Traveling in Armenia is a feast for the senses, particularly where food is involved. Dolma, kufta, amazing yogurt and ice cream…and of course, Pakhlava (which many other countries call Bakhlava)! Here are a few pictures of delicious treats I enjoyed on my visits to Armenia. Delicious Armenian dolma Sweet fruit leather Lamajoun Armenian Pizza: lamb […]
Armenia
A picture is worth a thousand words: Travels in Armenia
“You’re still you and we’re still us,” Big Papa told me the other day. He’s right, of course. But in the past couple months it’s been hard to remember this in the midst of tackling various issues around two parents with dementia, one going on Medicaid and one about to move into an assisted living […]
Pampers turns one!
Happy Birthday Pampers and Pakhlava! Today my blog turns one. It seems like just yesterday I was sitting in front of my computer screen, forefinger shaking as it hovered over the ‘publish’ button. I’d never written about something so personal in such a public venue. This was a big leap. I was full of nervous […]
Can’t see the forest for the trees
Our adoption agency sent an email letting families know that the new laws regarding Armenian adoption have been published and there are several changes to update families on. They will be sending each family a personalized letter with their current status, place in ‘wait’ and details about how the new laws will impact them. All […]
Why aren’t you adopting from Haiti?
If I had a $10 for every time someone has asked me recently why we aren’t adopting from Haiti, I could probably fund the update to our home study (more on this in an upcoming post). Here’s the thing, even if we wanted to adopt from Haiti, we can’t. In the wake of the disaster […]
The color of pomegranates
Shenoraavor Nor Dari yev Pari Gaghand! That’s ‘Merry Christmas’ in Armenian. While the glow of the holiday season is fading in the U.S. and Christmas trees have been stripped of their glory and are heading to the curb, today is Christmas Day in Armenia. Armenian Christmas is celebrated January 6. So it is both ironic […]
Brandy is dandy
My copy of ‘The Cuisine of Armenia’ by Sonia Uvezian arrived in the mail today (thank you Amazon.com). If it weren’t for the fact that the Urban Cabin’s kitchen is still mid-remodel, I’d be diving right in to cook Armenian vittles for Big Papa and I. Unfortunately, I am without a stove for the moment, […]
Half my life
Walking along the Seine in late summer, I watched the sun sparkle across the water. With a baguette tucked under my arm and a chunk of French runny stinky cheese wrapped in paper, I strolled and nibbled my way along the quaint cobbled streets of the Left Bank. The year was 1985 and I was […]
Hurry up and wait
Waiting makes me grit my teeth, pull my hair and worry. I’m a take charge, can do sort of gal. I like to get stuff done and make things happen. Patience is a virtue I’d do well to cultivate a bit more. When we were doing our home study and getting all our documents together […]
From Here to There
Kazakhastan, Kyrgystan, Taiwan, Marshall Islands, Ethiopia, Georgia, Armenia – what did I know about any of these countries before I entered the world of international adoption? When you’re nearing fifty, newly married for the first time and interested in adding a child to the mix, the learning curve for adoption is steep. Domestic versus international? […]