Winter scenes, RS birthday celebration, Printer/Copier, P-Day games

Winter Scenes

On our last train trip to Moscow, we took some pictures of the countryside. Every few miles, there will be a small community of datchas, tiny little summer cottages.

They appear every few miles, seemingly in the middle of nowhere.

You'll probably have to click to make this picture larger to see the little houses behind the hill.

It's a continuous round of birch/pine forests, open fields and little datcha communities.

This is our courtyard with children playing in the snow. On the left is a group of boys playing stick hokey on the packed snow. It was fun to watch them slipping and sliding around.

Here are ice fishermen on the Kotrasol River. Alexander, one of our English Club members, catches as many as 50 small Perch each day. He loves to make fish soup with them.

RS Birthday Celebration

During our branch Relief Society birthday celebration, Anne taught the women how to knit hats on round looms. Sveta, on the left and Shondra on the right, learned quickly.

Maria, the Relief Society president, is on the left and Lena, a non-member is on the right. Maria finished her hat for her new baby.

Deema, second counselor in the Branch Presidency, was anxious to come and learn this craft. He did very well!

Sveta brought her finished cap for us to see. She really caught on fast!

New Printer/Copier

Rick has worked hard to be sure the branch has the equipment it needs to keep things organized. The new printer/copier finally arrived and is now installed and usable. He started trying to get this from the church physical facilities in October of last year. It finally came!

Elder Jouttenus practices playing the piano while Elder Hiatt looks on. We are always grateful for missionaries who can play the piano.

P-Day Games

While Elders Armstrong and Heath are using the internet, Elders Hiatt and Jouttenus play Mexican Train with Rick and Sasha. We all enjoy preparation days (P Day) because we can visit and play together for a few hours. Sasha joins us when he has free time. He is planning to serve a mission in the near future.