African Muzungu

Christmas in Africa is different. Bet you didn’t expect that. JK  But especially here in Mbale, you don’t see every store decked out in Christmas decorations with a new Santa product on every shelf. Lights don’t sparkle on the roofs of each house (or any house for that matter). There isn’t a culture battle over saying ‘Happy Holidays’ instead of ‘Merry Christmas.’ And since most families can’t buy every child and relative a Christmas present, clothes are actually considered a GREAT present (even by the kids)! You even might, if you’re lucky, see a tree decked out for Christmas, African style like this one:  Please note the cotton ball snow Oh wait, you need the full effect.....!! But the best part is that almost every family makes the effort to go to church on Christmas. You remember all of those awkward years when Christmas fell on a Sunday and you couldn’t decide how to handle it? Do we open presents really early? Do we wait until after church? Do w...

What does close to 1000 Ugandan kids gathered for a Christmas party look like? Well, if a picture says a thousand words, it’s still not enough, but here’s just a taste! Part of the crowd from above Watching the Jesus film The highlight of my Christmas: a Christmas skit put on by some of the sponsored kids. Seriously, there were no words for how funny and precious this was!! Cooking in the village for a crowd Washing hands before lunch (yes, all 1000 washed hands before eating!) Enjoying Pilau (beef mixed with rice) and beans All Smiles Cakes for 1000 takes a LOT of work!! Even if you do cut very small! Waiting in line for clothes and sweets It definitely was an incredible day of laughing, entertainment, teaching, eating, dancing, and the kids even received a piece of clothing, some candy and a balloon hat!  And if some video of a muzungu lady dancing who looks just like me shows up on youtube, ...

I love my new puppy.  I love my new [roommate's] kitty.   My new kitty does *not* love my new puppy... but he loves her!! And yes, their names are Buddy and Bunny. And no, that wasn't planned. :)

Since everything was finalized with HUM in September, things have been nonstop! So get ready for a whirlwind recap of the past couple of months!! Ready? Beginning in mid-September, I was so blessed to meet with many of my supporters and get to know them better. Many of them I hadn’t really known before, so the opportunity to have one on one time with them was a wonderful one! I’ll be honest though, with some of them I was nervous. These were people who believed in my ministry and knew what had been going on with me, but I didn’t know much about them. Before each meeting, I took time to pray for them and ask that the Lord would bless them through our conversation…I didn’t expect that He would bless ME so much! After each time, I walked away with a specific blessing and encouragement from each of them. I am so humbled to have such a wonderful group of people behind me! Beginning in October, Katherine and I set out on the fundraising trail to find support for the ministry. Le...