Daily news

Thursday, we were able to visit Matthew in the morning. It’s nice to do that and have the rest of the day to relax. Last night, we met the Allens and the Mickschls for dinner at a nearby café. It was a short walk and the weather was perfect. We ate at this café on our last trip and they had a meat soup with lemon that was wonderful. That was what I had. Mark had a pork chop which he said was very good and Maia had a plain omelette (read, egg only) and some French fries. She also had some dark bread which Mark Mickschl was kind enough to share.


We lost our internet this morning (not quite sure why) so I am typing this up in anticipation of heading to Mickey D’s later for their wi-fi and perhaps some ice cream. The washing machine part arrived, but the repairman wasn’t able to fix it (again… not sure why) so the landlady took our laundry home to wash. Very nice of her considering that we have to leave this apartment tomorrow. It is reserved for someone else. We knew that when we moved in, but our options were this for short term or staying at the hotel. It’s been nice to have the kitchen here.

Maia and I walked to the nearby park before lunch. There are kiddie rides, toys, and refreshments to purchase. We just went to the free play area where Maia was very happy on the swing and jungle gym. On our way back to the apartment, we stopped at a bakery we had noticed the other day. I picked up a few cookies that looked like giant meringues. We had them for dessert after tacos. They were even better than meringue cookies. They were like that on the outside, but the inside was like angel food cake. One was coconut and the other was a maple nut flavor – oh, my goodness – I think they are my new favorite food here!

Visited the orphanage this afternoon. As soon as Maia saw Matthew, she said “There he is” in that very happy way of hers. It was so sweet! Our boy wasn’t having a good day today. He was sitting on a bench looking very sad when we arrived. One of the caregivers was talking with him, not sure if he was in trouble or what. But, he was pretty subdued. We brought bubbles for the kids. Matthew spilled most of his and was upset when we wouldn’t let him have Maia’s. Matthew likes to dig around in the bag that I bring with and we have started putting it where he can’t reach it. Today, he was trying to get at it and kept repeating something over and over – wish we knew what he was trying to say. He just wasn’t his usual happy, exuberant self. When our visit was over, we took Matthew back to his groupa and he went without saying good-bye. I walked up to where he was and picked him up and just held him close, told him that I love him in Russian and kissed him. He smiled a sad, little smile and oh, those sad eyes. Mark kissed him good-bye and I held him for a while longer, trying to tell him that we would be back tomorrow. My heart was so heavy and the tears were flowing as we left. Would you pray that God would just begin the healing process in that precious heart?

Tomorrow, we will visit Matthew again in the morning. We have to be back at the apartment at noon. Our landlady will be bringing our laundry back and we will move back to the hotel for a few days. Early next week, we will move to the complex where we stayed for Maia’s adoption. The Mickschls will be staying in the apartment we had last time and we will stay across the courtyard from them. The frequent moving isn’t so much fun, but this is peak tourist season here so availability is limited and we are thankful that we have had nice places to stay.

I better stop and get dinner ready. More soon!