Quinn's 1st Christmas

This was Quinn's very first Christmas...even though he is 5 1/2 years old. He loved having a tree in our house...even though he thought it was funny at first!

He loved meeting Santa Claus. He said he had never met him before. It was quite a night. We went to this place in Irvine called Irvine Regional Park. We took the train and met Santa...along with about 900 other families!! (I am not kidding!)

We had a quiet Christmas day. We didn't want it to be overwhelming for Quinn. He did really good. At first it was a frenzy of Christmas paper going everywhere and then we decided to have the boys take turns opening their presents....much better idea! Ha ha ha

We are now getting ready for Quinn's 6th birthday...January 17th!! We are staying at the Disneyland Hotel and going to Disneyland the next day! He is going to love it! This will also be Quinn's very first "acknowledged" birthday!! So we want it to be very special.

We have had Quinn home a little over 6 months. We were a little concerned with his height at first. He looked like a 3 year old when I first brought him home. He has grown 3 inches and put on 4 1/2 pounds!! He still is short for his age group, but we think he is going to catch up just fine. He is also finally liking our food here! So hopefully he will gain more weight too. Parker weighs 46 pounds to Quinn's 36 pounds!!

Quinn and Parker go Trick or Treating

Happy Halloween!!

Oh what fun! I told the boys...."Go put your costumes on"!! They screamed!! We have never seen them run so fast! Ha Ha

This was Quinn's very first Halloween! We think he caught on very FAST! He was so excited to run from door to door saying "Trick or Treat"!! All of our neighbors were great! They were just as excited as Quinn was! We took so many pictures!

Boy life has really changed for the little boy from Kazakhstan! It breaks my heart thinking of the ones still there!

Lot's of people that meet Quinn can't believe that he has only lived here for 5 1/2 months. His English is getting so much better.

Quinn has also grown 2 full inches! That is awesome! He is catching up to Parker!! But Parker said that he is still the "Big Brother"!! Ha

Quinn has SURGERY!!

Quinn has perforated eardrums and we had his left eardrum repaired. Due to the recent fires here in California, Quinn's surgery was moved to the Kaiser Hospital in Anaheim Hills. The ash and smoke were too much for the Sand Canyon Kaiser Hospital. What a week! The fires were awful...but we are thankful that we weren't in any danger. We were just surrounded by smoke and ash!

Quinn was pretty happy prior to his surgery (he's a pretty happy little guy) I was worried that Quinn would freak out before surgery. When he and I were checking out at the SOS Clinic in Kazakhstan, it took 3 of us to hold Quinn down just to draw his blood!

But Thankfully they do things differently with children. They gave Quinn a liquid cocktail and pretty soon he was a little drunken soldier. He started to relax and they whisked him away. Quinn didn't even know that we had gone.

He woke up and was very groggy and started crying. The nurse said he kept asking for his mommy. Soon I was there by his side. It was special to know that he needed me. I was happy to be there for him. He slept most of the day at home. He didn't really understand why he had to have surgery, since his ear wasn't hurting him. I am sure that was confusing. We tried to explain to him that he has holes in his ears and the doctor just covered them back up.

We won't know until 2 months if the surgery was a success or not. Then if it was, we will have the other ear repaired. This will help his hearing tremendously.

4 Months Home!!

We have been home 4 months now! Wow!!

Quinn is learning sooo much and really loves it here! Life is pretty cool for the little guy! We do alot of fun things with the boys. Living at the big "O" Quinn didn't know any better. But he says "We didn't do this or we didn't do that at the Groupa", referring to life at the Orphanage. We think he really understands what he was missing living there.

His English gets better every day! He says funny things like...Gosh darn it! (yikes he learned that from me!)

He is scheduled for his first ear surgery October 26th. I already know it will frighten him. He has very bad memories of ear infections. Quinn is very cautious not to get water in his ears. Basically he has holes in both eardrums and water just goes right through...very painful we have been told.

For Halloween Quinn is going to be Buzz Lightyear! He "thinks" he knows what Halloween is all about....ha ha ha!! Parker will be Spiderman! We will take more pics and post them. Lots more fun things to look forward too!

Big Day at the Turley household....school, school, school!!

Hi,

We have been home for 3 months now. Hard to believe! So much is happening! Quinn is settling in and learning so much! At times we see little gestures that Quinn does that he obviously got from Parker...ha ha!!

Quinn went back to Pre-K on September 4th. He was VERY EXCITED! His preschool didn't have openings in August.

Parker started Kindergarten on September 4th Too!! Very exciting day! We all went out to Ruby's on the Newport Beach Pier to celebrate our big day!

We also found out that Quinn does not like his birth name of "Askar". I called him Quinn Askar and he said "No Askar...I don't like Askar". Tyler and I are going to re-adopt Quinn here in the US. We are now thinking that we may not keep "Askar" as his middle name. Just thinking out loud!

It has been getting easier....but definitely one of the toughest things Tyler and I have ever done! It is the "getting to know each other" phase that really threw us for a loop! I guess we thought we were prepared...but there is no preparing. Also we had "instant sibling rivalry" by week 3...YIKES!! We definitely weren't used to that with Parker being an only child.

So it is good. We are taking one day at a time. Quinn definitely looks up to Parker. Parker is the BIG brother!

Finally I am updating our Blog!

Hello,
We have been home 6 weeks today! What a difference 6 weeks makes! We are adjusting of course, but it getting easier each day!

Quinn already sings the ABC song! Sings "Twinkle Twinkle Little Star" (a song I sang for him at the Big "O") He counts 1 to 11 and he is now recognizing letters! He knows that "Q" is the first letter in his name. By the way...within the first 2 weeks it was Quinn who dropped "Askar". We were calling him Quinn Askar and soon we noticed that he started calling himself just Quinn!

He has been swimming in several pools, riding his tricycle, enjoying the BEACH, playing with Parker, going to a birthday party (that was a first for him), many parks to play, library, Ruby's Cafe, walking the dogs, going to pre-school, going to Home Depot, racking leaves in the backyard, picking out a toy for himself at Target, saw "Ratatoulle" the movie and this Wednesday is going to Orange County FAIR (He is going to LOVE IT!)

Quinn is a very happy little guy! He really WANTS to BELONG to our family! We grow fonder of him every day!! Parker is getting used to having a brother. But that relationship will still need time to GROW!

Quinn is FEARLESS! His first time in a pool he was on the steps one minute and then under water the next minute! We grabbed him fast and he was laughing when we got him up.

He was JUST AMAZED at the Ocean! We took him to Laguna Beach for this big moment. We closed his eyes and then when the Ocean was in perfect view we uncovered his eyes! He just kept saying "WOW"!! The beach was perfect. The water was like bathtub water. I didn't know that it would be like that, so I didn't prepare. I brought no swim trunks and only one towel. Well Parker and Quinn went crazy and were soaking wet and full of sand in their short pockets within minutes of arriving! HA HA!!

This has been quite the journey. I thank all of you for your WONDERFUL support and friendship! Thanks to my family and Tyler's family for welcoming Quinn with open arms! He is still meeting everyone. We were told in the beginning to take it slow. We think it has paid off and we feel that Quinn understands that we are his FAMILY now.

Just cruisin along

Hi Everyone!
Just wanted to write something quick. We have been home 2 weeks 5 days. Quinn is settling in. It is definitely an adjustment....for all of us. But we have been reassured that this is all "NORMAL" stuff that you go through.

We feel bad for Quinn because it must be difficult when you don't understand alot that is going on around you. Tyler and I feel like "Orge's" most of the time because we have to say "NO" so much right now. We believe it is very important to help Quinn understand the rules of our house.

Quinn just finished his first week with his English tutor. He is picking up English pretty fast. We taught him how to play "Animal Bingo". Once he got the hang of it....he wanted to play it ALL DAY LONG! It is really a great game because he is learning how to take turns and he is learning the names of animals. Pretty cool.

Tyler and Parker went to Catalina Island for Indian Guides this weekend...lucky guys! So this weekend it is Quinn and I. So for fun I called Maria tonight in Kazakhstan. It was great to talk to her. She told Quinn a few things for me. Quinn is very familiar with her and I thought that would be good for him to hear her voice. The language barrier thing is hard. I can't wait for him to understand what we are saying. Soon...soon!

Just taking this one day at a time! Thank you for your prayers and positive thoughts!

Getting to know one another

I don't know if anyone can prepare another for adoption. Especially prepare them for a child of 5 who lived his entire 5 1/2 years in an orphanage.

I thought I had read and talked to everyone I needed to prepare us....but adoption is something one must experience for themselves. Everyone can tell you what "might" happen....but every child's situation is different.

We have now been home for 1 week 4 days. The first few days home were ROCKY to say the least. I guess I was so tired and my "time" in Kazakhstan was overwhelming! I know that Quinn was excited to finally be "here"...whatever that meant to him....he was finally "HERE"!!

He is starting to learn the rules of our home. We have explained to him that he lives with just us now. We are a family. We know that he might not understand that just yet...but he will.

We hired a teacher to help him with English. Both Tyler and I feel this is extremely important right now. The teacher was surprised how happy Quinn is. We told him that was what we first saw when we met him....his happy smile and laugh....even though he lived with 16 other children (all groups were about this size) with no real mommy and daddy.

Right now Tyler and I are taking his "One Day at a Time". Tyler and I are also seeing a counselor as well to help us with our new addition to our family. We need all the help we can get to make this as smooth as possible.

A few have asked how Parker is doing. I must say Parker is handling all of this really well. Parker calls him his brother and accepts that this is where Quinn belongs...with us as a family.

We have heard that 6 months is a marker for these children. Soon Quinn will be understanding us better and his memory of orphanage life will fade into a distant memory.


Sorry Tyler has been so busy and promises to put some photos up soon!

We are HOME

Hi Everyone!

I almost KISSED the ground at LAX, but it was too dirty (the clean freak in me wouldn't let me) But I was sooo happy to be standing on American soil.

Quinn was PERFECT on all 3 plane rides!

I had to sort of force him to sleep on the last one...he finally did and I had to wake him up when we landed!

What a JOURNEY!

The first week I had Quinn out of the orphanage was great...it was the 2nd week that Quinn decided to change things a bit.

I have stepped back a bit. I really appreciate the long discussion that I had with the director of Quinn's orphanage. I learned alot.

We have now been home for 24 hours. The moment we pulled up to our drive-way, Quinn recognized our home from the photos we showed him. It was as if he couldn't believe it really existed.

I had a wonderful sign made for Quinn and I made by my neighbors The Hemmon's Family. Thanks you guys! That was really special to see!

I PROMISE to post some photos. Actually Tyler is going to do it for me.

As for Tyler and Parker getting BIG FAT KISSES...They got just that from me! Quinn was also VERY HAPPY to see them as well.

I know our "jouney" isn't over. We all need to get to know each other.....bonding and stuff like that! Just taking this "one-day at a time for now!

THANK YOU EVERYONE FOR YOUR LOVE AND SUPPORT! Just knowing you were all out there praying and thinking of us. Still please do. We need all the LOVE and PRAYERS we can get! Thank you!!

Less than 24 hours to GO!!

I am sooo packed you have no idea!

Quinn and I leave in Monday Morning (Sunday evening for all of you in America) The translator and driver will be picking us at about 5:00 a.m. and the flight leaves at 7:20 a.m. YIPPPPEEEEE!!!!

I spoke to Tyler and Parker earlier and they are excited too!! I can't wait to give them both BIG KISSES!! So watch out guys!!

All I want is a nice big salad and a Chai Tea! (the US does not recommend eating veggies here!)

This WHOLE thing reminds me of a Grateful Dead Song...."What a Long Strange Trip It's Been!" Not sure if that is the name of the song....but I know those are the lyrics and the only way to describe this experience!

Sorry I haven't posted any photos. I will as soon as I am home. It is hard to do because I am at a different internet cafe than the one in Ust-Kamenogorsk. I have no translator right now, because Quinn and I can walk to the store and internet cafe by ourselves. Plus she doesn't really understand much English...so it is annoying to me to have her around.

I am happy that to report that Claudia, Stephan and Tasha are on there way to Almaty as I write this. I am hoping to eat lunch with them today! I know that they can relate to the song lyrics above as well. Claudia and Stephan were soooo helpful to me. I am forever grateful.

See you soon Tyler, Parker, Ranger and Riley!!!

The U.S. Embassy ROCKS!!

God I LOVE AMERICA!! (and miss it too)

Sorry that I haven't blogged, but it has been too difficult because of various situations that have occurred.

I am not going to go into too much detail, only to say that Quinn and I didn't make our flight last Tuesday for Almaty as scheduled. Quinn had a........FREAK OUT ATTACK!!

I was EXTREMELY upset and was taken to a hotel (apparently there were no available apartments) Then before I knew it Quinn was taken to the orphanage AGAIN....to be "babysat". The sad part, he was screaming "Mommy" and told them numerous times that he wanted me and didn't want to stay at the orphanage.

I was at a very nice hotel and was miserable.

I didn't see Quinn for the entire day and night. I basically was exhausted and took something to sleep. I was able to pick up Quinn the next day at 4:00 p.m. Boy was he GLAD to see me! I was a bit more cautious.

I was told by the director how to handle Quinn in these types of situations. I understand a bit better what was going on in his head. I am sure this will take some time for him to adjust to life he has no idea about.

I decided to fly my former translator Maria with me to Almaty (just in case!) I also went to the pharmacy to get Quinn some....medication...to "chill" him out! The flight was PERFECT and he was an Angel.

Maria has been a HUGE HELP to Me in Almaty. Boo hoo she leaves back to Ust-Kamenogorsk tomorrow in the a.m. I may try and pack her into my suitcase...she is pretty small...a carry on maybe???

We had our US Embassy interview today and it was AWESOME! GOD I LOVE AMERICA!! The US Representative was wonderful to me and Quinn! Quinn got to see many other children that were also being adopted like he was. I think he understood a bit better what is happening to him. We met some great people in the Embassy waiting area that were extremely supportive and shared their advice and email addresses to the new "adoptive mother". A few that were there were adopting their 3rd child...so they knew what "fears" I was having. So this is to Cindy and Dominick...THANK YOU and we will be in touch!!

Quinn and I will be coming home this Monday June 4th!! FOR SURE!!

Last day in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan

Well Quinn and I leave tomorrow for Almaty, Kazakhstan. We will then go to the S.O.S. Clinic in Almaty for Quinn's Medical check-out.

Then we will go to the US Embassy on Wednesday (they are typically closed, but because of the Memorial Holiday they might be open) If not, we will go the Embassy on Thursday and fly out on Friday June 1st. Please Pray that will be the date! I just want to come home!!

I miss you Tyler, Parker and my dogs Ranger and Riley!!

I have had a few stressful days with Quinn. I believe that 80% of the problem is the language barrier. Ugh! I have been teaching him some English, but definitely not enough to help us.

Plus Quinn is trying to understand his "NEW FOREIGN" world. The days seem to just drag on and on. Very boring! He really doesn't like to watch movies either. He will watch one for about 10 minutes, maybe more if it is an interesting part. Hopefully he will learn to love movies because we Turley's like to watch movies!!

I wasn't able to blog on the weekend because they are closed. I will try and blog in Almaty after the S.O.S. Clinic appt.

Thanks for all the prayers.....we need them for sure!!

See you all soon!

Going to see Shrek in Russian...Hmmmmmmm??

It has been nice spending this "Quality" time with Quinn. There is definitely a reason for it. I really am homesick, but know that this time with Quinn...one-on-one is very important for him!

We went to Stephan's birthday party last night! WHAT FUN WE HAD!! Claudia threw a wonderful birthday party. Quinn, Tasha and Bolat's daughter Amy had a blast with the balloons! This was officially Quinn's first birthday party invitation on the "Outside". He really liked it. Some foods he wasn't willing to try. His diet was very bland at the orphanage. After the party we went back to our apt and he ate oatmeal...a food he feels very comfortable eating.

I am posting some photo's and I have to hurry because the movie SHREK is starting in a bit.

Thanks for all the COMMENTS......I love hearing from you!!

Getting Closer to Getting Outta Here!!

Hi just another day in Kazakhstan!!

Soon Quinn and I will travel by plane (his first plane ride!) to Almaty, Kazakhstan. There we will get him checked out by the SOS Clinic. All adopted children must be screened before going into another country for any illnesses. Then we proceed to the US Embassy for Quinn's "Exit Visa". Once we have that...we leave the next day!! Yahooooo...okay I must admit I want to GO HOME!

Quinn knows that he is taking a plane and is VERY excited about it. It will be a good first plane ride for him....only 1 hour 20 minutes.

We will be in Almaty for approximately 3 to 5 days!! Then our next plane ride is 6 1/2 hours long with a 3 hour lay-over in Amsterdam. Then the long 11 hour flight back HOME to AMERICA!! Yahoooo again!!

Quinn is already learning English!! Everyday I work with him with "little" words like "America"..."Hello"..."Banana"...."Yes" (instead of "Da")...."Trash" and his favorite...."I Love You"!!

Well Quinn is ready to leave the internet cafe. Which is really just a small office space with 4 computers on desks. I am sitting next to others right now as I write this. Not what you would expect from a "Cafe"....I was wondering where is the Coffee and snacks....not here! Ha!

Oh, today is Stephan Wessels birthday! They have invited Quinn and I to a nice restaurant with them. What fun! It is really nice to have another American Family with us.

One last thing....Quinn and I along with our translator Sveta and driver went back to the Big "O" to donate 2 fans for Quinn's group. It is soooo hot up there! We also dropped off a few toys too! We saw Quinn's group playing outside and went over to them. They all swarmed Quinn and I and wanted a hug from me. Quinn some how ended up away from me. Soon he came over and pushed a boy out of the way and grabbed my hand. Then Quinn started pulling me away from the children. Sveta noticed that Quinn was crying. He was very upset in a silent cry. We waved good-bye to the children and quickly got Quinn away. We asked him what was wrong. He was worried that I would leave him there! I had Sveta tell him that Daddy and I picked him out special and that we love him and are not going anywhere and will never leave him! I felt terrible for him. I have never seen him cry through this entire process!

He returned to the car....very relieved!

Just another day.......with my son!

Hi,

I posted a couple of new photos! I will hopefully come back and post more, but I am in a little hurry finalizing adoption stuff.

I wanted to include the photo of the Wessel Family who were sooo helpful to me!

My other favorite photo is of Quinn in the bath.....for the first time by himself!!! Wow he had fun! He stays in there for over an hour every time!

The weather has been pretty nice. A little breezy today.

I will post more tomorrow!

Love you all and thanks for all the POSTS!! It makes me really feel good to know you are all out there watching this unfold....thank you so much!

Quinn's First Days of FREEDOM!!

Well it has been 48 Hours of FREEDOM for Quinn! He is really doing well...much better than I expected. In fact we are at the internet cafe and he is sitting next to me playing with a Hotwheel.

His first bath went well. He wasn't too sure about getting inside and had to first play in the water with his hands first. So I was able to talk him into putting his feet in...with all his clothes on. Then off went his shorts, then shirt and finally he decided to take his underwear off and sat down! He LOVED the bath and spent over an hour in there. I was told that he probably hasn't taken a bath since he was a baby! He and his group take showers ONCE A WEEK!!

He also LOVES his toothbrush and toothpaste! He brushed his teeth 3 times within a few hours. I let him do it because I think he really liked the taste of the toothpaste.

On his first night with me I thought we would watch the DVD Cars, but he found the washing machine much more entertaining! He kept telling me when the washer would spin the other way (It is a front view washer)

Last night I took him for pizza! My translator asked him if he had ever had it and he said "NYET" which means "No". Wow he is going to LOVE coming to AMERICA...Pizza Heaven!!

Well I don't want to torture poor Quinn by typing too long. We are going to eat at the Pancake House and meet with Claudia, Stepan and Tasha for lunch.

Also great news....I heard that I will be home about 5 days sooner. Well that is what they are saying now....we'll see!

Aunt Gail and Uncle Tom thank you for helping out with Parker, I truly appreciate it!

Tyler and Parker I MISS YOU SO MUCH!! I love you both very, very much!!

Gotcha Day!! May 19,2007

Hi Everyone!!

I made it here safe and sound, but exhausted! I felt guilty the first night because I chose not to get Quinn out of the Big "O" because I was too tired! I wanted to be well rested for his BIG DAY!!

I am sitting right now at Claudia and Stephan's kitchen table writing this because the internet cafe is closed on Saturday and Sunday. They were kind to let me blog this WONDERFUL DAY!!

I woke up pretty early and was completely ready to go get Quinn OUT!!

I arrived at the orphanage with my driver and translator Sveta @ 10:30 a.m. I was greeted by Stephan, Claudia, Tasha, Almagul and Bolat. We went upstairs to greet Quinn and his group! I really didn't know what to expect. I wasn't sure how Quinn would really react. As I walked in all the children were sitting in chairs watching a video.....a Barbie Mermaid video. I didn't see Quinn and then all of sudden he came running out of a back room. He ran to me with the biggest smile on his face! He knew today was the day! All the children were waving and smiling! Stephan was my videographer....thank you Stephan!!

I gave the children little bags with surprises inside...they were excited! We spent about 15 minutes there and then I went into a side room where I changed Quinn into his new clothes! He was a little embarrassed to take off his undies, but I showed him the new ones and he seemed okay with that! He liked the clothes, but boy is he small. He wears clothes that would fit a 3 year old.

We went back to his group and he hugged the children good-bye. Then one of his main caregivers started to cry....which of course made me cry.....and made Claudia cry too! Quinn was definitely ready to leave!

We walked downstairs and out the door. I wanted to walk out of the orphanage instead of drive out. The gates to the Big "O" are forbidden to go out of. I thought that it would be cool to walk out! I think the drivers and translators thought I was nuts, but this is Quinn's moment and I didn't care. Stephan and Claudia "My E-True Hollywood" film crew filmed the entire exit from the orphanage. I think that Quinn was also wondering why we were walking. Hopefully he will understand one day when he watches the video!

After our historic walk out of the Big "O" we got into the cars and off to lunch we went. We ate at Kaz "Starbucks". We ate omelets. When the omelet was brought to him he then smelled his shoe and pointed at the omelet. It was obvious he thought it smelled like his shoes! Needless to say he ate pancakes with jam. He also had a fresh sqeezed O.J. that he really liked!

Then we had to buy him some P.J.'s since I forgot his back at home. Bummer because I bought him glow-in-the-dark Dinosaur P.J.'s. He seemed facinated by the clothing store and was a really good boy!

We all went to a park and it was like a small amusement park. I was thinking it was going to be a park with swings and stuff. The moment Quinn saw a women holding a Python snake he ran the other way. I had to chase him...yikes! We stayed for a few hours and I think he really had a great time.

This is alot for a little 5 year old to absorb, but I think he is doing great! He is very loving and holds my hand everywhere! Sonn he and I will be at our apartment. I am going to give him a bath and let him watch the movie Cars...in Russian!!

Thank you all for praying for us! Today was a GREAT DAY!!

QUINN, MOMMY IS COMING....FINALLY!!

Hi,

Well my Visa arrived and I am leaving Wednesday May 16. I will be in the country on Friday May 18th....what a long trip! We haven't really written on our blog because we have been in this "holding pattern"! Our friends Stephan and Claudia were able to get their new daughter, Tasha, out of the orphanage for good on Mother's Day! How cool is that! Congratulations to them. When I am there I will post the new family photo of them for all to see.

Tasha lived in the same orphanage as Quinn. In fact they sent us photos of Tasha leaving the confines of the orphanage and of course she saw Quinn when she was leaving and gave him a GREAT SISTERLY HUG! I am sure Quinn was wondering "where the heck is she going"? Well Quinn you will know soon enough! Hee Hee

I want to send a BIG THANKS to Claudia, Stephan and Tasha for taking great photos of Quinn for us. Thank you Claudia for sneaking raisins into his pocket. (Quinn loves raisins!) Thank you for being his connection to us while we have been back here in the US! I think your presence has helped Quinn know that he is LOVED and SPECIAL and that we are coming back for him! So THANK YOU my friends!!

I want a BUNCH of Comments left for me in our comment box while I am in Kazakhstan! Don't be chicken!! I love reading the little notes you all leave us! Of course if you have alot to say....I guess you have to email me...ha ha!!

I will be gone approximately 17 days....of course I am hoping to come home sooner!! I will miss Tyler and Parker terribly I already know! But I will be home before you know it!

Thank you to ALL who have watched this journey unfold. We love knowing that you are all out there praying for us! Thanks!

Quinn has no idea what "LIFE" is waiting for him in AMERICA! He will find out very soon!

I leave on May 16th for Kazakhstan

Well my "Cable" came in. I filled out my new Visa application and I am hoping that I will get my Visa back in time for May 16th! It always seems under the wire lately!

Apparently all Quinn's paperwork is getting prepared. I have a friend there who keeps me updated on everything!! She also has been taking some cute photo's of Quinn for us. We so appreciate you Claudia...and her newly adopted daughter Tasha!

I will update in a few days to let you all know if the Visa came in!

I am in the process of making little goodie bags for Quinn's class. I am going to give him a small farewell party. The orphanage freaks out if you give anything with sugar in it. So I am going to make sugar free jello...Whooopeeee! It's like a party at a Retirement Home! (Sorry Tyler's Grandmother...who is 101 years old by the way....she gets CAKE!!)

Quinn is ALMOST here!

Hi everyone!

Well we are still waiting to get my official cable from Kazakhstan to go back and pick up Quinn! I already booked my flight for May 16, because the flights were starting to get full. So I better get my confirmation pretty soon....yikes!

I will be giving Quinn and his little "roomies" a little going away party! That ought to be fun. I am also going to video Quinn leaving the orphanage for the last time. I want to do it for Quinn, but also for Tyler and Parker since they won't be there for the BIG OCCASION!

I feel that the music from "Jeopardy" is most appropriate piece of music right now.........Do, do, do, do, do, do, do....do, do, do, do, doooo, do, dodo, dodo....well you get the picture! Ha Ha

Here is The Mighty Quinn! Updated 4-25-07

Unfortunately we lost our brand new camera! We actually think it was stolen! It is just too strange how it became missing. We were bummed because we had taken several photos of us with Quinn Askar!

I have gotten a few messages from people who are a bit confused about our recent trip to Kazakhstan. When we first went to Kazakhstan back on February 22 everything was going fine with our 16 days of visitation. But then on the 14th day of visitation our adoption coordinator in Kaz told us that they needed to have a "Special Document" signed by the Mayor of Quinn Askar's region. There were problems getting that document signed and we had to leave the country because they had no time frame when the Special Document would be signed. Thus the reason for this "extra" trip. Tyler and I decided to go on a Saturday and come back that Friday....major jetlag!

Now there is a 25 day waiting period and ME "Christy" will be going back alone to Kazakhstan to get Quinn. I should be back in the country in the middle of May and return HOME about 20 days later WITH QUINN ASKAR. There is a few procedures that I have to complete to remove Quinn Askar from his homeland.

Also the Judge agreed to change Askar's name to Quinn Askar Turley

I hope that clears up the confusion as to why Quinn is not here in California yet. Soon however!

Court from HELL

Well court didn't go as well as expected. We appeared in court all dressed up expecting it to go smoothly. Well the prosecutor had other plans. She wasn't satisfied that the Ministry of Education looked for Quinn's birth mother. The birth mother had written a letter and said she would return for him after 1 year. Well she never did. She never called. But the Prosecutor thinks that she could still return. What kind of mother would this be. Why on earth would the Prosecutor bend over backwards for a mother who left her child willing and then never came to check on him or even pick up the phone to call him in OVER 5 YEARS!!

The Ministry of Education and the Director of the Orphanage were arguing with the Prosecutor and explaining that the mother had abandoned this child. The Prosecutor made up this lame excuse...Well maybe she is ill and could not come to the hospital or orphanage to claim him. Then the Orphanage Director says...She could have picked up a phone! They admitted into evidence that the birth mother did not give the correct address or names in her letter and that the Police could not locate her. Well then the Prosecutor requested a delay until 5 p.m. that same day. She wanted a BETTER letter from the Police Dept that stated they looked for this mother....Oh Brother!

So we return to court at 5:00 p.m. only to have the Prosecutor still bent on searching for Quinn's birth mother. The judge interjects and says that the birth has violated their laws regarding her son's welfare. The judge agrees that the mother has abandoned Quinn. The Prosecutor says she still needs to discuss our case to the Chief Prosecutor and wanted ANOTHER DELAY until the next day at 9:15 a.m. Well Tyler and I asked the court to let us leave on our scheduled flights back to the US. The judge allowed us to leave.

Today we heard that the Judge Granted our Adoption to Quinn....but the Prosecutor was not happy! Can you believe that? Personally we couldn't! The Prosecutor has 15 days to Appeal the Judges decision and there is a chance that she will. Apparently there is another case that has gone to Appeal and this same Prosecutor may get into trouble over it. So now she is being EXTREMELY CAUTIOUS, but it doesn't make any sense. This birth mother has never seen Quinn since the day he was born.

Were not worried!!

We Are Here,,,,,again!

We made it here safe and sound! We had a BLAST flying Business Class! We were seat 1A and 1B amazing!! We were treated like royalty.....until we landed in Amsterdam! They had to give us our new seat assignment.....back into economy class...BUMMER!!

We visited with "Quinn" Askar yesterday (Monday) and today. In fact we get will get to see him again today for 2 hours! We have another couple in the visiting room with us...Claudia and Stephan. They are adopting a 7 year old girl named Tasha! We are having a great time with everyone even though the room is rather small.

The weather is wonderful....we are wearing t-shirts! Kazak's still think it is cold....they continue to wear coats. They have a fear of cold for some reason!

We have good news and bad news...first the bad....Hot water is out for 4 days! We had to boil water for our bath. The good news....we didn't have to go to the well to get the water. So we had a glimpse into what it might have been like in the Wild Wild West days!!

We promise to put photos up later. We forgot our camera in the car!

WE MISS YOU PARKER!!

p. s. Gail you are WRONG!!

Just a tiny delay......

Well we got to the airport and.........the flight was over-booked! We were involuntarily bumped, but KLM gave us each a $750 voucher and they guaranteed us a flight tomorrow night (Saturday night) Here's the best part.....BUSINESS CLASS!! We are now officially spoiled! We now may actually SLEEP on an international flight....Wow!! We are SO EXCITED!

Our bags are on their way to Almaty, Kazakhstan. When we arrive we have to hurry and get our bags (where ever they are) and catch our next flight to see "Quinn" Askar. We should make it!

Thanks EVERYONE again and again for following along on our INCREDIBLE JOURNEY!!

Here we come Quinn!

Here we go again!

We are leaving this Friday for Kaz! We should be returning the next Friday the 20th.

We have some friends, Claudia and Stephan, that are adopting from the same orphanage as "Quinn" Askar. They have met a beautiful little 7 year old girl. We are so happy for them!! While visiting their little 7 year old daughter they have been hugging and taking photos of Quinn for us! Thank you so much Stephan and Claudia...It means so much to us!

We will of course Blog next week about our Court date. We are very confident that everything will go well.

Once court is completed and the judge allows us to adopt "Quinn" Askar then we have a mandatory 25 day waiting period. When that is done I will return to Kazakhstan for the last time (thank God) and finish this adoption and bring the little guy HOME!! Yippeeeee!!

Back to Kaz!

Hi everyone!
We should be leaving April 14, 2007 for Kazakhstan.
Then we request our court date and then hopefully a few days after that we will be in court to officially ask to adopt Askar "Quinn". We will only be gone from the states about 1 week. We will be leaving Parker with my Aunt and Uncle and our nanny too. This will be the first time we have ever been without Parker! We will miss him bunches.

We are excited that we are finally going to see Askar! We are certain he is confused by the unfortunate events that have made his adoption longer than usual. We are bringing him a map of the world and with red ink we are going to show him where we live and where he lives (for now) Hopefully he won't be too bummed that he isn't going home just yet. The process is just too confusing when you are only 5 years old. We are giving him a calendar to cross off the dates until his Mama (Me) comes back for him to finish the final step in his adoption.

Please check back for more......

Quinn was visited by our translator

Hello,

Our lovely translator Maria visited Askar for us! Maria found out that Askar had spent a week in the hospital for his ear infection. Maria said that he was brought back to the Baby House and that his ear looked fine. We are happy to hear that his little ear is better. Maria said that he asked for us to bring him new clothes and for Parker to bring him a car. Quinn(Askar) knows that he will be getting new clothes to leave the orphanage! We can't wait to bring him home!

Little did we know that a couple of cookies and organic juice boxes cause ear infections....ha ha ha!!

We should be flying back to Kaz the first part of April for our Adoption Hearing. Then there will be the required 25 day waiting period. Then I will go back to Kaz and get his passport and other items and finish with his medical exam from the US Embassy in Almaty, Kazakhstan.

We'll keep you all posted with this final stage of this process.

The Special Document is SIGNED!

We just heard the news that the Mayor of Ust-Kamenogorsk signed the Special Document regarding Askar's adoption.

Tyler and I will now make our travel plans to go back. Just need to make sure my Visa is okay. Tyler's Visa is good because he accidentally got my "double entry"......oh well we ended up needing it!

Our Adoption Coordinator in Kaz said that she visited with Askar and she said that he really misses us. That is the sad part to us. This process must be confusing to him. It confuses us and were adults!

We will keep you updated on when we leave!

No Updates Yet

Hi to all that are still checking in!

We still don't have that darn document signed yet. It is Kazakhstan's New Year right now. We are hoping for some news by next week!

We are hoping to have the special document signed and then we will return to Kaz for the court date. Our translator Maria is going to visit Askar "Quinn" this Monday the 26th. Oh we are so happy. We hope he isn't too bummed waiting for us while the silly bureaucracy goes on and on!!

Just waiting!!

We Made It Home Safe and Sound!

Hi,

Well we made it home safely! What a long trip back....ugh! This will be short and sweet because we are all ready for bed and EXHAUSTED to say the least! I have had a hard time sleeping the last few nights before we left Kazakhstan and then sleeping on planes...well you know how that it!

We will wait to here from our US Adoption Coordinator, Orson, about our trip back for court. However due to Tyler's work schedule we won't be able to return to Kaz until after April 6th. This special document should be signed by then. (POSITIVE THINKING!)

It is hard to believe that we are going all that way for literally one hour for court and one night stay in Kazakhstan and then back to the US. We will see Askar briefly either before court or after. We are not happy about such a short visit, but under the circumstances it is the best we can do. Then after the court hearing, I will return 25 days later for the final chapter of this adoption process. I will stay for approximately 17 day (I hope, I hope)

Thank you everyone for all your love, prayers and good thoughts. Please check back from time to time for more updates!

The Big Surprise!

Hi Everyone!

Sorry that we haven’t blogged in a few days! No we have not decided to move here and change our last name to resemble the entire alphabet! Were ya missin us?

Well I can’t believe it but I got Strep Throat! I was taken to a Ear, Nose and Throat “Specialist”. Now that was an EXPERIENCE! The treatment room looked like it was from the 40’s on “Walton’s Mountain”. I was greeted by a very elderly female Russian Doctor. She thought I was German. Ha! Thank goodness our translator was there, I would have been lost. I was feeling miserable and desperate and would have accepted help from the “Pillsbury Dough Boy”.

Modernization has not hit Kazakhstan. Not sure when it will. She told me I have a Disease! I knew exactly what I had. I told our translator to tell her that I have had this a few times in my life and usually have to get a antibiotic (which I hate) and a pain killer so that I can swallow without pain. I ended up getting just that! She was a very kind Doctor.

Big News! The Mayor that was suppose sign that special document is now a “New” Mayor as of today. So this new mayor will need to settle into his position before he signs this document. Needless to say we are on our way home! We are scheduled to leave March 15^th. So we will be home a few days earlier than scheduled.

Update on Askar. Poor little guy has an ear infection. We really just want to get him to an American Doctor to clearly evaluate his ear problem. They just keep dumping more stuff inside his ear and it doesn’t seem to help. Tomorrow we will need to say good-bye to him until Tyler and I can return for court. We have no idea how he will take it. Tyler thinks that he will smile and say “Da” (which means Yes) It is really hard for Askar to understand what is happening with the adoption process. We could be gone as long as 3 weeks before our return for court. I am especially sad because I didn’t get to see him for 2 days because of my Strep Throat problem.

This journey and its been a JOURNEY has brought Tyler, me and Parker so much closer.

We will be seeing most of you soon! Thanks for following along! Thanks also for your prayers, positive thoughts, emails and comments. It was a true blessing to receive them all!

LOVE YOU ALL!!

We Completed our 16-Day Visitation Requirement

Well we completed our 16-Day required visitation with Askar. At first we were going to tell Askar of this milestone, but then our Translator Maria thought it might confuse him. Askar might think we aren’t coming to see him anymore. So we decided not say anything and have our own private celebration. We asked Parker how do we celebrate, he said by watching “The Ant Bully”, which I am sure most of you celebrate this way. Ha Ha Ha!!

We will be seeing Askar today, but later because today is Bath Day! He will be amazed at our house because every night is bath day! So many changes are in store for this little guy.

We are going to slowly introduce him to life in America. We won’t take him to Disneyland right away, but probably to the Orange County Fair in July. He will have been home a few months. Parker wants to show him his favorite ride…the Big Slide! That is the one where you sit on the burlap bag and go down the slide. Tyler and I love that ride too.

Askar’s life seems very mundane here. The same routine over and over again. He was moved into this particular house last October 2006. We found out the other children call him “Little Askar”, because there is another boy named Askar who is a bit older and was here before he was. We always bring some little treats for him to eat. His diet is pretty bland and the staff here gets upset if we give him sweets. We try and keep them to an extreme minimum. Askar really looks forward to the eating part of our visit. Yesterday we gave him a hard boiled egg with a little salt. He was so excited about that egg! He ate it so fast. We then gave him a banana and a few little Russian cracker things. We were giving him a juice box everyday (organic believe it or not) and they said it is too much sweets for him. Askar saw the juice box and our translator explained to him that they did not want us to give it to him. He did not protest or complain, he was completely fine with it. Tyler and I both believe that they give the children this bland diet and any disruption is not good. They do get sweets we heard only on a special occasions. I can’t wait to see his face when he eats a homemade Chocolate Chip Cookie for the first time!

We have to wait until Monday (Kaz time, Sunday your time) to find out if the special document can get signed immediately. So we wait…………………………………….!

"Just Keep Swimming, Swimming, Swimming" - Dorie "Finding Nemo"

That’s what you do…Keep Swimming! After our visit with Askar we were taken into the Director of the Orphanage’s office. We were told that Askar’s paperwork is NOT complete. Apparently we need a special document signed by the Mayor, which is like the Governor where we all live. Askar’s file has not been updated with some important information. Without the update we would not be able to go to court and request to adopt Askar. Our lawyer is working on the problem and hopefully he can get the document signed faster so that we can go home on time. We are schedule to leave on March 18^th. We don’t mind a couple of day delay, but any longer than that is a worry.

Quite a few of you have emailed us…THANK YOU!! We LOVE hearing from all of you! It is nice to read your words of encouragement. We need all the encouragement we can get! So again…Thank you!!

Parker is GREAT! He hasn’t once complained to go home. It is Tyler and I that seem to complain…ha ha ha!! We have run out of our beloved “Chai Tea” so life seems a bit dull…ha ha ha!!

We wanted to put photos of our “Home Sweet Home” on our blog for your enjoyment! Ha! Most of the population live in these huge brick monstrosities. There are 2 and 3 bedrooms and most of them are owned by their occupants. It cost approximately $55,000 to own one of these places. The Government controls the heating. If the place gets too warm we open a few windows and that cools it down pretty good. The hot water here is REALLY HOT!! Another feature from the Government.

The weather here is in the mid 30’s during the day and about 10-15 degrees at night. That is why “Kaz” the dog is brought in at night. It is getting warmer every day. The snow and ice are melting. Our translator said that it is warmer than usual….Global Warming???

Tomorrow we complete our required 16-Day visitation with Askar. We just need EVERYONE to take a moment and send a pray and positive thought that the special document will get signed immediately and we are in good shape for court!

Thanks everyone!! We Love and Miss you all!!

A "Groundhog" Kind of Day!

We go to court this Friday to set a court date for the Adoption Hearing. We are hoping to get a date quickly. So please think POSITIVE for a QUICK DATE (like within 3 to 5 days is preferable) once we have that hearing we can return home immediately. We of course have not told Askar yet that we are leaving. We were told not to say anything until it is time for us to go. We made him a photo album of Us, our dogs and home. We have also added photos to it of us all while we have been visiting him. That way we can leave that behind for him to look at while we wait the required 25 days back in the U.S.A. We are not sure how he will react to us leaving. I am sure he will not be too happy. We are not looking forward to that moment.

A few people have asked why we have “masks” on. We are required to wear them during our 2-hour visits with Askar. The reason is that it is considered “Flu” and “Cold” season and they want to keep everyone healthy. We try and take them off for photos so you can see our smiling faces!!

We have found a couple of restaurants that have made our stay more bearable! (thanks Melissa and Jason) We love the Pancake House and the Chinese food. We still have to check out the Police Chief’s Wife’s restaurant. We do lean towards the “picky” side of eating, so we only have a few things on the menu that we can try. Lots of meat dishes and we don’t eat meat. I even tried to make something here in our apartment and Tyler rated it a “1” on a scale of 1 to 10 and Parker took one bite and that was that! I am definitely out of my element. While at the very limited produce section of the local Supermarket, you have to point to what you want and how many and a produce girl wraps it and puts a price on it for you. You are not allowed to get it yourself.

I honestly didn’t know what to expect coming here. None of us did. It is not like any place we have ever been. This has been quite the journey. We will never, ever forget our time in Kazakhstan.

"We must be the change we wish to see in the World" - Ghandi

Such a true statement! It makes no sense to sit around and complain. It makes better sense to “be a part of the change” and show the rest of the world that it can be a better world!! Even little things like picking up trash you see and even hugging a little child who may not have had a hug today!!

We had another visit with Askar today. We all decided to meet him in the hallway. He came down the stairs and saw us all standing there. He had a shy little smile. Then to my surprise he came up to me and wanted to be picked up. I picked him up and brought him into our visiting room. As Tyler and Parker were getting their coats on to go outside I could feel that Askar wanted to be held. I felt his head lay on my shoulder. I have sang him the song “Twinkle, Twinkle Little Star” a few times and felt that this might be a good time. I slowly swayed back and forth and sang softly to him. For the first time Askar seemed content in my arms. It was quite a moment. Did Tyler have the camera ready….No!

We hurried outside to avoid all the little ones. We were only out about 5 minutes when we heard them! Askar wanted to still be held while being outside. Since my wrist is still a bit sore, I handed Askar off to Tyler. Of course Parker wanted to be held too. So there was Tyler holding both boys. He did pretty good too!

We were soon inundated with little children everywhere! Our translator Maria and I seem to get crowded around by all the children. I wave and say “hello”. They try and say things to me in Russian and Kazak and I just can’t understand them. A few times our translator will get a few things. One little girl wanted to say that she “Climbs trees, do we want to see her?” So immediately I say “Da” which is Yes! She hurries to the tree and climbs it! We clap for her. Then we all decide to make our way back to the visiting room amidst all the children. Then we are stopped by what looks like Askar’s group. There is this little girl with this extremely chapped red face. She has tears in her eyes with a snotty nose. She is the one I wrote about awhile back. She puts her arms out to me and not for a hug, she wants to be held. I picked her up and she smiled. I held her for a few moments and then put her down and she wanted to be held again. I had a little toy in my pocket that Parker did not want from a chocolate egg surprise. I pulled it out of my pocket and gave it to her. She was so happy. She smiled so big. I also took out some tissue for her poor little nose. She walked away and stopped and turned around to wave to me. It is moments like this I will not soon forget.

Today we are happy to have had a “cuddly and close” visit with Askar. He seemed to warm up to me more today than any other day. It will take him sometime to “feel” like he is a part of a family, since that is such a foreign feeling for him.

I will ask a favor from all who read this, to just take a moment and see us all with laughter and love around us! Thank you for the POSITIVE THOUGHTS and PRAYERS!

P.S. Happy Birthday Brent from Kazakhstan

Bath day for Askar

Today is Bath Day for Askar. Our translator forgot that today (Saturday) we are suppose to have our visit at 4:00 p.m. instead of 10:00 a.m. We arrived at the Baby House and had to come back home until later. Apparently the children get a bath once a week.

The weather is a bit warmer today. In fact the icy sidewalks are melting…..much easier to walk now! However it is still cold out.

Yesterday we brought a DVD to watch, “Finding Nemo”. We thought that Askar would enjoy it. We don’t have it in Russian, so we had asked our translator Maria to translate. The movie starts and immediately Askar recognizes the movie as one he has seen before. After awhile he lost interest because of the English. We don’t blame him. We had our translator tell him that one-day soon, he will understand and speak English. He said “Da”, which means “Yes”. We do think his favorite part of the visit is eating! He loves the food we bring. I was able to find organic juice boxes with no sugar. He loves it. He is very hungry, so I am happy to feed him!

He has been speaking English words. His first English word is “Pretzel”. Now he says “Cookie” and “Bye Bye”.

We ate Chinese food yesterday with 2 other American couples who are adopting too. Joanne & Kevin from Long Island, New York and Debra & Tom from Oakland, CA! It was really great to visit with people from America! Our translator Maria joined us too. Maria speaks English very well, but I am sure that all the talking back and forth was difficult to keep up with. Maria is a trooper! It was a nice lunch!

We found one T.V. show that there was English dubbed, but then we could tell that the actors were speaking English too. Very confusing! It looked like a show from England. It was like a “Three’s Company” kind of show. For those of you who don’t know that show, it was with Suzanne Somers, Joyce DeWitt and John Ritter. We basically don’t even turn the T.V. on.

Several people have emailed us at laughingsurfer@yahoo.com. We are able to check our email everyday.

Again it is GREAT hearing from so many of you!

Yes, his name will be Quinn

Hi
Well today is March 1st. We have had 8 visits now with Askar. We had a visit with a woman from the Ministry of Education regarding our adoption. She asked us a few questions like how long have we been married and why were we adopting. She even asked Askar a few questions. She then asked if would be changing his name. We told her yes to Quinn Askar Turley. She didn't seem to sure of the name. We had to spell it for her, then we think that she understood a little better.

We can't change his name right now and nor would we dare to right now. We will ease into his new name when we are finally home.

We went on a walk with Askar today and were able to go earlier to bypass all the little cuties. Of course I had to go to bathroom and ran into a few of them. They immediately ran to me and wanted a hug. They proceeded to introduce themselves. One was name Maksim and the other was Elena. The other one just stared and finally wanted a hug. Then they had to go. Oh my heart!

We have had an overwhelming response to our missng dog photo from our last post...we weren't able to download our dog photo the other night because Tyler took it in too high a resolution and it would have taken 1 hour to download. So today we are at the internet place, so hopefully we can download it. So if you see it, then we were successful.

My wrist is about 50% better...YEAH!! I am seeing a complete recovery. I am staying away from all things icy!

Lastly we had a wonderful lunch yesterday! It was Chinese food. Very good. We also love the Pancake House...thanks Melissa and Jason.

Until tomorrow!

Wizard of Oz

We are definitely having a “Wizard of Oz” kind of day…There is no place like HOME!! Please be proud you all live in America! Oh and Australia…Hi Mandie!!

I would like to send out a BIG Thank You to Melissa & Jason who were here one year ago and adopted Maksim “Maks”. They have been so helpful to us while we have been here. Sharing their experience has been SO HELPFUL….MANY THANKS!!

I think that you can do all the research you want and talk to everyone you want, but there is no way to fully prepare yourself for this! One must come here as open minded as possible. It is an experience we will all never forget. Not only are we bonding with Askar, but we are bonding with each other too. That has been a nice plus to this trip.

Believe it or not Kazakhstan is growing on us. I think we are getting used to its “quirkiness”. I don’t know if that is the right word, but that is what comes to mind.

We saw the little guy today! The visits are getting better and better. Askar seems to be getting used to these people who keep coming to play…..oh and bring yummy snacks! We wanted to take him out for a walk and wanted to hopefully get outside before the little ones were out. Well no such luck. There was a small group of little ones out playing, which soon expanded into many more little ones! They couldn’t take their eyes off us and personally we couldn’t either. We walked past and quite a few who began to follow, saying things to us in Russian. Soon, their caregiver called them and had them stand next to her as we passed. A few didn’t want to listen it seemed and tried to still walk with us and talk to us. Then came the more forceful tone and they walked back to her. I feel bad because I want to hug each and everyone of them. I was able to hug a few little girls and boys today. Hopefully the caregivers don’t tell me to stop. They are these little angels that need to feel special…Askar must feel like a “RockStar”.

Our walk was almost over, when I slipped on the icy ground! I fell hard and fast! This gave several small children the opportunity to come over to me. At first they smiled and soon discovered that I had hurt myself. They all looked worried and one little one girl decided to stroke my face, then she hugged me. Sooooo SWEET. Tyler was around the corner with Parker and Askar and was wondering where the heck I was. I got myself up and figured that I probably sprained my wrist…at least that is what I am hoping. In fact I typed this entire blog with one hand…I know, I’m talented!!

One last thing. We are really impressed with the Kazakhstan Staff. They are taking such good care of us. We would literally be lost without them!

Check out our new photos, including our dog!!

Today was a Good Day!

Hi Everyone!

It has been sooo great hearing from alot of you. It makes us feel good to still be connected to home! Today it snowed for a bit. It was cool.

Of course I have adopted....a dog!! Well you all know me! He is the sweetest dog in the whole world...okay besides Ranger and Riley. We sneak him into our stairwell at night and we have gotten food and water for him. We are not the only ones in the house complex that sneaks this poor little baby in. It is so cold at night and he will freeze if left out.

We had a very nice visit with Askar today. He saw the photo's of our home and Ranger and Riley. He was very interested in the photo album. In fact towards the end of our visit he picked up the photo album again and wanted to look at it. We also went outside for a walk. It was cold, but it was our first time going outside with him. The sad part was that the other children were outside and it broke our hearts. They looked at us longingly. I couldn't stand it, so I waved and waved and blew them as many kisses as I could. They would laugh and do the same thing back. Next time we take a walk we aren't going to go out when the kids are out....too sad.

Here are some more photos of our visit with Askar!

Another Emotional Day in Kaz

February 25, 2007

We have visited with Askar everyday. He smiles the minute he walks into the visiting room. The reality of his life is sad. We found out that he has been here his entire life. We are taking this situation very seriously. He is very special and you can tell he likes being with us, even though he might not completely understand what is happening. He most likely has never left these buildings that the children all live in. We believe when he is visiting us he can break away from all the rules of the orphanage. We have a really nice translator “Maria”. She is very loving and is trying to help us with our communication. There are so many emotions going through us right now. Askar desperately needs a Mom and Dad. The orphanage is nice and clean. We believe they are doing the best to take care of all these children. But you can only imagine how difficult it must be to take care of so many. The children are not treated as individuals, but more as a group. You can tell that Askar’s caregiver really likes him. We saw her give him a great “motherly” hug the other day.

When we bring him home we will have to work with him to help him become an individual, not just “one” of many.

We know that we can’t change the world for all the children here, but we can change the world for this one child.

We are happy that Parker has been allowed to visit with Askar. They seem to get along, even though they can’t communicate. We are learning some Russian words. Our translator is so nice at repeating the words over and over for us.

We Are Here!!

Hi Everyone! Gosh so much to say! We had longs flights and all in all we had no troubles getting here. Even all our luggage arrived! Yeah! One of the best parts about flying was Parker. He was such a little trooper! We were the most worried about all the flying and how he would do. He truly surprised us with his happy attitude the entire time.

We just now were able to get on the computer because we didn't have the right power adaptor. Many stores later and finally found the right one! As I write this, we are in our apartment. We are staying in a nice large 2 bedroom. It is definitely cold here. About the 20's to 30's. We are in Ust-Kamenogorsk, Kazakhstan. The city dates back to 1720. It is really hard to imagine living here that long ago....the cold must have been miserable!

Within hours of our arrival we were taken to the Orphanage. We had so many different emotions going on besides being incredibly tired. We met with so many people, our coordinator, the doctor, the Assistant Director, a caregiver and a women from the Ministry of Education. Quickly we were introduced to 3 boys. We knew right away that we wanted to spend more time with the youngest boy who was 5 years old. His name is Askar. At first he was shy and didn't know what the heck was going on. He kept looking at the "strange couple" and couldn't stop smiling. He was standing closest to Tyler. He was so shy at first that Tyler decided to pick him up and sit him on his lap. He seemed very comfortable sitting there. I told our translator that Tyler was a wonderful father. Immediately the translator told everyone in the room that and they all seemed very happy to hear that! We were allowed to spend some time with him alone with a translator. Askar was very happy and enjoyed being with the “strange couple”. When our visit was over he gave us all a really nice hug when he left.

We had our 2^nd visit with Askar today. He seemed excited to see us. Askar is definitely very small for his age compared to Parker. We think that is because of his size. We brought Askar a juice box. He was sooo excited about the juice box. Apparently he has never had one before. He was amazed that you could put a straw inside the box and yummy juice comes out. We brought our camera and some toys. He was excited about getting his picture taken and then looking at it right away. He would say “I’m right here”, pointing at the picture of himself. He didn’t know what to play with first. He wanted to play with everything at the same time it seemed. He also liked some cleansing cloths that I brought. He proceeded to clean the entire room with them. Very cute. We asked our translator to ask Askar what he thinks about visiting with us. He told her that he is having fun and that he liked us. We don’t think he quite understands what we are there for, but he knows that something is going on.

We are going into day 3 and it feels like we have been here longer….strange. I am off to bed now. We woke up today at 4:00 a.m. and couldn’t go back to sleep. Thanks for all your positive thoughts, keep them coming! Positive brings positive!! Goodnight from Kazakhstan!

We leave tomorrow!

We are packed and ready to go! We wanted to send a heartfelt thank you to Orson over at Adoption International Programs for all his help in getting us to this moment. We also want to send a big thank you over to Kevin too! Everyone at AIP really made this process go so smoothly for us. Thank you, Thank you!!

We leave Tuesday February 20th

Well it is official, we are leaving Tuesday the 20th @ 2:30 p.m. (we were suppose to leave the 21st, but leaving a day earlier takes away a "stop in Astana, Kazakhstan". We want to make this trip with the least amount of stops for Parker's sake...okay and us!)

We are even being chauffered by the Lovely Lisa Lobel....Thanks Lisa, your the best! We are packing and still gathering little things here and there, but for the most part we feel like everything is falling into place! Christy is just hoping that she doesn't adopt the entire orphanage! Yikes!!

We Got Our Visa's

Hi, Everyone! We just got word that our Visa's have been approved and are being Fed Ex'd. We are officially leaving on February 21st for Ust-Kamengorsk, Kazakhstan. We are scheduled to come home on March 20th (it works out to be approx. 25 days!) Then we are home for about 25 days and then Christy goes back by herself to pick up the little guy! She will be gone for about 10-17 days on the 2nd trip. We will update you more as the days get closer to our departure!

We have sent our Visa's applications to The Assistant Stork. We are waiting for our LOI (letter of Invitation) We have been told by our adoption agency (AIP) that we should be hearing any day now for our LOI. We have plane reservations already. Hopefully we get the Invitation soon!

Our Adoption Journey to Kaz!