Day by Day

So, after last weekend I took Monday to rest. That was much needed and also I had a bug friend get into my belly causing me some discomfort every time I ate. Not Nice.On Tuesday, I picked up Mesfin and Dawit and we headed back to Buipe. We were really hoping to find some accommodation for them so they can get started with language learning and meeting people. It was not meant to be. We saw a couple places. One was too big. Another one, the toilet and bath were outside. Another one, we had to wait for the landlord to come but we saw the outside of the place and the men were ok with that. We waited an hour and then found a spot that serves drinks and we chilled down there. I taught them how to play Sparkle (dice game) and I was the loser! Right when we finished the man helping us told us the landlord said the place was just rented out. (sigh) We did stay the night at a guesthouse and we were also able to meet Diallo again. He thinks that he may have two leads for language helpers for the men. So, all was not lost. We headed back on Wednesday.Random story- I decided to go for a walk/run at the guesthouse we stayed at in the morning. It has a long, dirt road so I thought I would be alone. HA! The flies were my companions, and not nice companions :) I had to run at some point with my arms flailing around my head just to keep those nasty things off me. Gross. I felt like I was running like Phoebe from  the FRIENDS TV show. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2fS5wJKiwR4On Thursday, I went to the airport to pick up Yvonne!! Yay!! She was in the UK for 6 weeks and we really missed her. I cooked up a lunch and we got to her place and caught up from both sides of the world. It is so nice to have her back! In the afternoon, I found out Rafia, my seamstress Madam, had a baby boy. I saw her on Monday and she told me the baby came on Tuesday. When I saw her on Thursday, it was as if she never had a baby at all. She was walking around, laughing like she did not just deliver an 8 lb baby boy. Oy, the woman is strong. I forgot a lot of Dagbani but with all the people coming and going I could grasp some things. In the evening, I went to sit with some other ladies who I have not really seen (waving out my car window does not count) since I came back from Accra. I really have lovely ladies around me. I am thankful.On Friday, I went back to see Rafia. She now has 1 girl and 3 boys. Women were coming around to greet her and say congratulations. Sahada, the other apprentice, has been helping with cooking and washing. After spending some time with her I went to town. I did lots of shopping because I wanted to cook up a lot of meals for the next couple weeks. As I was finishing, I was like, "dude, where is all my money??" but then realized the month of August is half over and phewww I am ok. But August Is Half Over People!! Time goes so fast here. Then I think, "what do I have to show for it?" Nothing...(sigh)The best part of my week was Friday night talking to my sister and then able to do a 3 way call with my mom. They had a family reunion last weekend and I loved hearing all about it. And just hearing about summertime in Wisconsin is wonderful. And just hearing us laugh together is wonderful...I won't tell you if I cried when we hung up :)Saturday, I was ready to have a nice quiet day at home...and the morning was lovely because a nice rain was falling down. Things were cool, animals were quiet. It was perfect. But then...the men right over the wall from my bedroom window started putting on a zinc roof...O Ghana, Ghana, Ghana. There is always something.But, that is ok. I had to do lots of cooking. I made chickpea and chicken, orange-carrot chicken (and the oranges here are a different sweet, so this one will prob not taste so nice), tomato sauce, bread, and a beef roast. I was able to freeze them and now, I don't have to worry about food this week or even next week! Yay!I have a couple people coming thru this week. Need to do some Dagbani, of course. Keep praying. Never know what the week will bring.Thanks for praying! Thanks, thanks, thanks!