We had a great time at Lake Baringo this weekend!  It took us about 3 hours to get there.  We drove down the hills of the Rift Valley to get to Lake Baringo and the temperature climbed as we descended!  We arrived around noon, were welcomed with fresh squeezed mango juice in the lobby and toured the grounds where we saw lots of birds and monkeys.  Then we quickly changed into bathing suits and were served lunch by the pool.  We spent part of the afternoon inside because it was just too hot and sunny for the kids.  We ate an enormous dinner and then went down for an early bedtime.

Unfortunately, Ben and I were awakened at 1 am by Andy crying.  His enormous dinner had revisited all over his crib and pajamas. We changed him and cleaned up then spent the rest of the night taking care of him while he battled an upset stomach.  By morning he seemed much better and we had a quick breakfast, with fresh squeezed watermelon, mango and pineapple juice as well as omelets made to order, assorted breads, fresh fruit and other yummy foods.  Then we took our boat ride to see the hippos.  They gave us an extended tour because it was such a nice day and it was just our family, so we spent almost 2 hours in the boat.  It was really beautiful and the kids loved it.  Andy fell asleep about 45 minutes before the tour ended.  We went back to the room, got on our bathing suits and headed to the pool again.  After a quick swim we lunched and then took naps (all of us!).  After naps, poor Andy was sick again, Ben and I each had a massage at the salon and then we all went swimming.

At dinner Sunday night, the entire staff came dancing out of the kitchen in a conga line singing birthday songs (and then other random songs) while carrying a birthday cake for me!  It was really fun and everyone in the restaurant sang and clapped.  The cake was pretty good and we shared with the other people that were eating near us.  That night, in hopes that the sickness was due to heat, Andy spent the night under the AC with just a mosquito net over his bed, instead of a blanket.  He seemed much happier like that and didn’t have any more problems.  On Monday morning we had breakfast and went for one last quick swim.  Then Eden had her hair braided at the salon and we headed home.

The kids were great travelers and we all had a wonderful time.  The staff was lovely and the hotel was very “American” compared to most places here.  Our room had AC, TV and a mini fridge!  I told Ben several times that I want to live at Soi Safari.  🙂

Meghan joins me today as a “late 20 something”! To celebrate her birthday we’re going on a weekend excursion to Lake Baringo. Its meant to just be a relaxing time away from all the “hustle and bustle” of Kenyan life. Oh wait, no, we don’t have any hustle and bustle. I guess we’re just going for the pool and to get a close encounter with a hippo or two!

Meghan and I went to Lake Baringo in 2009 but stayed at a different hotel. When going out on our (rickety) canoe tour we passed by the Soi Safari Lodge and wished we had stayed there! So this time we’re doing it right and staying at the much higher quality hotel!

See more pictures on their website:
Soi Safari Lodge at Lake Baringo

Feel free to leave your comments below about how jealous you are…

In mid March (two weeks before we left) I ordered a minivan from Japan to be shipped to Kenya. It finally arrived at our doorstep last night! The process was fairly smooth:

1. Pick out a car
2. wire them some money
3. get told your car is now on a ship
4. wire them the rest of the money
5. receive documents in the mail for this imaginary vehicle
6. send friend to Mombasa to pick up said vehicle
7. friend gets delayed for 6 days while KRA computer systems are “upgraded”
8. send another friend to Nairobi to drive the car to Eldoret
9. Done!

The Kenyan fees were the lowest I could get, but were still substantial: the van was only 2 months younger than the max age they allow to be imported. The older the car the lower the fees (fee starts at 100% of value and goes down to our 30%). It also helped that the agent importing it was a friend of a friend, so no gouging and making up of new fees! Overall the cost of buying + shipping was only 60% of the total price.

Its a neat little car, a Nissan Liberty. Its small for a minivan, but will still seat all Wolfes comfortably (plus some guests). It has a navigation system (in japanese), a dvd player (in japanese), a backup camera, automatic sliding doors, and plenty of other bells and whistles! Meghan is determined to drive here now, so will take some “lessons” from a friend here. Not sure why she doesn’t want to learn from me, I’m a great Kenyan driver (read: willing to squeeze into tight places, drive in crowds, sneak between traffic, and generally be overly aggressive)!

The best news, though, is that that I already have 4 people lined up wanting to buy it when we leave. 😀 I’m thinking of starting the bidding now.

We were so excited to drive it to lunch today (a whole 2 minutes in the car) that we forgot to take some cute pictures. We’ll take some and post them tomorrow. Stay tuned.

Andy turned 15 months old on Friday! He really is turning into a little man. I was practically absent for 2 weeks while I was giving a training at the hospital to programmers (and then preparing/grading/working all night). So when it was done it really was a surprise to me how much he changed! He is willing to say any word we give him now. And he really wants to do anything that Eden does. If she climbs onto the couch, he’ll climb onto the couch. If she lays down and rolls around, he has to lay down and roll around. If she gets on the bicycle, he, well, pushes her around on the bicycle.

We just now are getting him to say “please” and “thank you”. And “yes” is at least sprinkled in amongst his “no”s. He loves to wave hello and goodbye. He says “mambo” (which is supposed to be “jambo”, swahili for “hi”) or “bye” while doing it and is very happy about it. He loves to push all kinds of buttons (not just Mommy’s): computers, dvd players, and phones are not safe. He likes to point out every “ndege” (bird) that he sees too…and sometimes I have a hard time finding it! He seems to have dropped his morning nap, which is great for Meghan because the kids naps are realigned!

Waiting as patiently as possible for breakfast...

Andy writing some OpenMRS code

Just a quick update on what we have been up to recently.

Ben: Ben led a conference that lasted two really long weeks.  He taught from 8-5 and then came home and worked most evenings until midnight.  He didn’t have a whole lot of time for anything else, but has squeezed in a couple of soccer games, taken out the trash and developed a way for us to have internet at the house.

Meghan: I’ve been busy keeping up with the house, the kids and new friends.  There are always dishes to be done and floors to be swept as well as kids needing to be put down for naps.  I’ve managed to find some time recently to read and have appreciated new friends being willing to run to the store or around town with me to help with the kids.  We have been going to the Sally Test Pediatric Center about once a week and yesterday went to visit three orphanages.

Eden: Eden has been very busy growing up!  As we realized how low we were on pull-ups, we decided it was time for Eden to stop wearing them for her naps.  She doesn’t like going to bed without her milk, but hasn’t had an accident since we started 5 days ago!  Eden also started “school” this week.  Each day during Andy’s morning nap we sit down to do some pages in a preschool work book.  She’s quite proud of herself and is doing really well.  It’s fun watching her think and to see how much she already knows.  She talks about home a lot saying things like, “Remember when Eden went ice skating?” or “When I go home from Kenya, I’m going to the jumping place!” My very favorite is when she talks about people.  She’ll ask me, “Mommy, do you remember my friend Clara?” or “Do you know my Papa?”  However, most important in her mind these days is my birthday.  She really NEEDS to have birthday cake and has been drawing pictures of cakes every day.

Andy: Andy is quickly becoming a big boy.  He is talking much more and runs around like he owns the place.  He’s getting more independent with his eating (which is very sad for the person who has to clean the floors in this family…) and he loves to be outside.  He knows that no matter what, he can do anything that Eden can do!  He’s still easy going and laid back and definitely charms the people in the compound.  He’s always being carried, hugged, thrown in to the air or being given treats by the other people that live here.

Please pray for the adoption process.  It’s taking longer to get things rolling than we anticipated and we’re stuck waiting for approval from the Little Angel’s adoption agency who we have been waiting to hear from since 2009!  Everything else seems to be in place, so once we get over this portion, we’re ready to roll! We know that God has a perfect plan and we’re trusting Him to direct us, but it feels like time is wasting away while we sit here not moving forward.

We really miss some of the conveniences of back home and of course miss our family, but we’ve all adjusted well and are having fun on this little adventure.  Please keep us up to date on your lives at home.  We love hearing about what you all are doing and what exciting things are happening in your lives!