Day 27 : Part 2

Dearest Alex,

I got tired last night so I didn’t finish typing about yesterday. Once we were at the apartment for a while, A1 came over to visit. At first you was a little quiet, and we didn’t help matters chattering away in English, but then A1 let you use his phone to call back to Mariupol and after a 15 minute talk - you were like a clam that had opened up. You were laughing and smiling and seemingly very comfortable. So a note to adoptive families, before you leave the country, let them call back to their friends. It will ease the transition for everyone.

Then I don’t know why we didn’t think of it before, but we had purchased some skype credits to call back to America (which is incredibly cheap - like .02 a minute) we let you use those to call your friends in the evening. It is slightly more expensive but well worth the mental effects for everyone. By the way, you chatter like a girl on the phone!

Last night after G3 and A1 made a lovely dinner, you wanted to go for a walk. A1 said that the river was nearby (note to self - always quantify nearby in the future) and we all decided to walk to it. It had rained earlier and instead of cooling off, it made things more humid. We set off, got lost, had to use A1’s cell phone to figure out where we were and 30 minutes later, found the river. But it wasn’t the river, it was a dank little tributary where there was a boat junkyard and lots of mosquitos. Then on the way back we ended up in an alleyway with lots of garbage cans that were ripe in the heat. And to top it all off the rain had lefts bogs of black mud everywhere. All in all it was a lovely outing.

I was so tired and cranky and I think you realized it. I took a cold shower and when I came in to check on you, you said, “Mom, you go to bed now.” So I took your advice and sacked out!

So happy you are with us.

Bethany, G3, G4, & Amanda