Another Farewell....

Today we had no set plans except to go on a few walks, which we did. This morning we walked to the water. Victoria played with a pail and shovel in the sand and really enjoyed this. She also had a good time chasing a bird and watching a few dogs pass. I have yet to come across anything she is afraid of. Always curious, but never afraid.


While we were down at the water there was a large group of kids walking around, taking pictures, playing on the broken rides, and just enjoying themselves. They noticed that we spoke English and finally came over to us, asked if they could talk to us and ask questions. It was really sweet. They did speak English, somewhat broken, but we all managed. We learned they were there for some sort of camp that lasted 21 days. They have already been here 10 days, but have just now started to enjoy the beach because the sun has come out. Actually, it was a beautiful day here today. It seemed they ranged from the ages of 11 to 14. We told them we are from California and they mentioned (the girls of course) that they hope to meet Brad Pitt someday…..haha! They asked several questions and we asked questions of them too. Finally, they said that they had a special present for us, they gathered together and sang to us! It was awesome! I really loved it! They reconvened again then gave us some Russian chocolate, a coin and a shell from the beach. What a great group of kids!




















We came back to the hotel to find that Ryan and Sandy finally received word that their paperwork was back from Moscow. They made flight reservations and got a plane going out tonight. We will miss them and Bodi very much. Another great family. Bodi is such a cute little guy. Both parents and Bodi are blessed to now be a family. Ryan and Sandy are both involved with the Air Force and just a really fun couple with interesting experiences under their belts. Now, we are down to three families here and no sign of any new ones on the horizon!

So here is how this goes, when a family leaves they start passing out all of their food. That happened when the Overstreet’s left and again with the True’s today. Justin even left a pretty nice knife! Both of those families acquired stuff when others have left. Today one of the items acquired was a can of kipper snacks (canned fish in an oval tin, like sardines). Mom opened them, started eating them and of course, who did not want to be left out of any sort of eating that was going on….yes, Victoria! She enjoyed them and kept going back for more. Honestly, she has not shown any dislike to a food yet! Funny, her caregiver at the orphanage was sure to tell me she was a picky eater! I have to admit, in her defense, she has slowed down a bit.


After snacking on canned fish (no, not me), we headed to the playground here at the hotel. Just as soon as we got out there, I noticed I had forgotten my camera. I wanted to get it because we were heading back down to the water, knowing lots of people would be there because today is a holiday here. I swear I was only gone for maybe 4 minutes and when I returned my mom says to me that I most likely will not want to leave my daughter with babushka (grandma) again. She managed to fall face first while I was gone! Mom decided to teach her how to swing on her tummy and she toppled head first over the swing into the dirt (I told mom I was telling). I wanted to know of course how she reacted. I was told that she got up, looked at grandma, brushed herself off and moved on to something else….crazy little girl! That really goes along with her personality, she is pretty resilient. We played on the swings (with mommy!), she went down the different slides, talked to the other kids in Russian, and we moved on.




















We headed down to the water and had a nice walk. Like I had predicted, there were many people. It seems the warmest part of the day here is around 4 or 5 in the evening. Sun sets late, it is not dark yet and it is 9:05 pm. On our way back to the hotel, Irina drove up to tell us goodbye. We are not leaving yet, but she will be out of town for a bit on business. We are now in the care of Lana, though we don’t have much else to do here. We actually spent part of the afternoon looking into changing our flight. I will have the paperwork I need to bring Victoria back to the US by Wednesday and we are now scheduled to fly home on Saturday the 9th. We will know for sure tomorrow if we can change the flight, that will be nice! I am ready for home!!!

Paka Blake

Today we said goodbye to the Overstreet's. I am so happy that they are moving on in their journey. I am grateful our paths have crossed and we share not only the bond of adoption, but our children lived together in the same group within the same orphanage. Additionally, our visits with our children where together over the ten day wait. They will travel to Moscow to visit the US Embassy there and then finally home. Blake is blessed to now have a Mama, Papa, big brother, big sister, and a dog! His new family is also very blessed! We all said goodbye, walked them out the the van and waved as they drove away. We are down to 4 families now at the hotel.

We went for a walk down by the water today. It was very nice. Victoria enjoyed the beach area. She threw rocks in the water, gathered a few shells and rocks, and watched at least 4 trains go by while we were there. She really enjoyed being outside, seeing the birds, walking and riding in a stroller. She is curious, but does not appear to be overwhelmed. She has more of a personality in which she seems to just take it all in. We walked for over an hour. Today was the last day that I need to complete any paperwork downtown, so I do hope we can go on a couple of walks each day and spend more time outside.

Throwing rocks in the water.

We had lunch, played, watched Sesame Street on the laptop and waited for Irina and the driver to pick us up. Today I had to go to the American Consulate in Vladivostok. That went well and I just needed to get papers ready for the courier to take to Moscow. He will be going tomorrow. Tomorrow is another holiday here in Russia, so most of the government offices will be closed. Processing that needs to go on with my paperwork will take place on Monday and Tuesday. The courier will fly back Weds. Even though Vladivostok and Moscow are both in Russia, Moscow is an 8+ hour flight from here. But I am glad someone else is making that trip and not me!

Lunch...salad...not just salad, trust me, this was just the beginning of lunch!

It took a very long time to get home from the Consulate. We did not get back to the hotel until 7:00 pm and we left to go just before 3:00 pm. We did stop at the market on the way back, but traffic was awful. This is a three day weekend because of the holiday. You know? Sort of like what happens to the 91 on a three day weekend. No wait, that happens to the 91 every day!

New words for today =)
socks, shoes, I love you (sort of). She certainly says lots of other things too. I guess I should mention I am picking up a bit of Russian. Also, today she just did lots on singing, she really just sings
away...very sweet!!

This is the whole group at the potluck.

Amy, her dad Randy and son Walker (North Carolina)

Fred and Heather (Newfoundland, Canada....their daughter will be joining them on Monday)

Mom, Victoria and me

Sandy, Ryan, and Bodi (Colorado)

Heather, Justin, and Blake (Illinois)

Potluck!!

Victoria brushing Mommy's hair.

Well, Victoria slept until 8:00 am this morning. Now that was a pretty good night’s rest. It was another busy day; mostly this morning. I am starting to have trouble keeping track of where we are going and what we are doing. I did get Victoria’s passport today and she also had to visit a Dr. This Dr. makes a report for the US Embassy. She did very well with the doctor, but of course did not talk. The Dr. asked if she talked and then asked her, “Why don’t you talk to me?”…..Nothing. She does talk A LOT in the hotel room and is also talking a lot around the other families. During the car ride the kids were very serious and she wanted to look out the window as much as possible. And yes, that is possible here, no child car seats at all!

Victoria did fall asleep for about 10 minutes on the ride back and that was about it for any sort of nap. We played in the room and then went for a walk to the store. Sandy had a great idea for tonight, she suggested that we have a potluck and all bring something to share. It really was a lot of fun. There were 5 families total. The idea of the whole thing was to just sort of put something together that you got from the market, grocery store or really just whatever you had. Also, it was the Overstreet’s last night here, as they will leave in the morning to Moscow and eventually home. It was fun to get everyone all together, though it does seem we all sort of hang out in the morning now too! We had our potluck in the upstairs dining area, which is called the “White Rabbit”. I am grateful that I was able to meet the Overstreets on this trip and get to know them. I will miss Heather, Justin and Blake and am also envious that they are traveling on.

Potluck gathering.

Victoria ate A LOT today! I am not sure where she is putting it. It really is a fine line, I want her to know there is not a shortage of food and that she can have what she needs and wants. The other side of it is that I don’t want her to get sick. Like I mentioned in a previous blog, this issue with food is not uncommon. It is also not uncommon for a child to stuff themselves until they throw up. Bodi, Sandy and Ryan’s little boy, had the nickname “Baby Bird” for a few days because anytime there was food nearby he had his mouth open ready for someone to poke some in for him. Visualize a nest of baby birds waiting for the adult bird to return to the nest with a worm. He would also have a little melt down (cry) when the meal was over. This is improving. It sounds very cute and we all joke about it here, but the reality of it is really sad to think about. I have been trying to let her eat as much as she wants, mostly monitoring how much she puts in her mouth at one time, so she does not choke. I really just have to take something away until she clears her mouth by chewing and swallowing then it is given back, sometimes one piece of something at a time. Tonight though, I did feel that I needed to cut off the food when I really started to think about the whole day and how much she had eaten. This will subside soon, I know for sure.

Trying to get a pictures of all the kids....Walker, Victoria, Blake and Bodi.

Again, I received all kinds of hugs and kisses from Victoria, mostly in the evening though while enjoying the potluck. We brought a lot of items to the potluck, because we had to bring our own dishes and silverware. Also, I had my laptop there for a picture exchange. I moved Victoria over to sit on mom’s lap and told mom that I was going to make a trip downstairs, bring some of our stuff, would return for the other stuff and we could all go down together. I went down, came back up and Victoria was just sitting there crying. Heather (from Canada, not Overstreet) and mom were both trying to console her, but of course in English. This did not work. Her little heart was broken when I left the room. She did continue to cry when I held her again, letting me know that my behavior was just not OK. This was the first time I had actually seen her cry, besides the first visit when she was told to play because we would be leaving soon. Like I said, I did feel bad for her, but I for sure think that is showing signs of attaching and I think she kind of likes me. =)

Watching Dora (Russian name is Dasha. Yes, she is popular here too) on laptop.

At orphanage the day we were able to take Victoria and Blake outside.