Gramma Irene

      We're so happy to have Leif's mom here this month!  Leif wasn't able to go on the hike because if his should injury, but instead he went to Chita (a city 10-12 hours east of here) for a conference and a meeting with local leaders.  He was gone 5 days, and it was so nice to have Irene's help and company.  During that week, we got to celebrate Irene's birthday!!!  We all picked up Anneka from school and then went on a special birthday picnic.

     It's so nice to have a lot of days now that get above freezing.  Things are melting!  We all ate while Ike slept.

     Then the girls played on the playground.  Anneka had the idea to make Gramma special cakes with candles out of the sand.

 And Ella got right into this idea and loved making a special cake, too!

Ike likes having Gramma here, too.

     The girls each got Gramma presents and enjoyed watching her open them (hand cream and jewelry).

     There has been an ad in our building for take-in Chinese food, and we thought we'd try it out for dinner, as Irene likes Chinese food.  I was a little nervous to order over the phone as it's not something I have ever done here, but the lady was super-nice and understood everything I said.  And the food was really good.  Ike and Ella really loved it.  Ike loved it so much that he ate it by the serving-sized spoonful and dug his hand into the box to devour it.

After dinner we made creations with the straws and connectors.

     Anneka designed this all by herself and solicited help for putting it together.  Both girls liked hanging out inside of it.

     And Irene requested a mud pie (with imported Oreos and peppermint flavoring).  Ella happily put in the candles.

And we sang Happy Birthday... what a fun day!

      Leif is back now.  It's nice to have him home and to have moments when we're all home at the same time.  I love when there's a one-to-one adult to kid ratio (especially at bedtime!).  I feel like I'm getting more quality time with each of the kids at different moments, and they're getting special times with each of us.

We're glad that we still have more time with Irene before she has to go back to the States!

Women's Retreat

 

      This past weekend, the ladies on our team rented a little house on Lake Baikal for a retreat.  It was soooo nice to get away and have time to get to know each other better.  It was a great little house with three bedrooms (and twin beds for each of us) and an open room for meeting/cooking.  Ike still nurses, so he got to come along... lucky guy to be with all of those ladies!!  He really likes ladies.

  

     Renata, Inka, and I went ahead of everyone (and nicely synchronized the driving time with Ike's nap.)  We took a nice walk down to the lake.  It was a sunny and beautiful day!  The snow was just beautiful! 

 

     It's always amazing to see the lake frozen over.  Recently a group of guys from the local churches made a trek across the lake and back.  If you're interested in seeing some amazing pictures from their excursion, click here.

     When we were at the lake, we saw this babushka getting water (for drinking, washing, etc.) out of this hole in the lake.

Then she had to climb over these mounds of ice to get to the shore.

  She went back for a second bucket of water and then went on her trek home, with no gloves, heavy buckets, and metal handles (probably digging into her hands).  I can't even imagine it in the middle of the winter!

   
     We had a great time singing, sharing, and praying for one another.  There was lots of time to talk and get to know each other better.  Even though we're on the same team, we often are so busy with all that's going on in each of our lives and ministries that we don't have time to really connect. 

     Martina gave a couple of great devotionals from a book on spiritual warfare by Warren Wiersbe.  It gave us  a lot to think about and discuss.  It was very applicable and encouraging.

     And Ike was a good little guy.  He cried in the night both nights (which he never does!), but everyone was gracious.  I think he was just scared to wake up in a different place.  In the daytime he slept great in his stroller through all of our chatter and moving about.

And we ate great food! 

     One night Lisa heated chicken enchiladas that she'd made in the wood stove.  They were sooo yummy!  The caretaker of the house came and made fires in the stove for us.  So nice.  The caretaker also stoked the fire in the banya (steam bathhouse) and Lisa, Renata, Melly and I took advantage of it!  I just love the banya! 

I love how the ice on the lake gets pushed up from waves!

     When I got back from the weekend, Leif's mom was here!!  It's been so great to have her here this week.  Leif was supposed to be on the mountain climbing trip this week, but then because of his shoulder accident he couldn't go.  But it worked out because he was asked to go to a conference and meeting for local leaders in the city of Chita.  It took 12 hours for them to drive there, and he's gone all week.  Without Irene, it would be a hard week, but instead it's really fun!  More on that to come...

McBuryat's

     The other day Ella ran some errands with me while Anneka was at school, and we had lunch at this new fast food place called "McBuryat's".  It's really quite different from McDonalds and I'm sure they would be sued immediately in the States for their copycat logo... but all the same, it was a lovely place and a lovely little date.

     They had a meal with posies, tea and french fries.  Ella LOVES posies... they are meat dumplings (pictured above).  The fries were actually very good. (They didn't have any ketchup.) I used to think it was so gross to give kids tea, but that's a way I've changed since living here.  Now I don't even bat an eye when people give Ike tea.  It seems... NORMAL!

     Ella thoroughly enjoyed our time together.  She looked around in amazement and said, "this is a really great store!"  And she ate as much as I did!  What a little cutie.

First Day of Preschool

     There's a new preschool very near to our home, and they have a great program for kids!  Leif and I scoped it out a few weeks ago, thinking of both of our girls for next year, and then Ella and I decided to go and actually try it out.  For kids under 3 they have a program that's 1 1/2 hours long for 2 or 3 days a week... with a parent (or grandparent).  Ella was excited to go out with Mama and to pose for this picture.

     But when I told her that it was a little school, she got really sad and cried the whole walk there.  I was torn because we didn't really NEED to go, but I also didn't want her to think that by crying really hard she could get her way.  So I pushed through.  I told her that she could cry for a couple more minutes, but then I needed to take our picture, and she'd have to be ready to calm down at that time.  And she did!  =)

     They have a really great facility- it's clean and cheerful and fun!  In the 1.5 hour block, there are 3 lessons (20 minutes each) with 3 different teachers.  In between the lessons, the kids get to play in this fun room.  Ella stayed close to me the whole time, but she warmed up and it was evident she really liked it.

     I'm excited about this program for a few reasons.  One is that it's a great way to meet new people... and a lot of people that are in our similar life stage.  It's not a daycare, so most of the parents who come with their kids don't work (which is also easier for connecting with them).  In between the lessons, it's easy to talk with the parents while the kids play.  It's also a good place for Ella to get more Russian- they go over colors and shapes and animal names... all things age appropriate and good for her to learn.  Plus, it's a nice stepping stone for Ella if she goes when she's older.  She will feel more comfortable if she can go there with me first.  AND it's special time for us to have together!  I almost felt  like we were going to a little children's museum or something- a special mama/daughter excursion. Ike is also allowed to go with us without extra charge.  (That day, he was sleeping so I left him home with Leif.)

observing the other kids

     For one of the lessons they had these special tables with backlighting and sand.  The kids would pour sand into cookie cutters and make fun animal shapes.

   ... or they just played in the sand and made fun designs with their fingers.  In this picture I used the flash.

     In another lesson they had a little story about a sunshine and the kids made their own sunshine.

     Both of our girls love to make artwork!  On Wednesdays they have music lessons, too.  I'm guessing that Ella will also like that very much.

     Ta-da!  A happy sunshine and a happy girl.  We haven't gone back since Leif's accident and need to decide when we'll go back.  Leif's mom is coming for a visit soon!  That may be a good time to start up going as a part of our weekly routine.  

Hard Working Grandmas

 Every day since Anneka started preschool (except for maybe once), this lady has been outside of Anneka's preschool, chipping-chipping-chipping away at ice, sweeping snow, shoveling ice chunks.  ALL WINTER LONG.  It always amazes me how ice just forms here in the winter without snow or water to make it.  Where does it come from??  And what tedious, hard work!  And when it was -40 degrees, I could hardly bear to watch her.

It seems that the babushkas (grandmas) here are the ones designated for this kind of work.  In the States, it would be a young strong man chipping away.  So it always makes me cringe a little bit to see her working so hard in such harsh conditions. 


This lady is very friendly and seems to have such a good attitude about her job.  She seems very interested in us and sometimes asks us questions.  I wanted to get her picture this week before the ice goes away.... but it seems we'll still be safe for awhile in having ice around.  =)  

Having Guests, Being Guests

     It was so fun to have Alex and Yulia come for a visit a few weeks ago!  The kids loved having them here, too.  Leif enjoyed talking about what (and where)  is needed to really reach the Buryats with the good news of Jesus.  We really like them both a lot.

     Yulia was superwoman!  The kids climbed all over her.

     We had a babushka stay with us for a couple of days last week, and after a couple of hours with our kids, she was so exhausted!  I was putting sheets on her bed, and the kids were in there, too... crawling around on the bed while I made it, and she said, "Stop!  I will make the bed!  Get the kids out of here!  You are a hero!"  So funny.

     Another day we went to Vera's house for a nice dinner.  She had invited her son, daugher-in-law, and granddaugher to join us.  I think she was hoping for us all to have good conversations and wanting her family to see examples of Christians that are in their same stage of life.  They were three hours late in coming, so we had to leave about an hour after they arrived... but it was still a lovely time.

     Vera had made "morse", which is berry juice.  I watched her make it.  She poured boiling water over berries that were in a strainer and added suger and Whala!  Morse!

     Another day, Inka's car broke down.  She took it to the shop and they said it wouldn't be ready for about a month.  She was planning on just taking the bus back to her village, but Anneka BEGGED her to stay the night... and she did!  What a wonderful surprise!  Ella joined the picture right as I snapped it.... sorry, Ella!

     Since Inka's car is broken down, we figured it would be a good excuse to go and visit her in the village and take her groceries.  We spent the night out there and then she rode with us to church the next day.  A lady that Inka is teaching English to came with her family for the day, and we had a really nice time getting to now them.  After dinner, Valera opened up a spiritual discussion with the question, "if you were standing at the gate of heaven and God asked you why He should let you in, what would you say?"  We all answered and then he went on to explain parts of the gospel.  In the moment both Inka and I felt that it was maybe too soon to share all of this, as it was the husbands first time to meet any of us!  But we had a good talk with Valera later, and he said that he felt prompted by God to share.  When I reflected on it later, I thought that it probably is better to err on the side of sharing than not to share at all!  Of course we pray for this family, that they weren't weirded out or scared away!

Leif enjoyed a game of checkers with their son (this was three days before his accident!).

     While Leif drove the family home that night, I got Anneka settled, and Inka watched the little ones.  I caught them in a cute, cuddly moment!

     We also had four Russian men from Chita stay the night on their way to a meeting.  We didn't know how many were spending the night until after 10:00pm.  Thankfully I had enough clean sheets!   I was so thankful for Lena's help that day... she made an amazing dinner that they all loved.  She is such a blessing!

     This week we've had a guest from Moscow staying with us.  He's Irish, which is fun.  I love that we get to meet people from all over the world!  I think this is a special privilege for our kids, too.  Especially as they get older, this will be a great opportunity to learn about different cultures and countries naturally.

     On this afternoon, Leif met with these two guys (the other is here from Yakutia) to talk about vision and what's going on with other missions organizations across Russia and how we can work together.  As you'll notice, his poor right arm is tucked up under his shirt.  He has to wear the sling for a month!  So far it looks as though everything is healing okay.  Today the doctor will look at the wound to talk about when the stitches will be removed.

     I've been finding it challenging to keep up with everything around here.  Ike gets into EVERYTHING!  Even though I have duct taped the freezer and refrigerator and certain cabinets, he somehow gets into them and strews everything about!  I found cheese in my socks yesterday.  He also can easily transport chairs ans stools anywhere in the apartment, which is a handy ladder to whatever he wants to reach.  This past week, the girls left the bathroom door open, and I found him playing in the toilet... three different times!  And it's not that I don't watch him.  These things happen in the moments I'm in the other room to wash my hands after changing a diaper or am mopping up spilled milk on the floor.  At times I feel like I'm going crazy!  But just about when I think I AM going crazy, God gives me just what I need.  Yesterday I had a migraine so I stayed home from church.  Ella and Ike stayed with me, and we ALL slept the whole time Leif and Anneka were gone!  I think we all really needed it!  I'm thankful that He never gives us more than we can bear!  

It's getting warmer!

     It's getting warmer and warmer!  Before Leif's arm injury it was warm enough to go sledding.  And now it's warm enough that we can't even use the sled for kid-transportation on the way to school anymore!  Three days have risen above freezing.  This leaves frozen sheets of ice everywhere.  Anneka fell down more than 20 times on the walk to school on Friday (no exaggeration)!  I'm hoping for one more good snow day so that we can make SNOWMEN... and then I want spring.

     The girls loved sledding and went fast, with no fear!   I went down with Anneka once and we ran into a big shrub.  She was mad at me after that, so I became the official baby holder.

... and the official baby picture taker.    He wants to be bigger so that he gets more turns on the sled.

     The other day on the way to pick up Anneka from school, this mangy cat jumped into the stroller with Ike.  He was very happy about, and Ella thought it was so great!  The cat was happy for a moment of extra warmth.  

A Run-In With A Chainsaw

      This week all of the guys in our church were asked if they could help with the construction... a big push in hopes of getting the main room done in time for Easter.  Leif cleared his schedule and committed to helping, but his help was soon halted on Tuesday when he hit a wire with a chainsaw in the frame of a window.  It jumped back at him and lacerated in and under his arm.  He ended up with a trip to the hospital that included stitches deep in his muscle and also in his skin.

     I was thankful that I was able to meet Leif at the hospital while Lena watched the kids.  This is how I found him, on a gurney in the hallway.  He lost a lot of blood, so they gave him an I.V. with fluids.  What a brave guy!  We kept marveling that the laceration was where it was and didn't get any major nerves or veins or tendons.  We know that God was protecting him and are so thankful.

     We stopped by the church on the way home, for Leif to collect his things and touch base with the guys.  These poor guys also witnessed Dima getting himself with the same chainsaw on Monday in his FACE!!  That also was a miracle that it didn't get him worse.  Part of the cut was even in his eye... a little more and he could have lost his sight... or even his life

     Here they were revisiting the site of the accident.  Leif had been up on this scaffolding, using the saw to widen the side of the window frame where there were metal wires. Once the saw hit metal it jerked back.  Leif said that if he were in North America he wouldn't have tried something like this.  But he said that being in Russia so long he got acclimated to seeing people do crazy things with chainsaws.  It just becomes normal and you forget how dangerous certain things are!

  After they bandaged him up, they put him in this plaster cast.  It kind of freaked me out at first because they whisked him away on the gurney after checking his I.V. and yelled at me not to follow.  The rational part of my mind told me they were just going to put a cast on him.  But the longer I waited, the more I started thinking about blood transfusions, etc!  It made me grateful for the informative part of health care in North America!  In this picture above, the nurse is cutting off his cast and about to change his bandages.    He has to do this every day for 12 days and get shots of antibiotics.

   The nurse and doctor at our clinic thought the cast was too cumbersome and cut it off.  So now Leif has to be more careful not to move his arm.  But I bought him a nice big babushka scarf for a sling, and that seems to hold it pretty well.

   
     I almost didn't post this picture because it shows our messy room.  But that's how it is.  And Ella was so cute helping Leif put on his socks.  It's a little more challenging around here, as Leif isn't able to do as much as he usually can (which is a lot!).   I'm actually amazed at what he can do with his left arm, though.   And we've had guests this week- both unexpected and planned, so that's been more work in regards to cleaning and meals.  But we've also been blessed by these guests, and are thankful for the strength God provides.

We trust that Leif's wound will heal well.  Again, we're thanking God for his protection!  I don't know what I would do without wonderful Leif!

Papa-Daughter Date

     On Valentine's Day, Leif had planned to pick Anneka up from school and take her out on a lunch date at a cafe near our apartment.  When he got there, she said that her stomach was hurting... but as soon as she found out about the date, she said she really wanted to go and that she'd be fine.

     They started walking to the cafe (with Anneka riding on the sled), and after a few minutes she threw up in a snow bank.  The timing was perfect as far as not being at school!  But it was a bummer that she had to come home and miss her date (and was sick throughout the day here, too).

     So a couple of weeks later, Leif picked up Anneka again and took her out, this time for a perfect little date.  This cafe has fun entrees for kids where the food looks like animals.  I think this one was supposed to be a little girl.  =)  It was so sweet to see how Anneka's face lit up when she told us about her date with Papa.  She happily said to Leif, "usually just Mama gets to go on a date with you.  I've never been on a date with you before!"  I just love that he did that and know that he'll keep pursuing his little daughters over the years.