Our Kazakhstan Adoption

2008-05-11T17:46:00.000-07:00

Playing in the sandbox
Yummy fudgesicle!

One Year Ago Today

2008-05-05T18:47:00.000-07:00

Today is exactly one year ago today that Brogan arrived home from Kazakhstan. I remember having dinner with Bryson and my parents at Ruby Tuesdays and sitting there thinking at that dinner about how our family was about to change.

I remember going to the airport afterwards with my dad to meet Joe, Kathy (AKA Grandma) and Brogan while mom stayed home with Bryson to get him in bed. In so many ways it seems like just yesterday, but on the other hand Brogan has changed so drastically over this past year that it seems almost impossible that it has ONLY been one year.

I cannot say enough how proud I am of him and how blessed I feel to have him in our lives!

I LOVE YOU BROGAN!

2008-04-27T18:23:00.000-07:00

Brogan at the beach
Bryson and Brogan
Happy 2nd Birthday Brogan

Yummy cake!

One Year!

2008-04-27T09:53:00.000-07:00

It is so hard to believe that Brogan has been here a year already. It has been challenging at times, but he is an amazing little boy.
He has caught up on all of his delays, except for his speech. He started speech therapy this past week and the therapist said he has about a 6 month delay.
Brogan is very smart though, it is so evident in his actions and his receptive language.
We took him to the beach last month for the weekend and he did so well. Loved the sand and the water - it mesmerized him! He also slept well in the hotel room and I think that made me realize that he really now does feel secure and knows that we aren't going to leave him.
He is so big and REALLY strong. He loves to tackle Bryson (who is 3 years older than him) to the ground and sit on him. One bad thing about that is if he has one of his "terrible twos" tantrums, it is really hard for me to hold on to him to remove him from the situation.
Our poor cats are constantly trying to get away from him as he loves to tackle them too!
He and Bryson get along pretty well. Bryson sometimes (rightfully so) gets upset when Brogan just crashes right into whatever he is doing - just your usual sibling rivalry stuff.
Brogan loves music and to dance. He also loves to be outside and some of his favorite things are the sandbox, swinging and water - and of course giving raspberry kisses. Lately he loves to play with matchbox cars and Thomas the Train toys.
We have still kept in touch with the Canadian family that were in Aktau with us - in fact Rayn will turn two on May 5th. They may come for a visit in the fall.
We have also kept in touch via email with our translator. She is no longer working for the agency, but for her sister in the market in Almaty and working more on her foreign languages.
I hope one day we can take Brogan back there once he is old enough to understand everything.
We have found a handful of local families who have adopted from Kazakhstan over the last few years and have had two get-togethers. One little girl is Brogan's age and that will be nice to see them periodically especially as the kids get older.
We are busy and tired, but happy! Also very proud of our two boys.

Brogan starts nursery school

2008-01-16T13:39:00.000-08:00

Last week we started taking Brogan to the same preschool that Bryson attends. He will be going just 2 mornings a week, and so far we are going slow with just 2 hours each time. He has cried each time when I drop him off, but not too bad - more of a fussy cry rather than all out fit. They said he settles down and seems to enjoy playing with the other toddlers. I wanted to ease him into it. Mom needs a break and he seems to really love being around other children so hopefully this will work out fine. He will get his speech evaluation soon, but hopefully the therapist will think all is well since he now is trying to talk a bit.
I have started a new job that requires more of a commute, but should be MUCH less stressful than where I was. I really needed a change.
I will post some more pictures soon. In just 1 short month Brogan will be 2!

Happy New Year!

2008-01-03T18:34:00.000-08:00

I know I said that I was going to make the last post the end of the blog, but I couldn't resist adding some pictures from Christmas. And the more I think about it, I have decided to keep adding posts through Brogan's 1 year anniversary date of his arrival home. It's hard to believe but that will be in only 4 short months!

He is starting to talk a little now and it seems every day he blurts out a new word. We had a great Christmas and are looking forward to an exciting New Year with the kids!

Home 6 months - Brogan Joldas

2007-10-28T13:11:00.000-07:00

I think maybe I will make this the last post to this blog. It has been 6 months now and it really seems like Brogan has been a part of our family for much longer than that. So, I think maybe this would be a good time to close out this blog. I plan to have it made into a book for us using a program I found on a website.

He is still doing well. The biting has stopped, the night terrors are better, and physically he is now in the 50-60 percentile for his age on the growth charts. I think he may still have some mild sensory issues, but it is all just slowly getting better. He is still not really talking yet, but has learned some baby signs and the EI program is probably going to go ahead and refer him to speech therapy in the next month or so. He is very determined and smart! He is also such a sweetie and it is so neat watching him blossom into an affectionate little guy!

Brothers

2007-09-23T06:49:00.000-07:00

Bryson and Brogan are getting along well. Bryson says the best part of being a big brother is
"being nice to Brogan, playing with Brogan and throwing the ball to Brogan."
We are going to a Central FL Kazakh family picnic next Saturday. We are looking forward to meeting some other local families with children from Kazakhstan!

Pics in the pool

2007-09-09T13:07:00.000-07:00

Brooke, Bryson and Brogan

2007-09-06T18:30:00.001-07:00

more photos

2007-09-04T19:08:00.000-07:00

Walking!

2007-09-04T18:57:00.001-07:00

Brogan has been walking now for about 3 weeks! He is still adjusting well. We have the Early Interventionist coming out once a week to check on him and give us some suggestions on how to help him along. She feels that his gross motor skills have caught up just fine now. So, the primary focus is going to be on his fine motor skills and speech. We are working on teaching him some baby sign language. It's been two weeks since we started with just "mealtime" signs and he can correctly sign "more" and "milk". I know he understands many things that we say to him, but the poor little guy just can't talk yet and I know that it frustrates him sometimes, so hopefully the signing will help.

He still has some night terrors, but slowly they are getting better. He is also still biting, but that seems to be improving also. We started doing a bit of "time out" for the biting and I think it is helping to get the point across to him that he cannot bite even though I know he doesn't do it to be mean or hurtful.

I'm also awaiting an Occupational Therapy evaluation that I am getting on my own just to evaluate for any sensory issues due to the biting and he is still so obsessed with chewing and putting EVERYTHING into his mouth to the extreme. We went to the beach this weekend for the day and constantly had to keep him from trying to eat seaweed and shells! He may not need any OT, but I would just like to at least get an evaluation.

It is so neat to see him becoming more affectionate with everyone - he really is a sweet little guy. Still full of tons of energy and getting into everything around the house. He is really making up for lost time when it comes to exploring his world.

Home 3 months

2007-07-29T18:41:00.000-07:00

It's now been 3 months - boy does time fly! Brogan does better each day. His "night terrors" seem to be subsiding almost entirely. He is still biting, but it seems that is less also. He just seems more relaxed and happy most of the time now. He will be 18 months old in a couple of more weeks and should be walking on his own very soon!

2007-07-07T08:54:00.000-07:00

Brogan has been home now for 9 weeks. I returned to work this past Thursday (2 days ago), and he is now staying with Granny during the day. But I am able to go and have lunch with him there each day as I did with Bryson. For the summer, Bryson will be at the summer program at his school 3 days a week and hanging out with Daddy or Granny the other 2 days. He is having fun and still adjusting well to beign a big brother. He is very protective of Brogan around other people - constantly reminding everyone that "you have to be gentle with him, he's a baby."
Brogan is really settling in more and more each week that passes. He seems calmer now, but still has periods where he is clingy or fussy - but what baby isn't? He has gained about 5 pounds since he has been home and is cruising the furniture very well, but is still reluctant to try taking many steps forward. His balance is getting very good when he is standing, so hopefully he will be walking soon.
He seems to be attaching to us well. He does still have some of his night "spells" of crying out, but these seem to gradually be getting better also. Right now he is sick with a fever and cough, but seemed a little better this morning. This is the 3rd time he has has a cold/cough type infection since he has been home. I'm sure this is related to his limited exposure to all of the viruses out in the environment, and the fact that we here on the other side of the world have totally different "bugs" than in Kazakhstan. He may be sick quite a bit these next few months until he starts building up some immunity.
He is still biting some, but this also seems to be a bit better as he seems to be understanding more of what we are saying to him and that biting is a definite NO! He understands dog, cat, ball, book, eat, and probably more. He is able to say ball and book, but that is about it as far as talking goes.
I think one reason that things have gotten easier is that now that we know him better we can interpret some of his actions and behaviors better to know what he needs or wants.
He just adores Bryson and they are so cute together - other than Bryson at times of course wants to be left alone and doesn't appreciate his baby brother's attempts to join in on his activities. Brogan just tries so hard to jump right in and play and copy everything Bryson does.
We feel very blessed and are so relieved that Brogan seems to be doing so well and quickly catching up on his milestones.
I will try to keep updates posted as more time passes!

Home 2 weeks now

2007-05-21T12:27:00.000-07:00

I feel bad that I haven't posted until now!
Brogan has been home a little over 2 weeks now and we have just been adjusting to our new routine. So far things are going well. He eats like a horse. He still cries every time his bottle is finished even though there is no way his little tummy could hold any more formula or baby food. He gained a pound in the 2 weeks since his exit medical exam in Almaty, and no major problems found at his first visit with the pediatrician. Of course he has alot of catching up to do with his weight, length, and developmental milestones, but otherwise is OK.
He sleeps well all night and 2 naps per day, but he does cry out once or twice during the night. It almost seems like night terrors as he is not really awake when he does it. It only lasts a minute or two and he's sound asleep again. We have discovered that it's best not to try to talk to him or pick him up during those episodes as then he REALLY screams and cries. One of us will just quietly walk into the room and turn on his Aquarium "white noise" in his crib and he settles right down. Some nights he does it more often than others. Hopefully he will stop doing it soon.
It is amazing how he has changed. When we met him 2 1/2 months ago he couldn't sit up or crawl (was scooting) and we were the first to spoon feed him. Now he sits well, crawls FAST and is trying to pull up to stand. He is getting much stronger with his muscle tone and now really wants me to hold him alot. He will now lay his head on my shoulder when he is tired. He also starting feeding himself finger food (dried toddler fruits and fruit puffs) just this past Thursday! We aren't having any issues with food textures. He is doing great on Stage 3 baby food. He babbles constantly, but no ma-ma or da-da yet. He does copy facial expressions. We can stick out our tongue at him or blow raspberries or smack our lips and he will copy us. Sometimes he initiates this himself. He seems to be trying to wave hello and goodbye.
He also adores his big brother, Bryson. He watches him constantly and tries to jump right in with whatever toys Bryson is playing with (sometimes NOT to Bryson's pleasure). Bryson seems to be a real trooper. It is a big change for him to no longer be the only child. But he likes to help out and this seems to have given us all the chance to let him become more independent. I think I was probably not letting him do things for himself enough and now he really seems to enjoy showing off what he can do now that he is a big brother.
Brogan also loves the water. The first two nights he screamed during his bath, then on the third night he was fine. We have been in my parent's pool now several times and he just splashes everywhere and kicks and laughs. We are so happy to have another "water baby" since we enjoy the water so much and love boating and the beach. It seems that the water is good therapy for him too.
The only hard part is when he gets fussy and we just can't figure out what he wants or doesn't want. We cannot seem to predict when he will be in one of his moods. It seems like during those times nothing makes him happy. I can only guess it is just his adjusting and perhaps some teething going on also. We just try to distract him and can usually find something such as the swing outside or going for a walk in the stroller to settle him down. He seems to crave new experiences. He loves movement and loves to touch everything. He even enjoys sitting in the grass. Boy, once he is up walking I will be on my toes as he is so much more active and inquisitive than Bryson. Bryson has always been so mellow and easy for us and it is already very different caring for Brogan. I am soooo much more tired even though I'm getting enough sleep at night. Brogan just wears me out trying to keep up with him. But to see him smile and laugh and babble - just positively BLOSSOM - is so wonderful.
I have now 6 more weeks left before returning to work and am trying to gradually start visiting Granny's house (my mom) to get him use to being there and her caring for him. She is going to watch him this Wednesday while I take Bryson to his preschool end of the year party. We also plan to go to the beach for the day this upcoming Memorial Day weekend, especially since Brogan seems to be doing so well with our outings thus far and loves the water.
Other big news - my new little nephew, Evan, was born early yesterday morning. So now we have 3 little boys in the family!
Will post another update soon!

Coming home!

2007-05-04T07:28:00.000-07:00

Everything this week went fine. Brogan did have a fever for a day or two and vomited a couple of times, but Joe said he seems to be fine now. He is still a bit fussy at times and the physician at the SOS clinic said he was cutting 4 molars. The embassy visit is done and they should be getting on the plane to head home about 7 hours from now. Can't wait to see them!

Back in Almaty

2007-04-29T18:24:00.000-07:00

Joe and Kathy (his mom) arrived OK in Almaty late Saturday night around 11:45pm their time. I didn't hear from him until just this morning (5:15pm Sunday over there) as they had some trouble dialing with the calling card.
When they arrived, Brogan was waiting in their hotel room with our translator who escorted him earlier in the day from Aktau. He was asleep and Joe said he did not wake up and actually slept throughout the remainder of the night. I'm glad they were able to get some sleep. I remember how tired I was that first night we arrived after that LONG trip!
They did not do much today. Kathy went out with our translator and the Canadian couple (they are back in Almaty also and staying at the same hotel). Joe was waiting at the room with Brogan when he called. Now they have to just pass the time the next 2 days until his medical exam Wednesday. I just hope all goes as planned and that this week goes by fast. I have plenty to keep me busy here with work and Bryson, so it should fly by.
Bryson and I had a nice low-key weekend. We went to dinner at a friend's and after church today went to my parent's house and swam in the pool. Bryson is like a little fish this year and just loves it! I hope Brogan likes the water as much as we all do.
I'll post again once I hear from Joe in the next few days.

Joe's return to Almaty

2007-04-25T13:42:00.000-07:00

We just received word that Brogan is ready to go. Joe will be leaving on Friday (4/27) to meet him with our translator in Almaty. He will arrive there late Saturday evening. His mom is going also to help with Brogan and we are so thankful to her for this!
Apparently the medical clinic is closed Monday and Tuesday, but they have booked an appointment for Brogan for Wednesday, then his exit interview at the US embassy will be on Friday. They will then return home on Saturday, 5/5.
They are staying at the Hotel Berkana again and the Canadian family will also be there with their son. That will be nice as they can hang out together to pass the time.
I will post again with any updates from them once they arrive. Last word is that Brogan has been doing well. We are anxious to get him home!

More photos - Almaty

2007-04-17T18:57:00.000-07:00

More photos

2007-04-17T18:49:00.000-07:00

Entrance to the Baby Home in Aktau
View from our apartment in Aktau
Playroom at the Baby Home
Camels in Aktau
Hotel Berkana in Almaty - was nice and reasonably priced (includes breakfast)

End of the Appeal Period

2007-04-17T18:45:00.000-07:00

Today was the end of the appeal period - so here he is!

Back home

2007-04-10T12:25:00.000-07:00

We arrived back home late Saturday night. It is so good to be back! I have slept like a rock the last 2 nights. It really makes you appreciate your own comfortable bed.
To back track a little- on Wednesday, the day after court and our last day in Aktau, the baby home director and pediatrician hosted a lunch for us at the baby home. Our coordinator and translator were there also. We had bread, cheese, meat, fruit, pastries and chocolates. It was a very beautiful table! We also drink tea and cognac. The baby home director gave us a little Kazakh doll and our coordinator gave us a small rug.
On Thursday we stopped by the baby home on the way to the airport to see Brogan one last time. We had a nice flight back to Almaty and went souvenir shopping on Friday. We left for the airport at midnight Friday evening.
The only glitch on the way home was missing our flight from Chicago to Tampa (the last leg of that LONG trip home) by only 5 minutes! The plane was still at the gate, but they had JUST closed the door! We had to wait 4 1/2 hours for the next flight to Tampa. Our connection was too tight. The Lufthansa flight from Frankfurt arrived on time, but by the time we went through immigration, got our luggage and went through customs, rechecked our bags, changed terminals and went through security again, we just missed it. Keep that in mind for anyone traveling soon - make sure you have enough time if you have to make a connecting domestic flight back home in the US.
Bryson was asleep by the time we got home. I tried to wake him up - I just wanted to see him so bad - but he was zonked out! But he was so excited to see us that next morning.
We had a nice Easter afternoon with family and both returned to work yesterday.
Now Joe will return in about 3-4 weeks, probably with my mother-in-law, to get Brogan. The Canadian family is still there and I have been in contact with them by email since we got back home. They said Brogan is doing fine - smiling an seems active and happy. It's nice to have someone there to keep an eye on him and keep us posted.
I will post a picture of him once our appeal period is up on the 18th - then its official and I won't be breaking any rules I guess.
We miss Brogan, but I can't express how great it is to be home!

Brogan is ours!

2007-04-03T08:22:00.000-07:00

Court went very smoothly this afternoon. It truly was "quick and painless" as I had prayed for!
We are officially Brogan's parents - well, the true FINAL court decision comes at the end of the 2 week appeal period, but they granted our adoption. The entire proceeding was only an hour. The prosecuter did not even ask us any questions and the judge only deliberated for maybe 15-20 minutes before returning with her decision.
We missed our afternoon visit today due to court, but will see Brogan again tomorrow for the last time before we head home. That will be hard! The baby home is going to have lunch for us to celebrate. Everyone here has been so helpful and wonderful. They really are happy to see the babies find families.
We return to Almaty Thursday, and then leave for home on Saturday morning.
Thanks to everyone for your thoughts and prayers!
I will post more once we get home (unless something exciting happens here before we leave - then I'll post sooner). It will be 3-4 weeks before one of us can return to get him. We are going to have him escorted to Almaty, so the return trip should be only a week or less.

Court is tomorrow

2007-04-02T07:51:00.000-07:00

We are going to court tomorrow (Tuesday, 4/3) at 5pm. The Canadian family that is here are going before us at 2pm.
They have told us not to worry and that everything should be fine. It still makes us nervous though!
We hope to go out for a celebration drink tomorrow evening after we are done. That will be a big relief.
We will return to Almaty on Thursday, 4/5 and then fly home on Saturday 4/7.
Brogan has been doing well. We have been able to take him outside each afternoon this week and he seems to really enjoy the fresh air. Today he fell asleep in my lap outside as we sat in the shade in a gazebo on the playground.
A couple of days ago, they took us on a drive about 30-45 minutes southeast of town to a small canyon. It really made us realize how vast this country is. Not so much the canyon size, but from looking down and across the horizon it just seems to go on forever. It was a nice trip. We saw several more herds of camels and some horses along the way also. The road was very rough though!
Please say a prayer that court is quick and painless! I will post again afterwards to let everyone know how it went.

In the home stretch!

2007-03-28T07:44:00.000-07:00

Let's see if this will post. We were still having trouble posting and I just gave up on Blogger for awhile! I know our family and close friends are up to date, since we have kept in touch via email and phone calls.
Things are going well. We finished our 14 bonding days last Sunday and are now awaiting court which should be on 4/2 or 4/3. We have been told that this judge never waives the appeal period. We will go home after court and then one of us will return in 3-4 weeks to get Brogan. We hate to have to leave him, but are also anxious to get home to Bryson as we miss him so much. It really makes you feel torn as a parent! We decided not to use the escort option. It sounds complicated to arrange and we just feel responsible for his safe trip home to us.
We haven't gotten sick - even after all the babies had colds and fevers, and have been comfortable. Just getting a bit bored at this point. We look forward to our visits with Brogan, but that is only 3-4 hours out of our days.
We did get to enjoy the Kazakh New Year festivities last week and have been to a restaurant to sample some very good traditional Kazakh food. We took a walk down at the beach. The Caspian Sea has very clear water and I collected some sand and shells to bring home for Brogan.
They also took us to see camels. A horseman was herding them to their daily grazing area and we caught up with them and took some photos. Some of the places we have visited have also included a Mosque and an Orthodox church. The fresh produce is awesome here and the bread, cheese and ice cream are good too! We have shopped at a fresh fish market and another excellent meat market. But I must admit I'm looking forward to some good old American food - a grouper sandwich sounds so good right now!
The people here have all been reserved, but polite, and we have felt very safe the entire time.
The weather is warming up a little. We have had more rain than I would have thought, but the last few days have been sunny and nice. We were able to take Brogan outside this afternoon for the first time - I think he liked it from all the smiles we saw! I think it was the first time he has been outside since he came to the baby home after he was born.
I will post again soon once we go to court!

Day 5 of bonding period

2007-03-16T00:23:00.000-07:00

Sorry I didn't post sooner, we had some issues with Blogger, but got it straightened out now.
Brogan Joldas is doing well. He has started to relax when I hold him and he will now lay his head on my shoulder a bit and "hold" me back a little. Also, he fell asleep in my arms for the first time yesterday! That was awesome! Previously, he would get a bit fussy if I tried to hold him when he was tired. He would always easily fall asleep on the floor, always on his left side sucking his left thumb. I tried holding him up against me in that same position, rocking him a bit and patting his back and he fell asleep without any fuss. He did it again today.
We are learning some of his cues and can tell when he is getting tired or hungry. We have been feeding him warm cereal (looks just like plain grits!) in the morning. I bet they just introduced solids recently as it is like feeding a 6 month old. Today they put more in the bowl and it was thicker, so it was a little easier. He is sooooo active and wants to explore everything he sees!
We have been able to make him smile and laugh a little. He really like doing "The Wheels on the Bus" on the floor yesterday and today - he just stared at me and smiled! Bryson liked that too when he was little.
We have fallen into a routine. We go to the baby home at 9:30am and again at 2:30pm - each visit is 1 1/2 to 2 hours. He always falls asleep at the end of our visits. We put a picture of us and one of Brooke and Bryson in his crib for him to look at.
We ate lunch on Wednesday at the Marriott - it was good, but too expensive and we won't go there again! Tonight I think we are going to dinner with our translator and coordinator before our coordinator returns to Almaty for about a week. She will return a couple of days before court to help us prepare. She said not to worry about court that it will be fine. Just to be honest and repeat the same information that is in our dossier. It looks like we should be returning home on 4/7 - I had our flight changed to that date. Then it will be about a month before Brogan can be escorted to FL or one of us can return to get him. We are somewhat rethinking the escort - just wondering if it will be easier for one of us to come back to get him in Almaty rather than trying to coordinate the whole escort scenario!
Tomorrow we are going to see camels after the afternoon visit.
Also, we were told this morning that because the babies have been sick (just a little cold going around, but Brogan has been fine) that they only want one family to visit in the AM and the other family in the PM! That makes no sense to me at all, especially because Brogan is not sick and when we visit we have him in a completely seperate room from everyone else! In fact, I would love to take him outside to get some fresh air. He is always sweaty in the TON of clothes they keep on him. We cheated a little yesterday - since we are pretty much alone with him during our visits, I lifted his shirts (2 long - sleeved) and wiped his back and the back of his neck with a baby wipe and blew on him - he really smiled. I can't wait to get him to FL and let him "be free" in just a T-shirt and barefeet. That baby home is so stuffy with the heat cranked up like it is! I just have to bite my tongue. I don't want to upset or offend them by expressing my disagreements with what they want us to do. Just grin and bear it - the goal is just to get him home with us ASAP!
I want to thank all our friends and family for the emails and posts! It is so great to read them and feel the support and encouragement! It makes the days easier!
Take care everyone!

Aktau

2007-03-13T05:49:00.000-07:00

Boy is this different from Almaty! Just dry and brown desert meeting the sea. It is a pretty good size city and we are in an apartment with basic modern conveniences such as washing machine, full kitchen including microwave, iron, cable TV with FOX news and CNN in English. The store is big and I realized I brought alot of stuff I could have just bought here - oh well. They have 2 shopping malls. It looks like you can buy pretty much anything you need around here. There is an Irish pub called Shamrocks about a block from our apartment with English menu. We are definitely not "roughing it"!
We have met our baby boy - Joldas is his name and we are going to use that as his middle name. It means "friend" in Kazakh is what we were told. He is 13 months old and his head circumference is great- perfectly normal, but his weight and length are small as to be expected. He has been there since birth and does have some delayed motor skills - more like an 8-9 month old baby. But he is so bright-eyed and curious! He cried the first 2 times we visited with him, but just briefly. After that, he hasn't cried at all the last 2 visits - he recognizes us now. And today we got him to laugh when we tickled him! Everyone at the baby house is very nice and helpful. It is clean and bright. But we have seen all the babies doing that rocking back and forward motion and one baby was repeatedly banging his head against his crib. It is also eerily quiet in there - except close to feeding time! Everything you read about in the books was right before my eyes in regards to the "orphanage behaviors" of the babies. It is really sad. You wonder why volunteers don't come in just to visit and play with them. They all need to build muscle strength in their legs.
We have been told our court date should be 4/3 or 4/4. Also we can have an escort back to FL instead of having to do a second trip - we certainly did not hesitate to take them up on that!
Now we just spend some bonding time and get through the next 2-3 week. I feel like finally we are in the home stretch after all of the preparation and waiting over the last year!
Will post another update soon.

Sights in Almaty

2007-03-10T01:45:00.000-08:00

Today we went to a park in the city that is a WWII memorial and has a beautiful Orthodox church. Then we went up into the mountains to a large ice rink and it was snowing - it is positively gorgeous up there. Hey Scott - this is the site for the 2011 Winter Olympics!
After the trip up into the mountains we saw the circus (camel rides outside for the kids), drama theater, universities, and then ate at Mad Murphy's Irish Pub. English menu and English speaking staff. Wonderful food also! Definitely would recommend it if you are missing American food and voices!
Now we are back at the mall internet station and will rest up for our 8AM flight tomorrow for Aktau. We are going to go directly to a renovated apartment (not the Marriott - too expensive!). It has a kitchen, laundry, microwave and should be great! Then we can finally unpack and get settled.
Will post again from Aktau!
Steph

We have arrived in Almaty!

2007-03-09T02:06:00.000-08:00

We arrived around 1:30am this morning in Almaty. The trip went very smoothly and really wasn't all that bad but we are definitely tired! Our translator met us at the airport and took us to a very cozy little hotel. There are only 12 rooms, but it has been renovated and is actually very nice - the beds are very comfortable. After we ate breakfast at the hotel (was included with the room cost) our translator and driver came and took us on a driving tour pointing out some sights. We also took a cable car up the mountain to a park - it is very pretty here with the mountains and snow.
We are now at an internet station in a shopping mall and it is very cheap to access the internet this way! We are going to eat here and then go back to the hotel for the evening and get plenty of rest tonight. Tomorrow we are going to the museum and then we fly on to Aktau Sunday morning. Our translator actually travels there with us. So far the people have been nice and many do speak a little English.
We definitely feel safe and comfortable. I know many family/friends seemed concerned about where we were going in relation to the proximity to the middle east, but there is absolutely nothing that feels middle-eastern about Almaty - the people are mostly Asian, but speak Russian and the appearance of the city is more Russian or European. So don't worry !
Will post an update again soon!
Steph

Definite travel date!

2007-03-05T18:38:00.000-08:00

The embassy had our visas today!
We will get them via FedEx tomorrow and leave on Wednesday (3/7). We will arrive at 1:45 am Friday in Almaty and then travel on either that same day or the next to Aktau, the city we are adopting from.
I'm just running around doing the absolute last minute details, but we are as ready as we will ever be!
Please keep us (and Bryson) in your prayers for a safe and speedy trip back home in about 3-4 weeks!
Steph

Still waiting

2007-02-26T08:12:00.000-08:00

Well, Friday came and went and we are still here. There were computer/technical problems at the MFA in Astana and visa numbers were not transmitting to the embassy. So, we can't go until we get our visas. It has turned into a day-to-day waiting game. I hope to hear news today. We have flights on hold for this Wednesday and Thursday. If the embassy doesn't have our information today, then we know we will not be going on Wednesday as we have to get the visas via FedEx overnight.
It wasn't such a bad thing that we didn't go on Friday as expected. We got to go to Bryson's first T-ball game on Saturday and we threw together an early birthday party for him yesterday. He really had a blast with his friends.
We are packed and ready - just waiting!
I'll post again as soon as we know more!
Steph

We are on our way soon!

2007-02-09T12:06:00.000-08:00

Just received word from our agency that Aktau, a port city on the Caspian Sea, has several children available right now. We have decided to take them up on the offer to travel there blind. Once we decided that, things have happened soooo fast. We learned 2 days ago that we are tenatively leaving on 2/23 (in 2 weeks)! YIKES!
Things have been crazy these last few days. There are so many last minute things to take care of and two weeks just seems like not enough time. I really did not think it would happen so quickly! I guess I thought we were still a month or two away from traveling.
I plan to post on this blog if at all possible while we are there.
Everyone please keep us in your prayers that things will proceed as smoothly as possible. Even more important, please pray for Bryson while we are gone and for us a safe return.
I will update more details on our anticipated leave once things settle down a bit!

Still waiting

2007-01-08T05:44:00.000-08:00

Well, it has been about a month since I last posted. We are still waiting on an update regarding our dossier. It has been at the MFA since early December. I sent an email to our agency last week to see if they had heard anything and am still waiting on a reply. The last I heard in December was that they would let us know when it went to the MOE. HOPEFULLY, maybe we will get a surprise that our dossier has already moved on and they just neglected to update us (rather than it is still sitting at the MFA)! I am surprised I haven't received any response at all - not even a "no news yet" or "let me check and get back to you" - but I don't know if the individual that I emailed was even in the office last week with it being a holiday week. I plan to give it a few more days before making a pest of myself by emailing again or calling.
It was easy to set it all aside with the holidays and December just FLEW by, but now that things have settled down and with the New Year I am anxious to hear something. I have a feeling that the wait now will really be tough!
Bryson got a globe from Santa this year and I have been showing him the different countries and oceans. He can identify where we live and where Kazakhstan is. He pointed out to me the other day - "this is where we live, and this (turning it around to Kazakhstan) is where you are going to get my baby". It was so cute! Then, as we looked at the different states in the US, he asked "but where is Publix?" - I laughed soooo hard!
I will post again as soon as I get an update (hopefully VERY soon)!
Steph

Update

2006-12-04T05:43:00.000-08:00

We just received an update from our agency that our dossier is on its way to the MFA (Ministry of Foreign Affairs). That means it has been translated in Kazakhstan, then went to their embassy in Washington DC, and is now back in Kazakhstan. From the MFA it then goes to the MOE (Ministry of Education). She said they would update us again once it was going to the MOE.
The wait has not been too bad - the holidays keep us so busy that time is flying by!

Lost "referral"

2006-11-13T13:20:00.000-08:00

We received news this past week that our little "referral" has been (or is in the process of being) adopted by a German couple that traveled blind to his baby home, saw him, and wanted him! I knew there was a possibility this could happen, but am still shocked. I guess I really did not think it would happen due to his medical issues! Also, everything about this had being "clicking" so fast and so smoothly it really seemed meant to be! This was my "adoption miscarriage" that I have read about from the experience of others. It certainly evokes the same feelings!
So, I was told that the Kaz. coordinator felt sooooo bad and was very upset - promising to push our paperwork through as fast as possible and try to locate us another child with minor special needs. I don't know if we should just travel blind for a "healthy" child or try to locate another special needs "referral" (and risk losing one again?). It has been 11 days and I haven't heard anything yet - I'm sure it's too soon, but on the other hand it would be nice just to hear from the agency - kind of to touch base and at least reassure us that they are working on it! If I don't hear anything in another week I plan to call them.
We did have to submit one extra document - a copy of the home study social worker's license (in addition to the home study agency's license). I thought that was a bit picky, and strange that they did not want a copy of the physician's licenses from our medicals. One would think that would have been requested too! Oh well. We got it and sent it on to catch up with our dossier.
So, now we wait. This must have happened for a reason. There must be a child in Kazakhstan who is truly meant for us and this little boy we lost was the one meant to guide us to change course in our adoption plans and lead us to that child. On a more positive note, we would still be waiting for Russia if we had not changed plans. I've been monitering the progress that our former agency has had with Russia. They have NGO status, but not reaccreditation yet. So, we really would still be waiting (6 months now from their accreditation expiration date) rather than having a completed dossier in a country just needing to get through the approval process. At least we have made major headway in that regards.

Off for translation

2006-10-04T07:39:00.000-07:00

Our dossier was sent to the agency and after review, it is now ready to go for translation. The only thing noted upon review by the agency was that our Home Study agency's license expires 10/15/06! So, I had to contact them for an updated copy and should have that in the next week or two. Boy, did I breathe a sigh of relief that everything else looked OK!

We also got big news from the agency - Our little guy (I'll refer to him as IK which are his initials) has a 5 year old brother that is also available for adoption. However, the two of them have never known one another. IK has been in the baby home since his discharge from the hospital at birth and due to their ages, they are not in the same place. We have been offered the opportunity to adopt the brother also (only extra cost would be the paperwork change and $2000 extra coordinator's fee). But, with a heavy heart I had to tell them that we just cannot parent 3 little boys ages 3, 4, and 5 at this time. If circumstances were different - if I did not work and/or if they were all older school-age we might could do it. But I feel it would not be fair to any of them to not be able to provide the individual attention they need and deserve. It REALLY makes me sad to have to turn him down. He is reportedly healthy - she is still working on getting more information on him. She did offer to try to find him a family that would wish to stay in contact with us. I would not want IK to grow up wondering where his siblings are. He is actually the third delivery for the mom and we do not know the whereabouts of the 3rd child.

If anyone reading this is interested in adopting a 5 year old from Kaz. please let me know!

Now I'm working on assembling the items on my packing list and going through my other "to-do" list of things to get ready for the trip. We also need to order the bunkbeds we have picked out and get the new bedroom for the boys painted and ready.
So much to do, but we are on our way!

Dossier Done!

2006-09-25T07:14:00.000-07:00

Yeah! I dropped our completed dossier into the FedEx box Saturday morning (2 days ago) to send it off to the courier in Tallahasse for it to be Apostilled - all 40 notarized documents that took me exactly two weeks of craziness to compile. Not bad though, I think two weeks was pretty good. Luckily, everything went smoothly obtaining the records. I expedited everything I possibly could, so I think that helped.
I have to say, as I dropped that envelope into the box, I had to resist the urge to try to reach back in, tear it open and recheck everything. Now I'll worry until I have it all back safe in my hands. It makes me panicky to think of having to do all of it over again if something happens - horrible thoughts of FedEx or the courier losing it or papers torn, etc. run through my mind.
Of course, then I will send it to the agency and it will go back and forth across the Atlantic a couple of times! THAT'S when I will REALLY worry!
I have started getting some things together for the trip. I made a packing list compiled from several lists that I found on various adoption travel websites. We are going to have to start shopping for winter clothes to take as our Florida clothing will certainly not suffice for winter in Kazakhstan. This is assuming no unforeseen delays occur that would push our travel dates off until spring.
I seem to be thinking more about having to leave little man for this trip. I guess since it is getting closer. I just don't know how I am going to do it! I have to just keep pushing it out of my mind.
I also joined a new yahoo group that formed - AdoptAttach - it is for discussion of attachment and attachment parenting. I completely agree with the entire concept and hope to learn as much as I can to prepare for our new addition. But, in many ways reading some of the posts makes me feel guilty and worried about the fact that I will have to return to work full time after 12 weeks. But, at least my great mom is there to help instead of having to go to daycare.
Will post again soon!

Change of plans!

2006-09-07T18:47:00.000-07:00

I have been very bad about posting on this blog! We have just been so busy this summer, and really nothing had changed much with our adoption process --- until now!
Since the end of May everything has been "on hold" in Russia. Our prelim. dossier completed, but just sitting waiting for our agency to get NGO registration and reaccreditation. So, I guess that there really hasn't been much to post about! I'm not the type to sit down and write about my feelings and thoughts and keep a journal every day. Sorry!
Well, now I will change the name of our blog to "Our Kazakhstan Adoption".
Very unexpectedly about 2 -3 weeks ago a little 2 1/2 year old boy "fell into my lap". I was just looking around online on some various adoption related websites (my obsession these last few months - absorbing all the information I can get) when I came across Until All Have Homes. This is an organization who tries to assist in finding adoptive families for waiting special needs children. There were a couple of children on their website that were in Russia and I inquired about them. This led me to an adoption agency that was representing the children. Upon speaking with the caseworker at this agency, I told her where we were at with our adoption and what age child and special needs we were willing to consider. She told me she had just received a referral of a little boy in Kazakhstan who was a preemie and had undergone open heart surgery earlier this year for a congenital heart defect. To make a long story short, over next 2 weeks I was able to speak with an IA doctor here in the US who had already reviewed his case (and consulted with 2 pediatric cardiologists here in the US) and received a total of 12 -15 great quality recent digital photos of him. I also spoke with a family who had just returned from his baby home where they were adopting a 4 year old boy. After much of this research and soul-searching, we have decided to take that "leap of faith"!
I feel blessed that we have received so much information on him that we likely would not have gotten on another referral. He is doing well and his cardiac prognosis is great. He is very small in weight and height, but all along his head circumference has been normal for his age. He is not speaking but "mama" , but I've been told his receptive language seems fine.
I'm sure we will need to pursue speech therapy and likely some other Early Intervention services.
So, now we have changed agencies and countries. I just received our new dossier 2 days ago and having been tackling it head on to get it done ASAP. We want that travel date! Knowing that there's a specific little boy waiting really makes every day that ticks by seem like it is taking too long.
I wonder if I can get the record for the fastest completion of a dossier for Kazakhstan? Ha! Ha!
Once our dossier is submitted, we were told we would likely travel in about 3 months. That makes it likely January (maybe sooner, maybe later) which is the MIDDLE OF WINTER where it gets 40 below celcius at midday! And here we are Floridians!
We likely will be in country for about 3 weeks. They have a 2 week bonding period first, followed by the court date. We then can return home and one of us can return 2 -4 weeks later to get him or have an escort bring him to the US. We are still debating which option to choose. Actually, I am hoping that we may luck out and have the appeal period waived and could bring him home with us immediately after court and the embassy proceedings in Almaty. We were told the judges rarely waive the waiting period. But, if it did get waived, our time in Kazakhstan would likely be a total of about 4 weeks in order to finalize everything a bring him home with US.
So, I'm busy with paperwork and also trying to learn as much as possible about Kazakhstan. A bit of trivia - it is the 9th largest country in the world!
I won't give out any more details about our little boy such as his name, the city he is in, or our new agency's name. This needs to remain confidential until things are completed.
I will do my best to keep this up-to-date from now on!

Family weekend

2006-07-01T09:18:00.000-07:00

We are getting ready to go out to Joe's parent's house out at the lake for the afternoon. It is 4th of July weekend, and we have alot of fun plans for the next few days. Cookout today, then tomorrow we will be going to meet up with my parents and stay overnight in the motor home in Orlando. On Monday we are all going to Sea World. And then another cookout/pool party on Tuesday the 4th!
One reason I mention this is that we get to spend the next few days with my aunt and uncle who adopted two sisters from Ukraine a year and a half ago. We haven't seen them in a little over a year. They are the reason we began exploring international adoption - and here we are now actually doing it! Joe and I are so excited to see how the girls are doing and I plan to ask my aunt tons of questions!
I spent about 2 -3 hours last night sorting through our paperwork. I have organized it (I am sooo obsessive about lists and organization) into folders - things to work on now, papers for our embassy interview, papers for our dossier, and travel information. I am not going to date anything or have items notarized and apostilled at least until our agency has been re-accredited. Maybe we will run less of a risk of documents expiring before court that way. But I have started filling out some of the documents. Also making a "to-do" list to prepare for travel. I think the more organized and prepared we are ahead of time, it should be easier once we get a referral.
Well, Joe and Bryson just got back from getting haircuts - much to Bryson's dismay! Ha! Gotta go!
Steph

Next steps

2006-06-29T11:07:00.000-07:00

We have received our next set of paperwork from our adoption agency - boy is it a lot!
They have also included travel information for Moscow and within our region. Basically we have to complete a lot more paperwork relating to all aspects of our lives (health - physical and mental, finances, employment, marriage, criminal background checks, pictures of our home and family/friends, etc.). But it is relatively straightforward and we should have plenty of time to work on all of it. We are also getting some CD's to learn a little Russian!
Once we receive a referral we make travel plans for Trip 1, which should be approximately one week. This trip is to meet the child and make a final decision on whether to adopt that child. When will then return home and await our court date. Trip 2 will be for our court date and to bring our child home. If the 10 day wait is not waived, we may be in Russia for 2-3 weeks on that trip. The judge has the authority to waive the required 10 wait and allow us to leave the country, but the trend is that the judges are being pressured not to waive it. It is suppose to be the appeal period.
I don't mind the travel -except for leaving Bryson!!! It is going to be sooooo hard to leave him here, especially for that second trip knowing we may be gone for that long. I know he will be fine with my parents, but I will worry and miss him so much! It is so far to travel away from him. I know some families take their other children - even on both trips. If he was older, we probably would. But that is such a hard trip to take a 3 or 4 year old on. And our new child will likely be frightened and need ALOT of attention. Can you imagine a 10 -12 hour overseas flight with both a preschooler AND a scared 1 or 2 year old. Can you say "flight from hell"? Ha! Ha! Author John MacLean has a whole section in his book "The Russian Adoption Handbook" entitled "The Flight From Hell" and I about died laughing when reading it. But I'm sure it is correct unless we get very lucky!
Until next post!
Steph

Introduction

2006-06-28T13:47:00.000-07:00

Now that I have more time to write, I will give a quick summary of where we are at in our adoption process. The good news is that we have completed our Home Study, received BCIS approval, and our documents have been sent to the region of Kemerovo. Kemerovo is about a 4-5 hour flight from Moscow in Siberia. If anyone is interested in learning more about this region, I have found RussiaTrek.com very informative as you can get more general information on the different regions of Russia.
The bad news is that we are caught up in delays with re-accreditation with our agency. Russia has implemented a new law that all adoptions agencies must register as a NGO (non-governmental organization) before they can renew their accreditation. The problem is that while they have passed this new requirement, they have not set up the policies and procedures for agencies to comply with it! Our adoption agencies accreditation came up for renewal on 6/9/06 - right after this new policy was passed. Therefore our agency (and many other well known agencies) are "in limbo" preparing to get NGO registration so that they may then get re-accreditation. We have been told this should take anywhere from 1 -3 months. It has now been 1 month and everything is still pending.
Unfortunately, our documents did not get registered in Kemerovo before their accreditation expired (it was sent over about 10 days before the 6/9 expiration date). For families with paperwork already registered in their regions, they have the option of continuing with their adoptions independently or waiting for their agency's accreditation to be renewed.
So, now we wait - wait for this "glich" to get straightened out and then our paperwork can be registered and begin our wait for a referral.
For those who do not already know, we are waiting for a child younger than age 2 (boy or girl), and have told our agency that we would be willing to consider a child with a minor medical need. Many simple corrective procedures that are easily obtained in the USA are not readily available in Russia, and we would love to be able to help a child with a special need.
Next posts I will give a bit more detail about our "next steps" and probably ventilate a few frustrations!
Steph