First Visa Renewal Trip

The three-year tourist visas we have require that we leave the country for at least 24 hours once every six months. So last Tuesday we hopped a flight to Almaty, Kazakhstan where Paul and Roman met us at the airport and took us back to the house there. When we stepped outside in Almaty it was in the mid 30s and Finn exclaimed, "it's summertime!" Haha! I guess we have adjusted to winter in Siberia just fine. We had written a few months ago to see if it would be alright to bring my parents along, if they would have room for all of us, and it seems the joke was on us -- we all got to sleep together in one big bedroom! Unfortunately I woke up the first morning feeling really crummy (I had been fighting a cold) and it wasn't long before I felt chilled and a fever set in. I ended up flat on my back in bed for the next three days, each evening optimistically thinking I would wake up the next morning feeling better. I was getting so weak that mom had to feed me, and for one meal the only thing I would eat were the mashed potatoes because I didn't have the strength to chew and swallow. At that point, my dad, of all people, actually suggested I find some medication because my body wasn't going to be able to fight this one on it's own. And so, being in a foreign country where laws are disregarded, Matt and dad walked down the road to the pharmacy and paid $4 to get me hooked up with some antibiotics. Problem solved. I was

finally on the mend, but I was surprised just how weak I was. I was able to sit in the gatherings on Saturday and Sunday, but was really disappointed to have missed out on all of the time spent together earlier in the week. Solid weight loss program though; I'm confident I would fit into my wedding dress right now!

Both boys had a great week and LOVED having so many aunties and uncles around to entertain them. There were a total of about 25 people at the house for the week and it was amazing how smoothly everything went; a well-oiled machine! Finn seriously thrives on social activity and was thrilled when Harvey (8) and Kingston (10) showed up Thursday morning from Australia. He proceeded to pester them for the next four days, but they didn't seem to mind too much. On Friday everyone except mom, Lev and I took a trip up the mountain for snow tubing and various other activities. It sounds like they had a great time and Finn was his usual adrenaline-seeking self.