Getting Ready for Africa!

So...I'm really not ready. Most of the time, when I make these big decisions like this, I don't fully grasp the decision I've made until I'm on the plane. That's how it was with France. That's how it was with China. That's how it's looking to turn out with Mali. I will be leaving on Saturday and staying about a month, returning June 27th. But I am excited to see my sister! I haven't seen her since last July.

The hardest part so far has been shopping for clothing. I really thought I dressed relatively modestly, but even most of my clothes were not really appropriate for wearing in Mali. Everything must fall below the knee, preferably to your calf. No fingertip rule there! Clothing needs to be loose and basically, very covering. Novel idea huh? :)

I also had to get a tent for sleeping (no malaria for me!), headlamps (think caving), all kinds of bug sprays, plenty of gifts for her multi-family household (polygamist family and extended as well). And let's not forget about vaccinations for Polio, Hepatitis A, Yellow Fever, and Meningitis! Pray for us y'all!

I just finished cleaning out our shower bag...Yes that's right, we will be showering with a solar shower bag. It's basically a black bag that you can fill with water and hang up, with a little spout attached. I'll have to take a picture for you. And having the shower bag is actually much nicer than how my sister has been bathing while there this whole time....in a bucket. There are countless other niceties I will be giving up. I couldn't even tell you because I'm not quite sure myself.

I'll be honest, I'm not sure I'll be a good blogger. I don't always feel like I've got something worth sharing. But uh...hopefully you'll find it interesting anyway!