My Last Trip to Nairobi

As we are hoping to be on a big plane home in the next month or two....we are beginning to wind things down here so that when we get that good news from the US embassy we will be ready to go!  Uncle Gogo always needs to go across the border to Kenya every so often because he is not an official resident like Mommy and we are. So....he crosses into Nairobi every few months and then comes back, legally paying his tourist visa fees. 

This last time we decided to make it a family trip.  Shei Shei had not yet been to Kenya so this was her first international trip.  I've been lots with Mommy, but this is probably my last time to go there for a long long time. 

We had a great sendoff.  We all love Nairobi so much.  We always stay at the Stanley hotel.  They have a great swimming pool there that the whole family loves to play in.  We also went to see Karen Blixens old coffee plantation.  I don't know who the heck Karen Blixen is, but Mommy loves this old house and museum and grounds and she kept saying that Shei Shei and I would enjoy having photos of having visited it later on in life.  Uncle Gogo definitely wasn't interested in visiting and neither were we....but Mommy dragged ALL of us there.  And, we managed to have some fun.  I saw a lot of animal skins laid out on the floor.  Most of them had the head stuffed and it was sticking up off the ground.....ew!  Mommy was grossed out, but I kept naming animals...leopard, cheetah, lion wow!!!

After that, we went to visit the giraffe santuary again.  I was there before with Bada....but Uncle Gogo really wanted to go one last time....he french kissed a giraffe!  ew!!!!

We also went out to eat and got pizza and shopped.  And, we did lots of swimming in the pool.  I used a floating tube and pretended it was a boat.  All in all, it was a great, short, last trip to Nairobi. 

Bath for Two Please...

Today, for the first time, Mommy had Shei Shei and I take a bath together.  Usually we bathe separately because Shei Shei has still been using the small baby bath, but Mommy thought that she was finally big enough to brave the big waters, so we had a bath in the big tub together. 

I LOVE baths....and this one was even better because I had a friend, a compadre, a partner in crime.  Mommy was helpless against two of us...and soaking wet to boot.  She sounded a bit tired and cranky and she looked pretty wet, but we didn't care.  Boy was it FUN!

Santa Came to My House!!!

Can you believe it??  I was so excited.  It's the first thing I checked this morning....and guess what?  He ate the cookies and drank the tea, but he left his trash on the table (he must not have a Mommy!!).  It's ok Santa, I cleaned it up for you. 

What a day it was!  I can't believe how fun Christmas is.  Really, every day should be Christmas Day.  We ate tons of food, we opened lots of gifts, we went to church, we saw friends, we watched feel good Christmas movies (It's Christmas Charlie Brown and Sound of Music.....to which Mommy sung EVERY word and Uncle Gogo cringed in horror) and, oh did I mention the food and the presents.  It was amazing!!!!  I had so much fun.  Bada and Grandad joined in the fun.  We put on the Peter (computer) and turned on skype and the video and Bada and Grandad watached us open our stockings filled by Santa and our gift from Santa.  Santa gave me a new toothbrush, a small book and lots of food (dried apricots, an orange, juice boxes etc.).  He also left a big present for me to open - a wooden train set!  I LOVE IT!!!

Then, we got off skype and had a baked french toast that Mommy made (I did NOT like it, but Shei Shei ate my portion).  After that, we all got ready and went to church....I told all the people around me that Santa came to my house and ate our cookies....they seemed pretty impressed.  I also shook hands with everyone and said peace.  I was on FIRE at church today. 

When we got home from church we called Bada and Grandad again on the Peter (computer) and we all opened our gifts from Mommy together.  I got more books and some counting flash cards.  My favorite gift from Mommy was definitely my lion hat.  It is sooo cooooool......I have a lion on my baseball cap.  Not many people can say that!

In the afternoon we relaxed during nap time on the couch with some movies and then delivered cookies to our friends.  Everyone else was having a nice Christmas too.  We went to dinner at Impala (my favorite), and then came home to play a little....unwind with a bit of Sound of Music and then head to bed.  I hope every day is Christmas! 

Santa's Coming

Tonight was Christmas eve.  Usually we would be going to a Christmas eve church service tonight, but there was not one to be found here, so we had our Christmas eve service a few nights ago at the Christmas Carole event. 

Instead, tonight we had a family evening at home.  Mommy tells me that usually, back in CA the family would make enchiladas and mexican treats and have dinner all together at home before going to a midnight church service.  So, here, we made enchiladas and bean dip with guacomole and salsa and chips.  It was YUMMY.  On top of that, Mommy let us eat it in the living room around the coffee table while we watched the coolest movie.  It's called the Polar Express, about a little boy who goes to the North Pole and finds Santa.  I think that is so cool as I'm learning all about Santa right now. 

After the movie, we put a plate of cookies and a piping hot cup of tea out for Santa Claus, Mommy read me my two favorite Christmas stories that we've been reading non-stop for the past 3 weeks, and then I quickly headed off to bed.  Mommy told me it's important to get to sleep early, otherwise, if Santa sees that I'm awake when he is flying in our neighborhood, he might just skip our house.

I can't wait to wake up tomorrow and see what has happened overnight.  I sure hope Santa makes it to our house tonight. 

Here's hoping!!!!

New Traditions

Mommy is starting her own Christmas tradition with Shei Shei and I.  Each year on Christmas Eve day, the three of us will go to lunch just us...no one else is allowed to join.  And, at that lunch Mommy gives each of us a special Christmas gift that we get to open with her, and she gives us each a letter which she has written to us talking about the past year, what has happened in our lives and in the world over the past year.  When we grow up we'll have the story of our lives through her Christmas letters. 

Today was our first time with our new Christmas tradition.  Mommy took us to Mt. Meru Game Lodge and we had lunch together and opened our gifts.  Mommy gave each of us a memory book made from Tanzania.  This book is empty now, but she is going to fill it with each of our adoption story and how we came to find our forever family.  It's too hard here in Tanzania to actually do the scrapbook part of it, since even decent working pens are hard to find.  But, she'll work on that when we get home.  And, we'll have our beautiful masai beaded books to house our special stoy in. 

Thanks Mommy for a fun lunch, a beautiful memory book and a great new tradition.  Merry Christmas Eve.

A Christmas Carol

Tonight, the family went to the Arusha Community Church which was holding a special evening service of Christmas carols.  Mommy says it was like the Christmas Eve services that she is used to going to in the US, only its a few days earlier here. 

It was a bit difficult for me to sit quietly through the whole service and I was overly excited by the lighting of the candles.  At one point Mommy was afraid I might burn the church down.  But, I had a fun time, and I ALWAYS love music, so when people were singing, I tried to sing along, even though I didn't know the words, and I did a little dancing as well. 

And, we saw some of our favorite people there....Sister Sheila was there, who helped us with our home study, and Davona, the Director of Cradle of Love and her husband Max, and Maria were there, and Mommy's friend Madeline and her family was there.  It was nice to feel like we were in a community and to remember the importance of peace.  I learned how to say peace to people....as 'peace be with you' was a bit of  mouthful for me to say to people that I don't even know...but 'peace' seemed to be an acheivable goal for me. 

The sermon tonight was a little tough to follow (as I was a squirmy fellow), but it seemed to be about making room in our lives for people....and it made me think how our family has been built this year, we have all had to make room in our lives for each other, and we are a whole lot better for it, so that sermon guy might be on to something.  I'll have to rememer to make room in my life for people.

So far....I'm loving everything about this Christmas thing.  Merry Christmas to you all.

Holiday Family Photo 2009

Baking Christmas Cookies with the Family

This weekend we spent most of our time at home. Mommy was in the holiday spirit and we got supplies, turned on the tree lights, cranked up the Christmas music and baked our little heart out. Those in our vicinity should expect some elves to drop holiday cookies at their doorstep very soon. Don't worry....Mommy made me wash me hands....a lot!

I LOVE baking. Well, I kind of like mixing, I REALLY like kneeding (with my hands) and I LOVE eating!!!!

I especially loved eating the booze balls off my hands. Mommy was trying hard to get it all off my hands before I could lick them, but I snuck in a few licks regardless. It's just a little rum Mom....what's the problem??

Dar es Salaam

I haven't written for a bit, because we traveled last week to Dar es Salaam to apply for our visas to become US citizens and enter the US.  It was quite a difficult week.  First the document that we needed to include in our application to the US embassy never arrived.  They were held up by the ministry of health because they said that they found poop in the container that they were in when they came from London.  That sounds just crazy to me.  I go to the bathroom in the potty so I can't imagine that someone would go to the bathroom in a container.  Anyway....that kept us in Dar for 5 days instead of 3.  AND, our package still didn't arrive. 

On the drive over we had company.  A little baby from the orphanage came with us so that she could get tested for HIV.  We really hope that she has a good outcome just like Shei Shei did back in February.  Shei Shei, Rachel (the baby) and I all rode in the backseat together for the 10 hour drive to Dar.  Mommy kept getting mad at me, but I just couldn't control my hands.  It was so fun to have a little baby to poke at, I couldn't seem to stop myself.  Sometimes it made Rachel cry though, which made Mommy mad.  I tried to stop....really I did, but I just couldn't.  Mommy didn't think I'd make it for the whole ride without having an accident in my pants so she put me in diapers for the car ride.  However, I asked about every hour to stop and go potty and so she'd pull the car over and get me out and I'd go by the side of the road, and I didn't need the diapers at all.  I didn't have one single accident!

Dar was HOT!  And our hotel room had air conditioning but it was very small.  And, there is really nothing to do in Dar....so we spent a lot of time in a very small hotel room.  Mommy got us out a bit each day to play but it was so so hot that it was hard to play outside for very long.  We also went to the US embassy every day we were there, for filing the paperwork, doing interviews and getting the grown ups finger prints taken so the FBI can check and make sure Mommy and Uncle Gogo are wanted felons. 

We had an ok time and tried to make the best of it, but I was sure glad to arrive back at home.  I really my nice big house and my nice big gardens and our wonderful climate at the base of our mountains.  Welcome home to us!!!  And, the doggies were all so glad to see us.