Week 2 - 4/23-29/17

Everyone is pretty much settled in their new or last year's homes.  Except us, of course.  We still say that we are the only ones on our mission who are serving from home.  That is because we have been living in our RV for over 10 years.  Yes, we are spoiled!  It didn't take us long to "pack up and set up."

We all attend the 9:00 Church meetings at the three buildings in Evanston Stake.  They are different wards from the ones we went to last year.  Everyone seemed happy to have us there.  We had our first potluck dinner together after Church.  We usually have one every Sunday.  

Some of us got together in the evening to play games and eat snacks.   

What a great couple of days we had with our Area Authority Seventy over our mission, Elder Mark Durham.  Each missionary couple got to visit with him and his wife.  

We had a a special Family Home Evening with Elder & Sister Durham.  He gave us some very special blessings.  He told us that if we would look for some of our ancestors on TREK this year, we would feel them with us.  With the Durhams in the middle, we are Elders & Sisters McDowell, Wilson, Feler, Barton, Clark, Anderson, Call, Ekins, Howard, Peart, and Moretti.

The Evanston Stake President and Sister Lester and his counselor, President and Sister Platt also attended our Family Home Evening.  They bore their testimonies.  They are such great people.  Also at the meeting, some of the new missionaries told a little about themselves. We have such a great group this year.

Elder Dennis & Sister Jan Peart, our Directors and 3rd year missionaries, from Heber, UT.

Elder Bob & Sister Debra Barton, 2nd year missionaries, from Mesa, AZ.

Elder David & Sister Linda Ekins, 2nd year missionaries, from Hinckley, UT

Elder Spencer & Sister Gaylene Call, 2nd year missionaries, from Spanish Fork, UT.

Elder Terry & Sister Susan Howard, 2nd year missionaries, from Emmett, ID.

(We are not too good at selfies.)

Elder Larry & Sister Margery Clark, 1st year missionaries, from Midway, UT.

Elder Mark & Sister Marcia Wilson, 1st year missionaries, from Bloomington, ID.

Elder Jack & Sister Carolyn Theler, 1st year missionaries, from Draper, UT.

Elder Butch (Oliver) & Sister Barbara Moretti, 1st year missionaries, from Lyman, WY.

Elder John & Sister Jeanene McDowell, 1st year missionaries, from Mesa, AZ.

Elder Chris & Sister Renee Anderson, 1st year missionaries, from Heber, UT.

Elders Howard, McDowell, and Barton talking over some of the assignments given the first day of our work week.

The handcarts are one of the priorities.  Without them we couldn't have treks!  Besides that, some of them are stored in the Trek Center and are in the way of some of the other projects that need to be done.  I really enjoy working on them.  Partly because the Trek Center is heated, and it is pretty cold outside this time of year!

Sisters McDowell, Wilson, and Moretti got their first experience tightening bolts and screws, and checking wheels and boxes on the handcarts.  They are such good workers!

Sisters Ekins and Barton doing some of the repair work on the handcarts.

Sister Anderson . . .

. . . and Sister Theler spent a lot of time organizing all of the tools, nuts & bolts, and everything else piled on the workbench.  It will be so nice to be able to find the things we need.  I am sure it will be a big help to the Elders.  They were given a very nice request that they be sure to put things back where they belong so the next person can find them!

Elder Howard, in his fancy new bibs, as one of the mechanics, got busy right away!

It kind of looks as if Elder Moretti is the worker and Elder Howard is the supervisor!  Smart move, Elder Howard.  I do know better, though, because I can tell he spends plenty of time on the floor under those vehicles because I have to wash his bibs several times a week!

The birds are trying to let us know that spring is coming.  We had our camp chairs under our slide for a week or so.  When Elder Howard pulled one out, it had a bird's nest built on the top of it.  It is a good thing there weren't any eggs in it yet or we would not be able to use it for a while.

Whoops!  Did I say spring was coming?  

We had quite a few carts stored out in front of the Trek Center because the ground is too wet to take them to the staging areas yet.  Now they have to dry out!

Trying to finish up the last of the carts with Sisters Barton, Howard, Clark, McDowell, and Wilson.  It seemed like Christmas!

Saturday was a cold day at the ranch so we left and found warmer weather down in Salt Lake City.  It had been about 25 years since we had been through a session in the Salt Lake Temple (as we were taking Shay to the MCT for his mission.)  We talked a young photographer into taking our picture.  She was probably there to take some wedding pictures, but she was so nice to spend some time taking ours.

After the session we all went down to the cafeteria and ate lunch.  In the Salt Lake Temple there are people who act out the story of the creation, where it is a film in other temples.  The brother who played the part of Satan stopped by our table in the cafeteria and we told him that we had enjoyed the session with him in it.  He just laughed and said, "You would never imagine that I am a Stake Patriarch, would you!"

I love this picture with Moroni up in the clouds.

Elder Howard and I stepped inside the Conference Center--the first time we have been in it.  It is really nice.  That is where all of the Church's General Conference meetings are held, in April and October.  Some day we will have to go there to see conference, instead of watching it on TV.