11/13/04-A response to questions...

Your daily journal writer would like to respond to some questions and comments we have received recently.

First, let’s be clear – Gma is not being held prisoner, nor has she been sent to a gulag . Though her descriptions and some of the pictures give the effect of a Siberian wasteland, Gma is voluntarily staying with us here in Karaganda and can leave at any time. Which I guess is what the Soviets used to say to the people in gulags, but, that’s beside the point. She is not a prisoner.

Second, a few people have stated that next time, they would not give Gma permission to go on a trip like this. Let me point out that in the past Gma has visited all her children when they had babies and usually stayed two weeks. Since we have adopted two children, that means she comes for four weeks. O.K., she never realized her son would travel half-way around the world to Kazakhstan to get those babies, but then next time she needs to be careful of the precedents she sets.

So let’s summarize – not a prisoner, here by precedent.

On a trivia note, one of our faithful readers has informed us that the bird described by Gma in yesterday’s entry is a Black-billed magpie.

Some have asked if the Adoption Show will continue after our return home. Since there has been some interest, I will keep it going, but it will probably be shifted to a weekly show instead of daily. (Of course, over time, this will probably change to bi-weekly, then monthly, then bi-annually, then yearly, then just an occasional Christmas Card form letter.)

Since Gma did yestesday’s entry, I was unable to inform all of you that, yes, I finally took my first spill on the ice-covered streets of Karaganda. Luckily, there were few people around and no one laughed. (If a large American falls on the streets of Karaganda and no one laughs, did he really fall?)

Today was a little rougher than usual. The kiddies, especially Gracie, were in less cooperative moods than they have been. Toward the afternoon, she started getting fussy and clingy. It was hard to tell what was eating her – hunger, thirst, teeth, diapers, tummy-ache, tired, all of the above. We just put them both down and she is not happy. We can tell she is tired, but, as Gma has pointed out, she is a very strong-willed little girl and can hold out for some time.

We got out tickets for Almaty today. Only two more days and we head to Almaty for the last stage of our adventure. One nice thing about this stage is that Almaty has been in the 50’s and forecast is for the same next week.

One editor’s warning – I do not expect to have Internet access while in Almaty. I may be able to go to an Internet Café one of the days, so keep checking. I’ll keep writing, but they may not get published until we get back.

11/12/04-A view from the window...

Today’s journal comes to us from Gma Jan

As you know from Bilbo’s daily narratives, it has been very cold here – too cold to take the children outside. Therefore, my view of Karaganda has been primarily from the back of our building, looking “inside out.” Our apartment has three large windows, one in each window. The living room and bedroom windows are covered wall to wall, floor to ceiling by very large one-piece lace curtains. There are white with off-white appliquéd floral designs. The outside window openings are framed with “scroll-type” wrought iron bars – understandable since we are on the first floor. All the windows have white vertical blinds. Our windows overlook a type of courtyard. The apartment complex is in a large rectangle (a little bigger than a football field.) There are many trees and, I am sure, during the summer, you would not be able to see the building across from us because of the leaves. We face the front of the building across from us. It is interesting to see the comings and goings of our neighbors. One day, an elderly lady drug a large rug out and hung it over the fence (which surrounds three cylinder-type structures that resemble miniature silos.) Anyway, she proceeded to beat the rug with a rug beater – similar to the one I remember my grandmother using.

There is a small parking area shaped like an upside-down “T”. One day, a large delivery truck drove into the log (from the bottom of the “T” up to the right side of the “cross-bar”.) When he tried to turn around, a large branch of one of the trees had him “hemmed” in. He tried for half an hour to maneuver around it with no luck. He ended up breaking off part of the branch and the top of the truck must have been covered with numerous scratched as I could hear the rest of the limb scratching across the roof.

Yesterday, two elderly gentlemen stood outside our kitchen window. One of the men pulled a partial loaf of bread from his pocket, broke off a piece and gave it to his friend. They remained there quite awhile, conversing and eating their bread. Most of the older men and women wear long, dark coats to the shoe tops. I have not seen many “bright” colors, mostly dark browns and blacks. The men wear the typical Russian fur hat or a tam-like hat – more like our golf hats. The older women mostly wear scarf “babushkas” and carry large purses. The younger women wear fur or felt hats.

A few people walk their dogs in the area right outside our windows – to do not pooper-scoop here! It has been 4 or 5 days now since the 4-5 inches of snow fell. The steps of the apartments across the way still have snow on them. (OSHA – where are you when we need you?)

There are large birds here – a lot of them. They are the size of a crow – all black with white breast and white “shoulders” on the wings. The only other birds I’ve seen are common sparrows.

Here are some pictures of what were described.


Inside the apartment, the children are a delight! Jack has become the happiest boy – always busy, always laughing or smiling, constantly on the move and not all “clingy.” He entertains himself for long periods of time. I don’t know how much he has gained, but he is getting heavier to lift. Gracie is still somewhat serious. She tends to “stare into space” at times. I often wonder what she is thinking about. She is not as “pensive” as when I first came here. She is more ready with a smile. She doesn’t miss a thing! She is so observant. We call her the “beggar” – if we’re eating, you can be she wants whatever we have.

It has been a very interesting time for me – I feel very privileged to have been asked by Bilbo and Mary Jo to share in their dreams and happiness. Nevertheless, I look forward to returning to the good old USA where people are friendly and they smile!!!

For some who want their daily pictures of the kids, here are a couple for you. The first shows what happens when you don’t take your morning nap and the second show what happens when you do.

11/11/04-Good news...

Our big news today was that we got status on our paperwork. We found out today that our paperwork will be completed a day earlier. So, we will be going down to Almaty on Tuesday, November 16. On Wednesday, the kids get medical exams. On Thursday, we have an interview and complete the paperwork. Then we should be able to leave. This doesn’t necessarily mean we can leave Kazakhstan early. That is yet to be seen. But, it gives us an extra day unless any issues come up. This will make sure we can get out of here on Saturday.

Gma and I have been discussing the trip home and are getting a little nervous. One of the flip-sides of all this talk about the kids blossoming is that they sleep less and are more active. The kids Mary Jo and I met at the beginning of October would probably have been easier to travel with. We are not sure how these kids are going to act on the plane. This is especially true of Jack, who seems to be getting bigger and even more active. Grace will be fine being held as long as her biological needs are met – feed me, clean me, let me sleep. Mary Jo has arranged to get us seats that will have some room and we will have bassinets for the kids to lie in.

I got the cutest picture of Jack today when he was in his crib this morning. When I went in, he was just sitting there with his fingers in his mouth. He just looked at me, but didn’t rush to get up. Take a look at it.



The kids felt the “wrath of Gma” today. They were both put down for their naps, but she could here them in the room talking and giggling, but not sleeping. So she went into their room, shook her finger at them and said, “You go to sleep.” Grace’s lower lip began to quiver and she rolled over and went to sleep. Jack just sat there with a blank look on his face as if to say, “What?” He never did go to sleep. We expect him to go to bed early tonight.

Here are today’s pictures.

11/10/04-I've fallen and I can't get up...

I can now understand why Kazakhstan does well in wresting, boxing and weight lifting in the Olympics for such a small country. Those are sports where balance is critical. These people are the most sure footed people I have ever seen. I went on my usual daily walk this morning and the sidewalks have basically turned to a sheet of ice. Four different times I almost took a major spill, which might have finally brought smile to the faces of some of the people on the street, but I chose to right myself rather than provide them a Chevy Chase moment. Anyway, while I am shuffling along the walk, everyone is walking around as if it is the middle of June. And it’s not like they are wearing special shoes. Most of them are wearing dress shoes and the women are all in high-heels. I think my most embarrassing moment was when the little babushka sprinted by me. Luckily, she avoided the temptation of nudging me into the gutter. Now that would have been funny.

The kids were only children again in the morning as they took staggered naps. In the afternoon, they went down together, much to Gma’s relief so she could get a short nap. After the nap, we had some fun playing. You will see in the pictures that for a while they just stood at the couch by Dad playing.

It’s interesting to see how each of them develops different abilities. You may have seen in Jack’s video how he has picked up clapping, blowing a kiss, and waving. (Mary Jo said it sounded like he was a trained dog, with us shouting out commands. At least I wasn’t shoving treats in his mouth after each “trick.”) Grace has started to clap and wave, but not as quickly as he has. But, when it comes to pulling themselves up on the couch and getting back down, Grace is a little more advanced. Jack pulls himself up with total upper body. When he is tired, he gets really frustrated because he can’t pull himself up. Grace picks up her foot, places it flat on the ground and pushes up with her legs. When they want to get down, Jack is still scared and bends at the hip very slowly and puts both hands on the floor. Grace moves her foot, bends her knee and gets down easily.

Many people have sent notes on how they have seen how much they’ve blossomed. I’ve definitely seen it. I was looking at some videos from the early days we were here and I see a big difference in them both physically and emotionally. As someone said, they are such sponges. It is fun to watch.

Here are some pictures from today.

11/09/04-One last trip to the Gros Market...

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The opening of today’s journal was written for you by Grace Elizabeth McGrath, age 11 months. She decided she wanted to help Dad with his work tonight.

Today, I made what may have been my last trip to the GROS market. I think I got everything we need for the next week. Any small item that comes up can be purchased at a local market. You’ve heard me talk about some of the challenges and difficulties of living in Kazakhstan, so I thought I would give my top-ten list of foods that I will miss when we leave.

10. Georgian and Kazakhstan Wines – We’ve actually had a couple nice wines here. I picked one off the shelf and I didn’t know where it came from. We really liked it. I looked it up on the Internet and it is a Kazakhstani wine (Gold Product) that is gaining some International recognition. And, like many other things, it was cheap, about $7 a bottle. We also had a nice Georgian wine (that is Eastern Europe Georgia, not southeastern US Georgia) that was $4. Of course, I didn't have the guts to try the $1 Vodka.

9. Блинчики (pronounced: Bleencheekees) – Basically blintzes that you find in the freezer section. I liked the ham and cheese blintzes. Gma liked them with mustard. Apparently, you can get them with anything inside, including chocolate.

8. Bacon – It is kind of a cross between American and Canadian bacon. I think it is tastier than Canadian, but not as fatty as American. I think its pork. Yeah, I’m sure it’s pork. At least I know it is bacon, because the name on the label was бeкон, which is pronounced “bacon”.

7. Little croissants – They are not as big and fat-filled as they are in the US and are great for sandwiches. And they only cost about 9¢.

6. Beef in spices – A corned beef-like meat that is wonderful as a sandwich.

5. Gallina Blanca Bouillon cubes – Gma has made a couple dishes with them and they really added taste. She says they are better than anything back home. We bought a couple boxes to bring home.

4. AXA Honey roasted Musli with Chocolate – A type of mueslix cereal, that is, well, the name tells it all.

3. The brown bread – It has no preservatives, fresh from a market nearby, tasty, and costs about 15¢, unless you get the version with the sesame seeds on it. Then price skyrockets to 24¢. Are you seeing a theme about some of the breads? Good quality, low cost.

2. KRACKS – A Pringles like chip from Malaysia. I like them better than Pringles and they have no cholesterol. And, since I can’t read the rest of the label, the fat doesn’t count, right?

And the #1 food item that I will miss when I leave:
EFES BEER – the beer that made Kazakhstan famous!

The kiddos are still doing fine. They were both a joy today. Jack discovered his new favorite toy tonight – a large empty box that I brought back from shopping. He is such a boy.

I sat the kids on the couch and took a bunch of pictures. I thought they came out well. I’ve also included a couple new videos.

Today’s Pictures
Video 1 – Jack was really a performer today, doing all his new tricks – bye-bye, blowing kisses, patty-cake, etc.
Video 2 – Grace was just hanging at her dad’s legs in a great mood. Then she decided she wanted to read a book.

11/08/04-Pizza night...

We gave Gma a special treat tonight. She asked if we could have pizza tonight. As I think I have mentioned, there are many options for pizza in Kazakhstan, though the concept of delivery has not hit Karaganda. Because of the cold and late hour, I chose to get pizza from Johnnie Walker’s Scotch Pub. It is a 2 minute walk from our apartment. I have described Johnnie Walker’s in the past. The main draw for we Americans is that that menu has English subtitles. Of course, this didn’t help the night Mary Jo ordered ribs and got chicken wings, but most of time it works out. It doesn’t hurt that the Russian word for Pizza is, well, Pizza.

As described previously, Johnnie Walker’s is a Scottish themed restaurant. It is probably one of the best decorated restaurants I’ve been in while here in Kazakhstan. It has everything – wood booths, marble top fully stocked bar and waitpersons in kilts. It has everything, that is, except for customers. I really don’t know how the place survives, other than government subsidies or some unseen nefarious income. Anyway, it took two people and multiple attempts to get them to understand that I wanted something “to go.” After reaching this understanding, I ordered our pizza and sat at the bar and had a Smarye, a Kazakhstan beer. I sat at the bar and watched Four Weddings and a Funeral dubbed in Russian. On the other side of the bar, they had Gladiator. About 20 minutes later, our food arrived and I realized the activity of take-out, in particularly pizza take-out, was not a common occurrence at Johnnie Walker’s. They had sliced our pizzas and put them in long plastic containers. So, when I got home, Mom was treated to a nice 8-decker pizza sandwich. But, it was very tasty and we had no complaints. Tomorrow, we will have some for lunch.

I don’t know if any of you watch the weather in Karaganda or look at the little sign on our web, but last night Karaganda reached -8 degrees F. Luckily, when I want for my walk and for the pizza, the temperature had risen to somewhere just below freezing.

The kiddies are good. Gracie got a bump on her head last night when she hit it against the crib. This, combined with the scabs she already has from scratching the rash she had, gives her quite the marks on her forehead. I kept trying to tell her the boys don’t like scars, but just doesn’t seem to listen. She has started to grab the spoon to feed herself. She doesn’t have the concept of the spoon scoop yet, but once I put food on the spoon, she grabs it and feeds herself.
Jack is also fine. He is really such a little imp. He has a new game now where he throws his bottle, crawls over to it, drinks some more and then throws it again. This goes on until he finishes. He has also started to clap with open hands and we taught him to blow kisses. It is interesting how each of them is developing different things. I tried to get a picture of Jack in his bed to show you how this kid thrashes around. It didn’t come out well, but I include it anyway.



Here is a picture of Gracie with her Gma.

11/07/04-The kid is a garbage can...

Message to Mary Jo: Get a small food processor; we will not need to buy anymore baby food for Grace. This girl will eat anything.

Each day, we feed the kids their meal first and then sit down for ours. Sometimes we can get the kids to take a nap or go to bed before we eat, but lately, they’ve been up when we eat. We have found that Gracie is a major beggar. She eats anything and everything. Gma said the kid is a garbage can. This afternoon, Gma was feeding her some tuna fish on small pieces of bread. Tonight, she was eating pasta and peas. (McGraths – Another story of Grandma shoveling peas down a grandchild’s throat. This one seemed to like it.) Our only issue is that she doesn’t seem to want to drink her formula. We’ve decided we’re going to get some supplementary foods – yogurt, cheese, etc. and just make sure she gets fluids when she needs them. No need to force her since she is getting plenty to eat. (Oh, did I tell you about her ½ cup of pudding in the afternoon along with some of Gma’s cookie?)

We are finding that Jack may be the finicky eater, like his father. He doesn’t refuse to eat anything, but we can tell when he doesn’t like something. He doesn’t open his mouth and he will spit the food out. You can get him to eat it, but he isn’t happy with it. His issue right now is that he doesn’t like chunky foods. He’ll get used to it. He has no issue drinking a bottle, though it can take him a while since we let him feed himself.

That is all for today. We just put the kids down. It is a little later than usual, but they were still wide awake. I am sure they are very nervous about the big Steeler game with the Eagles. I had to put my foot down and tell them they could not stay up and watch the game on the Internet.

Sorry, no pictures today. I will have some for you tomorrow.