Bump Update

Ok, so I know it's not a huge bump, but there is a bump, nonetheless.  I promise the baby is in there.  

For my next exciting post, I'll tell you about our trip to Dar, and I'll include a lovely picture of Sasquatch's ever-growing beard.

And the Baby Is...

 A Girl!  So, all you out there who guessed boy, I'm sorry, maybe next time.  I have three theories as to why we should have known all along that it would be a girl. 

1.  I think Cheryl had it right.  I'm still pretty tiny, and if this were a Brett-sized boy, I'd probably be huge by now.

2.  T's comment about our team.  It seems that if you are a member of the Geita team, you are not permitted to have boys.  The Groen's have 3 girls, we're having a girl, and Daniel and Kasey are having a girl.  Now, the McNeal's don't know yet what they're having, so we'll have to wait 2 or 3 more months to see test this theory.

3.  Brett has always maintained that he is incapable of producing girls.  I assume God thought this would be a good opportunity for a laugh.

Really, we're happy with a girl.  The doctor's appointment went well, and the baby is very healthy.  She's a little small, which suits me just fine.  We actually have pictures of the ultrasound, but we don't have a scanner here so you'll have to wait on those.  We still haven't decided on a name yet, but we've got some ideas...Helga, Calvina, Hot Dog, and more!

Any Guesses?

 

This next weekend we are headed to Dar for a checkup at the doctor’s.  We’re hoping to find out if we’re having a boy or a girl.  I thought I’d see if anyone has any guesses...let you know the answer in a week or so:)

Giraffes Aplenty

For our fifth year wedding anniversary, we decided to go on a little safari.  Our actual anniversary isn’t for another couple of weeks, but the rates for safari lodges skyrocket in July, so we decided June was a fine time for a wedding.  

We went to Ruaha National Park, which is about 2 1/2 hours from Iringa.  This was Brett’s first safari, so I was really glad that all the animals were out and about.  I’ve never seen so many giraffes in my life.  They’re so amazing to watch move.  They always look like they’re in slow motion, even if they’re running.  We almost demolished our car by running into one coming around a corner.  But, thanks to Brett’s fast braking, we managed to not get squashed.  We also saw a herd of over 500 cape buffalo.  We came through to a clearing and there they were, as far as the eye could see.  We also saw elephants, warthogs, hyenas, jackals, greater kudu, about a million impala, hippos, crocodiles, baboons, zebras, birds, and more.  The only thing we didn’t get to see were lions. That was the top animal Brett wanted to see, so it was a little disappointing, but we figure surely sometime in the next 10 years we’ll have another chance.  It was a really great trip.

The Americans Take Over

One thing that I love about living overseas is meeting people from all over the world.  Language school has been no exception.  We've met people here from Switzerland, Germany, Denmark, Australia, New Zealand, Holland, Spain, South Africa, Scotland, Canada, Lithuania, and I'm sure I'm forgetting more. And we Americans have always been in the great minority. Until now.  Last week, a group of 27 Americans came to school.  So, we dominate.  Of course, having more Americans also means it's always louder, the table manners are worse, and we have to fight to be able to watch soccer on tv.

But this weekend is the 4th of July, so we will celebrate the fact that there are other people who appreciate this holiday.  And it's also fun to make fun of our British friends who run the camp--"How'd you like the year 1776? Was it good for your people?"  Really, the people who run the camp are a lot of fun, and they're giving us a good old-fashioned American bbq on Saturday, complete with hamburgers and potato salad.  I don't think we'll get the cake decorated like an American flag with blueberries for the stars and strawberries for the stripes, but I'll cross my fingers.  

Enjoy your festivities.

Swahili is Fun

I thought that since I'm learning so much Swahili, I'd teach you a few good, useful words.  Ok, so most of what follows is not so useful on a regular basis, but they are super good words.  

shagalabagala --- disorganized or messy

mshamba --- redneck (literally--person from a farm)

nusa nusa --- a spy (nusa literally means "to smell or sniff")

mwana siasa --- a politician (literally -- a person who is not genuine)

pi pi --- candy

piga mswaki --- to brush your teeth (literally -- to hit the toothbrush)

taco -- your bum

And here is my story about that word.  Our teachers have spent a lot of time with Westerners, for obvious reasons, thus they know a lot about our culture.  One day, teacher Saye was talking about cooking.  He said that he's a very good cook and he can cook everything except the taco.  I said, "Really? I can teach you how to make a taco. " He said, "Oh, you know how to make a taco?  Do you like to eat the taco?"  I said, "Of course, they're delicious!"  This is when he burst out laughing and told us what taco meant in Swahili.  Oh that jokester.  

I've been asked to post a picture of my tummy, so here it is--me, at 18 and 1/2 weeks.

And now, since that was so very disappointing ( I really have no idea where it's hiding), here is a picture of Brett's beard growth, which we will also call 18 weeks-ish, and is much more impressive.  He intends to grow this thing until the baby's born. I think he might scare it back into me.

Please try to use your new words at least three times today, or you might forget them.

Tour de Riverside

I thought I'd give a little glimpse into our lives at language school.  Riverside Camp and Language School is located 15 km outside of Iringa, in the southern highlands of Tanzania.  It's beautiful here and the camp runs right next to the Little Ruaha River, so it pretty much always stays green, even when it's dry and brown a few miles away.   It's also much colder here than I ever thought it would be in East Africa.  The afternoons are nice, usually in the 70s or low 80s, but the mornings and nights are really cold.  A lot of times I'll wear jeans, a t-shirt, a long-sleeved shirt, and a sweatshirt.  And since we didn't really expect this weather, we wear a lot of the same things over and over.  Fortunately, it's Africa, and no one cares.

Anyway, onto our tour.  This first picture is one of our classrooms.  There are about 6 classrooms, all a little different, and we are in a different one each week.  I think this is because one of the classrooms is way up a hill, and no one wants to hike there all the time.  This is the classroom we had last week, and it's right in front of the river, so you can hear the water all through class.

The picture on the right is our dining room.  All our meals are here, so we really like this room.

The picture above and to the left is the dining room on the inside.  The tables aren't usually set up that way, but our normal tables got taken to town to be used at a lunch for the prime minister.  seriously.  

The picture above on the right is the chai lounge. We can have tea or coffee there at any hour and that's where we play games, darts, read, or watch tv, usually soccer, but last night the show Numbers was on--crazy.  I think it was even the current season, but I'm not sure because I've never really watched it.  

The last picture is our little home.  Brett and I have the room on the right, Carson and Holly are on the left, and we share a bathroom in the middle.  The rooms are just big enough for a bed, desk, and little armoire for clothes.  It's comfortable, and keeps us in shape because it's at the top of a big hill. We like it well enough.  

So that's our school.