Greetings from Ukraine! Time has flown since our last post because we have been busy! We celebrated Sarah Avery's birthday with a great big family surprise. The girls started their new school and we made some more fun memories in our new city. Here are all the pictures from the last few weeks:
We spent one of our last days before school started exploring more of downtown. We started in this coffee shop for a little bathroom break and a treat.
And then we headed to check out a couple of the beautiful orthodox cathedrals in Kyiv. This is us in front of St. Andrews.
Another shot of St. Andrews against the bright blue sky.
Our new friends, The Barrys, joined us with their son Matthew.
We enjoyed checking out the beautiful St. Micheal's Cathedral and even got to witness the Blessing of the Harvest service that was happening that morning. Camera's aren't allowed inside, but it was so beautiful. I can't wait to go back without kids so I can linger a little longer.
Next stop was a beautiful and delicious Ukrainian lunch, complete with these famous Kyiv Cakes for dessert. (We were the only ones in the restaurant, so social distancing wasn't a problem.)
After lunch we headed down the street to ride this big thing and check out the city from the sky.
We were the first ones on after they had been closed for maintenance. We couldn't decide whether that was good news or bad news. ;)
The views were awesome; the heat and the rocking motion as the kids walked back and forth in our car, on the other hand, were not so awesome.
We were the only ones in the car and I was hot so I had to lose the mask for a second. It was a beautiful day with friends that we really enjoyed!
And then, before we knew it, it was August 22 and this little girl was turning 6! We put a candle in her pancakes and sang to her before breakfast.
And then we headed out in an uber for what Peter and I had been calling a "birthday activity." Upon arriving at a random soviet style high rise apartment, the girls were perplexed. Until we walked in and they saw puppies!
That's right. The birthday surprise was this little shedding machine. The girls were delighted. Her name is Sally and she will come home with us next week.
After the big Sally surprise, it was time to come home for presents and cupcakes.
Sarah Avery wanted chocolate with blue icing, so that is what we did! I can't believe my baby is six years old.
We had so much fun celebrating as a family.
She was so excited to get a Garmin watch just like her big sister has.
A couple of days later, we had more treats (this time pumpkin muffins) and another little celebration with our friends The Siler Family.
The Silers gave Sarah Avery a skateboard which has become a big hit with her and her sister.
A huge and unexpected blessing of our new life here is all of the neighborhood friends the girls have made already. There is a gang of them and they play together almost every day.
It seemed surreal to be sending them back to school, but the day arrived and it happened. They were ready!
1st and 4th grade! They were so brave. Peter and I were really proud of them.
They wanted masked photos too. Had to keep it real. ;)
It is a short and easy walk to the bus stop. Although maybe a little less easy in January?
Miss Tatiana is the sweet bus monitor that takes their temperature every morning.
Buckled in and ready to go!
Watching them drive away wasn't the most fun, I have to admit. COVID makes everything harder and not being able to walk them into their classrooms on their first day was a perfect example of this fact. But they were brave so I tried to follow their example.
It helped because I spent the first couple of days the girls were back in school participating in a service project with a couple of friends. We collected money and school supplies for local children in need and distributed them. This little girl was exactly Susannah's age and immediately picked this Paris backpack that Susannah had picked out. She gave big tight hugs just like Susannah too. And her mom was so strong and gracious and admirable. I loved them immediately.
It was really touching meeting the children and their amazing mamas. All of the families we supported were single mothers and the obstacles that they are facing seem insurmountable. But they were so brave and kind and welcoming. I look forward to doing more work to help these families in the future.
Sally's breeder sends us pictures every few days so we can keep up with her. And we visit every weekend.
Another sunny weekend, another day to explore our new city. Kyiv has so many impressive murals. The girls liked this one.
After lunch we headed over to a playground that the girls have grown to love. It is an Allison in Wonderland theme and it is super cool.
After the playground we headed to the famous Andriyivskyy Descent so that the girls could pick out journals that they had been begging for since they spotted them at a vendor's stall our first evening downtown. We got each of them one to celebrate their first successful week at school.
Another cool mural photo op
and an ice cream cone for the win.
One huge COVID silver lining is that even though Peter is working really hard here, his schedule is such that he can be home with us quite a bit too. We are so thankful.
Last activity of the day was these little cars that the girls could ride for ten minutes for $2. They loved it!
This is Honey's favorite spot in the house because she can see out to watch for us if we aren't home. And she can watch for any intruders of course. We don't have a mailman here so she is searching for a new nemesis.
Last weekend Peter and I celebrated 16 years of marriage! Before our date night babysitter arrived, the girls presented us with an awesome scavenger hunt that ended with us finding this sweet card. It was so creative and fun!
Then we headed downtown to have dinner at the rooftop restaurant on the 8th floor of the Hyatt Hotel.
The views were absolutely breathtaking. We could see three of the famous cathedrals and so many other beautiful Kyiv landmarks.
Sunset was spectacular
Labor Day wasn't a school holiday for the girls so we celebrated on Sunday with a couple of other families at a fancy "beach" club. Beach is in heavy quotes because it is actually on a river, but the pool is awesome and the kids area has fun slides so fun was had by all.
These kiddos had the best time together swimming and playing to celebrate the last day of summer.
And the parents had fun too! These two ladies have become quick friends that I was so thankful to spend the day with.
Earlier today Peter and I visited Sally for the last time before she comes home. She is already so big! One more week of calm before the storm.
And that completes our Happy Birthday Sarah and Back to School post! I hope all of you are off to a good start with your school years. We love and miss all of you so much!
