Home Again - Where is that??

Hello All,
We are here in the US and have been so busy since we hit the ground!  It was a 32 hour journey that was thankfully uneventful.  One of my face book friends commented after her travel to the US that, "I arrived last week and my brain showed up today!  I wonder how much the airline charges for a brain!" Boy, I sure can relate to that one!

Sallie and I traveled to Chicago last week end with another mom and daughter to visit the American Girl Place and see the Chicago sites.  It was a great trip after a rocky start of missing our train.  The girls had a wonderful time, spent all of their money and got to ride the subway.  Here are a few pictures:

Sallie adding up her purchases at AG

Sallie dissecting a cow's eye at the Museum of Science and Industry

On a comfy bench in the park

the Ferris wheel at the Navy Pier

Char and Callie on the wheel

the skyline = beautiful

the girls at the museum - notice the shadows collecting the balls

 

We were also able to catch up with some other friends from Kijabe that live in Chicago.  It was wonderful to see the Clauds again.  They commented that coming back to Chicago after 6 months away was almost like it never happened and was just a dream.  After being here for just 2 weeks I can really understand that.  It seems like we just jump right back into life and Africa is so distant, which shows how hard it is for people that have never been there to connect with the needs that exist there.  And of those there are so many.

 

We have had a great and relaxing week here in Evart (up by our Reed City house and with our sending church).  The church set us up with an online sign up for dinners all this week.  It has been wonderful.  We have been able to sit with families and actually have conversations!  Thanks Jenny - you are amazing!

 

We visited our home in Reed City yesterday.  It was kind of surreal to stand in my kitchen and visit with my pizza oven.  The kids enjoyed seeing their old rooms.  We had lunch with our neighbors, Sue and Gordon.  They are wonderful people and we miss them.  Here are a few pictures I took out there:

 

Timothy and Sallie had to get in the hot tub!

Miss Sue

Sue and Gordon's pond - beautiful

 

 

Sallie - what is she up to?

Trevor is thinking

She had beautiful lilies everywhere

 

 

The kids went to camp this week out at Springhill.  They had a great time and came back to us on Friday completely dirty and exhausted (as it should be)!  I don't have many pictures but here is Sallie getting the "Thankfulness" award.

 



 

We are presenting at our church tomorrow.  Timothy has lost his voice somewhere at camp, so I am worried that he won't be able to sing with me!  Our presentation is going to be mostly about the hospital and its mission.  It is so hard when living here in the states to connect with what it is like in a country like Kenya.  I wrote several blogs ago about "Who is your neighbor."  It is very hard to see the single mother of 2 with no job or skill or hope that worries about where her families' next meal is coming from and can't get money to buy tuition for her kids' education nor their shoes for school as our neighbor.  But she is!  We just need to find a way to connect with her and have a relationship.  How do you do that?

 

We love being here for a bit, but is really shows us that home is where God has put us (wherever that is).  We can be at home at my in laws place, some friend's basement, Kijabe or Reed City.  I am grateful that my kids are good with that.  It is a challenge living with 5 people out of suitcases and remembering where you put everything - especially at my age!

 

Please pray for us in our travels and please pray that we will be able to present to our church tomorrow and other churches in the coming weeks about the people of Kenya and help to make a little bit of a connection.

 

In His Hands,

Jullie T.

 

Visiting with good friends





PS - I should be able to post at least every other week while here in the states.  Sorry I won't be as consistent as every Saturday.  But, life here is anything but consistent at the moment!

Good Byes are hard

Hello All,
School is finally out!!  The kids finished up on Thurs and I finished work on Friday and Jim just has one more meeting on Monday morning and we will head home on Monday afternoon.  We are so ready to have a break and hopefully rest for a bit.  We are so grateful for the work here and the feeling that God has put us here for a reason.  He has provided so much!  Today was graduation at RVA and we saw a man that works up in Samburu.  He knows us a bit and was so kind to compliment what we are doing.  His comment was that the work we are trying to do is difficult at best in America or Europe, but here it is so much more then that!  He said he would continue to pray for us!

We went to dinner last Saturday night at a friend's house.  This is a special friend who we helped build a house for last year when she was being funded by a church in Pennsylvania.  There was another couple here that was instrumental in connecting her with those supporters.  She continues to be so grateful.  She is overwhelmed with the fact that there are people in the world who don't know her but want to help her and changed her life!  She now has a home and takes in many people and children with needs.

Three boys looking like trouble!

 

Me, Njoki and Trevor

She and the girls made a wonderful dinner!

Me and Njoki

 

Beautiful sky at her place

More trouble!

 

We also saw our friend Patrick Graduate last week.  I mentioned him in last week's blog.  Here are just a few more pictures.

 

Patrick is on the left

Getting his diploma

 

Good byes are always hard.  We have lived with those for many years.  This year sees many friends parting ways for who knows how long.  We have made more friendships here and have grown our Christmas list for sure!  We had to say goodbye to our dog of a year - Pepper.  She is a great dog and we will miss her.  She has reunited with her family that has been gone for almost 2 years!  They were so happy to see her.

We will miss you Pep Pep.





Last Monday, the school had the yearly awards ceremony.  Trevor was inducted into the National Honor Society.  He also got the highest honor in his Current World Issues class.  We are very proud of him and not sure where he gets his smarts!

Inductees for the NHS

 

Timothy had Sixth Grade graduation this past week.  They honor the 6th graders as they pass from elementary school to Junior High.  It was a great celebration as well as a concert band performance. 

 

He is doing so well on the French Horn.

Timothy is on the far left in the light green shirt.

 

Timothy getting his diploma

 

Timothy with his diploma

 

 

The RVA graduation ceremony was this morning.  It was a wonderful event!  I don't know how I am going to get through it next year when Trevor is graduating without a pocket full of tissues!  This afternoon it is so quiet up at the school.  Everyone is packing and heading out.  People sometimes leave the night of grad or wait a few days so that they can think and pack a few things.  We are very glad we have tomorrow and Monday morning to get things together as things have been crazy up till now.

As we get ready to go, our Kenyan friends all know it and want to come by to "talk."  This mostly means that they have troubles and need help (usually in the form of money).  I have 6 (as of now) people that want to come and see me!  It is very difficult.  We want to help and most of the needs are very valid.  But, we don't always want to just give money.  The book "When Helping Hurts" is a great walk through why money is not always the solution.  Just stopping what we are doing to listen to their stories is hard because it really breaks up the day, but it is the best way to be sympathetic and to do whatever we can.  When you live on about $4 a day, life can be very challenging.

Jim has one last meeting on Monday morning.  He agreed to do it because it is something we have been working towards for the last 2 years.  The treasurer of the Board of AIC wants a presentation about the septic system.  He put together a 1/2 hour presentation that will hopefully get him all the information he needs to understand what it will cost and the scope of it all.  We really need someone to get the message and move forward on the project or Bethany Kids may not be able to open next year.  Please pray for that one!

Here are some lyrics that we sang today (not sure the author):


Give me one pure and holy passion
Give me one magnificent obsession
Give me one glorious ambition for my life
To know and follow hard after You

These are to the song One Pure and Holy Passion.  That is the hope I have for all of us!

Thank you all and hope we get to see some of you as we travel home.

In His Hands,
Jullie T.

Here is a picture I should not show.  It is something we can do here in Africa (one of the perks)!

The kids riding on top of the car!

The Drive By Blog!

Hello All,
Today is the drive by blog because I have so little time!  Things are just a bit crazy here so I will give you the week in brief:


Saturday last:  Class Party for Trevor and skating party for Timothy and Sallie.  Trevor's class party was proceeded by a week of "scarfing."  It is a tradition here where the girl captures the guy with her scarf, then he has to wear it all week and they go together to the party (bond by the scarf)!  There were only minor injuries and all were captured successfully and had a great time dressing up for the party as movie characters.  Trevor and Hannah went as the people from "Up" (the old man and the little boy).  They did a great job.

eating from the ice cream gutter

Sallie got in on it too!

 

Sunday:  We went to the baptism at RVA.  It was 15 kids getting baptized and was so wonderful to watch.  There stories are so amazing and so are they!

 

Monday:  This was an all day luncheon!  It started with a pedi in the morning, then bible study lunch, then going away tea with the staff at RVA then Dessert Night for short termers with the hospital!  Its a good thing I didn't eat the sweets that were offered all day.  I would not fit into my jeans right now!

 

Tuesday:  Jim and I went over to Upendo Village for the contract signing with the contractor who will build the new Administration Building.  They made lunch and served it at 1:00, then the meeting was at 2:00.  Some people were late so we didn't start till almost 3:00.  Our new rule is lunch at 1:00, and it is removed by 1:45.  Meeting at 2:00.  If you are late you don't get to eat and you really want to eat there because the food is so good!  I like that rule!

Jim giving the gift of "chickens" to the sisters (Thanks David and Rhoda)

One of the Mamas at Upendo Village

Signing the contract

Ground Breaking

 

Wed:  This was my power shopping in Nairobi day for the Junior store we are putting on today (Saturday).  Sara and I went into down town and bought 75 kg (over 150lbs) of chicken!  Spent lots of money and sure hope we sell things well today!

 

Thurs the 4th of July:  Was it really the 4th this week?  I can't tell.  It was a work day and cold.  We got some sun in the afternoon and watched the guys play rugby.  Timothy's team had a game with another team from Nairobi.  They did well but lost because one of the other team's guys had really long legs and ran so fast no one could catch him!

 

Timothy making a great tackle

 

We also watched the varsity team win against another team for the semi final match.  Today they are in Nairobi playing in the finals.  We will know in a few hours if they won.  Then we went to a friend's house for dinner.  All in all a wonderful day!

 

Friday:  Let the donut making begin!  We had store prep, so were making donuts by about 5:00 and ended about 10:30.  Long day!  But the best news is that we found a septic tank to use on the RVA woodshop project.  It is just down hill (because that is the way the "stuff" flows) and it runs right by our building!  This was great potential news.  We still need to investigate, but it is looking promising.

 

The new woodshop layout

 

Flag raising on Friday

Making Donuts

Chocolate are some of the best

That's a lot of flour!

 

The night ended with "Kiambogo Night."  This is where the kids get their yearbooks.  They will spend the week getting signatures and saying goodbye to some people.

 

Saturday:  Another crazy day.  It started at 5am with more donut making, then cleanup.  After that a quick change of cloths and over to the graduation ceremony for our Maasai friend who now is a pastor.  Another run by store to check on things.  Back home to write this and have a nice dinner with our friend.  The Maasai eat meat and lots of it!  We are having Nyama Choma (roasted meat) and potatoes in his honor! 

Patrick likes Meat!

 

 Back up to store to clean up and tonight we are going to another friend's house to honor the people that helped her build it and eat ugali.  It is a porridge kind of thing. After that we go to Trevor's jazz band concert.  They are so good, but not sure I will stay awake!   Then the day will end, I will collapse and start it over again tomorrow!  Pepper our dog of 11 months is going home tomorrow.  I will save all of my crying till then.

 

Wow!  It makes me tired just reviewing the week!  We have another busy one coming up and we leave a week from Monday to come home for a while.  We are ready for the break!

 

Love you all and please pray for stamina for us, for Upendo and their mission (helping HIV/AIDS victims), Bethany Kids as it continues at lighting speed, and for the people that will all be leaving next week.  It will be sad to see many people go.  But that is the way of life around here.  God has a plan and we are here to fill it for Him!

In His Hands,

Jullie T.

 

Sallie washing the beloved Eeyore!