My parents visited Russia and had a great time there! So I thought I'd share some of their trip photos with our kids, along with a Russian folktale, Clever Katya.
I wanted to share a Russian folktale with you. ~~~
Once upon a time, in a village in Russia, there were two brothers. Dimitri was rich and Ivan poor, but they both kept horses. One day, Dimitri was riding a fine white stallion and Ivan was riding a little brown mare. The mare had a pretty dappled foal, and greedy Dmitri claimed that the foal was his horse. Ivan disagreed, and they brought their disagreement to the Tsar, who was clever and had a sense of humor. He said that whichever brother could correctly answer his riddles could keep the foal.
"What is the fastest thing in the word, what is the fattest, what is the softest, and what is the most precious?" asked the Tsar. Dmitri consulted his neighbor, who said the fastest thing was her husband's mare, the fattest was their pig, the softest was a quilt she had made and the most precious was her grandson. Ivan meanwhile went home and asked his wise daughter Katya, who had come to love the foal. Katya said, "The fastest thing is the wind that rushes over the Steppes. The fattest is the earth, which feeds everyone and everything on it. The softest is a child's caress...And the most precious is honesty." The Tsar was pleased with Katya's answers, and said that Ivan could keep the foal if he brought Katya to his palace in a week so he could meet this wise girl. However the Tsar demanded that if Ivan wanted to keep the foal, then he must fulfill the Tsar's request, "She must be neither on horseback nor on food, neither naked or dressed, and neither bringing a present nor empty handed."
Ivan was worried, but Katya did not see this as a challenge too hard. When the week was up, clever Katya rode into the Tsar's court, sitting on the back of a hare. She was wearing a fishing net, instead of clothes. And she held a partridge bird in her hand. The Tsar asked, "Is that a present for me?" "Take it," said Katya simply, releasing the partridge. The Tsar was intrigued and asked, "What do you and your father live on?" "Why, on the hares like these that father catches in the river and the fist I trap in the trees with this net I'm wearing," said Katya. "That's absurd!" said the Tsar. Katya modestly replied, "Not as absurd as a stallion giving birth to a foal, Your Majesty." The Tsar laughed, concluded Katya was the most clever girl in the kingdom, and asked to marry her! She agreed.
I enjoy sharing about animals with our kids, and I got some fun photos of Rosie feeding giraffes when we went to the zoo in January. So I thought I would take some time to share about giraffes! I got the information from National Geographic Kids and the coloring page thanks to a Google Images search.
Dear Friend,
Rosie's favorite animal is a giraffe! As a school field trip, we were able to visit the zoo! And Rosie was allowed to feed the giraffe! What is your favorite animal?
National Geographic Kids shares these 10 facts about giraffes:
1) Giraffes are found in the dry savannas of Africa, where they roam among the open plains and woodlands.
2) Well known for their long necks, these gentle giants are the world’s tallest living land animals. An adult male can grow to around 5.5m – that’s taller than three adult humans!
3) A giraffe’s height is helpful for keeping a look out for predators, such as lions and hyenas. Their excellent eyesight allows them to spot hungry beasts from far away, too.
4) Herbivores, giraffes only eat plants. Their favourite grub is the acacia tree, and they use their long necks to reach the leaves and buds in the treetops. Their long tongues (which grow to a whopping 53cm!) also help them pull down leaves growing way up high.
5) And boy do these guys have an appetite! They spend most of their time eating, and can guzzle up to 45kg of leaves and twigs a day!
6) Whilst they may eat a lot, giraffes don’t drink much water. This is because they get most of their water from their leafy meals, and only need to drink once every few days.
7) Giraffes are very social animals and roam around in groups. These groups, called towers, typically have around 15 members led by an adult male. The other members are females and young males.
8) To see who is stronger, males (called bulls) fight by butting their long necks and heads. This is known as “necking“. These fights aren’t usually dangerous, and end when one bull admits defeat and walks away.
9) Female giraffes give birth standing up. The result? Newborns are welcomed to the world with a 1.5m drop to the ground! Ouch! But these infants are quick to get on their feet – within 30 minutes they are standing, and only hours later they”re able to run with their mothers.
10) In the wild these beautiful creatures live for around 25 years. In captivity they live longer, and have been known to reach 40 years old.
I am praying for you! We love to walk near our home and see all the cool insects and pretty flowers and fun animals. God's creation is so beautiful!
Love,
Hannah
Happy Writing!
