Saturday, November 15, 2014

Kitchen Party

A couple of friends and I went to a Kitchen Party yesterday.  Even though I have been in Zambia for over 5 years now, I have never been invited to a Kitchen Party.  This party seemed to be very expensive, so that is probably why they were not done as much in the Western Province where we spent our first term.  I really enjoyed my afternoon and really learned a lot.  

First of all, the invitation invited us to the Kitchen Party and on that invitation was the note that gifts should only be monetary and not less than 200 kwacha - which is about $30.  In the Western Province, that was about 2 weeks of wages for a day laborer.  No wonder I had never got to go to one before!

The party was supposed to start at 1pm.  By the time we arrived (deliberately late) at almost 3pm, there were about 40 ladies present out of about 250 that ended up attending.  We began to notice that there were groups of women with the same colors on.  We were told that these were committees that helped to plan the event and/or friends of the mother of the bride or friends of the bride or friends of the groom to be and so on.  Evidently, each group (I counted at least 6) got together and decided on material then all had their outfit made with that material but they could choose whatever style they liked.  The outcome was a beautiful array of Zambian fashion.  It was so fascinating just to see all the fashion.

The bride finally arrived about 4pm.  She was quickly whisked into a room with her head covered.  About 30 minutes later, several ladies lined up to dance and sing her into the party.  From my vantage point, it may be hard to see her in the middle of the line with the white cloth over her head.


 The Kitchen Party was beautifully decorated in white, fuchsia, and orange.  Here is a bit closer view of the bride to be as she walks up to the front of the party.  Up front, I didn't get a picture of it because I was so far away, was a bed decorated in fuchsia and orange.  With great ceremony, she was placed up front on the bed, still covered.  


Then several women went out to dance and sing the groom to be into the party.  He also went up front with a few of his friends to stand around the bed.  I'm a little cloudy as to what was happening here but a national friend said they were collecting money - not sure why; maybe after enough was collected then he could uncover the bride to be. After a bit, the groom sat down, facing the attendees. As a side note, throughout this whole affair, the bride and groom to be are not allowed to smile or seem like they are enjoying themselves.  This is a sign of respect.  So with the guy sitting, the bride to be stood in front him and then slowly lowered herself down to the ground (in all her finery!), laid on the ground on one side then moved to lay on the other side for a few minutes.  This was to signify her obedience/submission to her husband.  After a little bit, they came back down the red carpet together as the groom to be left.


 The wife of Zambian's former President Mwanawasa (he passed away while in office in 2008) was the Guest of Honor at this Kitchen Party and she spoke briefly on marriage.

They also had some 'Teaching Practicals' about how to make a bed and what to fix for breakfast. :)
I know that I missed many aspects of this event but all in all, it was a great day to spend with national sisters and missionary friends!

Friday, November 14, 2014

Puppy Love

We got our new puppy today!





We tried to find a good Tex/Mex type of name so we decided to name him Cowboy.

Tuesday, November 11, 2014

Zoe's 10th Birthday

Zoe is ten years old today!


 She was super excited to get her own digital camera.

 She wanted to do her birthday meal at lunch today.  
She chose fried chicken, green bean bundles and mashed potatoes.


 And for dessert, she chose Mint Chocolate Ice Cream Brownie Squares - four layers of homemade yumminess....



Monday, November 10, 2014

A Presidential Procession

Zambia's President Sata passed away on October 29th.  He is to be buried tomorrow.  The processional passed right by our house this morning.  This is the busy road that runs beside our home.  The road the military guy is standing in front of is the road that runs in front of our house.




 There were many, many vehicles in this procession - including several tanks, trucks filled with Zambian military, dignitaries and presidents from surrounding countries, past Zambian presidents and much more.


 Here is the body of the late president.

 As we were leaving after the processional passed by, we were snagged by a local tv crew who wanted to interview our children for Zambia's Kids TV.  Here they are, being interviewed...



Saturday, November 8, 2014

Visiting the Northern Province of Zambia

Recently, we travelled to the Northern Province of Zambia to visit two missionary families.  The first day was a long 12 hours.  We stopped on the side of the road to eat lunch.  We usually eat lunch in the car as we travel but this was the day that the Zambian President Sata passed away and Jeff was trying to find cell coverage so he could send out an email to our mission family.  


At our first stop, we went to visit Kalambo Falls.  It was beautiful.  It is in a total, out of the way spot (if you know what that means in Africa) :) but they have put in new stairs and railings.  It was a great time to trek up and down those stairs to see a glimpse of God's majestic creation.



I forgot my camera and only had my phone to take pictures, so I didn't get any pictures but of the falls.  The following pictures are courtesy of my friend, Dawnya.  We had a free afternoon on Monday, so we played Mexican train.  It was super hot that afternoon with hardly any breeze.

 Here, the girls are playing board games.

 A picture of all seven kids.