Cows

Sorry I didn't get a chance to write yesterday. We left for Penza early in the morning and didn't get back until 10:00 last night.  It was a successful trip though.  The reason of the trip was to get some office furniture and to have a meeting with the head of the company defining Levi's role as well as other employees roles on the farm.

We went to a store pronounced Lenta.  It was pretty amazing :)  I am definitely a bit more at ease, knowing I can grocery shop. I would describe this store as a wal-mart, but with more food and less of the "other" stuff. They do have about everything, just one option.  We found wonderful fruits, vegetables, and even taco shells!  Levi told me we are pretty lucky to have a nice store like this fairly close to us...and I agree. There were also good cuts of meat, lots of cheeses, and fresh bread.  I can't explain to you how much this has helped my overall mental state of health...lol  No really, it is great to know that we can go shopping and get most of our needs and wants! We stopped at the store on the way into Penza, so we weren't able to get any groceries that needed refrigerated.  We will go back in the near future I hope:)  Now of course, keep in mind, there still are huge amounts of groceries we can't find here.. i.e. Ranch, pepperjack cheese, liquid vanilla (they have powder. Has anyone ever used powder?), sliced bread, and regular spaghetti sauce.  We are making do though, and this place will be nothing but good for us.  Finding a wonderful grocery store....This makes me happy :~)

When the Cows come home~~ Today I wanted to talk about cows, but no the cows on the farm.  The cows in the village.  Each family in our village has a cow.

"When the cows come home"

This quote takes on a whole new meaning in 2012 in Russia :) The cows go out to graze every morning around 7 and come back every evening around 6.  The first morning I kept hearing a cracking sound and for a second was worried that my computer had blown up because I left it charging all night.  I got up and looked out the window to see a man with a whip rounding up cows coming from all directions. Don't worry I took pictures, and will hopefully get a video soon!

Last weekend, Michelle asked us if we wanted to walk to one of the lakes with her.  There are two within walking distance.  Levi wasn't too excited, but she said it was only a 15-20 minute walk.  After about 45 minutes, we finally arrived at the lake!  We did get to see the beautiful countryside and the place where the local cows graze.  There was a small hut where the guy has a bit of shelter from the elements.  I'm sure he was making the most of his day, by the appearance of beer bottles scattered around :)  The lake was a very peaceful place, hidden within the country.  The walk back took us through the sounds side of town and along a muddy muddy muddy road!  Like I said before, the dirt is so black here! I know, I know, you need pictures to believe...I'm slacking:) We were all thirsty when we got back, and Levi vowed to never go on one of Michelle's "20 minute walks" again!

I have to run and do a few errands, so I'll talk about the housing here in Russia tomorrow.  This will give me time to maybe take some pictures this afternoon....keyword maybe :)

lj xx

The cows coming home.

Until the cows come home

The farm.

Ice Cream in tubes...sure.

Levi's handyman skills have paid off!  A shower without holding the nozzle...heaven!  If we could just have hot water regularly:)

The Parlor 

Why We Love Russia-- In Penza we got stopped by a police officer while getting into our car.  Levi at this point, obviously loses all of his Russian speaking ability :)  We give him some papers we have and he takes a picture of our license plate.  Soo....we might be getting a ticket in the mail!  I think it saved us that Levi had an American license and I doubt he knew how to read it.