Mississippi Summer 2026

For the past few years we have been spending a few weeks of our school summer break in Mississippi.  The boys strongly desire it, and we have been trying to provide that for them.  Their time with us here in Guatemala is coming to an end much faster than we would like.  We realize that in just a few short years they'll be moving permanently to the U.S. We hope that by making these summer visits back home that it is helping them put down some roots and deepen relationships with family and friends there. It’s just another way to help prepare them to launch and transition well. 

Here is a look at our visit home this summer. 

 

We left Guatemala on a Saturday afternoon. Our excitement was high!

 

 

A beautiful sunset greeted us in Atlanta. We had a twelve hour overnight layover there and didn't fly out until the next morning.

 
We arrived in Jackson, MS on Sunday morning which also happened to be Father's Day.

 

 

We headed straight to Crystal Springs where we joined David's family for a delicious Southern Sunday lunch meal. It was great to see all of his family at the same time.  We especially enjoyed seeing baby Lake who was just two months old when we returned from our Stateside Assignment in December.

 

visiting my mom 

We had a meal with my family members at the local Mexican restaurant the following night.

 

We enjoyed several visits with the Browns while home.  Here we are having ice cream at Dairy Freeze in Crystal Springs 

 

Ben 

 

Cruz 

 

I love getting to be home for the annual Tomato Festival.  This was the 30th year for it. 

 

 

During the festival, we always enjoy the Friday night street party with the Browns. 

 

 

me and my longtime friend Malinda 

 

Another thing I love about summer visits is getting to celebrate the 4th of July in the U.S.  It was especially memorable this summer because it was the 250th celebration. 

 

 

We spent the day with David's family.  Here we are that evening at Lake Copiah getting ready to watch the fireworks show. 

 

We enjoyed a Sunday lunch meal with David's sister, Robin, and some of her family. 

 

David and Robin 

 

Robin and the boys 

 

 

us with sweet Lake 

 

 

We spent most of our Sundays and Wednesday nigths at our home church, Harmony Baptist, in Crystal Springs.  Here is Cruz serving as a greeter one morning.  

 

 

We went one Sunday morning with my mom to her church.  They were having a special 4th of July service that included a hamburger and hot dog cookout afterwards. 

 

us with Mr. Thurman at church 

 

We always enjoy getting to see our former youth ministry students and their families.  The Johnsons have us over every time we are home.  We love catching up with them and our kids hanging out together.

 

Ricky was another former student.  He came to visit us one evening.  He brought pizza, and we watched a U.S. soccer game together.  

 

 

Cruz upgraded his learner's permit to a regular driver's license while we were home.  He enjoyed a lot of driving freedom on the trip.    

 

 

He started a pressure washing business with his best friend, Jude.  They went door to door asking for work and ended up getting several jobs.  It kept them busy on the hot summer days and provided them with a lot of spending money for the days ahead.

 

 

They even had work t-shirts made.  

It was a fun learning experience for both of them.  

 

 

When he wasn't working, Cruz spent many days playing golf with his friends from Brookhaven at the Wolf Hollow Golf Club in Wesson. David's uncle gifted him a set of clubs, and he was thrilled to get to use them. 

 

 

Here is Ben on an afternoon there at the driving range.

 

 

David and Cruz went on a frog grabbing night outing.  That was a fun adventure! 

 

 

We made a visit to Oxford to see David's dad.

Here are three generations of Whites. 

 

 

Us with Mr. Harold and Jodi 

 

David's family

 

 

Another thing I love about summer visits is getting to attend the Miller family reunion.  This is my dad's family.  Now that he is gone, I like attending to represent him.  It is fun to see everyone and catch up in person.  This is me with two of my cousins. 

 

me and my mom

We enjoyed several outings for shopping and meals. 

 

I especially enjoyed a day outing with David's three aunts.  We had a lot of fun and laughed the whole day.  We started with a lunch meal at Mama Hamil's in Madison, and then spent the rest of the day visiting thrift/ antique stores along Hwy. 49. 

 

 

Another fun day was spent with my friend Malinda.  We had lunch at Aplos in Ridgeland and then spent the afternoon shopping. 

 

Enjoying one last meal with the Browns at Arturo's in Crystal Springs before we left.

 

I didn't get photos of all that we did, but this is a good overview of our time there.  It was fun-filled, and we made some great memories. 

 

Returning to Guatemala to Start Our 6th Term of Service

On Sunday, December 28 we left Mississippi returning to Guatemala to begin our new term of service.  It was bitter sweet to leave one home to return to another.  We were ready to get back and that made the transition a little easier. 

We had a late afternoon flight so we had plenty of time that morning to get loaded up and ready. 

Ben in our van with all our luggage.  You cannot tell it from this photo, but he was surrounded by baggage. 

 

 

We stopped for lunch at Raising Cane's on the way to the airport. 

 

ready to check in 

 

Ben watching the baggage.  

In total we had nine suitcases, four carry-ons, and four backpacks. 

 

 

boarded for our flight from Jackson to Dallas 

 

leaving Jackson, MS 

 

sunset view on the flight to Dallas 

 

sunset view as we landed in Dallas

 

We had a few hours layover there, and then got delayed another hour. It was late when we landed in Guatemala and very late (early morning) when we arrived at our house in Antigua. We were tired, but thankful to be back home.  We have since spent our days trying to get the house back in order, the kitchen restocked, and our second semester of school off to a good start.  We have been working like crazy, but are finally starting to settle down some. 

Our hearts will forever be in two places. Below is what I posted on our Facebook page the day we flew out.

 

Leaving home to go home is harder than it sounds. One place holds our roots, the other holds our calling. Both have claimed our hearts. We’re grateful for where we’re from, but changed forever by where we’ve been. As we packed our bags, we were reminded that obedience often means loving deeply and letting go faithfully, trusting that God is just as present in the goodbyes as He was in the calling. We’ll leave with full hearts, heavy suitcases, and the steady reminder that when God calls you somewhere, He provides perfect peace to go with you.

Christmas 2025

We got to celebrate Christmas in the States this year.  It was only the boy's fourth time to ever be there for Christmas.  They were excited.

 We spent Christmas Eve with David's family and Christmas Day with mine. 

 

On Christmas Eve we gathered at David's late grandmother's house in Crystal Springs.  We had a great meal and fellowship time together and all the kids opened presents. 

 

our family on Christmas Eve 

 

 

us with David's two aunts and cousin 

 

us with his Aunt Terry 

 

us with David's sister and her family 

 

David with his aunt and cousin

 

 

our tree ready for Christmas morning 

 

For breakfast I baked these caramel rolls.

 

 

This was the first year they both slept in on Christmas morning.  We have definitely come a long way from those early morning hours. Here they are ready to open gifts.

 

Ben is our candy man.  He loves sweets!  He gave me a long list of specific things he wanted. 

 

Most of Cruz's gifts were Ole Miss themed.  I got him this Oxford print on our visit to the Lucky Rabbit in Hattiesburg back in November. 

 

Egg Bowl 2025 t-shirt

I am so glad we got to go to the game!! 

 

Ole Miss blanket 

 

hot sauce for David 

 

new gaming blanket for Ben 

 

I got a small digital frame to put in my kitchen.  

 

 

My mom and Aunt Nita came down to eat lunch with us.  I baked a ham, and we had potato casserole, macaroni and cheese, Lima beans, green beans, rolls, pecan pie, and sweet potato pie.

 

Later that afternoon Mr. Thurman stopped by to see us.  We had a great visit with him. 

 

It was a simple celebration, but sweet time spent with family.  As soon as Christmas was over we kicked things into high gear and got ready to leave the country.  We had two days to clean up, pack up, and get to the airport for our flight back to Guatemala. I'll share about that next.