Sweethearts!

Here are our "sweethearts", in their gorgeous

dresses for the Valentine's dance.

Courtney and Kaitlin, cutie patooties!!!

Happy Valentine's Day!

Welcome to my home during Valentine's 

I'm so glad I brought my decorations to Canada,

I did it for Courtney because I wanted things to

be normal for her, but it has really helped me.

This ginormous card was a purchase from the dollar store.

I thought the chocolates were a nice touch.

My cute painted candle decoration and of course my cards.

Another view

Valentine sprinkles, my favorite, my darling spoons and a cute heart

pan, also purchased from the dollar store.  Not sure what you'd cook in it.

Kitchen towels hanging on the oven door handle.

More random stuff

My cutie, patootie aprons.

Take outs and dishes of chocolates.

I found this awesome wall vinyl and put it up this week.

Perfect!

Do you like my new table runner?   Yeah, me too!

Soooo pink and soooo cute!

This very wonderful quilt came in the mail this week

from a sweet mother of one of our elders.

  It is my red and white Canadian quilt.

My wonderful children, covered with roses.

So Long, Elders!

We say goodbye to four more elders, we will miss them.

We are growing closer and closer to these missionaries, then we have 

to say goodbye to them, not knowing if we'll ever see some of them again.

But I truly feel that we will be friends for eternity.

After transfer meeting I took the outgoing elders to the mission home,

President and the assistants had a leadership training. 

 I had lunch ready, chicken salad croissants, chips, pretzel salad and cookies.

While we waited, I had them do all of my going home "things".

Sign my book, fill out my paper, highlight their favorite scripture,

tell me their favorite recipe and sign my apron.  Then when

President got home he started interviews.  We took them into the

temple and did a session, along with a few Grand Prairie elders.

Then came back to the house for dinner.  I fixed enchiladas, the elders

were really excited about that, chips and salsa, leftover pretzel salad

and corn on the cob.  Yummy!

I tried to make as many things pink as I could, you know for

Valentine's Day.  The sour cream, the salad, the dessert.

I made chocolate eclair dessert, 

it was very tasty.  Then after dinner we headed downstairs for the fireside.

It's all beginning to be quite a routine, not for the outgoing missionaries

of course, but it is for us.  And it's all good, we enjoy it.

We sing hymns, watch a video of the mission sights,

take pictures, more pictures, and . . . cut ties.

One of our outgoing elders was showing off the 50 pounds he's lost

 over the past 4-6 months.  He really does look good, and his

suit is really too big.  His parents will be so surprised.

Another elder has kept his piano talents a secret, he can play

hymns and he didn't tell me.  He played for our fireside.

I will never sing "God Be With You 'Til We Meet Again"

the same way ever again.  He basically taught himself to play.

Transfer Meeting

Another transfer meeting.  My favorite meeting.  Why?  Because we get

to see so many missionaries and they are sooo excited to see each other.

You don't ever think about it, but some missionaries go months without seeing 

some of their former companions or missionaries they came out with.  There

is quite a bond, and it shows at these transfer meetings.

We have a new french canadian missionary.  We already have one out and

they are from the same ward back home.  Only they didn't know each other.

Our new elder joined the church after the other elder was already serving.

We have our sweet sisters.  I had the hardest time pulling them together for 

a picture, it took me forever, they are just too social.

But they are so cute!

 I couldn't resist, I had to sneak into one of their pictures.  Did I say that?

I hate to have my picture taken.

I guess the snowbank makes a good holding spot, I hope the luggage is

waterproof, because all the clothing will be wet.

Sometimes the trunks of the mission cars just aren't big enough.  

But it's amazing what they can fit in them.

New Missionaries #13

We are welcoming a brand new batch of elders today.  Everything is 

ready at home and at the office, all we have to do is pick them up.

So off to the airport we go.  Next time we should be picking them up in 

the new international section of the Edmonton Airport.  Yeah!!!

This is a new sign, maybe it's an upgrade for the new airport section.

It was a beautiful sunny day, a little cold but sunny.  We keep telling

the new missionaries that they are very lucky, the weather has been gorgeous.

Next they need to get their paper work and get all their luggage into the trailer.

Shoes, brand new shiny, new missionary shoes.

We had a really nice lunch at the office, I made Valentine cookies, and they

all seemed to enjoy the new flavored chips and the cookies.  They filled out

the necessary paper work and watched the driving video.  They even got a 

kick out of the "special" medical training by Elder Woodruff.

After the office we head to the mission home, where President interviews

the new missionaries, the assistants train and I have them write a letter home

and fill out a "getting to know you" paper.  We eat dinner and then enjoy 

a nice fireside together where they get instruction from President and myself,

watch a slide show of pictures from around the mission and hear 

testimonies of our new, tired, humble and scared missionaries.

When all is done, I give them a taste of Tim Horton's and they head

off to the assistants apartment for the night.  Whew!!

Best Thing

Every now and then you do something in your life rather brilliant.

This was a brilliant move on my part. Bringing this little

marble game with us to the mission field was ingenious.

We bought it at a Bombay store in Las Vegas, years ago.

The elders love it, they all try their hand at getting the best

score, we've had two along the way that have gotten it down

to one marble, Elder Faber, (he actually said he wasn't going home

until he mastered it) and Elder Bishop (he just played it enough times).

The new elders right out of the MTC sit down and give it a try 

and the elders heading home will play it over and over again.

Brilliant!

World's Largest. . .

We spent the day driving two elders back to their area, but it wasn't

a total waste of time.   Along the way and on the trip back, we spotted

several of Alberta's famous "world's largest" items.  I was so excited.

I've been waiting to see these famous sights for over 18 months.

This is the "world's largest" mallard duck, don't know why. . . 

it just is.  This shows you how big it is compared to the flags.

Quack, Quack, Quack

This fine gentleman is a "world's largest" trapper man.

We had to take pictures from across the street because the museum

was closed for the winter.  We may go back this summer.

This, now this is. . . wait for it. . . 

the "worlds' largest" perogie.
When we were taking the picture, Chris asked what the big
thing through the middle was supposed to be. It's a fork.

 Figure that one out.  Why would you have a giant perogie in your town?

 A perogie is a dumpling type foodfilled with things like potatoes,

 bacon and cheese.  The missionaires love them because they're easy

 and cheap.  You typically boil them and then fry them in a little

 butter.  I haven't actually tried one yet, I guess there's no time like the 

present.  I'll get back to you.

And this "world's largest" hasn't even been seen by the missionaries.

At least they haven't told be about this one.  All the other attractions the 

missionaires have seen and told me about, but not this one.  I think I'm the first.

"World's Largest" mushrooms?  Interesting!