Well you wouldn't believe what we did today - you got it - we were packing! And then we did some repacking in hopes to get our luggage under the maximum weight restrictions. After some tough decisions and creative combinations, we think we made it. If we find out that the two bathroom scales we have are wrong, well Tammy's going to cry. Not just because that means some hefty excess baggage fees, but also because of the personal weight implications!
Surprisingly, today was actually pretty calm around here. For both of us, yesterday was our last day of work. Last night was the first time since we got the call that we didn't have to juggle organizing work and home. We could focus our attention on getting things in order around here.
Yesterday, Tammy's students had quite a few surprises for her. Numerous hand-made cards and pictures kept appearing out of nowhere on her desk and from little hands around school. Getting those hand drawn pictures or cards from students is just like them giving you a big hug. One class even organized a surprise party complete with cake! Some of the students played songs on the piano and violin. And as if that didn't nearly send her into a flurry of tears, they even gave her an adorable baby photo album and baby's first plush puppy!
Tomorrow morning we will get up, drive to the city and have breakfast with Rod's sister before we head off to the airport. We'll keep our fingers crossed that the luggage gods will smile favourably on our possibly overfed luggage!
Well, our goal was to be asleep by 11:00 and it appears as though we are a little late. We will post an update as soon as we possibly can.
Until next time, da-svee-dahn-ya!
Friday, May 23, 2008
Monday, May 19, 2008
Packing and Planning
We said we would give everyone a little more of an update when we got some sleep - who were we kidding! There's no sleep for the big people in this house, and the little person isn't even here! I guess you could say we're just getting practiced up. So the big question you are probably wondering is, "When do we leave?" Here's our travel itinerary. We fly out of Saskatoon at 10:45am on Saturday, May 24th and fly to Toronto. After a bit of a layover we fly to Frankfurt, Germany where we have about a 6 hour layover and then off to Almaty. We are scheduled to arrive there around midnight on the 25th, Almaty time. After a short stop and maybe some sleep, we will make a few quick stops in Almaty and then catch a plane to Ust-Kamenogorsk (Also known as Oskemen). We don't know how long of a flight that is, or which flight we will be on, so we don't know if we will get to Ust that same day or the next. As for time zones, we will be 12 hours ahead, so when you are getting ready for bed, it will already be morning for us.
Ah yes, Ust-Kamenogorsk, our home for the next 8 or so weeks! The city where we will finally meet our child! Oh, and the home town of a few NHL superstars, or so we've been told! (You know you're from Canada when your knowledge of world geography is tied to your knowledge of NHL players!) Oh no, we aren't going to tell you which players or which teams, that wouldn't be any fun. Maybe we should make this a contest to see who comes up with the longest list of NHL players (real ones, not ones you've made up) who call Ust their home! The prize? The chance to meet one awesome, loveable Kaz superstar of our very own! Maybe even an official autograph (in the form of a sloppy, wet kiss) from said superstar!
Many of you have asked if we have any information about our child. In a word, no. We have been told that the child will be between 6 and 18 months old. Many have also asked if we will be getting a boy or a girl. Yes, our child will either be a boy or a girl, but we don't know which yet. We don't expect to learn any of this until we are in country and actually meet the child face to face. This is how is was for those of you who had children by birth, why should we be any different!
So what have we been up to since our last post? Packing & planning, packing & planning, repacking & replanning, and losing a few fingers, a bit of skin and our patience trying to install a child seat into our car! How hard could this be??? We've both been putting in long hours trying to get our jobs and household in order for our departure. How busy could a teacher and ag-service manager be at this time of the year?
It's all good. We wouldn't have it any other way. We've always lived by the belief that the bigger the challenge, the greater the reward.
Right now we are waiting to hear that our visas have been processed and will make it back to us by Saturday so we can depart as scheduled. Other than that, it will be packing and planning, planning and packing, you get the idea.
Until next time, take care!
Ah yes, Ust-Kamenogorsk, our home for the next 8 or so weeks! The city where we will finally meet our child! Oh, and the home town of a few NHL superstars, or so we've been told! (You know you're from Canada when your knowledge of world geography is tied to your knowledge of NHL players!) Oh no, we aren't going to tell you which players or which teams, that wouldn't be any fun. Maybe we should make this a contest to see who comes up with the longest list of NHL players (real ones, not ones you've made up) who call Ust their home! The prize? The chance to meet one awesome, loveable Kaz superstar of our very own! Maybe even an official autograph (in the form of a sloppy, wet kiss) from said superstar!
Many of you have asked if we have any information about our child. In a word, no. We have been told that the child will be between 6 and 18 months old. Many have also asked if we will be getting a boy or a girl. Yes, our child will either be a boy or a girl, but we don't know which yet. We don't expect to learn any of this until we are in country and actually meet the child face to face. This is how is was for those of you who had children by birth, why should we be any different!
So what have we been up to since our last post? Packing & planning, packing & planning, repacking & replanning, and losing a few fingers, a bit of skin and our patience trying to install a child seat into our car! How hard could this be??? We've both been putting in long hours trying to get our jobs and household in order for our departure. How busy could a teacher and ag-service manager be at this time of the year?
It's all good. We wouldn't have it any other way. We've always lived by the belief that the bigger the challenge, the greater the reward.
Right now we are waiting to hear that our visas have been processed and will make it back to us by Saturday so we can depart as scheduled. Other than that, it will be packing and planning, planning and packing, you get the idea.
Until next time, take care!
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