Sorry I'm slow posting this week...a lot going on.  

Guess what time of the night I took this photo out our kitchen window?...12:30 a.m.  It was hot in the apartment and I got up for a drink and couldn't believe how beautiful it still was outside.  Our windows don't have screens so between the mosquitos and the "summer snow" from the cottonwood trees...we keep our windows closed at night.  During the early mornings, we open them to cool down the apartment.  So far we have had only one really unbearable day and that was when we were in Yekatrinburg...92 degrees with high humidity!  In Perm, we have had a lot of torrential rain storms.  We have been caught in it many times; so between the high winds and rain, we're on our second round of umbrellas!

 Same time, different direction and I caught the sun setting.

Meet Valentina!  She is the most colorful woman I know...inside and out!  Valentina is one of our investigators.  She is so happy, so positive, so excited about the gospel.  She loves to come to church,
she loves having us go to her area to teach her, she loves praying, and this Sunday I found out that she loves playing the piano.  I helped in the nursery this week, so guess who played the opening song for the Gospel Principles class?  Valentina!!!  What a gal.

From our apartment, it is about an hour bus ride into a really wooded area to get to Valentinas.  Valentina lives close by Anna.  In fact, Valentina came to Anna's apartment and met with all of us there for our last discussion.  Anna served a mini-mission before she married and loved being a missionary again!  We met this week with Valentina for another discussion.  She doesn't like us to go to her apartment because her son isn't really friendly towards the church, so she asked a friend that has a little cafe nearby, if we could met there.  On the way, Valentina introduced us to some of her friends.  In Russia, the older ladies are called Babushkas.  Here are three delightful "Babushkas" that loved all the attention we, "Americanskes" gave them.

Here we are at the cafe.  Elders Weber, Smith and Pocock with Valentina.  It was a quiet little place where we were able to discuss many aspects of the gospel.  The missionaries call Valentina every Sunday morning at 10:00 a.m. to get her up and give her time to get ready and ride the bus to church for the 12:00 block.  One thing that the missionaries covered was commitment...and how to set an alarm clock.  She hasn't missed church in over a month!  Every time we meet she has something to give us.  The Elders got oranges, Elder Pocock got a bottle of pumpkin juice, that he gladly shared!  I have to admit, it was really good.  And Valentina made me a centerpiece out of egg cartons.  They form a flower and in the center of the flower are pieces of candy.  I should have taken a picture...she is very creative and very giving.  I gave her some homemade peanut butter cookies.  She absolutely loved them.  They don't have peanut butter here except in certain stores and we have found one!!!

Introducing the Van family. They also have a 20 year old son.  They are on our branch rolls and the missionaries did their homework and found that this family moved to a new location in Perm about three years ago.  It was a delight to be in their lovely home.  They are from China and immigrated to Russia 20 years ago.  It is so interesting talking with them, they kind of float in and out of Russian, Chinese and English.  How would it be to be so talented!  They joined the church here in Perm approximately five years ago...all three members of the family.  Then something happened...life got in the way and they haven't been to church for some time.  I took them some peanut butter cookies also (I made a huge batch to have plenty on hand) and they gave us some berry tea.  It was delicious!  Brother Van is a very meticulous craftsman.  He has been working for three years on remodeling their home.  It is huge compared to most Russian dwellings.  He works drilling natural gas wells.

This is a photo of the exterior of their home...they live about fifty minutes on the bus from our apartment plus approximately another twenty minute walk.  Right across the street from their home is a beautiful forest.  They have enclosed their property with an eight foot high fence but they can see the beauty of the forest from their second story.  They also live at the very end of the lane so the forest meets them on that side of their property also.  Talk about heaven on earth...in Russia.

This is one of Brother Van's creations.  It is a covered patio, a banya (sauna), and a warm dining and entertaining area for the winter...and the workmanship is beautiful.

The doorway to the left leads to the sauna, the fireplace heats the sauna on one side and the dining area on the other.

Lilya...takes great pride in her garden.  I couldn't believe all the tomato and pepper plants.

The pink covering is to protect her strawberries from the birds.  In the distance, you can see the beauty
of the forest!  Lilya has been to church the past three Sundays.  She comes for Sacrament meeting and then leaves, but I am so proud of her and grateful for desire to come back.  She is truly a lovely woman.
This is a great family and I'm so happy we could go to their home.  We have asked the four sets of missionaries to have Elder Pocock and I visit a less active with them each week.  It is exciting to be able to put faces with the names on the membership lists.

Thursday, June 21, we caught the train out of Perm.  Time for another Zone Conference in Yekatrinburg.  The time is at the top of the train station...4:35 a.m. but it is really 6:35 a.m. because all of the trains and planes in Russia go by Moscow time and that is two hours earlier than it is here.  I keep asking myself if they do that to confuse the foreigners...don't they know that we live in a fog all the time anyway!!!

Ten of us boarding the train...we had a coupe' so we were able lay down and rest during the six hour train ride.  Elder Pocock has been ill for sometime now but he just pushes his way through it.  The rest on the train was a welcome relief!  On the way home, our train didn't leave Ekat until 10:30 p.m. on Friday and it took eight hours...we arrived back in Perm at 6:30 a.m. Saturday.  Lots of stops and starts, but we got a little sleep none the less!  I am so grateful for the missionaries in our zone...everyone treats each other like family.  It means sooooo much when we are all so far away from "family"!

Elder Pocock and I were the first to have our interview with President Rust...so while he was interviewing all the other missionaries, the office couple...Elder and Sister Schow, went with us out to lunch at a brand new Burger King in Ekat!  Seriously, I thought I was back in the states when I sank my teeth into that yummy sandwich.  The Schows are from Pleasant Grove, Utah and they GO HOME IN NOVEMBER!  The President is beside himself...they are absolutely amazing people.  Harder workers, you will never find!  We are so grateful to have made life-long friends with the senior couples that serve here.

The Perm Zone taken with President and Sister Rust.

Our apartment building is in "remont"...that means remodel mode.  The entry to the elevator looks like this.  They are doing a really nice job with the sheet rock.  They have torn up all the tile off the floor as well.  It will make such an improvement when they get it all done...

This is one of the doorways that we have to pass through to exit the building.  Every time I go under these braces, I pray they will hold.  We are still waiting for our hot water that was promised June 12 ... so it may be quite a while before we see the end to this project!

While we were in Ekat...the two counselors in the Branch Presidency called our Zone leaders and proposed that we have a missionary activity on Sunday after the block.  They said that they would announce a missionary devotional for 3:30 p.m.  After the devotional, members of the branch would go out with the missionaries for one hour and street contact...then everyone would come back to the church for a luncheon and "Oh by the way, could Sister Pocock take care of that for us?"  We were so
excited that our little branch was willing to get something going with missionary work, that we of course said YES!  Saturday afternoon, I purchased items that I thought everyone would eat...but there were nagging concerns...how much food do I need...how many people do I plan for?  I had been to enough dinners that I knew some of the basic food that Russians love, so I put together deviled eggs, sliced tomatoes with cilantro, sliced cucumbers (they are so good here!), a variety of breads, cheeses, apricots, apples, bananas, fruit juices and homemade cookies!  When everyone returned, they were famished and the food was a welcome sight.  We had such a great response from the branch...young and old alike.  They want that baptismal font used!!!  Below is a picture of some of the gals that went out.  L to R: Valentina, our investigator missionary...only in this church, another Valentina, who team teaches the Gospel Principles class, Sister Damron who has been in Russia for 3 weeks and has limited Russian skills, Ellia a young single adult who was just put in the Relief Society presidency to help get the YSA involved in RS...smart move, and Masha, another investigator missionary!  I went with Ellia and Masha and approached seven people at the park nearby.  Not much interest but we felt the spirit of missionary work.  What a great activity...with great memories. Next week we do get to fill the font.  Nadia is getting baptized on Saturday.  What a wonderful event for this sweet branch.  Can't wait to share.

Introducing the new Perm Zone:

L to R: Elder Smith, Baker City, OR; Elder Flitton, SLC, UT; Elder Weber, Raleigh, NC; Elder O'Neill, Oakland, CA; the Pococks, Meridian, ID; Sister Denning, Orem, UT; Sister Damron, SLC, UT; Elder Wimber, Georgia (family soon moving to Roseburg, OR); Elder Hronek, Heber City, UT.  What a team!  We come from all over but have one purpose: to invite people to come unto Christ.  We are so grateful to be able to work alongside these tremendous young missionaries.

Tuesday is one of our favorite days of the week...We changed FHE to Tuesdays so that our young adults who should be with their families on Monday...can join us.  "Commitment" was the focus of the lesson this week.  Six of the YSA shared their feelings about commitment to: parents, family, friends, work, their mini mission, etc.  We talked of the Savior's commitment to us, how He fulfilled His promises...even when it got hard and then we talked of our commitment to Him.  Commitment is difficult at any age, no matter where we live...but it is essential as a member of His church.  The games after the lesson are always fun and challenging.  They are such good sports.

This week I introduced Russians to fruit pizza.  They literally were afraid to taste it..."so strange!"  But it was a hit.  They loved decorating two large pizzas with strawberries, kiwi, bananas and pineapple.  The young man on the left, Stanislav, is a new investigator.  He is 17 and is awaiting permission from his parents to take the discussions but he was allowed to attend FHE.  Artium and Igor are the other two young men.  Katia is the young woman holding the pizza. She sits in on many of our discussions and is an amazing missionary in her own right.  She is so "committed" and loves to share her testimony.  There is power in having a fellow Russian share their conversion story.

Well, we have been without water in the hot tap of our bath and kitchen for 2 1/2 weeks!  Thank goodness for an emergency small water heater in the bathroom that allows us a SHORT but none the less, hot shower.  This week we turned on the hot water handle and this is what we got!  It isn't hot yet...it wasn't clear, but we do now have water!!!  The young adults tell us that it could be a long month of June before we get our clear, hot water back!  Thank goodness for our filter.

We talked on our last blog about the "White Nights" celebration here in Perm.  In the huge grassy area where they have their ice sculptures in the winter...they now have an amazing month long party celebrating the many hours of daylight.  Below you can see a view of some of the displays, restaurants and attractions.   On our P-day we visited the park and were amazed at what was offered.  Each week new performers from various countries provide entertainment.  They have had entertainers from Mexico that hang upside down from a pole, (remember Tulum?) American rock singers, many countries were represented with break dancer competition, a man played works from Tchaikovsky on about 30 pieces of cut glass and much, much more.  They tell us that they even had a demonstration of American Football.  The missionaries were sad they couldn't see that!  All of this is free admission to the public.  There are about 24 sand sculptures that have been created with a mixture of fine sand and a hardening glue.  You can see several of them to the right below.

This was our favorite:  Khrushchev with his shoe off pounding on a table.  Some of you probably remember this event in history.  We felt that this shows that the Russians are willing to laugh at some of the things from their past.  These sculptures were really detailed and creative.

One of the amazing portable restaurants was this one with authentic Arabian food and decor.  Check out the pipe at the front table.

Outside the chefs were baking the bread that was served.  You can see some of the finished product to your left.  These huge brick ovens have hot coals at the bottom .

The dough was attached to the sides of the oven and cooked to perfection...very carefully removed and
drenched in melted butter.  It made our mouths water just watching them.

Two large portable swimming pools were filled with very happy children and adults.

This gives you a wide view of how this large area is bustling with activity.  June 12 was a National Holiday and also Perm City Day...so you can imagine how busy this event can get.

While waiting for an investigator meeting at the church, we were delighted to find a mother and daughter busy at work making a quilt.  This antique iron and sewing machine were put to good use.

This is Ludmila, a counselor in the Relief Society.  Her daughter (above) is not a member but so kind.  This sewing machine was Ludmila's grandmothers and is approximately 70 years old.  It is operated solely with a hand crank. The stitching was better than most modern machines!  Ludmila said that she loves this machine because she can control the speed.  Electric sewing machines scare her.

Time for a haircut and Nadia came to my rescue.  She explained what I wanted and then she would check with me to make sure there were no surprises.  When the hairdresser was finished cutting my hair,  she used the blow dryer and an apron full of brushes to curl it...no curling iron needed!  It is truly amazing how helpless you can feel when it comes to needing such simple tasks.  We are so thankful for our friends who speak much better English than we speak Russian!!!

Talk about fresh...we haven't had any lettuce in the nearly four months that we have been here.  We were getting hungry for Taco salad so I went searching.  We found this lettuce that is so fresh that it is in the pot it was planted...roots and all!

Yes it looks like snow...but it never melts.  There are cottonwood trees everywhere and this is what it looks like outside.  The windows to our apartments don't have screens on them, so you have to be careful this time of year to just barely crack them open.  One Elder said that he forgot to close the window at night and in the morning he had "summer snow" all over the whole apartment!

Thanks for sharing in another of our weeks in Perm.  Can't wait to see what pictures I'll get for next week.  It is always an adventure.  We love serving here in Russia and seeing the gospel brighten the lives of the people here.

Hi from Perm!

I wish that we had taken an original picture of our step up to the parking area and front of our apartment.  The harsh weather really did some damage to a small, sloping step that soon exposed the rebar beneath the cement.  We were thrilled when we saw them working on building new steps with even a circular flare...but much to our dismay...two days after the new steps were put in...this is how they looked!

Again, they worked away at repairing the step...now you can see the finished product!  They just chipped away the broken one and tada ... our new steps minus one.

I am sure that many of you are experiencing the busyness with the end of the year school activities.  We have been thinking a lot about our grandchildren and all their events.  Our dear friend, Nadia, invited us to
be Mela's guests at her kindergarten graduation.  The sign behind the children reads: "Goodbye Children's Garden"...meaning "farewell to kindergarten".  Look at the clothes these children are wearing.  Seriously, I thought we had come to Cinderella's Ball!  The children put on skits, sang several numbers, performed dances with and without partners, and recited their alphabet and did math problems...it was pretty impressive!  After the program, they all gathered outside and each child let a balloon float into the air.  Inside the balloon was the child's wish for their future. They were just like children from home...so excited about their performance and sad to say goodbye to their friends.

Nadia with Mela.  Nadia's friend made Mela's dress.  Nadia told me that in Russia the fluffy net skirt is called: the American skirt.  It is very popular.  Mela felt like a princess and looked like one too!

This week Elder Pocock and I travelled to Yekaterinburg for a "first ever" joint Seminary and Institute Graduation for our mission.  Our Branch President was in charge of the event and went up the day before, so Elder Pocock and I were asked to chaperone the youth from Perm.  A twenty one seat van was rented and we filled every seat!  We loaded the van at 5:00 a.m. and returned home at 11:00 p.m.  We had a blast...and talk about togetherness!!!  Many of the roads in Russia are repaired much like our steps and it brought to mind a talk in general conference by Elder David B. Haight when he talked of a buggy ride where there went 80 miles an hour...40 mph straight ahead and 40 mph up and down.  That sums up our ride perfectly!

President Rust, President Ustyuzhaninov, the instructors and participants of the graduation.  After the exercises, a luncheon was served and then the youth participated in activities surrounding events from the Old Testament.  It was a very memorable event for our young people.

This is what we faced when the van stopped for a pit stop on the way back!  Needless to say, this was a "first ever" experience too! (and hopefully last)  The kids really enjoyed the look on my face!!!

This is for all you young moms out there that are having a hard time getting your kids to go to bed because it is still light at 9:00 p.m.  Well, this picture was taken out our kitchen window at 11:15 p.m.  and as you can see...these moms have given up.  The kids are still going strong.  I have mentioned before that at this time of year we rarely see it get dark.  It is light when we go to bed and light when we get up.  Perm has a huge celebration during this time called the "White Nights".  They have activities and major events going on most every evening and all day on the weekends.

Tanya and Lena, a less active and her non member friend invited us to attend one of the activities that the city is hosting.  It was an international Brass Band Concert.  Bands from Scotland, Moldova (a small country between Romania and the Ukraine...we had to check out the map to see if this place really existed), Italy, Netherlands, St. Petersburg, and an amazing band from right here in Perm!  This is the building where it was held. It is by far the nicest and most modern building we have been in since we have been here.

Pictures taken before the concert began...Scotland

Italians in tights...Lena and Tanya

Scottish bagpipes and dancers

Moldova...their band and dancers were my favorite!

Panorama from Kent's Iphone

Meet our new Sisters...Sister Damron and Sister Denning on the right.  Sister Damron was celebrating her
birthday on her fifth day in the country!  She is from Salt Lake City, Utah and  Sister Denning is from Orem, Utah.  We came to find out what a small world it is when it was discovered that Sister Denning's mother lived across the street from Elder Pocock when they were growing up!  We are so glad to have sisters back in our zone.