Last weekend we were priviliged to see Dima again. It was a pleasant surprise to hear that he was coming from Moscow. Barry and I met Dima at Fresno Pacific University where we all went to school and after a few conversations, the friendship was developed to hopefully last a life time. It has been absolutely wonderful to see him again, and most of all to have him meet our beautiful addition to the family, Isabella. His visit would not have left him any fun memories if he did not change his first diaper, so we made sure that happened.
One of the biggest highlights this May was my first Mother’s Day. It almost seemed unreal to be celebrated as a mother, but I had one of the most wonderful days. My dear husband and Bella surprised me with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers, wonderful card, a washed car, lovely bike ride and a lot of help around the house. Being a mother is a very special gift from God and I feel abundantly blessed to have received such a gift. As difficult as this job is, it is the MOST rewarding. I never imagined such love until I met face to face with my precious girl. To all mothers that will be reading this post, I hope you had a fantastic day where you felt loved and appreciated and not just on Mother’s Day, but hopefully every day. God has blessed me with the most extraordinary mom that has become my best friend with years, who I can go to with my sorrows, joys, questions and of course recipes. I believe my mom is the most giving, loving, kind and the best chef I know. She has taught me everything about being a mom and the reason I am the type of mom today is because of my dear mom. Thank you Mamysik, I will be forever grateful.
My gift from GodMy first Mother's Day bouquet from my dear husband and precious daughter
This week has been a true blessing. My (Helen’s) very dear friend Olga from childhood whom I have not seen in 16 years came to visit us. It’s amazing how one doesn’t know what God has in store for us. Her journey on American soil started off rocky and difficult, but because of her strong faith, she is now a happy and content individual. Olga and I grew up in Zvenigorodka, a small town where we visited each other daily and loved to play together. I remember her going to weekly private lessons for English and Spanish, not knowing that in 16 years we will end up under the same roof, speaking no other but English, laughing and reminiscing about our childhood years. Her journey started off in Brooklyn after which she went to Florida, followed by Missouri and ending in Oklahoma, where she met her husband JD. I must admit I was very nervous about our meeting, not knowing whether we grew too much apart where we would not have much to talk about or whether we would pick up where we left off and we picked up right where we left off. We had a chance to show them Sacramento and go to an European market where we found a huge selection of Slavic food and made it into a nice lunch that we later shared together. We also had a chance to take them to my parent’s house where she got a chance to re-connect with them and Oleg, that was a very fun time for all of us. The biggest highlight for me was sharing the same faith and being able to talk about Christ, which I never thought I would with her. God is definitely full of surprises, I praise Him for that.
Olga and IReunited at lastJD & OlgaThe "fam" and our special guests
Welcome to our blog! We have been wanting to create a family blog for a while now, but never seemed to find time. The opportunity has opened itself and we jumped on it (especially me- Helen) I have learned that blogs are a great tool to keep people updated on what goes on in one’s life as well as to create memories for the future generation, in our case, it’s our precious daughter Isabella and/ any other additions to the family in the future.
