Mommy has been sick

I’m sure many of you are wondering why it has taken me so long to post an update and pictures.  The problem has been that I have been sick since arriving home. The day after we arrived home, I woke up with an earache and sore throat.  I didn’t think much about it and went to the grocery store and bought some over the counter medicine.  By 9 pm, I was having chills and could hardly swallow and made my first trip to the emergency room.  I was very concerned I had caught something that I could pass onto Allison and my parents.  They ran tests to determine if I had the flu virus A or B as well as strep throat.  All the tests came back negative and they said I had picked up a virus and sent me home with some pain medicine.  Over the next three days I continued to have a fever, chills and no energy.  Wednesday evening I started having problems breathing and went to the emergency room for the second time.

This time they ran more tests and determined I had fluid in and around my lungs.  Given I was having problems breathing and maintaining my oxygen level, they admitted me to the hospital.  The final diagnosis was Viral Atypical Pneumonia and I was released Friday night.

I am feeling much, but I still don’t have much energy and think it will take a few more days before I’m feeling good again.

I’m very thankful my parents were here and they were able to take care of Allison the first week we were home.  My friend Laura helped us on Saturday and my sister Canessa came and stayed with us from Saturday evening until Tuesday morning.  Grandma and Grandpa came back Tuesday afternoon and are going to stay until I am able to take care of Allison on my own. 

Allison is doing great

Allison is doing great and seems to be adjusting well.  She loves spending time with Grandma and Grandpa.  Grandma cuddles and plays with her and feeds her.  Grandpa sings her songs and makes noises that she mimics.  She is very curious and is constantly exploring everything around her.  She likes exploring and checking things out better than playing with her toys.    She likes the musical walker Grandma and Grandpa gave her.  She is able to push and walk behind it.  I don’t think it will be very long before she is walking.

My prediction that I would need to buy lots of Resolve and a carpet cleaner seems to be coming true!  While Allison is not spitting up as much, she still spits up quite a bit.  I’ve also determine my daughter will probably not be a little girl who stays clean and pristine.  Between eating and playing, she does not keep any outfit clean for very long.  

She is also making progress with her verbal development.  She has started saying “da-da”, which is the first verbal communication a baby makes. 

Allison will have her first checkup with a pediatrician this afternoon.  

That’s all for now.

Saturday, November 4, 2006

Arrived Home Safely

Allison and I arrived at Dulles around 4:30 p.m. and were welcomed home by Grandma and Grandpa Lockhart.   It felt great to finally be home with Allison.

The trip from Almaty to Dulles is very long and tiring, but Allison was a great little traveler.  We arrived at the Almaty airport at 1am and proceeded to stand in lines to check our baggage, clear immigration and board for the next 2.5 hours.  Securely snuggled in her Baby Bjorn carrier, Allison didn’t mind the lines and enjoyed watching all the people.  The worst part was boarding the plane.  There is no such thing as discrete, orderly lines in Kazakhstan unless imposed by the authorities.  When it comes to boarding a plane, everyone just converges and folks begin pushing, shoving and cutting in line. 

Including Allison, there were 5 adopted babies on our flight.  I’m sure our fellow passengers were happy that all the babies were fairly good the entire flight.  Allison fell asleep right before take-off and slept until we were about an hour from Frankfort.

We had about a 7 hour layover in Frankfurt.  We had breakfast with two of the other adopted families who were on our flight.  One family was a couple from Charlotte who had adopted an infant boy.  The other family was Pam Thomas and her son Max who was adopted from the same orphanage as Allison in Ust.  It was nice being able to chat and share experiences.  Sitting next to us in the restaurant were some folks, including a priest, from Texas who had been visiting Italy.  Before they left the restaurant, the priest gave Allison and the other two babies a blessing.  This was the first blessing Allison received during our trip.

Allison and I spent most of our Frankfort layover in a quiet area close to the gate for our flight.  There were not very many people in the area and I was able to spread out Allison’s quilt and let her play on the floor with her toys.  That is when we met Alex and her two daughters Jana who is 18 months old and Aliea who is 3 years old and their nanny.   Alex is a U.S. citizen who now lives in Cairo with her husband and children.  They were traveling to Michigan to visit family for the next two months.  Allison played with Jana and Aliea for a couple of hours.

Allison was a little fussy for the first 3 hours of our flight to Dulles, but then fell asleep and slept the rest of the trip.  She didn’t wake up until we had landed and I was putting her in her Baby Bjorn carrier.  Before leaving the plane, a very nice lady we had met at the boarding gate in Frankfurt stopped by and asked if she could give Allison a blessing.  This was Allison’s second blessing.

It took us about 45 minutes to clear customs and immigration.  We were so happy to see Grandma and Grandpa waiting to take us home! 

Allison had a good time getting to know Grandma and Grandpa that evening and was fascinated with their dog Candy as well as our own two cats.  She went to bed about 8 pm and slept until about 6 am and only woke up once.

We went to the U.S. Consular’s office today and obtained Allison’s visa to enter the U.S.  We will be leaving Almaty at 3:30 am and arriving at Dulles at 3:45 pm.   It has been a long journey, but we are almost home.  Allison is sleeping while I write this last posting from Almaty.   Our bags are packed and I only have to fix her bottles.  I have four bottles, but I don’t know if that will be enough until we get home.  If not, I’ll have to figure out how to wash one of her bottles.  Hopefully a restaurant in the Frankfort airport will help us out.

While we were at the U.S. Consular’s office, there were three other families there obtaining visas for the babies they  had adopted from Kazakhstan.  At least 3 of us will be on the flight from Almaty to Frankfurt!  It could be an interesting flight!

We had a lazy, but good day today.  I think if we stayed in Almaty a few more days, we would be able to establish a schedule.  Allison took a nap at 10am for 3 hours and another nap at 4:30 on for 1.5 hours.  It looks like bed time is about 9:30pm and she wakes up about 7am.  Who knows what’s going to happen during the 24 hours plus we will be traveling.  Hopefully it will not take us long to set a routine once we are home.

That’s it for now.  I’ll do another posting after we arrive home.  See everyone soon.

It has been 40 hours since I picked up Allison from the Baby House.  We have been using this time to get to know each other and restart the attaching process.  One of the things I’ve noticed is that she wants to be held and loved on more than she during the three weeks I was with her in September.  During my first trip, she was ok with some cuddling, but wanted to play with her toys more.  Since we have been in Almaty, she cries whenever I leave her sight while we are in our hotel room.  She also wants to be held and cuddled more than she wants to play with her toys.  I’m not sure if this is a sign that she is attaching to me or that she is a little traumatized from leaving behind everything and everyone she has ever known.

In one of the adoption books I read, there was an article about Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome and adopted children.   The theory behind the article is that a baby’s abandonment by their Mother, even at birth, is a traumatic experience because a baby is born knowing its Mother and expecting its mother to be there when it is born to take care of her.   Abandoned babies grieve the loss of their Mother especially when they are placed in an orphanage with multiple caregivers.  Depending upon the level of care they receive in the orphanage and to the extent their various needs are met, abandoned children can experience multiple traumatic experiences that actually cause their brains to release different chemicals because they are always in a fight or flight mode.  While being adopted and finding forever parents is a good thing, it can also be stressful and traumatic to the child being adopted.  Adopted children have to learn that parents are different from caregivers and learn to trust that their adopted parents will not abandon them.  

I gave Allison her first bath this morning.  I don’t think she knew quite what to make of it, but she didn’t cry.  She also went through three outfits today not counting the sleeper she slept in last night!  She is still spitting up a lot after she eats.  I don’t know if this is normal, but I’m going to mention it to her pediatrician.  Needless to say, Mommy had to change clothes a few times today as well.  I thought I may have bought too many clothes for her before I left, but if she is going to go through 3 to 4 outfits a day, I probably didn’t buy enough!  Between Allison and my cats, I will need to make sure I have lots of Resolve carpet cleaner on hand!  Maybe a carpet cleaner wouldn’t be a bad investment.

Another thing I will need to ask her doctor is whether she is eating enough.  She is only drinking three 6 oz bottles per day and eating 3 large jars of baby food or about 18 oz of food per day.  I don’t know if she can hold much more than one large jar of baby food at a time.  I’m beginning to realize there are lots of things about raising a child that I will need to learn. 

Allison slept through the night.  She went to bed at about 9:30 last night and slept until about 6:30am.  She did cry out a few times, but always went back to sleep within a minute or two.  While Allison slept through the night, Mommy didn’t.  I kept waking up every hour or so and checking on her.  Hopefully, Mommy can sleep through the night tonight as well as Allison.   She also took a two hour nap this afternoon, which meant Mommy took a nap too!

Good news!  It looks like we are coming home on Saturday instead of next Tuesday or Wednesday.  We have an appointment with the U.S. Consular’s office at 2:30 pm tomorrow.  If everything goes as planned and we can get seats on the flight leaving Almaty on Saturday at 3:30 am, we will arrive in Dulles at 2:30 pm the same day.  Keep your fingers crossed!

I’ve uploaded a few new pictures of Allison playing in our hotel room.  We hope to see everyone soon.

November 1^st will be a day I will always cherish and celebrate because today I took physical custody of Allison and officially became a Mom.  I picked Allison up at the Baby House today at 7am and we then proceeded to the airport to catch the 9:30 am flight to Almaty.  She seemed very happy to see me and didn’t cry once before we left.  To manage Allison, her diaper bag and my computer case, I carried her in a Baby Bjorn carrier.  She loved being in the Baby Bjorn carrier in which she can face forward and see everything that is going on around her.

Allison was a great traveler!  She wasn’t scared of riding in either the car going to the airport or the plane.   Since the plane ride was only 1.5 hours long, I did not get her a separate seat and she sat on my lap because the plane was full.  Thank goodness we had a window seat, which gave us a little more room!  She loved looking out the window of the plane and standing on my lap holding onto the seat in front of us.  I was afraid she might pull the hair of the man sitting in front of us, but fortunately her arms couldn’t reach that far!  After 15 minutes into the flight, she fell asleep and slept the rest of the way to Almaty.

Once again, I was impressed with the kindness of strangers.  In Ust, they do not have jetways and you have to climb portable stairs to reach the aircraft.  While I was gathering Allison and all our stuff, a very nice woman suddenly appeared and offered her assistance.  She wouldn’t let me carry anything, but Allison.  I don’t know if I would have been able to carry all my stuff and Allison without her assistance.  After we landed in Almaty, one of the airline stewards helped me gather my stuff and then proceeded to carry it all the way to the baggage claim area!  I was very grateful for the assistance and kindness of these two strangers.

Before leaving the U.S., I made my own hotel reservations because I could never find out whether Galina was making hotel reservations for me and I definitely did not want to stay in an apartment like the one I stayed in the evening before I left Almaty the last time.  It turns out that Galina did make hotel reservations for me at the Hotel Almaty and tried to convince me to cancel my reservations at the Intercontinental Hotel.  She had the driver stop at the Hotel Almaty where she showed me the room I could have.  While I could have saved a lot of money staying there, Allison and I would have been miserable.  The room was small with beat-up dirty looking parquet floors, a hard twin bed and a very outdated bathroom.  I know other people have stayed at the Hotel Almaty and liked it; therefore, I think they have some nice rooms, but I wouldn’t have been staying in one.   I am so glad I made my own reservations.  The Intercontinental Hotel is very nice and our room is fairly large with a king size bed that Allison likes to play on.   I also feel comfortable with letting Allison crawl and play on the floor.   They provided a crib for Allison and room service even brought boiling water for her bottle.  In addition, Allison  loves looking at herself in the full length mirror and giving kisses to the baby she sees!

We went to the SOS clinic in the afternoon where a doctor examined Allison and they drew blood for an HIV test.  The doctor said Allison appeared to be healthy although small.  She now weighs 6.7 kgs or about 15 pounds.  She is about 26 inches tall and her head circumference is a little over 43 cms.  She was very good while the doctor examined her, but she did not like getting her finger pricked and having blood drawn, which means she is just like every other baby! 

After her checkup we went to the Ram Store, which is similar to Target back home.  I was able to buy baby food, diapers and other things we will need while in Almaty.  Once again Allison was a trooper.  She loved being carried in the Baby Bjorn carrier and looking at all the stuff in the store as well as all the people. 

This is it for tonight.  Allison is asleep and I need to go to bed and get some rest as well.  I’m hoping she will sleep through the night.  Keep your fingers crossed!

I finally arrived in Ust-Komenogorsk at 9:00 am this morning.  I think I have been traveling for a day and a half and I am exhausted!  I had just enough time to check into the Irtysh Hotel and freshen up before leaving at 10 am to visit Allison at the Baby House.

I’ve been concerned that she wouldn’t remember me, but when I walked into the room and called her name she grinned and seemed to recognize me.  I’m amazed by how much she has progressed in the last four weeks.  She can pull herself up to stand and cruise along a bench or a play pen.  She is also crawling and going just about anywhere she wants.  She crawled to a doorway and holding onto the wall pulled herself up to stand!  I can see I’m going to be very busy keeping up with her!  I was also pleasantly surprised at how much she smiled today.  She seems to be a very happy baby, which I give credit to  her permanent caregivers.  I think they gave her extra attention while I was gone.  I’m very grateful her caregivers are so caring and kind.

Allison reached for me several times today wanting me to pick her up, which she never did before.  That simple gesture filled me with so much joy and pleasure!  She also cried when I left for the first time today.  When I put her in her crib for her nap after our morning visit, she cried and reached for me.  I felt very sad that I had to leave her and couldn’t take her with me and I’m glad I will be taking her home with me tomorrow.

Our afternoon visit also went very well.  The baby room has a slide and Allison enjoyed sliding down with a little help from Mommy.  Towards the end she was scooting herself down the slide!  I will upload pictures tomorrow from Almaty where I should have a faster internet connection.  The connection in Ust is to slow to attempt uploading any pictures tonight.  Sorry!

I will pick Allison up from the Baby House tomorrow morning at 7am to go to the airport.  Our flight to Almaty leaves at 9:30 am.  Once we arrive in Almaty, we will go to the SOS health clinic operated by the State Department where Allison will be examined and tested for HIV again.  My coordinator thinks the results of the HIV test may be available Friday, which means Allison and I could come home on either Saturday or Sunday.  While that would be very nice, I think it is more likely the results will not be available until Monday and we will leave on the 3:30 am flight on Tuesday, November 7^th.

The Baby House was crowed today because there are three families from the U.S. who arrived on Monday.  Each family is adopting a baby from Allison’s group.  I had spoken to one family while in the U.S. about the little girl they are adopting.  Bret and Kathryn Nelson are from Minnesota and are adopting a beautiful little girl.  There is another couple and their daughter who are adopting a little boy.  Jana, Mike and Bree are also from Minnesota.  The last family is from Texas and they are also adopting a little boy, but unfortunately he is sick right now and in the hospital.  Joanie and Nick are hopeful that he will be released from the hospital by the end of the week.  I wish them all the best and hope their adoptions go smoothly.

That’s it for tonight.  I need to get some sleep so I can keep up with Allison tomorrow!

I am on my way to pickup Allison as I write this posting.  I’m in Frankfurt, Germany waiting for my flight to Almaty.  I’ll have a 6 hour layover in Almaty before my flight to Ust-Komenogorsk.  The last few days have been very hectic trying to get Allison’s room ready and trying to finish a few things at work.   My friend Laura helped me finish packing and arranging Allison’s room before driving me to the airport on Sunday.  Thanks Laura!!

I would also like to thank my family, friends and colleagues for the kindness and support they have given me during my adoption journey.  I’ve truly appreciate your encouragement and support.  I really enjoyed the comments folks posted while I was in Kazakhstan the last time and look forward to sharing this last leg of my adoption journey with you.

The next day or two will be very hectic and I will probably not be able to post again until Wednesday.  I hope to have some new pictures of Allison to share with you by then.  The Hansen family that just came back from Ust told me Allison has cut two teeth and is cruising around her play pen! 

That’s it for now.  I have to catch my flight to Almaty.

The weather was beautiful again today and Allison and I spent the first part of our afternoon visit outside.  We played on the swing and walked around the building.  We saw some very pretty birds and a cat!  Allison found the birds and cat very interesting.

After I setup our quilt and toys just outside the baby room downstairs, Allison’s permanent caregivers came down and gestured that I should move and take Allsion upstairs.  It appears that while we were outside, the caregivers had transferred all of Allison’s things (diapers, formula, clothes, etc.) upstairs to her baby group’s permanent rooms.

When we arrived upstairs, we were greeted by two of her permanent caregivers, Natasha and Ulla.  Allison immediately held her arms out for Ulla to pick her up.  It was very comforting to see that she recognized her caregivers and had formed attachments to them.  They also seemed very fond of Allison.

Allison, Alesha and I then played for about an hour.  I think they had more fun tearing apart a magazine than playing with Allison’s toys!   Allison tolerated fairly well my trying to give her enough kisses and hugs to last the next five weeks.  I’ve uploaded a picture of Allison, Alesha and me playing.

Just before I left, I fed Allison a bottle and then carried her to her crib for her afternoon nap.  I feel very fortunate to have such a beautiful, loving daughter.

I’m also grateful that she has been transferred back to the care of her permanent caregivers because it is obvious that she recognizes them and has formed attachments to them.   While I will still miss her and worry about her, I feel better knowing that she is being taken care of by people she knows and loves.

I will be leaving Ust tomorrow morning and Almaty Wednesday morning.   This is my last blog posting from Kazakhstan until I come back to pickup Allison.  After I get home, I plan to post some additional pictures on Saturday. 

Court Day

This morning I went to court to ask the court to approve my petition to adopt Allison.  The process was a little nerve racking, but the Judge approved my adoption application!  

Adoption court is held in an office with only the Judge, Prosecutor, Court Clerk, Ministry of Education representation, Orphanage Head Doctor, Interpreter, and me present.  I gave a speech to the court that I had prepared in advance with assistance from Ahz and my local attorney.  The prosecutor then asked me if I lived by myself and how did I plan to take care of Allison.  Then Oksana, the Ministry of Education representative, gave a report in which she described Allison’s medical condition, attempts and failure to locate her birth parents, and her recommendation the Court approve my adoption application.  After Oksana, the Orphanage Head Doctor gave her report and she recommended my application be approved as well.

The waiting to finalize Allison’s adoption now begins.  The Judge’s decision will not be final for 15 days.  After the 15^th day, Galina will apply for a new birth certificate for Allison that will show her new name and me as her mother.  It will take a day or two to obtain the new birth certificate.   Once Galina has the new birth certificate, she will apply for Allison’s Kazakhstan passport.  It now takes 10 to 14 days to obtain a passport.

Just before or immediately after Galina obtains Allison’s passport, I will return to Kazakhstan to pickup Allison from the orphanage and we will then go to Almaty to finish the paperwork required by the U.S. Embassy before they will issue Allison a visa to enter the U.S.   The U.S. Embassy requires all children adopted from Kazakhstan to be examined by a doctor at the SOS clinic in Almaty.   They are now requiring the clinic to perform an HIV test on all children due to the recent outbreak of HIV cases in children from the Shykempt (sp?) region of Kazakhstan.  This outbreak is due to the contamination of the blood supply in that region and is thought to be limited to that region.  Allison has already been tested for HIV and the results were negative, but she will have to be retested. While the HIV test is important, it does add two more days to the U.S. Embassy process. 

After we complete all the U.S. Embassy requirements, Allison and I will be able to come home.   I’m estimating we will be able to leave Almaty on or about November 15^th.  I will be anxiously waiting that day!

Today was another Woman’s Summer Day and Allison and I went outside during our morning visit to enjoy the nice weather.  We encountered lots of people while outside.  We met a couple from Germany who were adopting a 2 year-old boy and there were two groups of children outside walking with their caregivers.  Allison has only been around the children in her own baby group who are all about her age; therefore, she is fascinated by these older children and thinks they are quite a novelty.

One of her permanent caregivers came down to visit during our afternoon visit and gave me a picture of Allison and Alesha taken in May.    The two caregivers working today, Gayla and Luba, gave me a pair of the booties the babies wear that are hand crocheted by one of the caregivers.  As I’ve indicated previously, the caregivers are very nice and genuinely care about the children.

In the picture taken in May, Allison and Alesha are about the same size whereas now Alesha is much bigger than Allison.  I’m sure some of it has to do with him being a boy and genes, but I also wonder if the extra attention he receives from the caregivers has also contributed to his growth.  As I mentioned before, Alesha is a favorite of the caregivers and he is constantly being held and given one-on-one attention.  He is a very happy and engaging little boy and it is easy to see why he is a favorite.  He also is more vocal and demands more attention than Allison and the other babies.   I hope his Mother is able to come and get him soon and she does not leave him in the orphanage much longer. 

I discovered yesterday how to get a guaranteed giggle from Allison!   She loves to have her belly nuzzled and will smile and giggle every time I nuzzled it.   She also likes it when she is lying on her back and I lean over her and give her kisses and we rub noses.  I think it is a good sign that she is responsive to this type of Mommy play and it will eventually help her build an attachment to me.

Allison seemed more tired than usual at the end of both our visits today and I put her down for her naps earlier than usual.  When she is tired and ready for her nap, she starts rubbing her eyes and her hair.  She also doesn’t want to play or be held.  She pretty much just wants to lay down in her crib and go to sleep.   I’m sure when I am home that I will appreciate this trait, but right now I want to spend every available minute with her.   I’ve uploaded a picture of her lying in her crib with her new blankets.

We went to the supermarket Friday afternoon to buy the 2100 diapers and 15 cans of formula, but all they had in stock on the shelves were two jumbo packages of diapers in the correct size and 2 cans of Allison’s formula.  We talked to the store clerk and explained I needed 23 more jumbo packages of diapers and 13 more cans of formula.  They are going to check with their supplier (warehouse?) and call Ahz when they have the items.  If we don’t hear anything by Monday afternoon, we will go back to the store and try talking to the manager.   While I would like to purchase and deliver the diapers and formula to the Baby House before I leave, Ahz has agreed that I can leave money with him and he will take care of it after I’ve left.   It doesn’t appear that Ust has the equivalent of a Wal-Mart or Target or even our grocery stores where the shelves are fully stocked.  The quest for diapers and formula continues!

Ust-Kamenogorsk Wedding Tradition

Fridays and Saturdays are the big wedding days in Ust and it is common to see cars decorated in ribbons, streamers and flowers passing by honking their horns.   It seems the tradition is that after the wedding service, the wedding party visits all the monuments around Ust and leaves flowers at each monument before proceeding to the wedding reception.  Ahz wasn’t clear why the couples leave flowers at each monument, but thinks it has something to do with honoring past heroes and ancestors.  Whatever the intent, it is a nice custom and entertaining to watch the colorfully decorated cars filled with flowers dash about the city.

In the U.S., we say we are having an Indian Summer day when the weather is very sunny and warm in late Fall.  In Kazakhstan, they call such a day a Woman’s Summer day.  According to Ahz, a nice sunny fall day is called a Woman’s Summer day because in the past women usually were not able to enjoy and relax on nice summer days because they were too busy gardening and preserving food, but when there was a really nice Fall day, they were able relax and enjoy the day because they had finished all their chores for ensuring there was food for the upcoming winter.   We had a Woman’s Summer Day in Ust today.  

The weather was so nice that Allison I spent most of our morning visit outside.  We walked around the orphanage a couple of times and played in the little playground next to the orphanage.  There is a slide, swing and two benches under some trees where the children can play.  Allison and I slid down the slide a couple of times and then spent the rest of the morning swinging.  She was fascinated watching the wind ripple through the trees and the birds fly through the sky.   She also liked watching a group of older children (about 2 to 3 years old) who were on a walk with their caregiver.   The other family’s son Jackson entertained her as well.

This afternoon, we went to Astana Air to buy tickets to Almaty.  There was only one seat left on the only flight that leaves Ust for Almaty on Tuesday, October 3rd.and I bought it!   Today was my lucky day!!   This means I will be able to catch the Lufthansa flight that leaves Almaty at 3:20 a.m. on Wednesday and I will arrive at Dulles at 1 p.m. EST.  While I am going to miss Allison very much and wish I could bring her home now, I am very happy to be coming home. 

The internet has been down most of this evening and I haven’t been able to check emails or post anything.  I’m hoping it will be working again in the morning.  To keep busy, I’ve written my daily blog missive and the speech I will have to give before the judge during court on Monday.

Wednesday, September 27, 2006

Today was a fairly typical day in Ust.  I visited with Allison twice and during our afternoon visit she pulled herself up to stand while holding on to a bench!  She didn’t stop there because she then pulled/climbed on top of the bench!  She has amazing upper body strength for such a little girl.

I was also very touched today when one of the caregivers gave me a hand crocheted doily for Allison.  It is beautiful and I’m sure Allison will treasure this gift when she is older.

The orphanage doctor weighed Allison today and she has gained 650 grams and now weighs 6150 grams!  I am so thankful that she is gaining weight.  I’m sure her weight gain is the result of the formula I’ve been feeding her plus the extra attention I have been giving her.  She is still not on the U.S. growth charts for weight, but we are at least making some progress.

I think Allison is feeling better because she was perkier today than she had been for the last few days.  She also reached another milestone.  She walked about 10 feet while the caregivers held her hands!  This is a big accomplishment given she didn’t even want to stand on her feet when I first arrived.  I also capture this moment on video and will be happy to share it with everyone!

I also learned today that both her temporary and permanent caregivers have agreed to feed her formula instead of the Kefir beginning today and during the 5 weeks I will be gone.  Yes, I am doing a happy dance in my room!   Now I have to determine how much formula I will need to buy to ensure it will last 5 weeks.  I think to be on the safe side, I will buy 3 cans for each week I will be gone.  I also plan to buy enough pampers for the entire baby group to last while I’m gone.   There are 10 babies and I’m estimating each baby will be changed 6 times per day; therefore, I think I will need to buy about 2100 diapers!! 

I also learned today that I will not go to court until Monday.  It appears that the judge is on vacation until Monday.  I was very disappointed when I first heard this news because it means my return home will be delayed 3 days.  The bright side is that I will have 3 extra days to spend with Allison.  Galina also told the other family and me that we should not return to Kazakhstan until November 6^th.   This means the time between trips will be 5 weeks instead of the 3 weeks I had expected.  The additional wait time is due to the extra amount of time it is taking the Kazakhstan government to process passports for children being adopted.

I will miss Allison during the 5 weeks I will be gone and I’m sure I will worry about her.  I have asked Ahz if he would look in on her while I’m gone and send me and email on how she is doing once or twice a week.   I still hope to make arrangements with one or two of the caregivers to stop by during their off hours to play with Allison.