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Hi- I just got home last night. It was a long couple days of flying! I couldn't figure out why people were staring at me in the bathroom in Atlanta (after 30 hours of travel) putting on deodorant, chanign my clothes & washing my face??? Anyway...It's good to see family and friends after what seemed like such a short 6 weeks, but I'm sad to be away from the girls at JBFC. I think I cried the whole way home! Thanks to everyone who read my blogs...I will be adding some pictures as soon as I can and I'm going to write more about my trip soon...the things that I just didn't have time to write while I was there. Thanks for reading!
Love, Sarah:)

Quahari=Goodbye

I have so much more to write about but so little time. I'm leaving in 2 days to head to Dar Es Salaam- the capital of TZ- for a little 2 day trip and then I will fly to Dubai, NYC, Atlanta and finally T-town! I'm sad to leave and can't believe that I've taken 1,500 pictures...yes- that's correct!!! I'll pick out the 'good ones' for you all to see...don't worry!

Since I last blogged...inspections were passed! YEAH! The girls have started school...they are very excited! I've learned a few Swahili songs. I had a fee traditional skirts made (and have been wearing them everyday...) ALSO...we (7 people total- all mzungu) went on a 3 day safari- amazing! We froze (in Africa) one night camping on top of Ngorongoro Crater. 2 elephants, 4 water buffalo & a couple zebras were all less than 50 feet away. The buffalo & zebras came VERY close to the tent! We went into the crater early in the morning & drove up seconds after a lion heard had killed a wildebeast and we watched them tear it apart and eat it! Great pics of that. We visited a Massai village and bought a few bracelets. They let us tour a hut made of cow dung...nice smell...and we videotaped a traditional Massai men & women dance/chant. VERY COOL! Then we spent our next night in warmer weather in the SErengeti where we weren't visited by such exotic animals as the night before- just mice, spiders and more bugs. We did take a solar shower- water in a bag that gets heated by the sun- my first time for that. We made a campfire and played games- 20 questions was my favorite until I didn't win. haha. Then we headed out of the park and saw more amazing animals. We stopped for lunch at a resort- which was the best meal I've eaten since I left America!!! What a fun experience!

Ok- I will write more when I get home about all the things I have journaled. Thanks for reading!
Love, Sarah:)

Hi guys! Everything is going well! Torie left this morning without any problems! We just stopped in for a little internet before heading back out the the village. Sorry it's been a little while since I last blogged...we have been really busy because inspections at the orphanage are this Monday and we had lots of work to do before it passed another round of "ok's". We put windows on the girls dorm house...which isn't what you think. We had to frame the windows that are ALL different lengths, widths, etc. because they were done by workers that were hired during the year...so "standard size" means nothing. Anyway, we framed all windows with wood and nailed in brackets to hold glass that we had to individually cut...that was my favorite part...that slanted into the window. There aer about 10 window panes per section of teh window and about 3 sections per 1 window! Wow...I know. So, it's hard to imagine (it was for me before I saw it on another house) that one lever pulls all the panes open and closed at the same time. I have plenty of pioctures of teh process! WE also had cutains made and are hanging those this weekend. We have a few moer minor details that need to be completed and then we all have to out of there for inspections. We are thinking of taking the girls to do something fun for the day and then when inspections are passed- it will all be worth it. Side note: It's funny that the government is so strict with this stuff when these kids were sleeping on the streets! I've come to the conclusion that I would rather it be this diffiult but right for these kids. Otherwise, anybody could claim an orphanage and who knows what would be really happening. So, I'm thankful that they are taking it seriously and not going off our word that it's a great place. I'll let you know what happens with inspections!!!

Serengeti Trip

Hi all- Hope everyone is doing well!!! I'm having a blast. It seems that we are getting to internet more often which is nice. I haven't written yet about our trip to the Serengeti even though it was about a week ago. We started our day VERY early...5am and made it to there by 7:30am. WE had a successful trip according to our guide because we saw not only the hyena's, gazelle's, wildebeasts & baboons, but we were able to see the more rare animals like elephants, zebras, giraffes, hippos & lions. AMAZING. WE never saw a cheetah (sorry Megs...) but we were so excited to see all the rest. We stopped for lunch and later stopped at a resort (for $800 a night) for a soda. Some of the group bought souvenirs at the gift shop and then we headed home. It was a great experience for all.

Mom & Dad

FYI: I got a cell phone- I'll text you the number. Mom- talk to Henry if you can because I can't open HH email over here...I know it's not full because it won't even let me sign-in. I'm going to try to create a hotmail account in the meantime. Everything's great- the HH group left this morning and all went well.
I'll call soon. Love you, Sarah:)

Village Meals

Village Meals: Once in a lifetime experience!!! WE spilt into 3 groups and were dropped off by Chris, introduced and spent the next few hours completely immersed. Besides the obvious language barrier (that the group is trying to learn), all of us were out of our comfort zones. We ate in a room that only fit 5 people in a mud hut. The custom is to eat EVERYTHING that is given to you until you can't stuff anything more in. Chris had prearranged the houses and even provided food for the 3 families- so we knew what we would be eating. Our meals were rice, beans, mandazi (bread), chai tea, our own water and then duck, chicken and goat. I've never been so full in my life...some of you are saying YEAH RIGHT! Well, they were so welcoming and honored to have us in their homes. They washed out hands before and after dinner and Chris says we were lucky to have plates- normally they all eat of the same serving platter. Side note: there was a grandmother guarding the door were we ate - beating off chickens and ducks that wanted to join us...wow! After finishing dinner...which was a big feat...we had an African dance party outside the house around a lantern. Then each family (entourage) thanked us for coming profusely. WE were a spectacle to say the least and crowds gathered everywhere. When we all got home- it was so much fun to talk about the experience and although that was not anywhere close to our normal dining experiences over here- the group was excited to have had that experience.
PS- Many pictures were taken of that one!!!

The orphanage

JBFC- There are 8 girls currently staying in the house next to us. The range in age from 6-14 years old and all have different backgrounds as to why they are there. We love spending every moment with them- eating, playing, working, singing and praying. They speak little English but we have been teaching them common words and vice-versa. They have taught us lots of African games to play at night before we go to bed. The first Saturday we were here was Children of Africa day and we had a birthday party for all of them. We had a lunch celebration and baked cakes and gave them presents. They each got a bag full of gifts they wear and use everyday. It was an amazing expereince how grateful they were and tears filled all of our eyes! We got the whole thing no video and I'm sure you will all be seeing parts of that! I can't imagine leaving them for the year because of the relationships that have been developed but hopefully we will keep in touch.

That's all for now- we will be back in a few days! THANKS!!!