Village life

We have been regularly going out to the main village we will be working out of. I honestly was a bit hesitant and wondered if the boys would like it. I have been thankfully surprised how much they have enjoyed it.

They love the trees in the yard and spend a lot of time there.

This is the typical scene after the car ride there (about 1 hr 45 min at best but has taken us 3hrs on two occasions thanks to getting lost once and another time carrying a water tank on our roof). Everyone gets a snack break.

Being in Segou, we cannot go on roof rides since the town is so large. There's no open space like we had in Koutiala from the hospital to our house. They are happy they get to continue in this tradition.

This isn't our donkey, but we have since gotten one of our own. They are only $30! Our girl is named Jewel.

It is truly peaceful out in the village. It's so quiet. Life moves slower. It's really nice. And the stars at night are simply breathtaking. Our kids love eating Malian style and enjoy whatever is put before them (why won't they do that at home?).  Eating with your hands makes everything better I guess.

The boys have already started to see this as a second home. They had a friend come out with us once and they were so excited to show their place off. Kenan calls the house "our home away from home." Again, the Lord has blessed us with the kids' acceptance to this new life. We've talked about how we really have to have them on board because it is not as simple as it was in Koutiala for us to work. We can't just go to the hospital and leave the kids at home. This is much more involved for them, They are truly apart of the work. I explained to them that their willingness to live out in the village means they are saving lives alongside of us. They are an important part of the work. They also get to be more involved here and see things up close what we are doing. I hope they will look back upon this with great memories.

My favorite five people in the world. So thankful for all of them.