UPDATE

Things are still going well for us here in Moscow! We understand a little bit more of the language every week and maybe in 50 years we will understand completely :) Deana said that last week was the hardest week in language so far for her, but I think Friday was much better. Kellan LOVES his Russian class and made a 95/A for his first Russian grade! I overheard Ella singing a song with her nanny the other day in Russian. It was really sweet. It was about how God loved her and she loved God! I had to sneak and listen because I knew if she realized I was listening she would stop!

The leaves have all turned different colors now in Moscow and most of them have already fallen from the trees. The weather has been great here though. All of the locals say that this has been the longest and prettiest fall in several years. We will take it as long as possible! I have found out that walking on wet leaves is hazardous to your health. Thankfully, I have not fallen yet, but I have come close 2 different times. They do a great job here of keeping the streets and sidewalks free of leaves! Sometimes, however, they can't keep up!

We are continuing to attend the same church because Ella is pretty comfortable going to Sunday School by herself there. Kellan went for the first time last week. I am proud of them, since it is all in Russian and they know VERY little! I am going to be helping Good News Church with their first English worship service soon. Please pray that this will be a success for them. I will not be involved in it long term, but wanted to help them get started.

Last weekend we had a former interpreter of mine and her new husband over for dinner. We had a GREAT time getting to know them a little better. He did not speak English, but I think he enjoyed himself as well. We are going to visit with them at their church soon. They are a young couple and would be great contacts in the future when we begin ministry full-time. I also met with the lady who used to be in charge of all of the logistics for my mission teams. Her name is Larissa. She and her colleague ,who I have also worked with in the past, met me for lunch and coffee in the underground mall in the center of the city. It was nice to get to catch up with them as well.

I wanted to share a letter that Kellan wrote me for my parent conference with his teacher. We had an awesome school in NC, but it is so nice to go in for a parent conference and the teacher start with prayer and pray for your child! Kellan did well on his report card and we are proud of him. Here is his letter to me:
"Dear Dad,
Thank you for coming to my class today. My favorite subject is Russian because it is easy. What I like best about our class is it is a fun class. What I like most about our school is library because I like to read. What is hardest for me is math. Math is hardest because I do not know some stuff out of it. The second hardest is science, reading, Bible, Russian. That is the order from hardest to easiest. Mrs. Hange is a very nice teacher. Our library has a few books to check out. Our computer lab has a lot of computers. We have a bathroom right next to our class,
Love, Kellan"

THANKS FOR YOUR PRAYERS! We will try to update again soon with some new pictures!