My State-side B-day!!!

While I have two minutes left to my b-day in TEXAS, I will post a beautiful picture of my friend--Valentina and her two boys---Nikita and Timothy---celebrating for me State-side.

Thanks for sending! I love it!!!

I got a new camera(pocket size) and earrings!

Just color!
Katie in black and white!

Mark with Sepia on
Our map with night vision on...

I asked John for a new small camera...I find that with 4 kids and riding the metro and buses and trams...I 'd rather not have to tote around too much. So, my current camera is very nice, but a bit bulky to bring with me(it's our video camera too). John found a small camera that is awesome! Here are some of the things it can do---Black and white, sepia, night vision, negative style. I also have noticed the hoops and hoops of earings that Russians wear...so, of course, I need to be in high fashion, right??? So, now I have medium sized hoops for earrings. They are silver!

Lena is making me a carrott cake---YUM YUM!! She also gave me some yummy smelling shower gel from Germany! I didn't get to bring any of my gels with me b/c of too much weight, so I am loving the shower gel!

My latest observation about b-days...it used to be that I would feel like it was my birthday on that particular day---you know, that special feeling all day long---, but in the last five years or so, I think I could actually forget my b-day during the day!! Does this happen when one has kids or when one ages???

By the way, this is starting to be funny---no hot water today!! Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say rejoice!!!

Future Master's Commission...it's a true sign of his calling!

He pulled the trash can over and started drumming on our trash can. A true sign of his calling!! Oh, can you tell the size of our itty bitty trash can---Sarah---what do you think now of our old trash can??? It was huge-eh?

My Birthday!! and YOUR Part in it!

Ok, my lovely Aunt Mary gave me an idea! She sent me birthday wishes! She said they might enjoy cake in my honor! So, my birthday is tomorrow Sept 30th!! Since I cannot be with any of you to celebrate---you can eat a piece of chocolate, cake, pie, cookie, have a cup of tea or coffee or anything in my stead and send me a picture of you doing it! I will post what I get from people on a blog!!! If you don't have my email...just leave me a comment and we will try to arrange something...I don't want to post my email to make it public.

Oh, and I share my birthday time with my beautiful neice Mary Claire--September 29th and my friend's little girl Chloe---Sept. 30th., and a few others too..so happy birthday to these two beautiful girls and more!!!

Hot water---I didn't know it was such a delicacy!!

Ok, so if you have read the blog on mosquitos and cold water, you will know that we didn't have hot water for about 4 days...it came back on for about a day and then it left for about 4 more days...the days run together...now that I am calculating the amount of days without hot water, I don't think I knew at the time it was almost 8 days. So, my missionary self was very much complaining last night to Lena about how miserable it was to go without hot water. What a great attitude, eh? I had to revisit all those great Pastor Brooks teachings on attitude determing my altitude!! Ok, so this morning, I had to have a chat with the Lord and repent for my complaining and selfishness! I was on a terrible roll last night.

Well, lo and behold...last night about 9 or 9:30(after all that emotion expressed)--guess what happened--the Hot water was turned back on!!!!!! Oh what a relief!!!! I hurriedly took a hot shower after Vera was done with hers(when it's hot, it can be really hot!!!---there is a key to balance here!) I can't tell you how much it was sooooo nice to enjoy hot water. So, instead of starting school right away this morning, the girls are taking showers this morning before we start!!! We don't want to waste this good hot water. Are you laughing with me or at me yet????

When Mark woke--he came and told us---the hot water works!!!! It's funny when it comes from the mouth of a child.

So, the scripture about being content in all circumstances comes to have new meaning...I will need to be content EVEN WITHOUT hot water!!! (only with the Lord's grace though is this possible!!). I think next time the hot water goes out, I will just slow down my life and take the time to boil the 3-5 pots of water and enjoy a hot bath and life with out luxuries. I know not having even cold water (like some parts of the world have to endure) is something I think I would need way MORE grace from the Lord to endure. So, I will praise the Lord with hot water and with out it! Pray that I can actually put this into practice if I need to!!! I pray that Lena does not have to endure my complaining either. No hot water is "suffering" for her too!

I will keep everyone posted, but as of right now, life is nice---WE HAVE HOT WATER STILL!!!

Dorm visit

In Russia, kids that have been in the orphanage for part or all of their lives go to live in a "dorm" and study a vocational skill after they are of age(around 16) to leave the orphanage. Last night, I went with Lena to visit some of the first year girls that have just started their studies and have just left their orphanage. This transition is big for them...some of them are leaving long time friends.

We met some lovely girls there. They were quiet at first, but by the end, some of them had shown us their photo albums and chatted with us. Lena spoke most, b/c I, of course, do not know enough Russian yet, except to say hello, my name is...how are you! We had a wonderful time meeting these girls who were all about 16. Lena gave them her number and told them they were welcome to come visit us today. Two of them are coming!!! They just called Lena and said they would come:). How nice that they would want to come see us again. We will go again to their dorm on Monday. I really enjoyed our visit and look forward to seeing them again today and Monday too. I pray that they feel very loved when they come see our family.

Rye Bread---would you eat it everyday? would you eat it with syrup?

Ok, for the last three weeks, we have been eating Rye bread...for the first two weeks, we didn't even know it!!! No, it didn't taste like wheat bread, but we just didn't recognized the twangy taste...now, we do. It's not too bad though...especially when making french toast with it!! Yep, I made french toast this morning with Rye bread! The kids have not said anything about not liking the bread, but it is a bit hard for them to chew...they have said this, but the taste is not bothering them...they are so accomodating in this new culture! They are doing awesome! They amaze me at their ease in adjusting!

My friend Valentina has said that Americans don't eat a whole lot of variety...I think I agree now that I didn't before. I have not had so much cabbage or mayonnaise is my life!! Not that Russians eat so much of a variety, it's just a different variety from Texas or that good ole--Mexican food!!! We have eaten a few new things...here is a start on the list of new foods: Beet soup, cabbage, goulash, rice porridge for breakfast, buckwheat porridge--not a fav of John's!, lots of different kinds of cookies and chocolate, crab salad, pelmeni(we had this once in Texas--a gift from Valentina--John's favorite---it's like pork/beef ravioli w/o marina)...and the list will go on.

Mosquitos and Cold Water!!!

The last few days, we have been without hot water but not without mosquitos. You would think that it might be no big deal for us native Texans, but oh no!!! We have finally plugged in somethings into the outlets that are supposed to help kill the mosquitos and still be safe for kiddos. Well, it might be helping, but we need more of them!!! We have only two right now! The kids have one in their room for at night, but we snag it out of their room during the day for the kitchen and living room. Maybe some of it will stay in the air!! We are now going to spray all of us with mosquito repellant and really act like we are camping til it gets cold enough to kill off the mosquitos. Oh, to smell like Off!!!! Don't you wish you were here to hug us!!???





We have lived without hot water for 4 days...it's finally back on, but we did boil some water and make some warm bath water for all of us. Are we good at camping or what?





If you want to ask questions, ask...or if you want pictures of something, ask!


Here is a picture of an apartment building next to ours(I took the picture looking out of our window of our balcony!)...looks similar to ours...well, all the apartments look similar to me. I haven't brought our camera out doors yet!

The kids' room

Katie is our photographer for the Bull Kids' Room...so enjoy the art work! The girls clothes cabinets and the desk in the middle. Mom had not made it to clean the desk before the picture. OOPS!!
The "Bunk Beds"...Katie sleeps on top and Matthew on bottom. All the blankets from the sleeper couch get piled on Matthew's bunk during the day.
The view of the window that faces out to the balcony. The balcony is an enclosed balcony, by the way.
This is our infamous sofa bed from IKEA...unfortunately, it doesn't look all that neat and tidy...the kids like to play, what can I say. The pillow is down, but should be up near the back. We leave the sheet on the bottom, so it's one less thing we have to do at night to get ready for bedtime.

Our Team---part of it:)

Arturo, Volva, Mary, John
Nina, Vera, Marina, Karen, Lena
Lucya, Losha, Karina, Misha

These are all the family home leaders/counselors and Lucya(she helps soooo much in all that we do), Losha and Misha(boys from family home) and Karina--Arturo and Nina's daughter.


Sorry, I haven't posted lately, I will do something more soon:).

Did you know we now have a trash compactor?

In honor of my friend Joanne and all of you who are like me and enjoy seeing pictures so we can understand daily life---I am blogging about how we take out the trash. By the way, my friend Sarah and many others have said that back in Texas, I had a small trash can--well, now, I have an even smaller one!!!!

I asked one time before knowing how trash was deposited, if we wanted to make the trash bag bigger then take it out when it was more full. Well, nothing was said, but I tried stuffing one to the fullest and then realized the reason the trash can needs to be the size it is!!!

Here is where we take our trash. It is located outside our apartment down about 7 or so steps. It's a lovely mint green---it looks like a pipe and this pipe goes down through each floor with an trash opening(which by the way, stays shut). Nope, it doesn't smell...I think it dumped below the first floor into the "dump" and then picked up by the trash collectors.

So, you open the lid, then you put your "small" bag in the hole. If it doesn't drop down automatically, you use a stick on the side of the pipe(I think it might be an old broom handle)....

and you push it down the pipe!!! Now, we have a trash compactor. It's actually quite nice.

So, don't you feel like you are here with me?

When you don't have a gym membership...

Matthew says---"Come on, you're almost there!!" Matthew had done his twenty sit ups on the bed and now it was John's turn. Katie is on the other side of John doing her math! Fun Fun!!!

Pictures from Airport...(Ok, so they are two weeks old!!)

Thanks to Steve and Deana for the entertainment!! The kids are watching Madeline on the portable DVD player given to us by the lovely Hovinds!

Lunch boxes that we packed full of snacks kept us from spending too much in the wayyyyyyy pricey German airport. Over there a dollar is worth 50 cents and we felt it. We spent $6 for a much needed water!!! Can you believe it???