September 24, 2012

   We had President Zolotov and his family over for FHE last week. He is really working hard to learn English so he talks to us in English, and we talk to him in Russian. Pretty hilarious! He even said part of his prayer in English which was so impressive. We know exactly how he feels trying to remember words or even put some semblance of a sentence together. The first thing their girls, 8 and 6, saw when they came in the house was our toaster and asked for toast. So they had toast with Nutella. We had watermelon. September is the month for watermelons here and people buy them like crazy. We have eaten a LOT of watermelon this month!
   Every cycle each missionary district is supposed to have a cultural activity. In the past, we have gone to the orchestra, a singing performance, an exotic fish exhibit, museum, etc. This cycle there wasn't anything appropriate or worthwhile to see so Elder Peterson suggested going into the forest for a picnic. Technically, the forest is "out of their area" so the missionaries had to get permission to go. Honestly, it would be a shame to be here and not go into the forest because it is so pretty and has such a distinct peaceful feeling to it. We scouted out the best gathering place beforehand and ended up having a great time, as you can see from the pictures. Some missionaries brought foil dinners to cook; others, hot dogs; us, big fat sausages. The weather was absolutely perfect, and the missionaries loved taking a break and enjoying the scenery. We still walk in the forest regularly and have seen a lot of people lately gathering mushrooms to sell on the street. We asked some members how they know which mushrooms are okay to eat, and they told us that children are taught from the time they are small to distinguish the edible mushrooms from the poisonous ones. People walk out with bucketfuls of mushrooms. Personally, I'll continue to buy mine at the market.
   Nothing to complain about the weather these days. We have been enjoying beautiful fall-weather days and pleasant, warm evenings. It will be changing soon so we are trying to soak it all in while we can. It is dark by 7 o'clock at night now.

1.The forest in September
2.The lake in the forest in September
3.Frogs in the lake in the forest in September
4.Babushki who sit on the bench outside of our apartment building every day. This is very typical dress for the older women in Russia.
5.Elder Peterson with the plant lady in our garden
6.Elder Lythgoe and Elder Long demonstrating their scouting skills
7.Elder Bullough and Elder Taylor
8.Elder Peterson and Elder Malloy making their hot dog roasting sticks
9.Sister Scoville and Sister Pearce
10.Missionary campfire
11.Hiking into the forest for our cultural activity