Pictures!!!!

I have tried endlessly to put pictures onto picasa. TaVonna brought her laptop to Kenya so I even spent time uploading them to her computer, hoping I could then put them onto picasa. I sat at the computer for over an hour waiting for five pictures to upload with no luck. I finally decided I would just put a few pictures into my actualy blog. This has taken an hour so far. I tried to pick a few good ones, but unfortunately you'll have to wait until I get home to see the rest. I'll explain the pictures from left to right. The firswt picture is of two brothers that I saw as I was walking down a rode in Isongo. I thought the way the older brother was holding the little one was so sweet. The picture to the right of that one is of a bunch of the kids crammed into a car to be taken home. They seriously fit around fourty kids in these little vans. It's crazy, but as you can see they are very happy children. The next picture is of me with some of the teachers I work with. Below that picture are some of my first graders :). Aren't they precious? To the right of those pictures is a little boy named James. He spends a lot of time on the farm and he is my little snuggle bug. He lets me just hold him forever. Whenever the other volunteers see me with them they tell me how happy I look. I just adore the little ones. How could anyone not fall in love with a smile like that. Then there is of a little girl I met while planting trees in Isongo. Something in her eyes just speaks to me. The other picture is of me and little boy named Samwin (Sammy for short). I just love the little guy. Stallon (Mama Betty and Rueben's son) always says that Sammy and I are so cute together because he speaks no English and I speak no Swahili but we have formed a little bond. He said that love has no boundaries :).


I took a picture of my hair in braids so you could all see it. The braids are coming out tomorrow, but hopefully I can get them done again before I come home. They have been a big hit here. At school the kids play with tires at recess. I couldn't resist snapping a shot of the little gril above, so cute!


Today has been one of the best days...

I have been missing my head lamp for almost a week now. It's been awful because I like to read in bed at night and I have to use the bathroom three or four times a night. At first I thought I had just misplaced it and then I thought someone took it. TaVonna was nice enough to let me borrow a flashlight, but it just wasn't the same. Last night was great because I only had to go to the bathroom ONCE! We have two night guards on the farm and my hut mates always say that the night guards laugh at how often I have to go to the bathroom. I drink three to four liters of water a day so I'm thinking that has a lot to do with it. This morning I was getting ready when my shelf just flipped over and everything on it fell on top of me. I was annoyed at first. Then what did I see? You got it...my head lamp! AHHH I was so excited, so I took it and ran around the farm telling everyone I had found my headlamp. It was all very exciting. The day just gets better from there.

Julie, Hilary, and I went to school this morning to grade some papers. All of our students are taking their standardized tests right now. They will all graduate next wednesday. The girls and I are on the flower making commitee. I'll let you know how that one turns out. Last week we had a meeting to discuss graduation and they were asking us what kind of gift we should give to the guest speaker. I recommended a nice book signed by the pupils. Julie and Hilary liked that idea but everyone else looked really weird. The next person suggested a cow and everyone after him said we should give the guest a turkey. The turkey won. At the meeting the teachers also discussed presents for the pupils. I guess if the student does well in a particular area they are given a gift that will help them to excel more in that area. One of the awards goes to the cleanist student. Can you guess what that student might get? They give them a bar of soap and a toothbrush. We had to hold our laughter. Some things that are discussed just crack me up.

After getting our grading done we decided to come into town to use the internet and get some lunch. These are my favorite days. On the way to lunch we stopped by the post office to see if my mom's package had come. The lady at the counter said that she had something for Bridget King. My mouth was watering just thinking about the American food coming my way. Then the lady hands me this large cushy package and I was confused because I knew my mom's stuff was coming in a box. I got this package from Heather. It was full of Thanksgiving/Fall things. I got fake leaves, a scarecrow, an IU football, a coloring book, Phase Ten, a candle (that smells amazing), stickers, recipes, a pencil, and candy. Thank you SO much Heather. That was such a surprise and it really made my week. The other volunteers are so excited to have some American candy and tonight we are all going to play Phase Ten. On top of that I have recieved eight letters here. Thank you for writing me. I just feel so blessed.

Today I am overwhelmed with the goodness of the world and the people in it. God is extremely good :)!!

"To live is the rarest thing in the world. Most people exist, that is all." ~Oscar Wilde