We are settling back into Gesses having spent a full week here now.   The children started school this week with Nicole Schwenk.   Monday was Ethiopian New Year and this country celebrated the year 2004.  Tuesday, Kalia and Emily ran a little carnival to start off the school year.  Joel was still recovering from a bout of malaria but was able to participate too.   Rolf and Barry have been able to hook up all the water tanks as of today and they can be filled anytime after Saturday (when the calking dries).  This was an urgent task as after the rains end in a few more weeks, we are dependent on the water stored.

We have hired a houseworker from a nearby Oromo village.  Mesalech speaks Amharic, Oromo and some Gumuz so she will be a real asset to our family.  She has worked 2 days already and we are all pleased with her servant heart.    She reminds us of Abebech (our past houseworker whom we would still love to connect with).    Mesalech works from 8-12 and 2-5pm  for 5 days each week.  Her jobs basically include washing dishes, hanging and folding laundry,  lunch preparation (injera and wat and some other food that I will train her to prepare) and some childcare.  Being a stay at home mom is quite a task in our home countries but without many conveniences, tasks here take much longer.  Having Mesalech with us allows me to help with homeschooling and focus on language learning and outreach and maybe even enjoy some family time before bed.