Boxes and Birthdays

Well, TIA is the best way to start this email. I know there are many of you who donated to Beautiful Gate and were hoping to see some pictures of the boxes being opened, but the 'Me' who inventories our supplies was not available last week so we have not been able to open the boxes yet. It is important to have her do this inventory as she is the one who puts things away in storage and hands out needed items to the houses, so she needs to know what is available so she does not buy items we don't need ;) That being said I hope (with my fingers crossed) that I can get some pictures next week.

On a different note, today was a fun adventure with a little pre-birthday celebration for Elijah and Mercy. Our friends Allan and Donna took us to a little game park about an hour and a half away, in South Africa. Once we got there and the kids got to play on a little playground for a bit, we began our adventure to go see a few wild animals. Well...Allan and Donna made it up the VERY steep hill, but we did not because our truck did not have 4 wheel drive so..... poor Bryan had to back our truck (Beautiful Gate's truck that we borrowed) down the steep hill (he is an amazing driver, I never could have done that) and Allan had to turn around at the top of the hill and come get all of us.

So, we had 6 adults and 5 children in Allan's Surf. Not exactly comfortable, but we were not going to stay at the bottom of the hill and miss out on seeing animals. We saw a few Meerkats, Zebra, Kudu, Spring Bok, Wildebeests, peacocks and several ostriches. The kids got to pet an ostrich which was cool for them but we did not get too close to many other animals. The kids had no idea we were going to see animals today, so it was a fun birthday surprise for them. Now, they will be prepared for our next safari because now they know that you have to drive around a lot if you want to see the animals ;) Maybe next time won't be so crowded either. I thought it was a wonderful way to spend the day with friends and to celebrate their birthdays which will be on Monday!