Ruth Michael's 7th Birthday

Wow, what a year this has been for you! You started 1st grade at Light Academy, and that was a bit of a tough experience. The last week you were there, Papa and I had paid security guards to stay at the school to make sure you and your siblings were safe. Safety was becoming a big issue in Malindi, and we didn't like the freedom with which people could come and go from your school. Ultimately, we decided to keep you home the next semester, and we found a really great tutor for you, Quinter. In the midst of taking you out of Light Academy, we also decided that it was time for us to move back to the United States. This was not an easy thing for you to understand, and it made you so very sad. You cried about it a lot, and when it finally came time for us to leave, you told us that it felt like your heart was broken into a thousand tiny pieces. I was trying to be strong for you, but I felt shattered, too. I think because I was trying to be strong, you felt like I wasn't hurting as much as you were, so I tried to let you see my sadness some, too. The first month in America was all fun: visiting friends and family, shopping for new clothes, and eating lots of good food. Then it was time to settle down in Greenville. You had to get used to a new church with lots of new people, you had to go to the doctor and get shots, and then you had to start a new school. You had never been to American school before. It hasn't been easy for you, but you are really trying to stay positive, and I am so very proud of you. You are trying to make friends, and you told me that you have been playing with Lilly at recess, instead of standing beside your teacher, so that makes me very happy. You are so sensitive! You say that your teacher plays sad music, and sometimes it makes you cry. You also get really sad at dismissal time. For some reason you think I will forget to pick you up. Papa and I did come late to get you for the first month, because we thought school was dismissed at 2:45, but it was actually 2:30! We felt really really bad about that.

Your seventh birthday was fun. Mimimo and Bepops were here, and we met the Atnips at Chick-fil-a. We had a princess cake for dessert. I really tried to make it special, but we didn't know many people, and we didn't have a house to invite people to, and I was feeling a little overwhelmed by my life in general, so it was a simple birthday, but you said you loved it. You got an American girl doll, which you thought was the best thing ever, although you haven't played with her at all since then! Alana made you and Abby-Jones these really cute frames with your names in them for your bedside table, and Mattie gave you a bunch of clothes and shoes for your American girl doll. I think your favorite things were the little kangaroos and the little house you got from Mimimo and Bepops, and the little red car and baby hedgehogs and pandas you got from Mimi later on when she came to visit.

Here are a few things I don't want to forget from our time in Kenya:

You used to thing the roundabout in Malindi was a carousel. You would get so excited when we would mention the roundabout, but when you never saw a carousel, you would be so confused!

When we got to America, we would often get gas at QT. You asked why all the workers at QT wore "home clothes." You thought the people pumping their own gas were workers. 😊

We were having some peaches, and I said, "I love peaches because I'm a Georgia girl." You said, "Well, I love Mangoes because I am a Kenyan girl."

AJ was complaining one day about a playground we were playing on because it was wet. You said, "We are Kenya people. We don't care if we get sunned on or rained on, and we don't need shoes!"

You and Mimimo love to watch the Chinese girl cooking. One time, Mimimo said, "She must be feeding an army!" And you said, "Really?!" You take everything literally... that's why we call you Amelia Badelia. Also, when you heard Iddy was going to run cross country, you said, "Wow, I guess he's gonna be really tired," because you thought he would be running across the country!

Also, you are so sensitive to your mama. When I met with Mr. Potkanowicz for your parent-teacher conference, he went on and on about how good of a student you were. He also said you get sad a lot and you like to stay with him during recess instead of playing with the other children. He has really been working with you on your vowels, because your education in Kenya sort of confused you in that area. I was surprised when he told me that you love to work with him on vowels, because you hated working on it with me. I asked you about that in the evening, and you said, "Mr. Potkanowicz makes it fun!" That hurt my feelings a little bit, which I tried to hide, but you saw through me immediately. You quickly said, "But you make it fun, too, mom. I love working on my vowels with you, too!" You gave me a big hug and were so worried that you had hurt my feelings. I love you so much, my precious child.

Iddy's 17th Birthday

Well, this birthday was kind of a funny one for you, I think. We arrived in Greenville, our new home, on August 2, and your birthday was the very next day! We didn't know many people, didn't have a house, didn't have any kind of life there at all... so celebrating a birthday wasn't easy. We had already celebrated with Mimimo and Bepops early on August 1st. She made you poppy seed chicken and I made chocolate sheet cake with peanut butter icing. We gave you Papa's iPhone 8 as your gift, because you really needed a phone, as the one you brought over from Kenya wasn't working well with the American phone networks. On August 3rd we went to downtown Greenville to walk around and get ice cream and do a little exploring. That evening, we had dinner with Travis and Kendra at Tipsy Taco, and you went with Hayden and some other guys to Top Golf. I know you are really having to push yourself to be around so many people that you don't really know (I totally understand that feeling), but you are doing a great job. You have been so outgoing at church, meeting so many people and just being friendly. Everyone loves you, and you seem to enjoy being with everyone at church.