It's about time...

Lovely Days

2010-11-14T06:31:00.000-05:00

We all need friends like Terri Fisher who throw school out the window on a beautiful day and encourage others to follow!

Okay, in reality, Terri is one of those mothers who can motivate her children to get it all done before lunch in order to get out in the sunshine.

I admire women like her...

I am of the "throwing out the window" variety...

I am so glad we did. Though the park security wouldn't let us have our picnic on the lawn, we rallied and still enjoyed ourselves.

Bikes, scooters, rollerblades and even a card game (what?!)

It felt like a bonus summer day... and we are hoping for a few more before the cold winds blow!

Fun on Ice

2010-11-14T06:09:00.000-05:00

Aubrie chose ice-skating as her birthday activity and our friend at the Mega Mall let us in before they opened, so we had the ice to ourselves! Thanks, Christian!

Good-natured learners!

Along with our whole family, we had Tasha Wilson, trying to brighten the day of a stubborn little boy, (we missed you, Ashley and Analea!)

Haillie & Noah Broberg (we missed Jonah & Silas, but 8am on a Saturday morning when you live on the other side of town is a little unreasonable!),

Hannah, Jonathan & Timothy Fisher,

And Ted.

This was Sam's first time on ice. Last year he was stroller-bound the whole time.

Though not crazy about the falling, he thought it was something he would do again.

It was a fun family activity
and, despite the bruises, we will definitely do it again!

She started with skates and ended with tennis shoes.
Anybody want to come over and teach my kids how to skate?

Happy Birthday, Aubrie... just a few weeks late!

2010-11-14T05:09:00.000-05:00

The anticipation was palpable...

we started the countdown sometime in July...

the lists... the discussions...

FINALLY it came to pass!

Aubrie completed her first decade!!!

The choice for commemoration was

a cookie dough mountain (sans eggs).

We tried to make it look like an island inhabited by pirates... what do you think?

Our team came over to help us celebrate, as well as some friends from town and further afield (glad you could be there, Ilya, next time bring the family:-)).

I thought you may want to see our living room from both angles. Wish you could come and put your feet up and chat a while...

Thank you to all those who sent gifts from America and to those who delivered them in person. She got everything she wanted... except the surprise visit from cousin Cassidy that she was SURE would happen. We will have to start saving now to make that one come about before she moves away.

But, Cass, she LOVED the owl!

Sam is TWO!!!

2010-09-12T01:18:00.001-04:00

The cake was going to be a huge car... Cars (or "Bbrruumm"s (imagine the sound of an engine, for those of you who, like me, are new to the ways of boys)) are EVERYTHING to this little boy right now, but time ran short and it became a backdrop for cars. (The burned marshmallows are supposed to be rocks :-))

He loves being the center of attention.

Singing along...

5 tries... but no spit!

Wonderful friends brought wonderful BOY gifts! I continue to be amazed at the lack of them amidst all the other toys at our house, but now he has a gun and cars and dinosaurs... when he gets the box of bugs later today, he should be set! THANK YOU, FRIENDS!!!

Funny Silas!
The boy closest to his age at his party... Maybe someday he will introduce Sam to the world of Legos...

Only thing that competes with cars in Sam's life... Rah Rahs! (That would be dogs... His attempt at "Roxy", our dog.)

Sam loves Jack!

Biding our time at the Zoo

2010-09-11T14:27:00.002-04:00

So, we are sitting in Kiev AGAIN waiting for our visas to be ready. We decided a day at the Zoo was in order, but unfortunately, we were only 6 that day, since Cady wasn't feeling too well.

Enjoy the pictures and try to spot the differences... Zoos on our side of the world provide other opportunities for entertainment than you find in the States, at least for these Americans :-)

Madi's attempt at a Llama smile.

Mom shows her how it is done.
Ignore the burgundy hair... that is another story for another day...

Not exactly a Burger King, but they do have pancakes and ice cream!

But, they DO NOT want you giving your ice cream to the bison!

They also say NO TEASING the deer!

They suggest it is not a good idea to put your hand in the cheetah's mouth.

Finally, don't climb up the cage, though the wolf looks like he could use a little excitement.

We couldn't figure out what this rhino was sporting on his nose...

I had to include this picture... he is just so handsome...

Handsome or not... he can argue with anybody!

We found most of the animals were cat-napping.

So we raced to see the monkeys... they NEVER sleep!

Though they were awake,this was the saddest part of the day... those monkeys really need a better habitat. But, they are Brookie's favorite and supreme highlight. She feels a kinship, and for those of you who know her well, it is not a surprise!

I really don't know why a face cream would sponsor a Zoo.

Having a little fun on the way to the car.

And then Dad says,"Let's run for it before they try to charge us more for parking!!!" And we were all in the car and driving away in 2 minutes flat! A new record and delighted dad!

Madi is 14

2010-04-14T08:41:00.000-04:00

It happened quietly without much fanfare... but that was okay because we kind of over-celebrated last year. That is probably the best thing I can say about Madi...

She is content whether the party is big or small. She doesn't care if you give her big, expensive gifts or homemade. Her outward circumstances don't generally upset her inner calm.
God knew this family needed some inner calm...
I love you, Madi! You are maturing despite your best efforts to stay young and you are beautiful! I am grateful for the young lady you are becoming.

Cady the Lady turned 11!

2010-01-07T14:23:00.000-05:00

It happened last month, but I didn't want to miss the opportunity to tell you how thankful I am for this little girl.
Cady is a people person in every way.She loves relating to people,serving them and making them laugh with her great sense of humor.She is a little of a drama queen, but that shows you all the more the depth of her emotions.
I am so glad God gave her to me 11 years ago and I love seeing her blossom into a lovely young lady with heart and spirit.

Brooklyn is FIVE!!!

2009-12-09T02:53:00.000-05:00

Happy Birthday to my vivacious, out-going, always entertaining, still-in-training, fun-loving, energetic, witty, little Brooklyn!
We love you!!!

We're still here!

2009-12-05T06:45:00.001-05:00

Here is a "Hello" to those of you who have faithfully and generously still thought well of us, even though I've have been so rudely out of touch!

I have a hard time having anything to say when I have no photos to go along with it! But, thankfully, I have a few and promise of more in just a few days, so here is a taste of news...

Cady is keeping up with her school and had a fun sleepover last night. We are thankful for girls her age in our town.

We had a great Thanksgiving celebration and were joined by Brooklyn's new friend and family. Dasha has been a special addition to our life.

Madi has not gotten outside quite as much as she would like, but as that would require actually living in a hollowed out tree... we do what we can... She did go ice-skating with her sisters and a great group of friends the other day.

Aubrie made some "armor" for Patches (her favorite bear) today out of cardboard. Maybe we will have a picture of that in the future.

Roxy has tripled in size and is turning out to be a nice addition to our family. We are so glad that she is so trainable. I am thrilled that she puts up with Sam. She is very gentle... at least with him! He has discovered how much fun it is to lay on her and share her toys.

We have started an English Club at the University in the last few months and I will have pictures and stories of it next time. Thanks for your patience!

Character learned the hard way...

2009-07-26T03:49:00.003-04:00

Due to an unfortunate accident, Mr. No Name (who was unofficially becoming Chewbaca (can you see the resemblance?)) died this morning.

We are sad, but know that we can use difficult times like this to learn to value life, be compassionate, be careful, love while you can...

We loved you little Duncan Khachipuri Chewbaca!!!!

Meet Mr. No Name

2009-07-25T03:44:00.007-04:00

This is our newest family member. The kids found him and his 4 siblings in a pipe under the road out in the country where our friends, the Brobergs, live.

He was named whimsically (Duncan, because he looked like someone had been "dunkin'" him in white paint) and quickly out of necessity, but now must receive the official name that we are willing to call outside our gate if need be. We are open to any and all suggestions!

This is Lemony Snicket, his brother. He lives with us until his family moves into their new home. He will also be receiving a new name.

He was a pretty cute puppy, too.

Girly Screams from a Baby Boy...

2009-07-24T08:19:00.006-04:00

...it is enough to make you finally discipline, though you thought you could NEVER say "no" to that face. So this is what we see when he hears THAT word...

And it is followed by THIS face...

But Madi knows just how to make it all better. Spoiled? Maybe... Sweet? Oh my yes!!!

2009-07-24T07:59:00.003-04:00

Welcome to our home in Krasnodar, Russia!We finally found a home and are spending every day unpacking boxes.I hope to give you a tour and some more regular updates, but one thing this house did not come with is a phone, so internet is difficult and expensive. But, I will see what I can do. Don't give up on me! Keep coming back to see if I managed to upload more. Become a "follower" of mine and I think you get updated when it happens. Thoughtful of the blogger people to come up with that one!

Not that he looks like he needs it, but...

2009-03-23T00:47:00.005-04:00

First Cereal!

He really loved it...

The girls liked getting it on his face, more than in his mouth.
They thought it was cute.

I don't think he agreed.

Equal Time

2008-11-23T10:46:00.004-05:00

Cady & Aubrie sharing the love.

And there is a little left over for Madi...

The kids have been hanging out with their cousins and loving every minute of it!

Nice monkey faces

Brooklyn & Aubrie LOVE their new little brother.

Madi gets the prize for "the most changed in the smallest amount of time"... and that is saying a lot when you are competing with a 2 month old!

Simply Sam

2008-11-23T10:29:00.005-05:00

They Grow So Fast!

This is Sam at two months old.

He had a hard time gaining weight. He lost almost a pound when he was only two weeks old. Since that time we figured out a few things and he has made up for lost time.

He looks pretty proud of himself!

He is a very happy, laid-back child. Just what a family of 4 crazy baby-obsessed sisters need!

He is such a little man. The fixation on the moving picture starts early...

Sam I am

2008-09-15T21:11:00.002-04:00

Samuel Stephen Hayes was born September 12, at 3:54 pm, 2008. Weighing in at 8.7 lbs., measuring 21.5 inches. He's calm and sleepy. Christine is doing great. The girls pass him around 24/7, even though he's only 3 days old. Thanks for all your prayers. We plan on heading back to Russia in the next few months, as soon as we can get all his paperwork together.

On the Road Again...

2008-06-03T11:17:00.018-04:00

I would like to say that the kids always enjoy the time in the car as much as this photo would suggest, but...

That is what our life has consisted of for the last 3 months. We have based out of...

this house in Syracuse and traveled every weekend to a different church.

It has been exhausting, but interesting to meet all the new pastors and congregations and we look forward to continued relationship with them through the years.

This park is across the field by the church that has sponsored us for the last few months.

Between the grueling hours of school, the girls have managed to have hours of fun there.

It will be hard to say goodbye.

We have gotten to see around NY a little bit. The Hudson River Valley was breath-taking! We hope to see more (maybe even Niagra Falls) before we head out of the state in three weeks.

When in the car, the girls entertain themselves pretty well (Thank you Brian & Kirsten for the DVD players!!!).

Madi takes lots of pictures... even self-portraits that she has begged me not to post.

(I have tried to explain to her the rights I was given after the 15 hours of labor she gave me, but to no avail!)

So, "Goodbye, New York"

"Hello, Next Adventure!"

There have been requests for a picture of me in the maternity state... I am convinced that these requests could not possibly have come from my REAL friends, but in an effort to hold on to all the friends I can... enjoy it now because we are entering the camera-free months. The next you will see of me will be holding our sweet little 6 month old boy!

Next best thing to being there...

2008-05-23T14:36:00.006-04:00

After multiple emails, bothering my dear friends on the other side of the world, I have a picture to share with you!
Stass & YanaMay 18, 2008
I wasn't lying, was I ?! She is a beautiful bride!
(Thanks for having your camera aimed and ready, Leigh!)

Missing Home...

2008-05-19T12:15:00.018-04:00

Our very good friend, Yana, got married yesterday in Russia and we had to miss it. I know it was a beautiful wedding - they are a beautiful couple inside and out.

As I am missing Russia so much, I am going to post some pictures to show you some reasons why...

The kids were attending the International School and they had some great friends... ...as well as great teachers! They miss the fun times and I miss someone else planning and correcting their lessons!

This is Haillie Broberg... a girl I hear about almost every day from the lips of my Madi. In case you are one of the few people left on earth that hasn't heard this yet...

Madi misses Haillie.

This is the White House.
The kids would spend hours here...

...and here at the Indian House living in another world with Haillie...

...and Noah Broberg...

...and Jonah & Silas Broberg.

There is nowhere here in America that is as cool... according to the Hayes kids.

And I miss spending so much time with Jen Broberg playing Settlers and Hearts and making pizza and so much small talk that she eventually falls asleep from an overdose of me.

(We miss you, too, Mark, but have no pictures of you... and we talk to you every morning... come to think of it, maybe we actually get enough of you as it is... :-) )

And I couldn't finish without an honorable mention to India.
Who couldn't miss that face?! We haven't had any news about her and absence has made our hearts grow fonder (not cleaning up after her in 5 months has probably helped with that as well...).

Enough Already!!!!

2008-04-30T10:26:00.014-04:00

I know I should feel flattered...

I like attention as much as the next guy...
But when you are hearing every other day that your blog hasn't changed for months and there is a rumor that you dropped off the face of the earth...
Enough already!
Thank you for the "gentle nudges". I will attempt to fill you in quickly, but for details, you should probably give me a call or use your imagination!
We spent all of November and December packing up our home in Krasnodar to prepare for 5 months of traveling in the States. Our plans are to find a new home when we return in June rather than pay rent for an empty house.
In January all our plans were turned upside down when we found out that baby #5 is coming in September. My husband now preaches "surgery before generosity" if you are REALLY serious about being done! We had given EVERYTHING away! After spending some much needed time with my side of the family in Texas, we headed to Florida in February for some vacation and time with Steve's side of the family (more of mine, too! Let's do it again, Nate & Pam!).
Completely rested and refreshed, we headed to New York in March for a whirlwind tour of the state telling anyone who will listen about our time in Russia and what we would like to see happen in the coming years. That is where we are now... In the middle of the whirlwind. I have just one more thing to share...
We will no longer have to rely on theory to teach our girls what boys are like... they will have a little brother to observe first hand!
The reason I had put this off for so long is that the pictures of all the fun are on the other computer. So, here are just a few of ordinary life that will at least help you to recognize us on the street.
The new plan is to be back in Russia by Thanksgiving. I can't think of anything I would be more thankful for!

This is the house that has been so generously provided for us to live in during the months we will be here in NY.

Here Steve and the kids are headed to the church next door to toss the garbage and play in the gym.

Our Guardians Angels are working overtime!

2007-12-04T00:35:00.000-05:00

So, I'm driving home from Pizza Night at our good friends', the Brobergs, home. I am following Steve because we had to take two cars.

Here in Russia we have round-abouts often where, in America, you would have a simple intersection and a street light. So, as I was entering one of these round-abouts, a semi decided that he owned the road and kept squeezing me off of it. As a result, I ran along the curb which consequently slashed both of my tires on the left side.

I pulled over just as soon as I could after getting out of the round-about and sat parked (in the Honda minivan) off the road in front of a car wash and called Steve for help.

He turned around and came to my rescue (in the Toyota Land Cruiser). Parking directly behind me about 10 feet, he helped me get the spare and started to remove the lug nuts.

Just then, a security guard in a Lada (a tin can of a Russian made car) slammed into the back of our Toyota. This is what it looked like.

Now, let me give you a little bit of background information. These cars belong to our organization. The Honda was given to us to use and the Toyota is in our keeping while it is being sold. After all this, we are pretty convinced that we would rather own the Toyota than the minivan. This is the second time the Lord has used it to stop the crazy drivers from hurting us. Though Steve and I were standing only feet from the accident and we each had two kids in our cars,

no Hayes was hurt!

The driver and his passenger went off in the Skora Pamotch (Ambulance). Do you see where the hood is piercing the windshield? It also pierced the passenger's nose. The driver hit his chest on the steering wheel at full force.

The perils of driving drunk...

By the way, Skora Pamotch means "help soon", but our friend, Jen, made it to us before they did and took our kids home with her. It took the medical professionals about 20 minutes.

This is where I was standing at impact... except just before the accident I had the Honda right beside me. You see, when the Lada hit the Toyota, it lurched 10 feet and hit the Honda which also lurched 10 feet. The road the Lada should have been on is actually not seen to the right of this photo. It is amazing that he hit the car and not me or Steve. Though, only 5 minutes before, we were between the cars and Steve was in a precarious position trying to remove the spare tire which could have resulted in serious injury, even death when our two cars hit each other. The scenarios are endless and we are just so grateful to be safe.

The first person Steve called was our pastor, Marat (in the red jacket). Considering this happened at 1am, we were so grateful that he immediately came and even brought a friend. We could not have done all that we had to do in the next 4 hours without them.

The police showed up after about 30 minutes, looked over everything and then started to leave. We asked them where they were going and they said that a pedestrian had been hit and killed and they were the only police for our region and that time of night.

So, after about an hour, they returned and we measured everything and answered their questions until about 3:30am. Then they left and told us to meet them at their office.

We then proceeded to try to remove the offending car from our Toyota bumper, which proved to be a little harder than expected. He had really driven it up under there!

The whole ordeal finally concluded around 5:30am, though in reality, it is just the beginning! Now we deal with insurance companies and mechanics, though I will take that over doctors and hospitals any day!

Harvest Party at KIS

2007-11-26T01:27:00.000-05:00

KIS (Krasnodar International School) had a Harvest Party just before breaking for Thanksgiving holiday. The Elementary kids were the Indians...

... and the Middle School kids were the pilgrims. Our good friend, Mark Broberg, came as Squanto and taught everyone the ways of the Indians.

This is how it is done...

...like father like son...

... and Cady had her own style, though not quite as effective.

He also taught the kids how to make fire with a flint stone and some soft blowing.

Haillie was good at starting her fire...

... maybe a little TOO good!

Brookie got in on the fun, too. She rode the bus to go visit a friend with Yana.

No stage fright here!

2007-11-26T00:38:00.000-05:00

Churches in Russia celebrate Thanksgiving just like we do, only they do it in September or October and call it "Zhadva" or "Harvest".

Oddly enough, all the children in our church are Americans, but they were troopers and sang a song in Russian.

Madi even sang a solo... in Russian! She did such a great job. I wish you all could have been there.

The next week our church celebrated its 5th anniversary.

The kids really enjoyed the food.

I don't know what I was saying, but as you can see, everyone was very interested!

This is a Russian family sent from our church to live in Dagastan and help with a new church there. Dagastan is located just above Chechnya and is predominately Muslim. Life there is very hard for Russian christians. As Americans, we cannot live there and can hardly even visit. They are a very precious family.

Jewelry Class

2007-11-17T06:28:00.000-05:00

Our kids have been attending the New International School here in Krasnodar and I had the happy opportunity to teach an enrichment class for their first quarter.

It somehow got around that I knew how to make jewelry and I was asked to teach the middle school girls what I know.

Since what I know about jewelry making takes all of one hour to teach, and yet I was supposed to fill 45 minutes two days a week for about nine weeks, it was a learning experience for all of us!

Getting middle school girls to take a simple picture was almost more challenging than teaching the class!!!

After making the basic necklace, we made Macramé bracelets. Then we moved on to earrings and phone charms.

Our biggest project was beaded insects and animals that we used to decorate frames.

It was a lot of fun and though I am happy to have more time for other things, I will miss hanging out with those wacky girls!

Engaged!!

2007-11-15T14:03:00.000-05:00

Our Yana is getting married!!! We have mixed emotions...

We think he is very lucky and he seems really sweet, but...

We really don't want them to do anything about it until we get back from the States next summer! We just CAN'T miss the wedding! I want to make her promise to wait, but I'm thinking that might be a little selfish on my part...

Aubrie is Seven!

2007-11-15T04:30:00.000-05:00

During my vacation from blogging, Aubrie turned 7!

It is so hard to believe that she is old enough to go to school and grow new front teeth.

If I could keep any of them little forever, it would be her, though Brooklyn is running a close second!

She asked for cheesecake for her actual birthday

and a cake with a deer on it for her party...

I couldn't figure out how to make a deer,

so I compromised with a rendition of India, our dog.

Aubrie has been so generous with the American Girl she got for her last birthday letting her little sister, Brooklyn, play with her to the point of permanent "bad hair day"!
So, we decided to pass Josephina on for good and let Aubrie have a new one.
For her party she wanted to make crowns
and sock puppets.

Cady & her horse

Aubrie & her pig

Silas Broberg

& his creature

This is Megan.

She was Aubrie's BEST present this year. Aubrie hasn't usually had girls her age in the different places that we have lived. Since birth Cassidy & Gabby, her cousins, have been her only close friends. While they are STILL her BESTEST friends (she misses you guys!) she now has Megan. Megan's family has moved to our city to work... not just for language school. That means we may have her around for more than 2 years (all of this does NOT mean that she has forgotten the boy who was her age and only here for language school... she misses you, too, Micah!).

Wouldn't you know...

2007-11-15T02:12:00.001-05:00

I don't know whether you would attribute it toMurphy's Lawor the desire to prove someone wrongor just crazy coincidence...
But just as soon as I pushed "post" on my last installment, my camera and computer came to some kind of agreement and I got all my pictures back!
So, I will share them as they come to me, but don't expect things to be chronological.That would be asking WAY too much!

Imagine this coming at you at 60mph!

Okay, not quite "u-shaped" but DEFINITELY un-Useable!

Cady was in the very back seat, but after the initial shock, we found only a tiny little scratch on her leg.

Brace Yourself...

2007-11-08T15:11:00.000-05:00

I know you have been waiting...

I have been waiting, too!

Waiting for my photography/computer saavy husband to put some pictures on my computer so that you all don't just have to read all that is floating through my head these days.

But, alas, all the "saavy-ness" in the world cannot undo what a Russian semi did back in August as we drove the 17 hours from the Moscow Airport to our home in Krasnodar.

We had just come down a hill 8 hours into our trip when we were forced to come to a dead stop because of "prohp-kah". (Russian word for "traffic" literally translated "cork")

After sitting for a few minutes, Steve, the ever-cautious driver, looked in his rearview mirror and seeing nothing, went to change the song on the MP3 player when...

--- BAM ---

the semi rear-ended us and pushed us off the road.

Now, before you get excited... we were in a Toyota SUV with a tire on the back and all of our kids were restrained properly (which is really something considering it is not the law here and our kids were REALLY tired of being restrained!). No one got hurt, just real shook up.

The worst part is what we discovered after we got out to survey the damage...

When the driver (who offered no explanation as to why he rammed us when traffic was clearly at a standstill and he had plenty of time to stop and even admits that he did not try to slow down) hit us he broke out our back window and consequently crushed our roof (we had quite a few boxes stacked on top as we had just come from America).

That is still not the worst part...

While walking around the semi to look for skidmarks, Steve discovered his laptop bag behind the semi... Yes, it had fallen out of our back window and the semi ran over it, not once, but twice!!! I had the greatest picture of our "u" shaped computer, but since it also demolished our flash card and card reader, I cannot show it to you no matter what my photography/computer saavy husband tries.

And here we are again... you're stuck reading my ramblings.

So, to whoever is still listening... I will try to give you updates during the holidays and try to steal pictures from others and if you just hang in there, it should all be remedied by February... or maybe March...

To the faithful few... I'm sorry!

2007-07-14T11:21:00.000-04:00

It has come to my attention that those who faithfully check my blog are tired of seeing bikes day after day. Being a "regular-blog-checker" myself, I understand the frustration (I'm talking to you, Rick Greene!).
I have been wanting to update with pictures, but I am stateside right now typing on a laptop and am not computer saavy enough to provide you with them... so you will just have to wait a few more weeks.
We came to Texas last month to renew passports and visas and are stuck 3/4th of the way through the process right now, so we are just enjoying all the family around us.

Lucky you! I found a picture. It is from the bike trip, but doesn't contain a bike, so that is something. Can you imagine being able to bike in those beautiful mountains?! You can, too! Come on over and join us next time!

Bike Team!

2007-05-25T06:56:00.001-04:00

For those of you who have been checking out our "Coming Events" at the botton of this page, you will be pleased to see some of these photos! The Bike Team from Texas has arrived!

This is Johnny. He is the leader of the pack. A gentle giant... and pretty good with a bike.

Will is the audio/video guy. He rides right along with them, but he also makes great DVDs of their trips.

Ryan is helping to build a bike ramp in the empty lot next to our house... that is, until the owners showed up and put a stop to it. They were afraid we might mess up the property that they may or may not build on in the next 20 years. We were actually cleaning up all the garbage for him!

We knew we had kids in our neighborhood, but they really came out of the woodwork when Jake started doing his tricks. We were warned about Jake before he came. He is not afraid of anything, even getting hurt! He proved it the first night he was here by shattering a coffee mug with his foot. Ouch!

He is even crazy without a bike!

I let them do this to Steve, but when Maddie tried to volunteer I said, "Enough is enough!"

These are two girls, Anna & Ira, that we have been getting to know when they come to our house every other week to practice their English. Yes, that is me... I went a little short and light for the summer!

Shashlik with the Neighbors

2007-05-25T06:40:00.001-04:00

We live in a duplex that we share with our landlords. They invited us for shashlik (Russian BBQ) and we COULDN'T refuse! Our landlord, Vladimir Ivanovich, makes the BEST shashlik in town!
(This picture is from April, before the garden really took off. You should see it now! Green growing things everywhere! I think I actually saw strawberries yesterday.)

They have two daughters. One lives in Israel with her husband and 1 year old son. Galya lives here. She is studying to be a Veterinarian.

There's a New Family in Town!

2007-05-25T06:27:00.000-04:00

This is the Broberg Family. We are SO excited to have them living in Krasnodar! I wanted you to meet them because I will probably be mentioning them in the future quite a bit.

They moved here from St. Petersburg, where the sun only shines 66 days a year. Good choice! It has been in the 90s here for the past week.

I just love Jen. She is a mother of four, also, so she and I have a lot in common.

So much fun to come!!!

Maddie's Birthday Party

2007-05-25T05:56:00.001-04:00

I can't believe how much a girl can change from 10 to 11!

Gone is the little girl who had to have her bunny all the time and loved to play with dolls.

Now she loves makeup (which has actually been discovered on her preteen face only after leaving for church!). The hat was a gift from Yana, our babysitter. She made it herself and Maddie has not taken it off in weeks!

And art is EVERYTHING! She says that someday she will be a missionary who sings and takes care of Russian street dogs while living off the sales of her artwork. Quite a plan!

She wanted to take her friends ice skating at the new rink in our mall and Yana generously allowed herself to be pushed, pulled and hung on for the whole hour! And I think this was her first time!

Maddie got the hang of it right away. She may even want to add it to her future plans... somehow...

I hung out with the ones who's feet were too small for the ice skates.

Visitors from America

2007-04-28T13:11:00.000-04:00

In May we have 4 college students coming from Texas to go biking with some of the young muslims we have gotten to know. In preparation their leaders came over to check out the situation so everything goes smoothly.

Eli is from Huntsville and works full-time on college campuses.

Michael is a pastor whom, oddly enough, Steve met back when he was 14 at Mike's dad's church! Small world!

Steve took them on the road about 7 hours southeast to Nalchik. (FYI: 100 km from Chechnya)

Our friends, Jerry (he is in the center) and Nancy Sturgeon, work in that city.

They definitely found time for fun...

The swinging happened at a rehab center that doubles as a fish farm. The farm sustains the work with those in recovery.

Isn't it beautiful?

But the scenery was marred by the city of Beslan. They were able to visit the school where terrorists killed over 300, most of them children, in 2004.

Steve says that they haven't changed anything at the school since the tragedy. You would have thought the bombs went off yesterday. They just put up memorials and built a new school.
The men felt indescribable sadness.

Looking at all the graves, Steve said that it is unbelievable what some people can do to other people.

Water?

2007-04-28T12:12:00.000-04:00

I am so grateful for my water filter!

The water was coming out real slowly, so Steve changed it this afternoon.

Good idea, huh?

More of Maddie...

2007-04-18T14:16:00.000-04:00

Our Maddie has been at it again!

This is Brooklyn hunting for eggs and trying to smile at the same time.

On Easter Sunday, Maddie generously allowed a 5 year old friend from church to take her picture.

Aubrie at the bowling alley.

Doing her supermodel best, Cady posing in our foyer. Sorry it has taken me this long to give you even a tiny glimpse of where we live. Our staircase is the biggest part of the house!

Aubrie dancing in the living room. That fireplace was a LOT of fun this winter.

Brooklyn and India are BEST friends. It may be because she is the only one who really plays with the dog, or because she always has something tasty on her face...

She even catches Mom on film.

Right now we have a houseguest, Yarik. He is the nephew of friend. He lives in Moscow, but has come down here for the week, so he is staying with us to practice his English... and his XBox skills!

Краснодаркий Хор!

2007-04-10T16:11:00.000-04:00

Pronounced, Krasnodarsky Hore (yes... just like whore), this group is often the butt of many an american joke, but since it just means a choir from Krasnodar (our city) it also means a night at the theater!

It was Girls Night Out (me, the big girls and Yana, our babysitter) and Steve stayed home with Brooklyn. We got ourselves all gussied up for our big night of local Cossack singing and dancing. Steve & I attended this choir once the year before and it was excellent. The singing was rich and I have never seen men squat so low and jump so high (my description of Cossack dancing)!

Well, we knew this was a special celebration of some sort, but we really didn't have a lot of details. Needless to say... we should have gotten details!

We sat through two straight hours of a birthday party for the main soloist of the choir. Now, you have to understand Russian birthday parties to understand our particular misery. The soloist turned 60 and EVERYONE who has EVER enjoyed his 40+ years of singing got up to wish him well and give him flowers. He sang a little, maybe one person danced, but primarily they toasted this man until he himself said that it was enough. TWO HOURS WITHOUT AN INTERMISSION!!!!! Aubrie was asleep in the first 15 minutes!

When I could finally see there was a break coming, I snuck out before anyone else so that I could get the kids to the bathroom before everyone else. Here in Krasnodar, most public toilets are just a hole in the ground and no seat, even in the concert halls. So, I asked my friend who had just been there herself what they were. She told me there was a seat...

Well, what she meant to say was that you get yourself into a seated postition... over a hole! That crazy Russian language! (My new favorite word is "sadushka", the word for the toilet you sit on.) So all my rushing was for naught. The kids decided they could wait... that is until the line formed and went out the door and up the stairs. That was when Aubrie decided she wanted to try. I had to tell her to forget about it and think of other things. I bought them candybars and braced them for another two hours of no music.

Well, since I had left early, I failed to realize that the soloist really meant it when he said enough was enough! The concert was over! There was a mixture of relief and dissatisfaction all at the same time. For Maddie it was a mixture of headache and nausea. She actually threw up in the car on the way home.

So, what started out with so much potential ended with tears on the bathroom floor. I don't think I will be going to see that hore ever again... (okay, I heard that snicker!)

English Club

2007-04-10T15:52:00.000-04:00

I may have already mentioned this, but every other Thursday we have the neighborhood kids who are interested in English come over to play games and do American type activities.

Since it was a few days before Easter, we decided to paint eggs.
Ira, the girl in the middle, speaks English fairly well and she acts as an interpreter for the other children who are barely beginners.

Even the youngest got to participate, though she really just wanted to crack them so she could eat them.

They decorate them very much like we do. They have really beautiful covers that shrink onto the egg in just a few seconds under boiling water.
We told them how we hide the eggs and they were facinated. Their tradition is to have two people hold eggs and then tap them together and the one who's egg does not crack is the winner. Someone convinced Steve that they also crack them on their heads. After getting a good bruise on his forehead they told him they were kidding.

After painting the eggs, Steve taught the kids how to throw a football outside in the empty lot by our house. The first step was to teach them that a football to us was not a soccer ball (that is what they call a football and considering you usually just kick it, I really can't blame them), then how to hold it and after an hour, they all looked every bit like American boys and girls! Though, the minute one of them got a grass stain, she went running home to try to clean it. They REALLY don't like to get dirty!

Happy Birthday, Maddie!

2007-04-10T15:42:00.000-04:00

The day has finally arrived!!!

Maddie waited so patiently all through the winter as everyone else in the family had their birthdays, and finally spring arrived bringing her birthday as well.

The thing she wanted most was a guitar... for her American Girl Doll.

I think this may renew her interest in her own guitar!

Maddie asked for Chocolate Chip Pancakes for breakfast... Aubrie really got into that idea!

Thank you, Simpsons!

2007-04-01T10:38:00.000-04:00

Our good friends, Mike & Kristi Simpson, from Kilgore, TX just sent us a care package. We already knew that they cared... but as I have said before, we LOVE getting cool stuff from the States!

Don't ask me what the dog is doing on the table. Picture taken by Maddie while I studied Russian upstairs.

The kids LOVED the stickers and pencils. I think they have enough to share with all their friends!

They also sent cake mixes, but you will see those in a few weeks when I post the cake I am going to make for Maddie's birthday.

You can always send Steve ANYTHING by Reeses.

Photographer in Training

2007-04-01T10:11:00.000-04:00

Maddie has a new hobby. Steve is teaching her to take pictures and then fiddle with them in Photoshop. For now I will share the "raw images" (I'm trying to pick up the jargon in order to fit in) and later you can see what she can REALLY do!

The kids went bowling with the family with whom they study Russian. (If my sentence structure seems a little odd, we can blame it all on Lomonosov, the man who really created the Russian grammar system! He has my brain all in knots right now.)

Maddie was throwing all kinds of strikes and spares (with bumpers firmly in place). Aubrie was just thrilled to see that her ball made it to the end... slowly... but surely!

The girls, remembering the downtime waiting for their next turn, brought all their drawing supplies.

Wheelbarrow rides are the latest amusement in our backyard. Yana has been a faithful pusher, but I am pretty sure I saw her riding a time or two!

Sing a Song

2007-04-01T10:02:00.000-04:00

I just found these pictures and realized that I had never told you that the kids were asked to sing in church. One of the benefits of Russian singing lessons!

Down By The Sea

2007-03-13T08:41:00.000-04:00

The time has come once again for daytrips to the sea.

Our friends from Moscow came and we wanted them to see the best part of Southern Russia.

We have been friends with Alex Motrenko since he was only 14. Now he has a wife, a daughter and a hankering to go cruising with Steve before he turns 30 this fall!

The kids love the beach, even when it is too cold to swim. Ruma, Alex's wife, is learning English and I, Russian, so we got to practice on each other.
Those listening may have been lost,
but we managed just fine.
Maddie found other things to do at the beach. She is really into drawing lately and she says Ruma is VERY talented!

Nelly is just adorable! The girls, especially Aubrie, carried her everywhere just like a baby doll.

Brookie made a new friend.

Unfortunately he had about 6 other friends and they sat around begging all day!

He's just so handsome!

You never know what you are going to find on a Russian beach.

An unbroken lightbulb was interesting, but the toilet seat was much more practical!

The fire for shashlik (Russian BBQ) had gone out before dark, so Steve built us another,
10 times bigger than the first...

Then he jumped over it.

Go figure...

Notice Cady praying in the background. The kids were thinking he could die - the dogs were just thinking,

"Mmmm, more shashlik!"

School Days

2007-03-12T04:48:00.000-04:00

The other day as I was dropping the kids off at school (their school is the building in the background with a steeple), I saw something that you don't see every day back in America...

A Chicken Herder!

This is the sign for their school.

It says, "House of Prayer" It is a church/private school. The girls don't understand everything (no one there speaks English) but their constant exposure to Russian has really helped them along in their language aquisition.

This is my Russian class. One of my classmates is missing due to morning sickness. My teacher is in the center. The man beside me has lived in Russia longer than we have and, like us, just now decided to really learn the language. The lady in the red scarf is German and the lady beside her is actually a distant cousin of my husband!

Small world...

When Mom's Away...

2007-02-25T01:44:00.000-05:00

Sorry I haven't posted in a while.

Things have been pretty crazy around here since I went back to Language School full-time. Steve and I went together last year and our babysitter, Yana, came and kept things running while we were gone.

Well, this year is a little different...

Steve keeps the kids for two hours before Yana comes and you just never know what really happens until he starts taking pictures...

I just love the "swimsuit used only as a skirt" idea.

She is growing up...

2007-02-08T01:52:00.000-05:00

It seems we have a little multi-tasker...

I found her picking through her toes while taking care of other business.
To counteract the inevitable embarrassment she will feel when she is 16... I would like to say that she is a very impressive little potty trainer. She got the hang of it in about 2 days!
Somehow, I don't think that will be much of a comfort...

Cousins Are Awesome!!!!

2007-02-08T01:10:00.000-05:00

Meet more of the family...

This is Steve's brother, Tim, and his wife, Janis. They have 5 beautiful kids:

Jess, Liz, Maddie, Gabby and Jackson.

They just sent the girls a box of all kinds of goodies.

They LOVED it!

They say, "THANK YOU!!!"

These are the Fuquas.

They have been the adopted Grandparents for the last year and a half. We all LOVE Robert and Ann! But, unfortunately, their language school days are over and they are moving on to the whole reason they came here to Russia in the first place. They help kids transition out of orphanages and into real life when they become 18.

We will miss them, but we know we will see them again.

Oh, the reason I included this photo now is because the shirts on my three girls in the back are from their cousins. They say, "Czarina" which is Queen in Russian. So cute!!

Music Recital... Again!

2007-01-17T08:51:00.000-05:00

It may seem like just yesterday that you saw pictures of a music recital... (if it really was yesterday, surely you have something better to do than read all my old posts!) but that was because I was so late in getting the last pictures to you. Actually, their last recital was with their former teacher in September.

Their new teacher, Anya, held a recital for my girls, as well as two of her other American students, at our house last week.

Once again, the girls played and sang...

their sister applauded...

and fun was had by all!

December 30th - 12 Years!

2007-01-17T08:30:00.000-05:00

One of the main things we have learned in our 12 years of marriage is to celebrate it every chance we get, not waiting for the anniversay day because life can be unpredictable...

Some friends of ours are out of town and offered us the use of their 10th floor apartment as a quiet place to get away from our precious children in exchange for watering their plants.

Well, they have been having a little door trouble. We stopped in for just a few minutes on our anniversary to water the plants before heading downtown for dinner. Little did we know, our dinner would be tortilla chips that we were able to find in our well-meaning friends' kitchen!
Yes, we were locked in for the night. The door was jammed. We removed the handle, but to no avail and we couldn't get a locksmith out to us because of the holidays. We did get out the next day in time to relieve our babysitter.
Happy Anniversary, Sweetheart!
Life with you is NEVER boring!

Cultural Observations

2007-01-17T07:56:00.000-05:00

We lived in Moscow for years, but since it is a big busy city, I think I have come to agree with the Russians living here in Krasnodar...

Moscow is not Russia.
Or at least it is a Russia that is VERY different than life everywhere else in Russia. So, even now as we celebrate 9 years living in and out of this country, I have learned more about the customs here this year than were ever noticable in Moscow.
American holidays start at Thanksgiving and basically stick around through Christmas and end with a bang on New Years. Well, here they are just getting started when we are all tuckered out!
Our city of a million people shut down on New Years and remained very quiet for well over a week. Quiet in the sense of the regular hussle and bussle of life. The malls and our new McDonalds, however, were full to overflowing the whole time! Speaking of overflowing...

This is a photo of our local dumpsters. There are about 5 within these walls where anyone can dump their bags of garbage, but as you can see, 5 is just not enough at New Years. I am not sure how many days the garbage men are given for vacation, but you will be glad to know that they have since gotten it all cleared away.
We are still hard-pressed to find our regular products and produce at the grocery stores, as they are struggling to fill the shelves after the frenzy of shopping for New Years.

As you may have read in a previous post, we had erratic internet service for the last few weeks.
Catching cabs and marshrutkas (minivans that work like public buses) was a challenge since the drivers were all at home sleeping off their hangovers (which we appreciate, by the way!).
So, to sum up, we have learned that next year, we will need to stock up for the lull after the New Years and that way we can enjoy the calm and recover from the holidays before picking up life's daily routine once again.

You Say It's Your Birthday...

2007-01-09T13:33:00.000-05:00

Well...It's His Birthday Too. Here in Russia, Christine shares a birthday with Jesus. Russian Christmas is tuned to the Orthodox Calandar and so every January 7th Christine and the history of the Gospel become a year older. Christmas is mostly overlooked here. It comes a week after New Years, which is the largest holiday thanks to 70 odd years of Communism's influence. Most people, and I do mean most, get completely smashed on New Year's Eve and sleep away the next few days . The fireworks are amazing at midnight, all around the city for 30 minutes non-stop. Other than that, I haven't found much good cheer or sentiment, no rich culture. There aren't any carols, hymns or songs. One famous movie with no redemption story, no angels, no wisemen, no mangers around town. The holidays are another reminder of a nation's lost indentity. But hey, that doesn't stop me from celebrating my beautiful wife's birthday. Happy Birthday, Christine! Ok, actually, she has to throw her own party here. Another gem of Russian culture. It is tradition to throw your own party; this really isn't so bad, because if your party stinks, you know who's to blame. My dear wife slaved in the kitchen all Sunday afternoon making food for the crowd of friends who came over Sunday night. This second picture that I posted of Christine reminds me of her character and of the concept of a Russian birthday party; she is blurry and everyone else is in focus. This is how she lives, with the focus on the rest of us and not on herself. Thanks, babe, for being so selfless in such a selfish world. I love you. Steve-O

I HATE DIAL-UP!!!

2007-01-06T09:29:00.000-05:00

When we first lived in Russia, before we were married, we relied on faxes to communicate with friends and family. We thought it was a great deal. We would get them maybe once a week, and though they were always smudged and hard to read, they were so much better than having to wait weeks for a letter to come through common post.

Then there was the Internet! It was amazing! We could write once a day if we wanted to. Sure, the connection was slow, but it was better than faxes.

These days we have ADSL. Highspeed Internet. Just a click and I can see my family in America and they can see us. I can give you all a picture play by play every day (if I am organized enough).

It is amazing how quickly you can get used to the conveniences of life! For about a week now our ADSL has been down and we have had to use dial-up once again.

So, we suffer together. We have to wait 10 minutes just to see the headlines on Fox News and you have to read my inane ramblings instead of looking at pictures that refuse to upload without more speed.

Woe is us...

Stay tuned for life as we knew it to return sometime after the 10th of January.

Mail Time!

2006-12-26T12:26:00.000-05:00

Today someone sent us a package.

She really didn't have to and it was not cheap, but I just can't tell you the thrill it gives us to open a box that has traveled for almost a month straight from the hands of friends and family.

I am debating how subtle I should be here...

Feel free to send some anytime!

Just email us for the address.

russia@blepo.com

Christmas 2007

2006-12-26T01:58:00.000-05:00

Merry Christmas!

Wishing all of you the JOY of family, the PEACE of a life in God's capable hands, and the LOVE shown so powerfully when God gave His Son for our eternal well-being.

It took a while to get a serious picture of the girls... here are some of the outtakes...

We had a Christmas party for our language school a few weeks ago and Dyet Moroz (Santa Claus) with his lovely helper, Snegoorechka (Snow Princess) came to ask us our New Year wishes (In Russia, Santa comes on New Year's Eve, not on Dec 24th). I wished for snow...

I don't know what it is like where you live, but we got a white Day-After-Christmas! This is the view from my kitchen window.

But, we have no fear of the cold. Steve keeps us in roaring fires all the day long!
Buying gifts in Russia has always been a challenge. The quality items that we are used to seeing in America are ridiculously overpriced here and the affordable things are very easily broken (in a word... cheap). So, we told the girls that they should exchange names in order to be able to get their sister something a little nicer. Unbeknownst to us, they just could not imagine Christmas without giving something to each sister, so they went through their own things and wrapped up what they knew each sister would love to have.

You should have heard the ooohs and aaahs on Christmas morning! Though, I am not sure Brooklyn knows what to think about the sticker from the dentist that Cady gave her (look at her expression in the picture)! So, we have decided that this is a new Hayes Family Tradition. They have to start somewhere, don't they?

Swimming Competition

2006-12-22T11:05:00.000-05:00

Please take a moment to stand and applaud for two VERY good little swimmers.

Maddie and Cady performed SO well today at their competition.
They both swam the 50 meter backstroke.
Cady raced against one other girl and came in second... it was very close!

Maddie challenged three other girls and was ahead the entire time.

It was a photo-finish and from our angle, she won, but was awarded second place. I actually heard the girl who got 1st place say that she was sure Maddie had won, too.
Their coach was almost as proud of them as we were! The improvement of their swimming has been nice to see, but what they really deserve a certificate for is the way they have jumped right in to a new sport in a new culture with a new language and succeeded!

Time for the Tooth Fairy

2006-12-22T05:53:00.000-05:00

Aubrie lost her 1st tooth!And she should lose #2 any day now...

Cady Day!

2006-12-20T10:14:00.000-05:00

Happy 8th Birthday, Cadence!

Cady decided the day before her birthday to have all the neighborhood kids over for a party.She got the 14 year old girl, Diana, who lives behind us, to help her invite all the other kids (10 of them in all).

They played Bop Em' and Twister. We introduced them to Jenga and some balloon games. They all brought Cady stuffed animals (her favorite toy!) and enjoyed cake that was made by the mother of one of the girls. Actually, that is a funny story...
We had a few families from the neighborhood over the other day in order to give them their first taste of Mexican/American food. One of the women is a baker at a fancy restaurant downtown. She makes the BEST cakes in all of Russia. She also makes the BIGGEST cakes in all of Russia! So, I couldn't bring myself to make Cady a cake when we had this huge yummy cake left over...

Yes, I served half a birthday cake. I am not proud of it, but you can't say I am not practical!
So, to finish the saga of the cake, it was set a little too close to the edge of the table and our dog licked a full inch of the cream off the back. Brooklyn helped destroy it from above.
The girls have had such a good time getting to know their neighbors. They could not have asked for a nicer bunch of kids to teach them a new culture and language.

We did masks instead of party hats. It added an atmosphere of mystery...

Registration Renewal!

2006-12-15T15:31:00.000-05:00

Every 6 months we have to leave the country. Six months ago we renewed our one year visa, which required at least a week in a country other than Russia. This time we just had to cross the Russian border and get a stamp from another country in our passport.

We chose to save the time and money and drive 5 hours to the Ukrainian border. As we drove north, we watched the rain turn to snow. By the time we got to the border it was covering the ground and the girls just wanted to be turned loose to play in it!
Getting into Ukraine took a good hour, but when we wanted to turn right around and go back into Russia, they told us the law says we have to stay in Ukraine for three days... or go find another border station by which to enter Russia. Since we had left our little dog back at home, we figured we had better do what needed to be done.
We drove about 100 kilometers farther north to another city, and after asking directions of about four different people, found the border once again. We had left home at 6am and by 6pm we were sitting in a McDonalds in Rostov-on-Don (Russia) so grateful to have the ordeal behind us... for another 6 months...
India was VERY glad to see us when we returned home that night at 12:30 am!

Happy Birthday, Brooklyn!

2006-12-15T15:02:00.000-05:00

Brooklyn Mildred Jean turned 2!

Her love of the "Happy Birthday" song began over a month before her first birthday when we were singing to Aubrie. It is still one of her all time favorite songs and she likes to sing it in English and Russian... at the same time...

"Happy Birthday, tebya!"

Aubrie took it upon herself to find out what kind of cake Brookie wanted for her birthday. She named a myriad of cake flavors and ended with lemon, so, of course, Brooke chose lemon. Then she named just as many frosting flavors and she ended with, you guessed it... chocolate. It was pretty yummy, if I do say so myself.

Well, all she really wanted was the chocolate. She is her father's daughter! Maybe she will be a surgeon...

Best Friends

2006-12-08T02:20:00.000-05:00

These two spend every day coming up with new ways to entertain each other and anyone fortunate enough to be around.

We took these pictures yesterday. I don't think I have ever gotten pictures to anyone so quickly!

Music Recital

2006-12-08T00:47:00.000-05:00

Some of the best things about this year have been the new educational opportunities that Maddie & Cady have had. Not only are they attending Russian school for the first time, but they started swimming lessons (look for a future post on that as they have a competition coming up on the 23rd of December) and music lessons.Here are the pictures from their recital. I just wish I understood the technology it takes for you to push a button and hear the precious music these twocan now make.

The girls each played three songs, some familiar and some traditionally Russian.
They sang in Russian and remembered all their hand motions.

Aubrie and Brookie did their best to join in. Vicca was their teacher for about 5 months until she moved to the United States.Anya is their new teacher. They miss Vicca, but Anya is very good and has a sweet way about her.

The Black Sea

2006-12-08T00:11:00.000-05:00

I recently found some photos from the summer that tell a little more about our life here, so indulge me while we look at sunnier days gone by...

The girls get their love for the water from their dad.

Brooklyn enjoyed swimming in her own little pool.Micah is one of Aubrie's best friends. He will be moving away in about 5 months when his parentsfinish language school. The kids had so much fun navigating the waters of the Black Sea in this boat we have been storing for years. This was the first time we had ever had theopportunity to use it!

Brenna is one of Maddie & Cady's best friends. Her brother is Micah, so she, too, will be leaving soon, but they work for the same group that we do, so we should see them at retreats and such.

Never "goodbye"...

always "until next time!"

Christmas is Coming!

2006-11-30T01:37:00.000-05:00

The handful of Americans living in Krasnodar are already putting up their trees and getting funny looks from the neighbors.
Russians start decorating about the time the American trees are all dried out. New Year's is their biggest celebration of the year and the Orthodox celebrate Christmas on January 7th.

This is one tradition that we have not abandoned in our attempt to blend into Russian society.

Here are a few pictures to prove it.

International Thanksgiving

2006-11-30T00:59:00.000-05:00

Happy Thanksgiving!
This is a picture of me and my neighbors/landlords. Unfortunately, it is out of focus, but I am sharing it with you because it is the only picture I have to offer of Thanksgiving this year!

I prepared my first complete Thanksgiving Dinner EVER for 21 people or so (I never got a head count) and we did not take one picture of my beautiful Turkey or the people enjoying it. I guess that could support the opinion that everyone was too preoccupied with the culinary delights to pick up a camera, or it could just be that it was all too chaotic and no one knew where the camera was. Take your pick...
For those of you who do not live in a country without a Wal-Mart, let me tell you, cooking requires a little more preparation than you may be used to. We are blessed to have a great variety of flavors at our disposal, but just not in a can ready to go. I got to roast my own pumpkin and boil my own cranberries. And fortunately for my guests, every pie crust was made from scratch. The next challenge is getting everything done at the same time in an oven the size of a large microwave. Normally, in the States, you would have everyone bring something and in the end you would have all the trimmings. Well, our guests were from places that don't know what stuffing is and have never even seen a sweet potato. So, I just told everyone to bring their appetites (with the exception of Christine Rasulov's great green bean casserole and Becky Hedgepeth's wonderful deviled eggs and relish tray).
To sum it all up, we had a nice time being grateful for all that we have... great friends, delicious foods, a warm and welcoming home, and, of course, football! (Someone loaned us a tape of an old game. We already knew the outcome, but it wouldn't have been Thanksgiving without it!)

Meet Яна...

2006-11-20T01:35:00.000-05:00

This is Yana. She helps me with the kids. They had never had a Russian babysitter on a regular basis before and the progress in their language skills because of it has been amazing. Brooklyn is speaking English and Russian... and both with a Russian accent!
Yana is not only good with my children, she spends her weekends visiting orphanages in the villages. She also makes slideshows of the children that raise awareness of the needs they may have. She shared some of her photoshop talents with us when she gave us a disk of pictures of our kids last week. I thought I would share some of them with you all.

She also took this picture of Aubrie when we went to the Black Sea for the day.

Men's Retreat

2006-11-17T00:03:00.000-05:00

Men's Retreat!

Steve joined this International group of men (Russians, Americans, Australian and Brit) for a day of hiking and shashlik (Russian version of grilling meat over an open fire). They traveled about an hour from our home and arrived in a region that is part of Russia, and yet all its own. It is called Adigeya. The people who live in this region are primarily Muslim. Their homes, towns and way of life are different than the Russians living just right across the river.

Steve said they had a great time and would love to build a house right there in the middle of the woods! Ironically enough, about twenty minutes from this site, IKEA has bought land and has taunted us with promises of thinking about building on it in the next two years.

Meet the kids...

2006-11-13T02:07:00.000-05:00

Meet the kids...

Brooklyn will be 2 in December. She loves babies and looking "beauty", as she likes to call it.Aubrie is learning to read and write her name. She will be starting 1st grade next year at a real school. She is very excited.

Maddie (10 1/2) and Cady (almost 8) have madelots of friends in the neighborhood as well as at their new Russian school.Their language ability is really thriving this year.

India is our youngest. She is part dachshund and part toy terrier.
She is ALL trouble!

And then there is Steve.
All the fun started when I married him almost 12 years ago.

Can you even believe it?!?

2006-11-09T13:39:00.000-05:00

I never EVER thought I would be doing this, but I guess one day you read just enough of the blogs of others and think, "They need to see the pictures of MY cute kids!"
Actually, I have been encouraged for many years to keep in touch better, so here is my feeble attempt to write to all of you in one swoop! I pray this does not become a diary, but just a weekly (Lord, please give me consistency(and enough new news)!) update on the comings and goings of the Hayes family. Now if I can just get the picture inserted...