Enjoying Life in Zimbabwe

I have enjoyed watching Elijah settle in so easily with life in Zimbabwe. He makes friends of everyone he meets and isn't afraid of anything. The property where we are staying has chickens which has become a highlight of his day. Each morning he wakes up and does sign language for chickens and wants to be outside. Some of his favorite times have also been with Uncle Marshall who is the gardener. Marshall has 5 kids of his own and several grandchildren so he is very gentle and kind with Elijah. He tries to incorporate Eli in whatever work he is doing, from raking and sweeping to weeding and working the wheelbarrow.
Elijah has also taken a shine to Marshall's two grandchildren who live on the property as well. They just love to play in the dirt and run around with sticks. In fact, the other day Elijah brought me my first bouquet of leaves and sticks. Below are some pictures of Elijah with Chantel and Tadiwa.
When we lived in Zimbabwe previously, we stayed at a TEAM home for almost a year. Now that property has been purchased by Hands of Hope and has a new orphan home there. It was lots of fun to visit these children and see the place where we had once lived. The kids immediately took a liking to Elijah and picked him up, played games with him, pushed him on the swings and helped him up when he fell. They were so precious with him. Here are a couple pictures below.

Jerod and I continue to seek out different opportunities with TEAM and are prayerfully considering where God might be leading us. Yesterday we went to the Karanda Mission Hospital that is out in a rural area. Jerod has also been helping with computer needs around TEAM and is looking into different counseling possibilities.

On a more personal note, we continue to have power cuts every day. Last week we had 4 days in a row where the power was out for about 14 hours each day. Since power cuts are such a common occurrence, most people have adjusted by getting generators and inverters, purchasing gas stoves, and using solar powered hot water heaters. Even with these devices though, there are plenty of days where we sit by candle light or eat sandwiches. Last night Jerod stayed up until 3 am so he could do laundry for me (a very sweet birthday present) because the power was out all day and didn't come on until nearly 10 pm. I guess you do what ya gotta do.