The past six weeks have been a whirlwind. We brought home Sally. We had a two week quarantine due to COVID exposure. We did a family photo shoot around Kyiv. We made some fun memories with new friends. We experienced the traumatic and devastating loss of a dear friend. We tried to make the most of the fall break school holiday despite our fresh grief. It has been a whirlwind. Here are the photos from the last several weeks in Kyiv.....
Peter and I brought Sally home the second week of September one afternoon while the girls were at school. She was hilarious that first day because she had never left the apartment where she was born. She was ready to explore her new world.
And these two were soooo ready to have their new sister home.
Our Sally girl is so sweet. She has settled into our family really well. The first week of night time potty breaks and accidents weren't fun, but she the house training has it down now and we are so happy to have her.
We have enjoyed our beautiful autumn weather as much as possible because we know the sunshine will go away soon. Lots of outdoor meals have been had.
Sarah Avery has loved school. Because of COVID procedures, they have to have their picture taken with their show and tell item and then we email it to the teacher for the smart-board. This particular week she "brought" monkey. ;)
One of Susannah's classmates had COVID, so she had to do 14 days of quarantine. Sally helped keep her spirits up during her zoom classes.
These two. They love each other so much. Until they don't. But for the most part, they are such a good support for each other.
We have tried to take advantage of warm sunny, weather and patio dining while we can. This Saturday, we had brunch at an adorable french place.
It was a lovely meal.
After lunch, we took a walk around some of the Kyiv landmarks. This is the friendship arch. Ironically, it was a gift from the Russians.
I love this Kyiv sign that is under the arch.
The girls rode the carousel that is on the square under the arch. I am painfully aware of how big they look and it makes me want to sob.
This statue sits under the arch. It is of a Russian and a Ukrainian holding their hands up together in solidarity. Apparently activists sometimes try to fashion barriers between the hands.
The girls wanted to ride the little cars again. (These are everywhere in Kyiv....every park ect.)
Cruisin'
This is a brand new walking bridge that connects the arch to another part of the city. It has amazing views.
This picture cracks me up because it perfectly reflects family dynamics......Sarah Avery airing out a complaint about the sun being in her eyes while I implore her to cooperate with peaceful Susannah in the middle. ;)
As I mentioned in the intro, we experienced a horrible tragedy a couple of weeks ago when our friend was tragically killed in an accident while jogging. This family was our closest friends here in Kyiv. We are still devastated over her loss. This picture was taken one of the days after Micala died; days we spent at their house, helping as best we could. Sally was such a blessing and brought so much joy to everybody even in the ocean of grief.
Micala's oldest daughter Kiera was Susannah's best friend (pictured here with their other friend Maya) so their departure has been tough on her. This family was so kind, so full of life and generosity.......we are still in shock over the loss of the beautiful mother, wife, friend and social justice advocate that we already loved so much.
KIS had spirit week before fall break and one of the dress up days was heros. Susannah was Susan B. Anthony and SA was Hermione Granger.
Honey has adjusted to Sally's arrival well. She even seems to enjoy playing with her. Sometimes. ;)
Last weekend, we had family pictures taken on a little walking tour of the Kyiv sights. This is where we started. The girls were troopers. Hopefully one of the pictures will be in your mailboxes in December as a Christmas card.
Sarah Avery and Peter went on a little excursion to a nearby park one afternoon when Susannah wasn't feeling well. She loved her time with Daddy.
Susannah was jealous when she heard that the outing involved cotton candy. ;)
We spent one day of fall break at a great little zoo about an hour outside of Kyiv. It is privately owned and was actually pretty nice.
Friends had told us to look for the monkeys with mustaches. We found them.
This cracked me up.......the homo sapien exhibit. ;)
We saw several baby animals, including these adorable pigs.
The girls were in heaven at the petting zoo because you could feed the animals.
This white tiger was beautiful.
And this little bobcat just stared at the girls. It was a great day overall.
The other highlight of fall break was our dates with the girls. Peter took Susannah to lunch and bowling, while Sarah Avery and I had lunch, went to an English bookstore and rode the ferris wheel.
Apparently bowling was a hit so we will be doing this again as a family as long as COVID restrictions allow.
Susannah had her first strike.
Sarah Avery and I had a blast. Even if this creakiness of the ferris wheel was a smidge nerve-wracking.
And there you have the Mallory family update. Thank you to everybody who prayed for us during the loss of our friend. We love and miss you all so very much. Hugs from Kyiv!
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