Friday, 11 July 2008
Wednesday, 9 July 2008
10 July 08 - sorry still no photos - 4got card adapter in Loughborough!!
Things with my house are coming along very slowly! We discussed the accommodation before I even left for Uganda, I agreed to go ahead and take it. So, when I arrived they told me that they were waiting to get furniture and to knock a doorway through because they wanted me to agree to take it – which I already had! So, now it seems that it will take them a long time to get furniture and to knock a doorway through – I told them the reason that I decided to come to Uganda 2 months before starting work was so that Nathanial and me could get settled into our new house and that we could ‘bond’ with each other again. I explained to them how difficult Nathanial is finding it in the evenings when we both have to go our separate ways – I don’t think they really understand! Welcome to Uganda – the country where they say things won’t take long but in actual fact they take forever!
I took Nathanial to his nursery class yesterday – he just clung on to me the whole time – another reason why I wanted him to settle with me first – before putting him in nursery! It didn’t help that everyone there called him baby! Even the nursery teacher called him baby – after I had told her his name several times. I must have taken Nathanial to the toilet about 5 times during the whole 1 ½ hours we were there – he still managed to wet himself twice! I sat in my new class for a while – which has now changed from Yr2 to Reception Class which I feel a lot happier about and more comfortable with! I will also be in charge of Early Years and expected to train up the Ugandan lady who is currently with the pre-schoolers!! Most of the kids I will be having don’t meet the expectations they should after leaving pre-school, for example recognising their name, their colours and their numbers and simple things like holding a pencil correctly! This is only because they haven’t worked on it in pre-school! So I am going to have my work cut out for me! They may also expect me to be joint school coordinator!
I have yet to determine how old Nathanial is – his language skills are quite good – although I would say not above 3 years. I guess it wont hurt him to be 3 in December, after all he is behind physically. All the trousers I brought for Nathanial are far too big around the waist – so he has to have a belt on which wraps around him 1 ½ times! However, wearing a belt isn’t useful when he is potty training.
I had my first stomach bug on Friday – I threw up in the night 3 times and had diarrhoea a lot more times! I was absolutely zonked come Saturday and did absolutely nothing all day – I went for a 5 minute walk in the garden – and then slept for 2 hours as it wore me out so much!
I also have this spotty rash on my right arm – very itchy – not sure what’s causing it though!
It is very quiet at the babies home, lots of the older kids have left and a few of the babies too. There are lots of new kids too though, mainly babies.
On Wednesday last week I went to Kampala to register at the British High Commission. We got there at 1.30pm, they close at 1. We explained to her that we had come 2 hours to be here, she didn’t care and sent us on our way. I am going to try and get a passport first for Nathanial before getting legal guardianship as I am told that that is the better way to do it. This also means two more trips to Kampala to get his birth certificate completed. The court cases are now being heard in Kampala as the local ones would always postpone them at the last minute, and for families travelling from far away it was very difficult. So the Kampala judges should be more efficient although we have one family who have now been waiting 2 weeks to hear on their ruling. It all varies from judge to judge and most of them are old and ailing.
Interesting anecdotes:
To get a birth certificate in Uganda it costs for a Ugandan child 5,000 shillings. For a foreign child it costs 80,000 Ushg!! That’s £22.50 more than a Ugandan!!! I’m sure that there are no legal documents certifying that – and if you asked for a receipt they would probably make excuses
I took Nathanial to his nursery class yesterday – he just clung on to me the whole time – another reason why I wanted him to settle with me first – before putting him in nursery! It didn’t help that everyone there called him baby! Even the nursery teacher called him baby – after I had told her his name several times. I must have taken Nathanial to the toilet about 5 times during the whole 1 ½ hours we were there – he still managed to wet himself twice! I sat in my new class for a while – which has now changed from Yr2 to Reception Class which I feel a lot happier about and more comfortable with! I will also be in charge of Early Years and expected to train up the Ugandan lady who is currently with the pre-schoolers!! Most of the kids I will be having don’t meet the expectations they should after leaving pre-school, for example recognising their name, their colours and their numbers and simple things like holding a pencil correctly! This is only because they haven’t worked on it in pre-school! So I am going to have my work cut out for me! They may also expect me to be joint school coordinator!
I have yet to determine how old Nathanial is – his language skills are quite good – although I would say not above 3 years. I guess it wont hurt him to be 3 in December, after all he is behind physically. All the trousers I brought for Nathanial are far too big around the waist – so he has to have a belt on which wraps around him 1 ½ times! However, wearing a belt isn’t useful when he is potty training.
I had my first stomach bug on Friday – I threw up in the night 3 times and had diarrhoea a lot more times! I was absolutely zonked come Saturday and did absolutely nothing all day – I went for a 5 minute walk in the garden – and then slept for 2 hours as it wore me out so much!
I also have this spotty rash on my right arm – very itchy – not sure what’s causing it though!
It is very quiet at the babies home, lots of the older kids have left and a few of the babies too. There are lots of new kids too though, mainly babies.
On Wednesday last week I went to Kampala to register at the British High Commission. We got there at 1.30pm, they close at 1. We explained to her that we had come 2 hours to be here, she didn’t care and sent us on our way. I am going to try and get a passport first for Nathanial before getting legal guardianship as I am told that that is the better way to do it. This also means two more trips to Kampala to get his birth certificate completed. The court cases are now being heard in Kampala as the local ones would always postpone them at the last minute, and for families travelling from far away it was very difficult. So the Kampala judges should be more efficient although we have one family who have now been waiting 2 weeks to hear on their ruling. It all varies from judge to judge and most of them are old and ailing.
Interesting anecdotes:
To get a birth certificate in Uganda it costs for a Ugandan child 5,000 shillings. For a foreign child it costs 80,000 Ushg!! That’s £22.50 more than a Ugandan!!! I’m sure that there are no legal documents certifying that – and if you asked for a receipt they would probably make excuses
Sunday, 6 July 2008
Firstly I must apologise for the lack of photos - I have taken some but I always forget to bring my memory cards! So one day soon I will get some posted - provided I remember!
I have enjoyed spending lots of time with Nathanial. On the compound next to Amy's used to be the Palm Tree - a guest house, but now its being occupied by some American soldiers training Ugandans up for peacekeeping, anyway they hosted a July 4th party there and that was good fun - you definitely can feel safe when there are 13 American military beefcakes living right next door.Today I took Nathanial to church, that was good and Nathanial sat very nicely the whole time.
Nathanial is still struggling every time I have to leave him at the babies home in the evenings. I always tell him before I go that I love him, that I will see him tomorrow, but he still struggles. He either clams up completely or he cries. Today, as I was sat doing internet and Nathanial had to go in and eat dinner, he stood by inside were he could see me and cried - I didn't want to go in and comfort him again because I think it would of made it worse having to say bye to him again - I'm not sure that that was the right thing to do or not. The sooner he comes in to live with me the better!
Tomorrow morning I am taking Nathanial to Kiira kids school for a couple of hours - for him to see what its like, and for me to get to know the kids I will be teaching.
I have enjoyed spending lots of time with Nathanial. On the compound next to Amy's used to be the Palm Tree - a guest house, but now its being occupied by some American soldiers training Ugandans up for peacekeeping, anyway they hosted a July 4th party there and that was good fun - you definitely can feel safe when there are 13 American military beefcakes living right next door.Today I took Nathanial to church, that was good and Nathanial sat very nicely the whole time.
Nathanial is still struggling every time I have to leave him at the babies home in the evenings. I always tell him before I go that I love him, that I will see him tomorrow, but he still struggles. He either clams up completely or he cries. Today, as I was sat doing internet and Nathanial had to go in and eat dinner, he stood by inside were he could see me and cried - I didn't want to go in and comfort him again because I think it would of made it worse having to say bye to him again - I'm not sure that that was the right thing to do or not. The sooner he comes in to live with me the better!
Tomorrow morning I am taking Nathanial to Kiira kids school for a couple of hours - for him to see what its like, and for me to get to know the kids I will be teaching.
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