Shabur Hike (Part 1)

     We had the privilege of going on a hiking trip for the second year in a row.  Leif led a group of teenage guys... they walked together, did activities together in the day, and slept in the same tent.  Most of the teens on this trip aren't Christians, but there were lots of opportunities for them to hear about Jesus and have conversations throughout the four days.  Here, Leif was gathering his group at the little church in Shabur and getting ready to start off on the adventure.

     I had a very fun job.  I got to be a cook with Adriana, my Romanian friend.  She took the lead with everything, so I just had to follow her orders.  And I drove us (and the little ones) along the route of the hike.  Here, you can see our van was very, very full (of food, firewood, archery equipment, tents, sports equipment, and musical instruments).  Thankfully, we drove very slowly and off of the main road.  We didn't run across any other cars. 

     The first day they walked to the site of an old concentration camp from WWII for Japanese and Lithuanian prisoners (more on this in the next post).

It's really fun to see our kids interacting with other kids.  Ella just loved Dasha!

   

     Our boys loved playing together.  They "helped" in the kitchen.  Here, Ike was trying out a potato (uncooked).  He soon discovered that raw potatoes aren't the best.  We got such a late start on the hike, and then the teenage boys had go get water from the river and build a fire.  So we probably didn't have dinner until about 9:00.  I would have totally been stressed about this, even a year ago.  But this year, it didn't I was able to take it in stride.  =)

     In the mornings and evenings, we had a time of singing praise songs to God and a devotional time.  Everyone seemed to really enjoy this time.

     Ella usually doesn't take naps anymore, but since we were going to bed at midnight each night, I made her take a nap each afternoon.  She would fight me on it, but then within 5 minutes she'd be asleep.  This day was really hot, and she slept in the cool of the shade of the kitchen screened tent.  She was so sweet curled up there.  

     

     Leif let different times of sports- soccer, frisbee, American football.  They had a lot of fun!

     One day the campers all had a secret friend.  Anneka's friend gave her these pretty flowers (it was a sweet teenage boy that drew her name).  Ella liked the flowers so much that she wanted her picture with them..  A group of boys picked some beautiful orange flowers for me and Adriana, and then someone said that they shouldn't be picked because they're an endangered species.  After that, I felt sad every time I looked at them.  We even brought them all the way home after the hike to enjoy every last moment with the rare flowers.

     Anneka got to be in her own group with her own camp counselor!  She loved being one of the big girls and sleeping in a different tent from Mama.  It was fun to see her interacting with her group and enjoying the week!

     There were so many dishes to clean!  Even though each person washed their own cup, bowl, and spoon, there were still a lot of  pots and pans and cutting boards to clean.  Ike really liked helping me with this job!

     The little ones and I shared a tent with Adriana and her littlest guy.  It got really COLD in the night.  A couple of nights, I shared a sleeping bag with Ella and Ike so that we could warm up.

Each morning Leif led the group in exercises before breakfast.

Singing praise songs to God!

     The kids also got to experience archery and learning how to shoot with a bow and arrow.  Anneka said it was hard work and took a lot of strength to hold the bow.

     Before lunch one day while the older kids were helping to build a fence around the cemetary of the concentration camp, the girls helped peel carrots for lunch.  They liked to be in their group, but they also liked to know that their moms were nearby! =)

Here's our group!

Busy Times

     The very next day after our family returned from our trip to Lake Baikal with Asya's family, Leif went back to Baikal with a group of pastors from across Buryatia for a conference on Training National Trainers.  They each had to prepare a short sermon from a passage of scripture.  They were timed and had to answer several questions within their sermon in 5 minutes or less.  Leif chopped and chopped his until it was exactly 5 minutes.  He spoke really fast and got it in just in time.  Everyone clapped!  =)

     In the background you can see the yurts where these guys slept.  When I asked Leif if he was able to get any rest that week, he said it was fairly easy to get to bed at a reasonable hour because it gets dark by 11:00 and there was no elecricity.  The guys were joining hands for a closing prayer time.  The week was filled with good relationship building and growing in skills that these men can pass on to others.

     

     While Leif was gone, the kids and I were busy.  Anneka still had school, and it was rainy several days, so this is always a huge feat to get everyone dressed, fed, out the door, and through the long walk to school.  We also had several guests.  One day a group of moms and kids came (10 in all).  We had originally planned to meet outside, but because of the rain they came over to our place.  I also spent the week helping plan meals with Adriana for our next camp and making a big grocery run for all of the food.  And I did a lot of laundry and prep for camp.  Leif returned Friday night, bringing 3 men home with him.  They were Americans who had led the training time and needed a place to stay before their flight back the next day.  We enjoyed time talking with them.

     Then the next day, I started packing and Leif led the Buryat Partnership.  Then he came home and we loaded up the van and left for Shabur for our hiking trip!  We arrived late that evening.

     The next morning, Leif was asked to preach at this small church.  He slept in the church the night before with a couple of other men.  The kids and I, along with Adriana and her kids slept at a very kind family's home, so Leif had a little extra time that morning to prepare without the distractions that our family can bring!  Leif told me to remind him to try not to have so many things crazy back-to-back in the future!

     After the service, we were all busy preparing for the start of the hike later that afternoon!  At one point, I hadn't seen Ike for anwhile, so I went looking for him.  I found him with his friend, Bogdan, sitting on this car.  They were both munching on cabbage.  Ike just loves Bogdan.  He calls him "My little boy" (even though Bodgan is 4 and Ike is 2!)  =)

So Fun To Be Four!!!

     We celebrated Ella's fourth birthday in some woods that are within walking distance from our apartment.  Our original plan was to go to the river, but our van was in the shop.  In the end, I think this turned out to be the perfect place to celebrate our little Ella!!  We invited our friends to join us, who have 2 little girls, Anya and Lina.  Our kids love them so much.  We had a picnic with fresh cherries and peaches (just now in season) and chicken wraps with different veggies and sauces.  And chips.  Ella adores chips.

It was so special when this butterfly landed on Anya's hand!

We got each of the kids a bottle of bubbles.  Here, Leif was helping Ella with hers.

     I made Princess Leia cupcakes for Ella. Anneka and I wore our hair like Princess Leia for the day, but Ella wanted her hair in braids.

Ella wanted a candle in each one.  How fun to blow them all out!

     Our friends, Angela and Culley, had sent us Hello Kitty party decorations.  We used them all around our apartment as well as at the party.  Something we recently discovered is that tablecloths are very important to Ella.  If the table has a tablecloth, then it's a real celebration in her mind!

Anneka spelled out Ella's name with some garbage and sticks she found on the ground.

     Our kids faces are ALWAYS dirty.  It's funny because people are constantly pointing out their faces to me, as if I didn't know.  (sometimes people will even wipe them off).  I actually do wipe them off often, but they are dirty again within minutes.  So then I kind of let it go for awhile before the next wipe.  The kids are happy, and we're happy.  A little dirt never hurt.

     Ella pulled her friends up the hill with her stick.

     And at the top of the hill was a little amusement park!  What could be better?!?

Sweet, happy girls!

     And, of course, the picnic wouldn't be complete without ice cream!  Ella likes ice cream so much that on her actual birthday, she had a plan all layed out in her mind.  We were driving back from Lake Baikal and we were SO dirty and it was getting late.  But she so sweetly asked if we could stop at the mall (it's just a little over a year old) and get the scoopable kind of ice cream.  And then sit on the green couch that's in the mall and eat our ice cream together.  This was so funny to me, as this is not something we've ever done before- "stopping at the mall".  It would have never crossed my mind that this would be her birthday wish.  We said we'd stop and see if they were open.  I think it was getting close to 9:00.  But they WERE open, and we got our scoopable ice cream and sat on the couch.  She was happy as a clam.

     After the picnic, Anya and Lina stayed the night.  Ella and Anya had matching pajamas and all of them watched a Tinkerbell movie before going to bed.  What a wonderful day!

We love you, Ella!   You are so thoughtful and loving.  You know how to speak works of love and encouragement and you are affectionate.  You are strong and express yourself clearly.  We can't imagine our lives without you!  As we often sing to one another, "We love you so much, we love you so much, we can't even tell you how much we love you!"  Enjoy your year of being four!

Village Life

     We were blessed with the opportunity to spend the weekend at a village on Lake Baikal with my friend that I met at the market last summer and her family.  Afterwards, the kids have proclaimed that they want to live there always!  They had puppies, so this- of course- enhanced the excitement of each moment!

     We took so many puppy pictures!  This family has a cabin really close to the lake as well as a farm a few kilometers away.  The first night we went to the farm so that Asya could milk the cows, and six puppies were there.  The kids convinced Asya to let them take 2 of the puppies back to the cabin for the weekend.  They also had piglets and calves.  So cute!

     This was Anneka's puppy, "Blackie".  Blackie basically lived inside of Anneka's coat the whole weekend.

     We went down to the shore Saturday afternoon, and the puppies were shivering because of the wind.  Leif put this little guy inside of his coat in the pocket.  The puppy LOVED Leif!  While we were there, the weather wasn't hot or cold- it was very pleasant.

     There's always something so mighty about being next to the ocean or a big lake.  You just can't help but shriek with glee!  I read today in Psalm 19 that "the heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the work of his hands".  I think this is also true with Lake Baikal!

There was a little sand bar sticking out into the water that the girls and I walked out onto.

And this picture cracks me up.  Asya's son was cold, so he stayed in the car, and her husband was out fishing.

     For part of the time we didn't have electricity.  There's also no running water.  We used this bucket for hand washing and for washing dishes.  And for paint when Asya decided on a whim to white wash the wood stove.  =)

 
     In this little town is a hot springs.  We couldn't stay in for long because it was so hot for the kids, but they LOVED it!!  Ella loved it so much that she asked to go again the next day (which was her birthday).  How could we refuse such a request to a sweet little girl?  Kids under 7 were all free, so our kids all still qualified!  I tried not to think about the water too much and what may be growing in there.  Instead we just enjoyed the time.




     One afternoon, they butchered a pig for some men who wanted to buy it.  They handed me this little pile of fish while they were working.  I couldn't resist us getting this picture.  With Ella and the puppy, it's a perfect picture for village life!  I don't know what kind of fish they were, but I was picking scales off of my hands for a couple of hours afterwards!  It was fascinating.

     Asya did something really special for Ella's birthday.  Not only did she get her amazing presents, but she bought a lantern (like in the Rapunzel movie) that goes up into the sky.  We set it off at around midnight, to mark the start of Ella being four.  The kids stood in a line like this while Asya and I lit it.

    I didn't know what to expect.  I honestly didn't think it would work!

But it took off higher and higher until it was a tiny dot in the sky!

  It felt magical to watch, and Ella felt so special!

     This is the room we all stayed in.  Their kids went to bed after midnight each night.  The first night we tried to get our kids down "early" at 10:30, but by the second night they were down at midnight, too.  Thankfully they all slept in!

Sharing a breakfast of cut up hotdogs and onions.

Getting water from the well.  Unfortunately, the bucket totally fell off of the rope, so we had to use baby wipes for washing after that.

     Asya's mom found a huge treasure in the woods- mushrooms!!

Asya made flower crowns for the little girls.

They loved them!

     We celebrated Ella's birthday on a second day where I made Ella some cute little cupcakes.  But on her actual birthday, we sang to her, too.  She picked out this little cake at the village store.  (that and drinkable yogurt)

     The kids made a little home inside of the old hen house.  One night the puppies got lost (through a hole or something) . We prayed for them and they appeared the next morning.  What a relief!  Of course there were many tears saying goodbye to the puppies, too.

     We're thankful for this time to get to know this family more!