Settling in, birthdays, Kyiv

We've been in this house for two weeks now, and we're loving it. The quiet and the yard and good places to walk (without crowds!) are amazing.

Also, Asya's birthday was a week ago. She actually wasn't here with us on the exact day, but before she left, we celebrated with her, and now she has returned to us. Her Kherson friend who has lived in Poland, then Zhytomyr, and now Kyiv, came to spend her own birthday with Asya. Their birthdays are only a few days apart, and they sometimes celebrated together when they were little. This year they were together again, and we actually did what Asya wanted last year: Papa cooked meat on the grill, and we had dinner outside.

Actual birthday in Kyiv

The plan was that Ira would spend a few days with us, then the girls would go to Lviv together for a day, then Ira would head back to Kyiv. Asya already had a ticket to go to Kyiv on Friday, because she needs a new passport, so they would be seeing each other again soon. However they begged and begged for Asya to go earlier with Ira, and we gave in. That means Asya got to be in Kyiv for the whole week, helping our friends move to another apartment and spending time with Ira and other friends.

Will and Bogdan went to join Asya on Friday-Saturday. We had thought we would take a whole family trip to Kyiv for the passport and to see all our TCI friends, but when we found out that Asya only needed one parent with her at the embassy (little kids are required to have both with them, but big kids don't have to), I stayed back with Leo. Will, Asya, and Bogdan had a busy weekend in Kyiv, and Leo and I had a quiet time here. Mostly we just enjoyed the quiet and saw lots of rain. I also had several Zoom calls and time to think, read, and write.

 

Now we're back together. The travelers are tired, I'm well-rested, and the dog is overjoyed.