When we came to Ukraine on those first few short-term trips, we were told many times by our friends who lived here that alcoholism was a huge problem in their country. We also learned that drinking was not acceptable if you were a member of a church and called yourself a follower of Jesus. I recall thinking- Wow, that's pretty legalistic. No drinking? What's the harm in having a drink now and then?- And this is the mindset of many followers of Jesus in the US. I'm sure many of you would agree. (FYI: I'm not writing this to get into any theological arguments or debates- I have another purpose in mind- so hang tight).
After having lived here for the past year, I have a much better understanding and respect for the "no drinking rule" and also a greater understanding of how many lives here are affected by alcoholism.
Now this is my own personal thought/opinion/view from a non-native. It seems like there are 2 kinds of people here: those who drink and those who do not. There is no "social drinking"; if you drink, you drink hardcore, you drink to get drunk (in its various stages from giddiness to passed out on the street)- and will most likely end up being an alcoholic. If people know you drink, this is what they expect from you. The only other alternative is to not drink.
Some people (like I did myself) may think this is an extreme alternative, but after seeing firsthand the effects of alcohol on so many people- it totally makes sense and I have a great respect for the followers of Jesus here who have conformed to this alternative.
Everyday, it is not uncommon to pass by people that are laying down on the ground where they passed out, to pass by people swaggering down the sidewalk, barely keeping themselves upright, as they walk home. To see people attempting to cross the street and watching cars and buses swerving to avoid them. To have random people come up to you (on the street, on the bus, in the store) and start talking to you, put their hands on your shoulders like they are getting into a deep, philosophical discussion (and then you smell it heavy on their breath).
I was walking with a friend today and as we passed a certain section of sidewalk in front of a store, I commented that there are always interesting things for sale here. There are always maybe 4-5 different people with random things set out for sale: old shoes, old books, old bags, etc...). My friend said that the people selling there were usually alcoholics looking to make some extra money; selling whatever they could find around their house.
A few months ago, Solomiya and I were walking home from town and we saw a heart-wrenching scene: a young woman, maybe 24 years old, disheveled clothing, messy hair, barefoot, running (or trying to run) down the sidewalk, falling, picking herself back up again, yelling a name, clearly plastered. I looked ahead of her and saw a young man calmly leading a little girl (maybe 4 years old) away from this woman.
Our fellow American friends passed an old woman on the side of the road while driving. The woman was lying there, not moving. They pull over, get out, try to see if she is alive. Another person walks by and says for them to not worry, because the woman only passed out from being drunk; she does this all the time; leave her outside and her family will take care of her when they come home.

Crazy stuff. Maybe this is why the average life expectancy of a person is 65 years old. 65 years.

Holidays

December 1st was officially the first day of winter here in Transcarpathia. One thing I have noticed about the seasons here, is that they seem to adhere to a strict schedule (more so than in NY).
December 1st: Winter. The temperature turned super cold and we have had flurries or light snow every day since.
September 1st: Fall. The leaves began turning yellow shortly after.
June 1st: Summer. It became HOT.
March 1st: Spring. The trees actually started blooming at this time.
The seasons are definitely on a strict schedule. I like it.
And- We are looking forward to another frosty, ice-covering-everything winter. Seriously. The air has become cold, but fresh, and there is a lovely covering of white on the ground.

We are also looking forward to experiencing the Ukrainian winter holidays. This is what we have to look forward to:

19 December - St. Nicolas Day

"This day opens the chain of winter holidays. Every child who behaved during the year will receive a present from St. Nicolas on this day. Nowadays it has become traditional to present gifts to every child."*

25 December - Christmas

"Catholic Christmas is also celebrated in Ukraine, especially in her Western regions."*

 

1 January - New Year's Day

"It is one of the most favorite of all holidays in Ukraine. As in Western countries on Christmas Eve, Ukrainians give "New Year" presents, Children receive their presents under the New Year Tree on the morning of the 1st of January. Traditionally just prior to midnight there's a Presidential speech broadcast nationally. When the clock strikes Midnight, people pop open their champagne bottles and raise a toast. With the first glass they congratulate each other as the clock strikes 12 times and fireworks fill the sky. [woo hoo] The week before the New Year is a busy one with shopping, parties at work, decorating pine and fir-trees, and cooking the years most delicious meals. The main folk heroes of this holiday are Father Frost (Did Moroz) and his grand-daughter "Sniguron'ka" (The Snow Girl). Nearly all businesses remain closed from December 31st to January 8th."*

7 January - Orthodox Christmas

"The period from the 7th until the 14th of January is Saint Christmas week. During this week people go from one house to another, singing songs and wishing good wishes to health, prosperity, etc. and just having a good time. Most usually are dressed in folksy or carnival type costumes. Such activity is called "Kolyaduvannya" and "Schedruvannya". The songs are called "kolyadky" and "schedrivky". When somebody is singing these songs and greeting you, as a rule you should give them sweets or food or drinks or whatever you have as a token of appreciation. It is believed that everything that the people have sung in their Kolyadka and Schedrivka will come true.

Also during the new year holidays, up to the 14th of January it is common for kids (and sometimes adults-in the villages) to go from one house to another wishing the owner of the house new year wishes, new happiness, health, etc. All those wishes are usually said in rhymes and with the spreading of seeds, such as wheat or other grains. This shows a wish of prosperity for the house. This practice is called "Posivannya". Some token, usually food, drink, sweets, or money, is usually given in return."*

 

14 January - Old Calendar New Year

"Celebrated as a family holiday. See more above under 7 January - Orthodox Christmas."*

 

*http://bestofukraine.com/culture/holidays-in-ukraine.html

 

So if you read through all that, you might be surprised to find out that New Year's is actually the big holiday here with tree decorating, gift buying, fancy meals, parties and fireworks. I found an interesting explanation online:

"Christmas in Ukraine is celebrated January 7 according to the Gregorian calendar as in most of other Orthodox Christian countries. During the Soviet time it was not officially celebrated in Ukraine. Instead communist government tried to substitute Christmas with the holiday of New Year. But people did not forget their traditions. After gaining it’s independence in 1991 Ukraine started to celebrate Christmas officially as well."*
*http://www.uazone.net/holidays/christmas.html

You may enjoy this video that further explains New Year's celebrations:
Маша и Медведь: Раз, два, три! Ёлочка, гори!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qd6OtRox9V8&list=PL73E786B499A54A18&index=3

I highly recommend it.

I took this photo from a Facebook page- I Love Uzhhorod-. This is the walkway along the river (not now, but some other winter).

 

Ukrainian New Year

 

 

The First Snowfall

The first snowfall! I'm not surprised- on Sunday the weather tuned frigid! And yesterday (Monday) was again frigid, cloudy and flurries were in the air. When Mike came home last night from the coffee house, he said it was lightly snowing outside. Looks like there is about an inch or two out there.

The snow came just in time because I bought Solomiya snow boots last week from a guy named Abdul for 15r (less than $2).

Used, Italian-made snowboots. I bought them at a second-hand store that sells used clothing from Western Europe. This store kinda popped up overnnight a few weeks ago. There are a few other places like this in town also- and you can find some really nice stuff, super cheap.

I went up to pay for them and the guy was telling me how much he would charge for each item (I also found S snowpants for $2 and a winter vest for $2) and I was saying I agreed with him, and then he said- You're not Ukrainian? Where are you from? (darn, this accent) and I told him- America. And then he started speaking in English, interesting. So he's telling me- he's Abdul from some Middle Eastern country and this was his store, and he gave me a discount off the total price of everything and invited me to come back and speak English with him.

The last of the brown sugar...

Nothing too interesting went on last week- just normal 'life stuff'. Spent the beginning of the week trying to get Solomiya in for her check-up with the doctor. Got an appointment on Monday, went to the clinic only to find out that we had left Solomiya's chart at home. (Interesting fact: The patient is responsible for keeping their own chart and bringing it to each appointment). So, we went back on Tuesday, with her chart = mission accomplished. Went out for coffee afterwards to recover (Solomiya does not like medical workers).
Mike taught his own classes last week and also filled in for one of the other teachers, so he was quite busy every evening. I cancelled my OT sessions for Tuesday, but did see everyone on Friday and Saturday.
We were invited over to friend's houses for dinner on Saturday and on Sunday (dinner invites are awesome because we know that we'll be eating some good food and Mike knows that he will actually be able to eat some meat for a change!).
I went back to the dentist today for her to work on another tooth and to have a cleaning done. (My teeth are super clean- at one point the hygenist was "sand blasting" them with calcium carbonite). I still cannot believe how amazing this dentist is and how incredibly cheap the services are. Thank God!
After Solomiya went to sleep for the night, I decided to make a pineapple upside-down cake with the last of the brown sugar. I'm experimenting because we would like to have some people over for dinner this weekend.

Yum... that looks appetizing. I blame it on our oven. And on the brown sugar sauce that burned. I'm glad I did a trial run first. oi.

That looks better and slightly more appetizing.

Maybe Mike will clean this pan for me...

We have on our hands here a little girl who likes to play dress-up. She was so excited when she saw this dress (I believe her reaction was something like this, "ooooOOOOooooo"), we had to put it on her over her clothes. She wore it the rest of the evening.

No outfit is complete without a hat.

She also does this quite often- finds an article of clothing and wraps it around her waist or her shoulders. When I came home from the dentist today, she was wearing one of my tank tops around her neck like a cape.

Day 24: Thanksgiving!

Sorry, bailed on the blogging last night. I watched a Christmas movie on YouTube instead; meanwhile... Mike was teaching and Solomiya was sleeping.

Today, we celebrated Thanksgiving with our fellow American friends that are also "sojourning abroad*", Jim and Laurie.

*" ... I do therefore invite my fellow citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are at sea and those who are sojourning in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next, as a day of Thanksgiving and Praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the Heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings, they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the interposition of the Almighty Hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity and Union." - Abraham Lincoln, 1863

Thanking our beneficent Father for:
- a warm & safe place to live
- running water
- more than enough food
- clothing
- people around the world who support us and the work God is doing here
- fulfilling & meaningful work each day

Commending to His tender care:
- the hundreds of orphans that live in Uzhhorod
- the alcoholics passed out beside our front door
- the Roma who wait by our trash bins for new bags of garbage to look through
- the many elderly widows and widowers who have seen so much heartache in this land over the years

Asking God to heal the wounds of this nation of Ukraine and to restore it as soon as may be consistent with the Divine purposes; Asking for peace, harmony, tranquility and unity upon this nation.

Day 22

Started out the day by heading to the Hope & Life office/English school for our weekly meeting/prayer time. Laurie made chocolate chip cookies (with real dark brown sugar) that were AMAZING. It ended around 1:15pm, and then I helped Mike get Solomiya and all her luggage into a taxi so that they could go home while I went to my dentist's appointment.
I was VERY impressed with this dentist and her office/treatment room.

Waiting Room: sorry it's fuzzy (from their website)

 

Treatment Room

The dentist, Nataly, not only speaks English very well, but was also educated at the University of Michigan School of Dentistry. She worked on my tooth for at least 45 mins, and by the time she was done, it looked like she had replaced my old tooth with a new one. She did amazing work. I highly recommend her. AND- it cost 545r ($68)! I realize that this is quite expensive for most Ukrainians (especially with an average monthly salary of 1600r); but after having so much work done on my teeth over the years in the States- this was a bargain. Quality work for a low fee.

After this, I headed home to relieve Mike of baby duty so he could prepare for his class. I'll tell about the adventure going home in another blog...

An hour and a half later... I arrived home. Solomiya had a Thanksgiving Skype call with Grandma and Grandpa. I google called/Skyped with my siblings (all 3 of us at the same time- that was fun) and also got a Skype call from my grandma!

Annie- Ukraine *** Chrissy- New York *** Freddie- Baltimore

Chrissy and Sophia: They are cooking a Thanksgiving chicken and enjoying a peaceful day at home watching football with Prayer.

Made some "chicken flavored" noodle soup for dinner (mostly because I still could not feel my mouth very well after being numbed at the dentist), Solomiya fell asleep around 6:40ish pm and Mike is teaching his Advanced class.

Day 21

In case we forget tomorrow- Happy Thanksgiving.
Mike prepared a "Thanksgiving-themed" evening for the conversational English group tonight- complete with Charlie Brown's Thanksgiving (or whatever it's called) movie and another short clip on being thankful for everyday things. Should be good.

Today included:
- Annie visiting someone for an OT session at 11am
- Mike hanging with little S and working on stuff for the evening class
- Our friend, Rudolf, coming over for lunch
- Forgetting to go to the post office to pay the bills
- Solomiya and I making an evening run to Cilpo
- Mike leaving for the class at 5:40pm
- Solomiya was asleep by 8pm (yay!)

5 Day Forcast for Uzhhorod:

Tonight Nov 21

36^°F

Partly Cloudy

Thu Nov 22

46^°

37^°

Mostly Cloudy

Fri Nov 23

48^°

37^°

Cloudy

Sat Nov 24

46^°

38^°

PM Light Rain

Sun Nov 25

46^°

39^°

Light Rain

 

Day 20

I think we may have mentioned before the process of paying our bills, but I'll give a recap: Each month (on varying days) we receive in our mailbox bills for elevator maintenance, gas, electric, garbage removal/upkeep of the grounds around our apartment, phone (land line) and water (no bill for this, just have to keep track of it yourself in a little book). The bills are technically due the 20th of each month. You take your bills, money and go to your post office to pay for them. Or try to pay for them... On more than one occasion, Mike has been met with a locked post office (closed for lunch?), a sign saying the "bill machine" is broken, an angry post lady saying he cannot pay for them that day (why? not sure), it is after 4pm (no bill paying after 4!) or whatever else. Interestingly, it is usually the 20th of the month when Mike will go to the post office and the post ladies will say- no, you cannot pay your bills today. I think the post ladies do this on purpose, for fun. They tell customers their bills cannot be paid and then go into the back room and laugh (mwah ha ha), as the customer walks out, nervously trying to figure out when they can come back to pay before being charged a late fee. (I'm just kidding). Nevertheless, it is always an interesting trip. A few months ago, we decided that Solomiya must accompany the person paying the bills because the post ladies are much nicer to us when she is there.

So, this weeks bill-paying adventure. I took the bills with me yesterday, but by the time Solomiya fell asleep (strolling in her stroller- she was having a melt-down due to tiredness and the post office had to wait), it was the time of the day when the post office is closed for lunch. Today, Mike went to pay the bills, but it turned out he arrived too late- after 4pm. He did say that the post lady was very nice when she explained this to him.
We'll try again tomorrow.

Today, Mike had a teacher's meeting at the Hope & Life office at 12pm. Solomiya and I went with him and then I left at 12:10pm to catch a bus to see a lady for an OT session.
I met Mike and Solomiya back in town at 2:30pm and we then walked home after hitting up a stationery store. A tiny stationery store. Picture this- a tiny store, packed floor to ceiling with merchandise, no room to maneuver the stroller, lots of people coming in and out, a screaming baby- and it will be like you were there.
We bought a 2013 calendar for 21r (about $2.75).

Other activites included: Solomiya calling Grandma on Skype, eating dinner, folding laundry, cleaning the kitchen, Solomiya going to be.

Mike, however, had a very interesting evening. He left around 5:40pm to go to 'coffee house'. Our friend, Clint, (and fellow American) recently started a monthly coffee house geared toward reaching out to university students. This is Clint's blog: http://ministryhappens.blogspot.com/

And this is his blog directly concerning the formation and first meeting of said coffee house: http://ministryhappens.blogspot.com/2012/11/30-days-of-blogging-day-6-humble.html

Day 19: The Land of No Sweet Potatoes


We cannot believe that Thanksgiving is this week. It came up fast. Last week, when I mentioned to Mike that "Thanksgiving is next week" he did not believe me and had to look at the calendar for himself.
We do not have any plans for this Thursday- mostly because it is already an action-packed day in itself (weekly Hope & Life meeting, dentist appointment for Annie, class to prepare for/teach for Mike). I think we might do a Thanksgiving-type meal on Saturday and invite some friends. Heard a rumor that you can buy turkey at the bazaar... Things we have definitely NOT seen at the bazaar: pumpkin in a can (because that's where they come from), cranberries and sweet potatoes. Not even sure if they exist on this particular continent.

Started off the day with a soliloquy ("a dramatic monologue that represents a series of unspoken reflections") from Solomiya as soon as she woke up... and then woke us up. And she has continued non-stop all day. What is she saying? Don't know- but it is quite funny. Mike said it sounds like she is speaking Hungarian.

Next, came my Russian lesson with Valya. This is one of the tongue-twisters I worked on today: щеночкам щётчками чстили щёчки. What does it mean? Something about puppies...

Around 12:30pm, Solomiya and I went for a sanity stroll around the neighborhood and she fell asleep (слава Богу).

Mike had to go into town early for a meeting and just decided to stay at the Hope & Life office to finish preparing for his evening class.

Solomiya and I hung out in the kitchen for a couple of hours cooking, eating, and cleaning. Actually, Solomiya was crawling into the bottom cabinets; she has moved beyond just playing with pots and pans.

I have 1 OT session to prepare for tomorrow and then when Mike comes home we may watch another episode of Sherlock Holmes on Youtube: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b30CzC4xYuo&feature=plcp

Day 18

Sunday again.

 Guest writer: Mike

A somewhat typical Sunday... except that we got a later start than usual and so arrived at church after most of the worship / music time was over. With the weather being as  cold as it is, we take a taxi to the center of town these days, rather than walk the 2-1/2 kilometers.

When arriving at church, we set up Solomiya's stroller in the downstairs lobby and walk upstairs to the second floor. When arriving late, the third floor (where the band is and where the sermon is given) is already packed, so the "overflow" area on the second floor is a much more comfortable space. Generally, Solomiya enjoys herself, listening to the singing and music and checking out all of the people. At some point, though, she begins to get a little noisy and Annie brings her downstairs to the lobby. Then, it's off for a ride around town for Annie and Solomiya, while Mike stays upstairs and wonders who will approach him, to see if he would like translation of the sermon from Russian into English. Usually, this duty falls to our friends Volodya, Yura or Viktor, depending who happens to be sitting nearby. A special treat is when one of the assistant pastors, Oleh, preaches; he always speaks in Ukrainian and Mike can understand much of what's being said without a translator.

It's recently come to our attention that the translation has become a distraction to some members of the congregation. I can understand this, as sometimes we sit in a place where people can hear us if they are easily distracted. So what does this mean? Do we just give up and say "we'll just have to skip the sermon, or sit through it without understanding anything until the day comes that we understand Russian completely"? Do we move to a church where they preach in Ukrainian? That is tempting, as we have many friends (including the pastor) at another church in town where the service is conducted entirely in Ukrainian.

In the end, harboring hurt feelings or contemplating running away are mere distractions - however strong - from the reason why we decided to join New Testament Church in the first place: the people. From the moment we decided in 2008 to begin the long process of moving to Uzhhorod, we felt that one item God had already taken care of for us was the choice of a new "church home". Since Mike's first visit in 2003, we had developed a number of wonderful relationships with people from New Testament, including its senior pastor, who had preached at our church in New York on more than one occasion. As we came to the very edge of our move, in early 2012, a couple of our dearest Ukrainian friends advised us not to rush into joining New Testament, simply on the basis of having so many friends there. "You need to find the church that's the right fit for you, where you know for sure that God wants you to be", they cautioned, "and you have to accept that it may be at an entirely different church. Attend a few different churches before you make a decision. Then, when you decide, put down roots and commit yourself to the pastor and the congregation". Wise words indeed, which we took to heart, even as we got ourselves dressed and ready for our first Sunday as residents of Uzhhorod back in January. On that day, we agreed that we would attend New Testament that day, simply as a means of re-connecting with many dear friends. However, a strange thing happened as we spent a wonderful three hours in church, hugging old friends, being greeted warmly by Pastor Volodya and worshipping God: we realized that this is where we belonged. We didn't say it then and there, but when we got back home and debriefed, we both realized that the Holy Spirit had stirred something inside us and that we had both "independently" come to the same conclusion; there was no further searching to do.

 Now, ten months later, when we really think and pray about it, we land at the same conclusion: New Testament Church is where we belong. And this is simply because being a member of a church is more than just being served on Sunday or even being comfortable on Sunday; it is a matter of maintaining a committed and faithful heart in a relationship with people who really love you and whom you love. It is about "making every effort to keep the unity of the Spirit through the bond of peace" (Ephesians 4:3). More than once, the Holy Spirit has stirred my heart during Sunday worship to remember that being part of a congregation is not just going to church so you can hear good preaching; it's sharing a common bond of love for God and commitment to one another. We have felt nothing but love from our church family from day one, despite our frequent inability to say (or understand) more than a word or two from many of them. And this love has spilled out beyond the walls of the church and the mere three hours which comprise a typical Sunday service. We are loved by our church family and we commit to love back, translation or not. And we know this from our own relationship with God, whom we often do not understand, but who we know loves us deeply and whose relationship with us grows ever deeper each time we commit to love Him back and never give up loving Him and serving Him for the sake of our own comfort or ease or convenience. Love commits; love endures; love believes the best.

 And now, until such time as a set of discreet headphones becomes available, so that we can listen to a translation made from a quiet corner of the church, we make do. Today, that meant pleading with the ushers to let Mike and Yura sit in the church's downstairs cafe (normally cordoned off during the service) so that a translation could take place that would be heard by no congregants and not disturb their receiving of the Word. And it worked out fine!

In the end, it's our responsibility as new residents of our adopted home country to keep pressing on with our language studies, so that one day - by God's grace - we will need no translation at all :-)

Day 17: Oven Mitt Hands

I gave Solomiya an oven mitt to play with while I was cooking last night. She put it on her arm, so Tato gave her both of them!

 

 

 

Today, I had my last OT session for the week at 10am. I actually woke the guy up when I knocked on his door. He has not been sleeping well at night and usually wakes up at 4am to start his day. I think he had finally dozed off again when I knocked. But, we had the session anyway, I understood his Russian very well and he is becoming stronger each day. Good session!

 

Mike left at 12pm to help our friend, Rudolf, with cleaning out an unfinished house and moving bricks and wood to another location. He came home around 8pm.

 

Solomiya and I took a walk to the bazaar and bought diapers and wipes from one lady, crackers and Maria's from another lady and dish soap from a guy. We then walked into a nearby grocery store, because we could not find anyone selling our favorite brand of apple juice (the only brand that doesn't add sugar or any other un-apple stuff). I walked home really slow hoping that Solomiya would fall asleep- but it didn't happen. She did fall alseep after we got home home and slept for almost 2 hours. It was really nice to have some quiet time to myself.

 



Day 16: For Lack of a Better Title

I love Fridays. I think it spills over from my youth, knowing that Friday was the last school day of the week and you had 2 days of freedom ahead of you.
Today, I had 3 OT sessions. Solomiya stayed at home with Tato and I left at 10:15am to catch the #7 into town.
The first session was okay, but frankly, I feel like I'm not doing much there. I think that if I had a private OT space that people came to for treatment, that it would work much better for this particular client. There is just a lot of tension between the main caregiver and I about the best way to treat this person and I don't want to to step on their toes because first, I'm in their home and second, they are with this client 24 hours a day. We'll see what happens- I think I may talk with them next week.
The second session went well and they gave me hot tea and a piece of apple cake before I left. The third session was also good and they gave me a huge bag of apples from their tree to take home, as well as two jars of homemade jam.

Mike and Solomiya ended up meeting the team from the A 21 Campaign in town for lunch, so I met them there and was able to meet the team (3 young women) and have a chance to talk with them. The main leader of A 21 is an American, but these girls were all Ukrainians from Kiev. They have been working with and traveling for A 21 for three years; they have a presentation that lets people know about the reality/severity of human trafficking and what A 21 is all about. Awesome ladies.
We walked back home after this; Solomiya fell asleep; I made a quick stop at Cilpo and Rodina Kolbasa for dinner stuff; I cooked dinner; Mike's students both cancelled the English lesson this evening; we ate dinner; played with Solomiya (she is becoming quite silly- it's a lot of fun); watched a few episodes of Masha & the Bear; Solomiya went to bed; Mike and I watched an episode of the old Sherlock Holmes series on YouTube. The end.

Tomorrow- bright and early OT session (I have to leave at 9:30am; leaving early has become much harder with having a little one); Mike is helping our friend Rudolf move bricks after I get home; I need to find a button for my jacket (I lost it somewhere today...); Solomiya and I must buy diapers from the diaper lady at the bazaar.

Day 15

Thursdays, we meet at the Hope & Life office/English school for a weekly meeting/prayer time/hang out time with the whole team. It starts at 10am- so our mornings are quite rushed as we try to get out of the apartment and into a taxi by 9:45am.
We made it on time this morning. Yay!
We have a great time hanging out with everyone, but it takes a lot of creativity and patience to keep Solomiya occupied for that long. When she was younger (hmmm... a few months ago?) she took a nap at some point during the meeting, but not now. Today though, she actually handled it well because last week Chrissymasi and Sophia had gotten her interested in coloring- so I brought some crayons and a little notebook of paper.
One of the topics talked about at the meeting was that a group from 'The A 21 Campaign' (*see below for more info) is coming to Uzhhorod tomorrow.
The meeting ended around 1:30pm and we then walked across the pedestrian bridge to the center of town so that I could stop and make an appointment at the dentist's office (I broke a tooth yesterday); I'll be heading back there next Thursday and I'll give a full report.
We walked home and Solomiya slept on the way. The rest of the afternoon, Mike prepared for his evening class and I tried to prepare for my OT sessions tomorrow along with hanging out with little S. She is sleeping now, so I hope to finish the prep work for 3 OT sessions tomorrow and 1 on Saturday morning.

Also, this afternoon, I read a very cool blog entry: http://ontothewaves.com/ by Bethany (man, this girl has a gift for writing) and I read the article she referred to in her blog: http://www.prodigalmagazine.com/guarding-my-heart/.  I definitely recommend it!

*A21 website: http://www.thea21campaign.org/
They are group committed to doing everything they can to end human trafficking in Eastern Europe.
The following is some info from their site concerning Ukraine:

"Ukraine is a source country for trafficked women, and is currently one of the largest exporters of women not just to the European Union, but also to the Middle East and South East Asia.¹⁰ The "exotic beauty" of Ukrainian and Russian women has made them the most valuable commodities in the current international sex trade¹¹. Over 420,000 Ukrainian women between the ages of 15 and 27 have been trafficked in the past decade¹², just less than the 440,000 people in Ukraine with HIV, considered one of the most severe HIV/AIDS epidemics in Europe¹³. One study reveals that one in every 10 Ukrainian persons knows someone in their community who has been trafficked abroad.¹⁴
Ukraine is also increasingly becoming a destination country for trafficked victims, as its popularity as a sex tourism destination grows. These victims originate from South East Asia, Africa, and other Eastern European states.
In addition, Ukraine suffers from a huge domestic trafficking situation. Unofficial numbers state that there are 250,000 prostitutes in Ukraine, 200,000 of whom are in the industry against their will and could most likely be classified as domestic traffick victims.¹⁵ Domestic trafficking is not just for sexual exploitation, but also for organ removal and labor exploitation.

RE-TRAFFICKING

While in Asia, 20-25 percent of survivors are re-trafficked, in Eastern Europe an estimated 80 percent of rescued women end up retrafficked.¹⁶ Most of this re-trafficking occurs within the first two years of their escape. Since the year 2000, over 7,000 victims of trafficking have been repatriated back to the Ukraine.¹⁷ The need for transition and reintegration assistance for these victims has been recognized by the Ukrainian government. However so far efforts to supply this assistance have been limited by a lack of funding.^18"

This is a picture from our friend's facebook page. A photo of a different part of Transcarpathia. We are hoping to visit this area next spring.

Day 13 & 14

Day 13
We slept a little later than usual because we use Solomiya as our alarm clock. She woke up at 8:30am.
Mike had a teacher's meeting at the English school/Hope & Life office at 12pm and I had two OT sessions (originally 3, but the first one was cancelled). We took a cab into town and then Mike and Solomiya went to the office and I took a #1 bus to a different part of town.
Every week, all of the teachers (Mike, Valya, Yura, Ira) meet with the director of the school (Volodya) to talk about how their classes are going, if they are having any problems and also to pray for the students. Mike said they also discussed and brainstormed ideas for a student 'Course Evaluation' form and ideas for a website for the school.
Afterwards, they all went to a nearby cafe for lunch (you can get a bowl of pelmeny- meat filled tortellini- for about $3). He and Solomiya walked home afterwards and arrived at 3:50pm; thankfully, the little one fell asleep in her stroller during the walk and slept until 5:15pm.
I arrived at my 1st patient's home at 12:45pm. She is doing so well! She had a series of issues in March and April that left her with partial paralysis of the left side of her body. Her niece stays with her during the day, while the rest of the family is working, and faithfully assists with exercises/activities that I give. Yesterday, this woman showed me that she has begun to get movement back into her fingers and toes, and was able to flex them! Awesome! She is also more confident when she walks around the house, is able to get in and out of bed by herself and go into the bathroom by herself. I left them at 1:45pm and on the way to the bus stop went into a huge grocery store near their home. Sometimes this store carries products that we cannot find at the stores/markets near us. I found this -baby 'Dannon' yogurt- there that we had also found when we were in Hungary. It's Solomiya's new favorite.
I got to the bus stop at 2pm and finally a #1 came at 2:15pm. I took this bus into the center of town to see patient #2. He lives off of one of the pedestrian streets right in the middle of downtown. This was the second time I saw this man and he also was doing great! He had some medical issues in October that left him severely deconditioned, weak and with partial paralysis in his right leg. He is definitely stronger, walking better and just looks better overall. I think his body just needed some time to recover from being in the hospital for 2 weeks.
While I was there, this man was telling me about the building he lives in. It is 120 years old and was built in 3 separate stages. He lives on the 4th floor and his apartment has an almost attic-like feel to it. He has lived there for 40 years (his wife too, but she passed away last year).

Random google image of what the street/buildings look like.

I left his house around 3:15pm and took a #3 bus home. After stopping at a small store (Watson's) for some shampoo, I arrived home 10 minutes after Mike and Solomiya did.


Just a random google image for Watson's- but it gives you an idea of what it looks like.

Mike spent the rest of the evening preparing for Wednesday night conversational group and I cooked dinner and had another broccoli washing session.
I felt pretty good about this day because I was able to communicate with and understand my patients really well- with no translator. I'm finding I can understand a lot more Russian than I can actually speak.

Day 14
I had my Russian lesson from 10-11am with our friend Valya. This morning I learned 3 new tongue-twisters (to help with pronunciation) and a variety of verbs/dialogues about what I do in the morning (i.e. make breakfast, wash the dishes, brush teeth, etc...).
Mike spent the morning and afternoon working on preparing for the Wednesday conversational group and grading tests/preparing for his Thursday night Advanced class AND hanging with Solomiya during my lesson and taking several breaks throughout to play with her :)
Solomiya and I went on a walk after lunch (beautiful fall day; complete with sunshine, 60 degrees and the smell of leaves in the air). As soon as we went outside, Solomiya fell asleep. We went to Cilpo to buy bread, bananas, laundry soap and milk.

Yup, random image, but kinda looks like the one down the road from us.

We then walked around our apartment complex for about 45 mins checking out what was new and/or interesting.
The rest of the day was spent doing laundry, blogging, hanging with Solomiya and listening to our new favorite group 'Mumford & Sons'- I know, we're totally behind. We're grateful Chrissy introduced us to them.

30 Days of Blogging Revisited

Yes, our "30 Days of Blogging" ended at Day 5. Truthfully, we were busy enjoying time with Chrissy and Sophia from the rising of the sun to the setting of the sun- and beyond. Then, we traveled to Budapest and did not bring our computer with us. So, here we are, Day 12.
On a completely different subject- so excited to find broccoli at the market! We have not seen broccoli since our departure from the States last January. Not so excited to have to wash and inspect each floret a million times to get all the bugs/worms off. I probably sound like a pansy, but I do not think I will buy it again for this reason. I don't do worms. But hey, it's organic, right?
Mike is teaching his Advanced class this evening, Solomiya is sleeping and I must prepare for 3 OT sessions tomorrow- but first, an onslaught of pictures:

This was probably 75% of the visit: playing with Uncle Mike/Tato.

Solomiya decided she was just the right size to fit into Sophia's carry-on luggage.

And everywhere Sophia went, Solomiya was sure to follow...

Play area for kids outside of our favorite place to get gelato. It's amazing (the gelato.... not the play area). The guy who owns this place is from Italy.

Sophia was a great helper. Here she is helping Uncle Mike by drying the dishes. She also helped me sweep the floor a couple of times.

Of course, Solomiya had to get in on the action.

tub rides

On the train to Budapest.

Gives you an idea of what the inside of our train car looked like. This was our 2nd train- we took 3 total. Taxi: Uzhhorod to Chop, Ukraine. Train #1: Chop, Ukraine to Zahone, Hungary. Train #2: Zahone, Hungary to N-something, Hungary. Train #3: N-something, Hungary to Budapest, Hungary.

Solomiya had our hotel room key in her hand and was trying to escape.

At the airport in Budapest waiting for Chrissy and Sophia's flight to check in. They have the same look on their face. They are eating Maria's.

Heading back home to Ukraine, Train #2. Solomiya was doing some stretches. In between the airport and heading back home, we did go to a mall in Budapest. It wasn't Mike's first choice, but I really wanted to go to H & M. If only they had a Target...

Post title

Today, we let the little ones spend most of the day playing in our apartment. We ventured out in the rain to go to Cilpo (the grocery store up the road) and to the coffee kiosk at the same shopping center. And then, ventured out again to have dinner at a restaurant that serves great pizza and has a small play area for children. I think this was the first time I had ordered in a restaurant without Mike or another Ukrainian- so it was good practice for my language skills- and I understood about 80% of what the waitress was talking about.
Mike had a Hope & Life meeting at the office in the afternoon, then prepped for his 6:30pm Advanced class.
Some cool, potential things in Hope & Life's future:
-Crisis pregnancy center (a place for women with unplanned pregnancies to go and receive support).
Hopefully, it will include free: ultrasounds, counseling, medical support (to an extent), etc... should be very cool.
I recall, on one of our past trips to Ukraine, a story that one of the pastor's told. His wife was pregnant with their 3rd child and had gone to her local clinic for a regular monthly appointment. She ended up waiting for a long time to see the medical staff because they kept taking women who were there for abortion procedures ahead of her. She was amazed as woman after woman went before her to end her pregnancy.
A crisis pregnancy center, with the aim of encouraging women to keep their babies and offering biblical counseling, would be awesome.
We'll keep you posted on any developments.

It took me almost 2 hours to get Solomiya to go to sleep, so I am off to do some therapeutic baking: banana chocolate chip muffins made in a cake pan because my muffin tin bit the dust.

Morning Tea

morning tea in their pajamas

coffee at a cafe (solomiya was peeking under the table)

good times with uncle mike (sophia is pretending she is a lady bug that fell on its back; solomiya is concerned)

It was cold today...

Cousins brushing their teeth together before we left for the afternoon.

At Lviv Chocolate Factory. The best part of this outing was when Sophia (sitting on Uncle Mike's lap) looked up and asked him, "So, what are you doing, baby?".

Walking up to the castle.

Amazingly beautiful church.

Ivan and Tetyana got married today.

Made it to the castle! Solomiya was wiped out...

On the pedestrian bridge in town, there is a local custom to put a lock on the bridge when you get married (with names, date, etc...). This lock is definitely the coolest one I have seen so far.