Dorm Outing

Yesterday we had our second term dorm outing. We loaded the bus with all 32 dorm kids, 10 adults and our own 8 kids for a beautiful day at Simba Lodge at Lake Naivasha, about an hour north of here. They had a kiddy pool and a clover leaf shaped larger pool and a nice, big playground for the kids. Our boys all covered themselves in sunscreen and headed to the pool. We spent about 4 1/2 hours there, with some of the kids hardly leaving the water. It is still pretty warm here and with solar panels to heat the water, it was just perfect swimming weather.

Levi loved the kiddy pool and had company most of the time, with other kids coming and going from the big pool, to try the shallower water for hand stands and whirlpools. Abby and Rachel also swam the majority of the time there. James and his brother, John, had kids climbing onto their shoulders, then would do back flips or just jump off into the water. I don't know how they held up so long, but the kids had a blast flying out over the water.

We ended the day with a big dinner up at Tembo dorm, the 2nd-4th grade dorm. We had lasagna, garlic bread, ramen noodle salad, and cookies. The boys were all tired and quite sunburned, so were ready for bed early. We all turned in and it was even pretty quiet this morning. Just under 2 weeks of school left, then we begin our April break. Everyone is getting pretty tired and ready for some down time.

Pics

Ok, I have to remember how to write comments on photos. The following pics are:

Rachel's 9th birthday
Luke and his cousin, Jonathan, wading through a deep part of Hell's Gate. We chose to find another way around
Fixing a flat tire on the way to camp at Hell's Gate.
Campfire at Hell's Gate, Luke and Abby roasting bacon over the fire
Lizzy and friends getting ready for Banquet
Liz and her date, Stan, at BQ
Levi, scraping the ice cream off his shoe that fell off his spoon. We try not to think of the germs!

We're Back

Since it has been 2 1/2 years since we last did any blogging I am probably not really writing to anyone, but we will try to get this up and going again. It took us awhile to remember our blog address and find a way back to it. Now we seem to be back in business.

We are currently dorm parents at RVA for the 5th and 6th grade boys. We have 10 boys in our care, plus our own 5 kids, so the house is an active, busy, noisy place. We have 3 1/2 weeks left this term, then one more term (12 weeks) after our break. The kids are ready for some time off to be with their parents and siblings. They have had a busy term so need some rest. Swine flu arrived on campus in January and made its rounds on campus. It seems many are still trying to recover from fatigue and various viruses that came with the flu.

We have enjoyed being back at RVA and getting involved in campus life again. Lizzy is a junior so recently went to the Junior/Senior banquet. The junior's are in charge, so pick the theme (Ancient Greece this year) and do al the planning of food, decorations, drama (comedy/drama) and all the logistics that go along with that. They had a great time getting ready and looked great the night of BQ. They dress up as they do in the states for Prom, getting their hair and nails done too. I will try to post some pictures of her.

We hope to share more of our daily lives here. There are details I want to share, but they don't all fit in our prayer letters. I hope to let you feel more of Africa through our weekly messages.

Thank you all for your prayers for our family. We are having a great year and have really been quite healthy, despite all the illnesses that have gone around. We are so thankful for that. It is hard to keep things going when we are sick. We would love to hear from you all too!

We're Back