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This afternoon, we were able to go to the field. I will post more pictures later. But I also wanted to let you know that two of my teammates are also blogging about Uganda. You can check out their perspective here and here.

It is nearing noon here and y'all should be in bed getting some rest.

The hotel in which we are staying is SWANK! I'm not lying. The shower head is one of those ones that is big and round and makes you feel like you are standing underneath a waterfall. I have to remind myself to keep my mouth shut, it would be dangerous to drink even a little of the water. we use bottled water to brush our teeth even.

The veiw out my window isn't all that (it looks at another hotel and a parking lot), but out of the window of one of our other teammates, you get this:


So far today, we have had our first team meeting and we have stuffed the boxes for the hotel hospitality bags that the VIPs will be getting when they arrive. Right now, we have a short break while a few people run to the bank and to do some shopping. In about an hour, we are going to meet for lunch and for our first trip to see the venue. We have a ton to do before Friday gets here and so it is nice to have this little lull.

If you are praying for this journey, then I ask that you join me in praying that we would have wisdom in setting priorities and the endurance that we will need to get everything done. Pray for team unity and that we would all remain healthy. (Despite being sticky with bug spray, I already have bites and so pray that our malaria medication works.)

For me, pray that I would be a humble servant this week. That God would open my eyes to see needs as they arise. I am struggling with wanting to be useful, but not knowing exactly what to do. I don't feel pretty or cool enough to be hanging with these people. Pray that God would change my heart- that he would show me the truth of the matter is that I don't have to be pretty or cool enough. That by bowing down to an inferiority complex, I am making light of the fact that He has called me his daughter and that he has equipped me with His Spirit. Pray that my mind will be constantly renewed. I know that this sounds random, but just felt like throwing it out there.

It was so nice to talk to Wendy, Scott, and Momma last night through Skype. Thank you each for your encouraging words. Also, Sara, thanks for the devos- I've enjoyed them so far.

I should go.
Happy Memorial Day to y'all. Have fun and be careful today.

I'm in Africa!!!!

We made it. It is midnight here and I am tired!!! The second flight was really bumpy and I slept little.

So far, here are my impressions: It is very dark and has a weird smell.

I am going to bed but will give you more tomorrow.

Oh, and thank you Lord for giving someone the brains and capability to create Xanax. It is a good thing.

Done

I think that I got it all packed. And it is only noon.

I am exhausted and the pre-flight nerves have set in.

My first flight leaves at 5:15. I will try to give you an update during the 4 hour layover in Amsterdam but it will be 3AM here, so don't wait up.

Almost on the way

Wow!

I can't believe that I leave in less than 48 hours! Tomorrow is the last day of school and hopefully the rain will hold off so that we can have graduation tomorrow evening. Otherwise, I have to return Saturday morning since I am reading names.

My first flight leaves at 5:15 Saturday. I haven't packed the first thing, but I did make a start today by pulling out the packing list that I have used on my past mission trips. I think that tomorrow night will be one of little sleep.

Some of you have asked how I am doing as far as support goes. Thank you so much for your generosity. As of right now, I am about $1000 short of covering all expenses. That is so incredible to me and again, I can't tell you how grateful I am. It is such a cool thing to see God's faithfulness in raising up supporters.

If you still want to give, it's not too late. You can mail me a check (see the very first post here for details), but seeing as how I leave so soon, your check would just be sitting around until I get back. The other option is to donate online at www.268generation.com/donate. In the comment box, please be sure that you write that your donation is for Beth Cleaveland and Kampala. It would also be helpful for my accounting purposes if you sent me an email and let me know how much you donated. Again, thank you.

I will try my best to keep you as updated as I can. I am not really sure what to expect once I make it to Uganda.

Really? Is there a option?

So I got all of my immunizations over Spring Break at a travel clinic in LaGrange. Since then I have been carrying around the prescription for the malaria medication and the one for traveler's diarrhea (honestly, never thought I would be typing that word on a blog post).

I knew that I had an annual doctor's appointment coming up and so I figured that I would just get them filled at the pharmacy in my doctor's office. Nope. They don't carry the drugs.

So, I went across the street to pharmacy that accepts my insurance. They get all of my information in and start to fill the prescription. But then I got a call to come up to the desk. Apparently, these meds are not covered. Nice.

My guess is that most of you don't take anti-malarial drugs on a regular basis. First of all they are the size of horse pills and second of all, I hear that the side effects may not be great. In addition, the 17 pills that I needed cost 10 bucks a pill!

But what do you do when the pharmacy tech asks if you still want the prescription? Is there really a choice? Who wants malaria?

I told them that I did indeed want my prescription, but since my insurance wasn't going to cover it anyway, I was going to go down the street to CVS. I have brand loyalty. (And by supporting CVS, I feel that I am inadvertently supporting my inheritance. Right, momma?) Plus, I saved 2.50 a pill.

Lesson to learn: next time, you decide to go to Africa, budget for the medication.