Family Weekend

          Before the craziness of summer set in, our family took a long weekend to get away and spend some fun and relaxed time together at Lake Baikal.  We realized that while we get to do many special things, we don't often get away just our family.  So this was a treat for us all!



     The tourist season on Baikal is very short.  We went in mid-June, and we were the only people staying at a little cabin on the property.  Meals were included with our stay, which we all really enjoyed!

     It was still too cold for all-out swimming, but we played and played on the beach!

 Sand and water make the best playground in the world!

 

     I found some water guns before we left, and packed them.  It made for some fun water fights.

Enjoying snuggles on the beach with Ella

     We were gone for 3 nights, and on two of the days, we had rain.  But there was a game room that we played in.  I didn't know Ella knew how to play checkers!  She was GOOD, too!

Checkers with Chess Pieces

     Leif had plans to be in a village on Father's Day, so we celebrated a week earlier.  The kids found fun presents for him at a little store, and we all had a great time celebrating their wonderful Papa!

We ventured out a little after the rain.

Flowers they found on a walk... and a little playground

    My sweet cuddly guys!

     On one of the rainy afternoons, we drove down the road to a hot springs.  We made the kids get out of the water every few minutes because it was pretty hot, but they all loved it, and it was the perfect activity for the day.

     One of Leif's Father's Day presents was a volleyball, and we all hit it around on the beach. 

The kids really love burying people.

Funny little dumplings

     We played hide-and-seek on the grounds where we stayed, and Anneka hid up here, on the beams of this picnic area.  I did not see her AT ALL.  I'm glad it supported her weight!

Father's Day Cuddles

Sand Face!

Another Sand Face!

     Anneka really wanted to make a sand face of Mr. Art (her science and math teacher).  =)

     We're so thankful for this time we had to be together and energize a bit before the summer rush!

Our Six-Year-Old Sweetie

      Oh, how we love our Ella!  What a gift it is to celebrate her and her life.  She's six, and we've enjoyed each age with her, praising God for her life and for making her so wonderfully. Ella is such a brave little girl and often thinks of others' feelings.   She is creative and artistic and knows exactly how she likes things to be done.  She's loving and funny and such a delight.  Happy birthday, dear Ella!

 

       Ella awoke to presents from her family and a skype call with her grandparents.  

      We went on a little family vacation for a long weekend before her birthday at Lake Baikal, and we gave Ella a choice to stay at Baikal for her birthday or to go to kindergarten on her special day.  She chose kindergarten!  They have a special tradition where they sing a song and lift you up on a chair and you get to pick your six favorite people.  So, Ella went to school and chose her favorite freinds and passed out candies for everyone! 

     After a lunch of chicken pot pie and crepes (Ella's favorite foods) we picked up her best friend Anya (and her Papa) and went to a local amusement park.

     The kids had fun on the dragon roller coaster...

and rolling around in this water wheel...

     And eating ice cream!  Ella doesn't like cake, so she asked for candles in ice cream instead of cake.  It was a bit windy and tricky to keep the candles lit, but Leif was able to keep them lit until she blew them out!

There's nothing like ice cream on a hot summer day!

I love watching the joy on the kids' faces!

It's so much fun to fly an airplane!

     There's a great ferris wheel at the park that gives a great view of the city.  The girls were so cute talking excitedly together in Russian!

Friendly Faces

Riding Above The World

     Anneka and Leif rode on one of those huge swinging boats.  Anneka both loved it and also was gripping onto Leif very tightly!

     Next to the amusement park is a nice playground.  The kids played in the sand there for awhile.  I met a nice lady and had a good conversation there as the kids played.

     We finished off our day with dinner out.  Ella ordered a hamburger.  She LOVES hamburgers!  When we make them at home she usually eats TWO of them.  I don't know where they fit.  =)  We had fun telling each other funny stories.

     As we were leaving, the kids got to choose a toy out of a special machine.

     And the very next day, Ella lost her first tooth!  We didn't know if she'd be 5 or 6 for her first tooth, as it was loose for so long! 

What a gift to celebrate such a special day with our special daughter!

Connections

     Even though I lost some pictures off of my phone, I still have some pictures from these past weeks to share some of the things we've been a part of.  The mother church that our current church was planted out of is making their building bigger to accommodate all of the people who've been coming.  They will soon have an indoor bathroom with a real toilet, which is always a bonus.  ;)  Leif was able to help one day with some construction.  It's a great time to connect with others while working side-by-side.



     In light of what we shared in our last blog post, we are wanting to be more deliberate with our focus and time.  We partnered together with our friends Erdenei and Ira to invite some of our Buryat friends from English Club to a barbecue.  Erdenei and Ira live in the same village as these guys, and it was so neat to see them hosting all of us and reaching out to these new friends. 



     It was quite cold outside, so we squeezed into their one-room living space for dinner and conversation.  It was a really nice time for all.

     Martina was so great to keep all of the kids overnight during the barbecue, which was especially wonderful since we got home after 11:00!  They loved all being together.



     The next day was Nathan's birthday party at a new trampoline place in the city.  All of the pictures I took of the kids were on Martina's camera!  But Leif took this one of me.  At first I didn't think I would jump, but I acquiesced and ended up loving it.  =) 


 
     Here are a couple of pictures from the ladies retreat we had this spring.  The theme was God's grace.


 

     I really enjoyed many great conversations with these ladies and could see that the Lord was at work in each of our hearts!



      Anneka ended up having one more performance after her "last one".  It was for Kid's Day.  Even though her costume was the same, this time she wasn't a crying doll, she got to be a smiling doll.  =)  She had new lines, also, which she had to learn the day of the performance!  She and Ike are done with school now for the summer.  Ella is in high gear right now, practicing regularly for her kindergarten graduation performance. 

Moving Forward

     We've been evaluating our lives and ministry lately, wanting to make the most of each day, of each minute.  This life is short, and yet what we do (or don't do) here has eternal significance.  Oh, how we long to invest in God's kingdom!  Leif was encouraged by a sports' camp he was a part of that cast the vision to local believers to go into the world instead of expecting people to come to us.

 

     Since this camp, we have seen some of the college-aged kids in our church reaching out more to the students who come to our English Club.  We see them wanting to free up time in their lives to invest in friends who don't yet know Jesus.  This is encouraging!

     And while there are exciting things happening, we are seeing that the purpose we came here for- to reach the Buryat people with the good news of Jesus and to start churches where they can worship their creator.... hasn't made too much headway.  Jesus talks of people from every tribe, tongue, and nation gathering before His throne, praising Him together.  He also tells us that before the end of the world "this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations".  We know that this whole group of people- the Buryats- are so dear to the Father. How we want them to know Him!  A couple of weeks ago, Leif invited Misha (a Buryat believer that Leif met years ago in an English club before Misha was a Christian) to speak at our church.  It was encouraging for us to hear his heart and passion and to reflect on what the Lord has done in his life!

Chingis, teaching small children a knife-throwing game.  =)

     It was also good for our hearts to get together with Chingis's family  (Leif's good friend that he  met 15 years ago, also through an English Club).  Chingis was a brand new believer when they first met and is now a pastor. 

     And one more super-encouraging meeting was with this family.  Sasha, was also from that English Club from years ago and is also now a church leader.  This dear family lives in a village on the outskirts of our city (they drive into the city for church throughout the week).  The area where they live is full of new little homes from people who are moving in from the villages- from Buryat villages!  Most of these people don't know anything about Jesus, and there is no church in this place (just as there isn't in most villages!)  Sasha and Yulia want to reach out to their neighbors.  They want to start a home group and church here, and they need help!  Many of these people are hungry for relationships, as they've recently uprooted their lives.  Our vision is that these people will come to know the Lord and take the news back to their friends and families in the villages they moved from!

     We have seen that for whatever reason, the Lord has blessed Leif and me with being able to meet new people, through English Clubs and such.. and many of these people are Buryats.  We are thrilled at the idea of joining with a couple who's gifts would compliment our own, who could help lead these friends to the next level.  We'd love to see some Buryat churches started.

     So, currently, we are praying about this:  About moving to this village and starting a church.  We appreciate your prayers for God's guidance!!

     We have been a part of a lot of great things here, and we see the Lord at work.  We don't want to lose sight of our goal, though- to bring the news of Jesus to Buryats and to see these dear people praising their Creator in their own culture and language.  Our director showed us this great clip from a dog competition recently.  You can click on it to view it:

   Dog Competition

     While the golden retriever is totally lovable and hilarious, he's not focused on the main goal- running straight to his master.  He's distracted by many good things.  We don't want to be like this (except for maybe the lovable and cute part)  ;)  We can't do this alone and are dependent upon your prayers!!