Kemerovo-day 21

We made it through our first full day together. It is 10:39PM here and the boys are thankfully sleeping soundly. They slept in today (imagine that as they did not fall asleep until after midnight) and woke about 8:30. I quickly called home on Skype so that Jessica and the girls could see the boys. Things were kind of crazy here so we didn’t get to talk long. The boys may be surprised to finally meet their sisters in person as they look at their photo albums constantly and name everyone in it. We found out they don’t like instant oatmeal this morning. I think they were given juice 24/7 at the orphanage because it is all they ask for. Chad and I have noticed that everyone here drinks juice a LOT. The majority of the commercials are for some brand of juice. We have been limiting juice to one to two times a day of watered down juice (only four ounces). After breakfast and getting dressed we bundled up the boys (it was in the low 40s) and walked down to Lenin square so that they could play on the equipment. They definitely had not been on anything quite like it and needed some help climbing up the stairs. Ruslan needed to ride in the stroller quite a bit as he got tired walking. I am thinking that he did not do much walking when they took the kids out. We came home and the boys had a quick snack while I ran to the store to get more groceries for lunch and dinner. I decided to make some scrambled eggs (one of the few things that sounds good anymore) along with the boys’ request for sausages (I bought salami instead but they were pleased). For lunch they had sliced apples, salami, bread, and cheese. After lunch they took off their shoes (which they always wear) and climbed up into bed. All right; they are in the routine. No such luck on the sleeping though they did lie in bed (with some jumping too) for two hours. They did not cry or whine to get up so they are in this routine too. Chad left at 3pm with the coordinator so that he could sign some more papers and actually acquire the boys’ passports. So, we have our American passports and they have their Russian passports. I am thinking we will get visas for them at the US Embassy in Moscow and can apply for US passports when we return to the US (of course for yet another fee).
After Chad came home we hung out for a bit and then took a quick walk around the block to just get out of the hotel. The boys are used to going outside during this time so it helped keep on that ever important schedule. After we came back inside I made dinner (it just felt that I had finished with lunch) which consisted of grilled ham and cheese sandwiches, corn, cubed cheese, French fries, and apple slices. The boys really liked ketchup so they will fit in with Sam. We already go through a container of ketchup weekly so I can imagine we will need to buy the big value size now. The boys sit nicely during mealtimes and as always are chattering to each other. They share their food nicely and mostly Ruslan gives Pasha the food he doesn’t like. Their preferences are very apparent and I have already learned the phrase in Russian for “I don’t like it”.
Showers went much better tonight Ruslan had an accident so he really wanted to get cleaned up and stepped right in. I had him sit in the bottom of the shower and he rinsed himself off and helped suds up as well. He didn’t mind too much when I washed his hair either. Pasha screamed at first but calmed down quickly. They both shiver and shake when they get out. They really don’t like being cold. I hope it is warm when we get home.
After showers I borrowed some scissors from the other couple and cut Ruslan’s bangs. Both boys need haircuts, but Ruslan’s bangs were hanging down in his eyes so a trim was really in order. He sat up in the chair so well so I think haircuts in the orphanage were not a terrible ordeal for him. Of course Pasha wanted his turn as well (especially since I praised Ruslan in Russian for how handsome he was) so I snipped his bangs as well. It definitely is not what our stylist Anna can do but it will work for now.
We have had a few bumps in the road with discipline but overall I think things are going well. Today Ruslan was testing us a bit by throwing toys and such. He would try to do something naughty while looking at us the whole time. He really checks in with our faces to see our reactions to things; I am really pleased with this. He told me a couple times today that he loved me; this is really nice to hear but I can’t help but think that he doesn’t really know what that means. Ah, I need to stop overanalyzing things and just ENJOY.
On a side note, Samantha’s volleyball team took the championship in her tournament on Sunday. I am so proud of her and all the girls on both United volleyball teams. I am looking forward to seeing her play on the junior high team in the fall. It is hard to believe that the girls will be done with school when we get back. We really have missed a month!
We have to be up and ready to leave at 5am for our early morning flight to Moscow. There is a three hour time difference so it will be interesting to see how the boys do with that. We will be heading home a week from tomorrow!