Been trying to think of things that might be new and different since we've been in Russia - of course, in addition to Anya.
- Talking and sometimes screaming in your sleep. Yes, Anya does this. Saying perfectly coherent words (of course, that we generally don't know what they mean)
- I like oatmeal. Who would have thought it? But I really do!
- Referring to ourselves in the third person. This was kind of by mistake. We were trying to get Anya to call us 'Mommy' or 'Daddy'...so I would say "give it to Mommy". Well, now Anya is doing that too - saying things like "Anya toilet". We're trying to teach her 'me', 'I', and 'you'.
- Pickles with dinner. All the time - because we're in Russia, therefore we must have dill pickles.
- Surviving on 4-5 hours of sleep a night. I am a sleeper. I could probably get by with 6 hours a night, if they were good, restful hours of sleep. Because of the screaming in the sleep, the traffic on the road we're on (we are in a 1st floor apartment, bedroom windows on the street side), and the 3am removal of snow from the streets (insert sounds of massive machinery and scraping of streets and sidewalks)...we're not really sleeping at all.
- Walking. I SO WISH we could walk for a few hours every day at home.
- Going to church where you don't understand anything that is being preached...and not caring...just being happy to be with other Christians.
- I color about every day. Not because there is nothing else to do, but because it is kind of a stress reliever for me.
- Using a bathroom without a functional door. Oh, the joy! The door here in the bathroom doesn't really latch, and because it doesn't latch, it doesn't close. This has created some real 'oi!' moments over the past week and 1/2!
And, of course, Anya's favorite meal - hotdog, mashed potato, green beans with the side of bread and pickles. Yum Yum!
4 comments:
The bathroom door would close and LOCK when we were there and that's one thing Nathan didn't break so must have been the French LOL
Nathan's favorite meal in IRK was hot dog, cooked carrots and potato chips...
too funny
Kathy--so much of what you've said about parenting Anya for the first few days resonates with our experience. You just articulated it so well!!!! Thanks for sharing, as it brought back so many memories for me....the first time I tried to zip up aleeza's coat and she said, "Nyiet, mama." :-) Yes, these kids have such survival skills and strength that I can't even fathom, so you're not alone in feeling that way....I say that I'm the wimp in the family!!
Thanks again for sharing. Love and prayers to you!
Kathy---the anonymous comment is me, Wendy Hite!! I don't know what I did!!
OH YES! We talk and scream and cry in our sleep--but so, so, so much less than we used to. Funnily, English appeared at night almost immediately.
And you know how I feel about sleep. But, I figure, she'll be a teenager in just a few short years and we can both sleep then. ;> (Not saying it's easy because it's not. I'd still love just one.good.sleep-in. She slept until 7:00 this morning and I was thrilled!) (The street noise here--first floor, too--is extreme. I'm too much of a princess to adjust, I guess. When the boats start, I'm moving to Lexi's room.)
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