Each day Zoya is learning more and more of what she can get away with, but the testing is continuous. When we must get onto her, she just laughs at us until she realizes the seriousness of our tone and face. All in all, I think we are being effective in teaching her that we are in charge as parents.
Lastly, though Zoya is 10 years old, Amy and I feel as if we have a toddler in the house (Sofia apartment) again. Zoya has had extremely limited experiences in her life. Amy gave her probably one of her first baths of her life (probably only had showers at the orphanage) on Thursday night. On Friday night, Amy let Zoya be a child and just splash and have a great time!! Though, I was not allowed to this party, it will be one of my favorite memories. Zoya was laughing so much it was amazing to hear!! All I could do is laugh from my seat in the living room! Once the bath was complete, Amy comes out of the bathroom soaked to the bone! Not to mention that the bathroom needed some mopping! Now each night when we say it is time to put PJ's on, she give us the hand signalling that it is bath time.....and the suckers we are, Amy takes her to the bathroom for a bath! It is also very cute to watch her and Amy blow dry her hair (even I have helped with her hair). Back to the toddler experience; we have to watch what we leave down. Her curiosity is rampant and she gets into everything. So we must keep anything harmful out of reach. This morning she saw me shaving my head and later in the morning, I wondered what was taking her so long in the bathroom, and as it is with most children, the quieter they are the more scared you get. Finally, I ask if all is ok and as she exits the door, one side of her face is covered in shaving cream. Oh, the life as a parent! Amy and I are just so excited for her, and as long as she does not get hurt, we are happy she is experiencing new things.....I am just glad she could not reach my razor!
Since my last post, we have had some fun being tourist as well as parents. On Friday, along with Ivan, we walked around Sofia and toured the Archaeological Museum and the Temple Sveta Sofia. On Saturday, we took Zoya to her first movie in a movie theater. We watched Rio 2 in Bulgarian. And the movie would not be complete without a jumbo popcorn, large bag of M&M's and a soda. After the movie we went shoe shopping and bought Zoya some new shoes. Not 100%, but Zoya may have been just excited about the new shoes as she was about the movie.
Later in the evening, we successfully connected with the boys via Face Time. Zoya and the boys were able to see and talk to each other for the first time!! It was so good to see the boy's faces!! But I think the time was so good for Zoya! She even told Stephen and Coen (Amy figured it out.....again, she is amazing at understanding Zoya) that she wished they were here so she could hug and kiss them! Then she said those precious words, Obicham te (I love you) to the boys!! It was so cool!! Zoya was so excited to see them and she talked about it constantly.
Today, we went for a tour of the Boyana Church (боянска църква) and the National Museum of History (национален исторически музей). The tours of these two venues were amazing......for Amy, myself and Ivan. Not so much for Zoya. As with 99% of all children, museums and historical sites are not all that interesting. None the less, there were at least playground equipment near both and she got to have some fun. As I have stated in prior posts, Ivan has a Bachelors in History so we do not just walk around, we get an education. It is so cool to learn so much about Bulgaria and its rich history!! So many of the museum items go back as far as the 17th century BC. The National Museum of History takes you to the early BC years and as you make your way around this large museum, you eventually make it to recent history. Amy and I are always in AWWWWW!! We thank Ivan for all our tours!!
Going back to Zoya not having much fun in the museums and other historical sites, she has really enjoyed the playground equipment we find. It is obvious she has not had much time on some of the equipment and can get scared at times. But that is when I get so proud of her. If I am with her and show her that all will be ok, she will give it a try (most of the time) and she proves she can do it. The smile on her face when she does something new is priceless!!
As with our first trip, the Bulgarian cuisine is very good! We have eaten many different things (again, we are so happy Ivan is with us most of the time to help us order). Today, I had ox toungue. I even convined Amy to try it and she admitted it was good and tender. I have had beef tongue in the past, so now I can take ox tongue off my list of new foods. Near our apartment is a tiny market with fresh fruit and veggies (it is like a small convenient store as well). The fruit and veggies come from a nearby so it is all fresh. All I can say it is absolutely wonderful and the best tasting fruit and veggies we have ever eaten. The staff at the market is very nice and helpful. I think the novelty of having some Americans come in the store often is neat to them.
Well, this post went longer than I expected and I know it may not been as exciting as prior post, but it is good for Amy and I to look back on our experience here in Bulgaria. This blog also serves as our future reminder of our first days with Zoya! If the last 4 days are an indicator of our future......We are so excited! God has blessed us dearly with two wonderful boys and now a wonderful daughter!! Today is Mother's Day! All I can say is....Stephen, Coen and Zoya have an Angel for a Mom!! She is the most wonderful person I know! She is not only my best friend, she is the most wonderful wife and mother of all three of our children!! Obicham te Amy!! Thank you for all you do!! Happy Mother's Day Amy!!
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