packing for Guatemala

We leave in just a few days - my family is so excited for this trip... just under two weeks in Guatemala with overnights at my dad's on both ends of the trip. While we are in Guatemala City, we will visit with Marisol of Asofamilia. This is the organization through which we were able to locate Haydee's birth family and provide modest assistance with food and visits. Last time we went to Guatemala, we brought a suitcase of cloth diapers for the orphanage where Haydee had stayed. This time, there is no orphanage. Sadly, the abrupt halt of international adoptions forced many orphanages to close. Guatemala lacks the infrastructure for government lead foster care so many children are either abandoned or stay in their birth families where meeting basic needs is near to impossible. So we'll be bringing more diapers to Marisol for distribution to birth families as needed. We'll also visit Safe Passage to meet the 13 year old girl we've been sponsoring there. We're excited to meet her and hear about her studies. Thirteen is a critical age - we hope to reinforce the importance of staying in school and focusing on studies while there. We're also looking forward to showing Haydee some of the special places from our time there almost four years ago - the Embassy which issued her visa (finally!), the grocery store (EconoSuper) where we walked daily, the little book store where we purchased the Max and Tina series. After our time in the city, we're off to see other parts of Guatemala - including sea turtles in Monterico and tree houses outside of Antigua. Should be a great time!