С Новым Годом!

     Happy New Year!  New Years is the biggest holiday by far in Russia.  We gave out some Christmas cookies to neighbors and a store worker for Christmas, and they weren't aware of what day Christmas fell on.  It's so interesting, as probably most everyone in North America knows it's December 25th!  Since everyone else celebrates New Years (and largely with family), we decided that we needed to celebrate, too!  However, with three small kids, we didn't want to go anywhere (Russians stay up ALL NIGHT.... the party BEGINS at midnight!)... so we invited the Jordans to come and spend the night at our place.  It was really fun.  We don't get to spend a whole lot of time with this family usually, and it was so great to have a ton of time to just have fun together!  We had fondue for dinner.  Alan said, "Fondue is fun to do".  "Yes it is, Alan, yes it is!"

Ike likes to feed people.  Here, he enjoyed feeding Eric.

     We went outside and lit sparklers and some small fireworks.  It was COLD (but fun)!  The kids were rolling around on the cold ground, so they were freezing.  We came in and warmed up with some hot cocoa.  Then we decorated some Christmas cookies.  We played a couple of games of Taboo and Beyond Balderdash and watched a short movie.

     Then at midnight, the fireworks started!  We had a GREAT view from our 7th story apartment which is on a hill that overlooks the city.  There were big fireworks as far as the eye could see, as well as big fireworks right in our courtyard.  (someone was even shooting them off of a balcony to the right of us).  We let Anneka stay up until 10:30, and then we could tell she was tired, so we put her to bed and promised to wake her up at midnight for the turn of the new year and the fireworks.  I have this picture to prove that she was awake because she doesn't remember a speck of it!  Her eyes were open, but she was still asleep!

     The Jordan boys are so sweet with our kids.  (Here they're playing hide-and-seek).  They all woke up and played nicely together the next morning.  Leif slept until after 8:00 and began making a great breakfast of pancakes and potatoes... and I got to sleep until 9:00!!!

     It was  relaxing day with the kids playing nicely and the guys playing Monopoly.  I got to skype with my parents and brother and talk with Juli.  We're blessed by having this family in our lives!  I had to post this picture of when Darin was getting ready to go.  I love how Ike is smiling and watching him from the couch.  =)

     I want to learn to play the guitar as my New Year's Resolution.  Leif said he'd teach me.  He taught me two chords so far.  I'm looking forward to learning more.  I think that this will be a good way for me to praise God and have an outlet, as I'm often home with the kids.  Both Leif and I have noticed what a difference music makes when it is in our home!

It's vacation time now (no school or work for most people), and we're on a later schedule.  This past week, Leif and I have stayed up past midnight each night drinking tons of raspberry black tea (with cream!) and playing a game called Lost Cities.  It's nice because the kids are sleeping in later now (8:00) that we don't have to wake Anneka for school.  It's dark in the mornings until after 9:00, so it's nice to get up a little later instead of at 6:30 and feel like it's the middle of the night forever.

Happy New Year!