Pictures soon to come!

Amy is here and I am so happy!!!!! I was able to receive a lot of gifts from my friends and family and it's an early Christmas!! :) I am currently living on 3.5 hours of sleep, but tonight will be a good night of sleep! :)

Today we stopped in Rongai and I bought my first thing from the market. I bought 2 feet of garlic for 10 shillings each!! Then we went to another place next to Tusky's and I was able to buy some potatoes!! I got a pretty good deal--5 kilos for 200 shillings AND then he gave me like 5-6 extra and said "Merry Christmas!" So....I was pretty excited!!! We're planning on making some homefries and some french fried!!!!!!!! :) YAY!!

I get pretty excited about food as you can tell. So, I REALLY enjoyed dinner!! We had haystacks tonight and it was AMAZING!!! My sisters got me some fritos!!!! (not available in Kenya) and Yani made some ballin chilli....we made a hefty bowl of salsa!!!! and then Derek topped it all off with some nacho cheese! I seriously can't explain how good it was except for to say that my mouth was literally tingling because of how GOOD the food tasted! :)

Tomorrow we plan on going to the elephant orphanage!! I'm pretty excited to go back because the baby elephants were pretty cute! And, I think that Amy will REALLY enjoy it!! Also, we plan on going to the glass factory and I can't wait to smash some glass again. Lastly we plan on going to the Maasai market at Galleria tomorrow and I wanna get some cool things and help her bargain!

We've been at the Raymonds house tonight looking at tons of pictures. I'm really really excited about going to the Mara this weekend!!! We also plan on going to Hell's gate when we get back and then to Mombasa (the beach) for a couple days! Hopefully we can hit up a couple other places like Ngong Hills, the giraffe center, ect!

This week we've been going around town to places like Sarit Center, Westgate Mall, shopping for kikoys and souvenir shopping at Blue Shack. This place was pretty fun but everyone bombards you so it's kinda hard to shop in peace.

Other than that, not all too much has been going on. I'm really enjoying being on break and I hope it doesn't go too fast. My time here in Africa is just incredible and I am already thinking about how much I will be missing it next year :(

And you should listen to this song because it is pretty cool!!!

Christmas Break

Just another lion at the Mara!!!! This is like the most basic picture ever but I still think it's PRETTY COOL!

So happy to be out of class right now, done with grading and on Christmas Break!! Today we're going out to town!!!! Amy is currently on her flight here and I can't wait!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :) We have a lot of good things planned and the past couple of days have been really fun hanging out with everyone and going to town to shop and eat!!!! We've also been cooking lately since the cafe is closed and that's been fun! Also, I've been loving having this tent in our backyard and sleeping in it, watching movies or watching the stars!! I've been keeping a collection of the planets, meteors and constellations I've been seeing!!!! I'll have to post that list soon, but I'm really excited about it!!! Africa is still AMAZING! :)

Girls Club Hawaiian Banquet

At the Equator!

Sunrise at Lake Baringo

All our pretty tents

Weaver Nests

Parent/Teacher Conferences

What an experience. Most of them weren't too bad..but...some parents are out right stubborn. It's really a shame. Stop treating me as if I have no idea what I'm doing. Trust me, I put much thought into things and I always do my best..but I've learned many lessons from this. So thank you, really.

Grades

Kingsley is in my 5th grade homeroom and Daniel is his 1st grade buddy!

You know there always has to be a classic dunking tank

Hitching booth ran by the Sophomores...Jill and I hitched many students but I got hitched myself...

Ameline and Kaleb!! This was one of the hitches I decided on my own! lol.

I bought these roses for 150 Kenyan Shillings with my leftover shillings

Stapain is a very sweet and funny student

Yani taught me how to make this very good homemade icing!

Nimo and Ines!! Very sweet girls from the Academy

My adorable 1st graders!!! Ameline and Ethel :)

Well, it's finally the end of first quarter-what an accomplishment!! This means that we are 1/4 of the way through the school year and time is just flying by! I submitted all of my grades tonight and only one person received an F-due to missing work.

Tomorrow is the last day of classes until we go camping. Right now we are actually setting up our plans for this weekend's camping trip. We will be going to Lake Boringo where we can see some hippos and eagles, go on a boat ride and eat some delicious food!! I can' wait. I'll be posting some pictures once we return.


Two Sabbath's ago we went to Kibera Slums and got to play with a bunch of really cute children. I was holding a baby and she fell asleep on me..so cute!!

We also went to The Village Market where you can go bowling, see a movie and enjoy some water slides. (We didn't watch a movie..nothing good out)

Last weekend we also had an event called "Peanut Carnival" Basically this is what BMA called "Fall Festival" Since I'm a Sophomore sponsor, I helped out our class by making rainbow cupcakes. All the students seemed to enjoy helping make these and eating them too! It was pretty cool to bring this recipe here to Africa!! Also, I brought a new "game" to this event. Because I remembered how popular the hitching booth was at BMA I figured it would be equally as popular here. Jill, Hadassah and I ended up having more fun then the students I think hitching all the elementary students together. Some of them started catching on and I found myself hitched a couple of times as well!! Enjoy some new pictures! :)

Art Class

Today has been good. I can't believe it's Wednesday..the weeks go by fast really. Here's a breakdown of my week:

Sunday: Lesson Plan/Do something fun
Monday: Teach a full day
Tuesday: Teach a half day/eat lunch in cafe/go out to town (Java House & Nakumatt-Grocery Store)
Wednesday: Half day of classes/Teach art to 7/8 and 1/6 in the afternoon
Thursday: Full day again, but at least the week is almost over
Friday: HALF DAY/time for the weekend

Not to mention all the grading which is thrown in there!!! There are a couple times during the week we go over to the Raymonds house to eat, have tea, grade, or just chill. Being there is nice because it helps me feel more like I'm at home and there is always a good laugh involved!

Right now, I'm sitting in art class. Today the students choose a partner (they didn't know what for) and are sketching portraits of each other. To be perfectly honest, I can't draw to save my life--but I just give instruction and hope it's fun for them. Most times this ends up being a mad house for me but I am glad that they are having fun.

Some of the interesting things that people say over here:

"Can I go to the toilet" -Almost all the 1st & 2nd graders
"Pass me the rubber" -Students asking for an eraser
"Jambo" -A very white/touristy way of saying "hello"
"Flash me" - A way of telling someone to call you..almost like a page


Well, this blog is all over the place. Feels like me sometimes!

24/9/11

7th and 8th grade taking our Flat Stanley picture! Quite a lively bunch as you can see!

Hello!!!! A giraffe!

1st-2nd grade!!! Taking some pictures during math class!

5/6 graders painting during Bible class!

I love getting my hair did at the orphanage!

Full moon party...guess who forgot to get plasticware!?!?! ME!

PHASES OF THE MOON!

Girls playing in a sandbox

The clouds above my house seem really close...more then normal

standing up in the Land Rover

Glass from the glass factory

So, I haven't blogged in the longest of times...and my family is about to be upset with me because they want to see pictures and stories. So, here it goes...


Last Sabbath, I had the MOST AMAZING FOOD EVER!!!! Rice and beans with homemade salsa and guacamole (I made that!!!) Also, I had the most amazing drink ever and it's totally my new favorite. It's a fanta and it's called "Black Current" but sometimes I get confused and call it "Cool Torrent" and I have no idea why!!!! hahaha. I got a lot of naps and sleeping in last Sabbath and it was pretty nice. Later on in the evening when I woke up form my nap, I was still at the Raymonds...YAY!! haha. That night we made cinnamon buns and told a bunch of fun stories!!!!

Sunday I went out to brunch with a group of the Maxwell staff who were off duty. Afterwards, we went to the glass factory and got to see a bunch of really cool things that they made out of glass! (there was even a scrap area where you could break glass for fun) We took some cool pictures too! Then, we traveled around to see the places that serve really good pizza and that also have a swimming pool!!! (Can't wait till it get's warm enough to swim again!!) While we traveled around, Derek put the roof up on the Land Rover and I got to stand up and watch as we drove past everyone staring at me...the "Muzungu!" haha. I had a really great time and was wishing my sisters were with me for that!!!

The week was pretty uneventful, besides teaching and getting out early!! Thursday started our "Long weekend" which is basically a short break that the students get. Some go home or to a friends house..but others stay on campus so we have a more laid back weekend. I went on the town trip thursday afternoon and so part of my supervision was eating frozen yogart, grocery shopping (for some Black Current!!) and testing out KFC! Not bad!! (Sorry mom)

Anyway, today we had a delicious brunch and I actually had sour cream that tasted pretty good. Yani made it and she is a good cook...but I was skeptical because I don't seem to like the dairy here. :( And, I'm really excited about having some for dinner with the haystacks!! I supervised from 12:30-2:30..nothing too eventful there. Tonight I'm going to make cornbread with Yani...and let me tell you...her cornbread is AMAZZZZZZING!!! :) I feel like I'm forgetting something...but I'll have to add it later once I remember!!

My 1st and 2nd grade students!!!!!!

Daniel

Ethel

Edna

Ameline

Elephant Orphanage

 

 

 

First squat pot!!

So I ended up passing out because it was really really hot, I was standing for awhile in the sun, I'm still a little sick and because I hadn't eaten much breakfast or drank much water..OOPS. But, Jill was there and caught me and then random people helped by putting cold water on my head and lifting up my legs...(according to Jill, this part was really funny) Anyway, no need to worry about me (Mom and Aunt Darney) because I learned my lesson!!

 

This was a couple minutes after I passed out

This elephant is under 24 months old and ADORABLE!

The SM Team

 Here are some of the SM girls (and Drew) after last weeks handshake!!!! You know..we just doing our thang!

This is Drew. He actually spent 6 years here when he was younger in the elementary school. His family lived in the house that Jillian and I are staying in. His job here is to help out in the IT department. Also, he teaches the tenth grade computer class and will be the staff advisor for the Zamani (a video version of the yearbook). Drew is studying chemistry with the plan to take that to pharmaceutical studies. He is blogging at http://growingupkenyan.tumblr.com/

Then there is Lauren. Her main role is to be a tutor to the students. She teaches a grade nine math class and also helps in the registrar’s office sometimes. While here, she has chosen to take a year out from her engineering degree at Southern. Lauren’s thoughts on life in Kenya are at http://laurenmccoyslife.wordpress.com/

Ashley is a nursing major but is here as the assistant girls’ dean. She and Lauren have been close friends for years I believe and they applied to come to Maxwell together. It seems she has a busy job over in the girls’ dorm. We enjoy drinking coffee every morning and it seems that mint chocolate chip is a favorite of everyone in our group! Ashley blogs at http://ashleyinkenya.wordpress.com/

Jill is one of my good friends from Southern!! We've played on flag football, basketball, and soccer intramural teams together. It was a huge blessing that we were able to come to Kenya together as SM's and it's really fun working with her at the elementary school. She is the homeroom teacher for 7/8 grade, but she also teaches 1-4 and 5/6 for other subjects just like me. We also live in the same house and get to spend a lot of time together going on African adventures...that is when I am not sleeping! ha! Jill has no blog.




Here you see Karl..or at least kind of. He has taken on the task of driving us around town and insists that he's used to it from driving in Australia. He is the only SM that is not from SAU..but he did go to Andrews last semester so I enjoy talking to him about the Ferguson family! (well,  he only knows Pastor Dave) Karl is from Australia though and speaks with an accent. We make fun of it...but only because we wish we talked like that too. (not really) He helps me out with camera and computer stuff and also at the elementary school. If you read Karl's blog at karllindsay.com/travel/blog you might notice that I've stolen some of his material for this post...so thanks Karl!



Here is a group shot of everyone on top of Mt. Suswa! That was a really great view, and so nice to be able to drive up to this point...however....I was wearing too much layers and I was burning up the whole time!!!! AND, the altitude was killing me. Looks like I better work on that before we head up to Mt. Kenya.

PS....Southern should totally add this picture to their website and change things up a bit!!!

Sabbath 3/9/11

Today I wasn't feeling good because of my cold so I slept in for awhile!!! Then, I went to Ngong hills with some other people who are off this weekend with me. I got to help a Masai guy herd some of his sheep and goats and I also got to see a baby ewe only 2 hours old!!! The view from the top was GREAT and the weather was perfect.

The "A team" supervision on top Ngong hills!

Afterwards, we went to the back of the Giraffe Center when the giraffes were getting fed. Here we didn't have to pay, but we got to take pictures with them, feed them, kiss them, ect. All the while I had to go to the bathroom REALLY BADLY...but I had such a great time!!!

It just kicked the gate and I was scared of it's monster kick

It was super cool seeing this animal in real life!

After we got back, Jill, Karl, Drew and I went over to the Raymonds house for some Ramen.... FREAH LEMON AND GINGER TEA and even some homeade salsa! :) YUMMY!!! It was nice being off this weekend and not having to go to the program and just being able to get a break.

1/9/11

Some flowers that used to be outside of my house...before it got too cold and they died

A Kenyan Sunset

Yes, we do the date over here differently and I'm totally going for it!! It was hard to get used to at first..but I always try to make the students use this way of dating their papers....

In other news. I've almost finished my second week of school. YAY! Planning lessons is still very time consuming. I'm usually staying up late to do this..but I have a feeling that soon I will in the swing of things and it will take no time at all. (Like tonight I think I finished at 9:15 as opposed to 1amish!


My class is good. I really really enjoy my homeroom classroom of 5/6 graders. Each classroom has a nickname...and our's is "The 5th and 6th grade weirdos." They came up with it and LOVE it. I also teach some other classes like English for grades 7&8 (which I am not too fond of because I don't enjoy grammar and I have to learn it really well to teach it) and I also teach Social Studies for grades 7&8 which is not as bad either. I get to teach math to 1-4 graders. It's split up so that I teach 1/2 and the same time and then 3/4 at the same time. Not bad. Also, Science for 5&6 gets a little tricky...but I'm enjoying learning about Astronomy. We're studying phases of the moon and we're already planning a little "get together" for Sept. 12 when we have a full moon!

I got to use my student worker today (from the highschool) so it was nice to get a bunch of papers graded and copies made!! This way I have more time to plan the lessons. Tomorrow is a half day and I can't wait!

In other news...there are a bunch of gross spiders that I like to kill when I find them in my room. I bought some really cheap roses...for only 100 KES...however, they didn't last too long so go figure! A couple days ago Yani helped me hem some pants..YAY!! And, I showed her this hilarious Lady Gaga video or her banging on the keyboard with her foot and singing off tune! And, we've had tea a couple times at their house so far...always a nice treat. OH, I'm getting sick and finally getting what everyone else has..BOO! I have a stuffy nose and a cough with some congestion. I guess my immune system isn't as strong as I thought!! :( And, yesterday I reffed a game of volleyball for the tournament that was going on and then the winners (the tournament was classes against classes) played the staff! It was fun to get back out there and play although it's been quite a while since I last played. Needless to say, the staff won...HOLLA!!  So yeah, this weekend I'm hoping to be able to go and see some elephants or giraffes, so I'm EXCITED! Yeah, I've lost my train of thought and this blog is all over the place...but that's what's been going on lately and I'll have to post more later! :)