Very Important!!! New Mailing Address!

Erin and I have decided to move our mailbox in South Africa to a different location with a nice manager who promises to pick everything up for us and save it until we are able to come to South Africa to pick it up. Our new address is:
Erin Welton (Meghann Glenn)
PostNet Suite #169
Private Bag X11326
NELSPRUIT
1200
South Africa
Please write it just like this because I'm not sure they will look for mail with only my name on it at the post office. This should help out for sure! Now send whatever you wish and I'll be praying I actually see it. And a hint for sending things...on the customs sheet don't declare how much it costs unless they make you then write a VERY low amount! You can even write "old books/clothes" or something along those lines for what's inside...this helps it actually arrive instead of getting stolen!
Thanks for all your love and support and know I love mail...even a postcard or letter!

South Africa with the girls!

Friday morning Erin, Chris, and I headed off to pick up our rental car and spend the weekend in South Africa. This coming Thursday is Erin's birthday and Chris will soon be leaving us for a few months at home...so we decided this weekend should be special. I was able to be involved thanks to a generous tax refund check from the US government! You have to love when those arrive!
Point being we booked a weekend away at a wonderful lodge in South Africa. The package deal also included a wine tasting dinner! What the experience...we had a blast and let me just say the food was AMAZING! Here's a few photos...

This is the view from our balcony Friday evening!This is the gorgeousness from our breakfast table!

Oh and the packages my mom and grandmother sent arrived!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! These are the first packages I have gotten since being here...sorry to all else who have sent me things. But that meant I got to enjoy all the nice notes many of you wrote me at the first football game...
I now have the ingredients required to make sweet potato casserole (meant for Thanksgiving dinner but Christmas will do), some new pj's, a bubble machine to play with the kids, US candy, and many other treats for me and the kids! Thanks Mom and Grandma Stevie!

Chris decided I needed a photo of me reading all your notes for your viewing pleasure!
I loved them...I miss you...and Thanks!

Then on Sunday we headed off on an adventure to Kaapshoof (at least I think that's how you spell it). It's a little mountain town outside of Nelspruit. They have wild horses, a great pancake place, and according to others a wonderful look out point.

The pancakes were delicious and the horses were great! We enjoyed them tremendously (made me feel like I was back in Aiken)!But then...we took off on this hike to see the look out...Here's what happened:
All started well...Then we got a bit tired thanks to the steep incline...And here's what we actually saw at the top...yep that's right a cloud! We were in a cloud...we saw nothing!Like I said...we were in a cloud!But on the way back down we did see a "big fish"...And have some fun taking silly pictures...

All in all it was a great experience! Sunday night we stayed at Mercy Air which is gorgeous. Erin and I jumped on a trampoline there for 2 hours straight before deciding we should probably shower up and get ready for dinner. Then Monday morning we got up super early and headed to Kruger Park...wait for it....to go on SAFARI!!!!!!! You'll have to wait to hear about that until later this afternoon. I am off to eat lunch and go help Rebecca with the afternoon program. I promise I'll tell you about my first safari experience soon though!

Catching you up...

So I've been a bit busy as you can probably tell by the lack of blog updates. I'm hopeful today I can catch you up on life...
Well the last you heard from me was Thanksgiving. A day filled with heat, play time, and NO TURKEY! All was well until about midnight when our house phone rang. It was the tias in the Bercario...Lucia wasn't breathing well is all I could translate from their Portuguese. I headed up there to find little Lucia struggling to breath. After a nebulizer treatment she was doing better and I put her back to bed promising to be back in about 3 hours to check on her. By 3am she needed another nebulizer. As I told some people a little later that week, it actually was a great experience showing me I am capable of responding to emergency. Some days since I've arrived I've wondered what would happen if something emergent really happened. God has prepared me...along with Clemson Nursing School!!!
Other than that I've worked 4 12 hour shifts in the past week that turned into more like 14 hour shifts not to mention helping out with the nightly checks on our dear friend Lucia's breathing situation. I was just a bit tired and on top of that I was acting as Rebecca. That meant I was running the afternoon program, playing with Laura's boys as much as I could, and making sure the tias in her dorm had whatever they needed each day. It was an experience...one that made me appreciate missionaries who's houses are attached to dorms even more. God gives them more grace and patience than I have ever experienced.
Let's see what else...one of our Baby House kids...Julio went home with his brother for good! Their mom is now stronger and excited to have her boys back! Julio is certainly happy to be with his mom and brother again as well! Please pray for his transition back into the community as well as his asthma. We will be seeing him once a month to check out his status and make sure his inhalers are still working.

Tchau Julio!Ok...I think that is it. Next up...to update you on my trip to South Africa!

Thanksgiving...a little atypical!

Happy Thanksgiving to all! So somehow I think us Americans forget that Thanksgiving is solely an American holiday. Being on a multicultural staff, living in Africa makes that extremely clear! Haha...here's some wonderful pictures from my Thanksgiving...

My dear Bercario babies playing outside in their bathtub...or pool!?Dear sweet Cleita!Wesley...very pensive!Augustinho while playing in the water! It was definitely at least 100!Francisco and Cleita...some of the cutest babies ever!!!Innocence?! I think not...Pedro playing in my garden...Narciso and Mae (brother and sister) having a little play time today!Adilson in the Baby House post lunch...Alberto not sleeping during nap time (possibly my fault)...ps- this little one learned to climb out of his crib on his own this week...oh the things the Baby House will teach you at a young age...Dionisio...so excited not to be sleeping during nap time!Alfiado being a monkey in his crib...Oh Sheldon...dance moves galore!Joao and Lucas hanging out before afternoon program!

It was certainly a full day! This morning I helped out in the nursery for about an hour so our tias could go to a Bible study. It was already about 100 by 9:30 so we let all the little ones play in a bucket of water outside! Maybe one of the cutest things EVER! Then I went off to find Narciso to let him play with his sister, Mae, who lives in the Baby House. All of Narciso's buddies followed us. It ended up being 4 little boys and dear Mae playing in my garden for about an hour. They made me laugh a lot and had tons of fun! After I had some lunch, I was off to prepare for the afternoon program in Laura's dorm. This week I am having the boys trace their hands, decorate them, and glue them to a big circle to make a sun. They were so excited when it was complete and we hung it on their room door. So cute! I played with my little friend Lucas for a bit, let some of Laura's boys come play with cars, got snack and everything else ready for afternoon program tomorrow since I won't have any time to prepare tomorrow because I'll be working in the Baby House all day and just sneaking away to make crafts with the boys! Next came cooking garlic bread to bring to our pot luck dinner. It turned out great with melted cheese on top and everything. A full day for sure!
I want to write you all a list of all the many things I have to be thankful for here, but it is going to have to wait until at least tomorrow! I'm exhausted...it's already almost 11pm and I have to be up in the Baby House by 7:30 tomorrow morning. Today was a great day filled with sun, fun, and many little ones. Tomorrow will be a bit different and certainly more nursing focused!

Love you all and pray Thanksgiving was a great day for you as well!