A day off? YES

When we arrived at the mission we were told we would get a day off every time Salt Lake did.
All normal holiday's.
 Everything we do has to be approved by 'Salt Lake'.
 BUT none the less 'Salt Lake' did say we were to get days off as office staff.
We have yet to see one....

  UNTIL LABOR DAY OF ALL DAYS!!!!

I actually laid in bed till seven and relaxed and read a book.
Stan went for a long walk. 

From there we drove to...

OKEECHOBEE

Florida Orlando Mission.

The big body of water on the south of our mission is 

Lake Okeechobee.
It is the largest freshwater lake in the state of Florida, seventh largest freshwater lake in the US.  It covers 730 square miles approximately half the size of the state of Rhode Island and exceptionally shallow for a lake of its size with the average depth of only 9 feet.
If you want to know more go to Goggle Okeechobee lake facts.  It is very interesting.

 In the rain--Lake Okeechobee.

Most of our travels were through areas like this,
we couldn't see anything through the trees and brush.
Beautiful.

THEN
It opened up and we had cattle ranches dairy's orchards and even silo's.

We were so excited to actually see Holsteins!!

AND milking barns. Lots of them!
We don't know much...
but there is pasture year round.
We heard they supplement with sorghum and instead of sugar beet pulp they have sugar cane.

 MILK TRUCKS!

 Elder and Sister Williams, proselyting missionaries.
He is in the branch presidency and she is Young Woman's president.
They are leaving for home the end of October....
there isn't any one that we know of that is coming to take their place.

Okeechobee Branch.

One hall with the chapel at the end.
There is a family history center
Kitchen
Young Women's Room
Primary Room
Relief Society Room
  I believe it is the Young Woman's room that is the meeting place for all ward activities (like a cultural hall).
The chapel closes off into two class rooms. They do have a small organ.

The Williams are very worried about their little branch of 40, mostly women and children.

This is just a small part of a very large mural on a big building in Okeechobee.
It was an amazing art piece.
The town of Okeechobee is probably the size of Burley Idaho.
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Elder Doxey and Merrell came over to view the new Preach My Gospel DVD.
It is an amazing piece of work.

Had to feed them of course...between part 1 and part 2 of the DVD

I also cut Elder Doxey's hair after the DVD.
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Thursday afternoon was a special meeting just for the sisters.
President had to have special permission from 'Salt Lake' to have this meeting.

They presented the new pictures of what sisters are allowed to wear on a mission. 

 

On top of that, sisters no longer have to wear nylons.

Got a group picture of everyone, I will get a copy but this is the best I could get myself.
We have 26 sister missionaries not counting four senior sisters.

Sister Clanton from Tonga.
What a beautiful powerful sister, she took charge and conducted.

Sister Campbell

 I Don't know if you can see it in the picture, but she looks so much like Ruth.
Her coloring and mannerisms are right on.
She is going home in one week.
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Elder Engeman impersonating Sister James--her sweater and glasses.

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Relief Society get to know you night.

ASL sisters Ellsworth and Snyder with a member.

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j

Took elder Fullmer and Elder Engeman to the temple with us on Saturday.

We were asked to do sealings after the session--it was a great experience for the Elders.

We ate at Perkins, a nice place in Orlando -- nothing like the one in Burley.

We saw this in the temple parking lot.

Ada county -- Idaho Boise

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Saturday evening  we took Elder Christensen and his companion Elder Rydalch to dinner because Elder Christensen is going home and we have promised him a meal for a very long time.

Elder Engeman and Fullmer live with them so they also ate with us again. 

Sunday after church we took Elder Engeman and Fullmer home (we are their Sunday ride).

Elders Wilks, Becksted and Schow waited for us at the church.  We then went back to the church and picked them up for dinner at Sister Rowan's.  Since she is single she needs to have another Melchizedek Priesthood holder present.  We get a lot of dinner invites this way.

Because of the week.. I had to shop on Friday.
On top of the crowds of people it was pouring down rain.

Pictures of the sun going down in the rain.

As we live the gospel of Jesus Christ and pray always, we will have joy and happiness.

"Be thou humble; and the Lord thy God shall lead they by the hand, and give thee answer to thy prayers" (D&C 112: 10)

So do we really do missionary work?

President Hall is making the office into something pretty fancy 'Professional' he says.

  He is starting with his personal office and this table was not doing anything so out it went.

(I collated my reports on it but oh well...)

As you can see it is a beautiful wood table. 

The Assistants don't have a table so they want to use it. 

My feeling is...Something that nice doesn't belong in an Elders apartment. 

But who cares...so I purchased them an oilcloth tablecloth so they won't ruin it...I hope.

We did take the Assistants out to dinner Monday night, not pictured here. 

Panera Bread is a great place to eat.

No this isn't hurricane Earl.

Look close.....

Elder Schow is really cleaning house, or office, and he found this postcard. 

Have you figured it out yet?

Okay-I tried to take a picture of the wind, it wouldn't hold still!!!!

  The wind we received when Earl passed by way out on the ocean. (Waves on the lake)

What happened here is Earl sucked all the moisture out and away from Florida so we had very cool temperatures -78 to high 80's- and breezes.  What a beautiful week it was because of Earl.  

Today we are back to normal. 

Heat - rain in the afternoon and high humidity. 

Ya gotta love it!

This made me cry.

It is the envelope with travel itinerary to the parents of a new missionary.

Betio Tarawa is where my dad spent four years cleaning up after the Americans stormed in and reclaimed the Islands during WWII.

(for details read Melvin J Ward's history)

It isn't Gilbert Islands any more it is Kiribati.

Now there are members of the church there and a missionary!

Do you suppose Dad knows and is crying with joy as well?

Meet Breonna and Isiah

Sarah and Chad have three children of their own.  Andrew Ben and CeAnna.

A little while back they received Hunter and Lauren as foster children into their home. 

They will be leaving in a couple of months to live with their maternal grandmother.  

Breonna and Isiah are also foster children and they came this week.  

Sarah and Chad now have seven children in their home.  

They always wanted a big family.

Yes that is a Zucchini.

No I didn't grow it, the Mapakoi's gave it to us...

Yes even in Florida people try to get rid of their zucchini.

Stan and I are addicted to mango's.  They are SOOOOO good. 

Better then a peach any day.

The other melon is a Santa Clause Melon. 

It tastes a lot like cantaloupe, honey dew and watermelon.

It is delicious!!!!

Inside the Santa Clause Melon.

I believe this is a Great Blue Heron. This is  just at dusk..it is a big bird.

  Remember those little tiny baby chicks I showed you last Spring?  

The people who live in this space kept them in their apartment till about a month ago.

NOW every night the ducks come to the patio and quack to get food.

This little thing is the weirdest looking duck you have ever seen.

Literally no legs, but huge feet and he is fat-round.

The same people who had the other ducks just let this one out.  

It looks like a mutant duck.

While we are away life goes on...

'down on the farm'.

 

 

 Reassuring in a way yet causes a bit of homesickness in another.

Sunrise

through my patio screen.  Just before Earl passed by.

Sunset

The last couple of weeks I have been teaching the Gospel Principles lesson in Sunday School.

This week is on the Holy Ghost.  

I do know that the Holy Ghost plays such an important part in my life. I could not function without it. 

The following is a quote by President Joseph Fielding Smith:

'When a man has the manifestation from the Holy Ghost, it leaves an indelible impression on his soul, one that is not easily erased. 

It is Spirit speaking to spirit, and it comes with convincing force.

  A manifestation of an angel, or even of the Son of God himself, would impress the eye and mind, and eventually become dimmed, but the impressions of the Holy Ghost sink deeper into the soul and are more difficult to erase...

Through the Holy Ghost the truth is woven into the very fiber and sinews of the body so that it cannot be forgotten.'