Life is the Foreign Service is difficult, at times! In each place I live I am learning to embrace and enjoy certain things. Here in Bamako there are several things I really am thrilled with. First, I broke my sunglasses the other day and when I got in the car to drive to the store I had none with me. I have to wear sunglasses, even on overcast days. I do not like to squint! It took me exactly two minutes to get a new pair. That is record time even per American standards! There are many of these roadside sunglasses vendors along several routes near my home. We stopped, I picked out a pair, I asked how much and paid the whopping price of 4 US dollars in minutes. Do all things in Mali happen this fast and conveniently, in a word NO! That is why a victory like this is so sweet :)

Secondly, is that showers here are right in the middle of the bathroom, not enclosed at all. First, I thought this would be a problem with kids, but now I see the blessing it is! Everything in Mali is covered with red dirt. The kids remain clean only after showering if they go immediately to bed afterwards. Life is dirty, and African life is rarely clean. I can have all five kids shower in our bathroom shower while rotating in one or two and rotating out they others when they are complete.
We have tried to bathe them, but we NEVER have more than enough warm water to fill up the bathtub more than once. Add to that the water in the tub after the first child bathes is disgusting, that means by the time the fifth enters, either the water is clean and cold or warmer and filthy.

The shower removes all the dirt individually and effectively most days. I also like that after years of bending over MANY bathtubs, I can stand up and assist as they shower.

Lastly, I love my consumables shipment! Without this special shipment and our DPO (diplomatic post office) my life would be much more difficult. We just received a large consumable shipment that I purchased back in December in Michigan. Yahoo!!!! All the goodness of the U.S. :)

Well we are now much into this new year, 2012. We had many things happen in Bamako of late. Timmy, our second son, turned 5! He loved his minion cupcakes from the movie despicable me. I got the idea from Pinterest. I just LOVE that website :)Timmy is such a sweet boy! We have loved him since we knew of his existence even before we met in a dirt alley way in Kampala, Uganda. Timmy is kind hearted, ready to forgive and just plain sweet! He looks out for his siblings and friends. He is very attached to Hope, which is just so cute. He is okay with the fact that she is most often in control, he just goes with the flow. Timmy will be a great man in the future! His wife will thank Hope for preparing Timmy for marriage, I am sure ;)

Grace just turned 10! I am still in shock that a decade of her life has gone by. Wow! When people say the time flies by while you watch your children grow, they are right. Grace has been true to her name since the day she was born. She is sweet, thoughtful and has a tender heart towards others! We love you Grace! You are truly one of the best gifts God has ever blessed me with!

We had some civil unrest in the capital of Mali, Bamako, of late. Things are quiet now, thank God! Malians are kind, loving people and they have had a right to be angry over certain things here in their home country. We pray it can all settle out peacefully!

Other photos include a few items you won't find on American shelves. Cigarette cookies from France. Potent man tea that we found at a Super Market locally. My husband made the. Comment he could understand potent man beer or whiskey, but he would never think of tea and potency together.

There are also some photos of a new restaurant in Bamako. It is called Abissinia and it is a great place to relax and enjoy the evening. They serve both Spanish Tapas cuisine and Ethiopian. It was delicious!

Lastly, is my gift that my driver Aboubacar gave me :) it is a thumbs up sign decorated with the American flag. These stickers are frequently seen in all modes of transit in Mali. I love to see people giving each other the the thumbs up! Sure, it may be an obscene gesture in some countries, but most Malians understand it's meaning :)

In Bamako the traditional meal for a New Year's celebration is chicken. Chickens were everywhere before New Year's day for people to purchase for their grand feast. We saw many trucks, cars and motos loaded down down with poultry. This photo is one of our favorite. Bon Appetite!

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all! I went to the U.S. In December for classes to complete my Bachelors degree in Maternal Child Health. The classes were in Cincinnati, Ohio. I had a great time at the courses and learned a great deal :) I was able to make a brief stop in Michigan, my home state, to see family after my courses were finished.

I loved seeing my sweet niece, Heidi, and my nephews, Matt and Josh. They are truly joys to me and I hope each will come visit us abroad sometime in the future.

I got to stay with My brother, Rick and my SWEET sister in law, Kristin. They are always gracious, loving and joyful!!! I love being in their home. It feels like second home to me :)

I also was able to get to Frankenmuth, MI with my family. We had the traditional German chicken dinner with all the trimmings, YUM! I spent time chatting with my sister, Heather, whom I miss terribly. We laughed and joked like always as if no time had gone by :)

I shopped with my mom for a large consumable shipment while I was home in Michigan. here are sone if the photos of part if the items we shipped. Thanks to Mom for all her help, I could not have done it without her:)

Our first Christmas in Mali was great! 85 and sunny was weather for the day. The kids are glad that Santa does indeed make it to Africa!

We made gingerbread houses, frosted cut-out cookies and hosted a dinner party for Kelly's co-workers. We are often glad to be out of the major commercialism of an American Christmas. It is just less pressure and helps you focus on the reason for the season.

Now we look forward to our first visitor. My dad arrives in Mali in a few weeks and we all can't wait!!! Our children adore all their grandparents and "Grandpa B" is no exception :) they are already planning what to do with him and what to show him. All I can say is bring sunscreen and your swimsuit, Dad!

I will post more as we have events cone up. For now, HAPPY NEW YEAR 2012!!!!!

Lately I have spent MUCH too much time dealing with the medical problems of our family! I have been struggling with vertigo since Kelly left, Faith has a raging infection in her toe and Luke has a large pustule under his eye. There have also been several cases of "Bamako Belly" and a few other ailments that are not completely appropriate to mention to all in the blogosphere ;)

This always happens when Kelly leaves, without fail! I was hoping it was over with just me struggling with vertigo while caring for our children. But, no such luck! As I struggle with all this I am so THANKFUL for the Embassy Health Unit. The nurses and staff are excellent! There us no "first world" medical care in Mali. I am optimistic that the health of us all will begin to turn around this week. In the meantime please pray for us all!

Kelly and Grace are visiting an Orthopedic Surgeon in London for a couple weeks. Grace is doing AMAZINGLY well, Praise God! She is having outpatient physical therapy this coming week and has made remarkable progress. She has also loved seeing the "London Eye" and Buckingham Palace.

We had a great Halloween celebration with our American friends before Kelly and Grace left Bamako. The kids enjoyed getting to "trick or treat" and seeing all the standard American candy :)

The other photos are of one of the rock cliff parks here in Bamako and of tile "squattie potties" on the side of the road for sale. I will try to post some of the more interesting everyday photos commonly seen in Bamako.

This weekend is Tabaski, it is a sacred holiday for Muslims. They commonly sacrifice a ram. Rams were bleating like crazy yesterday! Today is truly "the silence of the rams". Have a good weekend and to this in Bamako, "Bonne Fete"!

I have been wanting to share with you about my "mon ami" for quite awhile now. Everyday, since our Durango arrived, I have been driving our kids to and from school. After dropping off our three oldest I take a road that has gangs of young boys begging. They remind of the gang of petty thieves in Charles Dickens classic tale, "Oliver Twist".

I know that these gangs of boys are most likely sent out to beg by a "pimp", of sorts, to get the money they can and bring it back to the "boss".

As I watched these boys each day, one stood out to me. He would run after my car to be right next to me when I came to a stop at the stoplight he was camped out at. At first I didn't give him anything only cheered for his fast running and asked him in French "Ca va?" he would answer with "oui, ca va." which means "yes, I am fine."

After a few days of this running I would look forward to greeting my friend. One day when I did not see him immediately I began to grow concerned. I wondered was he hit by a car while begging or beaten for not collecting enough money? After some time he eventually found my car. My car stands out and I am thankful for that, in this situation. I rolled down my window and said "Mon ami, ca va?" he smiled so big and responded with his usual response that he was indeed o.k.

His smile near tore my heart out! I could tell he was thrilled that I had called him "Mon ami" or "my friend" in English. I gave him change that day and have been doing so everyday since. I don't know where that money goes and frankly I shutter to think about it. I hope and pray he gets to keep sone to eat. I wonder does he have a family? Has he ever had the privilege to attend school? I wish I could take him in and undo all the wrongs in his life. I can't fix everything for him. That is overwhelmingly sad at times forvme to think about. But, for now I can befriend him. We can both look forward to each others visit. I will cheer for him as he runs and he will smile for me. I am glad in this situation I know the one who has this boy's life, and my own, in his hands. I am not completely helpless, I can pray! I will pray for my friend and ask God to show me why it is this boy that he has allowed to touch my heart. I will pray for his safety and security. I will trust that God can work in this boys life and mine, in mighty ways!

The photos attached to this blog post are of my friend running and smiling for me. The other photos are sone of the crazy traffic I drive in each morning. Have good day, Crystal

Grace is healing very well! I am so proud of her. She walks with her walker and is moving around much better. I am so glad to see her fierce Independence and will power!

In other news we made cheese this weekend from fresh milk we pasteurized. Kelly is my hero! He went with an acquaintance to a market, picked up the milk and mad cheese with kids all morning on Sunday! We now gave mozzarella and ricotta cheese to eat and store :) yummy!

Due to Kelly's hard work we had home made pizza on Sunday. We celebrated Faith's eighth birthday with the pizza and chocolate cake. I can't believe how old Faith us getting. She is so FULL of fun:) Happy birthday,Faith! We love you ~~~

We received some new bikes last week. The kids were so excited to ride! You can't really ride bikes on the road safely in Bamako. Thank God we have a vacant lot,that we call the "Rock Farm", close to our house that is perfect for riding bikes.

Grace even got to go with us. She was bummed to not get a chance to ride her new bike, but also happy to just be outside.

The best thing was watching the Malians stare at us, the strange Westerners. I am sure they were wondering "what is on those children's heads" and "why aren't they just riding their bikes on the rode?"

We had a great time and I an sure we will be at the "Rock Garden" riding again soon : )