the boys...

The boys are great. Africa is one adventure after another, and Josiah is all about adventure. He loves being able to eat with his hands, and never tires of beans and rice, or ugali (stiff porridge made of maize—like corn but not sweet). Today we were served cow stomach and intestines. Josiah didn’t mind. Kinda grossed me out, though. Also, he loves the fish here (fresh tilapia for a quarter each!). He likes going to new churches that don’t have buildings yet, because when church is outside, it’s okay to play with sticks, right? He likes playing with the kids here, and is learning how they play their games. He thinks bumpy roads are the best (no shortage here!). And we occasionally see a monkey running around, which always makes his day (one was taking our clothes off the line last week!).

Elijah is growing up, too. He is trying to walk. He stands without holding on to anything, but to walk, he has to be holding something, like a mop or a hand towel. He loves being outside, playing in the dirt, and is learning to tolerate bumps on the road. Best of all, he is so receptive to new people; here, when you greet an older person, you say, “shikamo”, but, for babies, the mama says shikamo for the baby, then takes the baby’s hand to touch the top of the other person’s head… Elijah has learned this, so when we lean him a little bit, he will always reach out and touch the other person’s head, then just go to the other person. Everyone enjoys this!

I will try to post some pictures before the power goes out...