Hey everyone!!
Want to thank you once again for all of your prayers and support in the past three months.
We have gone through this week without any babies in Isolation!! Praise God :) I am feeling much better this week, and am healthy aside from a runny nose, which is no biggie. We still have no water in our rooms.....its been a week now, but it wouldn't be an experience if we had water right?! That's what I keep telling myself anyways....haha
Before I explain my weekend coming up, I want to let you all know.....
FOUR MONTHS FROM YESTERDAY I AM GETTING MARRIED!!!!!
And I am a little excited about it :)
Anyways, this last week and weekend is busy. The past couple of days I have been getting in lots of baby time and last minute pictures!!! This afternoon I am going to "House Church" with a family from Rev. Peter's church. Not too sure what to expect but I am sure it will be interesting. I am hoping to go to Juja Farm on Friday and then the other three volunteers and I are going out for supper. Saturday we are feeding the babies and then heading into Nairobi to go to lunch, the market and look around. Sunday is church with a mom named Dorcas. I have been to this church once before, and it is a very Pentecostal church, which is different for me, but she wanted me to come again before I left so I will go. Hopefully I won't be gone all day, so that I can spend time with the babies. I think I will be going back to Kicheko Slum on Monday morning and being with the babies and kids in the afternoon and evening. Early morning on Tuesday I will be boarding a plane for home.
It is super crazy that my time is coming to a close so fast. I am trying to make the most of my time left, but at the same time I think I am in denial that I am leaving. I am excited to see everyone at home and to start volunteering again, but at the same time I wish everyone at home could come here to visit me so that I could stay here. But I suppose that God gave me this amount of time for a reason, and it is time to move on to a different season of my life (the wedding planning season!!!).
Please pray for me as I complete my time here and prepare myself for leaving. Also if you could please pray for my flights home; I go from Nairobi to Amsterdam and wait two hours. Board another plane to Toronto and wait another two hours. Then board my last leg of the trip into Winnipeg where I will be landing at 11:55pm on Tuesday April 23rd!! Please also pray for Erik as he drives into the city to pick me up.
I feel like I am running out of things to blog about...I hope this is interesting for you!!
Thank you for reading and praying.
Love: Rach :)
Thursday, April 18, 2013
Monday, April 15, 2013
Eight more Sleeps
So the last few days have been interesting, to say the least. We haven't had water since Thursday morning....which means I am super ready to be clean!!! Haha
And I only have seven full days left in Kenya, which is super bitter-sweet. I absolutely LOVE these babies to death and leaving them is going to be a sad time. I took lots of pictures of them today!! It was awesome. They are super cute and I wish I could take them all home.
And I only have seven full days left in Kenya, which is super bitter-sweet. I absolutely LOVE these babies to death and leaving them is going to be a sad time. I took lots of pictures of them today!! It was awesome. They are super cute and I wish I could take them all home.
Sophie: the Baby Duck :D
Isn't this face adorable?! I waited a while to get this pout :)
Tai
Ray
Tendai
Edward
And I learned how to be a Kenyan mom today!!
Lamuel; dressed for Manitoba weather today!!!
Leanne
Precious
Trevor
Jude: the Baby Dinosaur :)
Joannah
Aren't they lovely!! Man, I love these kids :)
It was a good day chilling with them today. And we even got another volunteer today, Iker from Mexico City and one on Saturday night, Brigitte from CANADA!!!
Funny story:
This morning, Rosemary came into Infant A while we were feeding and said we were getting another volunteer today and she would be sharing a room with Brigitte. I asked, for some reason, "Are you sure the new volunteer is a girl??" Rosemary assured me she was. I turned to Brigitte and said "Well that's good that we know for sure your new roommate is a girl." Then later Kenya (volunteer from New Zealand), Brigitte and I were having guacamole and chapati for supper and we heard the sound of luggage clumping up the stairs. We were all excited to meet her so I went out to introduce myself!! I look into Rosemary's office and see a guy.....well this is awkward!! I introduced myself and I looked at Rosemary, who gave me a "I'm just as surprised as you!!" look. It was hilarious because I specifically asked earlier!! Either way, they each have their own room which is good.
Ended the day with a baby feed and my homemade mandazi!! I have turned into a Kenyan woman, except for the color :)
See you all soon!!!
Love: Rach :)
Friday, April 12, 2013
Prayer Updates
Hello Readers :)
Thank you once again for stopping by. I am sorry it has been so long since my last post, we had no power for two days, which means no wifi. During that time I was sick with the flu, so I was stuck in bed anyways. Yesterday I was still recovering from being sick, and also said goodbye to two amazing volunteers; Andy and Mari from California. Got to have supper with them and see them off at the airport which was cool. My stomach feels much better, and yet I don't quite feel like myself.
And this morning I was praying and talking to God, and I had the urge to blog and ask for more prayer. And then I thought "Man, I have asked for a lot of prayer in the last little while, how much more should I really be asking for??". But then I opened the Sword of the Spirit (the Bible) and read this:
And right there, I realized that there is no such thing as "asking for too much prayer". God is amazing, and shows me things when I need them. So if you could please pray for me, I am struggling with a few things. First of all, I am ready to be home now, so I am trying to figure out God's purpose for the last twelve days of my adventure because clearly I am not home yet for a reason. Also, all of my joints are stiff and sore and I have no idea why; they have been this way for about four days now. I am not really my usually energetic and happy self, and it bothers me because even the mom's notice and ask what is wrong because I am not chatty and bubbly. I am not too sure what is up with my body, so I am trying to seek God in that.
As for the babies, most of them are doing better. Cathy lies in her crib flailing her arms and legs which is a blessing because her limbs were very floppy last time I posted!! Thank you Lord :) Sophie is doing better although she is still coughing. Trevor is doing sooooo much better!! And I am not too sure the status on Jewel; her face looks cleared up yet she is still in Isolation, so I'm not too sure what is up. Hannah and Tai have now also been admitted into Isolation for sever coughing. We now have six babies in Isolation and only five in Infant A... not a good thing. Please keep these babies in your prayers!! They need them a lot right now.
I am just going to have some breakfast and then go down to see the babies!! I saw them a little yesterday, but I wasn't really feeling up to it. But today is a new day and I feel awesome because My God is with me and He is going to heal me :) Being sick not only sucks because I am sick, but it also means I don't get to see the babies and I definitely miss them.
Thank you for reading, and thank you for looking back for updates all the time, even when there are none. I appreciate it.
Love: Rach :)
Ps. an update after doing two feedings: Cathy, Sophie and Trevor are out of Isolation!! Praise God :)
Thank you once again for stopping by. I am sorry it has been so long since my last post, we had no power for two days, which means no wifi. During that time I was sick with the flu, so I was stuck in bed anyways. Yesterday I was still recovering from being sick, and also said goodbye to two amazing volunteers; Andy and Mari from California. Got to have supper with them and see them off at the airport which was cool. My stomach feels much better, and yet I don't quite feel like myself.
And this morning I was praying and talking to God, and I had the urge to blog and ask for more prayer. And then I thought "Man, I have asked for a lot of prayer in the last little while, how much more should I really be asking for??". But then I opened the Sword of the Spirit (the Bible) and read this:
And pray in the spirit on all occasions
with all kids of prayers and requests.
With this in mind, be alert and always
keep on praying for all the Lord's people.
~ Ephesians 6: 18 ~
And right there, I realized that there is no such thing as "asking for too much prayer". God is amazing, and shows me things when I need them. So if you could please pray for me, I am struggling with a few things. First of all, I am ready to be home now, so I am trying to figure out God's purpose for the last twelve days of my adventure because clearly I am not home yet for a reason. Also, all of my joints are stiff and sore and I have no idea why; they have been this way for about four days now. I am not really my usually energetic and happy self, and it bothers me because even the mom's notice and ask what is wrong because I am not chatty and bubbly. I am not too sure what is up with my body, so I am trying to seek God in that.
As for the babies, most of them are doing better. Cathy lies in her crib flailing her arms and legs which is a blessing because her limbs were very floppy last time I posted!! Thank you Lord :) Sophie is doing better although she is still coughing. Trevor is doing sooooo much better!! And I am not too sure the status on Jewel; her face looks cleared up yet she is still in Isolation, so I'm not too sure what is up. Hannah and Tai have now also been admitted into Isolation for sever coughing. We now have six babies in Isolation and only five in Infant A... not a good thing. Please keep these babies in your prayers!! They need them a lot right now.
I am just going to have some breakfast and then go down to see the babies!! I saw them a little yesterday, but I wasn't really feeling up to it. But today is a new day and I feel awesome because My God is with me and He is going to heal me :) Being sick not only sucks because I am sick, but it also means I don't get to see the babies and I definitely miss them.
Thank you for reading, and thank you for looking back for updates all the time, even when there are none. I appreciate it.
Love: Rach :)
Ps. an update after doing two feedings: Cathy, Sophie and Trevor are out of Isolation!! Praise God :)
Saturday, April 6, 2013
Sick Babies
Trevor and Cathy in the Isolation room
Sophie in Isolation
and Jewel also in Isolation.
I love this picture of her!! She looks like she is contemplating life :)
Please keep praying for these sick babies.
Friday, April 5, 2013
Prayer is Powerful
Hey guys,
I have been learning how to pray more so that I connect with God in a new way, and I love it!! Prayer is sooo very important and I think I forget that sometimes. Thank you all for your continued prayers for me and for these children. I know sometimes we pray at the start of the mission trip, but as time goes on, we forget to pray for those who are away. Please keep praying!! Each one of you is a warrior for Jesus Christ. Satan will try to tear you down and place excuses in your heads, but STAND UP!! Please keep praying.
I have some prayer requests that are urgent at this time. We have way too many sick babies at this time. Ranging from colds to the flu to pneumonia to asthma. These poor babies can't catch a break.
Love, Rach :)
I have been learning how to pray more so that I connect with God in a new way, and I love it!! Prayer is sooo very important and I think I forget that sometimes. Thank you all for your continued prayers for me and for these children. I know sometimes we pray at the start of the mission trip, but as time goes on, we forget to pray for those who are away. Please keep praying!! Each one of you is a warrior for Jesus Christ. Satan will try to tear you down and place excuses in your heads, but STAND UP!! Please keep praying.
I have some prayer requests that are urgent at this time. We have way too many sick babies at this time. Ranging from colds to the flu to pneumonia to asthma. These poor babies can't catch a break.
- Cathy has pneumonia, for the second time since I have been here
- We were trying to feed her and she coughed so much she puked up all of her milk
- I was feeding her water but she was coughing so bad, for at least ten minutes straight.
- She has fallen asleep now, so please pray for her as she sleeps!!
- Sophie also has pneumonia
- Her symptoms are not nearly as bad as Cathy's though
- Trevor has asthma they think
- He can barely drink his milk because he is so clogged up everywhere.
- And he coughs like crazy
- Jewel has a rash on her face, that is going away, but please pray that it won't come back.
Love, Rach :)
Wednesday, April 3, 2013
Pictures :)
David
Mama Rachel (left), Mama Dorcas (middle) and Mama Phoebe (right)
They were praising God because "if we don't, the rocks will cry out!!" I was told :)
Freddy and Daniel
Patrick; my son and pretty much my favorite!
Whit
Naima
Edward
Lamual; three weeks old, our youngest baby and newest arrival
The past couple of days have been good. Nothing too much is new. Hopefully we can go to Juja Farm tomorrow!! Then I will be able to post some pictures of the kids that are there and give you an update on them. I hope all is well with you, and thank you for stopping by!!
Love: Rach :)
Sunday, March 31, 2013
HE is ALIVE!!!
Happy Easter everyone!!!
I hope as you read this you remember that Jesus died and rose again for everyone's sins. HE forgives you for everything and wants to have a personal relationship with you :) Seek Him!!
This weekend has been super crazy (I tried to post last night but the wifi was down), I will lay it out for you:
Friday:
Get ready for 9:45am to go to Easter Friday service at Overcoming Faith Church which starts at 10am. Waiting...waiting..9:59....waiting.....10:05....Then at 10:10 Winnie comes to pick me up. We pile the kids in the van and arrive at church at 10:30. Praise and Worship was amazing!! It has been a long time since I have been able to worship like I do at home in church so it was lovely. There was a group from a university leading and they picked songs like we have in church. Church was decent too, but it was long. It was supposed to end at 12, but it was done at 1:30!!! And then, Winnie and I piled all the kids into the van and started for home (down a one-way) when we got flagged down and told we needed to come back to church so the kids could sing a song and get videotaped. Remember how we were driving down a one-way?? yeah so we drove the wrong way down it to get back to church. While the kids were singing Winnie decides she wants to go home, so she gets someone else to drive us. This is fine only in the end I waited for a whole hour to get the kids in the van, then he wasn't there so we had to wait for him and by this time the kids where bored with sitting so they were gone and we had to reload them...it was the definition of GONG SHOW!!! It was crazy. So got back at 2:30 to Happy Life grabbed a snack for lunch and went down to feed the babies. Chilled in the afternoon and got to FaceTime Sarah Martens which was fantastic!! Then at about 7:15 it started thundering and lightning and raining a bit. I was like "sweet, I will just grab my handy dandy umbrella and go up onto the roof to watch the lightning!!" Let me tell you how bad of an idea that was!! I thought it was raining down, like normal rain, but it was SHEETING. I was soaked in seconds. Then, all of a sudden the power goes out, just at the time of feeding. I look down over the balcony to where the older kids are supposed to be getting ready for bed and I see a single light, so I went down there to bring them another one. Between the building I am living in and that building though is this open area, which was now filled with about 5 inches of water!! By this time it has been raining for about 20-30 minutes... I was down there for a while and then I offered to go up and feed the babies so they didn't have to get soaked too. So I went and fed the babies, and it was later than usual by this time, so I was feeding babies two at a time!! It was great :) Then as I was going to be, the power popped on. Story of my life!!
Saturday:
Slept in until 7am!! Haha. Got ready for the day and went to feed the babies just like a normal morning. Basically chilled all day and fed babies. I also met a wonderful girl, Ashara, from New York City, who is here for school. We hit it off right away and we were chatting for a while!! The elections are FINALLY over...it has been almost a month, but praise God it has been mostly peaceful. There was a court case against Kenyatta (the winner), because the loser, Odinga likes to cause a stink. In the end the court ruling was in favor or Uhuru Kenyatta and he will be officially signed on April 9th. It was super loud here again when the people found out!! There is a new two week old baby here named Lamual and he has become one of my favorites :) I spent a lot of this day cuddling him. I got to Skype Kenge :) and then the kids were dying Easter eggs with Mari and Andy which they loved. I went to feed the babies for the night and my day ended with being able to cuddle with Lamual. He is pretty much the only one young enough to fall asleep in your arms, and it is awesome!!
Sunday:
On Saturday, I invited Ashara to come to church as well as another friend Olivia, who invited one of her friends, Edith. They came over in the morning ready to go to church. Today was a BUSY church day. In the past little while we have had many new children; Daniel - 10, twins who don't speak any Swahili or English, Dominic and Peter - 3 ish, another 3 year old boy, Kennedy - 1 1/2, Ray (who I thought I named Erik, but they changed it..) - 1 and Lamual - 2 weeks. These kids all came to church with us to get dedicated, like baby dedication at home, and so that was interesting because we very rarely take that many babies... But we also have kids that are getting adopted so we brought them to get prayed for!!: Abidah - 2, William - 2, Ethan, - 1 1/2 and Tendai - 8 months. It was super crazy, but it worked out. And most of the babies didn't even cry in church, thank the Lord :) I kind of felt like the mom of seven though...because I was making bottles and getting diapers changed and being busy making sure all of the babies were okay. We got back home and fed the babies and then Andy took us all out for lunch; Mari, Olivia, Edith and I. It was a buffet, which was pretty amazing. Chilled in the evening and fed the babies before bed. Got back upstairs to hear that the youth group got back safely from Mexico!! I was so pumped and thankful that they are all safe and sound. I got to Skype with Erik before bed, which made my day :)
I am definitely going to miss being a "mom" to these babies, because I love them like my own. When one doesn't want to eat, I try to sit with it until it does. If one is sick, I cuddle it because that's all anyone wants when they are sick. And if they are crying I try to make things better :) They have become my babies and it is gonna suck to leave them. I might take a couple home in my suitcase!!! Just kidding. But I am already praying that God will bring me back someday soon because I love Kenya. I am excited to come home in 23 days, and yet it will be a sad time saying goodbye.
Thank you for all of your prayers for me!! I really appreciate them. And I am sorry that it has been a while since my last post, but the power has been out and wifi has been down, and it has been a crazy weekend!! I will try to post some pictures shortly. Of the new babies and kids too!!
Love: Rach :)
I hope as you read this you remember that Jesus died and rose again for everyone's sins. HE forgives you for everything and wants to have a personal relationship with you :) Seek Him!!
This weekend has been super crazy (I tried to post last night but the wifi was down), I will lay it out for you:
Friday:
Get ready for 9:45am to go to Easter Friday service at Overcoming Faith Church which starts at 10am. Waiting...waiting..9:59....waiting.....10:05....Then at 10:10 Winnie comes to pick me up. We pile the kids in the van and arrive at church at 10:30. Praise and Worship was amazing!! It has been a long time since I have been able to worship like I do at home in church so it was lovely. There was a group from a university leading and they picked songs like we have in church. Church was decent too, but it was long. It was supposed to end at 12, but it was done at 1:30!!! And then, Winnie and I piled all the kids into the van and started for home (down a one-way) when we got flagged down and told we needed to come back to church so the kids could sing a song and get videotaped. Remember how we were driving down a one-way?? yeah so we drove the wrong way down it to get back to church. While the kids were singing Winnie decides she wants to go home, so she gets someone else to drive us. This is fine only in the end I waited for a whole hour to get the kids in the van, then he wasn't there so we had to wait for him and by this time the kids where bored with sitting so they were gone and we had to reload them...it was the definition of GONG SHOW!!! It was crazy. So got back at 2:30 to Happy Life grabbed a snack for lunch and went down to feed the babies. Chilled in the afternoon and got to FaceTime Sarah Martens which was fantastic!! Then at about 7:15 it started thundering and lightning and raining a bit. I was like "sweet, I will just grab my handy dandy umbrella and go up onto the roof to watch the lightning!!" Let me tell you how bad of an idea that was!! I thought it was raining down, like normal rain, but it was SHEETING. I was soaked in seconds. Then, all of a sudden the power goes out, just at the time of feeding. I look down over the balcony to where the older kids are supposed to be getting ready for bed and I see a single light, so I went down there to bring them another one. Between the building I am living in and that building though is this open area, which was now filled with about 5 inches of water!! By this time it has been raining for about 20-30 minutes... I was down there for a while and then I offered to go up and feed the babies so they didn't have to get soaked too. So I went and fed the babies, and it was later than usual by this time, so I was feeding babies two at a time!! It was great :) Then as I was going to be, the power popped on. Story of my life!!
Saturday:
Slept in until 7am!! Haha. Got ready for the day and went to feed the babies just like a normal morning. Basically chilled all day and fed babies. I also met a wonderful girl, Ashara, from New York City, who is here for school. We hit it off right away and we were chatting for a while!! The elections are FINALLY over...it has been almost a month, but praise God it has been mostly peaceful. There was a court case against Kenyatta (the winner), because the loser, Odinga likes to cause a stink. In the end the court ruling was in favor or Uhuru Kenyatta and he will be officially signed on April 9th. It was super loud here again when the people found out!! There is a new two week old baby here named Lamual and he has become one of my favorites :) I spent a lot of this day cuddling him. I got to Skype Kenge :) and then the kids were dying Easter eggs with Mari and Andy which they loved. I went to feed the babies for the night and my day ended with being able to cuddle with Lamual. He is pretty much the only one young enough to fall asleep in your arms, and it is awesome!!
Sunday:
On Saturday, I invited Ashara to come to church as well as another friend Olivia, who invited one of her friends, Edith. They came over in the morning ready to go to church. Today was a BUSY church day. In the past little while we have had many new children; Daniel - 10, twins who don't speak any Swahili or English, Dominic and Peter - 3 ish, another 3 year old boy, Kennedy - 1 1/2, Ray (who I thought I named Erik, but they changed it..) - 1 and Lamual - 2 weeks. These kids all came to church with us to get dedicated, like baby dedication at home, and so that was interesting because we very rarely take that many babies... But we also have kids that are getting adopted so we brought them to get prayed for!!: Abidah - 2, William - 2, Ethan, - 1 1/2 and Tendai - 8 months. It was super crazy, but it worked out. And most of the babies didn't even cry in church, thank the Lord :) I kind of felt like the mom of seven though...because I was making bottles and getting diapers changed and being busy making sure all of the babies were okay. We got back home and fed the babies and then Andy took us all out for lunch; Mari, Olivia, Edith and I. It was a buffet, which was pretty amazing. Chilled in the evening and fed the babies before bed. Got back upstairs to hear that the youth group got back safely from Mexico!! I was so pumped and thankful that they are all safe and sound. I got to Skype with Erik before bed, which made my day :)
I am definitely going to miss being a "mom" to these babies, because I love them like my own. When one doesn't want to eat, I try to sit with it until it does. If one is sick, I cuddle it because that's all anyone wants when they are sick. And if they are crying I try to make things better :) They have become my babies and it is gonna suck to leave them. I might take a couple home in my suitcase!!! Just kidding. But I am already praying that God will bring me back someday soon because I love Kenya. I am excited to come home in 23 days, and yet it will be a sad time saying goodbye.
Thank you for all of your prayers for me!! I really appreciate them. And I am sorry that it has been a while since my last post, but the power has been out and wifi has been down, and it has been a crazy weekend!! I will try to post some pictures shortly. Of the new babies and kids too!!
Love: Rach :)
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