Saturday, July 7, 2012

Riding with the Giraffe and Zebra

Hello All,
Awhile back I mentioned how some lady friends and I went riding out in Naivasha with the zebra and giraffe, et al.  I now have some pictures of that day to show you:

Me on Sparks with the Zebra in the background

Christina and Dorothy (German Friends) and our guide

Baby Giraffe

The Giraffe were just lazing in the sun

It was so cool to just ride right up to them

We even saw a blacked backed Jackal

Dorothy, being a good German, brought a proper snack for the end!

We had a great ride, but nothing beats having your own horse so that you know all of his buttons!  Miss you Meeko!  I don't think Meek would have done so well riding with the zebra though.

Trevor had exams this past week.  Glad that is over!  But, in the middle of it all, he got to go to the US Ambassador to Kenya's house with the Jazz band to play for about 1200 people!  The ambassador had a big 4th of July celebration and invited the RVA jazz band to play.  They had a great time and I am sure "wowed" the crowd and got to eat real hamburgers!  We had a cook out with some of the Americans up at the school.  Last year, the 4th just came and went and it was just a regular working day.  So, when someone wanted to have a gathering and BBQ, I was all for it.  It is one of my favorite holidays and my whole year was messed up by not celebrating!  But, it was definitely different having to wear your fleece and warm hats.  It is the winter here and it has been cool.  I have seen the thermometer down to about 54 degrees.

Back to the Ambassador:  We were shocked last week when he announced his resignation.  It was something to do with "differences in leadership style and priorities."  Scott Gration was Jim's last boss in Stuttgart, Germany.  He is a good man and has ties to RVA and Bethany Kids.  We will be sad to see him and his wife go.  Also, the seniors have been invited to his house for the last 2 years for their end of the year celebration.  I am sure that will come to an end too!


Last week, RVA held a baptism during church.   They have a baptismal out back in an amphitheater.  Nine kids dedicated their lives to following Christ.  It was inspiring to listen to them.  But, it was very different to have the baboons fighting in the background!  There have been many baboons that come through Kijabe lately looking for food from the trash bins.  They apparently wanted the same thing because we heard a huge fight going on.   Life here does bring some surprises!

We are still moving forward on the Sanitation project and we may even have some money next week!  The design should be done in about 2 weeks and we can actually get started digging trenches to bury pipes.  I have been sitting in front of my computer for several days working on the project plan (oh Joy!).

We are almost to the point of picking a contractor for the Pediatric Wing.  We have a meeting on Monday with the Quantity Surveyor and the Architect to sort things out.  We should be able to contact the 2-3 contractors that we are zooming in on and talk to them too late next week.  It will be exciting to actually set a contract with someone and start moving with timelines and cost schedules!  As they say here, Pole-Pole (po-lay, po-lay) (Slowly) things get done!  The problem is that we are coming to a head here just as Jim and I (and the kids of course) are heading to MI for a break!  We leave in 2 weeks and that is when the sanitation project and the contractor hiring will be in the thick of things.  Timing is not so good right now.  But, I figured that I got my tickets first (back in Feb) so we get to leave!

The kids finish school this coming week.  They are so excited to be done.  Then we have 1 week of quiet (because Timothy and Sallie are going to camp) and then we pack up minimal things to head to Italy then Michigan.  We will all be ready to soak up some warmth!

Have a great week and we pray that you are standing in God's Grace! (New book by Harry Kraus, Breathing Grace).

In His Hands,
Jullie T.





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