Life Lately June 2023

We began the month by hosting seven Summer Sojourner students.  They spent three weeks in Guatemala serving alongside us.   We stayed very busy with them.  The taught English classes at a school in Jocotan (English classes Day 1 and English classes Day 2).  They visited pastors and did a youth activity.  We spent a week in Antigua. They shared in local churches.  They did a chocolate class. We hiked up to the Antigua Cross.  They toured the Jade Museum.  They did a coffee farm and biking tour at La Azotea.  They spent a day making home visits.  They did a sports day at a local park.  They spent more time teaching English classes at a school in Parramos.  They served as camp counselors at Camp Guamiski.  We did a day trip to La Aurora Zoo.  Then, sadly, we had to say goodbye.  They were a fantastic group to host and we miss them greatly.

 

We spent one of our weeks serving in the Chiquimula area.  We took this photo on Sunday morning as we drove up the mountain to have attend a worship service at our church plant in Nearar.

 

Here is a video from that day.

 

 

Ben enjoying a frozen frappe at the hotel in Chiquimula. 

While in the Chiquimula area we did a day trip to the Ipala Volcano and swam in the crater lake.

 

enjoying the day at Volcan Ipala

 

 

Me and Cruz at the Antigua market.  We made many trips there in June with our summer students.

 

an afternoon coffee break at Cafe Barista in Antigua

 

He has grown so much this summer! 

 

 Cruz lead the group on a climb of Volcan Pacaya.

 

Cruz hiking Volcan Pacaya with our Summer Sojourner students.

 

 

clowning around at McDonald's in Antigua

 

grocery shopping for our June mission team 

We hosted a group from The Church at LifePark in Mount Pleasant, SC.  

 

Here is a video highlighting our week together.

 

They brought down some of our school books for the upcoming school year.

 

Taking a coffee break at Cafe Condesa in Antigua.

 

David and I enjoyed a fun date night.

 

Lunch at Pizza Hut in Guatemala City

 

A video highlighting the robot delivery at Pizza Hut in Guatemala City.

 

We overlapped a night with the Stones and Cadenheads at our mission house in Guatemala City.  It was great to catch up with them.

 

We tried to squeeze in all of our annual medical checkups that we could.  Here are the boys with my gynecologist.  He always comes out to the waiting room to see them each year and loves seeing how much they have grown.

 

We also did dental cleanings and eye exams.

 

 

Everyone got haircuts.

 

 

a video of the boys getting a haircut

I am trying to post more to our YouTube channel.  If you would like to follow us there, here is the link- https://www.youtube.com/@davidandregina

We ended the month with another work trip to Mexico.  It was our third trip there this year and was the last one we currently have planned to make for 2023.  

 

 

Here is a fun video of our travel day there. 

 

While there we received a certificate recognizing our completion of fifteen years of service with the IMB.  We will actually be completing seventeen years of service this October but just now received our certificate.  I was very proud that the boys also received certificates for completing years of service alongside us.  That made them proud also.

 

 

Here is a collage of us getting recognized at five, ten, and fifteen years of service.  We look forward to adding more photos to this collage in the years to come.

 

We returned home tired but with just a stopover to unpack, wash clothes, and repack.  We'll be on the move again for the month of July.  It has been a very busy summer for us but the best is yet to come!! 

Having Fun in Antigua

After a week in Chiquimula we were all ready to load up and head towards Antigua.  That is where the students spent their second week serving. 

 

We all enjoyed the delicious breakfast buffet every morning at the hotel in Chiquimula.   Here are Trey and Isaac on our last morning there.

 

We stopped at Sarita's in El Rancho for ice cream.

 

We had lunch at Taco Bell in Guatemala City.

 

 

It took seven hours to make it to Antigua!  We checked the students into their housing and then headed out to explore the town.  Here they are in our Central Park.

 

A photo under the arch.

 

We walked all over town and then ended the outing with coffee at Starbucks before dropping them off for the night.

 

The next morning I met them at a local coffee shop, Artista de Cafe, for coffee.

 

We did some more exploring around town and made our first of three visits to the local market.

 

Mollie and Olivia

 

They spent the afternoon at our house playing games.

 

We spent the evening at El Bosque. We ate and then played games there.

 

Having supper by the fire.

 

Later that week we did a walking tour of town that included visiting a few of the cathedrals.

 

Another afternoon coffee shop visit.

 

McDonald's in Antigua

 

Isaac and Cruz

 

 

and yet another afternoon coffee shop visit. 

To say I am going to miss having these students around is a understatement!!

 

Another visit to the market.  They loved to shop!

 

I 💜 these girls!!

 

Enjoying a late breakfast together.

 

Loaded up and headed to summer camp.

 

In my upcoming posts I will not only share about camp but all the other fun activities we did around the Antigua area that week.  We squeezed a lot in!!! 

 

 Here is a short video showing just a glimpse of a few of those activities.  Check back for more!