Monday, August 13, 2007

Hello from Nikopol...






Hello everyone. All is….the same here in Nikopol.

On Saturday we had a lovely afternoon with our new British friends, Carol and John. They picked us up in their car which had AC and SEATBELTS…what a luxury! Lucas would tell John “Don’t go yet” until Lucas had his seat belt on. They took us to a wonderful restaurant (Monte Cristo) and the food was a delight. It was so nice to have an enjoyable meal with great company. Johns recitations of his youthful travels kept us in stitches! Lucas kept telling them that they “talk funny” and carol would try to pronounce things in an American accent…she’s pretty good at it too! After lunch, we took a walk along the lake front to the beach where we waded in the cool water. Lucas was mesmerized by a group of girls doing a “girl band” routine on an outdoor stage. We had to literally drag him away! After our walk, they took us to their favorite supermarket where we bought some food including a rotisserie chicken…what a treat! They drove us back to our apartment and we ended our visit with hugs and promises to get together again. They are such a wonderful couple and we are so happy that we have had the opportunity to spend some time with them. They have lived an incredibly interesting life, globetrotting and experiencing so many things that the rest of us can only dream of. Thanks Carol and John!!!

Today, I went with Emma and one of the orphanage workers to get passport pictures. They dressed up Emma in a cute halter dress with a straw hat and the shoes we bought her a couple of weeks ago. She behaved so well and she was so cute sitting in the chair, carefully following the directions of the photographer. I couldn’t help but beam with pride at our little girl…she is so amazing!!! She loved having mama fix her hair beforehand and kept asking to look in the mirror to see if she looked just right. She is all girl!!

We taught Emma to say “cookie” since that is a VERY important word in our household. She soon realized that it rhymes with “Lukie” so she has now started calling Lucas “Lookee Cookie”. He seems to like it. He said “She keeps calling me Lukie Cookie”. I said “it’s because she likes you” and he said “Yea, that’s why I picked her”. You can’t ask for better than that. I’m sure they will be fighting like regular siblings soon enough, but for now we are enjoying the blissful harmony between them.

We met up with Carol again this afternoon. She is leaving for England tomorrow for 2 ½ weeks so this will be our last time to see her. We went to a pizza place that served really good cappuccino’s and latte’s. She gave Lucas a Ukrainian police car and he was thrilled! We are going to miss her greatly. If any of you that are traveling soon end up in Nikopol, Carol will be a great resource for you.

Well, that’s all for today.
Love from Ukraine,
L,C,L &E
PS: Lucas wants me to write: "I miss everyone...and...I love them".

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

It looks like summer is finally here---102F yesterday, and supposedly the same today! That picture by the water looks nice and cool! When I was in Yalta, I met a Dr. and his sister. They were from Krivoi Rog, which is not all that far from where you are staying. They had a car, and took me to Sevastopol on the Black Sea. There are some great war museums and a huge war monument there. The English couple seem to be very interesting people! How did they wind up living in Nikopol?
Bob

Anonymous said...

Congratulations! Emma is beautiful. I have so enjoyed following your adventures - you really missed your calling as a writer (although you also make an exceptional nurse!)
Thanks,
Jackie

Anonymous said...

Hi Guys, She is so beautiful. She doesn't look six in that dress. I hope she will be a girly girl. I can not wait for you guys to come home. I am glad you are not coming home this week. I wouldn't be able to get off from work but they know after Friday when my niece and nephew come home I will be there at the airport. I can't wait to buy her a dress. I was looking at clothes over the weekend and I am so glad I have a boy but I think she will make up for that I hope. Do you all have the humidity there like here? Tell Lucas we miss him and love him too. Aunt Tracey

Anonymous said...

I could not wait to wake up and get online to see the pictures and read of your travels. We are at the Hampton Inn in Sandusky, OH traveling back from the North Woods of WI. Emma is so beautiful...like I have to tell the both of you that! How amazing! We are so excited for all of you and hope that you are back home soon. Mary and Mike

Anonymous said...

Emma looks so sweet. The girl is going to be an excellent shopper before she knows it. She is so small please take her to McDonald as soon as your feet hit Americian soil!!! we are off to Myrtle Beach for 10 days, so I won't have computer access. I hope you all get home safely and Emma adjusts well to the changes. Please keep me update via email Love to you all Deanna

Anonymous said...

How wonderful that you found Carol & John! Probably seemed more like a vacation enjoying time with them ...

Almost to the halfway mark on the waiting period - right?!

Soon, very soon you will all be home!

Anonymous said...

I'm a bit disappointed! I needed my Emma fix and there is no entry for today! There had better be new pictures by tomorrow or there will be hell to pay!!!

Any thoughts when you'll be heading home?

Steph

Anonymous said...

Good Mooring Bush's!
Hey how hot is it there? Its 100+
here and it his HOTTTTTTTTTTTT.
The pics are great, I especially like the one of Chris and Emma, You can clearly see that she already has Papa wrapped tightly around her finger. Lisa its wierd but Emma favors you. That just means she will be a beautiful lady when she grows up. well its 3:12am gtg 2 sleep.
Juan, keep the pics coming