After Sunday School

 Richard's reading group
 Timothy's cooking class
 cole , Joshua and Owen having a jam
 Hope listening to music and supervising
 Matthew's fix-it workshop
 Marilyn escaping for a few minutes with a cuppa
 the trampoline triplets

Where did September go?

Wow, it has been so long since we last wrote that it is hard to know what to include this time, but indeed where has September and most of October gone?
Before we talk about what has happened we are celebrating getting our work permits this week, we have the documents in our possession so we are now legal in this country for three more years, thank you Lord. Thank you too for all those who have been praying for these. All up the process cost us over 4 000 000 shillings (about $2000NZ) but we are pleased to be able to continue the work we are doing here.
Since last report we have had a wonderful visit from our friends Ruth and David for two weeks. They were able to stay in our new house which is now habitable and almost finished. We now need to purchase furniture for it so that it will be ready when we are able to move in ourselves. Our tasks here continue to keep us very busy and we do get tired by the end of the week but the Lord is good and knows when we need something to perk us up. Today for example the boys were up early and had scrubbed out the house, done the windows, and had really worked hard. Marilyn also got a lovely plaque from one of the boarding girls saying 'I love you Aunt Marilyn' ( this is an ohhhhhh! moment, it was really nice).
Last weekend we celebrated Pita's birthday in style. The birthday concert was really fabulous with a lot of dancing and singing items from the children, the traditional barbeque, and some 'disco' dancing at the end. Just as we were about to leave to come home it bucketed down with rain, really heavy rain, so we stayed and all bundled over to P&P's side and watched a movie until it eased. The water was so strong that it washed out part of the compound wall down by the transformer.
The previous day we were preparing for a visit to the compound by  President Museveni but his visit was called off the day before and we will invite him for a proper visit some other time. In the meantime there was such a lot of work done in preparation so the effort was not wasted.
Here we have also celebrated the last of the birthdays for this house this year, Mark's. It was nice to be able to invite the boys from the other family unit to share in the celebrations.
In the last 5 weeks we have had 5 or 6 new babies arrive here (it is hard to remember since they come regularly), the last arrived today (our second for this week). Earlier in the week we got a 2 day old baby girl called Rosa, her mother died in childbirth and the father is young and has no way of caring for her at present. There is the possibility that the family will be able to look after her in due course, but in the meantime she is here. Today was another girl about three weeks, abandoned so nothing else is known about her yet. She is called Gabriella. Please pray for these babies and the others who have arrived and also for Pita as she cares for them when they first arrive, especially at night. Pray also for Rhode, she has been diagnosed with Typhoid this afternoon so she had a temperature and was feeling miserable, we pray that the medication will be effective. There is quite a bit of malaria and Typhoid around at the moment, both Joshua and Ezra also have them.
Well no doubt I've missed out heaps of news but I think this is enough for now, it is time for bed. Thank you to all who keep in touch, we do enjoy getting mail, both e- and snail- we do at times miss NZ so thank you for praying for us.
Till next time, God Bless

Marks Birthday, guitar groups, Rhode

 special meal, chappati and peas
 cake at the home
 one of his presents, cars are a winner with Mark
 celebrating at home with the boys from next door
 one relightable candle, will it relight? (yes it did)
 a picture to paint
 guitar groups practising for Mamas Birthday. What a great way to spend a Saturday afternoon
 move over Elton John, we present.....Rhode in her very academic glasses.

Ruth & David's visit

 resting at Holloand Park
 our lovely place at Holland Park, bedrooms upstairs
 Early morning view, peaceful
 Marilyn testing the hammock
 a malakite kingfisher
 a fish eagle, quite haughty
 a woodland kingfisher, not very common, beautiful
 a pied kingfisher, quite common
 a monitor lizard swimming
 a red-tailed monkey posing
 ruth sampling the hammock
 some old fella also trying it out, easy to fall asleep in
 a family of monkeys came to visit early one morning
 at the source of the Nile
 again our intrepid explorers at the source
 dinner at Ling-Lings Chinese restaurant
 a stunning sunrise
 our family plus Gloria who is an honorary member most Sundays
 with Ruth and David too
 with our beloved Prossy

some recent pics

 Richard, Stuart, and Aima with the guitar they will share which we bought with some donated money. They were rapt!!
 Jannie and Klara with the trusty sewing machine in the foreground
 Friday night DVD time, Ruth ironing (a favourite occupation of hers , NOT). Marilyn knitting STILL, a lot of children doing it. David watching with the boys.
 Bridget, a village girl who visits some Sundays, playing cards with Ruth
 "Tuppence" with her after church ice block
 And one for Bridget too