update

Thank you to all of you who responded with medical advice.
The good news is that most of my symptoms (sore throat, swollen glands, body aches, fever) are responding well to the Cipro. Unfortunately, my right eye remains unchanged (swollen on the outside, very red on the inside). I am coming to the conclusion that this is viral pink-eye, not bacterial pink-eye I am dealing with. I had wrongly decided that the eye infection that was not responding to the anti-biotic eye drops progressed into a larger bacterial infection that got really bad Friday evening. Now I am thinking that these are two unrelated infections: one bacterial -- maybe strep throat?; and one viral – the pink-eye. Of course, if this is the correct conclusion, the only thing I can do for my eye is apply warm compresses and wait it out. Sadly, I will not be able to return to the baby house to see Arman until all the infection is gone. I also need to make sure I do not infect the other eye (I had been putting drops into that eye as a preventive measure when I was treating it as bacterial).
As I said to one of the people who responded to my request for medical advice: I will always believe that one of the great mysteries of life is discerning whether an infection is viral or bacterial. Thanks again for all your help; if you see a flaw in my logic, please let me know.

no photos -- need medical advice

I am really sick and need some help figuring out what to try next. [To put this in perspective, please keep in mind that I am a generally healthy person – for instance, I have never stayed in a hospital overnight – so when I don’t feel well, I tend to believe that I am deathly ill.] If you can help, please write to me on the work address that goes directly to my blackberry; I’ll see your message right away (instead of waiting for the incredibly slow dial-up connection here at the hotel).

I have been in Kazakhstan for three weeks and have managed to avoid the gastro-intestinal problems that most adoptive parents suffer while they are here. Unfortunately, I have picked up pink-eye (at least I think that is what it is) and it seems to be getting worse instead of better.

Starting on Wednesday morning, I have been using prescription eye drops (that I brought with me from the States) in the infected eye (I started a little late because I thought that the lid was swollen from a mosquito bite). The drops are Tobramycin 0.3% OPH Sol B&L; I followed my doctor’s instructions the first day or two: instill two drops into each eye three times a day after soaking. He really believes that soaking with a hot towel could solve the problem without the drops. I started to get worried that putting water near my eye that we don’t consider clean enough to brush our teeth with could be exacerbating the problem so I stopped the soaking part. I also read the insert and saw that I could use it every four hours.

It seemed to be getting better until Friday evening and then I came down with a fever, sore throat, slightly swollen glands, body aches, and headache (now I feel like my head is going to explode). I took advil last night. This morning, I took the first dose of the other prescription medicine I brought with me: Ciprofloxacin 500 mg (take two times a day). It has been about seven hours since I took it (5 hours until I can take it again) and I have been feeling feverish the past couple of hours. Here are my specific questions for you:

Should I keep using the eye drops while taking the Cipro?

Can I take Advil for fever while taking the Cipro?

Hoping I start to feel better soon, how long should I take the Cipro? (I’m a little nervous about taking all of it because that will leave me without it and I still need to be here another 3-4 weeks.)

If you were here in Karaganda recently and had a similar problem, please let me know how you solved it. Or if you have any other advice, I would greatly appreciate it. I have sent an e-mail to my doctor at Guthrie Medical (the system said I would get a response within 72 hours).

It's official: Arman Jonathan Froggatt

Sometime before 4 and 5 this afternoon (Karaganda time – GMT+5), the judge granted my request to adopt Arman, to change last name and middle name so that his full name would be Arman Jonathan Froggatt, to leave his date of birth and place of birth unchanged, and to put my name as “name of mother” in the birth registry! Oh happy day…

By my estimation, we are about half way through the process. There is now a 15-waiting period when someone could object to the adoption. When that is over, papers will be filed to get Arman a new birth certificate and his Kazakhstani passport. Once we have those documents, we can go to Almaty to fulfill all the requirements of the U.S. embassy.

who has pink-eye now?

 
Well, you can see from the photo that Arman is doing really well (any day now they will take that bandage off the infected bug bite on his head, I’m sure). I’m the one who has pink-eye now. Fortunately, I came prepared with prescription eye drops to take care of the problem. I am hoping that it will look much better by Friday afternoon because, I learned today, that is when I am scheduled to go to court to formally request permission to adopt Arman! Friday at 4 pm Karaganda time (6 am in the US Eastern time zone) – please send good wishes for a speedy, uneventful court visit.

In the meantime, back at the baby house, this morning I had my first experience with Arman’s poopy diaper (this may be too much information for some of you). It was a really messy one – so bad that Natasha had to leave the room. That left me and one of the caregivers to try to communicate with each other about where his stash of Pampers could be. Turns out that his supply had run out so I brought a new package for the afternoon visit. The good news is that I was able to see that his diaper rash has cleared up.

Ministry of Education interview!

 

At the end of my interview at the Ministry of Education this afternoon, the two interviewers said, "Good luck raising your son and finding a man to marry!" I, of course, replied, "Spaseeba" (thank you) with a big smile.

For those of you who don't know the intricate details of the Kazakhstani adoption process, I should explain that as of the end of the day Sunday, I had completed the 14-day bonding period with Arman. The next step, then, is the interview with the Ministry of Education. Now that I have successfully completed that step, I wait for a court date.

The two women who interviewed me were very nice, even funny at times -- they asked the routine questions: how much money do you make? do you own your house? Will you have help to raise your child? Do you realize your child is asian, will your family accept him? (okay, maybe that last question doesn't seem so routine.)

Some of you will find it humorous that half-way 'round the world, the interviewers asked me the very same question that I hate to be asked by men on first dates: "you are successful, pretty, smart, blah, blah, blah, but at 46, why aren't you married?" I really can't recall how I answered it today (I think I made a joke about still being hopeful), but I've decided that I should get married just so I never have to worry about coming up with an answer for that question again!

Since the interview was relatively short, I still got to spend about an hour with Arman in the late afternoon (thanks to Pam for taking today's photo). Later, Pam and I joined the Halls for dinner to celebrate their successful visit to court to adopt their son, Alistair (from the other baby house in town). They have been patiently waiting for this day for too long (they got to Karaganda on June 3rd and are just now starting the 15-day waiting period that follows court).

beautiful day!

 
Arman is feeling much better today and the weather outside is lovely so we went out for a little walk around the grounds. In photo at left, Natasha (translator) is holding Natashka (who should be traveling to Almaty later this week to be reunited with her adoptive parents and then taken home to the U.S.), Tolik (driver) is holding Arman, and Pam is holding Emily. Whenever the children go outside, they must wear hats. Later in life, Arman will probably give me a hard time for letting them put a pink striped hat on him and then making it even worse by photographing him in the hat. I like the hat -- it reminds me of the Flying Nun.

 

Sunday morning routine

 
They let Arman sleep late this morning since he's been sick the past few days. Yes, he's been sleeping without a diaper, hoping it would help with his diaper rash. So he's naked on the bottom but wearing a hat on his head so that he doesn't fuss with the bandage on his infected mosquito bite (when they weren't looking, I snuck some Neosporin onto it!).
 
Once awake, he was cleaned up and dressed.
 
Then they fed him (sometimes I do this, but they are much faster at it) and let me take him out into the playroom. He did not have a fever today and was in a pretty good mood. After our visit at the baby house, Pam and I went shopping, had lunch, did my laundry at her apartment, and watched a very funny movie she brought with her called "Johnny English." I bought myself a thermometer so I can take Arman's temperature whenever I want...

he likes Elvis!

 
For the past two days, Arman has been, well, miserable (see photo at left of one his very kind caregivers in Room 3). He's had a fever off and on, an earache, diaper rash, a bit of pink eye, an infected bug bite on his head, and he's been drooling/biting on two fingers to deal with his teething. Today, his caregivers asked me to keep him near or in his crib and to help him sleep when I wasn't feeding him. I found he quite likes it when I sing Elvis Presley songs to him, especially "I Can't Help Falling in Love with You." I know, I know, it is hard to believe that anyone could LIKE my singing, but he really doesn't seem to mind. Of course, he does have cotton stuffed in one ear so maybe he can't really hear my singing? He seemed much better when I left at 6 today. I'm hoping he feels much better tomorrow.
 
While Arman was sleeping, I filled out some paperwork (guided here by Lena, Natasha's sister). Lena also prepped me for the Ministry of Education interview that will happen sometime this coming week. This interview must happen (and go well) before the court date when I will formally ask to be allowed to adopt Arman.
 
Starting tomorrow, Pam (pictured here with husband Mark and daughter Emily) and I will be the only adoptive parents visiting children at the baby house. She will be here for about another two weeks before traveling to Almaty with Emily to finalize her adoption at the U.S. consulate (Mark leaves this evening to return to the U.S.). Since there is only one visit on Sundays (from 10 'til noon), Pam and I have made BIG plans. We're going to the apartment where she is staying downtown to do my laundry in her washing machine (so far, I've just been washing things by hand in my hotel room).

The really big news is that the cable is working again at the hotel (it went out last Sunday evening during a big thunder storm) so I can watch the BBC again (the only channel in English). I'm disappointed that I had only watched 2 parts of the 3 part series on Tony Blair before the cable went out. I don't think they are showing the series anymore. Oh well, I know the ending anyway!

mom recovering at home

thanks to everyone who has asked how my mom is doing and sent good wishes her way! She is glad to be home from the hospital and is working on regaining her strength so that she can meet us at Newark Airport when Arman and I get home at the end of August.

Fever

 
This morning, we had a little miscommunication. Through the translator, I asked his caregivers if he had been given medicine for his fever (because he felt hot to me when I picked him up when I arrived around 10 am). They said yes, but it turns out they meant that he had been given medicine for his earache NOT for the fever. The doctor saw him before I left at noon and he was given medicine then for his fever. When I came back at 4 o'clock, one of the caregivers took his temperature again (see thermometer under his arm). He still had a slight fever so the doctor gave him a suppository of some sort which seemed to make him feel better. He's also still getting drops in his ears for his earache.
 

He mostly wanted to be held and rocked until he saw the camera come out! Everyone agrees that he is quite the little ham, loves to have his photo taken. Can you think of a better match? I love to take photos and he loves to be in them. Also, he has nice dark eyes that never have a problem with red-eye. For the short time that he played on his blanket this afternoon, he managed to rock for the first time while he was up on his knees. Don't worry, you'll be the first to know when he starts crawling.

one of the advantages of being a single parent

 

 

I got to be in the group photos of the moms AND the dads!

reading "Let's Play" by Leo Lionni

 

 

Arman now stays on his tummy long enough to read his favorite book (okay, it's the only book I brought with me) and really likes it when his friend Adam reads to him! It's unusual that Arman is the one in motion in this picture and Adam is the one sitting still. Typically, Adam is a blur in most photos I've tried to take of him. Of the six children being adopted now, Adam is the only one walking (well, he's usually running). He will be living in Indiana with Julie and Rick (Rick's mother, Joan, has been here during the 14-day bonding period too). We are hoping to take a big group photo today since the other adoptive parents have court tomorrow and then they leave Karaganda in the evening.

not-so-good news, good news, even better news

 

 

The not-so-good news: Arman had a fever this afternoon; upon closer examination, it turns out he has a bit of an earache, a slightly red throat, and maybe a slight case of pink eye. But, and I'm sure this is what you are dying to hear about, he "has good poop" (that's how it gets translated to me). Poor little guy just slept in my arms for part of the visit.

The good news: the caregivers in Room 3 and the doctor take very good care of him. They are very responsive to me and very attentive to Arman. I knew he was in very good hands when I left him this evening. I'm sure he'll be feeling much better tomorrow morning when I see him again.

The even better news: I finally have a sense for when Arman has a fever (he was running a slight fever off and on last week). I thought he felt hot while I was playing with him, asked to have his temperature taken, and sure enough, he had a fever. He's such an easy-going baby that I've been concerned that once we leave for the U.S., I might not know when he isn't feeling well and needs medicine. Now I feel a bit more confident that I will be able to take care of Arman...

another milestone

 

Arman spent a good part of this morning's visit in this position and actually got up on his knees at one point. He seems to be feeling much better; his first tooth is almost through.

Arman also had a very good time "playing soccer" with his friends Cole and Brent (okay, all three had a little help from the adults and maybe, just maybe, we had more fun than they did).

Favorite Facts about Kazakhstan

Here's the deal: I don't have a new good photo of Arman to post today. Soooooo, I will use today to launch a new feature of this adoption blog. My challenge to the loyal blog readers is to find and post information about Kazakhstan. Now, I know there are several people out there who have traveled to Kazakhstan at least once, carefully researched the country, and could post whole web sites or wikipedia entries about Kazakhstan. Therefore, I am asking that you limit your post to ONE interesting fact that is followed-up with an explanation of WHY this is one of your favorite facts.

I'll start...

My favorite description of Kazakhstan is that it is four times the size of Texas. I like this fact because:
a) two of my favorite friends, Mary and Sally, live in Austin, Texas most of the year;
b) my favorite dog in the entire world, Pinkey, lives there most of year;
c) two of my favorite adoptees, Teagan and Emmy, were born in Texas and adopted from there by their parents who live in New York (and due to Texas' independent streak, I think these adoptions could be considered international adoptions!).

Okay, now it is your turn...

Sunday afternoon with other adoptive parents

 
 
 
 

Fantasy World, lunch/dinner, people-watching, bowling, shopping, supper, internet café – just another Sunday afternoon in downtown Karaganda…
There are 5 other families who are adopting children from the baby house formerly known as Malutka (3 couples are from the States, two from Spain). Some of them are pictured here. We also met up with the Halls again (they are adopting from the other baby house in town). It was a beautiful day (except for some rain, but this allowed Siena to shop for umbrellas so that was fun). This time, all on my own, I negotiated for a cab ride back to my hotel (everyone else is staying downtown in apartments) – I am feeling much more comfortable here now.
Of the group, I have been here for the shortest time (just one week); I am grateful to these other parents who are teaching me what they’ve learned about the orphanage and Karaganda. It is really nice to have their company during the visiting hours. I am also appreciative of the advice I am receiving from adoptive parents who have come before me and are now communicating with me via e-mail.

and on the 7th day...

...Arman cried when I put him in his crib at the end of our visit. This was the first time he seemed the least bit sad when I was leaving. This made it hard for me to say goodbye, especially because I knew I would not be back later in the afternoon (on Sundays, there is only one visit -- from 10 until noon).


 

Earlier in the visit, he was happy to be with Svetlana (pictured at left), the doctor who takes excellent care of Arman and the other children in Room #3. My recollection is that she is the person who brought him into the room last Monday when I met him for the first time (he was the 4th child brought into the room). She was holding him up above her head and he was smiling. She then sat with me and Natasha (the translator) to go through his medical file. Today, she gave Natasha his medical records which will be translated into English and given to me before we leave for the U.S.

sleeping and waking

 

 

 

Arman fell asleep in my arms at the end of the morning visit and I put him down for his nap. When I returned for the afternoon visit, he was still sleeping peacefully and I was able to get these photos (and some videos that I’ll show you when I get home).

I think he is starting to figure out that I might be staying around for a while…

a really cute photo!

 

passport photo day

 

This morning, Arman had a his photo taken for his passport. Olga (another translator) held him while the photographer did his work (Arman was wiggling around too much when I tried holding him for the photo).

I know you've all been waiting patiently for this announcement...

His passport will read: Arman Jonathan Froggatt

go Big Red!!!

 

 

 

dva piva

 
 

Wednesday evening: I had a big night out in downtown Karaganda! I even had a chance to use a little of the russian I learned through the Pimsleur system -- "dva piva" which means "two beers." No, both beers were not for me. One was for Corey: pictured here with her husband, Erik, and daughter, Siena (adopted from Almaty a few years ago). They've been in Karaganda since early June to adopt a baby boy from the other orphanage in town. After e-mailing back and forth for the past few months, it was wonderful to finally meet them. They really know their way around, gave me lots of good information, and helped me negotiate my first cab ride back to my hotel after dinner (Chris and Colleen -- got it for 400 tenge - thanks for the advice).

Right across from where we ate dinner in the park, there's a really cool trampoline set up (see photo of left). The only thing that kept me from jumping right on it was the fact that I was wearing a dress! Can't wait to go back again in shorts.

Now if Sally would explain to me how she got that cyrillic alphabet into her posted comments (see comments under "Arman flirts", I could make my blog even more exciting!