Welcomed Guests

We were happy to have my Uncle Dave and Aunt Sue (actually my mom's Aunt and Uncle) come and be part of our lives and ministry in Obule!  Aunt Sue visited Uganda five years ago so we were glad to have her back and share Obule with her.  This is our day in Soroti where we went out for local food and to the market.

We visited Christ the Answer Primary School

Town market

A couple friends had our guests over for a meal

Dad and Dave got papyrus for me

Village market.  Sharpening our tools.

Aunt Sue loves to sew so we had fun looking at material.

We cause quite a crowd at market.

Worship

Walking back from church.

Uncle Dave is interested in woodworking so we brought him to meet the carpenter we use.
Dave was impressed with all he could do with his simple workshop and tools.

We visited Adiama a blind man who received an orange orchard about 8 years ago.

Adiama was so glad we visited and of course blessed us with oranges.

Our week together went too quick but we have to share with my sister too (in Uganda). 
On their way out we stopped by Sipi Falls.  It was beautiful as always.

Can you see all three falls?

One last bonus picture of a beautiful Obule sunset - God's artwork!

Thank you for coming Uncle Dave and Aunt Sue!  You came as learners.  You asked great questions, you were flexible, you engaged with people, you wanted to experience our real lives and the ministry, you tried new things...Your heart for the Lord and love for His kingdom was evident.  Thank you for being a part of the prison ministry, encouraging Josh in his teaching, and loving our family.  The kids loved that you visited their friends with them and played games with them.  Thank you for blessing us by your visit.  We love you.

Retreat

Welcome to Mombasa!

We were able to attend the Resonate Global Missions retreat in Mombasa, Kenya (we are partners).
We enjoying getting to meet new people and see old friends.

Shaardas and Ribbens together again (began mission work in Nigeria together and reunited last year in South Africa where they serve now).

After the retreat we had a two day family vacation.

Mombasa is interesting.  Every time you go on the beach people try to sell you something - boat rides, camel rides, crafts, clothes...  I definitely prefer to be left alone but usually if you say no they leave you alone.  I don't like being rude but...  I know everyone needs to make money.  It just isn't always relaxing to always finding the balance between kind and firm.  I did try to be intentional about sharing my faith through these interactions.  I hope I was an encouragement to the Christians I met and a witness to those not yet in Christ.   

Mombasa is unique.  The tide is extreme (depending on the moon) and when the tide is out and the water is very shallow you can walk out and see sea creature that remain behind.  The water is so warm it is almost hot at times.  It is an adventure seeing what you can find.  And yes, we are nervous and careful where you step.  "Guides" walk with you out there to navigate you around and show you creatures.  Hoping for a nice tip of course.

Grace and a sea cucumber and our guide

One afternoon we went to Fort Jesus in Old Mombasa.
We loved it.  History is amazing and it was a great home school adventure. 
The fort was built in the 15th century by the Portuguese.  

Baby Humpback whale bones - not sure why they were at the fort other than the dead whale washed up on shore near there - but they are awesome!

We walked through Old Town with our guide from the fort and loved seeing all the architecture, cultures, and history.  We saw the first pool, hotel and post office in Kenya.  Where the queen stayed and still normal everyday life there.  It was interesting.  

Swimming in the Indian Ocean

Walk on the beach...

TRYING not to get sunburn but it was hard with our white skin and intense sun.
We had to reapply sunscreen three times a day with all the swimming.

We had the privilege of going snorkeling as a family in Mombasa.  It was the kids first time and they LOVED it.  We all did!  We snorkeled in the coral gardens by the reef.  It was amazing!  I felt like I was in an aquarium.  There were all different corals, colors, and fish of every size and shape.  We all praised God as we watched His creative creation!  We saw stingray, starfish, tiny to big fish, a school of hundreds of fish...it was awesome.  We were so thankful to see another part of God's creation.

We all loved snorkeling so much we actually did it again!  What a treat!  The second time we went out further by the reef and then snorkeled in to the coral gardens.  I loved seeing even more variety.  The captain snorkeling with us showed the kids many things and stayed with them while Josh and I had a snorkeling date.  Holding hands and snorkeling - how fun!  Lydia and Josh enjoyed taking off their life jackets and driving down for a closer look.  I tried but just took in too much salt water when I got hit with a wave.

We had wonderful and beautiful meals at the hotel.  The servers were so nice and knew our kids by name.  One of the waitresses saw Luka pray before his meal and she came and thanked him.  We enjoyed getting to know some of them and encourage them in their faith.

At night we liked to walk on the beach and find sand crabs.
Luka learned how to case them so they ran by his sisters and made them run and scream.

Luka loved the entertainment each night at the hotel.

Thankful for a great trip...

The Hatch of the Ants

It is a fun and festive feeling the night the white ants come out!  It wasn't the biggest hatch we have seen but people are happily gathering all the same.  They really appreciate our lights where the ants gather.  They scoop them up by handfuls, sweep them up, or gather one by one as their wings fall off.  Our kids delayed their bed time and joined the festive ant collecting.  It was funny to hear them scream or see them squirm as the ants flew on their heads or down their shirts.  (Yes, I was one of them screaming and swatting.)  Luka, of course got right into it and then thought it would bring laughter if he ate one.  It did.  So he ate three live white ants.  Yuck!  (The video is below.)  He said it wasn't good but he got the reactions he wanted.  He is a funny boy!  By the end our guard and neighbors each had a half a bucket full of ants.  They will fry them and eat them the next day or dry them and grind them with peanut butter.  African treats!  You can't say anything til you try it yourself.  (And remember Americans eat their share of interesting things we love too - hot dogs anyone?)

On another note, it has been unseasonably cloudy and cool here.  Since the rains started the end of February, we have had more cool, cloudy, rainy days than all of the last year and a half when we had drought.  A huge change.  We are thankful.  It is blessing to see the gardens growing and the rains continuing to come.  It is funny though.  This week it was cold for us.  I had to wrap up for devotions, wore long sleeves all day - and socks, and we had to have a special break in school for hot chocolate (or coffee and African tea!).  When I looked at the temperature I just had to laugh - 69 degrees.  Many of my Ugandan friends were in winter coats or stocking caps if they had one.  Honestly, it is cold when you basically live outside, bath in cold water (I really don't like that part), it is muddy, and it is damp with no way to dry out.  I will just enjoy it while it lasts, because it will always go back to African heat.