In the spring of 2008, I really started to feel like it was time for my family to come with me to Aceituno. Scott had been there on the initial trip, but not since. The children had trouble understanding why I was spending time away from them and what the conditions were in Guatemala.
The prospect of paying for the five of us to fly to Guatemala and spend a week there seemed impossible. But, if there is one thing I've learned, it's that money is only pieces of paper. If the Lord wants something to become a reality, the money will come. Little by little, the money came. An unexpected tax refund and generous gifts from friends and family made the difference. When I bought the tickets and clicked "purchase" my hands shook. It was the most money (cash) that I have ever spent at once.
Our kids love to travel, and fear nothing. They enjoyed every minute of the trip. I had laid out some rules for them before we went. Most of the rules were things to protect their health in the village. For example, don't touch the dogs and other animals; don't step in the puddles (they usually aren't water) etc.
When we arrived in Guatemala city, we were picked up from the airport by Luis. He brought Anabelly (his sister) and her two oldest grandchildren Jennifer and Tulio. Jennifer and Tulio are the same ages as my kids Adam and Lora. They also have a younger brother, Jonathan who is the same age as my Hannah. Their mother, Yeya and I have often said that we would like to be inlaws someday. In spite of the language barrier, The six kids hit it off almost immediately. They spent their days in the village together playing soccer (futbol). Eating candy and other treats from the tiendas ( which broke one of mom's rules), and just being kids. By the end of the week, they had broken almost all of mom's rules. They were filthy and ran loose in the village like the other kids. They never got sick or hurt and no one ever bothered them. The people in Aceituno knew they were my kids and I like to think that they looked out for them.
Of course, I had to take the opportunity to work in the village. I squeezed in 4 days of work. Susan and I taught the ladies two new patterns; a short sleeve jacket with a hood and elastic in the waist, and a reversible bag. This was a big step for me because I designed these patterns myself. It was a tremendous amount of work. But, worth every frustrating minute. The end results have been really cute and easy to sell.
We took some time to see the country with our kids. Adam turned 15 that week and we celebrated by swimming in a spring fed cave (cueva) and relaxing on the pacific ocean. It was a lot of fun, but the kids said they enjoyed their time in the village more than anything. They made some lifelong friendships and I think they have a better understanding of they way the rest of the world lives.
The prospect of paying for the five of us to fly to Guatemala and spend a week there seemed impossible. But, if there is one thing I've learned, it's that money is only pieces of paper. If the Lord wants something to become a reality, the money will come. Little by little, the money came. An unexpected tax refund and generous gifts from friends and family made the difference. When I bought the tickets and clicked "purchase" my hands shook. It was the most money (cash) that I have ever spent at once.
Our kids love to travel, and fear nothing. They enjoyed every minute of the trip. I had laid out some rules for them before we went. Most of the rules were things to protect their health in the village. For example, don't touch the dogs and other animals; don't step in the puddles (they usually aren't water) etc.
When we arrived in Guatemala city, we were picked up from the airport by Luis. He brought Anabelly (his sister) and her two oldest grandchildren Jennifer and Tulio. Jennifer and Tulio are the same ages as my kids Adam and Lora. They also have a younger brother, Jonathan who is the same age as my Hannah. Their mother, Yeya and I have often said that we would like to be inlaws someday. In spite of the language barrier, The six kids hit it off almost immediately. They spent their days in the village together playing soccer (futbol). Eating candy and other treats from the tiendas ( which broke one of mom's rules), and just being kids. By the end of the week, they had broken almost all of mom's rules. They were filthy and ran loose in the village like the other kids. They never got sick or hurt and no one ever bothered them. The people in Aceituno knew they were my kids and I like to think that they looked out for them.
Of course, I had to take the opportunity to work in the village. I squeezed in 4 days of work. Susan and I taught the ladies two new patterns; a short sleeve jacket with a hood and elastic in the waist, and a reversible bag. This was a big step for me because I designed these patterns myself. It was a tremendous amount of work. But, worth every frustrating minute. The end results have been really cute and easy to sell.
We took some time to see the country with our kids. Adam turned 15 that week and we celebrated by swimming in a spring fed cave (cueva) and relaxing on the pacific ocean. It was a lot of fun, but the kids said they enjoyed their time in the village more than anything. They made some lifelong friendships and I think they have a better understanding of they way the rest of the world lives.
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