First Day in Uganda

We had a very long bus ride after we landed, but along they way we tasted some local food (grasshoppers and little bananas).  Yes I ate a grasshopper (only one, and it wasn't bad, it was nicely seasoned and the legs and wings were removed).   Morgan tried some ginger candy which was very spicy and too sticky for her liking.  First impressions of Uganda - you see armed security everywhere, the ground is RED, and it was very crowded.

Dubai - a nice place for a layover

We had 14 hours in Dubai, most of which was over-night but that did leave a few hours for sight seeing.  We visited the Dubai Mall, which is the largest mall in the world.  There is an ice rink, aquariam, and a full size dinosaur skeleton, not to mention the shops and restaurants.  Had a beer and some of the best hummus *ever*.   Right outside the mall we saw the fountain show at the Burj Khalifa (photo below - world's tallest building).

*hit is Gettin' Real

Morgan & I got vaccinations this week, we have our flights booked.  I know it is still a few months away but this is really happening !!!

Obedience

Today is March 15, 2017.  If you know me, you probably know that I'm a bit of a geek, I have an engineering degree and I am the IT Manager at Ford in Avon Lake.

I love this week.  Yesterday was π day (yes I'm geeky enough that I had to figure out how to insert the symbol and not settle for writing Pi).  Today is AICP day.  Never heard of it?  It stands for "Annual Incentive Compensation Plan".. aka Profit Sharing at Ford.

Most years I allow myself a little splurge on this day.  I bought my first iPad on March 15 or 16 a few years ago.  I'm sure I bought something last year, but I cannot remember what.  If it comes to me I will share, but obviously it wasn't very important.

This year I told God that if it was enough to cover the cost of going on the mission trip that has been weighing on my heart and mind for a few months, that I would do it.  I pretty much knew it was going to be enough and it was.

Yes I know that there are a lot of good reason not to do this.  My husband was laid off on February 1. My family is going through a tremendous amount of personal challenges, again maybe I'll share later but those details aren't important right now.

So a little bit about how this came to be.  My next door neighbor's name is Marsha.  This is a trip she has taken each of the last several years, her son Chris organizes it.  He is a medical doctor and this mission trip provides free medical care to many who desperately need it (don't quote me on the numbers, but I think they saw 2000 people last year).  Marsha suggested to my oldest daughter that she join them.  I decided to tag along too.

Morgan will be in the fall of her senior year when we go for two weeks this November.  I hope and pray that we are able to contribute.  On some level I know I'm going for "me" more than for "others", but that's not how I want it to be.  I want to serve, to be part of something big.  I'm not afraid of hard work, bring it on.  I'm anxious to share the story of the trip and I thought a blog would be the perfect way.

Well I have a blank form sitting next to me,  it's not going to fill itself out.
Let's get this ball rolling.

The Water's Edge Church sponsors this trip, a Methodist church in Nebraska. Marsha and Chris and pictures from past years are on this website.  

http://www.weomaha.com/serve/national-international/


Correction:  Chris is not a medical doctor, he works in IT.  Marsha's other son is a doctor and is also joining us on this trip.  You can see how I got that confused (I knew she a son who was a doctor and a son who plans a medical missions trip...).  I'm looking forward to meeting both of them!