There's no place like home

We truly and completely understand now what Dorothy must have been feeling when she said, “There’s no place like home”! There are no words adequate to describe what it felt like to crawl into our own bed for the first time in two months, having gone for the better part of 48 hours with no sleep. It just doesn’t get any better than that.

Well, actually it does get better than that. What’s better than that is the sight of seeing our family waving, crying and cheering as we walked down the airport terminal corridor holding Lily Grace. What a life moment to cherish. Tonya’s dad and brothers were there. Steve’s parents, brother, sister and their families. Balloons, signs, and best of all – the smiles and tears. What a way to come home. Tonya’s mom and sister and her husband, who live in Tulsa, OK will be coming to stay with us later next week for several days. Then will come the reunion with our church family, our friends, our extended families – so many parts of our wonderful family of support.

We're thinking that to better match Dorothy's experience with ours, this would be the famous final scene: Dorothy is sitting up in her bed, with her aunt, uncle and close friends standing all around her, as she tells them all about this wonderful, far away land, and how they were all there with her – really, they were! – when she suddenly stops, smiles, then says, “And I brought back this munchkin – what do you think?!”

For in the end, there is Lily Grace. This beautiful child of God - full of wonder, curiosity and delight - who we are now privileged to call our daughter. This story is her story, but it’s not a story just about her. It’s a story about Lily Grace in the context of family – the family of support she received from the doctors and caregivers at the baby house and our adoption team in Kazakhstan, her new family here, and, ultimately all of you – her larger extended family. We are all now a part of her journey, as she is now a part of ours.

Happy Thanksgiving indeed!

Steve and Tonya

Goodbye Kazakhstan, Hello USA!

We have now begun our long journey home to Tennessee from Kazakhstan, with a very precious carry-on item! If all goes according to schedule, we will arrive in Nashville around 5:30pm Thanksgiving Day.

Our week here in Almaty has gone well, with a smooth process at the U. S. Embassy and even time for some sightseeing in the beautiful Tien Shan mountains. Lily Grace has been a trooper through it all, taking it all in.

We want to take this opportunity to thank each and every one of you for your prayers, your support, your words of encouragement and empathy, and for being so in our corner on this journey to become a family. We have been lifted by you, and have felt the warmth beaming this way from the other side of the world.

We’ll send out another post once we’re home and settled.

Have a wonderful Thanksgiving holiday with those you love.

Steve and Tonya

Goodbye Karaganda, Hello Almaty

We are now in Almaty, the former capital of Kazakhstan and its largest city, having completed all of our Monday tasks on no sleep.

Our wonderful team in Karaganda took us to the airport last night for our 11:00 p.m. flight, shepherding us through an unexpected paperwork glitch with the ticket counter agent for a bit of last-minute excitement. :-) There were tears and warm hugs as we bid farewell to these special new friends.

Lily Grace began the flight upset, a combination of being awake when she would normally have been sleeping with the strange new experience of being on an airplane. As the flight wore on, she gradually settled down. We’re thankful for the angel of a young Kazakh woman seated next to us, who happened to know English, wasn’t bothered at all, and pitched right in to help LG adjust.

Upon arrival, we were greeted at the airport by our assigned driver, Emil, a jovial fellow also well-versed in English, who helped get us and all of our luggage safely to our Almaty-based high-rise apartment on the 9th-floor around 2:00 a.m. Unfortunately, the apartment didn’t have a crib (it was supposed to) and, as sleeping in a crib is all that Lily Grace has ever known, she (and we) had a miserable, sleepless night.

After finally getting her down (we think she simply “gave out”) for about two hours of sleep, it was time to wake her back up, dress and be ready to be picked up at 8:45 a.m. for the days’ required activities. We write this now with Lily Grace sleeping soundly during a late-afternoon nap, as our wonderful travel partner family, the Clermonts, were willing to let us use the crib assigned to their apartment, since their new son, Evan, has adjusted well to sleeping without one.

Tomorrow, we have a day off as LG’s passport and medical papers are prepared for our appointment with the U. S. embassy on Wednesday. (Her medical check-up went smoothly today and all of her measurements and other tests were normal.) We plan on resting here at the apartment in the morning, then meeting the Clermonts for lunch and some sight-seeing during the afternoon.

All in all, it’s shaping up to be a brisk finish to an incredible two-month journey, becoming a new family bit by bit along the way.

Steve and Tonya

Kazakhstani Hospitality

This past Sunday was quite a treat. Our interpreter, Julia, and her parents invited us to a family gathering and dinner at their apartment here in Karaganda. In addition to Julia and her parents, Slava and Sveta, Julia’s Aunt Lara, cousin Helen (Lara’s daughter, who looks just like a grown-up version of our niece Emily) and her grandmother (babushka) and grandfather were in attendance.

Julia’s mother and babushka must have cooked for hours because the table was crammed full of delicious food (we’re getting her homemade pickles recipe!), and a few hours later, so were our stomachs! Lily Grace was scared and cried a bit when we first arrived but soon calmed down and had a great time scooting around in her walker and getting into everything she wasn’t supposed to be getting into. :-)


Much conversation and laughter passed between us, as Julia put Helen to the test, asking her to serve as our interpreter for the afternoon. Helen, who is a second-year English interpretation major (following in her cousin’s footsteps), did a fine job. We all learned a lot about each other – and discovered just how much we all have in common, despite living on opposite sides of the world.

We are thankful for these new friends, and many others we have met, and are humbled by the efforts all have made to make us feel home away from home.

Steve and Tonya

Lily Grace Revealed

We’ve been looking forward to this day for so long – the day we are officially cleared to post pictures and video of Lily Grace Young on the blog! There is a mandatory 15-day waiting period after court before the adoption paperwork is deemed completely final, and that period ended yesterday. Lily Grace is now living with us at the apartment, and we are finally a family.

Lily Grace at the Apartment


Lily Grace Takes a Bath

We are scheduled to be here in Karaganda for another week while her passport is being processed, then we spend a week in Almaty, processing the paperwork required to leave the country. We fly home on Thanksgiving Day, a Thanksgiving like no other!

Thanks to all of you for your prayers, your notes, your love and support – we are overwhelmed and grateful to have such wonderful family and friends.

Steve & Tonya

Karaganda

We are based in Karaganda, Kazakhstan, the city where Lily Grace’s orphanage, or “baby house” is located. Living in Karaganda has been fascinating, as it’s a city that’s literally transforming in front of our eyes.

Karaganda, also spelled Karagandy (Russian: Караганда), is the capital of Karagandy Province in Kazakhstan. It is the fourth most populous city in Kazakhstan, behind Almaty, Astana and Shymkent, with a population of about 500,000.

Karaganda has primarily been an industrial city, built 75 years ago to exploit nearby coal mines using the slave work of prisoners of labor camps. Recently however, with the surge in economic growth of Kazakhstan (due in large part to the discovery of vast oil reserves in the early-to-mid 1990’s), Karaganda is quickly becoming a cosmopolitan city. Observing the co-existence of the old with the brand new, native Kazakhs with Russians, the poor with those with new wealth, has made these two months a very full experience, above and beyond our primary adoption journey.

Steve and Tonya

Here's a collage a pictures we've taken in Karaganda:

A few comments about the pictures:

- water pipe: Karaganda is heated using hot water through radiators in all buildings, including residences. Water is delivered in large pipes from a central boiler. In many parts of the city these pipes run above ground, along the roadside and up and over cross streets.

- apartments: Most citizens of Karaganda live in large apartment buildings. A more analgous term for us would be "condos", as most own their apartments. Single family homes are rare.

- statue of Lenin: Along a main street is a plaza with a statue of Lenin carved in granite. This was clearly the centerpiece of the city during the Soviet era. Now, it appears to be just another piece of history in this city that has voraciously embraced capitalism.

- public workers: Karaganda employs thousands of public works employees. You see them everywhere, laying concrete tiles, restoring the opera house, or sweeping leaves off of sidewalks with handmade brooms.