Ethiopia, Blessings, and April Fools

It's hard for me to believe how fast time flies by. We have that six week transfer cycle that seriously feels more like two weeks! I blink my eyes and another group of missionaries goes home, replaced by a new group of young missionaries. This time we had three missionaries go home, and ten new missionaries come.

Elder Stanley is a unique missionary. He has served under 5 different mission presidents. He is one who struggled with visa issues. We were lucky to have him for his final six months. He is a very valiant dedicated young man. We told him he was too good to stay in just one mission, and was truly a blessing to all he served with.

Elder Kampelya seems like he just arrived in the Uganda Kampala Mission. He served in both Uganda and Rwanda, and was a zone leader early on in his mission. He has been a great example to other missionaries. It's hard to let him go home. 

Elder Williams is one of our missionaries serving from the great state of Hawaii. We have really grown to love him and will miss him very much. He is always so thoughtful and a pleasure to be around. 

We were very surprised with the new missionaries who came. We have been blessed with four Elders from the Democratic Republic of the Congo. Recently, we have received many missionaries from the DRC. They learn English in the MTC. We have seen them just blossom as they become more comfortable with the language. They are strong, solid members of the church. Many have been raised in the Gospel from the time they were born. It's such a blessing to have them.

Along with the four Elders, we received SIX sisters! That's unreal for us! Four of them are from South Africa, one from Australia, and one from Kenya. As we had our first testimony meeting with them, we really felt of their strength. We are so blessed to have such amazing missionaries who have been sent to the Uganda Kampala Mission. The Lord must really love us to send us such strong Elders and Sisters.

The day after transfers, we had to go to Ethiopia. We wanted to spend time in the Bekulobet Branch. This will be our last time in Bekulobet, and we wanted to just enjoy Sacrament Meeting with them. It really was a nice experience. The speakers in Sacrament Meeting were very mature in their understanding of the Gospel, and we were really able to feel the Spirit during the meeting.

It has been a long time since I have taken a picture of the Bekulobet Branch, so after the meetings we asked them to all stand outside of the church for a picture. The Branch President and his counselor also took a picture with President Collings. There is so much energy in this presidency. We are excited to see the continued growth of this branch.

We were also blessed to witness a baptism after Church. It was such a great meeting. The missionaries are really seeing those who are prepared come to church. It's been amazing to witness.

After the meetings, we went for a final visit to Sister Yeweinshet's house. She is an amazing woman. She is the District Relief Society President. Her entire life is centered around helping others. She is blind, but is so independent. She never lets that stop her from going to church, conferences, or other church meetings. She is very dedicated to the Gospel. She also cares for other young women who are blind. She teaches them to read braille and teaches them skills to be self reliant. There have been a few of her students who have learned about the Gospel and have been baptized. She has a young daughter Helena, who is amazing. She has always been so thoughtful and helpful. She knows English very well and helps with interpretation when we come and speak in front of the members. We love her so much!

We will miss them both so much. They are a great strength to the members of the District and their Branch.

Meanwhile, back in the United States...

March 31st was a very special day for our family. Three of our four kids attended church together. We had two grandsons who were to be blessed. They decided it would be a good experience to have them blessed on the same day, in the same ward, so that family members could attend if they wanted to. It was so fun to see pictures of them together!!

Our daughter Kaylea and her husband Kirby had their baby on December 31st. His big brother was so excited to have a new playmate. We are excited to see this sweet family grow!

Our son Steve and his wife Sarah had their rainbow baby on January 14th. They will be such great parents, and we are so happy for them.

I love this picture of them both smiling on their blessing day!

Our son Conner and his wife Taylor are the happy and excited aunt and uncle! It was so fun to see all of the kids enjoying the day together.

They look good holding babies!

Our oldest daughter Jessica and her husband Chris, were not able to travel to the baby blessing because she was pregnant, and they didn't want to be too far from home... just in case. This ended up being a great decision on their part because at around 8:00 Sunday night, this little guy was born! Three extra special blessings in one day! We couldn't be happier!

Of course, his two older sisters are so excited to welcome him into their home. They will be a great help to their parents.

Needless to say, after seeing all of these fun pictures from my kids, I was a tad bit homesick. I can't wait to hold them all! With that in mind, I have another story...

Monday morning we were in Ethiopia in a hotel room, preparing for the day. President Collings was on the phone with what sounded like the Area President. I tried not to listen in, but we were sitting in the same room... the conversation turned to one that concerned me. My husband was talking about how we had been communicating with the new mission president and wife. (We have been trying to send them information about the mission that will help the transition go a little more smoothly.) Then he said he hadn't heard that there was a problem. He asked why the new mission president and wife would not be coming. Then said, wow, he was sorry that they had found a medical condition that would not allow them to serve. Then he asked, "How long do you think it will take to get a new mission president and wife assigned to this mission?" Then he said, "Of course, we will stay as long as necessary. Three to six months would be fine."

My mind was racing. I was preparing myself to be okay with staying a few months longer... "No big deal. What's three more months when we have been here three years?" I pushed back the thoughts of, "I just want to hold my new grandchildren!" I was preparing to be strong when he got off the phone and shared the news with me... "Don't freak out... you can do this!"

He hung up the phone, smiled really big, and then just said, "April Fools!" Oh my goodness! I just burst into tears! I was laughing and crying at the same time. I couldn't control my emotions. Of course I would stay if I was asked, but was relieved I didn't have to...talk about an emotional roller coaster in a matter of minutes.  I don't know if I like April 1st. I have really enjoyed our mission, but I am looking forward to seeing my family again.

Before leaving Ethiopia, we had a zone conference with the missionaries and then took them out to lunch. Elder Pratt and Elder Millecam are the zone leaders, and they really gave great trainings. I was so impressed with them!

The missionaries are doing well, they don't have a senior couple serving there, but they handle themselves very well and we are so proud of them!