We're Alive!

All in all, the journey maybe wasn't quite as bad as I was anticipating. I was so worried about the trip that I failed to consider just how exhausting the process of moving out of our house and then being homeless for five days would be. We were all worn out before the 24 hour travel marathon even started! Big thanks to my parents and Karisa for helping us pack and clean, and Matt's family for letting us move in for a few days!

Our flight departed MSP at 7am, so we were up and getting our ducks in a row by 4am. We were hoping to transfer the kids asleep to the car, but they both woke up and stayed awake. All of our flights were on time, which we were very grateful for. The transfer in JFK was rather challenging, as we had to collect our bags, take the air train to another terminal, check-in, and go through security again. Luckily, we had four hours, and we were surprised when we used three of those. Lev was a really good traveller, napping in my lap when he was tired, and trying to escape my lap when he was awake. I had no idea how challenging in flight meals would be! We had three tray tables, four meals, and more flailing arms and legs than I can count. It actually wasn't possible to fit Lev on my lap and open my tray table, so we were

juggling kids and trays and Finn was of course freaking out because they didn't have a straw for his apple juice. The layover in Moscow went much better than expected; I was anticipating the kids would be both sleeping or screaming; instead, they were wired -- like running all over the terminal, screeching and chasing each other. Finn slept for a total of 3 hours during the entire 24 hour journey, which means Matt and I didn't really sleep at all. Seriously kid! I've decided he gets his energy from the sun -- the Solar Powered Redhead.

We had quite the welcome crew when we arrived in Novosibirsk; two visiting couples, the couple that lives here, and our workers were all there to greet us! Unfortunately, Finn was all out of sorts and I was beyond exhausted so I barely caught everyone's names. We collected our things and then called up some cars (via Yandex, similar to Uber) and took the 40 minute trip to our apartment. The workers had secured an apartment for us in the same

building as their bach! It was unfortunately really dirty, but they had spent a day getting some things cleaned before our arrival. There is still a bit of grime we need to take care of. The apartment is in a great location, has an awesome playground for the boys, a little balcony, and is really spacious. I think it will suit us just fine. Oh, and how could I forget the broken dishwasher taunting me?

Friday evening the workers had everyone over to their bach for tea and cakes and to get to know each other a bit. As is customary here, we all shared a bit about ourselves and our experiences until now. We were still adjusting to the time change, but managed to keep it together for a few hours anyway. Surprisingly, the biggest challenge we are having with the time change is getting the boys down for a nap (I thought that part would be easy, as it is the middle of the night their time anyway) and then getting them to wake up again. We've never had a problem getting Finn to wake up before! We are pretty much a mess after 3pm everyday yet. We have been using some Melatonin gummies at night for Finn and that seems to work pretty well. The boys have been getting up absurdly early, at 4am! At least we get the playground to ourselves every morning.

Meeting here is at our friend's apartment about a 40 minute tram ride away. Finn and Lev were quite pleased with the new transportation arrangements (no car seats, so they get to stand and look out the windows) but that also means naps in the car are a thing of the past. I'm understanding quite a lot of Russian, but am tongue-tied when it comes to producing the language.

We made a trip to IKEA today to get a bunch of random things like dishes, toys, and a rocking chair. It was refreshing to be in a place that felt so much like home! The oven in our apartment was broken so we bought a new one from an appliance store just down the street. Rather than pay for delivery, Matt decided to carry it home!