Happy Holidays.

Tanya calls me every day on Skype.  Luda can go home from hospital on Tuesday, which is good news for all. She recovered very quickly and is walking without pain.

We had "Catholic" Christmas, as Tanya calls it, dinner here.  Lina and Sveta came early and we baked cookies and prepared the meal.  Supper wasn't very English Christmas traditional but there was an overabundance of food, which is traditional everywhere.

Masha was off on a three day school excursion to Kyiv and L'viv.  Andrei had to work, as usual.  When you manage some 70 men doing security work there are always problems and all occur at night.  Tania and her mom came and of course Dasha.  We had enough food for 10, so I sent as much home as people would take.

Yesterday I ate the rest of the cookies so today I had to cook.  I made Enthusiasm Soup aka Refrigerator Soup.  The recipe I learned from my mother-in-law many years ago.

Tomorrow morning I am off to Pereyaslav-Khmelnitsky to visit my friends Artur and Oksana for the night, with a stop off at a feedlot near Boryspol to check out Artur's client's feeding problems.  The owner will meet me at the train in Kyiv.  He is supposed to find me some boots.  Size 49 (13). I wish him luck. I am looking forward to the visit more than to the feedlot.

Christmas Cookies

Lina and Sveta, my sou-chefs

Family

Christmas morning view from our balcony

I'd have sung "I'm Dreaming of a White Christmas" but I understand it is now the official song of the American Republican and Canadian Conservative, Wildrose, and Saskatchewan Parties.