Pretty Awesome Week

It was an awesome week for us old folks,  and now we are pretty tired...  The temperature is in the mid-80's today, the grass is green, there are many daffodils in bloom, and the trees are beginning to leaf out!  Yeah! I even have a garden!  Some thoughtful ward members that we have become friends with and are trying to get to come back to church (and Wayne assures me that going fishing with Dave will further this quest...) started us a tomato plant, and I started zucchini and cucumbers from seeds.  We have been babying them along, last night was the first night I let them stay out on the patio all night.  Hope they survive.

Our garden!

 Tuesday we had District Meeting in Romney, it was good.  They we drove up to Parks' home and taught them a lesson using the Family Guidebook, about Family Prayer, Family Scripture Study, and Family Home Evening.  They just want to learn all they can and do everything they can to strengthen their marriage and be good.  We visited our friend Margarite Kindrick and she gave me a bouquet of daffodils, they look so pretty in a vase in our living room.  We also stopped by Traci's apartment to set up a time for our next lesson with her.  Then we had a funny experience.  We have been enjoying doing volunteer work at a nearby nursing home, helping with Bingo twice a week and other activities occasionally, and Wayne has been singing there twice a month. They had a volunteer appreciation dinner Tuesday night and had a big crowd, we saw people that we know and work with, also made new friends with six people at our table.  Had a really good dinner and a nice program. Then they gave out some awards - imagine our surprise when they gave Wayne and I lovely personally engraved trophies for being "Volunteers of the Year"!  (we haven't even been here a year...) Very embarrassing, but very nice.

Grant County Nursing Home Volunteers of the Year!

Wednesday we made a lot of visits, and I worked in the Family History Room while Wayne did computing in the clerk's office in the evening.  Thursday we taught another lesson to Traci,  then I took her to our Relief Society evening meeting.  Wayne met a few of his buddies there and they played music & sang.  Our RS Easter activity was well attended, well-planned, and fun. Friday Wayne took his friend Johnny Keplinger with him as he traveled a long distance to do some visiting & home teaching.  They had a good time.  Johnny showed Wayne the little church where he and Janet were married.  They later went to the temple.  They have had some difficulties with their marriage and their church activity recently, but have been doing very well lately. We are hoping to get them back to the temple while we are here.

Little white church in the woods.

That brings us to our busy Saturday.  We spent the morning working at the community mobile food pantry.

There is a local food pantry that gives food to local families in need weekly, we work there every six weeks or so.  But twice a year there is a huge mobile food give-away, where a big semi brings 12,000 pounds of food, volunteers unload & organize it & fill boxes.  Two hundred pre-approved families come and pick up wonderful boxes of frozen meat, vegetables, fruit, dairy products & eggs, and bread & pastries donated by big food chains.  It's held in the Petersburg fire station and is pretty fun to be a part of.  

The Elders provide a lot of muscle for this event, setting up tables, unloading pallets, carrying boxes to cars for participants, etc.  They are such good workers.  Wayne and I tried to help out wherever we were needed and made new friends.  

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But the real highlight of our day yesterday was Sonja Morton's baptism.  She is just awesome.  She started coming to Relief Society evening meetings last fall with a member friend, Janet Keplinger.  We have gotten to help with her lessons and have come to know her well and love her.  She is German, spent her childhood there.  She has three daughters in their 20's and a son Joseph who is 14.  It's been fun to see her growth and her gradual acceptance of gospel principles.  She didn't want to be pushed, she wanted to learn and understand, and make up her own mind.  As she came to accept and live each principle she just became stronger and stronger, and when she was ready to be baptized she was solid.  She wanted Wayne to baptize and confirm her - what a privilege.  I spoke at the baptism.  It was AWESOME.  She bore her testimony at the baptism and also in church today.  She is amazing.  

Sonja Morton & her son Joseph, with Elder Farr and Elder Plumb

Today, Sunday, has been  lovely day.  Wayne taught the Priesthood lesson and I taught Relief Society.  The Parks, John and Audrey, came over to our apartment for dinner, then Audrey and I went back to the church to work on genealogy while John and Wayne went visiting with the missionaries.  We look forward to hearing from our kids this evening and for updates on our grandchildren who we miss so much.  Would love to hear from anyone else who happens to be reading our blog.  I am not a great writer, I know, but please understand that we love being here in West Virginia and we love the wonderful people here.  Especially we love our Savior Jesus Christ and are blessed to be serving this mission for Him.  Happy Klarese Blessing Day to the Thuesons, Happy Birthday to our amazing oldest daughter Karli tomorrow.  And Happy Easter to you all!