28 Nov 2010

Another wonderful week.  I learned to make bread.  The bread here is very dry and we really do not like it to well so one of the senior sisters gave me her bread reccipe and it worked the first try.  That is a miracle.  But it sure makes a good peanut butter sandwhich for lunch. Tues night was Senior night and we went to the Lochead's house.  He is working here as a legal person for the church so they are in a beautiful gated housing area with a beautiful home that is owned by the church.  But it was so nice.  A lot of Americans live there so it really felt like a little piece of America. We enjoyed the evening. We had to ride marshuka's, buses and metros to attend this but we have gotten use to that. Thursday was Thanksgiving.  What a treat.  Each senior couple had the missionaries in their branch over for Thanksgiving dinner.  Sister Sorenson got us all a turkey through the American Embassy and one can of pumpkin pie mix. No turkeys in Russia.We could only get small turkeys because our ovens are so small. We call them cracker box ovens. So we had turkey, potatoes and gravy, salad, some stove top that Michelle sent from home some candied carrots to take the place of yams(no yams or sweet potatoes here) carrots and cucumbers, rolls, and pies.  It was so good.  And it was nice to be making the missionaries happy on Thanksgiving.  I know it was hard for us to be away on Thanksgiving and I know it is hard for them.  So being together made us all happy and kept our minds off of home.  We talked about our own traditions at home and it just turned out to be a wonderful Thanksgiving.Then I have been making sugar cookies.  We are having the Great Christmas Cookie project.  Each senior sister was given a cookie cutter and was asked to bake 6 doz cookies.  Then the missionaries are all getting together to frost and decorate them and give them to investigators.  We have some Russian missionaries serving whose families are not members and they do not get much support from them.  So they will decorate cookies and send the missions love with them to their families. Then today Sunday was probably one of the highlights of our mission.  The primary did the sacrament meeting.  There were 9 little girls ages 6-9 who sang and bore their testimonies.  It was really touching to hear these little Russian saints sing the primary songs and talk about their families and how they love heavenly Father.  They sang How Great Thou Art..all verses without a word to read.  They had it all memorized.  One little girl sang while her father played the piano.  We take the church so much for granted and these new saints appreciate it so much in their lives. I will never forget those sweet little children and how we are all God's children. That was their whole primary except for a couple of little boys who are to little to participate. How blessed we were to be part of this day.  We love the saints here and their sweet young and simple testimonies. 
We love you all and appreciate your thoughts for us..Gene and Marcia

I made bread

The Lochead's

Enjoying pie for a treat

Thanksgiving table

Pretty little flowers we bought for a table decoration

This turkey barely fit in the oven and we had to take a 1
hr bus ride to a store where we could buy a pan to cook
it in

Sitter Knudsen and Sister Perry they brought
some onion cabbage rolls..a Russian food

Ready to eat

Elder Nielsen had just received
a package from home

After dinner photo

Always an event to get laundry done.
Trying to get the sheets dry

The great Christmas Cookie Project

It has been a good and happy week

Carving the turkey as Elder Cardoza takes lessons