It has been a long 24 hours in Almaty already. We are ready to go home but realize this is all a necessary part of the process so we can bring Caleb home forever.
Our room at the hotel started feeling kind of smoky around late afternoon/ early evening. I asked the receptionist if she had a non-smoking room and she said no. Apparently there is a Bird Flu conference going on at the hotel, and all Bird Flu scientists must smoke heavily. I tried to explain to her that we had a small baby and the smoke was not good. She suggested we go take a walk. Nice. The smoke got a little better by late evening. As the smoke lifted, Caleb got worse!
He has been fairly fussy and demonstrating his lung strength on a regular basis. We can tell he has some digestive issues that leave us pretty concerned, yet we don’t have the resources to figure out what is happening until we are home. There are many times we’ve tried everything we can and he is still just so upset. It is hard to see because we just want to help him. It makes us worry that he is hurting somewhere, possibly his tummy. He is also quite congested, so all the crying plus an already congested nose leads to lots of snot and a baby who can’t breathe. We feel so bad for the little guy. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep last night.
This morning I went with Zorya to do some souvenir shopping since we did not have the opportunity to do so in Bishkek. We also went by a Pharmacy where she helped me get some baby formula that is soy-based. One of the theories our IA doctors and wonderful pediatrician friend had was that Caleb could be allergic to milk-based formula. We have only been able to give him 1 soy bottle so far today and have also been giving him small amounts of Pedialyte since yesterday because of all his tummy trouble.
For lunch we weren’t really brave enough to go to lunch with a screaming child, so I got some snacks from the market that is very close to our hotel entrance. These snacks included some Russian Ramen Noodles which we had enjoyed in Bishkek as well, mainly out of pure desperation to have something to eat in the room! As we were getting ready to leave for Caleb’s medical appointment today Bryan decided to eat some Russian Ramen and quickly realized we needed a fork. I did what anyone else would do – I went downstairs and stole a fork from the hotel restaurant! I went over to the buffet section where a waitress assumed I was checking out the soups. I acted interested while she showed me a ladle-full of chicken soup and slyly grabbed a fork as she chatted to me in Russian. Once she was done, I slowly moved my arm to carry the fork at my side – TOTAL STEALTH MODE. To appear genuine, I checked out the rest of the buffet selection before hauling out of the restaurant to deliver said fork to hungry Bryan.
After the fork robbery, we bundled Caleb up in true Kyrgyz/Kazakh fashion and went to the SOS Clinic for Caleb’s exam. We weren’t sure what to expect and thought they might take blood for various blood tests. Thankfully that was not the case! The doctor (a very kind Russian woman) gave Caleb a very basic exam which he viewed as pure torture. This led to screaming which our coordinator could hear all the way downstairs! We also talked with the doctor about his tummy problems. She seemed concerned but told us we were doing all we could until we get home- switching him to soy and making sure he stays hydrated. We also realized that Caleb’s height and weight have not changed since Sept 1 when our friends Mike & Karla saw him at his orphanage and took his measurements. He’s just 11 lbs and 25 inches long. His length is great but his weight is just too low. It concerns us and we hope we can help him pack on the pounds back in the States.
We are now back in the room where Caleb has been sleeping for an hour and a half. Technically it is time for a bottle but we are letting him sleep since the doctor’s appointment really wiped him out. Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will turn in our paperwork to the Embassy and then schedule our Embassy interview for Wednesday. If all goes as planned, Caleb’s visa could be ready by 3pm on Wednesday. If not it should be ready by Thursday for sure, and then we will leave at 3am on Friday morning!
We really appreciate your support, kind words and prayers. This trip has not been easy, especially with a sweet baby boy that we often cannot console. I am so thankful to not be alone in this – we can feel your prayers! Most of all I am thankful to have Bryan here with me as he has been an incredible new Daddy, staying so calm, anticipating Caleb’s needs, and knowing exactly when to give me a break. We have made a good team and I know I could not do this without him.
**QUICK UPDATE: After I finished typing this blog post, Caleb woke up because he rolled over! We had been told he could do this but had never seen it. He then guzzled down a full soy bottle and did great! WOOHOO CALEB! Now we just need to keep our fingers crossed for no diaper explosions later!
Our room at the hotel started feeling kind of smoky around late afternoon/ early evening. I asked the receptionist if she had a non-smoking room and she said no. Apparently there is a Bird Flu conference going on at the hotel, and all Bird Flu scientists must smoke heavily. I tried to explain to her that we had a small baby and the smoke was not good. She suggested we go take a walk. Nice. The smoke got a little better by late evening. As the smoke lifted, Caleb got worse!
He has been fairly fussy and demonstrating his lung strength on a regular basis. We can tell he has some digestive issues that leave us pretty concerned, yet we don’t have the resources to figure out what is happening until we are home. There are many times we’ve tried everything we can and he is still just so upset. It is hard to see because we just want to help him. It makes us worry that he is hurting somewhere, possibly his tummy. He is also quite congested, so all the crying plus an already congested nose leads to lots of snot and a baby who can’t breathe. We feel so bad for the little guy. Needless to say, we did not get much sleep last night.
This morning I went with Zorya to do some souvenir shopping since we did not have the opportunity to do so in Bishkek. We also went by a Pharmacy where she helped me get some baby formula that is soy-based. One of the theories our IA doctors and wonderful pediatrician friend had was that Caleb could be allergic to milk-based formula. We have only been able to give him 1 soy bottle so far today and have also been giving him small amounts of Pedialyte since yesterday because of all his tummy trouble.
For lunch we weren’t really brave enough to go to lunch with a screaming child, so I got some snacks from the market that is very close to our hotel entrance. These snacks included some Russian Ramen Noodles which we had enjoyed in Bishkek as well, mainly out of pure desperation to have something to eat in the room! As we were getting ready to leave for Caleb’s medical appointment today Bryan decided to eat some Russian Ramen and quickly realized we needed a fork. I did what anyone else would do – I went downstairs and stole a fork from the hotel restaurant! I went over to the buffet section where a waitress assumed I was checking out the soups. I acted interested while she showed me a ladle-full of chicken soup and slyly grabbed a fork as she chatted to me in Russian. Once she was done, I slowly moved my arm to carry the fork at my side – TOTAL STEALTH MODE. To appear genuine, I checked out the rest of the buffet selection before hauling out of the restaurant to deliver said fork to hungry Bryan.
After the fork robbery, we bundled Caleb up in true Kyrgyz/Kazakh fashion and went to the SOS Clinic for Caleb’s exam. We weren’t sure what to expect and thought they might take blood for various blood tests. Thankfully that was not the case! The doctor (a very kind Russian woman) gave Caleb a very basic exam which he viewed as pure torture. This led to screaming which our coordinator could hear all the way downstairs! We also talked with the doctor about his tummy problems. She seemed concerned but told us we were doing all we could until we get home- switching him to soy and making sure he stays hydrated. We also realized that Caleb’s height and weight have not changed since Sept 1 when our friends Mike & Karla saw him at his orphanage and took his measurements. He’s just 11 lbs and 25 inches long. His length is great but his weight is just too low. It concerns us and we hope we can help him pack on the pounds back in the States.
We are now back in the room where Caleb has been sleeping for an hour and a half. Technically it is time for a bottle but we are letting him sleep since the doctor’s appointment really wiped him out. Tomorrow (Tuesday) we will turn in our paperwork to the Embassy and then schedule our Embassy interview for Wednesday. If all goes as planned, Caleb’s visa could be ready by 3pm on Wednesday. If not it should be ready by Thursday for sure, and then we will leave at 3am on Friday morning!
We really appreciate your support, kind words and prayers. This trip has not been easy, especially with a sweet baby boy that we often cannot console. I am so thankful to not be alone in this – we can feel your prayers! Most of all I am thankful to have Bryan here with me as he has been an incredible new Daddy, staying so calm, anticipating Caleb’s needs, and knowing exactly when to give me a break. We have made a good team and I know I could not do this without him.
**QUICK UPDATE: After I finished typing this blog post, Caleb woke up because he rolled over! We had been told he could do this but had never seen it. He then guzzled down a full soy bottle and did great! WOOHOO CALEB! Now we just need to keep our fingers crossed for no diaper explosions later!
Also, I can only use the internet in the hotel lobby as the wireless signal is not strong enough on the smoky 4th floor of Hotel Kazzhol!
Here are some random pictures from yesterday when I was unable to upload pictures of our trip to Almaty. All of these pictures are post-border crossing, aka post-Caleb screaming bloody murder in front of border control :)
Finally taking a bottle in the backseat of the mini-bus
Trying on his puppy dog hat to stay warm
(also, new outfit because he drooled formula all over outfit #1)
Snuggling with Daddy, doing his best not to get upset!
"Talking" to the crib photo decoration of Mommy & Daddy
"Talking" to the crib photo decoration of Mommy & Daddy
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