Close-ups

One evening Chris and his parents went to meet with a mutual associate who is helping Chris with his research. As it was more of a business meeting, I stayed at home with Addie. I decided to let her roll around in her diaper (yes, it's cloth with plastic pants--probably like you wore as a baby...) and then got out the camera...

Taking it Easy

Aunt Clari with Addie... Look at how cute they are!
Grandpa & Dora with Chris & Addie. Dora was all ready for bed, but definitely awake! She often enjoyed holding her little niece.
Chris with his parents, sisters, and daughter...
Grandma & Grandpa with Addie
The whole group! I have to mention that I look a little funny in this picture... because I was caught teasing Dora...

A Visit From Family

Do you ever feel paralyzed by a seemingly insurmountable to-do list? I do. It may seem silly, but lately catching up on blogging has had me feeling a little overwhelmed! It seems there is so much to cover!

BUT... I will endeavor to do just that!

We recently said good-bye to Chris' dad, mom, and two younger sisters. Although we had a lot of fun visiting with them, we didn't do a very good job of documenting it... so, I will show what we have here and in another post (for another day).

Here we are waiting... I don't know that this is easy to see, but the floor is actually sloped (and at a VERY obvious angle).

Inside our transport...

Our transport! I'd never been in an aerial lift before but it was kind of fun.
A supporting tower... keeping us aerial (definitely a good thing)...
The view from our car:



You may not be able to see this very well, but that yard has sheep and chickens. That may not strike you as being amusing, but seeing as Almaty has a population of probably 1.5 million (it was at 1.2 in 2005) it easily compares in size to many of the top ten cities (population-wise) in the U.S. To get a little more specific, that means it best compares to: Phoenix, Philadelphia, San Antonio, San Diego & Dallas... and there are sheep and chickens in a backyard.
...And an outhouse.
Our destination! Kok-Tobe means "Green Hill" in Kazakh. We took the aerial lift to the hill so we could see the city.

Although it was still a nice view, it was unfortunately, a bit overcast and smoggy...
An apple fountain! Quite appropriate for the city named after an apple.
A map displaying some of the various amenities and features available on the hill. There is a small amusement park, zoo, various shops and restaurants, etc.
Dora loves rock & roll, which means she was pretty excited about getting a picture with The Beatles (bronze version of course).
Chris kept joking that I was getting a little to friendly...
These are replicas of the yurta. The Kazakh people are originally a nomadic people. A yurta is basically a tent, but it was shaped like you see here (circle with a dome top). The frame was made of wood with the covering being made of felt. Carpets were/are often hung on the inside to give greater insulation and warmth.
Some tile work on the yurta.

I thought these bird houses were sort of fun...
The sheep farthest from the camera was pretty shaggy looking... but it didn't want to pose...
I kept calling this a reindeer, but it is a Kazakh elk.
Some peacocks (they refused to spread their tail feathers for us...)
These birds were probably some of my favorites, they are different kinds of pheasants.

Not for sure, but we think this is a turkey. I loved it's coloring: black with white polka dots!
Check out the rooster!
Her hat is a little too big and often shifts to a position like this... surprisingly, she doesn't usually complain (at least... not much)
Mom & Dad at a special spot on Kok Tobe...
The rest of us...
Check out the ears on this little guy! The Kazakh version of a squirrel is called a byelka.
We have seen a number of trees like this throughout the city. This isn't the best example, but the tree branches have a tendency to wind around each other.
After our visit to Kok-Tobe we visited the various homes Chris' family living in during their years in Kazakhstan (sorry, no pictures...) and then I went to the Green Bazaar with Mom and Clari. It was a relatively short shopping trip followed by dinner with old friends, the Kabdigalive family. I was introduced to bishbarmak, a traditional Kazakh meal which translates to five fingers--because you eat it with your hands (we used forks). It is dish made with noodles (wide, flat, and homemade), potatoes, onion, and meat (traditionally horse, but ours was made with beef).

The Stages of Her Smile

Addie does, of course, have many moments when she isn't particularly smiley. We just love catching the moments when she IS!!! =D She makes us laugh with all her cute and silly little antics (even the unhappy ones), but there is something about her smile that is so endearing.
Who is that looking at you?
Is that daddy?

A Little Overdue...

I decided after reading my s.i.l., Rachelle's, post that I would go ahead and do this post... I too had never been "tagged" until about 4 weeks ago (ok, maybe a little longer than that) and then I was tagged a lot all at once. To date, I think it's been 4 times. Maybe 5... I'm not sure. I've lost count. While I've never felt so loved, I've also never felt quite like such a slow-poke! I actually started filling my responses to the first two tags in a word document, and I haven't kept up with the others... I've decided that I can't! I hope my response to these two will satisfy all!!! =D



Fives:

Five years ago, I:

1. Was attending LDS Business College, preparing to finish my degree the next semester.

2. Was attempting to figure out where I’d go from there.

3. Taught the 4^th Sunday lessons in R.S. and absolutely loved it.

4. Was working at Lonestar… the fourth in three states (pretty impressive, I know)

5. Was introduced to Cranium at Girls Night with some Lonestar coworkers.

Five things on today's "To Do" list:

1. Do the dishes

2. Fold laundry

3. Prep my English lesson

4. Mop the kitchen floor

5. Figure out how to use the mop

Five snacks I enjoy:

1. Bliny—thin Russian pancakes (think crepes) stuffed with lots of yummy things--sweet to savory--sweet are my favorite!!

2. Ice cream

3. Creamy Rooibos tea

4. Rahat candies (freshly made from a local factory here)

5. Cucumber & tomato salads with fresh dill and a lot of salt. YuM!!!

Five things I would do if I were a millionaire:

1. Pay tithing

2. Invest for children & retirement

3. Buy a house

4. Help family

5. Help others around me (preferably anonymously)

Five places I have lived:

1. Virginia Beach, Virginia

2. Sandy, Utah

3. Mesa, Arizona

4. Williamsburg, Virginia

5. Almaty, Kazakhstan

Five jobs I have had:

1. Spiegel Brands Inc. (Executive Assistant)

2. DMH, Attorney at Law (Legal Assistant)

3. Lonestar Steakhouse (Server & sometimes Asst Manager)

4. Einstein Bagels (grunt worker)

5. Westminster-Canterbury (server)

Tell about 6 of your quirks:

1. I am a very tactile person and have bought things (mostly just clothes) simply because they felt soft to me…

2. I’ve been known to get into trouble for laughing. Probably because I have a tendency to get the giggles at the worst time (like during prayers). [I am progressively getting better]



3. As a youth/young adult I never mulled over “girly” things like my future wedding (and all the details), decorating my home (before I had one of my own), where I would live with my future (at the time non-existent) husband [isn’t he happy about that!], naming children, etc.



4. I guard my food. Chris loves to tease me that he’s going to steal it because I always react to his teasing (with a horrified, protective look over my food).



5. I avoid watching t.v. for a number of reasons, one of which being that I have a tendency to zone out—where I don’t even realize people are talking to me. It apparently runs in the family.



6. I hate picking favorites—the reason why is probably the quirkiest part about it—somewhere in me I feel like if I were to, for example, say yellow was my favorite color then it means I don’t like hunter green as much, and I really like hunter green, so it’s not really fair to demote it. I think there’s also a small part of me that thinks it would hurt hunter green’s feelings. (We won’t go into the fact that a color has no feelings, ok?... ^_^)

A Pacifier Pro

Ok, not quite. The only time Addie has effectively taken a pacifier was the week we flew across the Atlantic. We still give it to her on occasion simply because she likes having something in her mouth.