England

We were able to go visit friends from Mali in England this past June. The Diarra family is dear to us  and we have missed them greatly in Mali. It was so nice to be with them. We crammed into their small, three bedroom home, had a blast, and never once felt like 11 people were too many for the space we had. Being with friends is refreshing to the soul and body, even with the lack of sleep we were getting. 

Brett and I took all the kids up to London for a day to see the sights. Thanks to a special going on the train tickets were only a few Euros each (Alison commented that her one ticket to London that day was more than all of us going with the special). 

Haven playing with pigeons as the older kids enjoy hot chocolate at the Tower of London

I wanted to see Buckingham Palace. That was the only thing on my list. We didn't go on any tours or anything but I wanted to SEE the palace. So we saw it. :) Somehow that was fun and everyone actually enjoyed it.

The kids got a kick out of the guards. I think that was their favorite part of the whole day (except maybe the Kentucky Fried chicken we found at lunch). :)

 I love being in places with grass and green things! It's so wonderful. I tried making my first (for my daughter) flower crown. The subject was much more beautiful than the crown she wore. :)

playing hide and seek with Daddy at a park

By far the best part of the trip was sitting with this lady. Somehow a year and a half had past since we had seen each other but it felt like two seconds when we were together. It was so wonderful to be with someone who gets you and understands your perspective and what life is like in Mali. I commented on our last day that though I had gotten little sleep and no time to myself (which is usually a big need for my introverted self) I was so happy. Being with dear friends truly is medicine for the soul. I can't wait for us to be together again!