March 26

Today we went to the bazaar. It started out not so crowded and then became a madhouse. It’s an outside flea market with very narrow “streets”, many covered with tarps which turn the place into a maze of tunnels. Russ said the fire marshal would shut it down in 10 seconds in the US. We tried our best to stay together amid the pushing crowds and we were only separated momentarily a few times. I may kiss the ground at Walmart upon our return! I We got some clothes for the kids but it was difficult because they are so small. I estimate Julia wears a 7 slim, not sure about Vasya because I’m unfamiliar with boy sizes but he’s small.

After the bazaar, we came home exhausted but had to prepare for our 2nd dinner party. Those of you in Colorado know how we love to entertain and being half way around the world in a country where we barely speak 50 words hasn’t stopped us. Shopan cooked Montee and made a wonderful salad. Vasya and Russ went for a cake and some other items before the guests arrived. We normally type into the translation software what we need and then Vasya becomes our interpreter and guide to go get what we need.

Vasya and Julia’s older sister Ira and her husband and daughter came, along with their other sister Anna and her son. With our interpreter Bibi, we had 12 people. It was a fun night but I think Bibi was exhausted at the end of it, trying to keep up translating for all of us. Russ and I finished up the evening with a mountain of dishes.

Vasya and Julia are still very excited about having a family and living in a flat, but we’re starting to use phrases like “quiet, please” and “be nice” and “can you turn that down a little?” We know we need to give them some time to adjust but we're also kindly teaching them the "house rules". They catch on very quickly by watching how Brooke and Paige respond and we normally only have to explain something once.

We didn’t expect to have to each them about littering. People here just throw trash everywhere so it’s become their culture to litter. We explained that in America we don’t litter and there’s a fine from the police if you do it. Now both of them go to great lengths to show us they’re putting their trash in the trashcans. If we say something isn’t done in America, that’s pretty much the end of it.

Tomorrow is the party at the orphanage and then we won’t be going back. I think they’re excited about saying the final goodbye.

We’ve been here 3 weeks now and we’re really ready to go home. As any international adoptive parent can tell you, this starts to feel like it will never end! We learned today that the ONLY person who can sign the forms for the passports is on a 3 day conference in Astana. So that means the plane reservations we just made yesterday for April 5th will have to be changed. But, we were happy to learn this while we’re still here in Taraz, in our flat where it’s inexpensive to live. We’re hoping and praying for no delays when we finally move over to Almaty. In Almaty, we’ll have to rent 2 hotel rooms and eat out every meal.
Wendy