Our trip so far!

Hello family and friends! Our trip has been a very exciting one thus far! We spent all day Friday and Saturday traveling. We began our trip here by worshiping in the Kinyago-Dandora community, where it was held in the cafeteria of the school that we are serving. Kinyago-Dandora School (KDS) is about 45 minutes away without traffic from where we are staying.

There was lots of singing and dancing, and the love for the Lord was incredibly evident. The service was held in English and Kiswahili. For the all of the students, English is their second language. They begin English when they enroll at KDS in "nursery" which is our equivalent to pre-kindergarten. It was amazing to see and feel the excitement of the students and staff present for our arrival. The children were very friendly and just precious! We all look forward to forming relationships with both the staff and students throughout the next week.

After worship, we went to an open air market in Nairobi. If you think the perfume ladies in your favorite department store are pushy, you haven't seen anything! Given the state of decreased tourism in the Kenyan economy, all of the sellers were incredibly aggressive to make a sale. There were some absolutely gorgeous handmade pieces--bowls, sculpture, figurines, etc. We all picked up some great goodies after much bartering (they love to barter!).

Today was an incredible day. Never have we felt like rockstars/politicians/Lindsay Lohan until today. As we drove into the school gates, screams of "Ginger" rang out. Shortly after, the van was swarmed with 600 screaming, smiling children greeting us! Ginger is the President and CEO of Kenya Children's Fund which is the sole financial backer of this school. The children know great things happen when Ginger comes! After lots of singing, dancing, hand holding and pictures, we began our day with devotions and a school tour. It is absolutely mind-blowing to see how much these children and teachers are able to accomplish with so little. We had our initial meeting with the Nursery, kindergarten, 1, 2, and 3 teachers. It was wonderful to work together to determine what struggles the teachers are having, and planning lessons to fit their needs. Tomorrow is our first day of teaching, and we are all so excited!

Things you are wondering about...

1. The food is great--it's skewed towards an American fare, and we have all been fine. No goat and no sore tummies!

2. There is hot, running water and flushing toilets.

3. Cindy and Jen were successfully able to use the blow dryer and straightner (YES!!!) to do our hair.

4. Leda looks gorgeous every second of the day with her braids (lucky!).

Many of you mentioned the slum situation here. It is undescribable however, these children are filled with a hope and love that I can only hope to have one day. Please keep praying for the staff and children of the school. They need love, support, $$$$$, and most of all your prayers.

Signing off!