Sunday, July 25, 2010
Home At Last
Well everyone, we made it home! Funny thing is, we almost missed our flight because we originally thought we were going home on Friday, but when we talked to Mom and Dad, we quickly realized we were leaving the next day on Thursday :) We laughed at our mistake, not surprised at all that something like that would happen and glad that we got everything done that we wanted to do. On Wednesday, we went on a mini safari, saw and touched some orphaned baby elephants, and fed some girraffe! Thursday we all went to the movie theater (which is nicer than most here in Tulsa by the way) and Kyle, Vanessa, and Christina, the other doctor there, saw Eclipse while Emily and I took the boys to see Toy Story 3. They loved it! We then went to dinner at a nice restaurant/coffee shop and was able to get some tasty coffee to bring back home and then headed off to the airport. We were probably a little early, but we just walked around all the stores, played some card games, and read our books so the time passed by. After four hours in the Nairobi airport, a seven hour flight, four hour layover in Zurich, a nine hour flight, six hour layover in Newark, and a three and a half hour flight to Tulsa we finally made it home! We are happy to be back, but miss beautiful Kenya, the Jones family, and the wonderful perfect weather! We definately have some jet lag, but it shouldn't be too bad. Once we load all the pictures on the computer we will post the pictures from our trip!! Thank you all so much for the prayer and support while we were gone, you are all such a blessing!
Tuesday, July 20, 2010
From Kapsowar to Nairobi
Well...we have had a fun week and are now in Nairobi for a missionary retreat that Kyle and Vanessa were invited to. Let's see...on Friday, Emily and I walked to the children's home that a couple of the missionaries here help out with. It was about a 30-45 min hike through town, up and down some hills, through some trees, and finally to the tip of one of the mountains. It was beautiful! The home rests near the primary school that the children attend on a large stretch of grassland surrounded by forests. The home has its own shamba (farm) in which the children grow corn and other such fruits and vegetable as well as four cows. There are about thirty children in all, ranging up into the teenage age group. Instead of walking back on the usual route, we decided to take a treck straight down the mountain, along the river, and straight up another mountian. Man were we tired! It was really fun though; we got to spend time with a missionary who has lived in Kapsowar for twelve years and hear her encouraging testimony. We also were grateful for a little work out :) (and what a work out it was!) It's a good thing the weather is so perfect here. Mid-seventies with a slight breeze is such a relief from the blazing Oklahoma weather. On Saturday, we were called in to observe a C-section, and Emily got to scrub in! Not only did she get to watch, but she actually was able to deliver the twin babies on her own :) It was such a fun experience. Everyone was taking bets on what the babies were going to be, and I won with the guess of two little girls. Once they were cleaned up, I got to hold them and help take them down for their examinations. They were little premature girls, so precious and tiny, but were strong and healthy! On Sunday, we all went to church at one of the many local churches in the area. Kenyans love to sing. Before the sermon, people can come up and sing in front of the congregation and guess what.....Emily and I were asked to sing, so we got Mark (the medical student from liverpool) to play the guitar for us. It went well, the people loved it. We also performed our mime/skit that we did while in the valley with the Pokot and the kids really enjoyed it. Later that day, we had a picnic in the backyard and played card games and Settlers all afternoon. Monday morning we packed up the car, said a sad goodbye to everyone, crammed in the car, and made the six our trip to Brackenhurst, a Christian-based resort that is hosting a week of relaxation for all the missionaries in the surrounding areas. Along the way we got to see some monkeys and zebras! We also drove through Iten, a little town that is famous for training olympic runners. We saw many people running those big hills and felt fat :) Hudson and Jude are staying with Kyle's aunt and uncle this week and today, Tuesday, Emily and I watched Isaac so that they could have a nice anniversary together :) Happy Anniversary Kyle and Vanessa!! Tomorrow, we are heading to the Nairobi game reserve which will be super fun to see some African animals and Thursday and Friday will be spent shopping and exploring Nairobi. We leave Friday night around eleven. The time has gone by so fast; it will be sad to leave everyone here. As you can see, we finally got some speedy internet connection and were able to put pictures up, but we will have more from the trip later.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Another week in Kapsowar
Well, this week has gone really good. Emily and I have been to the hospital a few times, but Vanessa has not been feeling very well so we have helped out with the boys a lot. On Monday, we were determined to get baby Isaac to walk and guess what- HE DID! We were all so excited because he has been standing on his own for quite some time now. Apparently, the word got out that I knew how to play the piano so I gave some lessons for the afternoon :) (I never thought I would be teaching piano while in Kenya) On Wednesday, we did our mime during the morning chapel service and everybody loved it! We were even asked to perform it again on Sunday for church. That night, while Vanessa was having a women's biblestudy, Emily, Kyle, the boys, and I took a hike down to the river. And I mean a HIKE! We basically went straight down the mountain on a trail just big enough for us to fit on. Kyle had to carry Jude, the two-year old, and Emily and I took turns carrying baby Isaac. We had a couple wipe-outs on the way down, but when we finally made it, it was beautiful! the river snakes through the mountains and we stopped on a green flat right beside the banks. We decided it was the perfect spot for a picnic. We then had to climb all the way back up. Luckily, no one fell, but we were sucking air by the time we reached the top! We have eaten dinner at a few Kenyan houses, getting to enjoy the cultural food and tomorrow we will hike to another home to have dinner. We have had a couple movie nights with the other missionaries here; its fun to hang out with fellow Americans and our honorary Brit from Liverpool. Today Emily did rounds in pediatrics with Kyle and then scrubbed in for a surgery. We're still hoping to deliver a baby...maybe this afternoon :) tomorrow is our last day in the hospital and then on Monday morning we head to Nairobi for a couple of days. It's gone by so fast!
Monday, July 12, 2010
Jep Korir
Well, apparently I am officially a Kenyan, because I was given the name Jep Korir. Jep, because I’m a girl, and Korir, because I was born early in the morning (at least I think I was) :). Here, they name babies according to the circumstances surrounding the birth, whether it be what time they were born, how long the labor was, where the birth took place etc. It gets a bit confusing at times. Hanna couldn’t remember when she was born so she just picked the name Jep Kamoi (a girl born in the evening).
This last weekend was a crazy one. We drove down to the valley to visit the Pokot people and conduct a medical clinic. Saturday morning we got up at 4 am to shower and load the car so that we could be on the road by 5. It was still dark outside and pretty cold. Trying to organize 18 people with their personal items along with all the medical supplies was a bit tricky, but Kyle is a master packer and had it done very quickly with a lot of our stuff strapped to the top of the vehicles. Kapsowar, the town where we have been staying, is located in the mountains, and in order to get to the valley, we had to drive down the mountain on roads that were actually laughable most of the way and made us thankful that the cars had four wheel drive. For the first part of the trip, we were on a black top road that consisted of mostly switch back turns that caused us to be on top of each other most of the time. The next part of the road (if you can call it a road) was steep downhill, made of completely rocks, boulders actually, and river beds. It is hard to describe because I’ve never driven on anything like it. We drove down with the side of the mountain on the right and a complete drop off on the left. Some of the people with us were getting car sick, but we loved it because the view was unbelievable! Down the sides of the mountains were farms, mainly corn, and you can hardly imagine the people carrying heavy loads and harvesting their crops on a 45 degree angle. I have such a respect for these people. We tried to take pictures, but because of the boulders we were driving over, it was difficult to get a clear picture and when we were finally able to snap a good one, the camera just could not capture the depth and perspective that can only be seen with the eyes. The last part of the drive I can only describe as what you would think it would be to be on an African safari: small roads (or paths) in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by Acacia trees and African landscape. Despite all the bumps and craters we had to drive through, it was amazing. I kept thinking, where else could you have this kind of experience, and how many people outside of this area have actually seen it. Even the Kenyans who traveled with us had never been as interior into the bush as we went.
We finally made it to the church that we were teaming up with and unloaded our luggage to start the clinic. Pastor Steven is a Kenyan missionary that moved to the area 4 years ago. When he moved there, there was not one Christian. Now, his church is slowly growing and he is seeing fruit of his labor. There are, however, still many unreached people that are still in the dark and even still practice female circumcision. We really have to keep that area in prayer! The church is literally in the middle of nowhere and the nearest “village” is 15 or 20 kilometers away. It is centrally located though, so it serves many communities. As a result, people had to walk so far to come to the clinic! It’s amazing what people will go through to get health care or go to church. It makes me wonder if those of us in America are as passionate in our faith.
Hanna and I switched off doing triage and helping with the kids. I have never seen so many babies at one time! It seemed as if all of the mothers were carrying a baby, as if they all had them at the same time. :) We were able to bring vaccinations for the children and the parents were so thankful. We saw mostly women and children; apparently the men all usually live together while farming and working with the livestock and rarely come home to their families. Their culture is slowly changing to a more western one, but we still saw some people with the huge beaded necklaces, huge earrings, braided hair, and traditional “elders seats” that the older men carry around for themselves. We had chai everywhere we went and sometimes even with camel milk! They were so polite and patient, such a sweet people that welcomed us with open arms.
That night the Jones Family, Hanna, and I all slept in a five person tent- what an experience! Some of the team members did not bring bedding, so we lent ours to them, which allowed for a very cold, rocky night for us. In the morning, we went to Sunday school for the children at the church and later played with them and handed out sweets. We then broke, again, for chai and later to the main church service. The church consists of a wooded pole frame, covered with tin roofing and walls. There were probably around twenty-five adults who came and most of our team members were able to share their testimonies and some of us even did a little mime for the people. The service lasted for almost three and a half hours and they still wanted to continue! But we had to get home before dark.
We finally made it home and when we got out of the car, we were covered in dirt. Our white t-shirts were turned brown. We cleaned up, happy to have a hot shower and watched the finals of the World Cup (we both were falling asleep during the game because we were so tired from the day).
Well, one more week in Kapsowar! Today is Monday and Hanna homeschooled the boys and made a birdhouse while I helped Vanessa with all of the laundry from the weekend. We will still be going to the hospital for the rest of the week and hopefully get to see some babies be born. There were five born yesterday! We are having a great time here and are so happy to be with the Jones family. They are such an inspiration as they serve the Lord and community here in Kapsowar!
This last weekend was a crazy one. We drove down to the valley to visit the Pokot people and conduct a medical clinic. Saturday morning we got up at 4 am to shower and load the car so that we could be on the road by 5. It was still dark outside and pretty cold. Trying to organize 18 people with their personal items along with all the medical supplies was a bit tricky, but Kyle is a master packer and had it done very quickly with a lot of our stuff strapped to the top of the vehicles. Kapsowar, the town where we have been staying, is located in the mountains, and in order to get to the valley, we had to drive down the mountain on roads that were actually laughable most of the way and made us thankful that the cars had four wheel drive. For the first part of the trip, we were on a black top road that consisted of mostly switch back turns that caused us to be on top of each other most of the time. The next part of the road (if you can call it a road) was steep downhill, made of completely rocks, boulders actually, and river beds. It is hard to describe because I’ve never driven on anything like it. We drove down with the side of the mountain on the right and a complete drop off on the left. Some of the people with us were getting car sick, but we loved it because the view was unbelievable! Down the sides of the mountains were farms, mainly corn, and you can hardly imagine the people carrying heavy loads and harvesting their crops on a 45 degree angle. I have such a respect for these people. We tried to take pictures, but because of the boulders we were driving over, it was difficult to get a clear picture and when we were finally able to snap a good one, the camera just could not capture the depth and perspective that can only be seen with the eyes. The last part of the drive I can only describe as what you would think it would be to be on an African safari: small roads (or paths) in the middle of nowhere, surrounded by Acacia trees and African landscape. Despite all the bumps and craters we had to drive through, it was amazing. I kept thinking, where else could you have this kind of experience, and how many people outside of this area have actually seen it. Even the Kenyans who traveled with us had never been as interior into the bush as we went.
We finally made it to the church that we were teaming up with and unloaded our luggage to start the clinic. Pastor Steven is a Kenyan missionary that moved to the area 4 years ago. When he moved there, there was not one Christian. Now, his church is slowly growing and he is seeing fruit of his labor. There are, however, still many unreached people that are still in the dark and even still practice female circumcision. We really have to keep that area in prayer! The church is literally in the middle of nowhere and the nearest “village” is 15 or 20 kilometers away. It is centrally located though, so it serves many communities. As a result, people had to walk so far to come to the clinic! It’s amazing what people will go through to get health care or go to church. It makes me wonder if those of us in America are as passionate in our faith.
Hanna and I switched off doing triage and helping with the kids. I have never seen so many babies at one time! It seemed as if all of the mothers were carrying a baby, as if they all had them at the same time. :) We were able to bring vaccinations for the children and the parents were so thankful. We saw mostly women and children; apparently the men all usually live together while farming and working with the livestock and rarely come home to their families. Their culture is slowly changing to a more western one, but we still saw some people with the huge beaded necklaces, huge earrings, braided hair, and traditional “elders seats” that the older men carry around for themselves. We had chai everywhere we went and sometimes even with camel milk! They were so polite and patient, such a sweet people that welcomed us with open arms.
That night the Jones Family, Hanna, and I all slept in a five person tent- what an experience! Some of the team members did not bring bedding, so we lent ours to them, which allowed for a very cold, rocky night for us. In the morning, we went to Sunday school for the children at the church and later played with them and handed out sweets. We then broke, again, for chai and later to the main church service. The church consists of a wooded pole frame, covered with tin roofing and walls. There were probably around twenty-five adults who came and most of our team members were able to share their testimonies and some of us even did a little mime for the people. The service lasted for almost three and a half hours and they still wanted to continue! But we had to get home before dark.
We finally made it home and when we got out of the car, we were covered in dirt. Our white t-shirts were turned brown. We cleaned up, happy to have a hot shower and watched the finals of the World Cup (we both were falling asleep during the game because we were so tired from the day).
Well, one more week in Kapsowar! Today is Monday and Hanna homeschooled the boys and made a birdhouse while I helped Vanessa with all of the laundry from the weekend. We will still be going to the hospital for the rest of the week and hopefully get to see some babies be born. There were five born yesterday! We are having a great time here and are so happy to be with the Jones family. They are such an inspiration as they serve the Lord and community here in Kapsowar!
Wednesday, July 7, 2010
Kapsowar
It's mid-week here and we having been having a blast. Monday Emily went with Kyle to the hospital to be his personal nurse. There is a nursing school here so there are nursing students who are also in the hospital and Emily got to teach some how to do vitals. I stayed home with the kids, watching them while Vanessa got to get some stuff done that she hadn't been able to in a while. Later that day I homeschooled the oldest, Hudson, teaching him all about memorization, shapes, and what the ocean is like :) That night we had a movie night; we watched a pirated version of Prince of Persia with some other missionaries on the compound.
Yesterday we both went to the hospital. Emily helped out in the Children's Ward while I was in Maternity. I followed the OBGYN, observing procedures, baby deliveries, and an emergency C-section. The people here are so nice and accepting of anyone and it was fun to see how the hospital works. I was also able to ask as many questions as i wanted, which helped me learn a lot. Emily had a productive day with pediatrics, taking vitals and any other such work that Kyle needed help with. She is a big help with the other nurses or nursing students, being able to teach them important procedures, techniques, and vocabulary. Later that night after the kids went to bed, we all played a game of Settlers, but half way through the game a knock came on the kitchen window and a voice that sounded like a kid's saying that she needed to see a Daktari (doctor). Apparently, a psych patient had left the hospital and found the house, wanting Kyle to perform an operation in her abdomen. This was the same lady that was giving the doctors a hard time earlier in the day. Finally, after letting her say hi to all of us, Kyle was able to get her back to the hospital and give her medication. Security guards had to hold her down and Kyle tried to convince her that he would do surgery on her. So that was a fun story that was decided was "blog worthy!"
Emily got to scrub in and assist with a C-section early this morning at 1:00 a.m! Kyle was on call and called her to help out. Today we both went to the hospital and I observed as Emily and Kyle did rounds in the pediatrics ward. It's sad to see all the sick children, but good to know they are in great hands. This afternoon I will homeschool Hudson again and tonight we are going to the nursing school to watch Germany play Spain in the World Cup with all the nursing students!
This weekend we will be traveling about five hours to do a medical clinic for the Pokot people. They live in the valley and don't have access to good health care. We will be spending the night and attending the church the next day before coming back. We're not sure what kind of accomodations we will have- probably a tent or on the floor of the pastor's house. So please keep that trip in your prayers. We are having a great time, thank you all for your support! --we might not be able to post pictures because it takes too long to upload them with the internet here, but we will try to do a slide show or something when we get back :)
-Hanna
Yesterday we both went to the hospital. Emily helped out in the Children's Ward while I was in Maternity. I followed the OBGYN, observing procedures, baby deliveries, and an emergency C-section. The people here are so nice and accepting of anyone and it was fun to see how the hospital works. I was also able to ask as many questions as i wanted, which helped me learn a lot. Emily had a productive day with pediatrics, taking vitals and any other such work that Kyle needed help with. She is a big help with the other nurses or nursing students, being able to teach them important procedures, techniques, and vocabulary. Later that night after the kids went to bed, we all played a game of Settlers, but half way through the game a knock came on the kitchen window and a voice that sounded like a kid's saying that she needed to see a Daktari (doctor). Apparently, a psych patient had left the hospital and found the house, wanting Kyle to perform an operation in her abdomen. This was the same lady that was giving the doctors a hard time earlier in the day. Finally, after letting her say hi to all of us, Kyle was able to get her back to the hospital and give her medication. Security guards had to hold her down and Kyle tried to convince her that he would do surgery on her. So that was a fun story that was decided was "blog worthy!"
Emily got to scrub in and assist with a C-section early this morning at 1:00 a.m! Kyle was on call and called her to help out. Today we both went to the hospital and I observed as Emily and Kyle did rounds in the pediatrics ward. It's sad to see all the sick children, but good to know they are in great hands. This afternoon I will homeschool Hudson again and tonight we are going to the nursing school to watch Germany play Spain in the World Cup with all the nursing students!
This weekend we will be traveling about five hours to do a medical clinic for the Pokot people. They live in the valley and don't have access to good health care. We will be spending the night and attending the church the next day before coming back. We're not sure what kind of accomodations we will have- probably a tent or on the floor of the pastor's house. So please keep that trip in your prayers. We are having a great time, thank you all for your support! --we might not be able to post pictures because it takes too long to upload them with the internet here, but we will try to do a slide show or something when we get back :)
-Hanna
Sunday, July 4, 2010
Day Two in Kenya
Our first full day in Kapsowar. Today, Sunday, was pretty relaxing. We visited a local church along with some other missionaries. We were a little late, so a herd of white people stampeded into the front of the church during the middle of worship. It was fun. Students from the school took turns singing songs; kenyans love to sing :) The people are all so welcoming; they were so excited to have us there and welcomed us with a little reception after church.
Vanessa and little baby Isaac are not feeling well, so please keep them in your prayers. While the family enjoyed a relaxed Sunday afternoon, we girls went to a soccer game between Kapsowar and a neighboring town, Itan - the famous town where Olympic runners come to train. We went with a medical student from England and a couple of nursing students. We were the only white people out there and one of the few females, so we were quite the spectacle. The game was really exciting with so many locals coming out to cheer for their team. The field was definately not in very good shape for an official game, but that didn't slow anybody down! We left at half time, just before it rained, with Kaspowar down 1-0.
Finally, for the fourth of July all the missionaries gathered for a full fledged American dinner with our honorary Brit. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, potatoe salad, fruit salad, cookies, s'mores, etc. Very delicious. :)
Tomorrow I (Emily) am going to the hopsital with Kyle and am going to help out wherever he needs it. I was asked to do some lectures for the nurses so i'm going to scope out the hospital and see what could be most useful to teach. I'm also planning on scrubbing in for some surgeries and hopefully delivering a baby or two at some point. :) Hanna is going to help Vanessa with some homeschooling tomorrow and then maybe come over to the hopsital and help out wherever. She is also probably going to go to the primary school that is near by and perhaps do some teaching.
We are both so excited to be here and look forward to the next few weeks! Thanks for keeping us in your prayers!
Vanessa and little baby Isaac are not feeling well, so please keep them in your prayers. While the family enjoyed a relaxed Sunday afternoon, we girls went to a soccer game between Kapsowar and a neighboring town, Itan - the famous town where Olympic runners come to train. We went with a medical student from England and a couple of nursing students. We were the only white people out there and one of the few females, so we were quite the spectacle. The game was really exciting with so many locals coming out to cheer for their team. The field was definately not in very good shape for an official game, but that didn't slow anybody down! We left at half time, just before it rained, with Kaspowar down 1-0.
Finally, for the fourth of July all the missionaries gathered for a full fledged American dinner with our honorary Brit. We had hamburgers, hot dogs, potatoe salad, fruit salad, cookies, s'mores, etc. Very delicious. :)
Tomorrow I (Emily) am going to the hopsital with Kyle and am going to help out wherever he needs it. I was asked to do some lectures for the nurses so i'm going to scope out the hospital and see what could be most useful to teach. I'm also planning on scrubbing in for some surgeries and hopefully delivering a baby or two at some point. :) Hanna is going to help Vanessa with some homeschooling tomorrow and then maybe come over to the hopsital and help out wherever. She is also probably going to go to the primary school that is near by and perhaps do some teaching.
We are both so excited to be here and look forward to the next few weeks! Thanks for keeping us in your prayers!
Friday, July 2, 2010
We Made it!!
Wow! sorry it has been so long since we wrote a post. After multiple long flights, we finally made it to Kenya! It was a pretty smooth process with only one slight complication with our boarding tickets, but that was easily fixed. Customs and immigration was a breeze, praise the Lord, and all of our bags made it! Kyle and Vanessa, the couple that we are staying with, picked us up last night around 10:30 p.m- 3:30 p.m. in Tulsa Time. We stayed in Nairobi last night and we made it to the house just in time to see the end of the Uruguay vs. Ghana soccer game, so that was exciting...except that Ghana lost :( This morning we went grocery shopping, which was an experience, at a very nice mall. Since Kapsowar is about 6 hours from Nairobi, Kyle and Vanessa do as much shopping while in town as they can.
We tried to make it to the mission base before sunset so that we could see the scenery, but we didn't quite make it. I've been told that Kapsowar is the most beautiful place in all of Africa, so I'll have to see tomorrow. We are so excited to see the beautiful Kenyan landscape! We want to post some pictures, but the internet may be too slow to do it. We'll have to see what we can do. We were a little worried about missing the world cup, but apparently they have been watching it in the nursing school every night, so maybe we'll get to see it. :)
Kyle and Vanessa are so wonderful and their three little boys are absolutely precious! Tonight we pulled out all of the gifts that people sent with us for them. The boys played with their new toys for so long and Kyle was especially excited about the candy. :) Tomorrow we're going to church and then a 4th of July party, with barbeque and all.
Thank you all, again, for your support- We're sure our travelling here would have been much more complicated without your prayers!
We tried to make it to the mission base before sunset so that we could see the scenery, but we didn't quite make it. I've been told that Kapsowar is the most beautiful place in all of Africa, so I'll have to see tomorrow. We are so excited to see the beautiful Kenyan landscape! We want to post some pictures, but the internet may be too slow to do it. We'll have to see what we can do. We were a little worried about missing the world cup, but apparently they have been watching it in the nursing school every night, so maybe we'll get to see it. :)
Kyle and Vanessa are so wonderful and their three little boys are absolutely precious! Tonight we pulled out all of the gifts that people sent with us for them. The boys played with their new toys for so long and Kyle was especially excited about the candy. :) Tomorrow we're going to church and then a 4th of July party, with barbeque and all.
Thank you all, again, for your support- We're sure our travelling here would have been much more complicated without your prayers!
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