We Are Finally Here!!!

We had some problems crossing the border into Canada on Sunday and ended up spending another two days in Bellingham WA.  We finally  got here on Tuesday January  18, 2011 and got set up in our basement apartment at 9231 Williams Rd, Richmond BC.  It is humble but we are enjoying the life that we used to have when we were first married living in a small basement apartment while going to college. We weren't here one hour when 4 elders showed up to welcome us and then the other senior couple, Elder and Sister Nielsen from Idaho Falls came.  We already feel loved!

Paul  sitting at  his desk with his balloon...you're the greatest!  We have a devotional  with the Nielsen's each morning and we are reading in 3Nephi currently.  The mission office is in the Richmond chapel where Richmond 1st ward meets as well as the Chinese speaking branch.  This area is about 80% Chinese (mandarin speaking).  There are also a lot of Spanish, Koreans, and people from India.  There are about 155 missionaries and Paul is in charge of the 58 cars. This along with all the investigator referrals and travel arrangements for the Mission keeps him VERY BUSY!  We got a call Sunday  morning about yet another car accident from one of our missionaries.

Here I am at my desk getting ready to start the day.  I'm in charge of departing missionaries and baptismal records among other things.  There are missionaries in and out of the office all day and it is so fun to interact with them.  They are  happy, enthusiastic and filled with the spirit and doing a great job of preaching the gospel.  There were 2 baptisms last week and prospects for several more. This is a happy place to be.  We cross the border going back into the US once a week at Port Roberts, WA to pick up the mail and. We will go tomorrow which is like a vacation. We also try to get a few groceries because the prices in Canada are very high (everything is about twice as much as in the US). I did go into the dollar store (called "Looney Town") and found a few reasonable prices.  Today was sunny but we are generally getting a lot of liquid sunshine. 

Leaving the MTC...sad!

Friday January 14: Yesterday we  finished our 2nd week at the MTC.  We were training on the  computers so we would know what to do in the office once we get there.  Paul learned a lot and breezed through the  exercises.  I on the other hand am computer illiterate so for me it was very HARD!  But I now know much more than I did before so I'm fully confident that I will eventually get the hang of it.  Elder Holland spoke at the last fireside while we were there and it was a marvelous experience to see and hear an apostle of the Lord.  We met so many other wonderful senior missionaries and quickly formed some good friendships!  And who could fail to be inspired by 2500 young sisters and elders (missionaries) with so much enthusiasm and bright smiles.  We interacted with many of them in the cafeteria as we  devoured our three meals a day.  We left Provo this morning eager to get to Vancouver and get to work.  We made it to Pendelton Oregon tonight and plan to make it to Vancouver by Sunday.  We have to stop at the border to get our "visitor record" (visas) and will ask for a 24 month visa.  There is no set rule and it is up to whoever is there as to how long they will issue a visa for.  We are at their mercy!  Here is a  picture of our whole group and if you look really hard you can see us.

Team Practice!

This is our district (small group) that we were assigned to so that we could practice our gospel discussion presentations. We are trying to win the Gold Trophy by being the best of any other district. When we went through the first session, I asked our teacher how we were ranked so far...they sent me to the office for rehab! They told me that they don't have competitions in church so I suggested that they start. They sent me to Rehab 2!  My next class is for special cases and is titled "The Obedience of the Humble Heart".  Sue wanted me to tell everyone that she was not in favor of me trying to organize the competion.  She must have already taken the class?!

I will keep you posted on how I am doing in time out.

Surviving the MTC

     We just finished our first week at the MTC (Mission Training Center). We were not sure what to expect but it turned out to be a wonderful spirtual experience. One of the best parts was visiting and interacting with the other Senior Missionaries during our various training sessions with the emphasis on learning and presenting the gospel discussions. We actually had to give the lessons to various "pretend" investigatiors during role play sessions over a couple of days.  We have loved the experience eventhough we were exhausted at night.
     There were about  30 couples that we went through the training with...probably 65% going on foreign places like Ukraine, Africa, Russia, Fiji Islands, Japan, Dominican Republic, London, etc.  We thought that Vancouver BC turned out to be just right for us.
     This week we go from learning the discussions to learning about the computer functions that we will need to complete our day to day callings as office specialists helping the full time younger missionaries. Sue is doing well inspite of not having a lot of experience on the computers. We leave for Vancouver BC on Friday morning and should arrive by Sunday night, January 16th.