices from home, we found a good BBQ sauce here and fried up some onions and mushrooms for the burgers. Nice to make a ‘home’ type of meal…. The meat at the Silk Way City supermarket has been very good – the deli and meat counters are very clean, you can see the butchers through the window and all the meats are kept cold, very much like at home. This makes us much more comfortable eating meat here this trip, compared to our first trip.

Wed – we’re not allowed to visit again today, we think it’s again due to the review/ audit of the babyhouse, but who knows... So we’ll have a quiet day, maybe walk around the park or look for souvenirs for ourselves. We've learned of a new store with great local crafts, which is kind of hidden in our neighbourhood. OK -now it's a treasure hunt! The days are long when we don’t get to visit, so anything new to pass the time is welcome!

Please keep those positive thoughts coming; we can feel them and we really appreciate it!!!

Hope you’re having a good day!
Take care, love N&P