Good Luck Alicia!!

The girl on the right is my friend Alicia. She is a physician's assistant and is leaving today to go to the Dominican Republic to operate on quake victims from Haiti. I'm very proud of her and her skills and wish her well. Please keep her in your thoughts.

Oh and the reason she and our friend Patty are dressed like that is that it was Patty's 80's themed anniversary party and she surprised Alicia with birthday cupcakes.

Little A Classroom

This was the classroom at Little A-- After we made the folded spiders for Itzy, Bitzy Spider, the teacher at LA asked me if I could hang them in the little classroom there. This was a super big deal because we often felt that the nannies felt that many of our activities were strange or too difficult for some of the kids.. and they don't really hang things up in their classrooms in Ethiopia. I was able to take pictures in one of the government schools and the only thing hanging up is the chalkboard.

Storm and Thunder

At Little AHOPE, two of the first kids who I really felt I connected with were Storm and Thunder. Storm and Thunder are twins and about 4 years old. They are absolutely adorable and have very short hair that you can tell they must have had to have their heads shaved recently. They were probably the first kids who wanted to spend time with me and the other volunteers. They love to be held and spun around and put up on the wall outside or small wall next to the main the house where we would sit and watch the kids play. They really just wanted to sit next to you up high, but were too little to figure out how to get up there. But if Storm is sitting next to you then Thunder wants to sit next to you, but if you pick up Thunder and put her up there, then Storm is not happy with you. Very competitive like sisters but are almost always together... also like sisters. They made you feel useful though because they wanted you to help them color or play with playdoh or Legos. I took them on the Ferris Wheel at Vera's and they were daredevils, kept trying to get up to peer over the railing!!

One day about a month into our summer, we were spending the afternoon playing with play doh and I had been working with Storm- just flattening her play doh and then having her cut out animal shapes with cookie cutters. She had such a great attention span, we were doing this for quite a long time. Then it was just about time for us volunteers to go and for the kids to have dinner when suddenly it started raining. So we hung out in the living room, and Storm climbed up on my lap and we were playing patty cake. Then Thunder wanted on my lap, so I let her climb up behind Storm and normally she would have argued to get to be in front to play but then it really started storming and both girls jumped and both just laid down in my lap and hugged each other and me until the storm died down. It was so cute and also showed that they were willing to share when they needed to.

UPDATE: I got lucky and I got to meet Storm and Thunder's mother when she came to pick them up in late July-- and seeing the three of them together was amazing!! Wish I could share the pictures with you-- a beautiful family!!

Very cool giveaway!!!

Maya’s Mercato is holding a giveaway for one Amharic Tee! (of your choice) and a logo tote bag.

Free.

Like in – it costs nothing!

Free.

Hurry - click on the link and add your comment for a chance to win one of these fantabulous tees and a tote bag!

Free!!

The giveaway ends January 20th!

Link

And let me tell you-- these are great tees!! I love mine and wear it all the time. Plus if you click on the link.. you will get to see two awfully cute models!!

Happy Ethiopian Christmas!!!

(This was one of the cards the kids made me at my going away party)

Today is Ethiopian Christmas... here is a link that gives you six steps to celebrate. It explains the holiday in Ethiopia and I wish I could share pictures of all the kids in their white outfits. They are very cute. Plus I love that when I look through the AHOPE website photos, how many of the kids I recognize.. though they are much older.

A New Year...

2009:
Fundraised and shared AHOPE and Ethiopia with all my friends and family.
Went on the trip of a lifetime.
Saw another beautiful country and culture.
Made so many lifelong friends.

2010:
So far in the two days, I've spent time with a dear friend from high school, who moved herself to teach Environmental Education in Costa Rica for a year or maybe two. Her pictures and stories are amazing and I'm so impressed that she is so fluent in Spanish-- clearly she paid better attention in Mr. Hayak's Spanish class or maybe it's the semester she spent studying Tapirs in CR back in college.
Then today, I met with one of the co-founders of Spark Ventures. This is the not for profit that I talked about in November.... it is so inspiring to talk with someone that passionate about partnering with friends across the globe-- that is their goal, a true partnership with the chosen organization in Zambia.

I guess it is just starting to make me think.. what is the next move.... I know I want to go back to Ethiopia-- I'm just not sure what my goal should be.

But to start off 2010-- I plan to try to be healthier-- eating, exercise and working on stress in better ways. And while I try to do that, I wish all of you PEACE in 2010!!!!

Hannah and Kyle...

This is Hannah......
This is Kyle... K Y L E.. he can spell it himself.

We spent the morning yesterday having breakfast at Buzz Cafe together with their mother Kristen. Yummy food and great company and I have to say they are really good sports at amusing themselves while Kristen and I drank huge peppermint lattes!!!