Day 4 :)

Baby C's yummy dinner

Jason sharing a fascinating gum wrapper with Bobby.

Cheeky little Fazira.

Our walk to Lake Victoria with Baby C.

This is Uganda.

Hello friends!

It's Alea... Sorry we've been MIA for the past few days. We've been really busy spending time with the kids and getting used to life here. So we're all really excited to tell you about our kids and each wanna write a little bit about things so far, so be prepared for a looooooooong one!

I can't believe we've already been here for four days... It's already flying by. We have been having an absolutely amazing time so far. I wish I could describe all the sights and smells and sounds of Uganda and do it justice. It's just a phenomenal place. We'll post more pictures and videos as soon as we get a chance. Right now we're stuck inside listening to a thunder storm and pouring rain :) This is the first day there's been anything but thick heat and sunshine.

The first day we were here we just got situated and played a little with the kids. We started in our assigned rooms on Thursday, me in Baby A, Nikki in Baby B, and Natalie in Baby C (Baby A has babies from 3-10 mos, Baby B is mostly 1 year olds, and Baby C is mostly 2 year olds). I thought Baby A would be a little boring cause all they can do is eat and sleep, but I have fallen in love with each and every one of them. There's little Susan with her sweet little eyes and this warm little smile. And Will, who cries hysterically when you're not holding him, but as soon as you pick him up he just settles down and sucks on my arm like a passifier. It's precious. Eric is 3 months old, but looks like he's only a month at the most. He's teeny tiny and I feel like he just might break if I touch him. Frank's a drooler. His mouth is constantly wide open as he takes in all the sights around him, and drool is continually dripping from his mouth. He has the funniest little chuckle I've ever heard. Joseph is super chubby and is extremely quiet, unless he's unhappy. Then he cries inconsolably. Andrew's a little terror. He is tiny, but he can already pull himself up and stand and crawl and will never sit still. He's extremely stubborn, but also extremely happy and easy to make laugh. Helene is my favorite. She's 10 months and has a big tuft of hair on the top of her head and is completely bald all around it. She loves to nod and shake her head and clap her hands. She's always happy and unbelievably precious. I just adore her. Already the older ones smile when I walk in the room and I've been brought to tears more times than I can count at how precious they are. They bring me so much joy. I just adore them.

We've had a lot of time to spend with the toddlers and preschoolers as well. These kids are just a constant encouragement. They see you coming and just run over and throw their arms around you, yelling "Auntie up!" or "Auntie, I want to go to town." They cry when you set them down or won't pick them up, steal my glasses and my camera whenever I have them with me, and constantly demand attention, but they are soooo loveable. I'm consistently walking around with two kids in my arms or kids hanging onto all my fingers. Two hands are simply not enough, but ten fingers can hold so many more children. Yesterday we took the two-year-olds on a walk by Lake Victoria, and they got so excited every time we saw the random animals on the sides of the road (cows, goats, dogs...)

There are a lot of kids that are still here that were here two years ago. One is Deborah, who was just a tiny little baby last time I was here, and now she's two. She has cerebral palsy, so she's not running around like all the other kids, but she has so much personality and the sweetest little smile. She's picky about who she likes and doesn't like, and she laughs when the other kids get into trouble. Josephine is still here. She's now 3 1/2 and still makes the same sounds when she's happy and swings her head from side to side for no apparent reason. I just adore her. There's little Dan, who was also just a baby when I was here last time, and all I remember about him is his smile. His smile took up his entire face and could brighten up the whole room. I asked Charlie, our volunteer coordinator, if he was still here and she brought me to him and asked him to smile and it's still huge. He's my favorite toddler I think. He's 3 now, and is kinda a crybaby, but I adore him. Katie, Matthew, Hannah, Matthias, Bobby, George, Jason, and Steven are all still here too, and they are even more adorable than I remembered.

We've been having a ton of fun with the other volunteers. We spent 5 hours last night playing Phase 10 with 8 of us. It was the longest Phase 10 game I've ever experienced, and by the end we were deliriously tired and laughing uncontrollably. Everyone's really fun and so great with the kids. And the volunteer house that we're staying in is just the upstairs of the orphanage, and the woman that started the home used to live here so it's very homey and really nice. Not exactly how you'd picture living in Africa. We have a view of Lake Victoria from our balcony. Everything about this place is just breathtaking. Anyways, I've said enough. Nikki and Natalie both wanna update you about their kids too!

Hi everyone this is Nikki!! I just wanted to give you guys an update about the kids I am taking care of! I help out with 11 one yr olds and they are absolutely adorable...of all the babies I would say they are definitely the terrors and the monsters but I absolutely love them. I have little Deborah in my group. She is the pickiest baby ever but I love her, and I have tried to become friends with her. Just yesterday she let me start feeding her without complaint :) My favorite though is baby Moses. He just was transferred from Baby A to Baby B so he is one of the littlest ones. I love him because he adores everyone who wants to play with him and he has one of the loudest voices of them all. Baby Josephine (this is a different one than Alea was talking about) is another of my favorites because she is ALWAYS happy. She has the chubbiest cheeks you will ever see and a cute little chuckle laugh. Her and Gift (another baby) are constantly getting into trouble together but are absolutely adorable.

Aside from the kids we are learning some words in Lugandan which is one of the languages spoken here. "Mzungu" means white person. "Weraba" (said "welaba") means goodbye and "webalay" means thank you, which can be very confusing at times. "Souu souu" is an important word to understand because it means "pee", and "jango" means come. Sometimes we hear the Mamas say "banangay!" which means "oh my word!" to the kids when they get frustrating. "Bambi" (pronounced "Bombee") means poor baby and they often say that when one of the kids gets hurt. But I'd have to say my personal favorite is "bonga!" which basically means "pound it!" (bump knuckles). We tell the kids to do it instead of a hi-five, but they know how to do both.

I am absolutely loving it here, although at times entertaining 11 one year olds at once can be exhausting, God has provided all of us with so much love and patience for these little ones and we would ask that you guys could pray that He continues to provide us with this amazing attitude. I would also ask that you could pray for little Deborah that she would learn to walk and crawl because she currently learning how. Jemmy (short for Jemimah) also needs prayer because she is having a hard time meshing with the other children. Please continue to pray for us and all of God's precious children here at Amani. We thank you so much for all your support and love! ...now I'm going to pass you off to Natalie :)

Hey guys, its Natalie!! So, as the other two girls have expressed, it is amazing here!! The kids are exceptional and make you feel like the most special person in the whole world when they come running into your arms and give you a huge smile!! The kids I have been working with are in Baby group C. They are only about 1 1/2 to 2 1/2 years old and they are probably some of the smartest little kids I have ever seen. When its meal time they all walk over to the door of their nursery and sit down until one of the mamas comes over and washes their hands. Can you imagine 12 two year olds sitting patiently waiting like that in the U.S.? I definitely can't. Each one of them then crawls over to their spot at the table and most of the time they don't even fight over the plates of food!! It seriously blew my mind the first time I saw them do this!!

So, here is some cute info. about the kids I have had the pleasure of working with: Eve is the sweetest little girl ever and she hardly ever cries, even when someone steals her toy. Josephine just stares up at you with her little eyes and gives you the biggest smile ever. Zahara is a little pistol who hates when anyone else tries to sit in my lap while she is wanting my attention. She made this abundantly clear when she bit Patrick's toes yesterday as he climbing into lap to show me his toy. Patrick is a precious little stinker with the biggest eyes and smile I have ever seen. On my first day working with the kids, Patrick wandered outside and I told him to come back in. He just laughed at me and kept doing his own thing until a mama yelled at him and he came running inside. Apparently he doesn't find me very intimidating, haha!! Then there is Jacob who is so sweet but cries every time you put him down. There is Issac and Mebra who are twins and are pretty content doing their own things. Isaac loves handing me his toys as gifts. There is also Gavin who is a little punk and on my first day with them, every time he got in trouble or just wanted attention, he would come crying to me, and the second I acknowledged him, he would stop crying!! He loves clinging to me and this little manipulater has undoubtedly stolen my heart!! Nicholas is another sweetheart who probably has the nicest disposition of any child I have ever met. He always hands his toys to the other kids and strokes their heads when they are crying to try and comfort them!! He is so precious!! Zarita is the littlest one in the group and her legs are not yet strong enough for her to walk or crawl yet so she has become a pro at scooting around on her bum. I got to take her on an outing down to Lake Victoria yesterday, which was an absolute blast but let me tell you that if you want an arm workout, all you need is an 8 pound child and an hours worth of free time. Sadly, I was very sore last night. I ask for prays for her, that her legs will soon become strong enough to walk on her own, and that she is getting the nutrition and stimulation she needs to do this. And last but not least is Elijah, who is a bit fussy but has the cutest two-toothed smile ever!! Sadly, I will be spending a little less time with these little guys next week since I will be with the toddlers, but they are adorable and I can't wait to see how they continue to grow.

I have already gotten to spend a little bit of time with the toddlers, and let me tell you they are hilarious!! They completely hustled me on my first day. A bunch of them were pointing to a tree with what looked like unripe fruit and repeatedly saying, "auntie, I want a mango." A few of them already had some that they were munching on and seemed very convincing when they told me that the mamas give them mangos all the time..so i pulled a few from the tree and gave them to the kids...only to find out later that they weren't supposed to have them...little stinkers haha!! Its ok though because I have since then learned that mangos are a regular, harmless, sneaky indulgence that the kids somehow get a hold of on a daily basis!! This whole ordeal was started by a little boy named George...and while he was not at all thrilled when I took away his mango, we are now the best of friends and I adore him!! Today he ran across the grass to give me a big hug!! He is so sweet!!

Well, now that you have read the longest blog post ever....haha we hope you have great day and just ask that you keep us in your prayers, that we can continue to do God's work and pour out into these kids and all the people around us!! Thanks for reading!!

-Natalie

p.s. more photos and videos to come!