Equal opportunity family

One of the things I love most about Nkoaranga orphanage is their total lack of awareness of gender stereotypes. Partly this derives from sharing everything - if a dress happens to be the closest thing on the rack that fits, a dress it'll be!

Very happy cross dressed Simoni in pants turned shorts and the wrong shoes

Simoni was an especially frequent example of this phenomenon, simply because with his rickets it's a little harder for him to scale the shelves to find something that fits him just right - so when he finds something, he pulls it on, no questions asked. He also likes to do things himself - as evidenced by the shoes on the wrong feet!

One of the kids' other favorite activities is when volunteers bring over nail polish, and then EVERYONE gets in on the action. Really, the only limiting factor is patience - Pray was particularly funny running around with one hand with red fingernails for a week, because he simply couldn't hold still long enough to get both done.

Eman showing off his nails (Thanks Amy for the pictures!)

Baracka testing to see if they're dry

Dainess and Loveness, our fashion plates

I honestly believe this is part of what makes the kids so close - they go through thick and thin together, and they enjoy their little pleasures together (the small things, if you'll forgive me then pun. You won't? Ok, little pleasures it is then.) The result is the gorgeous, happy, if incredibly rambunctious little family you see here.

Farajah and Maureeni

Ericki, Farajah and Andrea in.. a conga line? Not sure, but it's cute!

That sense of belonging is so important for kids, and although the Nkoaranga orphanage family might not be the most traditional family to belong to, and it can't truly replace parents of their own, it's a pretty fantastic one nonetheless. I feel pretty darn lucky to be a part of it.

Help us make our family safer by contributing to Project MAJI - keeping our kids healthy as well as happy with a water filtration system for the orphanage and hospital wards.