7 quick takes....

1. Good morning! A quick one this week because it’s the last week that we are home and we are winding down for the holidays. The girls are running outside playing that they are horses, Hartmut is at work and I am supposed to wrap up work, pack our suitcase and make sure the girls don’t get so excited that things go wrong (because the excitement for going to Namibia is real).
2. Yup. 3 more days before we fly. A few weeks ago we were so nervous about this trip because it looked like the airline would go bankrupt but all seems fine (for now) and we cannot wait. Lesson learned about not worrying too much about what might happen because it may not happen at all.
3. When I ask the girls what they want for breakfast they first ask me if there is electricity. Funny how living with an interrupted supply has become so normal that we all know how it influences our choices. If there is power, they want porridge or toast, if there is not, they like weetbix. This last week has been terrible on the power front, we did not have power for 2,5 days straight. Whenever we called the provider they either acted as if it was the first time they heard about the fault or they acted as if they were on top of it (which they clearly were not) and said that it would be fixed soon… soon was two and a half days. I planned to empty the freezer before we would go but that’s already done now so I can thank the Malawian power company for helping me to do that job.
4. The excitement is real for our trip but also for something else. Our mama duck has started to lay eggs and every morning the girls run to the duck house to see if she has added another one, which is always the case. There are 5 eggs so far and I am curious to see how many more she will add. Very clever though, to prepare to breed when we are not there so that the girls won’t disturb the process. Ducks sit on their eggs for up to 35 days so we won’t miss the hatching, if that is going to happen. Very exciting!
5. Every year around Christmas  it seems to be the same dilemma, since we are married we have traveled to family almost every year and I never know whether I should decorate the house or not, since we won’t be there for the actual holidays anyway. This year I decided to not do it, partly because what you can get here is very fake and very kitsch and partly because we won’t be there. But to not do anything at all wasn’t what I wanted either. So last week the girls and I made a nativity scene. I had ordered some peg dolls for a present that I made for Sinterklaas and for Doris’ birthday but I had enough left to make all the characters from the famous story. The girls painted, I added details and I already know that we have made something that we will treasure forever. Since then, the girls have played various versions of the story (some more historically accurate than others) and it has been a great way to prepare our hearts for the reason for the season.
6. Some really happy news, (for us). My sister has just booked her ticket to come with her husband and her two children to Malawi! I am so happy that we will be able to share a bit of the life we love here with people we love. I can tell all the stories and share all the pictures, it’s not the same as experiencing it  for yourself.  
7. Got to go. Tryson, our help, is already on holiday so this week it’s up to me to clean, make beds and do the laundry. Not a disaster because it’s what most people do every day but it’s much easier to get used to  a life where you don’t have to do it than to a life where all those things are your responsibility.  Have a great week and festive season. I think I’ll only blog again in the new year!