Monday with Manitoba

 Garry and I are spending the mornings teaching the first year students this week, so we had breakfast and I headed down the street for English class before 8 am.

I walked back after nine when Garry took over and was heading for the shop where the guys were working. I met Marcie on the way, she was bringing first aid for Doug, he had hit his head and it was bleeding a bit. 

The guys were cutting boards that would become baseboards later in the day.

The chicks enjoying the saw dust I brought from the shop

After the boards were split, they were carried down the street to the yard, where Marcie and some of the students painted them. They turned them over and painted the fourth side when they were dry so they would be ready to use after lunch.

Did I mention it was 19 C for the high today? That's 66 F. It will be just as warm tomorrow.

That looks so clean Doug

When it was lunchtime- I had started with one smaller pot of soup but decided to make a second which was a really good idea- there were no leftovers!
We also served up three loaves of bread fresh from the village store, Carol walks down every morning, sometimes twice, if it has not been delivered. Plus three leftover pizzas from the night before. Then there was chocolate pudding cake hot from the oven for dessert. I may have gotten carried away cooking.

Jack- look we had slivki (thick cream) on the pudding cake

After eating the students like to play with the chicks

I think we had 12 for our first lunch seating

Wow, who took a picture of me?
I think I was explaining how to make the broccoli cheese soup
to Masha, all the students had seconds on the "white soup"

Everyone else was done by the time they started, lucky I had saved 3 bowls...
and a pizza for them.

 Garry had to leave just before we were going to eat lunch to breed a cow somewhere, so he ate with Anton and Artom, who had just gotten back to the yard with a tractor. Anton wanted the recipe for the tomato lentil soup so I explained how I made it.

They finished off all the stuff that was left. Poor Bear, he is not getting any left over soup again.

After lunch Garry got some students working on rolling out the attic insulation

going up?

Julia and Dima before they went up the ladder

Peter installed the doors today- one into the cheese house
the second goes into the honey room at the other end/

Samson helped move boards from the shop

All the guys looking at Peter's door

Vasili digging that hole, they should finish tomorrrow

Garry measuring for baseboards

The cheese storage room, great job on the silicone Dan

Now to measure and cut

The lab has cabinets installed already
assembled by Richard and company

Here's one for the honey room

As you can see, the Manitoba team is getting more of the finishing work done on the building, and were building shelving for the cheese storage room today.

Ice cream break- I told you it was warm out

Doug has a second band-aid on his head today
Peter had 2 cuts on his hands, too, from around the windows

Eight at this table

 Dinnertime and I dished the rice and stirfry up on plates - 18 plates and then we realized Karina didn't have a plate, so we took a little off a couple to make one more. Nineteen for dinner, including all the boys from the boys house but one, and both grad girls and Vika.

Andrey the vet student showed up this afternoon so he had his own spot
we had taken the cow spotted table back to Maria with the BC team gone.

The main table,
 Dima had walked over for Pepsi, they only had milk and water at their table

It's all gone

Well it took a bit to get all the students out after dinner
Sasha is fascinated with the scrabble twist game
even though it needs to have English words put in

Sunday

Anyone for a box of peeps?

Sunday morning we had to say goodbye to Jack, Richard, Matthew and the brothers- Jeremy and Daniel. Victor said he slept well the first part of the night, but the chicks woke him up around 4 am. Coincidentally, Marcie said they had been awoken by Bear's barking outside around the same hour.

We had breakfast by 6:45, the usual oatmeal (cornflakes for the young guys) but with french toast on the side, before they carried the suitcases that were leaving with them out to the blue van. 

Salmon rm, BC team

 Instead of our normal team photo in front of what you built, the young guys decided they should have their photo taken in front of the burnt van. Afterwards they piled in to Victor's blue van and were off on their trip across Ukraine to Kiev. Hopefully they are almost there by now, since they were stopping a few places in the way. (as I write this our internet is down. Hopefully they will have made the plane by the time I load photos and hit publish in the morning! 


or afternoon as it happened.)

The All- Canadian team

The  Steinbach, Manitoba team

We also took some  of the Manitoba team and the two teams together before they left (everyone has cameras so they all wanted some). Then we and the Manitoba team relaxed a little before walking down to the village church for the Sunday service. 

Afterwards we borrowed Max's Mercedes van and went into Zaporosia for lunch and a bit of shopping, we walked the market and went to a Ukrainian souvenir shop where the Steinbach team made some purchases, before going to Ashan for groceries and heading home to the village.  

 

It's Roy in the deluxe seat...the van seats 6 so...

The forsythia is blooming in the city

We made pizza for dinner. Garry had to go breed a cow in the village, so Doug and Marcie rode along with him as the pizza was almost done. Roy and Carol were facetiming with some of their kids and grandkids,(turns out baby chicks are as popular on the computer as live.) we all had dinner and the rest of us played games. We're ready for a few more days at a slower pace now.

Saturday- the big push to finish

Jacks' team is leaving early Sunday morning for their tour of other places on the way to Kiev, so today is the day to get stuff done. The hay shed trusses need to be finished because he's taking the auto-nailer back with him that came in one of their suitcases.

Easter candy eggs for breakfast?

Today Nikolai left for a week

and Dima returned after three weeks away
Julia (his girlfriend) and Lada were both excited to see him

Daniel sealing the plastic on the walls with silicone

Daniel trying to get his brother to try the Pepsi cake at coffee time-
he ate a teeny- tiny piece

Losha cleaning the ceiling

Jeremy doing electrical work

Dan's still caulking- he did it all day- he got pretty good at it too

Garry has decided to build a hay shed over near the new barn- where the pyramid of straw has been the last two years. Early in the week they were sure they didn't have enough work to keep everyone busy, but now the are hurrying to finish because student church is at 6 pm tonight, so that is the deadline.

Building trusses inside and cutting outside

Doug nailing

and Garry

Later Garry said they were out of nails for the guns and did the last three trusses by hand. Victor had phoned all over Ukraine to find more nails for it on Monday, I think.

However, last I heard, the nail gun is staying here. Probably in my house with the rest of the Canadian tools. Too many disappeared over the summer, so now Garry keeps them here.

Garry explaining to Vika what the trusses are going to be for
and where it will be- novi ferm (the new farm)

Roy and Marcie cutting and carrying
She worked almost all day outside today

Project three that they added to the list was a deck on the back of the school from last year to replace the skinny steps, which were knocked off earlier in the week by one of the students. They started on it yesterday and are getting it done this afternoon.

Maria was recruited to paint wood preservative on the deck boards

and Karina and our visitors Denis and Alice-
Victor's son and daughter-in-law

Jack said it was a fun newlywed date

I walked down the street- by the way it was the first shirtsleeve weather we've had since they arrived- after lunch and took some photos. Of course I needed some of the bee boxes Peter has been building all week. It was one of the original projects and Peter worked by himself most of the week. One day we forget to bring him coffee!

Looking good- we'll be getting new bees in May for them

Well, since it was so warm and they were down the street near the store, they had ice cream instead of coffee break in the afternoon like they did last year. The lady at the store had told Garry she had stocked up on ice cream bars when she heard they were coming.

 We pushed dinner to after the church meeting at school, and the guys and Marcie arrived at the house by 5:40. A couple even got to shower before heading to the school. All the projects had been completed, too.

The completed deck

Karina, Ira and Karina before church started

the Canadians

plus one- this 4 year old? village girl helped them all afternoon
at the shop and came to church on her own too

We had a great time at church, with alternating   English and Russian songs, Roy and the youngest team member, Dan made a few remarks which Maria translated in Russian. Then a few more songs and Andrey Spak, the usual speaker, spoke briefly. Maria translated into English for us.

Now the Pray for Ukraine song in Ukrainian

When we "How Great Thou Art" in English, some sang it in Russian, too

Dan speaking

Roy with that little girl from way up the street
she came by bike by herself- only in Ukraine

Andrey preaching

The kids found the demo toy tractors

  Jack lead a round on the guitar in Russian for everyone, and we sang Jesus Loves Me in English (my greatest achievement in English class every student can sing the Yes Jesus Loves Me line) before the closing prayer.

after church, we had a few neighborhood kids tonight

Then I walked fast toward the setting sun as soon as church was over to get dinner finished and on the table. Everyone else stayed a for a few minutes during the fellowship and cookie time. I forgot to take a photo at dinner, tonight it was just Maria, Victor and the teams with us. We had Mashed Potato Iced Meatloaf, my April Fools special and fried chopped cabbage, onion, mushroom and grated carrots with dill.






Then the BC guys were busy sorting and packing, while Manitoba (or the Canadian team as Jack called them one morning) played games. Victor is (hopefully) sleeping on the living room pull out couch so he can get an early start with the five guys in the morning, The chicks are cheeping right now as I finish this post in the my room, and he's right next to the box.