Congo Adventures Day 5--Hair &Fabric

Thursday, October 25:

We traveled to Congo with four large suitcases---two filled with donations, one for Bobby and I, and one for Addy.  We brought her A LOT of clothes....not only prepared for her more than likely (and true) stomach issues, but also because we were told she was wearing 2T at 8 months!  I wasn't really prepared for that and had all these cute 12month outfits ready and washed...so I brought clothing ranging from 9m-24months.  

This outfit was the first matching outfit Ayla picked out for Addy but unfortunately it was 12months!  I decided to stuff her into it anyway....not such a great idea (and only last a couple of hours)!

After our usual breakfast buffet with A&J we came up to the room for a quick snooze...okay, so daddy and Addy had a snooze while I watched a movie--the two of them got a lot of snuggling in with all the sleeping they did;)

 

I also had this brilliant plan to leave her hair alone and not touch it until we got home....after all the nannies had it done in cute little puffs and I had no clue what I was doing. 

 

Again, my plan didn't work so well.  Addy's hair thread started breaking and a few puffs were coming out so I decided instead of just leaving it I'd better take care of it, somehow!! 

 

So, off to the bath we went again.  This time I blew up the bathtub we brought along (thanks Mary!!!) and Addy LOVED it!!!  I let her just sit and splash for awhile before diving into the shampoo and conditioner. 

(She really did like the tub----but was still very leery of the camera!)

 

The only thing I knew ahead of time was CONDITION, CONDITION, CONDITION.   So I lathered her sweet skin up with lotion and piled on the leave in conditiner.  Surprisingly, combing through her hair was very easy and she really enjoyed a little head scratch!  I decided to leave her hair alone for a bit and just left in a cute frow for the time being (that only lasted until after lunch and then I had to get my hands back on it and put it in some puffs)! 

 

After another nap we headed downstairs to wait for D to pick us up for our outing (fabric shop and market--we thought).  D told us he'd be there around 2 so we got downstairs on time, yet expecting to wait awhile. 

 

After waiting for about 30 minutes we decided to order a coke...and just as they were bringing us our drinks D showed up....but not to take us on our outing.

 

The only big hurdle we had to get through this week was obtaining Addy's exit letter.  We were told to expect it within the four working days we were there, and we'd be able to be on our way.  We were also told to expect it this day, so we were hoping D would arrive with the letters in hand and ready to take us out a bit. 

 

BUT, D arrived with some bummer news.  The DGM (Congo migration officials) were not going to release Addy and Josee's letters unless we paid a fee.....so we forked over the money and were told to wait some more while D ran the money over and then would take us on our outing.

 



D and M (the driver) were back in about an hour and we were off to do some Congolese shopping!!  The fabric store was just a few blocks away, so we were there shortly, anxious and excited to be walking in the hustle and bustle of people.  The fabric store was rather small, with at least 20 people shopping for the perfect pattern----and boy were there choices!!  From floor to ceiling were rows of beautiful, colorful African prints.  We spent about 40 minutes in the shop trying to take it all in and pick out the right fabrics.  I couldn't decide, so I decided to get four different patterns in 6 yards. 

 

While we were shopping, M held Addy---it was so sweet to see the love for her that ALBB in-country staff had for Addy (and all the children).  As soon as we were out of the car he asked if he could hold her and continued to be all smiles the entire time! 

 

We got back into the jeep and started the bumpy ride when D told us we weren't going to go to the market after all....he had wanted to get back to the embassy and the day was getting late.  So he said he'd try to take us another day.  I was a little bummed as this was something I was really hoping to do while in Congo, but even this short outing was a great "get away" from the walls of our hotel. 

 

Another little nap, some wonderful dinner, some skyping with the family back home, and another day was gone in Congo.