Week 2

Monday 11th November

The start to a new week and i cant believe that i have been here for 1 week already! only 2 weeks to go and so much to do!
Mary had a wonderful idea this morning (she always has wonderful, kind ideas) This year we would like to give our most needy community members a special Christmas. Most of them would never even celebrate or doing anything different on this day.
We (even me!) take for granted how lucky we are with our wonderful families on Christmas day when there are people here that wont even have enough food to eat.
We would like to take some 'Christmas Hampers' around to people who have nothing... we will include some nice food for them to cook and some sweeties for the kids and a small gift for their children.
For people who do not have any family to enjoy the day with, we will bring them here and cook for them and they can spend the day with us as we are a big enough family for everyone!
If you are interested in donating to this special project, please go to our donate page and make a donation and let me know that the donation is for 'christmas hampers' when you make it.
As you can see from the photo on the right Mary and I where busy today going through our donated items sorting out clothes and presents for when Christmas comes!

Mary sorting through items that have kindly been donated by volunteers for our children and community members.

Joshua and Faith playing today...

6 month old Baby Joyce getting stronger and happier each day...

Inside the shed/house

Tuesday 12th November

I slept in until 7.30am today and woke up to the sound of barking dogs and mooing cows. i really thought our cow was giving birth.
We have another situation to deal with today. (MIA always has a situation to deal with somewhere) One of our workers Damaris came to Mary for some help. She is a very sweet 24 year old girl who has 2 children a husband and no family at all. Her brother and sister died last year of AIDS. During the clashes at the beginning of the year she had all of her belongings and her home burnt to the ground. Then MIA helped her set everything up again and once again some members of another tribe came and destroyed everything for the second time.
She came to Mary begging for help. She needs somewhere to live as where she is is not suitable. Her husband works over 12 hours per day and Damaris works here during the day and she has no one to leave her children with (1.5yr old & 4 yr old). She left them with the neighbours yesterday and they did not watch them at all.
We have the opportunity to help Damaris and her family move into a shed/house close by to where we are. It is not in great condition so we would have to fix it for them and put a cook house outside etc but it will be allot better then where they are and close to work for both of them.
We went and checked it out today and we figure that it will cost approx $ to fix this up and make it livable for their family.
We will welcome anyone who might want to sponsor this project to help Damaris and her family. It would cost approx $1,400 for the new roof sheets (will use old ones to make cook house etc) $55 nails, $250 for the water tank and $50 labour. Please contact me if you would like to help!
We also had our annual general meeting today and it went very well. Pictured below Ivan (blue shirt), Mary, Dr Kalya, Uncle John, Maha and Me....
The MIA committee less 3 wonderful Ozzies who are down under.


The outside of the new house

MIA board members during the annual meeting today

Wednesday 13th November

Shopping day has come around again... i thought we only did this yesterday! Today we took Antony, Lucy, Joshua and Purity shopping with us but first we stopped off at the popular sweetmart (sweat mart) for lunch. The kids ate a plate of chips bigger than their heads, then a soda and THEN some cake! They sure can eat.

The drive home was an absolute NIGHTMARE. Nakuru is turning into a mini Nairobi with traffic and chaos everywhere. The roundabouts do not have any rules at all.. it really is everyone for themselves.

After the rain today there was flooding everywhere and blocked roads causing the chaos. Lucky Mary has been here long enough and is a confident driver. I tried to take some photos to show you but it really dosent capture the TOTAL madness but it gives you a small idea. I would not feel safe on a bike here!

Oh, we saw something funny on the way home in the pouring rain... a car coming towards us with the hazard lights on and the driver hanging out the window with his broken window wiper wiping his windscreen. I LOVE Kenya!

Check out the links on the right to 2 new projects that can help Mission in Action. If you need to do some Christmas shopping make sure you check out the Empassion site! Fantastic products and MIA get a commision from everything that is sold from this site.

 

 

 

Trying to get onto the roundabout..

One of the roundabouts that was flooded

The kids on their walk today.

Thursday 14th November

Today we woke up to an email from a very generous girl from the UK who advised that she would like to donate an amount to help complete the house for our staff member and her family Damaris!
We were so thrilled that we started work straight away!
We went for a walk with the kids this morning to see the house and the progress that they have made. The roof sheets are up already and it should not be long until they move in. Thanks to the sponsor of this project, Damaris and family will now feel alot safer and much more comfortable.

I felt very strange afer lunch.. very spaced and tired. I went and layed down and woke up feeling very sick. I vomited all afternoon but am now feeling alot better and in need of some more sleep and less time working on this computer!

The new house is looking good and very shiny

Digging the trench...

Friday 15th November

I did not sleep much at all last night as my body was full of aches and pains but after i had a shower i started to feel better today.
Mary and I headed into town before lunch to look for a wedding gift from us and the staff for Roslyn who is getting married tomorrow.
She lives in a house with electricity so we all decided to get her a microwave... i am sure she will be stoked.

The staff are harvesting the maize that we grown on our land. Its a huge process that takes some time and i cant say that i like the taste of the finished product but it is popular around here...

Mary and I sorted through the many donated items a couple of days ago and Mary dispersed some shoes out to all the kids today who needed new ones. They thought it was very exciting... 'NEW SHOES SARAH!! NEW SHOES SARAH!!'

Bed early now as we have the wedding tomorrow so i must get my beauty sleep. (will need a weeks sleep)

sorting the maize

Mary giving out the new shoes

Looking from the orphanage to the school....

The arrival of the bride and bridal party

Saturday 16th November

IM AM SORRY i haven't written sooner. It has been tooooo full on and i haven't had time! I will make up for it now i promise.
Today we went to a wedding of one of our workers Roslyn.
I had been warned by the Budulica girls that the wedding may go for some time (they chose to stay home) but was not quite ready.

We arrived at the venue at 11.15am (meant to be there at 10.30am) (i might mentioned that we nearly had 2 head on car crashes on the way) and everything was set up ready to go but not many people where there. Considering we were already almost an hour late i was surprised that we didn't miss the ceremony. I then remembered that we are in Africa and the ceremony would start in African time which could be 4 hours late. surprisingly they bride and groom arrived around 12. The ceremony was lovely and long. The sermon was long and they repeated things at least 5 times. The preacher mentioned that 'a marriage will work if you DO AS YOUR HUSBAND TELLS YOU' mmmmm... you think? like fun i say.
Don't get any ideas Jonas ;-)
Everything took longer than i am used to but it was a nice day. food was served in plastic dishes out of big pots and no cutlery so we had to eat with our hands. the kids loved that.
Kenyan tradition is that when you give a present you must dance and sing the present up to the bride and groom which takes another 2 hours(slight exaggeration) each present so needless to say it was the longest, loudest, most colourful wedding i have ever been to and have taken many tips for my big day next year.
I expect all my presents to be bought to me with singing and dancing people!!

Arriving back from having photos. every crows around and sings

Mercy and Inna loving the lunch!

Walking up to reception area with all singing and dancing behind

Singing and dancing the new cabinet up to new couple?!?!

Sunday 17th November

Today Martha and I headed out for a family day. You see, Martha is my Kenyan sister so we had to go and see Mumma and Bubba Martha. I had not seen them yet and i have missed them.
Before we got there we went via the showgrounds to see the IDP's (internally displaced people) camp but when we got there it was empty. It seems that all the IDP's have been relocated to new land or to their home land. It was such a large space and not so long ago it was filled with over 2,000 tents and approx 20,000 people.
After lunch with the family we went along to a party for some 1 year old twins (marthas friends) it was a HUGE deal. such a beautiful family. Everyone did a speech, did the whole dancing with the present up to the kids etc... was long and drawn out but very sweet and showed me just how much family means to a lot of Kenyans.
Oh, and i have lost my voice. Too much partying i think!!!
(or the fumes and dust)

Nakuru show grounds which once held 20,000 people

Lillian, ME, Mama & Bubba Martha, Uncle and kids Benja & Tracy

Great Grandma, Aunty, Dad, Baby, Grandma, Mum & Baby!