A Night Out…

A Funny AM…

I stopped by a park this morning to snap a few pics and found this man exercising.  He was so focused and determined he did not even notice me.  I admire his confidence and bravery, but must admit…I laughed the entire way home!!!

Things I love About Russia…UPDATED

I find myself to frequently giving a dissertation about all the things I do not like about Russia...I want to try to be more intentional in finding things I love about living here.

I love the market....everything is so fresh, colorful and fun and the people are such a delight!  Today, I was proposed to!!!  Of course I declined, but how funny!!!

I can get medicine without going to the doctor or having a prescription!

All the treasures I find...fresh figs, Dr Pepper, humus...they are never consistent, usually random, unexpected and always make me smile!!!

I think I am the only person in all of Russia who actually sits on the toilet sit, since I always find it up...so I never worry about getting germs!!! HA-HA!!!

I love that I can pretend to not understand when I am in a "predicament" or getting into trouble.

The majority of my conversations end up being like a big game of charades!!!

I colorful people, usual outfits and amazing hair colors...which leads to the freedom to simply being you!!!

I love our apartment...it is clean, bright, cheery and has lots of space and storage.

I love our car...I try not become dependent on it...but I love it!!!  I love zooming down the street with music blasting and singing at the top of my lungs...a totally funny and humiliating sight that I pray is never witnessed by anyone I know or will ever come into contact with!!!  I love being able to drive around with the AC on when we reach record highs or with the heater on when the rest of Russia is covered in ice.

I love that in a matter of minutes you can find something totally bizarre, funny or unusual...and all the stories that I can share.

Coffee and Sushi on every corner.

Getting to meet people from all over the World.

Great public transportation.

We can go sledding, snow skiing, ice skating...even ice fishing for almost half the year!

I love getting to go to Thailand for the holidays…or other destinations that would not be as affordable from the states.

I love getting to live a life that is a complete mystery to most of our friends. 

I love that my kids have passports full of stamps!

Everyday is a new adventure with new discoveries, new people and new memories!!!

Emme…

Emme learning to wink.

Emme learning to read…she can REALLY read.  I am sooo proud of her.

 

I love you Emme!!!

Hard At Work…

   

Another Week!

Visitors From Yaroslavl!!!

Happy Birthday Keith!!!

We hope you have a fabulous day and another year filled with priceless memories!!!  We love you!!!

Fall Friday…

I love fall!!!  The cooler temps, changing colors and crunching of leaves.

 

Bikes…

   

Soccer…

 

And silliness…

 

What a fun night!!!

Pictures Around Our Hood…

    

Being without a car for the majority of the week had its advantages…lots of random pictures and 2 pounds lost!!!

Car Problems…

I love our car.  I try to not love it, need it or depend on it…but I do!  Russia has fabulous, very convenient public transportation…but it still requires lots of walking and lugging around all of your possessions with you.  The bus driver is not sitting outside my door waiting to take me and my excess baggage wherever I want to go, adjust the temperature to meet my mood or would he be willing to listen to me sing at the top of my lungs completely off key to my choice of tunes.  I will not even mention the sense of power I feel driving a stick, racing down the road smiling as I fly past other cars…since of course I would never do that!!! 

Phuket

We are planning a trip.  Actually, I am always planning a trip…long or short, little or big…it really does not matter.  I love to go on adventures…which is actually sort of funny, since I rarely leave the little island that we live on and just across a bridge from the Hermitage, the largest Art Museum in the World, and surrounded by so many amazing treasures that I still have yet to discover!

Anyways, we are planning a trip to Phuket, Thailand.  Gideon loves to read and does a great job sounding out new words.  While I was researching hotels, he said, “F-u-k-e-t looks great!”  Let’s just say we had a quick lesson on pronunciation exceptions and are considering a change in location for our vacation!!! :-)

God Is Faithful!

I am a worrier.  I worry about my family, their safety, their happiness, their health.  I try not to worry and often rename concern…since the Bible does not say “Don’t be concerned about anything, but pray about everything!”

I really worry about Gideon.  How is he doing academically?  Is he having a good day?  Did he have fun during recess?  Recess has not been a highlight for him.  Yesterday, he reported that his class voted to have an additional recess for a special reward and said, “I wanted to cry!”

All night I worried about the extra recess.  Should I rescue him and take him some where special for lunch or just let him struggle through it on his own?  I prayed, but have such a hard time trusting the Lord with things that I can fix (or mess-up) on my own. :-)

I canceled sushi with a friend to join Gideon at recess.  Gideon had such a great time playing that he hardly knew I was there!!!

Lesson learned…again:  God is faithful and can be trusted…so live like it!!!

Consequences…

Emme’s first school punishment…5 minutes of lost recess.

Faces In Our Neighborhood…