Three cheers

Hurrah! We went outside today. It's still grey and wet, but not actually raining, so we put on our rubber boots and went out. It felt so good! Jaan put his own mittens on, and in my hurry to get the screaming baby outside, I didn't even look at them. I just congratulated him on doing that by himself for the first time ever. He kept asking me for help all the way down the stairs, but I thought he wanted me to carry him. Once we got outside, I looked and figured out why he wanted help. His mittens are on a string through his coat sleeves. Somehow he had gotten them on wrong, so each hand was closely connected to the opposite sleeve. He could barely move his arms. No wonder he needed help!

And after we came in, we saw our first family of bullfinches for this year. (I just learned what they're called in English today.) They're one of my favorite winter sights: bright red little birds against a background of white snow on a sunny day. . . Even without the snow they were beautiful in the red berry tree right under our window. (Now that's one I need to learn in English. I really do know what it's called in Russian.)

Hurrah! Will will be home tonight. I talked to him briefly on the phone, and I know he's enjoying the fellowship with the other men. We'll still be very happy to have him back!

Hurrah! To find out the biggest news of today, look down at the very bottom of this page. I know the butterfly doesn't fit with the wintery forest background, but I did that on purpose. It makes me think of my poor Dad in Kovrov in December. Note to the Hunsucker grandparents: I wanted to do something like that for your visit, but couldn't figure it out at the time. Did I tell you that Jaan still asks for Baba and Danna almost every night at bedtime?

We have a very busy weekend ahead of us, so don't expect to hear from me until Monday or Tuesday. Nathan and Masha are coming to visit, Will has the first night of the youth club that he's starting, and there's still the usual weekend activities in Sannikovo and with the orphanage Sunday school.