Hi everyone, we hope you are well. I apologize for not blogging sooner. We received some bad news and it has taken me a few days to blog.
My youngest brother Kevin got his scan results and the doctors found a spot on his femur. Needless to say, we were all hoping for the clear scan results. Being so far away is not helping either. I am a true girl and need to give and get hugs! When someone gets bad news I want to get by their side and give them a hug. Kazakhstan is too far to jump on the plane and deliver the hug I have planned for Kevin!!!!!
Then we got the bad news that instead of going to court in the one to five days we were told, we will not go until December 8th. Nine days after our required visits. Joe is pretty upset, as he needs to get back to work. He loves his job at GE. He really does. He loves the people he works with, loves the challenge of his job, and hates to be away. This year he has been away with a management training program, and now the adoption. It is driving him nuts! Joe is so easy going that when something is bothering him, we all know it. We tried every which way to get him back, but we just can't do it. Also, the judge requires him to be here and so a power of atty for me, does not work. We are the easiest going people, but right now we just want to get Alena and go home.
As for the kids here, they are wonderful. The one saving grace is that our kids are making a difference with all of the kids in the orphanage. We really have fallen for about five kids here, and if they were up for adoption, Alena would be one of many. I know, all of my girlfriends think I am nuts anyways, but being here you realize that things would be better for them. Even with all of the things we have going on, everyone would manage back in the states. These kids need parents who love them and just like some big families at home, everyone would support each other and do fine. Because these kids are not as young as some children, they are more self sufficient and primarily need love and guidance. Guidance that parents give just by example and spending time together. I know if we got these kids home, half of you would adopt them in a heart beat.
No matter what happens, we will be a part of these kids lives forever, if not by living together than by mail and internet. They will need some connection to Alena, and she will need a connection to them. Since Alena is going to be our daughter, then we will be able to stay in touch with everyone there. It is the saving grace of having to leave them here. No matter what, we will stay in touch with them and at least be a part of their lives for the short time we were here.
What a life changing trip this has been. I was thinking I can not wait to get home to get my hair done, get a massage..... and then I thought, no way, it costs too much. For the money it costs to get a massage, I can send Victoria an English/Russian dictionary. Actually, I could buy about ten and send them to all of the kids that want to learn English!
Wild, huh! I don't think I will look at our life the same. We can still do amazing things at home, but maybe that one dinner out can be used to send a kid to dance lessons in town. These kids are pretty well off compared to say street children, but they still don't just go to the store to get something they need like we do. It is a true paradigm shift in thinking.
Anyways, we have had some pretty fun adventures here. We continue to visit Alena everyday and as odd as this place was when we got here, now it is familiar. Seeing the man on the cart with his donkey going by a Mercedes is pretty normal!!!
We are bringing someone home with us. Zhanara, our translator, is coming back to the states with us. She is 27 and has never been out of Kazakhstan before. Her mother, the orphanage director, saved $4000 to give her the chance to visit America. Zhanara feels comfortable with us and so we are going to bring her home for two months. You guys will love her. She is a true romantic and even though she is 27, she will be like a kid coming to America. She hopes to visit some of the families she has helped, and I know we will love having her with us.
I have to go, so I will try and blog soon. We love you all and we are so happy that you check on us. If you pray, can you pray we get into court sooner? Maybe we can get Joe home and back to work. He will be so happy if that happens.
Take Care,
Joe, Kelly, Jonathan, Jameson and Alena
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Monday, November 27, 2006
Birthday Party Continued....
I was hoping Joe could blog but right now he is teaching Alena and her friend Aigerim English. Much has happened since our last blog. We left the birthday party at the orphanage early because of the power outage and went to our translator's 27th birthday party. It was a great honor to be invited to go. The three families and our drivers were treated to a feast. There were all kinds of salads, nuts, candy, fruit, and meat pies. Plus they made Manty, which is a type of Kazak steamed dumpling, and horse sausage. Yes horse!
Kazaks were and in some places still are a nomadic people. The horse is a very important animal in the Kazak life. Very much like the buffalo is to native Americans.
Not only do they use the horse for transportation, but they raise horse as food as well. It is hard to think of eating horse meat but when in Rome!!!!!
So, as not to be rude, we all tried the horse sausage. Horse is just like roast beef! Seriously it is. I do not think I could eat it often, as I like horses way to much. Just give me chicken anyday!!!
As in other parts of Asia, elders are held in great esteem. This is a custom I
personally like very much. Elders have so much to teach us and as a middle age woman, I wouldn't mind being revered as I get older, ha-ha!!!!!
Zhanara, our interpreter, has an older aunt who is in her 60's. She looked older than my parents but was about their age. When she came in the door, everyone paused. She gave the prayer and toasted Zhanara. Joe got up and made a toast, acknowledging the aunt of course, and the aunt was very pleased. Later on Zhanara told me that she thought Joe was a very handsome American. She did not know American men could be handsome and she was surprised! You go Joe! I have never been so proud!
After we ate we did the traditional Asian party game..... Kareoke! Zhanara loves to sing. So we spent the next few hours singing kareoke. When you finish a song you get a score. We all ended up singing and I think Jameson got 100 on one of his songs!
The Power continued to go on and off but we had a wonderful time.
On Saturday. We broke from our routine to get Alena her passport picture. This has been the first tangible thing we have done towards getting her home. We hope and pray that we get a quick court date. We are anxious to get home.
I better go. Thanks for takin g the time to visit our blog. We love knowing that you visit. We shall update soon.
Love,
Joe, Kelly, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Kazaks were and in some places still are a nomadic people. The horse is a very important animal in the Kazak life. Very much like the buffalo is to native Americans.
Not only do they use the horse for transportation, but they raise horse as food as well. It is hard to think of eating horse meat but when in Rome!!!!!
So, as not to be rude, we all tried the horse sausage. Horse is just like roast beef! Seriously it is. I do not think I could eat it often, as I like horses way to much. Just give me chicken anyday!!!
As in other parts of Asia, elders are held in great esteem. This is a custom I
personally like very much. Elders have so much to teach us and as a middle age woman, I wouldn't mind being revered as I get older, ha-ha!!!!!
Zhanara, our interpreter, has an older aunt who is in her 60's. She looked older than my parents but was about their age. When she came in the door, everyone paused. She gave the prayer and toasted Zhanara. Joe got up and made a toast, acknowledging the aunt of course, and the aunt was very pleased. Later on Zhanara told me that she thought Joe was a very handsome American. She did not know American men could be handsome and she was surprised! You go Joe! I have never been so proud!
After we ate we did the traditional Asian party game..... Kareoke! Zhanara loves to sing. So we spent the next few hours singing kareoke. When you finish a song you get a score. We all ended up singing and I think Jameson got 100 on one of his songs!
The Power continued to go on and off but we had a wonderful time.
On Saturday. We broke from our routine to get Alena her passport picture. This has been the first tangible thing we have done towards getting her home. We hope and pray that we get a quick court date. We are anxious to get home.
I better go. Thanks for takin g the time to visit our blog. We love knowing that you visit. We shall update soon.
Love,
Joe, Kelly, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Sunday, November 26, 2006
Birthday Party
Every month the orphanage has a big party to wish the children who have birthday's that month, congratulations. This month's party was held on Friday night and the three American families were the guests of honor.
It was the first time for some of them to come to the childen's house as the baby house is à seperate house not near the children's house.
There were about 50 kids and their caregivers in attendance. All the kids that have a November birthday we're out in the hall and were announced as they came in the room. They were so proud and every kid was dressed in their best clothes. There were 13 kids who celebrated their birthday's and they ranged in ages from 4 to about 16 or 17. We got to say a couple of words of congratulations and then the director spoke. The director of the orphanage is a phenomenal woman. She came to the US in 1995 with a peace Corp volunteer and is the most Americanized person we have met.
Jamal, the director, was asked to teach at the University but chose instead to run this children's house. The kids think of her as their mother and she hugs and kisses everyone of them. She really is amazing and it is sad to know that not all houses are like hers. Lauren, the peace corps volunteer we met, was in a small village and the orphanage there was so bad that kids ran away constantly.
After the kids sat down, Jamal gave a speach about how all of the kids are welcome in this home and that they should not run away so fast. Of course, we got this through translation and learned later on that some of the kids run away at 16 to find their families. She tries to tell them that they may want to stay until they are older and are settled before they search for their parents. She knows these parents are the ones who have left them in the orphanage and is trying to discourage them from more pain.
After the birthday song, the show began. Guess who got up and sang? Alena! She was just like a popstar! Alena and Valeria both sang. Then the power went out! Yep totally out and it never came back on! We ended up leaving the orphanage and went to a birthday party for our interpretor Zhanara. Joe will tell you the rest of the story. Kareoke and all!
Love,
Joe Kelly, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
It was the first time for some of them to come to the childen's house as the baby house is à seperate house not near the children's house.
There were about 50 kids and their caregivers in attendance. All the kids that have a November birthday we're out in the hall and were announced as they came in the room. They were so proud and every kid was dressed in their best clothes. There were 13 kids who celebrated their birthday's and they ranged in ages from 4 to about 16 or 17. We got to say a couple of words of congratulations and then the director spoke. The director of the orphanage is a phenomenal woman. She came to the US in 1995 with a peace Corp volunteer and is the most Americanized person we have met.
Jamal, the director, was asked to teach at the University but chose instead to run this children's house. The kids think of her as their mother and she hugs and kisses everyone of them. She really is amazing and it is sad to know that not all houses are like hers. Lauren, the peace corps volunteer we met, was in a small village and the orphanage there was so bad that kids ran away constantly.
After the kids sat down, Jamal gave a speach about how all of the kids are welcome in this home and that they should not run away so fast. Of course, we got this through translation and learned later on that some of the kids run away at 16 to find their families. She tries to tell them that they may want to stay until they are older and are settled before they search for their parents. She knows these parents are the ones who have left them in the orphanage and is trying to discourage them from more pain.
After the birthday song, the show began. Guess who got up and sang? Alena! She was just like a popstar! Alena and Valeria both sang. Then the power went out! Yep totally out and it never came back on! We ended up leaving the orphanage and went to a birthday party for our interpretor Zhanara. Joe will tell you the rest of the story. Kareoke and all!
Love,
Joe Kelly, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Saturday, November 25, 2006
The Routine
Hi everyone, hope Thanksgiving was wonderful. We had an amazing dinner at this local Kazak restaurant and they made turkey! It was just like out of a movie. They cooked the turkey with everything still in it like the liver and giblets. They did put an apple in the middle for flavor and to be honest it tasted pretty good. Igor our driver, ate all of the meat off the bones and when he was done there was nothing left!
Even with the holiday we have settled into a routine. We visit Alena from 10 to 12, go to the internet cafe, and lunch.
We go back to the hotel, relax, and then at five we go back to the orphanage to work on English until about 6:30. Igor drives us back to the hotel where all the Americans hang out until bed about 9pm.
To say we are stir crazy would be an understatement. We are blessed in that Tatyana, our coordinator, has taken care of our every need. She is an excellent buisness woman who does not want you to have to do a thing. Service is an honor
and all we have to do is ask! For independent Americans this is a bit different and it is all we can do to give up and let things happen!!!! Joe has done well so far, but he is ready to get back to work right NOW! We shall see how well we do in a few days.
Alena is wonderful. She has changed so much since our first day. We have heard that the babies also change. They get more color in their face and smile much more. Alena has more color in her face and she seems much more relaxed. She is very affectionate and gives lots of hugs. She tries so hard with her English and seems to understand quite a bit. Unfortunately she has been learning German at school, so unlike some of the kids she does not have an English backround and is learning everything brand new. Even with that she is picking it up fast. Ónce we get her home to America she will learn very quickly.
We are with Alena alone in the morning as our translator goes to the baby house with the other families. At night we have a small group of orphans that all want to work on English and we have become accustomed to the group being together. Along with Alena we have Valeria, Victoria, Syletvana, and a little 6 year old named Pajalt. At least, that is what we shall call him! Some names are hard for Americans to say and spell, so forgive me if I mess them up. The 6 year old never stops moving and is every bit a little boy! The girls are teenagers except for Svetlana who is 10. She is being adopted by a single mom from Ohio.
For me it is wonderful having the girls around. Alena loves it and so do I. After being in a house full of men, it is fun to have the girls spending time with us. We spend the time working on speaking English. They never get the chance to speak it so that is where we can do the most good.
Tonight we break from our evening routine to attend a show at the orphanage. Every month they celebrate that month's birthdays with song and dance. Tonight we are the guest of honor and Jameson has been asked to sing and play guitar.
The kids are so excited and Jonathan is going to film it. I will let you know how it goes tomorrow.
Thankyou to everyone who has posted a comment or sent Joe an email. We feel very isolated and any news or encouragement from home means so much. Tina, thanks for the updates on the dogs. We miss them a bunch as well as all of you. Alena is just like our friend Tina's daughter Ashley. We can't wait to get her home to meet Ashley.
By Monday we are hoping to hear about our court date. Please pray for a fast court date as we want to get home.
Thanks for visiting.
Love,
Kelly, Joe, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Even with the holiday we have settled into a routine. We visit Alena from 10 to 12, go to the internet cafe, and lunch.
We go back to the hotel, relax, and then at five we go back to the orphanage to work on English until about 6:30. Igor drives us back to the hotel where all the Americans hang out until bed about 9pm.
To say we are stir crazy would be an understatement. We are blessed in that Tatyana, our coordinator, has taken care of our every need. She is an excellent buisness woman who does not want you to have to do a thing. Service is an honor
and all we have to do is ask! For independent Americans this is a bit different and it is all we can do to give up and let things happen!!!! Joe has done well so far, but he is ready to get back to work right NOW! We shall see how well we do in a few days.
Alena is wonderful. She has changed so much since our first day. We have heard that the babies also change. They get more color in their face and smile much more. Alena has more color in her face and she seems much more relaxed. She is very affectionate and gives lots of hugs. She tries so hard with her English and seems to understand quite a bit. Unfortunately she has been learning German at school, so unlike some of the kids she does not have an English backround and is learning everything brand new. Even with that she is picking it up fast. Ónce we get her home to America she will learn very quickly.
We are with Alena alone in the morning as our translator goes to the baby house with the other families. At night we have a small group of orphans that all want to work on English and we have become accustomed to the group being together. Along with Alena we have Valeria, Victoria, Syletvana, and a little 6 year old named Pajalt. At least, that is what we shall call him! Some names are hard for Americans to say and spell, so forgive me if I mess them up. The 6 year old never stops moving and is every bit a little boy! The girls are teenagers except for Svetlana who is 10. She is being adopted by a single mom from Ohio.
For me it is wonderful having the girls around. Alena loves it and so do I. After being in a house full of men, it is fun to have the girls spending time with us. We spend the time working on speaking English. They never get the chance to speak it so that is where we can do the most good.
Tonight we break from our evening routine to attend a show at the orphanage. Every month they celebrate that month's birthdays with song and dance. Tonight we are the guest of honor and Jameson has been asked to sing and play guitar.
The kids are so excited and Jonathan is going to film it. I will let you know how it goes tomorrow.
Thankyou to everyone who has posted a comment or sent Joe an email. We feel very isolated and any news or encouragement from home means so much. Tina, thanks for the updates on the dogs. We miss them a bunch as well as all of you. Alena is just like our friend Tina's daughter Ashley. We can't wait to get her home to meet Ashley.
By Monday we are hoping to hear about our court date. Please pray for a fast court date as we want to get home.
Thanks for visiting.
Love,
Kelly, Joe, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Wednesday, November 22, 2006
Happy Thanksgiving
Happy Thanksgiving Everyone!!!
Amazing how much we all have to be THANKFUL for! So easy to take our blessings for granted in our busy, daily lives.
As you are all asleep we are starting our holiday. A local Kazak restaurant has found a turkey for us to enjoy. There will be the two other adopting American families who we have become close friends with, our driver, interpreter, and 2
Americans with the Peace Corps. Unfortunately Alena has school, so we will see her before and after.
We want to thank all the folks at GE for all the support, especially Bob, Joe's boss, and all his co-workers, as well as David who is holding down the fort while Joe is out.
We want to thank all of our friends and family for all the prayers, we know they are being answered!
Joe will miss watching football with a full belly and Jonathan will be missing the pumpkin pie!
Most of all we want to thank God for this amazing opportunity to hopefully impact lives.
We realize just how blessed we are to be living in the U.S. Be sure to give all your loved ones big bear hugs and kisses on this wonderful day of Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving and all our love from Kelly, Joe, Alena, Jonathan and Jameson!
PS the ground is covered with ice and it is snowing lightly today.
Amazing how much we all have to be THANKFUL for! So easy to take our blessings for granted in our busy, daily lives.
As you are all asleep we are starting our holiday. A local Kazak restaurant has found a turkey for us to enjoy. There will be the two other adopting American families who we have become close friends with, our driver, interpreter, and 2
Americans with the Peace Corps. Unfortunately Alena has school, so we will see her before and after.
We want to thank all the folks at GE for all the support, especially Bob, Joe's boss, and all his co-workers, as well as David who is holding down the fort while Joe is out.
We want to thank all of our friends and family for all the prayers, we know they are being answered!
Joe will miss watching football with a full belly and Jonathan will be missing the pumpkin pie!
Most of all we want to thank God for this amazing opportunity to hopefully impact lives.
We realize just how blessed we are to be living in the U.S. Be sure to give all your loved ones big bear hugs and kisses on this wonderful day of Thanksgiving!
Happy Thanksgiving and all our love from Kelly, Joe, Alena, Jonathan and Jameson!
PS the ground is covered with ice and it is snowing lightly today.
Tuesday, November 21, 2006
Getting caught up...
Hi everyone. We are making up for lost blog time so please check the past ones.
Since Joe is telling you about Taldy, I want to tell you about Àlena and her friend Valeria.
We could not have asked for a more perfect fit for our family then Alena. She is in 7th grade, just short of my height, and very slender. Where some of the girls have a more mature look, Alena is still child-like. You can tell the girls who have been here for a while. They are much more guarded in their emotions, where Alena shows her emotions on her face.
The first day we met her was crazy. There was nine people in the room and Alena had to walk in to meet her new family. Just prior to walking in she found out she had brothers! She was so nervous. Yet she walked in and after we spent some
time together she started to relax. Once that happened she started to beam. All of the older kids know what it means to be taken into a loving home and all of them dream of having a family.
By the time we were leaving we met all of the girls, saw where they lived, and fell in love with Alena. The kids are all separated into groups of mixed ages. This way the older kids can help the younger kids. That is how Alena and Valeria met.
During the first night Alena brought her best friend, Valeria, down to meet us. Where Alena was beaming with pride, Valeria was hiding her sadness. Every once in a while she would look like she was going to cry. Valeria is almost one year older than Alena and one can tell she has been in the orphanage for quite a while. It is almost as though she has lost hope of being adopted, yet the child in her still dreams of a family. Oh yes and she wants to be an actor!
Since that first night we have gotten to know Alena. She is so sweet and kind. As Joe said there are other American families here with younger kids. Alena played with them just like the guys do. She has been hurt but does not have the emotional wounds that say a child like Valeria has.
Back to Valeria. On that first night the director of the orphanage and our coordinator called the goverment to check on Valeria's status. We were told that she is not eligable for adoption. She has not seen her mother since she was in first grade. Yet, her mother calls every year to check up on her and that makes her ineligable for adoption. We never know what is fact or fiction here, but the intentions are all good and if they could get her out of the orphanage both the Director and our coordinator would do it.
It is so heartbreaking to not be able to help these kids. What they need and want is a family to call their own. Being an orphan carries such a stigma here and going to a university is not something that anyone can do. These kids have few options like kids in America and elsewhere.
Plus, coming here is not an easy thing. It is so far and expensive. This country is so different than anything most of us have encountered that culture shock is a given for at least a week! Not everyone can come to help these kids get what they really want, which is just a family who loves them.
The one saving grace is that we feel the outcome is so worthwhile. Alena will have a chance to have a different life. I am not sure what would have happened to her here. She is an orphan, tiny, and has a lazy eye, which is another stigma in this culture.
Now the world is her oyster, as they say.
One thing this has taught me is America is an amazing place. I am afraid I will have little patience for anyone who complains about our country. We are blessed beyond measure.
Thanks for visiting everyone.
Kelly, Joe, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Since Joe is telling you about Taldy, I want to tell you about Àlena and her friend Valeria.
We could not have asked for a more perfect fit for our family then Alena. She is in 7th grade, just short of my height, and very slender. Where some of the girls have a more mature look, Alena is still child-like. You can tell the girls who have been here for a while. They are much more guarded in their emotions, where Alena shows her emotions on her face.
The first day we met her was crazy. There was nine people in the room and Alena had to walk in to meet her new family. Just prior to walking in she found out she had brothers! She was so nervous. Yet she walked in and after we spent some
time together she started to relax. Once that happened she started to beam. All of the older kids know what it means to be taken into a loving home and all of them dream of having a family.
By the time we were leaving we met all of the girls, saw where they lived, and fell in love with Alena. The kids are all separated into groups of mixed ages. This way the older kids can help the younger kids. That is how Alena and Valeria met.
During the first night Alena brought her best friend, Valeria, down to meet us. Where Alena was beaming with pride, Valeria was hiding her sadness. Every once in a while she would look like she was going to cry. Valeria is almost one year older than Alena and one can tell she has been in the orphanage for quite a while. It is almost as though she has lost hope of being adopted, yet the child in her still dreams of a family. Oh yes and she wants to be an actor!
Since that first night we have gotten to know Alena. She is so sweet and kind. As Joe said there are other American families here with younger kids. Alena played with them just like the guys do. She has been hurt but does not have the emotional wounds that say a child like Valeria has.
Back to Valeria. On that first night the director of the orphanage and our coordinator called the goverment to check on Valeria's status. We were told that she is not eligable for adoption. She has not seen her mother since she was in first grade. Yet, her mother calls every year to check up on her and that makes her ineligable for adoption. We never know what is fact or fiction here, but the intentions are all good and if they could get her out of the orphanage both the Director and our coordinator would do it.
It is so heartbreaking to not be able to help these kids. What they need and want is a family to call their own. Being an orphan carries such a stigma here and going to a university is not something that anyone can do. These kids have few options like kids in America and elsewhere.
Plus, coming here is not an easy thing. It is so far and expensive. This country is so different than anything most of us have encountered that culture shock is a given for at least a week! Not everyone can come to help these kids get what they really want, which is just a family who loves them.
The one saving grace is that we feel the outcome is so worthwhile. Alena will have a chance to have a different life. I am not sure what would have happened to her here. She is an orphan, tiny, and has a lazy eye, which is another stigma in this culture.
Now the world is her oyster, as they say.
One thing this has taught me is America is an amazing place. I am afraid I will have little patience for anyone who complains about our country. We are blessed beyond measure.
Thanks for visiting everyone.
Kelly, Joe, Jonathan, Jameson, and Alena
Monday, November 20, 2006
Update from Taldy-Korgan....
Things are still progressing as planned.
It's interesting how many of the buildings are old style Soviet era looking, and then Sunday we went bowling at a
6 lane bowling alley which had a pool table and served pizza and ice cream. Crazy.
Jonathan continues to venture into unchartered water with choice of foods. First of all, he mistakingly asked for some water at the orphanage and after the cook and one of the boys got him a glass of tap water, he didn't want to offend them
so he drank it. He really enjoys all the lamb and, today, dove into some other exotic meat they serve here.
There are two other US families that are staying at the same hotel as us, Hotel Arat, and adopting babies from the sister orphanage that cares for babies. They are great people and its nice we are all in the hotel together. Sunday we had our own little church service up in our room and Chris even played the guitar he brought over here. Taldy-Korgan is over 50% Muslim with the balance Russian Orthodox and other.
The other families also brought over their children. Each family has one little girl already, ages 20 months and 4 years old, who are great fun. They are both adopting another baby. The one couple staying downstairs on the first floor was keeping their juice and coke on the ledge outside the window to keep it cold. Chris noticed that it seemed like the juice
was being depleted faster than the family was consuming it. Then, he saw a little hand reach up over the ledge outside, watched the coke lower itself out of sight and then reappear on the ledge short a few ounces. Chris opened the window
and looked down to see a poor, young, startled girl who he offered the rest of the coke to. There are just a lot of funny little things like that that happen.
We continue to share many laughs with Igor our driver and Zhanara our interpreter. Igor is a big dude who looks like he could have played offensive line for The Cleveland Browns. He appreciates the beer I buy him every few days we go to the grocery store. Zhanara is a kind, 25 year-old who speaks perfect English, won't let me buy Igor more than one beer each store visit, and loves the boys.
I can't tell you how many close calls on a daily basis pedestrians almost get runover. I almost think a number of times people's clothes brush the bumpers when the vehicles pass by. People walking up the road the opposite way nearly get clipped by the side mirrors regularly.
Alena is doing great. Along with Zhanara we are teaching Alena English daily. She is very eager to learn and has made great strides in just a few days. Her friend Verleria also shared in the English lesson with us tonight. We get to
visit twice a day for about 2 hours each time at 10 AM and 5 PM. The little boys in the orphanage light up when they see Jonathan and Jameson come in. The other day the guys were break dancing (more like attempting) with a bunch of the
younger kids, they had a ball. Jonathan did some filming in the orphanage today and the kids loved smiling for the camera. We got some great footage.
Got to get back to my email and make sure we're closing deals at work!
Thanks for keeping us in your prayers!
Joe, Kelly, Jonathan and Jameson
It's interesting how many of the buildings are old style Soviet era looking, and then Sunday we went bowling at a
6 lane bowling alley which had a pool table and served pizza and ice cream. Crazy.
Jonathan continues to venture into unchartered water with choice of foods. First of all, he mistakingly asked for some water at the orphanage and after the cook and one of the boys got him a glass of tap water, he didn't want to offend them
so he drank it. He really enjoys all the lamb and, today, dove into some other exotic meat they serve here.
There are two other US families that are staying at the same hotel as us, Hotel Arat, and adopting babies from the sister orphanage that cares for babies. They are great people and its nice we are all in the hotel together. Sunday we had our own little church service up in our room and Chris even played the guitar he brought over here. Taldy-Korgan is over 50% Muslim with the balance Russian Orthodox and other.
The other families also brought over their children. Each family has one little girl already, ages 20 months and 4 years old, who are great fun. They are both adopting another baby. The one couple staying downstairs on the first floor was keeping their juice and coke on the ledge outside the window to keep it cold. Chris noticed that it seemed like the juice
was being depleted faster than the family was consuming it. Then, he saw a little hand reach up over the ledge outside, watched the coke lower itself out of sight and then reappear on the ledge short a few ounces. Chris opened the window
and looked down to see a poor, young, startled girl who he offered the rest of the coke to. There are just a lot of funny little things like that that happen.
We continue to share many laughs with Igor our driver and Zhanara our interpreter. Igor is a big dude who looks like he could have played offensive line for The Cleveland Browns. He appreciates the beer I buy him every few days we go to the grocery store. Zhanara is a kind, 25 year-old who speaks perfect English, won't let me buy Igor more than one beer each store visit, and loves the boys.
I can't tell you how many close calls on a daily basis pedestrians almost get runover. I almost think a number of times people's clothes brush the bumpers when the vehicles pass by. People walking up the road the opposite way nearly get clipped by the side mirrors regularly.
Alena is doing great. Along with Zhanara we are teaching Alena English daily. She is very eager to learn and has made great strides in just a few days. Her friend Verleria also shared in the English lesson with us tonight. We get to
visit twice a day for about 2 hours each time at 10 AM and 5 PM. The little boys in the orphanage light up when they see Jonathan and Jameson come in. The other day the guys were break dancing (more like attempting) with a bunch of the
younger kids, they had a ball. Jonathan did some filming in the orphanage today and the kids loved smiling for the camera. We got some great footage.
Got to get back to my email and make sure we're closing deals at work!
Thanks for keeping us in your prayers!
Joe, Kelly, Jonathan and Jameson
Saturday, November 18, 2006
Met Alena today
We have not been able to update the blog but this trip is wild. Today we drove 4.5 hours through some mountains from Almaty to Taldy-Korgan. We were in the middle of nowhereville Cental Asia. Slowing down to go by military checkpoints. It was like watching a movie except I was in the front seat. Our driver spoke no English and if we were to get stopped at the checkpoints or pulled over by the police, I am not sure of an option besides prayer. Fortunately we did not get stopped and arrived safely. Transportation ranges from walkers, bikers, horses, wooden carts pulled by donkeys, overpacked old buses and vans, motorcycles, small cars you wouldn't believe can still run to brand new BMWs, Mecedes, and Land Rovers. Tons of people standing on the side of the road looking for rides. Some in the middle of nowhere.
Going to the orphanage was an incredibly humbling experience. Alena shares a bedroom with 17 girls in 12 very small bunk beds. She is absolutely thrilled we are here and has already developed somewhat of a bond with Kelly in the few hours we were there. But then again, who doesn't bond with Kelly. Communication is quite challenging but always good for a laugh when I am attempting my Russian. Our interpreter had to run back to court shortly after we met her and that's when our English/Russian dictionary came in handy.
Alena is very petite, shy, and kind. Her best friend of the last two years will find losing Alena hard. She is very happy for Alena but you could see the concern in her face. The orphanage director was warm, well-spoken, and passionately cared for all the kids there. You could see what great pride she has in the orphanage. All the people have been great, from our adoption coordinator to our drivers, people in the hotels and restaurants, drivers and everyone at the orphanage. Just another confirmation there are great people everywhere. We'll try to get on the internet somewhere on Friday and update. Quite fascinating so far.
Love Joe
Going to the orphanage was an incredibly humbling experience. Alena shares a bedroom with 17 girls in 12 very small bunk beds. She is absolutely thrilled we are here and has already developed somewhat of a bond with Kelly in the few hours we were there. But then again, who doesn't bond with Kelly. Communication is quite challenging but always good for a laugh when I am attempting my Russian. Our interpreter had to run back to court shortly after we met her and that's when our English/Russian dictionary came in handy.
Alena is very petite, shy, and kind. Her best friend of the last two years will find losing Alena hard. She is very happy for Alena but you could see the concern in her face. The orphanage director was warm, well-spoken, and passionately cared for all the kids there. You could see what great pride she has in the orphanage. All the people have been great, from our adoption coordinator to our drivers, people in the hotels and restaurants, drivers and everyone at the orphanage. Just another confirmation there are great people everywhere. We'll try to get on the internet somewhere on Friday and update. Quite fascinating so far.
Love Joe
First Couple of Days
Hello Everyone,
Things are going well. We have been in Almaty since we arrived. Big, old city with 1.5 million in population. Giant mountains surround it covered with snow caps. Weather here is unusually mild, pretty much 50-60s during the day. Very polluted, still use leaded gas. Traffic congested and driving is insane. Lanes and, for that matter, red lights don't mean much. Need to wait a few seconds after light changes before you go to be sure its clear. Pedestrians have NO right of way. Car alarms have a habit of going off in the middle of the night outside our hotel, not sure why. Current hotel is old and I'll define as OK, walls are paper thin and you can hear all hallway activity clearly. Wish I knew Russian, certainly would have understood more.
Unfortunately the boys are in a room on the floor above us, so we are looking forward to going to Taldy-Korgan tomorrow morning (around 4 hours by car over 2 Mountain ranges) to go to the Ministry of Education and then meet Alena at the orphanage. Taldy-Korgan is a much smaller town. We are 11 hours ahead of you. Today we met with our adoption coordinator, Tatayana, signed some docs that are written in Russian and she translates for us by reading them in English, then we went to the American Embassy to get our fingerprints updated.
There were 7 couples or just the Mom there with their babies doing exit interviews at the US Embassy and heading home. Most of them took 7-8 weeks to finalize and go home for good. The boys and I plan to come home in 3 weeks. Kelly is probably going to London but may come home as well as we have a 10-30 day lag between court date and final adoption approval to bring Alena home. I was practicing my Russian on our driver (he doesn't speak ANY English) saying words from our Russian/English dictionary, he was laughing his head off, although he did understand me. Well, need to try to get back to sleep.
Joe
Things are going well. We have been in Almaty since we arrived. Big, old city with 1.5 million in population. Giant mountains surround it covered with snow caps. Weather here is unusually mild, pretty much 50-60s during the day. Very polluted, still use leaded gas. Traffic congested and driving is insane. Lanes and, for that matter, red lights don't mean much. Need to wait a few seconds after light changes before you go to be sure its clear. Pedestrians have NO right of way. Car alarms have a habit of going off in the middle of the night outside our hotel, not sure why. Current hotel is old and I'll define as OK, walls are paper thin and you can hear all hallway activity clearly. Wish I knew Russian, certainly would have understood more.
Unfortunately the boys are in a room on the floor above us, so we are looking forward to going to Taldy-Korgan tomorrow morning (around 4 hours by car over 2 Mountain ranges) to go to the Ministry of Education and then meet Alena at the orphanage. Taldy-Korgan is a much smaller town. We are 11 hours ahead of you. Today we met with our adoption coordinator, Tatayana, signed some docs that are written in Russian and she translates for us by reading them in English, then we went to the American Embassy to get our fingerprints updated.
There were 7 couples or just the Mom there with their babies doing exit interviews at the US Embassy and heading home. Most of them took 7-8 weeks to finalize and go home for good. The boys and I plan to come home in 3 weeks. Kelly is probably going to London but may come home as well as we have a 10-30 day lag between court date and final adoption approval to bring Alena home. I was practicing my Russian on our driver (he doesn't speak ANY English) saying words from our Russian/English dictionary, he was laughing his head off, although he did understand me. Well, need to try to get back to sleep.
Joe
Monday, November 13, 2006
Good Morning Everyone
Good Morning and welcome to our blogspot. We leave at 4:30pm today to fly to Frankfurt, Germany and by Wednesday we should be in Almaty, Kazakhstan. Yahoo! We are on our way to adopt a girl. Not a little girl, but hopefully one a bit older, fourteen. Joe and I are taking the guys, Jonathan and Jameson to have this amazing life experience. We are excited, not completely packed and as usual, laughing and running around like crazy. Can you imagine going to Kazakhstan to adopt? Neither can we, but non the less God has us going so onward Chrisitan Soldiers!!!!( see the movie Flyboys for that last line!)
I promise our blog will be funny and not make much sense unless Joe is writing. I write like I talk, fast, and Joe talks like her writes methodical. That is why we are so good together! Have I told you I married over my head? Well, I did!
We have some amazing people who have helped us so much with getting out of here. It was so much work in such a short time, I even missed the Atlanta Workshop Players 25th Anniversary. Sorry Lynn. Adoption is a huge undertaking and I want to praise anyone who has done it. As for us, we had no idea and literally are reacting to the things you must do. Our desire was to give a child a loving home. One that they can call their own. We have much love and laughter in this house and coming from big families we just wanted to share that love with more children. Well let me tell you, what a process! A wonderous process but a process nun the less. As you will see on the next blogs, it really is life changing.
As for the wonderful people who have helped. There are tons, but let me just say thanks to everyone for their patience and kindness to our family. Tina, Suzie, Julia, Debbie, Fran, Kathy, Destri, Tammy, and all of the women that I have been in touch with lately, thanks for your ears and offers of help. Laura Hansen noterized all of our papers and she is amazing. I am sorry I couldn't see you yet Laura. When we get back we shall definitely have coffee. For the last week, we have literally run around trying to finish up, as well as take care of our home, and just get prepared for the next month. Everyone's love and patience has bolstered us through some amazingly stressful days. Of course it is our fault as we are trying to do so much in our lives, but I have to be honest, we can not see it any other way.
As you know Joe and I feel really blessed. We have tons of faith and God has really blessed us beyond measure. It is amazing that we are going on a plane halfway accross the world to adopt. How cool. Thank you God!
We love you all and pomise to update often. We do not arrive until Wednesday night US. Kazakhstan is ten hours ahead and hopefully we can start blogging right away. We will be in Almaty the first day and actually visiting our Embassy for fingerprinting! Oh the joys of adoption.
Take Care, God Bless, and love,
The Moss Family
I promise our blog will be funny and not make much sense unless Joe is writing. I write like I talk, fast, and Joe talks like her writes methodical. That is why we are so good together! Have I told you I married over my head? Well, I did!
We have some amazing people who have helped us so much with getting out of here. It was so much work in such a short time, I even missed the Atlanta Workshop Players 25th Anniversary. Sorry Lynn. Adoption is a huge undertaking and I want to praise anyone who has done it. As for us, we had no idea and literally are reacting to the things you must do. Our desire was to give a child a loving home. One that they can call their own. We have much love and laughter in this house and coming from big families we just wanted to share that love with more children. Well let me tell you, what a process! A wonderous process but a process nun the less. As you will see on the next blogs, it really is life changing.
As for the wonderful people who have helped. There are tons, but let me just say thanks to everyone for their patience and kindness to our family. Tina, Suzie, Julia, Debbie, Fran, Kathy, Destri, Tammy, and all of the women that I have been in touch with lately, thanks for your ears and offers of help. Laura Hansen noterized all of our papers and she is amazing. I am sorry I couldn't see you yet Laura. When we get back we shall definitely have coffee. For the last week, we have literally run around trying to finish up, as well as take care of our home, and just get prepared for the next month. Everyone's love and patience has bolstered us through some amazingly stressful days. Of course it is our fault as we are trying to do so much in our lives, but I have to be honest, we can not see it any other way.
As you know Joe and I feel really blessed. We have tons of faith and God has really blessed us beyond measure. It is amazing that we are going on a plane halfway accross the world to adopt. How cool. Thank you God!
We love you all and pomise to update often. We do not arrive until Wednesday night US. Kazakhstan is ten hours ahead and hopefully we can start blogging right away. We will be in Almaty the first day and actually visiting our Embassy for fingerprinting! Oh the joys of adoption.
Take Care, God Bless, and love,
The Moss Family
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