I just realized that tomorrow marks our 9-month anniversary of being in Kenya. Perhaps it’s just the passage of time, but for the past couple of weeks I’ve finally felt at home here. When I walk out the back door, the landscape doesn’t strike me as being quite so foreign. I’m familiar with most of the kids who hang around the front gate, and if I’m not I know how to politely chase them away. I have a better idea about we can and can’t acquire at the local markets and how much things should cost. After spending our first few months feeling like all we did was work, work, work (and lucky to get language arts and math done each day), we’re more at ease with our daily tasks and everybody pitches in fairly well to get done what needs doing. Our schooling is, as a result, a little more in-depth, which is good.
Last but not least, Marc has spent more time at home these last few weeks and I feel like we’ve finally been able to relax a bit and just enjoy each other. Yahtzee is our new favorite family game. The girls and I had some free time to make a paper “picnic playset,” the kids and I did some coloring and played with clay, and I’ve been able to actually sit down and read stories with my little ones. Oddly enough, it’s been reading aloud to the littles that I’ve missed the most during these busy nine months. I feel like I’m finally able to catch my breath.
So that’s it…no big lessons or lofty exhortations from this blog post. Just thankfulness. 🙂 I pray that you will embrace all the little moments that you have with your family and appreciate wherever you are in your journey.