An Ivanyenko Christmas!

Aside from this year, I've only been away on Christmas once in my life.  In 2007, I spent Christmas in Vietnam while on a mission trip.  It was a weird experience to be honest, nothing like Christmas at all; the palm trees, the tropical heat, the absence of a family atmosphere, all of this distracted us from being away.

This year, I wasn't sure how I was going to handle it, because it was a very different story: I was in a family now, with their own holiday traditions and way of doing things.  I wasn't sure if this was going to make it harder or easier for me to be far away from my family.

God is good.  Being with the Ivanyenkos on Christmas was wonderful; of course I missed my family, but I was also overwhelmed with thanks to God for the family he has brought me into in Russia; a family that loves me and treats me like their own, that supports me, teases me, laughs and cries with me, and a family that I was truly happy to celebrate Christmas with.

The family Christmas Tree in our cozy new kitchen

Uncle Ilya repeatedly demanded to be photographed with both the duck, and his woman

The stove-top doesn't work, but the oven sure does!  Grandma is Queen of the Kitchen

All fancy for Christmas

And lest we forget what Christmas is about, here's my homemade nativity scene

For most Russians, of course, the biggest holiday of the year is New Years; they typically don't celebrate Christmas until January 7th, which is Christmas according to the Orthodox Church's calendar.  Everyone worked and went to school on the 25th, it was so bizarre!  Tomorrow, everyone's two-week holiday vacation starts, and the country basically shuts down.

I've got New Years with friend to look forward to, and on the 2nd, English camp begins!  We're starting the year off with a bang, and I can't wait to give a full report once I've recovered.

I hope you've had a wonderful Christmas with your loved ones.  Enjoy New Years (and Christmas again if you feel like it!) and God bless you in 2014!

Пока ребята, Russian Jane