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Hi folks,

It's the pits. A month has flown past and my stay with the children is coming to an end. They still have awful coughs but they have had some cough medicine and are picking up. My heart will break tomorrow when I have to say goodbye to T. We are not supposed to have favourites but it's inevitable. T is very active and said to be very 'naughty' but it's autistic naughtiness and all the old tricks work with her. She so adores wearing shoes (unusual for African children) and a threat of "I'll take your shoe" quickly puts a stop to unwanted behaviour. She has learnt "hands down" and is now allowed to go to the nursery school with the other children. She doesn't do the full 4hours but does well for 2hours. She loves songs and tidying up. She makes an awful mess tipping things out but then puts them all back. A skill most teenagers haven't mastered so she's doing well.

The children are loving the new house. Having the paddling pool in a nice garden instead of next to smelly bins is great! We've been giving them turns in the big pool and N, the cerebral palsy girl, laughed lots! I have a lovely photo of her laughing but can't put it on here. I'll have to put one where you can't see her face. On Thursday, Glynnis, who runs Isiaiah, took us up to the Valley of a Thousand Hills. This was so the other volunteers could enjoy the lovely scenery but for me, it was a opportunity to visit Agape. It was so strange to see it without the children. I had a long chat with Pamela, who is trying to get the place going again after her Mother, Gogo Zodwa, died. It is all very complicated but I'm doing what I can to help. I went with Pamela to fetch water as theirs has been turned off. I got a glimpse of real village life away from tourism. Back at Isiaiah, the hectic life went on. Always hungry mouths to feed, nappies to change, piggybacks, cuddles, entertainment.

Hi everyone

Hi folks

The other volunteers and I had an amazing weekend in Lesotho. We travelled to Sani Lodge,  a backpackers place and on Saturday morning went up the Sani Pass by Land Rover. Those of you who know me will know that I was scared stiff but it was also SO beautiful. The scenery is out of this world - sort of combination of the Scottish Highlands and the Grand Canyon! Really takes your breath away. Then up in Lesotho, the Kingdom in the Sky, we travelled to a village. We watched the men and young boys sheep-shearing (PT2....the sheep are mainly Merino and they get a lot more for the fleeces here than at home. All the sheering is obviously by hand with shears but they are very quick. The young boys can pick up a full-grown merino and carry it on their shoulders like it was no heavier than a scarf!) Then we visited the village where the women danced for us. At night we stayed with a family and ate our meal in pitch darkness, with just an oil lamp to give you an idea of what you were eating.

Wow, a very busy and exciting week and it's getting even more exciting! The Children's home, Isiaiah54 is moving to a new a bigger house and we are all helping. The older children are so excited because the new house has a small swimming pool. This week I have been asked to work with the autistic girl. I am LOVING it, she is so responsive. I go to the little Nursery school and spend two hours with her and she is progressing amazingly! She has already learnt "Hands down" and "I want juice" (sound familiar anyone?) I also look after a very severely disabled girl who needs total care because of her cerebral palsy. The other volunteers and I work in shifts, 7am to 3 pm and 10am to 6 pm. In this heat we get very tired. Today is a bit more breezy which feels great. Now we are finishing for today (lunch-time) and are off on a weekend trip to Lesotho. I am SO looking forward to it-except the Sani Pass where I will have to keep my eyes closed.

Hi folks

Hi everyone. I'm flying out to Durban on Jan 30th. For reasons that I cannot explain here and now, I am not going to Agape. I am going to a different project called Isiaiah54. I actually spent a day and night there last year and  I think it will be a lot more challenging. I shall miss the Agape children's singing and dancing so much and desperately want to know if they are all ok. I am hoping to visit Agape while I'm out there and perhaps be able to find out and let you know how the children are getting on.
Whatever happens, all the money you helped to raise will be put to the very best use, I'll make sure of that.
Lots of love, Kate xx

Absolutely fantastic! Thank you so much to all of you who turned out on the foulest night imaginable. Driving wind and rain didn't deter you and 76 people tucked into the fodder. We had a grand raffle and a quiz which was set by Jill Ellam. Thank you Jill, it was great fun. I haven't got the final total as there are one or two more donations trickling in but.........it looks like being about £670 !!! :o) :o) :o) How brill is that?!
When I get the final figure, bank the money and put it into the Just Giving kitty, you will be able to see the exact amout. ( www.justgiving.com/coolmumdiver-kate )

Thank you SO, SO much everyone. Every penny will be well used at Agape.

Kate :o) xx

Hi folks. I've arranged the curry night for Nov 2nd. The Cinnamon Lodge at Meltham does a superb eat-as-much-as-you-like buffet and charges £6 per person. So, for every ticket that's sold for £11, £5 goes to my Agape fund. That's a really good value meal and an excellent return for Agape. So....any of you reading this who live in this part of the world.....please buy tickets. It's easy-just email me on coolmumdiver1@o2.co.uk 
Gareth's also agreed to do another haircutting night. It was brill last time and, again, a good fund-raiser.
I'm so looking forward to going to Agape again and can't thank you all enough for your support.
Kate xx 

Hi everyone,
I've paid my deposit so I'm definitely going! My collection has taken off thanks to brill friends. I can't say thank you enough to Lesley for her fantastic donation, to Gaz and to all the 'Shetland Islanders' for theirs. Thank you, as well, to Shirley for organising and running the 'Pampered Chef' night which raised money for HSGA as well as Agape.
I can start to think seriously about how I want to spend the money. I had a lovely letter from Agape and they've already got some suggestions. I'm going to arrange a curry night in Meltham so I'll keep you informed about the date.
Love, Kate x

Hi everyone! Just when you thought it was safe to spend money on yourself......Kate wants it again! I just couldn't stop thinking about how the children said that the volunteers never return. I feel that if I go again I will know what to expect and whether I can make a real difference. It will be harder in some ways- understandably harder to raise money when people have already been generous, and harder to generate that same sense of venturing into the unknown. But.....I am determined and Agape has written a lovely letter to me saying how excited the children are about my return. I asked Pamela, the manageress, what the children need and she said that they would love to have somewhere to hang their clothes, particularly their school uniforms. So...maybe Ikea would like to donate some collapsible wardrobes!! I would really like to arrange some basic staff training at Agape regarding health and hygiene, nutrition etc. Not easy but I will discuss the idea with Pamela.

Hi folks. Yes..I'm back in England. It felt very strange going on holiday after Agape. At first I felt overwhelmed by how clean everything was and the lack of bugs. Then there was all the food. It should have felt wonderful but all I could think about was the children. Every time I saw a black child I was instantly back at Agape and wondering how they all were. I kept expecting children to rush up to me and fling their arms round me but of course they didn't. It took me a while to adjust. It was totally brilliant meeting up with my four friends from home for the holiday. I think they were embarrassed by my OTT welcome at the airport! We went to Aliwal Shoal, Mozambique, Hluhluwe Game Reserve, Sodwana Bay and finally Cape Town. It was a super holiday and I hope I didn't bore them to death with my stories of Agape. I'm already planning fund-raising for the school and hope to do some talks at Primary schools round here.

Oh dear, I don't know if I can write this. As well as the fact that I have forgotten my glasses, I've got such a big lump in my throat that I know tears are very close. The plans for the school extension are looking positive. So far they have a quote for about 11,000 pounds but they will get more quotes. All of us volunteers are going to have to do some serious fund-raising back at home. Maybe I could do some talks at schools or something. I've also bought some new mattreses, had some old ones recovered and got a load of spoons. They never have enough spoons and it's awful having to wait for a spoon while the others are eating. We also had 14 teenage girls over to our house for a sleep-over last night. We bought pizzas for them and they swam in the pool (which is actually reasonably clean at the moment). On Friday it was the turn of the creche children to swim but it was raining and quite cool (another thunder storm) and the pool is not heated.