It was 20 years ago today...

Well, maybe not 20 years. More like one year. It was one year ago today that our lives changed irrevocably - when we first met our Small Person Wolfe (SPW), Nicholas James.

What a difference a year makes:

March 16, 2007

March 16, 2008

This year has been interesting, challenging and rewarding beyond measure. We have learned (and sometimes struggled) to become parents. He has learned to walk, run, talk (sort of), climb up and down stairs, come down slides, sit quietly to read a book or watch a little Sesame Street, feed himself (first with a spoon, then with a fork), run races with his friends, and to give the best hugs on the planet...oh, so many things. The latest is the acquisition and use of the word "NO" generally in it's proper context. Fortunately, he can still be cajoled around it. Soon the day will come when that won't be quite so easy!

Here are a few additional recent pictures (and just a note - his secondary molars are coming in - hence the drool and damp shirt!):

Boy in Action:















Show mommy how strong you are:Um - well if you really want to wear mommy's boots (but maybe it's time to move out of this neighborhood!).

The Second Half of the Year

Updates? Is that what you’re here for? I’ve been hearing the little voice in my head ask for them too, so I’ll try and bring us up to the end of the year – 5 months in one entry!

So starting in August: Nicholas got to spend time with both sets of grandparents – on subsequent weekends. Auntie Pat came with us to Madison to see Grandma & Grandpa D. We toured the barn, walked (stomped?) across the back yard with Grandma, and then proceeded to tell Grandpa how to cook dinner!

The following weekend, we went to the Avon area to visit with Grandma & Grandpa W. Lots of investigating in the yard, checking out water glasses, and then we went on a long walk, without camera :( , around a pond.

We then visited to friends who have a yard, a kiddie pool, and a sprinkler. Good thing, since it was the hottest day of the summer! Thanks Michelle and John!

And we rounded out the month with a visit from Aunt Florence, who was in town helping cousin Elizabeth move to her new apartment.

In September, I went back to work 3 days a week, and Nicholas began to spend those days with another little boy his age, and to share his nanny. That has worked out very well – both boys play well together, and the nanny is a terrific source of suggestions and information. Adjusting to this made for a fairly quiet month, but we did find time to help on clean-up day at our favorite playground, get in a trip to the zoo, and start figuring out what sports we like!

October was all about red – the boots from cousin Eileen’s Paddington Bear, which actually fit on little boys, and the Red Sox – that fabulous home-town team.

November was an adventure. We took Nicholas to Florida to visit Grandma & Grandpa W, and for his first plane ride since the odyssey home in May. He handled it very well, except when he couldn’t understand why he could get up and walk at some times, and not at others. While there, he learned to play “monster” with Grandpa and Grandma gave him a few piano lessons.

Then we introduced him to the pleasures of the beach. At first, the sounds and movement of the ocean really frightened him (especially when that giant bathtub swallowed his Daddy), but we found a tidal pool on an inlet – much more his cup of tea.

And we also got to spend time with his girlfriend from Delphin House, Morgan, who now lives in Miami. We had a fun day catching up with her and her parents.

And now we’re getting ready for what we hope will be a low-key Christmas. We’re only doing the minimum of decorating. We won’t have a tree in our house, as new things are still to be approached with extreme caution, but we will decorate, and will spend Christmas day at Aunt Pat’s, with most of my sided of the family…more updates on that later.

For now, here’s the Holiday Picture of the boy:

Life in the Fast Lane

So what’s been up in Boston? Well, we have a little man who loves to climb stairs. This is good from our perspective for a number of reasons:

1. it shows he’s developing nicely
2. it means he’s becoming a bit more independent
3. we live in a 2-story condo at the top of a 5 story building. He can climb all the way to the living room (on the 4^th floor). Not all the time, but it’s helpful when lugging groceries!

We had two Independence Days this July. The first was the traditional one (the 4^th). The second was Nicholas’ Independence Day – the day he started walking, which was one day later. Just out of the blue, and with no fanfare, he pushed upright and took off. He’s still a bit wobbly, and looking somewhat like Frankenstein (arms out and walking side to side), but moving none-the-less. His cousin Elizabeth asked if he had started singing “Puttin’ on the Ritz” (Young Frankenstein). Since then, he has transitioned from mostly crawling and sometimes walking to the complete reverse. In fact, I don’t think I saw any crawling today at all. No pix of this, but a few videos, which I unfortunately don’t know how to upload!

We had a little KZ reunion this month as well. G. and D. live in the area, and were glad to welcome Nicholas into their little (exclusive) club. All three boys were born within 28 days of each other, although G. & D. came to the Boston area a bit earlier than Nicholas. They played kind of like puppies in a basket, crawling over each other, “sharing” and retrieving, and occasionally bonking each other on the head (OK, that was mostly Nicholas, but we’re working on it!). The three Moms were glad to get together, share experiences “in-country” and bounce parenting ideas and challenges off each other. We hope to continue this on a fairly regular basis as the boys grow up. It’s amazing how different and yet alike the boys look. Nicholas is very jealous of G’s full head of hair…we have hopes!

Nicholas has been experimenting with self-feeding, with various results. Spoon control is still minimal, but he happily chows down on what he can get his hands on. Here’s the result of some work with cottage cheese, and with the contents of tacos:

Finally, for now, I’ll share with you our latest big fun. Boston has a host of terrific parks and playgrounds, both large and small. We have our favorites, each for a specific reason…some close and small, others farther but better equipped, or with fun dogs, or…but the real biggie is the Boston
Common. At the center is what’s known as the Frog Pond. In the winter, this is an outdoor skating rink. In the summer, it’s a great place for children of all ages to cool off, splash their feet, and wash away the stress of the day. At it’s deepest point it’s no more than a foot deep…which works quite nicely for a little boy in search of a good time. Here are some of the results:

Settling In?

Nicholas has been home for just short of a month, and seems to be settling in quite well. He has had his first birthday, surrounded by family and friends. Not sure of all the customs, but he'll go along with them for spaghetti and cake!





Boy feeding himself Spaghetti

Boy after cake!

Parks and playgrounds have become favorite places. There's a nice one just down the street, sized for little kids. We go there most days.




There's also a bigger playground across town. This is where Nicholas had his first encounter with a sand-box. At first he just didn't know what to do with this stuff. But once he discovered the dump-trucks and shovels, it was all good from there!



He has also settled in food-wise. Although he really doesn't like chicken of almost any kind, and especially doesn't like leftovers, most other things are either accepted or appreciated. The new item this morning (mixed reviews but Mommy enjoyed hers) was Kiwi Fruit. Guess it was a bit too tart.


The sleep schedule is in flux right now. Afternoon naps were disappearing, which wasn't making anyone happy. So, for the second day in a row, we didn't have a morning nap. Afternoon was fine yesterday, a bit bumpy today. Today's afternoon nap turned into two separate mini-naps. Ah, transitions. Here's an early sleep picture...how peaceful is that?


As for growth: He's put on over 2 lbs in a month, and is filling in quite nicely. Since he's over 1 and over 20lbs now, we turned the car seat to face forward. Maybe this will make him like it better? Anyway, here are two favorite pictures - one taken in the hotel in Almaty, and the other taken in our living room. Just a cute boy.

Trot Trot to Boston

Whew! OK, so I've been remiss in keeping up with the blog. Anyone who actually has small children will understand the reality that my time is no longer my own...my life is in the very sweet hands of a little boy who will turn 1 tomorrow.

Sorry - no pix at this point - they're still on the camera, but I promise updates soon.

So how was the trip, you say? Well, I owe my sister Florence a HUGE thanks (yes, I know your birthday is in December!). Without her, I probably would have survived, but not with my sanity! We had an uneventful trip over to Almaty. Long layover in Amsterdam, and we got a room at the Radisson. Yeah - comfy beds and a fully stocked bath. We arrived at around 6am on Sunday the 20th, were met by Eugene, and taken to the hotel. Not the Hotel Kazakhstan, which we had been told was booked for us, but rather to the Hotel Kazzol. Not a pit, but not the Radisson. I think Oleg, Igor and Eugene are part owners, since they send everyone there!

We snoozed for a while, did some paperwork in preparation for the Embassy visit, then went down Gogol street to the market to get some water, baby food and munchies for us. We met Nicholai (our Almaty driver from the first trip) at 5:30pm and went back to the airport to await the arrival of Little Man (and the head nurse from the baby house). After a bit of hesitation, he seemed to recognize me. Not fooling myself that he was fully comfortable right away, but I could really see the value of the required visitation.

The following day was spent getting visa photos (not sure where the originals went, but oh well) and then going to the SOS International Clinic for a final checkup. It took far longer than we had expected, but everyone survived just fine.

On Tuesday morning, we went for a walk down Gogol Street to Panfilov Park. This was once a beautiful, shaded park which has suffered from neglect over the past few years. Great paths, but too much undergrowth and unkempt trees/bushes. There is a beautiful old Russian church, as well as a Soviet Era memorial to the 28 members of a KZ company who held off a whole passel of Germans for a strategic win (something like their Battle of the Bulge?). That afternoon we went to the Embassy and were done in 15 minutes, due largely to the great preparation of our paperwork by the folks at MAPS - our agency. We got to see the results of incomplete paperwork in another family not able to get the visa processed - very painful.

EARLY Wednesday morning (after a sleepless night for me and Florence) we hit the airport for our 7:20 flight to AMS. OK - so I'll never complain about lines in US airports again. At least the personnel know what they're doing! Once on the plane we breathed a huge sigh of relief at being in the care of a western airline (KLM).

OK - just gotta say that Nicholas was a champ for both flights and for the layover in AMS. He didn't have problems on takeoff or landing, and only lost it mildly when he just couldn't get to sleep. Here's one example of where Florence was a life-saver. The overtired new mom (me) was trying vainly to rock the overtired little boy in a seat that doesn't allow for it, with tears simply rolling down my cheeks. F leaned over, patted my knee and said "this is why I'm here" and took Nicholas for a walk in the aisle, allowing both of us to calm down enough to get a nap in.

Arrival in Boston and passing through immigration was a breeze. I was all done before the luggage came up. The three of us got our stuff and went through the door where Jim was waiting. I was so hoping Nicholas would remember him as well. Jim got down on his level (in the stroller), did one of his fake sneezes which had been so popular in Kostanai, and it was all good from there.

That Saturday (of Mem. Day wknd) we went to Auntie Pat's house so Nicholas could be introduced to my side of the family. After sitting in my lap for a few minutes, he decided that being the center of attention was his due, and he moved to the middle of the room to allow all to worship him! As long as either Jim or I were in view, he was perfectly happy to play with others, and he was absolutely fascinated by his Uncle Jim's beard - never having seen one up close.

The past week has been spent trying to get some kind of routine in place, and to figure out his needs and preferences. New fave dinner: spaghetti Least fave dinner: any jarred meat concoction. We're moving almost completely to table food, and his disposition and energy level have been great. Yesterday was a bit tough - for some reason he didn't nap at all, and I was a zombie by 5pm. Right now, though, he's down for the 2nd nap of the day... and I need to follow suit.

Will post pictures and a report on tomorrow's festivities soon.

Updates

We heard from the agency today that they are in possession of a fully completed, stamped and certified court decree approving us as parents to Nicholas James Wolfe...YIPPEEE!!!

What we also heard, unfortunately, is that due to two separate holidays coming up in May, we will not be able to return to do the final check-up and embassy visit until May 18 - a week later than we had hoped. Seems we keep getting caught in the bad timing trap.

Whatever. I've made plane reservations to head out the evening of the 18th, with my sister Florence - a truly wonderful woman who will help keep me going and keep Nicholas fed and clothed! We are scheduled to arrive early on Sunday, May 20th. At some point that day I'll actually get custody of Little Man.

Early Monday morning we'll go to the western medical clinic. All test results should be ready the following morning, enabling us to go to the US Embassy to obtain the all-important Super Secret Sealed Envelope required for entry into the states, which is to take place the following day.

So, if all goes according to the current plan, the three of us will arrive in Boston at rush hour on Wednesday, May 23.

Think positive thoughts!

Country Roads, Take Me Home

Well, it might be planes, rather than country roads, but you get the picture. We leave in an hour for our last visit with Nicholas, then off to the airport. We've been doing some thinking, and wanted to share a few wishes with you:

What we miss and want when we get home:

• Family & Friends
• Fresh vegetables (Mom, did you ever expect me to say that?)
• Colorless, odorless water
• Ice in our drinks, not on our sidewalks
• Lactose free milk
• Cottage cheese
• Having some clue what the people around us are saying
• Stooping (unaccompanied by Babushkas and Dyedushkas)
• NPR & DSL
• The city sound of fire engines
• Starbucks Grande Vanilla Lattes
• Drinks at The Palm, where we can trade Nicholas photos for Phil’s wedding pix.
• The entire skyline of Boston from our roof deck
• Boston Drivers…never thought we’d miss them!
• TV in English – it might be 100 channels of drek, but at least we’ll understand it, and the shows start at regular times, not randomly

What we will miss when we leave here.

(kind of trumps everything else)

It's Official (?)

We had court this morning, and the judge (a formidable woman with what appears to be a good sense of humor) gave us provisional approval as parents to Nicholas. There's some paperwork to be competed in the next 15 days (the standard appeals process), but we are assured it's fairly routine. Forgot to get a picture at court - we're a little fried at this point!


Then off to see the kiddo. Again, we were in the sleeping room and, given temps, layers and stress, all three of us were pretty mellow. Nicholas got his fix of Cheerios and another go at the sippy cup; we got our fix of Nicholas (if not our fill).









We're about to start packing. We leave Kostanai tomorrow afternoon, directly after our last visit with little man. We'll spend a night in a nice hotel in Almaty, then fly home via Amsterdam on Friday. Will give a recap when we're home and human. Love you all.

It's all a matter of Degree(s)

I can't remember if we've covered how temperature plays a role in the lives of people in Kazakhstan. If so, too bad - just look at the pictures!

In general, anything cold is to be avoided.

• Open windows - Nyet
• Single layers of clothing - Nyet
• Fresh air - Nyet
• Drinks kept in the fridge - Nyet (we were out to dinner last night and the waiter asked if it was ok that our Coke and Sprite were cold - um, yes please)
  

We have probably mentioned that the rooms in the baby house tend to be a bit warm. On a number of occasions, they move into the downright hot range. For example, the playroom was at about 80 yesterday, and all the windows were closed, as usual. Cross-ventilation is anathema, and doors are always kept closed on rooms being aired out, to prevent any cold air (or refreshingly cool air?) from give the kids a chill. How this would be possible when the kids are in 2-3 layers at all times, including multiple pairs of socks, is beyond us. So that's your background for our visit today.

We arrived a bit early, as we wanted decent play time before taking Nicholas to get his passport photos taken. As usual, we took off our jackets (light ones, as it's 50 out, and keep that in mind), and headed in to play with the boy. He was wearing two of the outfits we bought for him - at the same time. The first layer (aside from diapers) was a fleecy type of sleeper. Over that he had on his blue and white Bear outfit - also fleecy. Then he had terry socks on - over the footie part of the jammies. It was about 78 degrees in the play room.

We went into the bedroom for our visit, and had a busy but slightyly sleepy boy. He had just finished a huge lunch, so that made sense. But knowing that he would have to be changed into a brighter outfit (for more contrast) for his passport photos, we removed the outer layer. Wow - we had a different boy. First of all, he wasn't like a sausage in casing, so he started really moving. And he wasn't melting, so the sleepiness disappeared.





Have to admit, we did give him some forbidden fruit today...Cheerios. Check out the reaction!






Then it was time to head to the photographers. We got him back into his red and blue track suit that you've all seen, and layerd that with a fleece and fiberfill snowsuit that we bought a few weeks ago. Not a happy camper, but there you go. When we got back into the playroom, our parenting skills were called into question, as we obviously didn't understand how to dress a child for the frigid tundra (um, again, it's 50 out). Off goes the fleece, and on goes the snowsuit rated for a blizzard in mid-winter in Antarctica.


Interestingly, Nicholas didn't have any visible negative reaction to being out in the car, as some kids do. He was definitely nervous, but the combo of being over-heated and the movement of the car sent him to la la land very quickly. Got to the photo place, pix got taken, and we took him back.

One more day down.