We have a court assignment!

Getting your court assignment is the next big step in the adoption process. There are 22 adoption courts in Bogota. Different courts process adoptions at a different speed, depending on the attitude of the judge about international adoptions. We got assigned Court 14. According to Helena, it's "better than average, a bit faster." We have no idea what that will mean for us, but are optimistic that things will move along promptly.

We found out our court assignment on Wednesday, but I'm not sure when it was actually assigned. The person at CRAN who can tell us was out at the end of last week, and Monday was a holiday here (Columbus Day). At this point, it just feels good to know the paperwork is in the system!

It's been quite a week

When we last left you...we were heading into Sunday and a trip to the flea market.

We did go to Usaquen on Sunday. It took Grandma Dawn and I almost 90 minutes to walk from the new apartment to Usaquen. The new place is far enough north that we had to walk south to the Cyclovia route, and then across Calle 116. We met Julien and Grandma Ana at the square in Usaquen. They took a taxi and arrived well before we did - they even had time to catch part of mass at the church on the square. It was so late by the time we were all assembled that we had an early lunch before starting our shopping. We enjoyed the flea market. It's filled with hundreds of stalls of artisans and vendors selling everything from lunch to jewelry to textiles and toys. Even if you don't buy anything, it's worth the trip. We had never been there in the afternoon, so I don't know if this happens every week, but we saw a music/dance group who performed in the market. Neither of our kids liked them at first - too loud, guy in scary costume - then Esteban decided he liked the ladies in the pretty dresses :)

Monday, Julien's last day with us, we walked to Unicentro (a big mall) to finish our last bit of souvenir shopping for Julien and Ana to take home. And we finally got our empanadas for lunch! While we were there, it started to pour rain, so we took taxis back to the apartment.

Julien's and Ana's taxi came for them at 6:00am on Tuesday. We were very sad to see them go. It's been so fun having 2 abuelas here! And we miss Julien very much. It's a good thing we have a Vonage phone here in the apartment (free calls to the US), and good wireless Internet for Skype! We spent Tuesday having a relaxing day of regular meals and naps and playing in the park - trying for a "normal" schedule for all of us. Julien called Tuesday evening to say they arrived home safely, and with all their luggage!

Wednesday and Thursday have melded into a blur. Some firsts from those days:

• We discovered that Isabella really likes feeding herself. She has just about mastered getting baby "puffs" into her mouth on the first try. She likes feeding herself so much that she doesn't like to open her mouth for the spoon.
• Isabella also likes to feed herself pandeyuca (bread made from yuca aka cassava and cheese) and french fries.
• There is a sandbox in the park across the street, which required us to get some sand toys for Esteban to play with.
• Esteban has gone pee in the big potty (standing up!) twice! We've been talking about potty training for months, and relaxed all efforts when we knew we were coming to Colombia soon - so this is a big step!
• Sabeth has realized that she may never get anything done (like blogging or watching her DVDs) in the evening if Esteban refuses to go to sleep before 10pm!

It's Friday - we had another low key, low stress day. We've been in the apartment a whole week. It's cold in the apartment! Most homes in Colombia (or at least in Bogota) don't have any kind of heat - and this one is no exception. It's been near 50 at night and only in the mid 60s in the daytime. The apartment doesn't have many outside windows and so we don't get much warming effect from the sun. Good thing the kids have warm pjs and the beds have nice thick blankets on them!

Salt Cathedral

We spent Friday getting settled in, and today we took a day trip to the Salt Cathedral in Zipaquirá. North of the city, the trip took about 2 hours to get there because we took the scenic route and had a very safe (meaning, slow) driver. The Salt Cathedral, the newest version of which opened in 1995, is an old salt mine. You walk into the mine and down, to see the stations of the cross and several sanctuaries that are all underground. It's an amazing and beautiful creation. The kids both slept in the stroller for most of the time we were in the mine. Esteban had been really excited to go in a cave and fell asleep soon after declaring it "Really Cool!" After the walk down into the mine and back up, we went to lunch and headed home to our new digs.

It's amazing to see how both kids are adjusting every day. Esteban is already calmer here at the apartment, with his own toys and own space to play in. That doesn't mean he isn't having tantrums about other things, but he is calmer and eating better. Isabella is connecting more with us all the time, though we discovered that she doesn't like to go to sleep alone. We think she probably shared a room with other babies in her foster home. Since we were all together in the hotel room, we didn't notice it before.

Tomorrow we're hoping to get out and walk again for Cyclovia (when they close the streets to autos on Sunday) and go to the flea market at Usaquen with Grandmas Dawn and Ana. Then, we hope to go to lunch at the Halifax, where they may be having empanadas!

We moved to an apartment

On Friday (that was yesterday, wasn't it?), we moved to the apartment where we will stay for the remainder of our time in Bogota. It's a bit further north in the city, and the improvement in air quality from the area around the hotel was noticeable! It's 2 bedrooms, with an office that also has a decent sofabed, 2 bathrooms, free internet and wireless, and free phone calls. It also has a maid who comes 6 days a week to cook, clean, grocery shop and do the laundry - and she's included in the price. Milena, the maid, also loves children and is great with both Esteban and Isabella. The apartment is in a nice neighborhood, and has a park right out front. There is a line of shops on the other side of the park, where we can find just about anything we need - even a $5 box of wine that is reasonably drinkable. We will miss the comforts, staff, and comraderie of the Halifax, and plan to return to visit regularly.

Coffee Plantation Trip

Wednesday was Grandpa Julien's last day with us, and to celebrate we took a wonderful day trip to Hacienda Coloma Coffee Plantation. It took about three hours to get there from Bogota (1.5 hours was in Bogota traffic). We headed south out of Bogota and saw a different side to Bogota than we had previously witnessed. We passed through some very poor and crowded parts of the city. Soon afterwards we passed into rural Colombia, where you can see all levels of housing and people often graze their cows and goats next to the road. We stopped along the way for a late morning refreshment of typical Colombian food - arepas filled with cheese, grilled chorizo, potatoes, and coffee (of course). This photo is outside the restaurant.

Our trip took us up about 200 meters over a mountain pass, and then down into a valley and up again to Fusagasugá (the town where Hacienda Coloma is located). At one point we crossed the Rio Bogota - one of the most polluted rivers in the world - it was black in color, and smelled awful! It was much warmer down at 1700 meters elevation. We were the only guests at the plantation when we visited. We spent about 45 minutes being shown around by Jorge Rico, our driver/guide for the day. We saw the plantation house and grounds, the coffee grove, the harvesting, drying, roasting and grinding processes. The beans are harvested twice a year, and since this isn't harvest season, we didn't see the plantation in full action. Esteban had a great time with a stick and a baby orange he found - as only a 3 year old can! Isabella was too hot and complained loudly. We tasted oranges fresh off a tree, coffee beans fresh picked from the plant, and some amazing coffee and coffee liqueur produced on location.

After the coffee plantation tour, we had a delicious lunch at a nearby restaurant. Esteban discovered that he loves fresh arepas (small corn meal cakes) grilled and buttered.

After lunch Jorge took us to the fruit market in Fusagasugá. It was a great chance to see so many different kinds of fruits and vegetables - all being sold by the people who grew them. Colombia has more than 200 different kinds of fruit that grow here, so we were able to ask about some of the unfamilar ones.

After dinner back at the hotel we said goodbye to Grandpa Julien, whose taxi came to take him to the airport at 6:00am on Thursday.

Esteban's Birthday and ICBF visit #1

Esteban turned 3 on Monday! We celebrated with a long visit at the park on a very sunny afternoon, and dinner with Julien's parents, who arrived in Bogota over the weekend. We went to dinner at a local chain called Crepes and Waffles, where Esteban got 2 desserts! Isabella had a grand time at dinner being sociable with her grandparents. We are so excited to get to celebrate Esteban's birth in the city of his birth.

Tuesday morning we had our Integration Interview with ICBF (Instituto Colombiano de Bienestar Familiar), the child welfare agency. The meeting was to determine if Isabella was integrating into our family well and if we would be a good match with her. At 8:50am, we were trying to get ourselves all clean, dressed, and presentable looking when Sabeth's mom showed up (she flew in on Monday night). Grandma Dawn saved the morning! She was able to entertain the kids while we got ourselves the rest of the way dressed and the bags packed. Our taxi arrived at 9:00am and we were off to the meeting. Helena, our representative, warned us to be ready to wait when we got there, so we took plenty of snacks and things to entertain the kids. As we were waiting in the hall, another family joined us - and they recognized Isabella! Their son had been in the same foster home with her and they had photos of Isabella and he together. Our lawyer arrived, and we were called into the meeting room with the Defender of Minors. She asked several questions about how we were adjusting to Isabella, her needs and health, and how Esteban was adjusting. After about 10 minutes of questions and answers, she said she was officially signing responsibility for Isabella over to us. We all signed the papers. Then she talked to Esteban about how he is responsible for being Isabella's big brother, and she had him put his fingerprint on the documents as well.

We came back to the hotel and went to lunch with all the grandparents to celebrate! At 3:30pm the hotel hosted a birthday party for Esteban and another little girl who turned 4 on Tuesday. They each had their own cake, and everyone from the hotel came and sang Happy Birthday (in English, Swedish, Finnish, and Spanish - all the languages currently present in guests and staff). The cakes were delicious! Thanks to all who emailed and posted birthday wishes for Esteban.

And here' s the video of Isabella I promised - it's only about 45 seconds because that's all Google will upload :)

Another sunny day

We have been so blessed with sunny days! We are well aware that it's the rainy season and sun is a rare occurrence right now. Today was beautiful - and made more so by the minimal traffic in Bogota on Sundays. Every Sunday, Bogota closes miles of roads for Cyclovia. Cyclovia promotes cycling and other outdoor exercise by closing many streets from 7am - 2pm. We joined the people and walked! We went to Usaquen to the flea market, which is filled with wares from local artists. I know we'll be going back there and will describe it in more detail later. Since it took an hour to get there (that's a long walk at 8600 ft elevation!), we took a taxi back to the hotel. Isabella was hungry when we got in the taxi so she ate while we were in the taxi. Something about the bottle or being in the taxi didn't agree with her, and as soon as we got back to the room, she vomited all over me. Not spit up - full on projectile vomit. It was inside my bra. I wish we'd grabbed the camera and taken a picture - it was that memorable. She went down for a nap and I took a shower!

One of the great things about sunny days here is that clothes on the line dry really quickly. The hotel has washers for guests to use, but no dryers, so all clean laundry is line dried. The lines are sheltered from the rain, but things dry quickest on sunny days.

When Isabella woke up she was hungry, and Esteban wanted to help feed her. He held her on his lap and helped me hold the bottle. It was such a beautiful late afternoon that we walked to the park that is a few blocks away to visit the playground. We were amazed at how many people were there! The playground was mobbed!

Once again, the kids were asleep by 7:30 (Isabella) and 8:20 (Esteban) so we can hope for a decent night's sleep for all of us.

I was going to post a short video of our girl in action but it's 3 MB larger than Google allows, so I'll have to shoot a slightly shorter one tomorrow.