July 19th

Nothing on the agenda this morning. We stay in bed until 9:30am. I shower and we go to the Internet cafe. We did not go yesterday and won't have time to go after the baby home again today. Pat posts an entry to the Blog and I check email. I also copy the latest pictures we'd like to make prints of to disk. Pat runs into a glitch saving his Blog entry and loses 1/2 of the entry. He has to re-type what was lost. Bob and Beth arrive to check email. We're running behind and ask them to take the disk to the photocopy center which they gladly do. We get back to the room with just enough time for Pat to shower and for me to wolf down a bowl of cereal. It's 12:15pm and time to go. Pat takes his yogurt on the road.

We see Mama and Papa on the way to the baby home. We say hello, kiss and shake hands. We do not see the young girls and give Mama their pictures.

The kids are inside. Molly for me and Aidan for Pat. I find Molly sitting in the group playpen giving instructions to the children around her. She see me and leans towards me. I pick her up, change and dress her and we go. We stop to get the weeble doll on the way. The kids are good today. Bob, Beth and Nicholas go for a walk and we stay in the marble room and play. It's a typical day. Molly plays with toys and chatters. Aidan explores and climbs. Bob, Beth and Nicholas return from their walk. Molly begins to fuss so we load the kids in their Snuglis. We get 1/2 way around the baby home when I notice that Molly's head is on her chest. She is fast asleep. This looks uncomfortable to us so we take her out of the Snugli and change her position from outward to inward facing. Molly continues to sleep peacefully. We do a few more laps and go back inside. I stop at the mirrow in the hallway like I usually do. Today is the first time that Aidan sees and recognizes his own reflection. He smiles at the handsome boy looking at him. Molly wakes up when Pat takes her out of the Snugli. He hands her to Bob and she is content to sit in his lap while Pat packs up our gear. Bob is equally content to have her on his lap. We take the kids back to their rooms and double-time it back to the hotel. We're meeting Olesly at 3:15pm to go to the Russian Orthodox church.

We arrive back at the hotel at 3:10pm to find Olesya waiting in the lobby. We take our stuff to our rooms and we're ready to go. We take the bus to the church. We immediately see the church's distinctive gold onion shaped domes when we get off the bus. It is a new church built within the last year or so. The original church which is made of wood and much smaller remains standing next to the new one. We enter the church and there is a small table to the left of the doorway with scarves and aprons on it. Olesya, Beth and I must cover our heads and wear an apron. The church is ornate and we spend about 45 minutes looking around. We are permitted to take pictures and we do. When we are done we take the bus back into town and go to the mall. We need a blank video tape and Olesya needs a few things. When we're done shopping we find a table at an outdoor cafe and have a drink. We say goodbye to Olesya and head back to the hotel to meet Dana.

Dana arrives at 5:30pm as does Cate. Tonight we're getting take out from the pizza place and going to Cate's appartment to play poker. Dana phones in the order from our room. It will be ready in 30 minutes she's told. We hang out and chat for a while and then walk to the pizza place. Dana and Bob go in to pick up the order and come right back. Dana is told it will be ready in 30 minutes. So much for calling ahead. Take out is a relatively foreign concept here. We go into a few shops to kill time and our order is ready when we get back. Pizza and poker at Cate's is a big success. We all enjoy ourselves although Dana is not sure she likes poker. We wrap up at 10:00pm. Pat, Bob, Beth and I walk Dana 3/4 of the way home tonight. Taking the bus is not an option for her since bus service stops at 10:00pm. We walk through the park on the way back and it is still crowded.

We get back to the hotel shortly before 11:00pm. I attempt a crossword puzzle and Pat watches TV. To bed at midnight.