The Beginning

Hello friends and family! I have finally given in to the whole blogging thing so here it goes. I have officially been here for a month now and I have loved every second of it. I have definitely had my ups and downs, but over all this has been an experience that I will never forget. The first month has been mainly just getting settled in and getting the feel of things. The first week I was here my dad took me and Rebecca on a Safari, he got to spend some time with the family I am staying with, and we got to visit and orphanage together. Having my dad here for those first couple of days was a great beginning to my trip and I am so glad I got to share those incredible experiences with him. I started teaching the preschool class with Rebecca a week after we arrived. There are 7 missionary kids, 4 of which are adopted from kenya. Me and Rebecca definitely enjoy teaching, but those kids sure can be a handful! I look forward to seeing how they progress in these next couple of months…hopefully they can learn something haha. The third week Rebecca and I were able to visit The Baby Center (about 3 hours away from Tenwek). This facility is for babies that have been abandoned and now are being taken care of until they can hopefully be adopted. We had so much fun showing these babies the love of Christ and can not wait to go back again! This past week we had the privilege of attending an Indian wedding.  One of the patients that loves Tenwek invited some of the doctors and their families to his sons wedding, so we had a fun 4 hour road trip to kisumu. The wedding was totally different from American weddings and it will be something I will never forget. It was one of the most beautiful and coolest experiences ever. This week I was able to shadow surgeries in the hospital. I was able to see many eye surgeries and help out when they needed me. I also went to the PEDS ward and was able to observe there as well. It is so cool how just one smile can make a child's day. One child was abandoned in the hospital about a week ago. The nurses were taking care of him until the mother came back, but she never came. So our family took the child in and are keeping him until tomorrow. He had a severe burn to his eye, but is quickly healing. This Wednesday Rebecca and I went to Nairobi to help/shadow The Least Of These Ministry. We were able to go to a facility for special needs children and then to a school for k5-5th grade. We played all day and when one child let go of my hand there was one waiting to grab it next. I have never been so popular in my life. We actually signed autographs today haha. We will be traveling back to Tenwek tomorrow so pray for safe travels. Much love, Mal