January 2014 Update 1
Wow! We have had a full first 2 days! I wish I could say the journey
here was uneventful, but unfortunately I cannot. We flew from SFO to
Portland. We had a 5+ hour layover in Portland. When we went to our
gate to get our boarding passes, they rechecked our passports. Madi’s
doesn’t have a full 6 months before it expires so they wouldn’t let
her get on the plane with us. Aahh!! We had a very short time period
to figure out what to do. I spoke with the gate agent and she said
this happens often. She gave us all the information to fix the issues
with the passport and to rearrange the flight. She spoke with the
airline we flew to Portland and they got her on a flight back to the
bay area at no cost. They said that this was all their fault, so they
fixed the flight stuff. Unfortunately it was friday, so Madi got back
to the Bay and the passport office was closed until monday. BUMMER!!
But now (3 days later) we know that she has gotten everything worked
out and she will be getting on a flight tuesday morning to come and be
with us!! Anytime God is at work, Satan is there to frustrate our
plans. Madi has been looking forward to this trip for years literally
and I know God is going to do amazing things in her life and her
relationships with the other girls who have come. Please pray against
the plots of the evil one.
So the 3 of us who were with Madi got on the plane not knowing what
would happen and very very sad!! We were set to meet Lauren in
Amsterdam and my mind started doing the worst case scenario thing
because of what happened with Madi. We had agreed to meet at the gate
we would be flying out of to Uganda. We got there and were looking
and looking. She was supposed to land before us, so I expected her to
already be there. I walked past our gate and there she came around
the corner. The smile I saw on her face was priceless!! Woohoo!!
We’re together.
Side note…for any older CPC families. I had posted on Facebook a
couple weeks ago when I booked our tickets because I was so excited
and I got a message from Lisa Rains. They were at CPC when I was in
jr high/high school and I actually used to babysit her kids. She told
me she and her son were going to be in Uganda after christmas too. So
fun! God has made connections here that are only explainable because
of Him. Lisa and I chatted on FB a couple days before we were leaving
and found out we’d be on the same plane from Amsterdam to Uganda.
CRAZY!! So cool! So I actually was saying as were we walking up that
we need to find (and I was about to say Lauren) and Lisa called out
“ME!!” It was awesome! We were able to connect a little bit. God is
so cool!! They actually live in Alabama and 2 of her kids are Auburn
Tigers!! War Eagle!!
The flight from Amsterdam down to Uganda was uneventful. We all
actually slept which we hadn’t really done on the other flights. We
arrived and collected all our bags, praise God!!, and I walked outside
and saw my name on a little sign. Relief! My fear is that my ride
will not be at the airport when we walk outside. We squeezed our
things into a little minivan, just barely and headed for our hotel.
We settled in and crashed out!
The next morning Emma, my good friend and driver, was due to pick us
up at 9:30. I walked out to read and journal at 8:45 and the hugest
smile greeted me!! He really does have a beautiful smile!! Of course
he was early! He wasn’t sure how big of a vehicle we would need, so
he brought a big 25 passenger van. We all traveled very comfortably!!
The girls were quiet just watching and looking at everything out the
windows. Tarah several times said ‘ I can’t believe how green it is’
I was able to catch up with Emma a bit and we made it to Jinja in
record time. Sunday morning is the right time to drive to/from the
airport (note to self).
When I was in Ethiopia last January, I stayed in a guesthouse that is
run by a ministry out of SoCal. While I was there I shared that I
work in Uganda and they told me they were going to be starting a
guesthouse in Uganda too. When I asked where, they were like ‘ a
small town called Jinja I think.’ Of course!! I communicated with
their american director and asked him to let me know when they were
opening. Well, they opened in the fall, so I booked a room for us.
We’ll see how it goes. I would prefer to give my money to a ministry
than to a corporation. When we drove up Emma was concerned because
you can tell they still have some work to do. Once we walked inside
though, it was beautiful! Tile and high ceilings, the rooms sleep 4-6
people and it is decorated so cute. Donna and Jeremiah are the
Ugandans running the place and they have been so accommodating.
Literally she keeps asking me if we need anything or what we want to
eat and apologizing for any little thing. My shower was one of the
best I’ve had in Africa. Emma’s concerns were eased, so we brought in
our luggage and chose our room then headed into town for so food!!!
We were all pretty hungry. The bus took us and dropped us at Flavors,
a favorite of mine. They have this great little garden in the back
that you can eat in and the food is good. They are also an internet
cafe, so the girls were able to get on their wifi and communicate
home. We didn’t have a lot we needed to get done, so we decided just
to walk down main street and do a little window shopping. Most of the
shops are closed because it is Sunday, so it was pretty chill for the
girls to ease in. My good friend Allan came and met us and got to
know the girls a bit. We also stopped by Ritah’s shop, a good
friend!! She was there and so excited to see me! So fun to see these
friends the Lord has provided for me over and over!! We started
getting a little tired, so we headed back toward our hotel. While we
were walking we passed by a neighborhood where another friend lives.
I wasn’t sure if he would be home, but I poked my head around the
corner and the whole fan was there. So fun!! Shallom is a good
friend of Erin Beck’s from when she lived here and I have gotten to
know him this year. He has come to camp the last 2 times and brought
a bunch of new friends in September. We chatted and introduced the
girls. Shallom has been accepted to a school in Kansas, so I got
caught up on that whole deal. It is a huge deal for a ugandan without
any real connections to get out of the country for schooling. He is
still working on getting his student visa, so please pray that God
would give him favor in those who are driving the process.
Earlier I had told the girls about jack fruit. It is a tropical fruit
that we don’t have in the US. I told them we would try to find some
for them to try. Shallom’s mom had some while we were there and
offered them some. Cool!! I’m not a huge fan, but the girls tried it
and I think they liked it. While I was still talking with Shallom
Lauren and Tarah came and told me that she was having a reaction to
the fruit. Her lips were swelling. Uh oh! Thankful I’m a nurse. We
were close to our hotel, so we headed out to get her some Benedryl.
Tarah actually found some in her purse while we were still walking.
It was a little nerve wrecking and I think Lauren was pretty scared.
We got back to the hotel and she wasn’t really improving, so we gave
her some more Benedryl and a Zyrtec. After a few minutes she calmed
down and it wasn’t getting worse. She didn’t have any breathing
issues or anything, but just to be safe I jumped on a boca into town
to a pharmacy to grab some epi. Tarah is a nurse too and Allan was
with them in case things started getting worse. I was back and Lauren
was very sleepy!! The Benedryl was doing its thing! Her lip was
going down and the tingling was improving. Thank you Jesus!! I was
praying the whole time that He would protect her and give me wisdom!!
He is so good!! SATAN needs to get the heck out of here though!!
Please pray for continued health and safety!! Even though these
situations are frustrating and scary, I am excited to see what God is
doing. And I keep reminding myself, if God is with us who can stand
against us!!
Lauren ended up sleeping for the rest of the afternoon. We relaxed
with Allan and the girls got to know him better. Then we decided to
just go to dinner at a restaurant really close that is right on the
Nile. It is beautiful! We had burgers and pizza (very Ugandan) and
then headed back for the night. Lauren is doing great! She has slept
a lot!! Tomorrow we will head into town and let the girls actually
shop. I will write more later!! Have a great day!! Happy New Years
Eve!!