Day 3 with Temenuzhka

I am afraid that the spelling of "Temenujka" is actually supposed to be "Temenuzhka," so I will be referring to my sweet girl with that spelling from now on. 

Today was a good day! It started out with Maggie, Tyler, and I eating breakfast at our hotel and then picking up Naina to head over to see Temenuzhka. We then picked up Temenuzhka and turned back around and headed to Pazardzhik. We first started with getting photos of Temenuzhka for her visa and we also took a photo of all three of us. I plan to get it framed to give her tomorrow. 

Next we walked over to a bowling alley, which, unfortunately, was closed. We chose to eat some lunch at a cute little kids cafe and then we played some games. Temenuzhka seemed a bit uncomfortable when we were out and about. Playing a game helped her to relax a bit. 

Tyler bought a pot of red flowers for Temenuzhka to have, since she is our flower. "Temenuzhka" means a flower, called a "Poppy." Naina sang a song today about blue poppies, which Temenuzhka knows. It was really a sweet moment. 

We went up to our hotel room to get some measurements for clothing and shoes for Temenuzhka. 

 

Ducky-Mo-Mo wanted in on the photo, too. 

We stopped by Temenuzhka's school on our drive back to Lesichovo. She was SO thrilled to take us to meet her teachers. She was practically giddy! It was so wonderful to meet these teachers, some of whom were crying tears of joy that Temenuzhka finally found a family after so many years of not having her own. We are so thankful for all of the love that she has received from many people over the years. We are eager to bring her home and to give her a forever family. 

 

Naina and Temenuzhka outside the school. 

 

One of her teachers. 

 

This is where our flower sits!

 

Old school heating options. 

 

Beautiful flooring. 

 

 

Some art in the school hallway. I was surprised by how much English we saw. 

We drove back to the orphanage, and then we looked over some decorations that Temenuzhka made for Baba Marta Day on March 1st. She had one for each member of our family, including Georgi and Miroslav. 

 

 

I held Temenuzhka on my lap for a few minutes. Then I told her how much I enjoyed snuggling with her. We have been affectionate some up to this point, but it was mostly hugs and me rubbing her back. Well, I think my telling her how much I enjoyed her snuggles changed her, somehow, because for the rest of the evening, she was grabbing my hand to hold it, snuggling up to me, and giving me lots of hugs. It was so sweet and it felt natural. 

 

These are the colors that she wants for her quilt. 

While we were playing some pick-up sticks with Temenuzhka, a boy from the orphanage came inside and informed Temenuzhka that her boyfriend was outside. We learned on day 1 that she had a boyfriend and I just had to get a look at him! His name is Georgi and he is 15 years old. Both of his parents have died, so he is a true orphan, and of Roma descent. They have been boyfriend/girlfriend for two years. When he decided to pass by the house again, I invited him to join us for some games. I figured that Temenuzhka really likes Georgi, so it would only help things if I got to know him, also. 

We played Spot It and Georgi did really well. I noticed the scars on his hands and we were told how there are non-orphan boys who attend Georgi's school and that they want to pick fights with all of the orphans. So sad. I tried to encourage Georgi to use his brain and intellect for a career. I told him that we would be happy to have Temenuzhka Skype with him after we bring her home. Then I gave him some candy, too. I think it meant a lot to Temenuzhka that I was so kind to Georgi. She seemed very happy and was very affectionate with me while he was there. I can't get enough of this girl's smiles!! 

Would I prefer that she have a boyfriend? No, not really. But the bottom line is that she has her agency and there's not much I can do to prevent anything from happening. We did have a thorough conversation about our family's values and appropriate boundaries in dating relationships. For now I can just pray that she will make good decisions. 

Maggie, Tyler, and I went to dinner at the restaurant across the street from our hotel tonight. It is the only place we have eaten dinner since we got here. It has nice food and even an English menu! Tonight there was a musical group present and they played some nice music. It sounded more Greek than Bulgarian to me, but I can't really identify Bulgarian music, anyhow. Ha ha. 

Tyler and I each wrote a letter to Temenuzhka and Maggie translated them for us. We plan to give them to her just before we leave tomorrow afternoon. It will be so hard to say goodbye. And she will have those letters to comfort her when we are gone for four months. 

 

Cappy сок (juice) with dinner. 

 

I am guessing that the orange was to add some nutritional benefit to my chicken Geneva with mashed potatoes?

 

Some yummy garlic butter naan bread. Seriously, it was so good! I am loving the bread here. 

Day 2 with Temenujka

This morning we went grocery shopping for some food to make for lunch with Temenujka. We also decided to have a small Birthday celebration for all of the birthdays that we have missed with our girl. We picked up a cake and some balloons. 

 

I love all of the snow here. Those are mountains in the distance! We are tempted to move to Bulgaria and live in one of these villages.

 

Day 2 was wonderful with Temenujka. We were able to spend most of the day with her, 10am - 6pm. And as the day progressed, she seemed more relaxed and more herself. I heard her laugh for the first time and it was adorable!

We started off our time by talking about the childhood of Tyler and myself. She was invited to share some thoughts about her life and we learned a bit more about her. She had a grandmother in the same village and she loved her. There was even talk of her going to live with her, until the grandmother died suddenly due to cancer. This poor girl has had so much pain in her life!

 

Temenujka was the honorary mayor for one day due to her excellent character. 

 

The director of this center for family type accommodations, Naina, and me. She owns this house and it is over 100 years old. She runs this non-government organization and has been working with orphans for forty years. She inspires me! I told her that I would love to do what she is doing one day. She said to look her up when all of my kids are grown, and see if we can arrange something. :-)

Next we blew up some balloons and got out some party hats to celebrate all of Temenujka's past birthdays. We brought out a cake and sang to her. We gave her birthday drawings from her siblings back home. We gave her a watch that she set on our time, so she will know what time it is for us after we leave. She seemed to enjoy it, despite all of the focus being on her. She is such a shy girl. 

 

 

Next I helped Temenujka make a shopshka salad, which has tomatoes, onions, peppers, cucumbers, and cheese. It is a very Bulgarian salad! Temenujka is quite the cook. They said she can make many dishes all by herself. In fact, she made traditional Bulgarian rolls for our lunch today. And they were amazing! This girl is so talented. 

 

This girl peels cucumbers with a knife! She has some awesome skills in the kitchen. 

 

Some yummy chicken and rice. 

 

The rolls that Temenujka made. They were delicious!

 

 

Look at that smile! I love this girl. 

 

So after lunch, we had a dance performance by Temenujka (and three other kids) that Temenujka choreographed. Then she plugged her MP3 player into the computer and played her current favorite song on it: I Love You Like A Love Song, Baby, by SELENA GOMEZ. 

 

Apparently she really likes that song, because she played it three times in a row. Ha ha. We had so much fun dancing with her! At one point, Tyler knelt down on the floor and he was exactly her height!

 

During lunch, Naina was telling us about how the kids have chores that they do everyday. With a full table of food and many people eating, I commented that I felt badly for whoever had dishes today. The reply was that Temenujka did! Ha ha. So Tyler and I helped her to clean all of the dishes. She was so positive about working hard and she did a great job. It was fun to help her. 

 

Next we played pick-up sticks, Spot It, and Uno with all of the other kids. Then later on, Temenujka asked to play pick-up sticks again. She is really good at it!

Some photos of the laundry room and bathrooms on the main floor. 

 

And they still use a trash can to put the toilet paper in. It is hard to not throw it in the toilet!

 

First visit with Temenujka

Last night I slept until about 3am, and then it was a struggle to sleep anymore. Part of it was the anticipation for today in meeting Temenujka and the other part was jet lag. 

We met Maggie for breakfast in the lobby. We had some sliced sausage, toast with butter and Bulgarian cheese, milk, and some oatmeal that I had brought along on the trip. It was delicious! Side note: the bread doesn't make me sick. I guess I am only allergic to American gluten? 

 

 

The orphanage director joined us and we talked about Temenujka's history. It was very informative and also easy to see how much Naina loves Temenujka. I could tell that she is living in a good place, and she was emotional in her excitement for us to be coming to adopt Temenujka. She said that she was also awake at 3am in anticipation for today!

Life is made up of moments, and the moment that I met Temenujka will forever be one of those cherished moments. 

 

The front of her orphanage, which is actually called a family house, where there are only five children living there with caretakers. 

 

Some fun Christmas decorations! I have seen that Christmas decorations are up many places here in Bulgaria. 

Okay, back to meeting Temenujka. When I saw her, I introduced myself (in Bulgarian!) and Tyler did the same. She smiled and then started to cry. We went off to a room on the side to give her some space and take off our coats and gloves. The next thing I know, she is running up to me and giving me the biggest and tightest hug. I held her tight and lifted her off the ground. It was a beautiful moment that I have replayed in my mind many times since this morning. 

After we hugged, she hugged Tyler. The facilitator translated her words that she had been waiting for so long for us to finally come and she couldn't contain her emotions once we were here at last. Tyler and I  have been nervous, also. We want for her to like us and to want to be a part of our family. It was very emotional for us all. 

After our initial meeting and hugging, we were taken to the kitchen where Temenujka brought out a special bundt cake - which was delicious! - that she made especially for us. And here is a photo of our sweet girl.

 

Isn't she beautiful?? We think she is such a gem of a girl. She fixed up her hair all pretty and even wore the red turtleneck shirt underneath her pink jacket. The caretakers said that she keeps all the gifts that we sent in the package (that we mailed to her in December) in a special box in her room. She was able to show us her room, also. 

 

She has framed some pictures of our family on her wall. She also said that the day that our package arrived was the best day of her life to date, until today. 

 

Look at her adorable hair! She said she wants to be a hairdresser when she grows up. She can fix my hair anytime. She is so short! I expected her to be taller. But she will fit right in with my short kids at home. Ha ha. 

The social worker came over and we had a long conversation about an array of topics with Temenujka. I felt bad for her. At one point she had three separate people talking with her. I could sense how overwhelmed she was with it all. I tried very hard to look at various things when she looked over at me. I know that she is trying to learn my face. She was so pleased that we were there. I love each smile she gave me. 

Tyler juggled for everyone and I also sang in Russian (the closest song to Bulgarian that I have). Temenujka wanted to know more about her siblings in America and wanted to know our daily schedule. We gave her some drawings from her siblings that are for her birthday - which we will miss being with her - and then she wanted to know more about our birthday traditions and other holidays. She had drawn some pictures for us, also. She is so thoughtful. Her favorite subject is art. 

She is especially excited about sharing a room with Anna and getting to know her. I asked her what colors she wanted in a quilt and she said red, yellow, and blue, in light colors. I told her that I would make her quilt before she gets home. 

She said that when she saw the first name that we had chosen for her - Sarah - that she loved it right away. She is excited to have this American name. 

We walked down to a cafeteria for lunch. Temenujka held my hand as we went. My heart melted each time she looked up at me. More precious moments with MY precious girl.

She ordered some chicken soup and meatballs with French fries and some apple juice. She ate maybe half of it all. All of the ladies from the orphanage that came with us ordered soup and bread, and none of them finished their food, either. Do people just not eat much here? I don't know. 

By this time, Temenujka was checking out due to all of the stimulation of the day. We went back to the family house and gave her the MP3 player with English music, some candy, and a notebook to journal her feelings from today - and the rest of our time with her -  until we pick her up. We are hopeful that the good feelings from today will sustain her during our separation until she is home with us at last. 

 

We couldn't be more excited about getting to know Temenujka over the new few days. And we are already wishing that she could just come home with us. 

Bulgaria

Greetings from Bulgaria! After a year of waiting, we are finally here at last. The first flight we took was to Frankfurt, Germany, and then on to Sofia, Bulgaria. 

 

Keith helped me get Ducky-Mo-Mo ready for our flight. 

 

Ready to go!

 

Eating a sandwich before boarding our flight to Frankfurt, Germany. 

 

We are ready to go! This flight was full of all kinds of international people. I met a gal from Italy and a man from Romania (who I was initially afraid of, as he was big and burly and looked like he could inflict some serious pain on anyone, but when I asked him about his homeland, he was super kind and told me all sorts of things.)

 

Ducky-Mo-Mo wishes he could sleep better on the plane. #8hourslong

 

I was incredibly impressed with a flight attendant who tracked down this gluten-free meal for me. I didn't even know it was an option to order a gluten-free meal and she was so kind and helpful. I intend to contact United Airlines to dote on her good service. 

 

On the airport tram in Frankfurt. 

 

They had this area in the airport where you could take pictures with huge paintings. I thought this one was lovely. I don't know what it depicts, though. 

Our flight to Sofia was only a couple of hours. After getting about 2 less-than-great hours of sleep on the first flight, I got another hour of sleep on the second flight. Once we arrived in Bulgaria, I wanted to soak up everything about the country, so I didn't get any more sleep. Running on adrenaline!

We picked up our luggage and our facilitator, Maggie, was waiting for us by the car rental place. We were issued a purple SUV (doesn't a purple vehicle scream tourist?) and away we drove to Pazardzhik. 

Maggie is absolutely fantastic. She loves working in a job that makes a difference and she truly cares about the children. She spoke a lot about our triplets and their files and potential situations and their strengths, etc. We are so thankful that she will be with us on our trip! 

Bulgaria is beautiful! I didn't know there were so many mountains here. And there's tons of snow - which I love! We checked in to our lodging (see photos below) and then we went to a restaurant for dinner. I was able to practice some of my Bulgarian, saying благодаря and добре, at appropriate moments. :-)

 

Ducky-Mo-Mo is exhausted!

 

 

 

The whole bathroom is a shower! 

 

 

My first Bulgarian meal: meatballs and mashed potatoes. Tyler ordered the beef stroganoff - both meals were tasty! I am always a bit nervous when eating in foreign countries, because the food doesn't always agree with me, but this meal started it off on the right foot. 

The music playing at the restaurant sounded like a mix between middle eastern music and Indian music, with a mix of Latin flare and some accordion, also. Very interesting! 

In Bulgaria, the people shake their head yes and nod their head to say no - the opposite of us! I am trying hard to not shake or nod my head at all, so I won't confuse anyone. Something else I noticed, is that they don't just shake or nod their head, they also swing it a little bit, similar to people in India. It is fun to watch!

The people here have much darker complexions than we have seen in Ukraine and Russia. Maggie says that the Ottoman Empire's control for 500 years brought about many inter-marrying. I am still trying to understand the cultural castes here, as I know the Roma people are generally looked down upon in Bulgaria. It seems like the people are either very white and Caucasian with light eyes or they have darker skin with black eyes and hair. 

 

Tomorrow we are meeting with Temenujka for the first time! I am having trouble sleeping - what with jet lag and also anticipation - but I hope that our first meeting will go very well!