Last Day in Kiev

First, my pity party. At first, I was thinking that I just can't hack it as a parent because the past few days have been so hard. But then I realized, I'm in a foreign country where I don't speak the language, in an apartment very much not designed with toddlers in mind, watching a child who can't communicate with me but is old enough to wreak havoc on her environment, and I have no stroller, no booster seat, no baby gate, no toilet seat, no food in the kitchen and no grocery store nearby...Yeah, this should be hard. End of pity party. But in spite of my extenuating circumstances, I have a newly deepened respect for all single parents.

We got the visa! I'm about to pack our bags so that we can head out late tomorrow morning. If either of my flights is significantly delayed or canceled, I will cry. No shame, no reservation, I will just break down in heaving sobs right there in the airport. (Oops, I forgot that I ended the pity party!)

Today had a big highlight (other than getting the visa). Oleg and Audra, our new friends and our hosts for much of our time in Kiev visited Cosi and me in the city today. They have been a continued blessing to us here and that continued today. We went to lunch together and I was able to eat a full meal! While they were playing with Cosi, I felt my stress level drop about 50%. I don't think I even realized until then how high strung I've been, needing to watch Cosi's every move. And it was also nice to have conversation with someone who speaks English. And thanks to them, I even got a few pictures of Cosi and me here in the city- something I had been wanting!

Below are some pictures and video of the day. I think this was the first time Cosi was allowed to run freely outside. I'm really looking forward to the first nice day back in East Asia when I can take her to the park and set her loose!

One more random thing: we've been listening to a lot of kids songs in the apartment, and Cosi's best reaction so far was to the VeggieTales cover of The Doobie Brothers' "Jesus is Just Alright with Me." East Asian readers should hit that one up on Google Music.