Where to start, I have absolutely no clue. Life has been moving so quickly, and the days are absolutely jam-packed. October we had that group of 40 missionaries at the orphanage (I think I mentioned that before), and November has been just flying by. GLOW Club attendance is regularly about 12-15 girls, and they just love it. Which makes me feel quite awesome. I have been teaching swimming every  Thursday in Piggs Peak, and I am really enjoying the kids there and having a change of scenery every week. Also I am helping in the preschool there every Tuesday - love those little ones! Speaking of, I am sending a little boy to the preschool now. Jaden. I don't know what it is about him, but over the last seven months, I have just fallen head-over-heels for this boy. It took him a few months to warm up (or to talk at all), but now the two of us are inseparable buddies! I enrolled him in the last six weeks of school (it is a private school, and a very good one at that) because classes were finished at his school - they just spend the last six weeks looking over their old work (which for a seven year old boy in a room of peers without a teacher probably looks more like running around and playing) and taking a few exams. So, I took him out of there (he was in first grade, but with the 'quality' of education, he was a bit behind the preschool class at the private school) and stuck him in the private school. He is loving it! He is already starting to sound out words (he didn't know a lot of the letters in the alphabet before) and has come SO FAR out of his shell! It makes me so happy to see him doing so well! I know it is terrible for me to only send one kid to school, but A) I can't afford to send any more, and B) Only three other people know it is me sending him because I have requested we tell people he is being sent by "a sponsor from America" to avoid favoritism stuff. There are already two other kids from the orphanage going to the school, and three more will be going next year, so he is not singled out. And like they say, you can't help who you love.

Other things: Last weekend I had Piers and Janna come up and paint a huge mural across the front of Jaden's new school (the head teacher asked if I knew anyone who could do such, and I absolutely had to volunteer!). It is a little garden scene and is TOO cute!

The weekend before that, I took a little vacation by myself to spend two nights in Mlilwane game park. It was the perfect escape!! (I hadn't left the orphanage in well over a month and was getting serious cabin fever.) On my first afternoon I took a hike and ended up napping on a large fallen tree. When I woke, a zebra was standing just in front of me with a quizzical look as he decided what level of threat I posed. The next day I woke early and hiked Execution Rock (yes, it is what it sounds like). It was a beautiful view of all around the central country. I ended up hiking all over the park for about 7 hours and swimming in the afternoon. It was the perfect rejuvenator.

Me with Jaden, Sibandze, and Nicolas, my most crazy buddies!

Hangin' with Jaden

The girls playing under their exciting new parachute (or "tent" as they call it)

Little Nothando, as beautiful as can be!

Piers painting diligently 

Mural in progress

This was last night's lightning storm. I literally took this just out my kitchen window. No special effects. No filters. Just Nature's awesome power and a killer camera (thanks Emmy!!).