Saturday, February 16 was such a fun day.  The young single adults loved our idea of a dance and they took the ball and ran with it.  They planned the meal, the decorations, invited their friends and all that Elder Pocock and I had to do was get the music and teach some dances.  I would have felt much more comfortable cooking, but thank goodness for the internet!  Elder Pocock down loaded some great dance  instruction videos and some fun music.  We knew that the kids wouldn't mind music with English words because that is what is always playing on the buses and in the stores.  Some of the kids brought their own Russian music.  The youth decorated with Russian medals and banners...

...then they also put up some fun posters depicting American memorabilia...with ties and scarves for interest. They were really creative...with  "long playing" record folders taped all over the walls.

We had about 22 young adults that were eager to learn some new dances.  They don't have the opportunity to dance except if they go to the night clubs and of course, we discourage that.  The only other time these kids have danced since we have been here, is at the Young Single Adult conference last August. It was time!!!

They loved the cha-cha, the twist, the stroll, the jitter bug, even the waltz was a hit...

and of course, their own kind of rock and roll!

They are all ready to do it again...sounds great, as soon as Elder Pocock and I recuperate!

One of the great moments that fills us with such joy is when we see one of the young adults catch the vision and reach their potential.  Sasha is shown here picking up his suit. He is leaving to serve a mini-mission in Chelyabinsk (he just missed the meteor episode)...a companion was needed for four weeks because an elder went home.  Sasha wanted to serve but didn't have a suit.  The zone leaders found a suit in their closet that was left by a previous missionary.  The waist needed to be taken in, the pants needed to be shortened, the sleeves on the jacket had to be shortened...but we whipped it into shape...pressed it and he was thrilled to have a suit to wear!  Believe me, these kids go on missions with very little, but they are thrilled non the less.  What a great missionary he will be.

Look what we saw in the elevator of our apartment building this week!  President Obama is popular in Russia...he even has a restaurant named after him.  The second to the last line reads:  Barackabama.  I wonder how busy the restaurant is?  We will have to check it out...

Visits this week have been wonderful.  This sister, Tatiana, lives a long way from the meetinghouse.  She doesn't make it to church very often.  A couple weeks ago she came to Sacrament meeting.  We introduced ourselves and asked if we could visit her.  She told us that her grandmother had recently died and she was coming into town to do some things at her apartment.  We had a great visit...she is trying to decided whether to move into her grandmother's apartment.  It would be so much closer to the branch.  She has a daughter that is a member who works in Yekaterinburg.  Here she holds her miniature chihuahua...Caesar.  So grateful for our visit.

Monday night we travelled to the apartment of a family in the branch.  Here are the two boys, Andre' and Sasha and their neighbor, Stass.  We presented a FHE on choices.  Sasha has recently turned 12 and could get the priesthood, so we are encouraging him to attend church with his older sister...one of our very special young single adults...and his younger brother.  The mother is inactive with no interest.  Our amazing young single adult carries the majority of the responsibility with this family.

The four apartments on this floor share this kitchen...

This laundry room...

This wash room with ONE shower...

and ONE toilet!

This is the large area where the families of all four apartments hang their coats and put their boots, and enter the above common rooms... there are also four different doorways that lead into their individual living space.

You may remember our sweet new member, Natalia.  She is following up her baptism with the new member discussions with Elders Henderson and Kaiser.  We so want to help our new members get the foundation they need to build on.

After we met with Natalia...we took off for another member's apartment.  Here you can see Elders Henderson and Kaiser run and slide down this sidewalk of pure ice...while Sister Pocock is creeping along the snow bank for fear of falling.  We had one of our young sister missionaries go back to the states for some rehabilitation for her shoulder due to a fall on the ice.  I don't want that to happen to us!!!

This is a picture we took from the Moscow Times newspaper that shows what life in Russia is like right now.  We had several warmer days that melted some of the snow...now we are getting a winter blast that is freezing everything again and making life treacherous, even for the dogs!!!  Today the temp is a chilly -19 C with a bitter wind!

At last we arrived at Nellie's apartment.  This sister hasn't been in the church for very long, but she is faithfully attending.  Nellie also attends English Conversation Group and has some English phrases down really well.  She is a widow and would so love to go to the temple to do she and her husband's temple work.  With the closest temple being in Kiev, Ukraine...it makes it difficult and expensive for those on pensions to get there.  We are praying for a temple in Russia!!!

English Conversation Group has started up again.  Each of the three groups offered...beginning, intermediate and advanced... actually introduce a very simplified part of a discussion each week and we introduce English words from the discussion.  After the 45 minute conversation, we all meet together for a story that is told in English and then translated into Russian for those that are beginners...then a spiritual thought, a song (you can see our Elders performed last week) and closing prayer.  If there is interest from those participating to speak English one on one...we stay after and discuss topics with them. The first week Elder Pocock and I had two people attend our Advanced English Group...this past week we had seven participating.

The Sister Companionship was getting over some food poisoning issues...so Henderson and Kaiser taught their English group for them.  Payoff was some homemade cookies from the sisters.  Here we see the Elders enjoying the fruits of their labors!

On February 23, we celebrated Men's Day in Russia.  Originally this holiday was to honor the soldiers..."Defenders of our Nation"... but now they honor all men.  Several sisters met at the branch early to prepare for the men's feast.  I learned how to make "chicken in a bag"... English translation.  You take dough...roll it out into a square...cut off 1/4" of the dough around the edges...fill it with the prepared mashed potatoes and sauteed onions and then place a pre-cooked chicken leg upright into the center.  Gather the dough around the chicken leg and tie it closed with the l/4" dough strings...baste with butter and bake.

We made over fifty of these "chicken in a bag" dishes.  It was so fun to work alongside these sisters and learn from them.

Here are a couple of the hardworking "babushkas" (grandmothers).

At the men's feast, I started to pick at the "chicken in a bag" with my fork and I quickly was informed from multiple sisters that this dish is eaten with your hands!!!  So I copied Tamara's lead and enjoyed every bite!

Sister Ninna...my dear friend in her new hair color and her new blouse!  She keeps telling me she will help me color my hair!

On the way home from Institute one evening...our young single adults pointed to the pile of snow above us.  They warned us of walking clear of buildings as the snow begins to melt.  Apparently there have been injuries with falling ice and snow!  So now one of us looks up and the other looks down as ice and snow starts to gang up on us.

What a treat...Saturday we visited Alexei and Lena to welcome another little girl to the branch!!!  Under that hat is a ton of beautiful, dark hair.  While the missionaries gave a meaningful message and we shared photos...I got to hold Emalena the whole time!  I'm getting primed for our new grandbabies that are coming in March and April.  Alexei serves as the branch mission leader and Lena serves in the young women.  What a sweet family. We're so excited to have more children in our little branch.

Sunday evening we went to visit our dear Laressa again...it was her birthday!  On the way we passed this frame home that has been burned.  With the extreme temperatures, these older individual homes are heated with fireplaces.  You can see that it is very risky.  This is why the majority of the people live in apartment buildings that are provided with the water/radiator heating.

As we arrived, the Relief Society presidency was just leaving.  They came to Laressa's right after the block with a meal to celebrate her special day.  I really admire our relief society sisters...they are so busy caring for the many, many needs in this branch.  I am also grateful for their spouses that are not members, who are very supportive of their service!!!

Laressa lives in a home with no indoor plumbing...their outhouse has been build just outside their door and under an extended roof.  However does a paralyzed woman do this?  Does it make you feel that your challenges pale in comparison?

This is the front door to Laressa's home.  In some homes in Russia...you just have to make do and we admire them for it!  Every visit helps Elder Pocock and I learn something new from our Russian friends.  Every family has different levels of circumstance, hope, and commitment, but one thing is the same...we love them all!