Hodge Podge

Here are some random pictures that I took the time to take, so I'm sharing them. This first one is of papyrus plants. Once you see them, it's easy to see how Moses mother could have made his little boat and hide him among the reeds.

This picture is of some art work we saw when we stopped at the equator. I couldn't help but ask Charlotte if she thinks it would match the lovely, abstract paintings that are sitting in her garage? ;)

It's not every day you meet someone named "Obadiah" so when I had a Joel, Amos, and Obadiah in the same room - I just had to take a picture! So here they are in correct order.

We completed our homestay today and checked into a local hotel. There is a pool and a trampoline so the kids are happy. It'll probably take Dade a couple of hours in the pool before his feet turn completely pink again. I learned some very exciting news the other night...I can get a good pedicure here for about $5-10.

The pictures have been added, now a day later. The pool is quite cool, enough that Joel didn't even ask me to get in. He is such a good man! The kids played for quite sometime despite the temperature and Dade's feet are now a lovely shade of pink! The water is quite deep. Dara can't even reach in the shallow end so thankfully there were two inner tubes available.

Mukasas

Our host family is amazing. The couple is Amos and Perry Mukasa. They have 6 boys and 1 girl. They have embraced and welcomed us better than I could have possibly dreamed. Tonight Boris (that's not his given name but his nickname and I cannot say his given name very well), helped me - or better - allowed me to help him chapatis. It's a round bread that they very much enjoy. I made them once with my pastor's wife, but that was a couple of years ago and I was clueless enough to not confess ever having been taught before.

This is a picture of Boris and me with the various stages...Boris is holding the finished project and I have a ball of dough and a rolled, uncooked chapati. Boris is 20 years old and wants to be an engineer. He is hoping to find out if he is accepted into a university this coming Monday. I told that maybe we should start a restaurant and specialize in chapatis!

It soon became a family affair (and this was all happening after 8pm. I think we finished by 8:45 or so.) Joel was watching it cook over this wee (that's how all of our British and Scottish friends say "little" and I kind of like it - it's fun to use. You should give it a try, anyway...). There is a wee charcoal stove that is very effective, more economical and apparently makes chapatis better. These were the best tasting chapatis I've ever had, albeit things do taste better when you've worked and made them yourself.

Dade was enthralled by the cooking process - specifically the fire. When Dara got into the game, she just really wanted to use the last little bit as play-do. (Something, I have a recipe for and will need to make pretty soon.) I think Boris thought Dara was crazy because she kept trying to draw faces in the dough. He was, however, quite disappointed that she refused to try the chapati. Dade, thankfully, made up for her with his enthusiastic appreciation.

The kids have had a blast playing with the kids but today spent the day with our team leaders kids so we could focus easier. The children here leave for school at 6:30 am and return at 6 pm. And our kids would be terribly lonely without them.

I don't know if every Christian, Ugandan family is similar, but the Mukasas have this great tradition of singing 1-2 hymns together with a time of prayer before bed. I think we'll definitely be incorporating that into our lives. It's great.

This last picture is of us standing with one leg in each hemispehere (unfortunately you can't tell which is which - you'll have to take our word for it) We crossed over on our way to Mbara.

Kampala pictures

Here are some of the pictures from Kampala. I don't know if you can see all of the white small vans, "taxis", from this angle, but there were hundreds! We road them into town. They are packed with at least 10 people and cost about 40 cents/per seat to get into town. The kids were free because they sat on our laps. This is the taxi park where we would go to find one to take us back to the inn.

I'm not sure we've walked so much since we arrived. Definitely not with so many people around. I didn't take many pictures because I had a hold of Dade's hand the entire time. It was quite overwhelming. (The praise is that today we went and had a walking tour of Mbarara and it is quite delightful - I'll post about that another time - first things first.)

We stayed out of town a bit at Matoke Inn (matoke is the green banana that is found everywhere here). This is a guest house run by AIM and there are 3 dogs - which made it a great place...especially for Dara. This is Gizmo, whom Dara claimed as her favorite.This beautiful German Shepherd is Maddox, whom Dade enjoyed very much. Except when Dade threw his stick and Maddox went and retrieved it and broke it when he bit down. Dade was given strict instructions not to tease Maddox as he is trained as a guard dog. Thankfully all of Dade's skin is still intact and they have friends they will look forward to meeting again at Matoke Inn. The third dog is Shuny and she is quite old and therefore not all that playful.

Well, I am off to continue my language lesson with our hostess, Perry. She is so patient and kind as I ask her to spell each word for me. Please pray for my ears to hear and understand, especially because it seems that Ugandans speak very softly...or, I'm losing my hearing. Hopefully it's not the latter.

I can't wait to catch up on my blogging to share with you what God is doing here. But I feel you'll understand things better if I go in order...so, you'll just have to keep reading. :) Know that God is alive and taking care of us here. He is so faithful. If you are reading this and can't say an "Amen" then please find someone to help you understand. :)

We're still here!

I just wanted to let you know we've arrived. We spent two days in Kampala, the capital city. I have pictures but they're still in my camera. It was a very busy two days. Uganda is a beatiful country. While in Kamala, we walked a lot of the down town area. I don't know that I've ever been around so many people. I'll definitely try to put some pictures when I get the chance - it was a bit overwhelming. We were able to find "chips" (french fries) and pringles and it helped the kids a lot.

We arrived in Mbarara on Saturday and celebrated by meeting the team of people we'll be working with. There is such a neat team and I am so grateful that we're able to be a part of it. There's a girl from Canada who is 8 (Judah) and her brother is 6(Samuel)! There is a single girl from the United Kingdom (Zhilla) and many more.

On a side note, did you know that the rest of the world says the letter 'z' as 'zed'? So if I were spelling Zhilla's name, I'd say "z-h-i-l-l-a". Everyone else says "zed-h-i-l-l-a". It's very interesting. And if anyone gets some time and would like to make a list of conversions from english to metric (ex. miles to kilometers andfarenheit to celsius), I'd really appreciate an email. I could look it up on line, but it takes so long.

Well, I need to go...we are all adjusting. Please pray for the kids eating. I'm confident that one day it'll get better, but the sooner the better in my opinion. Thank you all for your prayers - please don't stop.

Airport Lessons

Well, we are behind security and waiting for our flight to Entebbe, Uganda. Our good friend from Mayfield, George, got to take us to the airport. It is truly amazing how God binds our hearts to those we meet.

We have been trying to figure out over the last two days in Nairobi, exactly how much we were going to have to pay for our extra baggage. Based on what others had found out, we knew we would be over, but had no idea how much that would cost. The home office in Pearl River told us we were each allowed 30kilos (approx 60lbs) per person and that we would pay $3.50 per kilo for anything over that. However, in recent days we had heard that it might be as high as $7 per kilo. With all of our luggage that would have cost us about $1000.00!!!!!!!

Guess how much we paid....................$297.00!!!!!! Not sure what that comes out to per kilo, but needless to say, we were pleasantly surprised. They even let us use 30 kilos as our maximum weight instead of the 20 kilos it should have been due to the regional flight (Entebbe is only a 1 hour flight from Nairboi). I tipped the guy helping us get our bags to the counter 500 shillings - that's about $6.50 in US dollars. After we got through the line, we had to fill out our exit forms. As we were trying to figure out what to fill out, one of the other fellows that helped with our bags approached us wanting to know if we had tipped the other guy and if so, how much. I think I might have started a fight! Great......my last day in Kenya for over a year and I start a fight in the airport. You live and learn!!!!

The hard part was still saying goodbye to all those still at Mayfield when we left. The first group left at 4:30am and needless to say, I did not get up to see them off - blessings on you Wilsons, Eisbrenners, Margaux, and of course Hannah (the kids still miss you and Jenny!!!!). The Mazzas and Kathryn left this morning around 6:30 and we were still waking up. We will miss you guys! And then finally to the last of our ABO group - Jennifer, Mark, Ana, Cintia, Elizabeth, Joel, Little Isaiah, Rob, Char, and Little Micah.....don't think I left anyone else from ABO out. It was hard to say goodbye, but we are already planning times to see many of these dear friends.

Next update will be from Uganda - miss all of you back home and look forward to meeting all of you in our new home!

On the road again..

Africa Based Orientation is over and we are off to our final destination (in a couple of days). We are back in Nairobi at the Mayfield guest house. We will leave here Thursday morning and fly to Uganda. We will stay at a guest house in the capital, Kampala, for 3 nights. Tonight we had pizza for dinner! We are so excited but, to be honest, it's the first time I've had to use Tums since we arrived. I think I may have been too happy to have pizza. :) We have the same room we had last time and the kids ran in and dropped their backpacks on the floor and ran out to play as if they were home. It warmed my heart in a special way to see how comfortable we all are - at least here.

Before we left, back at Scott Theological College, I finally took these pictures I had wanted...

of the avocado tree (it's huge!)

and the crow with the white vest.
We had to say goodbye to Jenny, a very special lady whom we have all grown to love, today. She is off to be a teacher at Rift Valley Academy and I was surprised at the emotions that overtook me. It was like having a little sister we were leaving behind. We thank God so much for her. It's only the beginning of some difficult "goodbyes". I thought those were over when we left home. I guess not. Tomorrow night we tell Hannah "goodbye" as well. She is off to Namibia to work in an orphanage. Here's a few pictures of Jenny and Hannah...

On our "safari"

Dara and Hannah at the top of the mountain before Joel twisted his ankle.
Jenny and Dade in a tuk-tuk (a little vehicle that's not called a tatu like I had said in a previous blog) :)

Joel and Jenny were picked along with others to be a part of a skit for "family fun night". Joel was an Indian chief.

God has been so faithful and has taught us so much. We have been blessed with amazing friends from all around the world and who are heading to places all over Africa. Sometimes it doesn't even feel like we've actually made it to Africa. We can obviously look around and see that we are not in Texas anymore, but life has not been as difficult as I thought it would have been. Life is not necessarily as easy, but I still haven't had a hard time. I anticipate this changing because one day I'll have to wash my own clothes and cook my own food. But I have an amazing assurance that God will take care of all my worries for the future too. We serve a great God who care about us intimately and completely. We are so blessed!

This is just a great picture (from the top of the mountain - again - before the twisted ankle)that Hannah took. She gave it to me and it's just too good to not share.

Home Visit

Part of our orientation to Africa is called a home visit. We were sent to a home with 9 other people. I have to admit I was pretty surprised that we would be going somewhere they would be able to host 13 people. Much to my delight we were sent to Exodus Children's Development Center.

This is a local Christian home for orphans. Presently they have 22 children in residence. There are 7 boys and 15 girls. These were some of the happiest kids I've seen considering their circumstances. This is the boys room. There are only these 2 sets of bunk beds for all 7 of them. 2 older boys each have their own bed. The younger 5 boys share the second bed. Their rooms were so neat and they were so proud to show us their space.

The girls share a room this same size. There were 3 sets of bunk beds and then another bed in the midst of them. It was amazing to see how they didn't complain about anything. Truly amazing. The kids are allowed to live there as long as they need. They have 2 "kids" who are now adults who help support the center. The director and his assistant are very active in the kids life (it's only them and two other ladies who work with the kids). Their focus is on helping them learn the Bible, learn how to give to their communities, do well on their studies (most of the children are in the top of their classes), and for the boys - ladies first! (This is a difficult concept for many men on this amazing continent).

The director was telling us how they have often wondered how God would supply enough food for the children. One day they had no food for dinner and they sat down to pray - the phone rang with someone calling to say they had some food they would like to give. How amazing to see God work in such a tangible way!

Each child has an amazing story of God's grace and provision. This young boy is the youngest in the home. His name is Barracka, which means blessing. His mother gave him the name "suffering" so when he came to the center, he received a new name. Because of the deformity in his hands, his mother tried to kill him 3 times. His grandmother walked in on the last attempt and called the center. Dade took this picture while Barracka was being silly. :)

The kids sang songs for us and told us what they wanted to be when they grow up. Then we got serious and played "net ball". It's very similar to basketball with a hint of soccer, but brutal. I kept praying for Joel's ankle and it is a testimony to God's grace that after a little over 2 hours, his ankle was no more swollen and sore than it had been on the previous day! God is so good.

This young lady is Lillian. She and Joel were buddies and she is one tough goalie! She wants to be a doctor when she grows up.

My special friends were Faith (on the far left) and Momina (Joseph). Momina means "finished". He is the youngest of 6 boys and is 11 years old (even though he is significantly smaller than Dade). His mother is still living but is "suffering". Faith's brother and mother both died last year. She is 13 years old and has a beautiful voice. She wants to be a doctor as well.
It was a great visit that went late into the night. The kids walked us back to our campus, about 30 minutes away, around 9 pm. I could not have asked for a better time. Dara and Dade did very well and I think they learned a lot as well. Please remember these kids in your prayers. They are precious.

A Market & A M0$que

Here are the pictures from the market (the internet is acting super fast - I think I might pass out)...

It was very crowded with people and tons of veggies and fruits all neatly piled up.

Most everyone sat under umbrellas which made the whole place quite shaded - nice. Most of them had the same foods - I wonder how they ever make money...everyone is selling the same stuff! How do you know whom to buy from? There was an ample supply of food but not very many buyers. It just left me wondering how they survive.

It definitely was a family affair with lots of little kids around. This little one was smiling and jumping like crazy, but as soon as I asked his mom if I could take his picture he quit smiling. This was the second picture and I got a bit of a smile. Most kids wear this kind of hoodie but it's not attached to a jacket or anything. The kids here just laugh and smile so much. The older ones laugh at us like crazy when we walk by, we just laugh with them :)

On Tuesday we went to a M0$que (I'm spelling it like this so searches of the internet won't find my blog - I'll explain more another day). It was such a "neat" experience. It is located by an intersection so travelers who need to pray can come by conveniently. It was a very narrow building - which surprised me. There was a courtyard with water spickets for washing and then an open porch type of space and then the main room. Very interesting.

Here I am with my head covered. The young lady with me is Jenny, one of the single ladies who has made our life much better here. Please pray for us (especially the kids) as we think about leaving in a week. We will miss her and the others so much when we head for Uganda and they go their own way.
We had to enter the "place" through the back door and take our shoes off.
Then we had to look through these little holes which made it very difficult to really observe what happens - I guess the women who come are praying instead of watching... I held my camera above my head and this is what I saw. I didn't keep the pictures of the men who came in - thought it was a bit intrusive (not like this isn't).
It was an interesting experience as we were able to visit with the leaders and men afterwards. My heart breaks for these people who are so passionately lost. They are so convinced they are in the right but they are so far from the truth. I'm thankful for the chance to learn and see what I may never have the opportunity to see again. Please pray for these people. God loves them just as much as He does you and me.

Finally, here is a picture of Joel's toes. We find them to be impressive. Please keep praying for his ankle. It is still very tender. Thanks for lifting us up!

Laundry and Market

First, laundry...there is a lovely lady, Mary, who will wash our clothes here. She'll wash a pillow case full for about $4.50. It saves me lots of time and back ache so we give here our business regularly. She washes everything by hand and then lays them out on the grass to dry. I try to go out in the early afternoon and flip over the pants so the pockets dry better. You have to be sure to shake everything out completely to make sure the ants are all off. When the clothes are still damp, there are ants everywhere! But when they dry, the ants are usually off. My pajamas aren't as soft as they used to be, but I guess that's just how it goes. Personally, I see Mary as a blessing and am so grateful that she gets this extra income when we come here to study culture.

Today we went on a "scavenger hunt" through our town. It was interesting and tiring. We road a matatu to town and went to a chicken place for lunch.

To be honest, the chicken is not all that flavorful, but there are "chips" or french fries that are quite good. We fed all 4 of us for less than $15. We can't eat at McDonald's for less than that.

I'll write more later (hopefully, later today) about our experience at the market. We are learning so much and God is so faithful. Please continue to pray for the sale of our house, they are coming up with a creative way to possibly get it done. We know God wants us here - therefore, He'll take care of the house, but your prayers are still very much appreciated. Gotta run!

Adventures

Pop quiz...Is this picture from (a) the panhandle of Texas or (b) a wild life preserve in Kenya? Okay, so I know it's easy to figure out the answer, but it does kind of remind you of Texas, doesn't it?

On our way to the small wild life preserve we rode - well packed- in two land rovers.

We passed many little "shopping strips" such as this. Usually there's alot of nothing around them - just all of a sudden there's another set of stores. I don't know if you can see, but the butchery is very very close to the clinic. Somehow I don't know how those judging cleanliness would feel.

I'm not sure what the Rotary Club of Machakos does exactly but at least. Do you think this is an example of the West influencing Africa? :)

Here is a matatu (sp?) or local transportation. I've only ridden in the smaller tatus - not yet brave enough for the larger vehicles. Can you see the two people riding on top?

Here's a local college of Engineering & Computer. Weldon, we'll get you a few resumes if you want? :)Once we arrived at the wild life preserve, we were able to ride on top of the land rovers. Dade wanted down and waited until we were further into the drive.

Here's another quiz, how many giraffes can you find in this picture?

The answer is 3. This wasn't one of the bigger preserves. The only animals were: giraffes, wildabeast (I can't even spell that), zebras, a variety of antelopes, ostiches, and cows.

This is a group of girls who decided it would be fun to chase after a herd of zebras. I think I would have done it as well if we found another herd that didn't have wildabeast intermingled, but alas - there wasn't another herd like this one.

Finally, as we were leaving, there was a huge male giraffe by the entrance. We tried to show how close we were. It was such a nice and relaxing day (and thank you, Lord, for the internet access to share it!)!

Pictures - finally

Finally, I have a few pictures. The first is of our first day here. Upon arrival, Dara and Dade found the goats straight away. Later Dara was quite upset because one of the nationals was "cruel" to the goat. I think they pulled on it somehow and it was limping. Her love for all nature is still very strong!

Here is a picture of the bathroom situation - we're getting used to it. :)
And, lastly, here is Joel's beautifully colored ankle. I'm sure the colors will improve over the next few days, but here it is as of last night. You can still see how swollen it is around his toes. He's getting better each day - thank you for your prayers.

Well, I'm off to get ready for the day - hope you enjoy the pictures a bit - this next one is Dara and Mercy (Marcy) - this is the little girl that held Dara's hand most of the way up and back down the mountain. If we can get it to upload, the last pic will be the little town at the top of the mountain.