Oh my gosh - We are alive

Hey Everybody,

Yes, it has been too long since we have written for our blog. Unfortunately the rain season causes power to drop a lot and so we have gone days without power. Also we pay for our internet by the month and had to wait till our last payday to renew it.

So basically we are slackers. But we have also been doing lots of things with our village. In the next few weeks I hope to write out these stories and post them. For right now here are some highlights since swearing in on April 21st:

End of April Highlights
 Swimming in Mbale town (look it up!) – Swimming never felt so good! We can’t go swimming in any Uganda lakes or rivers because of Schisto (parasites).

May Hightlights
 Erik and Anjali visited our house in Bukedea
 We attempted to make Gnocchi pasta and accidently tripled the recipe
 We got mountain bikes in Soroti town (look it up!) and can now get around much faster and easier! Thank goodness our area is flat or mid-afternoon would stink!
 I slaughtered my first chicken and made Chicken in Butter Sauce – hmmmmm
 I got a Singer Sewing Machine – the one you pump with your feet! Crazy yes but at $85 for a sewing machine who could resist
 We visited Sipi Falls (look it up!) with Arwen and Brennan and had a blast. (My facebook profile picture is from Sipi Falls)
 We went to our first Ugandan wedding – It was a Tuesday – The ceremony was over 3 hours long with a rain storm threatening to blow the tents away, literally.
 We ordered a table and chairs and after 4 weeks of not getting anything Tony’s Supervisor, Sister Salome, gave the carpenter a smack down – Hilarious!
 Classes really started one week after school started
 I began a question box at school and have had great questions that I am happy to tackle (i.e. Is it true that in America when people reach a certain age you kill them?)
 I had a 7 hour staff meeting where we only talked about new information for 1.5 hours…
 We were locked in a hotel one morning for 3 hours…
 I made Banana Cake for the Sisters at the Convent
 Meeting up with almost everyone in our training group in Kampala was a blast.
 We received our care packages! Only 2.5 months after being sent (will change now that we have a PO Box in Mbale)
 My Laundry Speed is approximately 15-18 items per hour (shirts, pants, and skirts – no comp outs with socks and underwear!) – Sheets and towels still are hard to do!

June Highlights
 I made bread with our 4 year old neighbor Julius. We sort of take turns occupying Julius because he can be annoying and get in your way quickly. I mean he is 4, it is only natural.
 We found a cheeseburger place in Mbale that also sells cheese! Can you say Homemade Pizzas?
 Tony learned he is not an electrician
 I slaughtered my second chicken with 4 year old Julius, 5 year old Peter, and 1.5 year old Baby.
 We accidentally made brownies for the Sisters and gave them a big surprise.
 I play games and sports with girls at my school and they are always surprised
 After 6 weeks we finally got our kitchen table. Can you imagine not having a kitchen table for 6 weeks, its crazy.
 Sister Betty wanted to learn how to make Banana Cake so we made it together
 We watched the first England/US World Cup soccer game in Mbale with lots of other volunteers
 Uganda has great fabrics – Soon I will have a piranha fish dress. I feel like Mrs. Frizzle from the Magic School Bus.
 I held a penpal meeting with the girls at my school and it seems that all of them want US husbands…hmm more to come on this issue.
 I have successfully fought Giardia for the second time (look it up!)
 I have mastered Chapatti (a Ugandan style of Tortilla).

Tony Projects / Adventure with Ants
 Various hooks and nails have made our life easier
 Hour camping shower is set up and hot water showers are amazing!
 Old chairs have been re-worked into bookshelves (since the school carpenter doesn’t have wood – now does that make sense? “T.I.A. – This is Africa”)
 We have retractable mosquito nets
 An attic mouse can no longer eat our food thanks to Duct Tape and Wood
 We have curtains that completely cover our windows and move from the top down (this is a Stacey project)
 And we have a 120L water drum with a tap that is now elevated and useable!
 Ant lines are being destroyed
 Ants are no longer in our food because we have tuperware and a water system.

So overall we are healthy and happy in this country of ours. We do have bad/horribly frustrating days but the good outweigh the bad by far.

School is going well. We are figuring out teaching and how to be effective. Currently I have about 60 students per class and Tony has around 110 students per class. But the people we work with are great people that are wonderfully helpful.

Thank you for your love and support! More to come soon!
Stacey

PS – We do have more pictures to post but we are going to find a web-site to post them to for our family members without Facebook.