Our little destroyer and Reflections

Katya is known as our little destroyer. She tears anything that can be torn, unfolds clothing just folded, throws toys just for fun and her most recent episode, throwing the remote control in the toilet. It was to our expense that Daniel had just gone to the bathroom and hadn’t had time to flush. We are still unsure in the Remote is going to survive. (YEAH! The remote works! Joseph just put it back together.)

Daniel is constantly asking when we are going to go outside. He will not know what to do when he sees the big yard he can play in pretty much anytime he wants. It will also be nice for us. He also keeps asking when we are going to eat more ice cream from the freezer. Last night we introduced one of our favorite family activities, Family Movie Night. It was a little different since it usually includes homemade pizza, or homemade hamburgers and fries, eating dinner on a blanket and watching a movie. This time it was popping microwave popcorn sitting on the couch and watching an Andy Griffith Episode. (We didn’t even think to bring some kid movies not just cartoons)

Yesterday we went to an Aquarium. It was a two-room place with several different tanks. There were lots of different kinds of fish. Daniel was actually scared of them at first, but then realized they couldn’t hurt him. We also saw turtles, a crab, and a crocodile. After the Aquarium we took a very long walk downtown. We saw some more interesting statues and 2 memorials for WWII. The kids really enjoy being out. Today we are going to go back. We still have yet to find out where everyone is getting the ice cream cones we see all around. Today that is our goal. We are stopping the first person we see with one. Yesterday there was only one couple with them and we missed our opportunity.

As most of you will never be able to experience Russia for yourselves I thought I’d let you know a little about our life here that we take for granted at home.

They have clothes washers, but not dryers. Waiting 2 days for jeans to dry on the line only to put them on when they are stiff. At least they’re clean.

Dishwashers: Here in Russia it is known as Joseph and Kamber alternating turns. At home it is a beautiful machine that is dearly missed.

Clean water: The water here is a bronze color and has a foul smell. So whenever we need a drink we have to get in the fridge for the drinking water as well as water to brush our teeth. When we shower we are hoping it’s doing some good. It’s really gross to fill up the tub for the kids.

Queen size bed: Here our bed is very small. It does not have a normal mattress and box springs, but more like sleeping on a couch in the RV. It is also only the size of a super single. I’ll be happy to not have aching arms in the morning from sleeping with them so close to me at night.

Apartment living: Boy do we miss our house. When we go for walks we have to lock 2 locks for the door. We then go down the elevator and go through 2 more secure doors before we are out. It is quite the process getting back in too. We have to put in a code at the first door. Swipe a keyless entry thing, get in the elevator and then again unlock the 2 of 4 locks at the door of the apartment. We are also ready to be as loud as we want without worrying about disturbing the neighbors.

Trash: 2 things here. This is the same as all apartment living, but I miss walking right out my door to take out the trash. The streets here and everywhere else is lines with garbage. Back in communist time they had workers to clean up the trash and so it doesn’t seem like people have learned to take care of their garbage properly.

Orderly lines: If you walk in a McDonalds in Russia (or any public place for that matter) you will wonder where the end of the line is. It doesn’t exist. Basically you have to push your way until eventually you get to the front. Then when you get your food finding a table is just as bad. Don’t be surprised if you have to take care of someone else tray and garbage before you can sit down. This is normal.

All in all we have enjoyed our time here. The people are very kind. We have experienced things that could not have been experienced in the US. We have learned so much about the kids. We have learned how to parent them better along with Brigham and Kyler. We have learned great patience and complete dependency with each other. What a wonderful experience. Check back Monday for our last post from Russia.