Day One Uganda!

So I already posted a short and sweet update but here is the whole rundown...

This morning we met in Wanale Hut for worship, bible study, and prayer. That was such a sweet time! Then we all got in the van and went to namatala. We went straight to Mama Sarah's area and Becky showed us the key hole garden that the first tem planted. It's cool! I think we get to take our shot at one tomorrow! After we saw the garden Becky told me I could go looking for "baby girl" so I did! I practically ran toward her house but then I had to stop and wait for Sarah because I knew I would need a translator. We started walking together and then from about 100 feet away I saw her and I RAN the rest of the way. I picked her up and just held her and she smiled!!! I never got to see her smile last year because she was sick so it was such a sweet thing to see her smile, especially at me!!! Sarah caught up with me and helped me ask a neighbor what her name was and she said her name is Chade. Pronounced Cha-day. She is just beautiful :-) Sarah wanted to catch up with the rest of the group so we took Chade and her sister Maria with us. I held her for at least 30 minutes-an hour and then Becky said it was time to send the kids home so we could go to a different area of namatala. When I put her down he just grabbed my legs and wouldn't let go so I picked her up and asked Paul to explain that I would be back but we had to go. He took her, explained, and put her down and she did the same thing so he had to give her to her sister Maria. Maria had to carry Chade home crying. It was so sweet! I can't wait to see her tomorrow :-)

After Chade and Maria left us we went a few other places in the village and then went to mama's house for lunch. When we got there we spent some time with the sewing ladies then went inside for lunch. Lunch was very good. We had fried chicken, potatoes, and pineapple. Typical Uganda food :-) very good. Glenn was there, Jared was there, mama Aidah was there...it was fun! After lunch, as we were getting in the van, Paul told me that Flower was home for lunch. I RAN all the way back there yelling Flower and she ran out and we had the sweetest reunion ever! She is still as beautiful as ever and I can't wait to spend some more time with her!

After lunch we went on a hunt for a hoe, nails, and a big stick (I have no clue. dont ask. you never know.) The hoe, nails, and big stick rang up to a totaly of 13,000 shillings. that would be about $6.50. seriously good deal!  Then we went to the hotel to get a few things before we went to the school. When we got there the kidswere still in class so we waited in the ichooseyou office for a while. Finally, the kids came running out. We all walked outside and I was searching for Teko Brian when all of the sudden I saw him running at me! He ran straight to me and gave me a huge hug! Then he said "Hi Callie" like he has been practicing with Becky and the first team. He never left my side :-) it was the sweetest thing!!! I also got to see Sandra! She no longer has hair but she is gorgeous! She was also pretty glued to my side. I saw Esther, Jacob and Isaac, Fortunante, Edwin, and a few other kids that I have missed so much this year! It was wonderful :-)

Our last stop of the day before the hotel was Chat N Chino (Glenn's coffee shop.) We stopped in to have smoothies and milkshakes and use the internet. The internet wasnt working when we got there so becky called Glenn and he came and fixed it. We updated facebook, blogs, instagram, etc. and drank our drinks then headed back to the hotel for dinner and free time.

This has been such a great first day in Namatala/Mbale. I am overwhelmed with emotions and overflowing with joy! Friends and Family- I miss you! Hope you will come with me someday. It's amazing here.

Tomorrow we will be gardening I believe and maybe some wound cleaning here and there. Monday and Tuesday will be our medical days so be praying for us! Thanks!

Uganda!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm here!!!!! I am in Uganda :-) Praise Jesus! I am so happy! I found "baby girl"!! Her name is Chade! Her sister is Maria. She just let me hug her and kiss her and love her. Paul taught me to say "I love you" to her and I told her over and over! When it was time to go she held onto my skirt and just cried. She did NOT want to leave me :-) I got to see Teko Brian as well! He is so handsome and he has told EVERYONE that I am his sponsor and everyone knows my name because of it! Haha :-) I had the best reunion with Paul, Esther, and FLOWER!!! Sarah, Glenn, Margaret, Sandra, and everyone else are well, and we have seen them quite a bit today.  We are currently at Chat N Chino (Glenn's coffee shop) and we are having milkshakes and updating facebook/blogs/etc. The internet at the hotel is not very good this year.

I am so overwhelmed with everything so far. I am so happy to be here and I just don't know what to do with myself!!! I keep forgetting that I will be here for a long time...I don't have to rush to do everything!!! I'm not on my computer right now so I will have to post pictures to facebook from my phone for today. It has been a great day in Namatala! More later.

Today!

Today! We leave today :-) This will be my very last post from the states! I don't have a whole lot to say except that I am soooooooooooo excited!!!!! I am having major conflicting emotions right now, haha. I am beyond ready and excited to go back to Uganda, but it's still hard to say goodbye to the ones I love here. Family and friends, I'll be home soon enough! Then you will probably have to help me through being here again. Know that I love you and I am so blessed by you in my life! I couldn't do any of this without you! I hope you know that no matter how much I love Uganda, or how long I stay, you will always be missed, loved, and cherished every single moment of every day!

Now lets get going!!!!! Ahhhhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Houston, Dubai, and UGANDA here we come!!!!!!!!!!!!

5 days! Here we go!

I have been thinking that Tuesday would be my last day of work all week. We just discovered a miscommunication and now I don't work Tuesday. All of the sudden I feel like I'm really about to leave the country! I have so much to do! I feel so unprepared. Haha :-) its a wonderful feeling! Sounds crazy I know but feeling unprepared and rushed makes me realize that I'm leaving in 5 days!!!!! So soon! Last monday when the first team left I fell into an AWFUL funk. After some much needed time in the word and a reminder of God's sovereignty and faithfulness the funk left. Praise God! It wasn't fun. So now I'm on the downhill slope! Going very fast! Praise Him! I have to make sure I have everything. THEN I have to make sure it all fits! This is going to be quite the challenge since people keep asking me to bring something for them, or take something to their child. BUT, I will find a way :-) please pray with me this week! Pray for safety and for God to move in Mbale/Namatala in mighty ways! One of my prayers has been, and still is, that the alcohol problem would be taken away from that village completely. Pray for that with me this week? Thanks! I also hope you will pray with me for our medical clinics, gardens, and the new water well coming soon! Most important of all let's pray for SALVATION in Namatala and Mbale! Let's pray that the Holy Spirit would fall in that place and that every person would come to know Jesus as their Lord and Savior!!!!!
I can't wait to be here telling you about what our God is doing in Uganda! 5 days :-D Praise Him!

A week and a half!

I just got a picture of Teko Brian from Becky!!!!! He is the most handsome little man I have ever seen. Seriously. It made my heart SO happy to see him in his school uniform smiling, and know that I will be with him soon! I have really been struggling with being here lately. It's not that I don't love my friends and family, I really really do! But I have just been anxious. It's as if the enemy is trying to tell me I'll never get there. But I have news for him...I'm going to get there!!! Jesus is all in this trip and I am SO excited to see what he has in store for us! I have a week and a half left here to love people well before I go and that's exactly what I plan to do :-) The enemy is already defeated, he just doesn't know it yet. Amen!

Packing!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! / 17 days

I'M PACKING FOR UGANDA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It's so close! I'm so excited!!!!! I can't believe it's actually that time again!

In some aspects this is going to still be a very new experience for me. I have no clue what it is like to return to people who know and love you (although I have heard it's AMAZING.) I don't know what my reunion with Teko Brian will be like, or how I will react when we step off the plane, or even what I am going to want to do first! (Thankfully that part isn't really up to me!) So this will still be rather new to me! All I know for sure is that I am bursting with excitemement and coming apart at the seams thinking about how soon I will be there! Only 17 days until I go back to Uganda and I am SO excited!!! However, I would be lying if I said it isn't bittersweet.

Aimee (the cutest almost 5 year old in the WHOLE WORLD) will be turning 5 without me this year. This is probably the hardest part of leaving this summer. My baby girl is turning 5! It's a big deal! I so wish I could snap my fingers and be here for her party. I am really hoping to skype in for a few minutes to at least tell her happy birthday and remind her that I love her. Aimee, if you ever read this, Lala loves you SOOOOOOO much. To infinity and beyond and back! (haha I win!)

Leaving my baby sister for 6 weeks is also one of the hard things about leaving for so long. Leaving my whole family is going to be hard but there is something extra hard about leaving my baby sister. (ok she is 15...not a baby anymore...but still) My mom and I are extremely close and I will miss her to pieces but I know that I can skype her and she is going to be ok. I know I can skype with my little sister as well but she is 15! You grow and change and go through so much when you're 15 and I hate missing even one second of it! I love and CHERISH our late night talks when she comes into my room just to tell me about a boy, or about something that happened at school, or just to say hi! I can't help but feel like I'm going to come home and she is going to be so different. Still beautiful and wonderful but different. She is going on a mission trip to Costa Rica while I'm gone and I wish I could be here to scratch her back or play with her hair while she tells me all about the things she sees and does. Thank the Lord for technology. Skype will have to do.

My friends. I SOOOOOOOOOO wish they could come with me!!! I just want to pack up everyone I love and take them with me. They would love Uganda! Or at least I like to think they would. :-) Again, I'm so thankful for technology and skype, but 6 weeks is a long time to go without my besties! Luckily, I have some amazing besties and I know that we will talk and I know that they will be here when I get home!

Random post Uganda posts :-)

These are some re-post worthy pictures and comments! It's not much...Becky Ball made fun of me for my flashback to last years trip and how whiney I sounded about having to go to the gamepark ;-) hahaha I just did NOT want to be there at the time. Looking back now, I am SO glad we went. It was a great experience. Thanks Becky :-)

I don’t know these kids. They were with us in Namatala but we didnt get to know them very well. It doesn’t matter if I spent the whole week playing with them, like I did some of them, or one day taking a few pictures with them, like I did with these kids, the unmistakable fingerprint of God is covering these children. I cannot look at them wihtout seeing our Fathers love. I cannot be with them without wanting to love them in a way that will point them to the cross. I thank God every day for giving me the opportunity to love these children.

I miss this girl :-) Vicky is so sweet. This was a fun day! Trying so hard not to get rained on haha. So many kids and 8 Mzungus standing in one very small area. Good times.

So stinkin cute!!!!! In church on sunday I held him the whole time that he was in with the adults and when I would rub his arm he would rub mine and when we would dance he would dance. Lauri blew him kisses from the row in front of us and he blew her kisses back! haha it was so cute. Then we were sitting in the seat singing and he turned and looked at me then put his arm around me. It was so cute!!!!! haha Just like a little man :-) I seriously considered making room in my suit case for this one!

Papa Ted, you are so loved. Lauri, thanks for sharing your dad with so many of us. These kids absolutely adore Papa Ted. Papa Ted adores them too. It is so easy to see why :-)

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Thats all! I would like to thank everyone for making my 23rd 2nd anniversary of my 21st birthday wonderful! I got flowers, a new bible, a pedicure, some amazing girl time at grins, cute clothes, a new purse, nail polish, and so much food ill probably never eat again! Best part was seeing all of my wonderful friends and being so encouraged by my community! Yall are the best!