When we heard there was a big ice sculpture festival in a small city about an hour away from us, we decided we had to check that out.  This is the kind of thing we anticipated attending in the Baltics when we moved here!  So one Saturday morning, we loaded up the van and headed to Jelgava for the twentieth annual international ice sculpting festival.  The festival brings together 33 professional sculptures from 10 countries, and it was really amazing what they came up with.  This year's theme was "dreams," and the entries and creations were very creative.

Jelgava straddles the river Lielupe, and the sculture gardens were on both sides of the river and a few blocks away at a city park.  We parked above the river and started at the city park, admiring the circus-like atmosphere of the festival and the ice (it was really cold).  Bri bought the kids some pastries and me some sausage and chicken.  Here's Thomas trying something new: We also bought some sweets and these nuts in a fruit condense that taste like a strawberry twizzler (we all tried it before we threw it away.  ; ).I love the babushkas and their head coverings!

In the park, the organizers had made a giant ice slide (did I mention it was really cold?), and our kids and half the kids from Jelgava were having a blast riding down this slide, standing up while riding down the slide, riding it backwards, riding it lying down, etc.And an ice maze!

After Bri bought Rhea and me some hand-knit Latvian wool socks (it was cold!), we headed down the hill to the main event by the river.  There, we walked along the exhibition, admiring the entries and seeing which ones had won what and where the sculptors were from (all over the world!).

 
 
 

After picking up some emergency hot chocolate (IT WAS COLD!!!), we crossed the large footbridge to the other side, where larger ice sculptures were set up in tents, and again admired the sculptures and the talent and imagination behind them.

By that point, we were COLD and decided we had got our money's worth out of the event, crossed the bridge, and made our way to the car.  We then took advantage of one of the great benefits of being in Europe and stopped by McDonalds on the way home, picked up dinner, headed home, and GOT WARM! : )  We had a great time in Jelgava, and will go back next year for the twenty-first festival (with more socks, sweaters, jackets, scarves, gloves….).  

Guest blogger Briant here.  One of the best things about being in the foreign service is having my kids close to full-time Elders and Sisters.  Growing up in Oregon, my family was very close to the missionaries, and had them over and interacted with them frequently.  In a very real sense, these elders were like big brothers to me and my siblings – practical and palpable exemplars of the kinds of quality young adults we could become, and their example of love, service, and righteousness infused a lot of our childhood.  Mick had similar experiences growing up in Southern California.  When we lived in Alpine, there was one set of elders assigned to the three stakes (appx 30 congregations) in Alpine, and I think we physically saw the elders three times in seven years – there simply was no opportunity in Utah to have that intimate and sententious relationship with the elders that both Mick and I had growing up, and I knew that was a lost opportunity for my kids. 

Fast forward to Angola and now Latvia, and we have had our missionaries around us in spades.  In Angola, I was the ward mission leader, and every week I had at least four elders and a couple of branch members over for dinner to talk about the missionaries' efforts and what we as a branch could do to support their efforts to teach about what our church believes and to support them personally.  I think since joining the foreign service we have cooked for close to 50 missionaries and local members, and my kids have had close and meaningful relationships with these good elders and sisters. 

As we have got to know these elders and sisters, they have all loved and supported my little family and its unique needs with love and genuine feeling, and they have given back to us as much or more as we have given them.  I know they love the little piece of America and family and home that we represent for them – a chance to occasionally "come home" for a meal and some family time – but I truly believe we get more out of it than they do, and I am grateful beyond words for the love and support, and above all the example, that they give to me and my family. 

While all of the elders and sisters are special to us, a few of them have really stood out as particularly impactful in the lives of our family.  One of these elders – Elder Krommenhoek – was one of the mission president's APs and made a close association with the kids, particularly with Thomas.

Every time they see Elder Krommenhoek, the kids play games with him, tell him riddles, and otherwise connect with him because Elder Krommenhoek is genuinely interested in their lives and loves them and they can feel it.  For Christmas, Elder Krommenhoek gave Thomas a miniature Christus statue, and Thomas made a paper quilling flower for Elder Krommenhoek.  Every time we had Elder Krommenhoek and his companions over for Sunday dinner they gave us meaningful, thoughtful lessons, and our admiration for Elder Krommenhoek grew. 

As happens with all of our missionaries, the time has come for Elder Krommenhoek to leave us.  The Baltic mission takes in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, and Belarus, and Elder Krommenhoek is an Estonian-speaking missionary and has headed back to Estonia for the last couple of months of his mission before going home.  On his last Sunday with us, we enjoyed his friendship and his warmth one last time, and the kids listened with fixed attention to his words on Jesus and the Christian life that he taught them one last time.  He also left a CTR necktie for Thomas.  Maybe he can save it for his own mission?  ;)We wish Elder Krommenhoek luck and hope to see him again someday.  But his influence – and that of the other missionaries that surround us – permeates our home and our lives.  As a father trying to teach my kids to grow up and meet their spiritual potential, what more could I ask for?  I am grateful that Thomas and Savvy and Rhea are growing up with Elder Krommenhoek's example – and that of Elder Yost, and Elder Mitchell, and Elder Siquafenge, Elder Cook, Elder Alfredo, Sister Burton, Sister Taylor, and dozens of others – firmly before them.  They have a pattern and an ideal for what they can become, and I see them filling that mold slowly but surely.  If that were all we got out of joining the foreign service, that would be enough and more.   

     
       
         Bri is the oldest in his family and his parents had four daughters before his younger brother Gord was born twelve years later.  So when Bri's sister Lisa met and married a great guy named Rich, Bri really bonded with his new brother-in-law both at BYU when they were all there together and later when Bri was in grad school in Champaign and Lisa and Rich lived in Chicago.  We lived close to each other in Utah for several years as well, and my kids absolutely adore Rich and Lisa and their kids.  So when Rich told Bri that they would be coming to Riga for a few days on the tail end of a trip to England where Rich's family is from, we were all very excited to have them.

          Lisa and Rich made it through the airport on a Tuesday night in just under an hour (what is with that processing time!!!) after Lisa borrowed a phone and Bri was able to explain in Russian to the intake officer who he was and that these were his guests.  Bri took the next day off, and after getting the kids off to school, Lisa and Rich woke up, we ate breakfast together, and we all headed into Riga to explore.  We took them on our "greatest hits" tour from the presidential palace through the Dome Square, on to the Convent Yard and St. John's church.

We also stopped by the statue of the Bremen Town Singers (animals) and St. Peter's cathedral.

Amazing stain glass!

Lunch at Province, Latvian Cuisine.And lastly, the House of the Blackheads.We then pushed on to the Central Market's zeppelin hangers, and Rich and Lisa enjoyed some pastries and donuts along with the pre-war vibe and heavy Russian presence there.  We had fun trying to figure out what the meats were in the meat hanger as well.  ;)  We made it back to the car and home to pick up the kids from school, who were overjoyed to see Rich and Lisa for their first time.  Rich and Lisa were good to humor us, playing games and hanging out with the kids as Bri made dinner and we caught up.

Next morning Rich slept in a bit (late night conference call – hard to be nine hours ahead of Utah), and I caught up with Rich and Lisa at home in the morning before we all headed to the embassy for lunch with Bri.  Bri gave them the tour and introduced them to his staff in consular, and we had a nice lunch.  After lunch, we said goodbye to Bri, Lisa and Rich dropped me off at the house, and the two of them took the van and went exploring at the beach in Jurmala and up the coast for a few hours.  That night, we again caught up and played games (including "what would you rather--this or that?") and enjoyed having our family close to us.Rhea snuck out of bed for one last "goodbye" and "I love you" before going to bed.Friday morning, Bri got up early with Rich and Lisa and prepared to go to the airport.  The kids all wanted to say goodbye and got up and gave hugs and kisses before they left for the airport.  The visit was great and we loved catching up with Rich and Lisa.  We're trying to talk them into coming back when it's warm and there's green again – we're so glad they came and saw us!

After years of having dentists in the states tell us that we need to get braces on our kids, and "the earlier, the better," we finally got them on our 13 year-old Thomas. We didn't have access to orthodontists in Angola, and we were in Virginia for only 8 months after that, so we didn't think we should start the process there because we had heard that orthodontists will take the braces off and start over if you come to them with braces already on because they don't like to finish other dentists' work. And they charge you all over again for what they do. We lucked out, and are in a place where medical and dental services are cheap! The standard of care is not as high as the U.S., but it's cheaper anyway, so we're taking advantage of it.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, the dentists are very conservative here on when they start orthodontia work on kids. In the states, we were being pressured to get our kids into an orthodontist when they were 7 years old. And here I am in Latvia, asking the dentist why she's not putting braces on the bottom teeth too. She said that the roots Thomas' bottom teeth aren't as mature yet, so we need to wait, maybe 6 months. She also wouldn't start putting braces on Savannah's teeth just because of one baby tooth that she still has. She wouldn't pull the tooth because she wants to let nature take its course. Again, in the states, they have no problem pulling teeth (I myself had 8 teeth pulled when I got my braces). But when I asked why we pull teeth in the states, the dentist explained that we end up going through the phases multiple times waiting for the teeth to grow in instead of letting the teeth fall out, grow in, and then put braces on (maybe this is why orthodontists make such good money huh?). The logic is sound to me and I appreciate that she's not trying to make money off of me in that way! I'm hoping that we can get Thomas' bottom braces on this summer and Savannah can get her braces on as well. Unfortunately, Rhea will have to wait, and I'm guessing our next post won't be as cheap or as good. It's probably only going to be about $1500 per child instead of $6,000-8,000 as was quoted to me at a free consultation I took the kids to in Virginia when we moved back from Africa (it was going to be $150 per child but they waived it because I was referred by a current patient). Orthodontia work here in Latvia is a huge financial blessing for us!

                                                                              Before:Getting a chance to check out the new look.  ;)

Here's Thomas' memory and perspective on braces:

Getting braces felt fine. It did not hurt as much as I thought. My lips were dry so they started to bleed after having my mouth open. The first week with them on felt horrible. I kept feeling like my teeth were moving and I always felt like my braces were falling off when they were really not.

After the first week or so, my braces started to feel a part of my teeth. I eat gum, apples, and carrots all the time and my braces feel just fine. When I first got them on, I thought that they were going to distract me in my classes. They turned out to not though.

Brushing my teeth with braces is essential. I something, all of the sudden, swallow something from my meal before. You brush your teeth normal like you would without braces first. Flossing is a little harder. You have to other tools that also help you clean places into your mouth that cannot be reached with a normal toothbrush.

Overall, I don’t mind my braces at all. I see that they are really moving my teeth in the correct place. I forget I have them on my teeth. When you eat, that is when you feel the braces. I definitely recommend them to anyone.

(March 22 update: He's had them on for a few months now, and his teeth are moving together nicely!).