We all smile in the same language

привет!

Do you see this fancy shmancy word above? It says "Prevyet!" which is Russian for hello. So I am saying hello to you all, in a totally Russian way.

I haven't blogged as often as I should have during this semester, so I haven't told you all enough about the wonderful experiences I've been having and the reason why I am here. Between all the vacationing and friendship making, I actually have been teaching. Surprising, right?

I love what I do and I am so happy to be here! My kids are quite lovely, even if they are kind of crazy. Actually, they're very crazy. I love them! It's hard to describe all the wonderful moments I've had with them that are permanently etched into my memory. So what better way to try and illustrate than through pictures? Annnd... I even have a few short videos I can show you all.

I know that, because I'm a teacher, I probably shouldn't have any favorites. But can I help it? I don't think so. This girl, pictured above, is my favorite. Her name is Liza, and she is a gem to have in the classroom. She's always trying to help me out, gathering up ripped paper that the boys have destroyed, fixes my clothes if it's in disarray, and continues to always have a cute smile on her face. And she totally loves me, too! I mean, we have oodles and oodles of fun in class... so much so that it's hard to leave at times. One day, the poor sweetheart was having too much fun to leave that she peed her pants instead. It broke my heart; she cried so hard and was so upset, she couldn't even look at me when I left that day. She's adorable and I already know that I will miss her cute face so much!

Well, uh, this beaut pictured above is Nikita. Oi, Nikita! Trouble-maker on steroids, that kid is. I really have very little to say to him, other than he is the most challenging student we have. But hey, at least it's been a few weeks since he's jumped off the piano, right? And only two weeks since he tried to jump out the window. Oh, and last week he tried to push me out the window. At least his English is pretty swell, right?

Misha, as you can tell, is ADORABLE!! One of my favorite boys. Yes, he's a trouble-maker as well, but how can you really get mad at a face like that? Even when he pushes you down, ties you up with a jump rope, and rips a hole in your pants, he does it in such a suave manner that you have a hard time using any disciplinary strategies at all. And, it's probably to his advantage that he's very small and has a high-pitched voice (as do all little boys, but his is especially high) and repeats English in the most adorable fashion. Love love LOVE this little man!

Artiom! So cute, so small, so lovable. I mean, just look at his face! He has got to be one of the funniest children I have ever met, and most of the time I have no idea what the heck he's even saying. He'll always choose the most random toys at store, like a toy razor for example. He will repeat sentences said earlier to him that day at the most random of times, running down the stairs singing "One, two, three, freeze!" and dancing to it with his cute Russian accent. Love it! I love this small child.

Here I am, with little Anya, Polina, and Artiom. Good thing Artiom knows where his nose is, right?

Velizar hasn't shown up to class for nearly two months now. I don't know where he went, nor if he will be returning. Russians are kind of funny like that; they randomly will stop going to school for weeks at a time, or go on vacation, because it's good for their health. But perhaps Velizar moved. Even if he followed the other trouble-makers around, he is pretty dang adorable. And I especially loved his mullet.

More of the cute little Artiom :)

Kirill. Oh, the delightful boy he is. Do you like his face? I sure do. He has this thing about crossing his eyes. And he does it all the time. Sometimes he's a perfectly angelic child, but most of the time he makes you want to scream and pull your hair out. Tying me up and pushing me out the window was his idea, FYI. But with his cute face and lovely smile, it's pretty hard not to love him and have a soft spot for him.

Alosha! He hardly ever comes, and is usually too scared of us to do anything when he does. He's super little, and I don't blame him for being scared. Honestly, I'd be scared if I was stuck in a room full of Chinese teachers who only spoke Chinese trying to make me color, too. 

My cute kids... too enthralled with the movie to pay attention to my mind-blowing lesson. They missed out, it would have been life-changing I am sure.

And of course, Liza is always paying attention! Love. Her! 

Here we are on St. Patty's Day! Russians don't celebrate it, but that doesn't mean I can't do a St. Patrick's Day celebration with my children! They are just too adorable with their leprechaun hats and beards.

Misha makes the best leprechaun.

Here is Anya, and she is absolutely precious. I love her so much, she loves being a princess and giving me high fives. Her english is not so great; she'll only repeat one word at a time and it's usually the last word of the sentence. For example, I'll say something like "I see a duck!" And she'll look at me and say "Duck!" taking a few moments to be able to pronounce the last word. She'll get so excited and then grab my hand so she can give me a high five. She is so sweet and I love her!

This is our newest student, Liza. Her english is pretty swell, and her pigtails are, too. She is super smart, super little, and likes to pinch people a lot when they do something mean to her. But I promise she is still a sweet girl! She is lovable and I'm so glad to have her in my class.

Polina is so cute! Her English isn't too great, but at least her glasses are!

We only had two kids show up, so we played outside! We drew with chalk, and traced each other. Here I am with Artiom, just loving life! Being outside is so great, especially without a jacket in Russia.

Nikita was so happy to be outside! Ah, it's so great to be outside :)

And now, well, I wanted to show you the promised videos. They're all of Nikita, Artiom, and I outside while playing with chalk. Artiom is a funny kid, and if you have the patience/desire to watch the videos, you'll see why. Funny, funny kids. :)

It's been a great week, but goodbye for now!

до свидания!