Still here

Wintry postcard from St. Petersburg during some recent colder temperatures...

I don't even remember how to edit on here! I hope to update soon, though...for now, check my updates on Instagram. I have a regular account and a second one for homeschooling thoughts.

And so it begins (Lent and Lethargy)

A week or two ago I felt like I was coming down with something. It was a weird combination of symptoms: fatigue, sore throat, but also a bit of a GI bug.

It wasn't really progressing, but it was the middle of the week and I figured I had picked up something at church on Sunday. I just couldn't get my energy back, though! And suddenly I recognized the feeling. In the spring every year I usually have a period where I'm totally dragging all the time. Not the same as winter malaise, a special springtime variation where the sun is out, everything is good, and yet I just want to sleep all the time. I've been attempting late afternoon couch time, but that also happens to be Sophia's neediest time, go figure...maybe it makes her nervous when I lie down.

I have a few old posts on "avitaminosis"...I just checked them and they were written in May, BUT with the mild winter, maybe things are just happening a bit out of order this year?

To get some energy back, I determined to get more sleep. Sometimes I think it's ridiculous that I don't get enough sleep, since I don't get up early for work, but...it's always something.

Of course as soon as I decided I was going to sleep more, there were obstacles...kids needing a cuddle, or the bedroom being too hot because it was warmer outside and the heat was still going full-blast. Etc. And then finally one night Andrei took over with Sophia, and when David got up early he quietly went about his business...a miracle! And I got some sleep. And then a few more nights after that I got probably 7 hours.

Trying to wake up

Happy Solstice! Although I have been focused on celebrating Advent and the Birth of Christ, I breathe a sigh of relief when we are on the other side and the days are starting to get longer again. We did a little Hanukkah dinner, too, meditating on the wonder of the Light that stayed.

(I came in to write about being tired....and discovered my computer was drained of energy, how ironic! Trying not to be mad at The Person who goes around plugging and unplugging things.)

(The Internet is being slow, too...but at least I can write!)

A few years ago, I read a book about Winter Blues or Seasonal Affective Disorder. Then last winter (earlier this year, apparently) I wrote a post here about my findings.  https://lizinstpete.blogspot.com/2019/02/sleep-and-sad-can-you-ignore-weather.html

Side note: Winter Blues (Norman E. Rosenthal) is worth reading for the case studies alone. Many of us will recognize ourselves in those mentioned...

"The physical difficulties start first: eating more, sleeping more, and the slowing down of brain functioning. Initially, I'm not sad. I can still sit down and laugh with friends and enjoy my favorite TV shows. As it becomes obvious that I'm less able to function at work or with friends, mental depression starts taking over. I have trouble writing Christmas cards, which adds to my depression, since I am unable to communicate with people I really care about..." (Case study of Peggy, page 29 Kindle Version)

"In his work as a sales representative, he found his productivity declined markedly in the winter months. He would sleep late, cancel appointments, and spend much of the day at home, depressed. When he was able to get to work, he came home exhausted and would collapse on the couch for the rest of the evening." (Neal, case study and president of the SunBox Company, page 26 Kindle Version)

"More bothersome to Herb than his social isolation was his decreased creativity during his depressed periods. He would procrastinate at work because "everything seemed like a mountain" to him, and his productivity decreased markedly. It was only by grim perseverance that he was able to write up his research from the previous spring and summer. His sleep was disrupted, and his characteristic enthusiasm for life evaporated." (Case study of Herb, page 12 Kindle Version)

..and there are more, but you get the idea. Physical lack of energy leading to lack of productivity leading to depression leading to even less motivation and productivity. In these cases, directly corresponding to the decreased daylight hours.

Back to my observations: Turns out my findings this year are similar to last year's even though I didn't remember my observations from last winter until I went back and read about it.

December doldrums

Excited to be writing my 28th post of 2019, making this only my second-least productive blogging year. :) That's still more than 2 per month-not bad, right?

So, how has December been treating you? Are you on as much of a roller coaster as we have been?

December started out with a few inches of snow, fluffy and beautiful for the first Advent. It was so nice!

Speaking of Advent, I managed to get out the candles and a minimum of other decorations just in time. I couldn't find the Jesse Tree ornaments, so I had my son coloring a print-out. He did great! Speaking of print-outs, I used to search for Advent (and general Sunday school materials) back 10 years ago, before Pinterest was really used, and before people monetized their blogs. Maybe there was less on the Internet then...so not as much to choose from, but at least it was free! It actually took me a while to find a sheet of really simple Jesse Tree symbols to print out in black and white. I understand that monetizing is pretty widely accepted nowadays, but I also felt like...do you have to charge for EVERYTHING? I was so desperate I even registered for a Catholic newsletter just to get a "free printable" which turned out to not be what I was looking for.

Okay, that was a big tangent. We've been gradually acknowledging Advent, while on our 3rd family cold in as many months. It's not pneumonia, or even strep throat. We're all okay! But on top of very little daylight, it's just so draining!

I was feeling like I was doing okay psychologically, but with this latest round, I went completely stir-crazy. You know it has to be bad if I actually want to leave the house. We did a few rounds of holiday cookies, Christmas movies in pjs, etc. And then...I just couldn't take it anymore! Normally I like having a slow day at home...in fact, I was relishing the prospect of a slower week so that I could catch up on housework and the like. And I'm normally more productive when Andrei is at work. But the past few days, I can't stand him being gone! He doesn't have time to call between classes at all, and I just feel like I need him at home.

I probably had other topics to cover, but it's bedtime. In closing, a few gift ideas!

I have a bunch of gift ideas for the kids, but not grown-ups. Typical.

Disclaimer: I'm the boring gift-giver, but my husband's side of the family will take care of toys...no child will be deprived.

Climate

The other day my kids were listening to a YouTube playlist and in an otherwise normal list of kids' songs I kept hearing the lyrics "we've got the whole world in our hands." My son is quick to point out where something deviates from the Bible stories he's been told, and said "It's not WE, it's GOD." (he gets confused about the concept of Mother Nature, too)

I didn't really want to criticize the song, but here my son had pointed it out, so it was discussion time.

Song background: Although we may sing it traditionally as a children's song, the original song was an African-American spiritual. Interestingly enough, it was my (Russian) husband who introduced me to Mahalia Jackson, whose recording of "He's Got the Whole World in His Hands" is one of the more popular ones.

When I stopped to think about it, I realized that the altered lyrics likely had a connection to environmentalism. So I talked about that a little bit. It doesn't contradict the biblical idea of Creation, merely reminds us that the earth is God's precious creation, for us to protect as we can.

P.S. When I finally went ahead and looked it up, I found that a children's book came out a few years ago to this effect. You can look up "We've Got the Whole World in our Hands" by Rafael Lopez.

Since everyone was talking about Greta Thunberg and the Climate Summit last week (2 weeks ago?), it has been on my mind.

When I take a minute to contemplate, I don't think I'm really comfortable with putting ourselves in place of God. It's because the earth is the Lord's that we should care about it at all, not because it is completely "in our hands." I want so much to be a good steward and also reflect Christ in the way I care about the environment. However, an alarmist approach really turns me off and I don't want to live in fear. I'm glad there are activists and I'd be fine with making some changes to reduce consumption. I haven't actually talked to my kids much about this topic, but I'm sure it will come up!

Sleep and SAD-can YOU ignore the weather?

Last year I was all about fighting the winter slump. I read at least one book on SAD, which primarily focused on light therapy. I schemed about changing the light fixtures in our apartment, and bought various "happy" lamps.

The happy light I bought (Phillips?) turned out to be the wrong voltage and my father in law fixed it up for Russian use, but it's the kind of thing where you want to have it sitting on a table near you, and I have 2 very curious/destructive kids. So I haven't wanted to risk having it out on a table, and there it sits in the closet! :(

I also got 2 "sunrise" alarm clocks. They're off-brand because I wasn't sure if I would like it (and again, things get broken quickly around here). I've tried them a few times and even though they claim to brighten gradually, I'm pretty much awake with the first hint of light, and then it feels like I'm at the dentist's or something with a bright light in my face. So, it doesn't feel the same as sunshine. A few times I tried just shining the light in my face when I first woke up to send the message to my body that IT'S DAYTIME NOW despite the dark outside. I didn't find it to be effective, though.

So those were my experiments from last year.



Fall 2018 

This year my online fitness group did a walking challenge again during the month of November-get outside every day. I did this faithfully for the first two weeks or so. It's supposed to a) help you get more daylight to keep your body in rhythm and b) give you lots of fresh air/positive exercise vibes.

Well, November is definitely the month when it all starts-the grey, dreary weather and desire to hibernate. The walks didn't feel like they helped at ALL.

On my way to the clinic not knowing I had appendicitis.

What's your hygge style?

The seasons are changing and I'm taking whatever measures I can to keep the increasing gloom from infiltrating our household. Aside from spiritual inspiration, there are of course many ways to make an environment feel more cozy.

I think I've been putting "fairy lights" up since I was a teenager!
Good to know they're hygge-worthy. ;) 

I think it's partly nostalgia that triggers all those seasonal associations year after year. The sound of crunching leaves reminds us of a favorite fall recipe, or a Christmas song brings us back to the place we spent Christmas as a child. Along with that, there is more research nowadays to demonstrate that not only traditions, but a certain type of lighting and other details actually alter our brain, and arranging the environment the right way can help battle conditions such as Seasonal Affective Disorder.

I can't remember when I first heard the actual term "Hygge," but it wasn't yet the hot trend it is at the moment. I think it appeals to a lot of us because it combines our cozy traditions (a favorite type of drink, music, aromatherapy, etc) with those household touches we have on our wishlist but maybe haven't been able incorporate yet: all-white furnishings, hand-made decorative pieces, etc.

I definitely think it's worth it to do all you can to create a comfortable environment, especially if you live somewhere with limited hours of daylight in the winter. But I also notice that Americans (and probably other Westerners too) tend to borrow an idea that's meant to make life SIMPLER (working with what you have), and turn it into a trend that becomes materialistic. For example, in rural Scandinavia it would make sense to use tree branches and other elements of nature in decorating, but are city dwellers meant to spend a great deal of time tracking down these materials? "Simple" woven baskets are presented as humble, but are actually quite costly to purchase. If we don't knit/embroider/ etc, should we covet those pieces, or rather turn to the artistic talent we do possess? In other words, do I want my house to look like a magazine cover/Pinterest article that features a house in another country with a different climate, decorated by inhabitants of another culture? Some days, my answer may be yes! On the other hand, while my IKEA list hangs out waiting for the biannual shopping trip, there are things lying around that I just may be able to use.

That's my introduction to what I thought would actually be a fun exercise. I've been comparing a few of these decorating trends/tendencies. Which one or combination would you pick? I'm undecided, but I'll share my thoughts.

The coldest week of the year

I think around this time of year if I'm blogging actively, I tend to write about the germs going around, the days getting shorter...and of course, the wait for the heat to come on in our building (in addition to the beautiful fall foliage, of course).

Getting progressively colder outside.

The city turns the heat on-we have no control over what temperature or when, and once it's on, it will stay on at mostly full blast until April or so. At least, that's the way it seems. I did an internet search for what date it usually comes on in St. Petersburg-of course it is always a big topic of discussion here. The first week of October seemed to be the average.

I'm not sure how it works in the U.S.... I know individual families can decide when to turn the heat on,  but are there any restrictions, or could you turn it on any old day, like in the summer, for instance? I forget. I know that if you are in charge of your family home thermostat, you must keep a budget in mind. That's one question that we don't have to deal with! The heat is calculated according to the size of our apartment, and maybe by how many people are registered to live here.

March the Lion

I have to admit, I haven't been feeling like blogging lately, but it's not that there's anything wrong. I've been content with less computer time lately (with the exception of occasional bouts of scroll addiction on my phone), which is nice. I think if I decide to start blogging regularly I will try to monitor my computer time closely and make a limited list of sites to visit, or even turn the internet off in order to write.

I wish there were an easier way to post photos and create a little visual interest without getting on my computer. I don't really understand how to do it from my phone. Bloggers, what is the most streamlined way to post photos?

Typing is far easier from a laptop than a phone, of course.

Getting back to the title of this post, here it is March 23 and still snowy here like in many parts of the U.S., I hear. Do you think there will be snow for Easter? There most likely will be here, but that's typical. As I've probably mentioned before, Russian "Palm" Sunday actually makes use of pussy-willows!

I've got a lot of bureaucracy/paperwork type stuff hanging over me, and I feel like I have to put off fun plans until that's done. I've been doing some spring cleaning during the day, but whenever a babysitter's available I end up using that time to do some grown-up errand rather than doing some much-needed shopping or getting lunch with a friend. Hopefully soon!

One thing I was browsing on Pinterest today was (were?) ways to bring nature into the home. Rocks, leaves, plants to touch? Dried flowers? I like the idea of getting out into nature, but I'm not inclined to sit around playing with dead things that used to live outside. Where would I get a dead stump? And do drawings of the samples count too, or is there some sort of healing property in the items themselves? Is it true that wicker baskets are more grounding than plastic ones? And why do we need to be grounded, anyway?

Off to make a wasp for David's class tomorrow.

Enter Winter

No Advent or Christmas posts in December 2015, must be a first for my blog! I did just now find a draft from November called "Preparing for preparing," in which I had written two words: "fermata" and "Sunday school." I guess I was going to mention the Advent/Christmas choir...but that's old news now.

So here we are in 2016! As usual, we are still in the midst of holidays here in Russia: another week off and Russian Christmas yet to come. Andrei already gave his exams, so he won't start up with academics until the next semester in February.

We had our typical gray period which I probably complain about every year on here. The shortest days of 2015 were dreary and overcast and it seemed to continue for about a month. And then recently I was ecstatic when it cleared up and the frosty days began. Beautiful. Unfortunately it then went down to about 0 F and I keep chickening out about going outside, simply because child-corralling doesn't always keep me warm enough. Maybe if I did jumping jacks...

It's light until 4-5 pm now, so I don't have to scramble to get us outside before lunchtime anymore... there is still some time in the afternoon.

The fireworks continue every night. Sometimes I feel like I am hearing Mordor in the distance. I wish it weren't the reality for people living near conflict zones. :(

No New Year's resolutions here. Lots of things to catch up on, as usual! And just looking forward to David continuing to hit milestones. He'll be 3.5 in a few days, so I'll have to post an update. :)

Summer as lifetime

"Summer is a mini-lifetime" is my loose translation of a popular Russian saying. I suppose a lot can happen in a whole quarter of a year!

But in general summer usually starts out with a list of hopes and dreams and some grandiose plans...and then before you know it, September is just around the corner. Were your expectations met?

Sorry if I'm getting ahead of myself here...don't worry, I'm not going to talk about Back-to-School. ;)

This has been my first summer in Russia in awhile... probably since the summer we were married (4 years ago), and even then we spent 3-4 weeks in the U.S. I used to focus more on being home for Christmas, and now summer is the best traveling time for our family. But not this year...we'll be traveling for just 2 weeks in August, and other than that have been around St. Petersburg!

I was hoping to get a lot of projects done this summer and we have a lot of friends to catch up with. But we've had a cold going around and have gotten behind on everything. We barely just got caught up on family birthdays, and I'll be lucky if I even hand in my Immigration form before we leave on our trip!

I will say that weather always seems to play a role in how summer goes. Funny, is it that way for other seasons, too? This summer has been cool, and I am incredibly thankful for that. Although we've yet to spend a full summer in this apartment, I can imagine how 2-3 months of heat during White Nights would be a lot to endure. So I have been relishing the cool breezes, admiring the rainstorms (from inside), and appreciating the occasional warmer day. Plus-no mosquitoes!

Downslope and Kitchen Experiments

After the last time I wrote, everything came screeching to a halt as we got a family cold. Andrei felt very sick and David had a pretty bad case, too. David even now seems a little sniffly. I had my usual kind of malaise for a few days and the general feeling that I was fighting a virus, but no other symptoms.

It's been a very mild summer, and right now I am enjoying a terrific summer rain/thunder/hailstorm going on outside the kitchen window. Hopefully it will clear up in another 3 hours when I need to leave!

A blog friend recently did a fun post about some favorite foods and kitchen tips, and I thought I would share a few as well, including things that David is into.


In no particular order...

1) "Korean" carrot salad.

If you've been to Russia, you know this dish. It's the one that's sort of marinated, not the one with mayo. A little zesty, with coriander as the key spice. It's usually recommended that you use a mandoline slicer to get the right-size carrot pieces, with just the right amount of crunch. David loves it! It's good with onion, but we leave it out for picky eaters. We cheat and use a spice mix, but there are some recipes online, like this one: http://shesimmers.com/2010/08/russian-korean-salad-корейская-морковь.html

May flowers

Woo-hoo, a new post. Naptime is going by fast, though.

I'm still working on getting my energy back, and unfortunately Andrei has been under the weather. :/ When I last wrote an update, he was getting ready to go to Moscow for some heavy-duty lecturing. Well...he's been back for 10 days and still not recovered. Tonsils and laryngitis, not fun. So basically our May to-do list is hanging around for June.

Speaking of weather, we never really got our spring here in its proper season. We went from non-winter to non-spring (sort of warmish, but blustery all the time), and now that summer officially starts in 3 days, we are having spring-like weather. It's actually quite nice. You just have to wear layers and be prepared for the sun to suddenly go behind the clouds or even a rainstorm to come out of nowhere. I realized that part of what keeps me from enjoying the glorious sunshine is being unsure of what to wear, or not being able to convince David what he should wear. Now that he has worn a coat and winter hat for the past 8-9 months, he refuses to go without them. So on the first really hot day he was sweating buckets and we had to go home early because he got so thirsty.

Last weekend we followed through on some plans and went to visit a "Tulip Festival," which is pretty self-explanatory! We went with 2 other parents with kids, but none of us had our spouses along, so we all three pretty much spent the time trying not to lose our offspring! And then it did rain. So I didn't really see the tulips (only enough to see that David had gone under the barrier), and couldn't even get my camera set up without him running off. But it was fun to do something different and maybe we'll go back to the park, NOT on a Saturday, and WITH back-up so the adult-child ratio is a little more convenient. :)

Trying to update my recipe blog as well which is going at a snail's pace, and catch up on some photo projects-also miserably behind with that, but where there's a will, there's a way, right?

Fighting fatigue

A word that people like to throw around in Russia in the springtime is avitaminosis.

My kid's sick, your kid's sick....avitaminosis.

Why do I feel like I want to sleep all the time? Avitaminosis.

But seriously, it can be so hard to get energized!

We live in an area that has very little sunlight for about 6 months of the year. David usually takes a multi-vitamin, but I realized that I hadn't given him Vitamin D drops all winter, nor have I been taking anything myself.

Last weekend we were at a church retreat, and I came back feeling like I'd been hit by a bus. Yes, we may have a cold virus in the family, but a week later, we still have the sleepies. I'm a total night owl and yet I'm practically falling over my keyboard right after dinner. I don't even have the energy for aimless Internet browsing! It's not the same kind of tired where you haven't gotten enough sleep and/or have been really active physically. It feels more like jet-lag.

Meanwhile, D. won't go to sleep...sigh.

I think I'll hit the drugstore tomorrow and refill my supplements. Any other tips? Other than a walk in the sunshine, if we get any.

Apartment Life

Before it snowed and got yucky again, we had some nice sunny days (including a partial solar eclipse last week!), and some spring maintenance projects were underway.

Like this one.

Action is towards the upper middle...

Every few days, a dump truck comes and dumps a full load of sand, then leaves. For the next week, a few workers gradually shovel the sand into a wheelbarrow, then take it over and lower it into the basement via the window. And then back for another load. And then the dump truck brings a delivery to the next building on the list. They started out with the building to the right of this one, and had already moved on to the one on the left, when we suddenly got snow again.

Definitely not a job to envy!

Two days in the courtyard

Didn't manage to get one of those perfect fall photo sessions, but I got a rainy day and a snowy day for you! :)

Pondering his next puddle...

"Cheese!"

"Mommy, no gyubs (gloves)!"

"Catch you!"

Hmmm...I think we will admire the view from INSIDE today!

Summer in the City

(read to the end, because there are a lot of random topics covered here)


Too...much...SUN....I know I probably say that every summer when we have a heat-spell, and I wish the heat wouldn't bother me, because it surely is a blessing to see the sun after a gray spell. But it's hard to find a happy medium, because when the sun is out there is no escape...not until very late in the evening. As opposed to the very low sun in the winter, it's HIGH in the summer. You can't just wait a few hours for the sun to pass over and some shade to appear. It is directly above for many, many hours during the day. Whether you're going to the bus stop or the store, you have to be prepared.

Personally David and I stay in during this kind of weather. I feel guilty because I know Russian moms try to make sure their kids get fresh air every day. We get up and shut the windows and shades/curtains so the apartment won't heat up, and then we go through our daily routine, until we get a little relief and can let the air back in...but that might not be until like 10 pm. :/



Sickness

...Also, Andrei had the flu last week, poor guy. :( Thankfully it wasn't the worst case ever, but he still just felt really yucky. In the days he tried to get rest and in the evenings he helped out with David for dinner/bedtime, which was good because evening is crazy-time around here. Especially when we don't go outside because of the weather!


Cancellations

Last week was also sort of a bummer in that I had some plans that didn't work out. I know I've probably mentioned it before, but trying to keep up with people here is a scheduling nightmare. Not that my friendships are reduced to schedules, but I have lots of people I've been trying to see for a year or more, maybe even since before David was born, and it just doesn't happen! On Tuesday I had tentative plans with one person and she didn't write back and then it turned out she had a dentist's appointment and wasn't free. Then I had cleared out another block of time for a certain friend another day and was trying to figure out what to do with David and so forth since Andrei was sick, and then at the last minute my friend didn't have any money for the metro???? I'm not judging anyone here, just trying to illustrate the pace of life here. Everyone is freakishly busy which makes it seem fast, but at the same time you spend months and months trying to organize a certain get-together or run a simple errand.


Productivity

...and on that note, we had kept the entire month of June open to catch up on some things, and I'm finally starting to sort of come to terms with the fact that we AREN'T going to get much done. We are going to go through the same list, just slower. :) And no matter how we plan, those last few days (hopefully not hours) before our plane ride are going to be hectic, sigh.


Tears

I cried so hard in church today! First there were announcements, and then an engagement ceremony, which I got through, and then there was this testimony at the end that -BAM- left many of us sobbing. This woman got up to talk about the dental problems of her 3 yr old daughter, and I was already starting to cry because SHE was starting to cry, and anything with mothers and children makes me cry.  So as it turned out they couldn't find a doctor to see their daughter, and the child was crying all the time from pain (which I didn't know, just thought she was a particularly sensitive little girl), and they didn't have the money for treatment, and it was going to be under general anesthetic, and then they did find a doctor who did it all for free and without needing to use anesthetic and the little girl didn't cry at all! Which if you've ever been a parent needing to arrange medical care for your child, is just one of those gut-wrenching things. So it had a happy ending, but it was the WAY she told it that had us all sniffling. She was crying and laughing and we couldn't understand half of what she was saying! I could hear this woman behind me snorting, but I couldn't tell if it was from crying or if she was already laughing from the relief of knowing it was going to end well. I couldn't stop my own shoulders from shaking, and then all of a sudden it was over and we were dismissed. And technically we were supposed to be congratulating the engaged couple, but we were all trying to find some Kleenex and pretend we hadn't just been crying.


Misbehaving

Then on the way home we got yelled at personally by the tram driver for having the baby in the stroller. He wanted us to take the baby out and carry the baby and stroller individually up the steps before reseating the baby. I understand maybe wanting to avoid a baby-in-stroller-on-stairs scenario, but the second option doesn't make sense either. Let's say you are the only adult. You take the baby out of the stroller...now what? Who carries the stroller up the stairs? If you lift the baby up first, he could fall down the stairs while you're getting the stroller. Believe me, I've tried various scenarios in our apartment entrance. Anyway, David was asleep and we weren't going to disturb him. On the way out we got yelled at, too. The clear solution here is to DO AWAY WITH STAIRS!

Stick to safe topics, like the weather...

You know that feeling when you think you’re going to be early and you end up being late? Or when you’re hoping the teacher will let you out early and then he/she finds something to keep you occupied right up until the bell?

Early evening (sun sets at 8 pm)

Well, that’s what it was like with Winter this year. We waited and waited and there was no Winter. March 1st came and went and Spring was officially underway in Russia. Birds chirped and there were buds on the trees and green shoots coming up from the ground. I started to think maybe we were just going to skip right to Spring, and I let down my guard a little.

A few days ago…BAM! I woke up, went and looked out the kitchen window, and everything was white outside. Uggggh. It’s here. Right on schedule, in a way. It wouldn'
t feel like Spring without some final encore appearances by Winter.

I definitely don’t envy those of you who had really harsh conditions this Winter, with lots of snow days. Winter weather has its own repercussions. I've had very little trouble with my joints this winter and I think it’s partly thanks to not having to tiptoe gingerly over sheets of ice on a regular basis.

But as I mentioned at least once, we had a lot of gray days, and those are hard, too. I had to wait until March 15th to get my perfect winter weather: bright blue skies and temperatures just above freezing, with a little blanket of snow. Of course, January’s skies wouldn't have given us as much light.

I was trying to remember when we did have a little COLD spell this year. It was in mid-January, as David was entering the hospital. So I sort of missed it. But that reminds me, I need to write a little bit more about that…

It's beginning to look a lot like...???

I had just decided it was too windy to take David outside, so I was getting ready to put him down for a nap at home. Then some rays of sunshine unexpectedly began peeking through. The next thing I knew, there was a rainbow. Not looking very snowy here these days!

4 pm on Christmas Eve Eve, 2013

Tidbits

As usual, Advent managed to sneak up on me even while I was working on getting ready! I have all these unfinished projects...oh well. I will share if they ever come together!

Our Thanksgiving guest

Last week was Thanksgiving in the U.S. and we had a new American friend named Emily over for dinner. Andrei cooked shaverma, which is about as far from a roast turkey as you can get (obviously we didn't cook it on a vertical spit, it was a stove-top version). I made apple crumble without crust. I'll put the recipe on my recipe blog soon but basically it's just baked apple slices with a crumb topping, nice and simple!

I can't do an update without mentioning the weather! As I wrote a few weeks ago, November was a very gray month. It was overcast almost every day. However, it shaped up nicely and the weather has been great recently: mostly clear/blue skies, beautiful pastel sunsets/sunrises, light snow, and temperatures just below freezing. David and I have resumed our daily walks.

My little snow bunny!

At church this past Sunday we opened the Advent season. Andrei gave the first sermon, on Hope, while I attended Sunday school with David (see bottom photo). We have quite a large group of toddlers/ preschoolers!

That's all for now, but I've got lots of other things to write about, maybe tomorrow! I want to write a few book reviews, finish up the "church" series, and explore a few other topics.

Stay tuned!

David experimenting with mixed media at Sunday school!