Life Lately May 2025

 I am way behind on updating my blog!  I will try to get caught up over the next several days.

 

We began the month of May saying goodbye to Gary and Lily Stone.  They began their final furlough before officially retiring later this year.  They will be missed! 

 

 

David and Gary 

 

 

supper with the Stones 

 

 

I had a wonderful Mother's Day celebration! 

 

 

last day of school 

We wrapped up 7th and 9th grade and began our summer break.  

 

 

We took an AMAZING family vacation to Colorado.  While there we visited the four national parks. It was the best family trip we have ever made!  I wrote several posts about the trip that you can see further down on the blog. There are way too many to link!

 

 

Cruz turned 15!!! 

 

  

Ben spent a Saturday morning playing tennis and swimming with his friend Josue. 

 

 

On another day they made a visit to the local arcade. 

 

 

We attended a play at the Christian Academy of Guatemala in San Cristobal. 

 

 

Ben's friend, Kingston, was in the play. 

 

We had a wonderful time catching up with an old friend over lunch one day.  Keturah and her family served many years in Guatemala, and we lived near them for a short season in Sayaxche.  It is in the Peten Department of northern Guatemala.  They were back with a team doing some ministry, and we got to see her while she was in Antigua.

 

I took my computer to a local coffee shop one afternoon to catch up on work reports and training courses. Sometimes a change of scenery helps make me more productive.  Iced coffee and dessert helps too. 

 

 

David and I enjoyed a Wednesday night date while the boys were at youth group.  In addition to eating, we made a stop by a local hardware store to pick out a new toilet.  I took this photo and sent it to a friend as a joke that this was a new first for us.  

 

On another day, I enjoyed a coffee and dessert date with Cruz. Getting to have those moments with him have been special.   

 

 

On one of my afternoon walks, I passed by a coffee farm and noticed the plants in full bloom.  

 

They produce the prettiest white flowers with an amazing sweet smell.

 

Next, I'll share photos from the month of June.  It was a busy one!

Life Lately February 2025

 Here is a look at our family life from the month of February.

 

I took this photo on a Saturday morning walk around town. The volcanoes look like they have snow on them.

 

 

I snapped these photos on another walk I took one afternoon.  It is of the beautiful jacarandas that are in full bloom this time of year.  They are my favorite! 💜

 

 

We had lunch with some friends and enjoyed getting to catch up.  We miss getting to see those three Johnson boys on a regular basis.  Their family now lives and serves in another part of Guatemala, and we only see them a few times a year.

 

Ben with friends

 

On Super Bowl Sunday David preached at an evening service in Xenacoj.  On the drive back home we stopped in San Lucas for supper at Lai Lai, which is a Chinese restaurant chain here in Guatemala.  To our surprise, they were playing the game on their screens.

 

Ben ate using chopsticks.

 

I took this random photo because it is rare to crack open an egg and see a double yolk.

 

 

While the boys were at youth on a recent Wednesday night, David and I enjoyed a date night to our favorite BBQ restaurant in town- Pappy's.

 

 

Ben enjoyed a Saturday birthday party outing. They went to Guatemala City and did lazer tag, bowling, arcade games, visited a mall, and ate some fun foods.  They were gone from 10:00 am until 9:00 pm.  What a fun time to spend with friends!

 

 

ice cream with friends

 

birthday party fun

 

Ben at an arcade in Guatemala City.

 

 

We hosted a volunteer team from Virginia.

 

 

Ben and I went on a mother/son outing to Starbucks and the arcade.

 

 

Cruz and I took a pasta class in town.

 

 

Cruz did several fun experiments. 

 

 

We had a fun time celebrating Valentine's Day that ended with a date night.

 

 

We enjoyed the second annual Night of Candles.

 

 

We attended the annual Intermissions Conference.

 

 

I celebrated my birthday.

 

Mother/ Son Date with Ben

As one of his Christmas gifts, Ben got a homemade coupon for a mother & son outing to Starbucks and coins at our local arcade.  We recently made a visit to Telares mall to use them.

 

coffee date at Starbucks

He loves Frappuccinos, and I love iced lattes.

 

He also loves an arcade! He always has.

 

On this game he won 100 bonus tickets.

 

Air hockey is our favorite.

 

more tickets

To Ben, tickets equal candy, and candy is his favorite thing to eat.

 

 

We had such a fun time together. 

I love one on one time with my boys and need to make it more of a priority these days. Time left with them at home is passing quickly!

Life Lately October 2024

I am a little late posting these random photos from October. 

 

Cruz had twice weekly play rehearsals in San Cristobal.  During one of those rehearsals, Ben and I enjoyed a fun night out together while we waited to pick Cruz up.  We visited a local mall. Here he is enjoying ice cream. 

 

He also got to play some arcade games.

 

 

 

 

We enjoyed Pizza Hut pizza for supper.  It is a family favorite!

 

 

Another family favorite is horchata at Pizza Hut. YUM! 

 

homemade cinnamon rolls for breakfast one morning

 

 

I took Ben and his friend Joshua on an evening outing to El Bosque.  It is one of our most favorite places in town.

 

We enjoyed pizza for supper.

 

The boys played for several hours and had a blast.

 

I sat by the fire pit and had a blast myself.

 

We came home and they played video games.

 

On another day I had a coffee date with Cruz at Starbucks.

 

 

David traveled to Lima for a team leader training meeting. Here he is giving an update on our Team Guatemala.

 

 

Cruz performed in Little Women.

 

Later, both boys auditioned for the Spring performance of Romeo & Juliet.  They were both cast in the play.  

 

 

We celebrated eighteen years of service with the IMB.

 

 

We said "see you later" to the Robertson family.  Their term ended and they headed to the States for several months.

 

Coloring while we waited on our meal.  

 

Ben and Timothy

 

 

We had full load of school.  Here is Cruz during a Science lesson.

 

more Science

 

We did several fun experiments. 

 

 

We ended the month with David preaching at a special service in San Rafael.