March 15, 2015

Hi Friends!  I see on Facebook that the snow is beginning to melt in Michigan!  Wow!  Enjoy the  spring!!!

We are enjoying plenty of sunshine here in Rwanda!  We've had several storms & lots & lots of rain during those storms, but that doesn't stop the sun from baking us during the other times.  A picture is worth a thousand words, so I'm attaching several below.   We are so excited to have fast internet this year - fiber optic has been installed, so as long as it remains intact, we are able to post pictures this year. 

There is so much to be thankful for as we finish out our first full week.  We are so thankful for old friends who we can play with & spend time sharing experiences with.  Dr. Carl & Francie, the Lands, the Bergs, Julie, Dr. Jan & Dr. Parks, all of our Rwandan friends - too many to name.  But there are also many others on the mission this year - 2 fresh out of residency docs with their families (will spend 5 months here), a pastor & his family (who are on month 6 of 12), a dentist and his family (2 years) .... so we are the short termers this year.  

We have 2 roommates sharing our house with us.  They are both nurses from the US and in their mid-20's.  They did not know each other prior to traveling here, but we have all become fast friends.  Rachel & Lauren are wonderful to live with because they aren't too bothered by the typical fighting & arguing displayed daily by our 3 perfect little angels - ha !  We play games together at night, cook together, speak sarcastically to each other & laugh a lot!  God gave them to us as a gift.  They are SUCH a blessing!  Again.... God pulls through & blesses with friends, one of His specialties.   They will also be here for 3 months, so we will get to spend our entire trip with them.  (And we now have "Tall Lauren" and "Short Lauren")

The kids have friends to play with!  And they speak English!  Brandon & Zach are old friends Levi is thrilled to hang out with.  Deste is 6 and he was adopted last year by the Berg family - so he has now taken a trip to their home in Texas & can communicate so well in English.... imagine " Y'all " with a Congolese/Rwandan accent!  Lauren & Deste have become really sweet buddies.   The Wong family (the dentist) has 2 little boys:  Ethan (3) and Ollie (1).  And the Carpenters (the pastor) have a little girl Sarai (2).  One of the docs has a little baby, too.  So we have lots of kiddos around the place!  Nobody specifically Anna's age... but she & I have been learning to knit & doing crafts together - she plays with the boys, or on a rare occasion, she & Lauren get an awesome game of "pretend" going.  

This year does feel different.  We are very comfortable  - in a good way.  We know our way around the roads, know how to shop at the dukas and market, understand better how to cook, know who to ask for help & how to live here in general. It doesn't feel so difficult & foreign anymore.  Language is always tough, but we can get by.  It feels a lot like visiting family.  

Getting back to the hospital has been good for Joel.  It's always a bit overwhelming - relearning how to lower expectations, slow down the pace & communicate effectively.  There are lots & lots of patients.  One man was riding on the back of a vehicle and a downed power line struck him... he was electrocuted & his arm had to be amputated this week.  So terrible.  

Between Joel's patients - who are cared for by Rachel in the post-op / ICU, and Tall Lauren who has 88 patients in pediatrics, and Julie who cares for the itty bitty babes in the NICU, our dinner table is filled with lots of "shop talk".  I love hearing all of it!  It's wild.

I am carrying on with school for Anna & Levi in the mornings - we are usually finished with school by lunchtime.  It has been really good overall.  Homeschooling has always been that thing I said I'd never do... and we all know what God does with statements like that !  I'm very thankful to their teachers who have made it 10 times easier by giving me some curriculum to work from.  

Ok, time to go get dinner going....  Love you all!!!!

A great big thunder storm... Levi & Deste had a blast running around getting wet!

This is our walk to Kumbya.  (Yes, Lauren insisted on wearing her swim suit for the walk!)  We went for the afternoon to swim & picnic.  The walk is about 3 miles, mostly downhill.  But the sun was pretty scorching & we all got pretty burned despite SPF 50. We had a ride back home at the end of the day!  Whew!  

ps:  Levi's glove is just him being 8.5.   He & Deste were playing with some of Dr. Tim's surgical gloves & Levi wanted to put water in them & wear them on the walk to Kumbya to try to keep cooler!

Pals forever - Lauren & Deste!

Notice the strong lady carrying a huge box on her head while her baby is strapped to her back.  And! a nice, paved road to walk on!

And this little girl is carrying her sister!

This is part of the road that comes AFTER the nicely paved road.... and this is a smooth part!  

Our awesome Roomies!  Rachel & Lauren!

Joel & Tim rescued the raft after a big wind storm blew it into a nearby cove.  

The boys (Levi & Deste) taking the girls (Anna & Hannah-a visiting friend) on a ride around the lake!