Oct 2, 2014

Hi guys,

So it's been a good week of wonderful activities. Wed. after zone meeting in Santiago we took the sisters and went to see the famous pilgrimage cathedral and the surrounding area. It was such a perfect day clear and cool so we just took our time and strolled around. In a plaza behind the cathedral your dad was in heaven because there was a jazz guitarist playing and he was amazing. We actually talked to him for a while and he played "Girl from Ipanema" per Larry's request. I'm not a guitar expert but I loved listening to him. Later we went back to eat at a crepe restaurant, near where he had been playing, in hopes of hearing more of his great music, but he was gone. 

Last Thursday afternoon I spent with the sisters and Larry spent with the elders. We visited and taught an investigator and an then spent some time with an elderly lady in the branch. We sang with her and read the Book Of Mormon. The darling lady honestly cannot sing, which she admits, but loves the hymns and sings with gusto. We would sing for a while and then just burst into giggles  because she was so hilarious and then we'd get control and continue singing. Larry went and taught a lesson with the elders to an eight year old boy that was baptized Sunday night. 

Saturday was the  monthly RS meeting, the one that was enrichment and now has no name so when it's being announced no one knows what to call it. I went over in the morning to set up while Larry and the elders and sisters taught english. We learned to cook some wonderful appetizers and then we were able to sample them and have a fun time eating and talking. After that the YW had a fashion show which was their activity weekly activity (a small scheduling problem) and most of the women stayed for that. The YW did a really great job and to be honest it was a much better activity than I thought it would be. They were very creative and it was well planned. The clothes were also very darling. They used their own clothes and all of them modeled about 5 outfits for different occasions or types for activities. Their parent were the best cheering section but everyone was rah rahing. 

Sunday was the normal busy but with an added evening baptism followed by Institute, pancake night, and driving sisters and an elderly investigator home. We had a late night.

Monday Larry took the elders and sisters on the 3 in 1 tour, as he has started calling it. It includes the beach town of Biaona, the  Celtic ruins of SantaTecla, and the Portugese city of Valenca which is a small town built within a Roman Wall. I've writtien about it before. Larry has made that trip 5 times to my 3. It is a great trip but I passed and stayed home and did other things. Plus there wasn't room in the car for me. One of the sisters got sick on the trip so Larry brought them back to the apt. to rest and do their e-mailing. We went and got groceries for them and took them home later that night. They were both sick the next day so we took them some food to tide them over.

Wednesday night at english class one of our students, who is from Mozambique, and is here working on a doctorate in marine biology asked Larry and I to proof read her dissertation which she is writing in english. Wow that was an english grammar, vocabulary workout for our brains. She is coming again tonight so we can help her with more of it. It is a time consuming task.

After FHE we went with the sisters to one of our JAS homes to take her a birthday card and gift. We had gone earlier and only the dad was home so he invited us back for cake later that night with the family. We got there around 9:30 and could only stay for about 45 minutes because of the sister's 10:30 curfew. This young lady is actually not a member. Her parents are but she and her sister (16) were never baptized however they both attend all the meetings. She actually never comes to our JAS activities but she is there on Sunday and now and again at other branch activities. We finally got her to come into our Sunday School class and now we are working on getting her there for our weekly activities. She's a sharp girl but doesn't seem to want to be baptized.

We are so blessed to be here having such wonderful associations with the members here in Vigo, and all of the missionaries. What a marvelous work is being done in this part of the Lord's vineyard and we know the same kind of efforts are being made all over the world. What a great gift we have been given as a people to have the gospel plan in our lives and a living prophet guiding us through troubled times. We are so excited for General Conference. I hope you can all make time to watch it and hear the important timely messages our leaders have prepared for us.

Take care. We love you.

Mom and Dad

Sep 23, 2014

Hello dearest family,

If you've been on facebook today you know we started the day going to the fish market to buy swordfish. Angie, one of our JAS from Peru is teaching everyone how to make ceviche tonight at our activity and I told her we would get the fish. It wasn't as easy as I thought. We went to a few places and they all said "we usually have swordfish but not today" however at  last we found a little shop that had one piece and it was enough for our project. After that we came home and I started baking, oatmeal scotchies and brownies for tonight and zone meeting in Santiago tomorrow. I still have to make a stuffed baguette but I'm tired of the kitchen and taking a break. Meanwhile your dad is driving to Pontevedre to meet the owner of the former sister's apt. and close that down. I assume that means no more sisters there. So sad I love having sisters in our zone but now it's just the two in Vigo. After that he's meeting the sisters and taking them and their investigator to the Doctor. She is trying to quit smoking and apparently having a lot of anxiety. I feel for her and I know she really wants to stop so she can be baptized. I hope he can make it back in time for our "Sharing Skills Night" JAS activity.

We had a temple missionary couple come from Madrid come and spend the weekend with us. They are the Grieves from Springville where they have retired after having raised their family in Sacramento, CA. This is their third mission and they are such great people. We had a wonderful time showing them some of the beautiful sights between here and Portugal and then of course we went into Portugal to see Valenca the city surrounded by Romanesque walls. We also did some sight seeing around Vigo and ate at this wonderful Uruguayan restaurant. The Grieves had spent part of one of their missions in Uruguay and wanted to find a restaurant and eat some of their favorite foods from there so we found one and we loved what we ordered. We have a Uruguayan gentleman in our branch that told us two of his favorite restaurants with Uruguayan food.

Larry started getting sick last week at our JAS pizza night (which had a record attendance of 15) and woke up Wed. feeling terrible. After District meeting and getting all the elders back to their buses he pretty much hit the bed for the next two days with a terrible cold. Finally Saturday he felt well enough to help teach english class. After that we were also able to go with the sisters, to one of the families we've been asked to work with, to get to know them and leave a spiritual message. We talked a lot about the temple, obedience and the blessings they both bring into our lives. They seemed happy to have us there and when the mother gave the closing prayer she asked the Lord to help them get to church the next day. I thought for sure we would see them at church but no such luck. They rarely come so we'll just keep trying to build a relationship with them and help them any way we can.

We spent part of P-day showing the Grieves more of Vigo before they left around 11. We took them to this little church on a hill above Vigo that has amazing 360 degree views of the city, harbor, ocean and the islands off the coast. When we got their there was a tour bus there and the church was open. We had never seen it open before or even anyone on the grounds. For a Euro we climbed the bell tower of the church and were able to see even more breathtaking views. Later the sisters came to lunch and after that we went to the store to buy some things I needed for the food tonight and tomorrow. It was a fun easygoing day spent with wonderful people.

Love you all.

Mom and Dad

Sep 16, 2014

Hi to all,

I can't believe it's Tuesday and I'm  already a day behind in  my writing.  Last Tuesday most of the JAS came to the  church in the evening to help decorate for Andriv's good bye FHE party on Wed. We really decorated everything so nice with the colors red, green, and white. It looked very festive.  Wed. night so  many branch members came and everyone brought food so we had  more like a meal with lots of desserts. The party was such a lot of fun. We showed two videos of Andriv's life one of him growing up,  and the other with picture of his JAS years. His mom spoke, along with your dad, and Justino (his temple escort) and of course Andriv. Then it  was party time with music and dancing. It was such a lot of fun and a good send off for a missionary.

Saturday morning at 8 we went to the train station to see Andriv off to Madrid to be set apart by President Jackson. His mom  was able to go with  him so he wasn't alone and his older sister lives in Madrid and they have friends there so I am sure he had a  good support group at his setting apart.

 

Later in the day we met with Tairi, our JAS leader and planned the  next few months of activities. It can be a  challenge coming up with a variety of activities. We are limited by lack of transportation and budget but we do okay and the kids seem to be enjoying our get togethers.

We met with the RS pres. last week for a couple of hours and she talked to us about some of the couples in the branch that are struggling with staying active and getting to the temple to be sealed. She asked if we could start visiting and spending time with them and help encourage them in their efforts. So that is something new we will be doing that we are looking forward to. 

There is an LDS JAS age American here in Vigo until January as an exchange student from Ut State. That will be a nice addition to our group. In fact he was called Sunday to be the other JAS leader in the branch. He seems like a great guy, a returned missionary from Argentina, so excited about everything. He brought 3 other exchange students to Andriv's farewell party and invited them to church Sunday but they were too tired after going to Portugal and getting home late Sat. night. He said he would bring them tonight to the activity.

Institute started Sunday and we were so thrilled to have 8 kids show up. There are actually three  more enrolled that weren't there. Last year when we got here there was an average attendance of 3-4, so we are really trying to get these kids  excited about this new year.

 

We still have our regular routine of meetings, english classes, baking, dinners here, visiting etc. that keeps us busy most of the time. We do have an occasional lull in our routine but we enjoy the down time also and can go and see some things or just read and keep up with other odds and ends. Missionary work is so rewarding and just a happy time. We feel so blessed to be able to serve this mission here in Spain.

We loved being part of Griffin's blessing and all the other times we've face timed this past week. Take care and we love each of you so much.

Mom and Dad

Sep 8, 2014

Hola familia, 

It's a new week and today is P-Day so I have come full circle in my writing. I started off writing on P-Day and then the e mails started being written later and later in the week until I have caught back up or something like that. We had a busy wonderful weekend. There was  the Seminary and Institute opening for the new year Saturday in Santiago. We met some of our JAS at the church at 9:45 to be there by meeting time at 11. The meeting lasted until 2 and then we had lunch which was sack lunches bought by everyone and the district furnished the drinks and dessert. After that we had a district JAS activity at a nearby school, (a local  member lives on sight and manages the physical facility part of the school) which we were in charge of. We focused on missionary work and spotlighted two of the JAS that have mission calls and will be leaving soon. We had some videos,a great discussion about the actual process of paper work and medical requirements for a mission, the two future missionaries spoke about their decision to serve, and we gave them personalized pillow cases which everyone could sign. After that it was game and party time. They seemed to have a lot of fun and it was hard to break up the party when it was time to go. There was a Seminary and Institute training after the opening so when that was over at 5 the kid's rides were ready to go.

Our fast and testimony meeting yesterday was another memorable moment in our mission. Three of the JAS bore their testimonies and one young man said because of the JAS activity the day before he has decided to go on a mission. His mom was crying and everyone around her was patting her or holding her hand. The other JAS were beaming. It was truly a moment when you know the Lord's hand is guiding the work and we are his instruments. 

There was also a baptism last night of an 8 year old baptized by his father. The primary sang and three children gave talks and it was such a lovely evening followed by pancake night.

Larry went to Madrid last Thur. and came back Fri.  He went to take Andriv to pick up his visa for Mexico. At last that visa hassle is over and Andriv will fly to the Mexico MTC next Tuesday. While Larry was in Madrid I made the pillow cases and all the treats for the upcoming Saturday activity.

We had such a fun JAS activity Tuesday. I made up an amazing race game based on gospel tasks which we played at the chapel. It was fun. We built a scripture pyramid, drew Lehi's dream, had a word of wisdom photo shoot, and feasted upon the words of Christ and popcorn. It was a little more complicated than my description but it turned out really well. The kids hung around for quite a while afterwards and planned Andriv's farewell party which is this Wed. for branch FHE. We're in charge of the whole thing so that has taken quite a bit of planning. I am so delighted that they have Asian import stores all over this city where you can get just about anything you need for cheap. We took some of the JAS Thur. and went to one of the largest in the city and we were able to find almost everything we need to decorate for a "Mexican Fiesta." We bought ponchos, sombreros, red and green decor etc. 

Wed. was district meeting which we had missed the week before since we were in Madrid and I really did miss meeting with the young sisters and elders, learning, and being motivated. We had a great meeting then we took the Pontevedre elders out to lunch and drove them home. We needed to check on the sisters apt.in Pontevedre and make sure it was emptied of food and garbage since they have taken the sisters out of the city. Because of contracts the apt is still being rented by the church. Hopefully we can get some sisters back there soon. There is a shortage because so many sisters went home last transfer.

We had to postpone our anniversary trip to Portugal because of so many things going on. We're going to try to go next Monday or the next. President Jackson gave us permission, in fact he really encouraged us to go. We did manage to go out to dinner Friday night after Larry got home from Madrid and have a small celebration.

That's most of our past week in a few written paragraphs. It seems so short especially since this week was so busy. We are loving every minute of our time here and wake up happy and excited about each new day. We hope you all are doing well. We love the face time calls we receive even if it's just for a few minutes. And we love, love, love, talking to the grands. Love to you all.

Mom and Dad

Aug 31, 2014

Hi one and all,

It has been a busy but wonderful Sunday. After church a recent convert needed a ride home because her son's car had a flat. She lives in another city across the bay so it took some time to get there and back. We didn't get home from church until 3. Then at 6 we met with the elderly lady I talked about in a previous email. We try to visit her every Sunday and take a spiritual message. After that your dad was on splits at 7:30 with the elders then pancake night is at 8. It's10:20 and we just got home from taking the sisters to their apartment. Love Sundays!

Yesterday there was a branch party at Samil beach here in Vigo and what a fun time everyone had. We secured a place with grass and shade for eating and playing games and then the beach was just a minute walk away. The YSA were in charge of all the games and they did a great job planning and following through. We were in Madrid when they planned it so we were really happy how smoothly everything went.

The sisters came for lunch Friday and also to make brownies. Later in the evening we went to  a birthday party for a single sister in the ward who was celebrating  her big 50. It was at the RS president's house. Janet the birthday girl is from the Philippines so she, her siste,r and brother in law had prepared fried rice, noodles with chicken and veggies, egg rolls, and some kind of a meat loaf. Then everyone else filled in with sides and desserts. I  made lemon bars because Janet loves them. We had to take the sisters home from the party at 10:15 for their curfew and about 35 people were at the party. Amanda (RS Pres.) told me this morning that there were 60 people there by the end of the party which was around 1:30. Amanda said last year when she had her B-day party there was a large crowd and one of her neighbors called the police because of the noise. The police came and were surprised to find a group of clean cut people, no alcohol, and mostly women. They were very kind and laughed and told them to keep the noise down. But I think Amanda was a little worried last night there would be too much noise again and the neighbors might get upset. No complaints to the police thank goodness.

Tuesday we drove Andriv and his sister to Madrid and another gentleman in the ward drove their mom, little sister and grandmother. Andriv was receiving his endowment before his mission and we really wanted to be there with him. We got to Madrid and went straight to temple square (that's what they call it) so we could go to distribution and Andriv could get the things he needed for the next day and some things for his mission. We all went out to lunch and then to the apt. hotel where we stayed when we first came to Spain. Larry and I went to find a store called Taste of America so I  could buy brown sugar because our store here in Vigo is out. The store in Madrid only had one package left so I was not too happy. There are a few more of the same import store in the city but we ran out of time and never made it to another one.

Wed we were at the temple by 9 for the 10 0'clock session. The other gentleman that drove was Andriv's escort. He is a long time family friend. It was a wonderful day and we were able to do two sessions with lunch in between. Later that night Andriv's family prepared dinner for us in their apt. hotel. They really wanted to do something nice for us because of the support we were to them. We had a nice dinner and a lot of fun conversation.

We left Thursday around  3 after another stop at distribution, which didn't open until one, then lunch and back to Vigo. I hope we get to make many more trips to see  young men or women with a mission calls go to the temple to receive their endowment.

We actually did meet with Teo last Friday before branch council. He had a friend with him and she wants to take the lessons. I don't know what will happen with Teo but his friend is really interested. Maybe that's why the sisters felt so strongly to keep trying with him because of her. When investigators don't progress after a while the missionaries sometimes drop them and he has been months with no progress.

Our JAS sunday school class is official. They have even given us a room (not the Branch Pres office which was usually occupied so we were relegated to the foyer)and we are having great attendance. We had a wonderful discussion today about the signs of the second coming. It is such an important time in these young people's lives and there are so many things going on in this world that would be very discouraging to a young person without the gospel in their lives. The gospel of Jesus Christ is a gospel of hope and we know that good will triumph. What a blessing to have this knowledge and to be able to feel inner peace when the world is in such turmoil.

You all take care.

We love you,

Mom and Dad

Aug 22, 2014

Hello dear family,

We hope all is well with you and yours and those of you with school age kids are back in the swing. We have 5 grandkids in school which is hard to even comprehend, one of which is in middle school. Even harder to comprehend. Oh and we can't forget about Beckham who will soon be starting preschool. 

Monday morning we left for A Caruna with the Jacksons to attend zone conference. After arriving checking in etc. the Jacksons met up with the elders at the chapel and took a bus with them out to the Torre de Hercules. We drove instead of taking the bus. The tower is the oldest functioning lighthouse in the world and Is quite majestic as it stands at the tip of a peninsula on the Atlantic ocean. We all had lunch together at a restaurant near the tower which was so so. Then all the elders played soccer at a soccer field they had reserved for an hour and a half. The Hermanas, Jacksons, Dad and I just watched the soccer game and chatted. Those elders really enjoyed their game time and played hard. Later on in the evening we went back to the church together and watched the movie "Ephraim's Rescue." Everyone enjoyed the movie and the treats that went along with it.

Next morning we were up early to be at the church by 9:30 for zone conference at 10. Zone conferences are one of my favorite mission events. There is a real spirit of unity when we meet all together and are taught by Pres. and Sister Jackson and the assistants. The messages were wonderful, timely and as always so up lifting.  We said goodbye to all the missionaries and the Jacksons after a lunch of pizza. The Jacksons and the assistants flew back to Madrid and the rest of the elders dispersed on trains back to their respective cities. We drove the hermanas home with us so they would be on time for an appointment they had set up.

Later that night we had our JAS activity which was well attended and a lot of fun. We talked about ways we could improve after solving a scripture puzzle about qualites we need in our lives. We played a game of clues and pantomime guessing famous people. We made some plans for a going away party for Andriv  who will leave on his mission the 16th of Sept. I don't know if I mentioned our trip to Madrid with him and Joshua, another JAS so he could get his visa for Mexico. We got him there with every document they had told him to bring but they weren't satisfied and wanted the identification papers of the person in the legal department for the church in Mexico that had arranged everything. We hope he can get everything settled with them this next week when he is in Madrid to receive his endowment. We are going to Madrid to attend his endowment session.

The sisters made contact with Teo (african gentleman) again. These are new sisters that haven't worked with him before. We had an appointment to meet with him last night but he didn't show. When they called him before the appt. to see if he was coming he said he would be there. Well an hour past so they called again and this time he said he couldn't meet with them until tomorrow. So supposedly we are meeting him tonight at 7. 

President and sister Bamio (district Pres.) had us and the elders over for lunch today. We had a delicious lunch of lasagna and great conversation. They are a family from Venezuela although Pres. Bamio's parents were born in Spain and migrated to Venezuela. (I think that's the story) We have met so many wonderful people here in this mission and that has been such a blessing to us to have new and rewarding friendships. It's funny how important all these people have become to us in 7 short months. We didn't know any of them before that. We make the sacfrifice of leaving family and friends behind and the Lord blesses us with an abundance of more new friends than we would ever have met staying put in Orem.

I better get ready just in case Teo does come to meet with us tonight (I need more faith) and after that is branch council so our day isn't over yet. 

Take care everyone and know we love you.

Mom and Dad

Aug 17, 2014

Hello to everyone,

We hope everyone is doing well, especially Liam since his surgery today. Sure hope the tubes help him overcome his ear infections. We miss you all and love talking to you via facetime. Thanks for keeping in touch.

Today was the first day of our Senior couples seminar, or as Larry named it "the retreat from the heat" since all the couples are coming from Madrid or other hot parts of Spain. We met together at 9 for some presentations, one by your dad about using the buildings as a missionary tool, and then from the Lopezes who are the couple in charge of housing for the mission. We also watched a video about the purpose of temples. We played a getting to know you game then had district meeting with the young missionaries when they arrived at 11:15. The Pontevedre Elders, Beuden and  Johnson  missed their bus to Vigo and since Elder Beuden is the district leader and in charge of the meeting he was a little panicked. They arrived at the bus stop a little early but the bus had already left or it didn't come at all because today is a national holiday and the bus schedules can change. Elder Beuden called your dad while he was just finishing the presentation and for some reason he handed me the phone to answer. After hearing the Elders plight and a plea for a ride I reassured them he'd come right away to pick them up. It's a twenty minute drive one way and they were only a half an hour late instead of hours if they'd had to wait for the next bus. We had an excellent meeting conducted by Elder Beuden with all of the young missionaries participating. Then we had a lunch of Dominoe's pizza, salad, and desserts.

Larry and I were in charge of setting everything up for the meeting since we live here. We went over to the church last night and with the help of the Lopezes, who are staying with us, we got the tables set for lunch and chairs arranged for the meeting. Then we went and bought drinks and put them in the fridge at the church to be cold for lunch today. I came home and made salad dressing and cut up all the veggies for the salad.

Well it is now Sunday night and all of the Seniors have returned back to Madrid and other locals. Our Saturday meeting was  enriching and light hearted. The Arjonas from Madrid gave training for the JAS program and lots of good ideas, inspiration , and encouragement. They are over all of the JAS for all of Spain so they go train to all three missions. It was good to have some real direction and help with what can be less well defined than other church programs. They are both amazing people with some very good insights. President and Sister Jackson gave praise and instruction that was needed and helpful. After that was a talent show. Now that was fun and relaxing. Such cute ideas some of these couples came up with. Your dad had all the men come up and sing "Besame Mucho" to all the wives and it was a show stopper. At the end of the song all the wives ran up and kissed their husbands. I know cheesy but fun. President Jackson played the accordion and of course "Lady of Spain" was the chosen number. Great fun.

The afternoons and evenings of Friday and Saturday were free time so all the couples took advantage of seeing some of the beautiful sights in this area.  Some went to Portugal and others to SantiagoFriday. Saturday everyone went to La Toja, an island north of Vigo with a famous luxury hotel on it. A pretty exclusive island to be sure. Many wealthy Madrilenos go there to spend their vacations and escape the heat of Madrid. I do think one couple went to the beach here in Vigo rather than the island.

All the senior couples came to Church today and the people in the branch were so welcoming and glad to have all of them there. One couple sang a beautiful arrangement of "If the Savior Stood Beside Me", part in spanish and part in english. Both of them were Tabernacle choir members so that tells you the quality of their singing. Some couples left after sacrament meeting and others right after the block. The Jacksons stayed behind for zone conference Tuesday so we had them over for dinner. 

We visited a lovely elderly Cuban lady today along with the hermanas. She's pretty much homebound and the sisters have been working on arranging for priesthood brethren to bring her the sacrament. She's been in Spain for 20 years but lived in Cuba before that. She talked a lot about the devastation in her country and the hardships the people face because of the corrupt government and dictatorship of Fidel Castro. Never a day goes by here in our mission that I don't stop and realize all the blessings that I have enjoyed my entire life when so many others face such difficult hardships and challenges. We have been given much and it is our responsibility and blessing to give back.

There is so much more I could say but I am so exhausted that I am going to end now. We love you all and could use a few more facetime calls.

Love,

Mom and Dad