My Favorite Things of Uganda

As you probably know me and my family (the Hallahans) are leaving Uganda, probably forever, so I would like to share to you some of my favorite things.

Firstly I have always loved the wide and unique variety of nature that Uganda has, specifically animals. I have always loved animals for the longest time and Uganda has some of coolest, and most unique animals the world has to offer. No matter how old I am, it has always been awesome to visit the zoos, parks and wildlife centers of Uganda.

Secondly I love the culture of Uganda since it is so different from the rest of the world. The artwork is so beautiful and unique, the songs and dances are awesome, and even the food is great.

And lastly, but certainly not least, is just Uganda itself. When you just look at the culture, the people, and the nature it is a small wonder why it is "the pearl of Africa".

I hope you are all surviving though these crazy quarantine times.

                                                                                                                                 -Seth Hallahan

Dresses and Roots

before we left Uganda Elizabeth was in a "pretty dress" phase. Every day she would tell me, "let's go choose pretty dresses, mama. I will choose for you." And so we went upstairs and dressed for the day. No matter that our days were filled with sandboxes, swings, paints and playdates. We dressed. And sometimes she dressed me fancy. for grocery shopping. or school pick up. And that's ok. It's kinda fun having a personal stylist living in my house.

There is another layer of meaning in this "pretty dress" season. My mom lovingly preserved a few of my dresses from when I was small (and even one of her own) and gave them to me when I was expecting Elizabeth. and she loves wearing those pieces of history. my mom has given my girls the gift of roots. and that is beautiful!

and my mom also made sure to get the heirloom christening gown to Uganda so Rebekah could wear the same gown all my kids have worn, in honor of the christening gown generations of my family wore as they were dedicated to the Lord. i love that Rebekah didn't miss out on this piece of history, connection and roots. belonging is so important.

Tropical Christmas

Christmas came to Uganda! Even though there was no snow.  It was awesome because we got the Lego Movie set we have been waiting for: Lord Business' Office Tower! We got a swing set, new sand in our sandbox, and a bunch of Ninja Turtles.

Some of the things that are the same about Christmas in Uganda are: 

• we still get presents
• we have a Christmas tree
• we have Christmas stockings
• we made a gingerbread house
• we celebrated with yummy food with people we care about.
• we celebrated Jesus' birth

Some of the things that are different about Christmas in Uganda are: 

• there is no snow
• it is HOT outside
• we didn't have Grammy's hershey kiss cookies
• we didn't have dinner with grandparents and cousins.
• we got a whole month off of school for Christmas break

• 

First Day of School

We started school at Heritage International School last Thursday.  It was fun to see our old friends, like Jabriel, Anna, and Ethan.  We were glad we didn't have homework our first two days of school!

Bow and Arrow

One day Paddy, our day guard, showed us how to shoot a bow and arrow.  You put the arrow in the bow, put it against the string, pull back with two fingers, aim and let it go.

We like hanging out with Paddy. -Caleb

Home, Sweet, Uganda

The first plane ride was boring, because we had barely any TV time.  Mommy wanted us to sleep- but I could barely do it.  We got to the London airport and there was a kids place to play in.  And we brought Legos.  The next flight was awesome, because we could watch as much as we wanted. I watched Robots, and The Lego Movie.

When we first got to our house I was so glad to see our dog, Siddeley.  The mangoes are delicious.  So are our homemade popsicles and the pineapples.  -Seth