From Farewell to Arizona!

One last hug from Gretchen before the MTC

 Our nice room at the Marriott Hotel in Provo. The couples with cars 

stayed there. The others stayed on campus at the MTC (Missionary

 Training Center).

This is our district. Elder Ballard was the district leader. I am hanging off the edge of the sofa so we could all fit. We had such a wonderful time meeting couples from all over the world, going all over the world and learning together. The spirit was so strong.We all knew this is the Lord's work and we were where we were supposed to be doing what we were supposed to be doing. It was a great feeling to be part of this big wave of missionary work. There were 53 couples and one single sister. This was a large group.

These are all visitor center missionaries. We trained together the second week 

for three days. The photographer didn't tell us we couldn't be seen? Again the 

spirit was so strong and we learned so much. We have e-mails for all these new

friends so we can encourage each other. 

I didn't get a great picture to capture the amazing sight of missionaries pouring out of 
the Marriott center after the devotional. It gave me chills to see missionaries as far back as
you could see. There were over 3,500 missionaries. About 1,500 were in the choir. We 
had meals with these wonderful missionaries and felt their enthusiasm! It was

contagious.

The MTC

The chapel next to the MTC is where we attended classes. Our trainers

were all BYU students and return missionaries. They were dynamic and 
so patient with seniors. You could feel their testimonies as they shared 

their mission experience and taught from Preach My Gospel, a very inspired
book. 

Home for one last time and enjoying a cookout and some fireworks at the Steve
Ballard house. The kids enjoyed sparklers, blowing up watermelon and corn and

a little basketball. Mike's beard was holding a sparkler. The kids got a kick out of that.

 

Rachel get's one last hug. We were hugging these precious grandkids all night
long and we said a tearful goodbye. We are really on our way now.

Arizona Mesa Mission here we come!

Our new home for the next 18 months. Nice!

We moved in on Friday the 12th of July. We unloaded the car, looked around and made a Walmart trip right away to get what we needed to set up a household. It reminded me a lot of when we were first married and did the same thing. We could only take what we could fit in our car. We got enough groceries to get by for several meals. Our AC was not working and we were wishing we could call Michael since the temperature was 113 degrees. It was HOT! We hadn't been able to contact the home owner and the office person was also trying. 

Last night we got in touch with the owner and she sent someone over today. She had been out of town. It was frozen up and we are now waiting for him to come back and see if it is working. It has been up to 89 degrees in our condo but it is going down a little now. Needless to say we were glad to be at the visitors center. We have not cooked much, can't bear to heat up the house. We've driven around a lot to enjoy the air conditioner, and get to know the area. We also have a club house by a pool which is very cool. We hung out there when we needed to get out of the heat. The people in our complex, which is called Temple View Condominiums, are very nice. We have met three different owners so far. We have been written up in the newsletter and there is a party Saturday evening. Most of them are members of the church and some are also on missions or have been. We will get to know them in the ward. We met a couple from Ogden today.

 

This is the front of the Visitors Center.  It is open seven days a week. We work three six hour shifts and three four hour shifts each week. Our preparation day is Tuesday. It is amazing how many people came on Saturday and Sunday. Saturday was crazy for our first day. The temple was to be closed for two weeks of cleaning so lots of people came to the Temple. The Temple doesn't have a waiting room so the visitor center acts as a waiting area. We had brides, wedding parties, temple attendees, people wanting to get cool, have a drink or use the restroom. The Sister missionaries are so amazing, they just teach everyone. Our mission is doing well. The work is a lot about technology these days too. People come to see the movies in all the theaters and teaching rooms. The sisters are always busy teaching with the computers, iPads  e-mails or in person. They do it all. They speak different languages and are darling. We had about 400 people go through on Saturday.  Sunday was equally busy. Members come on Sunday to watch the movies also. I took two families through the exhibit  "God's Plan for You". It follows a family with vinettes in life to show how they can be a family forever. They were all lined up with the kids and I was wrapping it up and I told them they were so special to God and how he loved them. I also stated that they reminded me of my grandchildren and how I will miss them. One cute little girl came up and gave me a big hug and of course made me cry! Then three others wanted to too. It was a special moment. I wasn't the only one crying. The week days are a little slower now the Temple is closed and we have been able to get more familiar with things.

View of the temple from the back of the visitors center