We're home!

Sorry for the lack of blogging during the trip. We had no internet on the Hill, and we had very limited, expensive, and extremely slow internet at the resort. We typed up an entry at the resort and hit post but it wouldn't post... But now we're home and we're so excited to tell you all about our trip!

I'll start with the first day on the Hill. When we got there, all the kids from the school, and all the staff members and adults from the community came out to welcome us. I have never received such a warm welcome in my life. People were singing and cheering. The adults came up to each of us individually and shook our hands or hugged us. The whole group walked us up to the Children's Home and then we sat down with all the adults and were introduced to everyone and welcomed again. They kept telling us over and over "Karibu sana" (which means "welcome very much") and "feel at home." After the introductions, they brought in Nentaya, the girl we sponsor, and Edward, who the Huffmans sponsor. We got a "family picture" with the three of us and Nentaya.


Then several Maasai women walked us down the Hill to Joseph's house. Joseph is the director of the Children's Home. He and his wife Anna graciously opened their home to all 11 of us (plus 3 visitors from Kenyatta University, for 2 nights). So at one point, there were 14 visitors staying in Joseph & Anna's small house. They brought in bunk beds so we could all fit. They also gave us three home-cooked meals each day, and they were delicious! I was worried about liking the food, but I loved almost everything we ate. Joseph & Anna are the best hosts ever!

I could go on an on, but I'm going to stop there. We'll each post a few more times explaining what happened the rest of the week, and also what we saw on safari! We had an amazing trip and we're excited to share our experiences and stories with all of you! Stay tuned. :)

-Kara

Day 1 in Kenya!

Hi everyone! It’s Kara & Jeanette. We’re here in Kenya and we are loving it! It is even better than we could have imagined. Thanks to everyone who has prayed for us - we have had a great trip so far. We had two very smooth flights, everything was on time, and we got all 27 of our checked bags without any problems (10 crates, two guitars, and 15 personal bags). Everyone is fairly well adjusted to the 8-hour time change, which is great. We were a little worried about whether or not we would like the food, but so far we have had three delicious (and very LARGE) meals. Most importantly, everyone on our team is healthy. Thank you for your continued prayers for our trip.

We have only been here for a day, but we have already fallen in love with Kenya. It is absolutely beautiful. And the people here are so nice! As we were driving, people on the side of the road would smile and wave at us. (We also saw donkeys, cows, goats, sheep, turkeys, and chickens on the side of the road… they didn’t wave.) Today we went to a tea farm near Nairobi. We tasted fresh tea, learned about the history of the tea farm, and took a tour of the grounds. Then they served us a huge FEAST for lunch. We were full after the soup course – but there was still the main course and dessert! After the tea farm, we visited The Nest Home, which is a home for children whose parents are in prison. The kids greeted us by singing; it was precious. (Mom cried!) Then we went on a tour and saw the bedrooms and school. After that, the kids sang to us again, and then Dan taught a brief lesson about God’s love. Quick Swahili lesson: Yesu penda mimi = Jesus loves me. When it was time to go, the kids sang to us AGAIN – they love to sing! – and then we took pictures with some of the children. They loved the camera! We were so sad to leave them, and wish we could have spent more time there. But this experience made us so much more excited for our time on the Hill!

Now we are at Ann’s parents’ house in Kijabe, where we’re spending the night. (It's 6:30 at night here.) Tomorrow we’re taking a tour of the Kijabe hospital, where Mike (Ann’s dad) works, and then we’re driving up to the Hill. We cannot WAIT to get to the Hill and meet all those beautiful children!

We are having an incredible trip so far. We've taken over a hundred pictures already. Thanks for all of your prayers! We’ll try to blog on the Hill, although we’re not sure how much internet access we’ll have while we’re there. Talk to you soon!

Here We Go!

Good morning! It's Jeanette's turn to post. Today is the day! It is hard to believe that a dream that began almost 3 years ago is about to become a reality. In 24 hours, the world is going to look a lot different. 24 hours after that, it's going to look even more different! I am in awe that we have been given this incredible opportunity to take this trip. This morning I looked at Nentaya's smiling face on my refrigerator, the face I've looked at every day for almost 3 years in a photo, and realized that in a few days I will be hugging this precious little girl. I can't even put into words the joy and excitement I am feeling at the idea of meeting all of these children and their caregivers. We have some fun things planned, but we've been told by everyone who has been to "The Hill" before to just be ready for anything, not to expect things to go as planned, and to be ready to live at a slow, relaxed pace. I have to say, that sounds incredible to me. The idea of not being on a tight schedule, not being attached to technology, not running from place to place, makes me very happy. I am hoping to just be able to "go with the flow" and see what God has in store for me...
We are leaving for the airport in just about 6 hours, our flight leaves around 4 pm. Right now, I am in a state of disbelief, but strangely calm. We are putting this whole trip in God's hands. Thank you to everyone who has been praying for us. Please continue to do so. I am not as eloquent as Kara and Joel (it's also 6:30 am and I have not had coffee yet), so I will just say "Here we Go!" The next time you hear from us, we will be in Kenya!
Love,
Jeanette

Hi I'm Joel

And I'm going to do one of these blogs now.

So I was sick until about noon today, and very worried that I wouldn't get better before we left. Being sick on a plane for 18 hours and then being sick in Kenya wasn't what I was picturing for this trip. Luckily, I'm better now. Thanks to all who prayed for my health.

Speaking of what I'm picturing for this trip... I had this picture in my head of what it would be like for a really long time, but recently I've realized that it is probably going to be nothing like I pictured. It's going to be like nothing I've ever done before. It's going to be scary, alien, and difficult, but it's also going to be one of the most beautiful and amazing things I've ever done.

I'm hoping to get a new understanding of life from this trip. I'm hoping that I will not take things for granted like I do now. I'm reminded of a quote from Dr. Cornel West. He was in a plane getting ready to take off, sitting in coach because money was tight at the time. He said, "Coach is cool. It's a blessing to be on this plane at all. Blessing to be alive. Blessing to be on this journey of love." That is so right. People complain all the time about things like that: being stuck in coach on a plane, being stuck in traffic, having to drink water instead of coke. We don't realize how blessed we are to be able to travel the world in a matter of hours, drive wherever we want, whenever we want, and get a drink anytime we choose.

I've been fascinated by the kids at the Transmara Childrens Home ever since my family first became involved with Oasis. I was perplexed by the fact that they were so happy in their situation. Here they were, poor, orphaned, some of them sick, yet they had the biggest, most genuine smiles I've ever seen. They seem happier than many kids in America who have everything in comparison, myself included. I have so much to learn from these 74 kids.

Getting Ready

Hey everyone! Kara here. The three of us are going to be taking turns blogging before, during, and after our trip, and I'm up first!

As most of you know, I've been counting down the days to this trip since January! I remember being in the hundreds... hard to believe we're in the single digits now! We leave in 5 days. We went over to the Smiths' house yesterday and packed up a bunch of crates full of things to bring to the Hill: medical supplies, shoes, clothes for the kids, etc. (I'm going to try to get a picture of our group at the airport with all our stuff - it's going to be pretty hilarious. There are 9 of us, and between us I think we have 18 carry-ons, 8 big suitcases, 8 crates, and two guitars.) Now that we've started packing, it's beginning to sink in that in less than a week, we'll be in Africa. I am SO excited. But as the trip gets nearer, I'm starting to get a little nervous too. For twelve days, I am going to be COMPLETELY out of my comfort zone. I have never been to a third world country, or anything even close. I am so accustomed to my way of life, and I take so much for granted. I've been thinking a lot lately about the things I'm going to be without during the trip. My big comfy double bed, air conditioning, my cell phone, running water, bathrooms with showers and toilets... I'm going to miss all these luxuries. But I think it's so important for me to take a break from this life that I've come to know, and to go see what life is like on the other side of the world. I think that when I return, I will appreciate all that I have so much more. I am truly blessed to live where I do and to have such a comfortable life. Even though it scares me a little to leave behind everything I know, I couldn't be more excited. I have been looking forward to this trip for two years, and now it's right around the corner! I am so excited to see what God does through this trip - how He uses us and what He teaches us.

I cannot WAIT to get to the Hill and meet all the kids. For years, I've seen pictures and watched videos and heard stories from friends who've visited... I already feel like these children are part of my family. Now it's FINALLY time for me to go meet them in person! I'm especially excited to meet Nentaya, the little girl we sponsor. After exchanging letters with her for two years, we finally get to see her face-to-face! I feel like I'm about to cry just thinking about it. Nentaya is SUCH a cutie. I can't wait to meet her. Oh, and I'm bringing her a Butler University t-shirt so she can show her Bulldog pride. Yay! :)

There are 74 kids at the Trans Mara Children's Home (although only 72 are there right now, because 2 are in high school in Nairobi), and I am really looking forward to forming relationships with as many of them as possible. I have been trying to learn names & faces so I can recognize them when I get there... so far it's not going too well, haha. I know about a dozen, maybe more? I'll keep working on it. I have an extreeeemely long plane ride coming up, which will give me plenty of time to "study"!

Anyways, like I said, Mom, Joel and I will each be posting in this blog as often as we can. We're not totally sure how often we'll have access to the internet in Kenya, but we'll do our best to keep you all updated! It's going to be an adventure, and we're excited to share it with all of you.
Please pray for us to stay SAFE and HEALTHY during our trip! Thanks so much :)

Love,
Kara