The Calm Before the Storm

April has arrived, and like i said before it is going to be a very busy month. but we have taken full advantage of our downtime the last couple of weeks to have some fun! And nothing says more fun than a package from home and St Patricks Day.

It can be very lonely being half way around the world - even when you are surrounded with people. but it is amazing how quickly a little love from a mom can change that! We had been waiting for weeks for a st patricks day package my mom had sent to matt and i. but mail here is sporadic and receiving it is not always a guarantee. we joked as we came into work on the 17th of the odds of it arriving that day, never expecting that it actually would. but it did! And we were able to enjoy the box with the whole office- whom im pretty sure thought we were crazy. No one had a clue about what the holiday was about. And we spent the whole day explaining to everyone why exactly we were wearing ridiculous green hats. i dont think i ever enjoyed st patricks day more!

The following saturday was one of our friend's birthday. To celebrate we went to the animal orphanage in Nairobi. i wasnt exactly excited about going to see animals in cages (pretty much your average zoo) but after hearing rumors of a slight chance to pet a cheetah i was definitely intrigued. however it all depended on your guide. And it must have been our lucky day because we got Stephen. although im pretty sure he could have gotten fired, he found a way (with enough money there is always a way) to get us in that cage. we were a little nervous at first but the cheetah was just a big kitty purring the whole time. of course when luck is going your way, you dont want to push it. so we took a few pictures and got out of there!

Now kenyans have these wonderful morsals they eat called mandazi. basically its a fried donut, and matt and i love them! but when offered some i cant exactly take as many as i could really eat so i had been dying to make them myself. Then i could eat as many as i wanted and even put my own little twist on them, cinnamon twist to be exact. so last sunday i gathered all the ingredients needed and the best mandazi teacher in order to get to work. it was so much fun! what you have to realize though is that kenyans think americans dont know how to cook. they think we only eat "ready meals" or go out. so my teacher felt it necessary to explain each step and how to use each tool (as if ive never seen a rolling pin) she even had to take over kneading the dough for me. but it was all worth it. im pretty sure we made the best mandazis i had ever tasted!


Finally matt and i have joined a local softball team. there are four teams in the league, so its not big but its so much fun. last saturday we had a double header against the US embassy and japan. We felt a little bit like traitors but we won and thats what matters right!?! im horrible at batting, and i play catcher so i cause the least damage on the field but matt makes up for what i cant do. Although i will say- i did have a good number of RBIs :)
We travel tomorrow at 5:45am to Nakuru for our first youth seminar. Matt and i are giving classes on what it means to be a member of the salvation army, discipleship, purity, and being a witness. keep us in your prayers!

Mandanzi recipe

2 c self raising flour

1/2 c sugar

1 egg

1/2 c milk

3 tbsp butter

1/4 tsp cinnamon

mix dry ingredients

cut in butter

add milk and egg

kneed together

let stand for at least 1 hour

roll out dough

cut in desired shapes

deep fry in oil

mmm mmm good!