Owen's Been Home 6 Months!

Owen has now been home for almost 6 months, and life is good! He continues to be a happy, easy going baby - Dr. Victoria was right when she said he was a "calm gentleman".

Our little boy has grown so much and learned many new things since that wonderful day in March. He has brought joy and laughter to his family and friends. Owen has healed a hole in my heart and allowed me to let go of past dissapointments and pain. He's taught me patience and reminded me to be open to both the big and small blessings in life.

I've learned a few other things along the way too:

I love him completely, without hesitation, with all of my heart; and I always will.

Apple Cinnamon Puffs are surprisingly tasty; Gerber's Mixed Vegetables are not.

Getting bitten by six baby teeth hurts a lot.

I like the sound of soft rain on the roof at night, the cats purring, Justin Timberlakes' CD. My favorite sound by far is Owen giggling.

A warm baby sleeping in your arms - even if it occurs in the mind numbing hour of 3:00 am after you've been roused from slumber - is a wonderful feeling.

People have a need to tell you that your child looks like you. I don't mind since obviously I think Owen is adorable - but it did come as a surprise to us that Bob and I look asian.

Crawling babies can move astonishingly quickly, and will always go exactly where they shouldn't.

Being a stay at home mom is sometimes really hard and tiring. There are no coffee breaks, no lunch hours, no water cooler gossip or sick days. Forget about performance bonuses or a salary! But it's all always, always worth it and I am so thankful to Bob for allowing me this opportunity.

Have stacking cups, will travel.

I miss sleeping in on Saturday mornings.

Bodily fluids and other "outputs" aren't (quite) so gross when they are coming from your own kid.

I understand mama bears completely - I too would destroy anyone who tried to hurt or take away or interfere with Owen in any way.

You can have a whole room of toys but the cats water dish is much better entertainment.

Being a mom is the best job in the world!

Owen is Home!

HOME ... one of my favorite four letter words; along with love, life, and Owen!

On our last day in Kazakhstan we had a few more details to take care, including a trip to the US Embassy to get Owen's visa, where we were reminded again of what a small world it is. Earlier in our trip on our flight from Kokshetau to Almaty we met a very nice gentleman who had a cousin that lived in Ellicott City (the location of Bob's office), and during our interview at the Embassy we found out that the agent was originally from Baltimore! He asked us if Owen was going to be the newest Orioles fan and we replied "of course, but he'll be an even bigger Ravens fan"! We signed a few papers and were given a sealed packet to give to customs upon our arrival in the US. Of special significance to me is the fact that all Owen's visa paperwork (and visa) is dated March 6th.

We then met up with Maureen, Sean and James for a meal at the Stetson Cafe and finally got our cheeseburgers which weren't bad considering that they had cole slaw on them. Back to the apartment to give Owen a bath and pack up; then Kirill picked us up at 12:15 am to head to the airport. It took a while but we made it through security, got checked in, passed through customs, and joined about eight other families in the waiting area. After a short time we were aboard a Lufthansa jet headed for Frankfort, Germany! While we were obviously thrilled to be heading home, there was also a sense of melancholy leaving Kazakhstan - after all this is the country that gave us our son.

After more than 24 hours total travel time, two flights and a five hour layover, we finally arrived at Dulles Airport on the afternoon of March 7th, and as soon as the plane's wheels touched down Owen became a US citizen! Because the flight was a half hour early there were no lines in customs and we breezed right through, collected our luggage and joyfully reunited with Jodi's mom (Nana) and dad (Pop-pop), Uncle Rich, Aunt Cathy and our dear family friend Courtnay. They were wearing "custom made" t-shirts, holding balloons and signs, and smiling from ear to ear. Seeing my parents welcome their newest grandchild was a dream come true.

Finally we loaded into the van and headed for our house. The first thing I did upon arriving was greet my fur babies - they all looked great and I was so happy to see them. Our wonderful neighbors and friends had decorated our house with balloons, signs, flowers, and gifts for Owen and me; and stocked the refrigerator and pantry with yummy food and drinks. We are truly blessed to have such caring people in our lives - thank you so, so much: Mom, Dad, Aunt Cathy, Uncle Rich, Aunt Sue, Sherry, Bruce, Kim, Chris, Casey, Donna, Nelson, Jill, Vicki, Ashley, Alison, Eric, Chuck and anyone else who helped (but did so without my knowledge!); you are all incredibly special to us.

Our first full day at home was filled up by more fun with Aunt Cathy and Uncle Rich; then Nanny, Uncle Todd, Aunt Maria, cousin Hannah, Sherry and Kim came to visit, and again, Owen was welcomed home with lots of love and attention. I loved seeing the joy in Nanny's eyes when she first held Owen. On Friday, Owen, Nana and I had an outing to Target (obviously the first of many) and I got a huge surprise when I opened the front door to see my brother in law Jeff unloading a car ... Kris, Jeff, Samantha and Mackenzie had flown all the way from Wisconsin to visit!! I was so touched that they came to see us and I loved meeting our newest niece and spending time with them all and my parents. Thank you again Bruce for acting as their airport shuttle and helping to create such an incredible memory for me.

Owen is adjusting very well - he's sleeping through the night and seems to be very comfortable in his new home. He likes to pet the cats; he likes his new toys; and he gets a good daily workout in the Jumperoo. The last two days he had been fighting off a cold, (thank you Dr. Mike and Krista for putting up with this nervous new mom and fielding my call on Sat!) but he's improving and is almost back to his usual happy, adorable self.

Thank you all again for your support, friendship and love. Your comments and emails helped us tremendously while in Kazakhstan and will be a treasure we will share with Owen. Bob, Cearra, Owen and I wish you health and happiness.

Ahhh, Almaty!

We’ve made it to Almaty and it’s like coming to the big glittering city after camping in the boonies. It’s wonderful!

On our last Friday in Kokshetau we woke up early to get everyone ready and finish packing. Once we arrived at the airport we met up with the other families, got checked in, and paid $50 in overweight baggage charges. Although I was very happy to be moving on, it wasn’t easy to say farewell to Rada, Oleg and Inna. When we thanked him for all his help, Oleg gave me a hug and said “Now he (Owen) is with his parents and that is what’s important”. Rada cried when she said goodbye; we will certainly always remember these very special people and all they did to unite us with our son.

Three fairly uneventful hours later – Owen was very good and cried just a bit when he was fighting a nap - the Yak 40 touched down in Almaty (and I finally took a breath again). The guys unloaded our many bags from the plane and as a group we met up with our drivers and headed off. First our driver Kirill took us to get Owen’s visa picture taken, then we went to the Sisters office to complete some more paperwork. Next, a trip to the SOS medical clinic for Owen’s required physical. He got blood taken from his finger for an HIV test, and was weighed and measured, poked and prodded. Our boy is now 17.6 lbs and 26 inches long and the doctor said he looked fine. Owen didn’t like the finger prick at all but was a champ the rest of the day.

We made a quick stop to pick up some essential supplies (water, diapers, and Diet Coke) and finally arrived at our apartment for the next several days; a very nice one bedroom near the Ramstore (upscale mall and great grocery store). Yes, Scott and Susan – we are in THE apartment and having fond flashbacks of you guys! The view out our window here is of the Rolex building and a Marriott Residence Hotel; we have a kitchen with new cabinets, a full size frig, and a stove that works on all four burners; nice (fake) wood floors; a clean and stink-free bathroom; a kitchen table with four matching and sturdy chairs; and a bed that is somewhat more comfortable than a cardboard box. Quite a difference from Kokshetau.

Our second night in town the “Hamster Gang” met up at Mad Murphy’s for dinner. This Irish pub is a tradition among visiting American families offering an English menu and good “western style” food. Owen fell asleep in the car on the way there and took a nap before waking up and having some fun with his old buddy James.

The next day we again met up with Maureen, Sean and James, plus Jill, and went to the Green Market to buy a stroller – perhaps the best purchase so far – and then on to the third floor of the Tsum (zoom) store for souvenir shopping. Having worked up quite an appetite we then headed to the American Bar and Grill for lunch where we tried to order cheeseburgers, only to be told they didn’t have them at the moment! But we were all pleased with our second choice and just as importantly Owen enjoyed his teething biscuit and bottle and was, once again, a very good baby.

As you can probably surmise, we are enjoying the freedom of being able to take Owen out in public, and the weather here is warmer too so it’s great to go out and see some sights – like a giant red tulip!Today we will buy Owen’s return airline ticket, and tomorrow we have our “interview” at the US Embassy for the rest of the paperwork he needs to come home. We’ll probably try to get the whole group together for a last dinner to celebrate our successful journey (and my birthday!) then we’ll pack everything up and head to the airport again around 1:30 am Wednesday morning.

So this is our last post from Kazakhstan . It’s been a long trip. Some days (and nights) were incredibly rough, but the amazing moments were worth any tears. It’s been frustrating, tiring, maddening, and confusing, but most of all it’s been a journey we will never forget for the people we’ve met, the things we’ve seen, and most of all for the little boy we are bringing home as our son. Owen is truly a joy –we can’t wait for you all to meet him!

Almost Done in Kokshetau

It’s official … the waiting period is over and our little boy’s birth certificate now shows us as his parents and gives his name as Owen Edward Mechem (in Russian of course)!This incredibly important step happened the way many things here do; we followed Oleg into a government building, sat around for a while, then walked into a small office where we signed several documents as instructed. The woman handed us Owen’s birth certificate and with a big genuine smile wished us “Congratulations, grow strong and be happy”. Then we went to a teller style window in another part of the same building and waited for about twenty minutes for more paperwork; I think it will now all go to Astana (the country’s new capital) to be processed and we’ll get it back along with his Kazakhstan passport once we are in Almaty.

Speaking of which, we are now into our last full day in Kokshetau! We just got haircuts, and will now head back to start packing up. Not looking forward to dragging all the suitcases down the stairs or boarding the Yak again, but we are so looking forward to Almaty and getting closer and closer to coming home. Once in Almaty we’ll meet again with the sisters, go to the US Embassy for Owen’s visa, get his required medical done, and hopefully do some shopping!

It’s actually a little hard to believe that we are finally wrapping things up here. This has been a good trip; we’ve met some incredible people, learned a lot of interesting things about Owen’s birth country, and of course received the greatest gift in Owen, but we can’t wait to be home. I know Bob is most looking forward to seeing Cearra, and also getting back to work, and I am so ready to:

- See friends and family at the airport

- Talk to more friends and family on the phone

- Give my furry babies lots of love

- Take a real shower

- Wear some different clothes

- Enjoy the comfort of our house again

- Finally put Owen to sleep in his crib, in his room, in his home

There are a hundred other things big and small that I will appreciate about being back in the United States. We are very fortunate to live as we do and traveling certainly makes you appreciate our quality of life and freedoms.

Once again, thanks to you all for following along and for all your wonderful comments and emails. And a huge thank you to Alison for making it possible for me to keep you all updated! I don’t know if we will be able to post in Almaty but I promise to try. Please continue to keep us in your thoughts and prayers as we travel and we hope to see you each of you soon.

Today's Post Brought to You by the Letter "B"

I read in a parenting book that to facilitate your child’s language skills, you listen to the sounds he first makes, then repeat words that begin with the same sound. After two full weeks with Owen, we can say that like babies everywhere he loves to make the raspberry noise (photographic evidence shown), and his favorite sound is “booo”. So does this mean we should be teaching him “booze”, “booty” and “boobs”? Hmm, so much for that particular piece of advice.

Owen still loves his beach ball (check out that coordination) and butterfly but I think he’s ready for some new toys. Good thing he has a bunch waiting at home, including some furry ones that move and make noise.

This morning he was checking out the “Who Loves Baby” book so he knows who to look for upon his arrival in Dulles. He still loves to eat and Bob and I think he’s gained weight; there are times he looks just like a little Buddha.

All the attention the kid is getting is starting to have one not so great side effect – he has decided he no longer needs naps and bedtime has turned into a cry fest. Surprisingly he isn’t too fussy despite his lack of rest; we think he has really just decided that we are pretty fun to hang out with and he doesn’t want to miss a second! The good news is that this also means he is bonding with us, so we aren’t too upset; just a little tired.

On Sunday Rada took Maureen, Sean, Bob and I bowling. It was Rada’s first time bowling and her expression when she finally managed to knock down a pin (it took a few frames) was priceless. The place was small (5 lanes and a little bar and café area) but nice. They had electronic scoring complete with screen graphics, including a dead chicken for a gutter ball and a sports car for a “speedy spare”. We even got little socks to wear with our bowling shoes. Maureen was the best out of the gate but Bob managed to get in a groove and beat her in the third game. Sean, Rada and I … well, we had fun.

And our final “B’s” for the post … brrrrr – its -6 degrees today. We are sure hoping spring will be in bloom in Maryland when we get home!

The Kaz Crawl

We woke to another blizzard – snow blowing sideways for dramatic effect – which cleared in time for the Mechems to visit the Powers (Sean, Maureen and James). They are in an apartment a few blocks away so we bundled up the boy and braved the chill. Owen and James were both very good, engaging in a little friendly wrestling and playing with their toys. Maureen and Sean were going to treat us to a dinner of french fries, chicken nuggets and fish sticks; unfortunately their gas cylinder ran out halfway through cooking and a replacement couldn’t be delivered until the next day. By this time in the trip we all are sufficiently “Kazified” to laugh it off and eat dried peach and raisin pie for dinner instead.

Owen continues to be in good health and is making developmental gains everyday. It amazes us to see the things he does after being with us just short of two weeks. He can now sit on his own for several minutes, he loves to stand and even “dances” a bit, and he really seems to be enjoying investigating his toys and his world. But he’s still not showing any real interest in crawling; why bother when you can scoot yourself around on your back - the Kaz Crawl! We try to tell him that if he keeps it up the bald spot on the back of his head will never have a chance to fill in and the girls will tease him, but so far, it doesn’t seem to matter to him. Especially since pretty girls like Rada come by to give him lots of attention no matter how his hair looks (hmmm, maybe it’s really the Nittany Lion paw print on his pants that she likes).

Our little one also had his first babysitter this week. Luba is a wonderful woman who works with our agency and is the housecleaner at the cottage; she also does our laundry. She loves kids – as soon as she walked in she went right for Owen and started speaking Russian to him and he seemed perfectly content with her. Bob and I went to dinner with Rada at Kokshetau’s sole sports bar. It was nice and rather new looking inside with several large screen TVs all showing soccer. Rada tried to teach us a bit about the rules of the game, but if Owen decides to play I think I’ll have to get a crash course from Drew because I still don’t understand what constitutes getting a yellow card!

It was nice to get out and have a good meal, but it was even nicer to come back to the apartment and give Owen big hugs and kisses.We are now heading into our last week in Kokshetau!

Happy O is Back Again

The other night as I lay in bed unable to sleep, the chorus of a popular song kept running through my head … in Russian. Yep, we’ve officially been here too long.

I promised myself not to turn this into the “diaper diaries”, but as I mentioned Owen was having some serious intestinal issues that were pretty rough on all of us. After a few days of only rice cereal and formula didn’t help we asked Rada to call Dr. Victoria . She thought the only thing wrong with him was that we had fed him jarred carrots instead of the boiled cabbage and meat she suggested, and prescribed him medicine, capsules that we broke open and mixed with some water three times a day.We are happy to report that the situation seems to finally be back to normal. Just in time too as we woke up this morning to no running water for the third day in a row (it has since thankfully come on) and the kind of clean up involved in previous days would have been difficult to say the least. And no, living without running water is not at all fun, particularly for me, someone who won’t even go camping unless we stay in a cabin with indoor plumbing and a shower (Audrey stop laughing!).

Owen has been mostly back to happy baby lately, although he does get cranky if we are a little late or slow with the food. He sure does like to eat and I’m looking forward to his medical exam in Almaty (required before leaving the country) to see how much he weighs now. We are still tinkering a bit with his schedule and think we’ve found a winner – more frequent, shorter naps and a slightly later bedtime.

Our social life is pretty slow at the moment as it’s been very cold and snowy for a few days. But we do manage to get out occasionally - Bob and Sean went on a walk around town to take pictures of some of the monuments and I met Maureen, Jenny, Joey, Diane (a newbie from Alexandria), Bill and Jill for an afternoon of shopping at the Tsum store.

The Tsum store is really just a bunch of small kiosks and stores that sell everything from auto parts to fur coats. There are stores for appliances, sporting goods, books, stationary, wigs, chandeliers, cosmetics, food, curtains, shoes, china and glassware … in short, if you need it, you can probably find it here. It might not be all that nice or even look like it belongs in this decade, but you can find it.

We do a lot of reading to pass the time; I’ve finished two books that I highly recommend: “The Boleyn Inheritance” by Philippa Gregory (Mom, I think you’d very much enjoy; it’s about the court of King Henry VIII from three women’s point of view) and “A Short History of Nearly Everything” by Bill Bryson. The latter is just what the title suggests; it’s an explanation of everything from how the Universe works to what an atom does. It’s written by a non-scientist and is therefore accessible for everyone. Every five pages I was saying “Bob, listen to this …” Amazing stuff, great book.

Hope everyone is well. Your comments, thoughts and prayers keep us going – but we are really ready to come home. Two weeks to go!

To The Pick-Up Store

Grocery shopping in Kokshetau is a good thing for three reasons … 1) it gets you out of the apartment, 2) it gets you out of the apartment, and 3) it gets you out of the apartment. The half mile walk in each direction through snow and ice gets your blood flowing and muscles working. And really, there is nothing quite like the sensation of having your nose hairs freeze.

Once you arrive at the local pick-up store, the nicely dressed (business suit/pointy shoes) security guard eyes you suspiciously and the clerks look at you and whisper among themselves. But it’s really a lot of fun to navigate the three aisles and try to figure out what things are by the pictures. Go ahead - try this for yourself! Visit your local Safeway or Giant or Acme, pretend you don’t read English, and buy your entire list only by what’s on the package. Interesting, yes?

Mayonnaise here comes in a bag and mustard in a tube like toothpaste – I picked ours by the drawings of pepper and horseradish on the front – and there are at least nine kinds of ketchup; although none of the bottles we’ve tried tastes like Heinz. There is a whole row of teas and instant coffee but no peanut butter or crackers and very limited vegetables and fruit (fresh, frozen or canned). One of my new snack finds is a children’s breakfast cereal of little wheat squares filled with cherry, strawberry, orange, vanilla, raspberry or cappuccino (perhaps it gives the kids an extra boost for the walk to school in the morning?) cream, and I usually grab some Sour Cream and Onion Pringles, or the Kaz equivalent “Kracks”. I’ve given up on chicken but the yogurt is great, and we like the potato pirogues and “Mexican” beans with rice for dinner.

But without a doubt, my favorite thing is Twix Dark. Chocolate cookie, caramel and dark chocolate - delicious. We need these at home. Unfortunately, I told our fellow travelers about them and they agreed they were an everyday necessity and now I think we may have purchased Kokshetau’s entire supply. I’ll be looking in Almaty!

In other news Bob got a (good) haircut for five hundred tenge ($4); we’ve discovered Owen only likes the more expensive brand of formula (hmm, wonder where he gets that from); this week Kaz celebrated National Pancake Day; and it’s still snowing. Ah, the days go by …

Introducing Mr. Cranky

For reasons known only to Owen (and maybe his teeth), our sweet, agreeable, “easy” baby has turned into Mr. Cranky. We don’t see any little white Chiclets emerging from his gums but the other signs seem to be there … the previously oft-mentioned drool, the shoving of anything and everything into his mouth (why doesn’t someone make teething rings the same texture as fingers since that is obviously the preferred thing to bite?), ear rubbing, crying and general fussiness – see picture. And of course out of the all the toys and diversions we offered, the plastic wipes bag was the only thing to halt his tears for a good fifteen minutes.

The good news from Kokshetau is that we are getting out of here two days early, March 2nd instead of March 4th (although our flight home is still scheduled for March 7th). We don’t know the reason behind the change, although we heard something about the flight schedule changing for spring. In winter, the Yak flies only on Wednesday and Sunday; and yes, it has snowed here for three days straight and the high today is zero, but I think March 1st is the official start of spring. Whatever the reason we are happy to have more time in Almaty. Because it’s a much bigger city we will be able to take Owen out in public, Mad Murphy’s Irish Pub has awesome food, and the Ramstore is better than the Westminster Mall. Hopefully by then our happy baby will be back!

First Bath and First Play Date ... Coincidence?

Owen handled his first bath like a trooper, a happy surprise for us as so many new adoptive parents have reported stories of screaming babies (apparently bath time in the orphanages isn’t much fun). At first he was a little hesitant but was soon sitting happily while we soaped him up. He even enjoyed playing with a few cups and splashing a bit. Since we don’t have a baby tub Bob climbed in with him, which was great for Owen but unfortunately didn’t result in any bath pictures we can post on the internet!

The next day James and his mom and dad (Maureen and Sean) came over for a play date; and although it’s possible the adults enjoyed the afternoon more than the kids, we did get a few smiles from them. James is one of the “hamsters” and shares a birthday (July 14) with Owen. We are hoping to get together with Garrett soon; also one of the fab five, he’s Jenny and Darryl’s son.

We think we have Owen’s schedule figured out pretty well but have decided to cut out the carrots and pears for a few days; to put it nicely we think it may be a bit too much for his system right now. He’s having a lot of fun discovering his voice and he remains a very happy kid for most of the day. He’s also drooling a small stream so we expect more teeth any time. We tell him everyday about all the family and friends he has waiting for him at home and I think he may be counting down the days too (its’ now 18 to go).

Bob and I have decided we now miss American TV. It would be really nice to sit together at the end of the day and relax with an episode of CSI (the original, NY or Miami – any of them would do). The only English speaking channel here is Euro Sport, which is usually showing soccer or tennis. Music Box does play some familiar music and US/British artists; and today I saw a new A-ha video! Kris, they look pretty much the same although I think the lead singer may have had some work done.

To close out today’s post, another Russian/Kazakh superstition Rada told us … if you take a ring off and hand it to someone you are passing them your luck; therefore, always put it down first and let them pick it up (Sherry, thought you might enjoy this one and we’ll have to remember it the next time we are sitting at Texas Road House). Enjoy your weekend!