Hello everyone.... Brandy and I have started our countdown... Only 3 hours left before we head for the airport.
Couple quick items.... Brandy and Wind want to know if they can get in on the kids basket at the farm. They may need something for awhile while they are getting out of hock.
Lexi's blog is lexisparents.blogspot.com
Glad to hear Greg's promotion is going well. As for the SC crew. I am sure the guys could hit you when they are done in Williamsburg , VA. Just make sure you call and get on the the list.
Sorry Na... If a hot and humid zoo didn't do it, I think you wont make it before me. We are on our final week coundown to Buffalo. We are so excited. We have really learned how to navigate the grocery stores and shopping stores around here. We got this language barrier licked.
Well, Have to go finish packing. Hope everyone is well. Not sure when we will check in again, once we reach Moscow., but we will try to check in soon.
DJ I hear Doodle bugs is going well. Aunt Na says that you are learning how to play dodge ball. Owen, Leia can wait to try out her new swimming suit. Hope the pool is warm.
Love and Miss you all.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Wednesday, June 27, 2007
Monday, June 25, 2007
June 26th, 11:00 a.m.
Hey DJ..... I hear you scored your first goal. I can't believe we missed it. Way to go buddy. Keep working on those goals, we will be at your first game, as soon as we get home, and we want to see how that goal scoring thing works.
Aunt Michelle.... Feel free to stay and enjoy the accomodations at hotel Cloy. Whatever food is left, eat it up.
Did the DWC crew get the a/c on in the new addition? If not, I am sure they can come down and show you guys how to open the back doors.
Hey Mel, I meant to mention that our famous vacation to Niagara On The Lake came in handy. We are all getting very good at playing Rummy. Not much else to do around here. Tonight they might try teaching Brandy and I how to play Euchre. That should be interesting.
Hi Red... I will let you know as soon as we get home. I can't believe she is really mine either. It is still like I have a new doll. I keep fixing her hair and changing her clothes.
Hi SC crew. Glad to hear from everyone down that way. Will be excited for you to get to meat Leia when you get up here this summer.
Leia is having great nights. She sleeps perfectly (knock on wood). She goes to bed around 8:30 and sleeps till about 7:30. Doesn't seem to be minding her crib our her new surroundings. Grandma Cloy, she really likes her Teddy Graham cookies. That seems to be the only way Buck can make friends. But I think he is wearing on her.
Tomorrow is Brandy and my big day. We get to move on to our last destination, Moscow. Hopefully we will be good with our suitcases and kids, but I don't even think we will care, we will make it through.
Brandy and Wind got Lexi yesterday. Leia and Lexi played on the floor out in the 12th floor lobby last night for quite awhile. Buck and Wind figured out to not only get a WHOLE pizza, but to get it "to go". That was fun. We had salad and pizza in the lobby while the kids were playing.
Well, I guess that is it for now. Should get going and get Leia some lunch. We love and Miss you all.
Owen and DJ... can't wait to get home and see all the new tricks that you guys have learned from all your babysitters. Hope the pool is warm, Leia is excited to try it out.
Love,
Buck, Robin & Leia
Aunt Michelle.... Feel free to stay and enjoy the accomodations at hotel Cloy. Whatever food is left, eat it up.
Did the DWC crew get the a/c on in the new addition? If not, I am sure they can come down and show you guys how to open the back doors.
Hey Mel, I meant to mention that our famous vacation to Niagara On The Lake came in handy. We are all getting very good at playing Rummy. Not much else to do around here. Tonight they might try teaching Brandy and I how to play Euchre. That should be interesting.
Hi Red... I will let you know as soon as we get home. I can't believe she is really mine either. It is still like I have a new doll. I keep fixing her hair and changing her clothes.
Hi SC crew. Glad to hear from everyone down that way. Will be excited for you to get to meat Leia when you get up here this summer.
Leia is having great nights. She sleeps perfectly (knock on wood). She goes to bed around 8:30 and sleeps till about 7:30. Doesn't seem to be minding her crib our her new surroundings. Grandma Cloy, she really likes her Teddy Graham cookies. That seems to be the only way Buck can make friends. But I think he is wearing on her.
Tomorrow is Brandy and my big day. We get to move on to our last destination, Moscow. Hopefully we will be good with our suitcases and kids, but I don't even think we will care, we will make it through.
Brandy and Wind got Lexi yesterday. Leia and Lexi played on the floor out in the 12th floor lobby last night for quite awhile. Buck and Wind figured out to not only get a WHOLE pizza, but to get it "to go". That was fun. We had salad and pizza in the lobby while the kids were playing.
Well, I guess that is it for now. Should get going and get Leia some lunch. We love and Miss you all.
Owen and DJ... can't wait to get home and see all the new tricks that you guys have learned from all your babysitters. Hope the pool is warm, Leia is excited to try it out.
Love,
Buck, Robin & Leia
June 25th, 4:00 p.m.
Hello all....
Hi Paige, how did you get to sleep over at my house? Someone needed to babysit Aunt Na and Uncle Dan, huh???
Glad to hear everyone is doing well. We are all hanging in there. Very excited to make a move to Moscow and start something new. We all have Adoption Certificates and Birth Certificates. Nina starts passports tomorrow and Brandy and I are out of here on Wednesday, so wish us luck.
Aunt Brandy will be in charge of the blood test for Leia, just in case anyone was wondering.
We changed our plane reservations... So I believe that we are all set. We will be arriving in Buffalo on July 5th at 5:39 p.m., flight 5579. Shouldn't be changing anymore. This gives you an exact date Na, so get doing those jumping jacks.
DJ,.... Hope you have fun at Doodle Bugs... Enjoy yourself. I can't wait to hear all about your first day.
Owen..... Hi buddy. Have you scored on DJ yet with your new hockey stick.
Love and miss you all. More updates to follow soon. I need to let Brandy update her family on our arrival plans also.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Hi Paige, how did you get to sleep over at my house? Someone needed to babysit Aunt Na and Uncle Dan, huh???
Glad to hear everyone is doing well. We are all hanging in there. Very excited to make a move to Moscow and start something new. We all have Adoption Certificates and Birth Certificates. Nina starts passports tomorrow and Brandy and I are out of here on Wednesday, so wish us luck.
Aunt Brandy will be in charge of the blood test for Leia, just in case anyone was wondering.
We changed our plane reservations... So I believe that we are all set. We will be arriving in Buffalo on July 5th at 5:39 p.m., flight 5579. Shouldn't be changing anymore. This gives you an exact date Na, so get doing those jumping jacks.
DJ,.... Hope you have fun at Doodle Bugs... Enjoy yourself. I can't wait to hear all about your first day.
Owen..... Hi buddy. Have you scored on DJ yet with your new hockey stick.
Love and miss you all. More updates to follow soon. I need to let Brandy update her family on our arrival plans also.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Sunday, June 24, 2007
June 24th, 3:45 p.m.
Hello everyone, we have our daughter!!! We got to go to the baby home this a.m. and pick up Leia, how wonderful it is to have her out of there and here with us. She is supposed to be having a nap time already, but she is being so good here at the hotel, we just can't try to make her sleep. Brandy and Wind get to go tomorrow to get Lexi, so we are sharing Leia for tonight. Little do they know, she sleeps in their room tonight.
Everything went well today. Thought the baby home would be a big deal, but we arrived, they brought her to a room, took all her clothes off and handed her over. Took all of 5 minutes, which includes us dressing her and taking a couple pictures and we left. What a great feeling. Leia was great on the car ride, she was looking all over the place.
Other than that she is perfect. We just got our crib delivered into our room. Can you imagine how much room we don't have, now that we have added a crib to our furniture collection. Oh well.
I am so glad Brandy is traveling to Moscow with me. We really disrupted the plans with that request, but it all worked out and I don't have to travel alone. Our apartment is right on Arbot Street, so the shopping should be great. Hopefully there wont be time for that, would like to stay busy and get home to all of you.
Well, guess I better go relieve Aunt Brandy from her new babysitting duty. We will write more soon. Glad to hear from you all. Love and Miss,
Hi DJ, Hi Owen. Hope you guys are ready for your new sister. She can't wait to see you!!
Buck, Robin & LEIA!!!!!
Everything went well today. Thought the baby home would be a big deal, but we arrived, they brought her to a room, took all her clothes off and handed her over. Took all of 5 minutes, which includes us dressing her and taking a couple pictures and we left. What a great feeling. Leia was great on the car ride, she was looking all over the place.
Other than that she is perfect. We just got our crib delivered into our room. Can you imagine how much room we don't have, now that we have added a crib to our furniture collection. Oh well.
I am so glad Brandy is traveling to Moscow with me. We really disrupted the plans with that request, but it all worked out and I don't have to travel alone. Our apartment is right on Arbot Street, so the shopping should be great. Hopefully there wont be time for that, would like to stay busy and get home to all of you.
Well, guess I better go relieve Aunt Brandy from her new babysitting duty. We will write more soon. Glad to hear from you all. Love and Miss,
Hi DJ, Hi Owen. Hope you guys are ready for your new sister. She can't wait to see you!!
Buck, Robin & LEIA!!!!!
Friday, June 22, 2007
June 23rd 7:50 a.m.
Good Morning all,
It is Saturday a.m. here, I think we are finally on the schedule that we should be on. We didn't wake up until 6:30 a.m. today, so we are getting there. That is much better than the usual 2:30 a.m..
We just got to talk to Na, Dan and the boys. Dan says that posession is 9 10th's of the law. No problem Dan..... you get the mortgage too. It wasn't soooo bad before the addition. Na... I think that you are cheating, walking the stairs. I think I am still going to beat you. I might have to try the bribery thing also.
Let's see,, our updates..... Buck just managed to get himself a cup of coffee. Not quite like Tim Hortons, but he is managing. Can't seem to get past the cost of 80 Rubels. I think he is at least cutting back now.
I found out yesterday afternoon that I will have to leave for Moscow on Wednesday for Leia's paperwork. Buck has to stay in Novosibirsk until Thursday to collect her Passport, it wont be ready until then. Brandy has VOLUNTEERED to travel with me.... Isn't she great!. So... on Wednesday, Brandy, Lexi, Leia and myself will head for Moscow. I am sure we will be anxious for Buck and Wind to follow behind.
Current forecast from Viktoria is that we can make our plane reservations out of Moscow on July 5th. We are going to confirm this today.
Hope all is well. We got to speak with the boys for a few minutes this a.m.. Sounds like they are having a great time.. almost too busy to talk. Thank you all again for helping us get through this.
Our plans for today and tomorrow include 2 trips to the baby home, before paperwork starts again on Monday. Seems like we have already been gone forever. Can't wait to get back and see the new zoo. I knew there was reason for the addition. So where does the barn go, papa????? They have horse back riders here, just walking down the street. What a really funny sight. Seems way to city to be on horseback, but it happens. So Leia wont be afraid of a pony, she can't wait.
Well, I guess that is it for now, we going to have our wonderful breakfast. Talk to you all very soon. Na, Cheryl, Grandma P and Grandma C... you guys better practice your short distance racing skills. I hear that Aunt Michelle is in town, just so she can get a jump on the airport gate.
Where is all the rest of you writers... Look forward to hearing from you all. Can't wait to get home soon. Love and miss you lots,
Buck, Robin & Leia
It is Saturday a.m. here, I think we are finally on the schedule that we should be on. We didn't wake up until 6:30 a.m. today, so we are getting there. That is much better than the usual 2:30 a.m..
We just got to talk to Na, Dan and the boys. Dan says that posession is 9 10th's of the law. No problem Dan..... you get the mortgage too. It wasn't soooo bad before the addition. Na... I think that you are cheating, walking the stairs. I think I am still going to beat you. I might have to try the bribery thing also.
Let's see,, our updates..... Buck just managed to get himself a cup of coffee. Not quite like Tim Hortons, but he is managing. Can't seem to get past the cost of 80 Rubels. I think he is at least cutting back now.
I found out yesterday afternoon that I will have to leave for Moscow on Wednesday for Leia's paperwork. Buck has to stay in Novosibirsk until Thursday to collect her Passport, it wont be ready until then. Brandy has VOLUNTEERED to travel with me.... Isn't she great!. So... on Wednesday, Brandy, Lexi, Leia and myself will head for Moscow. I am sure we will be anxious for Buck and Wind to follow behind.
Current forecast from Viktoria is that we can make our plane reservations out of Moscow on July 5th. We are going to confirm this today.
Hope all is well. We got to speak with the boys for a few minutes this a.m.. Sounds like they are having a great time.. almost too busy to talk. Thank you all again for helping us get through this.
Our plans for today and tomorrow include 2 trips to the baby home, before paperwork starts again on Monday. Seems like we have already been gone forever. Can't wait to get back and see the new zoo. I knew there was reason for the addition. So where does the barn go, papa????? They have horse back riders here, just walking down the street. What a really funny sight. Seems way to city to be on horseback, but it happens. So Leia wont be afraid of a pony, she can't wait.
Well, I guess that is it for now, we going to have our wonderful breakfast. Talk to you all very soon. Na, Cheryl, Grandma P and Grandma C... you guys better practice your short distance racing skills. I hear that Aunt Michelle is in town, just so she can get a jump on the airport gate.
Where is all the rest of you writers... Look forward to hearing from you all. Can't wait to get home soon. Love and miss you lots,
Buck, Robin & Leia
Thursday, June 21, 2007
June 22nd, 6:15 a.m.
Congratulations Michelle..... you finally won one. That sleep thing is highly overrated.
Good Morning all..... As you can see by the times of our postings, our schedules are still not worked out quite right.
Lets see.... Yesterday we got our official Adoption Decree's done. This a.m. we got the Vital Statistics office to get her a birth certificate. Right now the plan is to get the documents Apostilled on Monday and Passports on Tuesday/Wednesday. Current plan is to allow us to leave on Thursday for Moscow. We were all bugging Nina about being out of here on Tuesday, but with the paperwork, she said that doesn't see possible. Also, there are 4 children that she is preparing paperwork, so that is surely slowing us up a bit. No big deal, we are getting by.
We all had a nice supper, drinks and desert last night to celebrate our good news. Buck hasn't had the chance to try a flaming drink just yet, but he did get to use the restroom in the baby home.
The judge was great. It was actually much better than I thought it would be. I had myself all nervous for days, but all went very well in the room. Buck and I had a chance to tell about ourselves and then answer several questions from the judge. Our Baby Home Director was there and spoke to the judge on our behalf and the Social Worker also spoke. There was a Prosecutor in the room, who asked a few questions, but not many. The judge mainly looked down at her paperwork, but we did get a chuckle out of her when Karina (translator in courtroom) read DJ's letter. I think she liked the part about Owen jumping on the bed.
Right now it doesn't sound like we will get the kids until early next week as they need to finish a few documents and prepare the parties. We are working Nina as quickly as possible.
Buck is trying to warm Leia up to him. I think he is using bribery. Seems like he is always calling her with a snack or a toy in his hand. But she is falling for it. I see the care workers trying to get her to say "Ma ma". When I say it to her, she says something that sounds like it back to me, but not sure if it is mama, or something else. We will keep working on her. I am thinking that after a week in Moscow, in an apartment with Brandy, Wind and Alexis, we will all be warmed up.
We should be able to make our flight plans from Novosibirsk to Moscow later today, so we will let you all know what they are.
Hi DJ & Owen. Hope you are practicing your hockey. Dad is getting very excited to get home to you guys and play. Is the pool getting any warmer? Maybe I should be asking Grandpa and Gretta that question.
Going for now, will write more later. Love and miss you all. See you soon.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Good Morning all..... As you can see by the times of our postings, our schedules are still not worked out quite right.
Lets see.... Yesterday we got our official Adoption Decree's done. This a.m. we got the Vital Statistics office to get her a birth certificate. Right now the plan is to get the documents Apostilled on Monday and Passports on Tuesday/Wednesday. Current plan is to allow us to leave on Thursday for Moscow. We were all bugging Nina about being out of here on Tuesday, but with the paperwork, she said that doesn't see possible. Also, there are 4 children that she is preparing paperwork, so that is surely slowing us up a bit. No big deal, we are getting by.
We all had a nice supper, drinks and desert last night to celebrate our good news. Buck hasn't had the chance to try a flaming drink just yet, but he did get to use the restroom in the baby home.
The judge was great. It was actually much better than I thought it would be. I had myself all nervous for days, but all went very well in the room. Buck and I had a chance to tell about ourselves and then answer several questions from the judge. Our Baby Home Director was there and spoke to the judge on our behalf and the Social Worker also spoke. There was a Prosecutor in the room, who asked a few questions, but not many. The judge mainly looked down at her paperwork, but we did get a chuckle out of her when Karina (translator in courtroom) read DJ's letter. I think she liked the part about Owen jumping on the bed.
Right now it doesn't sound like we will get the kids until early next week as they need to finish a few documents and prepare the parties. We are working Nina as quickly as possible.
Buck is trying to warm Leia up to him. I think he is using bribery. Seems like he is always calling her with a snack or a toy in his hand. But she is falling for it. I see the care workers trying to get her to say "Ma ma". When I say it to her, she says something that sounds like it back to me, but not sure if it is mama, or something else. We will keep working on her. I am thinking that after a week in Moscow, in an apartment with Brandy, Wind and Alexis, we will all be warmed up.
We should be able to make our flight plans from Novosibirsk to Moscow later today, so we will let you all know what they are.
Hi DJ & Owen. Hope you are practicing your hockey. Dad is getting very excited to get home to you guys and play. Is the pool getting any warmer? Maybe I should be asking Grandpa and Gretta that question.
Going for now, will write more later. Love and miss you all. See you soon.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Wednesday, June 20, 2007
June 21st, 1:00 p.m.
We are GOING home!!! Mel, Allen, Aunt Carol and Don, looks like you guys are off the hook. Court went well today. We got our adoption approved and our 10 days waived. Nina estimates we will be leaving Novosibirsk on Thursday June 28th and off to Moscow. Currently looks like we will be returning home on Friday July 6th.
Happy Birthday to Great Grandma Peete - She gets to share her special day with Leia!!
All three families were able to get their 10 days waived, so we will all be leaving together. What a relief. Buck, Brandy, Wind , the kids and I will all be sharing an apartment in Moscow.. We are so excited
Looks like we will get to pick Leia up on either Saturday or Monday and keep her with us from then on. Depending on paperwork. We are working on it.
DJ and Owen - We are going to be bringing your baby sister home very soon. Hope you are ready for her!!
We love and miss you all very much. Can't wait to see everyone. We will continue to keep our schedule posted.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Happy Birthday to Great Grandma Peete - She gets to share her special day with Leia!!
All three families were able to get their 10 days waived, so we will all be leaving together. What a relief. Buck, Brandy, Wind , the kids and I will all be sharing an apartment in Moscow.. We are so excited
Looks like we will get to pick Leia up on either Saturday or Monday and keep her with us from then on. Depending on paperwork. We are working on it.
DJ and Owen - We are going to be bringing your baby sister home very soon. Hope you are ready for her!!
We love and miss you all very much. Can't wait to see everyone. We will continue to keep our schedule posted.
Buck, Robin & Leia
Tuesday, June 19, 2007
June 20th, 7:00 a.m.
Good morning all,
Mom C - Your posting made it just fine, looks like you figured out what to do. Buck said the plane ride was GREAT, you can take that anyway you want. He is not so sure about renting a car just yet. If we are here for an extended stay, he may start to think about it. There is grass and trees, much to my surprise. Cars are surely much cleaner this time around.
Mom P - Hi boys..... DJ what awards did you get? Aunt Michelle and Grandma Cloy said you got your gifts. Have you been playing hockey? How does that mask and goalie stick work? Dad says he can't wait to get home and play hockey with you. He isn't sure if he will be able to get one past you with your new mask and stick, so keep practicing. Hi Owie..... Did you like your stick and pucks? Dad said you can be on his team, trying to score on Miller, I mean DJ.
Not too much new to here since we wrote last, we pretty much just went to bed. Still trying to get on the right schedule. We were up at 4:30 a.m. this morning, not too much to do here at that hour.
To all of our DWC fans, we are having an issue trying to access our emails, so haven't gotten any of them yet. Pam, could you please try to get ahold of Scott Addeo or Dave Meller and ask them how to log on remotely. I just want to ensure we are doing it properly. Just confirm that it is "remote.dwcmechanical.com/exchange", then I should log with my user name and password. It lets me get this far, but just wont let me see the mails. Can you please comment in the blog if you find out anything different. We will keep trying from here. If there are any emergencies, that can be written here, please make some short notes in here and we will answer back this way for the moment. Hope all is going well back there. Thank you all again for holding down the fort, we are sure it is hectic, especially with the temperatures that we are hearing from back there.
Well, I guess that is it for now. We are going for breakfast and then spend the afternoon with our court translator, "rehearsing" for court tomorrow. Talk to you all very soon.
Love and miss you all. Thanks for keeping in touch and for the "back home updates". We love you DJ and Owen. Can't wait to see you guys!!!
Buck and Robin (Mom & Dad)
Mom C - Your posting made it just fine, looks like you figured out what to do. Buck said the plane ride was GREAT, you can take that anyway you want. He is not so sure about renting a car just yet. If we are here for an extended stay, he may start to think about it. There is grass and trees, much to my surprise. Cars are surely much cleaner this time around.
Mom P - Hi boys..... DJ what awards did you get? Aunt Michelle and Grandma Cloy said you got your gifts. Have you been playing hockey? How does that mask and goalie stick work? Dad says he can't wait to get home and play hockey with you. He isn't sure if he will be able to get one past you with your new mask and stick, so keep practicing. Hi Owie..... Did you like your stick and pucks? Dad said you can be on his team, trying to score on Miller, I mean DJ.
Not too much new to here since we wrote last, we pretty much just went to bed. Still trying to get on the right schedule. We were up at 4:30 a.m. this morning, not too much to do here at that hour.
To all of our DWC fans, we are having an issue trying to access our emails, so haven't gotten any of them yet. Pam, could you please try to get ahold of Scott Addeo or Dave Meller and ask them how to log on remotely. I just want to ensure we are doing it properly. Just confirm that it is "remote.dwcmechanical.com/exchange", then I should log with my user name and password. It lets me get this far, but just wont let me see the mails. Can you please comment in the blog if you find out anything different. We will keep trying from here. If there are any emergencies, that can be written here, please make some short notes in here and we will answer back this way for the moment. Hope all is going well back there. Thank you all again for holding down the fort, we are sure it is hectic, especially with the temperatures that we are hearing from back there.
Well, I guess that is it for now. We are going for breakfast and then spend the afternoon with our court translator, "rehearsing" for court tomorrow. Talk to you all very soon.
Love and miss you all. Thanks for keeping in touch and for the "back home updates". We love you DJ and Owen. Can't wait to see you guys!!!
Buck and Robin (Mom & Dad)
June 19th, 10:00 pm.
Hello everyone, hope I can get this to all of you. We are having some computer issues, they all seem to be in the Russian language. Since I can't understand Russian, we are having problems posting, but we are getting there.
We just returned from dinner with the Mroz family and the Berg family. We all got to go to our baby home today and play. The Berg family is getting two small boys from our same baby home, so they were there playing also.
Buck got to meet Anna for the first time today. He really likes her. She even let him hold her for a bit, but then wanted to come back to me.
Tomorrow we get two visits to the baby home and court practice with our translator. Keep your fingers crossed, we will be posting the court outcome as soon as we find out on Thursday.
DJ - Way to go, I heard you won your soccer game. Did you score a goal??? Papa, aren't those hot dogs delicious?? How was your awards ceremony? Did you get any awards? When you have a chance, go see Grandma Cloy, Dad and I left her a small present for you and Owen. Let us know how you liked it.
Owen - Hi buddy, hope you being a good listener with your ears on.
Dad and I love and miss you guys a whole bunch.
Weather here is very nice and sunny. Cars are much cleaner this time around. There is some grass and trees, can't wait for you all to see the pictures. Nina is great, as always.
Well , I guess that is all for now. We miss you all. Thanks for the comments for those of you who have been checking. Keep them coming, it is always nice to hear from home.
Bye for now!!!
We just returned from dinner with the Mroz family and the Berg family. We all got to go to our baby home today and play. The Berg family is getting two small boys from our same baby home, so they were there playing also.
Buck got to meet Anna for the first time today. He really likes her. She even let him hold her for a bit, but then wanted to come back to me.
Tomorrow we get two visits to the baby home and court practice with our translator. Keep your fingers crossed, we will be posting the court outcome as soon as we find out on Thursday.
DJ - Way to go, I heard you won your soccer game. Did you score a goal??? Papa, aren't those hot dogs delicious?? How was your awards ceremony? Did you get any awards? When you have a chance, go see Grandma Cloy, Dad and I left her a small present for you and Owen. Let us know how you liked it.
Owen - Hi buddy, hope you being a good listener with your ears on.
Dad and I love and miss you guys a whole bunch.
Weather here is very nice and sunny. Cars are much cleaner this time around. There is some grass and trees, can't wait for you all to see the pictures. Nina is great, as always.
Well , I guess that is all for now. We miss you all. Thanks for the comments for those of you who have been checking. Keep them coming, it is always nice to hear from home.
Bye for now!!!
Monday, June 18, 2007
Friday, March 23, 2007
Saturday 3-24-07
Congratulation Shelly, for being the Blog winner today!!
Hi everyone, well it is Saturday afternoon here. We will be heading for the airport tomorrow morning. So when it 7:00 p.m. Saturday evening at home, we will be boarding our airplane to come and see all of you. Keep us in your prayers that we get home easier than we got here.
What a wonderful thing it has been to share this first step of our adventure with all of you. I don't know that our pictures and words will explain what we have seen and learned during our time here. It almost feels like this place is 100 years behind us in development. We constantly are comparing home to here with Nina, and she finds it hard to believe when we tell her things about home.
We just returned from our morning visit with Anna and have only one more visit from 4:00-6:00 this evening. I am going to have a hard time leaving her behind this evening. It seems as though she has opened up and come so far visiting with us this past week, that she is just going to go back to her old ways once we leave. I know she will come out of her shell again though. Just hard to leave her now. She is really talking and laughing all of the time. When we first got here, she would play for a moment and then sit on my lap with her thumb in her mouth. Yesterday afternoon and this morning, she never put her thumb in her mouth once. She is just so busy playing.
Good news for you Buck, they start potty training the kids here as soon as they are able to walk. She is well on her way to being trained right now. I can't even believe it. Each time I take her back to her room , they take her right to the bathroom. It is really weird seeing such a young child using the bathroom.
DJ - Your outfit fit Anna perfectly. Wait until you see the pictures. She was very pretty in her new clothes, so you better get shopping, she would like a closet full of "girly" clothes when she gets home.
We have found that Anna really likes snacking. This morning when we arrived, she practically climbed into my bag to check out what was in it. Toys came flying out and she didn't stop until she reached the different treats and then we just sat there and ate. But right at noon her lunch alarm must have went off in her belly because she was right on course to return to the table where she has lunch.
This will probably be the last time you hear from us until we get home on Sunday evening. We can't wait to come home and see the sun shining, our homes and our families. I can truly say that I am homesick for my family and friends. This has been an adventure that I wouldn't have changed, but don't want to be away from my family any longer either. I know that Anna will be in a much better place once she finally gets home with us and that will keep me going until the day we step into the airport with her. I am sure that I am biased, but she is such a beautiful child and so perfect in every way. She is going to be a blessing to our family.
We will see you all on Sunday!! Take care and we love and miss you!!!
Signing off,
Robin, Joyce and Judy
Hi everyone, well it is Saturday afternoon here. We will be heading for the airport tomorrow morning. So when it 7:00 p.m. Saturday evening at home, we will be boarding our airplane to come and see all of you. Keep us in your prayers that we get home easier than we got here.
What a wonderful thing it has been to share this first step of our adventure with all of you. I don't know that our pictures and words will explain what we have seen and learned during our time here. It almost feels like this place is 100 years behind us in development. We constantly are comparing home to here with Nina, and she finds it hard to believe when we tell her things about home.
We just returned from our morning visit with Anna and have only one more visit from 4:00-6:00 this evening. I am going to have a hard time leaving her behind this evening. It seems as though she has opened up and come so far visiting with us this past week, that she is just going to go back to her old ways once we leave. I know she will come out of her shell again though. Just hard to leave her now. She is really talking and laughing all of the time. When we first got here, she would play for a moment and then sit on my lap with her thumb in her mouth. Yesterday afternoon and this morning, she never put her thumb in her mouth once. She is just so busy playing.
Good news for you Buck, they start potty training the kids here as soon as they are able to walk. She is well on her way to being trained right now. I can't even believe it. Each time I take her back to her room , they take her right to the bathroom. It is really weird seeing such a young child using the bathroom.
DJ - Your outfit fit Anna perfectly. Wait until you see the pictures. She was very pretty in her new clothes, so you better get shopping, she would like a closet full of "girly" clothes when she gets home.
We have found that Anna really likes snacking. This morning when we arrived, she practically climbed into my bag to check out what was in it. Toys came flying out and she didn't stop until she reached the different treats and then we just sat there and ate. But right at noon her lunch alarm must have went off in her belly because she was right on course to return to the table where she has lunch.
This will probably be the last time you hear from us until we get home on Sunday evening. We can't wait to come home and see the sun shining, our homes and our families. I can truly say that I am homesick for my family and friends. This has been an adventure that I wouldn't have changed, but don't want to be away from my family any longer either. I know that Anna will be in a much better place once she finally gets home with us and that will keep me going until the day we step into the airport with her. I am sure that I am biased, but she is such a beautiful child and so perfect in every way. She is going to be a blessing to our family.
We will see you all on Sunday!! Take care and we love and miss you!!!
Signing off,
Robin, Joyce and Judy
Friday 3-23-07
Hi everyone - Okay the race is on. Let's see who will be the favorite Aunt to get a message back first. Ready... Set... Go............
Well its Friday 2:45 p.m. here and about 4:45 a.m. there. The weather is pretty cold today, but not any different than home. How is the temperature there? We heard it was supposed to be around 60 on Sunday when we get home, is that still the forecast? We just want to make sure we wont be cold in our shorts.
Let's see, fun around here..... Last night we walked down to the Brewery with Brandy and Wind for supper. We had a little problem when we first entered the door because they wanted us to take off our coats. We wanted to keep them with us, but I guess that isn't allowed. So after a little discussion we finally forfeited our coats to some stranger and sat down. We all ordered a drink and then the fun began. Judy ordered a cup of coffee and a shot to go in it, a B-52 shot to be exact, the waitress brought it over and lit it on fire and then started giving her an instruction. At first we thought she was supposed to stir it so she picked up her "plastic" straw and started to stir, well I am sure all you scientists can figure out what happened, yep that's right the straw caught on fire. After the waitress yelled a bit, she instructed us again and again she tried to stir, but this time with my "plastic" straw. Doesn't take a brain surgeon to know what happened again. Well finally Joyce made the Shot drinking motion to the waitress and we got the hint on what she was supposed to do with her drink, so Judy did a shot at the Brewery last night, through a straw before it melted. That was truly a sight to see.
On day 4 we finally figured out why the doorman was always frowning at us. I guess we can't read in Russian OR English. There is a sign on his desk that says to show your room key to walk past. We just came in like we owned the place for the first 4 days and kept walking right past him. Finally we noticed the sign, oh well, he isn't the first or last Russian to not like us around here.
Judy is insistent on making friends everywhere she goes around here. Funny thing is that when she speaks English and they are not understanding her, she seems to talk slower and LOUDER. I guess she thinks it will make more sense that way. For a bunch of people that never smile around here, they are surely getting a good laugh with her.
Hi Red.... its great to hear a friendly new voice on the blog site. Hope all is well.
Hi Mel.... Great to hear you finally figured it out. Buck wouldn't be any help because it doesn't understand it himself. He just follows the motions.
How 'bout ya Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Tony. What happened to you guys. Did you fall off the face of the Earth. Kinda like us, here in Siberia!!!
Today we finally made it to the mall, if that is what you would call it. They really need to come to our mall. It seems as though it is one size around here, SMALL, and if that isn't your size, you aren't getting any thing. There is only 1 or 2 of each item hanging on the racks and each store is like a small kiosk in the center of this building. It is very weird. Then we risk life and limb trying to get back to our hotel. I am sure most of you think I am joking, but trying to cross the streets around here is very dangerous. They don't have the "pedestrian has the right of way" rule here. It is just anything goes. Plus if you don't stand back, the cars will drench you with muddy water. What a great thing. The streets aren't smooth. It is pothole city around here and trying to dodge them usually ends you up in another pothole, just bigger. Joyce said the other day that the potholes around here, we would build houses around them and call them a lake. They are very huge.
Our visit with Anna today was great. She is really opening up today and getting pretty rowdy. I was thinking that she was going to be great on the airplane because for the first few days she would always sit on our laps, if we put her there and not move. Today she had a whole new outlook on things. She is getting a bit rough and likes to be thrown in the air, bounced around and tickled on her tummy. We got her laughing quite a bit today and singing and some babbling. We brought some Gerber snacks with us and she just loves them. She can hear that bag rattle from anywhere in the room and she is right there. Truly a way to her heart. (hint, hint, hint for all you Aunts out there). When we go back this afternoon, they are going to put the outfit on her that DJ sent. Can't wait to see how she looks. We will surely gets lots of pictures.
I can't tell you guys enough how perfect she is. Everyday I cry when I get her and again when I have to give her back. Her smile is very addicting. She will truly we a very blessed and lucky girl when she gets home. We watch the other kids in this baby home and I feel terrible. I would just like to grab them all and bring them home. I am sure they could have a much better life than here. Yesterday when we arrived at the baby home we were standing in the lobby and a class of kids walked past us. They paid no attention to us at first, but then realized we were standing there and the stopped dead in their tracks and came right to us as if they knew exactly why we were there. It was very heart breaking.
We are all looking forward to coming home. I know that I am getting homesick for my boys!!! (Just the two little ones), the bigger one I will leave with you, Pam! Speaking of that, how is your quite time at DWC with Buck???
Well I guess that is it for now. We will keep you updated on the travels of Judy. Just wait until I tell you all about the bathroom episode. I need to tell you that one in person, it will have you all crying. It surely had Joyce in tears.
Dear Dad, (Ray), we think you need to join us over here. We are looking for a driver. It would be right up your racing alley. Just stay out of everyone elses way and you would be good to go.
And if you are lucky you will get to sit on the wrong side of the vehicle. Many of the cars, the driver sits on the right side, instead of the left.
DJ & Owen - Love and Miss you very, very, very much. Hope you are taking good care of Dad and I can't wait to see the collection of McDonalds toys you have gotten while I was gone. Be good and I will be home very soon with lots of hugs and kisses for both of you. Don't forget me at the airport on Sunday at 6:00. Unless we have another issue with the airports in Russia.
DJ - Way to go dude on your spelling test. Dad tells me that you got a 115%. Nice job. Sorry I wasn't there to help you with the words, we know your dad isn't a very good speller, so we won't hold it against you for not getting a perfect 125% this week. That was great, very exicted to hear.
Well going for now.
Love you all and miss you lots!! Can't wait to share Anna with each of you and can't wait to see who wins "The race to the Blog comments" today.
Love,
Robin, Joyce & Judy!
Well its Friday 2:45 p.m. here and about 4:45 a.m. there. The weather is pretty cold today, but not any different than home. How is the temperature there? We heard it was supposed to be around 60 on Sunday when we get home, is that still the forecast? We just want to make sure we wont be cold in our shorts.
Let's see, fun around here..... Last night we walked down to the Brewery with Brandy and Wind for supper. We had a little problem when we first entered the door because they wanted us to take off our coats. We wanted to keep them with us, but I guess that isn't allowed. So after a little discussion we finally forfeited our coats to some stranger and sat down. We all ordered a drink and then the fun began. Judy ordered a cup of coffee and a shot to go in it, a B-52 shot to be exact, the waitress brought it over and lit it on fire and then started giving her an instruction. At first we thought she was supposed to stir it so she picked up her "plastic" straw and started to stir, well I am sure all you scientists can figure out what happened, yep that's right the straw caught on fire. After the waitress yelled a bit, she instructed us again and again she tried to stir, but this time with my "plastic" straw. Doesn't take a brain surgeon to know what happened again. Well finally Joyce made the Shot drinking motion to the waitress and we got the hint on what she was supposed to do with her drink, so Judy did a shot at the Brewery last night, through a straw before it melted. That was truly a sight to see.
On day 4 we finally figured out why the doorman was always frowning at us. I guess we can't read in Russian OR English. There is a sign on his desk that says to show your room key to walk past. We just came in like we owned the place for the first 4 days and kept walking right past him. Finally we noticed the sign, oh well, he isn't the first or last Russian to not like us around here.
Judy is insistent on making friends everywhere she goes around here. Funny thing is that when she speaks English and they are not understanding her, she seems to talk slower and LOUDER. I guess she thinks it will make more sense that way. For a bunch of people that never smile around here, they are surely getting a good laugh with her.
Hi Red.... its great to hear a friendly new voice on the blog site. Hope all is well.
Hi Mel.... Great to hear you finally figured it out. Buck wouldn't be any help because it doesn't understand it himself. He just follows the motions.
How 'bout ya Aunt Rosemary and Uncle Tony. What happened to you guys. Did you fall off the face of the Earth. Kinda like us, here in Siberia!!!
Today we finally made it to the mall, if that is what you would call it. They really need to come to our mall. It seems as though it is one size around here, SMALL, and if that isn't your size, you aren't getting any thing. There is only 1 or 2 of each item hanging on the racks and each store is like a small kiosk in the center of this building. It is very weird. Then we risk life and limb trying to get back to our hotel. I am sure most of you think I am joking, but trying to cross the streets around here is very dangerous. They don't have the "pedestrian has the right of way" rule here. It is just anything goes. Plus if you don't stand back, the cars will drench you with muddy water. What a great thing. The streets aren't smooth. It is pothole city around here and trying to dodge them usually ends you up in another pothole, just bigger. Joyce said the other day that the potholes around here, we would build houses around them and call them a lake. They are very huge.
Our visit with Anna today was great. She is really opening up today and getting pretty rowdy. I was thinking that she was going to be great on the airplane because for the first few days she would always sit on our laps, if we put her there and not move. Today she had a whole new outlook on things. She is getting a bit rough and likes to be thrown in the air, bounced around and tickled on her tummy. We got her laughing quite a bit today and singing and some babbling. We brought some Gerber snacks with us and she just loves them. She can hear that bag rattle from anywhere in the room and she is right there. Truly a way to her heart. (hint, hint, hint for all you Aunts out there). When we go back this afternoon, they are going to put the outfit on her that DJ sent. Can't wait to see how she looks. We will surely gets lots of pictures.
I can't tell you guys enough how perfect she is. Everyday I cry when I get her and again when I have to give her back. Her smile is very addicting. She will truly we a very blessed and lucky girl when she gets home. We watch the other kids in this baby home and I feel terrible. I would just like to grab them all and bring them home. I am sure they could have a much better life than here. Yesterday when we arrived at the baby home we were standing in the lobby and a class of kids walked past us. They paid no attention to us at first, but then realized we were standing there and the stopped dead in their tracks and came right to us as if they knew exactly why we were there. It was very heart breaking.
We are all looking forward to coming home. I know that I am getting homesick for my boys!!! (Just the two little ones), the bigger one I will leave with you, Pam! Speaking of that, how is your quite time at DWC with Buck???
Well I guess that is it for now. We will keep you updated on the travels of Judy. Just wait until I tell you all about the bathroom episode. I need to tell you that one in person, it will have you all crying. It surely had Joyce in tears.
Dear Dad, (Ray), we think you need to join us over here. We are looking for a driver. It would be right up your racing alley. Just stay out of everyone elses way and you would be good to go.
And if you are lucky you will get to sit on the wrong side of the vehicle. Many of the cars, the driver sits on the right side, instead of the left.
DJ & Owen - Love and Miss you very, very, very much. Hope you are taking good care of Dad and I can't wait to see the collection of McDonalds toys you have gotten while I was gone. Be good and I will be home very soon with lots of hugs and kisses for both of you. Don't forget me at the airport on Sunday at 6:00. Unless we have another issue with the airports in Russia.
DJ - Way to go dude on your spelling test. Dad tells me that you got a 115%. Nice job. Sorry I wasn't there to help you with the words, we know your dad isn't a very good speller, so we won't hold it against you for not getting a perfect 125% this week. That was great, very exicted to hear.
Well going for now.
Love you all and miss you lots!! Can't wait to share Anna with each of you and can't wait to see who wins "The race to the Blog comments" today.
Love,
Robin, Joyce & Judy!
Thursday, March 22, 2007
Thursday 2-22-07
Hello everyone, sorry our picture is gone and no more to come. You will all have to wait until we get home to see the videos and pictures. Maybe we can have one big party and you can all watch at the same time. We were advised that we shouldn't be posting pictures of Anna just yet.
Mel & Al - Got your message, you must have figured out how to get the comments to work
Cheryl & Pam - Please keep on Buck and see if you can get the mop thing working. It's a wonderful thought Pam, but I am afraid that Cheryl is probably right. Tell Harris I am working on the right bottle of Vodka. There are so many choices, we have to taste test first and we'll make sure we bring home the best.
To our newest visitors - Aunt Carol and Uncle Don - Here's a warm Russian welcome.
We just returned from our second trip to see Anna today. She is really starting to open up now. Of course, I am sure the treats we are bribeing her with are helping a bit. She smiles and laughs the whole time now. We got her to start babbling a bit today also. It is so great to hear her talk. She was riding around on a bike in the gym room and humming this afternoon also. Each time we would stop, she would look back at me because she knew I was behind her pushing, I would reach over and give her kisses and she would giggle. It got to be quite a game. We also got her really walking around today. We would each sit apart and call for her. She would run between each of us, with her arms up and ready for a huge hug when she reached the next person.
Believe it or not, we have also learned a bit of Russian so we can talk with her. Here are some words for all of you to practice so that when we bring her home you can talk with her also:
Thank you - Spasebo
Come to me -Ed dee su da
Give to me - Na
Take from me - Dai
Doll - Kookla
That's it, so as you can see our quality time talking with her is pretty interesting.
We are also learning alot about the travel around here. There doesn't appear to be any road rules. As long as you stay out of the way of others, your good. We each had a turn to ride in the front seat with the driver, let's just say, it appears it would be much safer in the truck. At one point we jumped up on the sidewalk and went around everyone else. Funny there doesn't seem to be any road rage though.
Brandy and Wind are here. They just got back from their first full day with their daughter. She is perfect. Tomorrow they get to meet with their doctor and get an OK from him.
Well guess its time to go for now. Check back with you all again soon.
Thanks for keeping in touch and your comments.
DJ - Glad you are enjoying your movie. Can't wait to come home and have a party with you. Make sure we have some popcorn left in the house. When I get there we will hop up on the couch in our jammies, put in a movie and have some popcorn.
Owen - Can't wait to come back home and snuggle with you. I miss you climbing up in bed with me in the a.m. with dog and cuddling. Although there isn't much room in these beds, they are quite comfortable. Or maybe we are always just so tired, that we don't realize how uncomfortable they really are. Anna loves her stuffed animal. We have lots of pictures of her with it.
Brandy just kicked Joyce off the computer, she needs a turn to tell everyone about their Nina. So...... Here's Joyce......
We are having a great time getting to know Anna but is certainly going to be hard to leave cause we are just getting to know her and then we have to leave her to go home.
Buck and Ray you have to know that she is loving to ride the cars but says they are to slow, so get yourselves busy. Dave we are certain that she likes to eat cause we keep sneaking her snacks to win her over, so you can get her a side of beef cut up. Carol and Don so glad you could join us it is such a treat at the end of the day to come abd check our messages. Sorry we couldn't get the regular emails to work. The weather her is about the same as home but the vehicles and the buildings are about 20 degreees hotter than home. Judy and I have our window open in our room cause it is so hot.{ and it stinks: not from us } Sorry about the pictures but I am taking lots every day and am on my third set of batteries. Our translator is a great person and very easy to talk and joke with. These people sure live differently here. I have yet to see a woman driving.. Coarse it may be cause the cars and windows are so dirty . We miss you all and love to get our messages at the end of the day. Keep them comming, Love Joyce
Mel & Al - Got your message, you must have figured out how to get the comments to work
Cheryl & Pam - Please keep on Buck and see if you can get the mop thing working. It's a wonderful thought Pam, but I am afraid that Cheryl is probably right. Tell Harris I am working on the right bottle of Vodka. There are so many choices, we have to taste test first and we'll make sure we bring home the best.
To our newest visitors - Aunt Carol and Uncle Don - Here's a warm Russian welcome.
We just returned from our second trip to see Anna today. She is really starting to open up now. Of course, I am sure the treats we are bribeing her with are helping a bit. She smiles and laughs the whole time now. We got her to start babbling a bit today also. It is so great to hear her talk. She was riding around on a bike in the gym room and humming this afternoon also. Each time we would stop, she would look back at me because she knew I was behind her pushing, I would reach over and give her kisses and she would giggle. It got to be quite a game. We also got her really walking around today. We would each sit apart and call for her. She would run between each of us, with her arms up and ready for a huge hug when she reached the next person.
Believe it or not, we have also learned a bit of Russian so we can talk with her. Here are some words for all of you to practice so that when we bring her home you can talk with her also:
Thank you - Spasebo
Come to me -Ed dee su da
Give to me - Na
Take from me - Dai
Doll - Kookla
That's it, so as you can see our quality time talking with her is pretty interesting.
We are also learning alot about the travel around here. There doesn't appear to be any road rules. As long as you stay out of the way of others, your good. We each had a turn to ride in the front seat with the driver, let's just say, it appears it would be much safer in the truck. At one point we jumped up on the sidewalk and went around everyone else. Funny there doesn't seem to be any road rage though.
Brandy and Wind are here. They just got back from their first full day with their daughter. She is perfect. Tomorrow they get to meet with their doctor and get an OK from him.
Well guess its time to go for now. Check back with you all again soon.
Thanks for keeping in touch and your comments.
DJ - Glad you are enjoying your movie. Can't wait to come home and have a party with you. Make sure we have some popcorn left in the house. When I get there we will hop up on the couch in our jammies, put in a movie and have some popcorn.
Owen - Can't wait to come back home and snuggle with you. I miss you climbing up in bed with me in the a.m. with dog and cuddling. Although there isn't much room in these beds, they are quite comfortable. Or maybe we are always just so tired, that we don't realize how uncomfortable they really are. Anna loves her stuffed animal. We have lots of pictures of her with it.
Brandy just kicked Joyce off the computer, she needs a turn to tell everyone about their Nina. So...... Here's Joyce......
We are having a great time getting to know Anna but is certainly going to be hard to leave cause we are just getting to know her and then we have to leave her to go home.
Buck and Ray you have to know that she is loving to ride the cars but says they are to slow, so get yourselves busy. Dave we are certain that she likes to eat cause we keep sneaking her snacks to win her over, so you can get her a side of beef cut up. Carol and Don so glad you could join us it is such a treat at the end of the day to come abd check our messages. Sorry we couldn't get the regular emails to work. The weather her is about the same as home but the vehicles and the buildings are about 20 degreees hotter than home. Judy and I have our window open in our room cause it is so hot.{ and it stinks: not from us } Sorry about the pictures but I am taking lots every day and am on my third set of batteries. Our translator is a great person and very easy to talk and joke with. These people sure live differently here. I have yet to see a woman driving.. Coarse it may be cause the cars and windows are so dirty . We miss you all and love to get our messages at the end of the day. Keep them comming, Love Joyce
Wednesday, March 21, 2007
Wednesday Evening 3-21-07
Hi everyone, well it is 9:15 p.m. here. We spent our day with Anna and had a GREAT day. We played with her twice today (from 10:00-12:00) and (4:00 - 6:00). She is great. She loves to ride on rideon toys. Grandma Cloy probably has a sore back now from pushing her around all day. We have lots of video and pictures.
Brandy and Wind are FINALLY here. We spent the last two hours bringing them up to date on all that we have learned. Boy it feels great to have a little piece of home here with us. They get to go meet their daughter tomorrow a.m., so we will give you an update on that tomorrow.
It is great to get your comments. Hi to all of you, we love and miss you all. Had a couple little glitches with our paperwork yesterday, but thanks to you Buck, got them all figured out and got my paper today. What you sent for Sue was perfect. We are all legal so far now. Thank you for your help. I will give you a call later.
Well we are off for tonight to go have our spot of tea. Talk to you and write more tomorrow.
Thanks and love you all.
Brandy and Wind are FINALLY here. We spent the last two hours bringing them up to date on all that we have learned. Boy it feels great to have a little piece of home here with us. They get to go meet their daughter tomorrow a.m., so we will give you an update on that tomorrow.
It is great to get your comments. Hi to all of you, we love and miss you all. Had a couple little glitches with our paperwork yesterday, but thanks to you Buck, got them all figured out and got my paper today. What you sent for Sue was perfect. We are all legal so far now. Thank you for your help. I will give you a call later.
Well we are off for tonight to go have our spot of tea. Talk to you and write more tomorrow.
Thanks and love you all.
Tuesday, March 20, 2007
Wednesday 3-21-07
Hello Fans.... Its the Robin, Joyce and Judy show. Well as you can see, we have a much better sense of humor now that we have had a little rest. I woke up at midnight here and called Buck, it was only 2:00 p.m. there. How weird is that. It is now 6:00 a.m. here, and should be around 8:00 p.m. there, so some of you addicts may still read this tonight.
We get to go back to the baby home this a.m. around 9:30 a.m.. Our driver (Genrik) and our translator (Nina) will be here to pick us up. We are still trying to get use to the language thing. It is very weird because you always feel as though everyone is talking about you, since you can't understand a word that they are saying.
We are expecting Brandy and Wind in here this evening around 5:00 p.m., so we have a lot of updating to do with them on the culture shock. Boy will they be surprised, but we are sure they have figured out a lot of it on their own, just as we did.
Breakfast is at 7:30 here, so we still have another 1 1/2 hours. What a weird thing eating a meal when our systems think that it is the middle of the night. The trip back home is going to rough.
On Monday when we arrived in Moscow we had a few hours to tour Moscow with our Translator, Viktoria. What a great time that we had. We visited Red Square, an observation pointe overlooking the entire city, lots of shopping, some very old Russian Orthodox churches and of course a genuine Russian lunch. We got the chance to sample some real Russian food. We all had the Borsch, which is a common Beet Root soup w/ sour cream. Joyce and Judy weren't real fond of it, but I liked it. Joyce bought Anna a cross from a Church and Judy bought her a hand made linen Christening outfit. So I guess she has to come home now, at least her Christening is all set.
We are finding a lot of unusual toys here. A lot of those nesting dolls. Anna had one in her hand when they brought her to us yesterday. Not sure what fun they really are to them, but they all seem to have one.
Buck, Let DJ read this..... Hi sprout. Hope that you and Owen are being good for dad and getting your homework done??? Today is going to be your test day, hope you have been studying and Grandma P. says "knock them dead". I miss you both very much, but will have lots of pictures and videos to share with you when we get back. And who knows maybe a surprise or two also. Dad says you got my gifts and mail that I left. How are the movies??? Just wanted you guys to know that I love you very much and miss you a whole bunch. We will be heading home soon and can't wait to see you guys in the airport. I got your card that you guys sent in my suitcase. It is right next to my bed with your pictures. I love you guys!!!
How is the weather back there? It is cold here, but not any colder than home. The inside of the buildings are very hot. We sit in our hotel rooms with our outside windows open. What a strange thing to have many layers on outside and then strip down once we get inside.
Joyce wants all of her fans to know that she is having trouble e-mailing them seperately. So you will have to check the blog site for updates. We will keep working on the email issues. Still haven't been able to get pictures to you, but working on that also. The computers come up in Russian, so we have to figure out what "save as" and "insert" are. We are contuing to work on this, so keep checking.
It was great to hear from all of you, thanks for your comments. We were up at 5:00 this a.m. checking to see if any of you had written back. Just like being close to home when we get to read your comments. Keep them coming.
We love and miss you.
Robin, Joyce & Judy
We get to go back to the baby home this a.m. around 9:30 a.m.. Our driver (Genrik) and our translator (Nina) will be here to pick us up. We are still trying to get use to the language thing. It is very weird because you always feel as though everyone is talking about you, since you can't understand a word that they are saying.
We are expecting Brandy and Wind in here this evening around 5:00 p.m., so we have a lot of updating to do with them on the culture shock. Boy will they be surprised, but we are sure they have figured out a lot of it on their own, just as we did.
Breakfast is at 7:30 here, so we still have another 1 1/2 hours. What a weird thing eating a meal when our systems think that it is the middle of the night. The trip back home is going to rough.
On Monday when we arrived in Moscow we had a few hours to tour Moscow with our Translator, Viktoria. What a great time that we had. We visited Red Square, an observation pointe overlooking the entire city, lots of shopping, some very old Russian Orthodox churches and of course a genuine Russian lunch. We got the chance to sample some real Russian food. We all had the Borsch, which is a common Beet Root soup w/ sour cream. Joyce and Judy weren't real fond of it, but I liked it. Joyce bought Anna a cross from a Church and Judy bought her a hand made linen Christening outfit. So I guess she has to come home now, at least her Christening is all set.
We are finding a lot of unusual toys here. A lot of those nesting dolls. Anna had one in her hand when they brought her to us yesterday. Not sure what fun they really are to them, but they all seem to have one.
Buck, Let DJ read this..... Hi sprout. Hope that you and Owen are being good for dad and getting your homework done??? Today is going to be your test day, hope you have been studying and Grandma P. says "knock them dead". I miss you both very much, but will have lots of pictures and videos to share with you when we get back. And who knows maybe a surprise or two also. Dad says you got my gifts and mail that I left. How are the movies??? Just wanted you guys to know that I love you very much and miss you a whole bunch. We will be heading home soon and can't wait to see you guys in the airport. I got your card that you guys sent in my suitcase. It is right next to my bed with your pictures. I love you guys!!!
How is the weather back there? It is cold here, but not any colder than home. The inside of the buildings are very hot. We sit in our hotel rooms with our outside windows open. What a strange thing to have many layers on outside and then strip down once we get inside.
Joyce wants all of her fans to know that she is having trouble e-mailing them seperately. So you will have to check the blog site for updates. We will keep working on the email issues. Still haven't been able to get pictures to you, but working on that also. The computers come up in Russian, so we have to figure out what "save as" and "insert" are. We are contuing to work on this, so keep checking.
It was great to hear from all of you, thanks for your comments. We were up at 5:00 this a.m. checking to see if any of you had written back. Just like being close to home when we get to read your comments. Keep them coming.
We love and miss you.
Robin, Joyce & Judy
We think today is Tuesday....
Hello everyone, we got all of your notes. Just letting you know that we all made it here, barely with a few snags along the way, but we are here. The weather isn't bad, cold, but just like home. We just returned from our very first visit with Anna. She is perfect. We met the doctor there this a.m. and spent a couple hours while he evaluated her. He says she looks great. She can walk on her own, play with toys. He tested all of her motor skills and checked her physically from head to toe. Said she appears to be doing everything right at the 14 month level. Which he says is very surprising for an orphan. He couldn't find a thing wrong with her, in fact the doctor has two sons (7 & 2) and said if he were looking for a girl, he would pick her for himself.
I got lots of pictures and some video. Going to try and get in on this site so you can all see her. When we first met Anna, the worker handed her to me. She looked at me, and possibly because I was crying, she started crying too. They told me to hug her, I did and she clenched right on to me and instantly stopped crying. I couldn't believe it. After that we took her into a motor skills room and they performed several tests on her. They had her pick up small pieces, pick up blocks and put them in a hole. We tested her walking, she motors right along. She currently weighs 21 pounds. The doctor took her clothes off, she looks pretty chubby to me.
Grandma P and Grandma C gave her the thumbs up.
As for Russia, things are really different here. Everyone lives in apartments and uses public transportation. The average earnings are $500.00/month. That's right, per MONTH. I will tell you more soon. We are just on a short break and we are going to get to go back to the baby home for a couple hours this afternoon.
Our clocks are really screwed up. We just figured out that in the past 50+ hours we have only slept, approx. 3-4 on the planes.
We will write more soon. Keep checking in and sending us notes. We are all checking them. Can't wait for you all to see her.
Love and Miss you all,
Robin, Joyce & Judy
P.S. Shelly, if you decide to come, make sure you get a translator. This language barrier is a real pain in the rumpuss!!
I got lots of pictures and some video. Going to try and get in on this site so you can all see her. When we first met Anna, the worker handed her to me. She looked at me, and possibly because I was crying, she started crying too. They told me to hug her, I did and she clenched right on to me and instantly stopped crying. I couldn't believe it. After that we took her into a motor skills room and they performed several tests on her. They had her pick up small pieces, pick up blocks and put them in a hole. We tested her walking, she motors right along. She currently weighs 21 pounds. The doctor took her clothes off, she looks pretty chubby to me.
Grandma P and Grandma C gave her the thumbs up.
As for Russia, things are really different here. Everyone lives in apartments and uses public transportation. The average earnings are $500.00/month. That's right, per MONTH. I will tell you more soon. We are just on a short break and we are going to get to go back to the baby home for a couple hours this afternoon.
Our clocks are really screwed up. We just figured out that in the past 50+ hours we have only slept, approx. 3-4 on the planes.
We will write more soon. Keep checking in and sending us notes. We are all checking them. Can't wait for you all to see her.
Love and Miss you all,
Robin, Joyce & Judy
P.S. Shelly, if you decide to come, make sure you get a translator. This language barrier is a real pain in the rumpuss!!
Friday, March 9, 2007
Our Russian Experience
Hello everyone. Just testing this out. If you are able to read this message, let me know. This will be our link to keep you all posted and send pictures while we are gone.
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