Many of us plan on taking our children back for a home land tour, while others plan on taking their child back to add a sibling to their family. Whatever the reason, your child must travel on a US Passport for part of the travel and their Kazakhstan passport for the remainder of the travel. We were curious how we would go about updating our children's Kazakhstan passports - so I called and below is the information that I obtained and thought I'd share with all of you.....

Renewing your Child’s Kazakhstan Passport

Voice mail... more

I can't help but reflect at this time of year, I wonder if everyone does it - is it the season? The end of one year and the start of another? Or maybe it was the years I spent in the past hoping, praying and dreaming of becoming a mom? I'm happy to have found such peace and happiness in my home and my heart.

It seems hard to believe that I was the woman who wiped tears away as I sat at church and prayed for just one child to parent and fill my world with love. It amazes me that I have been blessed beyond belief with not... more

Okay – we all know this – we have STRESSED about what to bring as gifts for the various people along our adoption journey – while the judge was included during our first adoption, he was not during our second adoption because of it being misinterpreted as a bribe of some kind – but typically your gift list will include:

Almaty or Astana coordinator – expect to spend between $20-$30 on a gift Almaty or Astana driver – our agency said tips were fine Adoption city coordinator(s) – between $20-$40 (we wanted more in Taraz for... more

While some adoptive parents are only offered one option in their adoption city, many are given the opportunity to stay in an apartment or hotel during their journey. Adoptive parents post questions to the various groups to determine what type of stay is better. My advice – neither is right or wrong – you just need to decide what is right for you.

During our Semey adoption, we stayed in a hotel while we were in Semey and an apartment during our Almaty portion. During our Taraz adoption, we also stayed in a hotel... more

Our Hanukah and Christmas cards are officially reaching members of our family and friends all over the world!

Just thought I'd share the picture we cropped of our two cuties to warm the hearts of family and friends......

Logan (Taraz) is in the yellow and Max (Semey) is in the white. This is the day they were helping daddy with moving some bedding around in the guest room - they were laying down on the job. :)

We were paper ready to adopt two infants from Ukraine when Max’s little picture on Tedi Bear’s website stole a piece or our hearts and began our journey to Kazakhstan. A huge change for us – but oh so right – we fell in love with the picture and time couldn’t move quickly enough for us to arrive and bring him home. I still vividly remember joking about parachuting in and “taking” him in some FBI style mission. I also remember the first time that Larry and I learned that Kazakhstan did not allow referrals, it was shortly after Max’s adoption and I thought – how crazy – we had a referral – we came home with our child – why would anyone start a “rumor” such as this? I quickly learned it was... more

You’ve put together a dossier, spent two weeks in the baby house or children's home bonding with your child, you’re ready – you are more than ready to have your child “officially” enter your life since they have been a part of your heart for much longer (please note -- some regions require you to travel home and back prior to court). I think most parents worry about court – while others know – everything will be alright.

Below is our court experience for both Max and Logan’s adoption – I hope this will give you some insight into the court... more

Nobody can go back and start a new beginning, but anyone can start today and make a new ending. ~ Maria Robinson

In the popular movie, Borat, Kazakhstan comes in for pretty shabby treatment. A more evenhanded look at Kazakhstan can be found in the UNESCO Policy Brief on Early Childhood (“Ensuring Equitable Access to Preschool Education: Kazakhstan’s Experience”; July-August 2005).

The paper points out that early childhood education has undergone significant ups and downs in the recent past. Before the fall of the Soviet empire, all children in Kazakhstan, regardless of their regional and social backgrounds, had universal access to state preschool services. But after the Soviet... more

Pinch of salt, hard work help Kazakhstan end iodine deficit - Donald G. McNeil Jr., New York Times Saturday, December 16, 2006

(12-16) 04:00 PST Astana, Kazakhstan -- Valentina Sivryukova knew her public service messages were hitting the mark when she heard how one Kazakhstani schoolboy called another stupid. "What are you," he sneered, "iodine-deficient or something?"

Sivryukova, president of the national confederation of Kazakhstani charities, was delighted. It meant the years of trying to raise public awareness that iodized salt prevents brain damage in infants were not spent in vain. If the campaign bore fruit, Kazakhstan's national IQ would be safeguarded.... more

Many parents like to “stay in the loop” once they have adopted from Kazakhstan – while others wish to learn as much as possible prior to adopting. What some do not know is how to go about receiving daily “alerts” about Kazakhstan or adoption to their in box to save the Internet search time.

I have two different “alerts” search engines set up – one is goggle. To sign up for what you like to get delivered to your e-mail and how often – please visit the site at:

http://www.google.com/alerts

Goggle... more