Bed, Bath and Beyond

Susan is upstairs with him now reading on our bed. I just spent 1/2 an hour sitting with him while she cleaned downstairs. Showed him how to turn the alarm clock on and off with the snooze button.
We didn’t get to pick up the kids until about 3. They told us he cried all morning, wouldn’t eat lunch. When some other westerners came to visit their child he thought it was us and threw a fit. Just exactly what we were worried about.
The hand off went nicely. We were in our usual playroom and the doctor, the director and the boys main caregivers came in and gave very short speeches thanking us and wishing us happiness. We brought a cake and gave them a cash donation to help with their expenses. It was touching and sweet.
When we got back to our apartment we gave him some pieces of watermelon, cookies, and odds and ends. He’s always thirsty so we let him have some water. We tried taking him into the bathroom and putting him on the toilet on this plastic seat that goes over the regular seat and he freaked. We tried taking him to the upstairs toilet which is bigger and showing him the shower with the same reaction. He’s afraid of the bathrooms. I ran out to the store and got a little plastic potty and we held it while he peed into it, no problem and obvious relief. We’re figuring it out. He loves the carseat/stroller we brought and he just fits in it if you take off the canopy.
For dinner we had left over chicken and penne with butter for Sultan and red sauce for Susan and me. He’s got a good appetite, handles his little plastic fork well, sits up, chews with his mouth closed, what more do you want? He works the food on demand concept, something new to him no doubt. His little belly was full and round. We gave him some pieces of pear and a section of orange for dessert.
We gave him a bath in the tub and he cried and didn’t like it, but he wasn’t panicked and by then time we were done he was fine. Got him in his dinosaur jammies and into the big bed and he was happy to just sit there and play with the alarm clock. Susan was able to get him to eventually switch to the all-new, inflatable Barbie air mattress which we happened to pass in the supermarket at the Atrium today while shopping for the cake to bring to the baby house. So he’s at long last asleep, no tears, alongside Susan’s side of the bed. I doubt any of us will have any trouble sleeping tonight. It was a big day for all.
Tomorrow we catch the 10 am flight to Almaty. Nadia should be back with the kid’s passports by then. We leave the apt. at 8am sharp. More hoops to jump through in Almaty. We have no idea where we’ll all stay there because a big energy conference is finishing up and all the hotels are booked. Susan knows the sister of a friend who lives there and maybe they’ll have an idea. No worries.
Its all good and very sweet and we are enjoying our boy, our son. Every time I think of saying “This is my son” I think I’m going to cry.
peace
love
Kyle and Susan
PS: a footnote on pronunciation. We’re calling him sool-tahn, which is how they say it here.