Pick Up Trip: Days 11&12

Day 11 was an absolute bear of a day, so we chose sleep instead of blogging :)  The kids were all not feeling well, so all the big people were on high alert!  Ana's breathing became so labored, shallow, and quick yesterday morning that she couldn't even finish a sentence.  Her chest and throat were retracting pretty dramatically, and mama bear was freaking out.  Ry has fairly severe asthma, so I was super worried that this awful congestion had triggered something.  So, we waited until our around 3pm our time, and called our pediatrician.  It was right before the office opened, so we phoned the after hours number.   We see Dr. White with Future Hope Pediatrics in Shelbyville, and we are slightly obsessed with her.  Not only is she everything we ever wanted in a doctor for our kiddos and more, she has adopted herself, so she has a unique perspective that we find invaluable.  Therefore, we knew she was the perfect person to call.  She gave Ry some things that wouldn't be difficult to find in another country, seemed to agree that avoiding a Bulgarian hospital was of high importance, and then followed up on facebook to make sure we had everything in writing.  So, off to the pharmacy we went to buy Vitamin C & Vitamin D.  

My sweet girl LOVES her motrin, so we expected this to be easy peasy.  NO. NO. NO.  "I don't like it!!!" was all we heard in between screams and gasps for air as we tried to force these meds down her little throat.  It was horrible.  Finally, we all learned that putting the meds via syringe into a pouch is much less traumatic, and she doesn't even notice.  So, we're encouraging her to eat these pouches, that were originally for the airplane rides, every couple hours.  She loves her pouches and pretty much downs them whenever we offer!  Thank you, Jesus.

Jack is still super hoarse - it's hilarious and oh so sad to see a baby cry but not be able to hear him.  You can tell he's slightly confused, too.  So, we're having to make sure someone has an eye on him at all times, since we wouldn't know if he was crying or not!  Niko seems to, unfortunately, be used to a cold (and has honestly, due to his diagnosis, had one most of his life), so he's not bothered by the snot at all.  Dad is on the mend (he found an english speaking pharmacist who had zyrtec-d!) and we are all doing okay.  

Niko woke up last night for the first time, and absolutely freaked out when I tried to soothe him in his crib.  Makes me wonder what they did to these babies when they cried at night.  He seemed so worried!  We finally rocked him to sleep.  Jacky woke up at the same time, so Ry and I were tag teaming at 2am.  I'm so thankful for my buddy.

We didn't really do much since everyone was feeling so puny.  But, the boys and Ry & I did have to go to the embassy.  We met our FNA attendant at our apartment, then caught a cab to the U.S. Embassy.  It wasn't at all what I expected, but I think that's mainly because I was so ignorant.  I expected a much fancier building (the UK Embassy seemed much more grand when we drove by) and I expected the workers there to be American, or at least speak excellent English.  When we encountered mainly Bulgarians, I was so thankful Hristina came with us!

When we got into the right building (after going through security, where they had us test our water, purell, and Ry's asthma inhaler on ourselves to prove it was safe to bring in, and walking through a beautiful courtyard), we sat and waited until our case was called.  It was first called in Bulgarian, and Hristina went up and presented all the original (in Bulgarian) documents to them.  Then, a few minutes later, after I fed Jack and Niko got some walking practice, Ry & I were called up.  I gave my fingerprints and swore an oath of accuracy, then we answered some simple questions.  The questions touched on the length of our adoption process (3 YEARS!), our post-adoption report requirements, and some feedback to give the host country (Bulgaria).  She asked if we were satisfied with Niko's care within his institution.  We gave a big, fat, resounding ABSOLUTELY NOT.  Then, we left.  Literally that simple!  I'm not sure what I was expecting, but it was something much more intimidating than that!

We came back to the apartment and called our pediatrician, went to the pharmacy, and went and got some dinner later that night, in which we were all too tired to blog :)

 *Letting super hot shower water go into the toilet so the girl could take a bath in some serious steam and get that wheezing under control!

*Can you tell who didn't feel well??

Day 12 started out much better than day 11!  Ana woke up not feeling normal, but feeling better.  We kept giving her her vitamin pouches, and by the end of the day, dare I say, I think she was back to her normal wild self :)  2 thumbs up for Dr. White!  This mama felt so much better!

We ended up going for a walk late this morning - we finally made it to the big cathedral!  We were able to go inside and look around, while I tried to convince the 2 year old on my back to talk in her "little voice", which did not work well until she saw the giant painting of Jesus on the ceiling.  Then, she spent the next several minutes looking up.  It was absolutely beautiful inside, and I'm so glad we got to visit some of the places we wanted to see, but weren't sure if we would be able to.  Mom even snapped some "illegal" photos with her phone while we were inside!

We also found a much older church on our walk this morning - there was a fallen "wedding this way" sign, so if they let you have weddings here, that is AWESOME.

We then went to "Happy's" again for lunch, and hunted for some souvenirs right around the restaurant.  Ana loved her new "froggy" that her daddy bought for her - the great thing about Bulgarian money is that a 5Lev toy is only like $2 at home!

Oh!  For those who haven't gone to Europe before, tiny spaces and old buildings are a must around here.  The elevator to our apartment freaks me out every.single.time.  The floor literally feels like it's going to cave in.

We had a lovely time this morning - no sickies, no meetings, and everyone liked getting to go out and look around.  I had a ton of Jesus-sent energy, so it was a blessing to be able to go out today.  The weather has been so beautiful while we've been here, too.

Practicing for when daddy has to go back to that j.o.b.

And, today was the last of our requirements while we are in country.  Our FNA attendant met us at the apartment, and we signed multiple declarations, were given a ton of translated paperwork (including a sealed envelope of papers to give to customs once we land in Detroit - so official!), had Hristina call us a car for Friday morning, paid her our wiring shortage, and gave her a hug good-bye.  The FNA was extremely helpful during this process - I can't imagine a better NGO.

Finally, we went to our favorite restaurant that we've found, topped off dinner with some creme brulee, and came back for bedtime (which Niko is HATING tonight, unfortunately).  

Some praise is that Niko attempted to sign "WATER" today.  The boy's wheels are turning!  Please pray that nighttime improves tonight - at least so that Ry & I can get some decent sleep!

Pick Up Trip: Day 10

Boy oh boy does this trip seem to be lasting forever!  It is so hard when we don't have any appointments for 5 days.  Tomorrow we have our embassy interview, so at least we will feel like we're accomplishing something!

Today was a crazy day, for not having done much.  Jacky had a fever of 100-101 all night, and has therefore slept a lot and fussed a lot all day, and only wanted mama.  He is super hoarse, so his little cries are basically silent.  We did a lot of babywearing and nursing, despite having trouble breathing and an eye full of blocked tear duct goop.

Dad has been super sick too, and neither of the big kids napped, Ana had a low grade fever most of the day, and everyone was just slightly irritated at still being in Bulgaria and not being home.  I think we are all feeling the effects of 2 weeks of no routine, none of our normal food, the kids not having a specific space with more toys than what our suitcase could manage, and not being able to go outside when we please.  It's tough living in an apartment in the city, in a place that isn't our home.  We are beyond ready to get back and find our new normal.

We did make Niko some milk & peanut butter "soup" - just as many calories/fat as a whole jar of baby food!  He ate it all, which is amazing!  And then we waited to see if there were any allergic reactions - none!  So far, the 2 big kids are nut allergy free, which is kind of amazing!

After nap, we all headed out to "Happy's" for Ry's 27th birthday!  It was completely chaotic - Jack was exhausted, Ana was too, and Niko wasn't super interested in eating tonight.  So, needless to say, we got some good food and then ran right out of there!  There was a pharmacy and grocery on the bottom floor of the mall where we ate, so we headed down there and split up.  Gramm & Grandad got food, and we all went to the pharmacy to stock up on Niko's food - he's eating so much now, that we can hardly keep up!  It's ending up being about 8-10 cans of baby food a day.  Since we do baby led weaning with Ana & Jack, I've never had to devote so much energy to making sure we had plenty of baby food - shew!  I'm so nervous we're going to run out!  Can't wait til we get home and we can make him these power smoothies I've been prepping for!

Mom & Dad gave Ry 1/2 his birthday gift before we left, and brought the other 1/2 with them so he could open something on his birthday.  So, if we can stay awake, the grown ups (and Jack, since he is wide awake!) will be watching Man of Steel tonight.

Happy birthday, my love.  You are absolutely, without a doubt, the absolute best.  We are some blessed people to have you all to ourselves, forever.

Edit to Add: We went on a date tonight!  Granted, it was across the street to get cookies and water, but it was awesome! I think I skipped back across the street!

Pick Up Trip: Day 9

Well, this is getting posted late because, well, BABY.

Jacky & Grandad caught the "orphanage crud" (as it's so lovingly been called) - they both had fevers all night and couldn't breathe very well.  Grandad handled himself, locking himself in the family room.  Jacky on the other hand...  poor baby.  Couldn't nurse very well (and he's used to nursing all night!) and couldn't really lay flat.  He was stripped down to his diaper, and Ry & I took shifts sleeping sitting up.  Even Ana had a low grade fever when she woke up, but everyone seems to be fever free now, just tired.  Jack is currently knocked out in the ergo while I type.

So, yesterday wore out all the littles (and lets be honest, the bigs too)  but it was a good day.  We caught a cab to a park that had slides and a playground so that we could meet another family who was in Sofia on their pick up trip.  Their little guy is absolutely adorable, and it was awesome to meet people whose family looks similar to ours!  They are from Texas and it was a real blessing to be able to connect while we are here.

Our sweet girl got some serious play time, and then we headed down to Vitosha Blvd (which was NOT the street we had been thinking was Vitosha this whole week - we still don't know what street we've been visiting lol).  Ana was so exhausted that she fell asleep waiting for her lunch - this NEVER happens.  I think this trip has made her a lot more flexible about where she will sleep - this was originally the child who would only sleep in her bed, in her room, with her turtle and her special covers.  We all ate (what was a very strange meal) while the table next to us stared on in shock, or fascination, at our table.  One child was fast asleep in her chair, one child, who looks Roma and not like us, was being fed baby food that we brought with us, and another child was being pulled out from under my shirt.  We must have looked like a circus act to them!  They just kept staring on, and I tried not to give them crazy eyes back.  Then, as we were leaving, a deaf lady came up and handed Ry a piece of paper asking for money.  I tried to chat with her using the little international sign language I know, but she either didn't really know bulgarian sign and just kept signing the same thing that she had learned over and over, or she didn't know how to break down her language to help me understand her.  I finally just signed the international sign for "money" and gave her 2 Lev.  After that, we had multiple people stop us for money - they were very persistent - but we learned quickly to just not.  

We caught a cab back, tried to put the boys down for a nap (Niko's naps, we are learning, are not really naps, which is sad for this mama who needs her nap time to rejuvenate!) and played around the apartment.  We ate dinner in, which was nice since Jack took such a long nap (now knowing it's because he was coming down with this awful cold!).  Mom has been the best postpartum/post adoption doula around, and has been washing dishes, washing clothes, and making food whenever someone says they need something.  So she made us spaghetti and it tasted pretty good!  

Jack and Ana got a bath together for the first time to try and help get some germs off their little bodies, but it didn't seem to help considering how they felt throughout the night.  But, I think Ana thought it was fun to be in there with someone else.  Jack still doesn't like the water, so he was not amused.  I put Jack down, Ry put Niko down, and I went back to put Ana to sleep that night, and both us girls fell asleep holding hands.  I seriously love my girl so much.  Mom came and woke me up at about 10pm, telling me she saw beautiful fireworks out the window earlier.  I headed to bed, and started cuddle walking with Jack not too long after.

Today is Ry's 27th BIRTHDAY, so we will be going out to celebrate tonight!

 

"Mama, cheers me!"