Life Lately June & July 2026

Hello blogger world!  I took a break during the summer and will try to get caught up in the days ahead.  Here are some random pictures from the months of June and July. 

 

In early June David preached at a special Father's Day service at the Baptist church in Jocotenango.

 

We met this sweet family from Maine and enjoyed visiting with them over coffee at a local coffee shop in town.  They were in Guatemala on vacation.  We love opportunities like this.   

 

 

A highlight of my June was watching the college baseball playoffs and World Series tournament.  Of course, we cheered on Ole Miss until they lost.  

 

We all had dental cleanings.  This was the view while we waited to see the dentist.  Not a bad sight!

 

 

The boys attended Camp Guamiski, which is a summer camp for MK's living in Guatemala.  They love this week!   

 

 

While they were at camp, David and I spent some time in Guatemala City doing annual medical checkups.  What a pretty view from Zone 10. 

 

 

A highlight of our city time was having lunch at Del Griego.  We love gyros!  We also enjoyed a meal at P.F. Chang's.  It is a tradition while the boys are at camp. 

 

 

As soon as camp ended, we flew home to Mississippi for a few weeks of summer in the South.  You can read about that HERE.

 

 

We returned to Guatemala mid-July and then just three days later flew to Peru for a work meeting/ training. 

 

Landing in Lima 

From the Lima airport, we had a two hour bus ride to our location.  Peru's Independence Day was coming up so that meant we saw their flag flying everywhere.

 

A highlight was the alpacas and llamas that roamed the property where we stayed.  We loved seeing them every day. 

 

 

 

While we were at our training, Cruz enjoyed spending the week with other high school TCK's whose parents serve in the Americas.  This annual retreat is one of his favorite things!  This was his second year to go.  You have to be fifteen to attend, so next year Ben will get to join him. 

 

Cruz with some of his friends at the retreat. 

 

They loved dressing up for an evening meal.  They also had a hoedown and a decades night. 

 

We are thankful for the way the IMB invests in our kids! 

 

 

We returned to Guatemala with one week left of summer break.  I spent most of the week getting ready for the new school year.   

 

Here are some photos of our classroom this year- 

 

I bought this wall decoration because it reminded me of Colorado, which I greatly love! 

 

 

 

We started back on August 3.  I'll share about our first day of school in an upcoming post. 

 

 

The boys spent the week catching up with friends.  They both had sleepovers.  Ben joined a friend to see the new Spiderman movie.  Cruz enjoyed a workout with a friend and a visit to a coffee shop.  They both joined friends at local pools for a day of swimming.  They had a busy social week!  On this particular day we enjoyed lunch with friends at a local coffee farm.  This is Ben with his friend Josue. 

 

A cute planter at the coffee farm.

 

Overall, it was a fun summer, and I'm a little sad that is has come to an end.  But, new adventures lie ahead, and we are fully embracing what fall has to offer.  What am I most looking forward to?  SEC college football!!!  Football season is my favorite season of all.

IMB Americas Homeschool Conference 2026

Our IMB homeschool conferences are top notch! We generally have one every two years. We always have a different educational theme. This year’s theme was Booktopia and focused on reading. I just can’t praise it enough. This year’s conference was a favorite of all. I think it was mostly due to my season of homeschool and the ages of my boys. My main focus was support for finishing high school and prepping them to launch and enter the college years. I left feeling very equipped to do both of these well. 

 

The parent’s days consisted of morning worship and devotions followed by training sessions. We also had daily workshops where you could choose interest based classes. These covered a wide variety of topics related to homeschool. I chose all the high school and college options. They were fantastic! 

 

We had a curriculum fair with several vendors on site to share with us. There was also a college fair for the high school students and their parents. We got to hear from representatives from several schools and some not in attendance sent information and swag to give away.

 

The students had classes of their own. The 2nd- 8th graders all took the IOWA assessment test in the mornings. They had interest based classes in the afternoons. There was a reading fair one evening for the K-8th. Before the conference they had to choose a book that was set in another part of the world and do a presentation on it. That evening they each had a table and everyone walked around and listened to them share about their book. We had so many high school students that we had to do their presentations over two evenings. They had to choose an author and give a 3-5 minute oral presentation about it to the whole group. It was great public speaking practice! We had an evening graduation ceremony to celebrate the juniors and seniors who would be graduating before the next conference. This was followed by cupcakes and fellowship. On the last night we had a talent show where the TCK’s got to highlight their talents. It was very good! 

 

We closed out the conference saying goodbye and thank you to Melody, our education consultant, who will be retiring in late summer. She is going to be greatly missed! We ended with a popcorn buffet that was a lot of fun. 

 

In between we spent countless hours and mealtimes connecting and encouraging each other. I think I love this conference so much because it pours into an area of my life that I spend a great deal of time doing. I’m thankful that the IMB values us as educators of our children and goes above and beyond to provide resources like this conference to help us do it well. 

 

I took very few photos so thankfully Cruz shared a few of his with me. 

 

off to the conference

We left our house around 8:30 am and due to airport delays, we did not arrive at our destination until 3:30 am the next morning. It was a long travel day!

 

 

I always love to see the fountain on the property. 

 

 

Our conference name- Booktopia.  Months before the conference all students get to submit their ideas for a conference name based on the theme.  This year's theme was reading. A list is compiled and then everyone votes for their favorite.  The person who submitted the winning name is always recognized during the conference.

 

 

Cruz and some friends walking to class. 

 

 

The Reading Fair was fantastic!  This was for the K- 8th graders.  It was fun to walk around and hear each of them share about their books.  I also enjoyed seeing all of their creative displays.  

 

Ben chose God's Smuggler as his book and this was his display.

 

ready to share about his book 

 

 

Cruz chose John Grisham as his author to share about.  He chose him because of his ties to Mississippi and Ole Miss. He had a PowerPoint presentation to go along with what he shared. There were at least one hundred people in the audience.  That was intimidating but in spite of it everyone did an awesome job.  

 

 

Walks down to the lake is always everyone's favorite.  It is very pretty and peaceful.  The students spent time there fishing most every afternoon. 

 

Cruz was proud to catch a few fish. 

 

 

 

Ben left for breakfast one morning and came running back in to tell me to look out the window. He then got my phone and took a few pictures. I love that he saw this sunrise and thought of me.  

 

sunrise over the lake 

 

 

Cruz's group in class with their team flag.  

 

These four had a fantastic week together! They’ve all been friends for many years and value times like this when they can be together in person.

 

 

 

Ben with his friend group of middle school boys.  They also had a blast together!

 

Since returning home, we are all in a lull and are missing being together with everyone.  It was a great bonding time not only for the boys but also for me with the other moms. We cannot wait until our next conference so we can all be together again!!! 

Intermissions Conference 2025

Every year on the last weekend in February we attend the Intermissions Conference.  It is held at Porta Hotel del Lago overlooking beautiful Lake Atitlan in Panajachel. The conference is designed for English speaking evangelical missionaries living and working in Guatemala. It is a time for worship, fellowship, networking, encouragement, and rest.  We love attending and look forward to it every year.

 

Our family leaving out on Friday afternoon driving to the lake.

 

Before checking in, we walked down to the lake to take some photos.

 

Those are volcanoes in the background.

 

 

 

Our program for the weekend.

  

Our speaker was Dr. Steve Moore from Portland, Oregon. Worship was led by Avenue Church in Waxahachie, TX.  We had a preschool team from Scottsdale Bible Church in Scottsdale, AZ. Lastly, the children and youth were led by additional members from Avenue Church. 

Our boys loved their youth leaders and said it was one of their favorite conferences ever.  That is always good for a parent to hear.

 

The conference also provides breakout sessions, counseling sessions, a book exchange, and coffee breaks to catch up with friends or to meet new ones.

 

Intermissions is special to our family and each one who attends.  We are thankful for this yearly event that fills us up in so many ways. 

 

Our Friday night coffee and dessert fellowship time included a fire.

 

The beautiful views on Saturday morning.

 

 

Ben headed out to class.

 

Saturday evening sunset.

 

During the conference we always have a time to remember those who have passed away in the last year.  We also recognize those who will be leaving the field before the next conference.  This year the Stones were recognized for their nearly forty years of missionary service and prayed over for their upcoming retirement.  Their plan is to retire in early May 2025.  The conference will never be quite the same to us without them.

 

The kids having fun in the pool.

 

 

How many boys can you fit in a hot tub?   Apparently many.  We are thankful for a great group of boys that our boys got to hang out with all weekend long.  What a blessing!

 

I never take many photos at the conferences.  I always go with big intentions but never end up doing it. We have many wonderful memories though that carry us through the whole year and make us eager for the following year's conference.  

 

If you serve in Guatemala and have not been attending, make plans now for the 2026 conference.  The dates are February 20-22, 2026.  We would love to see you there!!!