Hopping Mad

This "big beastie" was quietly sitting on a branch nearby.
Until Gerro gently prodded it with a broom.
Causing said "beastie" to swoop in the general direction of my face.
After much screaming & hysterical hopping from one foot to another (by me, not it), I calmed down enough to take a picture of my attacker.
Farrah

Next To Godliness

One way New Life keeps its costs down is by making its own soap.
Martha is our head housekeeper.
That's her hand stirring the soap mixture.
After taking this picture, Susanna got stuck in too.
Soap-er!
Guy

Slavic Surprise

Drifting off to sleep the other night.
Suddenly the door burst open.
There before me, larger than life, my long-lost Bulgarian relative ...
Borislava "Fazka" Bastablova.
Guy

Jurassic Park IV

Levi & Gerro came tearing into the house a few days ago.
Extremely excited about something.
That something is on the right.
No, not a triceratops.
But a chameleon.
Making his very slow way up the tree just outside our front door.
Wonderful!
Guy

While The Cat's Away ...

Having posted a photo of Jaqui yesterday, it seemed right to feature a couple more team members today.
This is Ann, our Admin Manager, on the left.
And Kyeni (pronounced "Chenny"), our Public Relations Officer, on the right.
Snapped here clowning around with funny hats at a recent in-house jumble sale.
Clive & Mary were away at the time!
Guy

Seeing Double

Farrah thought it would be nice to post a photo of Jaqui, after she was named (but not seen) in the post below.
So here we go ...
A few days ago, Jaqui turned up for work in dungarees & an orange t-shirt.
When she stepped into the baby unit, there waiting for her was a "wee fella" in an identical outfit.
Susanna snapped this shot of the New Life "twins".
Guy

Braids & Bites

Wondered how long Farrah would be here before she got her hair braided.
Answer?  Just 16 days.
Once she discovered that Jaqui Mwango, New Life's Health & Hygiene Advisor, had a secret "after hours" life as a hairdresser, it was just a question of fixing a time & place.
Which turned out to be yesterday afternoon in our back garden.
Jaqui kicked off at 1.30pm.
7 long hours (and 25 mosquito bites) later, Farrah was resplendent with her new golden "mop head".
Guy

Reunion Rhyme

This week
I have been looking

Looking for a friend

I left mine back in Scotland

My heart needs help to mend

Many hands
I have been shaking

While searching for a match

Last night a special someone
Reached out, my hand to catch

Today
I have been laughing

While sitting in the sun

My Scottish Sophie found me
Och aye, she is the "one"!

Pathetic (as critiqued by dad) poems aside, I'm delighted that she is here! :)

Farrah

Boxing Day

That's one box.
Just another 200 to go.
Phew!
Guy

Outlaws Outwitted

In Methlick, 10 months ago, we packed all our "stuff" into a 40' container.
Today - 5,000 miles later - it turned up here at New Life.
All 201 boxes of it!
Much to the relief of Levi & Gerro, who'd become convinced that Somali pirates would hijack the boat in order to pillage their Star Wars lightsabers.
Guy & Farrah

Hope's Last Bedtime

Baby Hope arrived at New Life just before we did.

At first she began to thrive, but then suddenly took a turn for the worse.

She suffered a bad bout of diarrhoea, lost a lot of weight, became very sick, and fought for her life for 4 weeks.
Doctors and nurses here did everything they could.

More than once little Hope fought her way back from the brink of death.
But finally lost her battle today.

Susanna

Jane (who has been at New Life since it began in 1994) and I drove dear baby Hope to the mortuary.
As with baby Ivy, I took baby Hope into the mortuary and waited & watched while she was washed & wrapped for a final time.

It feels like I'm putting these little ones to bed for one last time.

I will see them again when we wake up on resurrection morning.

Guy

Together Again

At 3am this morning, our darling Farrah touched down at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport.
Willie (the taxi driver) and I, bleary-eyed, were there to meet her.
We finally got to New Life at 4am.
Surprisingly, Susanna was not in bed.
Too excited maybe about having a female companion back in the family?
And the boys were thrilled to be reunited with their LBS (littlest big sister) this morning.
That's Levi sat on Farrah's lap, with a big smile on his face, blocking out most of his sister's face.
Farrah expects to be here in Kenya with us for a couple of years.

Hurrah!

Guy

Salami & Amani

Rare treat last night.
Taken out to local Italian restaurant by team of volunteers from Amani Children's Foundation. 
See www.amanichildren.org for more about these wonderful people, based in US & big friends of New Life.
Here's Rene, the Amani team leader, with Susanna, just before we all tucked in to pizza & pasta.
Rene and Susanna first met when they were both in Nairobi at the same time, adopting children from New Life.
They lived in the same apartment block & became good friends.
This is the first reunion since then.
Friends & food ... la Dolce Vita!
Guy