After lunch we moved the scaffolding and began some more bricklaying. The progress looks slow but the steel rods throught the bricks to tie the roof on do make it a lot harder. It is great to see it going up and we can see that it will be achievable. Still no container! Grrr! The whole team is working really well together and everybody seems to be enjoying it and working very hard. We are still getting used to the change in timezones, but sleep is happening a little easier for most now.
Roger struggling through his dinner
After the initial greeting time we enjoyed some dinner that the ladies had prepared for us, then we took our dirupted body clocks off for some sleep We really are here in Africa.
Agnes preparing our breakfast - delicious "Rolexes"
from the top:
unately a power outage meant that the welder and angle grinder were out of action so the last couple of shutters for the windows did not get finished. The new sign was installed by the front gate, and it is clearly visible from a long way down the road.
The children were very happy to have some Mzungu visitors and Pastor Moses was also keen to show us around. The team played with the children for a hour or so before they put on a little 'entertainment' for us. They managed to welcome each of us by name in a song, even if some of the names were difficult to recognise. 
Whilst we were visiting, John was busy submitting plans for the village and all of the buildings for approval. All you builders in the Yarra Valley eat your hearts out, the whole procedure was over in a couple of hours! Try doing that at home.
A good morning on the site with lots of work done then into town to do our shopping for presents for loved ones. The internal bricks were finished and some repair work was done on the walls inside house 2, timber work on the kitchens finished, and the window shutters got ever closer to being completed. The new sign for the village was painted by the signwriter and is ready to go in the ground. Whilst we were working, 
Ivan was busy talking with some of the local widows about how Village of Hope might be able to be of some help to them in the future, and Calista did a little nannying for old times sake!
nd window shutters. Bert and Dan finished all of the timber work in the kitchen dining area while the rest of us played in the mud. Many tired bodies dragged themselves off to the common room for a soda and then had probably our tastiest YWAM meal yet, maybe we are becoming desensitized.
to preach, saying that we needed one chance at least to hear an African sermon. We were still ushered in to the prime seats at the side of the stage to ensure that we were visible to all, and we were given the opportunity to introduce ourselves and give a greeting. The service was quite similar to the others we had attended with periods of worship and a lengthy sermon. This is the church that the kids from Care4Kids attend, so the average age of the congregation was fairly low. Pastor Moses and all of his people were very welcoming.
edding, but we did catch up with one man who wanted to recommit his life to Jesus. He showed us the house that his 75 year old mother lived in and where she cared for 5 children. The children had one bed made of cushions off an old sofa to share, and the first thing we saw when showed the mother's bed was an eight inch long rat crawling off the bed. After praying with the guy and talking for a while we ventured off to find another family where we spent quite a bit of time. The mother here supports here family of five children by making liquor. There were about 5 of her customers present and we all sat down for a while. One of the customers, an older fellow asked if he could be 'saved'. We prayed for him and when Ivan asked if any of the others wanted to be saved, the mother replied that she would like to be but would have to lose her job because the church would not accept her profession. What a dilemma. When John asked if she believed in Jesus and accepted that he died for her sins, he was able to assure her that Jesus accepted her. When it was almost time to go, we gave them some clothes and trinkets which they were extremely thankful for. The visit was an opportunity to get in touch with the people that we drive past and see but have not had anything to do with until now. It certainly gave us a different picture of what life is like for many of Uganda's people, and its not a great picture.
The 75 year old mother who we missed yesterday, appeared at our breakfast today. We shared a little of our breakfast with her, and when Calista gave her some clothes that we had left she broke down in tears. It doesn't take very much of what we have in plenty to make a huge difference to these people. We at HopeBuilders are not just building homes for orphans, but we are becoming part of a community that hopefully we will be able to help, and give some hope, for a long time.
on top of house 2. Bert and his crew erected the poles and beams linking the kitchen with the toilet/washrooms, at last giving some shape to that building. The welders were kept busy working on a large sign which is to be erected at the front of the block. A signwriter appeared and has painted a prep coat. John had to deal with the loss of our security guards who resigned on the spot in the morning after having had a pay claim rejected yesterday. He and Robert managed to find someone to replace them. We said goodbye to Tim and Ben from team 2 who headed for the airport for their trip home.
a long stint in the morning. We 'unveiled' the ring beam that we had poured on the toilet/washroom and proudly admired our work for a couple of minutes, then quickly set about laying the final 3 courses of bricks on top of it. The window shutters were all built and Cam hung the front door of house 1 and fashioned a locking device for it from a few shaky descriptions of what was required, so that house is now officially at 'lock up' stage. Just some internal doors to be fixed, a little painting and sealing of the walls to go before the beds can be made and installed. 
Bert did a lot of preparation on the beams to support the roof over the kitchen/dining/toilet area. We worked well together and came home a tired bunch. Always there to encourage us though are the 'site supervisors' from across the road.
We had a day off from the work today and went rafting on the Nile. There were lots of rapids, including several rated as class 5 rapids. Our gung-ho crew kept choosing 'wild' over 'mild', and we spent
quite a bit of time in the water having been flipped out. We also had some relaxing swims down the flat water parts of the river. Who would have thought 6 months ago that we would be in Africa rafting / floating down the Nile river? None of us that's for sure.
ery excited children. After the gifts had been given out, we spent some time playing games and talking with the kids. They showed us things like their school books and talked about what they had been up to. We had dinner together, posho and beans, and then for a treat, we had brought along some fruit for a rare dessert. After dinner, the children organised a game for us which ended up with all of us having wet seats - they thought it was funny! Our time together ended with a small fireworks session with fireworks some of our boys had purchased. We had to leave, but no-one wanted to and the children kept asking when we would be coming back. Care 4 Kids is a special place with great staff and the most loveable kids. Make sure you call in there next time you're passing!
een the roof sheets and the walls were fitted, with holes for ventilation drilled on house one, as were more of the window shutters and the front door. The fascia board was painted with the thinnest paint you could imagine, so Ben and Callista just kept going around and around until some sort of coverage was obtained! Kirstie did a great job painting the window shutters. To make sure that we had at least one building to go on with on Friday, we boxed up and poured the ring beam on the toilet/washroom, as well as a slab outside the doors of this building. Hopefully the ringbeam on house 2 will also be 
completed by then so we will be able to lay the final 3 courses of bricks on those buildings. There are still lots of things that we would like to get done before we leave, and the time is beginning to run out, so we are hoping and praying for good working weather.
e a river of mud as tools and materials started floating away. Fortunately, I was assigned the task of 'shopping' for today and was in town at the time. I returned after lunch to find a washed out team recovering back at the house. The sun came out and we were able to go back onto the site and do a couple of hours work, although once again it was much harder to get into it after the rain. The shopping expedition was an experience in itself. You have to be constantly on the lookout for people trying to rip you off with inflated prices. Robert is an expert at spotting this and lets people know if he thinks they are charging too much. We finished out trip with a visit to Robert's favourite restaurant for lunch African style. It was very tasty and very cheap! Goat meat in broth, with a side plate of rice, green banana mash, beans, cabbage and silver beet.
was almost as good as your teeth and the welder did not want to weld. Just an electrical 'brown out' so our electrician commented. The concrete mixer decided to spit a belt so... no mixer. The boys continued on to sift a couple of piles of dirt to mix with the mud to use once the ring beamers finished their job. Well when the rain came, 5" in 30 minutes then continual for the next 2 hours guess where their sifted dirt ended up, some neighbour down the track ended up with a pile of slurry. The new tarp cover for the brick making drying area couldn't keep up with the rain so the new bitumen emulsion bricks got a testing before they were completely dry, the ladies making bricks were busy digging drains to divert the water while 
others were trying to stop the huge puddles of water forming on the roof from collapsing onto their bricks. The mud mixing boxes had a couple of big rocks thrown inside them for a bit of weight as they started to float away. With a river flowing down our driveway, all the water from the roadside table drains flowing down our driveway, a couple of trenches were dug trying to divert the torrent down the road which resulted in drowned team members. After the rain departed and we were a slight bit dry we got back into it and everyone at the site grew a couple of inches, gained a couple of kilos and moved a bit slower...(sticky muddy shoes). Then the morning's shopping arrived, interior doors and all the timber for the roof of house two, the delivery truck made it 10 metres onto the block and disappeared into a huge hole. All hands on deck to extract the truck only to have a brake failure, the front wheels locking on and having to unload the truck and carry the timber to the house site all 150 plus lengths. We eventually got off the site at 6.00 pm for dinner of rice, potatoes and cabbage, followed by a soda. Then the troups relaxed playing cards. 
forged ahead making the window shutters, and has several fitted and others cut ready to weld together. Window sills were fitted to all windows in both houses today. Lots of walls were brushed down ready for sealing. The toilet/washroom walls are all completed up to ring beam level, and the cavity between the fired brick and mud brick walls at the end of the dining area was filled at each end, and a mud render on the exposed fired brick part of the dining area wall is almost complete. Lots of stuff done. The team is working really well together and enjoying what we are doing. The roofing team completed the last 
of the sheets and the capping on the roof of house 1, it looks a treat. The frustrations continue with the contractors who do the ring beam. Its almost a week since we finished the walls to ring beam height in house 2, and so far only 2 walls have the ring beam poured. unfortunately we have 
plenty to do after they finish, and the roofing team is held up also. Maybe tomorrow! The culinary department at YWAM must have known that we had a good day - we had fish for dinner which was a first and very tasty.
and whose eyes lit up when I was introduced to him as Pastor Ron. He was excited to have us in his church, the first Australian team to visit. The bus arrived nearly 30 minutes late to pick us up, but it was OK as we were following Pastor George, so I guess it couldn't start until he arrived. On the way the bus driver had to borrow some money so that he could buy fuel, as he did not have enough to get us to the church. At about 10.45 am we arrived at the church for a 10.00 am service. There were only a few people in the church, and they were praying loudly, probably for the previous 45 minutes. Pastor George was quick to grab my bible, notebook and glasses and proceeded straight to the stage where there was a couple of chairs for us. The rest of the team found seats at the front, although John and Bert were a little further back, until Pastor George interupted the service and called them up to special seats at the front! In what was 
called the 'first service', after some worship that was so full of energy and praise, I was introduced and given the opportunity to introduce the rest of the team. I began by sharing about the horrible fires at home, and we all joined in prayer for the people at home, and those who have suffered loss in the fires. As soon as we mentioned that Sam was a part of the worship team at home, he was given a guitar and told to tune it up and lead in a song. The whole team joined him as we sung "Our God is an Awesome God". A couple of the guys came up and gave brief testimonies. After much encouragement and many 'welcomes', the 'second service' began immediately. By this time the congregation had swelled to fill all of the seats in the church. Once again there was some brilliant worship, and much of it was in english, allowing us to join in. A group of children came and performed several dances that Pastor George explained to me were about being saved by God. There was a brief time for
testimony, an offering, and then the most over the top introduction of the visiting pastor that you could imagine. Preaching was both an honour and very hard work, having to stop after each phrase while it was translated. It makes flow difficult, and humour impossible, but we managed to get there. I worried a couple of times when Pastor George took about 50 words to translate the 5 words I had spoken, but I am sure he was just adding bits to fire up an extra "amen" or "hallelujah". When we finished he did a bit of a wrap up, then called for people who wanted to be prayed for. Before they could come, he started into a testimony of a lady in the church who had had difficulty conceiving a child, had been beaten by her muslim husband, who had eventually suffered 2 miscarriages, and who finally had given birth to a healthy girl. 
Having shared that he called for other 'barren' women to come forward for prayer, and decided that I would be praying for them. There were others who also came out with various illnesses, and so we prayed for them. We were humbled when Pastor George called for a 'love offering' to be given for us. He explained that whilst it might seem strange Ugandans giving to Mzungu, he saw it as a good thing to do, so we were blessed as a number of people came and put money in the basket. Finally after 3 hours, we were finished. It really is a wonderful experience to share with people on the other side of the world in praising our one true God who unites us together, no matter whether we are white or brown (or red, as the sun caught me a little yesterday)
Thursday 5th
up in the afternoon, and then we al cleaned up and hit the town for a nice dinner at ‘Two Friends’ restaurant.
The girls in the kitchen preparing lunch for the students!
“Chaos!” would just about sum up today’s visit to the care for kids orphanage.
Buenos Aeries! Spanish is some what non-existent here, just in case you were confused. Sundays are always great, on Sundays you expect to see God move and not for any particular reason other than purely because it’s a Sunday. Today He didn’t disappoint, from our church service this morning we heard of how we are all ambassadors or Christ, that we should resemble Christ like attributes; to actually living that out. Spending time in the orphanage was heart breaking, and I’m certain I am yet to fully appreciate it all. Seeing how happy they were to see us and we didn’t even talk, just standing along side some of them was all the affirmation they needed. After 20 seconds of talking with a beautiful young girl named Grace, she said I was her ‘friend’. I didn’t deserve that honour, but I will uphold it!
Hello hello, well today was certainly something I have never experienced. As you’ve read above we went to visit the orphanage and the welcome we got was amazing. To see how happy and thankful the kids are when all we do is just hang out with them, and how thankful they are to God for the position they are in. It really put into perspective how much I take my whole life in Australia for granted, I don’t even thank God every night for what he has provided me back home and yet these kids offer everything to the Lord. It was truly a humbling experience. Can’t wait to go back and spend more time with them.
The orphanage was a highlight.
Hey, well care 4 kids was really a huge experience for me, I don’t really know what to do with young kids, so was kinda confused as to what to expect, that combined with a rolled ankle meaning I couldn’t run around and just play sport, I was expecting a challenging arvo, it took me a few minutes to settle in, but after a bit I realised all these kids want is time, love, affection, just the simple act of holding a kids hand was enough, the smiles on their faces said enough! It was hard to believe that kids come from such hard circumstances, they are happier than anything. It was really moving to spend time with kids who have been given an opportunity, and to really think about the fact that what we are doing is changing lives, its not just bricks and mortar, It was awesome! If your reading this and haven’t been over here, you totally should, if the opportunity arrises, I would strongly recommend.
I stepped off the bus with a soccer ball in my hand. I thought the kids were coming up trying to get the ball, but actually they wanted to grab me and hold my hand. As I kicked the ball away, a couple of kids chased after it, but others hung around us and wanted to be picked up and held. The place became chaotic as kids and team members ran around kicking balls, throwing vortexes and climbing all over each other. Other kids who were less energetically inclined hung out with some of the team who were also less energetically inclined. We all had an awesome time, no-one wanted to leave, and we are all looking forward to going back. The best part for me was that it gave a glimpse of what we are building here at Hope Village.
sparkling eyes, radiant smiles, snotty noses and kids that just want to hug you are just hold your hand, that’s why. As the ‘good book’ says ‘what ever you do for the least of these you are doing for me.’ Now not saying the people here are the least as they bleed the same blood that I do and they are cherished by our heavenly father and they are his children just as I am. It is really hard to get your head around the wealth/poverty line, the haves and the have nots. So if you’re reading this you have access to a computer, millions in this country have never seen one, think about what you can do to make just one person or child’s life different.
blistered and cut, so dirty that I only can remember what colour they once were, even after washing. Then one afternoon we take a bus down a track that could be described only as that… A bumpy dusty track which brings us to a large gate, before the gate has even closed behind us they all start appearing, a few at first with glowing eyes and eager smiles, there is a child clinging to my hand before I have stepped off the bus. And then it begins, an eruption of noise and energy we have arrived at the ‘care for kids’ orphanage. It was unlike anything I have ever experienced, completely overwhelming, however the kids are like any other in any other place…They want someone to play with, the time of an adult, and to be picked up and held, there are so many, I realize why I have taken ‘holidays’.
As challenging as this experience has been for me, so far, both emotionally and physically I am very thankful that God chose me (a mere nanny/waitress) to be a part of this amazing project that will change the lives of many people… more than I realised it would!