Ikhaya Likababa

It's funny how things work out sometimes, isn't it? Amanda and I knew our mission trip in Randfontein was finished at the end of November and we didn't know where we were heading next...so...we posted that on Facebook! And...sometimes the internet is a wonderful thing! :) A friend I used to work with had some cousins who were volunteering at Ikhaya and so my friend gave us the name and we followed up on it. We contacted the director and a week later we jumped on the bus and the rest is history!


Ikhaya is a Babies Home for abandoned babies in Enpangeni, South Africa. The idea is that they only have babies for a maximum of six months in which time the kids are adopted or fostered. When we arrived there were four babies/toddlers (one baby, three toddlers), plus another part-timer (a former Ikhaya baby who is in the process of being adopted by the directors). By mid-January, though, another two babies has arrived, so the house is currently at maximum capacity. Anyone out there looking to adopt? :) The maximum capacity at the moment is six children, but a new house is almost finished. When they move to the new house they will be allowed to have up to twenty-two kids.



The kids are great! (What kids aren't?) I especially enjoy the "triplets". No, they aren't actually triplets, but as they are all the same age and all living at the same place it seems like they are. One little girl speaks English quite well, but the other two are still learning. One of them primarily understands Zulu, while the other understands more Afrikaans. They ARE learning though--and it's so much fun to watch how quickly they pick it up! (I don't think I'll ever here the words "Oh no!" again with out thinking of one of the little boys here who's picked up that expression and uses it constantly!)


I don't think I'll type much more, instead I'll let you experience Ikhaya through pictures. Enjoy!

Ikhaya Christmas party (not sure what I'm doing--it looks like I'm begging for food)

The toddlers all love the babies--but occasionally they get a bit carried away! We caught one of them trying to pry this baby's eyes open after he had fallen asleep...











Note: one of the reasons this post is a few months late is that we're currently pictureless. We'd appreciate prayers for our external hard drive which quit working. When we recover our pictures we will post photos to go with the following antidotes: One of the first activities we did with the kids was finger painting. They loved it once they realized they didn't have to eat it...although one-year-old Ruthie, our part-timer, did still manage to eat quite alot! *sigh* We also tried baking with the kids. It went pretty well, considering there were three three-year-olds and a one-year-old! The neighbours who are on the same property just had a dog who had seven puppies! The kids--especially this little boy--were enthralled.


That's it for now! There'll be a bit more about Ikhaya in the next post.