Trip 2 Day 6 (Part 1- from an internet cafe in Almaty... because we have no internet (or hot water) at the apartment.)
How momentous and wonderful and absolutely frazzling have the last two days been for my little family. Wow. Garrett Ruslan Snyder is finally ours full time and for real!
Caroline and I drove to the baby house in Schuchinsk for the last time yesterday morning. Nursultan’s van was packed to the gills because also in the van was Shizada, Makhabbat, Terri, all of Terri’s luggage, and all of our luggage. It was Terri’s court date as well as our “pick up” date, so both of us were heading to the airport after the baby house to catch various flights across the country (us) and around the world (Terri). Adding to the chaos was the fact that a new adoptive mother was arriving in town, and needed to be escorted to the baby house after Terri’s court time but before our departure. Makhabbat and Shizada couldn’t move quickly enough in the day’s family shuffle.
So Nursultan dropped Caroline and me at the front door of the babyhouse, while the rest of the gang headed to the court. It was bittersweet and wonderful knowing that I was walking down the faded turquoise hallway for the last time past the mural showing the smiling children of the world. This is the place where babies come from (according to Calvin) and there is a certain magical truth in that.
So, terrified of 10+ hours at the airport waiting for our late night flight, we convinced the baby house staff to allow us one more play session with Garrett in the music room, followed by one last baby house nap and feeding for Garrett before we headed to the airport. Garrett was so glad to see us again and, being totally unaware of the huge journey ahead of him, played and laughed and squealed just like the happy little cherub he is. When our playtime was over we returned him to the nursery, much to the confusion of the caregivers, who apparently had not been informed of our grand plan. I pantomimed returning in two hours and eventually they understood that I was indeed going to come back for my son!
Unfortunately, this is where the complicated shuffle of families in and out of Schuchinsk put a snag in our plans. Understanding that we would be through with our visit just as Terri got out of court, we had planned on having lunch with Terri, Makhabbat, and Shizada and then returning for Garrett. So Caroline and I sat on the warped blue bench in front of the babyhouse and waited for them to return. We waited and waited and waited. We watched the elderly staff member in charge of gardening methodically fill buckets from a nearby tap and slowly water a rectangular patch of dahlias she had just finished replanting. Caroline attempted to take a nap on the sunny little bench but the sight of one of us laying down drew such disturbed fascination from the caregivers passing through the court yard that I woke her up fearing that our reputation was at stake. Eventually, one of the babyhouse cleaning women came over to sit next to us. She spoke no English at all but we chatted anyway, using Caroline’s Russian phrase book to try to explain why we were sitting in the courtyard. Snatching up the phrasebook, the cleaning woman proceeded to flirt with one of the workmen who was making repairs to the building. With our pronounciation help, she told the worker that she loved him, that he should kiss her and then marry her. He, of course, had no idea what she was saying, so the three of us women laugh riotously between translations. Our hilarity caught the attention of the other cleaning women who all set down their bucket and came over to sit in the sun with us. We listened to them chatter and soaked up the rays of the warm spring day until Nursultan arrived almost an hour later. Little did we know it, but the time for lunch had come and gone. Terri went in to see Dylan (now officially her son) and Makhabbat and Shizada escorted the new mom into the babyhouse, stopping briefly at our bench to explain that we should pick up a quick lunch at a café and then come back for Garret and go to the airport. I was a little startled at the change of plans. “Are you going to be here when we pick up Garrett?” I asked Makhabbat. “No,” she said “I must go with the new lady.” And that was that. We hugged Makhabbat and thanked her for everything and a bit flustered headed off to a new car that had just pulled up for us and into which Nursultan was putting our luggage. We drove off to the café and that was the last I saw of the woman who had been our friend and daily companion in this life changing adventure. Sad, really, but life goes on.
We popped into Tim’s favorite “skulka” café and then went next door to the pharmacy to pick up the baby food that we would need for Garrett. We ate hurriedly on the short drive back to the babyhouse and then went in alone to take Garrett out.
Garrett was just finishing his last babyhouse lunch of compote and sour milk porridge. With my heart racing faster than usual, I changed him and kissed him and told him to say “paka.” Then, trying not to cry, I asked the caregivers if I could get a picture of them with Garrett. They set down the other children they were feeding and obliged.
The taller of the two stroked Garrett’s head as I took him back and told me “on harashow malchilk” (he’s a good boy). I smiled and we left. 
On our way out of the babyhouse we stopped by the director’s office to thank him one last time and to give him the donation that my sisters in law so kindly put together. We took a picture with him and the babyhouse doctor and then all spent a moment “spaceeba-ing” (thanking) each other. 
The babyhouse doctor told me that I should come back for a girl next time. We all laughed and then we headed out the door . 
More tomorrow!
Paka!
How momentous and wonderful and absolutely frazzling have the last two days been for my little family. Wow. Garrett Ruslan Snyder is finally ours full time and for real!
Caroline and I drove to the baby house in Schuchinsk for the last time yesterday morning. Nursultan’s van was packed to the gills because also in the van was Shizada, Makhabbat, Terri, all of Terri’s luggage, and all of our luggage. It was Terri’s court date as well as our “pick up” date, so both of us were heading to the airport after the baby house to catch various flights across the country (us) and around the world (Terri). Adding to the chaos was the fact that a new adoptive mother was arriving in town, and needed to be escorted to the baby house after Terri’s court time but before our departure. Makhabbat and Shizada couldn’t move quickly enough in the day’s family shuffle.
So Nursultan dropped Caroline and me at the front door of the babyhouse, while the rest of the gang headed to the court. It was bittersweet and wonderful knowing that I was walking down the faded turquoise hallway for the last time past the mural showing the smiling children of the world. This is the place where babies come from (according to Calvin) and there is a certain magical truth in that.
So, terrified of 10+ hours at the airport waiting for our late night flight, we convinced the baby house staff to allow us one more play session with Garrett in the music room, followed by one last baby house nap and feeding for Garrett before we headed to the airport. Garrett was so glad to see us again and, being totally unaware of the huge journey ahead of him, played and laughed and squealed just like the happy little cherub he is. When our playtime was over we returned him to the nursery, much to the confusion of the caregivers, who apparently had not been informed of our grand plan. I pantomimed returning in two hours and eventually they understood that I was indeed going to come back for my son!
Unfortunately, this is where the complicated shuffle of families in and out of Schuchinsk put a snag in our plans. Understanding that we would be through with our visit just as Terri got out of court, we had planned on having lunch with Terri, Makhabbat, and Shizada and then returning for Garrett. So Caroline and I sat on the warped blue bench in front of the babyhouse and waited for them to return. We waited and waited and waited. We watched the elderly staff member in charge of gardening methodically fill buckets from a nearby tap and slowly water a rectangular patch of dahlias she had just finished replanting. Caroline attempted to take a nap on the sunny little bench but the sight of one of us laying down drew such disturbed fascination from the caregivers passing through the court yard that I woke her up fearing that our reputation was at stake. Eventually, one of the babyhouse cleaning women came over to sit next to us. She spoke no English at all but we chatted anyway, using Caroline’s Russian phrase book to try to explain why we were sitting in the courtyard. Snatching up the phrasebook, the cleaning woman proceeded to flirt with one of the workmen who was making repairs to the building. With our pronounciation help, she told the worker that she loved him, that he should kiss her and then marry her. He, of course, had no idea what she was saying, so the three of us women laugh riotously between translations. Our hilarity caught the attention of the other cleaning women who all set down their bucket and came over to sit in the sun with us. We listened to them chatter and soaked up the rays of the warm spring day until Nursultan arrived almost an hour later. Little did we know it, but the time for lunch had come and gone. Terri went in to see Dylan (now officially her son) and Makhabbat and Shizada escorted the new mom into the babyhouse, stopping briefly at our bench to explain that we should pick up a quick lunch at a café and then come back for Garret and go to the airport. I was a little startled at the change of plans. “Are you going to be here when we pick up Garrett?” I asked Makhabbat. “No,” she said “I must go with the new lady.” And that was that. We hugged Makhabbat and thanked her for everything and a bit flustered headed off to a new car that had just pulled up for us and into which Nursultan was putting our luggage. We drove off to the café and that was the last I saw of the woman who had been our friend and daily companion in this life changing adventure. Sad, really, but life goes on.
We popped into Tim’s favorite “skulka” café and then went next door to the pharmacy to pick up the baby food that we would need for Garrett. We ate hurriedly on the short drive back to the babyhouse and then went in alone to take Garrett out.
Garrett was just finishing his last babyhouse lunch of compote and sour milk porridge. With my heart racing faster than usual, I changed him and kissed him and told him to say “paka.” Then, trying not to cry, I asked the caregivers if I could get a picture of them with Garrett. They set down the other children they were feeding and obliged.
The taller of the two stroked Garrett’s head as I took him back and told me “on harashow malchilk” (he’s a good boy). I smiled and we left. On our way out of the babyhouse we stopped by the director’s office to thank him one last time and to give him the donation that my sisters in law so kindly put together. We took a picture with him and the babyhouse doctor and then all spent a moment “spaceeba-ing” (thanking) each other. The babyhouse doctor told me that I should come back for a girl next time. We all laughed and then we headed out the door . More tomorrow!
Paka!
He can babble "dadadadadada." 
or stick out his tongue. 
Even Mommy got in on the action.
He was really really smily today, but you'll just have to take my word for it! 
Then Makhabbat disapeared for a moment and reappeared with none other than... the yellow bowling pin bear! Talk about excitement! Even more exciting is that this particular bowling pin bear is ours to keep. Makhabbat talked to the head of the caregivers who said we could take him home! Wow. We better head for the plane before they change their minds. 
Speaking of planes, we are off tomorrow! Eeek! We won't be able to write, so here is the plan so that you all know what is going on in the absence of my usual blog post. Caroline and I will head to Shcuchinsk at 8:30. We will sign some papers at a local notary and pick up his birth certificate and adoption certificate. Then we will head to the babyhouse for our usual 1.5 hour visit. We will give Garrett back to the caregivers for his nap and Caroline and I will have lunch in Schuchinsk. Then we will return to the babyhouse. The caregivers will give Garrett his gruel and compote. They we will officially take custody and head for the airport! We will arrive at the airport at 6pm. Someone from the agency will meet us there and give us Garrett's passport. Then we will wait and wait and wait for our plane to depart for Almaty at 10pm. We will arrive in Almaty in the wee hours of the morning and be taken to a local apartment where we will (hopefully) all fall fast asleep. What a day! Wish us luck!
O.K. now normally, I wouldn't subject you all to each detail of my babyhouse visit, but a reunion this monumental deserves a little special attention.
Anyway, I swooped him up and kissed him and changed him and kissed him. 
Then, just for good measure, I kissed him some more. Eventually, a very amused Makhabbat wrestled him from me long enough to saddle him with a fluffy pink hat and a quilted jacket. She handed him back and shooed me outside. 
We found a quiet spot and cuddled for a long moment. Here is the thing I am puzzling over. I can't tell if he remembers me or not. That month apart is an awful thing!!! He just snuggled himself into my shoulder and stayed there pressed against me like a little koala bear while I rocked and talked and sang. Every once in a while he would look up at me a seem to puzzle over me for a moment before settling his head back against my chest. I can't tell if he was confused and thinking "who in the heck is this woman" or if he remembered me and was thinking "I can't believe she came back." One thing is for certain; he was overwhelmed! When Makhabbat came over and tried to tease him into smiling, he wrinkled up his little face and started silently crying.
The same thing happened when Caroline came over. My poor little bug! So that's what makes me think that he might remember me... he didn't cry when he looked at me... he just stared and then pressed his head into my shoulder. We will try to staunch my "mommy guilt" by saying that he definately might remember me. Oh, I love my sensative little boy, whether he remembers me or not.
Garrett and I headed up to the music room and I unpacked all of his toys. He definately remembered them! Those little plastic keys went straight into his mouth. 
I also brought along a stuffed cat toy, which we are calling Koshka (russian for 'cat'). On our first trip Garrett always wanted to touch the old stuffed animals that the babyhouse has hung up on the walls, so I was pretty sure that he would like the stuffed animal I had for him at home. I decided to bring it along as a transitional item, so that he would have something familiar to him when he got home. Suffice it to say that Koshka was an instant sucess! 
Garrett loved him. He petted Koshka and smiled when I whisked Koshka's fur against his face. He chewed on Koshka's ear. He even cooed a little bit when he was playing with Koshka, and for my silent little Garrett that is a big deal.
Dylan and Garrett were both playing with Koshka and with eachother. 
Teri added funny commentary. For example. Garrett would lunge forward and grab Dylan by the cheek (Teri would say: "Oh, I like your face!"). Then Dylan would grab the strap of Garrett's overalls and try to chew on them (Teri would say: "Thanks, your outfit is nice too. Mind if I eat it?") This went on and on with the babies pawing all over each other like little puppies and Teri offering up "Look Who's Talking" dialogue.
Their were probably about eight of the zooming around, some controlled by their tiny occupants and some remote controlled by parents who followed behind at a distance. We wandered through the fabulous open air market which sells everything from fruit to shoes to car parts! As we started home we found that the fountains on the other side of Gorky park have been turned on, much to the delight of the kids. 
We we were almost home we happened upon a wedding party releasing a cluster of red balloons into the blue sky. 
It was all lovely.
Now this is the Kokshetau I love! Babushkas in clogs were sweeping up the dust on the streets outside their homes. Men clustered around old Volkswagens smoking pungent cigarettes, joked loudly with each other. Ten year olds in knit caps carried fishing poles and raced for the lake. A Policeman in a florescent yellow vest pulled over a passing car, for no apparent reason, by waving his orange flashlight with an air of determination and decided boredom. 
I picked my way through the wreakage, silently wishing the broom bearers good luck, and headed for the giant statute at the end of the plaza and the blue waters of the freshly melted lake just beyond. 
With the exception of several men and boys who were making their way to the lake to fish, I left people behind as I walked towards the lake. I looked up to see one of the firemen leaving his “dom” near the lake. One of Nana’s favorite people! I’m sure that he was heading to work for a day of marching past our old cottage. He must have seen the look of recognition register momentarily on my face and though I’m sure he didn’t recognize me, he called out “Privyet Diavichka” as I passed by. 
Then I was at the lake, with its clear waters lapping gently at the shore. There is no smog yet this morning and I could see across the lake to the hills beyond. It was absolutely beautiful. I listened to the gulls and the crunch of broken glass underfoot, before I turned and headed for home. I'm almost off to see my baby (for the first time in a month). What a wonderful Mother's Day treat! Hooray for Garrett and Hooray for Kazakhstan. 
Gone is the snow and the grey slosh in the gutters. Add to the spring splendor the fact that everyone in Kokshetau is off work to celebrate the three day holiday known as Victory Day, commemorating the Red Army’s victory over the Nazi forces in WWII, and you’ve got a lovely time in Kokshetau. 
All over town, families lounge in the grass and listen to the yellow winged sparrows singing on the leafy branches above them. There are bands playing on the grandstand outside of Gorky park. Little boys clambered all over several tanks that the army rolled out to Gorky Park. 
The high schoolers ran a series of spirited relay races up and down the main street, with full police blockades. 
Caroline and I were interviewed by a group of talkative college girls who desperately wanted to try out their English. 
Everyone is dressed to the nines: little boys are in suits, veterans wear rows of gleaming metals on their chests, and the little girls have the silliest frothy lace bows tacked to the tops of their heads. Kokshetau stepped out to welcome us in a fine style. 
I want Calvin to be here to chase bubbles with Ali and his sister. I want Tim to be here to cook up wonderful meals that make the cottage feel like a home. I want my mom to be here to be the glue that binds us all together. I thought, in coming back, I would experience the same happiness that I had before only multiplied because I would have Garrett with me too. What I found, however, was that my wonderful family and not this lovely city, is the magic key that makes everything beautiful. I can’t enjoy this place without them. Without them, it’s just another city. I have to keep reminding myself that I’m not here to settle back in for another thirty days. I’m here to close this chapter in my life and to bring my baby home.
She, her husband, and her son have moved out temporarily and are staying in their guest house next door. Shizada’s house is lovely (I'll give a tour later) and perhaps it is a good thing not to be in the cottage again because it would only make me miss Tim, Cal, and Nana even more. New cottage for a new trip, right? That’s a good thing.
