Pools, Haircuts, & Goodbyes

Kitale Club Pool and Golf Course...



We went to Sister Fredas yesterday and took some of the kids that live there to the pool at the Kitale Club. They weren’t quite sure what to make of it at first but once they got used to it they loved it. We never left the kiddie pool but I think it’s going to be a weekly occurance…
Morgan, Jaci, and Elia getting ready to go in for the first time...

Elia

Cute Moses...

Esther apparently thought it was a photo shoot for Sports Illustrated...


Elia's towel was a bit too big, anyone thinking E.T...

Mini Jaci and her giant towel

Kitale club & golf course

Me & Elia


Side note, Chris has Malaria…He hasnt been feeling well for a while so when we were at Sister Freda's he got tested and found out he had Malaria...hey better that than the HIV right? Sorry that sounded insensitive...

When we got back to sister Fredas, Richard asked me to cut his hair…And being an expert at cutting hair, I accepted…

Now try and keep in mind that the last time I cut someone’s hair was in high school and he had to go to Super Cuts to get it fixed…

Next up was Allison…its still a work in progress…


Poor Jaci, Megans trying to steal her corn...


Later we had to head to the airport and say goodbye to 2 of our teammates. Now when I say airport I mean a landing strip in the middle of a corn field…No joke there was a shepherd chasing after his cow in the middle…
The Kitale "Airport"



It was sad and kind of surreal to have to say goodbye. It seemed so long ago that I had gotten here and Carol was picking me up from the airport. Now it was our turn to take her and Megan.



Have I already been out of the country for over 2 months? And it actually made me wonder if I would be ready to leave in Feb. Probably but Allison and I both said we couldn’t imagine leaving yet.
Its definitely going to be a lot quieter around the house and I already miss our old room that we all used to stay in…I totally understand though, when you know its time to head home. Its definitely not my time, Im just going to miss them being around…
To Meg and Carol, hope you guys had a fun trip home and Ill miss you a ton

I have to say today was a challenging day. No particular reason other than it was one of those days. Nothing bad happened.
Maybe I was just really tired or something but I was really worn down and my attitude was not the best. I definitely woke up on the wrong side of the bed to begin with. Then getting into the shower only to realize as I turn the nob, there is no water. For the 2nd time in 3 days…
Now I realize what the thought process is at this point…”You’re in Africa” and my response is “Yes, I know” But that doesn’t make it any better at 715 in the morning and all you want sometimes is a shower and coffee…
Call me picky or high maintenance, for the most part it’s never a big deal. But today was different, like I said I woke up on the wrong side of the bed…
So after an afternoon of rest and journaling and a little bit of crying to relieve all the stuff in my head, I feel better…I also identified the many catalysts that all added up to today’s mini meltdown…part of it had to do with missing home and my life there, as well as the inconveniences that living in Africa can present, among other things but… Ill save that for my journal…
The point of this post? I couldn’t really tell you, other than maybe show the other side that once in a while shows up
On the bright side we went to dinner at Geoffrey's house. He works at Oasis of Hope, as the co-director along with Lydia. It was awesome. His wife,Olivia, made an amazing dinner of chicken curry and chipati. Not to mention avacado ice cream for desert...That'll be a good head start to tomorrow...
This picture describes me perfectly today...this is for Allison, for multiple reasons...

Back to School, Back to School

Joseph, Jonah, Steward, Braum, and Paul


We got to see some of the Oasis boys today when we visited them at their school. Geoffrey took some of us to go talk to the “Deputy” of Kitale Forest Primary about a couple of different topics. One of which was the issue of me being a P.E. teacher there 3 times a week! I can’t even imagine…but I would be totally amped for it, so ill have to see how that figures into the schedule…

Evans snuck in there...


They looked so freaking awesome in their uniforms.
Braum and Paul

I think we caused a small riot, because most kids were on break so they ALL wanted to see the mazungus...



Paul and Evans



Jonah looking sharp...


Steward


When we got back to Oasis, I got to help with interviewing some of the current kids. Its been a while since the files have updated so we have been going through and taking new pictures and doing interviews. I really enjoyed it because I was better able to identify the kids and know their story…

The afternoon was spent at Freda’s clinic. There have been a couple extra people around the last week who have been filming footage for a documentary…you should give it a look, the directors name is Tyler and the movie is called “A Chance For Peace,” www.achanceforpeace.com.


It was their last day and Freda was having a free clinic to the community.




Umi had betrothed me to Tyler…Heres our happy family picture…

The Boys Are Back!

Today was great! We went to church at Oasis and got to see the boys! Some of the boys didn’t show up yesterday at the field so I was oh so excited to get to spend some time with them …I love getting to go to church with the boys. Since they started school we only get to see them on the weekends and they usually have chores to do so our time with them is pretty limited. They are my favorite…

I don't think Steward ever stops dancing...


Chris trying to hang with the Oasis boys...



I found Evans after the service in the corner of the church pretending he was a preacher...

We hung out after the service and got to catch up with the boys about how school was going. I found out last sunday that Moses loves Elvis Presley among some other surprising artists, so I made him a playlist of music I thought he would like and he loved it...
Next step, teach him how to dance like Elvis...


I wish we had more time at to spend with them but I think were going to get to hang out with them next Saturday...

How cute are Martin & Jonah...

Evans & Braum...they make me smile


After church we went to lunch and then to the salon. Allison was supposed to get her hair done but the hair color had not arrived from Nairobi, so we just had to make due with pedicures…


Only Caroline and Megan got theirs done because we ran out of time but just being there was a great enough experience…

Sleepover!

So I have a lot to blog about, the last couple days have been tons of fun. Even though It seems as though we have somewhat of a regular schedule now, nothing is ever the same. Theres always something different that happens…

Friday we went to a place called Discover to Recover, which is a center for children who are infected or affected by HIV/AIDS. We will go there almost every Friday for the whole day and do whatever they need for us to do. The last 2 Fridays they havn’t had much for us to do because the woman who runs it, Patricia Sawa, has been out of town. Patricia is an amazing woman who has HIV and travels all around the world speaking and counseling people on the topic of HIV. She really is truly an amazing woman. So this Friday was split up and Caroline, Megan and I helped cook their lunch, and Allison helped with office work and Chris taught and played with the kids…
We got to peel the potatoes, cut the onions & tomatoes, and lucky me I got to cut up the meat~fat, bone & all...


Later that night we went to Ben & Christine’s, who are a couple we will be working with on Wednesdays as well as some other random ministry opportunities. They invited us over for a good old fashioned sleepover...



They have 3 children of their own as well as take care of 4 orphans. I really enjoy them and love the work they are doing here. Ben is a pastor and a teacher and travels all over eastern Africa setting up schools as well as speaking and apparently he’s a master at hanging mosquito nets…He’s one of my favorites…




They made such a delicious dinner, all of my favorites were present…fried potatoes, chipati and intestines…yikes! Dinner would not have been complete without Home Alone 2: Lost in New York…

We like to snuggle...

Clinton & Caleb...

This morning we woke up and decided we wanted to go into town to buy scarves. What made it even better was that we had planned on just going home after our slumber party so we never brought a change of clothes, hence having to go into town in our PJ’s and unwashed faces. Wait it gets better, the ENTIRE family decided they wanted to go too…
But it was fun, we became a LOT closer as a result…


This afternoon was awesome. We finally got to see some of the Oasis kids since they started school. We met at Milimani school just down the street from our house…


Steward and I played basketball…


This is his idea of defense…

I know Im lame and Ive posted about this kid a ton but I just love him and I can’t stop thinking about him and he’s just the best. I got to see him again today and I swear that every time I get to see him he’s healthier and more of his personality comes out.
Today we went for a walk and he sang and talked a lot more. He’s so smart and he learns so quickly.




Chris was comparing the size of Elias' leg to his hand...




Check out Gail and her pot socks…



Allison and Gail...



Also, a side note, Sister Freda's always needs support. Everything's pretty much run in house, and the work they are able to do is phenomenal, but they dont always get paid...So consider this a shameless plug if you feel like donating, those of you who know me, know Im no good at this, but trust me, its an amazing place worth supporting...


We started our day at Oasis, which was fun, we got to see some of the kids in their uniforms, but it made me miss them even more, knowing were not going to see them everyday…I know Im ridiculously attached so soon, but oh well…