Wednesday of Week 2

Good Afternoon to the US-
We are enjoying some quiet under our mosquito net writing you this blog. The kids have gone to bed and we are not far behind them. I had to read my last blog to see where I had left off.
  We went to the US Embassy on Tues and they only see non-emergency Americans on Mon/Wed/Fri so we headed back this morning. It is very secure and there were a lot of checkpoints for us to go through despite being US citizens. I wanted to yell out "Hey you guys we are Americans just let us in." There were no Americans working there that we could see only Ugandans. Once we got in, there were a lot of people waiting to get visas to come to the US but we did get bumped in front of them. There is still going to be quite a bit of paperwork that we are required to give them including the very large notebook of documents that I brought with me. We have an appointment on June 20 to have our Embassy interview. We return that morning at 9:00 am to give them our paperwork and then go back at 2 to be interrogated. It is then still a few days after that until we will receive the visas for the kids to enter the US.
  The court date went well from what we can tell. Victoria (attorney) said that the judge really reviewed the family member that was taken and asked a lot of questions. He said he would see her on June 15 for the final ruling. Most of the time if they are going to deny the adoption they do so then. Or if he needed more information then he would have asked for it on that day. I don't feel very concerned but I must say anything can happen within this court system. Please continue to pray for that date.
  Derrick is sick with some kind of cold. Edrine left us early on Sunday and was diagnosed with malaria. He is being treated for it now. It can be as easy as sleeping under a mosquito net but MANY of the Ugandans can't afford them. I think it costs them $7.00 so it seems ashamed so many of them suffer and die from malaria. We covered Edrine's medical treatment or Abbey would not have been able to afford to take him. The treatment cost just $25 american dollars which included his transportation on the back of a boda boda to the clinic.
  There is no end to the need here in Uganda. We see situations every day that would blow your mind. I want to share with you a situation that came up last night in a conversation with our friend Florence. She brought her cousin, an 18 year old college student, with her to visit us. I met Florence on my trip in December. She was the cook/housekeeper for the ekissa trip. She radiates happiness and has such a gentle spirit. Florence was one of my favorite people while I was here in December. Actually she had malaria when we got here and if Sarah hadn't paid for her to get medical treatment (16.00 US Dollars) her malaria was so far along that she would have died. Florence works as a cook for mission groups that visit Uganda. She has been helping Teddy with her college tuition, along with another cousin. Florence is getting married in July and when she joins her husbands family she will not be able to help support Teddy. She wasn't asking for money just prayer that Teddy would be able to finish nursing school. She has 2 1/2 years left and if she doesn't get a sponsor she will have to quit. University tuition is about $1500.00 a year. Out of all the people reading this blog I am hoping that we can help answer a prayer. Between myself and ekissa we will be able to keep a very close eye on Teddy and her education. When you help sponsor someone to finish their education you are not only helping them but you are helping their whole family. Relationships and family are the priority here and they all help one another. If Teddy can finish her education and become a nurse then everyone in her family will benefit. A prime example of this was one evening a friend, David, came to visit with Steve and me. It is customary for them to eat when they visit your house. Olive fed him dinner and after David left I asked Olive is she had eaten. She had fed David her food and was going to eat bread for her dinner. When I expressed a concern she said to me..."that is just how we do it in Uganda." They protect and care for one another. They all share a deep concern for one another. You even see that in the behavior of the children. In December, we witnessed a young girl bite her hard candy in many pieces and share it with all her friends around her. It is the perfect example of what Christ asks us all to do. If anyone is reading this that thinks they could sponsor Teddy then just let me know and I can give you the information you need to do so. You would be provided with all the receipts and information that you need to show that your money is being spent where you are sending it. I will try to take a picture of her for you to see. She is beautiful and quite intelligent. 
  I have been telling you all about the kid's first. Steve and I had a first last night. Derrick returned a kiss, through the mosquito net, but at least it was returned. He has not responded much to us when we hug or tell him that we love him. He comes to us freely and you can tell he likes us but he hasn't responded with affection. Of course, in his jibberish, he could be telling us he loves us a lot and we would never know. Steve and I were shocked and so thrilled to have this little morsel of love from him. Everyday is "like a box of chocolates...you never know what you are going to get."
Good night and we will write again soon.
We love and miss you all very much. Our days are long......

P.S. Edith informed us tonight that Derrick is going to be a doctor and she is going to be an "american princess." Ha! I was thinking more like maybe they could both be doctors. When Steve told her that she could be a doctor as well she said..."no I will just sit and do this" she was applying her sparkle lip gloss I have given her. We'll see about that!