Good week at the house, everyone is adjusting well. I thank God everyday for putting these sweet little ones in my life. I love every minute I get to spend with them. I am reminded of how truly blessed I am every time I see a smile on their faces. 

The whole crew

Isaac is doing better this week. He is sleeping through the night and starting to act more like himself. He was all smiles this afternoon. 

Cyril was as happy as could be today. She was laughing hysterically for at least an hour and a half today. I love seeing her so full of joy. 

Lavender is doing good. Getting more and more used to being at the house. The physical therapist made her a chair to help her learn to sit and as she gets stronger we can take out the seat and use it to help her learn to stand. She loves having her own special chair. 

Lavender is doing great! She is such a sweet little girl. She’s getting adjusted and gets more comfortable in her new environment everyday. Today I took her to church with me and she clapped her hands during the service and kept turning through the pages in my Bible. Then I went back to the house and spent the whole afternoon with the kids. 

Cyril was in such a good mood. She was laughing and playing the whole afternoon. I was sitting on the floor and she came up and snuggled next to me. Then Lavender asked me to hold her so I put her on my lap. Cyril was still in her cuddly mood and Lavender put her arm around Cyril who was resting her head on her shoulder. It was precious. Afterwards we all played catch and they were both having so much fun and laughing so hard. I love that they are starting to interact and become friends. 

Lavender ready to catch the ball.

So happy!

Keep Isaac in your prayers this week. He is so skinny and we are having trouble getting him to put on weight and he's been a little sick this week. He doesn't really have a great appetite and has trouble keeping food down. We took him to the doctor this week and found out he is anemic, so hopefully the medicine starts working he will be on the road to being healthy. 

Throughout my time here I have visited a slum called Bosnia a few times. Last week we decided to go and just spend some time walking around and visiting some of the people we had met on our other visits. Most of the kids in the area are infested with jiggers. These little kids have to walk on their heels because of how painful it is to walk. 

We visited a tiny little school and went back to remove jiggers from the feet of some of the kids who go there. 

The first graders

The whole school singing a song for us.

The kids lining up to have jiggers removed

Sweet Flora had jiggers all over her hands and feet

Flora soaking her feet before getting her jiggers removed. 

Little Charity holding her little brother who
also had jiggers on their hands and feet.

It is a joy  having Noel in the house. She is such a sweet little addition to the crew that we have there now. On the first time we met her, we were told her name was Noel, but yesterday when she was asked she told us Lavender. So now we are getting used to calling her a different name. She is doing great, still a little quiet and reserved, but will get more comfortable as time passes. 

Lavender

Today I just spent some time hanging out with the kids and it was great. 

Cyril, washing her hands and face after lunch

Isaac and Lavender taking afternoon naps in the backyard.

Then later in the day we had Dr. Nabongo come pay us a visit. He is the physical therapist from the District Hospital. He came and showed us what exercises will best help the kids and is making a few things that will help the kids learn to sit and have better control over their movements. It is great that he can come to the house and see them all at once.

Isaac's new way of relaxing on the couch. The rolled socks keep him from clenching
his fists and the pillow between his legs keeps his hips in the right position.

Lavender loved the exercise where she got to scoot across the couch.

Praise the Lord for another great week in Kitale. All the kids are doing great in the house. The goal was to start with three kids and so Noel came to the house yesterday. Her mother has been struggling to provide for Noel and her other 2 kids by herself. Her mother asked us to help, so we moved Noel into the house. 

She is a cute little bundle of joy. Her mom told us that she could talk,  so we were thinking that she could say a few words. She is very shy and quiet at first, but once she warms up she loves to talk. It’s nice to have a little chatterbox in the house. She can almost sit on her own and with the help of physical therapy should be able to make great improvements. She is such a smart little girl and I am excited to watch her improve. Keep her in your prayers as she adjusts to being in a new environment. 

Everyone at the house is doing so great. I was a little worried that Cyril would have trouble adjusting to the new place, but she is doing just fine. Isaac is still doing great too. I love walking in the house and hearing them just sitting and laughing at each other. 

This Sunday we decided to bring Cyril and Isaac over to Leila’s house so they could spend a little social time with her kids. It was so fun. Isaac was laughing at all the noise and running around that was going on at the house. Cyril enjoyed playing with Bella and Vella and the other kids too.

Brian learning to sit in his basin.

Sweet Rael.

Rose loved making Isaac smile.

Rose also loved Cyril

Bella and Isaac

Smile!

When I first met Cyril she was in bad shape. She had been sick with malaria and typhoid, so she had a high fever that was causing her to have seizures. Since she was sick, her appetite was not good and was very malnourished. At first I had no option but to do my best to help her from home. We started bringing her some PlumpyNut and Porridge so that she could at least have some protein in her diet. This helped her legs start to heal her legs and when they stopped hurting she started walking around again.

Her mother loves her very much, but has two other young children, a one year old with Down Syndrome and an infant, that also need a lot of support. Whenever I would go visit I would just sit and talk to her mom about Cyril and Henry. Henry is still young, so we are going to help him get physical therapy so that he can strengthen his muscles and start walking. She is a sweet woman who loves her kids, but lacks the resources to give them proper care. Cyril’s mother asked us to help, so Cyril moved into her new home this week. 

Henry

Cyril playing outside her house. I would always find her
here when I came to visit.

Cyril's mother

Now Cyril is all settled in and I have never seen her so happy. She is sleeping through the night and eating good meals. She loves sitting under the shade of the tree in the backyard. She has new toys to play with, but don’t expect her to share with you. She loves following Mary around the backyard too. She is all smiles and has the sweetest laugh. Yesterday I was sitting in the living room playing music for her and Isaac and they were just laughing back and forth at each other. I am so blessed to be able to be a part of these kid’s lives and I can’t wait to see God work in their lives as they continue to improve.

Hanging out in the shade

Lunch time!

Lounging on the couch.

It was a wonderfully busy week here in Kitale. The house got all finished up, we moved everything in and took in our first kid. For so long this was just a dream and a far off goal, but God is good and through him all things are possible.

First, let me give you a virtual tour of the house. 

The front of the house

The backyard

The kid's room 

Isaac just woke up from his afternoon nap in the living room

Now meet Isaac. I wrote about his story before, but here is a little refresher just in case you didn’t see it. Isaac has Hydrocephalus and Cerebral Palsy and we met him at the district hospital  where his father, Peter, took him for physical therapy occasionally. Peter is a good father, but just couldn’t give Isaac the care he needs. Isaac’s mother left her family and all of the weight of providing and carrying for their children landed on Peter. He has to work hard to send his other two children to school and put some food on the table. That means that Isaac had to lay on the floor of their home all day, without food, water or any type of attention until someone came home. His story broke my heart so we talked to his father and he was relieved that Isaac will now be given the care he needs. So Isaac moved into his new home on Tuesday.

Isaac is such an easy going little guy.  The first night he didn’t sleep a wink. He didn’t cry, but just laid there looking around. The next day, as soon as he was finished with lunch, he was fast asleep and on the second day is already sleeping well. He is making a quick adjustment. I didn’t realize the first time I met Isaac how skinny he was because his other needs were so much more apparent. He is malnourished and you can see all of his ribs and his arms and legs are so tiny. Now he will be getting 3 good meals a day and 2 smaller snacks in between so that he can get to a healthy weight. He was running a little bit of a fever, so we took him to the doctor and they told us that he had malaria. He is now on medication and should be healthy in no time and we set up plug in mosquito repellent in the room to keep him from getting it again. We will slowly start working on stretching his arms and legs to that they aren’t so stiff and will have a physical therapist come to the house to give him therapy. Isaac is so full of joy and smiles all day long and I can’t wait to watch him as he continues to improve. 

Isaac still smiling after a full night of no sleep

Still awake...

And finally asleep

All of this wouldn’t be possible without the help of a very special lady name Mary. She is the house mother and lives with the kids and cares for them. Here, it is easy to find someone who will work with kids, but it is hard to find someone who is willing to work with kids with disabilities. Mary said no problem and dove right in. Isaac’s face brightens up when she walks into the room and you can see that she really cares for him. I thank God for providing someone who is so willing and compassionate. 

Isaac and Mary