We're not in Guatemala

We didn't go to Guatemala, after all. Some things came up in the family, and after some thought and discussion and prayer, we felt like we ought to stay home. So here I sit on a cool, rainy October afternoon at Genevieve's computer, while she is strolling the beaches of Kauai. (Scott had a business trip to Hawaii, so Gen invited herself along. I would have, too.)

I sorta forgot about our blog. Apologies to all you serious bloggers. Actually, I think I'm being slowly converted to blogging after noting the phenomenal reaction of the blogging world to Stephanie Neilson's (NieNie's) tragedy. She is the sister of Courtney Kendrick, who works with me on Segullah. It all reminds me how powerful words are, how much good we can do with the Word.

Speaking of which, most of you know about Segullah's brand new book, The Mother in Me, published by Deseret Book. Our whole staff created this compilation of stories and poems about growing into motherhood. All you young mothers will especially love it, so be sure to get a copy.
I know www.deseretbook.com and www.amazon.com both sell it. My story is about adopting Grace and Gloria. We just had a benefit book launch in Orem on Saturday to raise money for the Neilson family's rehab fund. We're working now on preparing our manuscript for our second book in the series, which deals with school age children and teens. More on that as it develops.

So Nathan Garfield is here! Check out Bayra's blog to see the latest pictures. I was so grateful to be in Chicago for his beautiful birth and his first two weeks of life. I really miss Zach, too, so I'm excited that they are all coming to Camas for Christmas. And super excited that they will be moving to Portland next year for Garrett's job with Holland and Knight! What with the change in our Guatemala plans, we had 8 people in our house all summer, which was unexpected, but turned out to be just fine. It was especially fun to have Zach appear at the top of the stairs every morning calling, "Hi, Nonna!"

I think I'll still call us the Guatemala Garfields. What the heck, some of us are, anyway, all the time! I'll try to be a better blogger and learn how to post pictures.

Love to all,
Lisa

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Hello family and friends,

As you can tell, I'm not very good at this blogging stuff yet. But I did buy our tickets to Guatemala! We leave at midnight on July 11. I've got us booked into the timeshare place we stayed at last time we were in Antigua for the first week. The girls really loved the place (actually, they loved the pool) and I think it will be a comfortable transition.

I've signed up for Skype, so we can talk to you for free via computer. But you each have to get a Skype account so we can call you. Go to skype.com and do what it says to get an account. It's all free, the setup and all the calls, when we both use our computers. Then add lisagarfield to your contacts list and we're all set. We both have to be online for it to connect, so as we move through the year, we may want to set up specific times to talk.

So now we're cleaning out the garage and packing up books and little things that Garrett and Bayra don't need for the summer. On Friday, a family is coming to see about renting the house from September to June. Garrett, Bayra, and Zach just arrived and moved into the playroom for the summer, since Garrett has an internship with a legal firm in Portland this summer. I was released from my church calling last Sunday, so little by little, the pieces fall into place.

I'm going to try to attach a photo, mostly to see if I can do it. I'll try to post the one from Grace's 11th birthday party, with Fin, Max, Grace, Gloria, Nolan, Gavin.

Love, Lisa

Well, we've set a date for our departure and have arranged lodging for our first week in Antigua! We'll be leaving Portland on July 12, 2008. We've also been trying out some Spanish at the dinner table and in the car with tapes and CDs. We understand each other, but that's with a vocabulary of about 5-100 words, depending on who's talking. We're counting on immersion in the language to really help us learn.

We're still searching housing and schooling options and working on visa information. The biggest concern is not with arrangements on the Guatemala end, but on the Camas end. So if anyone knows of a responsible, clean person or family who wants to rent our house for the 2008-2009 school year, send them our way.

We hope that some of you are already thinking about how and when you'll come visit us. We can't promise housing until we know what we've got, but we can promise us! Please don't schedule your visit for September or October, as we'd like to preserve those months for settling into our new school and work routines. I imagine it will be a little stressful. And bear in mind that we will be actually living there, not vacationing, so if we can't join you on all your explorations, we will at least point you toward the best spots we know of.

We're getting excited as the time draws nearer!

Greetings All!

As we prepare to leave in July to spend a year or so in Guatemala, we thought this would be a good way to keep you updated on our family's activities.

Right now, we're looking for any contacts, tips, and advice you may have about our proposed adventure. We plan to live in Antigua.