Could you go to Ugandan Kindergarten?

We have been told that in Uganda, where birth records are often sketchy, schools have a little trick to find out if the children are 5 years old. Children are asked to put their arm over their head. If the child is able to touch the bottom of the earlobe on the opposite side of their head, then they are 5 and can be admitted to school. The belief is that younger children cannot do this. We tried this with our 6 year old and discovered that if he was in an Ugandan school he would not be considered 5 because he cannot touch bottom of his earlobe. Hmmm.... Is this only African children that this applies to? Do we just have an unusual child? Or is this merely a Ugandan wives' tale? Not sure, but our helper who is 30 said that when her parents took her to 1st grade, she had to do that. We are going to try this with some of the kids here at the orphanage and see what we find.

So here is something for you to try. Put your arm over your head and see if you can touch your earlobe and see if your children can. I'd love to hear your findings. Can you or your children be admitted to Ugandan Kindergarten?

If only. . .

There are times we all say "if only I was a fly on the wall." In this picture maybe it would be more appropriate to say "if only I was a lizard under the container." I wish I knew what Henry and Titus were talking about. The beauty of the holidays is that there have been fewer kids so they get to spend more time one on one and we all get to know the kids here better.



Henry, age 9 and his sister Juliet, age 13 both live here at the orphanage. Both their father and mother have died. They have a sister who is 22 and a brother who is 16. Henry is HIV+, but you would never know just looking at him. I think he probably is one of the fastest runners here at the orphanage.

Holiday Camp

The Ugandan school system takes the months of December and January as holidays. We take advantage of this opportunity to send many of the kids at the orphanage to family members so they can rekindle and develop the family ties that are so very important. We, however, have had around 40 kids who for various reasons stayed here during the holidays.

The challenge then begins. These kids especially needed to be loved during this time and kept busy and out of trouble. In walks, Sadie! Sadie is from Alaska and has stepped in to help us during the holiday. Sadie organized a reading contest, face painting days, trips to the zoo and safari and many other things. She has been a huge help to all of us here. We are grateful!

A miracle needed

There was a prayer service in our little chapel of Good Shepherd's Fold today. We were praying for a miracle for a 2 month old baby, Catherine, who has several heart defects. Her mother brought Catherine to GSF from a nearby village the other day. Our Director sent the mother and baby with two nurses to a hospital in Kampala. They found out that the defects are too great and the hospital here cannot do the surgery. When doctors in America were consulted, it was determined that Catherine could not physically make the trip to America to have surgery. All that to say, if Baby Catherine survives it will be a complete miracle from God. When the mother stood in church to give a testimony and ask for prayer, she openly admitted that she is not a Christian. Some people had told her that if she were a Christian, then she could find healing for her baby. Her mother was given the plan of salvation several times today. We are asking everyone to pray for Catherine’s physical heart to heal and for the spiritual hearts of her family. We need a miracle from God and we know He can do it.

Nanny and Poppy

My parents have come to visit us for 2 and a half months. We are thrilled to have them and to be able to house them next door to us. We have all enjoyed being able to show them around. Our kids still get excited about telling them something new that they hadn't told them yet. I love watching them with the kids here at the orphanage and watch the kids enjoy getting to know them. My dad is already teaching several art classes. What a special blessing it is!

Happy Birthday our 12 year old!

Our sweet Caralina turned 12 on January 2nd. We are so proud of her! She is an incredible help to all here at the orphanage especially with the little kids. She enjoys helping and is learning to help in ways that are beneficial to all. She enjoyed having her Nanny and Poppy here to help her celebrate. Because we were traveling on that day and had received lots of things from the States, we had a very unique Birthday cake that evening.

water, anyone?

We picked up my parents from the airport at the beginning of this month. On our way back to the orphanage, we went by the computer place in Kampala to see if Mark could drop off his computer as we wait for the mother board to come in. As we began to turn into the parking lot (which is rare in Kampala), the van stopped working and we coasted downhill into a parking space. We quickly realized that the radiator overheated. As we were discussing what to do and where to get some water for the radiator, we glanced in the grass next to where the van had coasted to a stop. Someone had left a half a dozen semi-full bottles of water! Coincidence? I think not.