being locked-down

I know many of you reading this have already been experiencing some form of a lockdown or stay-at-home order.  
Over the last few weeks, the President has given orders to get Uganda to this point.

On March 18th, he announced that starting on Friday (March 20th), all schools would be closed for 32 days.  Not only would schools be closed, but also churches and large public gatherings.

a few of the kids doing the work I make for them

 

We woke up Sunday (the 22nd) to the first confirmed coronavirus case in Uganda. In the past couple of weeks, the number has steadily risen.  As of this morning, there are 44 confirmed cases in this country.

All borders to the country have been closed since the 22nd/23rd.  They have also stopped international passenger flights.  
Last week, all public transportation was stopped and shops that do not sell food or pharmaceuticals are not to open (like hardware stores, electrical shops, and clothes sellers).

This was already a huge hit to a lot of people in Uganda, not to mention the prices on most items being raised (although the president said that can’t happen).

trying not to waste any of our charcoal

 

Earlier this week, on Monday night, President Museveni announced the country would be starting a 14 day lockdown.  He gave a lot of information, but people were left confused and not sure exactly what was going to happen.  
Starting yesterday (April 1st), there are to be no private vehicles driving on the road, people are supposed to get permission before going to a health center, there is a curfew of 7pm, and basically, people should stay at home and not go out unless they have to.

a chart of the president’s directives

 

All this sounds well and good, not easy, but doable, until you realize that a great majority of this country live [as they say here] hand to mouth.  Meaning, a lot of people live day to day, working for their next meal.  This is a not a place where people have savings accounts and credit cards.

There are a great number of people out of work right now and they are not sure how to feed their family for the next two weeks or more.

 

This blog can’t end without a giant THANK YOU, to all of you who have helped us get food and necessary supplies to help us make it through the price-hikes and the lockdown.

after Sam got back on Tuesday – dry goods and produce

 

Sometimes I laugh when I look at how much toilet paper we have, knowing that we will totally go through it within a few months.  No, we’re not hoarding it, but how much toilet paper would you need in your house if there were 16+ people using it on a daily basis?!?

toilet paper and soap

 

Hope you’ve been able to make some good memories these past few weeks, despite the lockdowns and strange lifestyle.

 

much love!

living in Uganda, during a pandemic

I have started to type, deleted, then started to re-type this a few times now.  It’s hard to know what to say when there’s something so big going on, that it is impacting the whole world.

As of Sunday morning, the first confirmed case of Coronavirus was in Uganda.  

Sam going out to get some necessary food on Saturday

 

Last week, the president preemptively (there had been no confirmed cases here) declared the closing of schools, churches, and any public gatherings like concerts or assemblies, for the next month.

Here at our house, we have talked with the kids about hygiene and the spreading of germs.  We have limited their movements and are making hand washing mandatory for anyone who enters our compound.

the kids washing their hands, feet, and shoes and trimming their nails

 

Living in Uganda, there is an aspect to this pandemic I hadn’t been expecting.  Even though the first confirmed case didn’t happen until Sunday, the prices of basically everything have already increased.
On Monday, Sam went to get produce; what normally would have been about $15, was $20.  On Friday, 50kg of sugar was around $38, it was about $52 yesterday (Monday).  I’ve heard the price for gas is actually down in America, it’s starting to go up here. 

While trying to limit everyone’s goings out, it means we are needing to feed 15+ people, all day, every day.  The price increases make it that much harder, because we go through a lot of food, charcoal, soap, and toilet paper. 

lunch being served, earlier today

 

If you feel led to help, we would be so grateful.
There are two ways you can help us meet our needs:

PAYPAL
(This is the fastest way for funds to reach us)

or

Through our regular donation platform.
These donations are tax-deductible and can be given HERE.

 

much love!

the new kid

A lot of people are talking about the Coronavirus.
It was announced yesterday, even though there have not been any cases in Uganda yet, they are closing schools for a month.  They are also saying churches, public transportation, and public gatherings should be limited.

With a lot of attention being given to how germs are spread, what preventive measures can be taken, and the number of infected people, I thought I would break-in and share something cute:)

On Monday evening, one of our goats gave birth.  She had a baby girl.

happy mommy and daughter

 

We hope you are able to find moments of peace and calm, despite stores being out of toilet paper!

 

much love

this little piggy…

Last year, you might remember, we expanded our pig house. The expansion/addition was necessary, and what we needed at the time.

after the expansion last year

 

 

old pig area, being repurposed for Daisy
we are planning to fix this area up to be nicer for her

 

Over the last couple of months, Sam built a new pig house on our CITY land.  As of a couple of weeks ago, all the pigs have moved in.

building the new pig house

 

the finished pig house

 

There are a few reasons we wanted to move the pigs:

• There are more grass and leaves on the land, which means we need to buy less feed
• The pigs are growing faster
• We no longer have to pay to have a truck pick manure from the house and take it to the land
• There is more room to expand their housing

happy mommy and babies in their new home

 

If you’re asking why we’re raising pigs, well, I can answer that for you!
The main reason is to sell them. A side benefit is for the meat.

 

much love!

 

hitting the books

School has officially started for the 2020 school year.

our littlest two working on their homework

 

It’s been almost two weeks now, and my evenings are once again filled with homework, making sure food is cooked, homework, making sure things are set for the next day, homework, hearing about each of their days at school, and, you guessed it, more homework.

two of our boys working on science and math

 

Homework may not be the most exciting thing to do, but I enjoy seeing them grow and spending that time with them each day.

 

much love!

chapaturday

If you are ever at our house on a Saturday, most likely you will be eating chapati.
Chapati is a flatbread; I usually say it’s like tortillas, but a little thicker and more oily.

Most every Saturday, a few of the kids grate some carrots, onions, green peppers, garlic, and ginger to mix with flour, water and oil to make about 50 chapati.

This was how our chapati was made this past Saturday:
After all of the ingredients are mixed into a soft dough, they roll it into balls.

 

 

Next, the dough balls are rolled into flat circles, ready for frying

 

The final step is frying the chapati on a hot, cast-iron skillet

 

Warm, freshly cooked chapati is hard to resist.

 

You are more than welcome to visit, and even if you don’t make it for a Saturday, we can make you chapati:)

 

much love!

 

chapati, home-made, Mukono, Uganda, Africa, kids, love, life, cast-iron, Saturday,

beaches, bricks, and corn

What have you been up to this year?

Similar to last year, we had a fun family outing to the beach.  We cooked food at home, loaded the cars, then made the two hour drive to Entebbe.

We spent the entire afternoon and evening swimming, playing football, eating food, and looking at old airplanes!

fun in Lake Victoria

 

the littlest ones enjoying a refreshing drink

 

having fun in an old airplane

 

most everyone, before we headed home

 

Besides going to the beach, we have been doing quite a bit on our CITY land.
We baked about 25,000 bricks.

finishing to stack them

 

coating the outside in a layer of mud to keep the heat inside

 

chopping the firewood and getting ready to start the baking process

 

We’ve also harvested a lot of dried corn, which we will use to make flour for us and bran for some of our animals.

taking the kernels off of the cob

 

There has been some drama going on with the well, but I’ll save that for next time!

 

much love!

 

 

 

 

life, love, well, water is life, CITY Uganda, kids, education, brick baking, well drama, beach, Lake Victoria, Mukono, Entebbe, Uganda, Africa, family outing

can you relate?

When was the first time you tasted alcohol?
Did your parents give you some gin to make sure you would sleep, even though you were hungry and didn’t get enough food all day, or the day before?

What about school, did they graduate you to the next grade, in order for you to just finish?
Did everyone around you see you as a burden and not really capable of doing well in school?

an actual end of year report for one of our kids a few years ago
[229/600 = 38% – this was their overall grade for the end of the school year – and notice how they were promoted to the next grade]

 

This may sound a little dramatic, and really hard to relate to.  Unfortunately, this was the reality for a few of our kids.

It is stories like this, where the future seems bleak, that motivates Sam and I to keep pressing forward; through, not just the financial difficulties, but the challenges in raising kids from different backgrounds and norms.  

celebrating Christmas as a family

 

Do you want to help bring hope to those who feel like they have no future?
There are still a few days before the end of the year.  If you are looking into giving an end of year donation, you need not look further!

Click HERE to give a tax-deductible donation 

This helps us to send these kids to school, grows our farming and business capabilities, and gets us closer to opening our own school.
For more information, check out this BLOG.

 

much love!

 

oh the weather outside is frightful…

…but the fire is so delightful
and since we’ve no place to go,
let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

We may have a delightful fire (cooking our food); but can you imagine how frightful the weather would be if we were getting snow here?!?

Merry Christmas, from Mukono, Uganda!

 

much love!

 

PS: if you’re still looking for where to give before the end of the year, click HERE, to give a tax-deductible donation that helps us take care of these kids, and so much more!

 

looking ahead to 2020

In our recent blog, which you can read HERE, we shared some of the ways your financial support has helped us grow over the past two years.

Thank you for all you have done to help us.  All of your support, whether it’s a monetary donation, messages of encouragement, or prayer, mean so much to us.
From the bottom of our hearts, thank you!

we wish we could give each of you a BIG hug

 

Supporting CITY Uganda doesn’t just give Sam and me food to eat; you are helping 12+ kids to have a bed to sleep in, to have food to eat, clothes to wear, and to get an education.
Your support also benefits more than just our family.  The families of the people we hire for different jobs are also being supported.

We have big dreams and plans for next year.  Do you want to be a part of all that we are doing?
Here are some of the things we would like to do in 2020:
*Send all 12 kids to school for the year: $6,000
*Finish fencing our CITY land, putting a gate: $1,200
*Baking bricks for building the school (by January, we’ll have around 35,000-40,000
bricks): $450

moving sun-dried bricks into stacks

 

*Expand our animal farm:
     – Buy 3 different kinds of chickens (to raise for eating, selling, and for eggs): $2,000
     – Buy a male pig: $90
     – Get a new cow: $450
*Speaking of expanding our farm, we are getting a bit crowded here with all the animals multiplying:
     – move the goats to CITY land: $1,100
     – move the pigs to CITY land: $750
     – repair the first two floors and build a third floor for our chicken house: $700

some of our male chickens we plan to sell at Christmas

 

*Purchase land near our CITY land:  $5,000
*We would really like to keep building classrooms for our future school.
     – two classrooms are roughly: $3,000**

the foundation for our first two rooms on CITY land!

 

Our monthly budget (not including the above projects) is around $2,165.  Currently, we have monthly commitments that are total $1,609.  This means we still need at least $556 every month just to meet our basic needs.

---

 

To be a part of all we are doing, whether you want to give to us monthly, yearly, or one time, go HERE to make your tax-deductible donation.

 

---

If you’d like any more information on how we spend your money, please, feel free to write us; we are happy to share what we are doing, as we know this money is not our own!

 

much love!

 

**before we start an operational school, we would need at least 12 classrooms/offices