The Road Home

We have been at Kijabe for a month. In some ways we have experienced so much and yet in others it seems as if we have only just began to learn the people and the hospital routines. Today I met Pastor Willis, the core of the "Bethany Kids at Kijabe Hospital" video production studio. With a few cameras, a dual-core Apple G4, and a growing collection of external hard drives, he has taught himself the skills to manage Final Cut Pro and has produced some remarkable video for the children of Africa. He sent a few of his projects home with me that illustrates much of what this work is about.

I spent some time with Bruce Dahlman yesterday and it seems that many of the IT challenges are the same as at home. There are many tools available but no way to let people know what is out there and no one to train people in how to use the tools that they discover. There is still many regulatory issues to resove within the country regarding internet and telecommunicaitons but it looks promising for significant growth soon.

Tomorrow we leave the Rift Valley for the much warmer climate at Mombassa. We have heard it is very nice and lots of recreational activites to enjoy. We hope to take some time to reflect on our time in Africa as we prepare for our journey home next weekend. One of the nurse/missionaries that hosted us during our visit (16 years ago) now works our of Mombassa, and we hope to have the chance to meet with her while we are there.

We have seen and experienced much while here in Kijabe. We have met some remarkable people and shared great stories. We will not be the same for coming.

Gary

Thursday night

I think the kids have pretty much summed up our day. It's been a great week, the variety has been much appreciated. We enjoyed doing some office work. Tomorrow, we need to do the few last minute things, take pictures of those we've worked with, get addresses to keep in touch, return books etc.
I spent a wonderful afternoon with Martha, talking and cooking. I will really miss her and Mercy. They have so much wisdom and I wish I could spend alot more time with them. I'll think of them often. And of course the kids.......I could just love them to bits. I want to take them all home with me.
I am finding it very difficult to leave not knowing what is in the future for us and missions.
I have learned so much in the last month, and have had a lot of time to reflect, ponder and muse through things. Am so thankful for the time we spent here.

Lori

Kenyan food

Today instead of working in the playroom, we did some filing of the patient’s records. We would put reinforcements on the pages, cuz they were very thin. Then we would put labels on each divider, and some on the binder. This afternoon, Martha came and showed mom how to cook some common Kenyan food. I miss u lots CaRlY

Today, Carly face painted me as a cat. Martha showed mom, Carly, Brett, and I how to cook chapatti, African stew, rice, and ugali. It was very good. We worked on some files of patients today.

AdAm

Soccer Among the Masai

The house is quiet as I log some of the events of our day. The fire is settling to a warm glow, I have padlocked the steel gates and locked the doors that seal us in at night, and take some time to reflect. Despite some threatening weather we ventured down to a small Masai village in the midst of the Rift Valley. The pavement ended shortly outside of Kijabe and we bounced, and splashed and rocked for well over an hour on 4X4-only roads. We had to follow the "alternate" route as the rains had washed out the road across the river for the usual route. The valley was lush, the birds abundant, and we even encountered a few zebra along the trip.


We were warmly welcomed by the local pastors surrounded by many children of the village. The Christians in the community have been instrumental in constructing and staffing a school; in bringing clean water to the community; in developing a rock quarry to support the economic base of the village; and to find support through Compassion for more than 450 of the orphaned children and children at risk within this region.

Travelling back the the school we presented the local school superintendent with 2 sets of soccer uniforms and some soccer balls courtesy of the Valley Soccer Association. How fitting that these Masai children of the Rift Valley would now have bright red (traditional Masai color) and blue jerseys labeled with "Valley Soccer" insignia. They could hardly contain their excitement as they quickly donned their new uniforms and engaged in a demonstration of their soccer skills.

I was humbled to see both the extent and the patience of those working with this community. Cooperativley they tackle project that not only meet the immediate need, but provide the skills and understanding to help them towards self-suffiency. It is a hard life. They have just come through a long period of drought and have been challenged in dealing with HIV/AIDS. This week the leaders will investigate an intiative that may see each family receive a battery and a single light for their homes. For a community that has never had lights in their home, this will be a remarkable opportunity.

The evening rains have started. The moisture over the past 6-8 weeks has transformed this valley from a brown, dusty, desolate place to a rich, lush, vibrant landscape. It is said that if you bring rain, you have brought a special blessing to the community and receive a warm welcome. We have been blessed by much rain and have certainly enjoyed a generous welcome.

Gary

Last week in Kijabe

Thank you so much again everyone for all the emails and comments on the blog. We really are encouraged by them and look forward to receiving them every day.

This morning we went to chapel and had to give our farewell speech. It feels far too early to do that. The time has flown. I could very easily settle into life here in Kenya. There seems like so much to do that would be fulfilling for the remainder of my years.

I went around with the chaplain this morning on rounds and met alot of patients. I had to give about 6 short devotionals (I wasn't prepared for this....I didn't know she was going to ask me to Preach and Pray!!!!) Saw some very interesting birth defects but also very sad for the mamas. They often wish their babies would die so that they don't have to watch them suffer. Sometimes people in the communities want to kill these babies, so it is very stressful for the mamas. I felt totally inadequate trying to encourage and console them. All I could do was pray...


This afternoon, Dr. Newton drove us about an hour down the valley to a Masai village where he goes to church and helps with community projects. We met some leaders, pastors and an extended family group. Had chai with one family and then drove to the school and gave some soccer balls and uniforms to the school kids there. There has only been a school in this region for the past 10 years or so. Before that the kids didn't go to school. THe kids have won against all the soccer teams in the area. They were thrilled with the balls and uniforms and had to show off some of their skills for us. What a joy to see their joy!!!


We have a busy and full day tomorrow. Hope I get a chance to blog it. On Saturday we leave for Mombassa and I'm not sure if we will have internet access. So we may not be able to email or blog until we arrive home on May 7th.

Lori

Wednesday

We're, well, Brett and mom are just siting around Bretts reading but mom is just siting.O.K. bla bla bla bla bla bla bla bla.We hear some weird music outside. Today we went down to a Masai village, and we met some Masai people. We met around 8 kids at the village, and they liked to hold our hands, and they liked the digital camera, and video camera. It took 1 hour to get to the village.

AdAm

What a day!

Well today was one of the most rewarding yet. Garnets and Fleurys, I think I have found the answer to your questions re: sponsoring and projects.

We had lined up a trip to two orphanages for today. We were to go with two sisters and a husband of one of them from Seattle to visit an orphanage up the road in the a.m. and one about 5km down into the valley this afternoon.

We left in a van at about 10:00a.m. loaded with gifts from home. When we arrived at the first orphanage we were swarmed with children hugging us, greeting us, asking our names and holding our hands. We couldn't walk two feet. They finally were asked to gather and sing some songs with us and dance. Us North Americans tried to follow their actions, but somehow our bodies just don't move like that!!!! Hopefully in heaven we can! We had a great time playing games with them, handing our lots of hugs and visiting. Adam was a hit and always had a crowd around him.
They lined up patiently and waited for candy and toys to be given to each one. They sang and thanked us again. I'll never forget watching their faces as they received the toys - even the older boys picked out dolls. One boy even kissed his doll as soon as he got it. I'm guessing he was Brett's age or older. Some were shy and had a hard time choosing a gift. More hugs and away we went.

This afternoon, we travelled down into the valley to Maai mahiu to another orphanage, much poorer than the first. We were warmly greeted and given a tour of the dorms and all the buildings. THe children were older here. About 120 kids. Only about 70% are sponsored by someone. We were extremely impressed with the staff. Their love for God, and the children was very evident. You really need to see the pictures. Each child had a bunk, neatly made and a small box with their clothes. They are in desparate need of bathrooms among other things. The manager has a real vision for what needs to be done there. The children are taught life skills as well as attending the local school. They had been taught about cooking, laundry, sewing, carpentry, metal work, leather work etc.
We had a wonderful time of singing and prayer with them. There were many tears from we visitors as we met with them and presented them with toys and gifts. They all shared their things and waited patiently in line to receive something. I really would like to explain more to anyone who is interested when I get back home, as I feel the possibilities for us to assist them are many.

My kids had fun playing with them and I even tried to help with the stirring of the "ugali". Everyone laughed. I told them it was definitely a man's job as I could hardly move the paddle in the huge vat of ugali. They had a garden and a number of cattle and animals to care for. They are thus able to supply most of their own vegetables and milk. They have no vehicle and last night there was a sick child and one of the staff tried to carry him on their shoulders to walk up the hill to the hospital (5km). I think they finally found a taxi.
They have a huge waiting list. The manager showed me the stack of files of the children waiting to be admitted to the orphanage. Right now they have no room for more, but they are hoping funds will come in to build another dorm.

We were told today that there are 6000 new orphans a day in Kenya alone. By the year 2010, there will be 2.8 million. It costs $30 a month to sponsor a child.
This is where my heart is. What the next step for me is I don't know. God had orchestrated this whole trip in his timing today (another story) and tonight I feel tired, emotionally especially, but excited about what all it means.

Pray for these beautiful, loving children and the amazing staff that love them and take care of them.

Lori

Thank you SCS!

Thank you, thank you Saskatoon Christian School for the 15 wonderful letters that we received yesterday. We were so excited to get them and open them all. It really made our day!! THey were so interesting, encouraging and well written. We are so grateful that you have been praying for us. We can really feel the prayers that have gone up on our behalf.

God bless you all!!

Love,
Gary, Lori, Carly, Brett and Adam

BACK TO WORK!

Well we’re back from vacation now. We’re also back working at the hospital. We’re glad that you sent us letters. We got them today (April 24 /06).We got another lesson in Swahili. The fire is going out and we still have TONS OF FIRE WOOD! We have 12 more days in Africa. I can’t wait until I get back home.


Today, mom, Carly, Adam and I went to the two orphanages. We gave them lots of toys. They loved the football (soccer ball) and the American football (football). We saw how they made ugali- it’s corn. They had made clothes out of paper. They also made leather bags. In Kenya, they have glass coke bottles. I have a sprite and a coca-cola bottle and a coca-cola cap.


BRETT

MONDAY

We got letters from the Saskatoon Christian school grade 5 class today. Today mom spotted Ester + Tabitha. I was about to play with them but I was reading my book so that’s why I didn’t play. And our Swahili teacher came today his name is Edward .
Adam

An African Family Adventure

After our adjustment to rather "spartan" surroundings at Kijabe we were overwhelmed with the pampering and hospitality of the Mara Safari Club. The pace was ideal for a relaxing adventure. The safaris were 2-3 hours and followed by exquisite meals. There was adequate time alloted just to reflect and relax before the next safari. I began each trip thinking that we had seen about all that we could see, and yet upon return to the lodge, we had experienced so much more.

In case you think that the pictures are a result of some remarkable telephoto effects, I have included a few pictures to show just how close we get to the animals in the wild. Even the vehicle doesn't always seem to be a fortress, as they are quick to point our that a single charging Cape Buffalo (in somewhat of a bad mood) has rolled one of their vehicles.

The roads were barely passable at times, the animals plentiful (though not always the ones you were expecting), and the views breathtaking. With everyone armed with cameras of one sort or another we managed to preserve some of the memories from our African Safari.

Gary

Mara Safari Club

Letters

Today we got some letters from the Saskatoon Christian School. They sent us 15 letters, and it was nice to receive something from them back in S’toon. Last night I was sitting on the couch when I saw something flying around the room. At first I thought it was a moth, cuz there are lots of those, but then I realized it was a FLYING TERMITE! Those things just FREAK me OUT. There were tons of them outside, and there was this cat, and he would catch them and eat them. He ate just the bodies though, so we had lots of wings on the step. EEEEEWWWWWWWWWW! Today at the playroom there were lots of little kids there, and about 6-7 mamas. Here they call them selves mama Dennis if Dennis is their child. So my mom is mama Carly, ha ha ha aha aha haaaaaaaaaaa. We sent letters to the Christian school and read lots of books. Right now I am reading the Left Behind I am on book 27 out of 40, and then I will read the Left Behind books. We had tons of fun on our safari, and saw lots of animals, my favourite was the lion pride (family)and the elephants. The tents we stayed in weren’t tents, they were tents with a bathroom and running water, even a shower, (MORGAN) big beds and mosquito nets over them. They even put hot water bottles in your bed at night and would bring you hot chocolate in the morning (tea or coffee too)it was even better than a hotel! Well that’s about it, miss you all,
CARLY

Dream Safari Vacation

I am sorry that we haven't written on the blog, but we were away on Safari. We just got back yesterday afternoon from the most amazing adventure weekend in the Mara. A big part of what made it so great was the accomodations.
We left Kijabe and drove to Nairobi with 2 other guys from Kijabe (Greg - a visiting surgeon from Virginia who is here the same length of time as us and Shawn - a very interesting medical student from Indiana). We went to the airport and boarded a plane for the 45 min. flight to the Mara. We landed at the gravel airstrip - maybe we can attach some pictures of it. We have been having a terrible time trying to attach pictures on the blog- doesn't seem to want to work. Anyway, we were picked up by safari vehicles to go the 5-10 min. drive to Mara Safari Club. It was built in 1989 right on the Mara River. A beautiful location. There were 50 tents all right on the banks of the river as the river at that point went in a "U" shape. The tents were huge!!! Made of green canvas, but set on a stone or cement platform. Each one had electicity (a bulb in a oil lamp) to give it authenticity, a patio, showers, flush toilets and beautifully carved four poster beds!!!!! Brett said, "This is the nicest place I've ever been!!!! It was so beautiful to sit on the deck and listen to the river running, watch the sunsets and the hippos, listen to all the bird noises and Hyrax sounds, sipping coffee and tea. I could easily have stayed another week to relax. I was not ready to leave on Sunday. The food was incredible, probably similar to a cruise although I've never been on a cruise!
At night, after supper when we returned to our tents, our sheets were turned down and there was a hot water bottle in each bed. How much more luxurious can you get in the bush?? Every a.m. at 5:45, we were woken up and presented with either coffee, tea or hot chocolate and some shortbread type cookies. Our first safari was from 6:30-8:30a.m. Our driver was Samuel and we were the only ones in the jeep. He was sooo good at spotting wildlife and he was so informative. You have to go to college in Nairobi for 2 years to become a guide. He works 7 days a week but when the season is slow he can go home (near MT. Kenya) for awhile. That is a very long distance away, so he does not see his wife and kids very often.
We would return to the camp for breakfast from 8:30 - 9:30 a.m. At 10:00, we would head out again until often 11:30 or later. Then we would come back to camp and the kids would often swim in the pool. Lunch was from 12:30-2:30. Then we would usually rest as the next safari was from 3:30 - 6:30p.m. Samuel I'm sure could smell the animals and where they were. He was amazing. We found every animal except the leopard (which is very shy and elusive anyway) and the croc's.
At 7:30, they had entertainment, once a nature lecture and once was Masai men performing their traditional dances. Supper was from 8:00- 9:30 p.m. Then I hit the hay as morning came early!!!!

These are some of the animals that we saw: elephant(about 20 in a herd), giraffe (again about 20 in a herd), 3 white rhino (we walked among them) many, many hippo (my they are noisy in the morning!) a lion pride of 2 males, 7 females and about 18 cubs (we saw them on 3-4 different occasions) lots of zebra, one cheetah, some eland, topi, Thompson's gazelle, Grant's gazelle, some baboons and black faced monkeys, bats in the dining room!!, dik diks, one jackal hanging around to scavenge after the lions killed a zebra, impala, gnu, warthogs (did you know that their tails go almost 360 degrees?) hartebeasts, a hyena (they are responsible for 60% of the game killed on the Mara!!!) 5 ostrich male and female, 6 male Cape Buffalo (scary!!) and a herd of female and young Cape Buffalo, Banded Mongoose, a Hyrax that hung around IN the lodge as well as bats in the dining room and lodge area!! I didn't mention any of the birds. There were so many and I couldn't remember all the names.

Many times we were so close to the animals, we could have almost reached out and touched them. The kids had almost as much fun riding in the safari jeep as they did seeing the animals. Those jeeps can go ANYWHERE!!!!! There were many times when I thought there is no possible way he can drive through this mud or through this river or over these rocks and hills and bumps, but HE DID. I told the kids it was better than the Exhibition rides any day. Even when we would get out of the truck, it still felt like we were bouncing up and down and side to side. Not good to ride in one if you have a full bladder!!! You would not believe how rough the roads and trails are.

The first day there Carly leaned over the fence by her tent and there was a Monitor Lizard looking at her. In her words, "It freaked her out!!" He quickly disappeared.
We saw many baby animals with their mamas and really enjoyed the lion cubs playing and bothering the adults!! We took sooo many pictures. We would never have been able to go on Safari if we had booked it from home as it would have been too expensive. This way, we were given the missionary rate which was about 1/4 of what we would have paid if we booked as regular Canadians from Canada. The staff were so friendly and joked around with the kids alot. Kenyans love kids. Brett even got pulled up to dance with the Masai warriors!!

Today, I took a walk up to the Girls school where Aunt Anna Sundbo was the first Headmistress there. I took lots of pictures of the school grounds and the house she lived in for so many years. There was a man I met there that knew her when she was here. His aunt was her house girl. I saw her office and a plaque on the wall remembering here.

I had lots of fun with the school kids on the walk up and back. This if their first day back after holiday. I took some pictures on the digital camera and they laughed and giggled when they saw their pictures. Then of course everyone wanted their picture taken!
Lori

5 feet from rhino

Ya, it's true we were 5 feet from three rhinos! It was funny we were 20 feet away and I thought we were not going anay closer. But we did and you should of sone the look on dad's face becuase the person who took us to the rhinos had only a little stick. We got the two nicest tents: 1 for the kids; and 1 for mom and dad. We saw a lion eating a zebra and were we stayed by a river with hippo in it. We are safe and sound now. Amen

Brett

Sunday afternoon

Hi

Ve just got back from our safari and it Vas the BEST PLACE I EVER BEEN TO We had 3 safaris a day. And every night Ve get woken up at 5:45. and Carly,Brett, and I always had hot chocolat.Ve never had a fire in the afternoon and Ve are just having one right now in the afternoon. At the safari Ve saw hippos,cheetahs,Ve Vent very very close to the rhinos and Ve saw buffalos,and giraffes and topi and even baboons,+ dik diks + impala + gnu + Elephants + Zebras + warthog + hyena + lions + grants. Is'nt that a lot of animals?.

Adam

Wed. afternoon

We had a great time at the Bransford's last night. We sat out on their deck around a big round table. There was a monkey (they have named him Malachai) that was hanging around - probably waiting for scraps from the table. The Bransfords had 5 kids and then adopted 2 Kenyon boys with very interesting stories. THe oldest was found abandoned at about 5 months of age with a fractured skull, hypothermia and pneumonia. He was named Moses by the nurses as he was found by the river I think. The Bransfords said that when they first took him back to the US, it was a bit difficult because he didn't have a last name and they had a hard time getting a birth certificate because they didn't know a date of birth. I think they just had to make one up. They had lots of interesting stories to tell about their many years overseas. Our 3 kids had a lot of fun playing with Philip their youngest son who is 10 years old.
We are picking up more and more Swahili words as the days go by. I love to see the smiles of the kids and parents at the hospital. The kids are feeling more and more comfortable around us. I have been getting hugs lately from the boys and today I received quite a thorough physical inspection by Richard who was investigating every freckle and scar visible. Nicholas was rubbing my arms and back! Maybe it is his way of saying good bye as he most likely will be going home today or tomorrow.
There were 5 boys today and no girls. In fact we have only occasionally had girls in the playroom. Even all the mission kids are boys practically!!! Alot of the families have 4 or 5 kids and there are a number that have all boys!! It must be in the water here.
John Garnet, I asked Dr. Bransford about the incidence of physical deformity here. He said it is difficult to know whether there is actually more here than say the US. FOr one thing, it is extremely difficult to access records here. Also there are alot of home births and so no one would be keeping records of those. Also it may be that there just are more babies born here therefore more born with handicaps. I wondered if it was nutrition related etc., but he didn't think the numbers were affected by regional differences ie fertile vs nonfertile areas.
Tonight, we are going to Mama Chiku's for supper. It is a tiny little duka with a couple of tables. It is sort of like the local coffee shop or restaurant I suppose, but it is probably not much bigger than my dining room. I think our whole family can eat there for about $10 probably.
When I went to the post office today to get a stamp, I had only 90 shillings in coins and then a 1000 shilling note. Of course, he didn't have change for the 1000 shilling note, so he told me just to bring the 5 shillings another time. Just like small town Saskatchewan eh?

Well life in Kijabe is good. We have been told that there will be a major change once school starts back next Tues. though. Alot more activity and things to do. I haven't minded the peace and quiet at all, but am curious to see what it is like when RVA is back in session.
Lori

Missed a day

I realized that no one had made an entry yesterday. Guess we were all just busy relaxing!
We ended up going to 3 different libraries yesterday and so with a whole new pile of books, the house was pretty quiet except for the pages turning!!
Gary and I got caught in the rain a few times yesterday, but we always carry an umbrella with us, so didn't get too wet.
Today, at the hospital, two of the boys had gone home over the weekend. We will miss them and think of them often. There were a number of new people there today though and I got a bunch of the mothers playing a game of pick up sticks. I don't think they had ever played it before and they had so much fun, laughing and giggling. One of the young fellas that works on the ward, told us that there is an ice rink in Nairobi somewhere. He was playing with Brett and the kids with their mini hockey sticks and a ball.
Tonight we go to Dr. and Mrs. Brandford's house for supper. They have been here almost 30 years and he started the Crippled Children's Hospital.
We also had our Swahili lesson today. Edward is a very good teacher. Swahili is a relatively easy language because you pronounce the letters as you see them. But my brain does not remember or think as fast as the younger ones.
The kids are outside playing with the neighbors. Just when I get feeling settled here and into a routine, we will be starting to think about leaving.

Lori

Reflections on Easter at Kijabe

Easter Sunday is drawing to a close. Walking the dirt paths to the sunrise Easter service we could imagine the women as they walked to the tomb that first Easter morning. Families working both at the hospital and at Rift Valley Academy gathered on the front lawn overlooking the Rift Valley as the sun rose.

The torrential rains and hail of the afternoon have passed; the boys created a truly African version of "Kum by yah" on the new instruments we purchased "at the door" yesterday; the boys are in the shower after returning from an evening soccer match under the lights at the neighbors yard; and the fire is slowly fading as Lori struggles with her knitting (not much porgress today).

Though this is known as the season of the "long rains" they really haven't experienced significant rain for the past 5 years. The rain we have seen over the past weeks has seen the land florish in a wealth of green both on the hills and through the valley.

The hospital remains busy. It seems that no one has let the patients know that this is the Easter weekend. They have a small ICU where they keep the 5 sickest patients in the hospital. It is amazing the amount and variety of equipment that has been donated, but not so surprising that it often does not work when you really need it. And yet somehow we manage to gather resources and provide the care necessary for these most ill of patients.


Attached to Kijabe hospital is Bethany Childrens Hospital that cares for children needing orthopedic and neurosurgery care. For a small center 5 km off the "beaten track" they do hundreds of VP shunts each year, repair numerous cases of spina bifida, repair well over 300 cases of "club feet" and tackle many children wiht difficult scoliosis repairs. This unique centre draws on patients throughout the country even into the refugee camps near the Sudan border.

I will take call for ICU again tomorrow night, but with many of the experienced staff returning from their retreat in Mombassa it should be less daunting. We hope to visit the libraries at RVA again tomorrow, find a few groceries from the store and collect a few more pictures. We might even get to sleep in for a while, considering our early morning today and the fact that the vendors won't return until Tuesday.

Hungry lots

Its weird. I always get hungry once in a while. We still have over 60 matches for the fire. Carly, Brett,and I went out and ran in the rain. When it was hailing, I took a few steps in to the hail when I didn't know it was hailing. sizzle sizzle
mmmmmmmmooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaahahahahahahahahahahahaha

I'm still hungry!

Adam

An Easter to Remember

He is Risen! He is Risen Indeed! were the greetings we received and responded to as we got up at 5:00 this morning in the dark, popped in some cinnamon buns in the oven, made a fruit salad, reheated some Quiche and made our way, carrying flashlights to the Mead's house. We met others walking and driving in the same directions as we carried our potluck brunch items along the dark trail. What a beautiful home they have just on the edge of the mountain overlooking the valley. We gathered outside in their backyard, facing the valley below as the sun gradually brightened the sky. What a picture it was! There must have been over 100 people gathered in the back yard sitting on chairs or blankets, as we sang Easter hymns. Emotions overcame me as a men's trio sang acapella, "Were You There When They Crucified My Lord?". I have never experienced anything quite like it. It was easy to imagine the early morning when Mary went to the empty tomb. It has been awhile since I have been at a sunrise service on Easter Sunday, but I must say that the setting and beauty as the sun rose this morning over the Rift Valley is something I will never forget.
Breakfast was delicious and of course was topped off with a good hot cup of chai. We made our way back home about 8:00 and I took the boys to Sunday School. They really enjoyed it and said it wasn't all in Swahili!! Tabitha walked them home after. Gary and I went to church at 8:30 and were home by 10:00.
It has been wonderful to relax and enjoy each other's company this weekend. There was a very energetic game of soccer on the front lawn this afternoon, followed by the all time favourite game of hide and seek tag again. Some speak only Swahili or Kikuyu, some speak only English, and a few speak all three. But they all understand the game!!!
It started to POUR rain and so friends went home. Soon we noticed it was hailing!!!
A fire in the fireplace sure felt good.
Lori

Happy Easter

Happy Easter to everyone!
I can't express enough how much it means to us to receive your emails and comments on the blog. It is certainly an Easter to remember for us.

Today, I got smart. Ha Ha! I put a note on the door asking all visitors to come after 10:00am. Well at 7:00 am I did hear voices at the door, but they left and came back later. We aren't sure how many people came today - maybe 12-14 again. We once again went through the same polite ritual as the days before. Each one in turn, we chatted about family, the weather, their jobs,etc and then to look at the items each person brought. The whole process took a few hours. But I just can't send them away. Besides I enjoy their company and find it very intersting to talk to them. A number of them support kids going to college in the States. I kept telling them that it is cheaper to put a child through college in Canada!!

Mary (bless her heart) somehow found some lettuce and broccoli for me today. She also brought spinach, onions, bananas, papaya, mango, passion fruit,lemons and limes.
I spent much of the afternoon sanitizing the fruit and veggies (due to the parasites etc that don't sit well with us North Americans) and chopping and cooking a vegetable soup filled with all the goodies that Mary brought. So you see, we are eating very well here. The fruit and veggies don't look nearly as nice as the ones we buy at home, but they still taste good!!

We did another major laundry blitz as usual today, but this time we hung it all under the car port as it POURED rain this afternoon. I am trying to make a few things ahead of tomorrow am as we are going to the sunrise service at 0600 hours and then attending the brunch afterwards at the Ortho doc's house.

It is difficult to describe the community that we are a part of. In some ways it meninds me of when we were in Hay River. It certainly is a different experience than the one we had the last time we were in Kenya. But not in a negative way really, just different. The people here are much better off and better educated.

I really would like to get out again to some more remote villages, but don't know if that will happen this time. I have received an email from a cousin who is working with Samaritan's Purse in North Eastern Sudan. Unfortunately, we won't be able to see him this time. It was great to hear from him and the tremendous work that he is doing there. Our foster child lives in Ethiopia, but we won't be seeing her either.
We have been trying to reach our friend from Northern Kenya, but have not been able to. We really hope to see her before we leave.

So two weeks left, and still some things we hope to
do before the time is up. Yet, still we are at peace that where we are, is in God's plan and will for us.

Will try to attach some more pictures.
Lori

good saturday

It was a good Saturday. We met new friends [in Swahili, "rafiki"]. Their names are Seth, Effy, and Ester. My Mom is buying from 4 or 5 ladies. Right now, Mom's washing dishes.
Adam

GOOD Friday

Time for the daily blog update...... We took the opportunity today to sleep in abit. It was quite warm out, so we took a long walk down by the "lower station" they call it. It has the best views of the Rift Valley. With all the rains recently, it is nice and green. Breathtaking view. On the way home, we stopped by the hospital canteen for chapati and pop. An unusual Good Friday meal....The kids thought that it would be good if they had the chapati rolled up with butter and sugar like lefse!! A Norwegian chapati.
We really had a lazy afternoon. The kids were involved in some "Spy Mission " game all afternoon. I can't tell you how much fun it is to see our yard full of little Kenyons running around and laughing and playing. They sure know alot of games to play. I think it is because of the lack of TV, they are more creative and know HOW to play!!!! That is my bias against TV coming out again.
Mom, am I beginning to sound like Grandpa Sundbo???

We are so enjoying all the comments on the blog and emails from home.
Mac Fleury - evertime I see someone working on a bike or matatu, I think of you and how you would have a very busy business here working on vehicles and machinery.
We stopped by the hospital to see the boys today and heard that they all may be going home soon. That will be a sad day for us. There will be more kids on the ward I'm sure, but we have mainly been with the surgical kids as the others are so sick. THere is TB here and of course HIV. Not as much HIV as some other areas. There are measles outbreaks up north. We got the one of the local papers today. It had a lot of news about the recent plane crash that killed several MPs trying to broker peace in the northern province. The country is in mourning and the President has called the nation to prayer.

Lori

the playroom

Yesterday, we went to work in the playroom. There were only the four boys there, Richard, Nicholas, Sampson, and Dennis. We sang songs, played with the JENGA and TINKER TOYS. We also played bingo, and when we would call out the number they would mimic us, it was hilarious! They are learning english words, and they will say, see you tomorrow, WOW, ball and some other things too, but they mostly mimic us when we say stuff. Nicholas, when Richerd does somthing funny, he says RICHARRRD, we just laugh our heads off. Today we were going to go to church but everybody woke up late. so we just read and then we went for a walk down towards the bottom of the misson compound, and took some pictures. We went to the cafeteria for Chapatti and sprite, but dad had coke, figures. Well thats about it. CARLY

And a few more .....

A few photos "Out of Africa"

I couldn't post these pictures yesterday so I will try to send a few today. At times it doesn't seem we are that far away, and then there are days like yesterday when you realize that you are at a place like nowhere else on earth as you walk with the zebra and giraffe.

Gary

FULL,FULL,FULL,

I ate 6 servings of spaghetti and there was still like 7 servings of spaghetti left. Dad, Carly, Mom, and I went down to RVA and Carly and I went down to the playground and Mom and dad went the long way.

Adam


It was another action packed morning with the four regular boys at the children’s ward. Samson, Richard, Nicholas and Dennis keep us all busy. They are typical little boys and we have grown very fond of them. They are usually waiting at the entrance to the ward when we get there at 0800 hours. They sure make us laugh. Nicholas has been saying goodbye at noon with, “See you tomorrow!”. They like to play Bingo and call out the numbers in English. Samson’s Dad is a Masai guide at Masai Mara Game Park, so his English is pretty good. We enjoy visiting with him. He is so friendly. Dennis’s Mom is a beautiful Christian women. One day she and her friend called Adam over and asked him if they could touch his hair!!! The Africans sure love kids and Adam is a popular boy with all the adults!! I can usually get a good laugh out of the kids as soon as I try to draw something on the chalkboard or make something with playdough. The other day, James called my horse that I had drawn, a rabbit!!(in Swahili). They really don’t believe me when I say my name is Lori. A lorry here is a truck!!! It’s even more hilarious when I tell them my husband’s name is Gary. A Gari here is a car!! And then they can’t remember who is the truck and who is the car.

The kids and I walked down to the Supa duka to get more oatmeal for breakfast and to a little shop for some beaded braceles. The kids had gone up to the library this am to exchange their 14 books that they had gotten on Monday for another batch. I wrote some letters today and mailed them so they will get home before we do! We took a walk this evening around the guard trail at RVA. It was quite windy and it had cooled off quite a bit from this afternoon. The last two days have been very warm and sunny.

We have been going to the devotion time every morning at 0800 hours. It is interesting to meet the nurses and staff. Every patient needs a guardian, so there is often double the people on the ward than there is beds for patients. Most often, children who are born disabled in any way are kicked out of the home (along with the mother) by the father. These poor women often keep their children covered up with blankets, etc. so that you cannot see the child. At Kijabe, thankfully they are loved and accepted and encouraged.
Mothers who accompany children to the hospital often leave a number of other children at home, along with cows, goats, chickens and gardens to tend. This leads to a lot of anxiety among the women along with the stress of having an ill child. My heart goes out to these women. Unfortunately, in Africa, the women do most of the work. It is a very hard life for women here. There is a very large hydrocephalus/spina bifida ward here at Kijabe. I have never seen cases to the extent that I have seen here. There is also the Crippled Children’s Hospital just a few feet away from the main hospital and they are constantly full as well.

Lori

A Remarkable Day

Today we "booked off" from our responsibilities at the hospital and hired a local driver and tour operator to take us on a day trip to Lake Naivasha. One hour from Kijabe we travelled to the Lake Naivasha Country Club and entered into a totally different world. Spacious grounds, manicured lawns and flowers, a playground, and even a swimming pool were a part of this resort. The kids practiced some of thier playground skills then opted for an hour in the pool before lunch. The pool is heated (by the sun of course) and with our overcast days is was a little cooler than the one in our backyard. The warm sunshine easily compendated for the "refreshing" nature of the pool.

We ordered lunch, and waited an unusually long time, even for Africa. Apparently the hamburger that Brett had ordered was still frozen and took a considerable amount of time to prepare. Once it arrived the food was excellent and there were few leftovers (the french fries vanished).

We then travelled by what seemed to be a large powered canoe to Crescent Island. We had no idea that this island was the site of both "Out of Africa" and "Born Free". Stepping form the boat we had entered yet another different world. The 5 of us and our guide were the the only ones on the island for most of the afternoon. The animals roamed freely and we could walk among them taking pictures at will. Our "tour" started with a visit to a nest of baby Python snakes (see Brett's pictures) and the guide stood right the nest to take the pictures with my camera. He tired to pick up a few of the baby snakes but they were justa little too fast and slithered back into their nest.

We then saw 2 of the 33 giraffe on the island. The female is nearing the end of her 13 month pregnanacy and is expected to deliver within the week. The zebra and gazelle seemed unmpressed by our presence as we wandered among them. The Gnu were described as God's creation from leftover parts: the tail of a horse; the hind quarters of an impala; the forelegs of a zebra; the horns of a waterbuffalo; the beard of a goat and only half a brain. Very curious indeed. Then there were the hippos, the guinea fowl, the fish eagle, and even a dung beetle at work. A truly unbleievable opportunity to walk among the animals of Africa.

We returned to Kijabe to find the water heater had been dismantled for repair but the water to it had not yet been shut off. the maintenance team soon remedied the situation and we are hoping for hot water before Easter. An evening fire is becoming a tradition in a home that without the help of central heating (or any heating for that matter) gets cool in the evenings. Power remains unpredictable but we manage to eventually get meals on the table and spend much of our evening playing table games, reading, or taking turns writing this online diary. No TV, occasional power, no hot water, no video games, no car, no clothes dryer, and yet all that we need.

Gary

THE WALK- IN ZOO

We went to Lake Naivasha for a day. We went swimming and went to the playground. We had lunch then we went on a boat to this crescent shape island. We saw a Big python dad and babies. We saw giraffes and gazelles and what was so cool was that Adam and I got to keep some horns. We got some rocks that look like broken beer bottles. On the way back we saw some hippos and lizards. Brett

Amazing animals

We saw lots of animals today. We saw snakes and deer and giraffes and a few hippos. It was very exciting. We went on a boat to a island were we saw the animals. And we saw 2 lizards.

Adam

A Evening by Firelight

Tonight we enjoyed the warmth of a fire in our fireplace here on the edge of the Rift Valley protected from the winds and the rain outside. Not only was a small load of wood delivered, but we had one of the Africans arrange and start the fire for us tonight. (How come my attempts at fires never work quite so well???)
The house has been a little cool in the evenings and the warmth of the fire had all of us looking to curl up and fall asleep in its glow.

I am continually amazed at the resources available here at Kijabe. I had two cases today. The first, a young man from RVA came for a repair of his ACL ligament in his knee. I had some trepidation entering into this case but those thoughts quickly vanished as I saw the surgeon review the MRI films with his team, and saw virtually the same arthroscopic equipment that we use in Saskatoon – with even the same struggles to get some pieces to work. My second case was for a 96 year old Kenyan that presented with a bowel obstruction. Upon emerging from his anesthetic, he commented on how well he felt and thanked us all for his care. I am on for ICU again tonight and hope to avoid the craziness that we had on the weekend.

Tomorrow we will take a day and travel to Lake Naivasha and Crescent Island. It is about an hour away down in the Rift Valley and should be much warmer than we have been experiencing in Kijabe. Elisha, (ee lee sha) one of the local “tour guides” will escort us for the day. This will be our first sojourn into the “country” and we have each begun our malaria prophlaxis as we leave the protection of the altitude at Kijabe.

I tired to change some US currency at the hospital today, but was informed that they would not accept any “bills” older that 2000. I will have to go back and sort through my cash to try to find some acceptable money to exchange. Go figure.

Gary

Trip to the library

We went to 2 libraries today and 1 was closed. Carly rented a book about Prince Kaboo [later called Samuel Morris]. We rented them today and we're almost finished all of them. I read 5 books. Carly told me about 1 book; the book about Prince Kaboo I was going to read it. I looked at it. When I saw a few pages, I didn't want to read it then so I didn't read it.

Adam

Especially for the Burrons

Val and Janelle,
Thank you, thank you for the posts you are sending us. We are really happy to get mail around here!! HOpe we are not boring you to death with the details!! Thanks for praying for us. I am not going to say, We wish you were here, cuz somehow I just can't imagine it Val!!! But we love you and look forward to each note you send our way.

Lori and Carly

Monday, Monday

Our alarm clock (Carly) gets us up most mornings at 7am. We are all out of the house usually by 7:45 for the short 5 min. walk to the hospital. I told the kids they should be eating more porridge for breakfast as a box of cereal here can cost $6 and they can almost eat a whole box for breakfast by themselves!!
We left the hospital early today, so that we could go to the library at RVA while it was still open between 10 and 12 noon. What a great library they have!! I was so impressed! They had some neat stuffed animals and African items all around the library (almost like a museum). THe kids loaded up on books and we were well over our limit, but they let us take them all anyway since school isn't in session right now. Carly has already finished 2 books and is on her 3rd(7 hours after signing them out!) Adam has read 4 of his books, Brett has read 5. I guess it was a profitable afternoon for reading!
At the staff meeting this afternoon, I learned about the plane crash here that killed about 6-8 (I'm not sure how many exactly) MP's on their way to some peace talks. The people here are very concerned for the Northern Tribes especially as they have already been fighting over animals and now with the MP's killed, are afraid that more war will break out. They spent alot of time praying for the families of those killed and for peace amongst the people that are killing each other.
Kijabe means "place of the winds" and today that was very true. I find the breeze refreshing and it certainly helps the laundry dry quickly.
I bought some ice cream today. I won't tell you how much I spent on a 4L tub of vanilla ice cream!!!! Gary thought it was still cheaper than if we all went to Dairy Queen though. I'm not so sure. I think we will save the ice cream for company.
There were a number of new children today at the hospital for us to look after. There were two Somali refugee families from different tribes. They could not even communicate with each other. I felt sorry for them as the language barrier was noticeable in the play room. The kids were initially unsure about the toys, but I got a few smiles out of Mama by the end of the morning.
We have two regulars. Two orphan boys who live with a Catholic priest. They are not brothers. Their names are Richard and Nicholas. Richard is well enough to go back, but the Father only wants to make one trip to pick them up so will wait until Nicholas is ready to be discharged too. Richard does not want to leave the hospital and go back to the Father.
The kids have fun imitating our speech and actions. They think it is so funny to do that. They have picked up alot of English and like to surprise us with a new phrase or response. There is the odd squabble over a toy, but usually there is a parent there to set things right. The kids are really, really good and very content to play with whatever is put in front of them for extended periods of time.
Some of their favourite things to do are, blowing bubbles, blowing up balloons(especially with the pump)and playing with play doh. THere are some mini hockey sticks that the boys like to play with there and of course the TV is a BIG attraction.
We found a number of centipedes in the house today along with the usual spiders and the largest beetle I've seen surprised me in the laundry basket today. We saw a GIGANTIC locust? or grasshopper or whatever it was on the road today. It would have been a meal of its own. Lots of moths, a few mosquitoes, but thankfully, I haven't seen any mice or snakes!!
Lori

Week One Draws to a Close

It has been a week of adjustments and orientation. Kijabe Hospital is a very well equipped facilty with a rich resource of equipment and personnel. Their OR (Theatre) runs 5 rooms most days using trained nurse anesthetists supervised by a single anesthesiologist. I am here providing him the opportunity to enjoy a short vacation with his family during the school break. Though all of their equipment is donated, they have an image intensifier in the OR to do complicated orthopedic procedures, have laparoscopic equipment, fiberoptic brochoscopes, piped oxygen and nitrous oxide, pulse oximeters and end tidal CO2.

As the anesthesiologist, I am slated to the ICU call slate and find myself way over my head in an area that I haven't worked in since my residency training 10 years ago. We have had very ill patients and I have had to complete death certificates on each of my ICU shifts. Yesterday an eleven year old girl died from respiratory failure from severe sepsis after 4 cardiac arrests through the day. Today we had one policeman die in ICU from a gunshot wound to the head and two others admitted to the ICU with gunshot related vascular injuries to their leg all over a disagreement over the price of a load of carrots.

The support from the other medical staff has been excellent but it has been a stretch for me. I'll get a bit of a break with the intensivist returning tomorrow. I look forward to a little quieter week with many of the surgeons gone to a meeting in Mombassa.

We saw a monkey on the way to church today. He ran acros the roof of the AIC Church hall then scampered through the trees and was gone...

Gary

Typical Sunday

Well we walked to church this morning. When we arrived a few minutes early, there was only a couple people there. Church started at 8:30 African time. Just when you think that you are squished in the pew, 3 more people sit down in your pew. The church was packed!!! It is a big church, I forgot to ask how many it will hold. The visitors were asked to stand and there were a number of Americans visiting and a mission team from Philadelphia. This Sunday it was the Kijabe boys school turn to come to church. RVA, Kijabe Boys and Kijabe Girls schools all have to take turns coming to the main church as there just is not room for everyone all at once. After the English speaking service, there was a service in Kikuyu. Most staff and people at the hospital speak Kikuyu. There are some Masai here tho as well as Somali peoples. We are familiar with the Kikuyu from when we were in Kenya 16 years ago.

Gary was on call again today and was at the hospital for most of the day. There was a gunfight they were dealing with etc etc. He will have to do some blogging here and tell about his work.

We went to Ruth Dix house for dinner today. She is a retired OB/GYN from California who is here for a few months. Her and her husband worked for years in the Congo and raised their 3 kids there. They are grandparents now. He was also raised in the Congo as his parents were missionaries there.

We had a yard full of African neighbors here playing soccer and hide and seek all afternoon today. If the laughter and screaming were any indication, everyone was having a blast. It was neat to hear the Swahili, Kikuyu and English all playing together. Tabitha (who I mistakenly thought was Dabidah!!!) is close to Carly's age so she spent alot of time here coloring and playing games. We showed her Carly's math book and she said that she is doing alot of the same math here. She is in grade 7.

Tomorrow will be a busy day. We go to the hospital in the morning. Then we want to get to the high school library while it is open as well as the school store. Mary will come and take our vegetable order for Tuesday and then we want to get to the elementary school library later in the afternoon when it is open. The two libraries are open at different times. I have to give the talk to the Ped's staff at 5 pm and that should be all we will fit into tomorrow.

Time for me to get to bed too. I have finally been sleeping through the night the last two nights!! Brett told me today that he would like to live here!

Lori

sunday

Today we went to church up the road.Tabitha, who my mom thought was dibida, ha, ha, ha, came to our door but I told her I was going to church with my parents. After church we went to the Dix's for lunch. It was really good. When we got home me and Brett went to look for a lost arrow in a prickly bush, and when we were out there Tabitha came to our house and we played Dutch Blitz, but she never really caught on. She would lay her card from her pile of ten, and would lay them on my cards of three. My mom was laughing the whole time. After that we went outside and played soccer. While we were playing, another girl named Esther came and then we played hide and go seek tag, and there was some little kids just laughing so hard that we would start laughing too. When it started to rain they went home and we had some soup for supper. Adam is listening to one of the ipods and when we talk, he talks really loud cuz he has it pretty loud. We tried calling grandma and grandpa, but they couldn't hear us, but we could hear them. Well, see you later, CARLY

Sunday night

We met some friends today.We had tons of fun with them.We played hide-and go seek[tag] and soccer.
Adam

saturday

Today mom said that we could sleep-in, but i have a habit of waking up at 7am here. I think i am over jet lag, and over my mystery illness. WE went up to RVA and walked around most of the perimiter, and we heard baboons calling, we couldn't see them but we could hear the wwwweird sounds they make. After we went to the park and went on the swings, it was muddy so we had to have baths tonight. This morning about TEN people came to our door selling stuff. There were people selling food, and necklaces and braclets, and spears and bows and arrows, and clothes, and lots of other stuff. We have met so many people and seen different things, but i miss some things from home, especially my smarties. They do things so different here, if one of them came to canada they would think it was the thing next to heaven, like the roads, here they are so bumpy, when i get home i won't even notice a huge pothole. but if you get carsick in canada you would besick in a instant. Well i sure miss my cats, and i miss their warm fur, but there are even cats and dogs here in kijabe, but they're not my cats:( i miss you all, CARLY

Saturday crowds

Power was out again all morning. We were going to have pancakes, but there is no other way to cook except the ELECTRIC stove!!! I was tempted to go over to the neighbors cooking fire. It is starting to get to the point where we would really like a hot meal once in awhile!!!
I had a steady stream of visitors from 8:00 - noon, selling all manner of crafts, necklaces, bracelets, carvings, tortillas, English muffins, bags, cloth, keychains, bowls, dolls, dresses, scarves etc. etc. I tried to patiently look at each ones wares. And they also waited patiently in line while I did business with each one.
The mission has made a deal with the local people that they are only allowed to come around and sell on Tuesdays and Saturdays and no earlier than 8am. I can see where that became a necessary thing to do.
Mary brought us some pineapple, bananas,potatoes,carrots, zucchini, tomatoes, green pepper, garlic, mango, passion fruit, and a bag of very funny looking peaches. The peaches looked awful and were hard, but boy were they sweet and good. Each bag of produce was weighed out and bagged per kilo. All of that produce for 480 Ksh.
Gary was on call today for ICU and so we really didn't see him til almost supper time.This afternoon, the kids and I walked the "Baboon trail" to see if we could see any. Carly and Brett thought they saw one. I think I heard them. We stopped at the playground again. The kids were entertained the rest of the afternoon with the new bow and arrow. I did laundry and the Dibidah (the girl next door) said she would come and pick Carly up for Sunday School in the am. But I think Carly will be too shy to go with her. Sunday School is at 8am and church is at 8:30am. We are invited out for lunch tomorrow to the OB/Gyn's duplex. They are from California. She is retired, but is here working for awhile.
It gets dark between 6:30 and 7:00 pm and it gets light out at about the same time in the morning.
It was so cold this morning, I didn't think that I would ever warm up. Well, I need to get some laundry in off the line.

Lori

sunshine

It stopped raining tonight.Me and Brett played with a bow and arrow that we bought from a guy named James for 500 shillings.We had fun.
Adam

P.S.

I forgot to mention that I don't have access to my address book on the computer for email addresses, so if you want to get an email from me, could you email me first so that I have your email address?
Lori

Friday night

I tried to post some pictures yesterday, but was unsuccessful. Don't know why we are having technical difficulties, but...we'll do the best we can.
It has been pouring rain all day. I see why they call this season the "long rains". The Kenyans are very happy about the rain though and I have to admit I kind of like it too. The kids stayed indoors though more today. Carly is feeling much better today. Thanks for praying for her. Her appetite has been good and the rest of us never caught it. She was content to stay home today and read, color etc. while Brett, Adam and I went to the hospital.
This afternoon, the boys and I took a walk in the rain down to the Post Office to mail a letter and then we went to the dukas (shops). We stopped at the Supaduka and picked up some matches and a small can of "drinking chocolate" as it is a cool rainy day. Stamps were 95 shillings to send a letter to Canada. There are about 60 shillings to a Canadian dollar.
There is no heat in the house and it has cement floors, so it can get a little cool in here. Today I wore my fleece all day. Am glad I packed some slippers to wear as my feet get soo cold on these floors. We have lots of quilts on our bed to keep us warm at night. There is a fireplace here but I haven't seen any wood in sight. I guess I'll have to hunt some up.
We have seen a fair number of dogs and cats around. We have seen the cats eating grasshoppers. The dogs look like German shepherds or rottweiler types.
Last night, we had a major infestation of flying termites. They lose their wings and then die, so we must have had hundreds of wings (they look like maple seeds) in the house and on the front and back steps. Gary was trying to block the cracks in doors etc.. so they wouldn't get in, but they did. It was so gross!
Here's a funny story from this week. When we were shopping for groceries on Monday, Brett wanted to get the pink and blue toilet paper!! I remember that from Ecuador when we were there. I had never seen the likes before then. I guess he thought it was a novelty too.
The kids were sitting around this afternoon discussing what they already missed from home. Carly said she misses Tim Hortons and the TV show, "How it is made". Brett misses his skateboard. Adam says he misses Tim Horton's hot smoothies!! Makes it sound like we are Tim Horton regulars doesn't it? Gary misses coffee, full blast showers and high speed internet. I think I miss clothes dryers and hot water from the tap!!
I made some chocolate chip cookies today to try to chase away any blues!!
Tonight we are playing crib and enjoying some family time without the interruptions that normally occur in our North American lifestyle.

Lori

Rainy day in Kijabe

This morning, I spent an hour writing a lengthy and detailed report for the blog…..it wouldn’t let me publish it or save it. Frustration indeed. Now I am attempting it again, but probably a shorter version as my patience is running out with this whole computer business.

It has been pouring rain most of the day and the power was out for most of the day!! It is the first time that the power has gone out though so that’s not too bad. I expected it to be a daily experience. The power did stay on long enough for me to cook supper, thank goodness.

I’m sorry that I haven’t been able to update the blog regularly yet. We have just set it up in the house that we are in so that will be easier for us to update it. As well, we were all wanting to use the computer at once in the little bit of time that we have been home, so I only glanced at my emails today and started to reply to some.

We didn’t go to the hospital to volunteer today, because Carly got sick last night. We think she caught the flu from the hospital. Maybe we should have gotten flu shots after all. Don’t know if it would have helped or not……She seems to be a bit better today, but still has a very sore tummy.

Adjusting to the altitude has not been too difficult. We all seem a bit more tired than usual, but that could still be the jet lag thing maybe. Going uphill here ( and there is lots of that) is a slow process. I did notice that the kids were pretty winded at the playground yesterday. We’ve been trying to drink sufficient water to ward off headaches, etc.

We have been doing laundry steady since we came. The rain, the mud, 5 of us…….The house has a tin roof so it gets a bit noisy especially at night. They have just come through their dry season so now things are starting to green up a bit and soon there will be a greater variety of vegetables available. I buy my vegetables from Mary, and Martha comes to clean the house. How about that eh?? Lots of Biblical names here. Solomon cuts the lawn across the road. We met him today. The day we came here, there was someone cutting the grass in our front yard. They do it with machetes so it is back breaking work. It took him all afternoon and he still wasn’t done and hasn’t been back to finish the job either so it looks kind of funny. They bagged all the grass. The kids were amazed that they didn’t cut off their hands doing it.

By the way, it is a myth that roosters crow at dawn. They crow any old time they please!! Directly behind our house is the clothes line and directly behind that are our neighbor’s chickens and rooster(s?). I keep expecting the boys to come in from playing soccer to announce that they are having chicken for supper next door!!!!

On the first day that we were here, the head of the Ped’s department asked me to speak at the monthly ped’s staff meeting on Monday from 5-6pm. OK, I know exactly who is laughing…..Tami, Val and Joy……When you are done laughing , you can start praying for me!!!
Every Wed. am from 8-8;30, they have hospital staff chapel. We were told to get there early to get a seat!!! Can you imagine that in Canada??? Anyway, they introduced the new people and prayed for them and then said good bye to those who were leaving and prayed for them. I am amazed at how many people go through this place (doc’s, med students, volunteers, etc.) And yet the long term people here remain gracious and welcoming to everyone. I am impressed. We must shake hands with at least 50 people a day. One of the doc’s here told us that that is likely how most people get sick here rather than via the food/water borne illness. Shaking hands is so important both to children and adults and proper greetings are a must.

Yesterday, I bought some pretty decent English muffins from Freda. You can also buy tortilla chips, tortillas, samosas and egg rolls from women who come around selling them at your door. How about that for international flavour?? Freda makes tortillas too, but I was told that Grace makes the best ones!
Excuse my grammar, punctuation etc. I am frantically typing, hoping to get it all in before everything crashes and I lose it all again.
Yesterday after the staff chapel, the kids and I headed up to the ward. We started off with a few songs, prayer and then pulled out the play doh. What a hit that was!!! We learned a few more Swahili words as we made lions, snakes, birds etc.. They all laughed at my creations. I am not really an artist at all. They are such sweet kids and so content despite all their difficulties.

We probably had about 6-8 kids between 8:30 and 12:00. We showed an Easter movie before we left. The boys were laughing at Brett. He seemed to enjoy entertaining them! Adam seems to have a sensitive heart for those kids that were alone or sad. I often found him trying to engage them in a game or toy. Carly was looking after all of them and in her quiet way was keeping things clean and organized. The kids have totally surprised me with their adaptability. They have jumped right in there with a servant heart. The sights and smells are awful even for a retired nurse and mother, let alone children. Carly seems to be the one who has been taking it all in and mulling over everything. I think her thoughts are running deep. They are real troopers and have not complained at all.

After we were done on the ward, a young guy named “Markmillan”, yes, that’s his name, took the kids to the hospital canteen for chai and chapatti. They loved the chapatti, but were not so sure about chai….
After lunch and a short rest, we headed up to RVA. What a HUGE campus. I could not believe it. The view of the Rift Valley from there was stunning. The campus reminds me of an English garden with an African flair! It would not be too difficult to live there at all. I think they often call it “Little America”. I loved it. We went to the playground behind the elementary school for awhile. There was a new type of swing there and the kids didn’t want to leave. The gym was closed because they were painting, but we saw the racquetball courts, basketball courts, soccer field, dorms, music hall, library, wood working rooms, classrooms, offices etc. etc. You can walk all around the perimeter of the campus, but we hardly got to see half of it.

Today, we stayed home, because Carly was sick. But the boys and I did walk up to the store and Post Office to buy stamps and mail a letter. We read and played games in the afternoon. I LOVE not having a TV.
Thanks for your comments everyone. I really appreciate getting the emails.
Lori

THE SUPER WEDNESDAY!

It was so funny last night. A friend of ours invited us for dinner. Guess what we ate. Pizza!! I know I thought there was going to be no pizza. Every day Carly, mom, Adam, and I go to the hospital to entertained kids 1-15. We went to RVA and played on the playground. Two thirds of the time we went on this swing that goes around and around. When we went down to the gate we saw huge pineapples. It shows photos at the top. There are two black poles of a clothesline that Adam and I play soccer with. Well that’s all I have today I can’t wait for tomorrow.

Brett

Settled in Kijabe

What an experience we have had so far. It seems like a long time ago since we left home. The kids did so well on the very, very long flights. Our connections were great and I was relieved that all bags arrived safely. Some of the highlights of the plane rides were when we were flying across the Atlantic into the sunrise on Sat. am. It was beautiful and the kids were in awe. Another truly amazing sight was looking at the miles and miles of desert from the air. Unbelievable. What an imagination God had when he created the earth. I didn't take exact note, but it seemed to me that of our 8.5 hr flight from London to Nairobi, three quarters of that time was spent flying over Africa!! I never really comprehended how large of a continent it was. Europe seemed so small in comparison. It gave me a renewed appreciation of David Livingstone and all he accomplished in his life!! When we arrived in Nairobi, Brett kept saying, "It's alot nicer than I thought!"

There have been oodles of MK's (missionary kids) around to play with, so my 3 are having a ball. No barriers,just instant friendships. For the most part, I think that they have adjusted well to jet lag. We are all feeling fine,Mom, nobody is sick!!!

We have met some incredibly interesting people so far,doing some interesting things with groups that I have never heard about. Especially at the Mayfield Guest House. I wish I had time to tell abit about them.

The Samaritan's Purse drivers and staff have been wonderful. I am so impressed with the people we have met. I can't describe it any other way than they just are very REAL.

Shopping for groceries on MOnday before coming out to Kijabe was a bit of an adventure. It was hard to know how much to buy and of what as I wasn't sure what all was available here in Kijabe. We don't have a vehicle so can't just drive into Nairobi to pick up supplies.

Carly has mentioned a bit about the house. We have running water but no hot water. I seem to be boiling water on the stove constantly. We do have electricity thank goodness and computer hookup has just been sorted out.

Yesterday, we unpacked after we got here and took a short tour of the hospital. It seems very large and confusing, but I think it is because it is so sprawling. I think there may have been quite a few additions.

Last night we were invited to the anaesthetists house (there is only one here) for supper. It was refreshing and encouraging to see the normalcy of their lives here in Kenya. The kids had so much fun playing with their 5 kids (including 2 adopted African kids),plus two that were there sleeping over night, but were so sleepy, they fell asleep on the 5 min. ride home.

We had to wake Adam up this am to go to the hospital. I've been waking up at 4:30-5:00am so power out in the afternoon. We went to the Ped's ward for devotional time this am and then stayed the morning playing with the kids. There were two Canadian girls there that had spent the last two months volunteering on the ward, but are leaving tomorrow. The chaplain was a lady that great aunt Anna mentioned to me so it was great to meet her and talk about people we both knew.

My 3 did an excellent job of playing with the kids, but said that they wished that they knew Swahili as the kids really don't know English. We may take some lessons while we are here, so it will be easier to communicate with them. The kids are so sweet and content despite their major health problems.

Brett saw some big kids on motor bikes today roaring around. There are 4 boys that live right beside us. They invited us over for tea to visit and the kids played soccer.

We also were invited to a pastor/teacher's house for supper tonight as well. They have a beautiful place overlooking the Rift Valley. Not a view like that anywhere else in the world I'm sure. The boys didn't want to leave to come home they were having so much fun playing with their kids and on the walk home in the dark with our flashlights, both Brett and Adam told me that those women are much better cooks than I am!!!

We did laundry this afternoon. Everything takes much longer in Kenya. It basically took all afternoon. We had meant to go for a walk, but people kept stopping by to visit etc. Relationships are very important here and it is like a subculture all of its own.

The vegetable and fruit lady came by today - Mary. I also had a visit from Peter and Martin. Peter carves out of 3 different types of wood - beautiful carvings and Martin is a painter(oils and batikk). Martin also does pictures from banana leaves.
Very nice gentlemen and very talented. They put alot of work into their craft and don't ask for much for it.

The boys played outside all afternoon today. They helped me hang up laundry, but were content with a soccer ball for the afternoon. They created some goal posts in the front yard. Am thankful that the environment here is safe. I don't worry about them out there by themselves.

It's getting late,Gary needs the computer and I will have to answer emails another night. Weather has been very pleasant, breezy, raining at night and the odd spit during the day.

Lori

Kijabe

Well we got here safe and sound, a little tired, but we are here.When we got here it was warm outside and birds were chirping and roosters crowing and we went into our house and looked around. There are three bedrooms, mom and dad's room, brett's room and mine and Adam's room. There is a living/dining room and also a small kitchen and laundry room.There is only a washer but no dryer so we have to hang them outside to dry, and if it starts to rain we have to quickly get the clothes and sheets off before they get soaked. My dad works in the OR and my mom and my brothers work in the playroom for the kids. We meet three familes already, the Newton's, the Ruiggs, and the Howarths. It is so exiting to be here it was not what I expected, but it is so amazing. CARLY

Safely in Nairobi

We had a long but uneventful trip to Nairobi. Melissa dropped us of at the airport at 10:30am on Friday and we were in London for breakfast. Brett had already read one of the books he brought for the trip and the all enjoyed the 18 channels of movies avialable on the flight from London to Nairobi.

An uneventful trip gathering our visas, changing a few funds to local currency and completely filling a minivan with our 8 checked suitcases and 9 pieces of carry-on luggage. We settled into our room at the Mayfield guest house and despite the 9 hour time change, we managed to sleep well last night.

Following breakfast promptly at 8am we left for church at NPC Valley road for their 11am service. Of course the times had changed, so we were instead 30 minutes late for the 10am service and stayed through the last part of the 11am and the first of the 12pm service. Both were packed (about 3-4000 people) and very warm with no air conditioning.

The kids met some other other missionary kids at the guest house and engaged in some timeless games of hide and seek and tag. Some things are the same everywhere. Tonight they all settled in to watch "The King and I" while I went for coffee with Ken Birch.

Tomorrow we stop for a few groceries on our way to Kijabe. We are still a little dazed by the jet lag but very excited about the adventure ahead.

Gary