... And Other Summer Odds and Ends...

(...that we have pictures for...)

     Leif went to Mongolia a few years ago with a team of Russians and Buryats.  There they put on a kids day camp and worked together with this Mongolian pastor, Sheika, and others from his church.  When we heard that Sheika and his family were driving through Ulan-Ude and needed a place to stay, we were happy to accommodate them!  We went on a little walk, and they treated us to some ice cream.

     That evening we invited out pastor over to continue a dialogue of how we can partner together with the Mongolians in reaching out to the Buryats (their close relatives).  It was also encouraging to hear a story of one young man who came to believe in Christ through the day camp we helped with in Mongolia and how he's now a leader in the church and on fire for God.

     

     I also continued going to my English discussion group with other women throughout the summer.  It was fun to bring Elaine along with me while she was visiting.  She was able to share her story and asked others good questions.

     Also when Elaine was here, Oxana invited our whole family out to her place.  She taught us how to make blini (Russian crepes) and shared her life with us.  It was so special how she and Elaine connected.  We prayed for one another and enjoyed an afternoon of encouraging each other.

     We have a tradition to celebrate the 4th of July with Inka in the village.  We were busy on the actual 4th (as it's not a holiday here!), but we still made it out there a few days later and enjoyed hamburgers over the fire and a great time with Inka.

     We also visited the Ratinkovs while we were out there.  It was very hot (100 degrees), and the kids cooled off by dunking in this barrel.  Neighbor kids also joined in the fun!

    

 Ratinkov and Gustafson kids

We all had a very fun water fight!

    


     The girls were a part of their first piano recital.  They both had such poise and gave big smiles.


     It's fun to watch and hear them progress.  These are skills they will use their whole lives!

Anneka went away to camp this summer for a whole week- all by herself!

     She had a great time!  Each kid had a special passport and throughout the week they tried different foods, learned about different cultures, and heard missionary stories from various countries.


     We didn't even talk to her on the phone all week (although I packed little notes for her to open each day).  When she came home, she wanted me to get recipes for most of the meals and had great stories to share of what she'd learned and friendships she'd made.  There were several kids there from a local orphanage.  A lot of people were praying for this camp, and we see how God was greatly at work!

     Martina's mom came for a visit this summer, and their family invited our family to join them one afternoon on a ropes course.  It was fun for the kids and a chance Martina's mom to get to know us and us to know her.  That's Anneka up there!

     It's nice because they had a lower course for younger kids.  In my opinion it was just as difficult as the higher course, but it didn't feel as scary, and we could be nearby to help, if needed.

The kids had a lot of fun!

     There was a zipline at the end of the lower course, and the man who worked there flung Ike and Ella with all of his might.  They squealed with fear and delight!

     After the ropes course, we sat by the fountain.  Dave dared Anneka to run through the middle.

Of course, she did!

     I enjoyed a special birthday with my family.  We went to see the Dori movie at the theatre.  It was the first time Ella and Ike had been to a movie in Russia.  We all enjoyed it very much.

     Leif's mom's birthday gift to me was to have a photographer here in Ulan Ude take our family pictures.  We had fun and got a lot of pictures that we love!

I like this one with the kids.  They were truly running, hiding, and playing with the photographer.  =)

     Then after the pictures, we went to a nearby cafe for my birthday dinner.  A little girl there was celebrating her 5th birthday, and her family invited our kids in on the fun.  They had paid to have a fairy come and lead the kids in games and special activities.  Really it was a gift to me!  Leif and I sat outside and enjoyed the summer evening air while the kids ran and had a blast.  

    They gave our kids hats and balloons.  Our kids love posie, the Buryat national food (steamed meat dumplings).

     Anneka has a pen pal in Las Vegas that is her age.  I took this picture of her mailing a letter.

     Our neighbors gave us a huge bag of cucumbers, and our kids love to eat them whole.  On this day, they each grabbed one before we went outside as a snack.  I thought it was so funny and cute.

     My grandma sent us money to eat out at a nice place for dinner.  Our friends told us about this restaurant that was up on the top floor of a tall building, and we tried it out.  There was a beautiful view and great food!

My Grandma says this picture of Ike reminds her of her brother, Billy.

     When Elaine was here, we wanted to take her to the circus, but it turned out to be super expensive with really bad seats.  So we went bowling instead.  We went on a special day where it was only $2 for all 6 of us to bowl for an hour (which, with little ones, you don't want to go longer!)

     We also took Elaine to the main Orthodox church in town.  While we were there, people were lighting candles and bowing to icons.  It created lots of good discussion with the kids.

outside of the Orthodox church

     We don't have a kids' program at church in the summer, so the kids run around and play outside.  Ike played and played with his buddy Rostik.  All the kids came home filthy and happy each Sunday.

     While Anneka was at camp, Ella was jumping and fell back on her finger.  It really hurt her and swelled up, but I figured it would get better.  By day 5, it was only getting worse and she couldn't move it, so I took her in to the doctor.  They gave her an x-ray, and the surgeon sent us to the kids trauma center and said something was broken and we needed to have it bandaged a special way.  But when we got to the trauma center, the guy there said it will heal on it's own and there's no need to do anything.  So we went back home.  And after a couple of weeks it got better.  =)  We may never know if it was actually broken.  But we had a little adventure, and it was a fun story for Ella to tell her big sister when she returned from camp!

     Our friend Larisa invited us to her birthday party with some of her artist friends.  It was interesting to meet them and an honor to be there. 

     One day we were running around town, looking for t-shirts to be printed for English Club on Baikal.  It's not a simple task like it is in America to find plain shirts, all the same color, with the right sizes!!  We took the kids with us everywhere and as a break let them have a few minutes of fun choosing one thing at the city square to do.  Ike chose this bike-car.

Anneka chose this horse.

... and Ella, this pony.  

     At one point in the evening, Leif split off with Anneka and I had Ike and Ella (to try and divide and conquer all we needed to do).  There was a lady begging, so I offered to get her food.  The kids asked to stay at the fountain, which was just yards away from the food stand (and within my view).  I decided to let them, with a fleeting thought that one of them might fall into the fountain.  Well, it turns out Ella did fall in!  We didn't have any spare clothes with us, so we bought her this outfit at the Chinese market.  She was simply delighted with her new shirt and shorts.  =)

 

Our kids took up "pigeon-catching" this summer!

 

 

     It was a little trickier for Ike to chase them down fast enough, so he made deals with the girls, telling him what he would do for them if they would catch him a bird.  =)

Don't worry, we made them wash their hands really well!