Mommy's favorite game

I posted this on Facebook, but that doesn't provide a lasting memory and this one is too good to forget.

Alex: Mommy, I want to play a game with you. What's your favorite game?
Me: Cleanup
Alex: What's your next most favorite game?

Molochovets

I can't believe I never wrote about this! On the corner of the street where we live is a beautiful, special occasion type restaurant called Molochovets Mechta (Molochovets' Dream). It had been recommended by some major foodies, but for some reason our first 2.5 years here we continually gave it a skip. Then we decided to go for my birthday dinner the night before my birthday.

[reprinted from a report I gave a friend about dinner right afterwards - I certainly wouldn't remember all the details now!] Dinner started with an amuse bouche of a smoked fish that's like salmon but not exactly (syomga), then I had a salad that was shredded apple and celery with smoked duck (the dressing was mayo/creamy) and Terry had solyanka. There was sorbet to cleanse the palate, I think it was champagne but couldn't 100% be sure. Main for me was a local fish that's like a Zander (same family as a walleye) in a simple butter sauce and fried cauliflower and T had moose in a berry sauce (he wanted the venison but they were out). The fish was amazing, we have never been able to cook it to taste like anything so I was excited to see what a pro chef would do. I was clearly the winner that night as Terry enjoyed the solyanka but reports it isn't as good as the CGR chef's version, and the moose wasn't exactly what he wanted.

I was stuffed after that but Terry ordered vanilla ice cream. Home made. We had cappuccinos and were just sort of hanging out because we didn't want to go anywhere and it hadn't been enough time in our minds to make it worth our nanny's while, so eventually I made some room in my belly and had chocolate ice cream. mmmmmm. then i was up til 3am - I blame the cappuccino.

Our second round was in honor of Terry's birthday, a bit belated as I had the flu that week. That night I tried the schi (very strange as it was written as "sorrel soup" in the English menu) and the halibut; Terry had an apple and berry salad and veal loin with blue cheese sauce. His starter was fine but nothing special but the veal was perfect - Terry didn't love the sauce but it's incidental anyway to the cut and cooking of the meat. Again we had an amuse bouche, it was a mushroom pate (veggie in honor of Lent - they actually had a Lent menu) My meal was fine on both counts but neither course was as good as the last time. I finished with hot chocolate, the super awesome Russian kind that is thick and tastes like like a melted chocolate bar. It was the perfect amount and perfect ending for me, although my favorite hot chocolate in the city is still Guell's.

Sleeping Beauty on Ice

Alex and I, as well as some friends and their daughters, went to see Sleeping Beauty on Ice. It was performed at the Rimskogo-Korsakova Conservatory, not at any of the ice arenas, which was a bit interesting.

The costumes were beautiful and the skating very pretty. I liked how they kept pretty true to the ballet. I really thought Alex would get into it, as she's been ice skating and her instructor used to be an ice ballerina not too long ago.

Nope, she prefers "real" ballet to this. She even prefers hockey to ice ballet. Maybe she's a purist.

It's Spring, sort of

In Piter the temperatures have been frequently (but not always!) above freezing, leading to ice underlying veritable pools of melting snow. The other day started with snow, moved into sleet, then hail, finally settling on rain. That became snow again by bedtime.

It probably doesn't need saying, but this is NOT the most wonderful time of the year.

This is what happens during naptime

... when we don't actually nap. RIP rainbow slinky.

Small victories

Russian is a difficult language to master. The more I learn the more I realize I don't know. I'm pained when I hear an FSO with a 3/3 or 4/4 tell me that they don't feel comfortable with the language or don't know how to say something simple (of course, at FSI there is a very different focus on what vocabulary is taught, but still ... a "high school graduate level speaker" should be able to buy curtains!)

Terry and I were lucky to get into the 8 week language program before heading to Russia, we learned useful basics such as how to ask directions or buy 2 kilos of apples at the market. As importantly, we learned what likely responses would be to such questions. Once hitting the ground we got into the 2h/week language class and practiced reading billboards and signs. All in all, not much instruction. I probably only got to class half the time between the whole newborn-who-doesn't-sleep thing and later the job-gets-in-the-way-of-personal-activities thing.

Then I passed the FSOA. I need those language points now! Upon my return to Russia last summer I became more diligent in class attendance, asked my teacher to give me supplemental homework, and basically kicked it into high gear. Of course, the rest of life still marched on and I still didn't get much more than 1h/day of Russian study.

I've been studying Russian with varying intensity for 3 years now.

Two weeks ago, I made a restaurant reservation without once slipping into English. This week, I reserved tickets to a performance over the phone ("Sleeping Beauty" Ballet on Ice, I hope Alex enjoys it and gets motivated to go back to skating!) also entirely in Russian. This one was more complex as I was asking for specific seats and also needed to figure out where to obtain the physical tickets. I picked up the tickets yesterday and they are exactly the seats I thought I ordered and cost the exact price I thought they should!

If I put as much effort into learning Spanish as I have in learning Russian, I'd be pretty darn fluent by now. But my small victories are sustaining me in my quest for basic literacy.

Our kids like sausage.

We have some sausage fans in our house.  As you can see in the video below.

Chocolate money

Terry and I were out tonight so it was up to my nanny to watch the kids this evening. We give Zoltan chocolate when he uses the potty when he's got underpants on (he prefers to go commando so we're working on encouraging underpants). I forgot to reload the chocolate so our nanny went out and bought some today. It was chocolate coins.

So, the evening passes, he uses the potty, and the nanny gives him and Alex their coins (to avoid the drama we just give her a treat when he gets one). Alex understands immediately what it is and peels the foil off to get to the chocolate. You'd think after the number of times I have read Silverlicious to these children that Zoltan would also figure it out.

Nope. The nanny is distracted talking to Alex right after giving out the coins so she misses that Zoltan has left the room. Until he comes back yelling "pinky bank! pinky bank!"

Yep, the chocolate went into the piggy bank.

European capitals

One of those "only in the Foreign Service" moments: a friend had Game Night and we were playing Outburst! The topic was European Capital Cities. Of course we got all 10 but the funny part was that before the last one we thought of - Athens - we had yelled out Bucharest, Tirana, Pristina, Tallinn, Riga, Vilnius, Lublijana, Budapest, and Valletta. None of those, of course, were on the list.

And of all the capitals to forget about until the end, it was the one most in the news right now. Doh!

The coolest shared-babysitting plan ever

We have new neighbors in our apartment building. They have kids older, younger, and similar ages as our kids. As has already been mentioned, barriers break down quickly in the foreign service - if you only have 2 years to be friends with someone (or less!) you waste less time finding out if you want to be friends.

The wife suggested a babysitting exchange: after the kids go to bed one evening, we go out while one of them comes down and stays with the kids. Another night one of us travels the stairway to do the same. We had our first test this weekend, when Terry and I went out for a belated birthday dinner (I inconveniently had the flu over his birthday weekend, even on the big day itself. I guess it's lucky that he doesn't think it's any big deal. He went to the hockey game that night anyway). We were worried because the night before Zoltan had been up about a million times before our bedtime, so I was ready for that "he won't stop screaming" phone call. Nope, the kids didn't make a peep all night.

This weekend will be our turn to monitor a sleeping house. Keep fingers crossed for us that it works out as well as the first run.

I know in the USA - where babysitters are exorbitantly expensive, at least compared to here - friends may not live bathrobe-and-slippers-commute close, but I do think it is a brilliant way for couples to get a bit of alone time outside the house. At first, Terry said he didn't want to do it too often because we can't necessarily afford to go out all the time. My perspective is different: if we do this regularly, there's no pressure to "do something special because we're paying a nanny for this". We can just take a walk, check out an art gallery, get shwarma and sit in the park.

Now that's something different

In April Terry and I will have been a couple of 12 years. That feels like a long time. And in all that time, one particular phenomenon has been a constant: if we both get sick with something, regardless of who got it first, he ALWAYS gets it worse. This means I'm the one who has to keep life going because I'm healthier.

Another constant of my life had been, until the last 3 years, that I don't get the flu. For about 15 years this held true. One of the last two winters we both had the flu and had to call in a nanny on a Friday, or maybe it was a Saturday. In any case we were equally useless and grateful to have someone who could care for our children because they don't have a 10 hour appetite for TV.

Until this week. Because I don't get the flu, I don't get the flu shot. Everyone else in my family did. Hence, I am the only sick one. It's been so long I didn't even remember what the symptoms were or how long it's supposed to take to feel better - I had to look them up.

Next year I will get the flu shot, promise!

Happy Defenders Day

Today is Defenders Day (the full name is Defender of the Fatherland Day).  This is a Russian Holiday to celebrate the men who served in defense of Russia/Soviet Union.  It is a Soviet hold over holiday.  There is more information here.  This is not to be confused with Defenders Day in Maryland.  So in preparation for the holiday Alex's deski sad class made little tanks to give their fathers.  As you can see from the picture.  Originally it had a piece of candy inside for the father's, but Alex ate the piece and left the wrapper.  This morning she kept telling me that she was giving me trash for my present. I guess it is fitting since I never defended Russia from a foreign invader.

Ice Museum

Back in December I saw a fascinating advert for the "Ice Fairy Tale". Constructed outside of a shopping center in the southern part of Petersburg, it boasted a winter fairyland including bell towers, a maze, snow maidens, and evil sorcerers all built out of over 1000 tons of ice and 300 tons of snow.

I wanted to go over Christmas long weekend. I wanted to go during the 10 days of New Year's holiday. It was going on through March so we kept postponing and postponing. This week is fabulous - two holidays! Monday was an American holiday so Terry and I had a "date day" and Thursday is a Russian holiday - no preschool - so we decided to do a family day. We asked another family with kids our kids' ages if they wanted to come too and we caravan-ed out to the mall.

A few navigational hiccups later, we arrived at the place. It definitely looked a bit disappointing from the outside, which was frustrating as we spent about 20-30 minutes extra in the car (due to said hiccups). But then we went inside. It was amazing. You can see our kids sitting on a throne made of ice. Unfortunately, my husband claims almost none of the other photos came out :( There was a huge heart in ice all studded with flowers on the inside, that was my favorite. There was also a maze of ice blocks, about the height of a 1st grader so the adults could look over the whole thing and keep an eye on their kids but the kids got to wander and get "lost".



The outdoor ice slide was a bit disappointing as it was near freezing today so the melt erased any amount of slickness it originally had.


There was also a 2 tiered slide made from linoleum stapled to a wooden structure. We totally are making this at the cabin! My friend and I each went down this one with one of our kids. We thought our coats were long enough to keep our bottoms dry through the slide and onto the ground. Ooops!

After the outdoor fun, we went in the mall for lunch. The kids got Burger King for the 2nd time in 2 days - lucky them!

Arctic Hysteria

For President's Day, Terry and I had a little "date day" - nanny came for Zoltan, Alex went to preschool (American holidays sure aren't holidays for the Russians!) It was all last minute as I thought until Sunday night I might have to deal with an IWC mini-crisis but it got resolved enough that my Monday freed.

Although there are many items on the Petersburg "bucket list" we hadn't yet checked off, we're also realizing that we don't care that much about some of the Must See sites. I'd also noted an exhibition at the State Russian Center of Photography (www.rosphoto.org/en) that looked interesting, called "Arctic Hysteria". The museum is interesting, it takes up half of two very separate floors (meaning, to continue the exhibition we had to go out the door, down the stairs, and ring the bell for the second part of the museum to let us in, show the tickets we had purchased on the floor above, and then be admitted). The artists were Finnish, and the art was varied. Our favorite piece was this one. Terry is astonished that I like it, I tell him I studiously ignore that the bunnies are stuffed - as in, formerly lived.

We also discovered a new artist to admire, Ilkka Halso.

Then we lunched at Russkii Dachinki on Nevsky. My Greek salad was great, and that's about all we can say about it. The pelmeni were the worst I've ever had and most of my pelmeni experience comes from the frozen food aisle.

Baby's Rock-a-bye

Some time in the last 2 years, Alex decided she could singlehandedly stop Zoltan's crying no matter what caused it (even if it was her own action or inaction). I think she got the idea from one of her "I'm getting a baby sibling" books, where the girl sings her baby a little baby song.

The song goes like this "Baby's rock-a-bye, Baby's rock-a-bye, Baby's rock-a-bye..." over and over in a singsongy voice.

2 interesting things regarding this song happened in the last week:

1. For no apparent reason, one evening Zoltan asked Alex to sing the song. He even said "please" and asked several times. She, also for no apparent reason, steadfastly refused.

2. On a different occasion, when Alex was crying over something, we hear this little voice singing "Baby's rock-a-bye, Baby's rock-a-bye, Baby's rock-a-bye..."

Butternut squash smoothie

The kids love smoothies. I love that I can usually sneak into smoothies foods they won't normally eat, as well as simply give them foods they can't get well other ways (any ideas for other good ways to use frozen fruit? I hate how they are mushy when thawed, they have to be used IN something - like a smoothie).

I honestly can't recall how the idea came to me, but I decided to get a butternut squash figuring I'd eat it if nobody else in the family did (I'm the only fan ... or rather I WAS). I also thought to add a bit of the baked squash to the kids' smoothie to give them some nutrition different from what they were already having. I looked up Butternut Squash Smoothie to see what flavors would go well with it and in the end decided to make a smoothie with the rest of the squash. Oh YUM. And the best part is Alex loved it too. Even Terry liked it. Zoltan wouldn't go near it.

So here's the recipe:
Ingredients*

• Butternut squash baked until tender (about 1h)


• 1 banana


• 1/2 - 1 cup of milk (can be rice, soy, almond etc. I used rice)


• 1 tsp cinnamon (or to taste)


• 1/2 tsp ground ginger (or to taste)

Directions

Combine everything into a blender. That's it.

* The proportions listed are just guidelines. I didn't measure anything except the spices. I also didn't have quite enough rice milk and used some ice to thin it. It was still thick so when I poured it for Alex I put in a bit of cow's milk for her so she could get it through her straw.

Korovabar

I've spent many a fine evening at Korovabar on Karavannaya - with girlfriends. Terry had never gotten there yet so when he really wanted a steak that he didn't cook himself, we schlepped to Stroganoff. There's no good way to get there so someone can't have a drink when we go, which does damper a nice steakhouse dinner. As much as everyone raves about Stroganoff, I've never felt the hype, but I kept thinking maybe I just didn't remember it well as I haven't been as frequently or as recently.

Nope. Korovabar has it all over Stroganoff. The meat is at least as good (I still maintain it's better at Korovabar, it's seasoned a bit more strongly and has a lot more flavor), the prices are better and it's a heckofalot more convenient.

Ingenuity and creativity

Alex attends a Russian preschool. Her teachers don't speak English (well, their English is even worse than my Russian so I just go about as though they don't speak any). When they post notices I take a picture on my phone and then look up the vocabulary if I'm feeling adventuresome, or I just ask someone to translate otherwise.

There was a notice on Thursday but I only got around to translating it today. I got as far as: We need to urgently inoculate Alex against something that isn't in the dictionary. Google Translate to the rescue!

p.s. - it was measles. She's has her MMR. We're all cool. Maybe next time I'll be sure to translate the same day though!

Lenfilm

Our new Consul General invited the Consulate to accompany him on a tour of Lenfilm back in December. Lenfilm, for those who don't know (I didn't) is a film studio in Petersburg that was basically Russian Hollywood. Every important movie was filmed there, and even actresses such as Elizabeth Taylor and Jane Fonda came through a few times. The studio only shoots about one movie a year itself, but its space, sets, props etc are used continually by other studios.

Terry can probably add more but I'll just finish with a few photos of the place.

The set of Sherlock Holmes (his study of course)

Original old films and some of the stars showcased in them (photos above)


Props, for when you need just the right old typewriter

Peter the Great's Original "Palace"

In celebration of Martin Luther King Jr. Day Terry and I decided to do a bit of touristing. One place we'd been meaning to see was Peter the Great's Summer Cottage, and as part of the Russian Museum it is open on Mondays (most museums are not).

I hadn't done my homework so I didn't realize the cottage was literally entirely enclosed in an "outer" brick building so I was surprised when Terry pointed it out and said it was the one (the cottage was made of wood).

Observation #1: The place is super, duper tiny. It's 3 small rooms, constructed in 3 days - although Terry noted there must have been many days beforehand spent cutting the lumber.

Observations #2: For the Russian price of 70 rubles it was totally worth seeing. For the foreigner price of 200 rubles, I'd have given it a skip.

We hadn't paid for the "photos permitted" ticket so I just got a couple of shots of the outside.

After the museum it was lunch time. We pretty much stumbled upon Troitsky Most, a restaurant that's been on the Consulate list of recommended restaurants forever and we never gave it much thought. It is vegetarian, so I thought Terry might not want to stay but he did and ... YUM. He even liked my mushroom plov. We'll definitely go back whenever life takes me to the Petrograd side.

the kindness of strangers

Russia observes New Year plus Orthodox Christmas over the first 9-10 days of January, depending on the location of weekends. When the host government is closed, generally, US Embassies and Consulates are closed too. So, we just had a great week's vacation without having to use annual leave.

Relatively early in the long week, I dropped my Russian identification card (my diplomatic ID). It isn't tragic - it meant I had to carry around my diplomatic passport for identification and when the Consulate re-opened apply for a new card. Carrying the passport is a bit of a hassle and a stress as pickpocketing is the most likely crime any foreigner is likely to encounter here.

In the morning of the first day back I get a phone call at the Consulate. The woman speaks Russian so my instinct, as usual, is that she has the wrong number. But I focus my attention on figuring out what she's saying and - yep - she found my card. She can meet me the following day to return it to me. At one point, when I couldn't understand the name of the metro station she was saying and I mentioned the station closest to my house to give her context on which line I would take, she said she was comfortable coming to my station. (!!!) When we met, she was exactly on time.

What I said to her as I thanked her profusely was that in the USA, nobody would have done what she did. Then I wondered if I was being jaded about my own country or just realistic. Then I read this Washington Post story.

My inverate skeptic

This Christmukkah Terry and I participated in a form of "direct charity" via a blog I have come to love, Rants from Mommyland (www.rantsfrommommyland.com). The gist was that mothers in need wrote to the bloggers, and people who wanted to help also wrote in, and we were matched up. We sent store gift cards in whatever denomination we felt comfortable giving. It was a total exercise in trust and faith, perfect for the holiday season.

My husband is a skeptic and that's being gentle. Our compromise was that I'd sign up to help 2 people and we'd send each half of what I really wanted to send - that way we were a bit "protected" as it was very unlikely that both of our matches would be scammers.

Read THIS to see what happened to one of the bloggers in the aftermath of the experiment (warning, if you have any heart you'll tear up a bit).

In today's mail came a thank you note from one of our matches (the online store sites required a return address on the gift cards, so she got it there). My husband's comment was that it was no guarantee that she hadn't been a scammer. It kinda make me want to smack him upside the head, but instead I stared at him until he agreed that was ridiculous.

Home Rules Police

I started to walk into the living room with half an orange I was going to eat in relative quiet while the kids had a snack in the kitchen and Terry was supervising. Out of Zoltan's mouth as I walk into the room "Mommy, back in the kitchen!"

You see, we don't eat in the living room.

our little komunelka

So if you know my mom - and as she's one of two readers of this blog, I know you do - you know she, um, likes to shop.

Last year she got Alex an awesome doll house for Hanukkah. It's an eco-house, with windmill, solar panels, a rain barrel, and a motorscooter for more efficient commuting. It was also very sparsely populated with minimal furniture and a family of 3. We had decided that this year we'd ask my mom to get furniture for the house for this year's Hanukkah gifts. I think she forgot the whole house only had 4 rooms.

So now we have 2 families living in a house with 2 kitchens (well, 2 stoves), all 8 human beings stuffed into 2 rooms, and only 1 sink in the entire house.

I'll let the photos do most of the talking here ...


The first thing you see when you enter the home is the stove and sink, which live in the foyer because the kitchen is largely taken up by the bathroom (see below).

Yes it is an open floor plan. As all walls are in your imagination, please imagine a wall between the toilet and kitchen. At least the shower faces the wall for some privacy. As you can see the table only fits 2 chairs, so they eat in shifts. At least they have recycling!

One bedroom (each family has 1 for the family) does manage to fit some furniture other than the bed - an armoire that probably has to be shared among everyone, and a vanity with mirror - also to be shared among as everyone as it's the only mirror in the house. The poor baby has to be fed upstairs as there's no room for the high chair downstairs.

The baby belongs to the "other" family and you can see the crib in the corner of their bedroom. The blue to the right is the bedspread on the parents' bed. The baby's changing table doubles as the family's dresser.


The living room is surprisingly normal. They even have a TV. I can only imagine the family feuds that arise when everyone wants to watch something different.

Everyone is out in the playground because the furniture takes up all the room in the house.

Anticipated budget cuts

In anticipation of the likely upcoming budget cuts, State has decided to return our Kovenskii building to its former configuration of housing 45 families (from back in the komunelka days. Note, today there are 6 families in the building)

These will be Alex and Zoltan's "bunk beds".

Happy Hanukkah!

It's hard to see with all the junk up on the counter, but the kids asked me to turn the lights off and they were just watching the candles burn.

Next to the real Menorah is the plush one Alex uses to count the days :)

The deafening sound of silence

A large part of my job is organizing the celebration of American holidays. There's also the "job" of being co-president of the IWC. Between the two, November and December are nightmares. In the span of one month I put together Thanksgiving, the American table for the Charity Bazaar, co-put together the monthly IWC meeting which involves a guest speaker and lunch at a hotel, and, finally the Consulate holiday party which is the biggest event I plan all year.

That nightmare ended last night, with the successful conclusion of the last event. Zoltan was sick so he was in the nanny's hands all day - they were out when I came home to change for the party so I saw my son for 20 minutes (in the morning) all day. Terry did bedtimes. Tomorrow I will be with Z all day. Happy Hanukkah to me! Between now and January 10 I will work 4 more days.

The samovar festival that wasn't

A friend alerted me to what appeared to be a samovar festival. It was definitely some kind of fair thing, sponsored by Petersburg Samovars, so our mistake is pretty understandable.

There was one stall in this huge convention center/arena thing selling samovars, plus about a hundred selling tea and a thousand selling honey. And every honey was different. In fact, the white one that looks like frosting was billed as bring good for childrens' health (polezni deti zdorovie) We ended up at only one honey stall, tasted about 10 different honeys - about half their supply - and spent what, to Americans, would be a scandalous amount of money on three small containers of honey. But ... ooohhhh ... let's just say I got the kids to keep their shoes on during the drive home with the threat of no honey when we got home if they didn't.

I'm pretty sure Terry is adding beekeeping to our retirement plan.

Winter Saturday

Thank you Megan for suggesting the bouncy castle!

My swag bag

We're Friends of the State Hermitage Museum. That means that in addition to getting in for "free"* and being able to go past the long lines, we also get invited to regular evening events. For many reasons we've never actually attended one of the evenings, but December is the 15th anniversary of the Friends Club so I booked the nanny and told Terry he had to wear a tie and planned to go.

Well, Terry's been sick with nobody-knows-what and it turned out I knew a whole group of ladies who were leaving their husbands home so he got a bye, we canceled the nanny, and I went alone. Due to my uncanny ability to get lost going a straight line, I got there later than planned. After checking my coat and the fancy shoes I planned to wear, then showing my invite to a dozen people, I was haphazardly included in a group of people following a Russian speaking tour guide through a new exhibit I'd never heard of and that I think Terry would really like. As I was completely ignoring the guide due to my complete inability to understand what she was saying, I did catch an earful of English coming from a different corner and glommed onto that tour group.

The tour went on for about 1/2 hour and then we were led into the Throne Room, where the director of the entire museum gave a speech. We thought we would then hear the concert and eventually get a canape or glass of water but instead we hung out in a large otherwise empty room while a trio or quartet played (I forget which) and nobody paid much attention, which is a shame as they played well. Our tour guide eventually rounded us up and another 30-40 minutes went by as we toured a different special exhibit that I also have to bring Terry back to see. At this point, however, we were thirsty, hungry, with aching feet and getting grumpy.

Just at that time we were led into the atrium where the food and drinks were. We all got enough to eat to assuage our hunger, and I even got scolded by a Russian because I put my empty plate on the bench on which I was sitting. Completely uncouth and I may never be allowed to enter the Hermitage again! I was pretty happy to be so Russian-ignorant as had I known what she was saying I probably would have gotten upset. In translation it wasn't so bad although I did keep insisting my friend point out to the scolder the stain that was on the bench from before we sat down.
Time to leave, we gather our coats and things and note a very large quantity of plastic shopping-type bags and a couple of people who looked like they worked there. We almost walked right by, but then we asked what was in the bags. Turns out, it's for us! In addition to the Annual Report, we go a DVD, magnet, moleskin datebook, and yummy Frazer chocolate. A perfect evening all around, even if I could barely feel my feet the next day.



* it's not exactly free when the membership costs about a hundred individual visits, but I don't have to have cash on the day I go so in that sense it's free.

Hermitage with Zoltan part II

Today was truly perfect. Alex went happily into her classroom at school. Zoltan even chose to wear his boots today rather than fight me for his sneakers. Traffic was normal, not awful. Garmin actually led me to my destinations.

First stop, the Grand Choral Synagogue to buy hanukkah candles. And, as I was there, a challah. Who thinks French toast will be on tomorrow's breakfast menu? Next stop, Hermitage.

Today the Hermitage must have staffed their dezhornaya nice-mean-nice alternating through each room. One lady smiled brightly when she saw Zoltan, chatted for a bit then gave what were clearly directions and a room number and said something like "On lubit" (he'll like it). Turns out that room held the suits of armor and replica horses, also armored. Another women gave me a nasty "neel zya" (not permitted) when I was showing Zoltan a painting, describing it by pointing to the different features, and I guess my hand went within a foot of the canvas. Horrors!

Completely by accident we got to an exhibit I've been wanting to see, Antony Gormley. His exhibit has 2 parts, one where he convinced the Hermitage to build up the floor in its ancient sculpture room so the sculptures are even with the visitors rather than being on pedestals, and the other part includes his own art. Zoltan had a blast with Gormley's figures, especially the one "laying down" (bottom right in the picture). He kept pointing to that and and yelling "lay down" and then to one of the other sculptures and yelling "stand up".

     The other interesting aside is that my 2 year old has a real preference in art forms. If there were no paintings or photographs in a room he'd sadly say "no pictures" and wander through to see if the next room would hold "pictures." My budding critic!

Goals, goals and more goals

On Sunday I went to see SKA host Spartak.  For those who don't know or forgotten from my previous post.  SKA is the local KHL hockey team in St Petersburg.  Spartak is one of the Moscow KHL teams.  This year SKA has been doing very well as of late.  The two previous games I have seen they won but they were close entertaining games.

This game started out similarly.   Spartak scored first in the first period then SKA answered with there own goal later in the period. The first period ended 1-1 so far continuing on the trend I seen up until this point.  The second period SKA came out flying early on and went up 3-1 and then started to play defense hockey for the last 5 minutes of the period.  Lots of short shifts and dumping the puck in the offense zone.  I figure they wold play a defense third period to try and hold on for the win.

Apparently the players in coach had another idea.  They came out aggressive and attacked the offensive zone.  In the end SKA added another 7 goals in the period.  They were 3 for 3 on the power play.  The only blemish in the period is they gave up one power play goal to Spartak.  The final score was 10-2 it was by far the most lopsided game I have ever seen.

And then there were 4

Back on July 9 I made 119 muffins to store for the winter. It seemed like a lot to me. I hinted that I'd keep track of how fast they would be eaten.

Between play dates, morning coffees, and occasional treats for the kids, we are down to the last 4 muffins. They didn't even last 1/2 year. I guess next year I'm aiming for 200+!

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow!

So we've had 2 flurries of about 10 minutes each and at least one hail but as it's only dropped below freezing a couple of times ... well, let's just say Indiana has a whole bunch of snow according to my friend and yet Petersburg is just damp and chilly. And dark. The dark is more annoying when it isn't glinty with snow and ice.

Banana chips for you, banana chips for me

We tested out the dehydrator today with banana chips. The first bite was "hm, this is weird" and it definitely did not taste like banana chips we get in the store. BUT ... it got a bit addictive and the kids really liked it so we have a winner!

Terry will probably try apple tomorrow while I'm at the IWC Winter Bazaar (charity fundraiser)

Dehydrator

After looking longingly at dehydrators for months off and on, Terry finally bought one during his Metro run this morning (American holidays rock!) So now, in the winter we can have apples AND dried apples. Woo-hoo!

Tallinn Zoo

Yes, we're a bit jaded after the phenomenal Budapest Zoo, but the truth is Tallinn's isn't much to report on. It is a huge amount of space with not much in there, and unfortunately the cages are not exactly spacious or comfortable. There are some signs around the zoo to the effect that depending on government funding and sponsors, the animals will get new homes as soon as they can be built, but I wonder how long those signs have been up.

The day was damp, almost drizzly, and +4C. We counted 4 other families at the zoo during our hour or so there. I really thought we'd be the only ones.

Tallinn, take 2

Getting to Tallinn when you don't stop for 2h at the border doesn't seem to take any less time, of course that could be that we stopped 2x on the way to the border, then again for lunch after we crossed (there's a French Fry Store right over the border). And Zoltan still has a 6h tolerance, although this time it was slightly less than 7 hours. And he was more easily distracted.

After some fits and starts with the rental company, we got into our apartment, got the kids down (Z sleeping, A not so much) and proceeded to alternately unload the car and lay down ourselves as the night before had been a marathon of the kids waking up - Z 3 times, A 2.

Our apartment is right in Town Hall Square, and all our windows face the square. Pretty cool when you just look out the balcony to see the Tallinn Christmas Tree being unloaded from the truck and raised. Much less cool when the loud drunks start yelling and singing at 11:30pm. I think the period of silence between 2am-5:30am was due to the rain that must have fallen some time in the night.

The morning started OK if early, to the kids it was 8am when they awoke so who can blame them? Then we learn that Tallinn is so amazing and we are so cursed here. Terry's been unwell with some kind of bug all day. I'll report on the zoo separately, and with a couple of photos, but after that it was pretty much hanging out in the apartment the rest of the day, with me making some excursions to get ginger ale, wipes (we'd forgotten them!) and a few other things.

Just keep repeating, at least we're away!

The best butter chicken in Piter

Last Saturday night Terry and I went to dinner alone for the first time since the summer, when our usual nighttime babysitter left for college. We decided to try the 3rd Indian restaurant in Piter - Tandoori. Don't confuse it with Tandoori Nights, just a few doors down on the same street.

I'll be honest, the samosas didn't impress, nor did the vegetable korma. The masala chai was promising except that they didn't boil the sugar with the tea, milk and spices (ah, they were SO CLOSE) but with a cube of sugar it was a pretty good rendition. BUT the butter chicken was fabulous. So good, in fact, that we smothered the korma in the sauce and scarfed it down. Jai Hind is still our go-to place, the food is good and best of all it's walkable ... but we will definitely make the schlep to Tandoori at least a couple of times to get that butter chicken.

Lomonosov Porcelain Factory Tour

The Lomonosov Imperial Porcelain Factory is only open Tuesdays through Fridays and not on Russian holidays, so our only opportunity to tour is a non-Monday American holiday. I think we all know how rare those are! So on veteran's day we honored our men and women in uniform .... by a tour of how artists made pretty things for the czars and how they currently can make pretty things for millionaires. I assure you, the things are VERY pretty.

I didn't take a single damn picture though. Ugh! I even had the camera with me. See, there was a miscommunication and I thought the tour would be an hour, as the tour I attended 2 years ago was about that long I think ... but we got a tour of the Porcelain Museum first, which was 1.5 hours long and I was pretty sure we weren't to take photos there. The molds for many - most - original pieces are destroyed, so they recreate pieces using 3D imaging and it still can take a year or more to replicate a piece. Also interesting - apparently, Europe first learned the secrets of making porcelain from a French abbot who stole the secrets from China. Those French! That clergy!

Then it was already 12:30 and folks started getting hungry and grumpy so the factory part of the tour got cut short. We did get to see a woman get the liquid whatever-its-called and pour it into the mold to make the shape, but she was trying to be nice and show us what it looks like and didn't wait long enough for it to dry properly and ruined the little piggy :( we also saw a few made-to-order items in their various stages of completion and learn about how many different pieces can come together to make one item.

Then of course, the shopping. I ended up not buying anything because I wanted to get concurrence before spending that much on anything, but it's actually easier to get to than I remember and I will definitely be back.

There's a Science Museum in the mall!

Seriously. We went today. At the Galleria Mall right by T.G.I.Fridays is a mini science museum. It kept the kids occupied for a solid 1.5h, which is the time allotted for the ticket price we chose, although I am curious how they monitor that. In any case, it was lunch time. We totally could have stayed longer.

The museum even employs a horde of assistants who explain the different exhibits. When we admitted to speaking no Russian they had the two women who spoke English hovering around us which was both comforting and disconcerting in turn.

Here's the web site: http://www.umnikum.com/

144

My FSO update - I am officially on the Register! #144 of 144 for the Consular cone. And now it's time to study Russian ....

Almost on the Register

On Friday I learned that my security and medical clearances were finally complete and my file sent to the final suitability review.

2 points about this:
1. I took the Oral Exam on June 13. That was more than 4 months ago, and State has allegedly sped up the process in the last few years.
2. Especially in light of #1 - I already have a Class 1 (anywhere in the world) medical clearance granted by State, and a Top Secret clearance also granted by State. And still it took 4 months to get here ... and technically I'm not even "here" yet.

Let's just say there's a bigger problem afoot than my personal problems if anything goes foul in this last step. Here's hoping for another FSO update in the next week. On the other hand, things finally starting to seem real and tangible might just be why I studied Russian over the weekend for the first time in about a month.

Happy birthday baby boy

I know, it's getting tiresome. But, that's what happens when you have your babies' birthdays 2 weeks apart. I can't believe Zoltan is already 2 years old, it feels like just yesterday he was a teensy bit of a thing who just screamed and screamed. We're so glad we didn't ask for a refund and decided to keep you!

An admission here: Terry had to work very late tonight so we're celebrating the birthday with fast food and cupcakes tomorrow. He'll never know the difference unless some day years from now he goes browsing through the old blog entries ....

Mobile no more

As in, automobile, not mobile phone. Our Russian drivers' licenses were only good until the end of our visas, and they expire today. They can't be good longer than our USA licenses, and of course both Terry's and my license expire this year so it isn't worth the hassle and expense to get a license for 2 months. Terry's renewed PA license arrived 2 weeks ago, so he's gotten his new Russian one and is good to go.

Where is mine????

Trunk or treat

All last week I kept forgetting that this week even exists, because the kids went Trick or Treating on Friday the 21st. In my mind it's the weekend before Halloween already. The personalized pumpkin bags have a motherlode of sugar, the costumes have already become filthy and been washed (just in case they want to be Pooh and a bunny again next year. A mother can dream, right?)



Anyway, the Anglo-American school held their annual Trick or Trunk event, wherein the parents decorate their cars and kids trick or treat as though the vehicles were houses. As we were the only sedan in a field of SUVs, I think the similarity was closer than one might otherwise think. Other than the 3 (or was it 4?) rain showers in the course of the 1.5 hours of setup and the actual event, it was a good time had by all.

The camera battery was dying so we don't have photos of the after-event, when Zoltan stuffed a piece of chocolate in his mouth so big he couldn't close his mouth, drooling chocolate over Pooh's belly, all the while screaming "More Chocolate" and having a complete meltdown.

Happy birthday babies

My poor deprived daughter finally got a birthday party at the ripe old age of 4. And she had to share it with Zoltan :) They are still young enough not to care, although I am sure the day is soon approaching that they demand separate celebrations. Given how attached Zoltan is to one of Alex's friends, I may be more than happy to keep him from associating with the "older girls".

We have totally rearranged our dining room to be more of a "bouncy castle room" where we can sometimes have meals with more then 1 other guest. As expected, the kids were in heaven between the bouncy castle, all our toys, the new toys from today, and the cake.

I am totally investing in a real set of icing tips - working with a Ziplock just doesn't work for me anymore. Here's an interesting tip about cake: when you make it a couple of days in advance and put it in the fridge, am overly light and fluffy cake denses right up. I was a bit shocked when I cut it and then ate it (I did cupcakes too so I had done a taste test the night I baked them.)

crazy week

We were on a nice roll there for a while, eh? It's been a crazy week ...

Last Saturday I organized an "orienting" walking tour with Peter's Walks. We hit the highlights, Kazan Cathedral, Church on Spilled Blood, Peter & Paul Fortress, Strelka, Winter Palace. It was, as Peter's tours always are, really interesting, informative, and a great way to see the city. I even managed to order up the most strikingly beautiful fall day EVER. When Terry's done editing the photos we'll put up a link. For now, here's the cathedral at Peter & Paul Fortress.

Sunday and Monday were pretty normal, although Monday I had to take a bit over an hour out of my day to go to the rink and buy tickets to the hockey game (I organized an outing as CLO). Seriously, folks, it is a bit ridiculous that the only way to get tickets to the game is to go to the rink.

Tuesday Terry went to the SKA hockey game while I hosted book club. Wednesday I stayed at work late for our first Post Language Program Game Night - Russian Scrabble! If I can figure how to get the photo off my phone I'll post what our final board looked like. Our language teacher wasn't impressed, to say the least. On the other hand, even beginner Russian speakers could have participated as I think we only had 3 words of more than one syllable.

Thursday I organized a cooking demonstration with the CG's chef. Mmmmmmm. Quite frankly, in Malta the Ambassador's chef was, to my taste, a huge disappointment. Vladimir, though, can cook. I am still trying to figure a way to get over there today and grab a bowl of leftovers for my lunch.

Dinnertime

There are So. Many. Things I do wrong as a parent. However, tonight I felt pretty good.

Me: Alex, eat that. It's french fries, you love fries.
Alex: I don't want those fries.
Me: Then eat some cucumber.
Alex: OK

Happy birthday baby

Today my first born is 4 years old. Feels like time is flying by! She had a great day, complete with purple frosted cupcakes to bring to school, Burger King for dinner (heck yes! we got the crown) and ice cream for dessert.