Ice cream today! It's Liana's birthday, so we brought them some ice cream bars. (They were less than $.20 a piece. I can't believe how cheap they were.) Anyway, we brought the ice cream to the children, and they absolutely loved it. Adam kept shouting the Russian word for ice cream, until we got it out for them. Then, of course, he stopped shouting so he could eat. Liana thoroughly enjoyed hers, too. Aleksa made a royal mess as she watched other things going on, and slowly lowered her ice cream bar into her dress -- in several places. At one point she dropped a chunk, and Liana tried to pick it up, which made an even bigger mess. Somehow she got some in her hair, and everyone of us was laughing as Shelly and I cleaned them up with some wet wipes. Then, after the ice cream was gone, Adam and Liana licked the wrappers clean (even the ones that Shelly and I had eaten from. They really liked it.)

During the morning visit today, Adam kept (jokingly) wrapping the unfilled balloons around his neck and pretending to choke himself. I told him no several times, then took the balloons away. He got up and slowly walked off. I had to put down Aleksa (who didn't want to be put down) and go after him. It was worrisome, and I didn't know what was coming next. However, when I got to him, he smiled as I picked him up and blubbered his belly. He certainly seems to understand the difference between good and bad behavior quite easily. It is just a matter of getting him to realize that we really mean no when we say "No." (Liana has an even harder time with that, but I have definitely noticed some improvement. She will come a little easier now than Adam will when we try to move all of us to a different spot.)

Liana almost constantly wants to be held now. I think I learned the Russian word for "run" today, but I'm not sure. Liana definitely likes it when I run with her. When I'm also holding Aleksa, she really enjoys it too. It's too bad that Adam is heavier, since I can't really hold him for very long. Instead, I put him on my shoulders. He seems ok with that, and often asks me to spin him. (He did learn to say "spin"!)

Aleksa hit Mama a two separate times today, so Shelly firmly told her "No." Aleksa didn't much like that, and ended up crying, in Shelly's lap, for many minutes. It is sort of nice to see Liana and Adam trying to give her things so she will feel better, but then Aleksa hits it away, because she's busy crying. It seems that Aleksa has had her way a little too often.

Overall, today was two good visits. They were happy to see us, and didn't get stressed when we left. Liana once said that she didn't want to go back to her group, and I told her that I didn't want her to go back either. But that was all, since she knew she had to for now.

Going back to our rooms tonight was interesting. As I walked toward the cab, I heard some laughing going on. Shelly had gotten there first, and she and Katya were laughing because I was drenched with sweat. (That is not and exageration. About 60% of my shirt was wet, and my forehead had been dripping.) I guess the kids really like me, since I must have felt slimy as I held them.

That brings me to some things I've wanted to say about Ukraine itself. We had heard lots of the scary things about coming here. Nasty bathrooms, scary drinking water, etc. While we have seen one nasty bathroom, we haven't hit any of the other scary stuff. (I rather appreciate the driving style here.) The taxi drivers are good at what they do, and they get you there in good time if they can. Rather than being a scary thing, I rather wish that we could drive this way back at home. For example, if you're going to turn left and someone else is occupying the lane and wanting to go straight, just check to see if there's enough room next to them. If there is plenty of room for the other traffic, just pull up on the left side of the other car and turn when the corner is clear. There is a certain respect as they drive that I think is extremely rare in the U.S. Several of the streets we've been on are rarely used, and so are only a little wider than one car. When two cars meet, the one with a place, will pull over. After passing, the other car takes off again. It's nice to see that kind of cooperation. I'm afraid that if something like that happened in the U.S. we'd be more likely to see a honking contest. Also, when driving in a busy walking section, the cab driver will simply honk the horn to warn the people who are in the way. As they slowly drive through the crowd, the people just move. Basically, if the car can go where the driver wants to go, it's fair game. (Not quite, but drivers sure have a lot more freedom over here.)

Also, the food here is really good. There are several things that I've never had before, and are quite yummy. However, the most impressive thing is that there are so many different kinds of things that we have. For example, they have about 20 different varieties of ketchup in the store here. They aren't different like brands, but different in the contents (something like different types of spaghetti sauce). I ordered some French Fries and ketchup at the restaurant we go to in this town, and the ketchup was awesome. I couldn't believe that any ketchup could taste that good. The stuff in the U.S. is going to seem almost disgusting when I get home.

As others have mentioned, the juice here is totally wonderful. We recently tried the banana juice, and it had a flavor that I think I will crave for the rest of my life. (I would love to know how anyone juices a banana, though...)

Anyway, for those of you preparing to come to Ukraine for an adoption, please don't be afraid of the place. Sure, you might run into some things that are uncomfortable. But, I've become quite comfortable here, and there are several things that I'd love to be able to bring back home with us. Food variety, cultural things, etc. There is a lot more to enjoy here than there is to be afraid of! (Oh, and the vanilla ice cream that we got a few days ago was the best store-bought ice cream I've ever had. It was on par with my favorite homemade ice cream! You can also put fresh peaches on it, or pour a little of the delicious juice on it. Mmmmm!!!!!)