New year, new projects, and a new niece to spoil

So this month has been a particularly productive one I am proud to say. Last I let you all know I had just applied for a grant, I found out a week ago that it was approved so that was exciting. The grant is going to help me host a opening ceremony for my Care Group (see last post). Its a Gender and Equality grant which I was able to apply for because my Care group ceremony will help to set an example of how women can be leaders and take charge of the development of their community. At the ceremony, which I hope to have the first week of March, I will give the women uniforms and certificates and they will be recognized as leaders by other leaders in the community. Hopefully this will also give them confidence and get the community to back them. I'll let you all know how it goes and Ill take pictures! Even though I cant actually post them half the time. 
I planted Moringa seeds with my Health Center at my health center this month and hopefully all 35 grow healthy. I plan to use the seeds and leaves from the trees in my future nutrition classes. I'm kinda using this garden as a pilot to see how it goes and if it goes well I'm going to do even more with it in the village over with my care group. I'm starting a health club at the second secondary school in my village, I think I told you all that I have an English club going on at one secondary school but now I'm hoping to work with the second. Even though its a little far out for me I think It will be good to give the students a chance to participate in an extracurricular activity. Oh! More good news! I finished my survey that I was working on for my care group, we did a total of 104 mothers and my partner wants me to come back and do "Au moins" 20 more just to reach some houses in other areas so that mothers don't feel left out. I'm with it. I think it was overall a good idea to do the surveys, even though they were time consuming it was good to get my face seen in the community and build rapport with the mothers, husbands and children on a personal level before I start bringing new ideas to them. In February I plan on having my first couple of meetings so cross your fingers for me and hope that all ten or so mama leaders mesh well. Work wise I think that's all that I'm working on at this moment. Next month I do plan on hosting monthly Baby weighing's and  nutrition classes, and Ill be starting the real work with my Amour et Vie team. We had a training, this morning actually, on reporting our work here so that's like big girl homework that Ill have to work on next month that's due in March. 

I made resolutions the beginning of this month and so far I've been keeping to them so I pat myself on the back for that. 

2014 Resolutions

1)    Become a healthier person

2)    Become spiritually sound

3)    Improve French

4)    Become prepared for life after Peace Corps

5)    Eradicate negative relationships

      I've been running twice a week, attending Friday prayer more, taking my french tutoring more serious, looking at GRE info, and paying better attention to who I let have access to me

In funner news this month my health center hosted a new years party and it was a blast. I made peanut butter cookies that everyone thought were too sweet (the Beninese in general don't like sweets). I actually had one man try to get out of eating them by telling me the sugar here is not safe and may have poison in it. I was like dude, if you don't like the cookies don't eat them "You aints gotsa lie Craig". But I ate good that night, we had two dinners. The first was chicken with rice au gras (rice with fried pasta and veggies) then we danced our butts off (them more so than me) and then we ate Akassa (fermented jelloey flour type stuff) with a tomato and onion sauce and fried fish. It was all pretty good and Maggie ate well. Shes getting so big! And she has already killed a lizard and three mice on my watch. So proud of her. Despite all the work Ive been doing ive actually been away from post this month more than I typically am. I went mountain climbing with my girls and then went to Cotonou to meet up with them again and take care of some business and now Im away again for the training. I dont like being away but looking at all that ive accomplished I don't feel that bad for have treated myself to a little internet, good food, and good company.  I deserve it. 

I don't want to leave on a low but I don't want to leave out the fact that my niece was born (yay!) and no one in my family thought to call, text, or message me until over a week later. I get that people are busy, but it really isn't that hard to email or send a FB message. And using that excuse is kind of like saying you're too busy for me. But oh well, I guess that's life for this PCV. I thought I may have been over reacting but I talked to other volunteers and its unanimous that that's messed up. Its also not normal, I thought maybe many other volunteers have faced this type of thing but no. It really is just that my family is slack. Im pretty confident that if I hadn't called when I did back in September that I wouldnt have found out about my great-grandmas passing until weeks later. Im also sure that if something does happen in my family I wont find out until way too late. Nonetheless, I am happy that my niecey pooh is here, well, and beautiful.  I am now the proud aunt of one niece and one nephew who's turning 4 in 11 days. By the time I get back my niece will be almost 2 and my nephew almost 6. That is just insane. 

I think thats where ill leave it for now folks. Its currently 4am in the morning here and Im streaming the State of the Union address but I think im like 20 minutes behind now. Don't forget me, Im still alive over here you know. A special thank you to everyone who sent me a card or letter or reached out to me in someway. It really means more than you know.