Our new facility in the heart of the slums

I was very excited to see our new facility that we have rented right in the heart of the slums of Katanga.

Its incredibly hard to find any place in the slums to rent – let alone anything that is more than one room so God has really opened the way for us to find this place and we have a wonderful landlord.

Who is an elderly lady who fully believes in what we are doing and is excited to have us with her.

Our small compound sits right in the heart of Katanga slum and we currently have 3 small class rooms – and one large class room.

While most of the place has been newly renovated and/or built – we are in desperate need to finish those renovations. They were meant to be completed before the program returned this month. 

Sadly though our landlords daughter over Christmas had a full term baby born sleeping. This meant with all the medical expenses she has used her remainder of the budget she had to complete the renovations. Which we understand. 

We have been using the facility as it is – but we desperately need to get it finished and tidied and get the toilets put in – since each week see’s us working with 200 children!

An agreement has been made that if we can come up with the money for the remainder of the renovations in can be completed within a week or so and be ready for when school goes back. And then she will sub tract that off our rent.

We currently have rented the place for one full year so then with us covering the costs of the renovations we will get another months of rent.

So we are looking to raise $1200 as quick as we can to finish off the last classroom and have toilets done. We also will be concreting and roofing in between the classrooms so the children can sit there to eat their meal and also mean we can use the facility once the wet season arrives.

We don’t know how to raise the money that quickly – we can’t stretch our current read for life budget any more without having to deduct from feeding the children or letting a teacher go or something – which is obviously not what we want to be doing.

So we are asking you to join us in praying or helping us to fundraise for the $1200 so we can hopefully have the work completed in the next month ready for school to start back and ready for our skills training to start on the 1^st of March.

Part of the compound with one classroom shown. 

one of our classrooms

The area that needs to be concreted and roofed in between classrooms runs much longer than photo shows ( runs behind where i was standing also - this will allow us to have children sit and eat their food in this area) 

The largest classroom is being used but needs the floor now added and walls completed. 

Hezekiah ready a day early for Read for Life to start :) 

Our wonderful landlord and Robert discussing what needs to still be completed - she has been very gracious in allowing all the children who come to program to use her bathroom facilities and entrance gate while the work was still being done. 

Hezekiah and mummy checking out the facility while daddy chatted - notice he thinks I'm taking a photo - CHEESSEE

Read for life is still running on Saturdays during school term and 3 days a week during school holidays – we currently run 3 sessions on those days and have 200 children registered for the program.

We also have a waiting list of approximately 100 children, with more families wanting to attend all the time!

The program is growing and expanding and we are excited for this year.

Our teachers ( 4 ) who have been with us from the beginning are very excited to now be in our own facility right in the heart of the slums, where these children live. They have worked hard to grow and expand the program in my absence and we could not be more grateful for a hardworking, trustworthy team. 

We have found the families to be so supportive and receptive – with many mothers making sure they actually BRING their children to the program, to ensure they get there.

We have seen so much change in not only the reading ability of the children but even the behaviour too – even their mothers and families are agreeing!

Since through a normal school week the facility is empty – as of the 1^st of March we are going to be running Skills training for some of the mothers/guardians attached to the Read for Life program.

The first lot of skills training will be for approximately 20 women and run for 3 months.

This will run through the week in the morning and then in the afternoons we will be running adult literacy classes for the Read for Life parents.

Many of the families when we did a survey of Katanga slums listed 3 things as their biggest desires and needs.

-          Education for their children ( READ FOR LIFE is helping to increase that)

-          Skills training and jobs for parents ( Skills training will meet that)

-          Literacy and English teaching for adults ( Adult Literacy will meet that need – many families have shared that even though they may have a job or a small shop or something – that they lose clients due to the fact they can’t read or write or struggle to speak a language that their client speaks – remember theres 50 different languages here!)

Along with starting Skills training - we are starting a Creche for 0-4 year olds which will run during Read for Life and skills training. 

One of the issues we have with read for life - is most of the children come from single parent families - and often mothers have to go to work during the day - so you will find children as young as 5 bringing their baby siblings to their class - this is obviously making it difficult for that child to get the most out of the class but also makes it difficult for the teachers who are often the ones left to care for those babies/toddlers. 

We also understand many of the women who are signed up to Skills training have children not of school age. 

So we have employed one of our Landlords neices who is a nursery teacher and will set up one of the classrooms as a creche facility - she will sing and read to the babies which will hopefully ensure not only will they get a headstart but their siblings will be able to concentrate in class better! 

We are very excited to see what God does with Read for Life this year and the Skills training.

There are other dreams and goals for this year but for today that’s enough to give you an insight in to why we need to raise the money as quickly as we can so that the Read for life and skills training can have the biggest impact possible!! 😊

Thank you for your prayers and support!

One of the classes in action - classes are currently down in size due to christmas holidays with many children going to villages to see grandparents/family. 

One of the baby siblings that came this week - his brother is only 5 who was left in charge of this precious little guy. 

Being introduced to our newest baby class 

Ezrael took a liking to one of our students - and he was super sweet and good with him. 

Look at them looking at each other!!! He said it was first time he'd seen a 'white' baby! :) 

Back home together FINALLY

Well we have now been a family of 4 again for around 2 weeks - and its been the BEST!

Thought I would share a few of the adventures we've been on and the lessons I am learning again about life here in Uganda.

The flight here was LONG to say the least but overall the boys were amazing!! Honestly the hardest parts were going through security in Sydney and then again in Abu Dhabi with the two boys and all our onboard luggage.
Sydney wasn't too bad thankfully.
Saying goodbye was really hard but once we said goodbye to mum and dad my priority was keeping boys settled until on the plane - it was late about 8.30pm so boys were both tired and really ready for bed - thankfully we had an amazing lady on both the passport check and security check - then I realised the time and how the plane was already boarding ( security had taken so long I hadn't realised)
So I had to rush ( almost run) to get to the gate and there was already a massive line - after then giving the hostess our pram I had two tired kids and lots of bags - thankfully an amazing irish family offered to help and got us on to the plane and we got settled - then we were informed at we'd have to sit and wait while baggage was unloaded again etc as something had been misplaced or something or rather - so we taxied for like 1 hr 1/2 hours.

Sound asleep even before take off

I tried to keep them awake since I didn't really want them sleeping in the time they actually needed to be in their seats but nothing was going to keep them awake and so even before take off they were both asleep!

Both sound alseep before take off

Thankfully we'd received a bassinet so Ezrael was able to sleep about 60% of the flight in there - the other 20% he was in my arms due to turbulence and then the other 20% he was awake.
Hezekiah was amazing and slept about 11hrs of the 15hr flight. SO thankful for the purchase of plane pal inflatable leg rest - best $70 i've spent - he laid down pretty much the whole time.
I even managed to get some sleep and to eat so that was a blessing.
The hardest part was the last 2 hours where both boys were just wanted to move around.
Hezekiah was actually starting to get tired the last half hour before they said to prepare to land which was not good timing!! I needed him to be settled for landing and then getting off the plane and going through security and on to the next flight - which we'd now have to run for since we were now delayed about 2hours.
He wasn't very happy about having to pack away his tray table for landing where he was colouring in and having to sit up so started to get very upset - they turned the lights off so all he wanted was to sit on mummy's lap  - but i obviously already had ezrael - so hezekiahs first major tantrum was as we decented in to Abu Dhabi - with him kicking out of the seatbelt - another lady tried helping but then gave up - not even the flight attendants bothered to get up - after a few minutes of screamig on the floor - i eventually was able to reason with him and he hopped in his seatbelt - AND THEN PROCEEDED TO FALL DEEPLY ASLEEP!!!!! And I mean deep asleep!!
GREAT....... now I have to run to get the next plane - carrying TWO KIDS?? and all the bags?? I knew this was going to be impossible...... as people got off the plane many just laughed and said goodluck or whatever - heaps of people commented at how well the boys had been the whole flight etc.... which they had up until that point.... I was starting to really pray and get a bit emotional when finally when almost the whole plane had left a lady said - can i help you - I quickly said yes and she carried all the bags while I had Ezrael strapped to me and tried to wake hezekiah while pulling him along behind me - poor thing walked for a little while - when he finally came to we were half way up to walkway off the plane - and he realised daddy wasn't there - so screamed we have to get back on the plane to get to daddy - poor thing was so heavily asleep he really didn't quite get that we had to take ANOTHER plane to get to daddy - so then he wailed for daddy the whole time i tried carrying him off the plane.
The lady helped me to get an airport pram and then she had to run - and of course I got a broken pram so had trouble pushing the pram the whole way to the next gate.
I realised we were no longer going to have 3 hours to run and play in the airport playground - but would have to RUN to get through security to get our plane before it left.
Hezekiah proceeded to scream for daddy while strapped in the pram all the way through airport - in some ways this was a blessing  - when we got to security  - the line was HUGE - probably would have taken an hour to get through - thankfully they heard a screaming child and ushered us through -
Still had to take hezekiah out of pram and collapse it and take ezrael out of the wrap - but unlike they usually require - they didn't even bother to make me take the liquids and baby bottles out or my electronics - I think they saw I had nothing left in me - after convincing Hezekiah to get back in the pram we ran as fast as we could to our gate - with just enough time to go the bathroom before they started boarding the plane - the boys had no time to stretch or play at all really -
But as soon as we were at the gate and saw all the Ugandans preparing to board the plane - it didn't matter - I prayed the boys would be ok on the next flight - but I realised no matter what - we only had one more 6hour flight and we'd be in Rob's arms.
I was reminded of one of the many reasons I love Ugandans - as soon as I sat down for the few minutes to wait for boarding - Hezekiah was being entertained by a Ugandan lady and Ezrael was crawling around playing peek-a-boo with a Ugandan teenage boy.

When it came time to board - multiple people offered to help us on to the plane.
The plane was so extremely quiet we had so much room and space it was great.

Almost time to get to daddy

Once in the air - Hezekiah fell asleep and slept 4 1/2 hours of the 6 hour trip. Ezrael slept about 3 hours of it - and the majority of the rest of the time was cuddled and entertained by a Ugandan lady across from us. She watched the boys while I went to the bathroom and ate my food.

I can't express how although the Abu Dhabi part was stressful - how much I felt God's presence with me from the moment I said goodbye to my parents in Sydney till the moment we were in Rob's arms. Many people prayed before we left that God would place people in every area we needed help.
And He did - everytime I boarded the plane or got off eventually someone was there ready to help.

When it came time to land in Uganda - I told Hezekiah to look out the window - we were about to see Daddy - I don't think he still could really understand - he said " can't see daddy - daddy's in africa".... since that was the line he'd been told for almost 6 months - but finally I was able to say - we are now In Africa - and we can see daddy very soon.
I then got teary as I looked out the window at my home - the land of orange dirt and shiny tin roofs - everytime I fly in to Uganda I love seeing the way the light catches all the tin roofs on the little mut houses or the newer houses. It reminds me this is a land that has so much sparkle and joy to it - despite some of the hardships.

When we got off the plane a lovely lady helped me get off the plane and carried all our bags and then when we got off there was a lady who works at the airport asking was I leah - I said I was and she proceeded to help me get through security and through to get my bags - with her on our side we didn't have to wait in lines for any length of time.
She then had another airport worker, along with herself help me get all our HUGE 6 bags on to two trolleys and walked us out to meet Rob. ( Rob had arranged all of this for me - I have no idea how I could have physically pushed two trolleys FULL of huge bags, plus carry ezrael and push the pram on my own - so so grateful to God for this lady).

Before too long there was Rob running through the crowd of beautiful Ugandan faces to meet us.
Public displays of affection are incredibly rare here - but that didn't matter to Rob or me today. He ran to me and tried to squeeze me and pick me up but that was a bit difficult with Ezrael strapped to my front - after a kiss and tears from me - Rob looked down to see Hezekiah had jumped out of the pram and was just standing there with a look of shock on his face - like he was about to burst in to tears - and he was completely silent and then said - oh hey daddy as he literally ran and jumped in to his arms - it was so magical to see - and then when Rob turned to Ezrael he smiled and gently stroked Robs face, as he looked at me for reassurance!

I wish we could have filmed it - but Rob had made decision to come and collect us on his own so we could have family time - and I had my hands full.
But it doesn't matter - the memory is seared in to both Rob and my minds - when we walked back to the car and those who helped us had left - the four of us just held each other - finally a family of four again!
It was really the best feeling ever.

We decided since it was about 1pm that we'd go and spend afternoon at botanical gardens to give the boys a chance to run around a bit and then travel home after dinner - so that the boys didn't fall asleep on the way home in afternoon.

Showing Ezrael the monkeys for first time & reminding Hezekiah

We eventually got home to our house about 8.30pm with both boys sound asleep and transferred well in to their new beds.
It was the best feeling walking in to our new house that Rob had found and chosen and rented for us and had set up. I was so grateful - every other time we've come back to Uganda it has meant being squeezed in to a tiny motel room for some weeks while we tried to find a house - so this time was so much better!

The next two weeks was spent just enjoying each other's company and remembering how it was to be together. The boys and I had some jetlag and took about a week - 10 days to really be settled sleep wise  - but thankfully the boys only took a few bad nights and then adjusted quite quickly - Rob graciously did all the middle of the night playing while I slept.
Both boys settled quickly into the food and new languages and people around, except Ezrael struggled with diarhea from all the new foods and germs for about 2 weeks. He lost some weight but is doing well now - again Rob graciously changed 90% of the nappies to try and make up for all the one's he'd missed :)

Ezrael was amazing - for about the first 48hours he'd happily go to Rob but didn't like it if I left the room or if Rob took him somewhere away from me - but within a few days he knew it was his papa and was able to be settled and comforted and put to bed by Rob.

We spent the first 2 weeks without water in our house so the boys got use to helping us take the jerry cans out to the tank to get water for washing and bathing etc.

It didn't take Hezekiah any time to get use to the cold shower/basin baths but Ezrael was another matter. I think he's a bit more like his mama - and although I now can quite happily have a cold wash or shower - it did take me a long time to get use to them.
Thankfully he seems to be use to them now - although I'm sure like his mama he doesn't enjoy them as much as hot ones :)

We enjoyed a pretty quiet Christmas overall ( although i spent christmas day cooking from 7am - 2pm ) for us and some of Rob's siblings and friends.
We did manage to find a church that had a christmas jazz carols event, which was really great and made me feel like it was Christmas a bit more ( christmas carols aren't really sung here like in Australia).
We've enjoyed spending time at our farm and exploring the land a bit where we will have crops growing soon - the boys have especially loved that.

Back to eating great, affordable mangoes ALL the time

Back to our weekly pancakes

Back to making everything from scratch on our single gas bottle - tomato sauce & pasta sauce underway

Content back in daddy's arms at christmas carols 

Ezraels first christmas. 

Our christmas tree with a present each wrapped in plastic bags - PERFECT 

Rob making chapati for christmas lunch

Ezrael meeting uncle geof for the first time on christmas day

christmas lunch prepared by Rob and me 

our first morning here I could hear Ezrael giggling and knew he was on verandah - i looked out curtain to see the neighour kid laughing and pointing at ezrael saying Mzungu Mzungu baby and running to get other children - ezrael lapped up the attention and giggled and smiled back. 

Our first day - hezekiah playing with the neighbours - didn't take long. 

Exploring the farm where they've just cleared in preparation for us to plant some crops - before the cleared Hippos use to enjoy grazing here. 

Huts near our farm about an hour and half from our home.

Back to lots of reading with daddy

Bathin outside in cold water under the stars - boys much prefer bathing outside. 

Back to hand washing - thankful for my love who helped us do a few weeks worth when we finally got water back after two weeks. 

Back to using technology for family catch ups! 

There is so much I have been reminded of since I've been back home - so many little things I had forgotten about life here
- I'd forgotten what is means to have no water and no electricity sometimes ( I took the power for granted so would let my phone/computer go flat forgetting that I may lose power and then not be able to charge it for a long time!)
- I'd forgotten how much i dislike dry season - dust everywhere! :)
- I'd forgotten how much I hate Ugandan traffic - ok - maybe I hadn't really forgotten but I'd forgotten the extent of it!
- I'd forgotten what its like to not be invisible! To always being stared at all of a sudden, has taken some time to get use to - as it has for the boys too. I'd forgotten how much of a fascination we are - Rob too had forgotten since, he was just a local ugandan without us here - now everyone knows him in our village since he is married to the Mzungu and has mzungu sons :)
- I'd forgotten how different our diet is here and how you have to get use to repeatetive eating.
- I'd forgotten what its like to cook on a single gas cyclinder.
- I'd forgotten how frustrating it can be with reception here sometimes and trying to get a good connection to family
- But I'd also forgotten how grateful I am for it!!
- I'd forgotten just how far Australia and family feel when you are actually here


but I hadn't forgotten the
- Kindness of people - our neighbours have all been very welcoming
- how many kids there are - everywhere - and how much they love our boys
- I'd forgotten how simple and slow life is here - and how BEAUTIFUL that is!

- and I hadn't forgotten how God is the centre of so much here - christmas and new year especially. ( we spent our new years at an all night praise party like many Ugandans do all over ) 

- And I certainly hadn't forgotten that this is home - that this is where we are meant to be - that despite the challenges - and the things that break my heart when I look around - that this is a land of great beauty, great people and amazing potential. 

Enjoying the water when it finally came back with the neighbours joining in. 

I'm so grateful to be back - I'm grateful for the precious gift of Ezrael that allowed us to go home to Australia and have a wonderful time with family and friends and our church at Eastlakes - and I'm grateful to God who sustained Rob and I while we were apart. 

It was a hard and long 5 1/2 months - with the boys hospitalised and so many other challenges while we were apart - but God never left our side. 

I'm grateful to be back feeling the best I've ever felt - healed and whole ( more on that another time) and I'm grateful for our team here who sustained our organisation and ministry while we were away. 

I'm very grateful to God for where we are living - unlike where we were living last time - we are in a place that doesn't have quite as much traffic and more than one road to get here if there is a bad jam. I'm grateful that we aren't in a busy urban area but a more rural, village like area ( even though that means we can't just walk and get certain items now) 

I'm grateful for how safe our house feels this time and how much cooler it is than our last house - and overall even with the power losses and having had water and sewerage issues most of the time we've been here - its by far my favourite house from the last few we've had. And it's not by chance we found it - if you knew the story you'd know it was God who led Rob to find this place  - because we would never have found this place out here if it wasn't for Him. 

And I'm very grateful for our family ( and friends) in Australia and in Uganda who helped to care and occupy us in the time that we were apart and who pray and support us when we are so far away. 

I am honestly just on cloud 9 - despite all the challenges and hurdles that may come at us this year - we are excited to see what 2018 has in store and believeing for BIG things for us as a family, but also for our ministry and all the children and women we are working with!! 

ITS GOOD TO BE HOME!