Happy Birthday, Matthew!

OK, so we don't have a lot going on. Our teacher has gone on her vacation, meaning we have a week-long break from our regular studies. The only disadvantage to this is the lack of things to blog about. Without our regular updates from the world of Russian study (I finally remembered the word for "sidewalk" yesterday in an actual conversation, if that counts), we're left with just cutesy pictures of the boys.

And speaking of which, it was Matthew's birthday last week, so we did have at least one blog-worthy event. I have a theory about 1st birthdays (not a very controversial one, honestly, as it's probably obvious to just about everyone) that the purpose of the celebration is for the mother and not the child.

Since it was a day to celebrate all the hard work the lovely B has put in over the past year, we rewarded her by inviting guests over and forcing her to prepare food. I know, you're thinking that doesn't sound like a "reward" to you, but you're not B. Nothing makes her happier than making food for other people, particularly if it involves chocolate. Hence, Matthew celebrated with a chocolate cupcake. His reaction was, well, "nonplussed" would be putting it generously.

You can also see his reaction in full via the video below. I think it's safe to say that he's our "health-food child."

All was not lost, however; he did get some presents to turn his frown upside down. But mostly not, since he kept his thumb firmly in his mouth the entire evening, thus not permitting a frown to form in the first place.

And just because I have absolutely nothing else to say, here's a photo of Steven, modeling the "punk" look for his mother. I think his facial expression conveys everything he needs to say about the fact that he's being paraded around for her amusement:

And that's about it. Sorry this is a post devoid of our regular witticisms and news. We really are doing fine, just continuing to plug along with our language study. The end of our time in Moscow is in sight, though, with only two or so months left here before we pack up and head east. We've even started to sell some of our furniture and other things that aren't going with us, in an effort to help fund the move. Please be thinking about all our moving details as we try to work all that out.

Since it's a bit of a sparse post, I'll leave you with this photo from the ever-funny Fail Blog, for your amusement: