February! Where'd you go?

Wow – I haven’t blogged all month! My mom said she was getting tired of watching bunnies, so it seems it’s time to post something : ).

To be honest, I have been busy waiting. Yes, that sounds funny, but psychologically I really have been “stuck” waiting for my house to be finished so that we can move (something I hate!), get our Pack, stuff and guards settled there, and then go to the States for five months. Yes, you read that right. Five months. Gulp. I have not processed that length of time yet and am trying not to let myself think of how much I’ll miss my dogs while we’re gone. Yikes!

February 9th Ella turned 7 and we had wild party at the pool with over 30 of her “closest friends.” Ha ha! Really got to love that girl : ) I posted all the pictures on Facebook, fully intending to post some here, but it just didn’t happen. Facebook uploads are so much easier than Blogger! Ella is a joyous, crazy little girl and truly a delight. A kick in the pants as well! Her big smile and gaping teeth are enough to warm the cockles of my heart.

The kids started weekly swimming lessons two weeks ago and LOVE IT. They were READY for it and Ella had been waiting for a long time! I had wanted to get her at least started swimming before I got her lessons (not sure why) so now she is improving on style and all. I must say, that child is good. The last time I swam with her she outswam me across the big pool!

I had held off and held off getting Frankie lessons, due to his tendency to freeze up and disassociate when touched, a dwindling but still lingering symptom of his PTS. I am HAPPY to say that he is READY now and although he’s wanted to slip back into “baby/victim mode” with the teacher once or twice, he has not disassociated or gotten pissy once! Yeah Frankie! I’ve watched the swimming teacher work with kids for years and appreciate the fact that my kids have a man to instruct them. They rarely get direction from men (usually just fun) and they are doing great! I’m so proud of the way they listen, respect and obey their teacher, making learning far more easier for them because they’re cooperating. I’ve forgotten to take my camera the last couple of weeks but will try to get some pictures this week!

Ella is almost finished with first grade. She still can’t read (????) but retains an incredible amount of knowledge of what she’s learned in her subjects. I think her favorite subject is Science, closely followed by Bible. She has finished History/Geography, is almost done with Science, and is close to being done with Bible. We stopped Language Arts in October because, while she was completing the work, she just wasn’t putting two and two together in order to READ, so I figured it was a waste of time. Being the great teacher that I am, I sort of just gave up, fully intending to hand her over to my mom this spring and having her help her read! We will start first grade Math when finished with Science and Bible and probably hand that over to Granny too ;). So yeah, I’m not getting any teacher of the year awards, but once her Granny teaches her to read I think things will be just fine.

Frankie, big boy that he is, has started WASHING DISHES!! Woohoo, Frankie! So far he hasn't broken anything, unlike his sister who broke two bowls at one go one day. Both kids are really starting to take responsibility around the house and I must say, it is SO helpful. Even a four year old can help and help he does. What a love about Frankie is how visibily pleased he is with himself when we accomplishes something. He's naturally not the worker his sister is but he DOES like the feeling of accomplishment that comes with a job well done AND team work with the family. For four years old, he is a very mature little boy.

Ranger has been battling health issues and is on his eighth day of being at the vet : (. In December he was off his feed and lost weight, due to anemia and a kidney infection. 10 days of antibiotics perked him up and he fatted up again, only to fall sick about three weeks ago. Our trusty vet diagnosed him with a damaged liver, due to the mold that was in the Pack’s chicken mash. Yes, I feel really really bad about this. Who knew that a bit of mold could be so toxic to dogs? I do now!

Ranger was put back on meds but after five days was getting worse, so I took and left him at the vets for better treatment. It was really not looking good at all as his kidneys weren’t functioning and he couldn’t pee, nor would he eat anything. The vet drained the urine from his bloated belly and he is able to pee now and started eating. We went to see him on Thursday and his little back legs were puffy and swollen, due to his fighting kidneys. The vet said yesterday that the swelling is going down now, but that he wants to keep him a little bit longer. I can’t believe how much I really miss that dog, even with four others! There is a huge hole in our Pack and I’m praying that Ranger can come home completely healthy again. Soon!

                                            Sanyu, involved in the worst kind of cat torture imaginable

Consequently, we have switched the Pack off of chicken mash and they are now eating a cheap (but good) type of posho and the vet clued us into a place where we can get the BEST DOG BONES EVER! This topic deserves a post all of its own but lets just say that these bones are SO GOOD that WE even eat them in soup! Cheap too, at 500 shillings per kilo, which is less than $.25! It thrills my heart to see the Pack happily munching and gnawing on their meaty bones, knowing that they’re getting the nutrition they need and are cleaning their teeth at the same time!

Billy, sporting the tiarra that Ella got for her birthday. He was the only member of the Pack who would wear it! As you can see, it didn't bother him at all...

Ella got a 20” bike for her birthday so now each one of us has a bike. I also got a bike pump so now each one of us has a bike AND full tires! This has kicked off some really fun Family Pack Bike Rides! We’ve only taken Bridger, Sanyu and Madea as Ranger is at the vets and Billy has a sore front let, but they do great! It helps that I’ve had some practice riding my bike now. I really hadn’t ridden a bike much in over 10 years so to jump on one AND handle two to three dogs was a bit much! Ella can even take Bridger and they do great! No crashes yet!

                                                            Billy - the ultimate cat bed

Ranger and the Birthday Bike. He didn't think much of the balloons.

Happy 4th Birthday and 2nd Year Anniversary, Frankie!!

Sunday was Frankie's 4th birthday AND his second anniversary of coming home. My how fast the time goes by! Seems just like yesterday that we brought this fat, bald little two year old feller home.

He ain't so bald and fat now let me tell yah! My Frankie is a four year old stocky bundle of hair and, um, er, muscle? Okay, maybe that's a stretch but he's lost some of his baby fat and is growing like a weed! And he does like to show people his muscles. It must be a Y chromosome thing...

A boy and his cat are a beautiful thing

The day started out with scrambled eggs and a little "candle practice" in preparation for the Big Cake later on in the day.

Yes, candles in scrambled eggs makes this boy happy!

Let 'er blow my man, let 'er blow! And he did!

Aw yes, the boy and his cake, complete with the backwards 4 on it. I can't even use dyslexia as an excuse!

The simple frosting on this cake took me an HOUR to make and plaster upon it. Ella helped by placing the candy around the edges (her idea!) but no, a six year old did not decorate the entire thing. As you can see though, Frankie has no great and lofty expectations - he was just happy to have a cake with a couple of horses and his name on it!

Because cooking gas has been harder than hens teeth to find around here and we were almost out, I had to make a special trip on my day off and cook this sucker at the office. But that happy little face made it well worth it!!

Like all good birthday boys worth their salt, Frankie had help take care of the left over frosting

Okay, we had a very special birthday celebration this year, for two reasons. One was that it was my Frankie's fourth birthday and the second year anniversary of bringing him home, and Two, was that our friend Harriet had just brought her baby boy home one week before!! So we got together and celebrated our baby boys together!!

My four year old Frankie and Harriet's eight month old Jason!

Now Harriet has been planning and waiting to bring a baby home for a very long time so to finally see her with a baby of her own was indeed special! Harriet has taken care of countless babies, but always for other people - none of her own!

Jason and his obviously loving big sister Jackie

Oh my, what a SMILER little Jason is! He'd been home for one week and acted like he'd always lived there!

Okay, there were some "interesting," rather "unusual" elements of the party ( to say the very least!), like when Harriet's friend whipped out an accordion and started honking away on it. Yes, you read that right, and accordion.

This was Frank's face when the accordion got started. This look really said it all. Um, Frankie? Your GRANNY plays the accordion my boy, so we'd better work on a little accordion appreciation!

While the other children danced to the, um, accordion, the Birthday Boy laid on the couch and entertained himself by catching his balloon with his feet.

And finally!! The moment he'd been waiting for, for weeks!!! THE BIRTHDAY CAKE!!!

He'd matter of factly stated that morning while he was watching me struggle to frost it, "I'm not four until I eat that birthday cake."

This was the only batch of children that I've met where even the baby and the two year old liked wearing their party hats and didn't try to eat them!

Brothers! This is such a sweet picture of Jacob and his baby brother, Jason

And best of all - FIREWORKS on the cake!!! It does NOT get much more cool than that folks! And it didn't even catch any ones hair or party hat on fire!

In true Ugandan birthday party style, the birthday boy gets to cut the cake. It's usually done with a huge butcher knife but we settled for a smaller one this time. This picture accurately depicts my careful little Frankie. Look at his concentration!

We saved the birthday gifts for when we got home. He received a pair of scissors as a gift which he proceeded to carefully cut open each and every one of his gifts :)

AND, to make a good day even better, we found a cylinder of COOKING GAS on our way home!

Aw Frankie, I love you! You make me want to tear my hair out at times, not because you're naughty but because you're too darn smart and I can't figure out WHAT is going on inside your fuzzy, sensitive little head!

You are a funny little boy too - not the comical, goofy funny that your sister is, but the "WHAT did he just say?" funny. Articulate and straight forward, you matter of factly state the obvious. But you're kind too! Like when we were discussing racial differences and you told me, "Your skin looks bad. But I still like it!" Thank you my kind, straightforward, thoughtful little boy!

March Milestones

March came and went, the large majority of the time catching me without a laptop on which to blog with!But here's a wee bit of a synopsis of the milestones in our family that occurred in March.

First Milestone - March 2nd work began on our house! The story of this land purchase and house building is simply mind boggling to me. It just doesn't happen this way here (or anywhere really!)! I will never doubt that it was God's will for us to buy land and have a house built on it simply because with very little effort on my part, it's happening! Richard, my friend who found the land and negotiated it's purchase (the owner never even saw me ONCE!), still just shakes his head at the speed and smoothness of it all. And to find a contractor who is not only an American but who is affordable? Unheard of! Especially in Christian circles, many people think that I need to get married. To me the obvious and direct ways that God provides for me and the kids is a no brainer that I do not. I mean, what poor dude could compete with God?! It would be a totally unfair act to follow.

Second Milestone - The beginning of March we attended a birthday party for our friend, Abi, who was turning 4 years old. And Frankie had a GREAT TRAUMA FREE TIME! There were seven kids altogether - three kids who mine knew but not well, and Frankie interacted with all of them in a normal way. The two little tricycles were a big draw to all the little boys and Frankie exhibited NORMAL little boy behavior making sure he got his turn with them. No shutting down, no getting overly angry, no pouting, but normal assertive efforts to make sure that he got his turn. Yeah Frankie! Post traumatic crap usually rears it's ugly head after an event like this and even if Frank's had a blast, all he can usually remember are the little "bad" things that happened - like his hat breaking, another kid getting the tricycle or pushing him, etc. But NOT THIS TIME!!! His little brain managed to retain ALL THE GOOD THINGS about the party!!! Amazing!! Proof that little injured traumatised brains DO heal! So when ever he has a "brain relapse" day I hold that image of him at the party in my head and it gives me hope. Thank you Lord for the continued healing of Frank's brain.

Third Milestone - March 10th was Ella's three year anniversary of coming home. Yep, the magical three years when Uganda can complete her adoption! We are planning to wait until November however to see if we can get the kids both done together, hoping that they'll make an exception for Frankie at his two year mark. I'd like to be able to get their US immigration business done together when we're back on furlough next year.

To be honest, I never thought that I could love or enjoy any person as much as I have Ella. She is a JOY. Truly an inspiring little person who has helped teach me to love, forgive and MOVE ON from crap that has happened in the past, simply by her inspiring example. She is like an adoption dream story - three years after coming home, even after living in an orphanage for three stinkin' years, she is a perfectly adjusted little person and appears not to have ANY emotional issues. Not only does she adore and appreciate her family but she truly seems to be free from any "adoption issues" or trauma from her past. It has been AMAZING to watch the Lord take a broken, scared, moody little three year old and transform them into THIS - what we have today. I have NO idea why God chose to bless ME with this child but I am SO GLAD and THANKFUL that He did!

Fourth Milestone - I turned the big 3-0 this month. Wow! What a last 10 years it has been - phew. I NEVER EVER imagined or dreamed that I would be where I'm at now - the mother of TWO children and one SIX YEARS OLD! How'd that happen?! Not to mention owning property and having a house built - in Uganda no less!

I've been through and learned a lot in the last 10 years- working my butt off through college (19 credits a semester, a 100 mile commute to school, two part time jobs and a work study), attending horribly intensive summer school for three summers(linguistics - blah!), moving to Uganda with stars in my naive little eyes and ready to give my whole entire heart and soul to Bible Translation (sorta missed the point, huh?!), getting slapped and stomped down a LOT, learning to get back up, learning to fight tooth and nail (against other "missionaries". Hmmm....) for what is right, having an entire world and world view opened up to me, being a minority ALL THE STINKIN' TIME, becoming a parent - not once but TWICE- to children who already had issues to deal with, and basically just growing up! Geesh, no WONDER I look so old and worn out...

The most important thing that I learned these last 10 years is that if you know God is telling you to do something, you just need to OBEY HIM and step out and do it. NO MATTER WHAT. Obey first and trust Him later if you have to. Work your butt off if you have to. You just have to know that He DOES hold to His promises, even though it's hard and it may seem like you're floundering. And usually He works things out totally differently than anything you've ever dreamed about!

Happy 6th Birthday Ella!

This weekend we went to Jinja, hung out with friends, had a pool party and celebrated Ella’s 6^th birthday. We had a blast!

Unfortunately, this was the weekend that Ella came down with a rip roaring cold – runny nose, weeping eyes, fever and cough. But thankfully it takes a LOT to get our little L down and dampen her spirits – especially when we’re seeing her best friends again AND celebrating her birthday! Actually, it wasn’t ALL bad because it sort of helped slow her down a bit : ). One thing about L though is that she can’t blow her nose quietly so it was sort of like spending the weekend with a sick baby elephant. That kid blows her nose LOUD! Dainty little princess that she is.... ;)

We stayed at Kingfisher this time and really liked it. It’s super affordable and the pool is GREAT for kids. We left early Saturday morning in hopes of avoiding the Kampala traffic and in our attempts I got a speeding ticket. Oops. Going 6 kilometers over the speed limit through Kajjansi. Watch out for that place – it’s a speed trap!

We made it to Jinja town a bit before 9am I think and had latte’s (adults), juice (kids) and a little breakfast (samosas) at The Source Café. A nice little coffee shop that attracts every tourist in the area, including us! From there we went on and checked in at our resort and the kids promptly donned their suits and jumped in the pool! Our friends (old neighbors from EBB who moved in August) came a few hours later and the party really started. Our kids hadn’t seen each other since last August (yes, I feel guilty about that) and it was quite the fun reunion! So nice to catch up and enjoy each other again. We swam, ate lunch, swam some more and then had the birthday cake and opened presents. Fun! My kids started swimming at 10am and didn’t get out until 4pm so they were tired.

Some juice at The Source Cafe

Frank and Tanya enjoying some breakfast

Tanya and the kids ready to party!

Yeah, this is sort of how Montanans party at tropical resorts. Fully dressed, in the shade, reading a Readers Digest. Yep, I'm a party animal people!

Janet taking a flying leap

Madeline taking a flying leap

Frankie sliding down the slide

Melinda and Hannah on the raft

Frankie sliding, Ella "sunbathing". The poor sick little kid!

Janet and Sophia have the right idea - get warm!

Tanya had the right idea too, sitting there playing with her little iPad thingy. She's advanced way beyond a Readers Digest!

Oh how the kids love their auntie Tanya! Her and Frankie really bonded on this trip :)

Frank totally loved chilling in the tube!

We had some cool times with some super cool party glasses. Cuz that's just the kind of people that we are...

Hannah, Frank and L

Sophia, Janet and Maddie

I have high hopes for this boy :)

Ella's dog cake, made by her loving auntie Tanya and mom. We couldn't fit "Pack Leader" on it but thought that the dogs would suffice.

The lightening of the candles was a real group effort as there was a bit of a stiff breeze blowing. Tanya did the honors with the matches...

... while Melinda helped shield the flames so that we could get though Happy Birthday!

Give it a blow L, give it a blow!

The opening of the gifts. I love how thrilled Tanya and Hannah look over Ella's new underwear from her Granny! Guess I know what to get Tanya for her birthday...

Ella got a new dress from her Granny. The more gaudy, the more she likes it!

Ella grabbed the knife and really dug into the cake. I was pretty impressed at how skilled and confident she was with that knife! A little scared too...

Hannah and Frankie - they played so well together! They're good little friends :)

Frankie cracked us up the way he totally got into the "resort chillin'" mode. He happily laid here wrapped in his towel playing with the lid to a pepsi bottle singing to himself :)

Tanya even goes down the slide!

Relaxin'

What's a celebration at a tropical resort without drinking expensive fresh juice?

Just kidding, Granny! Frankie really wasn't drinking this beer....