We made it!!!!  We landed in Yekaterinburg at 6:40 am, our new time.  It was an hour late, because of fog.  We circled the airport until we were finally cleared to land.  Ironically enough, the alternative was to land in Perm (the city we are assigned to serve), if the fog didn't clear.  We sailed through emigration and customs, which was a real relief.  There we were met by the APs and the mission president and his wife.  A very welcome sight.  This winter has been one of very little snow in this part of Russia but it has made up for it with the frigid temperatures.  It felt like we were snowmobiling in the Sawtooths without a helmet when we walked out of the airport!  They wisked us off to the mission home for a nap and then off for a busy day at the Mission Office.  This evening we had dinner with President Rust(the man on the far right) and his wife(not pictured.) On the far left are the Skows, the mission office couple and the Coltons, the CES couple here in Yekatrinburg.  A new senior couple is scheduled to arrive the last of March.

This is the most senior couples this mission has ever had.  President Rust told us that retention in our mission is around 18%!  We need more couples...sign up now!!! 

Our new mission president and his wife, President Kent and Sister Janet Rust.  We made it through the day on about three hours of sleep in order to try and get on our new schedule.  It is now 10:30 p.m. February 16, 2012.  You are just getting a good start on your morning.  Tomorrow we travel by train for five hours to our assignment in Perm.