Thursday, May 29, 2008
Explosion!!
We had an exciting power experience on Friday....it was right before we left on our trip. I was sitting with the kids...they were watching a movie, and I was reading (The Host...oh so good!), when I noticed the power doing something funny. The transformer started going on and off really fast and I could hear a buzzing sound. After a few seconds of that, I heard a POP and started to smell electrical smoke. I wondered what it could be...and looked around and noticed that Andrew was missing! I jumped up and yelled to Pascaline if she knew where Andrew was, and we both started running all over the house looking for him and yelling. The only thing I could think of was that Andrew had stuck something in one of the light sockets and he was dead! I was out of my mind with worry! After a few minutes of running and searching and screaming, my legs actually started to lose feeling...it was really strange! We couldn't figure out where the smoke and fire smell was coming from. But finally, Pascaline found Andrew in the playroom happily reading books to himself, and we discovered that the outlet where our water distiller was plugged into had internally exploded, and the whole thing was melted! Whew! The stove and the fridge went out, too. I was shaking like crazy and so happy to have Andrew back ok that I didn't even care that we wouldn't have water for awhile!! Talk about a power surge! I wish I would have taken a picture of what it looked like after it had melted. creepy! There are still black scorch marks on the wall where the outlet was...but they moved it, so now the outlet is at a different spot. I suppose that was just a little taste of their wonderful power here. I'm just always so grateful that if we ever have problems like this, there are people we can call 24/7 and they come almost immediately to fix it for free! What a blessing! And what a blessing that nothing caught fire! Especially in that room, since that's where I keep all the cleaners!!!!
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
FHE in the Morning
Yesterday, the kids and I were hanging out in the morning, and Josh and Claire piped up and said, "Mom! We never finished Family Home Evening last night! It was really fast, and we didn't even have a closing song or prayer!" Well, they were right. For some reason, we didn't 'end' our FHE the right way. So, they told me they wanted to do it again. I said that was no problem, as I'm sure Dad wouldn't mind having it again tonight. They said no, that they wanted to do it right now! So, we had an impromptu FHE at 8:30 in the morning! :) It was so funny! Josh sat thinking for a minute and said, "Well, I think Claire conducted last night..." I said, "Actually, Dad conducted last night." Then he brightened up and said, "Ok! Then can I conduct today?" Of course! So, he got up and welcomed everyone. And said we were going to have our opening song, directed by Andrew (and he was SO happy about it!) and we sang "I Am a Child of God" (just one verse). Then, Josh picked claire to say the opening prayer (and she's always so excited about it). Then Josh told everyone that I was going to give a short lesson. Okay... So I told them about the Word of Wisdom. I told them the poem that I learned as a child:
Of course, the Word of Wisdom encompasses much more than that, and so I told them that it was about taking care of our bodies because they are a special gift from Heavenly Father. The Word of Wisdom tells us what things we shouldn't put in our bodies (alcohol, drugs, etc.) because it can damage our bodies and minds. But it also tells us the things that we should do: Getting enough sleep, exercising, and eating healthy foods like grains and fruits and vegetables. So I asked the kids what kinds of veggies were their favorites...here are their answers:
Josh: Broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers and carrots.
Claire: cucumbers, carrots, chocolate and ice cream! (HA!)
Then the kids started to tell me what their ideas of the word of wisdom were. Josh said part of the Word of Wisdom is obeying your parents. I said that that would be a wise thing to do, but it's not part of the Word of Wisdom. :) Then, Claire wanted to 'give a talk', so she sat in the 'front' and waited. Pretty soon, all the kids were waiting in the 'front' to 'give a talk'. So Claire stands up and says, "The Word of Wisdom is bad! We don't drink coffee or beer." Then Josh gets up and says, "Claire's talk was wrong! The Word of Wisdom is not bad!" so I explained to him that she didn't mean that it was bad, but that it talks about the bad things that we shouldn't put into our bodies. "No, she was just wrong." Oh dear. Finally, it was time for the closing song and prayer. We sang the second verse to I Am a child of God, and Josh said the prayer, then he happily announced it was time for FHE treats!! of course! So, I told them they could have little cookies. But they shot that down. Josh said, "No, I'll show you what we want!" And I said, "If it's the ice cream, you can forget it! It's 8:30 in the morning!!!" So, they were all mad and pouted for awhile. Then I gave them animal crackers and they played with them in the living room for about an hour until they left for playgroup. What a funny bunch of kids I have!! :)
What's the Word of Wisdom?
It's for you to choose
No Tea, no coffee,
No tobacco, no booze!
Of course, the Word of Wisdom encompasses much more than that, and so I told them that it was about taking care of our bodies because they are a special gift from Heavenly Father. The Word of Wisdom tells us what things we shouldn't put in our bodies (alcohol, drugs, etc.) because it can damage our bodies and minds. But it also tells us the things that we should do: Getting enough sleep, exercising, and eating healthy foods like grains and fruits and vegetables. So I asked the kids what kinds of veggies were their favorites...here are their answers:
Josh: Broccoli, cauliflower, cucumbers and carrots.
Claire: cucumbers, carrots, chocolate and ice cream! (HA!)
Then the kids started to tell me what their ideas of the word of wisdom were. Josh said part of the Word of Wisdom is obeying your parents. I said that that would be a wise thing to do, but it's not part of the Word of Wisdom. :) Then, Claire wanted to 'give a talk', so she sat in the 'front' and waited. Pretty soon, all the kids were waiting in the 'front' to 'give a talk'. So Claire stands up and says, "The Word of Wisdom is bad! We don't drink coffee or beer." Then Josh gets up and says, "Claire's talk was wrong! The Word of Wisdom is not bad!" so I explained to him that she didn't mean that it was bad, but that it talks about the bad things that we shouldn't put into our bodies. "No, she was just wrong." Oh dear. Finally, it was time for the closing song and prayer. We sang the second verse to I Am a child of God, and Josh said the prayer, then he happily announced it was time for FHE treats!! of course! So, I told them they could have little cookies. But they shot that down. Josh said, "No, I'll show you what we want!" And I said, "If it's the ice cream, you can forget it! It's 8:30 in the morning!!!" So, they were all mad and pouted for awhile. Then I gave them animal crackers and they played with them in the living room for about an hour until they left for playgroup. What a funny bunch of kids I have!! :)
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Pygmies and Canoes
While in Kribi, we got to take a little canoe trip into the jungle to see a pygmy village! Here are some photos of that little adventure:
Here we are getting ready...putting on our beautiful life jackets! Andrew is on a leash (It's really blurry for some reason...) He hated it!!!
Here we are in the canoe! Whew! That was creepy! It was very....African. :) The water kept coming in, so it had to be bailed every once in awhile...
Another canoe shot. Devin kept taking these shots over his shoulder, so we were never sure what he would get! This one missed Josh's head, but got the guy who was actually paddling. The guy sitting behind me is Antoine--our driver.
A view from the front of the canoe. Is that a big gaping hole in the front of the canoe, you might ask? Why, yes. Yes it is.
Here is another beautiful view of the river we were in. The other canoe is the other people in our group. So fun!! On the way home, we saw monkeys in the trees! Baby monkeys! :) I thought after I saw them, "Man, it's too bad that I didn't have the camera handy! That would have been a fun picture!" just to realize that it was sitting in my hand the whole time! Ha!!!
And here we are at the pygmy village! How different their lives are!
When we got there, the other lady we were with wanted a picture with these cute little pygmy ladies. So, she had her son and Claire go over and stand by them. Well, Claire wasn't too happy about that! As a matter of fact, the one lady in the blue tried to get Claire to sit on her lap, and Claire jumped down, yelled NO and hauled off and hit her! I felt really bad and apologized.
Andrew was very much at home here! He was running around and happy as could be! I missed the shot that I really wanted...he had climbed onto the bench with all the guys and sat right next to them. It was hilarious!
Andrew is at 'home--No insecurities here!
Here they are doing a dance for us. There's the lady in the blue that I mentioned earlier. She had TEN children, right here in this little place! No hospitals, no meds, no medical intervention, no sterile environment...just a lot of dirt and guts!
These are the guys playing the music. They had some sticks and a couple of drums...but they sure made use of them!!! It was loud!
They even got me up there to dance with them! They got Devin in there, too, but no one got his picture. I wonder why people always want to drag me up to dance with them??
Here we are getting ready...putting on our beautiful life jackets! Andrew is on a leash (It's really blurry for some reason...) He hated it!!!
Here we are in the canoe! Whew! That was creepy! It was very....African. :) The water kept coming in, so it had to be bailed every once in awhile...
Another canoe shot. Devin kept taking these shots over his shoulder, so we were never sure what he would get! This one missed Josh's head, but got the guy who was actually paddling. The guy sitting behind me is Antoine--our driver.
A view from the front of the canoe. Is that a big gaping hole in the front of the canoe, you might ask? Why, yes. Yes it is.
Here is another beautiful view of the river we were in. The other canoe is the other people in our group. So fun!! On the way home, we saw monkeys in the trees! Baby monkeys! :) I thought after I saw them, "Man, it's too bad that I didn't have the camera handy! That would have been a fun picture!" just to realize that it was sitting in my hand the whole time! Ha!!!
And here we are at the pygmy village! How different their lives are!
When we got there, the other lady we were with wanted a picture with these cute little pygmy ladies. So, she had her son and Claire go over and stand by them. Well, Claire wasn't too happy about that! As a matter of fact, the one lady in the blue tried to get Claire to sit on her lap, and Claire jumped down, yelled NO and hauled off and hit her! I felt really bad and apologized.
Andrew was very much at home here! He was running around and happy as could be! I missed the shot that I really wanted...he had climbed onto the bench with all the guys and sat right next to them. It was hilarious!
Andrew is at 'home--No insecurities here!
Here they are doing a dance for us. There's the lady in the blue that I mentioned earlier. She had TEN children, right here in this little place! No hospitals, no meds, no medical intervention, no sterile environment...just a lot of dirt and guts!
These are the guys playing the music. They had some sticks and a couple of drums...but they sure made use of them!!! It was loud!
They even got me up there to dance with them! They got Devin in there, too, but no one got his picture. I wonder why people always want to drag me up to dance with them??
Kribi
Here are some happy photos from our little weekend beach trip!!
It was a nice overcast, cool day our first morning there! :) Yea!
Claire was fine as long as she wasn't too close to the water.
Here is Andrew chilling with Amadou (our French instructor). He's right at home! :)
Josh and I are testing the water. The Atlantic Ocean is SO much warmer than the Pacific!! Even on the Eastern side of it! :)
We got wet! Josh is so proud! :)
Here are the kids with their 'sand castle'...or sand lump...
And, as always, you can't keep a good man down! Devin is so good about jumping right in and playing with the kids! (Especially when I'm suffering from lack of energy and morning sickness!)
This is our peacock friend. There were 2 of them, just roaming around the place!
Here we are walking to some waterfalls just down the beach from our hotel. Claire kept falling behind, so I held one hand, and Amadou held her other. How I have missed walking along a beach barefoot!!
Claire did NOT like the waterfalls!!!
Most of the family posing on a rock. Devin was actually trying to get them to calm down and hold still, so I had him do a quick pose in the middle of it! :) (You can still see poor Andrew having a hard time...)
Here is a fisherman! (Out for a pleasure cruise in Eel infested waters...)
Some Pretty Views of the Falls...
There was a little restraunt just above and to the left of where I was standing...and this is the girl who washes their dishes for them. She wasn't the only only one washing things in the falls. There were two other ladies there washing their clothes...Not to mention......
They also catch the food that they serve at the restraunt right there with the washed dishes and clean clothes! Whew!
Did anyone know that Shrimps had huge claws? I didn't. I must be retarded, but I was shocked! But, hey, they taste good! Especially barbequed! :)
And, as usual, I have to put in a plug to remind everyone how pretty it is here... :)
It was a nice overcast, cool day our first morning there! :) Yea!
Claire was fine as long as she wasn't too close to the water.
Here is Andrew chilling with Amadou (our French instructor). He's right at home! :)
Josh and I are testing the water. The Atlantic Ocean is SO much warmer than the Pacific!! Even on the Eastern side of it! :)
We got wet! Josh is so proud! :)
Here are the kids with their 'sand castle'...or sand lump...
And, as always, you can't keep a good man down! Devin is so good about jumping right in and playing with the kids! (Especially when I'm suffering from lack of energy and morning sickness!)
This is our peacock friend. There were 2 of them, just roaming around the place!
Here we are walking to some waterfalls just down the beach from our hotel. Claire kept falling behind, so I held one hand, and Amadou held her other. How I have missed walking along a beach barefoot!!
Claire did NOT like the waterfalls!!!
Most of the family posing on a rock. Devin was actually trying to get them to calm down and hold still, so I had him do a quick pose in the middle of it! :) (You can still see poor Andrew having a hard time...)
Here is a fisherman! (Out for a pleasure cruise in Eel infested waters...)
Some Pretty Views of the Falls...
There was a little restraunt just above and to the left of where I was standing...and this is the girl who washes their dishes for them. She wasn't the only only one washing things in the falls. There were two other ladies there washing their clothes...Not to mention......
They also catch the food that they serve at the restraunt right there with the washed dishes and clean clothes! Whew!
Did anyone know that Shrimps had huge claws? I didn't. I must be retarded, but I was shocked! But, hey, they taste good! Especially barbequed! :)
And, as usual, I have to put in a plug to remind everyone how pretty it is here... :)
Friday, May 23, 2008
Clarification
I did want to answer a few comments that have been posted, as I felt they were especially relevant...ha ha ha...
As far as the little baby widgets that I have floating around my blog, it mentions (twice, I believe) about having my 20 kids. I have done the numbers, and have figured that if I continue on my '2 year track' of having children as I have hitherto done, I will be 62 when I have number 20. Well, obviously, that might not be quite possible. And, as we have no history of twins in our families (right????) we won't have that option available to supplement. I did know of a woman who was 56 when she had her last child, but she only had 13 kids, and if I were to have my last at 56 that would leave me with only 17, which would, of course, be short of my goal of 20. I have thought of adoption, but I don't know that they would really consider that with the number of kids we'd have. So, alas, I suppose that 20 kids may be beyond my reach...but who knows? Miracles do happen! :P
It is true that this baby will catch us up with my own parents. It also means we are halfway to Devin's! :) Devin has 6 sisters and 1 brother, I have 2 brothers and one sister. Usually, when people find out how many siblings Devin has, they always ask us if we're planning to have that many, so I always tell them we're not...we're going to have 20 instead and out-do everyone! Ha! Of course, it's not the truth. It's more of the We-have-absolutely-no-idea-how-many---Do-you? answer. I do love babies...and I love my kids more than anything. I plan to have at least 3. Probably 4. More than likely we'll have more. They're a fantastic tax break, and they definitely keep me from being idle and lazy! :) And beyond that, they teach me how to be extra loving and patient, how to be humble and teachable, and they show me each day a little vision of heaven! They are a blessing, and I will take as many as Heavenly Father is willing to send me! :))
As far as the little baby widgets that I have floating around my blog, it mentions (twice, I believe) about having my 20 kids. I have done the numbers, and have figured that if I continue on my '2 year track' of having children as I have hitherto done, I will be 62 when I have number 20. Well, obviously, that might not be quite possible. And, as we have no history of twins in our families (right????) we won't have that option available to supplement. I did know of a woman who was 56 when she had her last child, but she only had 13 kids, and if I were to have my last at 56 that would leave me with only 17, which would, of course, be short of my goal of 20. I have thought of adoption, but I don't know that they would really consider that with the number of kids we'd have. So, alas, I suppose that 20 kids may be beyond my reach...but who knows? Miracles do happen! :P
It is true that this baby will catch us up with my own parents. It also means we are halfway to Devin's! :) Devin has 6 sisters and 1 brother, I have 2 brothers and one sister. Usually, when people find out how many siblings Devin has, they always ask us if we're planning to have that many, so I always tell them we're not...we're going to have 20 instead and out-do everyone! Ha! Of course, it's not the truth. It's more of the We-have-absolutely-no-idea-how-many---Do-you? answer. I do love babies...and I love my kids more than anything. I plan to have at least 3. Probably 4. More than likely we'll have more. They're a fantastic tax break, and they definitely keep me from being idle and lazy! :) And beyond that, they teach me how to be extra loving and patient, how to be humble and teachable, and they show me each day a little vision of heaven! They are a blessing, and I will take as many as Heavenly Father is willing to send me! :))
Long Weekend
Once again, we are leaving for the weekend, so my blog will be silent. This week has been spent enjoying Monday and Tuesday off (Cameroonian holiday), and not much else! :) I will be happy to be able to post some more pictures and movies from our little holiday at the beach!!! In the meantime, my dad sent me this via email, and I thought I'd share with everyone the new $5 bill:
Happy Memorial Day, everyone! I hope you all have a bar-b-Q and eat a lot of potato salad, chips and ice cream for me!! :) (Oh, that sounds good!!!)
Happy Memorial Day, everyone! I hope you all have a bar-b-Q and eat a lot of potato salad, chips and ice cream for me!! :) (Oh, that sounds good!!!)
Sunday, May 18, 2008
Swimmer's Hair
Well, I wish I could say that my long absence from making any new posts is because I've been busy doing exciting things...but, sadly, that's not it. We've gone swimming in the new pool nearby, and that's been REALLY nice. I've just been sick and tired. I know, I know...complain, complain! I think I'm still in denial, and sometimes I actually wonder why I'm so completely exhausted and without energy! Ha! I would have thought that after already having three kids I would be 'used' to this...but luckily, we somehow forget (no matter how good our memory is...) how NASTY we feel those first few months! I really am not that bad, though, so no worries! I am VERY grateful for my circumstances this time around--that I'm not tired, sick AND overwhelmed with all the cleaning I have to do! It is a GREAT blessing for which I am grateful a million times over every single day!!!!
We were supposed to go canoeing yesterday it fell through, and I admit that I was sad!! I was looking forward to another interesting jungle adventure! Oh well. We went to a dinner party instead. It was nice--we met some new people that just moved in. It's nice not to be the new people here anymore! :) And it's nice when the new people moving in have little kids, and the mom doesn't work! Yea! Friends!! :))
So, here are some pics of our swimming fun. I'll try to think of interesting things to post again so it isn't weeks and weeks between posts! :)
Isn't this the most beautiful vista? And there's little Andrew contemplating jumping into the pool without his floatie! He has no fear!
Here are my happy boys! :)
It was 8am on a Saturday--and a fantastically beautiful day!! :)
Claire had a bad hair night! :) I washed her hair using the bathwater, but since I also use Skin So Soft, it made her hair very oily. I was playing with it, and realized that it stayed in whatever position I happened to move it, so this was the funny result!
Claire's sad face...
This is the Mother's Day card that Devin and the kids made for me! I should have taken a pic of the back, too, because that's where the kids added their pictures! :) My favorite was Josh's comment: "See mom!? I drew a picture of me and dad, and I wrote, 'I love Dad the most! I love mom and Claire and Andrew, too, but I love dad the most!'" I had to laugh that he put that on my Mother's Day card! :)) (And no, I didn't feel bad!)
We were supposed to go canoeing yesterday it fell through, and I admit that I was sad!! I was looking forward to another interesting jungle adventure! Oh well. We went to a dinner party instead. It was nice--we met some new people that just moved in. It's nice not to be the new people here anymore! :) And it's nice when the new people moving in have little kids, and the mom doesn't work! Yea! Friends!! :))
So, here are some pics of our swimming fun. I'll try to think of interesting things to post again so it isn't weeks and weeks between posts! :)
Isn't this the most beautiful vista? And there's little Andrew contemplating jumping into the pool without his floatie! He has no fear!
Here are my happy boys! :)
It was 8am on a Saturday--and a fantastically beautiful day!! :)
Claire had a bad hair night! :) I washed her hair using the bathwater, but since I also use Skin So Soft, it made her hair very oily. I was playing with it, and realized that it stayed in whatever position I happened to move it, so this was the funny result!
Claire's sad face...
This is the Mother's Day card that Devin and the kids made for me! I should have taken a pic of the back, too, because that's where the kids added their pictures! :) My favorite was Josh's comment: "See mom!? I drew a picture of me and dad, and I wrote, 'I love Dad the most! I love mom and Claire and Andrew, too, but I love dad the most!'" I had to laugh that he put that on my Mother's Day card! :)) (And no, I didn't feel bad!)
Friday, May 9, 2008
Honorable Mentions
Here are a few kid funnies that I have to share:
The other day, Devin came home for lunch so that we could fill out our absentee voter registration stuff and send it off. Devin was really concentrating as Josh kept trying to talk to him. Finally, Josh looks at him and says, "Daddy, what are you doing?" "I'm trying to fill out mommy's voter registration." I looked over at Josh and he had that furrowed brow, and you knew he was trying to figure out what all of that just meant. Then I heard him mumble..."Hmmm...voter implication. Dad, why are we going there on vacation?"
I was helping Claire in the bathroom (as usual...since I have to put ALL of the toilet paper up as high as possible so I don't come in to see that the toilet paper roll is empty and the kids are swimming in toilet paper...), and after, I washed my hands. I told Claire, "Come wash your hands with this nice soap, Claire!" Claire asked me what kind it was, and I said it was berry scented. Then she looked at me and said, "Mom, we need to use Palmyra soap!" (I didn't think Palmolive and Palmyra would be something that would be mixed up, but there you are!)
While we were on our trip to Foumban, we did a lot of shopping. Thankfully, there were some wonderful girls there that helped me to keep track of my kids...and the kids absolutely adore them!!! :) Well, the girls gave Claire 50 cfa (roughly the equivalent of about 12 cents) and said that was her money, and she could buy whatever she wanted to if they would take it. Well, it turns out, Claire is a natural! She had that money clasped in front of her, and when they would go into a shop, she would hold it out, smile adorably and say "Pleeeeeeease?" or "S'il vous plait" (which really got 'em!) and the vendors would smile at her and pat her head and give her free things because they thought she was so cute!! She got a necklace and SIX mini masks all for free--she even got to keep her 50 francs! :) What a girl!! I'm going to have to lock her in her room when she gets older! :))
Josh didn't have such good luck while we were in Foumban. He LOVES to run, as anyone who knows him knows. But he was so tired and off-kilter while we were there, his balance wasn't so hot. We'd gotten to the hotel, and he and the other kids started running around the 'tennis court'. I think they were playing tag. Well, Josh biffs it. Poor kid. So, I come running...thankfully, Devin packed bandaids in the diaper bag, and I carry around neosporin type stuff, and I was able to patch him up a bit, and he was happy to have his Scooby doo band aid on his left knee. Well, about 1/2 hour later...I hear Josh screaming his head off. I run out: Scooby Doo is plastered across the pavement, and there are more rocks and dirt to clean out of his knee. *Sigh* So, I told him he couldn't run anymore that night. Next day, they were running around in the courtyard around some vendors as some of us were shopping...and...SMASH! Once again, Josh is on the ground and scooby doo comes to the rescue. Same knee. More rocks. Next day...a different place...another courtyard surrounded by vendors and a perfect place to play tag--or soccer, I think it was this time--and down he goes! Timber!! My poor little boy! His knees are going to look like mine--scrapes and bruises and scars from falling down a lot in foreign countries! That kid used up all the Scooby Doo band aids on ONE spot on the SAME knee! Now that we are home, he hasn't fallen again...yet! :))
The other day, Devin came home for lunch so that we could fill out our absentee voter registration stuff and send it off. Devin was really concentrating as Josh kept trying to talk to him. Finally, Josh looks at him and says, "Daddy, what are you doing?" "I'm trying to fill out mommy's voter registration." I looked over at Josh and he had that furrowed brow, and you knew he was trying to figure out what all of that just meant. Then I heard him mumble..."Hmmm...voter implication. Dad, why are we going there on vacation?"
I was helping Claire in the bathroom (as usual...since I have to put ALL of the toilet paper up as high as possible so I don't come in to see that the toilet paper roll is empty and the kids are swimming in toilet paper...), and after, I washed my hands. I told Claire, "Come wash your hands with this nice soap, Claire!" Claire asked me what kind it was, and I said it was berry scented. Then she looked at me and said, "Mom, we need to use Palmyra soap!" (I didn't think Palmolive and Palmyra would be something that would be mixed up, but there you are!)
While we were on our trip to Foumban, we did a lot of shopping. Thankfully, there were some wonderful girls there that helped me to keep track of my kids...and the kids absolutely adore them!!! :) Well, the girls gave Claire 50 cfa (roughly the equivalent of about 12 cents) and said that was her money, and she could buy whatever she wanted to if they would take it. Well, it turns out, Claire is a natural! She had that money clasped in front of her, and when they would go into a shop, she would hold it out, smile adorably and say "Pleeeeeeease?" or "S'il vous plait" (which really got 'em!) and the vendors would smile at her and pat her head and give her free things because they thought she was so cute!! She got a necklace and SIX mini masks all for free--she even got to keep her 50 francs! :) What a girl!! I'm going to have to lock her in her room when she gets older! :))
Josh didn't have such good luck while we were in Foumban. He LOVES to run, as anyone who knows him knows. But he was so tired and off-kilter while we were there, his balance wasn't so hot. We'd gotten to the hotel, and he and the other kids started running around the 'tennis court'. I think they were playing tag. Well, Josh biffs it. Poor kid. So, I come running...thankfully, Devin packed bandaids in the diaper bag, and I carry around neosporin type stuff, and I was able to patch him up a bit, and he was happy to have his Scooby doo band aid on his left knee. Well, about 1/2 hour later...I hear Josh screaming his head off. I run out: Scooby Doo is plastered across the pavement, and there are more rocks and dirt to clean out of his knee. *Sigh* So, I told him he couldn't run anymore that night. Next day, they were running around in the courtyard around some vendors as some of us were shopping...and...SMASH! Once again, Josh is on the ground and scooby doo comes to the rescue. Same knee. More rocks. Next day...a different place...another courtyard surrounded by vendors and a perfect place to play tag--or soccer, I think it was this time--and down he goes! Timber!! My poor little boy! His knees are going to look like mine--scrapes and bruises and scars from falling down a lot in foreign countries! That kid used up all the Scooby Doo band aids on ONE spot on the SAME knee! Now that we are home, he hasn't fallen again...yet! :))
Monday, May 5, 2008
Hotel Baba
We made a little 'Pit stop' at a hotel in a village called Bafousam.
They had some pretty sweet bushes! This one looked like a fish diving in the water:
No one was really sure what this one was, but it looked pretty cool!
When we finally got to Foumban, we found our hotel: Hotel Baba! :)
This is the Hotel front taken from the front seat of the van as we pulled in:
Another good shot:
We hadn't eaten all day, so here we are in the hotel's restraunt waiting for our super expensive dinner of fish, chicken, plantains and french fries:
I wish I had taken more pictures of inside our 'fancy' room! This bed Josh is sleeping on was shared by Josh and Claire. You can see Andrew's little pack-n-play in the corner there. The smell of mothballs was SO strong in that room! Whew!!!!! Gives me a headache just thinking about it! :P But it was definitely an experience! From creepy foam beds, to damp blankets and sheets, to huge foam pillows to dirty floors with moth balls to a very interesting bathroom with only cold water (because the water heater was next door, and off!!!), to no screens on the windows and no mosquito nets...it was a very interesting stay!! There is, of course, no air conditioning there. So, we asked for a fan. They brought in this HUGE monster fan! It was as tall as me and twice as wide! BUT, there were no outlets to plug it in! So, we told the owner, and they came in, took a plate off the wall (not one for eating), pulled out some wires, and hooked up a new outlet--all without turning the electricity off! So, I came in to see this outlet hanging out of the wall by a few wires, and this huge fan going full blast...boy was this an experience!!! :)
This is outside one of the 'rooms'. They were cute little 'houses' outside. Josh has a nice bag of oatmeal-craisin cookies for the road.
I took this picture! Fun, eh?
Claire was playing tag with some other kids that had come with us. I yelled out to her to smile, and she turned her head and grinned without even breaking stride!
Family photo in front of our lovely room:
Camping, eat your heart out! :)
They had some pretty sweet bushes! This one looked like a fish diving in the water:
No one was really sure what this one was, but it looked pretty cool!
When we finally got to Foumban, we found our hotel: Hotel Baba! :)
This is the Hotel front taken from the front seat of the van as we pulled in:
Another good shot:
We hadn't eaten all day, so here we are in the hotel's restraunt waiting for our super expensive dinner of fish, chicken, plantains and french fries:
I wish I had taken more pictures of inside our 'fancy' room! This bed Josh is sleeping on was shared by Josh and Claire. You can see Andrew's little pack-n-play in the corner there. The smell of mothballs was SO strong in that room! Whew!!!!! Gives me a headache just thinking about it! :P But it was definitely an experience! From creepy foam beds, to damp blankets and sheets, to huge foam pillows to dirty floors with moth balls to a very interesting bathroom with only cold water (because the water heater was next door, and off!!!), to no screens on the windows and no mosquito nets...it was a very interesting stay!! There is, of course, no air conditioning there. So, we asked for a fan. They brought in this HUGE monster fan! It was as tall as me and twice as wide! BUT, there were no outlets to plug it in! So, we told the owner, and they came in, took a plate off the wall (not one for eating), pulled out some wires, and hooked up a new outlet--all without turning the electricity off! So, I came in to see this outlet hanging out of the wall by a few wires, and this huge fan going full blast...boy was this an experience!!! :)
This is outside one of the 'rooms'. They were cute little 'houses' outside. Josh has a nice bag of oatmeal-craisin cookies for the road.
I took this picture! Fun, eh?
Claire was playing tag with some other kids that had come with us. I yelled out to her to smile, and she turned her head and grinned without even breaking stride!
Family photo in front of our lovely room:
Camping, eat your heart out! :)
The Sultan's Palace
When we got to Foumban, the first thing we did--before finding a hotel, before even eating-- we visited the home of a Royal Princess. She had invited us over. I thought it was really funny as we were all sitting in this room...she had her television on and there were all these skanky music videos on, and all of us were sitting half dead! We'd just traveled for 6 hours straight, none of us had eaten since about 6am and it was around 4pm, and we knew that it took at least 2 hours for food to be prepared... so most of us sat in the room with glazed over eyes. :) But, Joshua sat next to the Princess, and they struck up a conversation:
P: So, are you out of school for this trip?
J: No, I don't go to school yet.
P: Oh, do you do school at home?
J: Yes, but I'm not old enough to go to real school. I will start in the fall (these people have no concept of what fall is, so I thought that was funny...)
P: Oh, the fall. You will like school?
J: Yah, I'm excited. I'm going to be gone all day every day.
P: Will it be fun?
J: Yah. I will be gone and I'll have fun. My mom will miss me, though.
What a conversation to have! Ha!!
We also got to see the palace of the Sultan of Foumban. Here we are standing in front of it!
There were some interesting murals on the walls and statues on the grounds...
These 2 are parts of one long mural:
This is the dynasty of the Sultans all written out. Sort of like a 'Who's Who' of Sultanry in Foumban:
And here was a wall with portraits of the sultans. This is the current sultan! Nice glasses, eh??
Devin bought some bread, and, as is the usual culture in Cameroon, if they see a white person, the start coming over to sell. If the white person buys, they swarm! So, Devin took some pictures with the street vendors. All street vendors here carry everything on their heads.
There were some 'royal riders' as I called them. Guys all dressed up and riding around their ponies. The kids thought it was pretty cool. They even got to pet one!
The Royal Musiciens played for us, too! It was pretty fun!
They even had me dance with them!
P: So, are you out of school for this trip?
J: No, I don't go to school yet.
P: Oh, do you do school at home?
J: Yes, but I'm not old enough to go to real school. I will start in the fall (these people have no concept of what fall is, so I thought that was funny...)
P: Oh, the fall. You will like school?
J: Yah, I'm excited. I'm going to be gone all day every day.
P: Will it be fun?
J: Yah. I will be gone and I'll have fun. My mom will miss me, though.
What a conversation to have! Ha!!
We also got to see the palace of the Sultan of Foumban. Here we are standing in front of it!
There were some interesting murals on the walls and statues on the grounds...
These 2 are parts of one long mural:
This is the dynasty of the Sultans all written out. Sort of like a 'Who's Who' of Sultanry in Foumban:
And here was a wall with portraits of the sultans. This is the current sultan! Nice glasses, eh??
Devin bought some bread, and, as is the usual culture in Cameroon, if they see a white person, the start coming over to sell. If the white person buys, they swarm! So, Devin took some pictures with the street vendors. All street vendors here carry everything on their heads.
There were some 'royal riders' as I called them. Guys all dressed up and riding around their ponies. The kids thought it was pretty cool. They even got to pet one!
The Royal Musiciens played for us, too! It was pretty fun!
They even had me dance with them!
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