Loving This Spring Weather

Loving this Spring Weather

15 March 2015

The weather is wonderful  - in the 70's - and predicting 80 degrees tomorrow. (Monday).  Sunshine can sure lift the spirits.  I took a little drive, hunting down maps of Iowa at rest stops, down I-80 and I just wanted to sing it was so bright and sunshiny.  There is no green grass yet, but lots of blue skies.   I'm feeling better since my last letter, but it will take awhile to get back to normal....so I've been told. 

Missionary work is moving along.  Some weeks we get lots of baptism and then others...not so much.   The office work is always busy.  Elder Stringham is busy closing apartments (our numbers are down) and moving furniture to storage.  I am trying to reach some parents who moved from Hawaii to the Marshall Islands so I can send them the Elder's itinerary, and also, their Bishop and Stake President.  The Elder is hoping they email him this info on Preparation Day on Monday.  Sometimes they don't have internet where they are living.  We want someone to be at the airport to pick up this returning missionary as he steps off the plane.  If I don't hear from one of them, I just can't assume that they received my mail or emails. 

29 March 2015

Sorry....we got busy  in the office.  There are changes being made in two of the Stakes so we are trying to decide which areas belong to which missionaries and which ones will be closed.  (Well not me...but the President and the Assistants)  This will be a big time computer changes for the reports, the Zone Conferences, the Mission Leadership Conferences and housing! 

My health is doing well.  I am feeling blessed to have good doctors!

I love learning about the sweet people whose baptisms I submit!  I just submitted one of a 45 year-old lady who worked with a member of our faith in the hospital.  He is an anesthesiologist, her job I am not sure of.   During some small talk she asked him what plans he had one night.  He said he was going Home Teaching  She asked what that was and he explained it all to her.  Another time she asked  him again what his plans were.  He said he was preparing for a trip to Omaha Nebraska Temple.  She again asked about the temple.  She asked if anyone could go in.  He explained that before it is dedicated visitors were welcomed to an Open House.  She wanted to know where there was an Open House for a LDS Temple.  The Phoenix, Arizona temple was holding an open house so she caught a flight to Phoenix, toured to temple and then went to the grounds/visitors center of the Mesa Temple and to the Gilbert Temple.  She had such a sweet feeling and a spiritual experience in Arizona, that she  got back she found the member and asked how she could become a member.  We had some very excited  missionaries there and she was just baptized last weekend. 

Yesterday we attended a baptism of a young 18 year-old man who was baptized by his best friend.  He had been coming to church for quite awhile.  He never really wanted to join until recently when he was thinking seriously about his life.  The friend was so teary-eyed through the whole program and ordinance and made us all emotional.

Mondays are Preparation Day for the young missionaries  That is when they email their parents.  Most parents must be sitting by their computers waiting for the email to come through.  If these missionaries are having a bad day or feeling grumpy about one thing or another  they tell their parents.  So Monday afternoons, evenings and Tuesdays we get a lot of calls from worried parents.  Sometimes  of their concerns are really legitimate.  Other times it sounds concerning, but by the time the President or his wife talk to the missionary it has been resolved or they didn't mean to make it sound so worrisome to their  parents. 

We are getting a lot of Easter packages and cards.  Some parents have clever ideas!  I posted this on facebook/instagram, but want to put it in the newsletter because I will keep these forever!

An Easter Egg shaped package sent to one of the Elders  It was quite heavy.  Last year we had a small plastic-type egg sent through the mail.    (Excuse the messy desk area.  It was a very busy day and I had several projects going on at once.)

We are enjoying our mission.  Some days are hard, every day is busy, but there are just a lot of sweet moments and wonderful memories!  We love you all so very much!