As we prepared for this journey we had read about many different country’s orphanages (baby houses as they call them here in Kazakhstan) and what we read described a very clean but rather plain place with little stimulation. Our experience with Astana’s baby house is very different from what we expected. They are very clean, but they are more like a big home with pictures on the walls, many colorful toys throughout, friendly people that truly care for the children, and a schedule full of activities such as music and organized playing. The only similarity to what we read is the ratio of care givers to children (typically about 1 care giver to about 12 toddlers), which does limit how much they can interact with each child independently. Typically these children are 1 month delayed for every three months in an orphanage, which is about what we have seen with our new son, especially communication. To our surprise he is much closer to his age with fine motor, gross motor, and self- help skills. Here are several pictures of the Astana Baby House…
As you can see our son’s temporary home is not what most people think of when they hear the term orphanages. Although his new home with us will be much better in many ways, I am sure he will still miss his familiar surroundings at first. We are close to sharing more about our new little man, but for now we will tease you a little by just give you a sneak peak…
Thank you for all your comments yesterday, we really appreciate you following along with us on this journey!
Blessings,
Jay & Jen
12 comments:
Ok...enough teasing already!!!! We want to see the little guy!
His toes are adorable and he looks just like Hayden from the backside when he was a baby.
The baby house looks very nice and homey like you said. It is nice to see that it is so clean and he seems to be well taken care of.
Looking forward to seeing the rest of your new son...we will keep you all in our prayers as well as Shelby, Hayden and Zoe.
Toni
Ok you two, enough!!! I want to see him!!!
Sounds like everything is going well. We will pray things continue to go smoothly.
"The joy of the LORD is your strength." Nehemiah 8:10
Love ya!
How very cool - I am so excited for both of you. My prayers are with you and all FOUR of your children! :-)
Much love from Michigan, Kristy
PHIL 1:6
How sweet he looks. Even his toes. I like the little hat. The house is suprising. It does look very stimulating. I was suprised to see the ball area where the kids could jump and play in. It's rather modern. I am continuing to pray for all of you.
He looks like such a doll -- from behind! Can't wait to see his darling face and meet him later. Many blessings! Jess :-)
Hi, it's Mackenzie,
Sorry I didn't get to say good-bye. He looks cute from behind, just like my Mom said, he looks like Hayden did at that age.
See ya soon, Mackenzie
Great stuff! Thanks for sharing the teaser pics. He looks great! I will pray for continued blessings as your journey moves along.
--Hugh
Looks like a stimulating learning environment for little kids! Of course, your home will be a much better place for this little guy. Looks like a cutie from behind - can't wait to see his little face and all his cute features!
Oh how it brings back memories. Your apartment is very much like ours was in Moscow. The double door, the bedroom,bath kitchen all the same. Amazing! We are so happy for you and we know what your are feeling. What a wonderful journey. The baby house looks very good and similar to our orphanage. Do you have to spend a month there? That is very different from what we did but regions require different things. Good luck and sorry i did not answer I had no idea who invited us to the blog. You didn't tell me you were close to going so I did not know. I am a big chicken on the computer so inless I know I don't answer. Anyways, we are praying for your safe journey and keep us posted. Love, M.J.
Hi Jay & Jen,
I hope you are feeling alot of joy right now. He looks like he will be handful as every boy should be and team him up with Zoe and you will have nuclear fusion. The teaser pictures are great and the enviroment looks much better than I would have perceived. What an amazing experience for the both of you and the kids. Can't wait to see him.
The Straw Clan is in my prayers.
Timmy
What great pictures. Thanks for sharing them with us. Ingrid asked why you are not showing the litte guy's face?? Bruce said, "Because you guys are just
goofy". We are praying that HIS wisdom, protection and PEACE be upon you both. The Blalocks
Hey, Everyone here is waiting, well not so patiently, but we'll survive until you get everything settled. It looks like the lord has guided you to the right place at the right time to get the final piece to your family. Please know your in our prayers always. Can't wait to meet my nephew. LOL
Sue
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