Hi Everybody-
Blogging from CPH this morning. Arrived after a flying from Novo to Moscow (and circling the airport for over and hour) and then Moscow to CPH.
Took the train into the city and are staying at a hotel right in the centre of the city that was recommended. I can say this city seemed fresh and bright in comparision to the pollution of Novosibirsk and there is lots of shopping.
But, Here is the deal- this town is not our town. I am not sure if it is that we are exhausted or just missing the kiddos or whatever but this town is all about the party. We are unfortunately right on the main party plaza so until about 4am we had people outside our hotel screaming and whooping it up. Ugh.
And everything here is ridiculously overpriced- $100 for soup and sandwiches is even more expensive that Russia- which I thought was impossible.
Maybe at a different time, on a different trip this place would be awesome but right now we are just ready to be home I think (sorry Brooks- I know how much you love this city and I tried, I really tried).
Anyway, we are off to the airport in a few hours and then straight onto Seattle!!!! We will be there tonight - talk to you all soon!
Love,
Sarah and Aaron
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Friday, April 25, 2008
Last Day with the Babies
Hi All-
Today was our last day with the babies. It was fun but sad too. A couple meltdowns but mostly fun play time. And we got to try on the outfits we brought for them (to try sizes so we know what to buy) and that was great as they love having fancy new clothes- especially Apple- she LOVED her outfits.
It was hard to leave them though- they were really opening up to us and starting to attach and now we will be gone for 6 weeks- it is an imperfect system for sure. But we told them that we would be back and they have the books to look at each day and hopefully they wont be too mad at us when we come back. It looks like it will be late June or early July when we come back and we just found out that it looks like we will have the 10 days in Novosibirsk (the official waiting period after court) for sure- it is not being waived for any families right now apparently. So, that will be interesting... A 20 day trip total for sure because we have to arrive a few days before court and then after the waiting period we have to go to Moscow for a couple of days for official stuff and then home!
I know some of you are thinking of a vacation in Moscow and would love to have anyone who wants to come meet us there! We can figure that out later of course. :)
Then we came back to town and signed some more papers and now are going out to dinner with someone from the adoption world.
We leave bright and early tomorrow- Novo to Moscow and then on to Copenhagen. We spend the night there and will be back in Seattle Sunday night - tired but happy.
Love,
Sarah and Aaron
Today was our last day with the babies. It was fun but sad too. A couple meltdowns but mostly fun play time. And we got to try on the outfits we brought for them (to try sizes so we know what to buy) and that was great as they love having fancy new clothes- especially Apple- she LOVED her outfits.
It was hard to leave them though- they were really opening up to us and starting to attach and now we will be gone for 6 weeks- it is an imperfect system for sure. But we told them that we would be back and they have the books to look at each day and hopefully they wont be too mad at us when we come back. It looks like it will be late June or early July when we come back and we just found out that it looks like we will have the 10 days in Novosibirsk (the official waiting period after court) for sure- it is not being waived for any families right now apparently. So, that will be interesting... A 20 day trip total for sure because we have to arrive a few days before court and then after the waiting period we have to go to Moscow for a couple of days for official stuff and then home!
I know some of you are thinking of a vacation in Moscow and would love to have anyone who wants to come meet us there! We can figure that out later of course. :)
Then we came back to town and signed some more papers and now are going out to dinner with someone from the adoption world.
We leave bright and early tomorrow- Novo to Moscow and then on to Copenhagen. We spend the night there and will be back in Seattle Sunday night - tired but happy.
Love,
Sarah and Aaron
Thursday, April 24, 2008
More about Novosibirsk
So funny things about Novosibirsk:
-Our hotel is the only game in town. Right now we have a Microsoft conference here (can never get away from them), tons of business people and at least one other adoptive family. Busy place.
-No one in Russia goes out for Russian food. So far we have eaten in a Levi's 501 bar, an Irish Pub, an American diner, the hotel's French restaurant and finally today had lunch at the one traditional Russia place in the city. It was good- had some borscht and pelmeni (russian potstickers with dill and sour cream) but funny that we have been here for days and just now having Russian food.
- We typically get back to the hotel around 4pm (except day one when we didnt get back until 8pm) and then take a walk and go find a place to eat. It is a walkable city but very very polluted so I would not recommend coming here if you have any issues with wanting to breathe easily or well. :)
-It is hot here. It was 75 yesterday and it is 70 now. This is funny because just last week it was 12 degrees- so there is snow on the sides of the roads and the lakes are all frozen but now it is hot and I am sure it will just get warmer as they head into summer. Wish I hadnt brought those boots and all that cashmere but c'est la vie!
-Russian women wear very short skirts and very tall boots- all the time. Doesnt matter the age of the lady- that is the outfit. So we definitely stick out a bit though Aaron has been mistaken a couple of times by people in stores which is funny.
Hope all is well!
-Our hotel is the only game in town. Right now we have a Microsoft conference here (can never get away from them), tons of business people and at least one other adoptive family. Busy place.
-No one in Russia goes out for Russian food. So far we have eaten in a Levi's 501 bar, an Irish Pub, an American diner, the hotel's French restaurant and finally today had lunch at the one traditional Russia place in the city. It was good- had some borscht and pelmeni (russian potstickers with dill and sour cream) but funny that we have been here for days and just now having Russian food.
- We typically get back to the hotel around 4pm (except day one when we didnt get back until 8pm) and then take a walk and go find a place to eat. It is a walkable city but very very polluted so I would not recommend coming here if you have any issues with wanting to breathe easily or well. :)
-It is hot here. It was 75 yesterday and it is 70 now. This is funny because just last week it was 12 degrees- so there is snow on the sides of the roads and the lakes are all frozen but now it is hot and I am sure it will just get warmer as they head into summer. Wish I hadnt brought those boots and all that cashmere but c'est la vie!
-Russian women wear very short skirts and very tall boots- all the time. Doesnt matter the age of the lady- that is the outfit. So we definitely stick out a bit though Aaron has been mistaken a couple of times by people in stores which is funny.
Hope all is well!
Lots of news- long post
Hi Everybody-
Sorry for being incommunicado. Lots to tell:
Day 1 at the baby home: after going to the MOE and meeting the lady that doles out the referrals (very nice, very efficient) and answering several questions we were officially given permission to go to the baby home. Our baby home is 2 hours each way from town. So we hopped in the car with our translator Anna and our driver Nicolai for the journey. Siberia is very flat and dusty. We were stopped by the cops at one point -- Nicolai handled it all well and we never really learned what happened as he went into the police building to sort it out.
Arrived at the baby home and met the kiddos. For the purposes of this blog we shall call them Apple and Orange.
The meeting was a bit of a disaster! They took one look at us and started crying. Apparently they never see men and were scared of Aaron and I was a stranger so they were scared of me too. After an hour of tears and not coming near us they started to warm up and we spent 3 hours tentatively playing with them as they were very on edge and scared. We also got some new medical info and had to get that back to our IA doctor for review. Then back to the hotel and got in around 8pm and crashed- hard.
Day two- off to the baby home with our team and our Russia doctor- a lovely lady named Dr. Galina. We got stopped by the cops AGAIN- which apparently never happens- and again Nicolai handled it all very well and we were underway again after 20 minutes of waiting.
We got there in time to see the children participating in their Spring Festival- very cute- Russian dancing, a small skit and some treats. They gave each child half of a pear- core and all and you should have seen them chomp down on those! Both of our kiddos have quite an appetite and there is no messing around with cutting it into chunks for ease of eating- they just go right to town on whatever you give them. After the festival we spent another 3 hour marathon play session with them. This one went slightly better- only two meltdowns per child and I was able to play "tea time" with Apple and Orange warmed up enough to Aaron to play ball and let him hold him for a bit. Then back to the hotel to wait to hear from the docs and make our decision. Finally at midnight we talked to Dr. Davies and got the go ahead- both babies look good and the reports were great. This was a huge relief and we went to bed knowing that we would be accepting the referrals officially today- which was awesome after 48 hours of anxiety and worry!
The baby home is very poor but well cared for. It is obvious the people there take good care of the kids and love them lots. But it is an orphanage so there is never enough love to go around. It is nice though that they are out in the country as Novosibirsk is incredibly polluted and at least they have fresh air. They go for walks every day and even in 70 degree weather (it is warm here) they get all dressed up in snow suits to go outside per the custom here. It is cute and funny.
A bit about each kiddo:
Apple- she is very smart and apparently quite bossy (just like her new mama). She is the leader of her groupa (the kids are divided into groupas- kind of like cabins at camp). She is shy to warm up to strangers- which is good because it means she wont just go with anyone but once she warms up she is great. She is very smart and talkative and can say complete sentences, has great motor skills and all around seems like she will grow up to be very bright and in charge!
Orange- he is a cutey and also very smart and verbal for a 2 year old. He loves Cheerios, cookies, fruit- whatever you have he will eat happily. Toys that make noise are the best and if it has lights that is a bonus. He is running around all the time. I swear when I saw him sitting at the Spring Festival he sat just like Poppy Nick sits when he is concentrating! He is a big boy and very active and will be a handful but is a great kid.
Day Three: Today was good. Only a few tears but lots of play- and we got to hold both of them and comfort them when they were tired and upset towards the end of the visit. Today we brought the family books we made and they went over like a house on fire. They loved them and wanted to go through all the pictures over and over again.
We have officially accepted the kids now and are are now in the waiting period. We have one more meeting with them tomorrow and then we leave Saturday morning - which is sad and terrible to think we will be gone for 6-8 weeks but it is the way it is done and I cannot dwell on that at this moment.
That is all for now. Lots of love to you all!
Sarah and Aaron
Sorry for being incommunicado. Lots to tell:
Day 1 at the baby home: after going to the MOE and meeting the lady that doles out the referrals (very nice, very efficient) and answering several questions we were officially given permission to go to the baby home. Our baby home is 2 hours each way from town. So we hopped in the car with our translator Anna and our driver Nicolai for the journey. Siberia is very flat and dusty. We were stopped by the cops at one point -- Nicolai handled it all well and we never really learned what happened as he went into the police building to sort it out.
Arrived at the baby home and met the kiddos. For the purposes of this blog we shall call them Apple and Orange.
The meeting was a bit of a disaster! They took one look at us and started crying. Apparently they never see men and were scared of Aaron and I was a stranger so they were scared of me too. After an hour of tears and not coming near us they started to warm up and we spent 3 hours tentatively playing with them as they were very on edge and scared. We also got some new medical info and had to get that back to our IA doctor for review. Then back to the hotel and got in around 8pm and crashed- hard.
Day two- off to the baby home with our team and our Russia doctor- a lovely lady named Dr. Galina. We got stopped by the cops AGAIN- which apparently never happens- and again Nicolai handled it all very well and we were underway again after 20 minutes of waiting.
We got there in time to see the children participating in their Spring Festival- very cute- Russian dancing, a small skit and some treats. They gave each child half of a pear- core and all and you should have seen them chomp down on those! Both of our kiddos have quite an appetite and there is no messing around with cutting it into chunks for ease of eating- they just go right to town on whatever you give them. After the festival we spent another 3 hour marathon play session with them. This one went slightly better- only two meltdowns per child and I was able to play "tea time" with Apple and Orange warmed up enough to Aaron to play ball and let him hold him for a bit. Then back to the hotel to wait to hear from the docs and make our decision. Finally at midnight we talked to Dr. Davies and got the go ahead- both babies look good and the reports were great. This was a huge relief and we went to bed knowing that we would be accepting the referrals officially today- which was awesome after 48 hours of anxiety and worry!
The baby home is very poor but well cared for. It is obvious the people there take good care of the kids and love them lots. But it is an orphanage so there is never enough love to go around. It is nice though that they are out in the country as Novosibirsk is incredibly polluted and at least they have fresh air. They go for walks every day and even in 70 degree weather (it is warm here) they get all dressed up in snow suits to go outside per the custom here. It is cute and funny.
A bit about each kiddo:
Apple- she is very smart and apparently quite bossy (just like her new mama). She is the leader of her groupa (the kids are divided into groupas- kind of like cabins at camp). She is shy to warm up to strangers- which is good because it means she wont just go with anyone but once she warms up she is great. She is very smart and talkative and can say complete sentences, has great motor skills and all around seems like she will grow up to be very bright and in charge!
Orange- he is a cutey and also very smart and verbal for a 2 year old. He loves Cheerios, cookies, fruit- whatever you have he will eat happily. Toys that make noise are the best and if it has lights that is a bonus. He is running around all the time. I swear when I saw him sitting at the Spring Festival he sat just like Poppy Nick sits when he is concentrating! He is a big boy and very active and will be a handful but is a great kid.
Day Three: Today was good. Only a few tears but lots of play- and we got to hold both of them and comfort them when they were tired and upset towards the end of the visit. Today we brought the family books we made and they went over like a house on fire. They loved them and wanted to go through all the pictures over and over again.
We have officially accepted the kids now and are are now in the waiting period. We have one more meeting with them tomorrow and then we leave Saturday morning - which is sad and terrible to think we will be gone for 6-8 weeks but it is the way it is done and I cannot dwell on that at this moment.
That is all for now. Lots of love to you all!
Sarah and Aaron
Monday, April 21, 2008
We are here!
Hi Everyone-
We are here- officially at the Hotel Sibir in Novosibirsk. All I can say is that Novosibirsk is FAR AWAY from Seattle! And, that business class is SO WORTH IT no matter what- the flights were long but we survived.
Russia so far is just like any other developing country. The airport in Moscow is dingy but doable and there is construction everywhere. Definitely growing. Novosibirsk appears to be an industrial city- as we thought- but we havent really explored much yet.
Our room here- the King Size room is about the size of the bedroom on the China Cloud and has as much storage. A King size bed is 2 single beds pushed together.
Wifi seems to work in the bar and lobby but not in the rooms.
Tomorrow we have our meeting with the MOE and then off to the baby home for the first time! I am sure we will have lots to report then.
If you want to Skpe with us- I think it would be good to email and set up times to make it easier all around. We will be back at the hotel tomorrow late in the day here and we are 14, not 15 hours ahead (daylight savings) so that should help a bit. :)
Love,
Sarah and Aaron
We are here- officially at the Hotel Sibir in Novosibirsk. All I can say is that Novosibirsk is FAR AWAY from Seattle! And, that business class is SO WORTH IT no matter what- the flights were long but we survived.
Russia so far is just like any other developing country. The airport in Moscow is dingy but doable and there is construction everywhere. Definitely growing. Novosibirsk appears to be an industrial city- as we thought- but we havent really explored much yet.
Our room here- the King Size room is about the size of the bedroom on the China Cloud and has as much storage. A King size bed is 2 single beds pushed together.
Wifi seems to work in the bar and lobby but not in the rooms.
Tomorrow we have our meeting with the MOE and then off to the baby home for the first time! I am sure we will have lots to report then.
If you want to Skpe with us- I think it would be good to email and set up times to make it easier all around. We will be back at the hotel tomorrow late in the day here and we are 14, not 15 hours ahead (daylight savings) so that should help a bit. :)
Love,
Sarah and Aaron
Saturday, April 19, 2008
Siberia Here we Come
This is a blog we are setting up to document our adoption journey. We leave on trip 1 today! We are going to Novosibirsk and will be meeting two little children who we hope to make our own. Because this is a public blog we will not be giving out too much information or personal details and hope everyone understands!
We leave for the airport in 2 hours- our next post will be from Novo!
We leave for the airport in 2 hours- our next post will be from Novo!
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