Nairobi Trip

 Hello All! We arrived back to Lodwar safely. The girls and I almost missed our flight and I held two frozen chickens in my lap on the plane...but that is another story. We enjoyed our time there, but were ready to come home. Pictured below are some of our favorite things we did. Not pictured below are the trips to doctors and x-ray places (Taylor had lung and kidney infections) and hours sitting in Nairobi traffic:) 

Andi holding a 2yr. old baby crocodile...no tape on the mouth!!!

Lucy, so brave.

The Giraffe Center. We got to hand feed "Lynn" the giraffe. This was so exciting. My kids afraid...never.

Lainey and "Lynn" blue tounge and all!

Camel ride anyone???

David Sheldrick Wildlife Trust (elephant orphanage)

We were so close! Loved it!

The tiny babies were very interested in the girls.

Just a rope between us and them. 

They drink human infant formula shipped in from UK. 

Very cool, black Rhino.

The Container Arrived!

Our container arrived to Lodwar on Thursday April 19th. The total journey from Ruston to Lodwar took only 11 weeks! God's speed huh? It arrived not a moment to soon! It was lots of work to unload the items off the truck at Share's compound. With about 20 hired hands we quickly sorted out donation items and our personal belongings. We brought our things home and began what turned out to be a week long unpacking, reorganizing and sorting marathon. Phew! All that hard work paid off and it feels very homey now! I cannot describe the wonderful feeling of seeing all our "stuff". I was happy to see my own worn out dish rags! Just because in a place where everything is different small familiar items make a huge difference. The girls were so happy to have their bikes, toys and rooms set up.The container was taken off the truck and a few days later was put onto concrete pillars Taylor had just finished. It will be remolded to be an on-site office for him for the construction of the SEND Center.

We are heading to Nairobi April 28-May 9. We are ready for some "R&R" and a hot shower. We have some fun things planned. We are all really excited. While there we will also shop for a new cooking range (we have not had an oven for about 8 weeks...yep...challenging!), buy meat, cheese and dry grocery goods to last 3 months. We will also eat out and enjoy some cooler temperatures and just relax. Since the house is all set up, when we come back on May 9th it will feel like coming home.

Open that thing up! 

The girls were so ready for their bikes!

Our things had shifted quite a bit after Kenya customs went through most of the contents. Let's just say they did not put as much care into packing it as we did. It had to travel on what may be the worst road in the world.  Only minimal damages occurred.

There it is! Our new "family ride". Taylor has since "tricked out" this ride .  It is now equipped  with locking tool box  on back. Yep, the girls and I (yes all 4 of us) take this to run around town. We get a few looks :)

That's a lot of stuff.

Backing up to be manually lifted off the truck. 

final resting place! Taylor will renovate 20ft. of the inside of this container to be his onsite office for the construction of the center. 

A tisket, a tasket....choosing a Turkana Easter basket!

Happy Easter! We had a good week here in Kenya. Even though Lainey came down with Malaria. She is doing great and responded quickly to her treatment medicines. She basically just ran fever and complained of a stomach ache. She was on preventative medicine, sleeps under a net and we have screens on the windows. It just happens. We had a few clouds roll by but no more rain yet. Saturday morning we are getting together with the Harris family to dye eggs and do Easter crafts and swim. Saturday afternoon Stanley (a Share Int. staff member) and his family are coming to swim. Then Sunday we will go to church. (I have to be honest, I have a huge crush on the Easter Sunday speaker ;) And yes, you guessed it Taylor is preaching. He will do great as usual. Then we are getting together with the Harris family and Lynn (Both CMF missionaries) and having an American Easter potluck! With our resources combined I think we will have an "Americanish meal". I will be adding a ham, deviled eggs and dessert to the meal. We took the girls Easter basket shopping at the basket market in town and they loved it! Enjoy the pictures!

So many baskets...which one to choose?

Taylor haggling with the "mamas"

Andi, remarkable balance. Even the Turkana ladies were impressed!

Lainey. She was able to make her selections the quickest and never changed her mind.

Andi thought she needed one as a purse also.

Lucy loves small things. Later that night she collected big ants in her "purse basket".

Happy Easter. We love our baskets!

A day of life in Lodwar

Here are a few pictures to help see what "everyday" kind of looks likes for our family.

Hum...well...this is Taylor slaughtering our first (and last) goat. Also pictured are Mary our house worker, Marco (well the back of his head anyway) and Thomas our 2 full time watchmen. They were impressed that a mzungu (white man) could slaughter! That is what you get when you marry a man from the south :) And yes, the girls watched and loved every minute of it.

Taylor hung this swing up in our compound. It is on a high branch of a huge acacia tree. As you can see it can go quite high! Look away grandmothers! 

This is the girls playing with one of our watchmen's baby and wife. Also pictured is Lyniah, our 7 yr. old neighbor.

The girls LOVE the 20 chickens we have. They spend hours playing/harassing them. This is Andi and Lainey with "Mrs.Fat"

This is a ververt monkey. They are described as "cheeky" monkeys that are very curious.  They come to our compound twice a day and are fun to watch but can be quite mischievous. We are minus one pet turtle because of them...

Lucy. I love this picture because my mom has a picture  of me that is almost identical, chicken and all.

Way to go girls! We collect eggs from our hens. We are allowing 2 hens to keep their eggs so the girls can see how this whole "chick hatching" happens.

This is the gecko that lives in my bathroom. He is only allowed to stay because he helps control the gnat and mosquito population. They are all over the outside of the house also.

Ahhh...sliced bread.... a modern luxury! It usually arrives to Lodwar under somebody's luggage or a cage of chickens strapped to the top of a bus from Eldoret, an 8 hour drive. It is usually smashed and must be "hand ironed" before making a sandwhich.

In loving memory of "Alissa Marie" the dessert tortise. Found missing from her enclosure in March. We suspect it was the monkeys. They had been poking around her cage stealing her mango peels...if we only knew they would be back later for more than just mango peels! 

Beef Samosas. This is a Kenyan food that is similar to an egg roll.  Not too bad, but also not too good for you as it is deep fried like most of their other favorites!

"The Watering Hole" All our drinking, cooking and tooth brushing water has to be run through this filter (thanks Moore Family, we use it everyday!) Once filtered, I refrigerate the water and then add ice and put it in the small water cooler, so we always have ice cold water available. The water straight out of the filter comes out at about 95 degrees. Not so refreshing on a 110 degree day!

We have borrowed a washing machine from some friends here but no drier. Yep,  "we let it all hang our here"!

Our compound backs up to the River Turquel. Its level stays pretty low, but it is fed from the mountains in Uganda. Every afternoon it is filled with laughter from kids playing. Across the river you can see some small mountains.

Kilpatrick Acamedy of Early Learning is in session!They love school ! Here they are finishing up our lesson on rain forest with a parrot art project.

Everyday at 4pm we go swimming in the only pool in town. It is right out the porch door! Taylor redid the plumbing and installed a new pump (isn't he awesome?) and we have been up and running for a few weeks. Andi and Lainey swim great with no floaties! Lucy is still "practicing" but she loves jumping in and going under. She has to be convinced into wearing the "floaties of shame". Love it! 

Our yard is an oasis in the desert. There is nothing else that even comes close to comparing it here in Lodwar. It is full of beautiful, tropical plants and flowers, birds and butterflies.