Party Prep

Oh, the party. OUT OF CONTROL. For the last week, every morning when I have emerged from my room to head to work, I've been greeted with all the women in my family and Emma, a woman MmaDiapo has hired to help her, working on the yard, preparing for the party. They've got all the kernels off the mealies that have been drying filling big buckets and awaiting departure to the grinding machine... they'll all become meal for the porridge that's going to be cooked.
And they've been working on putting down traditional cement.
Here's Margaret finishing up the final touches on the first layer, which is made of dirt and water.... mixed in a wheelbarrow and then applied by hand.
In this picture you can see the first layer (closest to you) and the final layer(farther away). For the final layer, cow manure and water are mixed together and applied to the mud and water layer. Usually some sort of pattern is made with the application. For MmaDiapo's yard, they've been making the "com-com" pattern... the way they move their hands, in a fan like fashion, looks like they're saying "come, come."
Pretty cool, huh?