Fun Times in Almaty!

We’ve had a really good time here so far! Yesterday we went to the medical appointment for Ry and it was quick & painless. We spent an afternoon poolside and went to dinner with Lisa & Beth. We had some great pizza and shared stories about each of our adoptions so far. It was so nice to meet them both and I wish them both the best of luck in their adoptions! Their babies are absolutely ADORABLE!!! After dinner we took a quick stroll through Paniflov Park and headed back to the hotel. Ry & I grabbed some ice cream in the restaurant while Dust tried to get some work done. It’s a little tricky getting him to sleep when we are still up and Dustin is working in the same room! The internet here isn’t unlimited and we have to pay by the ½ hour.
This morning we headed to Kok Tube to take a cable car ride up into the mountains. Of course, we pick the one day a week when the cable car doesn’t run until 6:00 PM. I was so bummed, because I spent about 30 minutes this morning trying to explain to Ry, in our limited communication what a cable car was! They had a bus though that took us to the top. It was very nice and had beautiful views of Almaty. They had souvenir shops, restaurants, a small zoo & a roller coaster that went down the mountain. Ryland LOVED this and has talked about how fast he went for most of the day today! This afternoon we had a 3:00 appointment with the US Embassy and all went well. So far, everything in Almaty was quick and painless. We have all paperwork in our hands and the official told us that as soon as we land in Washington DC, Ry is an official US citizen! He his so excited to have his own passport now!

We head to the airport about midnight tonight and we are only 4 flights away from home! We are scheduled to arrive July 21st @ 7:30PM at DFW. Crossing our fingers for no delays and no lost luggage this time!!

Here’s a few pics of our excursions!

Yes, he prefers to sleep in the crib...

swim time

Russian Orthodox Church in Paniflov Park

Roller Coaster down the mountain-side

View of Almaty

The Stone's

Apples Are From Kazakhstan