Pizza

Tonight I made pizza and I am so proud of myself. Please forgive me if I seem like I am bragging. For those of you who don't know me too well or are new to the blog, you should know I never cooked at home. Despite being around good cooks, I was very lazy and developed a love for fast food and processed food. So bad. After being in Sudan, I learned about cooking from scratch. No Jack N the Box there!

In Kenya and Tanzania, I have had to learn to be creative with food. If I wanted tortillas, I had to make them. At first I was nervous to cook. Now I am better at just finding a recipe and just going for it.

Lately, we have been eating simple food to keep costs down. We also have not eaten out at a restaurant in a while. Because of this, I have been craving pizza. Good pizza is hard to find in Africa. There is one place in Moshi that has decent pizza, but it's a bit pricy.

One of the items we got in the container was a toaster oven. I never had one growing up and really only thought of them for toast. Recently, it dawned on me that I could try to bake in it. At least small stuff. My first attempt - pizza. Could it be done?

We had most of the recipe items already so it wouldn't be expensive. We just needed cheese and yeast. Unfortunately the only cheese I could find was processed mozzarella slices. Not ideal, but it would have to do.

I started with the dough. It was a simple recipe and I added rosemary and marjoram (thank you to whoever sent the spice rack!). It tasted just like the bread at Macaroni Grill. Then came the sauce from fresh tomatoes. Simple and yummy. Last was putting it all together. I topped it with green peppers, onions, grilled beef and cheese.

The result - two delicious personal pan pizzas.

And George even ate it! That is a huge accomplishment for me. It was a lot of work so we won't have it everyday, but as a treat, it was awesome.

Ok. I am done tooting my own horn. Thanks for indulging me.

(Thanks to my super handy husband who fixed the oven when a fuse blew.)

November Email Update

Following is the email update we just sent out. For you faithful blog readers, you know all this already. If there is anyone who wants to receive the email updates and isn't on our list, just put a note in the comments or email me at spacie19@yahoo.com.

Hello!

Our family is getting settled in Moshi. We really like it here and never get tired of seeing Mt. Kilimanjaro's peak right behind our house. We know this is a busy season so we'll keep our update short and to the point this month. (Remember, more stories, photos and prayer requests can be found on the blog which we update frequently. www.thisisstaciesblog.blogspot.com)

So what's new with our ministry work this month? Here is a summary:

1. Africa Harvest of Hope has a vision of opening a new orphanage in the Moshi area.
2. We have submitted our paperwork for work/resident permits and are awaiting the approval from the immigration department.
3. The constitution for Africa Harvest of Hope's new NGO (non-profit organization) has been completed and all the documents should be submitted soon.
4. We visited a lovely orphanage this month and came away very inspired.
5. We are attending a small church called Yesu Anaweza (God is able). We began a discipleship class and women's prayer/accountability/Bible study group.

Along with the ministry work, we have some prayer needs:

1. Completion of our permits and NGO paperwork
2. A car for our family and ministry use
3. Additional people to join our prayer and financial support teams. These last few months have been a real struggle for us, but God is faithful and has always gotten us through. (Donation information can be found on our blog page if you are interested.)
4. Vision and wisdom for the leaders of Africa Harvest of Hope as they head things up stateside and ministry projects for us here as we wait for things to be put into place for the new orphanage.

We hope you had a wonderful Thanksgiving. We are thankful for all of you. Without your support, encouragement and prayers, we couldn't be here and we pray the Lord blesses you all.

Love,
The Orwas

1 Chronicles 16:34
Give thanks to the LORD, for he is good; his love endures forever.

A Work in Progress

Things are slow moving here. We are anxiously awaiting the approval of our work permits. The latest update on them from the immigration department is they are investigating our case (which is normal) and we just have to wait. The bad news we learned today is the cost of the permits is double what we originally thought which was discouraging given our tight budget. But, we still have hope and know that the Lord will provide. Another thing that has been an obstacle is dealing with bribery and corruption. It is so widespread here and we are praying the Lord gets us through the process the right way; that we would be dealing with only honest officials.

Please pray for us as we wait for our permits to come through. We can't do much here until we have them and we are chomping at the bit to get going!

Library

Poor Eli has the saddest library of all time... until today. More on that later. First I have to tell you about his books. Eli had only two books. A book about gas and a book about lice. I am not kidding.

The book about gas was actually a joke gift for George that my little cousin Matt generously was willing to part with when I left for Kenya.

It's funny...

and educational...

The book about lice came from George. Children's books are hard to find in Kenya and George was excited when he found one for Eli. He didn't look closely at it and we laughed after discovering it was about head lice. Only in Kenya!

It is important to George and I that Eli is read to from a young age. We want him to be smart! So, poor Eli has been read to about gas and lice. We figured, he's so young, he won't mind or know that there is other stuff out there. Oh yeah, we also read to him "Riki Tiki Tavi" his first night home from the hospital. I had it on my kindle. It was one of my favorites as a kid and it was free on Amazon!

Today, Eli's library doubled in size and increased in quality 100% (more actually, if possible). Our sweet friend, Marli, sent us two awesome children's books. What makes them so special is she illustrated them. She did such a wonderful job. We love Marli. She is one of the people at RdR who was able to meet and get to know George in Sudan. Now, we have a piece of Marli here in Tanzania. These books are about God and simple enough for small children to understand.

Already they are a hit in the Orwa household!

You can buy these books on Amazon. They would make a great gift for anyone expecting a baby. Here is the link:

http://www.amazon.com/God-Is-Spirit-Volume-1/dp/1480037621/ref=sr_1_2?ie=UTF8&qid=1350878166&sr=8-2&keywords=God+is+Spirit+Dr+Craig&tag=acleint-20

Thank you Marli! We love the books and are so grateful.

PS On an unrelated note... why are kids in their jammies so cute?

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope everyone had a wonderful Thanksgiving. Thanksgiving is one of my favorite days of the year. I love hanging out with family, eating, laughing and playing games ruthlessly (no mercy!). I have been away from home for Thanksgiving the last four years and each year it doesn't get easier. I still long to be there and now I long for George and Eli to meet my family and experience Thanksgiving with them too. I have faith that one day it will happen and oh, what a joyous day that will be.

But, I am so blessed. Blessed to be with my new family for the first time. Thanksgiving 2012 is the first year I am a wife and mom. It's our first Thanksgiving as an Orwa family. And being away from Kenya, it was just the three of us this year. Even though we miss our families, there is something sweet about it being just us for our first Thanksgiving together.

On Wednesday and Thanksgiving, I was a bit blue. Thanksgiving, obviously, isn't celebrated here, but it's a biggie in the US. I wanted to go out in the street and shout... stop what you are doing! It's Thanksgiving! But, no one would care. I remember being in Sudan on Thanksgiving and feeling so odd. It was just another Thursday on the compound. There was laundry to be done and patients to be seen at the clinic. I thought we all should take the day off. It was Thanksgiving! Although we had lovely meals in the evening, the rest of the day felt strange. Yesterday felt strange.

In the late afternoon, George, Eli and I took a walk. We wanted to explore our neighborhood and see what is near us. Up to that point, we had only gone in one direction - to town. Getting out felt really good. We discovered we live close to a stadium. We followed the cheers and found a soccer game in progress. We sat down in the back and took in our surroundings. Behind the stadium, Mt. Kilimanjaro's peak stood out - snow capped and shining in all it's glory. It was surreal. I wonder if the people here even stop to look at it anymore or if they are just used to it's beauty.

Because we didn't intend to go far or stay out long, we didn't bring Eli's diaper bag. I was nervous he may get hungry or need a diaper change and we weren't prepared. But, he did great. He just sat on George's lap and watched. A while later we looked over and he was asleep. Sweet little boy. All the excitement must have tuckered him out.

Soccer fans are wild! There was more excitement in the crowd than in the game. Apparently fans can get rowdy so George prepared me to be ready to leave quickly if anything got out of hand. Fortunately it didn't. The biggest drama occurs on the field. It's what drives me nuts about soccer. The players are SO dramatic when they get knocked down. They lay down acting like they are gravely injured in hopes the ref will call a penalty. Big babies! When no one pays attention to them, they get up, play and run like nothing happened.

We headed back to the house before it got dark and cooked our own Thanksgiving dinner. There isn't turkey here so we had chicken. We also had mashed potatoes, green beans, and french bread. It was delicious.

I have so much to be thankful for - my husband, my son, family, friends, church... I could go on and on. God is so good.

James 1:17 Whatever is good and perfect comes down to us from God our Father, who created all the lights in the heavens. He never changes or casts a shifting shadow.

3 Months Old

Today our little boy is three months old. He is growing so quickly. We never cease to be amazed by all the new things he is learning (smiling, "talking", holding up his head,etc) . Eli is a happy baby who really only fusses when he is hungry or tired (easy things to remedy). After a slow start, he is gaining weight and is now really chubby. He is starting to develop a sleep schedule. Usually he goes to bed around 8:00am and sleeps anywhere from 4-6 hours before waking for food. Then its another t3 hours or so before another feeding. Then he is up after sleeping for 1 1/2 to 2 hours. So far no major illnesses - just a cold and we are doing all we can to protect him from malaria.

We are so blessed to have him in our family.

(He smiles ALL the time.)

(He has learned to grab onto things and often holds up his fist. Is he cheering on something... protesting?)

(He loves chilling with Dad)

Guest Blogger - George Orwa: The Authenticity of our Faith

In our discipleship class/ Sunday Service our big question was, what is the authenticity of our faith? What is our faith based on as Christians? Are we Christians because our parents are Christians? Are we Christians because we are not Muslims? In this generation a lot of us profess Christianity. There are millions of Christian faithful all over the world yet the world is heading down the ditch every single day. If we are Christians why are things not going on right? Why is the economy so bad? Why is there a lot of poverty? Why are there a lot of beggars in the street? Why are there a lot of orphans and widows suffering? More so why is the world so corrupt? It is either our Christianity is corrupted or our faith is not authentic. It is a prototype, not original. It is not based on biblical doctrine. It is baseless and it has been rated as just mere empty religion.

Another issue that arose was that we could be “hearer Christians” and not “doers,” as Christianity being a way of life- living right with God. No one is practicing or a few are practicing while a lot of people are just bus riding. Christianity is not a religion-religion is man-made. Many Christians have forgotten this fact and have turned Christianity to be just like other religions. Also, as the world becomes knowledgeable, people have become more and more corrupted with knowledge and they start questioning the source of knowledge-God; and the more they go astray and refuse to repent, such people brings about the doctrine of ‘Jesus was just being a good man’, and ‘God is not there” kind of stuff.

That is why we started our discipleship class with the first letter of John. We will be going word by word, checking on the application in our life and making sure that we bring our Christian living to the right path, and the authenticity of our faith be based on the Word - who was there in the beginning with God and was God, and in the word was life- the life we both live and abuse - most part of it having no fellowship with the giver of life.

As we read the first chapter we come across a lot of simple things like, Christianity existed from the beginning - one thing that a lot of us don’t know. If Christianity is based on the Word (Christ) or to be Christ- like and He was there from the beginning, then Christianity was there since the beginning. A fact many scholars deny as they state that Christianity just began 2000 years ago. The only way to be a Christian is to have a personal relationship with Christ (1 John 1. Whom we have heard and we have seen with our own eyes). This shows the extent we should be personal with Christ which the authenticity of our faith should be based on. Many people say they are Christians yet they have no personal relationship with the Lord.

As we go through this book, God is blessing us and we are finding a lot of things that will make us be better Christians for a better world. Pray with us so that God does great things. There was a huge turn out today - both men and women came to hear the word of God. We found out that it is not how big the church is or our good our worship band is, but if our faith is authentic-based on Christ, then we will make it.
So what is the authenticity of your faith??!!!

Work Permits

This week our application for Tanzanian work permits was submitted. It takes about a month to process. Once we have these in place we will feel so much better and be free to officially begin work. We would appreciate your prayers for their approval.

Outside Family Time

Today the weather was perfect so we decided to hang out in our front yard for a bit. It was a beautiful day and I was thinking how thankful I am for my family.

(Nala was so happy to have her family outside playing with her.)

(Thanks Anne for the quilt!)

(Ever since Eli was a newborn, he has loved to stand.)

Dinner Party

Yesterday, we had Pastor Zac and his family over for dinner. It was our first dinner party in Moshi... actually anywhere (besides when the Africa Harvest of Hope team was here.) For dinner we served chapati, beans, beef, rice, sakuma and ugali. For dessert I made "no bake cookies." Everything we used to prepare for dinner was sent on the container... dishes, place mats, table cloth, pots, gas cooker.... everything. We don't take anything for granted... thank you to all who donated items. It was a huge blessing to be able to have them over. It's so quiet here with just the three of us in the house and it was nice to have company. We are looking forward to the next time.

Class

Yesterday George, Eli and I headed off to Yesu Anaweza for church. The church is small, but we really like it. I wish I could post a video of their worship. It's simple, but heartfelt. Pastor Zac's family is very talented and one of them plays the drum during worship. It's the only instrument they have, but they are saving up for a keyboard. Zac's daughter, Glory is really good on the drums, but when she is occupied, someone else will fill in. This week, it was Zac's wife, Redempta.

During offering, the choir does a song or two. They even have dance moves. I really want to join, but I am too scared! i think I could learn the Kiswahili songs, but choreography...doubtful. Check back with me to see if I get brave enough to join.

Pastor Zac preached a really good sermon on forgiveness. It was convicting as I was reminded of people I am struggling to completely forgive. It's an ongoing process. You might think you have completely forgiven someone, but then bitter feelings come up randomly and again you have to give those feelings up to the Lord.

After church, we went home for a bit (our taxi friend, Eddie, lent us his car for the day which was a huge blessing) before heading back at 4:00 for our meeting with the youth. Our plan was for George to teach a discipleship class from 4-5 and then I would meet with the girls from 5-6 for a Bible study/prayer group/accountability group. I wondered if anyone would show up and was pleasantly surprised when we ended up with 16 people in our class. What surprised me even more was that there were a few older women there. We thought it would just be youth. Well, everyone can benefit from a Bible study and fellowship - so the more the merrier!

This week was an introduction to the book we'll be studying, 1st John. George did a great job teaching and getting the group involved. Once he was finished, all the women remained (including the older ones) for my group. There were 10 of us. I also did an intro. I told them my story and how I came to be here. I also shared with them my heart for our group and what I hoped our time together would look like. Life is hard and many times we feel alone during trials. My desire is for us to lean on each other as sisters in Christ - encouraging each other during challenges and sharing in each others joys. I also want us to read the Word together and apply it to our daily lives so we lead a life that honors the Lord. Our cultures are very different and I can tell I will have to work on getting them to be open. I hope with time they will feel comfortable being vulnerable with each other.

As I left, I wondered if this is what the ladies (not just young girls, but the older women that were there too) need. Did they think I was a weirdo for what I was trying to do? The feedback I got was positive. Redempta and Glory separately told me that they were excited about the group as were the other ladies. They have never had this type of group before and have been too shy to share things in the past during a Bible study, but now they looking forward to coming.

George and I are very happy to be doing this ministry and see what else it leads to within the church. We want to do outreaches and help the community as well. It's exciting to see what the Lord will do!

KFC

I have mentioned before how far my cooking skills have come since I first left home for Sudan three years ago. Now, I am not claiming to be a professional or even a good cook, but I am trying. I have learned how to cook several Kenyan dishes (chicken, beef, fish, beans, mandazi, ugali, rice, etc), but sometimes, I crave American food. And what is more American than fried chicken and french fries? When I was in the US, if I wanted that, I would have had to go out to KFC. Here, there is not that option. Some restaurants serve this, but it's too expensive to have often so I decided to make it for lunch. Before, I never would have attempted it, but I am learning that you don't have to be an expert, you just have to have a recipe and try it. So, I looked up a recipe online and found a simple one with only a few ingredients. Here are the results...

It was actually very tasty! It also helps that we have awesome new kitchenware from the container to use. I am looking forward to trying more new recipes.

Pinata

I have the most awesome bike in the world. I don't mean to brag, but it's true. What makes it so amazing is not how cute it is, but how I got it. For my 25th birthday, a bunch of my friends and family pitched in to buy my dream bike... a purple beach cruiser. On my birthday, they surprised me with it. It was perfect - it had a basket and a bell too. I named my bike Pinata because that was the code word my friends used to discuss it's location while I was present. I love, love, love my bike. Now I am so thrilled it was able to be shipped here on the container. It's like a piece of home, here in Moshi. I see it and I am reminded of the love that brought it to me, then and now.

In Oceanside in 2006...

In Moshi...

Police Stop

Today on the way to the orphanage, George got pulled over by the police. In Kenya and Tanzania, the police are known for corruption. They stand on the side of the road, wave people over and try to get bribes. In fact, matatus just slow down and drop money out the window for them to pick up.

When George got flagged down, he pulled to the side of the road and presented his drivers license. They asked him to get out of the car and open the trunk. They were looking for something to cite him on. After a bit, the woman police officer said "give us money so we don't take you to the station." George asked "what is my crime?" She responded "your tires aren't new." WHAT? That's reaching. He refused to pay anything and she said something like "who are you to refuse." Then she said, "ok just bring me a white man to marry me." George joked and said "you'll have to wait for my son." The male officer just laughed and George was allowed to leave without paying a bribe.

Crazy...

Random Photos 2

(Nala is so good. She just stands and endures the baths.)

(We have beautiful Jacaranda trees in our yard)

(Eli chillin' on the veranda)

(Why does George get all the cute photos with Eli?)

(Mine isn't as cute, but Eli is funny in it!)

Poll

George and I are debating. Does Eli look better with or without a hat? We are on opposite sides of the debate, but to avoid impartiality, I won't say which of us likes him in hats and which one likes him without hats. Please leave your vote in the comments. Here are a couple photos of him in hats.

Stuck

Today we were reminded of how much we need a car. The orphanage is located about 45 minutes away from us. Our choices were to take a taxi or borrow a car. We were able to merge the two. Eddie, our new friend and taxi driver, allowed us to use his car for a fee. It was nice to be able to drive ourselves. Unfortunately, the orphanage is located off the main road and only accessed by driving on a dirt road.

Eddie's car is a small, 4 door sedan not built for driving on such roads. Fortunately, we made it to the orphanage without getting stuck, but on the way out we were not so lucky. Shortly after leaving, we found the front end stuck in a muddy hole. Pacific and another man came to help out George and after a long while, they were able to free it.

(Meanwhile, in the backseat, Eli was making new friends.)

We again found ourselves asking the Lord to provide a car. Even though taxi rides are cheap compared to the US, it adds up if you use one everyday. Due to the having the fridge now, we have been able to stock up on food so we can avoid a daily market trip (car required), but we still often have to use a taxi. Since getting a bike from the container, George has been able to ride it to town for small trips. Although the other day it broke my heart when he got caught in a downpour after going out at night for some supplies for Eli. Other times, he will walk to save money. Now that we are scouting out places for an orphanage, we'll need a car to get around. Taxis to far places are very expensive. Not only do we need a car, we need one with 4 wheel drive to navigate the unpaved areas (which there are many).

We don't know how the Lord will do it, but we are confident in His timing He will. Please join us in praying for a car for our family and ministry use. Thanks!

Orphanage Visit

As part of our research on starting the new children's home, we visited an orphanage today. We were so impressed by what we saw. It is run by missionaries Pacific, a Rwandan, and his wife, Eunice, a Kenyan. They do a fabulous job at running the place. They really have become Mom and Dad to these children. The children in their home are young and ADORABLE. Eunice is a teacher and has been teaching them English among other thing so we were great with "hellos" and "good mornings." Pacific and Eunice love the Lord and it comes shining through them in the way they love these kids. The kids were happy and healthy. Their home is beautiful and clean. I would love an orphanage just like it. Here are some pictures of their place.

(Eli loved interacting the kids. They liked Eli too!)

(Lunch time!)

(At one point, George went outside and the next thing I knew, he and a sleeping Eli were leading a singing parade around the hallways.)

While were were there, we talked with Pacific about Rwanda. Many of you may have heard about the violence and genocide that occurred there in the 90's. Pacific was telling us how the country has since turned around. Their president has forced the country to unite and as a result, Rwanda is growing and prospering. I was amazed to hear the praise he (and apparently most would agree in his country and others in East Africa) had for his president. It was especially touching in light of our recent elections. Oh, how I wish our country could unite in that way.

We don't know where the Lord will direct Africa Harvest of Hope to start the orphanage yet, but I was inspired and encouraged by what I saw today.

New Mailing Address

Just wanted to give you our new address.

Stacie Larsen and George Orwa
PO Box 8893
Moshi, Tanzania

Sending cards or letters is no problem. Packages get tricky. Things tend to go missing and they charge lots of fees to release boxes. Padded envelopes get through easily and quickly so if you want to send something, just use one of those and everything should be ok.

Mugs - Memory Lane

Whenever I went on a trip or to an event, I loved to get a mug or a glass as a souvenir. I figured that is something I would use, that would last and would provide a good memory. Over the years I collected many mugs. In addition to the items people donated and put on the container, my brother sent a bunch of my mugs from home. It is so fun to see them transported from the US to my kitchen in Tanzania. Here are a few of them...

(From Kenya - First trip to Africa)

(From the first Starbucks on a road trip to Washington with my friends, Sara, Traci and Becca)

(From Vegas - seeing the Beatles show "Love" with my friend, Angie)

(Also from Vegas - seeing Celine Dion with my friend Becca - It was AWESOME!)

(From the Grand Canyon - spur of the moment road trip with Amber and baby Tyler)

(Representing my love of Disneyland)

(From Michigan visiting some pastors with my friend Becca. We were fascinated with the Amish and stalked them!)

(A mug I made on my friend Monica's birthday. Pathetic, but funny! Not my calling.)

Here is the mug then (2007)...

and now...

Times change!