"I want to ask you to pray for me this week as I meet with the Mandarin-speaking potential investigators. Pray specifically that I'll be able to communicate clearly the doctrines, that the Spirit will testify, and that we will understand their concerns and be able to help them resolve them.
Thanks! :¬)
-ecmj"
August 24, 2009
August 20, 2009
our first day at school ~ we're eager little learners...
INSERT the Priceless pictures of my PHS & Dixon Dot's and my Timp Wakko right here...
but not right now, silly... it's a school night, and it's past my bedtime.Yakko: School!
Dot : School!
Wakko: School!
YW+D : Schoo-oo-oo-oo-ool!
YW+D : Our first day at school
Yakko: Teach!
Dot : Teach!
Wakko: Teach!
YW+D : We're ready for our lessons
So teach us Math, Geometry
Don't forget Geography
English Lit. and Chemistry
And please throw in the A-B-C's.
Oh, teacher, teach us nooooow!
Dot : School!
Wakko: School!
YW+D : Schoo-oo-oo-oo-ool!
YW+D : Our first day at school
We're eager little learners
So fill our brains with lots of factsOur first day at school.
Yakko: Teach!
Dot : Teach!
Wakko: Teach!
YW+D : We're ready for our lessons
So teach us Math, Geometry
Don't forget Geography
English Lit. and Chemistry
And please throw in the A-B-C's.
Oh, teacher, teach us nooooow!
August 17, 2009
as usual, i'm just a wee bit busy these days...
but it's past time to copy and paste some wee bits from Calvin:
-- first, his comments on the above pictures:
"This is my English badge. I got this on Friday. I’ve been using my Chinese one since ... ever, but no one here can read it. We don’t meet a lot of Chinese people in this part of London. We do meet a lot of Nigerians, though. Yoruba tribe, mostly.
Some of the coinage; values are 1 penny, 2 pence, 10p, 5p, 20p, 50p, £1.oo. They also have a £2.oo coin, but I didn't have one at the time. Also, yes, the 10 and 5 are out of order". - (sent Aug 3 & 10)
from today --
Lots of heat waves mean it feels kinda like home.
Lots of water is required.
Busses are awesome.
People are cooler.
Yoruba tribe is one of Nigeria's biggest. They say *hello* like *Ba-wa-nee*.
Awesome folks, them.
We meet in an old office building.
The mission is now fun. :¬)
Have a nice day!
Love you all.
-ecmj"
We meet in an old office building.
The mission is now fun. :¬)
Have a nice day!
Love you all.
-ecmj"
2 weeks ago (Aug 3rd) Maya asked him to tell her a story and here was his reply:
"Did I ever tell you about my first P-Day out here? I got here on a Thursday, so I had 3 days (Fri., Sat., Sun.) before P-Day. That day, we decided to go buy a basketball and play ("we" is Elder Komulainen and I, as well as Elder Call and Elder Toyn, who live in the same flat). We did. At the end of that, there were some boys--maybe Ashton's age? --who wanted to play football (that's original, not American). We asked if we could play with them a little. They were cool with it, so we picked teams. A minute or so into playing, one of the little kids kicked the ball, and it hit me right in the face. I got the bloodiest nose I've ever had. If I can, I'll try to send you a video Elder Komulainen took of the aftermath. It was a good day. :¬)"
YES, i know - i'm WAY overdue for typing in great stuff from Sean's wonderful letters onto his blog... He'll be home in 7 weeks!!! I better get on it SOON...
July 23, 2009
Calvin continues...
For a few weeks in a row he emailed on Mondays between 4 and 5 am our time. (7 hours later London time).
We didn't get one last Monday - darn it! But our family life of Missionary mail experiences/issues the past 34 months (and 21 more to go) has taught us not to worry; that their routines change almost as much as ours! Then later that day we found a short, fun letter from him in our mailbox!
But late this evening I noticed a reply from him in my inbox that he'd sent early this morning...
How are things? Hopefully well.
Sad story: The other day, a couple young girls (maybe 13 or 14) asked us if we had any cigarettes. Everyone starts things younger here, in spite of laws. Lot's of single mothers and things, too.
Less sad: The other day, I made something almost like Arroz con Leche. [Rice Pudding] Elder Call (another elder in the flat) had cooked some rice, but wasn't going to eat it all. I took some, put some milk on it (or, more milk, technically, as he was eating it with milk), put cinnamon and sugar and stirred it up. Arroz con leche obviously is more than that, but it tasted similar. Which brings me to my question: Will you send me the recipe (electronically, or physically) for your Arroz con Leche?
A related question: Will you send me the green recipe box that I bought for my mission? And also the recipes for Spinach Pie, and whatever else was there? And also some Mrs. Dash? If not, that's cool. Thanks! :¬)
Our washer is cool, 'cause it's also a dryer. Not a very good dryer, but it dries (or, it tries.) <= [P0€trY] Papá: What kind of training were you doing in SLC? Have you used the iPod for audio books yet?
Mom: Busy as usual, it seems. How are the vending machines? Is Josie more diligent? When should I expect that questionnaire?
Josie: What's new? Remember when you said you'd write? I do. It was just after I rebuked you all because you never wrote. Wanna know what else? You haven't really written since. You have one week to write something cool, like your favorite scripture, or the party you organized, or the song you learned to play on the guitar. :¬) Mostly I'm joking.
Carmen: Are you still alive? I get emails from your email address, so I assume you are, but you don't tell me what you're doing. You should learn to make cake. Find a Good Eats about Cake on YouTube or something.
Maya: Hi. You should write in your journal. Mom sent me something you wrote about spring break, and it's very good. Just get a pen you like to use and use it. You'll love writing when you get into the habit. It's very fun, and it'll be your favorite if you start now. I promise. And I want to know what happened while I was gone. That's your job, okay? Good.
Ashton: You're a Bear, huh? In c-c-c-c-cub scouts! You did some cooking, init? (Here in England, a lot of people say, "I'nit?". It's short for "Isn't it?", and it means, "Huh?", like "You did some cooking, huh?") You should make Mom teach you how to make Arroz con Leche, too, and tell her to teach you Spinach Pie.
Hey, this thing about sometimes having P-day on Thursday happens every moves (so every 6 weeks); I should email on Thursday or Friday for those weeks (Friday because, if I'm transferred, I'll be moving on Thursday).
Sad story: The other day, a couple young girls (maybe 13 or 14) asked us if we had any cigarettes. Everyone starts things younger here, in spite of laws. Lot's of single mothers and things, too.
Less sad: The other day, I made something almost like Arroz con Leche. [Rice Pudding] Elder Call (another elder in the flat) had cooked some rice, but wasn't going to eat it all. I took some, put some milk on it (or, more milk, technically, as he was eating it with milk), put cinnamon and sugar and stirred it up. Arroz con leche obviously is more than that, but it tasted similar. Which brings me to my question: Will you send me the recipe (electronically, or physically) for your Arroz con Leche?
A related question: Will you send me the green recipe box that I bought for my mission? And also the recipes for Spinach Pie, and whatever else was there? And also some Mrs. Dash? If not, that's cool. Thanks! :¬)
Our washer is cool, 'cause it's also a dryer. Not a very good dryer, but it dries (or, it tries.) <= [P0€trY] Papá: What kind of training were you doing in SLC? Have you used the iPod for audio books yet?
Mom: Busy as usual, it seems. How are the vending machines? Is Josie more diligent? When should I expect that questionnaire?
Josie: What's new? Remember when you said you'd write? I do. It was just after I rebuked you all because you never wrote. Wanna know what else? You haven't really written since. You have one week to write something cool, like your favorite scripture, or the party you organized, or the song you learned to play on the guitar. :¬) Mostly I'm joking.
Carmen: Are you still alive? I get emails from your email address, so I assume you are, but you don't tell me what you're doing. You should learn to make cake. Find a Good Eats about Cake on YouTube or something.
Maya: Hi. You should write in your journal. Mom sent me something you wrote about spring break, and it's very good. Just get a pen you like to use and use it. You'll love writing when you get into the habit. It's very fun, and it'll be your favorite if you start now. I promise. And I want to know what happened while I was gone. That's your job, okay? Good.
Ashton: You're a Bear, huh? In c-c-c-c-cub scouts! You did some cooking, init? (Here in England, a lot of people say, "I'nit?". It's short for "Isn't it?", and it means, "Huh?", like "You did some cooking, huh?") You should make Mom teach you how to make Arroz con Leche, too, and tell her to teach you Spinach Pie.
Hey, this thing about sometimes having P-day on Thursday happens every moves (so every 6 weeks); I should email on Thursday or Friday for those weeks (Friday because, if I'm transferred, I'll be moving on Thursday).
Thanks. Love. Bye.
-ecmj
-ecmj
July 20, 2009
Have i mentioned lately that i LOVE being in YW??
|
July 06, 2009
more from Great Britain
Today (P-day) at 4:30 am Mtn time 11:30 am London time, Calvin wrote:
Okay, for the rest of my trip:
My companion, Elder Komulainen, came with the office elders to the airport. When I met up with them, Elder K snapped a photo. I'll try to get that from him. We got in the van, and went to the mission office, on the grounds of the London Temple. During the drive, I got somewhat startled once when the Elder in the passenger seat (the left front) turned around to talk to me. I was like, "eyes on the road, driver!", but he wasn't driving.
Oh, ~ The letter you got was from President Swinton, right? He left last week, so now we have President Shamo. He's cool, too. I'm glad you got those pictures, though. President Swinton is probably back in Salt Lake looking for clients, now. He's a lawyer.**
Anyway, the day I got there was something called a Temple Conference. They don't happen often, I'm told. It's similar to a Zone Conference, but at the temple. Just recently, the London Temple got a Visitor's Center (the only one in Europe, according to reports), so President Swinton taught us there. Then we did a session, and had lunch at the temple cafeteria (very good food) then President & Sister Swinton taught a good-bye-type lesson. The zone leaders told some "Pres' Dawg" stories about things President Swinton did, and afterwards we went home. I live very near the Thames river. Google my address sometime. Tell Josie to, with the kids, or Carmen or Maya, if Josie's out. Oh, and write a snail mail letter to me, too, if you can. Just one as a family.
To answer your other questions:
Okay, for the rest of my trip:
My companion, Elder Komulainen, came with the office elders to the airport. When I met up with them, Elder K snapped a photo. I'll try to get that from him. We got in the van, and went to the mission office, on the grounds of the London Temple. During the drive, I got somewhat startled once when the Elder in the passenger seat (the left front) turned around to talk to me. I was like, "eyes on the road, driver!", but he wasn't driving.
Oh, ~ The letter you got was from President Swinton, right? He left last week, so now we have President Shamo. He's cool, too. I'm glad you got those pictures, though. President Swinton is probably back in Salt Lake looking for clients, now. He's a lawyer.**
Anyway, the day I got there was something called a Temple Conference. They don't happen often, I'm told. It's similar to a Zone Conference, but at the temple. Just recently, the London Temple got a Visitor's Center (the only one in Europe, according to reports), so President Swinton taught us there. Then we did a session, and had lunch at the temple cafeteria (very good food) then President & Sister Swinton taught a good-bye-type lesson. The zone leaders told some "Pres' Dawg" stories about things President Swinton did, and afterwards we went home. I live very near the Thames river. Google my address sometime. Tell Josie to, with the kids, or Carmen or Maya, if Josie's out. Oh, and write a snail mail letter to me, too, if you can. Just one as a family.
To answer your other questions:
- Elder Komulainen--to whom I am guessing Papá is referring by "Elder Alvar Aalto"--does not speak Chinese beyond "ni hao" ("hello"). Just Finish and English.
- The area I'm in now ("Welling"; Google it, if you like) there are not a ton of Chinese-speakers. There are lots of people from Nigeria and other African countries. Also, Indian, Nepalese, and "Chav"-- (poor white type), very like the low-life white type in Utah ... it's sad. But it's okay. (I meant to send you a picture today of the Book of Mormon shelf we have with tons of languages but I forgot the cord to connect my camera, so I'll send those next week).
- There are about 160 missionaries. About 7 Mandarin, as far as I've been told. I've only seen 4, (all at the Temple Conference). ~ There are at least 2 assigned spanish elders. There are elders from Finland, Spain, Denmark, Germany, the U.S., England, and I think I've met one from Poland. One just went home from Romania. There's another from there, too, I think. But as far as assignments go, I've only heard of English, Spanish, and Mandarin (which is pronounced /man-duh-REEN/ out here).
Yeah, have everyone write notes for the medicine box. Have them write them now, so they'll be done when you send the medicine. Mailing a lot of letters would be too expensive, of course, so send all you can in the packages.
I'm sure you've already thought of all that, though, so, whatever.
One min left. Love, ecmj
Oh, p.s. Tell Carmen and Maya to take the time to capitalize when they email the King of Convention, the Grammar Guru, the one and only me. :¬P Thanks. Bye.
** Sure-ease thought: Good thing he left Provo abruptly 2 weeks early ~ Because that put him there in time for the "Changing of the Guards" as far as mission presidents go, as well as that temple conf -which both would be good opening experiences for Calvin.
June 29, 2009
First word from LONDON!!
Dear family and friends:
Although Calvin's planned MTC departure date was July 6th or possibly later (based on recent visa delays and experiences of others) - He found out last Tuesday around dinner time, that he was "shipping out" the following morning first thing!! He was allowed a 10 min call to us at 9 pm Tues night. He sounded great - happy, excited, shocked, and a bit nervous about heading to England alone (he'd avoided ever flying before now) - but he sounded full of faith, to be sure... without which, he would've never left home last April.
So for me, (and it's ALL about ME) it was a very LONG 5 + days waiting for confirmation that he'd arrived in England - even with YW's camp to keep my mind off of him. But as usual with that boy, when nudged/compelled into doing something he's resisted and avoided (like an airplane) - once pushed into a pool, he swims to the edge, gets out, drys off, and that's that! (Often later, he doesn't even remember being resistant). ... Unmistakably - Koki's genes.
enjoy
Mucho love and campfire smell to each of you,
Cherry
(FYI ~ reminder for some of you that his London assignment includes learning and preaching in the Mandarin language - hence his mention of those he met that had served in Taiwan.)
From: Koki
To: Calvin
Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009
Subject: That's my boy
(Koki -the anti-blogger, wrote 5 GREAT sentences to Calvin that I will not post until i have his consent :D - but he asked Calvin to tell him ALL the details; from the time he hung up with us until the time he woke up his first morning in England. And so, he did! When does THAT ever happen?)
Mon, Jun 29, 2009 5:15 AM (mtn time)
Re: "That's my boy" & "hello out there?"
All the details would be somewhat tough to include in this email. I don't have a lot of time. But here are some good ones: I was up 'til 11:30ish Tues night packing, with the help of two other elders in my district (Elders Gania and Johnson). Then we went to bed. We woke up at 5:30 am, and I got ready, and a few other elders in the zone woke up and said good bye (remind me to tell you more about that sometime), then the same 2 and I went to the bus. I was the only one heading to England. There were other missionaries going to Canada, (English and Korean), I believe. There may have even been some going to Korea. Then we all drove up to Salt Lake airport, and I checked in and whatever, and I went to Gate D2 (I think), and I met some people there, one of whom had gone to Taiwan on his mission. Then I got on a plane to Cincinnati, Ohio. It was not a big plane. Delta. B737. My camera was pretty much out of battery by that time, so I don't have any pictures. Bummer, but whatev'. As we took off, I realized we'd fly over the Mississippi river. I wrote some things down in my reporter's moleskine, like "planes look ricketier up close", which they do. It was fun though. Then I flew. After a while, we did fly over the Mississippi, and other rivers, too. Le'me say, the East may have no clue what mountains are, but they know how to make rivers. I had a 4 1/2 hour layover in Cincinnati, and I met another former Taiwan missionary (both were rather old, by the way; 70ish, by my guess). I also talked to a lady named Megan for a while about missions, and the Book of Mormon. It was cool. Then, we got on the plane to the airport in Gatwick, London, England. I watched the sun "set" ('cause we were flying north/north-eastish over Quebec and such) and saw that "Escape to Witch Mountain" was the movie, though I did not have headphones, nor permission to watch it. I had the dinner (which is actually not as bad as people say; also, I had a Fresca with it) and, after 2ish hours (after the movie had ended, I think), I fell asleep. When we were over England already, I woke up. We couldn't see it, because of clouds. The plane eventually landed, (not too late) and we got off. Then I stood in a huge line for people with not-EU passports. When it was my turn, they weren't sure if I was okay. But after not too long, they figured everything out. So I exchanged the money I had in my pockets ([dollar sign]52.oo) for Pounds (£25.something). Then I got my luggage. At the bagclaim or whateverit'scalled, a family greeted me and asked where I was going. They were members. After a short conversation, they handed me an American bill. I thanked them and then again thanked them, and then I continued on. After a little while, I looked at the bill. Le'me ask you something: Who gives a stranger [dollar]1oo.oo bill in London? Evidently, the answer is charitable LDS.
Then--after a brief walk--I met the missionaries who came to pick me up. I'll pick up from there next week (if you remind me).
Quickly, here are some pictures. One of my "flat" building, another of my trainer (Elder Komulainen from Finland).
Speaking of where I live, here it is:
80 Longacre House
Pettacre Close
Thamesmead
London
SE28-OPB
England
Finally, Mom, I read yours too and enjoyed it very much. I will give you details as to first impressions of England in the next email, I imagine. It's less time covered, but more experiences. It's fun.
Thanks, love, and see you.
ecmj
From: Cherie
To: Calvin
Date: Sunday - 6/28/09 5:30 pm
Subject: Hello Out There?
Hi Calvin mijo,
I've been thinking about you and praying for you all week...
I got back from YW's camp late yesterday - and lived to tell about it :D ... but i still have NO idea if YOU survived flying and lived to tell about it! -
I must resign myself to the "No news is good news", I guess.
We are actually at Omar's right now. -- It was Jacob's day to speak in church!
Basically, everyone has left but us - Melinda & gang are coming back and we're making another meal later-(although we did enjoy filling chuchitos hours ago). We're "chilling" downstairs in the family room. Maya ran with Kristen to go feed her new puppies and get her train game (ticket to ride?) she's been wanting us to play since last Dec - Ashton is happily creating with a bucket of Lego, Papá is snoring on the couch as if HE went to camp, and several others are watching "Nanny McPhee"-(some for the first time). It just happened to start after a championship soccer game - and strangely we had just been reminded of it this morning in church when someone quoted a good line of the nanny's when she asks the children, "Are you willing to accept the consequences of your choices?" (Emma Thompson always rocks).
Mia Shalom was beautiful!! You'd be pleased to know that i took lots of close-up pictures of wildflowers on our long hike - their amazing detail is facinating to me. Oh, yeah - we were w/out a small camera again after you left, so i researched with Csmr Rprts and got a little Cannon, using up a $60 Best Buy in-store credit. (Hooray, i followed through!).
Camp was a huge success from my perspective, because much good took place - the YW showed love, felt love, and included whomever needed it at the moment. They pitched in, worked hard, and participated -- all w/out complaining!! Your 3 sisters were angels - really. Josie, Lizzie, Tori, & Renee did an amazing job of providing leadership, love, and example... and the adult leaders - both stake and ward, did a great job of setting up moments that encouraged the building of faith and testimony!!! (and FUN) Pres Bell was great with them all too. You'd have loved witnessing it all - miracles - many miracles.
I'll sign off - i've more to write but understand your limits on time.
I can't wait to hear about your adventures... and your first impressions of the UK!
Love,
mommy
PS -I want to send photos soon -Maya tells me she took a 17 min video of me -crazy dancing w/ YW, but I'm still denying its existence. We miss your fast AV skills... (We all wanted to view camp pics last night but not ONE of us had enough patience or energy to troubleshoot difficulties w/ the connection between the camera and TV) - I heard Papá tell a relative today that Sean will be home in 99 days - ... so maybe you'll get photos after that!
Although Calvin's planned MTC departure date was July 6th or possibly later (based on recent visa delays and experiences of others) - He found out last Tuesday around dinner time, that he was "shipping out" the following morning first thing!! He was allowed a 10 min call to us at 9 pm Tues night. He sounded great - happy, excited, shocked, and a bit nervous about heading to England alone (he'd avoided ever flying before now) - but he sounded full of faith, to be sure... without which, he would've never left home last April.
So for me, (and it's ALL about ME) it was a very LONG 5 + days waiting for confirmation that he'd arrived in England - even with YW's camp to keep my mind off of him. But as usual with that boy, when nudged/compelled into doing something he's resisted and avoided (like an airplane) - once pushed into a pool, he swims to the edge, gets out, drys off, and that's that! (Often later, he doesn't even remember being resistant). ... Unmistakably - Koki's genes.
enjoy
Mucho love and campfire smell to each of you,
Cherry
(FYI ~ reminder for some of you that his London assignment includes learning and preaching in the Mandarin language - hence his mention of those he met that had served in Taiwan.)
From: Koki
To: Calvin
Date: Thu, 25 Jun 2009
Subject: That's my boy
(Koki -the anti-blogger, wrote 5 GREAT sentences to Calvin that I will not post until i have his consent :D - but he asked Calvin to tell him ALL the details; from the time he hung up with us until the time he woke up his first morning in England. And so, he did! When does THAT ever happen?)
Mon, Jun 29, 2009 5:15 AM (mtn time)
Re: "That's my boy" & "hello out there?"
All the details would be somewhat tough to include in this email. I don't have a lot of time. But here are some good ones: I was up 'til 11:30ish Tues night packing, with the help of two other elders in my district (Elders Gania and Johnson). Then we went to bed. We woke up at 5:30 am, and I got ready, and a few other elders in the zone woke up and said good bye (remind me to tell you more about that sometime), then the same 2 and I went to the bus. I was the only one heading to England. There were other missionaries going to Canada, (English and Korean), I believe. There may have even been some going to Korea. Then we all drove up to Salt Lake airport, and I checked in and whatever, and I went to Gate D2 (I think), and I met some people there, one of whom had gone to Taiwan on his mission. Then I got on a plane to Cincinnati, Ohio. It was not a big plane. Delta. B737. My camera was pretty much out of battery by that time, so I don't have any pictures. Bummer, but whatev'. As we took off, I realized we'd fly over the Mississippi river. I wrote some things down in my reporter's moleskine, like "planes look ricketier up close", which they do. It was fun though. Then I flew. After a while, we did fly over the Mississippi, and other rivers, too. Le'me say, the East may have no clue what mountains are, but they know how to make rivers. I had a 4 1/2 hour layover in Cincinnati, and I met another former Taiwan missionary (both were rather old, by the way; 70ish, by my guess). I also talked to a lady named Megan for a while about missions, and the Book of Mormon. It was cool. Then, we got on the plane to the airport in Gatwick, London, England. I watched the sun "set" ('cause we were flying north/north-eastish over Quebec and such) and saw that "Escape to Witch Mountain" was the movie, though I did not have headphones, nor permission to watch it. I had the dinner (which is actually not as bad as people say; also, I had a Fresca with it) and, after 2ish hours (after the movie had ended, I think), I fell asleep. When we were over England already, I woke up. We couldn't see it, because of clouds. The plane eventually landed, (not too late) and we got off. Then I stood in a huge line for people with not-EU passports. When it was my turn, they weren't sure if I was okay. But after not too long, they figured everything out. So I exchanged the money I had in my pockets ([dollar sign]52.oo) for Pounds (£25.something). Then I got my luggage. At the bagclaim or whateverit'scalled, a family greeted me and asked where I was going. They were members. After a short conversation, they handed me an American bill. I thanked them and then again thanked them, and then I continued on. After a little while, I looked at the bill. Le'me ask you something: Who gives a stranger [dollar]1oo.oo bill in London? Evidently, the answer is charitable LDS.
Then--after a brief walk--I met the missionaries who came to pick me up. I'll pick up from there next week (if you remind me).
Quickly, here are some pictures. One of my "flat" building, another of my trainer (Elder Komulainen from Finland).
Speaking of where I live, here it is:
80 Longacre House
Pettacre Close
Thamesmead
London
SE28-OPB
England
Finally, Mom, I read yours too and enjoyed it very much. I will give you details as to first impressions of England in the next email, I imagine. It's less time covered, but more experiences. It's fun.
Thanks, love, and see you.
ecmj
From: Cherie
To: Calvin
Date: Sunday - 6/28/09 5:30 pm
Subject: Hello Out There?
Hi Calvin mijo,
I've been thinking about you and praying for you all week...
I got back from YW's camp late yesterday - and lived to tell about it :D ... but i still have NO idea if YOU survived flying and lived to tell about it! -
I must resign myself to the "No news is good news", I guess.
We are actually at Omar's right now. -- It was Jacob's day to speak in church!
Basically, everyone has left but us - Melinda & gang are coming back and we're making another meal later-(although we did enjoy filling chuchitos hours ago). We're "chilling" downstairs in the family room. Maya ran with Kristen to go feed her new puppies and get her train game (ticket to ride?) she's been wanting us to play since last Dec - Ashton is happily creating with a bucket of Lego, Papá is snoring on the couch as if HE went to camp, and several others are watching "Nanny McPhee"-(some for the first time). It just happened to start after a championship soccer game - and strangely we had just been reminded of it this morning in church when someone quoted a good line of the nanny's when she asks the children, "Are you willing to accept the consequences of your choices?" (Emma Thompson always rocks).
Mia Shalom was beautiful!! You'd be pleased to know that i took lots of close-up pictures of wildflowers on our long hike - their amazing detail is facinating to me. Oh, yeah - we were w/out a small camera again after you left, so i researched with Csmr Rprts and got a little Cannon, using up a $60 Best Buy in-store credit. (Hooray, i followed through!).
Camp was a huge success from my perspective, because much good took place - the YW showed love, felt love, and included whomever needed it at the moment. They pitched in, worked hard, and participated -- all w/out complaining!! Your 3 sisters were angels - really. Josie, Lizzie, Tori, & Renee did an amazing job of providing leadership, love, and example... and the adult leaders - both stake and ward, did a great job of setting up moments that encouraged the building of faith and testimony!!! (and FUN) Pres Bell was great with them all too. You'd have loved witnessing it all - miracles - many miracles.
I'll sign off - i've more to write but understand your limits on time.
I can't wait to hear about your adventures... and your first impressions of the UK!
Love,
mommy
PS -I want to send photos soon -Maya tells me she took a 17 min video of me -crazy dancing w/ YW, but I'm still denying its existence. We miss your fast AV skills... (We all wanted to view camp pics last night but not ONE of us had enough patience or energy to troubleshoot difficulties w/ the connection between the camera and TV) - I heard Papá tell a relative today that Sean will be home in 99 days - ... so maybe you'll get photos after that!
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