Graduation Grins

And I thought Levi had a big smile!
But this whopper belongs to CJ, Clive & Mary's youngest son.
And the reason for his Mombasa-to-Uganda grin?
His graduation from West Nairobi School.

CJ wasn't the only one smiling that day, of course.
His proud parents seem almost as happy as him, don't they?
And we were there too - and grinning also.
Well done, CJ. Good job!
Guy

Beasts, Birds & Boats

Oh, a (not so) little something I forgot to mention.
To get to the island, you first have to get through the hippos.
And when you are this close to these big beasties,
your boat suddenly feels very small and vulnerable.
And when the pilot tells you not to make any sudden moves,
and one of your sons is Gerro (who can't sit still),
then your boat feels particularly small and vulnerable!

Worth all the anxiety though.
Because the hippos are not the lake's only residents.
They share their home with these big, beautiful white pelicans.
And you can get so close to them, you can almost touch them.
Before they take off. In spectacular fashion!
Guy

Skull & Crossbones

Stepping off the boat onto Crescent Island, this is what I saw.
A skull. Bobbing under the gangplank. Boys' faces were a sight!
Later on, walking round the island, we came across these.

Guess every skull must have its crossbones?
But can you picture the boys' faces at this point?!
However, they soon got over their initial shock.
And kept a few for room ornaments.
You've been warned!
Guy

Crescent Island Critters

Long legs. Long neck. Big brown eyes.
Must be Susanna, right? Well, normally, yes.
But on this particular occasion, no.

And yes, we really got THIS close to these wonderful creatures.
And it was on foot. And it was without a guide!
So when you come to see us, insist that ...
we go walking on Crescent Island.

Just like a certain young boy & his mum are doing here!
Guy

Where The Wild Things Are

And here is Dan at Lake Naivasha.

Looking a little like a hairy Highlander with his makeshift "kilt".

We got a small boat across Lake Naivasha to Crescent Island.

And wandered freely among the wild animals there. 

Wildest of all? Dan, Susanna, Levi & Gerro. Silhouetted here.
Framed by a suitably sinister-looking tree.
Guy

Dan's Day Off

We did work Dan pretty hard.
Which, strangely, he seemed to like?
But we did also give him the occasional day off.
Here he is, for instance, on a decidedly dodgy viewing platform.
Looking out over the Great Rift Valley.
On our way to Lake Naivasha.
For a great day out.

Susanna was pretty wary about stepping onto this platform.
As I think her "petrified" smile gives away?
Guy

Dan-Tastic

Dan, our 20 year old nephew, came to stay a few weeks ago.
He's a veritable giant of a man these days. But a gentle giant.
As these pictures illustrate so well.

Unless, of course, he's arm wrestling this tiny tot?
Guy

The "Eyes" Have It

I've heard people talk about "eyes the size of saucers".
But now I know whose eyes that comment was made for.
They're utterly irresistible, aren't they?
Guy

Kenya Calling

My home from home.
The place you're most likely to find me.
At my sunny desk. In the PR office's bay window.
Where I get to see everyone. Coming & going.
So ... when will I get to see you?
Soon, I hope!
Guy

Stealing Kisses

My baby.

With one of our New Life babies.

Both adorable.

 

And if I guess if Susanna is stealing kisses from her baby ...

then I can steal a kiss or two from mine?

Guy

Warm Welcome

Want to know what happens when a new baby arrives here?
Well, a name is chosen & given. Always a fun task.
Photos are taken & filed. Ready for their hoped-for parents.
Footprints are also recorded & kept. For the same reason.
And somewhere in all this, a nice warm bath is always given.
No exceptions. Even when, like this little one ...
you're not sure how "nice" it really is?
Guy

Tartan Treasures

Talking of pearls (see previous post), here are two more.
But these two are "tartan treasures".
Spotted here in their natural Highland habitat.
Against the beautiful backdrop of Balmoral Castle.
Yes, it's our grandson Lucas.
And our grand-daughter Anise (aka Neesee).
Oh, how we miss them!
Lucas was here last January with his mum Lauren.
Neesee is making her first visit this October.
She's bringing her mum Cherry & dad Stephen with her.
And also her younger sister Harriet (aka Harry).
We can't wait!
Guy

Pre-Primary Pearls

New Life covers Kenya from east to west.
From our Kisumu home on the banks of Lake Victoria in the west.
To our Lamu Island learning centre in the east.
Surrounded by the Indian Ocean, it can only be reached by boat.
But it is well worth the wobbly passage across the water.
Because when you disembark at the other side ...
some little, living Indian Ocean New Life "pearls" await you.
Here are a few of them.
Guy

Milky Moment

Our babies might get treated to chocolate eclairs in Nairobi.
But there is a very different reality elsewhere in Kenya.
This girl lives in one of Kenya's drought-stricken regions.
Close to one of our "bush" school & feeding programmes.
Her eyes seem to be smiling, don't you think?
As she peeps over the brim of a very large mug of milk.
May she enjoy many more!
Guy

Good Friday Goodies

Think I've mentioned Alexandre, our local artisan bakery, before?
It's owned by a Frenchman and makes exquisite croissants, etc.
Every day they give all their leftover bread to New Life Home.
But on Good Friday, they came with mini chocolate eclairs.
One each for all the children (not the tiniest babies, of course).
Here's one little "Easter feaster" enjoying her first ever eclair.
Wonder how long it will be before she tastes her second?
Guy

The Tartan Trio

Julia didn't come alone.
She brought her own personal security detail.
In the shape of her daughter Rebecca, a dental nurse.
And Rebecca's boyfriend Neil, an IT desktop engineer.
Rebecca made the perfect First Aid "dummy". No offence!
And Neil did a fantastic job of tidying up New Life's mailing list.
A job that he took back to Scotland to complete.
That's dedication for you!
Guy

The Tartan Trainer

My mum & dad were with us for 10 weeks.
But while they were here, we had another visitor.
Julia Fraser. A good friend from City Church Aberdeen.
Here she is. Outside the doors of All Saints' Cathedral.
About to join us for the morning worship service.
As a nurse, Julia was a fantastic help to us & our Nairobi team.
She joined forces with our own in-house trainer Jaqui Mwango.
And in just 2 days they trained all our Nairobi staff in First Aid.
Including me!
Guy

Gotcha!

It wasn't all work for mum & dad. Almost. But not quite.
Between jobs, they'd warm their aching muscles in African sun.
And would even set up the occasional back garden card school.
In this instance, they both look suitably intent on winning.
But if anyone knows anything about my mum and games,
then the phrase that must come to mind for my poor dad is ...

"lamb to the slaughter"!

Guy

Roll Over!

There were 15 in the pool and the oldest one said:
Roll over, roll over!
So they all rolled over and ... Gran stepped IN!
There were 16 in the pool and the oldest one said:
Roll over, roll over!
So they all rolled over and ... Gran sat DOWN!
You should have seen the Kenyan staff's faces!
You should have seen MY face?!
Guy

Ear, Eye, Nose, You

Just say what you see.
Ear. Eye. Nose. You. (Here, I knows you!)
Baby Angus thinks my dad is very funny. He's not alone!
My mum & dad are here for 10 weeks just now.
But only a little over 2 weeks still left to go.
They've worked SO hard. No surprises there, eh?
But still found time to hang out with the kids.
We'll all miss them SO much when they go.
But maybe this'll be an annual migration?
We're hoping so!
Guy

Kits To Kenya

Two very happy boys from our Ark family home here in Nairobi.
Wearing two Ellon Thistle Football Club shirts - from Scotland.
Bet they never looked better on anyone else before.
Hey, I wonder if Terion Taxis have taken any calls from Nairobi?
Requesting a lift home!
Guy

Catch That Cake

This is 5 days after Christmas - Gerro's 9th birthday.

Did you know he's an extraordinarily good goalkeeper?

How good? Well, I had a phone call just over a week ago.

It was his soccer coach pleading with me. What for?

To let Gerro play in a weekend tournament for 300 kids.

He said they had no hope without Gerro between the posts.

He was spot on, as it turned out, because ...

The only goal scored against him in open play was an own goal.

And their last game came down to a penalty shoot-out.

Gymnast Gerro saved no less than 3 of the 6 penalty shots!

So it was pretty easy deciding what his birthday cake should be.

His brand new goalie gloves "catching" a ball-shaped cake!

Decorated with stars, of course, for our superstar son!

This is the same cake, after dark, a few hours later.

With the candles blazing - lighting up Gerro's face.

It's a magical shot of a magical boy!

Guy

Shake Me Up

Many of mine & Susanna's evenings are spent at home.

To while away the hours, we often watch BBC historical dramas.

Which we then pass on to Clive & Mary, who love them too.

The BBC can't keep up with our combined rate of consumption!

We really enjoyed the BBC's recent adaptation of Bleak House.

It includes a bath-chair-ridden character called Mr. Smallweed.

Who forever barks at his grand-daughter: 'Shake me up, Judy!'

Clive & Mary, Susanna & me, all picked up on this.

And it's now become something of a New Life catchphrase.

Hence, this bar of soap from Susanna in my Christmas stocking.

Look closely!

Guy

An African Advent

Another magical idea from Susanna for our Kenyan Christmas.

More firelight. But this time from our five Advent candles.

Standing in a wreath, which Susanna made herself.

But not from holly and ivy. They are a little scarce here!

But from some of our local plants. Good, isn't it? Exotic even!

What a wonderful way my wife has of making memories.

Guy

The Fascination Of Fire

Here are those same two boys, a little later on Christmas Day.

Toasting marshmallows in our newly-acquired clay chiminea.

If you look carefully, you can just about pick out their outlines.

This was one of Susanna's ways of adding a touch of magic.

Quite hard to do when you're celebrating Christmas in summer.

But firelight after dark was a big hit. Especially with our boys.

Who would have happily stayed up all night. Burning things.

And making themselves sick with sweet & sticky marshmallows.

The simple pleasures, eh?

Guy

We And Our Shadows

Susanna and I weren't the only two around on Christmas Day.

There were those two other chaps.

Who always seem to follow us everywhere these days.

I'm talking about the one pictured above.

With what's known locally as a Mombasa-to-Kampala smile.

And his ever-present sidekick pictured below.

Who looks a little more pensive on this occasion.

Probably wondering which gift to open first?

Guy

What Is She Up To?

We've just had our quietest Christmas Day ever.
Just the 4 of us. No visiting friends or family from overseas.
Maybe that's why Susanna decided to decorate herself?
With one of the tags from the Christmas presents.
She is definitely God's gift to ME!
Guy

Death's Door

It's not just people that are dying in the drought-stricken areas.
But their livestock - which is also their livelihood - too.
Esther came across so many rotting carcasses as she travelled.
This was just one of them.

Thank God death is daily left outside the door.
For those children who cross the threshold into our centres.
This girl is one of them.
Guy

Food For Free

This is one of the photos taken by Esther, our roving reporter.
It is a big 'sufaria' (Kenyan for cooking pot) full of rice & beans.
New Life currently feeds about 2,000 children each weekday.
Nearly all of them in the drought-stricken regions of Kenya.
Often these meals are the only food these children have.
And we provide it at no cost to the children or their families.
Thanks to partners all across Kenya. And around the world.

Here is some of that same rice and beans a few minutes later.
Enough to keep this wee fella going for one more day!
Guy

Roving Reporter

Recognise this? It's a honeymoon suite.
If you happen to live in Tana River County, Kenya.
This one was snapped by Esther, our newest PR team member.
She's serving New Life as something of a roving reporter.
Collecting stories from our many locations across Kenya.
And specialising in our more far-flung ones.

Here's the young lady herself.
At the entrance to the same suite.
Just minus one groom at the moment!
Any offers?
Guy

Daily Bread

We have a French artisanal bakery on our doorstep.
It is called Alexandre. And you MUST visit it, when you visit us.
Anyway, I was buying a baguette from there a few weeks ago.
And chatting about New Life Home at the same time.
The manager immediately came up with a wonderful idea.
That we should receive ALL their leftover bread each day.
Since then, we've collected bin liner bags full of bread every day.
It really is some of the finest bread available in this city.
Need proof?

Just look at the smile it's putting on this toddler's face!
Guy

Come Back, Jamie

It was great to have a team of 10 from City Church Aberdeen.
Between them they visited 7 of our homes/centres in 2 weeks.
Phew!
Jamie (above) had to leave a few days before the others.
But she had all the office staff here begging her to stay.
Everyone wanted more of her one-to-one coaching on MS Office.
She did finally get permission from the staff to leave.
But only on the strict understanding that she must come back.
Soon and very soon.
Guy

Good Job!

Someone taught our toddlers to stick up their thumbs and say:

GOOD JOB!

It has rapidly caught on among all of us here.

Has one of the staff done something a little bit extra or special?

Then up go their team members' thumbs and their shouts of:

GOOD JOB!

Last Saturday my wee niece Leanne became Roland's wee wife.

So the four of us here stuck up our thumbs and shouted:

GOOD JOB!

And hoped that she & Roland would hear it 5,000 miles away!

Guy

WednesDay Is YaYaDay

We have a posh shopping centre near here called YaYa Centre.
And every Wednesday afternoon we get out all our pushchairs.
Load them up with all our crawlers and toddlers.
Recruit a small army of volunteers.
And then head off to the centre.
The kids love it.
If I ever forget it's Wednesday, I'm quickly reminded.
By toddlers screaming "YaYa" upon first sight of the buggies!
Guy