Bath time for Moses!

Funny Children

A few funny happenings from the past couple weeks:

·      We just received our newest American visitor!  Ellen, a friend from the Portland area, has come to stay and volunteer for 3 months at Cornerstone.  The whole week leading up to her arrival, we were talking to the children about her coming.  They were praying for her and were so excited for her arrival.  My favorite question as her car came up the road was: “Is Teacher Ellen a boy or a girl?  Oliver keeps saying it’s a boy.”  Lol.

·      Moses is progressing well.  He is exhibiting some Terrible Twos behavior (aka temper tantrums), which is encouraging in that he is growing past the “baby” stage he has been living in since coming to Cornerstone.  Plus, Moses is now going to school every morning on his own, and is sometimes staying up until break time (about 3 hours).  Each day that he stays until break time, he gets a jellybean or skittle.  It’s a small price to see him trying to join his friends in school :)

·      David, who is about 9 years old, is quickly becoming the Cornerstone Children’s Comedian.  He has a quick mind and a hilarious sense of humor.  These last few weeks, he has been regaling my mom and I with imitations.  He “does” everything from my mom’s way of dancing at church to my “walk.”  When you find the Cornerstone boys gathered together and giggling, David is always in the forefront, providing some sort of entertainment.

·      Aunt Monicah and I had a really honest conversation with the children this week about showing the fruits of the spirit.  One of the boys, Bartholomew, who often has a short fuse, said: “I have a hard time showing joy.”  Then Charity, who often beats up on her friends, shared, “I’m not very good at self-control.”  As much as their honest comments made me laugh inside, I am so glad that they are becoming self-aware!

That’s all I have to share for now.  Have a great week!

-Abby

A Fun-ny Activity

A couple weeks ago, I brought a little surprise to all the kids after rest time.  I gave each of them a small shaped sponge, the kind that come in small clear tablets and "grow" when you put them in water.  The excitement was huge as they crowded around 3 buckets of water to watch their animal sponges grow.  Some had T-Rexs and others goats and chickens.  Even Moses joined in and watched his cow grow out of a tablet.  I love that our Cornerstone kids have fun with the small things in life!

Busy Days with Great Results

The last three weeks have been a blur of activity at Cornerstone.  The kids came home from the village, my mom and I made a journey to western Uganda and three trips to the doctor in Mbale (for her acute respiratory infection), I baked and delivered goods to Budaka and Mbale, Aunt Monicah and I did a program with the kids at church, and I helped the kids get the uniforms fixed (small tears were repaired, initials were sewn on each, and buttons were re-attached) and everything else ready for school this last Monday.  I do love to keep busy, and living here really fills the days for me J

         This last Wednesday, we started a new competition to see which bedroom has the most people showing the fruits of the Holy Spirit. Over the last 9 months, they have studied one characteristic each month and done activities and games themed around that trait.  The children each have a chart in their room, on which we put one sticker for each act each day.  The room with the most actions showing all the fruits of the spirit will win a prize at the end of the month.  The kids are very excited, even without knowing what prize they will earn (they will be as surprised as me, because even though I organized the competition, I haven’t chosen a gift yet, ha).  Hopefully this contest will keep them concentrated on showing all the things they have learned about!

         On Sunday, the kids came and talked to the adults at church about the fruits of the spirit.  The children shared verses from the Bible, sang “Today is the Day” by Lincoln Brewster, and talked about how they have been making better choices to show love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self control.  It was great to see their confidences being built by standing to speak in front of other people, something that is difficult to do even for many adults (like me!).  Brenda 2 shared that she now shows love by “loving her room,” and Sarah said she shows peace by no longer “beating up other people.”  So glad so see that the kids are not only hearing all of us adults talk about these things, but that they are taking responsibility for their own behavior.  It’s so wonderful to see the kids maturing in this!

        

Thanks for reading my blog!  Until next week,

Abby

A Quiet Week

         It has been a quiet week at Cornerstone.  This can very rarely be said, with Cornerstone’s 30 children and 18 staff members and a neighborhood full of cows, goats, chickens…and other children, of course.  This last Monday, 26 of the 30 children left to go stay further out in the village with their clans.  They go as part of a government requirement that they spend 5 days with extended families during each school break.  Most of the kids were excited to go and see their friends and family but I have been feeling lonely without all the children and activity at the orphanage.  There IS such a thing as having too much quiet!

         Natasha, Vanessa, Isaac and Moses, however, have been around to help keep me occupied!  They are the only 4 children who have nobody in the village to go and stay with.  So, they have been getting to stay with Pastor Rogers, which is a special thing in itself.  They are allowed to stay up later than their normal bedtime, and can watch as much television as they want!  How much more exciting can things get when you’re a kid, right?  Plus, my mom and I had all 4 come and stay at our house last night and eat scrambled eggs, “sausage,” fruit salad and toast (I have to put quotations around sausage, because after all, it is Uganda), and of course, eat American pancakes this morning.  We played Candy Land, built Lego creations, watched a few episodes of Mickey Mouse cartoons, and ate bakery “mistakes” (cupcakes that are scarred by the oven rack or slightly burned on one part).  What a fun time it was together, and I can’t wait to see the other 26 come home tomorrow!  

A picture taken last week of Christine and Natasha being goofy :)