My Buddies

A lot of my time is spent with the babies, especially the toddlers. I love these kids so much and they always bring me so much joy and laughter. They have such vivid imaginations and love playing pretend. Just the other day the two oldest girls were pretending to wash the baby doll just like the tanties wash them at bath time. It’s so cute how the kids pretend to do what their elders do. They want to be just like us! I have so much fun with these little ones and they teach me so much! 

Myself and the toddlers after they completed their crowns!

Monica and Mariam hanging out.

Being a mom and carrying her baby on her back.

Stories That Touch The Heart

Every Thursday, when the kids are off school, myself and one of the older boys in the orphanage do a Bible story and craft with some of the school kids. I deliver the story and lesson in English and Georges translates it into Moore (the tribal language). The kids are hearing stories like that of Noah, Joseph and David. They hear the struggles that these people go through and how they lean on God to get them through times of difficulty. The kids also learn a memory verse that they memorize and can keep with them. The final activity of the morning is some sort of craft. We have created animals for Noah’s ark and colorful coats like Joseph’s. The kids really enjoy the art project and it’s something for them to bring home and show their families and hopefully share with them what it is and the story that goes along with it. Most of these kids are brought up in Muslim households so speaking to them about Jesus and the love that He has for us is so important. Not only do I hope these Bible stories penetrate the kids’ hearts but those that they live with and spend time with.

                                                                                                                               

Visiting Dano

After about a 4 hour drive southwest we arrived in the town of Dano. Here there is a few missionary families from the United States that work with the people there doing things like providing milk for babies, sponsorship programs and repairing wells. We had the opportunity to visit and stay with one of these families and have a little get away and enjoy each other’s company. Along with this little get away we were able to visit with two of our girls that used to live at the orphanage. They have reunited with some extended family and are now back in their hometown. It was great to see them thriving and doing well. 

Half Way

It’s crazy to think that I am at about the “half way point” in my time here in Burkina. I am not going to lie that this trip has not been at all what I expected. It has been a struggle from the beginning but very enjoyable as well and filled with many great memories. Once here my plans for what I would be doing changed drastically and this was heart breaking. I am so used to having so much to do; school, work, social life, and being busy, what feels like 24/7.  But I come here and the pace of life is so slow and relaxed. I now have lots of little projects that I am involved in and love each and everyone of them. I am tutoring people in English, crafting with the toddlers, caring for and playing with the babies as well as working with them in developmental skills, and doing a Bible study with primary school kids. But yet, I still feel guilty that I am not doing enough because my schedule isn’t packed to the brim and I know that I am capable of more. With my curse of people pleasing and pride of thinking I am qualified to do more I know that I have an enemy attack on me. I am writing this only to tell you what’s been going on and ask for prayer that I would have peace in what I am doing and that God would reveal anything else that He has planned for me here. I am very blessed with the people that are apart of my life and I couldn’t be more thankful!

Fingers, Red, and Tuesday

These are just a few of the words that my dear friend at the orphanage is learning. For the past 5 weeks or so I have been tutoring and teaching him English. He doesn’t know it yet but he is going to be adopted by a family from the United States! So I have been slowly preparing him for a whole new language that he will soon be immersed in. I’m not going to lie it has been a struggle teaching him because he doesn’t realize the real reason behind me teaching him this. In his mind it is just some fun thing we do for 30 minutes everyday. But once he knows I know that he will be so eager to really delve in and learn the English language. He is a very intelligent boy that I know will succeed and thrive in this language. Please pray for him and that God begins to prepare his heart for this big transition ahead.

Gettin' Messy!!!

Every Monday when the toddlers have a day off from Preschool I have taken the free morning as an opportunity to do fun crafts and art projects. I have already made tissue paper butterflies with them that are now proudly hanging in their rooms and done lots of coloring activities. These kids really love to get out and do something new and exciting. So this week I decided to amp up the fun and get messy with them. What better way to get their creative juices flowing than to paint with hands and feet all over a white piece of fabric!

The toddlers really seemed to enjoy the painting but it took them a little bit to warm up to the idea of getting messy. When the paint was first put onto their hands they just looked at it and then looked at me to say “what is this? What do I do with it?” After demonstrating and showing them how, the toddlers soon went at it and used their hands and feet to create a masterpiece. With green, pink, purple and blue paint, that white piece of fabric was turned into a colorful work of art done by some of my favorite Burkinabe residents. Stay tuned to see what we create next!!!

Fun Friday

The gift distribution for Sheltering Wings sponsored kids was this Friday. A handful of the sponsored kids were given gifts that their sponsor families blessed them with. We were there to hand out the gifts and take pictures of the kids. There were a few kids that needed their gifts delivered to their villages so we loaded up the trucks and headed out. It was a beautiful day and the sun was shining. However, the roads were not so pleasant. Because it is still rainy season the roads are muddy and very uneven so it makes for a wet and bumpy ride. This didn’t stop us though…well actually it did. On our first village stop we got stuck in the mud and the truck wouldn’t start so we had to use the other truck to pull it out and then bring it to dry, flat ground so we could push it into starting. Because of our amazing strength we got the truck going again and it was on to the next village. This next village was beautiful and lush! It was a really fun morning serving and enjoying the Burkina country side. It was a fun Friday! 

Delaney and I preparing for pushing the truck after it wouldn't start.

Handing out gifts for a child for the gift distribution.

Attempting to be African...