Guatemala

We returned from Guatemala this past Saturday. It was a wonderful experience and full of fun! We spent the week at La Senda Children's home and School. La Senda means "The way home". Here are a few pictures so you can share in our experience.

This is a picture of the whole group.

We spent Wednesday in Antigua. It is a beautiful city full of history. That is a volcano in the background.

This is the playground! Look at the background. I don't remember anything like that in the background of our elementary playgrounds!
















Happily painting! And the finished product!










During the week we did a lot of projects. Some of the girls taught English classes and the rest of us cleaned, made Christmas decorations for the kids to send to their sponsors next Christmas, and I put information into the computer. I spent 2 days in front of the computer. The guys built 3 doors, planted flowers, and fixed sinks. We all spent the last 2 days of the trip painting. As you can see in the pictures above Matt and the guys (with the help of some of the girls) painted with black paint that resembled tar. Needless to say we are still removing black paint from our bodies. Also Matt is very proud of the door he and our friend James built. It took them all day but now 2 teenage Guatemalan boys now have some privacy in a house of 20 children!

















































































These are just some pictures of the children. To the left is Steven in his overalls. He is just so cute I had to include this one. Steven has lived at La Senda his whole life, it is the only home he has ever known. Above right is Samy playing soccer. All the children love soccer and play all the time. Two Above right is Matt playing with Carlos. Above left is Matt and I with the 3 brothers from the coast. The boys have a family but there family sends them to La Senda so they can get a better education. Two above left is Matt playing on the slide with the children. He look like he is having so much fun...or could be in much pain. You decide! Below right is Lupita with me and Below left is Matt with famous Victor. Maybe I will write about Victor next time I blog. His story is amazing. It is truly a miracle!
















































Here we are, the happy married couple, leading our first mission trip together. We feel it was successful and God was glorified. What more could we ask for?