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Hi Folks! I am starting this post on Monday morning, when I should be lecturing my group, but let me catch you up first... **This is gonna be a long one! It turns out that the network where we are staying is very bad and my router does not work well there. I will try to keep adding to this post during lecture breaks, and share it when I can!** Some of you may know that I have struggled most of my adult life with insomnia, which has only gotten worse with menopause. Well, travel and jet lag make it even worse, so I only managed about 2 hours of sleep a night over the weekend. I had a mini reunion with my ITW buddies, Renny, Allan and Picho, on Friday, and only realized after they left that I did not get a photo of us all. Booo! Another massive rainstorm started up sometime early Saturday morning and didn't clear until around noon. The rain took walking the Botanical Gardens off the docket, as the trails get very muddy, but I decided to walk to my favorite shop and explore some other...
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Whew! I made it to Uganda, but not without challenges. As always. ðŸ˜ķI arrived at the airport a little before 5am and had a smooth go through security, which should have made me suspicious. Haha. My flight on Air Canada was delayed due to engine trouble, then delayed again, then once more, then cancelled. I was "rebooked" on a Qatar flight that wouldn't board until 4"30 pm, but by the time my luggage was recovered it was clear that trying to leave the airport would have been a waste of time and resources. Qatar does not have 24 hour check in, so I have to wait with my luggage until the desk opened at 1pm. Once my luggage was checked, I was sent to the gate for a seat assignment, which I thought was a bit strange. I arrived at the gate and was told they would call me for a seat assignment. Well, what no one bothered to explain to me was that I was NOT booked, I was added as Stand-by. I managed to get one of the last available seats, on a full flight, squeezed into a wi...
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 Hi, Folks! I wanted to check in before I take off early Wednesday morning. Someone called out sick this morning, so I am actually going into work early, when my original plan was just a short shift. The house is a series of piles and lists, my suitcases are half packed, and I have some last-minute errands to run, so all is as it usually is immediately before my trips!  I got some family time this weekend, going to a local pumpkin patch and corn maze with my nephew and his friends from the Special Olympics, and taking an early morning hike to Bridal Veil Falls with my sister. The rest of the weekend spent on random house projects, pulling out supplies, and making lists of last-minute things to accomplish.  I have bagged up a lot of yarn, that I will send to the birth center for the midwives (and I still have 2 huge bags left over, thanks to the generosity of my fiber friends!), and Dinnah has plans to teach some of the village midwives how to make baby hats. On the Uganda...
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 Hello, friends! How's everyone doing? I thought I would jump on here and give a quick update on everything. I want to start by saying THANK YOU to everyone who donated to rebuild the collapsed dining area. As a reminder, this was the result of a 10-year attack from local termites... Construction started during my last trip in June, but I have just received a photo of the finished enclosure and I couldn't wait to share it with you all! The base is now a concrete slab, with high brick walls making the dining area usable during the rowdy rainy season, and electricity for evening meals. They are so grateful!  My next trip to Uganda is on, and I will be flying out on October 14th, returning on the 27th.  A much shorter trip than usual, but the travel time will be longer, almost 30 hours of travel each way. ðŸ˜Ŧ I will fly into Entebbe as usual, then travel to Lira, where I will teach 15 midwives for 1 week. Rachel and I are hoping to figure out a way for me to see everyone at t...
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 HELLOOOOOO!  I'm still here! 😁 Dozens of times I have sat down to catch you up and then something distracts me, or a meeting gets scheduled and I think "I should wait in case this turns into news", and then my aunt came to stay with me...and here we are. Weeks later. Better late than never?  We are just on the cusp of fall here in the PNW and its Sunflower Season! I love this time of year. Now on to business... Unfortunately, Rachel has yet to receive more machines or funding from DAK, although they have told her that they plan to. So, the October training has been cancelled. In the meantime,  Seed Global Health reached out to Rachel about her midwifery program, and more specifically POCUS training. Rachel is very optimistic that there is potential for partnership for both of us, so I sat in on a meeting with them last week. It was...interesting. They want training for 15 midwives, they want training to take place at LIRA University, and they are not at all intere...
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