Work/School/Church...LIFE

3 weeks into my new job. I am enjoying it and everything seems to be going well. Adjustments and changes, but it’s going well. 

We have been working on a new cinnamon roll recipe so today when I stopped by at 10 all of them were sold. I actually thought maybe they didn’t have time to get them made last night after I left, but they said they turned out great and were all gone! 

The recipe works well because you make up the rolls then leave them to rise in the refrigerator overnight so when one of the workers comes in at 5:30 he just can bake them after he makes the bagels.

The bagel recipe is next. I have a good one we have tried out but I have to see if we can make them to leave overnight and see how they will turn out in the morning. 

I have been getting different customer feedback which has been very helpful. We have lots of ideas and are first trying to work on making our own bread. Right now they just buy from the grocery store next door. So this week I was making french baguettes and focaccia bread. Need to try it again next week too. 

Its been good to observe the staff and see how we can be more efficient, and see what they think will work and what won’t. 

I have been out to Chikumbuso one day each week and have enjoyed that. The first week I just met everyone and hung out with the ladies and then some of the kids at the school. Then last week they started making soy milk. Soybeans were donated to the project and so the cost is very minimal for them to make the milk which they then sell locally. We hope to get tofu started again and then I will be looking into marketing and packaging that for selling within Lusaka. 

So far its been working out at home, I take the kids to school in the morning and then pick them up in the afternoon. Things are really packed and we are feeling worn out, but we are surviving. James and I try to get up at 5, get a few things done then by 6 I go for a run, then am back in time when James, Sarah and Ian leave at 6:30 for school. Then I wake the other 4 kids up at 6:30 and we leave for school at 7:30. I then head to work until about 4. Then I get the kids from school we get home around 4:30 4:45. Try to  rest a few minutes, get their snack, homework done, then James and the two older kids don’t get home until 5:30 or 6 depending on the day. 

Sarah and Ian have activities they are involved in after school (Swimming and chess for Ian and Sarah has basketball and music) then twice a week James is tutoring. The school is on the other side of town and traffic can be pretty bad so most days they are gone about 11 hours. 

Once a week I have gone in early, 5:30 to the cafe and help with the morning preps for opening the cafe, then I come home at 7 to get the kids for school.  I try to be done earlier on Friday between 2 and 3, since the kids only have half a day of school. 

The past 2 weeks some of the kids have stayed home sick so I have been able to go in to work later and come home to check on them. 

Last weekend was crazy, I had a big order for cakes,desserts etc with the baking business so I put in ( with the help of Sarah and Olivia) about 10 hours friday evening and early sat morning. So I still am doing that on the side for now. If things go well with the cafe and a partnership as we have discussed then I would look at rolling my business into that. I still have weekly cake orders, energy bars at 5 different schools/gyms and ice cream now at a local restaurant. It is helpful because we need everything we can get right now, but long term it is not feasible. I am looking at maybe hiring someone part-time for now to help with the baking at home, for the business and just in general. We have been saving money by making a lot of things from scratch, but I don’t have time for that anymore so we will have to see how that all works out. 

The older kids are enjoying being at school at Lusaka International Community School. The discount for James teaching there only applies to 2 kids so Sarah and Ian are the ones there right now. We hope something can be worked out for Emma since she finishes this month at her school. Taking the comprehensive year 7 exams. They are doing fine, though I think they are still the only “white kids” in their classes. Rather than being all Zambians there is quite a mix of other nationalities as well. 

They are involved in the youth group at the new church we are attending and that has been a blessing and encouragement to them. It has been refreshing for us all. Its a varied group of people. Americans, (Canadians and Latin Americans included) Zimbabweans, South Africans, Zambians, Europeans, Oceanians (that covers those from australia and new zealand, right? ) Very diversified group. Some missionaries, some expats, nationals...but, they all have a heart for Christ. To love and serve in His name, living out the grace and love of Christ to others. That’s what we need. So we are settling in there. They don’t have a pastor right now, so different men have been preaching. James offered to help and they wanted him to start a series on 1 Peter that he and another guy will be going through. So that has been nice to have him preaching again. 

So the days fly by, we pretty much finish dinner, get the 7 lunches packed for the next day get all the kids settled for the night from 8 to 9 then fall in to bed and start it all over again at 5. 

Sunday is truly our only day of rest as Saturdays are busy with other work and activities. 

Today though our afternoon is free, first time in a month and after some not so great dinners throughout the week we are grilling out James’s awesome hamburgers, Emma’s french fries, Jackson’s fried apples, Corn on the Cob and ice cream blizzards made with Reese’s peanut butter cups that I found this week and homemade vanilla ice cream.  I think we might even swim. Looking forward to the rest. 

The rest of the month and weekends are busy. Friends coming for lunch tomorrow, a group of guys we have had over occasionally over the last couple years but this year we have tried every few months to get together with them. It’s always enjoyable. 

Then next weekend Emma has her school graduation, Grace’s Birthday party then the church in Kabanana is coming to use our pool for a baptismal service. 

Then Emma is having the girls from her class over for a party after they write their final exams. Then the older kids are going away for a youth retreat another weekend. 

But the next 6 hours..their ours. Our family. Some peace and quiet. Well never mind, thats a stretch, more accurately some chaos and noise, but its our chaos and noise. And we don’t have to go anywhere.