Living in Uganda

Hey!! It's Marie! I want to share what's been happening since we moved to Uganda. We are pretty much settled here and are attending a great church. We've also been eating many kinds of foods and God has been very good to us.

We are going to Acacia Community Church. It is a wonderful church with a Christian heart. We sit under a tree while we listen to the pastor preach. Last week at Children's Church there was a little girl standing by one of the tables. We were doing our lesson and all of a sudden, she screams! There was a lizard in her shoe and it was crawling up her leg! I felt terrible for her. I have some Ugandan friends. They're awesome! We also sing "I am a Team Kid" every Sunday. It's fantastic! I love to sing it!!

For now we are eating out on Sundays. Some places we've been is The Keep, Ling-Lings (Chinese food), and Paradise Hotel on the Nile. At Paradise we sat where we could see the Nile River and they had excellent pizza. It was beautiful! At home we have two helpers. Their names are Grace and Prossie. I am learning how to cook. I now know how to make chapatis(tortillas but thicker) and banana bread. For Dad's birthday we had a banana loaf as the cake. We even put a candle on it!

You might be wondering about our safety at night. We have a guard named Peter. He is a very nice man. Then we have Mbusa who is our garden and yard help. Joey and him get along very well.

Me, Mbusa, and Joey

Even though we have a guard, it's God who really is protecting us. God has kept us safe so far, and I know He'll continue to do so. Praise God for what He's done. Also, please, please, pray! I miss you all. God bless! Bye for now!!

A New Home

I've been wanting to update and let everyone know how things are going for a few days. The problem is that there is so much to share. So I think I'll just jump in and try to share what comes to mind. I will try my best to explain what we see and experience.

We traveled on Aug. 31 from Dayton airport, to Atlanta(2.5 hr. layover), to Amsterdam(another 2.5 hr. layover), to Kigali, Rwanda(let people off and pick people up), then to Entebbe, Uganda. All said and done it took over 26 hours from Dayton to Uganda. God answered many prayers by having all the fees for 27 checked in bags waived, no delays, all children and dog(Buckets) did very well, and all bags arrived at destination. On top of that when we arrived in Uganda we were greeted by another missionary co-worker who took wonderful care of getting us transportation on a bus(also called coaster)and a house to stay in for that night. The next morning we visited the Game store(dept. store) and supermarket to buy some things before heading to Jinja. Needless to say we were all anxious to travel to our home in Jinja which is a two hour ride from Kampala, the capitol of Uganda.

Friday, Sept. 2 we arrived at our new home. What a home!!! God blessed us with a beautiful home that was lovingly prepared by many who serve here in Uganda. All the kids rushed in the door to see their rooms and Aaron and I stood in the living room in awe of how beautiful it is. We quickly were going in one room and then another trying to take in all we were seeing. All I can say about our home is that it is beautiful not only because of the furnishings, but because so much love and hard work was poured into it by many of our fellow missionaries. After lunch everyone left to allow our family time to be in our home by ourselves. However, plans changed quickly (as they often do here) and Aaron had to leave to do an errand. So I started unpacking some things so we could at least have the basic necessities.

In the next few days I worked at getting all bags and boxes unpacked while traveling hither and yonder to get things in Jinja. Some of the most memorable things thus far for me was my first trip to the market. Wow!!! What an experience. There were so many people and things smashed into small places that it was so hard to move. It is amazing what you can find at the market. Things you wouldn't think of like caulking, plungers (called toilet pushers), bolts and screws, any vegetable I think you could imagine, live and dead chickens, goats, fish, and the list goes on and on. Trying to get around Jinja was not so easy at first. The biggest issue is that everything is backwards in comparison to the US. You drive on the wrong side of the road, the steering wheel is on the right side of the car, and everything but the brake and gas are opposite. God help me if we purchase a vehicle that is a stick shift since I've never driven one:) I asked the missionary who took me to the market how long it would take me to get around and find things in Jinja and the central market. Her response was that there is alot more traffic now, then when they first moved here over 20 years ago. Oh boy, I thought. However, two days later I had visited the market two more times, I could navigate around Jinja, and I had actually driven a couple of blocks to drop Nick and Dylan off at they youth Bible study. So now this little town is becoming home.

The children are all doing very well. Nick and Dylan have spent time making lots of new friends. Marie and Joey have new friends of their own and have already been to a couple of birthday parties. The church we are attending is wonderful. Hate to tell you Urbancrest family but Marie said it may even be better:) I think it's because we get to sit outside under a tree. Everyone here has been so supportive, encouraging, helpful, and loving. God has blessed immeasurably. Buckets is doing well and getting along with our German Shepherd, Misty. We do have a few gecko and frog friends that live in our home with us. So far no snakes or rats, but I'll keep you posted:)

Life here is very different, hard at times, but without a doubt an adventure. When things are absurd it is referred to as TIA(This Is Africa). For example even though we drill into concrete walls screws pull out, the power strips are not grounded, if it's new it doesn't mean that it will work for more than a few days, ants overtake your home in a matter of hours, water in bathroom floor because of clogged drain, huge gaps around new windows where critters can easily enter, and the list could go on and on. Even through the many inconveniences I couldn't imagine being anywhere else. A huge blessing that occurred was that Aaron didn't get shocked when drilling into the wall to hang a fan. The drill bit hit the wires but instead of going through them, the black and red wires just moved apart. Thank you Jesus!!!

Thank you to all that pray for us and encourage us through emails. I will have pictures and possible videos soon. I've been so busy trying to get our house in order that I haven't had time to enjoy Uganda yet. Today we did get to have lunch overlooking the Nile River and believe it or not we ate pizza:) It was really good too. God has been our strength through the small trials that have come and will continue to be and through it all we pray that we glorify His name. I am going to have the children post soon, so they can share their experiences thus far. Please continue to pray for our family as we transition to this new land and this new home. We wouldn't be here if it were not for the many faithful supporters and prayer warriors that we have. Thank you all.

Prayers Are Answered

We asked for our team to pray for insurance and for the extra baggage fees to be waived by Delta in our last newsletter. The extra baggage fees were going to cost $2,600. Well, God has answered in a BIG way. First praise is that everyone in the family has insurance coverage. Second, we were just notified that Delta waived all extra baggage fees for our trip. Hallelujah!!!! The last big piece that needs to fall in place is for our vehicles to sell. Please cotinue to pray, as we all see that prayer is essential and does work. Thank you to all who prayed and interceded for our family. It is greatly appreciated. We have 12 days till we depart for Jinja!! Our whole family is excited and can't wait to begin a new chapter in our lives serving an Awesome God in Africa. If you haven't read our latest newsletter you can view it at:
http://www.gatewayglobaloutreach.org/Bogan/Newsletters/Archive/NewsletterAug2011.pdf
God Bless!!!!

3 Weeks Till Departure

Wow, it's hard to believe that we are down to our last few weeks before leaving for Uganda. All the preparation, hardwork, prayers, prayers, and more prayers have definitely gotten us where we are today. We now are living in N. Kentucky with a couple who graciously opened their home to our family and our dog:) They are so gracious and giving and we have enjoyed getting to know them better each day. Jim and Bonnie are family to us now. It's so amazing to see and be a part of how God orchestrates every minute detail. This home is exactly where we needed to be these last few weeks in the states. We also have been working on health insurance. To be real blunt, it has been a pain. The first insurance company didn't want to cover any back problems for Aaron ever, because of his spinal fusion that he had two years ago. That stipulation doesn't work. so we've applied to two more companies. Please pray that this will get sorted through quickly, and we have insurance by Sept. 1. God can work this out also, so we pray for intervention. The last two days we have been working on getting our vehicles sold. Right now there are people very interested in both the van and truck. Again, please pray that the vehicles will sell quickly. so we can focus our attention on other things. Our family has tried to seize opportunities to enjoy the beautiful pool on the property. It has helped us to relax and enjoy this time a bit. Each day is filled with last things that need to be done before leaving, so trying to slow down a bit by the pool has been very nice. Good news is that Dylan and Marie get their braces off on Friday!!! Nick will have to transfer with his on, which he is not thrilled with. However, I keep telling him that it will be so worth it in the end:) God has worked that detail out by already having our ortho. here contact our ortho. there in Uganda to set treatment up. These last three weeks we are hoping to spend time with family and friends. Our calendar is filling quickly, but we enjoy these last days of gathering and eating with many that we will miss while we are away. Please continue to pray for this transition time, and I will try to update once more before we depart.

Packing, Packing, and More Packing........

The task at hand this week is to try to fit all necessary items into these Contico storage boxes. Right now we have twenty-four of these boxes waiting to be filled. We have one week to have all our personal belongings sold, in storage, or packed. We have begun the daunting task of packing and boy am I tired. These last two weeks we have worked to sell what we can and still are in the process of that. Today, we began packing and I look around our home wondering how in the world we will be able to get all our stuff into these storage containers. Most of our weight and space is being taken up by homeschooling curriculum and books. Aaron and I packed three boxes weighing 50 lbs. each, and we yet have essential personal items in any of them. Tomorrow we've decided to make sure we start packing our clothes. It would be bad to get over there and have nothing to wear:) (At least our children would still be well educated).

So please pray for stamina and patience as we try to pack everything we need to live in Uganda. God has been so awesome to prepare the way and number our steps. We are so close to being on the plane Aug. 31. We look forward to having a few weeks of visiting family and friends before we depart. Please continue to pray for our family as it is going to be very difficult to say goodbye. We so appreciate our many brothers and sisters in Christ who continually lift us up in prayer. Our family could not take this journey without your prayers and encouragement. Thank you!!!!

Quick Update

Wanted to quickly update everyone on what is happening with us. These next three weeks we will be busily preparing to liquidate the rest of our household goods, pack, and put items in storage. We have to be out of our home by the end of July and will be moving to N. Kentucky until departure day (Aug. 31). A generous couple, Jim and Bonnie, have graciously opened their home to our family. Thank you guys for being so giving and supportive to our family. We look forward to getting to know this couple and taking a few weeks to spend with family and friends before leaving.

Please continue to pray for us as we continue on this journey. God continues to bless and do only what He can do. It's amazing to see and know people that are being the hands and feet of Jesus to get our family to Uganda. We can not do this without the team that God has brought together to support and encourage us along the way. Continue to pray for our support to come in and for us to be fully funded before leaving. Right now we are at 75% of monthly support needed. We are trusting in God to raise up churches and individuals to raise that last 25%. Aaron and I have no doubt that He will do it. Thank you to those who are continually praying for our family. We will be in Uganda before we know it:)

Time Is Going Fast

Our family has been busily preparing to leave on August 31. In the last few weeks we have been having meetings with pastors, individuals, and friends to share what God is doing at Uganda Baptist Seminary. There have been so many blessings intertwined in these special moments where others take the time out of their busy schedules to encourage, listen, and pray with us. Thank you to many of you who have committed to partnering with us through prayer and financial gifts. God has provided around 72% of our start-up and monthly support. We are so close to be fully funded, and a few churches are still praying how they will partner with us. Please pray that the rest of our support will come in by the end of the month, so we can concentrate on logistics.

July we will begin by visiting Aaron's brother, Davy, and his son, Joshua in VA. We are excited to see them before leaving the states. When we return, we will begin packing, selling the rest of our household goods, and getting rid of the rest. God has been so good to allow us to do much of the logistics in stages. However, I have found going through our things the most daunting and sometimes very hard, since many items are tied with memories of the children. We will be moving out of our townhouse on July 31 and moving to northern KY. A lovely couple has offered our family to live with them (including Buckets our dog) for the month of August. Thank you so much, Jim and Bonnie, for opening your home up to our family. We so look forward to getting to know you all better:)

Please continue to pray for our family these next few weeks as so much will be going on. We do look forward to our time in VA, but please pray for safe travel. Things in Uganda are coming along wonderfully well. We have been truely blessed with all the support of those who are spending so much time to make our house beautiful. God continues to bless and amaze us daily. Thank you to all those who continuely lift our family up before the Lord.