He's Got the Moves...

I can only hope that one day, our kid(s) have this much talent so that I can always be entertained!

So Much to Do...

I am extremely grateful because I don't have to work on Friday or Monday, so four day weekend, here I come!

However, the time is packed, my friends.

The teachers got paid yesterday, so we all make the obligatory trip to the bank to get some cash today. Every month when I get paid, we need to go in and take out enough cash to pay our rent and our driver. Today will be the last time we withdraw money for our driver. We are firing him and here is why:

1. It's a lot of money and we don't use him enough to justify keeping him. It was great when Huzz was going to work everyday, too, but he's not. It seems quite extravagant, especially when times are tough.
2. He has become increasingly lazier during the last few months. You would think that since he's hardly working for us that when he does, he would be on top of his game. But he's not. When he takes us somewhere, he leaves until we call him to come back and get us. This would be all well and good if he was within 5 minutes away, but it's not uncommon for him to be 15-20 minutes, so we are left standing outside, waiting for him.
3. His driving makes me sick. Literally. I seem to get carsick every time I ride with him now. I know that my condition is the main reason for this, but seriously, his driving is erratic, at best. He slams on the brakes and takes turns really fast and cuts people off. Not only am I sick by the time I get to our destination, but I'm also exhausted from all of the intense big P's I'm sending up the whole time.
4. Speaking of slamming on the brakes, his brakes have been rubbing raw and squealing (I've never heard brakes squeak this loudly before) for over 6 weeks now and he hasn't gotten them fixed. A little bit of a safety concern, there.
5. Secret reason: I am hoping that with the money we'll save from 2 months of not paying the driver, we could maybe go someplace during the last two weeks we're here, just for a few days. However, I know Huzz is probably just thinking, "Look at all the money we'll save!"

So, once we get the money, Huzz is going to let him go. We have arranged to have one of our friends nearby just in case Mr. Driver has a raging fit. He has exhibited some anger issues in our presence before, so we are taking precautions.

Anyway, tonight, Matthew and Sonia have invited the group over for shepherd's pie and apple crumble. Yes, please!

Tomorrow, we are going to the store to get all items needed for the Italian feast I will be making for 3 other couples on Saturday night.

And on Saturday morning, I am going to put all my trust in Him and get my bloodwork done for my pregnancy. I'm nervous because:

1. I don't speak Russian
2. They do things very differently here in the medical world than they do back home.

Sorry about the lists today. I like them.

So, Saturday night, there will be dinner for 8 at our apartment. I've helped my mom countless times with dinner parties, but I've never done one myself for more than 4 people.

No dishwasher = really fun times after everyone has left!

Probably church on Sunday morning. If not, it is because we'll be going to see Big Almaty Lake with our friends. We're trying to organize a trip there, but don't know which day it will be yet.

Anyway, an event-packed weekend! What are you all up to this weekend?

Wii Breakfast...

I think this video is funny, except for the last 20 seconds...those, I take no responsibility for -- easily could've left it out. But the rest is pretty funny!

Skiing, Shashlik, and a Bruise...

This weekend, we finally decided to go skiing. There is a small ski resort only 30 minutes from our house. The teachers have been going for several weeks, every Saturday, but this was our first time going.
At the top of the mountain, look at the view!

They had 3 lifts open - all 2 chair lifts. They were painfully slow, so by the time you got to the top, you were F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G.

I had to take these pictures FAST because my fingers felt like they were going to fall off. Here is Stephen, all ready to go!

And my self-portrait. Isn't it lovely?

Nick (Woody's friend who is visiting), Anthony (Ant), and Robby (Woody)

We all met up for lunch at the outdoor cafe and had really tasty Shashlik. (Meat kabob) We had lamb shashlik and frites (fries).

I quit by lunch time because the slopes were SO ICY!!! I had taken a couple of good diggers and my hip was hurting. I decided I'd go to the indoor cafe and have some hot chocolate (beer) while the rest skiied for a while longer. I went inside and there were three empty tables, so I sat down at one and waited about 10 minutes for someone to ask me what I wanted. Eventually, the waitress came over and said I couldn't sit there. There's no point in me asking why because I wouldn't understand what she said. I'm pretty sure it was just because I was alone. And because people are really rude here. So, I went back outside, where it was F-R-E-E-Z-I-N-G, but at least the sun was shining, and waited for Stephen.

This is what I looked at for an hour and a half.

And this.

And this! They were giving hot air balloon rides, but the the balloon was tied down, so it just went up and down, up and down, all day long.

I took some other pictures, but they didn't really turn out, since it was too cold to take my gloves off to take the pictures, my glove is in most of the pictures.

Eventually, Stephen did show up, along with some other teachers. By then, it was about 3:00 and everyone was exhausted. Skiing on ice is just too much work, in my opinion! We sat inside and had some beers before the bus left at 5:15.

When we left the cafe, I kind of had the feeling I needed to tinkle, but I figured I could wait until we got home. I was advised to wait, as the bathrooms left much to be desired. Think squatty potties that haven't been cleaned in who knows how long.

Well, by the time we got only halfway down the mountain, I thought I was going to pee my pants. I have never had to go so badly in my life. There's this skating rink halfway down the mountain that my friend said we could run in there to the bathroom. So, I jumped off the bus and ran to the gate, but another mean lady said "Niet!" She pointed to the trees.

Yes, I peed behind a tree. Oh, sweet relief.

But honestly, I would rather do it there than in a stinky squatty potty.

And later that night, as I was putting on my pajamas, I noticed a HUGE bruise on my hip. It is dark purple right now...almost black. Very pretty.

We decided we're not going back skiing until they get some more snow.

My, That Floor is Bouncy...

One of the things we did while in Colorado was go to a gymnastics competition. We didn't just go because we randomly enjoy going to things like that. We went because my Hannah was competing.

Here is her gymnastics class, lined up on the balance beam, waiting their turns. Hannah isn't in this picture because she was...
Right here! That's her on the balance beam. She did awesome! (Sorry for the horrible quality of the pictures. The lighting was bad and it is just convincing me that I should get a point-and-shoot camera.)

For instance, this picture below, was supposed to be her with her hands up in the air, but my camera took so long to take the picture, that I got her pushing her hair behind her ears.

She's cute, no matter what, but FRUSTRATING!

And here is a video of her floor routine. I love how confidant she is. She knows exactly what is coming next and I don't know why her coach helped her because in my opinion, she didn't need it.

Hannah, I am so proud of you! You have worked so hard and learned so much. It was fun to watch you.

Sidenote: I have known Hannah since the day she was born. I have cared for her and watched her grow. She is my Hannah. One day, I was going to name my daughter Hannah, after her, but now I have a niece named Hannah! Oh, well. Ha!

Just know that you are very special to me, Hannah. I love you!

How Are Things?

It's been a little while since my last post. Sorry 'bout that.

The kid that I got suspended is still having issues. His lovely mum approached my teammate a couple of weeks ago out in public and told her how much she despises the "insert name of school here" teachers. She ended up yelling at *Shelly and *Shelly ran away and hid behind a pillar until the mom left. Crazy, huh?

Then yesterday, I noticed the student wasn't at school. Turns out he's been psychologically evaluated and will not be returning to the school. It's so weird how things can turn out, isn't it?

Although, I saw him here today, so I think his parents must be sending him here until they figure out what to do with him. Fantastic.

Stephen and I went to the opera house last Friday night to see the ballet, Swan Lake. It was pretty good, actually! Surprisingly, I liked the music more than the dancing. I was surprised at how much of the music sounded familiar. Tchaikovsky. Did I butchar that spelling?

After the ballet, we went to a German restaurant with our friends, *Joe and *Valerie. We had big plates of french fries and a huge platter of sausages. I was so exhausted from the busy week that I was falling asleep at the table by the end of the meal. We had a good time.

Then, on Saturday night, we went out with Shelly and her husband, *Mark and another teacher couple to an early dinner and had a delicious meal. We stopped at the neighborhood bar to send off one of the teachers who has quit and is headed to Hong Kong this week. We then made our way to Shelly's with a cake in hand that our driver had given us. His son had turned 1 on Saturday, so he gave US a cake! Weird tradition, but I like it. The cake was pretty good and we had a fun time getting to know our new friends.

We went to church on Sunday, for the second time, and met a lot of new people. The pastor's wife invited us over for lunch this coming Sunday and there will be several other people there for us to meet.

I am spent. It turns out that I have a much heavier timetable than most of the teachers here (yet I am getting paid the same) and they are talking about making us teach our class more by replacing one of the Russian classes with more English. Yipee-skippy.

We still don't have resources and curriculum. Teaching is....well, you know.

I have a large stack of grading to tackle.

Dos Vadanya.

*names have been changed to protect the innocent