Now Playing: May 24th
Eli has been in country for 11 weeks now and the travel experience seems like it was ions ago. Eli has really adjusted well and he is a really good and happy baby. He is now 14 months old and is almost walking. Once in awhile he will forget he can't walk yet,let go of the piece of furniture and take about 6 or 7 steps before falling. He has received his first black eye and Grandpa and I were the culprits :(
I took away his bottle about a week before I started back to work and he is doing great with the sippy cup. I switched to a different daycare because of too many red flags am very satisfied with the new daycare he is going to.
When he first arrived, he could say Mama and da-which means Yes in the Russian language. He can now tell me how a cow sounds, No, Ball, and alot of jibber-jabber, which consists of new sounds daily.
He no longer likes to be rocked to sleep :(, but would rather lay in his crib and talk to himself for an hour before falling asleep.
He has been easy to take care-he has slept through the night all but once and then I picked him up, held him for a minute, then told him it was time to go to sleep-laid him down and he slept the rest of the evening.
He spent his first night away from home last Friday at Grandma and Grandpa's house. He was great and they had alot of fun showing him off to everyone.
When I brought him to the states, his doctor said he was in the lower 25% of his weight class, but his last wellness check confirmed he is now in the upper 25% of his weight class.
I've got alot of legal paperwork that is work in process with my attorney who is registering the foreign adoption This will allow me to get an Indiana birth certificate (right now his birth certificate is in Russian). After I receive the birth certificate, then I can apply for a social security number for him. I also need to visit my attorney to have a will made as well as assign guardianship if ever it is needed.

I walked in the Race for the Cure and took him in the stroller-It was about an hour walk and he did great-he just watched everyone until he finally fell asleep.

I'm will be updating this site periodically and will include the website that has updated pics of him.

Thanks for reading :)

Now Playing: Friday, March 11th
We are home at last. We arrived home March 9th, just in time for Eli's birthday, March 10th. The flight was hard on him. He was great on the flight from Kazakhstan to Amsterdam, which was 8 hours. The second flight from Amsterdam to Detroit was too much for him. He was so tired that he couldn't sleep but he did exercise his lungs.
Eli puts up a good fight when it is time for naps and bedtime-something I definitely need to work with him on before I take him to the babysitter. Twice today I put him to sleep, laid him down and he woke up. After the second time, I let him cry himself to sleep, which was very hard for me to do but he did fall asleep after 20 minutes. Feel free to reply with any tips. Today it was suggested not to rock him to sleep because he needs to learn that when he is put in his crib, it is sleep time. I know he would scream and become very upset if I do that now and I need to remember he is probably going through alot right now and has only been in his new home for 2 days.
I've got alot of paperwork to do to apply for a birth certificate in English since his is in Russian, apply for his social security number, and apply for a U.S. adoption.
Next Tuesday he goes to the doctor and I am going to request complete testing on him from bloodwork, EKG,and his immunizations will probably be given over because another Mom that I met over there told me her daughter's tests showed she had no immunizations even though her medical report from the orphanage showed she had received them. I feel a little rested but think I will need a couple of more days before my internal clock is on Indy time again.

Now Playing: Sunday March 6
Sorry for the delay in posting an update but I now understand that I have to be strategic with my spare time. Mom is babysitting Eli while he is napping so I could sneak off to the internet cafe. He has been awesome and sleeps through the night except last night. He cried from 1:30 a.m until 4:30 a.m after we tried everything with helpful suggestions from mom, who had experience from taking care of my brother when he was little and since I never cried :) I have to admit I am glad Mom wanted to join me in this adventure. I have already learned quite a bit from her.
He woke up crying today and we thought he had problems with his stomach so my coordinator brought her children's pediatrican over. Eli had a fever and is getting his upper lateral's and 1 yr. molar's in. I know-all of you mother's are laughing because you have already been there-done that. Luckily, I brought some Orajel and baby Motrin with me. The doctor suggested a couple of other things and this afternoon he was back to his normal self. It amazes me that the pediatrician making a house call was only 2000 tenge, which is only around $15-Mom and I felt a little guilty about that so we gave her a thousand more---tenge, that is. Not dollars :)
I don't know if I will get away to post again as I want mom to get some rest because she is really tired after last night so I don't want to leave Eli with her alone until she is rested again.
We will be home Wednesday afternoon and I'm sure there will be some adjusting as Eli's system will be totally messed up since Kazakhstan is 11 hours ahead of Indy.

Thanks for following my journey and I'll talk to everyone once Eli and I get rested.

Now Playing: Thursday March 3
My coordinator and translator did work their magic and I took Eli from the baby house around 4:30 p.m last night and he is doing great. I already see a big improvement with his motor skills and his personality. He is definitely a happy baby.
Friday will be a very busy day for us visiting the embassy, SOS doctor and another appointment at 7 p.m.
The plan is to get my passport friday, fly to Astana friday night so my coordinator can get to the consulate first thing Saturday morning to get it stamped. My translator will call her Saturday morning to check progress and if it is going fine, we will visit the KLM office and hopefully they will have departure seats still available for Sunday. Otherwise, it will be Wednesday.

Now Playing: Wednesday February 2nd
Wellllll-didn't get to take Eli from the baby house today. The director of the baby house has to be there to approve it and she wasn't in. Don't ask me why they didn't set up a meeting with her for this morning instead of waiting until the day of and finding out she isn't in. I don't think they believe in setting up meetings around here nor do they think ahead and plan things out. My coordinator is suppose to see if she can locate the director and we could possibly get Eli yet today, but it is 3 p.m. here and I don't think it is going to happen. I am told my passport will be ready Friday (I'm not content with that until I know my coordinator has it in her hands on friday)but they have to call the Consulate in Astana to confirm if they are open Saturday. If so, my coordinator will fly the passport to Astana (the capital of Kazakhstan) to have it stamped with approval and we will be able to fly out Sunday. I would think all that would take is a phone call but I haven't heard anything yet. It will probably be open but KLM probably won't have any more seats available(as of today, there are still seats) but at least we do have seats to fly out the 9th.(again-as long as the passport is done on Friday and it is flown to Astana to be stamped before the 9th)
I believe my coordinator and translator are doing everything they can to get us out of here on Sunday. I just don't think anyone moves quickly around here.
I'll post once I know my passport is complete on friday.

Now Playing: Tuesday, February 29
I spent the day visiting courts to sign and receive the birth certificate and the adoption decree. My coordinator is now at the passport court working her magic so I will know in about 2 hours if her magic worked or if I will need to make a second trip. If it worked, I will bring Eli to my apartment tomorrow and we will change our airline tickets to depart March 6th.
I will post tomorrow once I know and will keep this short so I can go to my apartment and wait for the phone call.

Now Playing: Friday February 25
Eli is crazy about the assistant director at the babyhouse. She was holding him today and he wanted to go back to me and she smiled and gave me the thumbs up. I was thinking " thanks for making me look good at the right time, Eli". Found out today that March 8th is a holiday and the passport application department is on holiday that entire week. My coordinator is going to do everything possible to get the passport completed next week. She said if she succeeds, the passport will be made of gold. Everyone please continue to keep your fingers crossed. Mom and I have made a calendar and taped to the refrigerator and we cross each day off. We made it the first of February and it was a little depressing to look at but it is starting to give us a different attitude when looking at it.
After visiting Eli, we ate at Mama Mia's-they have great spinach salads and calzones. The driver then dropped me off at the internet cafe and took mom to the apartment. I always walk to the apartment after the internet cafe to get some exercise. Tonight is probably a movie along with microwave popcorn and coke for dinner. Around 9:00 pm, professional tennis is usually on so we always watch a match or two.

Now Playing: Thursday February 24
Eli was taken out of the baby house for the first time to get his passport photo. He stared out the van window the entire ride. He bawled when he saw the camera man and it took an hour before we could snap a good photo of him. I believe it is the first time he has seen a man since all the caregivers and doctors at the baby house are women.
The caregiver took Eli out of the van and walked towards the baby house and he started crying so the caregiver waited for me and Eli quit crying as soon as I took him. I have to admit I enjoyed that but am sure I will not enjoy it as much once I get home and he won't go to anyone else so I can get a little rest. I'm sure it is hard for the caregivers that are close to him to not show attachment anymore.
Mom has had a rash for about a week. I called the embassy last week to see if they had a U.S. doctor mom could see and the cost was going to be $375 for the visit so she opted not to see a doctor. I called my translator last night and she brought her doctor to the apartment and confirmed it is an allergic reaction to the water here. She prescribed medication and it is already better today but we are going to take it easy for a few days. We are going to the opera tonight though. It is 3.5 hours long so we are having our driver pick us up after 2 hours.
Next Tuesday we will go to court to sign the adoption decree, then will go to the embassy to get Eli's birth certificate. After that is complete, my coordinator will do everything she can to get the passport process started and completed before the 9th. If I understood correctly, we will know next Wednesday what date Eli's passport will be complete. Mom and I both agree if it's complete before March 7th, we will each pay the $200 charge each to change our departure from here as long as they have seats available. March 8th is a holiday here and we depart at 4 a.m. on the 9th so the passport has to be processed by the 7th or we won't be departing on the 9th. Everyone continue to cross your fingers.

Now Playing: Tuesday February 22
Started the day off visiting Eli and then we went to KLM office to change the departure date to March 8th. I was told there was nothing available on the 8th, 9th or 11th-nothing until March 14th-All I could think to myself was there is no way I can stay here another week-I want and need to go home. I told my translator there is no way I can stay here until the 14th. I need to get Eli home and adjusted and get back to work. The reservationist spoke to here supervisor and they found two seats available on March 9th. I had to take a chance and schedule it. Now everyone needs to cross their fingers and say a prayer because Eli's passport will probably be processed by then but it is possible that it may not. I am not going to harp on the negative side of that and am going to believe it will be processed. I have been in contact with someone from Sen. Lugar's office earlier this trip and she asked me to inform her once the passport application for Eli starts so I have informed her it starts tomorrow. She can't tell them to process it quickly but hopefully it will help speed up the process after she contacts the embassy here. Kudos to our Indiana senators as other Americans from other states have contacted their senators and have received no replies. I have received replies from both Lugar and Bayh's office.
We went to the zoo afterwards and spent about an hour. Then we moved on to a pastry shop-they have alot of those around here.
We are taking Eli out of the baby house tomorrow to get his passport picture. A caregiver will go with us as I can't legally be with him alone yet. After the picture, he will return to the baby house until next Wednesday.

Now Playing: Monday February 21
Found out today that next Wednesday, Feb 28th, I can take Eli out of the baby house and to the apartment with me. The remaining days will consist of taking him to get his passport picture, visiting the SOS doctor so he can check Eli out, and visiting the Embassy to sign many papers. I will find out tomorrow my exact departure date, which I think will be around March 8th. Finally, the end is near.