Untamed & Uncut: My Animal Planet Moment

"The heart wants what it wants."

Kathryn Donville

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Okay, the quote has absolutely nothing to do with what's been going on here. I just promised Kathryn I'd use it.

We had just about the most fun day ever at the workshop a couple weeks ago. We did some holiday-themed photo shoots! This is the whole reason this day was so much fun:

Nicole is the cutest cupid in the whole world! Not gonna lie, I didn't get much of my own work done this day. I just helped with the photo shoots so I could hang out with this little munchkin the whole time. I can't wait for the Valentine's Day photos to be released!

She's the best.

This is the second year in a row I haven't been at home for the 4th of July. We actually thought we'd have pretty exciting plans - we thought the American Embassy was throwing a party. Unfortunately we were mistaken, so we quickly threw together a party of our own. We invited all the Musana women and their families; I can't believe we fit that many people into our little house! I don't know the exact number of people who came, but our initial pre-party headcount was around 70.

Honestly, I missed having fireworks and a barbecue, but I think it's safe to say this party was a success. It was actually really fun. Who'd have thought that one of my favorite 4th of July celebrations to date would have taken place in Uganda?

Plus I introduced Tina to Lady Gaga, so I'd say it was a successful day. I told her Gaga fans are called Little Monsters, so the above photo happened.

Post-party happiness!

But the excitement of the week doesn't end with the party! We made the trek to the Entebbe Zoo the next day to meet the coolest little guy:

Well, he's not exactly little. But he's not full-grown yet! Meet Charles, the 3-year old elephant. He was rescued when he was a week old (his parents were unfortunately poached) and he's been living at the Entebbe Zoo ever since. We thought we missed his visiting hours, but the staff was nice enough to bring him out to meet us privately. How's that for customer service?!

He loves bananas. And I love him.

Unfortunately the zoo doesn't let its guests meet the lions or the leopard (I asked), but Charles was a pretty amazing alternative.