Saying Goodbye

Another post today! A few hours ago we had to say goodbye to Aaron's parents, and Aaron took them back to the airport. Their friends left on Wednesday. We had so much fun with them here, and we gave them a good whirlwind tour of St. Petersburg. They did about as much as possible in two weeks, without dropping over from exhaustion. (And a few times I think they almost did!) It was hard to say goodbye, not knowing when we'll get to see them again. Lydia will really miss having Mimi and Poppi around. At least we have skype!

Here is a slideshow of some highlights from their time here.

More Catching Up- Lydia's Birthday

I'd been wanting to post a few pictures from Lydia's birthday, back in May, and never got around to it until now. She turned 2 years old! We had some friends over and had fun playing in the park and then eating dinner and birthday cake. I also have to show off my birthday cake creation- I made a "Very Hungry Caterpillar" cake. I made some cupcakes to go with it, that were decorated with the fruit the caterpillar ate through. This story was Lydia's favorite book at the time. Now she always wants to read "Sheep in a Shop" and "Time for Bed." Here are some pictures from her birthday party.

Summer Fun (Catching Up)

Wow, it has been a long time! It feels like our lives have been a whirlwind since the last post, but it's been a good whirlwind.

The end of May brought the end of Aaron's first school year of teaching in Russia! It was a great year for him.

The first week of June was spent at a dacha (a Russian country house). It was a rustic, but fun experience, even though it was chilly most of the time. Lydia loved it, although it took her a while to decide the potty (an outhouse) was a "nice potty." She loved running around in the great outdoors, and "helping" the landlady with the gardening. Some of our favorite things were hiking through the forest & fields, seeing a beekeeper, walking to the little country store in the morning to buy fresh tvorog (like cottage cheese) and smetana (sour cream), making shashlik over the grill, and last, but definitely not least, experiencing a banya (Russian sauna). Here's what a banya is like: You all strip down and go into a little room with your friends (and maybe the landlady), and the room is so hot you feel like skin is going to roast and burst into flames at any moment. After you sit there for a while, the landlady pours water over some hot rocks, and steam bursts out all over the room, making you realize that the way you felt before wasn't hot at all. (At this point, I was begging the landlady to let me out... she wouldn't let me...) You gasp for air, and once you start breathing again, you all start beating each other with birch branches. They do make the air smell nice, and you're supposed to breathe deeply to get the full healthful benefits. After a few beatings, you head out to the outer room again, where someone promptly douses you with COLD water. Yipes! I was screaming for mercy again. The landlady had none! Then you sit around in the lounge area of the banya cabin, drinking tea, and discussing how great it all is for your skin, your heart, lungs, and overall health. Oh, and then you go back in and do it all over two more times. Quite the cultural experience. I do have to admit, I felt refreshed and relaxed after it was over. And after the second time I learned to endure the heat/cold like a real Russian. Here are some dacha pics:

"Our" dacha

Making shashlik

People buying fresh milk, smetana, and tvorog

The rest of June and the first week in July was spent in the US! It was so great to spend time there again, and to see some friends and family. To get there, we took the train to Helsinki and flew out from there. Here's a picture from a boat parade we saw in Helsinki.

At the beginning and end of our trip, we were in PA, with my (Danielle's) parents. Here are some highlights:

Fun with Grandma...

And Grandpa!

Visited with lots of family (here with Great Grandma & Grandpa)...

Went canoeing...

Visited my brother and his wife in Washington, DC (you can see this view from their apartment!)...

And celebrated the 4th of July!

In the middle of our trip we went to Kansas City for Aaron's friend's wedding, and then headed to Arkansas to visit family there. Here are some highlights from that part of the trip:

Croquet at Mimi & Poppi's house...

Riding on the ski boat and "ski-bob"...

Kayaking & playing at the Buffalo National River

Meeting up with Aaron's brother's family (Lydia loved being with her precious cousins!)...

Time with family (here with Great Grandma)...

Playing in the water and seeing a big fish at the War Eagle Mill...

Dancing at the wedding...

And becoming a Razorback fan!

Now we are back in St. Petersburg, and it actually felt good to come back here again. A week after we got back, Aaron's parents and their good friends came for a visit. Their friends got a good cultural experience right off the bat, riding the metro at rush hour, with all their luggage on the way to our place from the airport. They got squished good! We're having fun showing them all around town, and I think they're enjoying taking it all in. They did a great service project for us, putting screens in our windows. We can finally sleep all night without having to wake up at 2am to swat mosquitos for an hour! Yea! Thanks, guys! Yesterday we took the electric train to visit the Peterhof palace, so here's a slide show of that. The fountains are amazing! This was our first time there, too.