Sunday, Dec. 20

It was a special day with our baby because we got to feed her a bottle of apple juice, and rock her to sleep for her afternoon nap. She nestled into Wendy’s arms, doing her best Dizzy Gillespie impersonation.

There we were, the three of us huddled on the floor-- baby in Wendy’s arms, Wendy leaning into Joe’s arms, and Joe propped against the table. She cried a couple of minutes for the first time, but soothed very easily, especially when the apple juice arrived. We had been concerned that up until now, we hadn’t heard a peep. But rest assured, we’re pretty confident that she’s got great windpipes, when she needs them. Wendy’s hoping for another soprano in the family.

Upon leaving, we had some fun in the newly fallen snow. In keeping with Joe’s brother’s request, Joe re-enacted an inspirational scene from “Rocky IV.” After all, he had to take advantage of being so close to the Russian border-- “Drago!!!!!”

Our translator gave our daughter two wonderful bracelets, which Wendy quickly confiscated, until she’s old enough to wear them. Back at the hotel, Joe speedily moved us back to our upgrade room. However, as the temperature rose and the snow began to melt, we noticed some trickling water coming down our walls. Hopefully, this will be remedied soon.