Here is our March 11th…..

We spent the morning starting out at the clinic in Asossa.  There were many, many more people waiting to be seen and we were working hard to get them all in for the doctors and eyeglasses.  A really neat thing happened in the middle of it all though…this little guy showed up!  He is a little boy featured in the Doctor’s Giving Back promo video from 2009 and one of John & Jana’s patients from last year.  Their faces lit up at the sight of him & his family.  And he was equally as happy.  (This is something else I have a video of to show you!!!)

And this next photo is just to tease Kristin!  These glasses, as I was told by a native Ethiopian, are “old lady” glasses.  No body seemed to want to take them?!?!?!?

There will be a few photos to follow this story:  A little girl (11-13 yrs I think) came in with her mother.  Her leg was large & swollen around the bottom by her foot.  She had gotten a small cut on the heel of her foot that went unattended & became infected.  The infection was spreading up her foot causing pain & swelling.  Jana explained to her mother about the medications she would need to take over the next few days & then Tiffany cleaned her wounds while Kristin distracted her from any pain.

(I also have a sweet, touching video of Tiffany & Kristin working so diligently with this young girl)

And now, after lunch, we had our first village trip!  I didn’t really know what to expect from a village trip.  I rode directly behind our driver, Sentayu, and a helper, Nati.  I asked Nati how long until the village & he told me about 40 kilometers and that it would be “an uncomfortable ride.”  HAHA!  What he meant by that is that at a certain point the road through Asossa ends and becomes simply a dirt path.  We quickly learned that when other cars passed us along the road we needed to shut our windows or we would literally eat their dust.

Here is what we saw at the first village….

This was the one piece of medical “equipment” that we found where we were.  It was a pretty ancient scale.  These are our two helpers, Nati & Tola, taking people’s weight.

This next series of photos of this little girl may be a little hard to take.  I know that the first time I saw her I about lost it.  I wanted to just stop, go in the van, and cry.  I believe the condition she has is called Hydrocephalus.  You can correct me if I’m wrong.  One of the hardest things I learned was that she is the same age as my daughter – 5 years old!  These kind of things just grab your heart strings & make you want to leave your cushy life in America & help all of the people here in Asossa.

Sigh….and if your are squeamish, don’t look at the following sore…

Here is the one, dear, sweet, poor nurse we found in this village.  She has the necessary skills, but no supplies!

After we began treating some patients (and by “we” I mean the doctors…not myself), we lined up the children to hand out shoes.  This is the line before it got out of hand…

This next little guy was too adorable.  His father spoke very good English & was apparently a soldier.  He named his son Japan.

Here is some of the shoe distribution…

And while the majority of the kids were distracted with getting new shoes, Jana & Philippa & I handed out these knit bears to children on the village road.  They were so excited…grinning from ear to ear!  We almost started our own little mini riot with these things!

And finally, as we were ready to leave, the leader of the village stood up & thanked us for our efforts & supplies.  We left him with a soccer ball for the children.

As we left this village, we were taken to their water supply.  It was down a type of valley through some long grassy stuff.  The problem was, that on the way to the water supply, we passed many animals feeding &, subsequently, pooping.  When it then rains, the water runs through the animal feces & into the water supply.  This is a main reason why so many of these people are sick – their water is not clean!  Something so simple to us, but something so deadly to them!

I’m tired, my jeans are wet up to my behind, I have sand in my socks…but I had a blast with Mark & Jill today.  They worked me so hard!

Mark & Jill are getting married in August in their home state, but wanted some engagement photos of where they live & play now.  So we headed to trusty ol’ Downtown Annapolis.  It’s the first super deliciously warm weekend in a bit, so everyone and their dog was out too.  After we found parking spots – which is a big deal in Annapolis – we headed down some side streets for more privacy and pizzazz.  If you’ve every been down these streets you’ll know what I mean.  The houses are literally dozens of different bright and glorious colors. Not to mention the city has so much character.  Then we headed over to Jonas Green Park and got some sweet shots in the evening sun.

Enjoy your preview Mark & Jill!  I can’t wait to finish the rest…

I got asked to provide a photo of a vertical scene in Anne Arundel County for a publication. Unfortunately, I don’t shoot landscapes, I shoot people. I sifted through all my old photos and I was able to find some scenes of Annapolis. My girls and I braved the winds today and got a few more shots as well. I hope you enjoy some different angles of our wonderful county!

I had the pleasure of shooting a wonderful family this evening at the Naval Academy Golf Course in Annapolis, Maryland. I had never been there, let alone heard of it. But it is gorgeous! Lori & Bobby picked the perfect place for their two lively boys. Lori “won” me at my daughter’s (Emma) school’s silent auction back in the spring. I was really excited to be in my first auction, and it was a lot of fun. Thanks Bobby, Lori, & boys for letting me share a beautiful evening with you. You all were a ton of fun! Here’s a little preview of what’s to come!