Quotes, Bible verses and Kipsigis words

"Pray continually."
"Whatever you do, work at with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not men."
"In his heart a man plans his course, but the Lord determines his steps" (Proverbs 16:9)
"If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face, then I will hear from heaven and forgive their sin, and will heal their land." -NIV 

"If you pray regularly, irregular things will happen on a regular basis."
"God is not great just because nothing is too big for him, he is also great because nothing is too small."
-MARK BATTERSON, Draw the Circle

ENGLISH                              KIPSIGIS
hi                                             chamge (cham-gai)
how are you?                          ii amu nee? 
okay/fine                                 missing (miSING)
thank you                                kongoi
my name is __.                        kigurenan __. 
what is your name?                 kikurenan ngo? 

And lastly, here's a reminder that I will not be able to reply to emails for a few days after tomorrow. My team and I are going to Mombasa for an ultimate frisbee tournament on the beach, and my computer will not be coming with me. 

HAPPY EASTER <3

Walk 3/25/13

Me and my shampoo :)

Travis and Zion helped us fill every bucket we could find, and then Zion had the idea to fill up the bathtub :)
We had absolutely no running water, the filtration system was broken, and we couldn't do laundry or shower. We had to boil water in order to make bottles for the babies. We did have bottled water to drink sparingly, but God answered the prayer for water before I could even send out a prayer request for rain. He provided with a torrential thunderstorm, and it was beautiful. I'm currently reading 'Draw the Circle' by Mark Batterson, and this quote is perfect: "God is great not just because nothing is too great for Him; God is also great because nothing is to small." He truly knows what we need before we ask, and He commands the weather and the elements. <3 'Who is this man that even the wind and waves obey Him?'

Mallory ran out to join me and we washed our hair under the gutter. It was freezing, but I experienced such felicity and liberty, and joy. The best part was drying off afterwards and being clean again :)
(Courtney risked camera and limb to take a picture of us, and that was so nice. I'm happy to have this picture and remember my first and only outdoor hair-washing).

Planet Yogurt @ Westgate in Nairobi

SO GOOD! :)

Hmm...

:)

Mallory, Courtney, and I   :)

Mallory and I took a taxi from the Guest House to Kusuku Center, to a friend's house. She drove us and her little girl and Lois, a girl from England, to the stable in Karen, and we had a great time :)
(Yes, I was wearing my toms whilst riding -they're the only close-toed shoes I brought; and yes, Mallory color coordinated perfectly with Espresso's tack). 

One row of stalls. There were 4 rows like this with all kinds of horses. They all have such pretty names. I met a chestnut gelding named 'Eagle's Wings' and really connected with him, and then I thought about my theme verse. 

an arena...a real arena. 

My horse's name was Tic Tac <3. He wanted to chase Espresso the whole time, but by the end of the lesson he was really listening to me. 

follow the leader!  :)

Mallory's an amazing rider, and she had Espresso working nicely.
Our Kenyan riding instructor said "where are you from?" I told him "Pennsylvania in the U.S"., and he said" it's good!"
I think he meant that the training and riding skills that he saw in Mallory (and maybe me) were good and that he approved of where we learned to ride. 

It was hard to understand the instructor at times, but we felt so complete just because we had the chance to ride <3

Bus ride to Nairobi :)

The Easy Coach bus. We took the Nukuru route this time, which I think is nicer than Narok. Greg dropped us off at the bus stop in Kericho, and we were on our way in a timely fashion. We made it to Nairobi in six hours (thankfully we had made scrumptious peanut butter oatmeal cookies to eat on the bus). -and Debbie picked us up when we arrived, which was so, so nice :) because that way I didn't have to carry my suitcase the whole way. 

The halfway point of the trip where the driver stops for gas and we can go to the 'washroom.' There's another Easy Coach office in the picture, and do you see the sign that says "Chemists?" -that's the word for a pharmacy over here.

I listened to some NEWSBOYS :) music on the way while watching the beautiful scenery out my window. I saw some zebras this time! And it rained, but I didn't bother to close my window because it was so perfect. 

Small beautiful things

A really pretty moth <3

The living room ('exercise room'). Unfortunately, we won't have it for much longer. Greg and Peter moved chairs and couches inside, because Peter will have class there starting on Thursday. 

My bracelet that Mary Rose and the girls picked out for me. 

"The Lord is my light and my salvation, whom shall I fear?"

My favorite workout <3 

Outside the nursery window. 

(Okay, the sky is not small). 

Sunday March 10, 2013

Me n' Billy :)

He always looks like that when he's thinking :)

Greg always says "you know, white babies just look weird to me now." Black babies have such beautiful skin and hair; and after being surrounded by them for awhile, white babies do look a little pale. Just look at this picture: Kathleen and Bumba are making me look bad! You should have seen me before I got a little tan; but the contrast is still so huge. 

Me with Kathleen. She's lovely. 

Talking to Kathleen. 

Billy boy <3, he's my favorite. 

Kathleen smiling while Joyce blows some bubbles. We had a 'bubble party' in the nursery, and the babies had a blast.

Mary Rose talking to herself and playing with the puppy stuffed animal.

This is Courtney's group picture of the babies. Her goal in life for this year is to eventually get a group picture where they're all looking at the camera, but this really shows their personalities. Elizabeth (back, left) is technically a toddler, but she was okay to join the picture. Bumba (Jacob Kipchumba) is sitting in front of her on the far left, putting a bracelet in his mouth. That's accurate, because he's always putting something in his mouth: rocks, dirt, etc...we have to watch him so carefully! Billy is in the front, sitting beside Jacob, looking sheepish. He's a clown; just so crazy and funny. Enoch is hidden behind Billy, pouting about something, and probably looking for "Ai-Obi" (Naomi). Mary Rose is in the middle, the center of attention. She is Greg's favorite; he always says "Mary Rose Chesung, you are the reason I came to this country." She loves to clap her hands and make noise, and she was doing such a good job of keeping Kathleen propped up, but nevermind. Kathleen looks a bit concerned about tipping over. She is very sweet and quiet, though, and has a beautiful smile already. Next over is JoEllen, and as usual, she is crying about something. In the striped blue sleeper is Jeremiah, and he's very resilient. He's tiny, and he's always doing something adorable. Behind him is Johnny, who is pretty small and still coming out of his shell, but he's starting to show some interest in things and have his own personality. Lastly, Faith Ann is on the far right. She is so precious, and she was found in a latrine, badly burned by the acid. She is completely better now, though, and I love to think of the great plans God must have for her life. She is so graceful and soft. She has a beautiful face, and she has absolutely stolen my heart. <3  

Billy snuggling with the puppy dog :)

BUBBLES.

Dennis is so responsible, and he loved blowing bubbles for the younger kids. He and Duncan, Hannah, Judith, Mercy 1, and Mercy 2 had containers of bubbles, and everyone else ran around chasing them. The kids actually swat at them with their shirts and jackets, too, which I guess is practical –you can pop them faster. They’re so resourceful. 

Here’s Hannah blowing bubbles for the kids. She’s a little shy, but after I got to know her, she is such a sweetheart, and so smart and sensitive. Yesterday, we built a play dough town together, and it was fun listening to her imagination working. She has a lot of creative and thoughtful ideas. –and she gave me one of her hair ribbons the other day. I picked the yellow one to remind me of her blond hair and how joyful and bright she is. 

Another PACKAGE :)

Thank you Steve and Jackie Cooper for the lovely package of toys and things for the kids and babies. You thought of everything <3. 

Stickers, and bubbles and play dough, and crayons, and a glow-in-the-dark puzzle, and a coloring book, and lollipops, and stuffed animals, and a Bible with a bookmark, and silly bands, and mints and gum! 

Awhile ago, my mom emailed me saying that 'Team Cooper' had sent me a package. I wasn't sure if it would make it, but today, Greg came home from Kericho with a large cardboard box and said "here you go." It was so full of surprises and so many good things, and it was a giant blessing. I can't wait to blow bubbles with the kids and watch the babies snuggle with the stuffed animals. -And the toddlers will love the coloring book. -and EVERYONE loves lollipops!