High School and Cows!

Toby is just 12. University is a few years off--emphasis on few. Time is flying! But, today I got a taste of  what it's been like for many of my friends who have taken their kids to University. Nabukeera reported to S5 or the equivalent of 11th grade today. Our New Hope schools at current are only up to the level of S4, so for those who qualify, S5, S6 and University are completed at other institutions. We started our day by driving to Jjaaja's house to pick up Nabukeera and her school requirements. A three hour drive later we arrived in Kyetume village at the site of her new home for the next two years--Seroma Christian High School. Our good friend Dan drove for us and one of our beloved sons, Perez, came along to be a support. I was so glad he came as he is much more familiar with how things work at this level of schooling than I am. He was a great encourager and guide through the four hour process of check in and setting up her dorm room. 

This is who Nabukeera left behind in the village. Jjaaja, her great-grandson (on her immediate right) and some neighbor children who are frequent visitors to their home

Nabukeera and our little selfie on the walk from Jjaaja's to the car to load her things.

We're here! Hooray!

We did a lot of walking today. We had a check-in form to fill out and frequently were told we were in the wrong place and to return to where we'd just been. Oh well, lots of exercise and familiarizing ourselves with the campus!

The cafeteria. This was a great source of uncertainty for me--meals. Other schools either don't provide any or don't provide enough for the students they enroll. We were there for the entire lunch period and no one went hungry and it all happened in an orderly manner. Whew!

Moving in meant carrying all her things across the campus. No cars were allowed to drive onto campus today.

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Her dorm is a three-story building with 8 girls in each room. Perez reports that it is probably the nicest dorm in Uganda--as far as he is concerned! He could be right!

We didn't know what to expect at this school as we know of no one from New Hope who has attended Seroma. We were pleasantly surprised with the Christian emphasis and the clean grounds. There are scriptures posted everywhere--so much so that Nabukeera and Perez said it was a "talking campus" All of our interactions with the staff found them very nice and accommodating. Nabukeera met one of her roommates who also happens to be a sister to one of Perez' schoolmates. Small country. This girl has studied at this school before and knows many people. She also was very nice and her friendship seems to be one that will help Nabukeera to get acclimated more quickly to this new place! 

love the scriptures, everywhere!

It was great to look up and be reminded of God's goodness!

in front of her dormitory as we were preparing to leave her behind :(

It was a great day and I'm thankful to God for leading us on this journey of seeking out schools and finding a good one! Thanks for your prayers for us as we LOVE walking alongside these dear ones through their paths of life!

Last month was Geoff's 45th birthday so we took a weekend out in Kampala just the two of us.  I managed to purchase, pack, carry and hide a ring all without him ever finding out until he opened the package! It is a ring made of actual working gears. We'd seen it in a magazine ad at the oncologist's office last year and he commented on its utter coolness. He was genuinely surprised and I was proud of myself for managing to get the surprise from the U.S. to here under the Geoff radar! He loves it not only because of the working gears, but because they remind him that God is always working in our lives! Amen!

We finally have water again!  Toby and Geoff had to prime the pump as it had been sitting idle for so many weeks!

Sam is in the midst of midterm examinations. He studies hard every night and reports each day that he is pleased with his performance in the exams. Please pray for him to continue to respond to our guidance. The reason we brought him in to live with us was because he needed some intense parenting--we're giving it, but only with God's help and wisdom!

I make the break time snack twice a week for Toby, Acacia and Kevin's school. Last week I decided to revisit an old recipe for chocolate orange scones! It made me miss our dear former neighbor, JoDell, who LOVED these little treats. JoDell--this picture is for you! When are you coming to taste these delectable yummies in person?????

And FINALLY---the COW portion I referred to in the title. Kakande arrived the other night all aflutter about Ente!!! (cow) MPALE!!! (trousers) and BANANGE (For crying out loud!!!) Seems he was helping somehow with the cows on site and one of them decided to make contact with Kakande's backside! He came over to show us the trousers and tell us his story. The whole story according to Kakande was three words said with emphasis about 7 times! Ente! Mpale! Banange! It's difficult to decipher, but there are two aptly placed holes in the backside of the trousers he is holding in this picture, but I was laughing so hard I didn't get it in focus.