This morning Sveta picked us up and we went to the MOE to drop off some documents and to further confirm that we do not want to see another file of a child. I think we'll be plenty busy with Calvin and Silas.
J Then we went to the train station for Tyler to buy some train tickets for himself and Keith. And finally, we went to see Silas. It’s a nice sunny day so they thought we might take Silas outside to play. They brought him to me all bundled up in a pink coat and off we went. He was breathing like he has a cold, so we thought we should bring him back inside and go to the playroom, instead.
I was hoping that Silas would warm up to us faster today since it was our third time visiting him, but that was not the case. He came to me, but was still unsure about me and very unsure about Tyler. We made complete fools of ourselves, making all sorts of silly faces and sounds…and Silas just looked at us, no smiles or laughs. Finally, I pulled out some Pringles chips to eat and I gave him a very small piece (he only has 2 teeth on the bottom). After he gummed it to death and swallowed it, he was hooked on them AND he was smiling. Success! Next time we’ll bring something softer like a nutrigrain bar. At one point, I tickled him on his sides and he was giggling so much – it was adorable. We got a little video of it, but it was the fifth time I did it so he didn’t laugh as much. Whenever we leave Silas, I feel like we’ve made a bond with him. But when we first come see him, it’s like we have to start from the beginning. I’m sure that will improve with time. I hope.
Oh, the director told us that Silas’ heart condition is a mild version of Tetralogy of Fallot. I don’t know what that means. I am sure a pediatric cardiologist will have some answers for us. I really hope that we can bring the boys home in July! It’s so urgent that we get them the medical attention that they need.
Tyler and I did a little souvenir shopping and then went to McDonald’s for a late lunch. Ketchup isn’t complimentary there – it’s about 50 cents per small packet. They do have a sweet and sour sauce that is free. Tyler likes it, but I prefer my expensive ketchup packets. It was nice to have some alone time before he leaves to go back home.
Some more observations:
We now have pink toilet paper that smells like raspberries.
Here in Russia (& in Ukraine, too) you wipe yourself with toilet paper and instead of putting it in the toilet, you put the used toilet paper in a trashcan next to the toilet. I guess the plumbing here doesn’t allow for toilet paper. It takes some getting used to. There is a great need for air freshener in restrooms here.
Mullets are alive and well here in Russia.
Recent pictures:
Our Easter dinner. It's sliced deli ham, cooked slices of potatoes in a homemade white sauce with cheddar & Russian cheese and some drained canned peas mixed in, plus some delicious white bread we found at the store. We bought 3 cakes: a white cake with strawberry frosting, a pastry-like layered cake with whip cream in between the layers, and finally a traditional Russian Easter cake which is more like a dry sour bread with raisins mixed in and powdered sugar on top.
A famous cathedral here in Nizhny Novgorod. It was the model for a bigger one in St Petersburg and is also the model dome for the US Capital Building. Pretty neat that some architecture for the US Capital Building came from Nizhny Novgorod.
The exit signs here are these green signs with this person running towards the exit. These signs make me laugh. Here I am demonstrating how to head towards the exit. I'm pretty sure that you should have your mouth wide open while proceeding in this fashion.
Silas' orphanage. The outside of the orphanage has some rough patches, but the inside is fairly nice. There are 3 full playground areas outside, which is nice.
Silas all dressed up for his 5 minutes outside, playing with cups, and hanging with Papa. This will be Tyler's last visit with Silas on this first trip. :(
