Christmas Eve

We enjoyed a really nice Christmas Eve with Inka and Elisabeth (from Germany), the Wickers (from Canada) and the Hoffstetters (from Switzerland). There were only 13 of us, but our small living room was full- of people, warmth, laughter, and love.




Inka and I found real (large!) hams at the store and were so excited. We each prepared one. She picked out one that was covered in garlic and Elisabeth wrapped it in dough (a tradition in Germany). She even braided the dough, and it looked so pretty! I glazed ours with a pinapple sauce. I was thankful that Leif was willing to carve it!



I didn't really get a good table shot with everyone, but this is the idea (minus a few people and towards the end of the meal).


After dinner, we watched a video that Matthew and Heather Ann had put together to a great song by Reliant K (sp?). I didn't know that they had done it when we were watching it- it was so professional. I was SO impressed to find out they'd put it together. It was really powerful and worshipful. Then we sang some carols (and the German speakers sang some beautiful ones). Leif read us all the book "Annika's Secret Wish". It's a great children's book. You've gotta read it. Then we all played a game called "nouns in a bag" that involves describing with words and motions particular words. Our teams were really even, which made it fun. Inka and Elisabeth brought presents for the little girls. Anneka's is book about a princess where her little face is on every page. She likes it.




Each year since we've been married, Leif and I have celebrated advent for the 4 weeks leading up to Christmas with different readings and songs. We love it. This year, we did half of the nights when Anneka was awake and could join us and half when she was already tucked into bed so that we could focus without a busy girl running around. It's so great to reflect on Jesus' coming to earth and to joyfully anticipate His return!



Here's our nativity set. We have a "pregant Mary" that next year we'll begin the tradition of she and Joseph walking to Bethlehem and then we'll bring out Jesus on Christmas morning.

Merry Christmas!

Sled Ride

It just keeps getting colder and colder! Yesterday it got down to -37C/-33F. That's COLD. Especially on the walk back from church when you come up over the hill into our neighborhood- the wind blows something fierce and you feel like you can't breathe and you want to run or walk backwards or cover your whole face with your scarf or all three at the same time. Anneka likes riding on her sled. We pulled it out before Christmas because it's way more practical than a stroller. It's a little funny/crazy/scary watching when Leif pulls her over curbs or down hills, but she seems unphased by it. She fell asleep on the way to church, despite the jostling and the weather. However, I didn't let her stay sleeping outside. It was just too cold today. Here's a still picture of her, too:

Team Christmas Party

Last night we celebrated Christmas with our SEND team and two other missionary families. There were 35 of us crammed into the Kerin's living room (14 people aren't pictured). It was cozy and busy and fun. We ate lots of yummy appetizers and cookies and candies, sang Christmas carols, heard a devotional on Christmas from Michael, and opened presents. We did the kind of gift exchange where you draw numbers and pick gifts out of a pile or steal them from others. It's always fun to see what the "hot items" are. The things people want when living in Siberia are much different than what you would want while living in the States. Examples are: Hershey's syrup, mapeline, good Christmas music. We are blessed by our teammates!

Family Conference

Last Saturday, Leif and I went to a family conference put on by some of our friends with Family Life from the Netherlands and Irkutsk. They shared valuable information and it was good for Leif and I to talk about ways that we want to invest in Anneka and ways that we can help each other to do so. It was also encouraging to see the good turnout.

Here's a cool story: Years ago when Leif lived in Ulan Ude, he remembers walking in to a class for adults learning English after a long, cold, winter day filled with other activities and thinking, "What am I doing? It's been a long day, it's dark, it's cold, I'm really tired, and this club doesn't even tie in with the things I'm supposed to be doing". But he went. And he met a guy named Max there that he became friends with. They worked out together and Max started coming to church. Max's life began to change drastically and he began trusting Jesus. At this time, Max invited his friend, Valentina to come to church. Well, Leif went back to the States and heard that Max stopped walking with God did Valentina didn't keep going to church. Years later.... at this conference on Saturday, Valentina was there. She shared her story and she's returned to church (for a couple of years now). She's really excited about Jesus and has taken some Bible classes and is just hungry to learn, learn, learn. She's not married and doesn't have kids yet, but she wanted to come to this conference so that she could learn about godly marriages and families. It was really encouraging for Leif because he'd initially been so encouraged about Max and then he was really bummed when he heard that Max had fallen away from God. But Valentina is a reminder of lasting fruit and how God is always at work.

The picture above is of our friends who led the conference. Leif invited them over for dessert afterwards. I only had a few minutes to clean (our apartment often looks like a hurricane went through it because of a certain little someone). I tried to put Anneka's toys away 4 different times and then she scattered them all over. So, I desperately called our wonderful neighbors, Inka and Elisabeth and said, "Please! Can you watch Anneka for 15 minutes while I madly clean?" Not only did they watch her but Elisabeth gave me a cake she'd made to serve to our guests. Talk about dream neigbors!! It would've taken me 3 hours to do what I did in 15 minutes if it weren't for them. Thank you, I and E! It was so nice to have everyone over and to talk about what God's doing in our lives and how he's leading us.

I had to include a picture of Anneka with her Papa after bathtime. They're both so cute!!

Shopping

This picture was taken when grocery shopping with Inka a couple of months ago. But what's on my mind today is another kind of shopping: for clothes and gifts. Yesterday, Anneka and I bundled up and headed out into the shopping world of Ulan Ude. Leif asked for a fleece for Christmas (I won't tell you the end result of our search because it needs to be a surprise if he reads the blog). We (Anneka and I) seriously looked in at least 20 different places... all spread out in the city. We went to sports stores, uniform stores, outdoor stores, modern clothing stores, etc, etc... and do you know how hard it is to find this simple item?!?! At a few places they had one or two. But shopping here is quite different than in the States. You may find something perfect, but it is often available in only one size... and it usually is not your size. Also, since most clothing items are imported from far away, they are very expensive. We're talking $120 for a fleece that's the wrong size and isn't all that great-looking. Craziness. Another difference from the States is that few places have customer service. Often the workers will ignore you or you have to track them down if you have a question. And if you ask if there's another size, they don't say, "Oh, I'm sorry, we sure don't" or "We don't but I can order it for you", or "Try the store down the steet". They simply say "No". That's it. No explanation or anything. Sometimes it's really nice while shopping to not be bombarded with pushy sales people. And sometimes it's not. A few months ago I went shopping for jeans because all of my pants were hanging on me. I found a place that had quite a few pairs that looked really cute. I asked to try them on and the lady said, "No." "Why?", I asked, "I think these are really cute and I'd like to try them on. "They're too young for you", she told me. "You need to buy jeans like these" and she pointed to another rack of plain-looking jeans. The funny part is that the prices on the rack she pointed to were less-expensive, so she would've made less of a profit. I tried on the old-lady jeans that she suggested and said, "I don't know, can I try on another pair?" pointing to the rack with the cute jeans. "No", she said again, "these look good on you". And she said it like she was really mad at me. And you know the funniest part? I bought them. I'd been shopping for a long time, Anneka was tired, I needed pants that didn't fall to my knees, and I bought them. And I actually really like them now. Maybe the lady knew more than I thought! I've never thought of myself as an old looking lady before. Since when can I not wear modern-looking clothes?

Whenever I come across someone who exemplifies good customer service, I feel this strong urge to "reward" them and buy something. I walked by a lady yesterday who asked me if I'd like to buy a Christmas card, and I said "Yes!", even though I hadn't planned on buying one. (But now I have a card to give my teacher tomorrow). So funny.

On a pleasant note, coming home from the grocery store on Tuesday, our dowstairs neighbors helped me carry my bags up two flights of stairs... and I didn't even have Anneka with me! And people here are SO helpful and nice when I'm traveling around with Anneka- opening doors, making sure she's covered well, carrying my bags, etc. It all kind of makes up for the shopping woes, you know?

One Of These Is Not Like The Others

Celebrating Six Wonderful Years Together!

We returned today after two days at Lake Baikal to celebrate our anniversary. It was our least relaxing anniversary ever, as Anneka was with us, but it was still a really fun trip. We brought Anneka's baby bed (she's helping her papa assemble it in the pic above), stroller, and two backpacks onto a van crammed with 14 other people and their belongings. I'm not kidding, it was at least 90 degrees in that van. And we were wearing our long underwear and heavy coats because prior to riding on public transportation, you have to stand in the cold. Such a dilemna. Anyways, about two hours into our ride to Biakal, I said to Leif, "We're never doing this again!", as Anneka was tired and cranky and sweaty and wiggly. But about thirty minutes after we arrived, I'd forgotten the suffering and it was delightful.



We wanted to rent skis, but the staff at the resort said that we needed a couple more centimeters of snow to be able to use them. So we went on a little walk to the lake. It was so windy and cold that we didn't last long at all! It was -20C, but with the strong wind, it felt much colder. Leif acted like a wind block for Anneka.



We'd expected more of the lake to be frozen, but only the edges were solid. In the surf, we could see huge chunks of ice crashing around.




The food at this place is really good. We had fish at three meals, and Anneka loved it. That's pretty much all she ate. The rest of the time she ran around the dining facility like a crazy girl (in her clunky red boots). We'd try to reel her in, but the ladies working would encourage her by taking her into the kitchen and letting her look at and touch what she wanted. So we let her have her hay day. Last night, Leif and I rented out the banya (sauna and pool) and Anneka slept sweetly on the covered porch in her stroller. Such a good baby.

I'm so blessed to have such a wonderful husband. Thank you, Lord, for giving us six wonderful years together!!

The Big Decision

I'm sad to say that this blog is a bit boring... because our decision is to let Anneka keep her hair. At first, I was totally gung-ho about the idea of shaving her (shiny-bald-shaving-her). I envisioned a fun party in the bathroom, with the camera and laughs and shaving cream all over. I was ready to shave her right away. But then Leif didn't think we should (which kind of surprised me), but then I started thinking about it and I started having my doubts. I think when you love someone and they have a view that's different that you... your view starts to change. For example, I hate pickles. Leif used to like pickles. But now that he's married to me, he thinks they're kind of gross now, too. Anyways, I started thinking about Anita's comment about sweet little baby girls not having prickly heads and my grandma's comment about how would I like to have a cold head and I just couldn't go through with it, you know? And we really don't think it works anyways. It just would've been a fun thing to do. Besides, I do like her wispy hair (thanks for the affirmation, Amy). And the kicker was that we got a package two days ago with little hair clips that work GREAT in Anneka's hair. So, that's our decision. Thanks for helping us to make it. Sorry it's not very exciting. But don't worry- we live in Siberia and will have other exciting stories to share!

Our daughter named Bill

I haven't taken any pictures this week, as we've been busy preparing for and greeting the new family from Switzerland that's joined our team and taking care of Shannon's belongings and apartment for the months that she's in the States for treatment. It's been super-cold. I think I heard that it was -25C yesterday. These pictures are from last week. We went to the market to get a new faucet for our sink (a long, boring story that involves lots of water and mess) and saw these fake Christmas trees. Leif and I aren't too into fake trees, but the real ones aren't put out for sale until AFTER December 25, since Russians celebrate New Years as their big holiday. And we didn't want to get arrested for chopping down one from the woods. So we decided to get a small tree that we can use every year and we'll have the option of getting a live real one if we ever choose to. It's nice having our apartment decorated for Christmas!


We found some red fur-lined boots for Anneka the same day, and she's so proud of them. We got a great deal: $16... they're normally about $40 for babies. She likes them so much that when we're at home, she'll bring them to us to put on her so that she can walk around the house in them. She's definitely a little girl- she likes shoes, hats, and purses! We tried out some sleds as a Christmas idea for Anneka. All the little tots are toted on sleds in the winter instead of in strollers. It's so cute. On our way to the bus stop, a taxi driver practically begged us to ride with him. His price was good, and we had a tree, a sled, and other purchases, so we decided to go for it. He was really chatty and couldn't believe that we were Americans. He kept calling Anneka "Bill". At first, Leif and I were confused, but then we realized this was the only American name the guy knew, and so he thought it was the perfect name for our child. Haha.

My Russian language teacher is coming over in a few minutes. It's been so neat because we've been reading through a children's Bible for my lessons. It makes it so much easier for me to focus on grammar and new vocabulary becuase I'm already familiar with the stories. And it's even more cool because we can talk about the stories together. My teacher isn't a believer, but she's been attending a Bible study lately and she's sharing with me what she's learning. I love it! She's shared some things I'd never thought of before.

Stay tuned for tomorrow's posting of the BIG DECISION with Anneka's hair!!!

Warm Socks

Our local store clerk friend knitted some nice warm socks as a gift for Anneka (pictured on her feet). I thought that was so sweet! I love how easy it is to strike up conversations with people when Anneka is with me. I somehow feel a lot more brave in speaking and people are patient with my language blunders (probably because they have a cute baby to look at).

Anneka likes going behind the counter with the ladies because then she can look at (and grab at) the products more easily. She wants to touch everything, everywhere, all the time.

Many Blessings

We enjoyed a nice thanksgiving yesterday with our teammates as we remembered all of the blessings God has given us and celebrated together. There were 10 adults and 9 kids all crammed into the Kerin's apartment (there would've been more, but one family is still in Mongolia.) The kids were really good and loved playing together. Leif and I made apple pies (see picture above) and Leif also made stuffing. We thought we'd only have chicken this year, but Nadia, a Russian neighbor and friend of the Kerins found and brought a turkey. Mmmmm!



Before we ate the feast, the kids performed a skit about the history and meaning behind Thanksgiving. It was really cute. Then Elisabeth and Leif led us in a set of worship songs and we praised God together. Rebecca had asked us all to come prepared with a list of the many things we are thankful for from the past year. We read our lists and were amazed at how much has happened in 12 months and rejoiced at God's goodness.



While it is always hard to be away from our family back home, we are thankful that God has given us a second family in Ulan Ude.



I couldn't resist posting a picture of our bundle baby.



And about the head-shaving, we're still undecided. Leif leans toward "no" and I'm more of a "yes". I thought that Anneka was close to bald anyways, but there definitely is a difference between her head and Kristina's, which was shaven a week before this pic was taken. We'll make our decision in a few days!

To Shave Or Not To Shave: A Poll Of Our Audience

People in many countries around the world shave their babies' heads so that it'll grow back thick and lustrous. Many Russians shave their baby's heads at the year mark. Anneka's little friend, Kristina, just had her head shaved last week. And now it's gotten us thinking. Does it really work? All logic tells us "no". I mean, at first, it will grow back thicker because the hairs have been cut off and they'll come out thicker blunt-ended than with a natural, peaked tip. But would it really make a difference for the long haul? Kristina's older sisters had their heads shaved when they were babies and they have the prettiest, thickest hair I've ever seen. People in India do this and have you ever seen a thin-headed Indian? Not me.

So here's the question: Do we shave Anneka's head? Adriana (Kristina's mom) said, "who knows if it really works or not, but if I hadn't done it I'd have always wondered." And if we shave it, do we use a buzzer or do we bic it with a razor? Adriana is bringing Kristina over tomorrow to show me what she did with her. What do you think we should do? Please cast your vote!

A Sad Day

Our teammates took this picture a few weeks ago, before there was snow, but it kind of captures how we're feeling today.

This morning, our friend (and teammate) Shannon called from the States, letting us know that she's been diagnosed with cancer of the esophogas and stomach. This is all so shocking (she's only 37 years old) and we are still digesting the news. Shannon was just planning on being in the States for a couple of weeks for her cousin's wedding. She'd had her mom set up a doctor's appointment for her ahead of time because she'd been having some problems swallowing. But she totally didn't think it was a big deal. She found out that she has a tumor that's been growing for probably a couple of years and it's blocking 90% of the passageway! She'll know more details next week, but she will have to go through chemotherapy and surgery and doesn't know when she'll be able to return to Ulan Ude. Leif and Shannon were going to begin studying the Buryat language together after the new year. We love Shannon and are hurting for/with her as she's going through this time.

I also heard from our friend, Elaine, this morning. She had planned on coming to visit us for Christmas and we were so excited! She got her letter of invitation from Russia and was just waiting on getting her visa (she's living in China right now). They wouldn't let her pick up her visa until she had purchased a train ticket into Russia. But she isn't able to purchase tickets from her city, by phone, on the internet, or through a travel agent (her plan had been to fly to Beijing and then purchase train tickets the day her train was leaving). And we aren't able to purchase them for her from here. It's so ridiculous because if you get a visa from the States, you don't have to show plane tickets. And there is no law saying that you must do this. So it really seems like some sort of weird Russia/China mix that has caused a wall. The man at the consulate was not nice to her and kept saying "Nyet. Nyet." Poor Elaine. And now Elaine can't come for Christmas. So sad.

So it's been a sad sort of day.

Anneka Got Tagged!

Anneka was tagged by her friend, Evie, to answer these questions. The above picture was taken and given to us as a gift from the Russian family we stayed with in Kyzyl.


Name/Meaning: Anneka Dorothy ... Anneka is a Swedish name, which we thought went great with the last name Gustafson. It is another form of Hannah and means "gracious". We wanted a name with a feminine ending (a), living in Russia. We also wanted a name that has a Russian alternative. We often call her Anya here. Dorothy means "gift of God" and is after Anneka's great grandma. We call her by her full name all the time, and we can tell that she likes her name.


Age: 13 months

Nicknames: Nipper, Nippy, Nip, The Nippinator, Bozo, Bozey, Doofer, silly pants, bean, sweet baby, Anya, Annechka, Anyota

Favorite Activity (ies): Throwing items out of drawers, playing with flap books

Favorite Food: yogurt, cheese, broccoli, green beans, grapes, bananas, plums, dates, dried apricots, Cheerios

Least favorite food: baby pancakes. I made her a special batch out of baby cereal, mashed bananas, milk, juice, eggs... and she wouldn't even touch them. I froze them and pull them out every few days and she wants nothing to do with them.

Favorite Music: When her mama and papa read her "The Little Drummer Boy" book. She rum-pa-pum-pums along with us. Sometimes she'll pick up the book on her own and sing pum-pum on her own.

Favorite toys: anything that's not a toy (especially the telephone)


Favorite books: The Bellybutton Book, lift-the-flap books, peekaboo books, googly eye books

What makes her happy: making big messes, eating grapes or seeing a whole banana headed her direction, bathing, going on adventures (she lays completely still when we put her snowsuit on because she knows that we're going on an adventure), getting attention from everyone, tearing flaps out of books


What makes her sad: When her mama isn't close by. And it's best if both mama and papa are giving their undivided attention.

Anneka tags: Katie, Winston, Kariya

-21C and counting...

Our friend, Inka, hung her robe out on the balcony to dry and it came back a sheet of ice!



The entrance to our building has three doors. This is on the inside of the second door.



This is ice on our living room window.

Two more months to go until it's the coldest time of the year!!

The Bundling Process

Here is a normal process of bundling Anneka to go somewhere.
layer one:


layer two:


layer three:
(Leif likes to pull up Anneka's tights up high on her chest.)


layer four


layer five


layer six


layer seven: mittens, boots, and inner hat


layer eight: scarf and fluffy squirrel hat


And bundling under a blanket for the last layer (number nine)!

This girl, Lyra, has been coming to our church (and youth club and Bible study) faithfully ever since we met her through the day camps in the summer. It's so neat to see how excited she is to learn and she has lots of good questions about the Bible and about God. She gave Anneka this dress as a gift for her birthday! I thought that was so sweet. This week, I'll post a blog on all that's entailed in dressing Anneka to go outside.



Katia and Sasha were at church today (after their wedding yesterday)! There were so many other sweets at the wedding, that their wedding cake wasn't touched. So they brought their cake and leftover pizza and salad to church and we all ate it together afterwards. I usually think that Russian cake is very pretty and very icky-tasting, but this cake was the best I've ever had. Anneka slept through the whole service. We just parked her outside in her stroller. I know this seems mean, but she would've been too hot inside with all of her winter gear on and it's too noisy inside. She woke up refreshed and cheerful. And she got lots of "fresh air", which is very important here.

Katia's Wedding

Yesterday, my friend Valia and her daughter Lyra and son Vanya (yes, he's the one in pink that I'm holding) came over to make pizzas with me for Katia's wedding today. It was fun to have the time talking, and it was a blessing to have help because our electricity was out again in all of our apartment except for the refrigerator and oven! What a blessing that they worked! Anyways, it was so nice to have them because we were able to finish just as it was getting dark. Then we made dinner and ate by candlelight. Leif tried to fiddle around in the fuse box, but it was glowing and he almost died a few weeks ago trying to fix the wires (it burned a hole in our pliers!) so he decided to leave it alone. An electrician came last night and fixed it, so now all is well . Hooray!

I was thinking about how much work it would be to plan a wedding in Russia. Some things are more simple- there's one gov't office that everyone goes to get married. There are standard locations that everyone gets their pictures taken, etc. But Katia had to go to a bizillion different stores to find 10 candles that all matched! And to find a few yards of ribbon all the same color! She borrowed our dishes, since they are red and her wedding color was red. And she had different people prepare pizza and desserts and sandwiches. It was really neat to see how loved she (and her husband, Sasha) are and how many people in their lives support them.



Sasha and Katia radiated joy and many people sang, gave words of inspiration and encouragement, showed videos, and acted in skits (Leif was in a couple and I was even in one... I just didn't know it until they called me up there. Ha!). For one part, the emcee read different love letters and women in the audience had to yell out if they thought their husband wrote it. I didn't know that Leif had written one, but when I heard a letter, I knew it was from him. I yelled out and was relieved that I was right! The service was about 5 hours long, and this didn't include the trip to the government office to become official. Katia and Sasha's day began at 9:00am with the "buying of the bride", where Sasha proved his love for her, and ended at about 7:30pm. They must be so tired! But happy. It was fun to be a part of this special day.

Today I went to visit my friend, Lyena, at the fish market. We know that fish is healthy to eat but we're afraid to buy it here. We can trust Lyena, though, as she won't sell us something that's spoiled. Lyena is so sweet and is so crazy-busy right now. She works long hours at the fish market and is very involved with helping out with the youth in the church.



We got TWO packages today! It was so exciting. The lady at the post office would only give me one of them because the slips had Leif's name on them. I told her to look at the packages, saying that the person who sent the packages probably put both names on there, but she wouldn't look. I somehow convinced her to give me one, but she wouldn't give me the other. She said that Leif had to come get it. Oh, brother. But actually it worked out well because I was on my way to the fish market and Leif went by there later, as he found an apartment for our soon-to-be teammates from Switzerland. And then it was easy for each of us to just carry one. The funniest thing is that both packages did have both of our names on them. Sometimes things just don't make much sense. ANYWAYS, Anneka got this fun ladybug outfit from my mom's friend, Judy. Isn't it cute? And these great boots that she had trouble walking in at first (SO funny).



And this is Anneka talking on the phone with her gramma. She's copying us more and more. She's also whining more and more. It's such a dilemna for me because I can't stand whining, but she also can't talk yet, and I know she's wanting to communicate... and of course, I want to acknowledge that. So we've been working a lot on sign language to try and curb the whining. Yikes.

Oh, what a funny daughter we have! I was in the kitchen doing the dishes after lunch, Jami was in the other room taking care of laundry and Anneka was playing in the hall going back and forth between us with her ever improving mobility. I heard her coming in the kitchen and turned to make sure that she was okay, and instantly called out to Jami to come see what our daughter was up to. In the minute or so that she was alone in the hallway, she had pulled down the hat box and found her hat which she put on all by herself. Of course in early acts of independence there are varying degrees of success. Her face was covered even more than it is in the picture. In fact, from my angle it looked like her face was completely covered. I think that she could hear my voice though, because she made her way toward me at a good pace. What really got me laughing though was that she veered just to the left of me and into the cupboard which sent her plopping back onto her backside. She is such a good sport though and didn't mind that her mama and papa were laughing at her. Actually, she began to laugh with us and really enjoyed herself immensely. The second picture is showing her with her new favorite toys. She just recently started playing with her magnetic monkeys, but she absolutely loves them (thanks Scott)! It really seems like she feels pretty when we strap them around her neck like a necklace too. It is so fun to see her develop and explore with such curiosity.

Finally, some REAL birthday cake!

For those of you who were not satisfied with the idea of Anneka having zucchini bread for her birthday (Inka, Anita), don't worry- Anneka finally had her chocolate cake! We celebrated with the youth Bible study tonight. At first Anneka looked really disgusted with how messy it was, but then she warmed up. She definitely is more thrilled about green beans, however. (I dropped our camera and jostled the lens right in the middle of everything so we have minimal pictures).

Our little toddler is now a climbing monkey. She climbed right out of her crib yesterday, landing on the hard floor. Thankfully, she's okay. Hopefully she'll remember the pain and not try that stunt again.

This week we're searching for an apartment for a family from Switzerland who is coming to learn language for a year. The prices have skyrocketed and it's really hard to find anything good. We saw the strangest apartment today that had a spiral staircase inside, ping pong and pool tables, and a triangular bathroom with a stand-up shower just sitting in the middle. It was really expensive. It would be PERFECT for youth ministry, but not exactly ideal for a small family. They will be arriving at the end of this month.

A Day to Celebrate!

The theme of the day was Psalm 107:22 "And let them offer sacrifices of thanksgiving, and tell of His deeds in songs of joy!" (ESV) There is a group of churches in Ulan-Ude that meet once a month to pray for the Republic of Buryatia and the people here and share ways that they have seen the church be a blessing, in particular for the Buryats. This group has decided that we should have a larger gathering of people from all the churches in the region twice a year, and it made sense to do one of these gatherings directly after the seminar that went on this last week. We personally took on a large role in helping to make sure that this day happened. It was great to have people from so many different churches gather together and sing sons of joy about God and all that He has done. I (Leif) was given the privelege of sharing about the theme of bringing God a sacrifice of thanksgiving and then members of many of the churches in Buryatia came and shared about what they have seen God do and what they are doing to show others our great God. We sang praises together and prayed together and then followed it all by sharing food together. I am so thankful for all the people that put time in to make this happen, and I am so happy that there are so many things to thank God for.

Professor Anneka

This week, we've had a conference about how to reach our fellow Buryats with Christ and the main topic has been discipleship. On Wednesday, Anneka made her first debut as a visiting professor. She was titled the "growth expert". The speaker used Anneka as an parallel between believers in Christ and shared how she will probably be tall, but she won't be 5'10'' tomorrow. It takes time. She needs food and nourishment and care to grow. Sometimes she grows fast and other times she grows more slowly. Etc, etc. She was the star of the show, of course. (She kind of blends into me in the picture because we were dressed as twins) Below is a recent clip of Anneka practicing her walking:

A Couple More Tuva Stories

God reminded me of His love for the Tuvans while I was there, and here are a couple of ways that he showed me:

In the daytime while Leif was at the seminar about sharing Christ with Buddhists and Shamanists, I would walk with Anneka all over the city (and pop in on the seminar, too). The city is small and it was fun to see my old "stomping ground". Walks in the stroller were the best way to get Anneka to nap well during the day. One day, she was crying really hard and I didn't know why. (I suspect she was just overly tired). I pushed the stoller faster and told her it was okay, to go to sleep, but she cried for what felt like an eternity (maybe 10 minutes). I started praying, "Jesus, please help!" It was at this moment that I walked by this prayer wheel and people were turning it, praying empty prayers. My heart felt heavy as I realized that I'm so caught up in my little world and there is so much MORE going on. My prayers changed to, "Jesus, please help!" for these people. God still cares about my little world and my baby's fussy 10 minutes... but how much more does He care about the people of Tuva and longs for them to pray to Him!

The second to the last day we were in Kyzyl, I went to a bank machine to get cash. It's a long story that includes me forgetting I didn't have cash when I went to the store and then hurrying at the ATM while the cashier waited and forgetting my pin number, etc... but to make the story short, I left my card in the machine too long and it ate my card!! This was our only working card and so I felt like a royal idiot and I also didn't know what I would do! The guard at the store showed me phone numbers I could call, but nobody answered them. So I went to the bank (Anneka slept in her stoller through this). A nice Tuvan man helped me and the worker at the bank was friendly, but I was told that I couldn't get my card back until the next afternoon. I explained that we were leaving Kyzyl in the morning and had to catch a train so we could not wait until afternoon. The man said that he'd try but it didn't look hopeful. I gave him our cell phone number and left. Later on, Leif returned with me to the bank and they said they were sorry but they didn't open the ATMs on Thursday and could not open it until Friday afternoon. We again explained our situation of leaving in the morning but there was nothing they could do. They said we could write up a document and have it notorized and have a friend send it to us, but we didn't want our activated card traveling through the mail. So we decided to just cancel the card and figure out what to do later. Another long story happened after this, but to make it shorter, we couldn't cancel our card online and to call would've cost $3 a minute (and sometimes these calls take awhile to get through the automated system) so we decided to just cancel it when we returned to Ulan Ude. As we left the phone company, I prayed with Leif that God would do a miracle. I knew that He could, but I can't really say that I believed that He WOULD. But we prayed just the same, and acknowledged that He was in control.

The bank closed at 6:00 and we made a fun dinner for our host family and had forgotten about the card. A little after 7:00, the bank called and said to come right away! We walked there in 5 minutes, got the card in 5 and back home in another 5! It was a miracle!!! Seriously. I really don't know how this happened. And how wonderful that we hadn't cancelled our card! That night, God reminded me again that, yes, He cares about small things like bank cards, but how much MORE He cares about the people of Tuva and wants them to know Him. What a wonderful reminder!