House Update

I moved into our house last week! However, it isn't complete yet. I am living in a construction zone and it has been raining daily so the house is surrounded by a mud pit!

Love their ladders!

Kitchen

We did not have water for over a week because the water pipe was clogged about 2 km from the house. Fixing it is the responsibility of the community which means each home is supposed to send someone to help dig to find where the clog is and then fix it. Many people have backup water tanks so they had water on reserve and were not interested in fixing it. Unfortunately, we hadn't bought our water tank yet and were out of water. That meant we had to use the outhouse and couldn't bathe. Finally, after a few days they were able to get about eight guys to dig and were able to fix the problem. But the water is only supplied Monday - Friday (this is how it is scheduled) and of course they fixed it on Friday afternoon so we had to wait until Monday to actually get water. No electricity is one thing, but no water is tough to deal with.

A group of women were coming from church just as I was arriving with my belongings and they helped to carry them to the house, thank goodness!

The kitchen is coming along but isn't yet finished so we are cooking and eating in a bedroom for now. And my bedroom isn't finished so I'm still living out of my suitcase. We are adding patios on the back of the house that have amazing views of Mt. Kenya and the Aberdare Mt Range! I'm guessing we have at least one more month until the house is complete...

Kitchen

The internet at the house is slow but I'm at least able to log into Facebook and email. However, it is too slow to upload pictures, so to do this I have to go to the internet cafe in Nyeri. Nyeri is an hour away after my 20 minute walk to the roadside and the time it takes to wait for the matatu. And for most phone calls I have to go outside for reception but it is better than having to walk up the hill! 

So the simple life comes with it's challenges, but overall I'm happy to be here! It's good to be able to work with the fundi (carpenter) and have input on final touches. But most importantly I now have time to spend with the kids at St. G!