So we have been here in Karaganda for one week already. At times, it seems to have flown by. At other times (when there’s no water) it seems to drag. But the big thing is that we’ve gotten to spend a whole week with our little Sumo (HaHa- I just made an oxymoron). The bonding process here in Karaganda is much different than in Astana when we adopted Rin. There, we were never allowed to see or play with any of the other kids, weren’t allowed to take care of him, weren’t allowed to even go into his room at all. When we took Rin from the baby house, we had never even changed his diaper much less fed him or put him to sleep. No wonder he was so miserable in the beginning- how could he trust that we knew what he needed? We didn’t really. Here it’s completely different and I think it is amazing how much more quickly I have gotten attached to Sumo than I did Rin and it’s amazing what a difference we’ve seen in him already. For one, the amount of time we spend with our little man is 4 hours a day compared to 2 and we get to come on Sundays too. We get to get him up from his crib, change his diaper and put him in clothes that we brought, feed him, burp him, put him down for nap, and we play in the room with all of his friends and caretakers. I have gotten to know the personalities of all of the babies- who is fussy, who I can make laugh, and sadly which I think have problems- and I will be able to tell him all about them when he’s older. And we can see firsthand the wonderful job that the caretakers do with the kids. They definitely do more than just make sure they are fed, changed, and healthy. That fact that we get to take care of him makes me feel like he’s more ‘ours.’ It’s nice. I can’t wait until he actually is.
Our little guy found his laugh today when we did Peek-a-boo. He thought it was really really funny. I would throw the towel that I use to change him over his head and then when he managed to pull it off, I would say “peek-a-boo” and he thought it was just hilarious. He is just so amazingly cute. He’s a pretty serious kid but when he laughs, he is baby transformed. And at the end of our visit, when I went to change him, he automatically began to laugh when I brought out the towel. He’s just so cute I want to eat his little cheeks up.
And Oxana told us to look and see if Sumo has a Mongolian Spot because most Asian babies do according to her so we looked and it turns out he does have a small one way back in his little crack. So now I have it down for posterity if someone accuses me of child abuse at some point. You can all vouch for me.
Have a great weekend! Love to all, -m
4 comments:
At our very first doctor visit after coming home, I made sure that my doctor saw the mongolian spot and recorded it. There was a family in the mid-Atlantic, don't need to tell you the whole thing, but it definitely pays to let people know about it and see it.
Hey wow, we miss you guys and we totally miss being there with o9ur sweetie....where is my update?!!! Good news on the 30 days, that will be a big relief to have that settled.
"talk" soon,
Diane
Hi there Maren
Thinking of you and checking in frequently. BTW-Henry has the spot!!From the Japanese side of the family, I suspect. So funny-it looks like a footprint (like some one was wearing a tennis shoe and stepped on him). We did the same thing China Dreams did-bc it does look like a bruise on the top of his bootie!
Cool shot of the meal. I'll admit that it doesn't look particularly appetizing. Hopefully it tastes better!
That's so cool about all the things you get to do for Sumo. Very nice.
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