Yes, we had a Christmas tree! It was left over from the days when the Swedes were here. It had ornaments made from Fulani ladies/
The Sunday before Christmas, all of the missionaries sang in church. We sang in English and Sango and even had two recorders and a guitar to accompany us. Josh played drums. It was very tame compared to the normal African singing in church! In the afternoon, we went and caroled at the hospital. We also gave out soap and sardines to the patients- probably not your typical Christmas gifts, but those are things they really appreciate.
On Christmas eve, 42 missionaries gathered for a smorgasbord dinner! There was a table in every room!
On Christmas morning, I made homemade doughnuts!
Then we opened presents- mainly Charlie opened presents. We were able to get a few things here for her- mostly cheap junk,but she loved it!
When Charlie saw this bag, she pointed to Belle and said, "Mommy!'
Here she is in all of her dress up glory!
On Christmas night, all the missionaries gathered again for desserts and a white elephant exchange. I got cheese from France! SO excited about that because cheese is precious around here!
There was a lot less hustle and bustle than usual and we missed our friends and families, but all in all, we had a great Christmas full of fellowship, fun, and time to remember the "reason for the season."
Sounds wonderful...we spent our Christmas with our 13 including 4 grandsons.
ReplyDeleteGod Bless, Chris and all