Tues,. March 8th - Volleyball - not just for summer anymore!

Today was GREAT! Today was Womens Day (kinda the eqivalent to our Mothers Day). Our friends, whose children are learning English, wanted to go to the winter park and invited us. We got dressed (which takes awhile here with all the layers), ate, and headed to the metro. We had a day of new experiences. We started off sledding. Now this sounds fun, but in reality - it's work. They are Russian Finishing Sleds. Somebody sits on a seat while another person runs behind and jumps on the runners. This is done on flat ground. A good run my take you 10-14 feet, so we ran a lot! After that, we took the older kids to the shooting range. Annie got her gun! lol Valara did a great job teaching her how to use the sites and he taught her how to load the rifle. Then, off to the ponies! Annie and Sofie each rode a pony. Annie is a natural (she gets it from her sister!)and the girl completely let go of the lead. Everyone was amazed! Then we did something very interesting - we ate lunch OUTSIDE! Yes, we had a picnic in the middle of like 5 feet of snow! This is how they do things here - life just goes on. This is a major city and they just don't have room for health clubs and spas, and even if they did, the economy is so poor that nobody can afford it! Lots of families were gathered around eating their lunches and they drink hot drinks - usually tea. Hot tea is very popular here! By this time it was going on 3 and the kids were wet. On the way out of the park I saw something completely amazing. Three volleyball courts and they all were taken! Yes, volley - not just for summer anymore! They plow the volleyball courts, the basketball courts, and the soccer fields, bundle up and the game is on. We are now home, snuggled in, tired, and SORE! I found how that I am more out of shape than I thought. UGH! These missionary days don't feel much like I'm doing missions work because the focus is on teaching English - which we use anyway. Annie is doing a great job interacting with the kids here and teaching them! I just like to socialize so it doesn't feel like work to me at all. Anyway, tomorrow I'm back to adoption stuff for the day. I get to apply for Max's passport, get our train tickets to Moscow, and hopefully get to see my boy! :-)