You mean my blog didn't update itself in the past 2 months?

One of my best friends wrote on my facebook wall that I hadn't updated my blog in 12 years.  My sister "liked" the comment.  Oops!  I guess that means I should get going.

So back to November...

Douglas brought me beautiful calla lilies from town!  

Another annual event at KICS is the Festival of Fun (name changed from “Fall Festival,” since we don’t actually have fall in Rwanda).  Everyone dresses up in costume, plays games, and eats food donated by parents.  This year the elementary kids performed, and later the middle and high school bands impressed us with their skills.  My friend Micki is the leader of Young Life at KICS, so I signed up for her fundraising event.  For 15 minutes small children lined up to throw a giant wet sponge at my face.  Lucky for me, it was mostly just little kidlets so they either missed, hit my shoulder, or just grazed my face.  By the end I was wet, but the kids were happy!  They also had a raffle where Douglas and I won a backpack, 2 water bottles, 2 t-shirts, and a gift certificate for a manicure and pedicure- fun!

I hosted my first ever baby shower!  The secretary at our school, Clementine, had her second baby boy and she named him Ian.  Baby showers are in no way a custom here, and Clementine even joked, "Should I bring a basin and soap to wash Ian?" Rwandans don't have any type of celebration before the baby is born (because that's too much assuming), and they don't ever announce a pregnancy.  You are allowed to notice and comment, but they would never go around shouting that they're expecting a child.  Despite the drastic differences in culture, Clementine (pronounced Clemen-teen) was still excited to have an American-type party (since she works with all Westerners) AFTER her dear baby was born.  We hosted it at our house, and invited the whole staff.  Some men came and said hello, but they all seemed to disappear as we opened gifts and got excited about things like bath soap and tiny hats.  Clementine loved having us shower her with  gifts and we loved passing around her new gift from God- sweet baby Ian!


Thanksgiving brought a half day of school that started out semi-tragically.  My class had been reading the story Tumbleweed Stew and brought in all of the ingredients on Thursday morning.  A wonderfully kind American mother in her class offered her 7 quart crockpot to cook our delicious stew.  They brought it in, without a transformer (for voltage), because I assured her I already have one in my classroom.

So, before the kids come in I pour in some water and plug it in.  I turn it on. CRACK, smoke, tears (from me) and I quickly learned that no, it was not a transformer, but instead a battery regulator.  Go figure.  I had ruined the possibility of tumbleweed stew for my students on Thanksgiving.  Plus, I had ruined a fancy  Kenmore slow cooker brought from the States.  Douglas came to comfort me (benefit of working at the same school as my husband!) and then my boss said he'd take my class so that I could calm down.  An office assistant talked to me and had the idea of bringing two big pots to school, and then cooking it at home.  I called the mother and apologized, to which she responded, "Are you still going to be able to have soup?"  Such a relief!  I assured her that my mother would bring one as she was coming in a few weeks (and she did!) and returned to our class.  It turned out to be a delicious soup, and the kids eagerly brought in so many ingredients that we have more than double what we needed.  Other staff and the guards welcomed a hot cup of soup for lunch. :)  God really provides in all circumstances.

Benjamin and Nicholas, the youngest kids in the
family that invited us over! 

Pretty tables!

In the afternoon a family from our church invited us over for a delicious meal.  Surprise!  We even had turkey.  I made green bean casserole, which is a tad different without cream of mushroom soup in a can, but even so, I received compliments!  We hung out, played games, and the guys watched a football game downloaded from the week before.  After celebration #1, we headed over to a KICS teacher Thanksgiving feast, where I ate only macaroni and cheese covered in cheddar cheese.  It certainly wasn't the same as my usual parties in the States, but I still got to be around wonderful people and indulge in delicious food.  No catch phrase, though. :-/


Well, that catches you up through November.  I don't want to do 2 months in one post because then, if you're like me, you'll just scroll through the words and look at the pictures when it gets long.

Do expect updates on:
-KICS Christmas program
-Field trip to a motor garage
-Christmas break with my mom!
-Etc., etc.

So, more to come.  Thanks for your patience and not giving up on me.

With love,
Kerry
kerrybryan87@gmail.com