Four Weeks of Fun

 After our week at Fox's Farm, Esther and Ben still had 4 wonderful weeks of school holiday stretching ahead of them, to fill up with fun! However, at the beginning of these 4 weeks, we first of all had a sad farewell at Dodoma's bus station :-(
 It was time to say "goodbye" to Auntie Claire, as her 2 year teaching contract here in Dodoma had finished. She returned to England a few days after we got home to Dodoma from Fox's Farm. We took her to the bus station to board the bus, where we were too sad to take photos of each other, but the bus you see above was the one that delivered her safely to Dar es Salaam, ready for her flight to pastures new. We miss having Claire here in Tanzania, just down the road from us, but are grateful for the blessing of having her nearby during the past 2 years.

For the rest of the holidays, it was rather quiet at MAF and in Dodoma, as everyone we knew seemed to be away, but we filled the time nicely at home.Here are some of the children's activities:
It was too cold (this is our "winter" holiday at this time of year!!) to go swimming in the swimming pool, but we did squeeze in some water fun in a new paddling pool that we "inherited" from yet another family that has just moved on and left Dodoma! There was also time for Esther and Ben to facepaint their own faces beforehand (and it took much more than paddling pool water to remove their painted designs!!).

Fun was had when we put up our tent in the garden, made campfire sausages and had 1 and a half nights of camping outside! On the first night, Joel and Dad stayed indoors, but Esther and Ben slept really well outdoors. (I can't say the same for myself- I worried about mosquitoes biting us and snakes and scorpions for most of the night!!). The second night was only half a night really, as the campers had to be evacuated at midnight, with Joel screaming indoors and assistance needed from both parents! However, it was still fun and the tent provided a great day-time diversion too!

We made time for plenty of opportunities for creative expression...

 ...including these cute peg-creatures the children created from a craft-pack, which arrived in an exciting parcel from England! :-)

Joel loved having his big sister and brother home for the holidays- he made the most of Mum being busier than usual to sneak away and get into the mud- one of his favourite pastimes...

 ...along with any games involving water and pouring- a great way to keep Joel occupied whilst Esther watched her ballet DVD or Ben watched his Big Machines DVD on my computer!

 Today,  Esther and Ben went happily off to school on the MAF school bus, to begin a new academic year. They both felt very grown up, with Esther moving to Year 2 and Ben to the Reception class. Here's hoping that they are having a fun day in their new classes as I write this!!