Fun at Sports Camp, a Garden Sale and a Cabalgata

Our friends have a ministry called Manos de Fe in a nearby town and they had a group in doing a sports camp. The kids had a blast after they warmed up to being the only gringo kids playing. They did three days of soccer and kickball. One afternoon they cancelled early due to the pouring rain...while the Panamanians just kept on playing! We started off each day with stretching and prayer in a circle. I love that even M got totally involved! On the last day, they had a big party with food and bounce houses. The kids had a blast!

We found out about a once-a-year garden sale at a nearby house, so we had to check it out. We had heard that the grounds were amazing and they didn't disappoint. The couple that started this purchased some farm land years ago and added each pond and plant you see. I just loved the lily pads and the views!

On July 1, our town and the surrounding ones, became a new district in Panama. Of course, a celebration must be had! The park had a bounce house and the pavilion at the nearby school hosted a group of speakers talking about the new district. They also ended with a college group doing the traditional dances of Panama. This is what I hung around for! We had a fun time...even if we stand out terribly and create our own parade wherever we go. ("5? All yours? Such beautiful children. Beautiful hair!") It ended with the new flag with 14 stars being paraded through the streets with hundreds of cowboys riding horses (a cabalgata). Experiencing Panamanian culture was one of the goals we had when  moving here.

Two sisters...two brothers. This is two girls in traditional indigenous dress for the Ngobe people of Panama.

This little girl was dead asleep! So cute!!

Our white kitty was missing for two days and here was her brother looking for her! The kids were glad she returned. 

Too cute not to add. He found some paint rollers and thought they made good binoculars. Silly kid! 

Homeschool Life in Volcan

You wouldn't believe that there really is a good homeschool life here in Volcan. It's one of the reasons we brought as many books as we did to open the homeschool lending library. We have been planning and participating in various field trips and other events around town. Volcan is quite small so we have to head toward David for some activities. 

One activity we have really enjoyed is taking in English speaking movies with friends. We have seen Cars 3 and Spider-Man! We pretty much fill up the theater and our whole family can go for $20! Popcorn is super cheap too! $3.75 for a large popcorn! Having a solid group of friends here has really helped out and we love getting together with them. 

 After the movies, we headed to a local wing place for $.50 wings! Our group took up the whole patio and we had a blast!

One field trip we have done is going to Don Joaquin to learn how they make their cheeses. We got to watch the process, ask a lot of questions and find out why their cheese is so yummy. The best part is we got to sample a lot of cheese (including some tasty goat cheese) and the kids all got a yogurt tube. Then we got to go outside and have a duro. They have THE BEST duros around!! The yogurt tubes are now a regular part of our day and we didn't know before the trip that they even carried them. Such a great place and who doesn't love supporting small businesses?

We get other stuff done too. We have all of the books sorted into piles and boxed back up. They're waiting for the house to be worked on and the shelves to go up but we've already had a lot of people come by to borrow books. We usually do our school work in the afternoon since it rains then. The mornings are left for exploring and playing outside. I have some plans for park playdates and the like in the future. Just wanted to give you a glimpse of homeschool life here. So blessed to have a group that God has provided for us and the kids!

Nana and Pop Visit: Last Days

Nana and Pop's view of our house in the morning. This particular morning, they had a little spy keeping an eye on them! The kids loved having them staying next door!

Tuesday can only mean one thing when visitors are in...Boquete for Tuesday market! We stopped to take a picture at the new sign in town!

The Tuesday Market is a lot of fun. There are vendors of all sorts there. Fresh fruits, all kinds of food, souvenirs, items people have made to sell, and tons more. That lady in the pink sweater, we made her day with the items we bought.

We drove up the mountain a little way and got a great view of the town of Boquete.

Tasty lunch at the Garden in Boquete where the kids get to eat in a boat. It's always a highlight and they have some great burgers. And then dinner was pizza in Volcan at La Carbonera. Yum!

On Wednesday, Nana and I went to Joya de Esperanza where a friend runs a ministry to teach indigenous women how to sew. This gives them the ability to make an income for themselves and their family. Nana is buying an apron and got to meet the girl who made it!

The kids, Daddy and Pop all played baseball and other games in the green area of our neighborhood. They had a lot of fun getting to run around!

And then we planted some seeds we have had sitting around. The soil is so great here, you can just put a stick in the ground and it will sprout and start growing. We are planting some cantaloupe, guanabana seeds and lettuce here. We plant most of our stuff in old milk jugs (because we have so many of them). We have always had a black thumb, so we are hoping to grow a little garden here. We like it because we won't have to go pull weeds in 100 degree temperatures! Eternal spring is pretty nice!

This is what I call my Chicken Little picture. He's so cute.

We found Nana and Pop's favorite place to eat...Burricos! It's in Volcan and it's a Mexican restaurant. It has some tasty tacos, burritos, enchiladas and fajitas. I've now tried them all! Yummy!

We stopped at Arte Cruz on the way down the mountain. This man owns a souvenir shop and will show you how he uses his chisel. He's a master! It looked so easy, but I know he has been doing it for many years. He even writes on glass! He was very talented.

Last but not least...we went for one more duro! Yumminess in a cup! Nana and Pop only ate pina colada each time. I have to agree that it is my favorite.

We are so glad that they came to visit us. It was really a fun week with a lot of great memories. They left early on Friday morning. We were headed to the airport in David and encountered a road block. Apparently there was a wreck and everyone was turning around. This bus stopped and told us we should go another way. We had never gone a different route, but thankfully we had Google Maps, so we followed the directions and with Ben's quick driving, they made it just in time!

We started their trip with a crazy driving adventure, and we ended it with one!

So glad they came. We love Nana and Pop!

Nana and Pop Visit: Las Lajas and David

On Monday we headed toward Las Lajas which is the beach close to David. It's about an hour from us. The waves are rough, so the kids had to wear lifejackets and Daddy kept close watch. They loved running and playing in the ocean!

Nana and Pop hung out on some nice drift wood with Malachi!

Ben said it was too big to bring back with us!

They dug big holes in the beach and tried to keep the waves from breaking their walls down. This black sand gets all over them and is hard to wash off! Good thing there is a little restaurant with showers where we parked!

After a quick lunch, we headed to the indoor market in David. They sell veggies, fruits, fish, meat, and chicken there. The kids goal is always to find the fish with the sharpest teeth.

In David, we stopped by PriceSmart to show Nana and Pop around. We bought a cake for our birthday while we were there and had it after dinner that night!

Nana and Pop Visit: Sunday Birthdays!

We started off Sunday with Nana and Pop at a new house church that is starting up at a friend's house. It was a fun way to start our birthday by seeing family and friends!

The kids got to spend some time in the freezing cold pool! They love it!

The birthday boy and girl! I was his 25th birthday present! It's a lot of fun to share our birthday and we try to be together most years on it! Pretty cool that they came to Panama to celebrate it with us.

We walked around their yard and took some pictures together. Fun to introduce Nana and Pop to our friends!

Sardines! This is our pretty stuffed car and how we went everywhere for the week!

Duros at Don Joaquin for our birthday! There's nothing better! My favorite is pina colada. I also like raspberry and coconut. These are like a natural popsicle in a cup. Some are made with water or yogurt. Sometimes they are in a plastic bag, but this place does them in a cup. They are so yummy!

Then we finally found Macho de Monte. Throwing rocks into it was about as close as we got. Maybe we will go back in dry season!

 

We found some really cool leaf cutter ants walking a trail. You can see how they have done this for so long that it has basically cleared a path. And it was a long path! Some ants were going to the tree to cut leaves and some were coming back carrying leaves, bark, or even leaves covered with other ants. It was an amazing sight to see!

 

Such a pretty place!

Happy birthday to Pop!!