Sunday dawned bright and early; the Niles family rose and departed EARLY for church. We arrived in time to meet the Maxwell family on the way in. Rachel and Masha checked in and stayed together for children’s church; Mark and I sat with Becky andEric for a great message on faithfulness. Sometimes God whacks one over the head with a board…the message was about how it’s not our job to figure out how the Lego pieces of our lives fit together, it’s just up to us to be faithful and trust that God’s plan is the right one for us. […]

Read More

Mark and I got up early, Mark mowed the lawn and I worked a bit. When Masha got up, she went downstairs. Mark and Masha went to the store to get milk and a couple other things. They took Simon with and then put breakfast together when they got back. Masha brought me a handful of fruity cheerios and asked me if I wanted a bowl. After breakfast, we did a few chores around the house…got laundry started, cleaned out the pond, and Masha learned how to use the pressure washer…she wrote her name on the driveway with it! After […]

Read More

Friday morning, Mark and I both needed to catch up on a little bit of work, so we explained via the online translator. Masha gobbled up a bowl of Raisin Bran (her request!) and then played for about an hour on her own while we both made phone calls and replied to emails. Today’s schedule called for us to all meet up at Science Central at 10:00. Although we were there for only 2 hours, the kids really packed a lot in. They crawled through a “dark” room where it was pitch black—dark enough that Mark used the camera flash […]

Read More

This morning was a little more organized, and I was up and showered before Masha woke up….after about 3 hours sleep on the basement couch. After taking care of a bit of work and making sure that everything was covered, Masha and I got some breakfast (OK, Masha got Rasin Bran – her choice – and I got a vat of Starbucks House Blend). Mark, Masha, and I packed up and headed out the door, with a stop by Becky’s to pick up Masha’s swimsuit. After ESL and a craft, we all headed out to Fox Island County Park, where […]

Read More

Day camp began today! Following a breakfast of oatmeal with raisins, we departed on time for camp. Imagine it….the Niles family on time for something? The only problem was that I forgot both her sunglasses and her sack lunch! Oooops! Once everyone arrived, Anna got everyone together to get to know each other. As a combination ESL and introduction, all the kids sat in a semicircle and introduced themselves. The Ukranian kids had to say “Hi. My name is…. What is your name?” and then the other kid replied “My name is …” and then go introduce themselves to the […]

Read More