Recent Photos

Our house! It's on the second of three stories. Our front door opens onto a porch which look out over the tin roofs and trees of the neighborhood. There is also an AMAZING breeze.

Behind the little chair is a bathroom (why do we need a bathroom on the porch? I haven't found out yet). To the right, through the first set of doors, is the livingroom. The second door leads to a hallway which is open to theo utside on both ends and lends itself to a very breezy home, which we love!

The double doors from the porch to the livingroom.

The livingroom, which we haven't figured out how to use yet except for laying on matresses and watching movies on the ceiling (see below).

The hallway from the porch. On the right are Sarah's bedroom, a guest bedroom, then my bedroom. Each has a ceiling fan and own bathroom with toilet and shower!! On the right are doors to the livingroom and kitchen. The floors are difficult to keep clean but are so pretty we don't care.

Guest bedroom/storage space.

Kitchen with sink!! Real coffee happens here every morning!!!

Our glorious kitchen, where we cook delicious meals centered around tomatoes and bread.

The view from the window above the sink.

Sarah's room.

My room: the whole family is here and I wake up to their smiling faces every day!

My bathroom. I'm actually smiling as I type this. Remember what my latrine looked like? Look at this place! There's a sink and a shower and a toilet and I actually feel clean when I bathe here!

My bedroom. The red design I made by taping pieces of cut-out paper to the wall. Under that is a shelf unit that I keep covered in a pagne. I made the picture collage on the wall with photos of family and friends from home. I love my little room. Still working on the bed situation- getting a double mattress from a friend and then buying a bigger frame.

Mantisfriend. He just landed on the porch one night while we were watching a movie, hung around for 1/2 hour then ook off. I wish he'd taken the ants with him...

Rich brought his projector over and we dragged matresses into the livingroom and watched "Up" on the ceiling. What a great movie! I felt that some of the themes were inappropriate for a young audience, however. They probably shouldn't have spent so much time foreshadowing the wife's death at the beginning. Incredibly sad. I'm still going through the grieving proces.

And... exhale.

At the ambassador's house for PSL 23's Swear-In ceremony!

Buying tissue at the marche. (I went with the one on the left. Her right. Our left).

You must pick only one! Choose wisely!

Independence Day: August 1, 2010. Benin's 50th Anniversary. Everyone and their mother was fete-ing!

A nighttime parade outside the restaurant we went to. No one threw candy but they sure did make a lot of noise...

Painting a mural in Tchaada. This one was about how to make your own oral-rehydration solution for treating severe diarrhea. We painted it on a paillote at the high school in Louie's village. Wish I had pics of the finished product: we did ones for malaria and AIDS prevention too!

At a Yoruba wedding in Sakete, about two hours north of Cotonou, pictured here with the bride. It was a lovely fete. I now have a keychain with her and her husband's faces on it.