Mail Time!

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

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

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

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

Cady Day!

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!

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!

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

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

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

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!"