Hello everyone! Oh what an amazing weekend I had! This weekend I went and stayed with Paul and Ann Kelly and their two children. Paul and Ann are both missionaries and they live off site in East Legion. They let me come stay the weekend just so that I could get away from the site, go to church with them and be apart of their family for the weekend and it was wonderful! On Saturday Joy, Nancy and I had a girls’ day and went shopping at Novatel, a really fancy hotel in Accra. Every month they have an art exhibit and this month it was kentey cloth. Ghana is famous for their kentey cloth and the man that makes this kentey cloth is one of the largest exporter of kentey cloth in Ghana. He actually sells to ambassadors and high political leaders here in Ghana. We went and shopped and shopped and I bought and bought! The artist’s daughter was there and her and I took a snap together. Then we ate lunch at the hotel because there are not many restaurants in Accra that are not in hotels.

Later that day I was dropped at the Kelly’s where I got to relax in the living room and read for a bit. (glad I brought my books!) I was reading when all of a sudden the most stunning man walked into the room with Paul and sits down across from me. His name is Moses and he used to teach drumming and dancing out at Rafiki. He stopped teaching because he was starting university. Paul and Ann were tending to their daughter, Judith, that was really not feeling well at all and so Moses and I just started chatting away. It was fun to talk to a college kid. University is so different here than it is in the states. Very few people get accepted because there just is not enough room to fit them. I learned that most of the people that are selling on the streets went all the way through secondary school and are very intelligent but they could not make it into university so they have no other choice but to sell on the streets. It made me look at things a lot differently- a whole lot! Later that evening Paul, Jacob, Moses and I all went for ice cream. Paul was really excited about taking us out and I felt bad because I do not like ice cream but we got there and it was soy ice cream! I was so excited! The lady the runs the joint is Ghanaian and moved to California for a while, opened a shop up there and then moved back to Ghana. It was so good and now that I know where it is, I can go.

Yesterday I went to the most amazing church!!! God really answered that prayer for me! The service was filled with the Spirit it was almost overwhelming. Everyone was so joyful and happy, as most Ghanaians are. It is very common for the church to ask the visitors to stand and introduce themselves and there was a young girl about my age from Georgia that is teaching at the International school here in Accra. After church we met up and started talking and I met four other girls my age that are here from the states teaching. They got my email address and invited me to their get together on Friday night. That was really exciting to meet people that are my age to hang out with. Ann said that I could come in with her on Friday and then someone that was in Accra could take me out on Saturday. I hope it works out!

Later on we went to Shangri-La Hotel because Jacob had a birthday party to attend at the pool there. I am not much of a swimmer to say the least so I just walked around the lobby of the hotel and then outside. I came across these little shops right next to the hotel and started doing a bit of light shopping, which turned into some major shopping! I met an artist who is amazing! His paintings were beautiful and he was such a nice guy just to talk to. I talked to him for about 45 minutes about his work and where he is from then of course I bought some things from him. Also there was a woodcarver there and I got talking to his daughter for a while as well. It was loads of fun to sit around and talk to these people. I was out there for about an hour and a half just chatting up a storm. Eventually all the vendors were in a bunch just talking.

Last night we got a new mini missionary to live with me! She is so amazing! Her name is Susanne Ray and we get along just great. She’s from Texas just like me and talks all the time just like me! I think this could be the beginning of a beautiful friendship.

Well that’s about it. I hope all is well with you!

~Sarah

Prayer Request:
-That my kids will continue being good.
-That the kids will start feeling better. There’s a stomach bug going around.
-That we can find more mothers to work out here.