The Footes

Week-end Quest

2011-12-02T09:25:00.000-06:00

Last month our CAM ministry team had the wonderful opportunity to attend a Mini- Quest. It is intended for CAM missionaries, to assist teams in their development so that they might be better equipped to share life together and minister. It was led by Keegan Williamson and Jon Edwards. We were able to get away to CAM's retreat center 'Las Buenas Neuvas' in Panajachel.

It was great to spend the week-end with these wonderful people. I was encouraged and blessed by each one of them.

Sandi was a great help with the kiddos. She and Maria were so caring and energetic! They were able to keep up with all of them.

Time for a little Bocce ball.

Great fellowship on a beautiful afternoon.

Honduras part III

2011-11-28T10:03:00.001-06:00

My parents took us to the Island of Utila off the coast of Honduras for several days. It was so neat to see our kids explore Gods creation. We rented Little Cay (click this link to see more) and it was wonderful to get away and rest!!

Danny and little Abi

The first day we got there we had to evacuate and go to the main Island of Utila for one night. Once it was safe to come back we still had some strong wind, you can see Danny and my Dad braving the wind.

The calm after the storm, we really enjoyed the gorgeous sun sets each night.

We had the whole Island to ourselves, It was so calm and relaxing.

We enjoyed the sea life on the Island and under water too. It was neat to be able to take pictures of what we saw under water, colorful fish, squid, eel and much more.....

Chloe Ann is ready to go snorkeling!!

All good things must come to an end, we loaded up into the boat that took us back to the main land. We have wonderful memories and great pictures to think back on our time together on the Island.

THANK YOU, Mimi and Grandsir for a Wonderful time together, We love you.

Honduras part II

2011-11-22T07:25:00.000-06:00

I was born in Honduras and lived there the first 8 years of my life. After my parents moved away we still continued to visit over the years. Danny and I were able to go on several trips with my parents, before we married and after. It has been 15 years since Danny and I had been to Honduras. We were able to see many friends, and loved ones.

My parents with the Sandovals (my sister in laws parents), in Spanish they are 'consuegros' (we don't have a word for it in English.)

In Siguatepeque we had a great lunch at the Granja D'Elia, the kids liked seeing the monkeys and the parrots.

These sweet girls are like nieces to me, their mother Lesbia lived with us when we lived in Honduras. It was so kind of them to give up their rooms so we could stay with their family. I loved seeing my kids play with hers.

Naomi and Marcela

It was like a homecoming, being able to see so many friends. It was especially exciting for me to see the influence my parents had on so many people when they lived in Honduras. Teenagers would come up to my parents and say "I don't personally know you but my parents think the world of you and pray for you every day. Thank you for investing in my parents." During the Sunday church service the man who was preaching spotted my Dad, he called out 'Don Pat', he stopped speaking, walked over to my dad and hugged him. He then said 'I am sorry it is not every day you Pat Davie in the service'. These were young men my Dad spent hours with mentoring. To see the respect and reverence they have for him was incredible.

The Alvarado family has grown.

It was good to see David & Fernanda too!

Last but not least we got to see Don Julio Marriaga, let me tell you, he looks great. He was my fathers mentor when we moved to Honduras in the 70's and he is like a Grandfather to me. It was so much fun to sit and talk with him and have my kids listen to him tell stories. My dad was also remembering stories from years back.

We had great times with good friends and made wonderful memories.

Honduras part I

2011-11-21T20:30:00.000-06:00

Last month Danny was asked to teach a workshop at a Conference in Honduras. It was a Business as Missions Conference. He spoke on the Biblical approach in Business and the Theology of Vocation.

It was extra special because my parents were there too.

We had a great time with other CAM missionaries from Honduras and Dallas.

our kids really enjoyed making new friends. They are looking forward to seeing them again at our CAM Convocation next summer.

Mr. David Paul Ekstrom

2011-11-10T16:19:00.000-06:00

Today is a sad day here in Guatemala. Mr. David Ekstrom went to meet his savior this morning, he was 85 years old. Dave was one of the most loving, humble, faithful servants I have had the privilege to meet and work with. He leaves behind a legacy of 60 years of faithful ministry. He and his sweet wife Helen (who survives him) dedicated their lives to Bible translation among the indigenous people of Guatemala, including the K'anjobal, Popti' (formerly Jacalteco) and Chuj. Danny and I count it a privilege to have been able to work with them the last few years. I am honored to have had them in our home, call them friends and team mates. We loved to sit and listen to the incredible stories from their pioneer days when they first got here to Guatemala. To be able sit in workshops under them and be in awe at the knowledge he and Helen both have about the Scriptures. Mr. David will truly be missed by many people all over the world (but especially Guatemala).

Please pray for his dear wife Helen of 61 years, she is an incredible lady who served faithfully by his side their whole marriage.

Puppies!!

2011-10-12T20:06:00.000-06:00

Our boxer dog Roxy had puppies, they are so cute. They are almost three weeks old.

The kids are really enjoying them.

Naomi and one of the puppies.

This picture could have so many cute captions....

Just a few days after they opened their eyes.

Naomi has Graduated from Preschool

2011-10-11T16:41:00.003-06:00

This past school year Naomi has had the wonderful privilege of attending 'La Escuelita Puerta Abierta' It was a great time for Naomi, she was able to meet new friends and learn great things. This morning we went to her Graduation. It was so neat to see all that she had done and learned.

Naomi and her friends

Miss Amanda

Watching the fun slide show of the whole year.

All her teachers

Naomi and Juanita

Tortillas.....

2011-08-11T17:43:00.013-06:00

When you hear the clapping of hands and smell tortillas cooking you know it is time to eat. Here in Guatemala tortillas are served with every meal. In this video you can see how to make tortillas on a "plancha" (flat griddle with fire underneath). Keep in mind these women do not use a spatula or tongs, to pick them up or flip them over, they have hands of steal. My favorite time to eat a tortilla is hot off the plancha with a little salt sprinkled inside then rolled up, it is delicious.

Now let me tell you, as easy as she makes this look, just pick up a little masa (freshly ground corn, dough) roll it up then flatten it out, right? Well, after 4 years of living here in Guatemala I can make tortillas but I do not look as graceful and natural as this sweet lady. I also might add that my tortillas are not always round and as thin!!! It is an art that is learned from the time the girls are old enough to clap. Chloe Ann and Naomi make much better Tortillas than I do!

Abigail's bed...

2011-08-07T13:00:00.000-06:00

This was our solution to having a bed room too small for a crib to put Abigail in. Danny suggested we go shopping on one of the Main streets here in Santiago, he had seen this hammock before. It is a really neat hammock that hangs from the ceiling. We hung it high enough so it won't hit our feet, and yet Abi is still close by.

Growing up fast

2011-08-03T13:20:00.000-06:00

It is hard to believe our sweet little Abigail is 5 months old today! As I set up my "studio" to take pictures of Abi, I decided to take pictures of all the kids. It is incredible how fast the kids are growing, I always heard that when I was young but you never really know how fast kiddos grow until they are almost grown. Titus is 13, Isaac is 11, Chloe Ann is 9 and Naomi is 4.

Abi has been rolling over for a couple weeks now, she loves to smile and laugh and especially catch your attention. She has just started to cough or squeal to get our attention. She continues to be a good baby and is very happy all the time.

2011-07-23T20:12:00.000-06:00

We went to Panajachel for the day, Crossroads Cafe is always at the top of the list of places to go. Once I got home and was grinding this freshly roasted coffee. I could not get over the smell, it was SOOO yummy, then it started to brew. I thought to myself if only I could have a scratch n sniff blog everyone would know the wonderful smell this coffee had. Here is the picture I took for you all to see, sorry it's not a scratch n sniff!! It was delicious....

Ann Crockett Reeves Duffy

2011-07-21T09:45:00.003-06:00

My sweet Nana went to heaven last week. She was a wonderful Godly example to me and many other people. She was beautiful inside and out. I was able to go the the funeral and spend time with my family. As I was going through old pictures while at her house I was amazed at how many people she new and prayed for. It was a great time of remembering Nana, as the whole family gathered to celebrate her life, I truly believe she would have been pleased to see us all together. Finding little notes she had written, she expressed her love for her family, and Especially her Lord and Savior!!

Below is her obituary.....Ann Crockett Reeves Duffy, age 91 went to be with her Lord on July 11, 2011 at 6 a.m. Born in Weakley County, TN on March 31, 1920. She was a Memphis resident since 1940 where She lived a full life. She served at Open Door Bible Church where she met Frank Duffy. She loved sharing her faith in the Lord Jesus, being a Sunday School Teacher, and was a leader in Bible Study Fellowship. She also served on many missions trips, hosted missionaries, was a prayer warrior, and mentor to many. She was one of the founders of Hands of Mercy women's auxiliary for the Moriah House, worked with Child Evangelism Fellowship, and was a business woman. She loved swimming and teaching how to swim. She was preceded in death by her first husband Sheriff Edward Reeves and son Charles Andrew Duffy. She leaves her husband Frank Duffy, seven children: Ann Carolyn Reeves Davie, Lynn Duffy Whetherholt, Edward Reeves Jr., Leigh Duffy Iwaszkowiec, Frank Duffy Jr., Richard Reeves, and Jane Reeves. She also leaves 23 grandchildren, 33 great-grandchildren. Visitation will be July 15 at 1 p.m. and the service will be at 2:30 at Open Door Bible Church, 1792 North Parkway Memphis, TN. Burial follows in Memorial Park Cemetery. Memorials can be sent to Child Evangelism Fellowship or Moriah House.

One of Nana's favorite verse was

Proverbs 3:5,6 "Trust in the Lord with all thine heart;

and lean not unto thine own understanding.

In all thy ways acknowledge Him, and He shall direct thy paths."

We love having people in our home!!

2011-06-28T15:38:00.006-06:00

We have the wonderful opportunity to have teams come and visit us through out the year, but it always increases during the summer months. We have had small work teams, large work teams, teams for the day and teams for the week!! We love meeting new people and sharing about our ministry. The Lord has blessed us with a house here on lake Atítlan that is big enough to host groups, and we really enjoy having them.

Fathers Day

2011-06-20T15:40:00.004-06:00

As soon as Danny got up the kids handed him their hand made cards, Naomi made one all by herself. It is she and Danny standing by a bush. Chloe Ann made a card that they all signed.
We spent Fathers day lunch in Antigua. La Fonda de la Calle Real is one of Danny's favorite places to eat, so that is where we took him. The rest of us like it too!

Happy Fathers day to a great father who loves his children and seeks the Lords best for them. He loves to spend time with them whether it be teaching, playing or working.

Abigail Elisabeth

2011-06-03T15:55:00.003-06:00

Abigail is 3 months old today!

She is so much fun, she loves to smile and laugh.

She loves to be talked to and she tries to talk back.

She loves to be held, but is also very content laying on her little blanket.

We love you little Abigail.

Visits

2011-05-21T18:18:00.004-06:00

We had a great surprise from the Selfs today! They were staying in Panajachel and made the trip across the lake to come see us. It is always so much fun and encouraging when fellow missionaries come to visit. Or anyone comes to visit for that matter.

Thank you guys for the delicious lunch, wonderful fellowship and great encouragement.

Happy Birthday Isaac

2011-05-04T07:00:00.000-06:00

It is hard to believe 11 years ago today my sweet Isaac was born. He is such a joy to be around, he always keeps us laughing. He is loving and thoughtful towards others and I love to see how he is growing into a fine young man. I love you Isaac, Happy Birthday!

Abigail Elisabeth

2011-05-03T10:45:00.005-06:00

Today Abigail is 2 months old. We are all so excited to have her in our family. Her brothers and sisters are so sweet with her and love to help. She is an excellent baby, she has such a sweet demeanor and is content all the time. Last night was the first time she slept through the whole night!! I have to say it felt wonderful to get 8 straight hours of sleep.

2010-10-05T14:43:00.004-06:00

Living here in Santiago we get to meet so many special people. It also means we have to say goodbye. Last week we said good bye to Mark & Dr Kiran, (an OB volunteering at the Hospitalito Atitlan). It was great to be under her excellent care while she was here.

It was fun for my kids to play with their two girls, Chloe Ann especially had fun with their daughter Leigh who was the same age as her. We will cherish the fun times we had while they were here.

Teams, teams and more teams!!

2010-08-27T09:51:00.006-06:00

~Christ Chapel~

This is a great team that we enjoyed having with us here in Santiago.

One of the days we were able to work with both the teams. It is hard work but so neat to see the progress everyone got done.

Poor Naomi had a little mishap but Dr. Reese was there to get her cleaned up.

Titus and Isaac were able to help lay bricks for the wall going up around the camp.

~Dallas Theological Seminary~

It was a privilege to have the Dallas Theological Team stay with us in our home this year. We really enjoyed getting to know everyone on the team.

Dr. Lopez is always a lot of fun, the girls were having a blast playing this game with him, I think he was too!

National AECM Meeting

2010-07-11T13:25:00.005-06:00

We were privileged to have the national translators from 7 different language groups, in our home again (several could not make it). I not only get to host them in our home but also get to cook for them (I have help of course). This meeting we had 24 people in our home.

It is so humbling for me to be able to have these awesome men and women in our home. Sitting around the dinner table it is fun to just listen. I am amazed at how many different languages I can hear. One person will ask, How do you say water in your language? Then others will chime in and share how they say it, some will be the same or similar and others will be completely different, or a "bad "word in another language.

One afternoon one man commented to Danny & me that he is so glad to be able to come to these workshops, he can feel the love of Christ here because we have invited him in our home to eat and sleep here. He said "whether its good or not, I feel very comfortable in your home, just like it was mine". Some one else said, "you are not only helping with the translation in the town of Santiago but you are helping with 10 translations in all of Guatemala. Having these workshops in your home makes it possible for us to learn more about the Word of God".

As I sit here reflecting our time together it hit me like a brick....These people are such great men and women of God, working tirelessly Translating ~The Word of God~ why are they suffering. As we spent time with them this week they opened their hearts to us and what I saw saddened me. They are ridiculed, mocked, rejected, suffering with illnesses, finances and many other things, Yet they are content and KEEP GOING! They see the importance of having the scripture in their mother tongue. They see the light at the end of the tunnel and through all the hardships of life they persevere. Please keep these individuals in your prayers.

Eye Clinic with the Coolbaughs and Josephs

2010-07-06T20:45:00.007-06:00

The Coolbaughs

The Josephs

Our kids all get along so well, it was a blast for our kids to hang out with these great kids.

The Coolbaughs were able to come down and have an Eye Clinic. They were able to see over 150 people and fit them with glasses. It was such an awesome testimony for us to see their generous spirit not only did they give us their time but they also brought plenty of glasses to give away.

We not only enjoyed working with the Doctors but also with their long time friends the Josephs. As the Doctors were prescribing the glasses, the Josephs and the older kids were painstakingly looking for the right glasses. Titus and Isaac were able to help out by translating for them. We really love working with these families, they were all working. The older kids were helping fit the glasses and the younger ones were in another room with coloring books, stickers and lots of fun stuff, helping to entertain the kids whose parents were waiting to be seen. We also had help from Molly, a fellow CAM missionary (Glenn & Judy Stewarts) niece was here for a visit and spent time with us that same week-end. Glenn was a great help translating for us during the clinic. We appreciate all the hard work from everyone.

It was such a treat to have them here, we had a family prayer time the last night they were here and it brought tears to my eyes to hear the sweet prayers that the children prayed for us and our ministry. We appreciate you guys and your love for the Lord and His work. Hope to see you back next year.

My Cousin Evan...

2010-07-01T10:13:00.004-06:00

I got a call one night from my aunt saying my cousin Evan was coming to Guatemala. I said GREAT, when is he coming and she said "in two days!!" I just laughed...nothing like being young and impromptu. He had the opportunity to take the place of some one who could not come on the trip. This was a team from their church in TN who have made multiple trips to Chimaltenango. He was not able to come to our house but we were able to go see him. It was so much fun to see him. He is a neat guy who loves the Lord. I am thrilled we got to see him while he was here.

We've got mail!!

2010-06-17T15:54:00.003-06:00

We got a post office box a few months ago and have tested the system out with my Mom. We got the packages, Yay!!! It was fun to get pictures, stickers and a few card games from my parents!!

It was especially fun be able to receive snail mail again...

The boys new hobby...

2010-06-16T21:26:00.004-06:00

Titus & Isaac have learned to dive down and catch the fresh water crabs that we have here in the lake. They have to swim along side the shore until they see one then dive down and catch it with their hands. Sometimes...well, a lot of times they come home with crab claw bites all on their hands...Titus says "thats just part of catching crabs!!"

Once they catch them they tie them up with the reeds that grow in the edge of the lake. This is how you buy them in the Market, tied up like this.

This is Alejandro, he (his brothers and cousins and friends) and my boys go out everyday around 1:30. Sometimes there are 8 boys swimming around looking for crabs. They take turns taking the crabs home to eat or to Market to sell.

They have some pretty big ones, they try not to catch the little ones, they are saving them for later!!

When it was Titus turn to take the crabs he decided he wanted to cook them for dinner. He cooked them all by himself, Now doesn't this look good? It was delicious...

Our 15th Anniversary...

2010-06-10T19:19:00.006-06:00

Today we are celebrating our 15th Anniversary. It's hard to believe we have been married that long. We have had good times, sad times, fun times, & hard times, but through it all we have been together. I can honestly say we are best friends and enjoy being with each other more than any one else. When we have to be apart it makes us appreciate it even more when we are together. Not only are we best friends we are also ministry partners and really enjoy working with each other. I look forward to seeing what the Lord has in store for us in the next 15 years!!

Xocomil (shocomeel) ~part 3~

2010-05-16T16:14:00.003-06:00

We took a day and drove down to the coast, there is a great water park there and we thoroughly enjoyed it. We were joined by the Minches family...it was good to get to know them and their sweet boys.

Naomi posing for the picture...

The BIG kids got to run around on their own...I caught them all here and snapped a picture before they all ran to another slide.

Chloe Ann, Josue, David, Isaac & Titus

This one was a bit too much for Chloe Ann... The Boys LOVED it!!

ISAAC'S Birthday!!! ~part 2~

2010-05-16T13:30:00.001-06:00

On Isaac's Birthday we decided to spend the day in Panajachel, It was a great day for a boat ride. Here we are in our front yard waiting for the boat to pick us up.

Here we are eating Lunch at Isaac's favorite place...Guajimbos!

We were being serenaded by some street singers.

Titus & Grandsir in the boat ride over to Pana

Mimi & Chloe Ann trying to keep the wind out of their face.

Naomi and me staying warm

Danny and the Birthday boy!!!

Since Chloe Ann Isaac and I have Birthdays within 3 weeks my sweet mother brought gifts for all of us and we celebrated all of them!!

Thanks Mom it was lots of fun...

Visit from My Parents ~part 1~

2010-05-14T10:12:00.004-06:00

On our way to pick up my parents we got caught in road blocks down on the coast. We had to call a fellow missionary to pick them up. We back tracked and finally made it to the capitol 5 hours later....Never a dull moment here in Guatemala!!

After we met up with Mom & Dad we stayed in the capitol for several days while the SETECA Missions Conference was going on. The whole family got to go on the last night. It was neat to see so many people, some I have not seen in years.

The kids (and I) really enjoyed the pool at the hotel.

It was a good little vacation for us, even more fun having Mimi & Grandsir there.

They are the most awesome parents, I am so proud they came down to visit!!

More to come.....

Happy Birthday Chloe Ann!!!

2010-04-17T17:45:00.005-06:00

!!Happy Birthday!!

Today we celebrate the Birth of our first sweet little girl...

Chloe Ann.

I love her bubbly personality, and the fact that she never meets a stranger.

A Sad Day at the Footes House....

2010-03-16T09:43:00.003-06:00

Our sweet Hershey got sick this week-end. Our Vet here in Santiago did all he could but Hershey passed away last night. She was a sweet spirited little dog who only lived one year. She will be greatly missed, especially by my kiddos.

Snaggletooth!!

2010-01-31T21:17:00.005-06:00

Chloe Ann lost her sixth front tooth this week-end, she looks so cute. Danny was testing her to see if she could still whistle and she can...I don't know how!!

Naomi is determined to find "her" loose tooth, I hope she does not wriggle one loose at 3!!!

AECM Translators

2010-01-23T21:15:00.006-06:00

Guatemala Team

January of 2008 we were asked to help out with the AECM (Academia, Educativa, Cultural, Maya) This is a new organization that was started by Mayans who see the need to translate the Bible into their mother tongue. They all have the New Testament and are yearning for the "whole" Book!! The team consists of 10 Language groups here in Guatemala who have the desire to complete the translation of the Bible. In January 08' the team came together from all over Guatemala to have workshops & Bible teaching. We met in San Miguel Chicaj, this is when Danny started teaching through Genesis. The end of October 08' we were able to have the AECM group at our house for the week-end. We had 27 people total and it was a fabulous time for all. Danny & I count it a privilege to be a part of this team. We have learned so much from them. As I sit through the meetings with these awesome men and women I can't help but think how easy we have it....We have had the Bible in English for so long. I just take it for granted that I can pick up my Bible and read it. I can't imagine NOT having the whole Bible in My heart language. Seeing the excitement, the desire and need for them to have the Translation makes me yearn for them to have it SOON. God has really put it on our hearts to help as much as we can. Each group wants to translate the Old Testament in their own language. Please pray God would give us wisdom and strength as we seek to help with this project.

Danny has had the awesome opportunity to begin teaching through Genesis. Then each translator will go back to their own town and work through the translation in their own language.

2010-01-23T21:06:00.002-06:00

Thank you for being patient with me. I needed a short sabbatical from blogging. Thats what I am going to call it anyway!! I am ready to get back into it now, but the problem is where do I start? So much has been going on....I'll give it a shot.

lets cook...

2009-09-29T20:31:00.005-06:00

When I go shopping in the market my choices are usually what is in season. The usuals are potatoes, carrots, beans, cabbage, and a few others. I have a pretty good selection but today I was able to get nice eggplant, fresh green beans and corn on the cob!!!

All the kids pitched in to help cook. It was a fun time together and it made dinner preparation a lot faster.

I didn't even notice the sky until I was downloading the pictures but it was a gorgeous sunset!!

Chloe Ann was washing the green beans,

Isaac & Naomi were cutting the ends off the beans. Titus asked if he could cook the egg plant. I was too busy supervising to take a picture of the process but he fixed fried eggplant that was delicious.

I was very proud of Titus, he fixed the eggs, mixed the batter, dipped it all and cooked it to perfection. Not bad for 11 yrs old.

Danny went to Market with me and helped carry all the bags home.

Everyone helped today!!

Fun Family pictures...

2009-08-29T16:24:00.003-06:00

The other day I grabbed the camera and headed to the garden and this is what I got....

Christ Chapel Bible Church, High School team

2009-08-09T21:26:00.004-06:00

Our last team of the season was Christ Chapel Bible Church from Texas. They brought down a team of 64 it was a high school team and they had plenty of energy and were able to get a lot done. They were able to help at the Alfa & Omega church Camp, just outside of town. It was incredible to see how they swooped in and did so much work in so little time. We worked with them when they were pulling up coffee and trimming the branches. We had a delicious lunch with the team at the hotel. It was hamburgers & hot dogs yummy!! After lunch they asked us to share our ministry with them and what the Lord has in store for us here in Santiago and Guatemala for that matter. So as we all gathered around under a tree (not all of us fit under the tree) Danny shared about how the Lord led us here to Guatemala and what we will be doing here. Then I shared about our everyday life in Santiago, school, shopping, language, our kids, the culture ect..

One day we invited the team to come over for some lemonade after working at the camp. We all squeezed in, I have never had that many people around my table... It was awesome. Since we had spoken a few days earlier the kids had some more questions. We had a very detailed question and answer time. It was neat for Danny and I to see the questions they had, Maybe one day the Lord will lead some of these very students to the missions field...We enjoyed the time we spent with this team, the youth and the leaders were a true joy to be around. We look forward to the next time they can come.

Random pictures of my kiddos...

2009-07-30T20:31:00.003-06:00

Titus is 11, he is our people person and loves to meet new friends. Isaac is 9, he is such a joy to be around always happy. He enjoys hanging out with Titus.

Chloe Ann is 7, she likes school and her friends she has made, it is neat to see how she shines around others.

Naomi is 2, she is our funny girl. She loves to make faces and make people laugh. Her favorite thing to do is play with her friends & siblings.

Ayore Team

2009-07-24T09:06:00.012-06:00

This month we had a team from the Ayore Church in Kansas. They were here for a total of 10 days. We really enjoyed getting to know this group. It was Pastor Casey & his wife Karen and 3 of their youth Zack, Elsie & Libbie. It was a joy to have them stay with us in our home.

This team came to work at Camp David Phillips. Alfa & Omegas camp just a few kilometers out side of Santiago. We all went in the morning and when the kids got out of school at 12:30 we would take them out to help too. The Church is in the process of building a wall around the camp.

We carried blocks, sand, rocks and sifted sand. It was very hard work, I have not worked like this in a long time and I was very sore...

All work and no play is not fun so after we worked hard for several days we took a day off and went to THE BEACH.... If you have never seen the Beaches here in Guatemala it is worth it. The sand is BLACK and the ocean is fierce!!!

We also had the opportunity to go on visitation with the church youth. We prayed for this man who has had a lot going on with his family and needed some prayer.

After working all week by ourselves we had reinforcements come in and help us on Saturday. It was a team of 64 from Texas (my next blog!!) I said that to say it was nice to be able to work with such a big group. When you have a lot of people the work goes by a lot faster. Once the other team got here we were clearing the land. We were clearing coffee. Digging it up from the roots, pulling the whole plant out, then stripping the leaves and branches with machetes. Naomi, Chloe Ann, Libbie & Casey were having fun... not sure what was going on but it was cute!!!

We had a great time with these guys and and were so happy to get to know them. We praise the Lord for good health, good weather and awesome attitudes.

Casey got to go with Danny & Diego to the Pastoral Leadership training that has just gotten underway in the last few months. Pastors and leaders from the Solola area are invited to come and take classes on various topics. (No pictures!!)

I don't like to say good bye....

2009-07-24T08:27:00.004-06:00

Last month we said good bye to some good friends we met here in Santiago. Jared & Traci were here in Santiago for a little under one year. Just long enough to really get to know them. We always had fun anytime we were together. They were here volunteering and helping in many different places. It was neat for me to see how the Lord used them in the time they were here.

This picture was taken at the going away party for them. It was great to see all the people who came to the party, people they had worked with and others they were friends with.

We are ALL sad to see them go. We will be waiting for that visit back here our good friends. We will be praying for what the Lord has in store for the two of you. The other day we walked by Milpas & Naomi said "lets go see miss Traci" I told her you went home to the states. Not sure if she understands that or not. We have had a lot of people coming and going lately.

You are missed by all of us.

Kristyn, our intern for the month of June!!

2009-06-27T20:57:00.009-06:00

Kristyn was an absolute joy to have in our home last month. She is from our sending Church, Bible Center Church in Luling, LA. We have known her for many years but to actually live together for a month you learn a lot more about each other! We laughed a lot, we cried some, but most of all we enjoyed every minute she was with us.

Kristyn had the opportunity to work in the Alfa & Omega School. The English teacher was gone for one month so Kristyn was able to help the kids continue their studies. All the students really liked her, she was a kind, loving, Teacher who cared about the kids.

Hard at work teaching the little ones their numbers, colors, and days of the week.

She also taught them Duck, Duck, Goose!!! They loved it. The boys would run all over the field while the girls would barely run around the circle.

This is the Mirador (the look out). It is a great view of the lake and you can see for miles around. The guy standing on the right is our Tz'utujil teacher Diego. He took Patin & tortillas for us to eat. (My next blog is about Diego)

The kids had some time off from school. We decided to take a trip to the beach so Kristyn could see the black sand beaches. AND we did relax and enjoy our time there too.

We went to Pana one day and had a lot of fun shopping and showing Kristyn life in Pana.
The last week Kristyn was here was a busy one. She studied Spanish in the mornings, and we studied Tz'utujil. We had a team come in from North Carolina and we were helping them all week. In the afternoons we would go with them to the Colonia and have VBS classes for the kids.

It was neat to be able to work with the team and to have Kristyn here to help out with all we were juggling.

Kristyn, we appreciate all your hard work and the time you spent with our kids. You became part of our family for a brief month and it was very sad to see you go at the end of the month.

THANK YOU, OUR GOOD FRIEND!!! WE MISS YOU...

Country Cousins...

2009-05-12T08:00:00.000-06:00

This is our Team, we call ourselves the Country Cousins. All of us live outside of the 'Big City' (the capitol) except the Sywulkas but he is the team leader.

We have been able to have several meetings and are really looking forward to what the Lord has in store for us and this team. It is so neat to be able to talk about our ministries and get advice on certain issues.

La Campesina

2009-05-08T08:00:00.000-06:00

La Campesina is a small town on the west cost of Guatemala. The people there speak Tz'utujil. We had the privilege of going with a group from our church. Our church has started a daughter church there, and it was their 5 year anniversary.

The pastor of the church is Elias & his wife is named Rosa (Ana Samuc's sister) & they have 3 kids. They are from Santiago and moved to La Campesina to work there. I felt a real kindred spirit with Rosa, she was very loving and hospitable. She too has left her home town, family and church to minister to people she did not know. Hmmm missionaries from Alpha & Omega church in Santiago, I like that.

It is very HOT there and we got to go down to the river to cool off before lunch. It was very refreshing, Danny and the kids really enjoyed a nice swim with the men & children. While the ladies fixed some delicious Chicken vegetable soup & tortillas. Then we had the anniversary service. It was neat to see how the Lord has been working over the time they have been there.

We especially enjoyed getting to know the people who went to La Campesina with us from Santiago.

Happy Birthday Isaac!!!

2009-05-05T08:48:00.003-06:00

We let Isaac choose where he wanted to eat lunch, he chose Tacos!!! They were yummy!! I was too busy eating to take a picture. Isaac has been eyeing a new knife for some time now. So we said we would let him pick it out. He had fun trying to find just the right one, decisions.. decisions.
Then we went out for ICE CREAM!!!! Isaac has really enjoyed the ice cream here in Guatemala. He has always been allergic to dairy, but here they have ice cream that is water based. And it is delicious. I told him that ice cream was as big as he was!! (he just grinned)
It was a good day for ALL of us.
Isaac said he did not want a Birthday cake he wanted a "cinnamon flat" (not to be mistaken for a cinnamon roll because it's FLAT!!)
Well here we are singing to Isaac in the dark because we had no power last night, but it was a fun time...

What I like to do for each child that has a birthday is explain what was going on the day of their birth and how all the family came to see them. I told Isaac, "the day he was born was the scariest day of my life". Titus said that sounds mean if you don't know what happened..LOL

Isaac is our little laughter, when he was born we did not know how long the Lord would let us have him. I Praise God for His faithfulness, and giving us Isaac. Our little Isaac is such a joy, and we savor every minute with him. He keeps us laughing all the time. I don't know how he lives up to his name soo well.

I love you buddy and thank God for you.

Hanging with the Coolbaughs!!

2009-05-02T08:35:00.005-06:00

We had a family come down to visit us and explore what the Lord may have for them in the future. They are both optometrist and would like to help in any way they can here in Santiago.
We had never met them before, but we all hit it off. They have four kids and brought them down so they could see what it was like to live on the mission field. Everyone got along so well, it was like we had known them for years.

We enjoyed introducing them to the Tz'utujil people and culture.
They were a great encouragement to us. We were able to relax with them and share what the Lord has been doing in our lives here in Santiago. Since we have been here we have had hard times, sad times, happy times and encouraging times but knowing we are right where the Lord wants us makes all the difference in the world. They prayed for us and some of our specific situations It was neat to see how the Lord has blessed this family and they were able to come down here to bless and encourage us in a time that I think we really needed an extra boost!!
Thank you Coolbaughs, We all really enjoyed meeting you and look forward to what the Lord has in store for the future.

Danny has started blogging (again)!!

2009-04-14T19:48:00.003-06:00

After much teasing and harassing Danny has decided to join us blogers and actually blog!! So put him on your list of blogs to check. danielwfoote.blogspot.com

My Trilingual Toddler...

2009-04-05T17:27:00.004-06:00

We have been here in Guatemala for about a year and a half. We were in Antigua learning Spanish, now we are here in Santiago learning Tz'utujil. We are all picking up Tz'utujil little by little. Naomi is the one who is a bit confused!! She speaks mainly English,but knows quite a bit of Spanish and is learning Tz'utujil now.

She was in her high chair and I said 'will some one please tell Daddy it's time for dinner'. Naomi Said "Ho' papi eat!" (Ho' is Tz'utujil for -let's go, papi is Spanish for-Daddy and of course eat is English!!!) Well there you have it, our little trilingual toddler. She is so much fun to be around and everyone loves to talk to her and we never know what language she will speak but surprisingly enough she usually gets the right language with the right person!!

My Kiddos...

2009-03-26T07:31:00.004-06:00

So many times I step back and look at my kids in amazement. I know every parent does but we have really pulled our kids out of their comfort zone and they have done extremely well. I praise God for his faithfulness to our family, when we are so far away from everything we know.

TITUS-11
A couple of weeks ago Titus had a major project due in school, he had to research 32 inventions, find the inventor and the date it was invented, write a description about them, & draw a picture of each one. (IN SPANISH DON'T FORGET!!) We were proud of his work... then he came home and he had the second best grade in the whole class. Yeah we were thrilled. Titus likes school and enjoys the friends he has there.

Isaac-8
Isaac likes school, and he does well. He came home the other day and told us that he won the prize for finishing all his work the fastest. He loves a challenge. Both Titus & Isaac are learning to use a Cayuco(wooden canoe). They borrow our gardeners as much as they can. Titus stands in the back and rows while Isaac sits in the front and rows. They have been into town and back a couple of times but usually I just like them to stay close.

Chloe Ann-6
Chloe Ann is our social butterfly and really enjoys her friends at school. She is learning to read and wrtie. Her favorite thing to do is write words down as I say them to her, she usually has a Spanish list and an English list so I can call out both and she will spell it and put it in the right list.
She reminds me of 'me' always ready to have a good time :)

Naomi-2
Naomi is our little laugher. She loves to laugh and has this deep belly laugh that is very contageous. Last week she woke up and said "no please diaper' I said OK but you cannot go on my floor...well she didn't!!!! And up until yesterday had not had an accident. She was running for the bathroom and just didn't make it. Happens to the best of us :) She loves to wear her corte(the typical dress here), When we go to Market the ladies all ask me if I will give her to them.. Naomis says 'no Gracias' and frowns at them.

The Guatemalan ZOO!!

2009-02-28T13:00:00.001-06:00

A couple of weeks ago we went to the Zoo. We went with Pedro & Ana Samuc and one of their daughters Heldi. We had a great time together. It was Naomi's first time to the Zoo. She loved seeing all the animals but was vary scared of the elephants. I guess because they were sooo big!!

We went in the late afternoon and a lot of the animals were up and running around. The monkeys were jumping and playing chase. The leopards were pacing back and forth, then started wrestling. It was neat to see so much activity at the Zoo.

Little did Naomi and I know we had some wild Tz'utujiles behind us!!

The last thing we did before we left the Zoo was get a snack, the kids went straight for the cotton candy. We also enjoyed grilled corn on the cob with lime and salt on it.

It was a good little Zoo, we all had fun and it was good to spend time with Pedro, Ana & Heldi Titus wanted to see was a Quetzal bird, but they did not have one in the Zoo. It is the national bird of Guatemala. Titus said "Seems to me if it was the national bird it would be in the Zoo, I guess I'll have to find it in the wild".

Cornerstone Community 2009

2009-02-25T17:14:00.007-06:00

One of our supporting churches Cornerstone Community Church came down last week. It was so good to see familiar smiling faces. This year we were able to visit 3 different schools in the mornings. We went in and had a gift for each student and teacher. We told them this was a gift from the team but we wanted to tell them about the best gift ever. We explained to them that God sent his Son Jesus to earth to live a perfect life and took the penalty of sin and died for each one of them. There were 3 elders from our church 'Alpha & Omega' who went with us every day. They told us before we entered the schools that most of these children had probably never heard the gospel before. We were able to share the love Christ has for them. You could have heard a pin drop in most of the classes. In the end we were able to share with about 1000 students and their teachers. Praise the Lord!!

In the Afternoons we had the privilege of joining a few visiting teams from Alpha & Omega. The men went together and the women split up into two different groups. We were able to go and pray for families in the church who had needs or were very sick. It was awesome to see what prayer warriors these brothers and sisters are. I think we all learned a lot from visiting with the Tz'utujil people. My team went to visit a lady who was diabetic and really suffering. We prayed for her and her family that God would comfort & heal her. Two of the people that our teams visited passed away the next day. It was such a reminder of how our days are numbered. We were all praising the Lord that they were no longer in pain and with their Savior!!

One afternoon we had the team over for lunch and introduced them to Patin (home made tomato sauce with meat wrapped in banana leaves) the most typical dish here in Santiago. We had Patin, with(hand made) tortillas, guacamole, cheese dip, rice and beans. We also go to hear the testimony of one of the deacons from Alpha & Omega. It was incredible what the Lord has done in his life.

I don't want to tell you all too much.. I want you to come for yourselves :)

pictures 'our time in the states'

2009-02-10T09:51:00.004-06:00

We literally hit the ground running, we signed the kids up for school two days after we got back, which meant getting uniforms, book supplies, new shoes for those who had grown, ect....Danny was studying as much as he could on Genesis, from the time we got home he had exactly two weeks before he had to teach the 17 translators.

As I was going through some pictures of our time in the states I decided to post some in a

slide-show. Enjoy!!

School has Started Again

2009-01-29T07:28:00.005-06:00

Here in Guatemala the school year is from January to October. Last year our kids got to attend the church school here in Santiago 'Colegio Alpha Y Omega' for about one month. We decided to send them again this year so they could really perfect their Spanish and meet more friends.

My kids are not the only blonde kids in school right now! We have a few Doctors who are volunteering at the Hospitalito who have decided to send their kids too.

"Pablo's Fish Camp"

2009-01-29T07:12:00.005-06:00

We have a neighbor who has a little restaurant/hostel in Santiago. He is from Colorado and spends the winters in Guatemala. We have enjoyed getting to know the English speakers in our town through his little restaurant. There is a small Hospital in town and they have volunteers from all over the world work there. It has been fun to meet the different people who have come to work here in Santiago. Pablo serves fish on Fridays and we all enjoyed it last Friday. He has a big Jocote tree in the patio and the kids really like to climb it.Another treat has been PIZZA with "real peperoni's".

Thanks Pablo for the good cuisine!

My Day Out...

2009-01-11T22:44:00.003-06:00

The day after we got to New Orleans my sweet (awesome) sister in law said she would like to keep mine & Heathers kids while we go out for the day. Let me tell you, not too many people offer to keep 8 kids (4 mine & 4 Heathers) plus 3 of her own!!! Thankfully mom was also there to help.

I had not seen my sister Heather since May and had only spoken once since then. I live on the side of a volcano in Guatemala, she lives in the boonies in Mexico so communication is rare. It was great to be able to talk and catch up on life and how each other was doing. We laughed and we cried, it was wonderful. Even though we live in different countries and have different lifestyles and live in different cultures so much of what we go through seems to be so similar.

We jumped in the car, left the house, looked at each other and said now what:) We went to get pedicures with a massage. The lady who did Heathers toes was fascinated with her, she kept telling her "You so beautiful" and she is it was just funny hearing it so many times in one hour from a stranger! We had a good laugh about that.

Then we went to the mall and got a few things, and finished off the afternoon with some good ol coffee from Cafe Du Monde.

Thank you Patty and Mom I had a much needed day with my sweet lil sister whom I admire and look up to in so many ways. She is an inspiration and encouragement to me and I am so blessed to have her as my sister.

First few days in New Orleans (Nawlins for those of you not from there):)

2009-01-11T11:08:00.008-06:00

All the cousins had a blast swimming at Uncle Warren & Tia Patty's house.

The boys got to play video games too! (left-right Titus, Isaac, Tucker, Diego, Silas)
Chloe Ann & Andrea were so excited to see each other, they spent every moment they could together.

Heather with her two youngest, Annie & Ruben

Annie & Naomi loved the oranges Tia Patty had. We could not resist this photo with us all around the kitchen counter. (left-right Heather, Annie, Ann Carolyn (mom) Naomi, Daphne(me:)

Highlights from the States(so far)!!

2008-12-26T09:36:00.011-06:00

Packing the last few things at the Stewarts(thanks for the Suit case), before we leave Guatemala!!

We made it stateside, Layover in Fort Lauderdale.

The night we flew in was Titus Birthday!! So the next day the family had planned a fun filled day of celebration with balloons, friends, family and of course RIBS!!!!

Balloon sword "Warriors"

(Chloe Ann, Titus, Maddie, CJ, & Isaac)

Will & Morgan entertained us with their music!!

It was great to see everyone, and spend time together. We spent 4 days in Alabama, Then we came down to New Orleans.

More to come!!!!

UH OH Chicken anyone!!

2008-12-03T08:15:00.000-06:00

We got Roxy as a puppy last January hoping one day she would grow up to be a great guard dog. She has grown up a lot and is a good dog and obeys for the most part. She is vicious looking and it keeps people from wanting to come into our yard and our house for that matter.
She also likes to bring us gifts like possum and little birds, or the neighbors shoes. Sunday we came home from church and there were feathers all over the yard. Danny and I just looked at each other. Danny said "Oh no we are going to have to replace a chicken. We were walking around the yard wishing she would not have done this. We could not believe it!! Then we rounded the corner of the house and we found it!!!!

THE FEATHER DUSTER!!!!!!

I guess all we have to replace is a feather duster. If we can find the owner! It was a good laugh for us...

Thanksgiving Pics

2008-12-03T08:00:00.000-06:00

Our Yummy meal, it made us all think of home:)

Enjoying time with friends & a good meal Playing in the Garden

A very "Happy" Thanksgiving

2008-11-28T18:05:00.005-06:00

Last year Thanksgiving was a hard day for me. I shed more tears than was Thankful. I tried to hide it from my little family. Then I just broke down and had to admit I was lonely and missed "HOME". I had comforted my kids during their times of missing home, and I felt like I was letting them down by being sad. Danny reminded us that we were all in this together, They all hugged me and loved me. It was just what I needed. All in all I have to say it was a hard day.

This year as Thanksgiving got closer I was excited, but wanted it to be much happier than last year. We invited some friends from Tectitan. We met them through our sending church in LA. We had not seen them since we had been in the states. It was great to get to know them more and meet their sweet kids.

I've never had to cook Thanksgiving dinner. I was a bit nervous about actually having to cook the WHOLE meal!! I called my Mom for a couple of recipes and my mother in law for a couple others. You have to keep in mind I don't have a grocery store within an hour and a half of me. Even then there is no guarantee that they are going to have what I need. So I went to market and got potatoes, and fresh green beans, a chicken and ran by the tienda(you walk in the door and tell them what you want then if they have it they go in the back to get it) to get Maseca(corn meal they make tortillas with) for my corn bread.

We had Turkey, Corn bread dressing, green beans, mashed potatoes with gravy, celery with cream cheese, I even found a can of cranberries when we were in the capitol last time!! Kathy made sweet potatoes and a delicious pumpkin pie. I managed to snap this picture before we all dug in. We had quite a feast and everyone was very pleased with the meal. Danny said the dressing may be better than his Mama's (it was her recipe). It was great to have friends here with us in our new HOME. It was a very Happy Thanksgiving.

After Dinner we went out in the garden and down by the lake. The kids enjoyed playing with the coco the rabbit next door. We were thankful for friends, family and for the opportunity God has given us to come work with the people of Santiago. I thank the Lord for loving me and carrying me when I need to be, and for rejoicing with me in times of joy. All in all this year was filled with joy, laughter and especially thankfulness.
Well, I cannot download the pics, I will have to owe them to you.

Foote Notes November 2008

2008-11-23T21:28:00.002-06:00

Greetings to all,

We want to thank you for your continued prayer. We have been here in Santiago for three months and have felt the Lord leading in so many ways. Thank you for praying for our transition and adjustment, Praise the Lord it is going well.

Danny and the kids are working more and more on their Spanish as we continue to learn about the culture and the people. Sometime the beginning of next year we plan to start formerly learning Tz’utujil. We would like to find a tutor who is a good teacher, someone who can read and write. Up until now we have been learning words and phrases. It is exciting to be able to use and understand words in the market or in church but we have a long way to go. The locals love it when we use the few words that we already know; it really motivates us to learn more.

We are so excited to be able to go ‘home’ for Christmas. We are going to split the time between both families. We will be in New Orleans with my family and in Pell City with Danny’s family. Regretfully we cannot see all of you during this short visit but we do hope to see a lot of you. We ask that you keep us in your prayers as we travel this holiday season.

We are thankful to those of you who came down this year. You were a great encouragement and help to us. We look forward to seeing who the Lord is going to send our way this coming year. Our calendar for 2009 is already getting filled up, Praise the Lord!

As our Pastor Gary says in Luling, We have a perfect Savior but we do not have a perfect church. Our church Alpha & Omega is going through some turmoil. We ask that you keep Pastor Abraham and the Elders in your prayers. Pray that they would let the Lord lead them to make wise Godly decisions. We do not know all the ins and outs of each situation but we too are fervently praying.

Praise the Lord!

2008-11-15T21:33:00.007-06:00

The Lord answered our prayers.

We got our truck fixed and are finally home. We had a great time with Glen & Judy, but we are all excited to be home.

Last night Danny picked up the part from the Airport at 4:45, dropped it off at the mechanics at 5:15 and around 10:15 last night. He called to say it was finished.

We are thankful to the Lord the total cost was no more than $200.00.

Thank you for your prayers, and for everyone who was involved an extra thank you!!

Daphne

Check it out

2008-11-14T20:41:00.004-06:00

I haven't taken the time to blog but Judy has, She took some cute pictures of my kiddos while we were in our meeting.

Click on this link to go to it. http://judyfrommoody.blogspot.com/

I'll blog soon I promise:)

We just think we have a schedule!!

2008-11-13T08:09:00.008-06:00

Danny and I had a meeting in the capital yesterday. So we came in on Tuesday to do a few errands. We had come through the mountains, on isolated roads, It's about a three hour trip to the city. Danny had dropped me off at Price Smart (our Sams) and was going to run to the Seminary to check out the bookstore. He had just passed Tikal Futura on the main road through Guatemala when the truck stopped. He could barely steer it over to the side of the road and when he got out it was leaking water, a lot of water. We are praising the Lord we did not break down on the way here, as Glen said we are glad it was here and not out in the boonies!! Thank goodness for friends. We called Glen S. He came to the rescue with a mechanic, picked me up from price smart and then we went to check on Danny. It turned out to be the water pump and a belt!! We could not find the parts to the truck here in Guatemala but Praise the Lord one of our missionaries is in the states and coming back Friday afternoon and is bringing the part. Thank you so much Bob. We are also thankful to Ken S. who has loaned us his van while we are without it has given us the freedom to get around while we are here. We are ESPECIALLY thankful to the Stewarts for opening their home to all of us(they thought for one night but has turned into at least four). Judy has been an excellent hostess with delicious meals, babysitting the kids and we just had some hot brownies with milk. The Lord is in control and we are enjoying a small break from lake living and deepening friendships here. Last night the Stewarts invited the Connors for dinner, it was great fellowship for the adults and kids too.
We just got word that another missionary Dave Ekstrom is going to stay here at the "Stewart Inn" tonight. Actually we have been wanting to meet with Dave to discuss our ministry and glean from his experience with indigenous groups. Wow God cleared our schedules so we could meet:) Isn't it neat how the Lord works?

Danny joined us Bloggers

2008-10-17T20:23:00.003-06:00

Check it out! Click here to see. danielwfoote.blogspot.com

Take it easy on him he's just getting started:)

A Day in the Life of Daphne

2008-10-15T13:35:00.010-06:00

My day usually starts around 6:30 a.m. It is a gorgeous time here on lake Atitlan. It is sunny and the lake is calm, I enjoy seeing fishermen going to work.

As I sip my coffee that is grown here locally I can really appreciate the hard work the coffee farmers do so I can drink an awesome cup of coffee. I had a stack of papers to grade but I was doing a puzzle instead.

I have to hurry and wash my clothes and get them on the line because this is rainy season and usually by 2:00p.m It starts raining. If I get an early start I can get 2 loads of laundry done. I am so thankful that I have a washing machine. The locals either go to the lake to wash or they have a pila(a large outside sink made for washing clothes and other things). You know as many of you may think "I would die if I had to hang up all my clothes" but you get used to it and I actually enjoy now, and the kids and Danny help too.

I do not have a grocery store here, I have what you call a tienda(a small store which carries all your basics). I can get sugar, noodles, mayo, milk ect... I also get an early start to go to Market. The early bird gets the worm here!! You have to go early to get the good veggies or you get the picked over ones. I have been able to build a friendship with the lady I buy my chicken from and another lady I buy my vegetables from and a sweet little man who goes to our church sells me dried beans. Poor thing he can't ever remember my name he calls me Mrs. Daniel:)

Speaking of my name... nobody can remember it or pronounce it!! I was at a ladies meeting and they said what does you name mean anyway?? I told them that Daphne is a flower like a laurel tree. They said OOHHH "hermana Flor". Needless to say, now I have a new name. My name is Flor!

I have a house helper her name is Ana. This is her with Chloe Ann and her school uniform. She comes in a couple times a week to help me with some of the cleaning. It has been a real culture shock for both her and me.The first day she came I was trying to find out what she knew how to do. Needless to say this is pretty much in sign language because she only speaks about 10 words of Spanish. I asked a friend to tell me how to say a few words in Tz’utujil for example help me, come, clean, like this and of course Thank you very much. It has been interesting. I asked her to sweep and mop but I didn’t know the word for mop the first time so she said “no need” I was like oh well O.K. I asked her to hang some clothes on hangers. I gave her a box of clothes and a box of hangers. She said “Utz ka” Which means that’s good in Tz’utujil, she came to me and said xuban (shuban) it means no more. She did a great job for someone who had never used a hanger. Some shirts were through the arm, a few dresses were just wrapped around and around the hanger. It was great all I could say was Utz ka!! I also asked if she knew how to iron she said she had never seen an iron! She felt very bad about not knowing how to iron so I decided to show her how. That was umm hmm, can I just say I will do our ironing. Then I showed her the Vacuum and how to use it. She used it twice then came to me and said “could I please just sweep it’s not as scary and it’s calmer”. Of course I said yes, Poor thing she was scared to death of the vacuum. She has made life so much easier for me. She has cooked for us a few times which has been neat to eat typical food of Santiago. Ana wanted to know what we eat, She said she makes tortillas in the morning, at noon and at night. She said if they are not hot her husband is not happy. She asked “If you don’t eat tortillas what do you eat?” She has made tortillas for us several times, I got in there and tried to make a couple but she just laughed and laughed. She said you really don’t know how to make them. She took my tortillas and fixed them then cooked them. I have a tortilla press that a dear friend gave me and Chloe Ann and I can make great tortillas with it. Maybe I won’t be the laughing stock of Santiago.

Today for lunch we had chuchitos, it is like a tamale but different(it is corn meal wrapped around a piece of chicken with yummy tomato sauce around it then wrapped in a corn husk). A lady comes to our door and sells them. I buy them for 2 Q each (approx. 27 cents). We all like them and it is a quick meal for me. Living here in Santiago we only have a few restaurants. No fast food here:) This is a delicious treat for us when I don't feel like cooking.

We were asked to finish the English classes at the Alpha & Omega High school. The previous teacher is on maternity leave. They had about six weeks left. Danny taught the first few classes then I ended up finishing up teaching. The classes are Monday & Friday 1:20-5:40. There are 5 classes, each class has about 40 students. The kids are mostly from the church. It is neat to be able to build friendships with these kids. I have been very busy with classes, projects to grade and now exams to give and grade. Thank goodness this is the last week. Here are a few of my students.

Some days we go down to the lake for a swim. Most of the time we don't even stay in for an hour. It's a little on the cold side this time of year. Naomi and I are the life guards for the other kids. This afternoon the kids and I planted flowers. My mom sent us a whole envelope of flower seeds. We had a great time planting together. Isaac & Chloe Ann liked digging in the dirt, Titus was our official sign maker. Naomi just toddled around. It was a lot of fun reading about each flower and deciding where it needs to be planted. As I am sitting here writing it is pouring down rain. I hope the seeds are not washed into the lake:) I will let you know if we actually have any come up.

Tonight Danny went visiting with the men and the kids and I hung out here at the house. I sauteed some vegetables and made a pasta salad. As I am Blogging Naomi is sitting right beside me holding her nena and the older kids are all upstairs playing Lego's but I think they are playing hide and go seek now it is getting louder and louder. Maybe I should go check on them!!

Pictures promised in last post

2008-10-12T09:42:00.005-06:00

This was one year ago on our way down here to Guatemala. As you can tell the kids have grown, here we are in our front yard over looking the lake. We still can't believe we are finally here.

One year Anniversary!!

2008-09-29T15:17:00.000-06:00

On September 17th we celebrated one year of being on the mission field. WOOHOOO we made it this long!! It has been an awesome year. We have been able to meet so many new friends, see new places and learn so much. In one sense it seems like we have been here for sooo long. Then I talk to the Missionaries who have been here for 15, 20, and 30 years and think wow I’m just beginning.

As I think back through the year I can see how much we have learned, and grown. Danny and the kids have learned Spanish and we all have learned a new culture, and moved into our third culture. We are in the very beginning of our Tz’utujil (soo too heel) learning. We are excited and nervous at the same time. The Tz’utujil language seems to be very hard, but with the Lords help it is our goal to master Tz’utujil. I have grown spiritually as I have learned to depend on the Lord in so many new situations. I praise the Lord for His faithfulness this past year, especially for good health, and safe keeping.

We have had the awesome opportunity to meet so many new friends, some who are living here in Guatemala and others who were just passing through. For those of you who are not living here in Guatemala we would love for you to come back some time, and for those of you who do live here we would love to have you out for a visit. Now for some of you (You know who you are, hee hee) you guys just need to plan a trip and “come on down”.

Sorry I can’t get the pictures to download I’ll try again later!!

Moving Day to Santiago

2008-08-23T23:29:00.003-06:00

We moved out to Santiago the last week-end in July. The church in Santiago sent out some men from the church to help us move from Antigua to the lake. It was so neat for us to see how different we are. Even just moving boxes. They would strap a towel around their forehead and hold the stuff on their backs. Let me start out by saying that to get to our house you have to park the truck about two blocks away and walk down a small path through coffee fields, corn fields and by neighbors to reach our house.

Let me tell you these men are real men. Jose carried our fridge on his back almost two blocks to our house. He was tired when he got their but only caught his breath and went back for the washer!!!!!We are very thankful to these brave guys who helped us move.

Davie Visit

2008-08-23T21:47:00.012-06:00

In July we had a great visit with my family. My parents, Pat & Ann Carolyn, my brother Warren, Patty, Warren Jr, Andrea & Diego came down. We had an awesome time together.

We spent half of our time in Antigua and the other half out at Lake Atitlan.

We played a serious game of base ball in Antigua. It was a very close game. We were all cheering the kids on. In the end Isaac, Diego & Warren won the game!!! Go guys.

Once we got out to the lake we had all kids of fun activities. Mimi brought kites, Patty brought water balloons, we collected puma stone out of the lake, and I can't count how many times the boys rolled down the hill. The best thing was whatever we did we were all together making great memories. Naomi is armed and ready.

Run Warren!!

Even though it was a little cold they loved swimming in the lake.

You know me I have to take a few scenery shots too.The Davie family trip is not complete without a good LOOOONG game of monopoly. Grandsir & Warren always enjoy playing with the little entrepreneurs to be!!

Diego we are so proud of you it was your first time to win CONGRATULATIONS!!

YEA DIEGO!!! The Daniel Foote Family

The Warren Davie FamilyThank you family for all the neat treats you brought for us and the great times of fun and fellowship we had together. It is great to have a Godly family who loves the Lord and wants to glorify Him in all you do. We appreciate you and the time you spent with us.

Spiders and Scorpions & Crabs OH MY!

2008-08-14T22:00:00.005-06:00

I hesitate to blog about this stuff because I don't want to discourage anyone from coming down, but it is a fact. We have them all! We found a nice big tarantula in the entrance of the house before we even moved in. Nice Huh?

Since we have been in the house we have found at least one scorpion a day. I have had a hard time thinking about living with these critters. We have been told they will not kill you if you get stung. That still does not make me feel any better.

The other morning I got up and heard a pitter patter of what I thought was a mouse. Then we heard a loud scratching noise. Danny found the noise and it was a CRAB!!

Needless to say life has been very interesting since we moved in. I will blog about our move and house soon.

ALIVE & WELL!!!!

2008-07-29T06:41:00.015-06:00

As you probably figured out we DON'T have internet yet at our house in Santiago :( yet?

This was the update letter we sent out in July, I thought I would post it with pictures.

Wow! a lot has happened since the last update letter. Thank you all so much for your prayers and encouragement. We have really seen the Lords hand in our lives the past few months.

Danny & his teacher Carola. She is a sweet Godly lady, we are thankful to the Lord for her great teaching spirit. We are so excited to say that Danny has FINISHED LANGUAGE SCHOOL!!!! Praise the Lord! He got his last book in June. Danny and his teacher went through it in record time. One day she told him “I have taught you all I can. Now all you need is practice practice practice”. That sounded great to Danny. He finished his schooling in July. He does great in Spanish. He is enjoying being able to have more meaningful conversations with the people here.

A few of the kids good friends from school
In the last letter I told you about putting the kids in school. After 5 months of school we felt as if they had learned enough Spanish to get by. After it is all said and done it was a good experience but they had their ups and downs in school. Learning the culture the language and meeting new friends, was what we wanted them to accomplish. They will always treasure the memories of that little school.
We got the house we had hoped to get. It is a large house with a great location it is a bit old but we will make do. Please pray for us as we are moving this week-end and should be completely out of the house in Antigua by Monday July 28th.

We have already put the house to good use before we even moved in. We housed a Missions team from Iowa, La. For one week.

We hosted two video interns from Texas for another week. It was fun to have Elliot & Matt with us for a week.

Last but not least my parents, brother and his family, visited from New Orleans. All this was in the month of July so you can imagine how busy we have been.

I mentioned above we had a team from Iowa, LA come down. It was led by Jerry & Sarah Lastrapes.

It was a great group of people. Everyone enjoyed the time here in Guatemala and the ministry we did. We got to go to a school in San Pedro, (right around the bend from our house). We held a vacation Bible school for the children and shared the gospel everyday. The students were very receptive and the teachers appreciated our work.

It was hard for us to say goodbye to Jerry and Sarah. They are in the process of raising their support to come down here and be part of our team. It was great to talk about future plans and ministry once they get down here with us. Please pray for them as God prepares them for Guatemala. They have 17% of their monthly support.

Danny was able to meet with Pastor Abraham & the Elders of Alpha y Omega in Santiago this past month. Steve Sywulka is our CAM field Director and he too was able to attend the meeting to discuss our ministry here. They spoke about our ministry with Alpha y Omega, our goals for this next year. Essentially they want us to be involved with the church, get to know the people and learn the Language. Sounds easy enough right!? Yikes! We will need lots of prayer for these. As we have been visiting we have been able to meet some people but most of the Mayans are more reserved. Please pray for the Lord to send the right people our way so we can begin to make friendships, learn the culture & the language.
Serving Him,
Daniel & Daphne Foote

Team from Iowa Louisiana

2008-07-06T08:36:00.013-06:00

I was a bit nervous about this team coming down. This was the first team we had to feed, house and translate for VBS. There were 10 in the team but I knew most of them very well (Jerry & Sarah Lastrapes and her parents Pat & Kathy). Anytime I would get a bit nervous I would remind myself it was Jerry & Sarah's team.

Here is the whole team from left to right, (back)Danny, Josh, Jerry, Maddy, Cathy, Sarah (holding) Cole, Tara, Caleb, Kathy, (front) Titus, Daphne (holding) Naomi, Chloe Ann, Isaac & Pat.

I tried to include several typical meals on the menu. One morning for breakfast we had scrambled eggs, tortillas, refried beans and a fruit salad. A very typical Guatemalan breakfast. I asked my friend Ana Samuc to help me find someone to make Patin (Typical only to Santiago). Her mother made it for us and the Samuc family came and ate with us. It is Chicken in spicy red sauce wrapped in banana leaves and cooked for several hours.

Everyone liked it, of course it was a team from Louisiana and they eat a variety of foods.

We got to eat at the Pescador, a local little restaurant in Santiago. The specialty is fried fish!! They also have a typical steak plate with guacamole that is delicious.

Mr. Pat & Ms.Kathy brought down Louisiana sausage and

made Gumbo for us one night. It was a great taste of home.

Titus had four full bowls & believe it or not Isaac did too.

They wanted the leftovers for breakfast!

We all stayed in our house in Santiago. We have not moved in yet so the furniture and beds are what came with the house. I think it is all from the 1960s. I wish I could have had my furniture in it the house but Danny keeps reminding me it's all in due time.

Staying at the lake house is like camping. The house is not weather proof or bug proof and the water comes right from the lake!! Titus thought it was funny one morning he went to the bathroom and there was a tiny little fish swimming in the toilet.

It was a fun time and everyone enjoyed their stay.

Mr. Pat brought down fishing rods for the kids and Danny too. It was a wonderful surprise. They had so much fun fishing all week. Thank you Mr. Pat, This will be a gift they use very often.

We went to a school in San Pedro every morning. It was just a short boat ride away. Our boat drive would pick us up from our dock and drop us off every day.

We spent the week ministering at a school. We held a Vacation Bible School for the kids. Since the kids are still in school here. The Director of the School allowed us to teach during class time. We would have the Bible story all together then split the kids according to their grades for Games and craft time. This is Josh and his group showing off their wordless bracelets!!Chloe Ann made friends with these two girls. They loved helping her with the craft that day. It worked very well that way. I translated the Bible story for Ms. Kathy and then once we split up Danny & Titus would translate for Ms. C in Game time, and I would translate for Sarah & Tara during crafts. I must say I am extremely proud of Danny (& Titus) for translating. Translating is not easy and they did a great job.

The Director was excited that we shared the gospel with every lesson. She said there were many students who had not heard the gospel.
The last night they were here we drove to Antigua and stayed the night in a nice little hotel. El Meson de Maria. It was a great treat after a week of "camping". We got to do some shopping and relax at the hotel. Thanks team for inviting us to stay with you at the hotel it was an extra special treat. One awesome feature was the roof of the hotel had table and lounge chairs that you could see all of Antigua, including the Volcanoes.
Maddy & Chloe Ann enjoyed the roof top view.

We went across the street to La Fonda de la calle real (our favorite restaurant) for dinner. It was a nice candle lit dinner for all of us to enjoy.

No visit to Antigua is complete with out a trip to Mc Donalds!!! It was a GREAT burger after all week out at the lake.

Jerry, Sarah, Maddy & Cole came down several days before the team to meet other CAM missionaries. They also met with the field Director Steve Sywilka to get a better idea of their future ministry with us. The Lastrapes are in the process of raising their support to come and work along side us here in Santiago. Their goal is to arrive here in Guatemala fall of 2009 please be in prayer for them as they raise their support. It was a long process when we raised our support but we saw the Lords strength and timing through it all. It was a hard goodbye for all of us. Selfishly we wanted them to stay. We are anxiously awaiting you guys!!!

PICKLES

2008-06-12T08:35:00.006-06:00

We have enjoyed all the new tasty foods we have encountered in here Guatemala.

Grocery shopping in Antigua is a bit difficult. Sometimes you can't get what you need or want. Now, I am not complaining because once we get to Santiago I won't even have a grocery store!!

Not too long ago I went shopping in the capital and It was great. I went to Hiper Paiz. It is our Guatemalan Wal-mart.

I managed to get several things we could not find in Antigua one of which was a jar of DILL PICKLES, I know you guys are thinking not that big of a deal. Honestly when I bought them I didn't think anything of it either. We got home and put the groceries away. I think Chloe Ann discovered them first and asked could she have some pickles I said "sure". She got a bowl out and had about 3 slices. She shared with Naomi and we laughed at the faces she made.

Then Isaac & Titus came in and said OOHHH pickles. Can we have some I said "sure thing guys". They each had their share. As you can tell we were about out of pickles, I think Danny came in and had the last two and had a big drink of the pickle juice. Titus said Mom the pickles are all gone. Could I make a pickle pop in the freezer? Like we used to have at Camp Pearl. I said "sure buddy".

As I was thinking about the pickles and I just had to laugh. We devoured a whole jar of pickles in about one hour (well Titus had to wait for his pickle pops to freeze).

Now that I think about it we have not had pickles since we left the states. We must have had Pickle withdrawals!!

Visit from Alabama!!

2008-06-01T17:44:00.011-06:00

We went to the Airport last Monday to pick up Jake & Maggie Lane, Danny's oldest niece and her husband. We were so excited to have them come down for a visit. The plane was about 30 minutes late so we were all anxious. We finally saw them walk through the door, but wait... who was with them?! "MEMAW" Titus screamed, I said who? Believe it or not it was Wanda. Danny's mother came down as a total surprise. We had no idea. They asked if we had suspected that she was coming. We had NO CLUE!! I was in such shock I did not take one picture at the airport. I had my camera on my shoulder but did not think to take one. I thought it was so cute when Chloe Ann got in the truck she said "I don't know who to sit by Maggie or Memaw"!

It was so neat to have her here too. We had all kinds of cool things planed and we were thrilled to be able to share them with her too. I know it was especially exciting for Danny to have his mother here.

We spent Monday afternoon and evening in Antigua. We took them to the Artisan Market. Wanda found a basket and loved seeing all the neat hand woven things.

We also went to the Local Market. This is were I buy all my fresh fruits & vegetables. It was a great time to go and see the Market, not too crowed but plenty of vendors still selling.

Pawpaw sent Danny & the boys new hats, they were so excited they wore them that day. Thank you Uncle David(who works at WEBB) & Pawpaw for the hats.We had waited since the first of May to climb the Volcano Pacaya for Isaac's Birthday. Since We knew Jake & Maggie were coming we decided to wait until they came. Memaw said she did not want Isaac to miss out on climbing the Volcano so she waited at the bottom of the Mountain in the little shop until we came back down.

This is the view as we were on our way up the Volcano. Isn't it gorgeous!!

Let me tell you I did not know what we were in for when we decided to climb Pacaya, but it was well worth it. Pedro our friend from Santiago, went as our guide. We even took Naomi!!
Here is the climbing crew minus Jake who took the picture.
Comforting isn't it.

I was so proud of my kids they climbed the whole way up. Chloe Ann did fall on the lava rock and got hurt. After a little consolation we were off to find the hot lava!! Titus & Isaac practically ran the whole way up. I was huffin & puffin. I think it was the altitude not the fact that I am so out of shape. hee hee

My rock climber Chloe!!

We found the Lava it was unbelievable. We were climbing over some rocks and had to turn around and go another way because the rocks were too hot!! Then we found it.The boys found a small hole in the rock that you could see the lava in. They would poke a stick in the hole and it would catch fire. They LOVED it.

This is the lava rock we had to climb as we looked for the hot lava. I liked the shapes it made as it oozed out.

This is the view as we left the mountain it was incredable. God is amazing! It was so awesome to see what He made for us to enjoy.

I just have to say I do not remember the last time time I was so tired. As we were coming down the mountain I did not think I would make it. Danny & I took turns carrying Naomi up and on the mountain but thanks to Pedro. He carried her the whole way down.

We wanted the family to see Santiago Atitlan. We got up early on Wednesday and headed out to the Lake. It's about a 3 hour drive from Antigua.

We stopped when we got our first glipse of the lake to take a group picture.

Chloe Ann just loves Maggie and had a great time with her all week.

We ate lunch at El Pescador, one of our favorites in Santiago. The sauted garlic fish plate is delicious!!

We were excited to show them our house in Santiago. We got the keys when we got there so we all got to stay in it for the first time together. I was a bit overwhelmed. It is an old house with a beautiful view of the lake. But mind you the house is 45 yrs old. So I have a lot of work to do before it is a "home".

We went on a boat ride and got dropped off at our dock.

Jake & the kids went swimming in the lake. The water is a bit cold but the locals bathe in it all the time!!

My monkeys climbing in the tree above the water.

Maggie helped by bathing the girls for me. It was nice having extra help around the house for a week.Jake found out why we call this shower a "widow maker" he tried to adjust the shower while it was on and running. He said it was a bit shocking!!
Maggie just loved the typical dress that the ladies wear. These girls were happy to have their picture taken with Maggie but they were also very emberassed!!

We got up early Friday morning to make the flight by 12:00.

Goodbyes are never easy, but we sure are glad they came down to visit us. We enjoyed seeing them and letting them see a week in the life of the Footes in Guatemala. Thanks for coming guys!

I got my new camera!

2008-05-21T06:43:00.009-06:00

I am so excited to say I did get a new camera. I am thrilled to have it. Thanks to my sweet husband for the camera. I got a refurbished Sony cybershot H-7. Sony has been a great camera for me and I could not think of getting a different kind. Thanks to Chrysten for bringing it down when she came to visit her sister Melissa. Thanks to Mom for the memory stick and extra battery and thank you to Mildred & Manolo for bringing those down from Mom. Wow!! it was quite the process getting it all down here. Thank you to every one who helped.
Here are some pictures I took this week of us. I am going to work on a new prayer card soon.

Mission team from Cornerstone Community

2008-05-17T21:10:00.001-06:00

It has taken me awhile to post this not because it was not important just because I was hoping to get a few extra pictures but I never got around to asking the team for them so these are the pictures I took.

Cornerstone Community Church came down a couple of months ago. Most of the team has been here before. For a few people it was the first time. It was so awesome to see how the Lord put together this team to come minister her for that week. It was very special for us to be here in Guatemala to help out with the team this year. We are so thankful that Cornerstone has been supporting us for several years now. We are thankful for the friendships we have made and look forward to the long lasting ministry together. We were very encouraged by the team. It was so good for us to have fellowship and times of renewal.

We were able to visit several Schools in Santiago and one outside of town. We had three Spanish translators and three Tz'utujil translators so we split the team into three groups. Pastor Abraham had spoken to the Principles the week prior to our arrival. So we just had to ask permission to go into the school. After we were in the schools we would go into each class room and sing a song, give a short testimony, and then pray for the students and their teacher as we were leaving the class we would give the kids a sticker or something small. Most were very receptive and some even prayed with us and for us!! It was so neat to meet Christian teachers and have the opportunity to encourage them, and be encouraged by them. Everyone on the team was shocked at the fact that we could go in and pray with the students share the gospel and then invite them to our local church. They mentioned that if we would have tried this in the states we would have severe consequences!! Praise the Lord it was an awesome time.

These were our Tz'utujil translators, they are from the Alpha Y Omega church.

In the younger classes they only spoke Tz'itujil. We would have to translate from English to Spanish to Tz'utujil it was a little crazy at times but it was so neat to see the kids understanding why we were there and what we were doing. In the older classes they could understand Spanish but sometimes I would have them translate just to make sure they understood.

Aren't these little girls so adorable? They were sweet and very quiet.

Sometimes getting to the schools was hard. As you can see here we are climbing up to the school.
The tall building on the left. We visited 10 schools in all and were able to share the gospel with aprox. 2500 students and teachers. It was a busy week walking to all these schools then praying with each class but it was well worth it. The pastor told us that he had never had a team come and do this kind of ministry but he loved it. He had many parents call him to say "Thank you for sending the team to my child's school to pray".

In the afternoons Danny would teach some Maya Tz'utujil culture & customs. One afternoon the group went to the catholic church and saw first hand the two religions that have merged. They also went to Market to see how the syncretism is evident in their Art. One question Danny posed was, Is the syncretism in the churches in the states?

Another afternoon we had a question & Answer time with our translators. About their lives as Tz'utujil youth, their family life, their religion, and much more. It was a neat time to see how these young people think.

The kids and I had to relax by the pool a couple of times during the week! Look at this awesome background of the lake and volcano.

Let me just say I was very proud of my kids this week. They went to every school and were very patient as we went to each class room and even participated. They liked handing out the stickers, singing the songs and playing with the kids. They really enjoyed getting to know the team.

Thank you Cornerstone team for an awesome trip!

Foote update- May 2008

2008-05-10T10:58:00.002-06:00

I sent this E-mail out today. I thought I would post it so you all could get the update.
If you want to be on our update list please give me your e-mail and I will add you.

We just wanted to let everyone know how things are going. We are all excited about our future in Santiago. Moving to Santiago has been in “our future” for so long it seems strange to think it is so close. We were able to put a deposit down on a house and it should be ours as of June 1st. We wanted to go ahead and start renting it when it came available in case we needed to fix anything or make any repairs. It is a rustic house but we are so excited about the location and the size!!! We will have plenty of room for visitors. Lord willing Danny will be finishing Spanish school in July and we will move out to Santiago.

Danny is doing great in Spanish School, he is going to be taking his second to last test today!! Please pray that he will retain everything he has learned. He covers a lot of material and sometimes I think he is learning so fast it is hard for him to keep up with everything. The last few weeks he has really surprised me with his increased vocabulary. He has gotten far enough along that I cannot answer the questions he has sometimes. I tell him I just speak it “I don’t know why we say it that way, it just sounds right” J

The rest of us are doing great, we are anticipating visits from friends and family starting in a couple of weeks. It will be so good to see some familiar faces.

Please continue to pray for us as we make our final transition to Santiago. We have settled into life here in Antigua pretty well and it is going to be hard to say goodbye ‘again’ to friends we have met. Pray for Danny as he finishes language school. Wow I can’t believe we are getting so close.

New Class mates

2008-04-22T16:36:00.004-06:00

I meant to blog about this a couple of weeks ago but my life got a little crazy. So two weeks ago the kids got some new classmates. These classmates are a bit different from the others they too are blonde with blue eyes. We met some really fun friends who live in our Neighborhood. They are the Walls. They are here fro six months and wanted their kids to learn Spanish & culture. Each one of my kids has a Wall child in their class. it worked out great. This picture was taken on the first day the Walls went to school. Sorry its a bit small, when I down loaded it was this small!!!

My kids have really enjoyed having a new friend in the class.

On thing I think is so funny the first time we saw the Walls they were walking down our street with their mother. My kids saw them and said "Mom talk to them I know they must speak english, we can play with them and understand'!!!!

So we did and have become good friends. Praise the Lord for good friendships we have made since we have been here.

Chloe Ann's Birthday

2008-04-22T15:32:00.005-06:00

Happy Birthday Chloe Ann!!!

This past thursday we celebrated her birthday. We had a party with her class at school.

My dear friend Melissa let me borrow her camera. Danny met me at the school with his Spanish teacher Carola. She loved holding Naomi while we had the party. We took a cake that Chloe Ann & I made and decorated. It was yummy and the kids all liked it.

I was surprized, almost everyclass mate brought a gift for her. She got all kinds of neat things. It was really fun for Chloe Ann. I took party favors for each child. One of the items was a whistle:) When all 14 of them opened the whistles and started blowing Danny said "could you not find anything else"? Poor teacher, She said it was no problem. She is so sweet.

Chloe Ann Her teacher Velin and Cindi.

On Friday night we had the Conners and the Walls over for dinner and celebrated her birthday with them. Chloe Ann wanted to have spagetti & a delicious cake from the bakery she had seen a couple of months ago. It was white with green apples and strawberries on top. We had a great time of fellowship and everyone enjoyed their time together. So sad to say I did not take pictures of this party. My camera is officially retired.

A little shook up but we are fine!!

2008-04-15T08:32:00.003-06:00

Since we got here to Guatemala we have had several trimmers. We would look at each other as the ground below us shook. It was a very eary feeling but would not even last long enough to think about it too long.

Last night as we were saying good night to the kids in bed. We felt a good shake and it kept going and going. Then the house really started to move we decided to very quickly move outside as it would not stop. You know 20 seconds is a long time for a trimmer. (later we found out it was 6.1 on the richter scale!!!) After we ran outside it was amazing to see everything shaking and moving. Chloe Ann said "my heart is really bumping mama". I told her mine was too. The boys did not really say anything. We just all stood there looking at each other in awe.

Thank goodness there was no major damage anywhere. Cell phone towers and electricity went out in some parts of the country for a few minutes but we are just fine. Praise the Lord.

It was the talk of town this morning as I dropped the kids off at school. Everyone was asking us (the new comers) how we felt about the "temblor".

I have this feeling this morning that no matter how much I think I am in control of my life. The Lord is in complete control of my life, and especially this world. I have such a peace about being here in Guatemala because I know this is exactly where the Lord wants me to be. Doing His will.

Black Sand Beach

2008-04-09T10:38:00.019-06:00

Last week Danny's teacher said he needed some time to rest his brain. So he took off school Friday and we headed to the beach. WHOOOHOOO I think we all needed a break. We have heard a lot of things about the beach. We were exccited to find out for ourselves. We left Friday morning and we were there in 2 hours. I could not believe we live so close to the beach! As you can see from the pictures it is not like Gulf Shores. It was absolutely beautiful! The sand it very black, it is volcanic crushed rock. Believe it or not the sand was actually softer than the white sand we were used to, but VERY HOT. The waves were incredible you can hear it as soon as you step out of the car. The surf is so strong we could only get in knee deep. It would crash on the shore and literally knock you down even when you were knee deep.
Naomi did not like the noise of the crashing waves. You can see her frowning as I put her down to at least get ONE picture of her on the beach.

Chloe Ann made many sand castles just like Grandsir(my dad) taught her. She said he is "the best" at making sand castles.

Titus & Isaac loved sitting on the sand waiting for the wave to come and throw them around. They were also able to find a few crabs, They loved that. They liked the beach even though they couldn't really get in.

We stayed at a great hotel and I loved the pool, mainly because when we were at the beach Naomi wanted to be held the whole time. It got a bit tiring.

We stayed at the beach or pool the whole time. It was a much needed break. We all had a very fun time.

The hotel we stayed in was outside Montericco so we drove in town to eat some good local seafood. We had garlic shrimp with french fries, fried fish(whole even with the eye balls!!) with salad and Danny got the typical Marisco Soup (seafood soup). They have yummy fresh fruit drinks out of any kind of fruit you want.. It was delicious!! Isaac said peeling the shrimp reminded him of crawfish. We all said AWWW we are missing crawfish season!!! But this is good too!

As I was sitting on the beach early one morning before 7:00 watching the kids play I was completely overwhemled with how Amazingly beautful, and unbelievably strong the ocean is. I just broke out in song. "How great is our God, sing with me how great is our God..." Even though there were people around they could not hear me because the waves were so loud. I knew God could hear me even if I would have been whispering. As the kids came up to me they too started to sing. After we finished the song we talked about Gods power, strength, and love. And how He made this for us to enjoy. It was a neat experience to share with the kids.

Some how Danny escaped my camera the entire week-end, but I did get a cute video of him with Naomi after her bath. Its a bit dark but I like just listening to it anyway.

I will publicly admit that I went against my husbands words of wisdom and took my camera to the beach around my neck (not in the Bag) YIKES!!!! And got it wet so to my detrement I do not have a working camera. I took it to a camera shop today so please pray with me, maybe they can fix it!!! Until then No more pictures.

Friendships

2008-03-31T10:32:00.010-06:00

We all need and crave friendship. We need someone who will rejoice with us or cry with us, someone who will comfort us when we crawl through valleys of despair or laugh with us on the mountaintops of happiness. Through the years we have made and still have many close friends. We have not really had that since we got to Guatemala.

Danny met Carrol at Language school and soon after we had the whole family over for dinner. It did not take us very long and we all hit it off. For the past 3 months we have had an Awesome friendship. We all need deep meaningful friendships with other people. The proverb says, "A man that hath friends must shew himself friendly." (Prov. 18:24) We have with the Gunters. When we met the Gunters it was like we had known them for ever. We all got along so well and we were able to really open up and share our hearts with each other.

Today our hearts are sad, we said goodbye to our good friends last night. It was a tearful time, and hard on the kids too. Last week as we were preparing the kids for the departure of our friends both of the boys had a melt down and said they were tired of making good friends then saying good bye. I told them I was too, but reminded them how neat it was to have so many friends. God has allowed us to visit many places and meet many great friends. I told them I would rather have friends I may have to say goodbye to than not have friends. Often people do not find the friends they want and remain lonely and wonder why? To have friends we must show ourselves to be friendly, and have to learn to say goodbye.

The Lord led Carrol & Mica here to Guatemala to adopt Sweet Josie. It was so neat to see the love that Christian & Corie have for their new little sister. We learned a lot from them and will really cherish the time we spent together. Blessing to you guys as you take Josie HOME!!http://antiguajourney.blogspot.com/

FRIENDS, YOU WILL BE GREATLY MISSED!

HAPPY EASTER

2008-03-23T19:06:00.014-06:00

I was taking pictures of the kids, Roxy had to be in the picture too!!

We had a wonderful Easter, as I reminded the children this is the day we celebrate that Jesus rose from the dead. It was so neat to see how they each pondered about it. Titus said it was easier to remember down here in Guatemala because you see and hear more things about Jesus and His death rather than the Easter bunny. Isaac is my quiet thinker and did not say anything. Chloe Ann asked "Did He just die or was it a long long time ago?" It's hard to get it all straight when you are just five.

Driving in Antigua

2008-03-18T17:21:00.009-06:00

Well I just thought I would enlighten you on my driving obstacles here in good 'ol Antigua. It is absolutely Gorgeous. Everywhere I look I want to take a picture. But the pictures don't even do it justice.

This is the famous arch in town. With Volcano Agua behind it. Actually we live at the base of this Volcano.

All the buildings are so bright and colorful.

This is the catholic church at Central square. it is absolutely beautiful! As you drive through town you see ladies washing their clothes in the community pila (concrete washtubs?) usually located at the end of a park. I am very thankful Danny bought me a washer when we got here.

I don't pride myself in being an excellent driver but I still cannot believe I drive through these things. There are concrete obstacles you have to drive through to get in town. To keep out big buses and trucks. I asked Danny if maybe we were considered too big to go in town? He said "We fit don't we." It took me several months to get up the nerve to go through them, I found a route that went around. One day I went too far and HAD to go through. Isaac was in the front seat and said "Don't worry Mom, I'll guide you through". Sure thing I said (then thought my SEVEN year old is guiding me through. yikes!!). I said a quick prayer, lined it up, and drove through.

I just want to let everyone know I have NOT hit a concrete obstacle with the truck, only the tire oops.

One day after I dropped the kids off at school I was driving through the concrete things and jumped out to take a picture. Yes the lady walking down the street thought I was a crazy gringa 'Oh well.

Just thought you guys would love to see me drive through Antigua.

Semana Santa (Holy Week) in Antigua

2008-03-17T10:49:00.017-06:00

We have really enjoyed the Easter season here in Antigua it has been so interesting. Last Sunday we went to a procession. I was able to look up some of the significances before we went so when the kids asked, what are they doing?, and what is that? I could actually answer their questions.

Semana Santa ( Holy Week or Easter) is the last week of lent. It follows Jesus from Palm Sunday to His death on Good Friday in preperation for His rising from the dead on Easter Sunday. You can see they are holding pictures representing each scene.

All the purple is a sign of penitence. The men in the purple robes pay to carry the procession float.

The processions completely bombard the senses. The incense is used for cleansing and purification. The alfombras are street carpets made from flowers, dyed sawdust, corozo palm and pine needles. R ight before the procession goes in front of the peoples house or business they decorate a beautiful carpet. As the precession goes by they trample all that beautiful art work. The carpets are a way to give thanks for favours granted, it is an obligation to a revered image.It is wild how long some of these carpets were. They were almost as long as the block.

This is a bird in the sand under a tree. We all thought this one was really neat.

This is a daisy made out of daisies!

The creativity is just amazing! I wish I could show you everyone we saw but it would be a lot.

As the Procession went by there were soldiers blowing their horns,

Men in red hoods who did not want their picture taken. oops
Ladies who walked on the outside of the procession with staffs.

It was a very festive and happy time with venders selling cotton candy, little toy trinkets & ice cream. As soon as the horns were heard there was a hush over the crowd, and we all watched in silence as the procession walked by. I could here people praying the rosary as we watched all the different people walk by. One woman who stood close to me was explaining the whole procession to her little girl. Our kids did not say a word they just soaked it all in. After we left we asked the kids what they thought. They all agreed it was different but cool to see. They thought it would have been even better if they would have thrown some thing. Thats my New Orleans kids for you!!

This is one of the procession floats which is carried by by thousands of men during a 12 hour period. This is a very desired job. As you can see they are about to turn the corner that we are standing on. It was incredible to see all those men carring such a heavy load.

School Uniforms

2008-03-14T21:59:00.004-06:00

Here is the cute picture of the kids I could not down load with the post I wanted to. I think the kids look so good in their uniforms. This is what they wear every day to school.

Our new addition

2008-03-07T10:21:00.003-06:00

This is Roxy our new puppy. (Yet another reason I have been busy)
She is a great puppy and the kids have really enjoyed having a dog again.

Hello again!!!

2008-03-06T19:24:00.003-06:00

As you all could tell I have been a little busy since the kids started school. School has been good for the kids. Titus comes home telling all about his day, what his teachers and class mates said and did that day. At first Chloe Ann had the hardest time leaving me. Once I left the teacher said she was better. Now she has made a lot of friends and looks forward to going to school. Danny & I are amazed at how well they are picking up Spanish. Isaac was having a harder time with School. He actually quit talking!! His teacher said he does all his work he is given but does not speak. Danny & I decided to give all the kids goals. Titus goal was to ask 3 class mates their names. Chloe Ann had to also ask 2 class mates their name. Isaac had to say "Hola, como estas?" That after noon when we picked them up Titus jumped in and said he had met 3 new friends, Andi, Josue & Violeta. Chloe Ann said she met Lourdes, & Estefani. We asked Isaac how it went. He said "Well I was going to talk to someone, then my lip got a cramp so I couldn't". No kidding this is what he said. We all died laughing. He just sat there with a big grin. After much encouragement Isaac is talking much more. Please keep the kids in your prayers next week, it is exam week. Titus is very nervous about the exams. We told them not to worry about the grades. The main reason they are in school is to learn Spanish. I was going to post a cute picture of the kids in their school uniforms, but I cannot add images right now. Anyone else have that problem?

Naomi's 1st Birthday

2008-01-24T15:06:00.000-06:00

Naomi had her first Birthday! She was not real sure about all of us singing to her. I don’t think she liked the whole candle thing. She can blow, but we don’t know where all the air goes? I cannot believe she is already one year old.

Before the cake

During

& After

She is so much fun, she keeps us all laughing. She can walk very well, and says mama, dada, Dog dog, & bye bye, there seems to be a pattern here. The boys taught her how to growl. Pastor Gary would be proud. She is such a pleasant baby & is always smiling. We are so thankful to the Lord to have Naomi in our family.

Time for School

2008-01-16T11:46:00.000-06:00

After much prayer and consideration we decided to put the 3 older kids in school. We have always home schooled and will continue to do so once we get to Santiago. They were learning Spanish just fine but at a slow pace. Once we get to Santiago we will focus on learning T'zutujil so to speed up the process. What better way than FULL immersion right. Yikes! poor kids. I think it is harder on me than them.

We have been attending a CAM church and they have a small school of about 130 students. The kids were very excited and even more nervous. The school is completely in Spanish, they do have an English class!! I told them they should make an A in at least that class.

As I sit here trying to catch up on E-mails & blog buddies I am a little overwhelmed. How I miss so many of you. I love keeping up with you through your blogs. As I sit here with tears running down my face remembering all the wonderful people God has allowed me to have as friends I am so thankful for you and your prayers but selfishly want to be there with you.

Goose I lost it when I read your last blog. We too would love to be there with you all. Give those babies a big hug for me.

Our visit with Mom & Daddy

2008-01-08T12:06:00.000-06:00

Our visit with Mom & Daddy was so much fun. We had lunch at the Calle de la Fonda real. We sat at the same table Titus lost his tooth! He enjoyed sharing that story with Mimi & Grandsir. We had some delicious cheese fondu.

The Philippis had us over for lunch. It was good for Mom & Daddy to catch up with them. We always have a great time with together.

I especially enjoyed taking pictures of her gorgeous flowers.

You all know me I cannot resist a good photo opportunity with the kids! Hee hee

Titus is 10, Isaac 7, Chloe Ann 5 & Naomi 1

That week-end we went out to the lake for a couple of nights. We stayed at Las Buenas Nuevas in Panajachel. It was absolutely beautiful!

Pedro & Ana were also at LBN one of the nights we were there. The boys & G’sir taught them how to play Monopoly. I think they got the hang of it pretty quick.

On Sunday we crosed the lake “on the fast boat” as Chloe Ann says. It takes about 30 minutes on the small boat. The view from the middle of the lake is Awesome. You are in a bowl of mountains and a few volcanoes, on this gorgeous blue lake. God is an Awesome creator.

Once we got to Santiago we went by the church and met with Pastor Abraham. There were some ladies there who could not believe Naomi could walk so well. They were so excited we were coming to live and work with them so soon.

We got to meet Pedro’s Mother. She could not speak one word of Spanish. Mom & I said “Hola” and she just started speaking in Tzutujil!! We did a lot of smiling & nodding, and sign language.

One of the highlights for the kids was shooting fireworks with Grandsir & Danny. On December 31st we had a blast, they put on quite the show.

We loved every minute of the week we had together.

Thank you for coming Mimi & Grandsir!!

Christmas Eve

2008-01-08T08:13:00.000-06:00

We spent Christmas Eve with the Samuc family. It was so special to be invited into the home of Pedro & Ana. We arrived around 9 and went to buy a few fireworks with Pedro. Ana also invited her cousins so after they arrived we ate dinner at 10. It was so much fun to help Ana and the girls in the kitchen. We had turkey, vegetable rice, homemade bread, potatoes & ponche (hot fruit drink with chunks of fruit, hot fruit cocktail). We had a fun time getting to know each other. We learned one or two words of T’zutujil.

Then we went out to shoot the fireworks at 11:45. Let me tell you it was quite the show!!! The boys loved it. Chloe Ann slept through the whole thing and Naomi woke up when the all noise started.

Traditionally the Guatemalans have tamales and do not eat dinner until after midnight!! The Samucs said they get too hungry so we ate at 10. We were glad about that!

Merry Christmas!!!

2007-12-24T09:37:00.000-06:00

Feliz Navidad,

Let me just start the letter out by saying we LOVE Guatemala! We have been here almost three months and we are thrilled to be here. We are really enjoying getting to know the people, learning the culture, and trying new recipes. It has definitely been an adjustment but we are taking it in strides and soaking up every minute.
We are so excited to spend our first Christmas here in Guatemala. It has been so neat to see so many new and different things. We have also enjoyed the familiar things. Central Park in Antigua is completely white with lights. Santa Clause was there Saturday night with a full orchestra playing Christmas music. My parents are coming down on Christmas day, what a Christmas gift huh? The kids are counting down the days. We have planned lots of fun things to do but the best time will be spent together.
Danny and I have had the wonderful opportunity to join David Gomez (Guatemala director of Evangelism Explosion Guatemala) a few times in Yalu. He has started a ministry to the people there. They have no church within 8 kilometers (down a dirt road through the mountains). They have only had the gospel for one year. As Danny and I sat in a house with Ed & Eleanor Beach, David Gomez and the three believers that are studying the Bible, We knew this is what the Lord has for us, not necessarily this group of people but this kind of ministry. A few weeks ago we went out with David as he was teaching the believers how to evangelize. We visited a neighbor’s house. They were both very attentive the wife made tortillas the whole time while the husband sat with us. Finally the husband told his wife to come sit by him. David continued to tell the story of Adam & Eve and explained the power of God. He also told the story about Jesus walking on water to show how Peter had faith. After a few questions they both knelt and asked the Lord to be their Savior, and Lord of their lives. It was Awesome! Please pray for the people in Yalu as the Lord works in their lives.
We now live in Antigua, we moved the week-end after Thanksgiving. It is a 3 bedroom house and has a large living area. The kids really enjoy the big yard. We live on the base of the Volcano Agua which is dormant and we can see the Volcano Fuego which is active. It is so neat to wake up in the morning and see the gorgeous view of both Volcanoes. The last couple of nights we have been able to see the volcano erupting. The kids really liked seeing that.
Danny is doing great in Spanish school. He is finishing up his 2nd book this week and will start his 3rd book the week after Christmas. At the pace he is going he should be finished by this summer. He is learning quickly. Please pray that he will continue learning and retain the language. It can be frustrating at times for him but he is doing really well.
Praise the LORD. We are so excited to tell you all that Jerry & Sarah Lastrapes are officially CAM candidates. Please pray for them as they are starting their support raising process to come down to Guatemala. We will all be working as a team around the Lake. It will be wonderful to have them help us with church Leadership training. We are so anxious to see what the Lord has in store for all of us.

Titus Birthday

2007-12-18T12:00:00.000-06:00

I still cannot believe we have a new pet. Titus decided to get an Iguana for his birthday. This is Gator!

Football or Soccer??

2007-12-18T11:51:00.000-06:00

The kids were playing soccer in the yard the other day Chloe Ann was doing everything she could so Titus would not get a goal.

We are really enjoying the wonderful weather here. The locals think it is sooo cold. We will be in short sleeves and the locals will have sweaters and scarfs.

We are alive and well!!

2007-12-13T13:44:00.000-06:00

Hey guys,

Thank you all for your questions and concern. The week after Thanksgiving we moved to Antigua and sad to say we do not have internet at the house. I have to go in town to check or recieve E-mail. I will blog again soon. I have lots of cool material.

To Mimi,

2007-11-14T06:34:00.000-06:00

HAPPY BIRTHDAY MIMI!

Wishing you a wonderful Birthday.

We love you and miss you.

Hugs & kisses

Guatemalan "thrift store"

2007-11-12T23:41:00.000-06:00

We found the "thrift store" it is called the "paca" or "ropa americana". I found four long sleeve shirts for the kids and a nice fleece for Naomi and some new shoes for Chloe Ann. This is all stuff from the states! I asked one of the vendors he said they buy up there and bring it down here to sell. There was Gap, Polo, Old Navy, anything I would find at a thrift store in the states. What a business.

Let me tell you going to the thrift store in a third world country is very different. Its outside underneath a huge roof, kind of like the French market. There were probably 200 vendors. All the vendors yell the whole time you are in there. "everything is cheap" "come see what I have" "everything in my shop is 10 quetzales" "Stick your hand in and see what you pull out" "C'mon' C'mon C'mon in". It was hilarious. Naomi got a little nervous so Danny took her and the kids out then I could really concentrate on digging in.

Thanks Graced for your offer you are so thoughtful, but I found the thrift store!! YEA
Abbey the thrift store feeling definitely is universal but not to worry we had our germ-X!!! :)

Sorry guys I could not figure out how to flip the video around. Anyone else know how? At least you guys get the idea.

Naomi started walkng!

2007-11-07T19:15:00.000-06:00

Naomi has been trying to walk for a while, she has finally figured out how to do it. The older kids were over one year old before they walked. Naomi started walking at 9 months!! I think it's because she is trying to keep up with the big kids.

Days of the Dead

2007-11-02T08:44:00.000-06:00

Danny had a holiday from language school November 1st, so we joined the locals and went to Sumpango to fly Barriletes (kites)! It was the day of the dead or all saints day. Try to figure that one out. The tradition is that the dead have 24 hours to come back and greet their loved ones. So everyone goes to the cemetery to clean, paint and decorate the graves. These graves were a work of art. It was so neat to see all these beautiful people working together as families. Some families did not have much to decorate their graves with but they were clean and painted, others were very elaborate.

These kites are huge!!

They write messages on kites and fly them so the dead relatives can read the message. It was a very happy occasion. I thought it might be morbid but it was not in the least. The kites were amazing some of them were so big they did not fly these were only for display.

Danny and I could not get over how it was so much fun but at the same time complete chaos. We were all in one soccer field and everyone was trying to fly a kite. We had some serious tangles. The people would walk up to the mass, bite the string, tie it back and go fly their kites.

We forgot the boys hats so they bought some local hats, don't they look cute!

We had to try the roasted corn it was soooo good. The Guatemalans like it with lime and salt. We liked it with Parmesan cheese and hot sauce.

We loved laying on the blanket watching all the kites! There were so many to see.

Our favorite part was being together as a family and seeing other families have such a good time.