At the Butcher's

I went to a local butcher's to buy some meat for our intended Christmas Day BBQ.

This butcher's shop sells great chunks of beef. He only opened recently, but we are glad we discovered it. The beef from here is much more tender than any of the other beef that we have ever bought in Dodoma:

I don't really like going inside the actual "Meat Company" shop. The interior is a bit of an assault on my senses! The sound of hacking and sawing through bone, sinew and guts is accentuated by the strong odour of fresh meat, whilst my eyes are confronted by the sight of blood-spattered walls, red bloodied meat strewn over every available counter top and bright red blood stains on the otherwise white uniforms and welly boots of the butchers. Although I am no vegetarian, it still turns my stomach a little! I open the door, place my order and scuttle off back into the fresh air where I don't have to think too hard about how my beef is being prepared!

As I waited outside for my order of beef to be cut to size from the carcass of the cow, I spotted the brand name of the butcher's truck, parked close by. It struck me as most appropriate, so I snapped a shot!

Mini Monsters in the Rain

The arrival of the first rains in Dodoma has the same effect on our children as the first snowfall would in England. The children go wild with excitement!

Joel was so excited when we had the first rainstorm just over a week ago! He rushed outside with his brother and sister. This is where he ended up- with this monstrous grin on his face!

The puddle outside our garden was monstrous in size:

But the scariest monster was this little chap, discovered by Ben this morning after our long rainfall last night:

Thankfully, Joel had not climbed onto his scooter whilst this scorpion was aboard- this in one passenger you would NOT want! Ben's keen eye spotted it before anything dangerous could happen :-) These type of scorpions are infamous for their particularly nasty sting- it would be extremely painful. Jane was quite shocked to see it so close to our children.

In all the excitement, Moshi came to see what we were looking at and her tail brushed the scorpion onto the ground. It's a good job the children had been wearing their wellies, as you would not be able to see Mr. Scorpion on the ground- he is well camoflagued:

We took a final photo, as he raised his sting in protest:

Then it was time to get rid of the little monster- Andrew had to crush him before he stung anyone. It seems a shame, but a necessary shame- safety of the children (all playing with their friends outside) had to come first.

Bubble-wrap and Boxes

Our home is slowly being dismantled as the packing up process continues...

This is the 7th time we have moved house in 10 years of marriage, across 3 countries, but experience in packing up a home does not make the job go any faster!

The worst job is taking apart the kitchen, with all the breakable bits and pieces that need to be painstakingly bubble-wrapped and all the cooking equipment that you collect along the way, forgetting how much trouble they will be to pack away for storage! As my kitchen goods were slowly transferred from their comfortable cupboards to create chaos on my dining table, the stress levels began to rise! Even Joel was upset by the all the upheaval, needing more comfort, which in turn meant less efficient packing!

 Thankfully, help was at hand in the much, much appreciated appearance of a very good friend, who gave up 3 whole mornings to pack...

 ...and to pack!! I know that I absolutely could not have managed the packing without her help: she so generously gave her time and it made a world of difference.

Of course, Joel also did his bit to help with the packing... He did a fantastic job sorting out our cutlery, sliding each piece onto its stand and feeling rightly proud of himself!

Recently, my days started to merge into a blur of packing and wrapping, but gradually, out of the haze of bubble-wrap and sellotape, a pile of neat cardboard boxes started to emerge..

The pile of boxes grew and grew, getting so large that our dinner guests has to squeeze through the gaps between the cardboard and the furniture to reach the table for our meal! But we were still smiling, despite the disorder that reigned in my lounge!

We allocated a "boxes" corner and I moved the sofa so that it faced away from them. Then I could sit and have a cup of tea on this particular sofa, pretending that the boxes weren't there and ignoring their brutal reminder of  the other 1 million and 1 items around the house that still needing sorting and packing!

Whilst sipping on welcome mugs of tea, I tried not to think about the fact that we only have these sofas for another couple of weeks, before they are sold on to another family. I will miss their comfy, soak-into-softness cushions, but sadly, we can't take them with us. There is not enough room in the plane to move them to our new house.

Last weekend, we eventually moved the bulk of the boxes into a neighbour's house, where they will be stored until the time comes to move them to our new home. The kids had a wonderful time, "helping" Dad move the boxes from one end of our MAF compound to a house at the other end. The tractor was a huge bonus and a great form of entertainment for children whose toys have nearly all been sealed away behind box-tape and cardboard!

The first load is transported from the Parker home...

... to the Stratton home:

Then it's time to go back for Round Two, with very excited passengers taking advantage of the empty trailer!

Now we have moved onto Operation Pack-Up the bedrooms and bathroom. The boxes continue to multiply and Andrew continues to get a free work-out as he lifts and shifts boxes from one house to the other for storage!
 This week, packing has taken on a strange twist, as we keep a watchful eye on current affairs which could have serious implications for us as a family. These are unsettled times. There are odd moments when I catch myself wondering what I am packing for or where I am packing for, but the job must be done; so in the words of my fabulous new tea-towel, sent from a friend in England, for now I must, "Keep Calm and Carry On"!!

Plane Party

Ben is my African baby- he was born in Africa and has celebrated each of his birthdays on African soil!
His first birthday party was celebrated in South Africa, but all of his other birthdays have taken place in Tanzania, including his 6th birthday this week.

In keeping with our life as a family working with MAF, we chose a very appropriate theme for his 6th birthday party: aeroplanes!

Here are some pictures from his "aeroplane" party. It was an easy theme to follow with the MAF hangar on our doorstep! We took the children to visit the planes in the hangar, where they took turns to sit in the pilot's seat next to Andrew and then they each took home a photo themselves "piloting" a plane. Then there was the aeroplane cake, aeroplane biscuits to ice, aeroplane pictures to create and aeroplane-themed games! One of the mums who dropped off her daughter for the party even wore her special plane-shaped ear-rings in honour of the occasion (see photo at the end)! All good fun...

Fire!

We had a bit of drama on the airfield next door to our MAF compound this evening...

 Fire was raging across the airfield! It looked pretty frightening, even though the airfield authorities had sent vehicles to bring it under control. The flames were spreading quickly on the dry, brittle grass...

 The rains have not come to Dodoma yet, so the ground and bush are as dry as can be. It is hot, hot, hot in Dodoma and the ground has not received a drop of rain to soften it since our last rainy season in April. It is not a good time to be lighting fires, but since that is the way most people here get rid of their rubbish, the danger of fires getting out of control is very real at this arid season.
Fortunately, the flames did not reach the apron where planes were parked, although the glowing heat of the fire made a dramatic backdrop to these aircraft stationed outdoors on the tarmac:

We spotted the fire as we were driving home from a very special occasion which involved flames of a much more controlled nature: the Carols by Candlight service at Dodoma's cathedral! We were shocked to see the startling colours of fire dancing in the Dodoma darkness, so we diverted our route home from the Carol Service so that Andrew could check that the aircraft and MAF hangar were out of danger. We then joined friends and neighbours on the edge of the airfield to watch the drama unfold as fire vehicles worked on quelling the flames. We were all very grateful that the wind was blowing the fire away from our homes and out across the field, where it was being brought under control. It was a relief to know that we were safe and that the MAF hangar with all of the aeroplanes and equipment were not about to be destroyed by fire!

We had just had a wonderful evening with many friends, joining in with traditional European Carols in an African setting. The children especially enjoyed the novelty of being outdoors after dark and having their own candles to hold with pride during the singing of the final Christmas Carols:

Seeing as this is our final Carols by Candlelight service in Dodoma, I took my camera to get a few photos as special souvenirs, so here is my (slightly hazy) view from near the front of the cathedral...

...and my picture from the back of Dodoma's cathedral:

We will miss this happy annual event! It's great to have photos to remember it by, although I can't help feeling that my children will probably look back and remember the excitement and drama of the raging airfield fire more than they will the gentle flames of their candles at the Carols by Candlelight service!

Time Out

It is that dreaded time again. The season of "Packing Up Our Home".

Already, the house is starting to look chaotic everywhere that I turn....

Being at home with me while I start the packing up process, Joel tries to help out where he can!

These are busy times. Sorting and decision-making for packing feel exhausting (should it be packed up to go with us to SS, should it be sold here, should it be packed for our few weeks in Nairobi??). Andrew is frequently away in Dar es Salaam for flight exams, tests and practice. This week he is away from early this morning until Thursday evening. The children need their mum for the usual day-to-day school run, packed lunches, home-work etc. And unfortunately, the children keep getting sick (Ben is lying listless and sick in bed as I write this). I know I should be all calm and patient, but the stress levels are rising!

Thankfully, I have had 2 opportunities recently for some Time Out! :-) Time away from the disorder of a slowly dismantling home and time to rest from the necessary recent demands. I really have appreciated the last 2 weekends- a real gift at an unusually busy time!

Two weekends ago, I went on a 24-hour Ladies Retreat.

The location: a nearby convent, just 30 minutes up the road from our home:

 It was such a calm and peaceful location, nestled close to a grove of orange trees:

The setting was surprisingly rural for a convent so close to Tanzania's capital. Nearby residents were completely quiet- but I guess that is not surprising when they mainly seemed to be tortoises, in all shapes and sizes, right down to this little cutie:

The people:  we were 11 lovely ladies!

We had plenty of time to take stock, reflect and rest: I really enjoyed the break. I had never been to a convent before and to my surprise, I enjoyed the peace and quiet, so I told Andrew that maybe I should return and perhaps join the nuns? He laughed out loud and said I would be fine until "Silent Time" and then I would probably get expelled for talking.... Cheeky! But also true! 24 hours was just enough time to enjoy it without missing my family too much, as well as my friends and, of course, a jolly good natter!


The second "Time Out" opportunity was this last weekend. It was our MAF international staff weekend away.

The location: a conference centre situated in the beautiful highlands of Morogoro, a 4 hour drive from Dodoma:

 There were lots of activities, fun times, staff talks, games and movie-time, as well some music times, where some of  the kids played their mini-instruments...

 ...to join in with us grown-ups on our larger musical instruments...

I snapped some shots of our Sunday morning service:

And I took a couple of pictures of "The Pilots" deep in conversation about flying matters- the 5 men who currently fly for MAF within Tanzania and 1 new pilot who is settling in before he "replaces" Andrew on the Tanzania team in January 2014:

 The people: and finally, here we all are: the International Staff team of MAF Tanzania:

It was a great weekend away and wonderful to spend some much appreciated "time out" with our work colleagues/ friends before moving on to join a different team in a different place...

What We've Been Waiting For

It's taken 3 and a half years and multitudes of kittens, but finally a vet came to Dodoma!

Last weekend, we were finally able to have our pet cat, Moshi, "fixed" by a vet! No more kittens for Moshi...

The visiting vet comes from England, but is currently residing in Morogoro in Tanzania. She came just for the weekend. Her Saturday schedule was hectic, as families based in Dodoma booked all of her time in order to have their pets seen to! Her work started at 9am, with cats galore lined up to see the vet, to have their rabies vaccines updated and the necessary procedure to help reduce the massive cat population of Dodoma!

Moshi knew something strange was going on, although she did not make too much of a fuss as Andrew carried her over to see the vet...

The "surgery" was our neighbour's lounge! It was transformed from a comfortable living space into a sterile surgery, with all kinds of rather menacing medical instruments, syringes and potions carefully laid out on the dining table and a chest of drawers magically turned into an operating table! Moshi howled with protest at the injection to put her to sleep, but it wasn't long before she was stretched out for the operation to begin...

An hour later, we were called over to fetch a completely "blotto" cat... We tucked her into a cardboard box- no nice cat-carriers available in Dodoma! Esther helped me to fetch her, to carry her home:

 Moshi had to be tucked up warmly with blankets, even in the shimmering heat of Dodoma. The drugs available to put an animal asleep for an operation are not as advanced as the medicines available in the UK, so the vet explained to me that our cat would be unconscious for up to 24 hours and that she must be kept warm, as her body temperature plummeted.

It was Sunday lunch time before Moshi came around. In the meantime, her 2 remaining kittens were running riot in our garden, tearing up the grass and plants and creating mischief...

...all the while crying for their mum and searching for her in the oddest places, like the top of our back door!!

I had to keep them separate from their mum from Saturday onwards, to ensure that they did  not feed from her and cause infection to Moshi's wounds. The noise was horrific as Moshi called for them and they pitifully miawoed for her! I felt like a tyrant, keeping them apart:-(

 Finally, by Tuesday evening, the kittens, who are big enough to fend for themselves, had been sent off to new homes with Tanzanian friends, who want them as rat-catchers...it will be a very different life for them, just as Moshi starts her new life without having kittens every 3 months!!