All Boy

Hi- I am not sure where it came from, but our little ‘NatNat’ (as he calls himself) is absolutely, 100% boy. He loves all things sports (OK, Peter has influenced him a little in that department). He has little plastic golf clubs and balls that he plays with 24-7. They are the first thing he goes for in the morning and the last thing he puts down at night- in the house, in the yard, and in the car. He also has a football that he loves and he carries it tucked into his arm as he dashes across the living room saying “Runnin’! Runnin’!” We even took him to a UVA football game which I think he enjoyed but didn’t really understand that we had to stay in one seat for 4 hours and couldn’t just crawl around wherever we wanted. To be honest, I think 4 hours in one seat is too long also. But it was still fun (well, maybe not so much for the people in front and behind us). And when football is on TV he watches intently until someone gets tackled and says “Uh-Oh! Uh-Oh, Mama! Boo-boo.” He cracks me up. But the one that took the cake the other day was when we went to the grocery store right next to a school where they were having soccer practice. He insisted that we walk over and watch them for a minute and he kept saying “Football, football!” and pointing to the field. When I corrected him and told him it was soccer and they kick the ball instead of running with the ball, he paused for a second and I could see his little face scrunch up in concentration, and he said “NatNat? Soccer? Kick it? Please?” He is sooooo cute. Have I mentioned how wonderful the internet is? Not only am I able to broadcast all of the adorable things that my little boy does, but I have also found it incredibly useful in trying to figure out what in the world to do about finding a sister for Rin. I joined several Yahoo groups to do some research and have, in the process, found a couple who we met in Almaty the day before they were off to meet their little one. I remembered them well because I felt so much sympathy for them since we had been in their shoes only 6 week before- terrified of the unknown- just like they were. It’s strange how you can run across someone anywhere now. The Yahoo group has also been really great for my sanity and I feel like I have finally found a group of people who can truly understand how exciting getting past each small step in the adoption process is and can offer guidance and support when I need it. It’s a lifesaver. And I have also, through Facebook, found some of my friends that I had when I was growing up and it has got me wondering who Rinat’s lifelong friends will be. One of the friends that I found was my best friend from the time I can remember until almost college and it has been really great to find out what she is up to and share some of the funny things that we did as kids. And I have found myself wondering who Rinat’s lifelong friends will be. Will they be the kids that we play with now? Someone he meets in school? Who knows, but I hope that he also finds someone who knows him through and through and can share all of those crazy childhood things like sliding down the stairs in sleeping bags, cooking s’mores over a campfire, spending hours and hours having Big Wheel races in the alley, running around the neighborhood like hooligans, going on vacations together, and having someone who feels like family- someone that truly understands what he’s about. I don’t wish for him a big house or fancy cars, I can only hope that he finds good friends to help him through the things that I can’t. And while we are on the subject of family, here’s a quick update on a sister. After researching every country that allows adoption, we are back to Kazakhstan. Yes, we are insane. We had considered Kyrgyzstan and Taiwan as alternates but my heart is in Kaz. I may come to regret it, but there we are. I waffled back and forth (and back and forth and back and forth). I have actually had our contract for two months and had not sent it in because I didn’t know what to do. I even put away all of the paperwork and took a break from it. But I decided to just rip off the bandaid and send in our contract so we hope to be moving forward with our dossier soon. I will, of course, keep you all in the loop. Cross your fingers for us because I think this time around is going to be a bit bumpier. But we have finally taken the next step. I hope that you too can soon rip off the bandaid of something you have been putting off. It’s really liberating! I feel a lot better about finally making a decision- whether it turns out to be the right one or not. Good luck! -m