We're back in the USA! Arrived just in time for a beautiful wedding reception in my parents' home town (what a grand welcoming with so many dear friends and family!)...

...and a wonderful week with my family at a camp in northern Michigan (my grandparents met here in 1948, and I don't think the Lehmans have missed a week since!).

Tomorrow, we'll pack up our U-haul and head back to Birmingham, Alabama, for the foreseeable future... not totally sure what's ahead, but we are so thankful for these past four months and eagerly anticipating what's yet to come!

We put together this little highlights video for the reception, and I thought I'd share it on here as well... enjoy!

Happiness.

I can't imagine a more perfect way to end our trip! More to come later, but we're on our way back to the States tomorrow and have one last date night in Europe to enjoy. :-) Avoir!

Sipi Falls

Ever since the first time I visited Sipi Falls, I knew I had to bring my wife some day. It's no doubt one of my favorite places in the world... Quaint cottages are seated at the base of a series of massive waterfalls, and the tranquility of it all makes it like paradise. One friend here put it well, “It’s perfection.”

Amazing food...

... breathtaking scenery...

... ample hiking opportunities (and my we are out of shape!).

My favorite coffee is grown here, and I blame Sipi Falls for turning into a coffee snob!

With this, we complete the African leg of our journey. Our bags are packed and the taxi is waiting to take us to the airport. We're looking forward to a few days in Europe before heading home to see our families!

Arise Africa

Last week, Danny took me out to Arise Africa's orphanage in Bukaleba, where he helped install a water pump system back in 2009. We bounced along bumpy red dirt roads to a small village about 40 miles outside Jinja....

...and, after after several goat crossings and a traffic jam of sugarcane trucks, we arrived two hours later at this property, with a stunning view of Lake Victoria.

He then drug me through jungly paths, up a mountain and down the other side again, to the natural water source where the well was installed. Major "toughness points" for Danny for walking that path every day with pipes, bricks, and cement! My husband is amazing! :-)

Four years later, the pump now serves an orphanage and primary school for about 60 Ugandan children.

During our week in Jinja, we also met a few of his old co-workers...

...had our world-views rocked in the slums with our dear friends, the Boones...

...and enjoyed both the quiet waters...

 ...and the raging rapids of the Nile River.

As I experience more of Danny's life here in Africa, my admiration for him continues to grow and grow. We are so thankful for this trip and for all of the opportunities to share these experiences together!