A stroll through the village

The weather was so beautiful the other day that Bella and I went for a stroll, camera in hand.

The path felt like it was lit by the sun bouncing off the trees and houses.

This is a beautiful time of year, and one that I have missed since being in tropical locations before we landed here in Atyrau, just about one year ago.

The colors are turning, bringing the beautiful Autumn reds and yellows:

The seed pods make a calm, rustling noise as the cool breezes rush through them.

Bella was surprisingly patient while I took my photos, but then again, she had fun with this cat that was frightened of her

The last of the roses are finishing up their blooms

and the butterflies are drinking their last sweet nectar before the cold winds and icy snowflakes begin to drop....

I hope Autumn lasts a little longer!

Nature's beauty

There have been some beautiful, sunny days here in Atyrau recently. The weather is certainly turning colder quite quickly. We have been lucky to have such sun around...though the last few days have been gray and dreary with dampness and rain in the air. The colder, winter months are upon us, knocking at the door.

Over the weekend I was able to capture a few pictures of creatures enjoying the last of the sunshine before the winter sets in.

I'm full of surprises

This time I surprised my niece, my Goddaughter.

She was graduating from law school, and I decided to go to it.

Long story is that we have been a big support for her throughout her three years, and even before that, deciding whether or not to even go to law school. I have always felt that I missed a lot with my nieces, my big brother's girls. I have always been very close to them.

So, when the email came that ended with...

"Love you, miss you, especially next weekend"....referring to her graduation weekend, I sprang into action!

I had been looking for an opportunity to get away from Atyrau, seeing as we are not going away during fall break, which is when the children have off a week from school. Most families leave the camp and get out during these breaks. The school has them every 8 weeks....but this year, we are saving up vacation days for my husband to spend with us at Christmas, and staying in town. So when that email came...I jumped at the chance!

I am so lucky to have such a supportive husband. He was the first one to say, why don't you go?! I couldn't say no now!

So, off I went, through Amsterdam, to Detroit, Michigan, and on to Auburn Hills, Michigan, which is where my niece graduated from Cooley Law School.

The autumn colors were just starting to show, which is one of my favorite times to be in the US.

I got there a day earlier than the rest of my family, seeing as I had much to do. I had to get papers notarized for our upcoming remodel/addition to our house, My gray hair was badly calling to be covered up, my nails were in desperate need to be painted....

and of course, I had to do some shopping to fill our cupboards in Atyrau with all our favorite treats from the US.

So there I was, driving around the rolling hills and green grasses of Auburn Hills.

Once Saturday came, I waited to surprise them all. First, there was the graduate, her sister with her adorable 8 month old baby, that I couldn't wait to see again, my Sister in law, who is the only one who knew I was coming (well, I had to get directions and hotel info from somebody!), and my niece's boyfriend. Since my SIL knew, she was texting me as to where they were on their drive. When she let me know that they were pulling in to the parking lot, I made sure to be sitting with my back to the open windows.

My nieces saw me first...and the surprised look on their faces was precious. The one that was graduating said...

You know, I looked in the window and thought, hhmmm, that girl looks like my Aunt. Then I realized it was you! We all had tears in our eyes and the hugs were warm and wonderful!

Next up, my dad, mom, sister and her son. So, the nieces went to pick up my brother at the airport while I waited, again. They were letting me know where the next batch of family was because they were texting them, and then texting back to me. So, again, I knew when they were pulling into the parking lot. My dad walks in, and I was sitting on a couch. He looked towards me, then took a double take, fixed his glasses, bent forward and said, Oh my gosh, BG, what are you doing here?! It was another wonderful moment.

I sneaked out, walking behind him, to surprise my mom and sister while they were still outside in the car. My sister yelled into the phone conversation she was having, Oh my gosh, BG is here, and my mom jumped out of the car and wrapped me in her arms.

I didn't get to surprise my brother in person. My SIL had mistakenly mentioned, while talking to him on the phone while he was waiting for his flight to Detroit, that they had brought their bags into my room while waiting for their rooms to be ready. It was so cute...she put her hand over her mouth and we all just laughed at the surprise she had given away. He was still quite shocked, just not in person.

It was one of the sweetest moments to be able to do this. I am so happy that I was able to be a part of my family in this very special moment.

Congratulations to my niece!

Tuesday's Photoshop

It seems like the group I am going out with for learning about our cameras and photo taking keep picking Tuesday.

So here are my favorites from our excursion yesterday to a local graveyard.

Kinda eerie I know.

Imagine walking around on a mish mash of graves...no nice straight rows, some without markers, some kinda above ground and covered in dirt, others deeper and more what we come to know like a graveyard.

The ones with this star symbolize they were part of the communist party...

Ten years and still fresh

I would like to pay my respects to all of those lost on

September 11, 2001.

It has changed all of our lives, forever.

I was walking outside of our house in Texas, ready to take my son to his Mother's Day out program. Neighbors were huddled in the street, calling out to me to join them. I was a little late already, but I still went over to their group. They were all talking about something inconceivable..

I asked innocently, What are you talking about?

They explained to me what happened. I missed the live coverage, but of course, saw the replays. My husband was sent home from his tall tower in downtown...everyone afraid that it could happen in their city. Ours was a city rich from oil, and in their minds, a possible target.

What we all didn't realize, is that we would forever feel like a target. It lessons with time...and of course, I do not live in fear of being a target. But my life and how I look at my fellow passengers on a plane, is certainly changed.

Let me say, I do not judge people. I try not to stereotype. I am quite tolerant of different cultures and religions.

It just is a sad reality that we live in a world where we have a guard up...

even if there isn't anything we can do about it.

So, I cried through the reading of the names today, and I watched those that are still suffering.

I thank God that it didn't affect my friends or family directly, as much as it has so many others, yet it still affects every one of us...

in every nation, in every religion, in every walk of life.

War on humanity is what needs to be stopped, in my opinion. We need to respect others.

It seems so simple, but then power and superiority gets in the way.

May all those that perished rest in peace.

God Bless America

and every nation

Comfortable

This is my new word.

It describes how I am feeling here in Atyrau. And it makes me happy.

When we first arrived and through most of the year until we left in June, I felt unsettled here. There were good days and there were bad days...as usual in any place really. For me though, it felt unsettling. I felt like there wasn't anything that interested me here...or was it that I was looking for too much outside of myself, and not enough inside of me.

This year (and yes, my "years" right now run on school years-August-August), I feel different.

Atyrau is a good place for me to be right now, to find me, to define me, to find what is interesting to me. There is a lot of time to do all this discovering here!

So, what is it I have been up to?

Well, I have been trying to enjoy the beautiful Autumn weather we are having right now.

I'm trying to spend a lot of time outdoors...either biking, walking Bella, or just sitting in our beautiful back patio.

The flowers have been blooming beautifully for us. Check out these sunflowers?!

They are massive!

They make me smile every morning.

I have been catching up where I left off last year with my Italian lessons. Yes, Italian lessons in Kazakhstan. I could learn Russian or Kazakh, and maybe it would be beneficial while I live here, but I get by. The locals and I have a great hand language going on, as well as a few words in each of our respective languages. So, I get by.

And I learn my favorite language that I have been wanting to learn for years, Italian.

My husband calls me the Italian Princess....well, I was actually the Italian Junior Honoree from the Italian Heritage Society of Pittsburgh, a few years back, when I was 17.

I have a scroll with my name on it to prove it, hahaha!

I have been learning it through the widely used computer programs found today.

Va bene..

I have started to learn more about how to use my camera, and what all those knobs and buttons mean. Usually I was randomly turning and pressing them, and now, I'm actually learning why I did that, and which way I might want to try next time!

It is still a long work in progress, but fun to try.

So, that's what's been happening in my world in Atyrau. I'm really enjoying life right now.

It feels good to be comfortable!

The daily routine begins...

Here we are at the beginning of another school year. Last Monday was the first day of school...filled with the promises, energy and hope for a great new learning experience.

My daughter was the most excited because she gets to join middle school...even though she is only in the 5th grade.

Here in Atyrau, since the class sizes are quite small and there is a limited number of teacher visas, the grades are combined. 5th is combined with 6th...therefore jetting her into middle school a year earlier than in most US schools.

Her eyes were wide with excitement, and she has loved it all...well, at least for the first week!

We have a new head of school who is brining a lot of new energy and excitement that was badly needed from what I saw last year.

The first days of school always remind me how precious time is, and how quickly it passes. This past summer flew by on the Key West breezes. I miss the relaxation of our home, but I framed it for us to remember those lazy days while we are here in Atyrau.

We have already booked the Christmas tickets and have the weeks marked on the calendar, counting backwards until we leave with tomorrow bringing week 15 :)

The weather is gorgeous here right now. The days still have the warmth of the sunshine but the air is crisp. The seasons are so true here. The summer was very hot, now in fall, we are warm and cool at the same time, winter is frigid and spring is a gorgeous explosion of color with the warming air to de-thaw everything it touches...(including me!)

I am hoping fall lasts for a long time...I'm not ready for the cold and snow yet.

Enjoy your week!