Father's Day Celebration

We went to Kiri Dam for a short hike and picnic lunch for Father's Day.  It was a beautiful drive through many villages.

We drove across the dam and parked our car at the base of the mountain (really a hill if you compare it to NH mountains.)

      Emma is doing her Ben 10 pose.

When we were looking through the pictures, Emma said this is her favorite part of the hike...having a swim and coke at the Club afterwards.

Last few weeks in Nigeria

Last week we drove out of Yola into the hills for a happy hour.  We watched a storm roll in.

On the last day of school the girls had a spelling bee and then pool party. Emma was the spelling champ for her class.  She felt quite proud.

Harv helped make pizzas for the classes that won the most books read during the summer session.  Emma's class read over 300 books in 5 weeks!  After pizza, the girls showed off their swimming skills in the big pool.  Everyone can't believe how Addie has no fear and can swim the whole length of the pool.

Here is our Yola grill/fire pit.

Cultural Day at Community School

We had a cultural celebration at the Community School yesterday. It was a day filled with dancing, food, and songs from various cultures.  We discovered that Addie loves to be on stage.  She wouldn't give the microphone up...she loved it!

Emma talked about the British culture...they eat fish and chips and say "Thanks Mate".  We have it all on video to share when we get home.  It was priceless!!

Here is our friend, Maryam representing the Fulani culture with a dance.

Graduate Student Field Study

We had 8 graduate students come to Yola for a field study as part of the course I am teaching at AU.  It was an amazing group of people and we had a great time together.  The students had the opportunity to go out on site visits including the orphanage, several local schools, villages on public health issues, visited AIDS patients, and went on a safari.  

Emma got some alone time with mommy and the group when she went with us to Yankari. She loved sitting in the front next to Dahiru and thoroughly enjoyed the hot springs!

We hiked to some caves on our safari and Emma's favorite animals were the baboons that were everywhere in the camp.  One even got into our safari vehicle.  She also liked the warthog babies.  

Some students enjoyed talking with the teachers at a local village school.  

During our farewell dinner we had great conversation with several inspiring community leaders. 

I hope we can continue this collaboration...it was an amazing experience for all involved! 

Graduation Ceremony at the Community School

We had the Community School graduation last week.  I can't believe that our Emma graduated from kindergarten!  As usual in Nigeria, the ceremony lasted for a few hours.  The girls did some singing and Emma did a ballet dance with her after school group.  Addie got a certificate as well and sang a few songs with her class.  I have been working as the Director for the Community School since November and I am so proud of all that the teachers and staff have done to move the school forward and incorporate hands on learning.  As a school, we have written a new curriculum, started an after school program, and conducted numerous trainings on educational strategies.  The first picture is all the staff at the Community School that I have worked so closely with this year.

Emma's 6th Birthday Party

Emma celebrated her 6th birthday party at the Club yesterday with her friends from school.  She picked Ben 10 as the theme and daddy worked hard at finding materials at the local market to make her cake.  LaLa sent the party plates, napkins, and cups which made it complete.  Emma enjoyed swimming with her friends.  Instead of gifts, she asked for books to donate to her school library.  Besides the 115 degree heat, fun was had by all.

The Easter Bunny Found Us in Nigeria!

 The Easter Bunny left footprints all over the house!  The girls were up at 6am and found the prints and immediately started looking for their baskets.  Luckily for us, the Easter bunny made a trip to PA to pick up some basket treats from LaLa, Pops, and Lauren!

Happy Easter, everyone!