Shanyrak Orphanage

About twice a month I get the joy of volunteering to teach English at the Shanyrak Orphanage. The orphanage consists of children from 2 to 18 years old. They live in groups with all different age ranges and there is even a woman that takes care of them. They call her mother. The children are happy, healthy, and mostly eager to learn English. Since Cameron is on his spring break I took him along this time. Cameron was very excited, but I believe the older children enjoyed his company more.
For doing a good job on their lesson, Cameron gave each younger child a sticker. Stickers still go a long way even in Kazakhstan. After the lessons were finished the older children wanted to show Cameron their rabbits. Cameron even got to feed them and wanted to take one home. Maybe next time Cameron.

Thanksgiving in March

We hosted a team building dinner at our house for Stacey's team and when asked what the nationals would like to eat they requested a traditional Thanksgiving dinner. The nationals believe we eat this meal all the time. Unknown to them is the amount of effort it takes to make the meal and to do it all yourself.
I was able to buy a 15lb turkey from the states here in Kazakhstan so of course we had turkey. We also had two types of stuffing, two types of gravy, macaroni and cheese, green bean casserole, sweet potatoes, corning pudding; and for desert Kentucky derby pie, pumpkin pie, and vanilla ice cream.
The nationals were very appreciative and tried all the food. As you would expect since the food is different than they are used to, they ate with caution, but I believed they enjoyed the turkey the most.

Nauryz

Nauryz is the holiday of spring. It is celebrated by Oriental nations such as Kazakhstan. According to the Oriental calendar it is a New Year's Eve. We all went to the Mahambet Square where there was a large festival where lots of national go to celebrate Nauryz.

There were vendors selling everything from bananas to shaslik. We were able to see arm wrestling and locals using a swing. (see the pictures and video) Stacey's company had sponsored a yurt that we were able to go in. A yurt is what the nomads used as a home in Kazakhstan. It is a portable dwelling that is cross between a tee pee and a tent. They are very warm, comfortable, and rather large. In the yurt we take off our shoes and sit down to eat local dishes. There was anything from sweets to bish parmak. (a local favorite of noodles and meat) (see the pictures for photos of the inside and outside of the yurt) After the festival we went to the Renaissance hotel with friends from London and celebrated with chocolate donuts and cappuccinos.

Happy Nauryz!!!

Mud

We all take for granted the drains that flow underground to wash away the rain water. Well, I have a new found appreciation for that after seeing how that does not happen here in KZ.

When it rains or snows the water finds the lowest point and gathers there. If it happens to be a place where people walk or drive it gets moved around and on everything. I have put some pictures of the challenges during these times. They are pictures of where I bring Mason to school and a store near Mason's school. The locals are used to it and they all wear boots. There are shoe cleaning stations at just about every public entrance. These stations consist of a bucket of water with a stick and a piece of cloth wrapped around it. It is amazing what you get used to. Or maybe not.

The Crud

The Crud. At least that is what I call it. It is when your are sick with symptoms such as fever, bodyache, night sweats, coffing, running nose, and head conjection just to name a few. Here in KZ, Mason brought it home school and has been sharing with us.

The first two nights he slept in our bed. He NEVER does that so we knew he must have been sick. Bad move on our part since Stacey got sick two days later. I guess getting breathed on for two nights was not a good idea. I must not have learned from that because three days later I got it.

Mason was sick for a week with a constant temperature. His high was almost 106. We could always tell when Mason's temperature was lowering because his mouth would start moving faster and faster the lower the temperature fell. (This boy can sure talk. He even talks when no one is in the room.)

Stacey and I were both sick for a week and longer with the lingering cold. I guess The Crud goes around the world and hopefully next year we can avoid it.

Mardi Gras in KZ

Yes, we celebrated Mardi Gras all the way over here in Kazakhstan. People will do anything for a party. It is amazing how much work all the spouses do to make an evening fun for everyone. People brought in decorations and lots of food. We had ingredients brought in people's luggage for this event. It may sound weird to you to put meat in your suitcase, but when you can't get it you do what you have to.

We had gumbo, chicken fettuccini, crawfish fettuccini, red beans and rice, and jambalaya. UMMM UMMM!!! The food was excellent considering you can't get it here. We even had king cake and pralines for desert. I was full after two heaping plates, but somehow managed to squeeze in king cake and a few pralines. We had a fun night eating, dancing, and talking with our fellow neighbors.

Laissez les bons temps rouler

Mason's 4th Birthday

Vroom Vroom and we're off for Mason's 4th Birthday Party. Mason had a race car themed party today and he was full throttle all day. Cars is his favorite movie and he would watch it everyday if we let him so needless to say that is what he wanted his party to be. He also has a Cars shirt that he wants to wear everyday so people must think he only has one shirt.

The party was highly successful with 18 children present plus parents. We played musical chairs, pop the balloon, put sticker faces on balloons, and had a remote controlled obstacle course. All the children had a great time, especially Mason. There was lots of presents and desserts. He has been talking about his birthday for 3 months. What will he talk about now? My money is on his next birthday. Only 365 days to hear about it.

Superbowl in KZ

Watching the Superbowl had its differences here in Kazakhstan. First, it started at 4:30am and yes I got up that early to watch it. Second, there were no commercials. Third, there were no commercials. All in all several of us enjoyed the game and were glad we could see it live. Even the boys were excited. I woke up at 2:30am to hear them playing in the playroom. They were fully dressed and ready to start their day. Who has that kind of energy? I know, two boys named Cameron and Mason.

Offner Day 2009

We celebrated our annual Offner Day to remember the day we became a family. This year we watched movies, went ice skating, baked cupcakes, and of course ate lots of food. As the years pass we are more and more thankful that God brought us together as a family. I know it sounds strange, but we have a better family life here than we did back in the states. We have both quality and quantity time. Happy Offner Day!!!

Trying to make a snowman

Who would have thought you could not build a snowman with snow on the ground. I tried to help Cameron and his class build one and failed. Since the air is so dry the snow does not have enough moisture to compact. I am sure it can be done, but this southern boy couldn't do it. We ended up with what looked like a melted snowman.

Ice Skating

We are learning how to iceskate and the boys ask me everyday if we can go. We have an iceskating rink in our neighborhood so it is convenient to go. Suprisingly the weather is not very cold, but still under freezing.

Merry Russian Christmas

We are trying to teach the boys about their Russian heritage and January 7th is the day Russia celebrates Christmas. In addition to this the boys also think Santa comes again. We did not make a great big deal of it, but we went out for coffee and donuts (that is a fun thing to do here in KZ). For you trivia enthusiasts, what do Russians call Santa Claus - Father Frost. Merry Christmas.

Hat Shopping

I went to one of the larger open markets with some friends to go hat shopping. There are many vendors outside that sell anything from pots and pans to clothes. It was snowing a bit that day so the vendors would take a small duster type item to knock the snow off the shoes. The hat section was outside in the very back with no cover. The hat my friend bought is the one I was wearing. I was the same size as her father so I got to try on all types of hats. The funny thing was that the vendor would knock off the snow, then place the hat on your head, and then carefully move your ears back so that the hat would sit better on your head. The personal service here is almost nonexistent so I was taken back by the hat shopping experience. The hat was made of "norka". It is very soft and comfortable and costs around $170. Do you think I would stick out in the US with that hat?

Jet Lag

Anyone who has ever traveled abroad knows about jet lag. You can't fight it and this is a picture of the boys from jet lag. It was 5:30pm and we I discovered them sleeping together in Cameron's bed. I was wondering why they were so quite.

Our First Snow

The night we arrived back from our Christmas vacation we were greeted with snow. This was our first experience here and we were all excited. The boys could not wait to go outside the next day to play. All Cameron wanted to do was throw snowballs. Unfortunately, the air is so dry that the snow does not compact well. The boys had fun anyway and now they are excited about learning how to ice skate. We have a rink in the village and will probably be going there quite a bit.

Christmas in KY

We spent 2008 Christmas in Kentucky. Stacey had not been home for Christmas in 12 years and the boys and I had never been. Stacey's family was very happy for us to come and we all had a great time. There were lots of family gatherings and presents galore. We had to tell everyone before hand not buy too many big presents because we had to put them in our luggage to get them home.

Some of the activities we did while there were bowling, going to the movies, playing corn hole, playing in the leaves, taking a rescued cat to the vet, and did I mention lots of good eating.

It was nice to see all the Christmas decorations since they are few here. We will be celebrating Russian Christmas on January 7th so Merry Christmas to all and Happy New Year.