Sunday, August 26, 2007

chase me daddy...

this pretty much sums up our evenings with ellen. that girl loves to play.

Saturday, August 25, 2007

fun in the sun

ok all you moms out there, take a deep breath and relax. this experiment was done by the expressed and scribbled consent of the patient involved. the surfact used was smooth. clean and nonabrasive. she loved it. she still has her arms, both of them. they still work too.

Monday, August 20, 2007

tentmakers




here are some pictures from the tentmakers conference. it was down by the might niger. it was a really pretty location and we always went down there in the mornings and evening and the afternoons. ya, we did fit the conference in there when we had some free time....=)

ellen bellen bo fellen dellen





these are just some pictures of ellen...well, just being ellen i guess.

bamako zoo

last week we took a family field trip out to the bamako zoo.
not quite the henry doorly in omaha but it did alright.

this is the ostrich...i guess he sneezes quite a bit. we didn't stay long enough to find out.


here is the aligator pond.


ellen was looking at the aligators in the water. she never did figure out that they were actually on the other side. i guess she likes trees better. =)

chimps are pretty friendly once you introduce yourself...

that's the lion. i actually touched its ear and its mane.

any guess as to where all the retired donkeys end up? lion chow.

ellen in the kitchen



i'm guessing this scene looks extremely familiar to all you parents out there. especially my mom.

Tuesday, August 14, 2007

around the yard




here are some pictures of ellen rummaging around the yard.

our walk






this afternoon we decided to go for a little walk to get to know the city of bamako a little better. we were out for a couple hours going up and down random streets and practicing greeting people in bamarakan. it was a fun little walk and some of the bigger streets had really wide sidewalks that ellen could rumble around on. the funny thing is that the sidewalks of mali double as culverts. all the rain water funnels to the hollow area under the sidewalks. they lay concrete slabs over the top and that creates the sidewalk itself. there are some cracks between each slab and some are larger than others. well, ellen will freeze when she comes to one that is larger than an inch. she can be walking along and screeeech!!!! she'll stop right at the edge and look up at us with terror in her eyes. as if to say, "mom and dad, save me from the black pit of torture and torment." it's really funny. we literally have to pick her up and carry her over some of the bigger ones. you can see that in one of the pictures.
some of you have been wondering about tessa. she is great. we see the doctor that works at the US embassy. USA #1. it's kinda' funny because in the states these diseases are seen as death seeking african beasts, and not to downplay them because they do kill, but the african people are like, "oh, you have malaria. gargle salt water and see me in the morning." they really aren't worried about it cuz it happens all the time and thy know how to treat it.
so there you have it. tessa is pretty much back to normal and the baby is doing great as well.

Sunday, August 12, 2007

ellen's birthday party











well, we finally had time for a birthday party for ellen. only 4 days late, not too bad given the circumstances. let's see. we decorated the room with balloons and streamers. we made a little ellen wall and had a cake and cup cakes. we spent some of the afternoon making pinyatas as well. the african kids had never seen a pinyata before and they had a blast taking whacks at them. ellen got a doll for her birthday and hasn't really let it out of her sight ever since. it was a good little party. she was really cute walking around with her crown on all evening.

Wednesday, August 08, 2007

cultural exchange night



thought you might like to see some pictures of the american culture swap. joseph told us that it was a great success. he said he met many new people and got to know some others on a deeper level. he said he will use these contacts for years to come. it was a good time for all.

tessa



here are some pictures of tessa getting one of her seemingly endless rounds of medicine. you will also see young doctor ellen helping with the i.v.

laundry in the rainy season


here is what our room looks like now that we are in the rainy season and have to do our laundry.