A week of activities

We are nearing the end of Ash’s first trip away since we have been here. He left on Tuesday to do a conference about five hours from our home in Kumasi. The kids and I stayed home, since the accommodations were not going to be conducive to housing two little kids for four days. To make the time move faster, I tried to plan an outing for each day. On Tuesday we ventured to the Kumasi Zoo. It was a slightly rainy day, which left the zoo feeling a little bit gloomy, but over all it was a good outing. Kaite was excited to see the crocodile, though a little concerned at just how close she was able to get to it. The Zoo is old: all the animals are in cages, but they appear to be well cared for. And the cages allow you to see the animals up close and personal. There were lots of different types of monkeys and apes, giant turtles, snakes, a camel and some ostriches. There were two Lions, a leopard and some hyenas as well. And of course the crocodile. There was a cage marked “ The Genet Cat,” but we couldn’t find the cat anywhere. Lucky for us we have one living in the spare room so we are already familiar with that particular species.

As we approached one small, circular area I wondered what we would see as we peered over the fence. There in a little pond was a goose. A plain old farm yard Mother Goose. I realized that the term “exotic” really dependent on ones geography!

On Wednesday we spent the afternoon at Sir Max Hotel. They have a very nice pool and restaurant. The pool even has a kiddy pool complete with cement dolphins spewing water. The kids loved it. And I enjoyed the hamburgers and fries that we had for lunch. Sir Max is a nice break. Katie would have us there everyday if she could. Unfortunately, Kumasi is a bit more expensive than we expected it to be, so excursions like those need to be limited!

Thursday we headed to the Cultural Center. There are lots of shops with colorful clothing, jewelry and crafts. We watched some men carving drums. The Cultural Center is also shading and very green. It has a park like feel to it. We enjoyed walking around and talking with people. It was enough to tire out the kids for a nice long afternoon nap when we got home.

Today we will be heading to the home of a Dutch woman I have been in contact with. She is part of a play group every Friday afternoon. There are several families all with kids between 1 and 8 or 9. Katie and I are both really looking forward to having a chance to visit with some of these families. Katie has been missing having friends to play with. And I look forward to getting to know some other mom’s and finding out what people do to keep their kids busy here in Kumasi.

John Mark seems rather content to wonder around the house discovering new things to climb on. I am beginning to wonder if he has a future in rock climbing. I find him on the table, the desk, the couch. Earlier this morning I found him hanging over the back of the leather arm chair. Paulina and Evelyn are amazed at how strong and active he is. I am trying to figure out what makes our kids so much busier than the Ghanaian children around them. I am wondering if carrying your children on your back helps to teach them a little bit about being still.

In some ways we are all learning about being still. I am still adjusting to life being slower. We aren’t rushing around from store to activity to deadline. We aren’t scheduling our days to make sure to fit it all in. I have been able to read four books in the last three weeks, something I haven’t had much time for since the last time I lived in West Africa. Katie is finding she enjoys coloring and drawing more, spending lots of time creating things. Her “staying in the lines” is really improving! She also enjoys sneaking into her room, or our room and cleaning up and making the bed for me. She does a nice job of that, too. John Mark is enjoying having lots of my attention. I had to teach Evelyn the phrase “Mama’s Boy” a few days ago.

There are still times when it feels a little lonely, especially with Ash gone. Finding a way to fit in and build relationships takes time. We have only been here for three weeks and I sometimes need to remind myself that it takes much longer than that to build friendships. When the coaches were in town it felt like we had instant connections, but now that they have returned to their homes and villages it has been a little too quiet for me at times. Which is sort of ironic, since one of my desires over the past four years of motherhood has been more down time, more time for quiet thoughts and prayers. It seems that this time is an answer to pray, if I am ready to accept it.

Update: It is Saturday Morning, I am posting this after Ash returned from a fun, successful conference. We had a great time at the play group and are all looking forward to next week!

Local hangouts in Nhyseiso

This little shopping center is a 15 min walk from our house. The cafe is on the first floor and the internet cafe is on the second floor. Like many buildings in west Africa the top floor is under construction in a half-built stage. As they get money from the current tennants they will continue to build up.

24 hour internet cafe (ice cream shop below)



Queens Gate Cafe

Some pictures of our life in Ghana

Our house

Don't even think about it!

Katie's new local tie die dress

A Fanta orange at Queen's Gate Cafe

Eating a frozen Tampico in our living room

Our first post from Ghana

So, although my track record with blogging has not be that great, I am hoping that the experiences of living in Ghana with two kids for four months will inspire me to do better. So here it is...our first post from Ghana

7.11.08
(or 11.7.08 depending on where you live)

We have been in Kumasi for one week. We have pretty much adjusted to the day to day quirks of life in an African City: We are brushing our teeth with bottled water, we have learned to sleep through the sounds of dogs, roosters and car alarms (all of which are heard throughout the night, despite the myth about roosters and sun up). We are even getting used to putting our TP in a bucket rather than in the toilet. For a week and a half, I would say we are doing quite well. There are still many adjustments to be made. The bustle of a congested city makes it harder to get around independently than I had thought it would be. I was a little overwhelmed by the Central Market when I ventured in there today. As I shared this with Paulina, the girl who manages the house we are renting, she laughed and told me we hadn’t made it past the market’s front gate. Kumasi is known for its market, the largest in all of West Africa. I was also a little surprised to do some shopping in a Grocery Store, complete with a computerized cash register for easy check out! And we are still hoping to find some children for Katie and John Mark to play with. As of this point, Katie is recruiting our friend and cook Evelyn to play “Doctor Kit” with her and is teaching Albert Churcher, one of the YLI Coaches and our driver, all about Tinkerbell, Aurora and all things Fancy. John Mark is enjoying the outdoors and the dogs (who are a little too wild for my liking.) He is also discovering that the kitchen is a good place to hang out, as he often manages to procure a little taste of dinner ahead of time.

Ash is getting into a groove, as well, working with Albert Jatoe to plan the next few months. We have a Coaches Conference coming up in a week. That will be the first time most of the YLI Coaches get to meet the kids and me. I am very excited to be apart of that and to get to know these people we have been praying for and hearing about for so long. Already we have had the opportunity to meet some new folks and hear some exciting stories of what God is doing. One of the big questions for me has been “what is my role in all of this.” Caring for the kids takes a great deal of time, especially when I find John Mark trying to climb into the toilet for a little water play time. But I also want to be a part of what is going on with YLI and beyond. I am realizing that this is the challenge of mothers with young children all around the world. And it is one that I will continue to work out day by day. For today, I am enjoying the sound of the crickets, and the new relationships we are forming. And I am wondering when I might catch a glimpse of the bush cat that lives in the spare bedroom.

Farewell Boy

This morning I loaded up Scrapple in the back of the Exploder and drove him out to Bremen GA where his foster family, the Bumgardners live. They have six kids so... he should be pretty tired by October 29th.

John Mark LIKES Watermelon

See for yourself.

Waterboy

John Mark has a complicated relationship with water.

1. You can't keep him out of the bathtub, but

2. he is absolutely petrified of the garden hose or any other flying water!

I'm interested in seeing how both he and Katie do this weekend during our camping trip to Vogel State Park... This family may go from little sleep to none at all for a few days.

Katie's New Haircut

Before last Sunday, 93.6% of Katie's meltdowns were in some way related to the issue of hairbrushing. Hopefully with 50% hair there will be 50% less fits!

As ususal, John Mark is just happy to be here!

Vacation at Bent Tree

We had a wonderful week up in the North Georgia Mountains with the extended Zook Family. Oma and Popi drove down and Andre and Susanna flew in from Houston. We stayed at Bent Tree, which is similar to Big Canoe where we got married. It was beautiful. There was a huge lake for swimming and fishing, and a pool. We hiked some of the trails in the community. There was a beautiful swimming hole with a waterfall that was a favorite of Ash's and Scrapple. Oh yes, Scrapple was able to come on this adventure. He was quite depressed when we returned home.


John Mark wasn't very fond of the winding mountain roads, but he found time for some fun.
Popi enjoyed soothing John Mark to sleep during the trip. It was wonderful to have so many hands around to hold him



Katie enjoyed wrestling with her Uncle Andre. I am pretty sure she is considering marrying him one day.


Katie is a little water bug. She swam in the pool and in the lake almost everyday. Since we've been home she has asked to go swimming everyday. Too bad the pool is closed already!

I will get some more pics from vacation up soon. These are a just a few to start with.

John Mark Playing

John Mark is a happy little guy, especially now that we got his reflux issues worked out. He just started to grab his feet.
Here is a beautiful smile after his first bath in the tub. Subsequent bath times have not yielded the same smiles, unfortunately!
Play time!!

Saturday Work

Ash and Katie added a new flower bed to the front path. We also had new sod laid in the front yard. The house looks great! Katie loves to spend time outside with her Papa (which is good, since Mama isn't the most enthusiastic gardener.)

Pizza Night

June...

started off with a bang! "Uncle Mark" came to visit us from Nashville. John Mark and Katie are both Miller fans. And Katie, John Mark and Carrie had a great day at the Renaissance fair with Mimi and Big Daddy. Katie was dressed as a Princess.

Settling in

Things are moving along here with the Zook Family. We have been trying to keep Katie nice and busy (translate: out of trouble!) Here are a few pictures from our afternoon down at Centennial Olympic Park.

It took Katie a few minutes to make up her mind about the fountain, but once Big Daddy hopped in with her, she was ready to go!

When Katie saw the torch from across the field she stopped dead in her tracks and screamed, " I see something amazing!!"

John Mark hung out in the stroller most of the day, relaxed and quiet.

Mornings are snuggle time around here. Katie has her pink blanket...a well loved treasure. And John Mark has his beautiful blanket crocheted for him by Ash's Aunt Mary.

Visit from Oma and Poppy

Oma and Poppy came down for a visit and to help out some too. These are some pictures from Mother's Day and from the Atlanta Zoo. Katie thinks the Willie B. statue is just as cool as the live animals.

PHOTO CREDIT: FEZ (thanks dad)

Let's get some sleep!

Ok...pacifier in, bassinet vibration operating, mobile spinning, clean diaper, full tummy, sufficiently burped, clean onesie, temp 76 F.

Lets see how we do!

Camera phone photos from the circus

I left the camera in the car, but took a couple photos with my phone. Katie and Zion McCray had a great time watching the animals and riding the merri-go-round.

More pictures of the boy

Yesterday we brought Carrie and the baby home to introduce him to everyone back in Egan Park. The introductions went well.

He had a bit of a rough night last night and so did the rest of us. He is still a little conjested and so its hard for him to eat. He and Carrie were up for most of the night.

Katie and Ash went to the Shriner's Circus and didn't get home until 10:30pm. Getting to see tigers jump through rings of fire, brown bears ride motorcycles in funny hats and elephants walking in a chain (and eating gobs of cotton candy and peanuts) left her a little wound up.

Ash started out sleeping with Carrie and the baby, then moved to the futon in the office, then to the bunk-bed with Katie, and then finally back to the office.

First Photos of John Mark

This is Ash posting by the way. A couple months ago Carrie hijacked my Scrapple blog but I'm sneaking a post in here (Carrie's sleeping). There are more photos coming but here is what the little man looked like mere moments after birth (and a quick hosing off).

Oh, and for all you women, the vitals are 7lbs 9oz and 19.5 in. The pediatrician declared him perfect this afternoon but I already knew that.

A dog and his family

Living in a small house with a large animal that sheds year round can be very frustrating for someone whose natural strengths do not include 'housekeeping.' So on many occasions over the last three years I have found myself threatening to banish all 112 lbs of Scrapple the yellow lab to the back yard. In fact, I have actually threatened to banish him to someone else's backyard. There were times that I truly believed that I had had enough, and Scrapple had to go. In those moments of frustration, as I cleaned gobs of dog hair out of the vacuum hose, I actually believed that I could find a nice family who lived on a farm and drop Scrapple off with a wave of my hand and a sincere thank you to the new family. I thought I might feel guilty for a few days, but I would get over it. I now know that is not true. I have discovered that Scrapple is here to stay. He is a part of this family, dirty paws and all.

A few weeks ago Ash came in from the deck to tell me that Scrapple was having a seizure. It isn't his first, but it was definately the worst we have seen. It lasted about 30 minutes, maybe a little bit more. It ended with a trip to the emergency vet. As I waited by the phone for a call from Ash, my mind couldn't stay away from the looming question: What will we tell Katie if Scrapple doesn't make it?" And I began to realize what a significant part of this family that big dog really is.

Scrapple and Katie have grown up together. Scrapple sniffed around at boxes of diapers and baby wipes before Katie was even born. He learned to take walks next to her stroller. He took naps on the floor while Katie played with her baby toys. And now that Katie is growing more independent, there relationship has grown, as well. Most afternoons you will find Katie dragging Scrapple around the back yard by his collar. Scrapple will chase a ball thrown 10 feet by Katie as if it had been lofted into the air 100 feet. Scrapple lays on his side so Katie can snuggle up next to him and rest. He sits patiently as Katie checks his ears and listens to his heart beat with her Fisher Price Doctor's kit. He sleeps outside her bedroom door at night, just to be sure things are ok. And Katie loves him to pieces. She talks to him about her friends, her family, her favorite movies. She looks out for him, feeding him and letting him out. She proudly tells strangers in the grocery store that her dog is three years old. They are best friends.

The day after Scrapple's seizure, Katie and I watched him walk back to the exam room with his vet. He would have a day of observation and testing. I turned to walk to the car as Katie burst into tears, panicked over her dog's fate. It was her best friend and playmate walking off all alone. Katie could hardly take it. After a trip back to the kennels to say goodbye and a promise that we would return for Scrapple after nap time we headed home. Both of us waiting for four o'clock to come quickly