Whew!

Mr. and Mrs. Nathan Clausen
Originally uploaded by fylliska.

You all probably want to hear about the wedding, right? I'm pretty much switched over into camp mode, but I'll try to go back. Or maybe I'll just post pictures and stories over the next few days, and that will give you a taste of what it was like. Yes, that will be better.

It does feel very good to be home! We had a wonderful time, but I didn't know a little four-day trip could be that exhausting! Ivan "Take a Breath" Petrash (that's what Dean called him recently) dropped us off here after midnight last night. Abby is with us. (We must have lost Anna somewhere along the way? ) She's going to stay here for a few days, and then she'll join a camp group somewhere, and Will will probably go with her. Maybe we will, too? Like Larisa said to me last night, "Of course, you have to take part in some camp! You can't live without it."

The camp news is that Shuya and Teikovo churches are starting their camps today. As most of you know, the camps are now at the different churches, with ministry teams traveling around to help. Yesterday in Moscow, Will rounded up the two groups of American helpers, and one of the Ukrainians, and we all got on a train. (That was an adventure in itself! You should have seen how many people Will was trying to find and how many things he had to do all in the last minutes before the train left. He was runnning around like a chicken with its head cut off, but he was a very calm chicken, and he got everything done.) Ivan met us in Vladimir and took us to the church there. Right away the crazy unpacking, sorting and planning started. Crafts and other supplies for the first days of the two camps I mentioned above had to be ready right away, so that Ivan could deliver them after he brought us home. Finally, everything was ready. We left Anna there to help, and headed home. Please pray for the two camps that are starting now, and for the team in Vladimir. This morning the rest of the Ukrainian team will be joining the team in Vladimir. Then they'll pray together, divide into groups, finish preparations, and take off in different directions.


Jaan's favorite part
Originally uploaded by fylliska.

(Many thanks to his grandmother and great-grandmother for the outfit! Everything fits perfectly.)

Those two wedding pictures will have to satisfy you for now. I hear my family waking up, and we're looking forward to a fun day with Aunt Abby!

(By the way, our children are the most faithful early risers I know of. Look at the time here! They're just now waking up. And they did the same thing yesterday in Moscow! The wedding wore them out.)