24 Samosas, 9 Drinking Chocolates, 8 Boys, 5 Ponytails, And One Bike Ride: Tuesday

Today began with a little more physical exertion than I had planned. I went outside to, once again, prove I know how to ride a bike and then was challenged to a race. I, unlike Sammy, am not really a daredevil (except for my skateboarding accident on my first day at Mariners) so I declined the race, but agreed to a leisurely ride around the block. 

Holy moly was I wrong about the "leisurely" part! Riding a bike that's built for a 12-year old on roads that are tricky to drive on...whoa did that seat get uncomfortably quickly! (Not to mention my skirt got caught in the back tire and slowed me down considerably.) Manu and I rode around the corner to visit Sam, one of the house kids who'd gone to visit his parents for the week, and then came back home to let me sit on the couch and continue sewing for a while.

That was the plan, but then I saw all of the great hairstyles Phoebe had given to each of the girls and I knew I had to take my turn.

Check this bad boy out! Everyone watched as she put in one rubber band after another and kept pointing and saying, "You have hair like a small child!" One of the teenage boys said, "Oh, this is not good!"

I did want to make sure to get a picture with Linah and her (yet again!) Spice Girls hairstyle.

I finally made it inside--out of the sun--to do some sewing and catch my breath. I finished Willie's jeans from yesterday and worked a bit more on the pillowcase.

Anyway, back to the sewing. I sat across from the physical therapist as he moved one kid after another for their turn. Moses absolutely loves therapy. He kept waving his hand and squealing to get my attention so I could watch as he laughed at whatever muscle was being stretched at the moment. The kid is a mismatching dream.

Before long, I realized it had been awhile since I'd seen Suzie. I asked around and no one was sure where she'd gone. Finally, someone said she'd gone to the farm across the street with Manu, so the panicked search was unnecessary. You never know with a kid who can't speak! She can't holler, "I'm here!" Or tell anyone where she lives if she's lost.

When they came back from the neighbor's, the boys started up a game of soccer. They ran back and forth across the lawn, dodging a flitting Suzie who has no desire to actually kick the ball, but wants desperately to follow it up and down the field.

I brought her back inside the gate, but she found a small space between the fence and the bushes and ran back outside. Twice. And then later, escaped, crawled under the bushes across the street and ended up in another farm. So, she was in a bit of trouble. When she's being really crazy, the house moms know there's only one place she'll sit still: in the corner by Mama Shiko (the laundry woman who's love for Suzie rivals my own!) Here's Suzie in her version of time-out.

Lunchtime came and went and, as promised, I loaded up the older boys and took them to our house for snacks and a movie. The original plan was Fast and the Furious 7, which we knew they would love, but when the DVD didn't work (dang those 50-cent burned copies!) we settled on Mad Max: Road Fury, which was definitely not what I wanted to watch, and, despite the fight scenes and explosions, did not hold the attention of eight teenage boys as I'd hoped it would.

I made a giant bowl of popcorn--which they ate in the time it took me to boil two pots of water for drinking chocolate--and then asked for water, milk, sweets, playing cards, and headphones. It was all very "If You Give A Mouse A Cookie."

It was simultaneously very fun and incredibly exhausting.

When the movie was over, they asked for a second, to which I said, "Oh nonononono. Let's go! I have a surprise for you!" And they all piled in to the van. I began to drive toward their home, but then turned at the last minute to go to the gas station. I parked and ran inside for 24 samosas. (Three each.) The boys cause a scene wherever they go: at one point, while I waited for the samosas, I looked outside and Hillary was standing on top of the van, pulling berries from the tree above. There was a table of old men who looked and them, then at me, and laughed. They understood the madness of carting around a bunch of boys.

I drove as slowly as I could so they could enjoy their samosas before being bombarded by the other kids and forced to share. Augustus found a poncho in the car, put it on over his head, and secretly ate his final samosa under the blanket. They each said thank you about five times...it was very sweet.

When we got back, everyone ran around outside for awhile while dinner was cooking. Here are seven of the eight boys I took with me today...each clearly excited to post for this photo.

When we came back inside the gates, Allan wheeled up to me with this giant branch in his hand and asked for a picture. How can you turn down this smiley tree?!

And then there was this pigtailed beauty. I can't begin to explain how much Linah loves her long hair. I wish the hair wasn't quite as heavy or I would try to recreate my prize-winning Pippy Longstocking costume from 2nd grade. (Who am I kidding? I'm definitely going to try this week!)

And, with that, I was wiiiiped out! I came home, expecting to eat dinner, do the dishes from all of house guests and blog before bed, but then the power was out for over an hour, so I sat in the dark working on this post and am now pretty unmotivated to do the dishes (I can be honest...this is a safe place, right?!)

Well, there you have it, folks! A post about today. Today! I'm fully caught up and ready to take each day as it comes--and tell you aaaaall about it. Are you ready? Are you ready for this? Are you hanging on the edge of your seats? (It was either a Queen lyric or a Destiny's Child reference...I assumed my audience would prefer the former. So, you're welcome, Mom!)

A Monday Of Childhood Moments

Monday morning, bright and early, we made our way over to Precious Kids Center. Sammy said the only "must" for the day was to take Allan and Manu to the doctor. So the morning was full of playing and lounging.

Phoebe and Sammy carried Allan and Manu to the van and we drove to the local hospital. The two boys sat and waited to be seen by the doctor. (Manu is his breakaway pants and Spongebob shirt...)

Each of them had blood drawn (with only a few tears) and then waited for results. Manu tested positive for malaria and Allan, typhoid and malaria. Since Allan can't swallow pills, (he threw up painkillers two days in a row) they put an IV in to his arm so he could receive injections over the next five days and make his way back to health. It was rough to hear him cry as they installed (you can call it that, right?) the IV, and then to see those big crocodile tears when he came back to the waiting room!

In the meantime, Manu, Phoebe and I played peek-a-boo with his drool cloth, and Sammy checked to see if any of his teeth were loose--she loves pulling teeth! And Manu was going crazy for all of this attention!

We came back from the hospital and headed to town to make a very exciting purchase. Hillary is sponsored by our friend Gennadiy, a Ukrainian pastor who was on the team that was in town when I came in February. He has a huge heart for street kids all over the world--he has adopted about 25 street kids in Ukraine! This week, he sent Sammy money to buy Hillary a bike.

Hillary was trying so hard to play it cool, but was obviously excited. When I asked him if he knew which bike he wanted, he immediately told me about one he'd seen last time he was in the store. We headed upstairs--Hillary trying his hardest to keep a normal pace--and he chose this green and black bike, which he rode all the way out to the parking lot. He jumped straight out of the car, grabbed the bike and headed out front with the other older boys (who were excitedly chattering about how cool it is!) when we got back to the house.

Earlier when we'd been preparing to leave for town, Cyril got up off of her favorite spot on the couch and walked out to the car. I've never seen this happen--she's usually very comfortable to hang out and watch the madness of the house unfold around her...she loves to laugh when the other kids get in to trouble--so Sammy promised we'd take her home with us that afternoon.

As promised, after lunch, we put her in the car and drove home. She followed Sammy around the house for hours--she sat outside while Sammy drank her tea, and curled up right in the middle of the couch where Sammy was trying to nap. We found a small purple clip with a flower on it and she pretended to smell the flower for a solid five minutes, until Sammy gave her a small plastic bag which she crinkled between her thumb and forefinger for nearly half an hour. Girl had the time of her life.

While Sammy took Cyril back to the kid's house (in the rain) I did some yoga (I know, check me out!) made dinner and thought about the fun, tangible moments of childhood that had taken place that day: peek-a-boo, first bikes, nap-time snuggles...each of these a memorable part of growing up. I love that these kids are able to have these experiences (even if it is years after most children.) Kids that were abused in orphanages, grew up on the streets, or were left alone in the house all day--now receiving one-on-one care, attention, and appropriate touch. These moments are just a small example of the beautiful redemption story God is writing in the lives of those at Precious Kids Center and I am so grateful to watch these unfold--and even be part of them--each day.

The One Where Bram Hugs A Mannequin...And Steve Arrives!

Wednesday began as it usually does, straight to the center to be swarmed by children! If you look closely, the white bandanna in the mix of those kids is Cynthia.

Bram and Male are two peas in a pod. They sit by each other at meals and nearly always ask for a photo together--Male always looking to Bram to see what the preferred facial expression is.

As I've mentioned, you're essentially handed a child as you walk through the gates...no one sits empty-handed! Here are Sarah with Mary, Toni with Bram...

And Jordan with Rael.

Oh, and Kevin with Mary and Cynthia with Dinah (who called for me to carry her when she saw me taking this photo.)

Sammy went to run a quick errand, so she took Male and Linah along for the ride. They clearly loved it.

It was Trinah's turn to head home for a visit. Trinah has mild cerebral palsy--she had surgery to extend her Achilles heel, and is doing physical therapy to strengthen the muscles in her hand, but her father has been sick for years (every few months, doctors tell him to prepare for the end) so it is best for all parties involved for her to live at the Precious Kids Center and go home for a visit every few months. Here is Trinah with her dad, Peter.

Alright, so that afternoon, Sammy had an appointment with a woman to meet a boy with autism who lives out in a village about half an hour outside of town. They are working on potential next steps for the boy's development. We pulled up at Discover to Recover and Sammy left the car in the yard (and me in their sitting room with some of my favorites) as they walked to visit this boy.

I was greeted by kids I have known for years and brought in to sit and watch an Indian movie while we waited for Sammy to return. Here's adorable Benja, who may rival Suzie for my all-time favorite.)

Bramwel's house is in that area, so Sammy brought him along in hopes of taking him to visit his mom for a little while. Unfortunately, we couldn't track her down, but Bram didn't seem to mind once we gave him this big soda, chicken, fries and vanilla ice cream for lunch. He LOVED it. After each bite, he would stick his fist in the air or point to the ceiling--almost in victory--proclaiming the goodness of his food...except for his first bite of ice cream, which resulted in a lot of blinking and a few nods, followed by "Mmmm! Sweet!" Needless to say, he kept the whole table entertained. (He also went to the bathroom after lunch and waved hello to--and hugged--the mannequins outside of one of the shops. Kid's a comedic genius.)

When we arrived back at the center, Lucy pulled me aside to read me a note she'd written. Her English is really impressive and her heart is something to be proud of. I really love this girl.

We made a big run to town, to stock our kitchen and Steve's, and then ran home to wait for Steve to call and say they'd arrived. When we heard they were about 10 minutes away, Sammy and I drove over to meet them at their house.

We walked them through the basics: how to take a hot shower, what to do in case of a blackout, and all of the breakfast options before letting them give in to the exhaustion of the day and go to sleep.

Sammy and I walked in to our house and were greeted by a group ready for a game of Five Crowns. (Told you it was a routine!) Unfortunately, part of the routine was for me to be beat by Jordan...every. time.

Takin' It To The Chief

Tuesday morning, when Suzie fell asleep in my lap, I knew it was going to be a great day. She crawled up on my lap, snuggled in and started drooling. I have such fond memories of my mom rubbing my back when I was sick, or letting me cuddle up when I was sad. To give these moments to kids without parents, is so special.

A little over an hour later, Sammy came in to ask if we'd like to go to the Chief's Office to get the proper paperwork for Victor's transfer to Precious Kids Center. Sarah and I jumped at the chance to watch this process.

We picked up Victor's mom, Phoebe, and then drove to the local Chief's Office.

Side note: Phoebe, Victor's mom, is a single mom who works full time to support her family. This often leaves Victor at home alone. The situation became even more complicated when Victor was diagnosed with a rare (and incredibly severe) form of epilepsy, but his mom could not afford the medicine to keep it under control. Victor is a healthy and happy child...Phoebe is a good mother in a tough situation.

On Monday afternoon, when Sammy went over to talk to Phoebe about bringing Victor to the Center, where he would receive round-the-clock care, proper nutrition, and the necessary medicine--and Sammy made it clear that she is more than welcome to visit Victor at any time--his mom was excited to help make Victor's transition as smooth as possible.

Alright, where were we? We picked up Phoebe and drove to the local Chief's Office. Here's the outside of the building:


And here's what it looks like inside. (I took a sneaky shot so I wouldn't make Sammy look unprofessional.)

The Chief writes a letter saying the mother has given permission for Sammy to take care of the child, so that, in case of emergency, no parent could come back and say Sammy kidnapped the child.

To celebrate the occasion, here is a photo of Sammy, Victor and Victor's mom:

Also, this adorable little man waiting his turn (presumably).

With Victor's mom on her way back home, and Victor's papers in-hand, we went back to the center for lunch.

Check out Moses' killer outfit: overalls AND a stripey shirt? Also, that shirt had buttons along the shoulder. Really doing it Mose.

Maureen brought me a bead to put back on the end of her braid. Honestly, one of the more difficult things I've done since being here...but I finally got it!

After lunch, my taxi driving friend Dan picked us up and drove us out to visit a new church (and future children's home) in Kipsongo (the local slum). I have been looking for a church to partner with as I launch this women's ministry in hopes that I would not be the face or the sole support for that community, but instead be able to point them to a local church.

This church is beautiful and the property has so much potential for growth!

Pastor Enoch and his wife will live here with 25 children, who will move in once the building is complete (the bathroom, kitchen, and bunk beds still need to be built). He teaches each weekend and said to me, "I don't know if you've heard of Saddleback Church, but I like to teach messages from their pastor Rick Warren."

As he gave us a tour of the property, I asked a little about his life story. He told me that he grew up in Kitale and that he was a street kid. He ended up in prison, which is where he accepted Jesus and began his path toward becoming a pastor. He has a huge heart for kids who are living in the slums, whose stories could look very much like his own. He really is in the perfect role for his gifts and heart. I am really looking forward to watching this church, home, and community develop.

While we were visiting the church, there was a huge rainstorm. I love the sound of rain on a tin roof, but it makes it nearly impossible to carry on a conversation. Our taxi returned and brought us home, where we changed in to dry clothes and made a delicious dinner which we ate while blogging and watching Never Been Kissed.

See, I told you that a day that begins with a napping Suzie is destined to be a really good day!

P.S. Obama arrives tomorrow. Should be wonderfully chaotic around here. More on that soon!

"Easy" Like Sunday Morning

Having grown up in a small family, (it's just me and my younger brother) I never experienced the chaos of a Sunday morning as I've heard it told from families of five or more children...one child completely ready and sitting in the car while another has barely made it out of bed, always able to find the right shoe but never the left, everyone dressed and ready to walk out the door and someone throws up or runs back in to go to the bathroom or is forgotten at home in the absolute insanity and effort (though nearly always in vain) to get to church on time.

Fortunately, having never experienced this in my own childhood, it makes the experience of preparing a houseful of kids for church on Sunday mornings here hilarious (instead of stirring up unresolved childhood issues.)

This Sunday, I walked back to the bedroom to check on the progress of dressing everyone and saw that there was no adult in the room, just a bunch of children standing in their underwear, unable to reach clothing, or, if they could reach it, unable to dress themselves. (There were two house moms out this weekend at a family funeral, so we all took on a extra role or two.)

I grabbed some outfits for the girls (dresses, obviously the easiest choice...put them on over their heads and sent them to the living room for shoes.) Two down. Sammy joined me (praises!) I dressed one more kid, identified the two that needed new diapers before church, and headed out to hunt for matching shoes for the masses. 

Meanwhile, the six that dressed themselves are standing outside the car chanting "Alice. Alice. Alice." waiting for me to come open the heavy and slightly broken car door. I grab Moses, throw on his high tops (which he points at about ten times with an excited squeal--still thrilled, weeks later, to have shoes to call his own) and carry him outside. I set him down by the car, he immediately falls to his knees and starts crawling, through the dirt, in his church clothes, to get to the car. I turn and exclaim, "Mose!" He stands up and walks the rest of the way to the car. 

I swing the door open and begin to pick up and load small children into the back of the van. Three are immediately asking to sit in the front seat with me and Sammy, but today we've decided to take both Willie AND Suzie with us (upon my request) so they will sit up front and that ends that discussion.

I head back inside to put shoes on Suzie, but can only find one of them. A smaller kid finds the second under the couch, but two older boys think this is the time for a game of "keep away." Finally, one small girl grabs the shoe, rushes between the boys and hands it to me. I get the shoe on Suzie, walk her out and put her in the car.

We load Willie in to the front seat, in-between Suzie and the driver's seat and Sammy goes back inside to check for anyone we've left. In the meantime, Willie (who's now two people deep in the front seat) decides he's not going to church anymore and wants to get out. I climb out, unload Suzie (who grabs the steering wheel for dear life as if to say, "Are you kidding me? You always leave me behind...there's no way on earth I'm letting you do that today! Not after you undressed, redressed and loaded me in here. Uh-uh. Not happening.") So Willie climbs over her and out of the car. Sammy comes out the front door and asks what Willie's doing...he changes his mind and we go through that whole process again, trying to undo what he's just done by getting out of the car.

I put Suzie on my lap and close my door. Manu closes the sliding door and, just like that, we're off to church.

Tired yet? 

Yeah, this is all BEFORE the service.

We arrive, I unload Suzie (taking special care to hold her hand since she's a runner.) Willie slides out of the front seat, slams in to me and I almost topple over, still taking care to hold Suzie's hand so we both nearly fall over. Sammy comes around to the passenger side to count the kids as they exit the van, to ensure that we bring home everyone we brought to church. 

Nineteen. She finishes counting and says, "Where's Willie?" And for a minute we all think, "How in the world did we lose a kid within 45 seconds of arriving?!" One of the bigger kids runs ahead and shouts, "He's here!" He'd run straight from the car and in to the church. Alright.

They find us some seats, we file in and I am considerably more ready for a nap than a two hour service...but we've only just begun. I plop Suzie on my lap and we settle in.

They dismiss the kids for Sunday School--even Willie heads out--and we're left with three adults and only two kids...granted, restless kids: Suzie and Moses, but still, only two. 

I dug some dental floss out of my purse to keep Suzie occupied (she loves to wrap and re-wrap her fingers and toes with strings) and Moses walked three steps away from Sammy and then back to her for about half an hour. At one point, Suzie fell asleep.

She woke up and we brought Moses over to hang out, thinking they might entertain each other.

Obviously, he needed a little more entertaining than Suzie could provide.

The speaker, mercifully, broke in to song halfway through his message, giving Suzie a dance break...wriggling out some of the pent-up energy she'd been forced to hold in for the first hour.

We eventually moved to the back of the room and let Suzie run back and forth between me and Sammy, (honestly, the greatest...I wish I had it on video.) while Moses crawled back and forth between Sammy and Sarah. We had a great tag-team thing going on while the greeters and ushers just watched in amazement.

We loaded up all nineteen kids and began to drive home...only stopping once for Sammy to get out and move one crying child who was being squished by the bigger kids.

When we arrived back at the center, we were wiped out. We quickly ate lunch and headed home to relax. After a short nap, we took a trip to Kipsongo (a nearby slum) to check in on the progress of a few kids Sammy's been keeping an eye on. While we were there, it began to rain, but we still had to buy vegetables for this week's meals. So, we parked the car as close as we could to the market and, in the pouring rain, ran in to buy vegetables from my friend Rosemary. Success!

On the way back to the house, we found a large group of street boys walking back from a soccer game they'd been invited to join. Look at those sweet faces.

We dropped the vegetables, put on some warm, dry, comfy clothes and headed to Sunday dinner at the kids house. A bunch of cooped-up kids on a rainy night?! We were in for a treat!

When dinner ended in a giant tickle fight, (Alright, I started it, but was knocked off the couch by the five or six kids who retaliated.) Sammy asked one of the big kids to put on a movie. Instead, he turned on some house music. The house erupted in a giant dance party!

These two were stepped on in the madness, but recovered pretty quickly.

When the dance party wound down, the night ended with a viewing of 101 Dalmatians. Once the room was settled, we figured it was okay for us to leave.

We arrived home to a fresh batch of no-bake cookies (peanut butter, chocolate, oatmeal cookies!) which was the perfect ending to a memorable (and absolutely hilarious) day!

Ain't No Party Like A Praise Party!

Friday was a very fun, and very full day. When we arrived at the center, we sat and played with a few of the kids awaiting their turn for physical therapy. I went to ask Sammy a question and found Willie in his version of a superhero costume: 3-D glasses stuck underneath his helmet. He had a huge grin on his face--so happy (and maybe a little dizzy?)--and, for the first ten minutes he wore them, he did not speak. Kid knows a good bit when he sees one.

During break, I took a few pictures with my sweet friends: Suzie and Japheth. I wish I could bottle up Japheth's laugh and play it whenever I want. I also wish I could capture one of Suzie's happy dances on camera, but they're unpredictable...

Friday was also Praise's Birthday. Praise is a boy in Class 1 who has cerebral palsy. He does not speak and can not walk (you may remember him from the post about a donated wheelchair!) but he communicates his joy through various sounds and signs. The teachers, staff and physical therapist can all understand him so they spent the morning asking about his birthday and raising Praise's excitement for cake!

Right after lunch, Praise's mom arrived and began to set up for the party she'd planned. Sarah and I went to the office and made Praise a paper crown.

Praise's mom is unreal. She cares for and loves her son more than anything. She told Sammy that she'd like him to come to school at the center, but not live there...she said, "Praise would be fine, but I would not sleep without my Praise!" She arrived on Friday with cake, cookies, sodas, and candy for everyone: about 100 kids and nearly two dozen adults. As a single mom, she's on top of her game. (The majority of my experience here has been with street children and/or families in the slums...I have never seen a parent in this neighborhood who cares for her child this much. Honestly, I've worked with teenagers in America for nearly 15 years and Praise's mom trumps many US parents as well!)

She arranged it all and had the teachers hand out the snacks...and then the group sang Happy Birthday!

Here's Praise and his ladies: their househelp, his Grandmother, mom's friend, Praise and his mom...who is amazing!

These three beautiful sisters were at the center for lunch and stayed for cake and singing. Celinah, Jennifer, and Esther.

After the party, we were wiped out! We headed home for a bit to rest. We went back to the center to help the house moms feed the kids dinner and then headed in to town for Chinese food. (I'm trying to figure out a way I can have Chinese food delivered to the house--maybe calling the restaurant and placing an order and then having a taxi driver pick it up and deliver it to the house?! It would be the most amazing treat to have dinner delivered...even once!)

We came back to the house, turned on a wonderfully cheesy 90s movie (Drive Me Crazy--Melissa Joan Hart and Adrian Grenier), made some popcorn on the stovetop and I brought out my needlepoint. Just wanted you to get a small glimpse at what our evenings are like around here.

(Note: I spent the majority of this afternoon googling stovetop recipes using ingredients found in developing nations...if you have any meal ideas that don't include a ton of bread, fruit, or cheese, please please pass them on!)