Back in the US

Maybe we shouldn't have gone to Costco on our first day back. No other place could highlight the contrast between the US and Russia quite so sharply. After seeing the packaged fresh pomegranate seeds, I wondered if we shouldn't just stay here.

Ella's Birthday

We had to cancel Ella's birthday party because she came down with a cold. But we still had cupcakes (Andrew and I did, anyway) and opened her presents. She seemed satisfied with that arrangement. Here she is styling her hair with her new blow dryer.
As is her wont, Ella enjoyed the candles much more than the cupcake, which she barely touched.

We took Ella out for a special birthday lunch with Andrew and our friends Anthony and Melissa Milewski. She shared one of her favorite foods, a milkshake, with mommy.

I thought pink fuzzy stars would make it seem more festive.

Our Week

Ella is such a big helper now. Here she is doing some pre-Thanksgiving cleaning. We're glad that she's finally pulling her own weight around here.
I couldn't find any of my tupperware the day before Thanksgiving. I looked all over for it. Finally I asked Andrew if he had seen it. Turns out he had...it was all in his office. He brought it home just in time for us to wash and refill them all.

The Saturday after Thanksgiving, we took Ella to the famous Moscow Cat Theater, which features dancing cats. Turns out most of the dancing is done by people holding the cats, but it was good. Ella really liked all the clowns and music. At the end she showed the cats some of her own awesome moves.

Thanksgiving Day Ella didn't go outside, so she decided to wear her tutu all day. Naturally, she warmed up with some stretching.

She was really pleased with how she looked.

Thanksgiving

We planned to have a big Thanksgiving with a group of seven families at our friends, John and Amy Lore's, house. As thanksgiving drew closer, more and more families dropped out due to illness or work conflicts (Thanksgiving is not a holiday in Russia, go figure). We were starting to get nervous with everyone so sick-- especially with an international trip in the works and being pregnant. Sadly, on Thanksgiving morning, our hosts' son came down with a high temperature and we decided we'd better not risk it. We felt horrible dropping out at the last minute. At first I thought going out to dinner would be a nice plan B (we did it last year in London), but then another friend who had opted out for the same reason called and we decided to scrape together what we could for an authentic meal. Luckily, she had already done most of the work, making yams, stuffing, and a pie in advance. We bought two chickens (no chance of getting a turkey by this time), some potatoes and celery and got to work. Four hours later we had a passable feast that I was pretty proud of, especially considering it was made by two pregnant women and one husband with next to no kitchen experience. It was much better than eating out, and so far everyone is still healthy.

We got some bad news the next morning when we found out that Andrew's Grandpa Sandgren passed away Thanksgiving evening. He was 94. The funeral will be on Friday and we are flying out Wednesday. Andrew will stay a week and come back to work then return again for Christmas. Ella and I are just going to stay through January 10. We are grateful that we are able to make it for the funeral and to see the family and be with them. The logistic arrangements were much easier and inexpensive than I ever imagined. The airline even waived the change fee on Ella and I's tickets.