Well, Hello Again....

So I know it has been FOREVER since I updated! BUT the good news is that it only means that I have had sooo much amazing stuff going on here that I haven’t had much free time to sit down and write all about it!
So…where should I begin…September was great! At the volunteer house at the time it was mainly me, Kendra, Jessica, Laura and Matt. During September I got a lot closer with them and with my staff in Masi. They are all amazing!
Holiday Club was held at the end of September…it’s like a week of VBS! We did Boomerang Express curriculum which I am sure brings back memories for VBS teachers back home. Brentwood Baptist Church from Knoxville had a team down here to work with us on that. They were all so wonderful. During Holiday club was when I really was able to call Masi my home, the place where I worked, the people my heart broke for, my friends.
The Life Skill Educators I work with are truly awesome. At my club there is Desmond, Phelisa and Vuyo (But Vuyo will be leaving us after Christmas because he is going on full time with Hope 2 Africa!) At the other club with Kenny and Carla (the married volunteers from Colorado) there is Natalie Toni (She is the team leader and like everyone’s mom), Sondy and Nandi.
To be honest it seems like these months have FLOWN by!! I can’t believe I have been here over 3 months already!!
October was when things really started to pick up for me. I was/am truly living here and that reality comes with happiness and hard times. My job at Living Way became more and more difficult to accomplish in the time I was given and I started to become more involved with Living Right being more involved with prevention programs.
Since then my job description includes the following: (LOL it’s a lot but sooo exciting)
• Documenting processes for Living Way
• Assisting to develop child protection policies for the entire Living Hope organization
• Heading up a fundraising committee with the Life Skill Educators
• Serving on a Fundraising Committee with selected managers for Living Hope
• Serving as the project manager for the Parenting Program scheduled to launch in February 2009.
On another note, October consisted of a lot of sightseeing and touristy stuff as well, since Jessica was going to be leaving us first in November.
We went to see penguins, wine tasting, museums, etc. It was a lot of fun.
And it seriously feels like we skipped November! LOL It came and went so fast! My birthday was amazing! I was a little worried about it because I wasn’t sure how big birthdays were here! But my Masi staff was awesome and came to celebrate with me and the other volunteers were great! It was so much fun.
Oh and I totally forgot to mention….let me back up
Praise the Lord because I was able to cut my budget almost in half and sort out living situations and everything. I am currently renting a flat from another volunteer missionary family in a really good area in Fish Hoek. It’s a studio flat/apt but very spacious and really nice…and WAY cheaper than the other place I was staying! I also decided to change in my nice automatic 4-door corolla that I was renting for an old school VW Beetle named Sir Rigby!! He is awesome! Bright Red too!  He’s a piece but he gets me from point A to point B and is half the price of the other car and now I’m totally attached to him. Haha
Carla and Kenny and I have also begun taking Xhosa lessons! It’s so great to learn another language and be able to use it in the communities we work in and to empower the lady that teaches the courses and help her business out.
But back to November…things really started getting crazy towards the end of last month, deadlines coming up, projects due, etc. Because the organization pretty much shuts down around Christmas everything gets insane at the end of the year.
And another PRAISE!!! My sister Ashley is coming here to visit for Christmas! This is probably the best news yet! I had been praying and so worried about Christmas and being away from family…and the Lord totally provided and allowed for her to be able to come…and she will get here soon enough to volunteer and help out at out Christmas Holiday Clubs! Everyone is so excited to meet her.
So now that leaves us in December…NOW…and I have vowed to update this WAY more often…so much more often that you might be bombarded with updates now! LOL....but in all seriousness I do apologize for not updating for months! I know you guys have been thinking about me, praying for me and supporting me so much and I should have taken more time to update you guys on the amazing things God is doing here!
I love you all! And will write more soon!
With much love,
Christina