Elder and Sister Brown spend part of the weekend helping this family move

From this one room, no windows and one door

To this two room three door and one window with electricity home.  The front room behind the double doors has been partitioned off with shelves to be the family store.  This store also features a freezer, quite unique.  Ice anyone?

Thank heavens for good babysitter while you are in the midst of a move.  They are sitting on the cooking stove that sits in the front of their 10X20 dwelling that housed two adults, 4 children and a managerie of  chickens and who knows what else.

Hen at home with the family and not too happy about being uprooted to a new home.

Pussy came in the back of the truck with the three laying hens sitting on their eggs, each in their own box and  one box of youthful looking chickens.  Luckily we removed the ugly baby rat that somehow got into the mix.

Elder Brown caught this chicken as it came flying out of the back of the truck

Giving instructions to Elder Crayk who likes to refer to the Ugandan way of living as "perma-camping".   It rained the day we were helping them move and everything was red and muddy.
We can't even describe to you how our sense of cleanliness was offended.  They didn't seem to mind so guess it's all what you are used to.

Here is the family of six and a babysitter ready to fill the shelves of their store

Our first Grandson has his mission call!

  

Congratulations Chase and the opportunity to serve in the Montevideo Uruguay Mission

He leaves for the MTC in Argentina April 11 to learn Spanish for two months

Elder Chaparadza, the district leader, introducing the Christmas eve program.  Elder Chaparadza is from Zimbabwe and speaks very well.  Elder Brown asked him how come it was so easy for us to understand him.  He said that in his home they read the Book of Mormon out loud as a family every day and he feels that is why he speaks clearly.

The mission provided a fun Christmas package for the missionaries in Jinja district.  We saved our ice-cream  containers all year then sister Crayk decorated them pretty fancy.  The mission secretary in Kampala made a DVD of the year with contributions from all the missionaries.  They got new socks men/panty hose women,  journal,  pen and a temple card holder with the Johannesburg temple on it plus lots of candy and goodies.  Many missionaries had never received a Christmas gift as that is not a tradition in Africa

These men are singing the song that went along with their part of the Christmas story

Telling the story before singing their Christmas Carol

We only have two sister missionaries in this district.

The Crayk's telling their version of the "Night before Christmas"

Elder Brown telling his Christmas story

Team mates are cheering on the uncoordinated Americans

I made a recording of the natives doing this and the blog won't accept it.  The white had a lot harder time walking down around the chair and back without dropping the basket

It was a race to get the cookie down from your forehead to your mouth.  Three teams of 7 members in the race

He almost has it with the help of the tongue

Visited Lugazi where they have just set up a new branch.  It is about 45 min. from Jinja.  These women are hired by an American member of the church to make very nice jewelry.  They had a welcome song for us.

ladies making the jewelry.  They sit all day with a bowl of tiny beads on their laps and two long tiny needles that they dip into the bowl to string beads for the jewelry they are making

This is my favorite neckless - looks very african

This is Melissa's shop next door to the room the ladies are making jewelry.  She has  set up an online business where you can order the hand made jewelry at ww.MusanaJewelry.org

Sisters Rose and Anne at our PEF office Christmas party.

Evenly was our first graduate interview.  She graduated in cosmetology and hopes to set up her own shop

Christmas is big in Kampala.  Can you see the white grey haired lady checking out.  Rand thought he needed this  picture

This is our Christmas corner.  Five african angels heralding the birth of the savior in the manger.  The stars and stocking was given us by one of the couple missionaries that crochets.

Dorothy and Ivan Wakabi returning with their son from their temple trip to South Africa where they were sealed as a family.  They are PEF students that are wonderful examples in their branch and to the rest of the District. We were so happy for them and they were thrilled.  I've never seen Dorothy dressed in native costume.

We made Sam a cake with the Zambia flag at a going away dinner in his honor the day before he left for his mission

School is out compared to our summer break.  These boys were playing with their version of remote cars that they made themselves with wire and carved wood wheels

We were surprised how many pots this man was able to carry at a time

Elder Brown with the son of Jinja Branch President.  His name is Moroni

Because our photos were too big we have had to begin a new blog.  Please find us at:    http://brownspefuganda.blogspot.com

Rand had a piece of tooth or composite fall out of his mouth last week.  We weren't sure what it was so we made a trip to Kampala to visit the dentist.  After the visit we still weren't sure what the problem was. (We still don't communicate with them very well)   Another  dentist looked at the situation and he told us he would do an implant for 5,000,000 shillings.  Then he'd have to have three crowns at 550,000 each.  We know there is something going on with his bridge but we figured we'd rather pay more in US to be sure it was a quality job.  Not sure what we'll do with the tooth problem but for now Rand didn't have anything done. 

Rand gets a kick out of men, machinery and construction jobs.  This piece of equipment looked like a handcart much like the pioneers had except for the inflatable tires, one of which was flat.  The men were filthy but you can't really see the dusting of white all over then.

The Paradise Hotel is adding to their restaurant/kitchen service.  One day while we were there they chopped down a very big tree and dug out the roots.  Then next time we came they were digging footings.  Here they are hand mixing cement for the footings out in the parking lot.  The sand and gravel are piled there and they carry water in the yellow jerry cans.  The wheel barrels get the cement to the site then they have scoops to put the cement in the forms.

The men weren't sure they wanter their picture taken.

This was my biggest tomato that I have ever grown.  I asked Frances to be in the picture too as he is our guard and waters for me when we go out of town.  He is often seen wearing a coat.  He must have really thin blood.

We are quite proud of our tomatoes - no black bottoms here and they taste so delicious

I designed these drapes for the kitchen then had Mary, the district RS president sew them.    Mary told me I paid her Mazonga price when I paid her 30,000 shillings for the job.  (12 US dollars)   Not sure what she was going to charge but the three drapes she did for me in the living room she only charged 15,000 ($6).
The flowers are the ones we learned to make for the following RS activity.

Some of the ladies wanted to learn to make crocheted flowers.  Sister Ballsteadt invited Sister Crayk and I to help teach.  The lady in red is Sarah.  She is RS Pres in Bugembe.  She announced that she will be marrying the district second counselor next month.  There are many singles in the district here with families in the minority.
The electricity went off so we had our class out on the front porch of the church.

Immaculate is pretty sharp.  She learned how to crochet the project quickly and then went around helping the others.

Rand took a picture with me in it so that you'd know I was there.  The lady on the left is the mother of Victoria.   Victoria lives in Kampala and is a return missionary and PEF student that overs the Distribution Center down the hall from the PEF office.  She is a beautiful girl that sometimes turns up in Bugembe to see her mother.

Yesterday we were reading the Book of Mormon with our Mpumudee Branch class 

and we came to 2 Nephi 31:20.  I've always loved the scripture and it

is my Father's favorite so I filmed Francis as he read it.

Thought you might like hearing their African accent.

It has been raining much more than usual and these trees are all over town.  

Found a place to watch these cute monkeys when we go walking.  It is on the other side of the Kampala road along the Nile.

The view of the Nile where we walk

Rand trying to get a monkey to come closer

This is the view from our bedroom window.  These folks belong to a very noisy church.  They have been celebrating something all weekend.  They go day and night with singing, chants and drums and clapping.  This is one thing we won't miss when we go home.  It would have been a good weekend to have been gone.

Our trip to Kampala this weekend was cancelled because of a burial.  Sister Peace passed away of aides on Wed.  and many in Kampala including the secretaries from our office there and Bishop Babeeyo over CES knew her personally and wanted to be there.                                      So now we have experienced a burial.                                                                                              Sister Peace is a return missionary that taught the “Planning for Success” class that teaches young return missionaries how to qualify for a PEF loan. We had only met her once at the Njeru Branch.  She was infected with aides as a youth by a relative.  People in Africa that get aides became obsessed with taking as many people down with them as they can.  Very sad.  Peace was 42 years old when she died.  There are many who die of aids here and members of the church are not spared.  

This is the viewing in the Jinja Branch Relief Society room. The top of the coffin slides back so the  deceased is visible and guests are invited to walk by to view the body.    

Getting the coffin out of  the transport vehicle.  Not sure why they didn't remove the back seats and take it out through the back.

They announced for the Priesthood to come carry the coffin out to the SUV they hired to carry the coffin out to the village 

This is the front yard of Peace's village home.  Many from the city go back to the village to be buried.  The plantation in the background was breathtakingly beautiful.  Peace actually lived here with her Moslem husband.  The man on the right is the new Branch Pres. of Njeru branch.  His wife is the RS president and they have a darling little baby.  He was the one that dedicated the grave
(the dad not the baby).  The man on the left was in charge of music.  We sang hymns for over an hour.  I was hoarse before the burial program started.  The packages on the coffin were flowers.  The top of the casket was slid back here so that family and neighbors could come and see the face of sister Peace.

 The MC of the Burial was Richard.  He is Bishop of the Seeta Ward, Kampala Stake and he and Peace joined the church in Jinja 20 years ago.  They both served their missions in Kenya.   He has been to our house to help us with computer issues.  We really like him but today he spoke mostly in the native language so hardly knew what was said.  It rained steady till the time to move the coffin to the  grave sight.  We were glad that they had a tent to sit under.  It was about the same as the one they had a couple weeks ago for the wedding.  Many of the guests were sitting out in the rain.

Cute little baby of Pres Jackair of Njeru Branch.  He is held by Sister Peace's youngest sister.  After the Burial I asked Rose, the CES secretary if this was the usual attendance at a burial.  She said that because of the rain there weren’t that many.  I was amazed as I don’t know where they would have put one more person.  She said that thousands can come.  It is a time that the LCS local political representative come and campaign for whatever is going on locally.  It can turn in to a big mess if people don’t agree with them.  We didn’t have that probably thanks to the weather.

Once the casket is moved to the hole in the ground the men start mixing cement by hand.  Basically they are making a vault on sight.  They pour the cement over the casket once it is lowered into the ground.

Since we had the only vehicle at the burial we were asked to go get the rice for the refreshments. We dove over to a market where we parked under this tree.  It was covered with hanging nests and yellow birds.  

These yellow birds are the kilombera or weaver bird.  The nests hanging are what they weave.  They seemed to be entering from the bottom of the nest, we were fascinated.   Leaving the burial several hours later was very difficult.  The road had become extremely slick with mud.  Rand thought he had never had so little control, and he has driven on snow and ice.  We were praying the whole time that we would get back to the main road without damaging the truck.  We were taking several back who had missed work and needed to get back before they lost their jobs.

                                                  Saturday was the Jinja Branch YSA activity.  

We were in charge of helping with refreshments.  The kids are getting pretty good at planning, organizing and carrying out their own activities.  Sister Ballsteadt has worked with them for a year and most the time they do their assignment.  If they don't someone else steps forth to cover for them and someone else talks about how "we need to be more responsible". 

The refreshments for the YSA activity were hotdogs and marshmallows.  Most of the kids had never eaten a marshmallow

Edward is the young man in the purple shirt.  He is a guard at the church.  He was very willing to help us round up the briquets and roasting sticks.  He told us to park down the street while he went and negated a price on the items.  He wanted us hidden otherwise they would charge us mazonga prices.  We were happy that he was so willing to help.  

Elder Brown and I were in charge of the bonfires for roasting hotdogs and marshamellows.  We used tin foil on the church parking lot with local briquets for roasting.  Most African's cook over briquets normally so this was a piece of cake getting the hotdog cooked without burning it.   I remembered to get out the camera when the crowd had thinned a bit.  We had about 100 YSA at the activity.