Mystery, mystery, what could it be?

So, we've got a little mystery here at the H house. It all started last Sunday morning when Frankie woke up in the morning looking like this.

Hmmmm, maybe he got bit or stung by a bug while in his bed....

Antihistamine didn't seem to help. At all.

Then Monday morning he woke up like this. What? Now the other eye is swollen shut? Blankets and pillow were changed so the child had fresh bedding.

Tuesday morning, the lad was fine. Whew! Problem solved. He had something in his bed. Until...

Wednesday he woke up looking like this! The FRONT of his face was swollen!! What the heck?

Get a load of that top lip!

We have wracked our brains as to what could be the cause. Perhaps he's developing an allergy to something? We haven't eaten ANY thing different, used different soap, NOTHING new in the last week or so. Nothing.

For a while I thought maybe he was having a reaction to his urine as both children are bed wetters and don't get their blankets changed every time. However when he was put on a new mattress with fresh bedding, in pull ups, he woke up again with not only a slightly puffy face but with welts on his stomach and arms as well. Nice. A swollen distorted face and itchy welts...

Antihistamine does work for the welts and he hasn't been quite so puffy or swollen on his face, so I guess he's sort of getting better. Our dear little cat, Bronco, was killed last week and he was Frankie's favorite little pet. In true Frankie style Frankie did not cry or express ANY grief over the death of his beloved cat. But as the week wore on he began to exhibit some unusual behaviors which were his own weird ways of dealing with the loss of his cat. So, we're kind of wondering if these physical symptoms could be a result of the stress he's putting his little body through, trying to grieve for his cat.

Praying that his swelling just stops and yes, we are in the market for kittens. We all miss our Bronco! But luckily not all of us have swollen up about it ;)

A Bronco update and playing with The Pack

Bronco has fully recovered from his mange, he's fattened up and he doesn't yowl anymore! He is a happy, fat little (he seemed to stop growing because of his mange and treatment so he is tiny) cat and we enjoy him a lot. I'm not much of a cat person but I really do like this cat now!


He still enjoys playing with the puppies and so is usually covered in slime and dirt but the night prior to this I plopped him in the tub with the kids and gave him a bath. He did great and everyone came out in one piece!


Madea, none the worse for wear only two days after her operation showing off her shaved tummy and stitches! I was amazed at how quickly she recovered from her operation - on Sunday she was eating and charging around as if nothing had even happened!

The Pack - I love this crew because they all look so different! Yet the same, if you know what I mean :) I am totally sold on "local" breed Ugandan dogs. They are a bit smaller than western breeds (and crosses) and so eat less, are a lot smarter and are better guard dogs!

The kids have taken to pretending they're Cesar Millan, The Dog Whisperer. It is hilarious! The other night there were two Cesar Millan's in the bathtub rehabilitating an "aggressive" rubber duck and a boat :)

Think Cesar ever plays with his pack in his underwear, with a zip lock bag full of beans? Maybe when he was three...

Ella and the Pack

The kids got some valentines gifts from their Granny and Aunt Becky. One of them was a DoodleTop which Ranger was fascinated by!

He spent forever watching it! We don't trust Ranger though because he is a notorious toy thief.

Madea thought it was pretty cool as well!

Jungle Gym and Friends

We've got a nice mango tree in our yard that makes a great jungle gym. The kids LOVE to climb it and it's one of the most popular "toys" out there now.

Simple, yet affordable (if you happen to live in Africa!)

An enjoyable activity for Frank is to run into the house and get a banana, then climb up the tree to eat it. Too many trips to the zoo for this boy or what?!

Ella is a careful climber (like her outfit? Ella fashion - a turtleneck and shorts :). She's got the longest arms and legs but isn't all that sure of where to put them.

Frank on the other hand... wow! I've never seen a person climb a tree like Frank. He uses his entire body! If his arm or foot doesn't reach a limb he'll actually use the rest of his body to cling to the tree and inch up. He even uses his BUTT to hang himself on something with! He is ALL OVER up there! And as you can see, he does tricks too!

Our cat Bronco - fully recovered from a killer case of mange and the cow treatment that followed! It almost killed him and majorly stunted his growth but he is getting fat now, doesn't stink and doesn't yowl and meow all the time. He's actually a great pet! And no, I didn't bbq him up on the grill :)

Went to the Gardens and Lake the other day with our friend, Abi. She's about 8 months older than Frankie and he practically towers over her :)

The pups enjoyed their first encounter with the Lake! With a little work it looks like Madea will be our next water dog :)

Harriet and Co came over last weekend and the kids all had a blast!

Jumping

Swinging

Friends, BBQ's, puppies, kittens and rabbits

I have yet to post pictures of our wonderful Christmas road trip, visit with friends and Kidepo National Park adventure, but until then thought I'd post some other "at home" pics since the New Year.

We have really been enjoying our friend Tanya whose been staying with us. She's been a HUGE Godsend as not only is she cheerful, friendly, calm, working on being assertive and brought a TV series to watch, but she also COOKS!!! Yep, you read that right, COOKS!!! And she claims that she even sort of likes it! She also cleans the kitchen too! I mean, what more could you ask for?

Tanya's a really good influence in that she always gets me out doing things that I don't normally do (like spending money!) and going places that I don't usually go (the fancy meat deli in Kampala, cool coffee shops, etc). So we've been living high on the hog lately, eating a variety of yummy food that SHE'S COOKING!!!

So, we've spent our days watching movies, eating delicious things, enjoying our 'pack', practicing dog psychology and generally just enjoying ourselves. The weather is always perfect, too!

My cherry pie

I liked it :)

The other day we had a bbq with some awesome sausages that we'd bought in Kampala. They weren't the cheap slimy type that we usually get here, but some REAL ones!

A pot full of green beans surrounded by some delicious bratwurst type sausages on the campfire

Madea and Bridger calmly and submissively smell the sausages cooking on the fire

Frank and Ranger calmly waiting for dinner to cook

Tanya pouring the beverages

A lovely evening

Foods done! Pig out!

Madea practicing all of the calmness and submission that she can possibly muster. Pretty impressive for such a young pup!

Ms Dave and Madea, chilling on the porch. This is an AMAZING rabbit.

Ranger and Bronco taking a nap while Ms Dave hops around them

Bronco using Ranger's head as a pillow

Strange. Very strange. But aren't all of us in this family?!

Ella's jump rope tricks

Old L's getting pretty good with the jump rope. It's amazing to see all those long arms and legs coordinated!

Also thought I'd post a cute video at the end of Bronco and Madea battling it out :)

Sleeping Madea

While we are NOT planning on keeping her, little Madea really is the cutest little thing when she sleeps! (SLEEPS - not when she whines, barks or poops!)

Can you see who sneaked into the crate to sleep with the puppies??

A walk in the park with the pack

The other day the H pack went for a walk in the Botanical Gardens. Ella took her bike and did great! The dogs were in "working mode" on their leashes and also did well. I even ran with them :).

Sanyu was being so calm and submissive that I gave her to Ella to take run with the bike

There they go!

Sanyu did great, even when we rounded the corner and there was a herd of goats being herded by a small boy (shorter than Ella) and two babies. Yes, babies. One slightly smaller than Frank and one, um, toddler. Out, by themselves herding their goats!

Frankie walked Bridger a little ways but as you can see, wasn't being assertive enough to make Bridger walk behind or beside him. But he'll get it eventually, I know!

The Pack - and I am their leader!

Two of the best dogs in the world :)

And, The H Pack again!

Ella snapped this pretty good picture of Frankie, Sanyu and myself. Too bad Bridger was looking behind us!

Ol' Frank collects all sorts of fun things on our walks. Here he had a couple of pinecones and various "perfect" sticks. He only fell once :)

Ella does great with her bike! Very little crying and she even pushes it up hills by herself (mostly).

A pile of pups!

This cat LOVES the puppies!