In Kenya

We are in Kenya after a loooooong car ride. We made it faster than we thought. It only took 13 1/2 hours! Eli did pretty well considering it was his first long car ride. Everything went smoothly. We had no problems at immigration or at customs dealing with the car. The worst part was the traffic in Nairobi which we were stuck in for over an hour. We were so happy to have arrived and crashed into bed. Eli is sleeping in his pop up tent. I wondered how he would do with it, but he has adapted very well. We are staying with George's sister. It's so nice to be with her and her family. Eli has reunited with his cousin Adi who he calls Dadi. It's so cute. She is almost three so the age difference is a lot at this point. Sometimes they are friends and sometimes bitter enemies. It's pretty much Eli's fault all the time. He just grabs whatever Adi has.

The day after we arrived, we went to George's home village. That meant another six+ hours in the car. We had a meeting set up with a pastor and the village chief to discuss having a medical camp there (through API, the ministry we worked with in August). We thought it was a small meeting but over 50 people were there! Needless to say they are very interested and excited. Lord willing it will work out this year to have a camp there.

Since then we have been busy with family commitments and other issues we are trying to wrap up while we are here. Some are simple things like getting hair cuts. There is no place to get my kind of hair cut in Moshi so it has been over a year since I got one. It is way too hot to have long hair. It has gotten so long that it gets stuck in my armpits and in my purse straps. Enough is enough. So, we are busy getting stuff done and being with family.

It has been nice being in Kenya. We just feel really relaxed and comfortable here. More updates to come when I can!

16 Months

Eli is now 16 months. There hasn't been a lot of new stuff happening with him this past month so this will be a short update. He is at a really fun age. His speech keeps improving and we are amazed when he says new words. He's getting really good at repeating what we say. He also knows many words. “Grass” is a new one. Also, “crackers,” too, since Gary gave him some Ritz peanut butter sandwich crackers. He loves playing on the grass in our yard. Actually, anywhere. He is the happiest when he is running around, exploring.



He is very much interested in feeding himself. We don't have a high chair so it has been a struggle for us to teach him to sit down and eat. Now he has a special bowl and spoon and will stand at the coffee table and try to feed himself. It's so cute.



He started teething again. Last month he got his first four molars in and now the pointy ones are coming through. Unfortunately, he must be in pain because he has started biting again. I thought we were past that! Eli is also going through a “rough play” stage. He'll go right up to kids and smack them. He is not being aggressive or trying to hurt. It's just like he is saying “hey, what's up” and waiting for a reaction. No matter what is the emotion behind it, we still don't want him doing it. So, we have been working on that. I don't want him to be the mean kid on the playground!

He loves playing his drum. He even forces it on Nala. She does not love it!



Love these dark brown eyes...



Eli loves the car too!



He is Mr. Independent. He would take off and never look back to see if we are following him if we let him.



Good Times!

Kenya for the Holidays

This morning we are driving to Kenya. We are going there for a couple weeks to spend Christmas with George's family. Being there will also allow us to take care of some personal stuff that we can't do in Tanzania such as going to the doctor for check ups, updating Eli's vaccines, talking with leaders in George's home village about doing a medical camp there, deal with land issues, etc. It will be a busy trip, but hopefully we will be able to find time to relax as well.

This is our first trip in our new car. We will be leaving at 5:00am and have a sixteen hour drive ahead of us. It will also be Eli's first long trip in his new car seat. He is not used to be restrained for long periods so it will be a challenge for us all! Please pray for us today as we head out. Pray for safety and strength for George as he drives. I don't know if we will be able to email or blog often from Kenya, but we will try!

Random Photos By Terry

Terry took many great pictures. It was cool to look through them and see what caught his interest. The longer I live here, the more I forget how different things are from the US. Here are some random photos of life in Moshi.

Mt. Kilimanjaro.



Water is often rationed and turned on and off during the day. In Korogwe, we only had water an hour in the morning and evening. In Moshi, it's often available at night, but not during the day. For those who are lucky, they have water storage tanks that fill up when the water is on, allowing the house to have water all the time. We didn't have that in Korogwe, but we do here.



Hot water heaters are extremely rare. Again, if you are lucky, there is still a way to get hot showers - by adding this to the shower head. We have one in our current house, but we get shocked sometimes so we often opt for bucket baths if we want hot water. Many nights, it's so hot that a cold shower feels good.



The streets are always full of people as most don't have cars and must walk.



Many men make their living by hauling stuff for people or selling their goods (like sugar cane) on the street. They are very strong and hard working.



Another way to make a living is to drive a motorcycle and give people rides for money. We have used this form of transportation MANY times.



A common sight... cows crossing the highway. They have the right of way! You hit one... you buy it.



Huts by the road side.



Young boys are often left in charge of livestock.



I hope you found these as interesting as I did. Thanks Terry for the photos!

Safari Photos by Terry

SNAKE!!!!!

Here is the snake under George's belt. I get chills just thinking about this. I am so glad this didn't happen to me! I would have taken a LONG time to recover.



Currently, the hot season was interrupted by the short rainy season. The long rainy season comes in April, but the month of December is often rainy. It has cooled the temperatures, which is nice. However, Nala is tracking mud into the house and I can't keep up with the mopping! What's worse is the creatures that are coming out. When George was at the airport picking up the team, I heard Nala making noise in the bathroom. I thought she was trying to drink from the toilet until I saw her in the shower poking at something. It was a big frog!!!!! It must have crawled in from the drain. Awful. I shut the door and called George. "There is a frog in the house" I yelled!!!! He told me just to shoo it out. Has he not been married to be for two years? That would never happen so I told him it would be waiting for him when he returned. There has been an increase in the amount of bugs in the house and flying ants in the air. I never thought I would prefer the hot season, but now it is looking kind of nice!

Cute Photos

Terry is a gifted photographer. He was gracious enough to let us download his beautiful photos. I am going to try to post a few of them this week. For now, here are a couple of us with Eli.

Saying Bye

Today we said bye to Alan, Terry and Gary. As I write, I am trying to shake off the blues.

We had a nice day. Church was awesome and full of life and joy. Alan spoke about faith and he dedicated Eli. Along with sharing a birthday, we chose Alan to dedicate Eli because we really admire him and know he cares for Eli and his spiritual walk. It was past Eli's nap time so he was a bit fussy. He started out ok, but melted down towards the end of the prayer. We pray that Eli grows up to know the Lord and walk daily with Him.



After church we had a yummy lunch and then headed back to our house so they guys could pack up and we could chat. Their trip went very well. We accomplished all they wanted to do. The NGO papers got sorted out and we are ready to move forward with the orphanage plans.

Saying good bye is so hard. There is no way to describe our much they mean to us. When they come, we are filled with joy. Brimming to the top. They bring us encouragement and support. They bring fellowship, love and laughter. They loved my son...even when he was cranky. They helped us and others with many things. They brought home to Moshi. Seeing them drive off crushed me. It happens to me every time visitors leave. When I was in Sudan, it was the same way. When my Mom and Al went home, tears galore. It's a part of the gig. Losing them hurts, but it's worth it. We know the fellowship will continue, just from a distance. We are so thankful for them coming and will miss them so much.

Please pray for them as they travel home.

Safari

You can't come all the way to Africa and not do a safari! The guys were blessed to go on a day safari today. They went to Ngorongoro Crater where they saw tons of animals including lions, buffalo, elephants, rhinos, hippos and a snake... under George's bed. It takes five hours to get there so they drive up Friday afternoon. At the camp, George had the uninvited guest join him. He reached for his belt and grabbed something soft. YIKES!!!!!!

Here they are before leaving...



On their way in the park, there were tons of baboons. Scary! They can be so vicious.



Here are some Masaai kids on the road



Seeing a lion in the wild is incredible and surreal



At the crater



Before the guys left on Friday, they finished up the paperwork we needed to get done. It was down to the wire, but I think we are all set now. It's a relief to be done with that. While they were gone, Eli and I stayed home and ran some errands in town. The Reeds blessed us with a car seat so we can now tote Eli around while driving alone in the car. Before, I had to hold him while George drove. I felt like a real mom, putting my kid in a car seat and doing errands. It was freeing driving in town. I thought I would be nervous to do it, but it was no problem. It made me feel so much more adjusted. Like I was just a regular person living in Moshi, who isn't scared to drive on the left and is able to drive despite the chaos that is on the road at times.

After the guys got home tonight, we had a quick dinner together at our house before they headed off to bed. They all looked so tired! Tomorrow is our last day with them. I already get teary thinking about it.

Visitations

Today was the worst day to have my camera batteries die! It's the day we did visitations. In the morning, we went to the market and grocery store to get supplies for the food baskets: beans, rice, lentil, sugar, flour, bread, oil, salt, soap, etc. Then we headed to church to pack it all up.

We were able to do five visitations. First we went to see Mama Teddy. She is raising four kids and living in a tiny one room house just behind the church. Her kids have been sponsored by Africa Harvest of Hope for a long time so it's always special to go see their family. Second we went to see Faith, another kid sponsored by AHOH. Her mother is dead and father is not around. She lives with her grandma who is blind. She is a sweet kid who does well in school while helping her grandma out. Her grandma was so happy to have us there. Next was Mama Saida whose husband abandoned her with two kids. She has an amazing heart for the Lord. She sells vegetables door to door to try to make ends meet. Fourth was Mama Neema who has six kids. She, too, is raising them alone. Last was Mama Remi who is a widow. She lost one arm in a bus accident and really struggles a lot. It was so nice to be able to bless them with some gifts and pray for them. It's a small gesture in the long run, but we hope it will help them today and that they will feel God's love.

Unfortunately, while we were having all the fun, George was stuck in town with Zac working on paperwork for the organization. It was a stressful day for him as he was dealing with lawyers, internet cafes and the tax authorities. The good news is that at the end of the day, they got it done. Tomorrow we have one last thing to do which we hope will go quickly and smoothly in the morning.

Eli had a rough day. He wasn't able to take a nap while we were out and about. He slept for five minutes, but wouldn't sleep more. Poor guy was really fussy and wild the rest of the day. George dropped us off home early so he could sleep.

Hopefully, I can get photos from the other guys and post them. I wish you all could have been with us on those visits!

Happy Birthday George!

Tonight we had an awesome birthday dinner for George. We got a cake from the coffee shop that made our anniversary cake. It was delicious!



He even had help from Terry cutting the cake!



We kept Eli up for the special dinner. I wasn't sure how he would do since he tends to melt down when he is tired, but he did amazing. He sat at the table and ate with us. Despite getting to bed at 8:10 instead of 6:30, he was wonderful. Being with the team was a nice way to celebrate George's birthday.

Electricity

Today we (the guys, that is. Eli and I just observed!) worked on putting electricity in Pastor Zac's house. It will be a huge blessing to him, his family and the church. They worked quickly and got the work done very fast.



While the guys worked, I worked on keeping Eli occupied. He is obsessed with the drum at church. At one point, I closed the door to keep him in there while I ran to get something. He dragged the drum to the door and looked so sad!



Then he dragged it out to the house.



Later he did his favorite thing... chasing chickens! I love this photo because it looks like he is going to club this poor chicken!



After, we went to town to continue working on paperwork stuff. The smallest thing can take a long time to do here. We are making progress on it and may be done with it all tomorrow. The guys have been so great with Eli. They help keep him entertained while we are working. Here he is with Gary reading a Bible story.

Getting Stuff Done

Monday brought another trip to Arusha. Eli and I had to stay home for this one. Eli is teething and needed a day of his normal routine. It must have worked because he was less fussy today. Before the guys left for Arusha, they dropped us off in town. A few of Eli's little friends were there and he got to share some of Alan's Tootsie Roll Pops with them. He has his own candy ministry going on!



The guys had a successful trip in Arusha and got the paperwork done that they needed to.

Today we headed to the village where we are praying about putting the orphanage. We saw the land George found and walked around a bit. It was nice to see the town. It's MUCH smaller than Moshi, but it seems cozy somehow.



We have had a great time being with the guys. We have laughed a lot and had great fellowship. We are so encouraged by their presence.

Loving the Team

We are having a great time with the team. Yesterday, after a morning devotion at the hotel, we went to Arusha to work on some paperwork for the orphanage. It's a hour and a half away without traffic. Eli was a trooper and did pretty well on the drive. The car has been great and a huge blessing. We are so thankful for it.

Today was church and Alan shared from 2 Samuel. He taught a great message and some people came to know the Lord. We are going to do a baptism next week.



This afternoon, we had a late lunch followed by a walk around town and a stop at our favorite coffee shop. The guys have been so good with Eli. He took only a thirty minute nap at church and was really fussy. In between fussiness, he was all smiles and laughs. He kept pulling Alan over to play with him.



We are thankful that the guys have been healthy and getting enough rest. Please pray for us all as we continue to work tomorrow.

They Have Landed!

The Africa Harvest of Hope guys are here! George picked them up last night and we had a quick dinner at our house before sending them off to bed. Today we hit the ground running. We'll be really busy over the next several days, but I will update you as often as possible.

Anniversary

On the 4th we had our second anniversary. I think because Eli came so fast, it seems like longer. We had a nice day. We had an early dinner at the same restaurant we went to last year. Instead of a calm three month old, we had an active 15 month old with us to keep us company. On our way home, we picked up a cake George ordered for me at our favorite coffee shop. Every now and then I order a piece as a treat, but I never considered a whole cake. What a nice surprise! I am still enjoying it! Thanks Babe! Happy Anniversary!