I am really, really bad at blogging. I know that I used to be much better, but this is just sad. It takes sickness to even get me near my computer to blog. Not too long ago, I stayed home from work sick and I wrote this:

"Two days home with a fever has proved to be more productive then I would have thought. A mostly clean room, sorted (but still dirty) loads of laundry, and now this...a long promised blog post. I blame part of this productivity on the fact that the library demanded the return of Gone With The Wind before I had a chance to finished reading it. But another important factor, at least for the blog part, is that I finally got a copy of all the pictures of my trip!! So without further ado, I will try to at least share an overview of my time in Kenya and Uganda."

That was as far as I got. Now, a few weeks later, I am once again home sick only now I have piles of clean clothes that need to be dealt with. I've decided to finish this! I really want to share about my trip because it was AMAZING!

Warning: There is more nudity than I typically allow in this post, but a lesson I've learned on the mission field is to advert my eyes if necessary and take off my American filters.

First of all, we had a nine hour layover in Amsterdam, which was just enough time to take a train to the city center, have a cappuccino, look in the window at Anne Franks house .

The first stop of our trip was to Helping Hands Orphanage in Kisii, Kenya. Pastor Cyrus, his wife, and the staff are doing an amazing job with the kids there. I had such a blast just hanging out and getting to know everyone! 

I loved all the kids, but this little girl stole my heart! She followed me around everywhere, constantly asking to be held, and when we left she cried for me and my heart broke a little bit! 

 They loved to sing for us and we loved to listen and sing along!

   

On our last night there we passed out glow sticks! It was fun, 

but a few of the kids were scared. : P

I also became good friends with Lucy, who is the pastors daughter. 

She got to go with us when we went out and fell asleep in my arms. 

This sweet girl, Ezinah, was very sick and just a few weeks 

after we back to America, she went to be with Jesus. 

The women cook everything on these "stoves". It's amazing! 

                "SEX = HIV= AIDS = DEATH"

This is on the wall of a boys schools. Sex education has a 

whole different meaning in Africa. 

One afternoon we went down to the creek to play in the water!
It was a blast!

 The morning that we were leaving, we came outside after breakfast to this sight.
Most of the kids where crying...so sad to see us go!

 The song they are singing says
"Goodbye goodbye Callie  (they went through each of us!)
You will miss us so much
We will never ever forget you"

After hugs and kisses and tears, all the children where sent of to school. Meanwhile, we finished loading up and started out. As we went around the corner we saw that they we're protesting our departure!!
All the kids were sitting in the middle of the road and along a wooden fence, crying their hearts out! 

They were right about me missing them!!

During one of our days in Kenya we went to a small village that I can't even begin to guess how to spell the name of. Part of the purpose for our trip was to get some details for the administrative side of Remember the Poor. This village was putting in a formal request for help. It was very hard for me to be there. It's very unnerving the difference between a place that is filled with followers of Jesus and a place that isn't. If I ever had any doubts about Christianity, some of the times I have spent in these remote places would be enough to convince me. Our short time spent in this village had a big impact on me.  

We gave out sodas and bread. Most of the kids were literally starving.

The leaders and the kids. 

I brought salvation bracelets and was able to give a short gospel 

presentation, my hands where shaking the entire time.   

This sweet, sweet baby stole a part of my heart. I was playing with some kids and happened to look over and I saw her sitting all alone in the sun. As soon as I picked her up, I knew I was holding a sick baby. She was limp, lethargic, and hardly even noticed that I picked her up. She couldn't have been that old, less then six months maybe, I just held her. Our team and the leaders of the village went into a house for a meeting. One of the women noticed that I was totally involved with the little girl in my arms and told us a bit of her story. Her mom also had another small child and was expecting another...and didn't really pay attention to this one. While we were sitting in the meeting, a women stormed in, scowled at me, and yanked her daughter from my arms. It was totally uncharacteristic from the way that any mother had ever responded to me holding their baby. I don't think I will ever forget that moment. 

We drove from Kenya to Uganda and stopped to look at the source of the Nile along the way.
Of course, it was beautiful!!

This was biggest spider in the world. Can you see it?

I don't have as many picture of the last half of our trip. The second part of our trip was spent in Kampala and Gula, Uganda. Here are some photos from another village, just outside of Gulu.

You can read about these women in my friend Drea's blog. 

We drove and drove out to the middle of nowhere to get to 

Kochgoma. 

Somehow this little lady managed to get a ride from us, 

I think her Aunt pushed her into the car and I'm not sure

she liked it much. :)

They greeted us with a cultural dance!  

The kids LOVED having their photo taken. 

Here are a few random shots.

Here are a couple videos of some of the ministries we got to work with. 

I am so thankful that I was able to go on the trip. I am so thankful to everyone who supported me and prayed for me while I was on this trip. I wouldn't have been able to do it without you! 

Devote yourselves to prayer, keeping alert in it with an attitude of thanksgiving; praying at the same time for us as well, that God will open up to us a door for the word, so that we may speak forth the mystery of Christ, for which I have also been imprisoned; that I may make it clear in the way I ought to speak. Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, as though seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should respond to each person.

Colossians 4:2-6