NEW PLANS.

You guys know by now that, due to a volcanic eruption, we were unable to leave Guatemala City today. The airport is closed and no flights are going in and out of Guatemala City until the ash clears; the situation is similar to what has happened this year in Iceland if you have heard about that. But BE ASSURED - WE ARE SAFE. We have had a temporary delay and this morning we have seen God provide for us in every way. Here's the new, finalized plan, by which we will arrive in Jackson on Sunday night.

Tomorrow morning we will travel from Guatemala to San Salvador, El Salvador. (All international flights are being diverted to San Salvador so this is why we are going here). We will leave the Holiday Inn in Guatemala City at 6:30 AM on the Pullmantur bus - www.pullmantur.com if you are interested. The bus will drop us off at the Sheraton Presidente Inn of San Salvador - http://www.starwoodhotels.com/sheraton/property/overview/index.html?propertyID=1597 where we will stay the night. It takes roughly four and a half to five hours to get to San Salvador, and the bus company arranges for ALL of our customs operations. This bus is very safe; this hotel is very safe; El Salvador will be very safe. We will be able to get home much quicker and be able to all stay together if we take the flight from San Salvador instead of waiting for the Guatemala City airport to open again.

Sunday morning, we will take the Sheraton shuttle to the San Salvador airport. We will leave San Salvador at 12:55 on Delta flight #374 to Atlanta. We will then leave Atlanta on Delta flight #1135 to Jackson, arriving in Jackson at 10:25 on Sunday. This, ironically, is the exact same Atlanta flight that we would have had if we had left today. We, essentially, have much the same plans as if we had left this morning.

We know this is a lot of information to grasp at once, but know that everything is under control. While this has been a somewhat confusing and unexpected turn of events, we are entirely safe and entirely ok. We have checked out information on the internet, Steve has assured us that this is an excellent way to return to the States, and we have worked out details with our travel insurance.

God has provided for us so well and we are thankful for the opportunity to trust Him more! I wish you could see the reaction of the kids when they found out we were staying another day...they all cheered and are so excited to have more time to work and to play. So, once more, be assured - all is well at La Senda and all will continue to be well. Thank you so much for your prayers! We will keep you updated if anything changes, but tickets are all purchased and confirmed so we believe this is the final plan. We are excited to see you in Jackson on Sunday night! If you have any questions, please post comments and we will get back to you as quickly as possible! For now until we leave in the morning, we will continue the good work God sent us here to do.

--Katie