Temple Square Sisters

We are blessed once again to have Temple Square Sisters come to our mission for their two-transfer proselyting experience.  Sister Mathias is from Germany and Sister Torino is from the Philippines. They have been on their missions  at Temple Square since last November.  I expected Sister Mathias to have a German accent, and I was brushing up on my language skills so I could speak a little Deutsch with her, but out of her mouth came beautiful British English!  Sister Torino came to the US knowing no English.  She said she just knew that she would be called to serve in the Philippines, so she studied another dialect as she prepared to serve, but instead of being assigned to the Philippines, she was sent to Temple Square in Salt Lake City. Her 1st language is Tagalog.  Now she knows three languages,  :o)

Sister Mathias and Sister Torino

Sister Mathias, Sister Rudy, Sister Wheelock and Sister Torino

These four met and went to the mission home so President could interview the two Temple Square Sisters - then he assigned them to their new trainers.  Sister Mathias will spend the next three months in Summerville with Sister Wheelock and Sister Torino will be working with Sister Rudy in Camden.

Switching Missions Mid-Stream

We've been blessed to have three visa-waiters in our mission for a good long time!  Elder Gonzalez and Elder Blackner have been in the SCCM a little over a year.  Elder Orchard came in January.  Finally...FINALLY, their visas arrived!  They were "excited but nervous," to be going to Brazil.  All three went to different missions, but they got to travel to SanPaulo together.  They will spend two weeks in the MTC down there before they ship out to their assigned areas.  President Turner said, "Actually, I'm a little bitter.  I just lost three GREAT missionaries!"  :o)  Glad we will be seeing them again at our SCCM reunions.

Elder Blackner and Elder Orchard spent their last night with us, then Jack took them to the airport.

Elder Orchard, Elder Gonzalez (who met up with us at the office) and Elder Blackner

I had to get a shot of Elder Gonzalez' ring!  A member made it for him out of a dollar bill.  :o)

Losing one of our Sisters...

It is getting harder and harder to see our missionaries go home.  Sister Roundy has been a Sister-Training-Leader and has come to our home for Sunday Dinner for quite some time.  Now she will be leaving the SCCM and returning home.  We love Sister Roundy!

Last Sunday with Sister Roundy...

State Farmers' Market

Finally!  A REAL farmers' market!  Most of the farmers' markets you see are a little bit of produce and the rest food booths and assorted crafts, etc.  This is a real farmers' market with produce from all over the state of South Carolina.  It is huge!  It is so big that two lanes of cars can get down the center of the building with room to spare.  Produce is lined up on either side of the open-air building.  It is pretty cool!  We tasted muscadines for the first time ever!  I had never even seen a muscadine!  The green ones taste just like a green table grape Dad used to have in his orchard on 12th.  They are a lot bigger than a regular grape - and round.  They have VERY thick skins though, and I have a hard time getting past that.

Half bushels of raw peanuts

Sweet potatoes and bushels of raw peanuts

Colors of the fall harvest 

Outside the building.  Farmers just drive right up and unload their produce then display and sell it under the shelter.

Just a couple a Farm Boys...

We took the Chapin Elders (Elder Arnoldsen and Elder Weston) to Farm Boy's BBQ last night.  We sign up once a month to take them and the Chapin Sisters to dinner.  If they loved closer, we'd just have them come to our apartment, but they don't.  It was my first time there.  I had collards again, but I didn't like them as well as the Farmer's Shed's.  Those boys really filled up their plates!  :o)

Look at these two!  Love 'em both!  Elder Arnoldsen's plate reminds me of that saying I saw at Cracker Barrel...

"It ain't food if it ain't fried!"

Going home...

Sister London Walker and Elder Jordan Saunders stopped in at the office Thursday on their way to the temple.  The had dinner that night at the mission home - then stayed over so they could leave early for their flights home.  We will miss both of them!

A member gave Sister Walker this long-board (guess that's what it's called) and Elder Larsen said he'd ship it home for her.  :o)

Ready to ride!

Surprise party for Sister Munson

Bienheim Ginger Ale

When we were in Charleston, Danny and Dalena went to Harris Teeter's.  He loves Harris Teeters from his GWU days where he lived right across the street from one.  Anyway, they found some ginger ale, which he also loves, so they bought an 8-pack.It happened to be Bienheim's, a ginger ale that is made in Hamer, SC.  It was THE STRONGEST ginger ale I've ever tasted!  It almost tastes medicinal!  We ended up bringing two bottles back to Columbia with us, so we decided to see if the Elders would like it.  When we were explaining it to them, Elder Muir knew exactly what we were talking about.  He had had some a while back and had been looking for it in this area.  He was thrilled to help us finished it off!  Elder Willie?  Not so much.  He had one word for it...NASTY!

It's stronger than root beer!

Working on the Harvester

Sister Barlow was such a great help in doing the Harvester each month!  I would throw all the pictures and stories together, then go into her office and together, we'd perfect it.  She was such a perfectionist!  And we had so much fun together!  Sometimes we'd get giggling and I'm sure the others thought we were having a party in there, but we put out some great newsletters!

Sister Barlow:  "Which do you like best?  Number one?  Number two?  Number one?  Number two?"
Me:  "You sound like my optometrist!"
Hahahahahaha!

A visit from the Okies

Danny and Dalena, Magda and Bronson came to visit us last week.  It was so good to have them here!  One of my favorite sights was to walk past the bathroom and see a baby in the tub!  Ahhh! Loved it!

They visited a few of the Triple-D eateries while they were here...The Farmer's Shed, Pawley's Front Porch and we tended the kids while D&D went to the Early Bird Diner in Charleston.

We went to the beach and to Boone Hall Plantation.  The kids loved being on stage with the Gullah presenter there.  They also liked the wagon ride - well Magda did - it put Bronson to sleep.

We went to the zoo, early in the morning.  We left by 11:30 because the kids were tired and it got so dang hot!  But they had fun.

It was a joy having them here with us, and there was, as always, a great big hole in my heart when they left.

This is how they met us at the airport.  :o)

Magda like posing for silly pics and then looking at herself on my camera.

Ready for the beach!

On stage at the Gullah presentation

Watching Grandpa Jack feed the birds

Dancing in the mister at the zoo

Riding the turtle

Mr. Independent - putting on his own shoes

Rub-a-dub-dub, two kids in the tub!

Portrait by The Wall

The Loaves and the Fishes

We were supposed to feed the Sister Training Leaders last Sunday, but it was Sister Barlow's last weekend, and she had moved out of her apartment to make room for Sister Ta'ala, so we invited both of them.

The four sisters who lived with Sister Barlow (and now Sister Ta'ala) had planned to get dinner appointments with members in their assigned wards, but nothing came through.  Jack told them, "If you don't get dinner appointments, let us know!"  Well, they didn't.  When Sister Barlow and Sister Ta'ala came, they told us that the four Sisters were at the apartment and planned on making cookies for lunch.  Well, that wouldn't do at all!  We got them on the phone, and Jack gave them what for!  He told them to get themselves down to our apartment pronto, and join us for supper.  We set up the small table and grabbed some paper plates and plastic utensils (missionary apartments are not equipped for crowds).  Even though we hadn't planned on feeding 10 - there seemed to be plenty of food.  There were even seconds on the home-made Oreo ice cream!

We sure do love our missionaries!!!

Sisters Come to Supper!

S. Barlow, S. Ta'ala, S. Clark, S. Derrick, S. Daniels, S. Bowman, S. Roundy and S. Clemons