Christopher Sorensen, Astana city, Press Attache of the U.S. Embassy in Kazakhstan
Janelle Sorensen, Astana city
About us
Christopher. My father is a diplomat, so I often lived abroad, studied at high school in Moscow, and graduated in Almaty.
Janelle and I met in 2008, when I returned from Switzerland, where I was doing an internship. I have a good friend in Moscow, and Janelle was his cousin's best friend. And at one of the parties we met. Here our versions differ. I say that she was the first to approach me, but she claims that I was the first to approach.
That evening we sang karaoke, I felt happy, and the smile did not leave my face.
Janelle. My first impression was that Chris looked younger than his age. I was 23 and he was 21, but he looked like a teenager.
Christopher. When I first saw Janelle, I thought she was too beautiful for me, out of my league. I even told my friend that she's beautiful, but I don't have a chance. But somehow I did it.
We were young when we got married. I was 24 and Janelle was 26. But we enjoyed spending time together. I think you realize that you love someone when you start taking care of them, and their needs become more important to you than your own.
We both come from big families. I have five brothers, and Janelle has six sisters and one brother.
Janelle. Chris knows my family well, as we often went to their family dinners on Sundays.
Christopher. While we were dating, my parents were in Germany and Azerbaijan, so for a long time they did not know Janelle personally.
Family Rules
Christopher. We have four children, which is a big family by American standards. Due to the fact that I am a diplomat, we constantly move from one country to another. And when you come to a new country, you don't know anyone or anything. At times like this, family is all you have. I am glad that our children are always together, they are friends, and they have each other anywhere, so the relationship between them is important to us. It was the same for me as a child. My brothers and I have a close relationship, often they were my only friends in a new country.
Janelle. Our eldest son, Aiden, is 12 years old. He loves video games, Rubik's cube, music, fantasy and chatting with friends. He also plays volleyball. Aiden helps us around the house, loves to cook and look after his youngest brother.
The second son Alex is 10 years old. He loves to play rugby, and in general is not indifferent to sports. He also plays the drums. Alex is an active child, likes to walk, go hiking. And he's also good with small children. One day he will have a big family.
Our third son Oliver is seven years old. He's an artist, loves to draw, mostly monsters. This is his way of showing his creativity, this is how he develops his imagination. He's our family's cheerleader. We always hear words of support from him: "You can do it, go ahead." He has a lot of energy.
The youngest Phineas is four years old. He's like a little bullet, curious and loves to learn. He has a lot of LEGO — he's a little engineer. And he adores Mom.
Sometimes Americans try to keep their children busy to the maximum: sports, extracurricular activities, contests and competitions on weekends. We try not to overload the children, we give them the opportunity to stay at home together, enjoy each other's company.
Christopher. If we talk about the distribution of responsibilities in our family, then we all help each other.
We all help each other.
Janelle. When we had children, we decided that it was important for one of us to be at home. Before the children were born, I was a teacher, then I left my job to be with them, to organize everyday life.
Christopher. At the same time, we are a modern American family. When I'm at home, I take care of the kids, cook dinners, wash dishes, clean.
We don't have clear 50-50 assignments of responsibilities. Sometimes I come home from work dead tired, Janelle understands this and gives me a break. Sometimes she gets exhausted, and I try to do more to help her. We support and understand each other.
We are not strict parents. We don't have many rules, but there are several standards. It is important for us that children consume only inspiring content, without negatively affecting their lives. It's about understanding what values are welcome in our family.
Another rule is no screens in the bedrooms: no phones, no computers, no televisions. They will receive phones only when they get older. Even our eldest son doesn't have a phone, he's the only one in the class without one.
A smartphone is a lot of pressure, dependence on social networks. It is necessary to give children freedom in this direction. So that they grow up and understand the risks of using social networks.
Janelle. We have a lot of traditions, they are important to me. We always celebrate holidays.
Christopher. Christmas, Thanksgiving, Halloween are the big holidays that we love to celebrate.
But we even celebrate events like Valentine's Day. For us, this is a family celebration and an occasion to spend the day together. Bake cookies in the form of hearts or cook a special dinner, watch a funny romantic movie.
Janelle. We also have daily traditions. I love cooking with children. Once a week we have family evenings where we discuss how the week went, play games, and enjoy each other's company.
We go bowling on Christmas Eve, we eat Mexican food at Christmas, we have a grand egg hunt at Easter, like my grandmother used to do, then my mom, and now we.
On weekends we like to walk, watch old 80s movies, and go to church on Sundays.
Our experience
Janelle. Raising children is a lot of work, it's difficult, but at the same time you live great moments with them.
Christopher. I read a book on how to be a parent. There was a phrase: Being a parent is not always fun, but being a parent is always happiness. In these happy moments, when your little child looks at you with love, you experience true pleasure.
Once I heard the phrase: Never go to bed angry if you have a fight. If you're mad at each other, you should end the argument and resolve it before you go to bed. That's the worst advice for me. If you are angry at each other, go to bed, because the next morning it will be better.
You must be tolerant of each other, of your children.
Janelle. As my grandmother used to say: You can't spoil children with excessive love, I follow this advice.
