Our Time In Bellingham

The last place we stayed on our trip was in Bellingham. When we first got there, we went straight to Rebecca's flower shop. (She's Leif's Dad's wife). It's a lovely place. We said our hellos and then decided to take our stuff back to our room to get settled in. Eric asked Anneka if she wanted to stay there with them or to go back with me and Leif. She chose her grandpa over us. I love that about her. She feel secure and knows when she's with people who love her. Here they are, happily waving goodbye.



We stayed in Leif's grandma's retirement home and decided to give Ella a bath there. When Anneka was a baby, she took a bath in the sink there, too. She fit so perfectly in the sink that we were able to let go for a few seconds to take the picture.



"Grancy" loved meeting her newest great-grandchild and Anneka. And Anneka loved being with her great grandma, too. One night we returned late and didn't get to see Grancy and Anneka cried so hard. She asked if she could just go into Grancy's room and get into bed with her. We explained that Grancy had a small bed and it just wouldn't work out. Anneka was not easily consoled.




Dinner together at Grancy's place.




"Grandpapa" and Ella enjoying one another




Our last day in Bellingham, we went to the Lynden Fair. We were there during Anneka's naptime, so she slept in the stroller for awhile. She loved seeing all of the animals and petting them.



Farm Fun



Who can resist sitting on a pink tractor?



It took forever getting home the last day. What is normally a 6 hour trip was a 13 hour trip. Ella would just get to sleep and Anneka would need to find a restroom. And Anneka got to sleep and Ella needed to stop and eat. Etc, etc. And then when we were just an hour from home (in Ritzville), we stopped to feed Ella one last time. And then the car wouldn't start! It was late enough that all of the car places were closed. Thankfully we were at a park. Anneka was delighted to be at a playground and not in a car and Ella was so happy to be able to kick and lay on a blanked on the grass. My sweet aunt came and saved us and drove us home. Above and below, we were waiting for her to arrive. =)



We had a wonderful trip and it was so good to see everyone. But we were also so glad to be back "home"!

Family Pictures

I'm too tired to upload pictures from yesterday and today's adventures, but I realized I've been wanting to post these family pictures for awhile. Our friend, Angela, who owns Stillpoint Photography did them, and we love them! SO MANY were so good, it was hard to choose which ones to show you. =)

Here And There

Since we've been married, Leif and I have tried to go on a date every week. Sometimes it's not a traditional date, but we want to guard that time together, as it's so important. This past week, we brought Ella with us and ate at a restaurant on a pier in Coupeville. Ella doesn't talk yet, so we can still have delightful, uninterrupted conversation. =) And in my opinion it's less stressful to bring a newborn along than to worry about her needing to eat and me not being around. Outdoor seating is something I DREAM about most of the year in Russia. Before we came back to the States I told Leif, "we need to eat outside every meal, all summer!" It hasn't quite been that frequent, but we do it when we can.



The last night we were in Coupeville, Leif's mom realized that we hadn't gotten a family picture right after Leif's brother and family had left. It was the last time we'd be together until we're in the States again. So I suggested we go over to Lark's house and get a late-night photo. The kids were in their jammies, but it was a fun memory. And great to have a picture of everyone.





On Saturday, our friends Brian and Lesley hosted a BBQ for CWU friends. It was really fun to see people and catch up on their lives. Hot dogs were another thing I was dreaming about for months (you're not supposed to eat them when you're pregnant). Mmmmm. I've been eating tons of hot dogs and hamburgers this summer.



It was so nice to sit outside and enjoy the nice day with friends.




Our friend Erin came at the end. A CWU party wouldn't be complete without her!



After the CWU party, we headed up to Darrington, where Leif's family has a cabin (his great grandparents owned it and it's been passed down through the family.) Anneka's cousin, Gwen, came and they had fun playing in a little playhouse close by.



On Sunday, we shared at two churches back-to-back and then Lark and the other two cousins joined us. We ordered pizza that night and hung out outside. Ella liked kicking around on her blanket. By the end of this day, I was wiped. We'd had a LONG lunch out after church and I had a migraine (and had gotten little sleep the night before. Thankfully, I've caught up a bit now!



On Monday, Leif, Anneka, Ella and I went for a walk down to the river where he'd go a lot growing up. The cool water felt so nice on a hot day! It's fun to show Anneka parts of our lives from our childhoods!

Swimming and Sharing

A couple of days this week, we went to the local pool. At first Anneka was timid, but by the end, she was squealing, giggling, and even "swimming" (with flotation) without us holding onto her!



Anneka really liked riding on our backs. Here she is with her grandma.



Splashing!



Ella slept serenely by the side of the pool one day and in her aunt Fawn's arms the other.




While in Coupeville, we had a chance to share about our lives in Russia with the church Irene goes to.



It was such a wonderful surprise when I found out that my elementary school music teacher, Jodi, also goes to that church! She came to our sharing time and it was wonderful to see her and to catch up. Jodi used to teach me piano and voice lessons, too. And she lived across the street from us. And her daughter was my favorite babysitter. Anyways, it was really great to see her again after so many years!

The Zoo

On Monday, Leif's mom came down to Seattle with her other grandkids and we all went to the Woodland Park Zoo together. My sister met up with us, too (pictured above). Home service is such an intense time- wanting to get quality time with friends and family, wanting to share with churches and supporters, wanting to rest, wanting to have fun and do things that we can't do in Siberia, etc, etc. Today I am feeling like I miss Anneka even though I've been around her every day. I just haven't really "connected" with her like normal. But I also want others to get special time with her. Anyways, it's an interesting time. And we're enjoying the parts that are good about this unique time.


The cousins looking at the komodo dragon.



Grandmama Irene with her two little grandgirls.




The penguins were so cute.




Before we got to the zoo, we tried to explain it to Anneka. "Will there be a boat there?", she asked. Leif told her that he didn't know if there would be or not and thought it was a random question. But sure enough, here was the boat she was wishing for. So funny.



A trip to the zoo wouldn't be complete without petting a goat!




Anneka and her cousin, Gwen, were our guides. They were so funny in that they both had maps and were constantly consulting the maps. They would tell us, "now we're going to the otters. Now we're going to the bears", etc... even if they didn't know where in the zoo we currently were. It was fun to watch.

On The Road Again

Our next stop was Seattle, where we stayed with Leif's grandparents for a night. Anneka DELIGHTED in them and it was so fun to watch them interact! Here, Great Grandma Margie and Anneka are playing with a Russian matroshka doll.



We enjoyed a neighborhood walk.



Playing with train tracks with Great Aunt Reta.




Anneka REALLY wanted both Great Grandpa Jack and Great Grandma Margie to play the piano with her. She patted the bench and kept inviting them until they both joined her.



And here's a picture of Leif doing the children's moment at church on Sunday.

On The Road

Last week we began a whirlwind tour of Washington, visiting friends and family and churches all over Washington. It's both crazy/tiring and fun/wonderful. Our first stop was the tri-cities. We saw Mandi and Terry and their family. They were in our life group in Spokane before we left for Russia.



We also saw Leif's great aunt Peggy and cousins, Gary and Diane. Anneka enjoyed being at their house and feeding the birds and playing with a mound of stuffed animals and blocks.



The next night we got to see our friends, Dave and Marsha and their two kids. Dave and Marsha discipled us in college and are a huge part of our lives and our spiritual growth. Anneka was pretty tired and kind of sensitive while she played with their kids, but she had fun them, too (love-hate). They played outside in the water and painted on this really cool screen.



Dave is in medical school. Here he was dressed up and ready to head out for his first day of the school year.



The next day we headed to Auburn and stayed at my aunt Sherrie and uncle Mike's. They were so nice in throwing a big family BBQ for us, so that we could see everyone in one place. It was great to see everyone, and Anneka especially loved her cousin, Emma, who is five. Here, Anneka didn't want to smile for the camera, so my sister Cory and I made pouty faces along with her.




On this morning, I had put Ella on the floor to sleep and Anneka saw her there, left the room, and came back with her own "baby Ella" and a blanket. It was so cute to see them laying side-by-side.

On Sunday, we shared at a church in Milton. The people there were welcoming and warm, and it was nice to be with them. My grandma, Violet, went to that church before she passed away.

Stay tuned for more pictures from our trip!

Family Conference

(SEND missionaries who have recently come for a time of "home service")
It feels a little strange to talk about a family conference when I left my family back in Medical Lake while I traveled to Michigan for the annual SEND conference, but that is what we call it in the world of SEND so I will call it that too :). Even though I was without my family, it really was a great time to connect with other missionaries including some of our teammates. I got to see John and Sharon Wicker again, they are the ones that visited us with their family a few weeks ago. Dave and Martina Brubacher were also there (that's who I'm sitting with in the picture above), and they are going to be our new neighbors in Ulan-Ude. We're really looking forward to that! They were nice to hang out with me so that I didn't feel all alone without Jami and the girls. It was also good to catch up with people that we had gone through training together with before we left. I even got to ride from the conference to our mission office with Wes, Michelle and their son Sidney who I was meeting for the first time. Connecting with people is always the best part of a conference like this, but I was also encouraged by stories of God's good news spreading through the world, and encouraged by the new missionaries who are moving out to new parts of the world. This picture shows some of the people who are just joining SEND to go to various parts of the world where God's message is not being shared. If you are interested in hearing more about these things you can check out the send website www.send.org. Acutally we have our own page on the website www.send.org/Gustafson.