The little family who lives behind us have planted their new crops -- the rains came and it seems like overnight they have sprung up!

The mama is cooking breakfast over a fire.  You should see her scrubbing her little children.

These water buffalo were on the side of the road in Naivasha.  There is much wildlife there.

Well, here's a good rear-end shot of some zebras!  Who's taking these pictures, anyway?  Gazelles in the distance.

Warthogs are funny little creatures -- they run everywhere they go.

They say water buffalo are very mean and aggressive but these guys were so busy eating, they didnt pay attention to us.  You can see how green everything is -- thanks to the rainy season.

These cactus plants grow very thick and tall and people use them for fences.  After a while they cut the cactus down and when it dries, they collect it for fire wood.

This is Naivasha Lake and there were thousands of flamingos there.  It was a beautiful sight.

Farmers were bringing their cattle and donkeys to the lake for a drink.

This was a National Geographic experience.  You would have all loved it -- especially Cami - our little Flamingo girl.

There was a photographer taking pictures with a lens as big around as a pizza pan and as long as your arm.  Click, click, click -- as fast as he could go.

There were few people on this side of the lake.  Lots of people ride bicycles or ride in carts drawn by donkeys.  There are very few vehicles.  Naivasha is famous for growing flowers which are exported all over the world.  The people who work at the flower farms are provided with humble housing, medical care and schools for their children which is a great blessing.

Elder Holmes, Elder Jensen, Elder Kakaire, Elder Hall, Elder Olsen, Sister Holmes, Sister Hall & Sylvester.

I wish you all could have been there with us!

This little monkey was looking for something to eat.

These wildebeests were grazing in a beautiful meadow.

These gazelles were mixed  in with all the other animals.  Beautiful & graceful.

These children had gathered up big bundles of fire wood and were carrying them back up a long dirt road that we had gone down to watch the animals.  Elder Holmes stopped and gave them a ride.

It's hard to guess how old these children were, but they weren't very big.

It's amazing how much weight people can carry on their heads.

Quite a talent to balance this heavy load.  I think they've done it many times before and will do it many times after.

This little girl didn't have anything to put on her head so Elder Olsen gave her his handkerchief to use as a pad.

And away they go!

This is Elder & Sister Holmes in front of their house in Naivasha.

And this is where the Elders live -- right next door to the Holmes.  It's called the "Rainbow" house because every room is painted a different -- bright color like purple, orange, yellow, blue, etc.   The Elders are so happy to have the Holmes living next door.  Not only are they the nicest people in the world, but Sister Holmes is a very good cook!

These are the power lines that lead into our apartment complex.  Maybe this has something to do with our power going out on a regular basis!?!

There are some beautiful buildings and landscaping that we pass on our way to the center.

There goes Elder Olsen with his lunch bag and umbrella -- anxious to get to work!  This is about 7:30 a.m.

These are the power lines leading into the center.  Yes, they are leaning.  There is a back-up generator that kicks on regularly.  See the sign above the building that says "Citi"  That is the landmark for our address:
Upper Hill Road Next to Citigroup
Nairobi, Kenya

There are wonderful gradeners who do fun things with the landscaping at the center.

There he is -- ready to launch forth on another exciting day in Kenya!  This is a busy place.  There is the mission office, a distribution center, many offices, a chapel with a small gym, an institute classroom and three garages.   The mission office is at the lower left-corner of the building and that's where we work.

This is one of the landscapers and he trims all the bushes by hand!

Here we are loading desks that were made for the orphanage.  They were made here in a little woodworking shop for $14 each.  This shop is on the outskirts of a huge slum.

The desks are pretty flimsy but they will give the kids a wriring surface and a seat.  They are made from wood that would be similar to pallets.

Above the woodwork shop lives a little family.  They all gathered to watch us loading the desks.

This is the actual yard where the desks were made.

This is a good shot of some of the desks.

Not exactly a Home Depot, but it'll do.

This is inside the woodwork shop.

Elder Olsen and Elder Holmes with some students from the orphanage.

We are now at the orphanage school.  There have been many improvements made in the last six months:  A new tin roof, cement floor and a separate room for the teachers.  Now they will have desks!

Here is Sister Hall encouraging some of the children into the school.

There are three teachers and about 75 children at the school.  The oldest student is about 16 and the youngest child is about 1 1/2 years of age.  Wouldn't it be fun to have 75 brothers and sisters?

Inside the school looking out.  There is no electricity and the only light is from holes in the walls or ceiling.  One of the teenagers said, "When we get electricity we will study until 9:00 o'clock at night!

We all went inside the school and the children sang and danced for us.

During one of the dances, the children would come out one by one and take a partner.  This is Sister Olsen dancing with one of the students while the other students were singing.  They were accompanied by a girl who played the drum.

I haven't danced for years but it was hard to resist.

This is a good view of the outside of the school and two little darlings.



Here are the desks waiting to be stained and varnished.  The older children really enjoyed working on them.



This is the walk way between the school on the left and the classrooms on the right.

Here are some of the students outside the school, playing in the yard.

The kids love to get their pictures taken.  This little girl was being silly and you should have seen her face when I showed her this picture.

We didn't see one argument the whole time we were thre.

Stephen has provided schooling, food and a home for kids for ten years.  He came from an African tribe that is famous for wood carving and that is how he makes a living

Whenever you ask Stephen what he needs for the kids, he always says, "Food."  Recently one of the missionaries drove Stephen to a place where they could get rice for a good price.  They loaded 90 kilos of rice and beans in the back of the pickup truck and as they were driving away, some men pulled it all out and took off with it.

This young man is a budding drummer.  He uses a stick and a plastic container and he was very good.

The kids never lack for attention.  The older children take care of the younger ones.

Everywhere Grandpa Olsen went, these little guys were right by him -- holding his hand.

The chidlren played some fun games where they stood in a circle and sang songs and did actions.   The older children had them all organized and took charge.

Everyone was busy playing or working.

We saw only one toy  -- a little boy had a plastic car.  These children were playing with that piece of cloth.

There are no flushing toilets anywhere in the miles of  this slum, but there are telephone towers. 

This is the entrance to the dormitory where the children eat and sleep.

This is the kitchen where one meal a day is prepared and it is always rice and beans.  They cook over fire or charcoal in huge pots. 

This is a picture of their "living room".  This is where they eat and play.

This is the dining room table/sofa.

The children are waiting in line for dinner.  All of them have washed their hands in a bucket of water that was fetched from a common water source -- no soap.  After they finished eating, they washed their plates and utensils in the same water.  The baby I am holding is the youngest child in the group -- a little girl.

These children are pretty used to mazungus so they aren't afraid.  In the Kilungu Hills we visited a school and the children were terrified of us.  They are told from a young age that mazungus will suck your blood or kidnap you.

Yum! Rice and beans.

One big happy family!

Sister Holmes attracted a huge group of hair dressers.  They were fascinated with her strawberry blonde hair and proceeded to braid it.  She was a very good sport and looked beautiful in the end.

It was hard to say goodbye to our new friends that day but we will be back.