New Mexico

It is Sunday afternoon and we are back in New Mexico. Tom drove yesterday and part of today. I drove the last 2 1/2 hours into Albuquerque. It is so good to be off the road! I can write more tomorrow after I have had some rest.

How Russian Are you?

You are 100% Russian!

Great job!!!!! You did WONDERFULY!!!! Nice try!!! Were you born in Russia? How do you know so much about it??? Well, good job anyway!!!

How Russian are you?
Quizzes for MySpace

This is my test result and I am happy that after two years of living in Russia I was able to answer all the questions correctly! Spencer took it and he was 92 percent Russian... how Russian are you?

CookBook Search

I found this one in New Mexico
















and I found this one here in Texas at Sams for a great price!



















Before we left New Mexico I spent time with Mom looking through her cookbooks and the Betty Crocker one looked very good to me so when I came upon it at Sams I decided to go for it!

The More-With-Less Cookbook was recommended by Debbie P. in Russia. I don't think I need to look for anymore cookbooks. Especially since there are other things on the list of "things to buy in America" and Tom says that most of our purchases will need to be mailed home so our suitcases are not overweight!

pursuing happyness

Ok, so I remember when a friend posted to her blog back in January using the title "The Pursuit of Happiness" it made me want to go see the movie "The Pursuit of Happyness". At the time we were still in Russia so I thought I would have to wait for the DVD.

I even sat through the Oscars with our family after we got back to the states and had those thoughts again after seeing Will Smith and his son Jaden. On Wednesday Spencer, Hailey, Tyler, Kim, Paul and I went out to actually see it! Tom stayed home to watch the basketball game on TV.

I enjoyed the movie... I teared up several times. It was inspiring to me that Rich Gardner was able to make his dreams a reality. I am a sucker for a rags to riches story!

Tomorrow is the big reward day in Dallas for the boys... they are going to a mall and to the movies. I am proud of Spencer for working so hard even though he didn't have too. He's on vacation!

I had a short chat with our oldest son Nathan tonight via email, he has actually done some driving and it went well. I am sure he will be happy for us to return the car so he can get in more driving time. We are heading back on Saturday. And of course I am proud of him too!

new walking shoes

Spencer and I purchased new walking shoes when we first arrived a few weeks ago... did I pack them to bring with me to Texas? No!

Spencer, Tyler and Luke are out doing community service for the city. Apparently, if you work two days doing city clean up you can win a trip to Dallas for a day of fun. Today is the second day for the guys to work... Dallas, get ready!

5minutesformom

the joy of email!

Tom calls this her Austin Powers look!











Yanna has the remote!












The top picture is Eera and the second is her little sister Yanna. I got this in an email from their mom, my friend Olya. I am sure they were taken with her husband Vova's cell phone. Isn't technology wonderful?! I cannot imagine how much Yanna will have grown by the time we get back home to Russia in June.

Read my VisualDNA™ Get your own VisualDNA™

I got this idea from Laughing Through The Tears and decided I had to see what my visual DNA would look like. Enjoy!

Blini

Yesterday, Spencer and I made blini (Russian pancakes). He had looked up a recipe on the internet. He and Luke followed the recipe carefully, while Kim and I watched. But, the Russian friends we have don't actually use a recipe and I had my suspicions about how authentic the internet source was... the initial batter was too runny and the pancakes came out gummy. They should be more like a crepe. Spencer asked for help so I made a few adjustments. After adding more flour and some baking soda, baking powder, and more vegetable oil... we finally had a recipe that worked. I think Lena would have been proud!

Our modified recipe is this:
2 eggs
1 tablespoon white sugar
1/3 teaspoon salt
1 cup all-purpose flour
2 1/2 cups milk
3 tablespoon vegetable oil
1 teaspoon baking soda
1 teaspoon baking powder

DIRECTIONS
In a medium bowl, whisk together the eggs, sugar, and salt. Sift the flour, baking soda and baking powder into the bowl, and stir in along with the milk. Mix until smooth and well blended. The batter should be thinner than pancake batter but not runny like water.

Heat a griddle or skillet over medium high heat. Lightly oil the pan. My friend Lena coats the pan with bacon fat and that gives it a unique flavor... but, vegetable oil works too! Pour about 2 tablespoons of the batter, or as much as desired, into the pan. Tilt the pan in a circular motion to spread the batter out evenly and thinly. When bubbles appear, slide a spatula carefully under the blini. Flip, and cook for about 1 minute on the other side, or until lightly browned.

Remove blini to a plate. Put a little butter on top, and continue to stack the blini on top of each other. To serve, spread with desired filling, then fold in half, and in half again to form a triangle...or you can roll it up and enjoy.

how NOT to catch a plane

Russian Policeman Starts Bomb Hoax to Save Boss From Missing Plane
MosNews.com







A Russian policeman has been jailed for phoning an airport with a bomb warning to help acquaintances of his boss make their flight, the Reuters news agency reports quoting an article in the Friday issue of Russian daily Kommersant.

A senior police officer, who was seeing off two businessmen in the Urals city of Yekaterinburg in February last year, told his subordinate to fix the problem when they failed to board the plane on time.

The assistant phoned the airport and said he had received a message about explosives and weapons on board the plane. The aircraft with 40 passengers on board turned around in mid-air to return to Yekaterinburg.

The police officer and his subordinate were sentenced to 21 months in prison each, the paper reported.Witnesses cited by Kommersant said the businessmen had been drinking in the airport.

at night at the movies

We took the kids to the movies last night and they all enjoyed seeing Night At the Museum. It was fun to hear them laugh. I am not a Ben Stiller fan so I didn't enjoy it as much as everyone else did. I did like Robin Williams... he is one of my favorites.

Spencer gave me not one but two e-cards for Women's Day so he scored major points!

The Ultimate Blog Party is winding down but I truly do appreciate everyone who was able to stop by. I noticed that there are over 900 blogs listed on the party site and I know I have not made it to most of them yet!

I am writing this early because we have a big day and night planned for tomorrow. Two of the kids are skipping school to spend the day with us and we have Celebrate Recovery to attend! <== Click on the highlighted words and go to the ministry link when you get there!

International Women's Day

I got an email from our friend Olya. It was great to hear from her and to feel connected to our Russian friends.

Today is International Women's Day and is a major holiday in Russia. It seems strange that people are not wishing me "Happy Women's Day". They don't celebrate Mother's Day there as we do in America. Women's Day celebrates all women... not just those who are mothers.

Flowers, candy and wishes of happiness, joy, peace and success are given to each female in your life!

all things Texas!

Spencer and I saw this in a Stuckey's on the way down here. We went back out to the car to get the camera. In Krasnodar we were treated by some friends to cornbread made in the shape of Texas so when we saw this it reminded us of Robert and Ann right away!

meetings, meetings

it feels like all we are doing is this!

We are back with our friends in Tom Bean. The drive into North Dallas for our meetings was not bad... going there it was less than an hour in the car. We watched Dreamgirls at the hotel last night and that was a real treat! We also were taken to dinner at the Cheesecake Factory. I had not eaten there in at least three years. We had lunch at a little Italian place and I had an Italian sausage Caesar salad and Tom had a crab cake salad... very tasty! We enjoyed going out to eat with Louie he has great taste in restaurants!

if it's Monday

We must be in Dallas! Don't know if we will see much of the city. We have meetings to attend all afternoon and evening. And tomorrow will be the same.

If we get a chance we may go to a movie... we have not been to a theatre to see a movie in English for 2 years! We saw things like Madagascar, The Island, and Chronicles of Narnia in Russian. So to watch in English will be a major treat!

Tom Bean

Wow! It has been great to see our friends again.

They have another dog. Last time we were here they had Skip and Angel. Now they have added Sparky... he was homeless and they took him in. Tom, Paul, Hailey and I were hanging out in the family room watching the Food Network after church and we had all the dogs at our feet or angling for a seat on the couch!

The service today was great. It was overwhelming to sing worship songs in English. I think I cried more than I sang! We are still having difficulty making decisions in stores. We went with Paul after church to pick up some food for lunch... just deciding on side dishes for the fried chicken was draining.

We are going back to church for a prayer meeting. Kim, a nurse, has to work this week so we only saw her at church this morning for a short while. Tyler and Spencer went to the youth meeting after the first service while Luke and Hailey attended the second service while we shopped for lunch.

We met with most of the elders at church this morning and got the chance to speak with a couple who adopted two boys from Russia. They are now a family of seven!

We are driving into Dallas for some meetings tomorrow and Spencer is planning to hang out here in Tom Bean while we are gone.

Amarillo News

We spent the night in Amarillo and now we are on the way to Tom Bean. It was a quick drive here to Texas and we are so excited about seeing our friends!

The drive was mostly uneventful... Spencer and I took a few pictures. When we got to the Texas border it looked like a storm was coming through. The winds were very high and we had thoughts that a tornado may have been nearby.

Ultimate Blog Party

How could I forget the big party???


I am setting a place at the table just for you... so don't be late!















Have questions like "why Russia?" ask away! I blog about our daily life in Russia, our trials with learning this language, and the work we do here. I write for our family, friends and supporters. I am glad that you have chosen to stop by. Please take your shoes off and enjoy some Russian hospitality... each time we have been to a Russian home for a visit out comes the photo album.

Our two years in Russia have taught us the importance of gift giving... if you are going to a Russian home for dinner the most popular gifts are flowers and candy! Make sure you take an odd number of flowers... even numbers are for funerals.

Take care and come again!

Alida

on the road again!

We are leaving for Dallas this morning. This will be our first trip without Nathan. It seems strange to leave him behind.

Stops in Texas include Tom Bean, Sherman and Dallas. It will be great to see old friends and meet new ones. I remember seeing an old ad about getting to Tucumcari by nightfall. I asked Tom if we would make it that far. He says that since it is only a few hours away it won't be a problem. Actually, I think the goal is Amarillo so that we make it to Tom Bean the next day!


I hope that we find internet access along the way... if not, Spencer and I will start going through withdrawal.

Enjoying the view

Spencer and I have been enjoying the walking path not far from where we are staying. It is very peaceful. Yesterday, we walked during our errands but didn't take an "official" walk and I realized this morning how much I missed it.

We started walking 5 times a week before we left Russia. It is helping me to feel better which is a good thing. Spencer is a great cheerleader. He is very encouraging and keeps me from quitting or giving up too soon!

We plan to keep up our walks all throughout our time here in the states... so if you want to join us just let me know. We would love to see your favorite walking trail!