If Home Is Where Your Heart Is. . . .

Today was a long day but really fun.  We had meetings most of the day and the kids were great just sitting through it all. This is my cohort.  India, South Africa, Rwanda, the US and Kenya represented. At one point they went outside to play frisbee and they attracted TONS of attention from the local school kids.  Before I knew it, the boys had an entire group of other boys playing with them and Gabby was being chased and pulled by a big group of curious girls.  I went outside to check on her (because she doesn't often like to be pulled and touched) and she was fine.  The girls could not understand how I am her mother.  They kept asking me how and pointing to their skin and her skin and my skin.  It was adorable!  The begged me to bring Maggie outside because they wanted to meet my Muzungu daughter and when she came outside they surrounded her asking her question after question.  Then they pulled her with them to their class.  It ...

Last night after I finished typing my blog we sat around the living room and played Mad Libs for nearly an hour.  It was hysterical.  I loved just laughing and being silly with my kids.  I wonder if that will be the highlight of my trip? Today we headed to the college for orientation.  On the way up (we found a back was that is only about a half mile walk STRAIGHT UP HILL) and we were thankful for that.  There were hundreds of little kids on the back road--all shouting "MUZUNGU!!!"  It was adorable!  Three of them ran up to Hays and wrapped their arms around him--at his knee caps!  The little ones who couldn't say muzungu yet just kept shouting "ZUNGU! ZUNGU!"  Gabby said, "Aww, they're so cute!  That's why I want to bring one home!"  She has been talking about adopting again while we've been here and I think this morning sealed the deal for her in her mind!  All day long Dax kept asking to go back and play with the kids....

Today was great!  I am so happy to be here. . . so happy & so thankful! We relaxed until around ten and then I made a shopping list with our cook for the market.  She headed to the market and while we out. . . (I'll write about that in a minute). Around noon we headed up to my school to get a feel for where it is in relation to our home.  It is about half a mile UP a BIG hill. . .coming home will be nice!  The school is nice--much nicer than it was in Uganda last summer.  We ran into three of my friends from last year and we all headed to town.  We were quite the spectacle our big group walking down the street.  We got so many stares--maybe because we are muzungu (white people), maybe because we were muzungu with little Rwandan kids, maybe because Gabby has braids and NO Rwandan little girls have braids. . .who knows, but we were the spectacle! My friends from last year, Lauren & Shelley.  They live in Kenya and are in my classes...

I (along with others) believe that life is a journey and not a destination. . .I believe that this trip is a part of the journey and will be a journey (an adventure) all to itself.  But, in terms of traveling to Rwanda, this post is about the journey.  (It was written from Newark and then from Brussles and then from our new home in Rwanda.) --> We left our house at 4:00 this morning.   EARLY!   The morning started off bumpy.   We arrived to the airport early with our 9 tubs of flip flops and the gate agent about fell off her chair.   Then they couldn’t check us in because of computer problems and as we are rushing for the plane, TSA finds a knife in Tiki’s bag—he had stolen it from Hays and stashed it in the pocket of his backpack.   Oh my.   The day has turned out better than it started and we are enjoying relaxing in Newark before we embark on our overseas flight.   My kids are fun to travel with and we ...

So much catching up to do before I can get to my Rwanda posting!!!   These past several weeks have been a crazy roller coaster jam packed with school (lots of school), work (lots of work) and getting ready for Rwanda.   Intermingled with all of that work was a lot of fun and some great stories! First things first—the last day of school and camp starting. . . .   School finally finished and I think we were all happy about that.   Gabby had a super teacher and we will really miss Mrs. Mull.   She says she is sad that there isn’t another Braner following Gabby up the grade ladder (she was Dax’s teacher, too).   Mrs. Hilmer, Dax’s teacher came out to camp after school was over and I finally got “brave” enough to call her Wendy instead of Mrs. Hilmer.   I’m so excited to be her friend and see where our friendship grows. We got chickens--12 of them.  Andy said he didn't want to be lonely while we were in Rwanda, so chickens will be th...