Chaos + 104 = Love: Day 2

Funny how things work here in Kenya, especially when it comes to the Kenya Power & Lighting (but mostly Darkness) Company. We had torrential downpour on Sunday night into Monday morning. The power didn’t flicker, not even once. We don’t even have a drop of rain last night and this morning and what happens? The power is out all night and into this morning and throughout the rest of the day today. Go figure.

And a cold shower I took this morning. Brrrrr!!!!

We had two different groups of people come out to In Step today. The first group was with our friends Louie & Rita Self. They had brought with them five women who just wanted to come and love on the children for a few hours. And that they did.

The children immediately grabbed a hold of the visitors’ legs and it was hook, line and sinker from there on in. The children had ten extra arms to be wrapped up in. They LOVED it.

The second group to come out were our friends, Betsy, Aly, Georgina, Andrew and Jonathan.  They are usually regulars here. Andrew and Jonathan are heading back to the States next week; Georgina is going back to Nairobi to finish up her last semester of university but Betsy and Aly will still be coming by.

It’s always great having visitors here. With 104 children, it’s obvious that they can’t all be hugged or given attention to all at the same time.  It’s definitely a gift when teams/visitors come out and love on the children for a day. So people from around the world, if you feel like huggin’ on and lovin’ on some sweet African children, come on over. We got lots for you to love. J

Before dinner, the children went outside to swing on the swings and play around the yard. I went outside with them and the kids asked me to do my dance, which consists of me putting my hands up in the air and turning around in a circle. The children then followed and we had a big dance party.  

Sean’s been keeping pretty busy today. He had to run into town to get some paperwork done for the generator (aka Genny!) that is coming out THIS WEEK to In Step. It was donated from somewhere in the US and shipped on a container here. It’s been a long time wanted and needed out here so everyone is pretty excited about its arrival. Genny is going to be loved here.

Sean also did a clinic run today with one of our boys, Dennis. He woke up this morning with a headache. He was given medicine but the headache persisted and he got a bit of a fever.  So we thought it might be malaria. It’s better to be safe than sorry. And we were correct; the poor little guy tested positive for malaria. He’s on medication now for it.

Every afternoon around three o’clock, we go around and ask the Aunties if any of the children need to go to the clinic. If so, we pile those that are sick, up in one of the vehicles and drive to the nearby clinic. In Step has a wonderful relationship with a doctor there, named Shadrack, who loves the children and takes excellent care of them. He’s definitely a treasure to In Step.

Also, one of our girls, Melissa, is having eye surgery on Thursday, early in the morning here. She will be admitted into the hospital tomorrow afternoon (our social worker is with her); the surgery will only take an hour or so and then she will hopefully be released on Friday to come home. So if everyone could pray for her over the next few days that would be greatly appreciated.

I also thought it would be cool to share what our dinners consist of everyday, since it’s the one that changes every day. Breakfast is chai (tea) and bread; lunch is either ugali (a corn flour and water like mixture, pronounced oo-gal-ee) and sukuma wiki (similar to kale back in North America, pronounced sue-kuu-ma wee-key) or githeri (a maize kernel and bean mixture, pronounced gee-there-ee).

A little fun Kenyan fact for you all:

Last night for dinner, we had tacos. They had meat, mashed avocadoes, tomatoes and onions all wrapped up in a chapati (similar to our tortillas back home but a bit more greasy).  So yummy!  The fun part of this story is that “taco” in Swahili is spelt “tako” and it actually it means “bum/butt”.  So you can imagine a Kenyan’s surprise (and probable disgust) when you tell them that you’re favourite food back in North America are tacos.  

Tonight’s dinner we had rice and green grams (similar to peas) and for dessert was a half an orange. A yummy meal, I must say.

After dinner, the children are all cleaned up and then it’s a chaotic moment (well more like twenty-thirty chaotic minute moments) of getting all the children into pajamas.  The younger ones and babies go to bed pretty much right after that and the older ones clean the dining area and put the clothes away of the younger children.  

It’s chaotic but an organized chaotic.

Sean and I (oh yes, and Cindy-Lou) are getting settled in our room for our night. Little Miss Princess demands attention and when I turn my head from her to type, she squeaks at me. So I better do as she says and give her all of my attention. J

Good night everyone. Until tomorrow.

Much Love,

Meredith

Chaos + 104 = Love: Day 2

Funny how things work here in Kenya, especially when it comes to the Kenya Power & Lighting (but mostly Darkness) Company. We had torrential downpour on Sunday night into Monday morning. The power didn’t flicker, not even once. We don’t even have a drop of rain last night and this morning and what happens? The power is out all night and into this morning and throughout the rest of the day today. Go figure.

And a cold shower I took this morning. Brrrrr!!!!

We had two different groups of people come out to In Step today. The first group was with our friends Louie & Rita Self. They had brought with them five women who just wanted to come and love on the children for a few hours. And that they did.

The children immediately grabbed a hold of the visitors’ legs and it was hook, line and sinker from there on in. The children had ten extra arms to be wrapped up in. They LOVED it.

The second group to come out were our friends, Betsy, Aly, Georgina, Andrew and Jonathan.  They are usually regulars here. Andrew and Jonathan are heading back to the States next week; Georgina is going back to Nairobi to finish up her last semester of university but Betsy and Aly will still be coming by.

It’s always great having visitors here. With 104 children, it’s obvious that they can’t all be hugged or given attention to all at the same time.  It’s definitely a gift when teams/visitors come out and love on the children for a day. So people from around the world, if you feel like huggin’ on and lovin’ on some sweet African children, come on over. We got lots for you to love. J

Before dinner, the children went outside to swing on the swings and play around the yard. I went outside with them and the kids asked me to do my dance, which consists of me putting my hands up in the air and turning around in a circle. The children then followed and we had a big dance party.  

Sean’s been keeping pretty busy today. He had to run into town to get some paperwork done for the generator (aka Genny!) that is coming out THIS WEEK to In Step. It was donated from somewhere in the US and shipped on a container here. It’s been a long time wanted and needed out here so everyone is pretty excited about its arrival. Genny is going to be loved here.

Sean also did a clinic run today with one of our boys, Dennis. He woke up this morning with a headache. He was given medicine but the headache persisted and he got a bit of a fever.  So we thought it might be malaria. It’s better to be safe than sorry. And we were correct; the poor little guy tested positive for malaria. He’s on medication now for it.

Every afternoon around three o’clock, we go around and ask the Aunties if any of the children need to go to the clinic. If so, we pile those that are sick, up in one of the vehicles and drive to the nearby clinic. In Step has a wonderful relationship with a doctor there, named Shadrack, who loves the children and takes excellent care of them. He’s definitely a treasure to In Step.

Also, one of our girls, Melissa, is having eye surgery on Thursday, early in the morning here. She will be admitted into the hospital tomorrow afternoon (our social worker is with her); the surgery will only take an hour or so and then she will hopefully be released on Friday to come home. So if everyone could pray for her over the next few days that would be greatly appreciated.

I also thought it would be cool to share what our dinners consist of everyday, since it’s the one that changes every day. Breakfast is chai (tea) and bread; lunch is either ugali (a corn flour and water like mixture, pronounced oo-gal-ee) and sukuma wiki (similar to kale back in North America, pronounced sue-kuu-ma wee-key) or githeri (a maize kernel and bean mixture, pronounced gee-there-ee).

A little fun Kenyan fact for you all:

Last night for dinner, we had tacos. They had meat, mashed avocadoes, tomatoes and onions all wrapped up in a chapati (similar to our tortillas back home but a bit more greasy).  So yummy!  The fun part of this story is that “taco” in Swahili is spelt “tako” and it actually it means “bum/butt”.  So you can imagine a Kenyan’s surprise (and probable disgust) when you tell them that you’re favourite food back in North America are tacos.  

Tonight’s dinner we had rice and green grams (similar to peas) and for dessert was a half an orange. A yummy meal, I must say.

After dinner, the children are all cleaned up and then it’s a chaotic moment (well more like twenty-thirty chaotic minute moments) of getting all the children into pajamas.  The younger ones and babies go to bed pretty much right after that and the older ones clean the dining area and put the clothes away of the younger children.  

It’s chaotic but an organized chaotic.

Sean and I (oh yes, and Cindy-Lou) are getting settled in our room for our night. Little Miss Princess demands attention and when I turn my head from her to type, she squeaks at me. So I better do as she says and give her all of my attention. J

Good night everyone. Until tomorrow.

Much Love,

Meredith

Mouse in the House: Part 1

To read the new blog:

click here

It's our new blogspot called Stewarts In Africa.

Enjoy!

Unwelcomed Visitors

Check out our other blog:

Stewarts In Africa by clicking here

Much love,
Meredith

Back To Life

We’re home! We got in to Kitale on Wednesday afternoon (early morning for you in the EST).

We have spent the last few days resting (trying to get over the jet lag), unpacking, seeing friends, training our new puppy and loving on our old puppy. Okay, so there hasn’t been that much resting. But we’re back to our life and we are happy.

We left Nairobi at 7:00am on Wednesday to head back to Kitale. Sean and I figured we’ve made it this far; let’s just get up early and go straight home. We had a friend arrange a shuttle for us and we paid for the whole thing – we had quite a bit of luggage and we just really wanted to get on the road. When we were close to home (the last 20 minutes seemed to take FOREVER), we called James and said we would be there shortly.

There was our gate and then there was James, to open it and welcome us home. Here is James’ face when he saw me:

Jack (our 14-month old German Shepherd) was excited to see us. He couldn’t stop running circles around Sean and me, tail wagging like crazy.

We walked in the door and I teared up. We were home. I went to every room of the house (well, skipped to every room) and smiled. I turned to Sean with a big grin on my face and said, “My heart is happy!” Home is definitely where the heart is.

We took James to town and met up with Mark, Derick and Eric and took them for lunch at our favourite restaurant, The Coffee Shop. It was great to see some of our friends in there and get the “Welcome Home” hugs.

After lunch, Sean, James and I headed to town for grocery shopping. We had turned our fridge off while we were in Canada to save on electricity so we had gotten rid of pretty much everything in the house except for a few non-perishables.

That night in our bed was wonderful; I have REALLY missed our bed. It’s seriously the most comfortable bed I have ever slept on.

On Thursday, we picked up our new puppy, Chloe. She’s a twelve-week old Rottweiler and is the cutest thing.

For those of you who don’t know the story, we did have a ten-month Rottweiler named Chloe, before we left for Canada but while we were in Canada, she was poisoned and died. So dear friends of ours here in Kitale, bought us a new puppy (from the same parents as the old Chloe) and were taking care of her until we got back home. We tried to think of another name for this new puppy but because we didn’t have old Chloe for very long – and I have ALWAYS wanted a Rottweiler – we decided to name the new pup Chloe as well. So Sean has spent the past few days training Chloe and getting Jack accustomed to her. She’s just too cute!

On Saturday, we had the Huffmans, the Huckabees (a sweet new couple who just moved to Kenya for a year) and Betsy over for dinner. It was great to have a house full of friends together again. I love cooking for people and setting the table all up and being all hostessy (yes, I know that’s not a word!).

We’re also house-sitting overnight two of Chloe’s siblings while their family is away (yes, that’s three twelve-week old pups – totally fun and cute). They slept well on our front veranda although we did wake up to quite the mess this morning.

Puppies getting ready for a nap in their crate

Sean cleaning up the lovely mess (what a man!).

The yummy puppy food (yes, that's a fish eye).

We finally have the internet up (our phone line was down when we returned) so we’ll be able to communicate with everyone again.

Anyway, that is our update for you. Again, I will try to do regular updates for those inquiring minds out there.

On an emotional side note, thank you Canada for:

1. Letting us see the green grass rather than the white snow (it had been six years of winter in Canada for me).

2. The smell of spring in the air (I love that smell).

3. The leaves on the trees.

4. The flowers beginning to bloom.

5. The beautiful blue jay birds that I got to see.

6. The longer days (daylight until after 8:00pm).

7. Our NAC family rallying around Sean and me and praying for us and loving on us.

8. The ladies’ cell group that I got to be a part of.

9. Our Stewart family for always being there for us and putting up with us.

10. Sean’s dad, who let us drive his Mustang convertible while we were there (sweet ride!).

11. Sean’s mom for her strength and love.

12. Being able to spend Mother’s Day with my mom since it’s been six years since I spent it with her.

13. The great talks that my mom and I had while spending time together.

14. My step-dad, for taking us out on the lake with his beautiful boat and treating us to Mexican Town restaurant (every time we come back to Canada) and cracking jokes with Sean all the time.

15. Time spent with our beautiful nieces and nephews.

16. Hanging out with our siblings.

17. Lunches/Dinners and wonderful/amazing conversations we had with people.

18. ALL OF OUR FRIENDS AND FAMILY who always make it hard to leave because they love us as much as we love them.

Kenya is our home but our friends and family in Canada are never left behind. We are so incredibly thankful for your support and love. You mean so much to us. Please don’t ever forget that!

Much love,

Meredith (& Sean)

Leavin' On A Jet Plane

It’s here; the time has arrived for Sean and me to head back to Kenya. It’s always a bittersweet time. We’re sad to be leaving our friends and family but excited to be heading home to our other friends and family.

This trip to Canada has been different than other years in so many ways. It’s been an emotional trip: sick family members, working on relationships that needed it, reuniting with old friends, opening up about struggles, grieving over losses and goodbyes, preparing for things to come and so on.

There were times of extreme physical, mental, emotional and spiritual exhaustion. There were times when a good solid cry (as my friend says, “the ones where it’s snot and all!”) was all that we could physically do. And all the other times, we just prayed.

I do have to point out that I have one incredible husband. He is the calmest person I know. He’s a man full of emotions (and not afraid to show them) but he’s also a man full of faith that God has it all worked out. I love and admire my husband for that; he’s a wonderful example and I’m honoured to have him as the head of our family.

On Monday, we’re leavin’ on a jet plane (its okay if you start humming the song!). Our trip will take us from Toronto to London, London to Nairobi and then Nairobi to Kitale. Sometimes I wish that I could just close my eyes, tap my heels together, and say “There’s no place like home; there’s no place like home!”....and voila, we’ve arrived. Do you think it will work? It did for Dorothy.

I haven’t been very disciplined with blogging. I hope to change that. There are many things that are going to be happening and we want to share the journey with you.

Thank you for sticking with us; thank you for praying for us. For those of you in Canada, we’ve enjoyed our time with you. And for those of you in Kenya, we can’t wait to see you all. We’re coming home!!!!

Check out our new blog: Stewarts In Africa

Big News Revealed!!!

Our lives are a lot like a book.

There’s a beginning and an end and in between, there’s so much of a story to be told. A story can involve romance, adventure, heartache, birth, death, sadness, or happiness. Sometimes a story can involve all of these and so much more.

Most books have chapters. Our lives have chapters. It’s where one part of the story ends but the other part begins.

Our story, Sean’s and mine, is turning the page to a new chapter; a chapter that we are excited to share with you all.

At the end of the summer, our time with Transformed International (www.transformedinternational.org) will be coming to an end. There are big and great things that will be happening with TI in the next year to come but that’s not our story to tell the rest of the world.

Some may ask, “Does that mean you’re moving back to Canada?”

Our answer is, “No. God is not done with us in Kenya.”

As the door began to close with TI, another one opened with a wonderful ministry that we have grown to love. This ministry, similar to TI’s passion, takes care of and loves on the children of Kitale, Kenya.

In the fall of this year, Sean and I will be joining In Step Foundation Children’s Home (www.rehemainstep.com) as house parents. Our dear friends, Jeff & Carla Picicci, are the co-founders of the organization and have run the home, just outside of Kitale, by themselves on the ground, for years now. They have put a lot of blood, sweat and tears into this place but more than those three put together, they have poured an incredible amount of acceptance and love into the lives of the 93 children in this beautiful home.

Ninety-three children???

Yes, you read it correctly; ninety-three children. Well, right now at least. There could be 95 by next week.

All of these children have incredible stories. In most cases, the beginnings of each of their books were usually filled with sadness and brokenness. Not anymore! Each and every one of these children is being cared for and loved.

And Sean and I get to be a part of it. How amazing is that? So amazing! I can’t be thanking God enough for what He has done these past few months; for what He has done in me, in Sean and in our walk with Him.

We hope you’re excited for us because we’re REALLY excited.

We encourage you to check out In Step’s website (www.rehemainstep.com) to get yourself acquainted with it. If you are at all interested in sponsoring one of 93 children that have yet to be sponsored, please look that up on the website. Most of the children need to be sponsored; so go ahead, pick one that melts your heart and tugs at the strings.

And for those of you who love to pray for us, here’s the list:

1. In Step is building a dorm as they need to expand their space. They need approximately $50,000 in two weeks time for the building material. With rainy season having started in Kenya, they need to get the materials on site before it becomes impossible for the massive delivery trucks. Please check the In-Step website on how to donate.

a. Friends, churches, family...any amount works - $10, $100, $1000.....it all counts.

2. Sean and I are going to need medical insurance and it’s quite expensive. If you’d like to donate toward that, please let me know by emailing us at: thestewartsinafrica@gmail.com and we’ll get you the information on where to send it to.

3. Transitions are always sensitive to all involved so pray that the transition runs smoothly and that all gets accomplished.

4. And always pray for the children of Transformed International (www.transformedinternational.org) and of In Step. They are the reason why we love it here so very much!

Thank you everyone for your encouragement, wisdom and prayers. It truly means a lot to us; you have no idea. Please continue to keep an eye on our blog: www.stewartsinafrica.blogspot.com for more information, updates and random life stories. We definitely haven’t reached the end of our book yet.

Much love,

Meredith

Big News Coming Up....

Sean and I are back in Canada for a visit. We’ve been here a month now. The weather has been pretty good....and then it snowed overnight last night. Green: that’s what I want to see, and trees and flowers budding. The sweet smell of spring; I’d like to be here for it. J

Anyway....

This year, 2011, is going to mark some changes for Sean and me, big changes, changes we are excited about. And we want to share them with you.

So, if you are in the Newmarket, Ontario area, we’d like to invite you to come out and hear us share with you about what 2011 holds for Sean and me.

Date: Sunday, April 3^rd, 2011

Time: 12:30pm

Place: Newmarket Alliance Church (NAC)

1140 Gorham Street (Leslie/Mulock area)

Sean and I are also speaking that morning at our church, NAC, so if you would like to come for the morning service, it begins at 10am. We will then have lunch together and then we’ll share our news with everyone.

We hope that you can all make it. We’d love to see you.

Much love,

Meredith

A Carrot, An Egg or A Coffee Bean

You will never look at a cup of coffee the same way again.

A young woman went to her mother and told her about her life and how things were so hard for her. She did not know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up She was tired of fighting and struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved, a new one arose.

Her mother took her to the kitchen. She filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to boil. In the first she placed carrots, in the second she placed eggs, and in the last she placed ground coffee beans. She let them sit and boil; without saying A word.

In about twenty minutes she turned off the burners. She fished the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. She pulled the eggs out and placed them in a bowl.

Then she ladled the coffee out and placed it in a bowl. Turning to her daughter, she asked, "Tell me what you see." "Carrots, eggs, and coffee," she replied.

Her mother brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. The mother then asked the daughter to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg.

Finally, the mother asked the daughter to sip the coffee. The daughter smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma the daughter then asked, "What does it mean, mother?"

Her mother explained that each of these objects had faced the same adversity: boiling water. Each reacted differently. The carrot went in strong, hard, and unrelenting. However, after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been fragile. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior, but after sitting through the boiling water, its insides became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique, however. After they were in the boiling water, they had changed the water.

"Which are you?" she asked her daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Think of this: Which am I? Am I the carrot that seems strong, but with pain and adversity do I wilt and become soft and lose my strength?

Am I the egg that starts with a malleable heart, but changes with the heat? Did I have a fluid spirit, but after a death, a breakup, a financial hardship or some other trial, have I become hardened and stiff? Does my shell look the same, but on the inside am I bitter and tough with a stiff spirit and hardened heart?

Or am I like the coffee bean? The bean actually changes the hot water, the very circumstance that brings the pain. When the water gets hot, it releases the fragrance and flavor. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and change the situation around you. When the hour is the darkest and trials are their greatest, do you elevate yourself to another level? How do you handle adversity?

Are you a carrot, an egg or a coffee bean?

Time In Between

This is my heart....

It's a song by Francesca Battistelli and I've been listening to it over and over again.

Click the link below to hear the song.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ykS2ZKSzXlk

Below are the lyrics. Enjoy!

Album: My Paper Heart

Song: Time In Between

Artist: Francesca Battistelli

You were there when your Father said
Let there be light
You obeyed when He whispered
Son, You have to leave tonight
To spend nine months in a mothers womb
Three days in a borrowed tomb

(Chorus One)
But it’s the time in between
That brings me to my knees
Knowing you came for me
And all that I can't be
I'm amazed, so amazed
And I thank You for the time in between

Don't take much for this crazy world
To rob me of my peace
And the enemy of my soul
Says You’re holding out on me
So I stand here lifting empty hands
For you to fill me up again

(Chorus Two)
But it’s the time in between
That I fall down to my knees
Waiting on what You'll bring
And the things that I can't see
I know my song’s incomplete
Still I'll sing in the time in between

So many ways
Your love has saved the day
And I'm grateful for them all

(Chorus 3)
But it’s the time in between
The middle of two thieves
That says everything
It’s the reason I believe
I'm amazed, so amazed
And I thank you for the time in between
Oh Lord, I thank you for the time in between