(Sorry, this is the same post from our dust, heat and dreams blog, but I am super tired and jet lagged, dizzy.)
We made it! Early Sunday morning(Jan. 18) Kenya time we arrived after an unexpected stop in Cairo, Egypt to try and fix a water problem on the plane. An AIM AIR pilot met us in customs to help us through and welcome us! The airline misplaced one of our 15 checked bags, but they already knew about it, so we should have it in a day or so.
We are tired! We crossed eight time zones, so our bodies will need time to adjust to Kenya time. They say the best cure for jet lag is sleep, so benadryl helped us last night when the kids were jabbering...it was only 6pm in Indiana where we had left from, but 2 in the morning in Kenya!!
We are at a guest house for two days before we head off to orientation(henceforth to be referred to ABO, which stands for Africa Based Orientation in AIM circles) in Machakos, a couple hours southeast of here.
Grace is busy making friends already. Isaiah is a little overwhelmed with eyes easily tearing up when mom and dad are out of eyesight. Olivia's doing well so far(She did not faint or "freak out" in the plane or the airport as she predicted. Thank you for your prayers!), eager to explore the area, enjoying the flowers, weather and a surprise dvd copy of Prince Caspian I just produced to help pass the time while I slept this morning.
We are excited to finally be here! We thank God for His provision for preparing us to come and for safe travels!
Sunday, January 18, 2009
Wednesday, January 14, 2009
I Fly Out tomorrow for New York (gateway to Kenya for us)
But, I, of course, am procrastinating from doing the things one should be doing before leaving on that flight in the morning to move overseas like: washing clothes; weighing my suitcases once more just in case and making sure my carry-ons contain no sharp dangerous objects like deadly tweezers or terror inciting nail clippers; searching under every couch, in every drawer and other nooks and crannies for treasures my children have squirreled away somewhere here at mom and dad's; giving my children a bath; going to bed...but instead I adding the following to this blog:
Four Places I go over and over and over:
Starbucks- when I have a gift card!
Aldi- cheapest grocery store
Dollar Tree- cheapest store of random household and other nonsense item
Goodwill-cheap if you find a treasure!
Four Places I'd rather be right now:
1) in Kenya already
2) at Target with money
3) with my awesome husband (he and Isaiah are in Chicago waiting for an Amtrak train to take them to New York via Pennsylvania. The girls and I fly out tomorrow and arrive BEFORE Jerry and Isaiah in New York -the length we'll go to save a buck or hundreds- so that we can be briefed at AIM headquarters before we fly to Nairobi, Kenya in east Africa, our new home!)
4) in bed already done with the stuff I'm currently avoiding doing
Four (okay, 6) Places I like to Eat:
N&J Cafe- a delicious Mediterranean eatery in Wichita, KS, where we lived once upon a time
Rosti Pollo- in Costa Rica, a rotisseri chicken place with lots of other yummy Costa Rican foods!
Queen Sheba- Ethopian restaurant in Worthington, MN, where we lived once upon a time most recently
Taco Bell
Red Robin
Burger King
Four TV Shows I could watch over and over and over:
Psych
Monk
The Office
30 Rock
Four Places I go over and over and over:
Starbucks- when I have a gift card!
Aldi- cheapest grocery store
Dollar Tree- cheapest store of random household and other nonsense item
Goodwill-cheap if you find a treasure!
Four Places I'd rather be right now:
1) in Kenya already
2) at Target with money
3) with my awesome husband (he and Isaiah are in Chicago waiting for an Amtrak train to take them to New York via Pennsylvania. The girls and I fly out tomorrow and arrive BEFORE Jerry and Isaiah in New York -the length we'll go to save a buck or hundreds- so that we can be briefed at AIM headquarters before we fly to Nairobi, Kenya in east Africa, our new home!)
4) in bed already done with the stuff I'm currently avoiding doing
Four (okay, 6) Places I like to Eat:
N&J Cafe- a delicious Mediterranean eatery in Wichita, KS, where we lived once upon a time
Rosti Pollo- in Costa Rica, a rotisseri chicken place with lots of other yummy Costa Rican foods!
Queen Sheba- Ethopian restaurant in Worthington, MN, where we lived once upon a time most recently
Taco Bell
Red Robin
Burger King
Four TV Shows I could watch over and over and over:
Psych
Monk
The Office
30 Rock
Wednesday, January 07, 2009
Go time! No sweat.
Wowie wow wow! (That's what one of my favorite kids' book characters, Junie B. Jones, would say!) Just about a week 'til we fly across the big ol' pond Africa bound! I'm excited, and thrilled to see the culmination of years' worth of preparation...finally the dream we've worked toward is on the horizon! What an incredible journey!!!
I'm not nervous, apprehensive or worried about any of it....not the flight/train connections, not entertaining the kids on the long transatlantic flight, the jet lag when we get there, whether all our luggage will arrive and in what state. Maybe it's because both Jerry and I have made numerous overseas trips, we just don't seem too concerned about those details, praise God!
Well, AIM takes a lot of those details out of our hands, and if it's hands- no need to worry! They submitted our visa applications, purchased our airline tickets, transport us to the airport, arrange for our pick up in Nairobi and delivery to the mission guest house, our first stop to rest and get over jet lag (which, by the way, sounded to Grace like something awful, "jet lag! That sounds as bad as getting your blood drawn!" She's a trip! Ne'er a dull moment in this family!!
My only concern really is that Olivia will share Jerry's and my excitement at finally arriving in Kenya and drinking in all the sites and sounds of that rich and vibrant place! I pray she will make good friends fast. As I mentioned, I'm sure, I believe for her that will be the key to releasing her anxiety and embracing our new life in Africa.
We won't be "at home", in the home we'll be living in Nairobi at first. First couple days are at the guest house to decompress, then three weeks in Africa Based Orienation AIM provides to give us all the info. we need about Kenyan/ African culture, language learning (Swahili), and everything else we need to know to survive our first few months in Africa. We'll even get a personal "guide" to show us how to ride local public transport (which makes me chuckle....after countless buses and taxis in Costa Rica, I think I could handle whatever Nairobi can throw out us, but I'm glad AIM's got ALL the bases covered. After orientation, we spend 4 weeks with a Kenyan family to experience in person all we've learned about the culture, and more I'm sure! Please pray Grace can keep her opinions on food to herself!! It's hard for me to make a meal she will eat without complaints, so brand new cuisine makes us worry she'll embarass or hurt the feelings of our Kenyan hosts....we have of course discussed it all with her, but she has trouble holding back her emotions :)
FYI, a typical Kenyan meal would probably consist of: meat (beef or goat) or beans, sukuma wiki (“Sukuma wiki” is Swahili for “push the week.” Sukuma wiki is kale, cooked with fat, tomatoes, onions, salt, and beef flavoring. This is also a main food of East Africans because it is inexpensive and easy to grow. The locals can eat this many days in a row on very little money and it gets them through the week.) and ugali (Ugali is a main food of East Africans. It is made with maize flour and water and is cooked until the mixture is hard. It is served in large brick-shaped pieces and is usually eaten with meat, chicken, fish, or vegetables.
I know I've been writing sparsely on this blog, there has been lots to keep us busy as we prepare to move overseas, as you can imagine. After the first three months in Kenya, when we're finally into our rental house, I DO plan to write more and share all the new and "fun" adventures we're sure to have living in Nairobi, encountering big bugs, new foods, new neighbors and a host of other new challenges we haven't yet considered. Will let you know once we've arrived in Kenya! PLEASE pray for us and thank you for your friendship and encouragement all along the path of this journey!!
Breanna
I'm not nervous, apprehensive or worried about any of it....not the flight/train connections, not entertaining the kids on the long transatlantic flight, the jet lag when we get there, whether all our luggage will arrive and in what state. Maybe it's because both Jerry and I have made numerous overseas trips, we just don't seem too concerned about those details, praise God!
Well, AIM takes a lot of those details out of our hands, and if it's hands- no need to worry! They submitted our visa applications, purchased our airline tickets, transport us to the airport, arrange for our pick up in Nairobi and delivery to the mission guest house, our first stop to rest and get over jet lag (which, by the way, sounded to Grace like something awful, "jet lag! That sounds as bad as getting your blood drawn!" She's a trip! Ne'er a dull moment in this family!!
My only concern really is that Olivia will share Jerry's and my excitement at finally arriving in Kenya and drinking in all the sites and sounds of that rich and vibrant place! I pray she will make good friends fast. As I mentioned, I'm sure, I believe for her that will be the key to releasing her anxiety and embracing our new life in Africa.
We won't be "at home", in the home we'll be living in Nairobi at first. First couple days are at the guest house to decompress, then three weeks in Africa Based Orienation AIM provides to give us all the info. we need about Kenyan/ African culture, language learning (Swahili), and everything else we need to know to survive our first few months in Africa. We'll even get a personal "guide" to show us how to ride local public transport (which makes me chuckle....after countless buses and taxis in Costa Rica, I think I could handle whatever Nairobi can throw out us, but I'm glad AIM's got ALL the bases covered. After orientation, we spend 4 weeks with a Kenyan family to experience in person all we've learned about the culture, and more I'm sure! Please pray Grace can keep her opinions on food to herself!! It's hard for me to make a meal she will eat without complaints, so brand new cuisine makes us worry she'll embarass or hurt the feelings of our Kenyan hosts....we have of course discussed it all with her, but she has trouble holding back her emotions :)
FYI, a typical Kenyan meal would probably consist of: meat (beef or goat) or beans, sukuma wiki (“Sukuma wiki” is Swahili for “push the week.” Sukuma wiki is kale, cooked with fat, tomatoes, onions, salt, and beef flavoring. This is also a main food of East Africans because it is inexpensive and easy to grow. The locals can eat this many days in a row on very little money and it gets them through the week.) and ugali (Ugali is a main food of East Africans. It is made with maize flour and water and is cooked until the mixture is hard. It is served in large brick-shaped pieces and is usually eaten with meat, chicken, fish, or vegetables.
I know I've been writing sparsely on this blog, there has been lots to keep us busy as we prepare to move overseas, as you can imagine. After the first three months in Kenya, when we're finally into our rental house, I DO plan to write more and share all the new and "fun" adventures we're sure to have living in Nairobi, encountering big bugs, new foods, new neighbors and a host of other new challenges we haven't yet considered. Will let you know once we've arrived in Kenya! PLEASE pray for us and thank you for your friendship and encouragement all along the path of this journey!!
Breanna
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