After spending an awesome day with friends in Antigua, we awoke to the biggest festivities to celebrate Semana Santa, Easter Holy Week, in this predominantly Catholic city. We had been told that 4am was the best time to start seeing people create the beautiful carpets of colored sawdust, flowers, and fruits and vegetables (and beat the crowds). 4 am?!  Are you KIDDING me?!! Well, needless to say…our crew of 6 adults and 10 kids did...

On our first morning in Antigua, we woke up to noisy birds outside of our rental villa we were sharing with our new friends from A King’s Life. It’s amazing to me how easy it is to be instant friends with someone you have never met in person before. We had recently chatted online and read each other’s blogs, but the previous day was the first time we had met the King family! We were instant friends!  We spent the night...

So much happened in 2012, that I get overwhelmed trying to remember it all. So, Jared and I thought we’d go through our photos and make a small monthly collage of our life happenings…but that proved to be even more overwhelming! How do you sum up so much in only 5 monthly photos? 2012 was by-far the most amazing year of our lives. We experienced so many new places and cultures, as well as learned and grew as individuals and as a...

My name is Ella and I am 7 1/2 years old. I love traveling! I like traveling because I make new friends and I get to meet new people. And I like traveling because I get to see new things. I love paintings on buildings. It’s fun to see things! This is me in my gymnastics competition. It was in June in Mexico. I got first place! l love this picture because he’s going, “Oooh! Too much pictures!” He’s funny! I love looking at new...

I’m always a little bit shocked (and perhaps miffed) when people ask us WHY we like Mexico (which isn’t technically Central America, but close enough).  They say it with this little bit of disdain, wondering how we could possibly prefer anything less than 1st quality living all of the time. After living and traveling in Mexico for nearly 2 years, as well as making trips to Belize and Guatemala…we are left with the...

Like any Latin American country, Guatemala comes to life at night! The central plaza in Antigua, Guatemala has a stunning chapel that glows in the darkness! Street performers come out to make their money for the night… And the famous archway of Antigua sets the tone over its wide cobblestone streets. Several plazas throughout town can be found full of street food and vendors during the holidays. We were just so lucky to catch a...