Happy Birthday Amalia Avino!!!

December 26, 2009

Last blog before we go say bye to Dylan and get on our 10hr train ride!!!

See you all in Canada!!
Mary & Fil!!!

Happy Birthday Amalia and have a great day!!

Christmas day and what a GIFT!!!

December 25th, 2009

Today is Christmas Day and what a delightful gift we received!!!
We went to the orphanage this morning for 10:00 and we picked up a nurse and a caregiver because since we were going to pick up Dylan and we have a mini bus, they came along as well to pick up 3 other children that were at the hospital. We got to the hospital for about 10:30 and the nurse and caregiver went in the hospital and they asked Irina, Fil and I to wait outside. About 1/2 an hour later the nurse, and 2 caregivers came running outside with 4 kids and one of them was Dylan!!!! So I grabbed one child, Fil grabbed Dylan and the caregivers came in the mini bus with 2 other children and we waited in the mini bus.
As soon as we sat in the mini bus and waited for the nurse to complete paperwork in the hospital I looked at the time and it was 11:02am (kazak time) which was 12:02am (Montreal time -->Christmas)!!! I looked at Fil and said it's Christmas in Canada and we finally got Dylan back from the hospital!!!
Is it a coincidence? Is it everyone back home praying for Dylan and giving him positive energy?? Whatever it was, it worked and it was a POWERFUL MOMENT!!
As Opera would say, it was an Ahhhh Moment!!!


I told Fil last Christmas while we were completing paperwork for the adoption and this I promise everybody is the very truth, I told him, "Fil next year will be a different christmas, you watch and see"!!!! Am I the powerful one??? I think I am!!!

We spent about 1/2 hr with Dylan at the orphanage, he seemed better but still had his cough, the other 3 kids that we picked up sounded even worse. Dylan had a little more energy than when we went to see him in the hospital this week and looked more himself!! We were so stressed being in the mini bus with all these sick kids, that have been abandoned by their parents that we didn't even wish Dylan a Merry Christmas!! We'll see him tomorrow morning before we catch the train.

MERRY CHRISTMAS DYLAN KORKEM CASACALENDA & EVERYONE BACK HOME, AND BUON NATALE IN ITALIA!!!

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Tonight we went for supper at a Korean restaurant with the german couple Ernie and katherine. It was a great supper and nice night out. Fil and I were then looking for a taxi to go home because it was very very dark and late and this guy in his car came next to us and said Taxi and we said yes and got in. I told Fil to drop us off at the corner because I did not want him to know where we lived. As we got out Fil and I both looked at each other and said, "this was not even a taxi" he didn't have any taxi sign or anything!! But we got home safe and sound and he doesn't know where we live!!!

December 24, 2009
10:00am
Today we won’t see Dylan again. It’s now 4 days that he’s been in the hospital, ALL BY HIMSELF!!!! Do you believe that a baby is left alone at the hospital all by himself???? I don’t understand that logic, it’s not right, but for now all we can do and all we can hope for is that he gets better!!

Fil and I are fighters and have never given up on our dream but this little guy is a fighter too and he’s been fighting all by himself since the 1st day he was born!!!
WE CAN’T WAIT TO LEAVE, NOT BECAUSE WE WANT TO LEAVE DYLAN BUT THE QUICKER WE LEAVE THE QUICKER WE COME BACK AND BRING HIM HOME WHERE HE BELONGS SO WE CAN SPOIL HIM, LOVE HIM AND GIVE HIM ALL THE CARE HE NEEDS AND DESERVES AND NEVER GO BY ANOTHER DAY ALL BY HIMSELF!!!!!

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It's now 9:00pm and Fil and I just had our Christmas Eve supper. Our roommates left this afternoon and are heading back to Canada, "bon voyages les amies" Our supper consisted of rice,peppers,carrots,cashews,raisins and shrimp with a tomato and cucumber salad with no oil because we ran out!!! The owner of the house brought us a christmas tree which was very nice of him considering nobody celebrates christmas here. However you find christmas decorations everywhere here but they decorate for New Year's Eve!! Some pictures are attached of our romantic supper just the 2 love birds..LOL!!!

We found out tonight that we'll be picking up Dylan from the hospital tomorrow and bring him back to the orphanage!!!! We really hope so, it will be the best x-mas gift ever!!!

Above are some pictures of our house. The lovely bed!!! Wow!!!

Happy Birthday Dr. Nick Casacalenda!!!!!!

December 24, 2009

Thank you for all your medical advice, for your words of wisdom, your support and encouragements throughout this difficult journey, Thanks for sharing your Beautiful, Positive and Intelligent Mind with us!!!
Have a great day and a fantastic birthday!!! xoxoxoxoxoxxo

Happy Birthday Annie Campoli

December 23, 2009

Walk around Taraz

December 22, 2009

We did not see Dylan today so Fil and I went walking around all day LONG. We were told of a place that made espresso, café au lait and cappuccino with Lavazza coffee, so we took a walk there. Got to the counter and wanted to order a café au lait, the girl responded nyet (no), I then asked for cappuccino –> nyet, espresso –> Nyet!!! So I looked at her and said, kaffe? She sticks out an envelope and in this envelope is instant coffee with coffee mate, I started laughing and I ordered an orange juice!!!! I think their machine was broken. Can you tell I’m in desperate need of a real coffee?? LOL!!! I ran out of Tim Horton’s coffee after 1 week here and all they have here is INSTANT COFFEE and all the teas that you can think of!!! Actually we found Ethiopian espresso coffee that we use in my 1-cup filter gadget and it’s not bad but an Italian coffee would have been really nice! My roommate said I would probably have been disappointed anyways if they did have it, and I said yes that’s probably true, because I’m a Diva….a coffee diva!!! (the picture of my 1 cup filter coffee gadget is attached)

We then continued walking and tried to look for stores to buy something for Dylan’s room that represents Taraz, Kazakhstan. We couldn’t find anything interesting and we were close to our house and decided that we wanted to go to a market called “Small” which is equivalent to our Wal-Mart. It was a bit of a long walk and decided to take a taxi. WOW!! What an adventure. We called our co-ordinator and asked her what to tell the taxi, she responded tell him the market called “Small”. Fine. So Mary and I started to kind of hitchhike to get a cab. Lol. So we were walking and this taxi driver stops and he already had 2 people and wanted to pick us up as well. We were both laughing and said no. lol. Finally a taxi stops and I told him to go to the market “Small”. No reaction came from him and didn’t know if he understood me, so I called back Vera and she spoke to him and told him where to go. It was so funny. Before she hung up she told me it shouldn’t cost more than 300 tenges equivalent to $2.00 canadian. Wow. He was a nice gentlemen and only charged me 200 tenges ($1.25 canadian). Oh the drive was between 5 to 10 minutes.

My bladder……yes I have a weak bladder and I need to go to the ladies room pretty often and it’s very interesting the toilets that I have visited here. 1st of all they are all "squat toilets" but that’s ok I’m used to them now but the best one so far is the one I went to today. I had to visit the ladies room and as I walked in, there were about 6 to 8 stalls but the only problem was that the walls were about 3 feet high and you had to go up 2 steps to get in.. Ok enough with the details, what I’m trying to explain is that when you go up the 2 steps to go into your stall you see everyone else in their stalls….and NO I did not turn around and leave, I did go………BUT there was nobody in there when I went in…… it was really funny, I guess you had to be there!!!

"BIG DAY"

December 21, 2009

Today we went to visit Dylan at the hospital for about ½ hour with Irina our translator and the doctor from the orphanage. We had to go buy masks to wear at the hospital. Once we got to the hospital the doctor there did not really want us to go visit Dylan but then finally gave the ok to go see him. We saw him in a little waiting room at the end of a hallway. He was calm and tired. He fell asleep in my arms. They had given him treatment through I.V. We were not told what he had but said they would do x-rays on his lungs. While we were visiting him the nurse asked for diapers and Irina had to go buy them for us. We were also told that we would not be able to see him tomorrow and that maybe we would be able to see him on Wednesday and if he was better we would be able to take him back to the orphanage.

Today was a big day for 2 reasons. #1 we went to visit Dylan in a children’s hospital and #2 we had an appointment at the Municipal Ministry of Education. Most couples are usually nervous about going there because you are in a room with 4 to 5 people from the board of directors of the Ministry of Education and they ask you questions about the Adoption. We really were not nervous about their drilling questions because we know we will give Dylan the best life for him. There were 3 people from the ministry of education and Vera who was translating everything to us and to them.
The questions they asked us were:

1- If we knew about his medical diagnostics and to name them
2- Who will be taking care of him when we both go to work
3- He asked if there was enough income coming from Fil as I will be home raising Dylan
4- They asked us if we were presented with more than 1 child on the 1st day at the orphanage and Why did we choose "Korkem"?
5-- The final best question was ->he asked if Fil was a hockey fan!!!!
He asked him between Russia and Canada who would win in the world cup? Fil responded the best answer ever………….”50-50 chance”!!! There was a big laugh in the room and the V.P. finally responded that Russia would win 4 to 3 against Canada!!! Fil responded…Maybe, we'll see!!!! Lol

He then gave us a speech to tell Dylan where he comes from even though he will be a Canadian citizen, teach him about his culture etc. He also said that Dylan looks like me...(Mary) how nice!!!!

It went really well and it was so easy because we were really confident and we refused to let them intimidate us, But they were also so very nice which made it easier!!

After that we all went to a "Georgian" restaurant called Sakartvelo to celebrate, Anatoli our driver, Vera & Medet our coordinators, Irina our translator, Elena the German couples translator, Catherine & Ernie the Germans, Christoph and Nathalie. We must say that the food was fantastic and the dessert was great. The 3 couples split the bill in 3 to thank them for all their great work!! The bill came out to $50.00 per couple. The restaurant was amazing and we really all had a great time.

Another hard day today!!

December 20,2009

Here it goes again!!! We went to the orphanage this morning and as I went to pick up Dylan the Nounou told us that Dylan was sick and we needed permission from the doctor if we can see him. Irina the translator and I went to see the doctor and she told me that Dylan is sick and that the treatment they gave him has not worked and that he will have to be hospitalized for about 3 days to get the proper treatment. She said that it was okay for us to visit him today. We felt so bad just looking at him so helpless but I'm glad he will finally get the so called "PROPER TREATMENT"!!!! I want him home in Canada, where HE WILL get the proper care he needs!!! They do the best they can but it's not enough for Dylan who is so fragile!! I'm not upset because he's sick I'm just very frustrated that he can't get proper care!! Hopefully the hospital has better equipment because what I've seen at the orphanage, let's just say I wasn't very impressed.
I knew he was starting something because yesterday he was coughing alot and he had a runny nose again. 1st of all it was never cured because I heard it in his lungs and 2nd of all, did he get the complete or correct treatment??? I seriously doubt it, actually I don't doubt it I'm sure he didn't. They need to open their windows at the orphanage to let in some cool air so it can kill the germs because it's sooooo hot in there and the kids have to many layers of clothes which is not very good for them. We are 3 couples that are currently adopting and all 3 kids have the same cough.
We're glad we were able to see him today but it broke our hearts watching him cough and it showed he did not feel well. He didn't want to do anything so we held him in our arms the whole time.
We were told that we would be able to see him in the hospital for about 20 minutes a day if he is not in isolation. That's going to be another torture watching him hooked up to I.V's!! The orphanage is not licensed to give treatment through I.V. so that's why Dylan will be sent to the hospital for treatment.

Today we completed our 14th out of 14 required bonding days.

Regardless of the horrible day we had I must say that everyone was extremely nice and compassionate to us, Irina our translator, the nounou, the doctor and Medet who came right away when he heard about Dylan and told us not to worry because Dylan would be in good hands.

Buon Compleanno Zio Donato

December 20, 2009

+13 degrees in Taraz, Kazakhstan and -18 in Montreal!!

December 19,2009

+12 degrees in Taraz,Kazakhstan and –20 degrees in Canada…..VERRRY Nice!

December 18, 2009

Went to see Dylan from 10 to 12:00 and then came home and had lunch. We then all went for a LONG walk around town from 2:00 to 7:00. While we were walking around town Vera called to tell us we had to go buy our train tickets for our trip back home. So they came to meet us at a park and they took us to buy our train tickets which came out to 10,000 tenge for both (about $75.00) There are no flights leaving out of Taraz to Almaty on the 26th of December so we have no choice but to take a 10hr train to Almaty. We will arrive in Almaty at 11:30 pm and our flight is the following morning the 27th at 8:15. We will be flying from Almaty to London (about 8 hr flight) and then London to Montreal (about another 8 hr flight). After we went to the train station to buy our tickets we went back to meet our roommates and we then went to have pizza and beer for supper which came out to 4,000 tenge (about $27.00)
Some pictures are attached of our sight seeing and of course Mr Fil the comedian as usual.

Hot and Sunny in Kazakhstan plus 5 degrees

December 17, 2009

When Anatoli and Irina (Interpreter) came to pick us up this morning we had another lovely surprise from Irina. She brought us some home made salad (Peas, sausage, mayonnaise and eggs), a meat dish (Beef meat layered with onions, potatoes, mayonnaise and cheddar cheese) and cake. She brought us these left overs from the night before cause they celebrated the husband’s birthday who just turned 25 yrs old. So we all said we know what to have for lunch today. LOL!! That was really nice of her and that put a big smile on our face.

We got to the orphanage and I had the opportunity to get Dylan in the playroom where he is fed and plays in the park. When I got there he still wasn’t fed and told me I could wait until they finish feeding him. While I was waiting I saw Dylan playing in the park; I called him and waved at him. When he saw me he started laughing. I was so happy cause he’s starting to realize who the daddy is. LOL!!!! The Nounou was feeding Dylan and boy was he eating, I was so proud of him. I have to say that the orphanage is very clean and they really take care of the babies here. They are in very good hands and they work very hard to take care of them.

Dylan was playing a lot today and didn’t sleep. He is so cute when we give him his multivitamin it’s unbelievable. We also gave him his apple juice; he loves his apple juice. Mary had the chance to bring back Dylan in his playroom. That’s really nice of them to allow us to bring him back, so we get to see what’s behind closed doors.

I had to stop at a phone store to buy cards for my cell phone. I just want to give you an idea how much I paid,(1500 tenges is equivalent to $10.00). We got home and we were anxious to try Irina’s food and let me tell you it was fantastic. It was very tasty and delicious. By the way Irina’s mother-in-law made the cake and it was very good. Kudo’s to the Kazak’s. They know how to make a home cooked meal. (picture attached)

After our meal we decided to go for a walk the 4 of us. It was really nice to go for a walk, it was sunny and 5 degrees above 0. The snow is almost all melted. You will see in the pictures above we took of our meal today from Irina, the ambulance, the notary we went to on Tuesday, a brick layer, Kazak men wanting for us to take a picture of them (they were nice) and puppies which are at the back of the orphanage (so cute).

Kazakh Independence Day!!

December 16, 2009

Today is Independence Day in Kazakhstan. This morning we got a call from Antonella as I needed some information and she was very helpful as usual - thx Nene!! We then prepared Dylan’s toys and diapers etc… Same routine like any other morning.

We got at the orphanage and Mary asked Irina if she could have gone upstairs and pick-up Dylan with her and she didn’t even hesitate and said yes. It was really nice of her, usually we're not allowed to go get our baby but because it was a holiday their Director of Orphanage wasn’t there so she allowed her to go. Mary said that Dylan was there all alone in a very big park playing, it is very clean, organised and it showed that they really take care of the babies.
Mary then came down and we started to play with him. He wasn’t as active as yesterday. He seemed like he didn’t get enough sleep. He yawned about 7 or 8 times,we tried to play with him and tire him out as much as possible. We gave him his multivitamin, which he really loves.

Around 11:15 Vera and Medet came and we had to sign documents and Dylan fell asleep on me. It was hard to sign cause I had Dylan in my arms sleeping. I then gave Dylan to Mary and he slept a little bit more. I’d say he slept for about 15 minutes plus it was close to noon and that’s when the babies are fed. So we woke him up and he seemed ok. The caregiver then came to pick up Dylan for feeding time and she stayed with us and we asked her some questions about Dylan on what he eats & how he is. The caregiver then said that Dylan is her favourite baby and she really loves him a lot. She told us that they feed him porridge, mashed veggies & meat and formula. She was really really nice answering all our questions and Dylan was really happy to see her. That makes us feel better seeing how he reacts to her.

We got home had lunch and then Nathalie, Mary and I went for a long walk. It was a little windy. We went inside an Orthodox Church and I went in a Mosque Church cause no women are allowed. It was pretty interesting. We arrived at home and about ½ hour later our neighbour which we don’t know her name, she’s in her low twenties came knocking at our door. I answered and she had a tray in her hands and she then asked for Maria. She told Mary happy Independence Day and gave us some kind of “Kazakhstan little fried breads "Scarpelle” with two types of sauces, a sweet fig sauce and a salsa sauce. We were SO TOUCHED by this gesture that even if she did not understand what we said she really saw it in our faces how thankful we were. Mary met her only once and this gesture she did was just indescribable. We are realizing more and more that Kazakhstan people are cold if you don't know them but once you know them they are ABSOLUTELY THE NICEST PEOPLE IN THE WORLD!!!By the way those fried breads "Scarpelle" were amazing and we ate them all right away. (picture is attached)

December 15, 2009

Hello everybody!! thanks for the numerous comments and positive messages that have been coming through our way!!! Dylan is doing very good. He is already loved by so many people that don't even know him yet!!! He really is cute and adorable and we are starting to get to know his character a little more everyday.

Yesterday at the orphanage as Fil was holding and playing with Dylan he accidentally sat on my ankle and now I'm in pain and limping around...LOL, nothing serious but it still hurts. Also it's 2 days I've had a weird little buzzing in my ear. When I talk or when people talk it sounds like a robot. But it seems to be getting less and less and I read on the Internet it can either be high blood pressure, infection or STRESS!!! I'm NOT STRESSED!!!LOL!!! Fil went to exchange some money and our roommates went for a walk and yes I'm home alone limping around!!! Just kidding I'm okay I just don't want it to get worse.

The weather is really nice and warm here, it's about 4 degrees today. After our 2 hr visit at the orphanage in the morning the rest of the day is pretty long and boring.

Everyone done with their x-mas shopping??? This year is a different year for us, we'll be celebrating Christmas with Dylan. We'll visit Dylan on the 25th for the last time before we come back home. Our roommates leave on the 24th of December to come back to Canada and we are leaving here on the 26th of December and arriving in Canada on the 27th.

We don't know how we'll be able to leave him but we have to find Strength & Courage somewhere and respect their rules, regulations & their system even if it's not human!!!

Later!!

Officially "Vegetarians"

December 13, 2009

Today we went to the orphanage from 10:00 to 12:00. We prefer the visits a lot more in the morning. We are still not allowed to feed them anything. Dylan was feeling a lot better but he was really hungry towards the end of our visit.

After the 2hr visit at the orphanage was up, they then took us to the BAZAAR!!! Oh boy was our experience ever bizarre, we are officially Vegetarians…..LOL!! It was a mix of flee market and food market. They sold about everything, from clothes to food. The food is just exposed everywhere out in the open in the crowds of people outside. Pasta, spices, breads, cookies, cooked whole cabbages, dried fruits, nuts, fresh cheese was all displayed uncovered in huge quantities……not very appetizing let me tell you!!

The meats………Noreena as per our previous discussion; yes it was really disgusting. The meats (the head, legs, liver, stomach all the insides are just simply slapped on the tables in huge quantities out in the open. We saw meat on a little thin cardboard on the ground we also saw a lady mincing the meat with her woollen gloves. Hygiene, Hygiene, & Hygiene?? In the parking lot from the trunk of their cars, people were selling chickens, turkeys, baby pigs, rabbits, puppies, (all alive)

It was very very crowded and to top it all off there were merchants that kept wanting to pass through the crowds with their trolley full of stock and they would SCREAM OUT “Jolle” which means make room for me to pass. Let me tell you, you better make room for them to pass or else they’ll run you over just the way they did to me! As a man went over my foot with his trolley I screamed out really loud “OOOOUCH” he did not even pay any attention to me, he just continued on his way… it was funny! The people in the crowd also pushed and shoved to get through. I was getting so nervous I then stuck out my elbows and whoever tried to shove me well they got an elbow shot from me… LOL!!!
What an experience, we were drained after 3 hours at the bazaar.