We are in Almaty

Fun with a napkin...

We arrived safe and sound in Almaty around 5pm. Nina's first plane trip was only slightly traumatic. It was all fun and games on the plane while we waited to take off but man oh man when the engines turned on and we took off Nina was absolutely terrified. She quickly calmed down and then went to sleep for the rest of the flight. I am so glad we had the extra time in Ust with her. I think I was much better equipped to comfort her because of it.

Leaving Ust was surprisingly emotional. Kiefer made some friends while we were in Ust and they came to the airport to send him off which I thought was really cool. Nolan, who is always sad anytime we leave anywhere, gave his heartfelt goodbyes to Arman, Aidan has been ready to go home since we got here. As I walked across the tarmac to board our plane, I was suddenly overwhelmed with the enormity of the situation. My throat tightened and my eyes welled with tears. I squeezed and kissed Nina, my god we are actually taking her home, it was almost too good to believe.

Baby Babushka

In Almaty we went to the InterContinental Hotel. It is pretty nice and really nice compared to the Shiny River. The boys acted like we just arrived in Shangra la. We had dinner which was really (I mean really) good and then crashed. The boys have their own room so Dart and I had a peaceful evening watching Nina dismantle a new hotel room.

Arrrgh, now she's a pirate

I can tell Nina is feeling the stress of all these changes but all things considered she is doing great. Our new words yesterday were; hello, bye bye (with a wave), and bird (tweet, tweet). We are here until Wednesday. Sunday is a free day when we can explore, not sure yet what to do. We might just skip the "cultural stuff" and swim at the pool. I know pathetic, but there is a spa here and mommy could really use a hot stone massage. Monday is Nina's medical visit and then we have an Embassy appointment on Tuesday. Almost done.