Ana's Favorite YouTube Videos

One thing Ana loves is watching YouTube with me. I was hoping to find some Russian songs or cartoons that would be familiar to her. She loved the clips of the Russian Children's Choir immediately, and even knocks my hand away if I try to touch the mouse when one of the videos is playing. As for cartoons, the only one she really likes is "Nu, Pogodi", which we also have on DVD from one of the markets in Ukraine. The seller told me that I HAD to buy it, because it was the greatest Russian cartoon of all time. Ana agrees, and now we have to watch the DVD every morning before school. In any case here's 3 of her favorites from youtube:

I actually learned this song in Russian school. "Let there always be the sun, let there always be the sky, let there always be Mama, let there always be me." Aw.


This one's about a lost dog. I like how the audience passes a toy dog down the aisles to the little girl singer.


This is the first episode of "Nu, Pogodi!" ("Just you wait!"). It's like Tom and Jerry but much funnier.

Ana Dancing

I finally figured out how to post videos. Here's one of Ana dancing around the living room.

Christmas Parade

1. Ana on Franklin Street waiting for the parade to start
2. Ana and the Caribou Coffee reindeer (or caribou?)
3. Stacy and Ana in front of Kidzu
4. Ana in a tutu that she got from her neighbor Kate

[Robin]
The Christmas season has officially started. We have tried to engage her by getting her to open the advent calendar with chocolate pieces behind doors each day. And this weekend Ana and I went to our area's Christmas parade. Ana was supposed to ride on the Kidzu Museum float with her cousins, but wanted nothing to do with it when we arrived at the float. So we walked down the street and took a seat in front of Kidzu and watched the parade from there with Stacy and Carmen. Ana was so cute when the Caribou character came by us. She went up and took his hand. She also was quite taken with the marching bands and a kids "rock" group that came by on a float.

We also went to a neighbor's yard sale and picked up a number of things for Ana. Their daughter is about four years older, so there were some great hand-me-downs including the pink tutu. As soon as she got up this morning she wanted to put it on. She is a really girlie-girl.

We went to a neighbor's tree/yard X-mas lighting tonight. We stood in the pitch dark street and did a countdown with about 30 of our neighbors and their kids. When the lights came on their whole yard and house were filled with snowman, blinking lights and reindeer. There was a round of applause for the festive look. They had a large blow-up snowglobe with snowman that rotated inside and this received oohs and aahs from the kids. Ana thought this was marvelous. She also went with Carmen to "pet" the reindeer. It was super cute seeing her reach her hand out to touch the lighted animal.

The Bean

1. Ana insisted on getting this Santa hat at the grocery store.
2. Ana in new outfit from Grandpapa and Memama
3. Memama and Robin helping Ana try on her new PJ's
4. The keyboard duo of Ana and cousin Karsten
5. [Late addition from Colleen's blog] Nikolai the driver (one of our favorite people in Ukraine) in Borispol Airport with Colleen's daughters, Lilly and Vivian.