May 30 (day 8)

Monday

Today we headed to a primary school to put on an assembly for the kids. On the way a few of of us pumped up balloons to hand out to the kids. I think we had around 300 or so balloons in the back of the van? We were drowning in them. Ha. But anyway at the school we did some Bible songs, played a few games, put on a skit about Noah's ark, gave a short message, shared some testimonies, and played more games. It was great to see the kids sing along or laugh at funny things we did. And I had so much fun doing the hokey pokey with them:) Kids are awesome.

Once we finished we just hung out with the kids and took a ton of pictures. They love getting their picture taken! It's so funny. I took so many pictures today of the kids, some of them over and over again. But I'm so happy to do the simple act of taking a kid's picture. I really do think it makes them feel special and loved for once. Once it was about time to leave we took all the balloons and stored them in an office so they could hand them out to the kids once school was over. Then we headed back to Manzini.

The rest of the day we spent at the Vanderwals (the family that runs The Luke Commission). For a good while we filled vitamin packets, filled eye drops, sorted glasses, and some other stuff for TLC to distribute at the clinic that week. I absolutely loved being apart of TLC last week, so I was happy we got to help out some more. I really respect all that they do. For lunch we had an authentic Swazi meal! It was pap (mielie-meal), cabbage, chicken, and gravy. It was really good! So glad we finally got a real Swazi dish!

Then we played soccer with the Vanderwal boys and some of the staff. It was a lot of fun. Luke, Zeb, and Jacob (the older sons) really got into it! I felt bad everytime they tripped or got hurt or whatever. So usually they got to take a PK to make them feel better. Ha. So for much of the evening we played soccer or other games, like Ninja (my first time ever playing). Had a good dinner, talked with the team for a bit, did dishes, and then headed back up to the flats. It was really nice to just relax while the sun was out. And as always it was great hanging out with the Vanderwals. I'm so grateful that they invited us over and that they've allowed us to be apart of their team. I thank God for this family and their ministry and I pray that He'll continue to bless all they do. They're just awesome.