Our first visitor from home...

This past week, we had our first visitor from home - Mimi! Lee's mom arrived on Monday afternoon. She had three suitcases full of gifts and goodies. (She only need half of one for her clothes - the rest was LOOT!) The kids thought it was Christmas in October!

We had treats like M&Ms, decaf tea, movies, new games, flip flops and much, much more.

We took her on a tour of Antigua - we drove up to the Cross on the hill which overlooks the city of Antigua. We took a tour of Jades SA - which is a shop that mines and cuts Jade into jewelry. We took her to see some ruins, some cathedrals and of course the market! Apparently, she can shop in any language. She loved all the beautiful textiles in the market.

View from Cerro de la Cruz (Antigua and Vulcan Agua)

Wednesday was my birthday. Mimi had some special gifts from friends and family. What a treat to open fun and thoughtful gifts from home. That evening, Patty was able to meet several of our new friends. Lee organized a birthday party at the home of our friends, The Ericksons. (Our place is too small, so Maureen was so kind to host for us.) We had so much fun laughing and telling fun stories about life in our new country.  Too much FUN!

Erickson family, Radfords, Amy & Andy, Joy & Jared (photo by Katey Erickson)

So many great new friends!!

On Thursday, we drove her to Pana. She was amazed by the sights and sounds of the Guatemalan countryside and terrified by the driving down here. We were able to see the house we will be renting in December. She really enjoyed seeing where we will live for a while. It was good for me to see it again too. I can start planning how to set up our next home. (This nomadic life is very different for me - I have to make a plan - I'm not a fly-by-the-seat-f-my-pants kind of girl!) We ate a really fabulous dinner at the Posada Don Rodrigo and the kids swam in their pool. We took Patty shopping on Calle Santander (market street).

View of Lake Atitlan from Sunset Cafe

On Friday morning, (we did some more quick shopping) then we went up to Eagle's Nest and took the grand tour. We had a delicious lunch with some of the EN staff. Then we drove back to Antigua. It was fun to show her all the places and people who will be part of our new life in Pana.

The week seemed to fly by; good times always do! On Saturday, she flew home to Atlanta. What a blessing it is that friends and family can come to visit! (It's cheap and only 3 hour flight from ATL - you know you want to come see us!) Who's next???