Signing Off From Africa

I cant believe this is my last post from Africa.  Tomorrow Katie and I will take shuttle to Nairobi and then hop on a plane back to the good 'ole USA via London.  Im not sure how to begin this blog or even what to say to bring this chapter to a close.  Honestly, I dont have the right words to describe this trip and all of the things I've learned and experienced about myself, Africa, and God.  I hope though that I've written honestly in these last posts to give a sense of the things I've seen and felt while I was here, although I'm pretty confident that my words have come up short.  What I can say is that this trip has forever changed me and to all who supported me in this endeavor I am eternally grateful. Grateful for the things that I learned, the friendships I began, the miracles I saw happen, the continual laughter and joy I felt, the work we were able to accomplish, the energy that I got from working with kids, the humbling experience of working in a different culture, for finding a new family abroad, and for the peace of God I experienced for the first time here.   Thank you, thank you, thank you for all of your support, prayers, and encouragement.  I could not have done this trip without those things- I'm sure of it.

Intern Post

  So this pic is of all the Wild Hope interns.  The two goofy looking guys are Steve and Tom.  Just kidding. they are both very nice, awesome, cute guys who we have had a really great time getting to know.  Its been so nice to have a community of people here who are about at the same place in life as us.  We all get together at least once a week for an intern night that usually involves a very safi dinner and a movie or random game  (plus I even got a free haircut out of this deal!).  Sidenote- Apples to Apples is just as incredible in Africa and prison style Apples to Apples is genius.  Steve is officially the king of this game, although every week is a bit of a battle.  These guys have been a huge blessing to us and watching them work with the soccer academy here has been great.  The intern clan has become one of my favorite things about Tanzania and I am just really grateful for the time we have all had together, whether its been telling stupid stories, dancing, movies with the projector, or counting a million beads.  Its all been very fun and I'm sad to leave this crew behind.

Different Country.... Same Tribe

I love the Maasai!  I have heard a mixed bag of things said about the Maasai stateside and in Africa, but I’ve lived with these people for a little while now and they are just incredible people.  I’ve talked about their intentional community and hospitality before, and this is still one of the best thing about them.  Not living in community is not even an option for them because they know that’s how we were created to live.  They know that life is richer with honest, vulnerable, loving friendships, and its also necessary for their survival at times to live in community.  I just wonder what it would be like in America if we lived with a more intentional community.  I think it would completely revolutionize the nation and issues that divide us and the intolerance we have would seem just stupid (sidenote- Shane Claiborne’s book “Irresistible Revolution” is incredible and addresses this).  They also treat everyone as family and you always feel welcome.  I now have about 4 sets of parents and 80 brothers and sisters, and it always feels like the best family reunion you’ve ever been to.  Not the type of family reunion that you fear because that crazy aunt is going to kiss you right on the lips and your second cousin will tell embarrassing stories and your grandma will make you eat that green jello whether or not you want to.  No, it’s the type of family reunion that you look forward to all year because you know that there will be an insurmountable amount of love and laughter there with your favorite people.

 So yes the Maasai are incredibly loving and kind, but the truly astounding part about this tribe is their rock solid faith.  If I didn’t have any of the amenities I was used to in life I think I could find a hundred reasons to doubt God (I say this because I have everything I need and still find reasons to doubt God).  If I struggled for food, had major health issues, struggled to keep my family safe from other tribes and animals, etc, I would probably think that God had left me and I was on my own.  But these people don’t think that at all.  In fact they praise God for the little that they have and have faith that God can do anything and is not limited by this world at all.  I think its because of this faith too that they see more miracles happen in their tribe than I have ever seen in America.  I do think that miracles happen, but I don’t see them often and honestly I don’t really have faith that they will happen most of the time.   I pray for things, but I pray like “Hey, God that’s a million miles away, if you wouldn’t mind helping with this that would be cool”.  The Maasai pray for things like God is right in front of them and they are desperate for Him to answer their prayers.   Sometimes we pray for things and God says no, but for the Maasai that doesn’t stop them from asking because they have faith that anything is possible. 

I went into the bush last weekend and went to the most spirit-filled church I have ever been to.  These people are loving life and loving God and loving their community.  They have a faith that is alive to them.  They pray for all things, but for me the craziest thing I saw was how they pray for healing.  In America I think we pray to be healed from sickness, and of course we still go to doctors because that’s just smart, but for these people the doctor isn’t always an option and even if it is they pray for healing and go to the doctor.  They believe God will heal them with all their hearts.  I have heard too many stories to recount about healing since I got here but I want to tell you a few we were close to.  There was one woman here from Germany who has MS and wanted to come serve in Africa with the Maasai.  Her doctors told her no because of her sickness (she hasn’t had feeling in her right hand for 2 years because of MS), but she felt she was supposed to go.  So she came here, and while she was here, her group prayed for healing fervently.  They prayed often.  Then during this trip that woman was talking to everyone about how she hasn’t had feeling in her right hand and as she went to show how she couldn’t feel her fingertips she froze because she had feeling back in her hand.  It was crazy!  I wish I could see the look on her doctors face when she goes back to Germany next week.  There is also this wonderful Maasai boy Siparrino who was healed in an unexplainable way.  He had been very sick so they took him to the hospital and the doctors did a procedure to fix his sickness but in the process severed his spinal cord and he was paralyzed.  Can you imagine?  You are healthy, but now you cant walk.  So again the Maasai and their friends prayed.  One group in particular prayed for 3 hours one day and 4 hours the next.  Nothing happened.  They were discouraged but knew that maybe this was one of those times God says no for some reason.  Then the next day when they came back home after running an errand, Siparrino ran out to greet them.  The kid who had a severed spinal cord ran out to greet them and he has been fine ever since.  There is no logic to these stories, and that’s why they are amazing.  I don’t know why we don’t see this stuff in the US like they do here, but I think it might be because the fervent, inexcusable faith these people have.  My mind is still spinning to be honest because these are just 2 stories we heard/experienced of about 20 instances, but its incredible.  Its just really incredible.

Termites and Bruises and Bats, Oh My!

Ok so I realize I haven’t sent any info out about the animals we’ve come across here or the injuries or bites we’ve gotten and that’s not fun at all.  I mean I know these things aren’t the meat of the story but they are definitely the comic relief.

We will start with the creatures and critters:  First of all let me just say I really don’t like spiders or snakes but I really really don’t like bats.  I mean when you get down to it they are rats that fly.  Honestly, who thought “Hey rats are cute cuddly creatures, why don’t we throw wings on them and really have a good time”?  Say it with me (in your best church-lady Dana Carvey voice)- “Could it be Satan”?  Yes, Im going with that answer right now.  And of course we had plenty of bats in Kenya.  They really would just fly around outside and that was ok, but then 1 week before we left as I sat up writing an email, one of those flying rats made a special appearance in my room.  Awesome.  So I woke Katie up and she couldn’t catch it (although she’s a good friend and really tried), and then we woke our Kenyan father Joseph up and the bat got scared and hid.  I thought it was over but 2 nights later as we enjoyed our dinner Sylar showed up again (yes, I named him after Heroes), and that was it.  Joseph, Immanuel, and Michael all trapped him in the ceiling, and Joseph sang him a song about his impending doom, but he snuck out and we never saw him again.  He got lucky, for now.

Other creature stories: So the bat was the most traumatizing, but we’ve seen other crazy stuff too.  We saw a camel spider when we were cooking our food at the campsite (look these things up if you don’t know what they are because they are HUGE).  Then while we were hiking up a mountain in the bush, and already halfway up the mountain, the kid who is taking us tells us that there are often buffalo at the top of the hill, so if we see any we should just climb up a tree as fast as we can.  Oh sure not a problem.  Let me use my awesome height of 5’3” to quickly scale a tree to avoid being impaled by the wild buffalo.  So to comfort us he then says if we cant climb a tree to lie on the ground and pretend we are dead.  Again another stellar idea.  Thank goodness we run into any buffalo and it was ridiculously beautiful from the top of the mountain.  We have also been told multiple stories about snakes (coming out of the shower drain, cobras in the pantry, that the snake who kills the most humans lives right where we were camping), but luckily (knock on wood) we haven’t seen any yet.  We have also seen incredible creatures here, especially in the game park.  Lions, zebras, giraffes, wildebeests, hippos, buffalo, cheetahs, hyena, gazelles, and elephants were all so close to us when we were in the park and it was the best!   Sometimes we see very cool animals outside the parks too.  Like, since coming to Tanzania I have seen many monkeys hanging around in the trees by our house which makes for some amazing sights on a morning run. 

Then of course they have been some bumps, bruises, bites, and “tasty” snacks since we got here too.  In case any of you were wondering, termites toasted and then dipped in a little bit of honey actually makes a decent snack.  Sidenote- not so decent is when you have something tickling the back of your throat hours later and it’s a termite leg.  Also have gotten some awesome insect bites, mostly mosquitoes, but I got this one bite on my elbow while we were camping that swelled to about the size of golf ball.  They said as long as pain didn’t shoot up my arm I was good, and so far so good.  Oh and then on our way home from camping Katie found a tick on her leg and she couldn’t get it off because the head was in there, so she freaked a little and I proceeded to pull the tick off her leg… ah friendship.  The best injury though was this sweet bruise I got after I crashed and backward somersaulted my paragliding landing (there is video of this that may surface at some point. All to say its never boring here and I love it!

Blog #2- TZ

Holiday is over and now we are getting into our groove here in TZ.  It feels really good to work again, and even though the work is a bit different than the work in Kenya, its cool to see how a different organization does things.  We are working more with computers and working mostly with ex-pats here so in some ways its easier than the work we were doing before.  In other ways though its kind of tough to make myself get back into a bit more of the American mindset.  The work we are doing here still feels very purposeful (just put together a proposal to build the kids in the Unga community a new soccer field), but its just a different type of work.  The main thing I miss is the kids back in Kenya.  They killed me with how precious they were and I was inspired on a daily basis by them.  I hope its not tool long before I see them again.

            The Russell’s have been extremely good to us though, and its been really interesting to see how an American missionary family lives in East Africa.  The obstacles they have overcome, and the ways in the which they’ve been able to be a part of the community here.  They have done some incredible work here with the community in Arusha and Unga Limited without making the people here feel like the “westerners” have come and taken over.  They really know how to partner with the people here and create working environments that produce a strong sense of dignity.  Plus they are really fun.  Other than the beach, we’ve watched Euro soccer, gone to some movies, and went to these hot springs where you can find hippo bones on an underground water cave.  It looked like it was right out of The Jungle Book.  So yes we are still working, but these guys know how to work hard and play hard for sure (and I have many bruises right now to prove it).  Oh and the picture above is of Kilimanjaro (it looks like its a cloud but its the snowy top behind that cell phone tower), but its beautiful. It would be incredible to climb this someday!

Blog #1- TZ

Well we made it to Tanzania.  Its very weird to think that our time in Africa is halfway over but when I think back at all the stuff that has happened I guess it makes sense.  I’m going through a little culture shock though right now.  We are living with a missionary family the Russell’s in Arusha, Tanzania and it just feels strange to be around Americans full time again.  Plus we are eating American food, we have running water, a washing machine, flushing toilets, and electricity all the time again.  I was actually getting used to living without these things and although its very nice to have them again, it feels weird.  But the family we are living with is extremely welcoming and kind, and we have been treating amazingly so far (see attached picture of the Indian Ocean).

            So our first week here is a training week and, since the Russell’s kids are on Spring Break, they decided that we could do our training week at Peponi Beach on the Indian Ocean.  Yeah pretty incredible!  It was also really nice to get a break after 6 pretty intense work weeks in Kenya.  We had a really wonderful week getting to know the Russell’s and their heart for East Africa, and also the type of work we will be doing here.  It sounds like we will be working a lot with their Artisan Massai group and also with their soccer league.  Plus there was just some fun stuff to do too.  We went with another family from Denmark and the father in that family is an extreme sports enthusiast (he paraglided off a 14000 mountain) so he came up with some crazy stuff for us to do.  We went paragliding, snorkeling in the Indian Ocean, and bunji cord swimming (there are hilarious videos of these things which may involve me crashing with a backward somersault).  So yeah our first week here was not too rough, but it was nice to get a little R and R too.

Last Days in Kenya

  Here’s just a quick glimpse at life in Kenya and all the beautiful kids we got to hang out with while we were there.  It was completely life-changing and thanks to all of you who believed in this trip and are praying for us!  Hope you enjoy!

I Don't Want to Leave

Blog 4:

          Our last few days in Kenya were some of the craziest and best days of my life.  Its not often that we are given the opportunity in life to see amazing things happen and lives truly change, at least not in my everyday life, and its always when you don't really expect it.  And thats what happened in our last days in Kenya and it was incredible and blessed and other words that are beyond my limited vocabulary (man, my friend Paul would know exactly what word to use here).

          Anyway, one of the tasks that Katie and I had at the Children's Home was to update the biographies on the kids in the program.  During that process we found that some of the kids who don’t live in the home yet, because there aren’t enough beds there, don’t have the best living situations.  Some of them walk very far to get home, often in the rain this time of year, and some do not have the best home situations, especially for studying.  So we began to work with the staff there and figured out a way to get more bunk beds into the home and the cost and which kids could move in next.  A huge blessing was that The Chapel Children’s Ministry (TGA) had already raised a bunch of money for the bunk beds for Dorm buy over Christmas and it was just sitting there waiting to be used for when Dorm 2 opened.  So since Dorm 2 is not opening quite yet, Oasis said we could buy a few of the beds early with that money.  We then went on the find vendors, do some bartering (so glad I was with Kenyans for this), and figure out all that was needed.  After a couple weeks of planning and finding trustworthy vendors and talking to the guardians of all the kids we wanted to move in, the big moving day arrived.  With the money sent for the beds, and after some negotiating, we were not only able to buy bunk beds but some other much needed items for the kids currently living in the home.  We were able to buy 4 bunk beds, 32 new mattresses, 35 new sheet sets, 26 blankets, 70 wash tubs, 60 plates, 50 cups, 73 spoons, and some sodas to celebrate the occasion.  And man oh man did we celebrate.  There was dancing and sodas and singing and the happiest kids you’ve ever seen.

So Katie and I spent our final day in Kenya picking up, delivering, and then giving, thanks to a lot of generous donations, 70 orphans new bedding and other goods (you would have thought we gave them a bar of gold when we told them they each got their own wash tubs).  The most miraculous and humbling thing we got to experience though was watching 9 new kids move into that precious home. I wish I could describe the look on these kids’ faces when they came into that home, and for the first time knew that it was now their home.  It was a type of joy I have never seen in anyone before.  And then to see that they were welcomed with such prayer and celebration by their friends, and now their brothers and sisters, gave me the type of joy I’ve never had before.  I know I sound like a big sap but it was one of those other-wordly God moments that you never forget.  We take for granted so much, like light to study by at night or being close to our schools/work, and when you see people who don’t have those things suddenly be blessed with them, its just amazing.    It was crazy, stressful, exciting, and overall incredible being a part of that community during this time, and honestly that day before we left Kenya was one of the best of my life.   

Did You Know The Human Brain Stops Growing At 26???

Blog 3:

I turned 26 last week.  So yes its official…. I am the most intelligent I will ever be right now, in this very moment.  Thank you Donald Miller for that lovely piece of information.  If I hadn’t just read the newest Donald Miller book “A Million Miles in a Thousand Years” I would not have this lovely little nugget of truth (awesome), except that I also would not have just finished one of the most inspiring books I have ever read (thank you Shauna for the recommendation).  I actually think the timing was perfect to read this book, right at my quarter-life crisis.  The book is all about making your life a story worth telling.  He talks about how most Americans don’t tell good stories with their lives; they tell fine stories but not the type of stories that people would want to watch on the movie screen.  He talks about how, “No one wants to watch the story about a guy who works a desk job to save up for that Volvo and then in the end he gets the Volvo and drives off the lot because its just boring”.  Nothing wrong with a desk job or a Volvo, but if that’s all we have its not much.  He also talks about how if we make better stories for ourselves then we stop looking to movies or other things to tell stories for us, and our lives just have more meaning (and I like movies, but he’s right).  He says it more much eloquently and also in a much funnier way, but that’s the gist.  Its just good, really good so read it.

  All this to say, I am now on this side of 30 and I hope I am starting to take some steps to tell a good story with my life.   I just celebrated what might have been my favorite birthday yet.  Your early twenties are a lot, I mean A LOT, of fun, but they are also filled with a lot of growing pains.  Graduating college and leaving some friends, first heartbreak, first real-job, first crappy apartment (thank you IV), first car that I own, being broke, and realizing that all of the things you thought you wanted or would get are not at all working out like you thought they would.  But they are all good things to learn.  And time passes and  I become more aware everyday of the things that I don’t know, but I have to say I like this side of  my twenties.  It kind of feels good and it doesn’t feel like my youth is ending or anything dramatic, but it feels like I actually have “lived” a bit and learned some things and survived some others. 

  I spent my 26^th birthday with one of my best friends Katie in an orphanage in Kenya.  For birthday presents I got a 2 liter bottle of warm coke, 4 Cadburry chocolate bars, and the funniest birthday card I have ever read from the kids in the Childrens Home (best quote was when one of the girls told me she wish me to be like Noah and reach 600 years old).   All the kids sang to me and gave a little speech, and then they prayed for me.   And we all laughed and danced a little, and I think I had a smile on my face most of the day.  It was a good birthday.

Cutest Kids in the World

Blog 2:  

  Ok here they are!  Some of the cutest children that have ever walked the planet.  Can you believe how cute these kids are?!?!  And when you think that most of them came from such rough situations its pretty amazing how much joy is in their faces.  I just love these guys and cant really say enough about them.  I have some kids that I am closer to than others, but it really just feels like one big family out here.  I now have 76 brothers and sisters.  Some of these kids we have been able to help in big ways with some medical issues and that has been cool, and others we have just been able to hang out with and play some soccer or guitar or dance…. And oh man can these kids dance.  We are busy here, I think busier than I have ever been, but the sense of purpose is so much greater here with these kids.  Plus, they are just so loving, like that other worldly kind of loving, and who wouldn’t want to be around that?  So I just wanted to share some pics of them.

Massai Life

  So I don’t have much to say right now except that I will be posting about 3 or 4 blogs all at once because I finally have a decent internet connection again.  I want to tell you guys about all that has gone on in Kenya (even though I am in Arusha now), but I just haven’t gotten to tell you enough about Kenya and how freakin wonderful it is working at the Children’s Home. 

  So for this blog I just wanted to show you my Kenyan mother Annah and my Kenyan father Joseph.  Katie and I have been living with them for 6 weeks and they really do treat us like their own kids and we love them.  Joseph has our back and makes sure that everyone in the Massai community here knows us and he also keeps us safe (I mean check out the spear).  Annah is amazing and completely takes care of us.  She cooks us the most incredible meals and has taught us Kenyan washing too (this by the way gets clothes very clean but also takes 2-3 hours).  Plus they are hilarious and just tell such entertaining stories and Annah is feisty and keeps Joseph on his toes.  They have 8 kids and now they have 10 with us, but they don’t seem to mind.  They always have kids living at their home who aren’t theirs because they are the house that always has an open door.  When a kid doesn’t have a place to go they can live with Joseph and Annah…. Seriously.  Right now there is a girl living with them who isn’t theirs but her living situation isn’t good at home with her guardians, so she helps Annah cook, and she lives there.  They are the most loving couple and they really believe that they are there to take care of the community around them, and being related by blood is just a technicality.  They just say God loves everyone so they want to as well.  Its pretty inspiring and humbling…. So so humbling.  We loved living there and it really does feel like home now.  

Ahhhh.... My first post from Kenya

Hello friends!
  First of all let me apologize for not writing sooner and letting you know that I got here safely.  It has been busy, but the main reason is that the internet connection up here in the hills of Kenya is not what you would call fast or dependable (I know shocking right?).  So I will do my best to update when I can but if my entries are sparse between now and Tanzania you know why.  Also, I sadly cannot add pictures yet because of the slower connection, but as soon as I can I will post pictures of life in Kenya.  It is so beautiful here with the rolling green hills and wild animals .... sidenote but I actually am woken up every morning by either a rooster crowing or a burrow making whatever noise a burrow makes.
    The main thing I want to send you pictures of though are these precious kids.  I cant describe just how incredible these kids are, but I am just so humbled by being around them everyday.  They are the cutest kids in the whole world, and once you know most of their stories you cant help but be in awe of them.   The more fortunate kids come from homes where their mother and father passed away from a variety of things (AIDS being the most common) and their guardians just couldnt provide for them, but some of these stories are heartbreaking.  Our newest orphan in the childrens home was being severely abused for 14 months until a neighbor took the child to the police where the child lived in a cell with the inmates for 1 month until they called the childrens home to come get here.  Other stories involve rape, abuse, malnourishment, and neglect.  Yet when you meet these kids they are so joyful and all they want to tell you is how lucky they are to be at the childrens home and how God has blessed their lives, and they just laugh and smile all the time.  You just realize how lucky and spoiled most of us are and it is just humbling (especially when I remember my biggest problem a few weeks ago was that we had regular coffee creamer and not french vanilla..... oh yes I suck).  The other day Katie said how she is just inspired by these kids and I couldnt have said it better.  I will post pics as soon as I can of these kids so you can see just how precious they are.
  So other than getting to know these kids better I will give you a quick update on life in the Trans Marra.    We are living with a wonderful family next to the childrens home outside a town called Kilgoris.  Joseph and his wife Annah have been so good to us and she is an amazing cook (so much for losing weight in Africa :-).  Plus their 9 kids have been alot of fun to get to know as well (only 3 of them live at home and they are all grown), and when they are all home its a bit of a party.  Katie and I share a room and its not a mud hut or anything but its not quite like home.  The toilets are holes in the ground and the shower is the bucket of water they leave for us in the morning, but honestly its not been bad and the simplicity has been a nice change (wearing no makeup and not washing you hair for a few days is pretty nice I must say).  We start our day with breakfast made for us by Annah (God bless this woman) and then head to the childrens home where we hang with the kids not in school and update info or take care of random needs.  So far (with the staff doctor and Katie) I've been to the ENT to talk about one orphan who needs tubes in her ears, been to the clinic to get update health of our kids, done dental exams on all the kids, done HIV tests on our newest kids, began giving guitar lessons to a could kids, taken 2 kids to get teeth extracted (let me just say I will never take US dentist for granted again), gone to many community homes where we are honored guests and served much Chai tea (which I always have to double up on bc Katie doesnt like the taste and we cant insult the hostess by refusing it), and we have been officially taken into the Maasai tribe and given a Maasai name in an official naming ceremony.  My new name is Naasisho which means one who does much work (ha ha).  Im also doing physical therapy everyday with a kid name Noah who had surgery a year ago for his club foot and he needs to strengthen his leg and arm on his right side.  This kid has an amazing spirit and I just pray he is healed quickly.
  Ha that sounds like alot but it has all been pretty incredible.  We have been so welcomed into this community and they have accepted us and trusted us so quickly it is again humbling.  I just cant believe how excited they have been to have us be here and how they constantly remind us how welcomed we are.  It takes hospitality to a whole new level.  There have definitely been times so far that have been hard (and its not the accommodations) because mainly I just want to fix any problem these kids have and you just cant.  So I lean on my faith and Katie and my support team back home to know that this all happens for a reason and for now I am just really grateful to be here and to have the trust and opportunity that the Maasai community up here offers.
  I know there is so much more to say but I think I'll stop there for now and send another update soon.  Thanks for letting me rant and update.  Hope all is well on the other side of the ocean.  Goodnight!
 

7 Days and Counting.....

Well its weird to say but in 7 days I will be in Nairobi, Kenya. The past two months have actually been much better than I thought they would be.  I though I might get bored moving back in with my parents and just waiting to leave for my trip, but its been really fun.  I've kept busy babysitting, seeing old high school friends (who now all live in the city and I'm a bit jealous), volunteering at church, making new friends, remembering how much I like seeing my parents all the time, and preparing for my trip with the Oasis crew.  So yes.. babysitting these kiddos Cy, Piper, and Charlotte.  Could they be any cuter?  I forgot how much fun it is to hang out with kids and also how hilarious they are!   Plus they all have great parents that have turned into good friends!  Funny thing about being back in the midwest but people my age sometimes have kids so you can hang with cute kids and your friends at the same time :-)
    Plus, like I said, seeing old high school friends again and actually getting to hang out for more than short vacation, has been really great.  They have all settled into to life in Chicago and are moving on to great things (a few of them are engaged and planning weddings, others have incredible jobs), but most of all I think the best thing is when you realize that even though people change you can all hang out again after years and it feels like not alot of time has passed.  You know what I mean?  

   And being back with my parents has been relaxing and really good prep for my trip.  Its nice to see them again and bounce the days activities off of them.  Plus, they have this massive dog Kaia (golden doodle that think shes a lap dog even though she weighs a hundred pounds) who has pretty much become my buddy  She's ridiculous but super smart and I think I might steal her when I come back.
    So the trip..... well its just around the corner (We leave Feb. 18th and come home May 18th).  I am getting a little nervous but more just because I have a list of things to do that I havent gotten to yet for before I leave.  Everything is going well so far in prep though.  We have tickets, places to stay, all the organizations lined up and ready to go, and the support is almost fully raised!  I am now just praying for that last $500, but i think it will be just fine.  I am so grateful for the generosity people have shown me so far, especially since, in the words of my friend Bette "the streets are tough".  I feel so encouraged and supported as I head out for this crazy adventure.  I will have internet the whole time I am there (can you say dial-up?) so I will be sure to keep this updated at least once a week.  Thank you again for all that are reading this!  Its going to be a great trip and I cant wait to share the stories that will come out of being there! 

Update from Winter Wonderland

*Reporting from over 8 inches of fresh snow (welcome to Chicago!)*

Well just a quick update from the midwest.  I got here safely and had a really calm and wonderful Christmas with my family and friends.  Plus, it was a white Christmas (I can never get used to CA Christmas because no snow), so it made the cold worth it.  It hasnt really stopped snowing much since I got here actually (this picture is from my parents porch after the small blizzard last night).  Its beautiful though!

Now for the real reason for this update (thank for humoring my snow talk).... new Africa trip details.  Since getting back to IL I have been able to meet a few times with Jill and Scott Hayward who run Oasis for Orphans and learn more about their organization and the culture on "the hill" where the orphanage is.  Plus they are helping me with my Swahili.  So far I just know how to say hello... but baby steps.  They are doing such amazing work up there although they never know whats coming.  Currently, they are trying to finish the well so that they will always have clean water on the hill (please pray this is complete before we get there) since they have to boil the water to clean it right now.  Also, 2 of the girls in the orphanage just had babies which is a blessing but also an unexpected challenge.  Both of the girls are 13 years old and they did not know that they were pregnant when they entered the orphanage.  Of course they are very happy to be able to help these girls and have those beautiful babies, but it shows that life on the hill is always unpredictable. Being able to be near Jill and Scott has really helped to calm alot of my nerves about the trip and both Katie and I feel 100% confident about the work we will be able to do on the hill.  It looks like we will be doing some financial updates for them, updating all of the information we have on the orphans, and finally creating a short film to tell the story of the orphanage. 

Now as far as logistics go here is an update on support and trip details:
1)  Currently Katie and I leave Chicago the week of February 15th to head to Nairobi, Kenya and then take a bus ride to the hill to begin work with Oasis for Orphans
2)  We leave Kenya March 29th to go to Arusha, Tanzania where we will begin our work with Wild Hope, and we will remain there until May 10th
3)  SUPPORT:  I have begun to receive responses from my friends and family from my letter and so far I have been unbelievably blessed and humbled by peoples support.  So far I have received $2,350 towards my trip.  YAY!!!!  The goal is $5500 so I'm a little under half-way there.  THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!