Dear readers,
I must apologize for my lack of posting recently. We have been very busy although what we have been busy with has been with rather mundane activities. Our mornings were consumed with school, cleaning, and laundry (we were doing an extra thorough job with the cleaning in preparation for guests - like washing walls and ceiling fans). Once the electricity would go out our inspiration to be productive would cease. The afternoons tended to be nap time, reading time, or Christmas card making/writing time. Starting Saturday however began our Thanksgiving break.
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| Glad to have the pool back! |
Saturday morning brought about a busy day. Almost immediately after breakfast we began filling the swimming pool again. Now, our pool is only a couple feet deep and about 10 feet diameter. It is the variety that has an inflated ring around the top. Last year we filled it with a balloon pump (the kind you use to make balloon animals). This year however I returned with an exercise ball and so we used the foot pump that came with that. After about an hour and a half of pumping the ring was inflated and the water was flowing in. Then we decided to do some baking. We made 4 loaves of oatmeal bread, pumpkin scones, and pumpkin pie. We delivered some of our baked goods to the neighborhood missionaries and then continued with dinner and baths and really didn't sit until evening. That was our first vacation day!
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| New bed to share my house |
We learned late Saturday that Moses would be returning with his sister on Sunday, so Sunday was made up of Sunday school with the kids (a lesson about being kind, apologizing, forgiving) and cleaning. The fun part was that the kids still believed that their aunt and dad wouldn't be returning for a few days. So the kids had just gone to bed when their surprise arrived.
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The 2 JoAnnas….
Well, we can't expect them both to smile for a picture! |
Monday was a more relaxed day, allowing the travelers to get acquainted and rested. I spent time working on Christmas presents and helping around the house. The excitement of Monday was that it brought about the return of our guard's wife and new baby (well the baby is now around 3 months old). The baby is looking strong and healthy and even a bit chunky which is truly a blessing since her mom was sick for quite a while after birth.
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Though playing in different size pools,
they both get cold in the water |
Tuesday was a post office day and tortilla making. The kids were a little less eager to get into the pool because they have decided it is cold (especially in the morning). It has been reaching the frigid temperatures of around 70°F at night.
Let's see, Wednesday brought about a day of relaxing. We did do some baking like delicious rusks, but for the most part we spent our day reading and making Christmas projects. One Christmas project we are working on is creating rag dolls for the neighbor girls who come over to play. JoAnna and I were in tears laughing at how ridiculous our first doll turned out. Let's just say it looked more like a frog then a baby. With some hair and a face it improved a little, but we have continually tweaked the pattern. By the time we have enough dolls, we will have a proper pattern right! Once the girls and I finish the dolls, I promise to post pictures of their progression.
Thanksgiving day, we celebrated Kenyan style. We had a very traditional meal with an auntie to cook it for us. Thursday again was a pretty relaxed day - what we really needed.
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| 5 = 1 right…..thanksgiving feast gobble gobble |
Friday we had many great plans, but then the power people came and cut our electricity. Our five chickens arrived (yup 5 chickens to replace maybe 1/3 of a turkey). Without assurance that the fridge would eventually be turned on, we didn't want to butcher too soon. We had also planned to bake the pumpkin pies, so we had cooked our pumpkin in the morning. In an effort to use our pumpkin (because it also wouldn't last too long in this lovely Chadian fall weather) I made more pumpkin scones and we had pumpkin soup for dinner. Luckily Moses was able to convince the electric company, yet again, that the problem was not with us but with a company that worked from our compound a few years ago, so around 5 pm the electricity was restored and we frantically trying to make up for lost time. Something to be thankful for: a guard who is willing to pluck 5 chickens in the dark with only heads and feet as his rewards. Oh that and getting to see a little boy run around the yard chasing the chickens.
Saturday was feast day for us. Straight away after breakfast we began preparing for our meal. We decided to skip our craisin salad (you do what you can without cranberries) and just use guava sauce as an alternative. For curious readers, guava sauce is what we get after processing guavas through a food mill, cooking, and adding sugar and cinnamon. A Chadian equivalent to apple sauce. We had been slicing and drying bread all week for our stuffing (although we suppose it would be called dressing because it was not actually stuffed inside our chickens). We made mashed potatoes of course (and after mashing them I was simply dripping with sweat and had to excuse myself to get mopped off with a wash cloth). The chicken was pressure cooked to begin with (because Chadian chickens are rather "rubbery" as the children say) and later was browned in the oven. We made two large casserole dishes of what I call corn pudding but here they call baked corn. We made delicious rolls and our guests brought a large green salad. It was quite the feast and though it was a lot of work in a small hot kitchen, it was worth it for the good fellowship. We had five guests and there was much laughter and we got to hear many interesting stories. After pumpkin pie the kids went off to cool in the pool and the adults sat around chatting. It was a good day over all though I did miss our family tradition of a rousing game of pit with my oldest brother's random friends coming over. We also did not have turkey sandwiches for dinner that night as 5 Chadian chickens do not provide a lot of leftovers.
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| Chui gets jealous of the baby |
It was a great break with quite a lot of hustle and bustle, but it was rewarding as well. Work is always worthwhile if it can ease or brighten someone else's day. Tomorrow we return to our routine with school, but we look forward to the advent season. Today however, without power and the very muggy and hot weather I was wishing for some of the snow I was hearing about in NE Ohio. We are most certainly thankful for the fans when they work!
