Turkey Time!

We got a GREAT letter from my parents today, telling us all about their adventures and Thanksgiving with the elders in their area! And, bonus! We even got some pictures to share!!

December 2, 2013   this is week five of our mission to Donetsk Ukraine. For those not keeping track it is week two and ½ of being in country.

Last Monday evening, we had a Family Home Evening in our apartment for interested persons. One person came. She has been attending English class on Friday evenings, and was interested enough to try this experience as well. Bob taught a lesson on SMARTER goals for the next year. We played a game and ate cookies and ice cream.

Thanksgiving was the big challenge for the week. Please remember there were no Pilgrims settling Ukraine in the early 1500’s. This area was settled at least 3000 years earlier. Thanksgiving is an American holiday. There is no big push for turkeys. In fact the mission leaders started more than a month ago trying to locate a turkey of any kind. They announced that the couples in Donetsk were getting turkeys. We could get one too for a reasonable price. We chose to make this a good Thanksgiving and have a turkey on the table. So we asked them to add our request to the list. Our turkey was supposed to be picked up at a ranch between here and Donetsk and delivered on Monday. There was a lot going on and the driver didn’t have time to make the side trip to us. He said that would be ok. He would be driving by on Wednesday morning and he would deliver it then. Wednesday morning came. No Turkey. Wednesday afternoon came. The phone rang. The driver wasn’t going to be able to make it today, but would be back in town next Monday. (I already said that Thanksgiving is not a Ukrainian holiday, didn’t I?) That was unacceptable. A fresh turkey should be eaten and not left in the refrigerator that long. This was an emergency!

Knowing that elders can leave their district areas for conferences and emergencies, we explained this emergency to the district leader and the zone leader. They agreed that this was a true emergency. Their Thanksgiving was at stake! The district leader spent last Thanksgiving in the MTC. He will be home before the next Thanksgiving comes, so this is his first and last Thanksgiving in country.

 It only cost an additional four cab fares. (2 down and 2 back for a pair of elders.) The cab drivers here always drive like they are going to a fire. The thought seems to be that the quicker they can get this one delivered, the sooner they can get started on the next. But it does take a while for an American to realize that it is ok to drive on the wrong side of the road, weave in and out of traffic, and swerve to miss the biggest of the road holes. The elders were only out of the district for four hours and the turkey was at our house.

 Imagine this. Alice is standing in the hall with only one eye partially open. This is a full sized turkey if you measure height, but it weighs only 10 pounds. It is Skinny. It is Scrawny. It still has pin feathers! Bob’s guess is that this is a field turkey, closer to wild than to what we grew up thinking a turkey was like. There is no meat to be seen anywhere. It still looked dangerous! The elders were very careful about picking it up to have a picture taken. Bob insisted that it was dead and couldn’t bite them. We realized that Thanksgiving wasn’t saved yet. The elders agreed and ran to the store to buy three packages of boneless, skinless chicken breasts. We found out later that the couples in Donetsk bought whole chickens and roasted them like tiny turkeys. We didn’t think of that. But they had two additional days to consider the turkey. Even with all of that, this was a turkey and he was our turkey. He was to be the center piece of our Thanksgiving.

 Bob didn’t sleep well Wednesday night. He dreamed of turkeys and how to cook this one. He finally got up early, researched wild turkey recipes on the internet and decided that skinning this one before cooking would make it look far more like food. It took a bit, but he got it done. Mom Preece had advised to cook a turkey long and slow to keep it moist. So we gave it four hours at 300 degrees. That seemed to work. It was done and moist, what there was of it, for our Thanksgiving feast.

 Each missionary companionship brought a favorite dish. One brought two pies and made the gravy. Another mashed potatoes and fresh bread. And the third brought dried bread dressing which was exceptionally good. Adding to that, Alice made layered Jell-O salad and two kinds of vegetables. It was finally Thanksgiving. Each and all of the dishes were excellent!

 We ate in true Thanksgiving tradition, everyone had seconds and there was still some left. We visited and played thankful games. At the end we had a district meeting where the topic was charity and loving and caring for your companion. We ended by eating the pies.

 On Friday it was time for Bob to have his first solo adventure. No, this was not Christmas shopping on black Friday. It was just that Alice needed the rent money for Saturday morning. The best bank-o-mat is in front of the AMCTOP (in Russian C sounds like S and P sounds like R so it is pronounced “Am store”) grocery store. This is a cash society and even rent is expected to be paid in cash. Our rent is 5000 in local currency plus internet and utilities. Bob was a bit uncomfortable with so much cash. He normally carries only about 100 to 150. He also has always had companions at his side who speak Russian. Not this time. The trip to the store is fairly easy. It involves a bus ride down three stops and walking through a couple blocks along a well-traveled pathway. He survived. Bob also brought home milk and a few groceries. This helped with the weekend food. Our refrigerator was close to empty after thanksgiving.

 Saturday was a second trip to the store for additional supply and the rest of the money for a week. It, too, was solo but not quite the adventure the first one was. In the evening there was missionary correlation and a game hour at the church for members and investigators. Bob met the elders on the bus and they walked from the bus stop to the church together. On the way home, the elders took him a different route and stopped at the EKO (pronounced “echo”) store, which is like a large Home Depot to get light bulbs for the apartment. There are some different types of bulbs here that Bob hadn’t seen before. This means that Bob can now get to the church and to a second major shopping area on solos or with Alice in the future. By the end of the day on Saturday all the lights in all the rooms of the apartment worked. It only took eleven bulbs and tubes.

 Bob had a great time at church on Sunday. He met the elders on the bus again. It was fast Sunday and he got the opportunity to bear his testimony in Russian. Elder Samuelson helped with translation of the words Bob didn’t know. At least it is a first step and the branch members now know we are here. As we were told would happen, they were looking for singing talent. Bob is now part of the ward choir. He is singing bass for the program next week. They are singing “I Know That My Redeemer Lives”. Bob says the music is easy; it’s just that it is all in Russian and he doesn’t know the words. This must be a good hint that he can learn at least these words. As Bob says, “It is just another adventure.” Thursday with the turkey, Friday with the solo trip, Saturday with the landlord and another trip to store for more supply and Sunday with the branch meetings. He has spent the week having adventures while Alice has worked very hard at getting better. Hopefully she will join in the adventures in the coming week. Bob is great at sharing all the adventures he has each time he comes home. Alice enjoys the stories.

 Alice wants to know about the Christmas decorations and the Christmas excitement in the stores. Bob says there isn’t any. Of course that is wrong. It is December. There is Christmas excitement. Bob asks her to remember that in Ukraine the 25^th is only a small holiday. There is a big new year’s holiday on the 1^st, but Christmas is celebrated on the 7^th of January. It seems someone has done the calculations and the western world has it wrong by two weeks. Then there is over 90 years of communist influence to deal with as well.

 Notes:

Kontik.

It seems that missions throughout the world have traditions to initiate new missionaries to the mission. For my mission to South Texas it was getting new elders to try a hot pepper. By the end of my mission I really enjoyed them, but the first one was HOT!! Here the tradition is much more enjoyable. It is called Kontik. It amounts to a layer cookie dipped in chocolate so it is completely sealed except for a tiny hole on one side. The cookies come in various flavors. What you do is bite a tiny bit of the cookie from the side opposite the hole, and using the cookie as a straw you suck milk through the new hole and through the cookie bringing the flavor and some soft cookie through. It doesn’t take long for the chocolate to collapse and a milk-wet, tasty cookie is in your hand. Eaten this way the cookies are very good. Eaten without the milk they are less than plain. Once it was explained, we bought some Kontik and had the elders explain and demonstrate the system. Bob says he figured it out instantly. Not only is it fun watching someone do it the first time, but it is a way for elders to get extra cookies! Alice tried it this week and she is now official. We have a picture.

Shopping in Gorlovka. Shopping here is a combination of many shopping experiences.

There is a Renik, which is a large bunch of small stores each owned by a person or a family. They sell everything imaginable some at excellent prices and some not so much. Bob bought a headset for the computer for $9 US (76 rpn). The elders warned that it is not returnable and questioned us the next day to see if it worked. It did. They had talked the shop owner from 100 down to 76 before he wouldn’t budge. Alice got a great winter coat at a super price. For those of you who know Alice’s shopping pattern we had to remind her that everything in non-returnable. At the Renik there is also all kinds of food from fish, which smells really bad to fruits and vegetables at farmer prices, and they come with free dirt. The shops are mostly open air and the ownerless dogs wander in and out with the shoppers. There are all kinds of clothing. This is where we can get the better winter gear we were told about. Both of us still need to get boots if we want them for the winter. We will see as the time approaches. Many people shop at the renik. It is like a party for five hours a day seven days a week. Shopping ends at 2:00pm. Everything at the Renik is cash only.

There are many stores like the ones I remember shopping for back to school in downtown Ogden. Most are well staffed and have lots of merchandise. Since they are only a 2 rpn ride (25 cents) from the Renik, their prices don’t get too much out of line. Some are the same as the Renik asking price. Each of these is a specialty store like the missionary store in Ogden. They sell one group of related items and that is all. A few of the more expensive shops take credit and debit cards, but mostly they prefer cash. There are clothing stores of all kinds. Women’s clothing, children’s clothing, men’s clothing and so on. There seem to be a lot of flower stores near the central town square where singles meet to go on dates. These stores do not negotiate prices, since the people buyers deal with are employees, not owners.

Then there are the new super stores like the AMCTOP and EKO stores. They look in every detail as if they were built and run by the Walmart or Home Depot store chains. It is as easy to shop with a card here as with cash, but you have to remember that there is a flat 20 rpn charge on each foreign purchase on most cards. Carts at These stores are chained one to the next and for ½ rpn deposit you unlock the one you want. The coin is returned when you return the cart. There are never loose carts in the parking lot. You check bags from other shopping when you go in and get it back when you leave. The prices here are generally fairly good and there are a lot of pre-packaged items as you find in grocery stores everywhere. All produce is weighed and stickered in produce so there is no need for scales at the registers. The store where we shop has a large bakery in the back and I suspect they sell bread to the owners of the Renik stores and the restaurants around town. They have the best bread ever, but there is NO soft bread here. The bread generally must be eaten within a day or two since there are no preservatives. This is just like French bread at Walmart. So far Bob has been able to eat this bread with no problem. It is as if high gluten wheat has not found its way to Ukraine as yet, and I hope it never does.

Bob has only shopped at the EKO store one time for specialty light bulbs and tubes. He found the light department and was approached by an associate in a vest. He held up what he was looking for and spoke the Russian number. She took him and the missionary’s right to it and counted out what he needed. Then Bob held up the other kind of bulb and the act was repeated. As they were leaving one of the elders said, “I don’t think they ever found out he doesn’t speak Russian.”

At both of the large box stores Bob has found the checkout people are always seated in their register. There is no scale since there is nothing to weigh. The customers always bag their own. Bags with the store logo are available for ½ rpn (6 cents) if you didn’t bring your own.

Nearly everyone shops by bus. There are very few cars, so people make many small trips to get their supplies.

Look at how skinny that Turkey is!!! 

Handsome missionaries that are so good to my parents! I hope they know how much we appreciate their kindness!!

Mom and her cookie eating experience! She's now official! 

Letters!!

We love hearing from our missionaries!! This is what they had to say this week--

November 25, 2013   This is week four of our mission to Donetsk Ukraine.
On Tuesday we got a call from Elder and Sister McLeod who are serving a church humanitarian mission for the entire country of Ukraine. They know Brother Wonderlich from Bob’s High Priests leadership. He asked them to look us up. They are visiting orphanages and homes where the church might be of service, collecting lists of items needed and evaluating those lists for possible shipments. It seems the new government passed a law saying that any shipment including containers has to list the final recipient by name. That means if there are 5,000 pairs of shoes there must be 5,000 names and each pair must go to the person listed. Any variance is illegal and could send someone to jail. That makes it nearly impossible to send many items where the recipient is decided on the receiving end including clothing, shoes, wheelchairs and so on. We went to Donetsk and ate Mexican food while we visited with them and the McFarlands. Through the conversation, we learned a great deal about the church’s role here and how our role fits.
 Part of a couple’s duty is to inspect missionary apartments. We do it with each transfer. This is the first time for us. And sister Preece is down with her shoulder. We sent the inspection sheets for the elders to fill out. When reviewed, they all passed and got a candy bar each. Our apartment would have not passed. We lack a smoke detector / carbon monoxide alarm and two bottles of water. The detector is coming from the mission office and we bought the water at the store Monday (today) morning.
 Sister Lochhead, the mission president’s wife, is concerned with the diet some of the elders choose. There is little left after the rent and utilities are paid and they are not experienced in healthy eating. When budget is tight, we usually buy some beans and some rice for complete protein. When we were uncertain of things like when we first arrived, that is what we bought. It seems sister Lochhead has had reports of elders buying just cookies and milk. Vegetables aren’t very expensive. For just over $10.00 (US) we can buy enough beets, milk, juice and carrots that they are hard for Bob to carry home on the bus. When Bob went shopping with the elders Monday morning, (this morning) they were talking about how heavy it gets with two 6 liter bottles of water. Their reply was that it just about the same as when you buy $50 US (400 in local currency) of fruits and vegetables, which is what one of them had done every week with a previous companion.
On Wednesday, Dr. and Sister Christensen, the area doctor, were in town inspecting medical facilities. He is responsible for the Baltic area and part of Eastern Europe. He made a house call and confirmed what we already knew about the injury to Alice’s shoulder. It will take time and we should not be too impatient. We may have to learn to take taxi instead of bus to get to places. We will see how that works. He said nothing is broken or torn, just stretched. That is the kind that takes the longest to feel good again, we understand.
On Thursday there was a district meeting at our place with the Assistants to the President in attendance. We ate baked chicken, potatoes and vegetables. Even with 10 people, the cost wasn’t enough to be too concerned about. Food here is not too expensive. Bob had to cook and serve. Alice was trying to rest. She came out before the lessons were taught.
Thursday evening was our weekly couples Skype meeting. We finally had all four of us in attendance. Each of the sisters agreed that this mission seems to be a lot of cooking and all from scratch. There are family home evenings on Monday, generally investigators and their fellowshipping members in the couple apartment, then district meetings weekly, also in the couple apartment. There are special events from time to time that need dishes prepared as well. There was a lot of talk about dishes that are nutritional and easier to cook. One that came up several times was Vareneky (I haven’t figured how to type Russian yet). These are dumplings that look like ravioli and have various fillings. Alice sent Bob to the store on Friday to get vegetables, Vareneky, milk, juice and an iron. So we had our first taste on Friday. Pretty good. We got the ones stuffed with potato, Bob couldn’t read the label, so he just got the one that that had the most shelf space.
On Sunday, Bob went to church. Alice stayed home. The meeting was all in Russian and Bob didn’t understand much of what was going on. The meeting flow is exactly what it is in any LDS meeting block anywhere in the world. When it was over, one of the elders who went with Bob, probably to make sure he didn’t get lost, had to stay for choir. They were looking for a bass. Bob sings bass, but doesn’t sing Russian. Well, guess what Bob’s Russian lessons for the week look like! He is practicing the hymn words to the notes he already knows – bass part.
Notes:
Gorlovka, Ukraine is just a bit further north than Salt Lake City, about the same as northern Montana, Idaho, Washington, or Paris France. This week our sunrise was at 6:41 and sunset at 3:47 giving us 9:06 hours of sunlight. Salt Lake City had 9:48 hours, so not that much different. The strange thing is that we are on the extreme eastern edge of the time zone, Salt Lake City is on the extreme western edge, so our sunrise and sunset times are both noticeably earlier. If you are out after 4:00pm it is DARK.
Gorlovka is a city with no suburb. We live at the end of the bus line in a 9 floor dom (pronounced ‘dome’). There are doms all the way from here to the center of the city. From our 4^th floor apartment, we can see several ponds and the winter wheat fields belonging to the neighboring farmer. There is a walking / running path that winds through the ponds. Ducks were on the waters when we got here but they are gone now. It looks like well-developed farm land. When the sun sets, it is directly outside our window. It is very beautiful; the elders like to take pictures from our balcon (like balcony). They get a great view of rural Ukraine.
From the couples meeting this week, it seems common in Ukraine that stair steps (both indoor and outdoor) are not even. Any height from 3” to 10” high with varying depths seems to be ok. Alice tripped over one of the 3” ones. When asked where anyone could find even stairs, the answer was at the Kiev Temple. The Ukrainian contractors couldn’t seem to figure out what the church wanted in temple stairways, since close enough is good enough here. We were told they finally had to get builders from Germany to make them all even.
This weekly report has grown larger than we wanted it to be. We got a request this week to include pictures, so Bob is figuring out how to e-mail pictures from his tablet. We use the tablet as our camera. But since we got the tablet just before we left home, there is still a lot to learn.
Make it a great week. We’ll write again next Monday.
Bob and Alice Preece
Donetsk, Ukraine misison

Adjustments and Blessings!

This has been an eventful week for Mom and Dad! They are adjusting to their new life in Ukraine and loving it. The work they do as missionaries is so rewarding and fulfilling! If anyone would like to e-mail them, they have decided to keep their e-mail address from home which is ademolady@comcast.net. They are busy as missionaries, so they may not get back to everyone individually, but they will do their best. Here is their letter this week--

Today is 18 November 2013. It is Monday, P-day and we are writing a letter about the week here in Gorlovka, Ukraine.

 We have no sisters here, just 3 sets of the best elders ever. They are incredible! They are working all the time to bring the gospel to a people who have only a soviet background. Alcoholism and drug abuse is everywhere, but the society as a whole gets by quite well. Our elders are from the western part of the US. They are from Utah, Nevada, Idaho, Washington and Arizona. They all work together extremely well. With the new influx of missionaries, three have been here for some time and speak Russian very well and three are still learning. In any case, they are each far ahead of us.

 This week was transfer week. For those who may not know, transfers are every six weeks and they correspond to the days when new missionaries arrive or leave. Those involved in the transfer in this mission come to the Donetsk mission office. Each is interviewed by the president and introduced to their new companion. The president and others give short instruction. Then the new companionships are placed on buses or trains and sent to their places of work. One of our sets was involved this cycle. They knew a week in advance, so there was time to let the investigators know and to clean the apartment and pack. From our side, it is interesting losing one of our young men and hoping to get another good enough to fill the vacancy. We did.

We had a district meeting in our apartment this week on Saturday. Our plan was to have lunch together and visit for about an hour before. We had started on Friday and cooked potatoes and grated cheese and got the hamburger ready to cook, and we were glad we did. Cooking here is different. Imagine no pre-prepared items at all. Potatoes are as they come out of the ground. We can select if they still have dirt on them or for a couple pennies more the dirt can be cleaned off. Cheese is only in solid blocks, no shredded, and no sliced. Bread is as it comes out of the oven and is GREAT, but it isn’t sliced. Bob likes the kind with hard crust and soft inside.

 We decided that fresh bread and ice cream were in order for the meeting, so we went across the street to the corner store to get them. Alice missed a step and fell on the floor hurting her left shoulder. It still is very painful, but getting better a bit at a time. When we reported the mishap to the mission office, the president told the elders to cancel the district meeting. He and his wife brought another senior couple who have been working with sports injuries for years to evaluate where we were. The diagnosis was a muscle problem, not a break of any kind. Treatment was Advil and Tylenol, an arm sling and cold to keep the swelling down. Alice was out of the team for meal preparation, but the meal was more than half ready. After the president left and things were settling, Alice said, “Call the elders and let’s have the meeting.” She gave instructions and Bob followed orders, well most of them anyway. And the meat was cooked and the shepherd’s pie assembled and baked (oven instructions in Russian temps in C – use your best guess) ready to come out when the elders arrived.

The meal went well. District meeting went well with a cameo appearance from Alice. Goals are now set for this transfer period and they are ready, set, gone.

 This week we are looking forward to getting Alice better. She has found on the internet some exercises that seem to work. We have another district meeting on Wednesday.

 Notes:

There aren’t many sunny days this time of year. And even at noon the sun is not very high in the sky. It gets light at about 7am and dark by 3:30pm. We are just 33 days from the shortest day of the year, and then it will start getting brighter again. Satellite dishes look strange. They are nearly horizontal.

 There are babushka (“grandmothers” - generally older women who have lost their husbands) taking care of everything just because it needs taking care of. We already know that even a drunken man will not stand up to a babushka. They seem to always get their way. When Bob didn’t have his coat done up enough for the cold, it was a babushka who loudly told him to button up and stay warm.

We are still new here and learning our roles. Every day we ask ourselves, “What can we do more?” and “What can we do better?” So each day is better than the one before. We are studying Russian, we are always in for a new adventure.

Elder and Sister Preece

Gorlovka

Donetsk, Ukraine mission

First Letter!!

Well, Mom and Dad have arrived safely and are happy! We have been able to Skype with them and we even had one (very expensive) phone call. They are 9 hours ahead of Utah time zone, so we mostly hear from them in the mornings (evening for them). It's so great to be able to hear from them and know they are well. Dad's leg has improved greatly, he can walk without his cane now. His eye is also much better, things are coming together for them. They have had a lot of help from the Elders in their area, which has been so great. They will need help getting adjusted to the culture and the ways things are done there.
Here is their letter:

We are finally settled in our apartment in Gorlovka, Ukraine. This mission needs lots of senior missionaries, so if you know of someone, we are looking. As are the other 10 or so missions in the area. After weeks putting together our papers and five months waiting for the call date to arrive then a week in the Senior mission training center, there was 20 hours of jet travel and we arrived at a place where nearly everyone is GLAD TO SEE us.

     Our living quarters are super great. No one takes care of the outside or the halls, so they are a mess, But the living quarters are nice. There is a large living room (on missionary standards) where we have invited the elders to bring investigators to be taught. There is a small study room and a fairly large bathroom with a BIG tub. Bob says he will go swimming twice a week and shower the rest of the time. It is newly remodeled with new appliances and air conditioning for the few days in the summer when that is needed. It is in a big building called a Dom where there are lots of similar apartments. There are ten or so outside doors with four apartments on each level for eight floors. We are only on the third floor. The first floor is businesses including a small grocery store. The Elders did not take Bob to get money until yesterday late, so we've not tried the store yet.

     Today (Sunday) was a regional conference for the Eastern Europe area. It was broadcast in English and in Russian (maybe other languages too) With speakers direct from Salt Lake, it was GREAT. This area now has a temple and three stakes! There are many new members here since the Soviet government dissolved in 1991. The members and the districts are working hard to reach the levels needed to be stakes. That is our personal goal - to make a Donetsk stake happen before we go home in two years. Or at least have our branch ready to be a ward. I guess there are others who need to decide about a stake.

     We have six missionaries in the area with us. One of the sets will bring an investigator to our place to teach this evening. We never know for sure since the meetings are often cancelled at the last minute.

      Tomorrow is prep day so we will go with the elders shopping. We have a  l o n g  list of things we need to start the apartment from super glue to pots and pans and everything in between.  Much of the stuff Alice had a hard time throwing away at home we need again. We did start-up shopping on Thursday and got enough to get through the week-end. Some things are really inexpensive here. Bob got two loaves of bagette bread for 25 cents a full loaf of whole wheat rye bread was less than a dollar US. The bread here is really good and tasty.

     Bob forgot the headset so he can do Rosetta Stone, so we have to wait until we get another one tomorrow to have him begin his again. meanwhile we are reading the Russian Book of Mormon and that is helping a lot. The Elders have made a few suggestions on how they learn best, so we can try them too.

Have a good week. 

Elder & Sister Preece (Bob & Alice)

And... They're Off!!

Oh, my! Can we say... busy?! These past two weeks have been so crazy! A week after their farewell, Mom and Dad were set apart as missionaries by our wonderful stake president. Our family got to meet together and listen to their very special blessings. They were both blessed with strength, health and a higher insight for the people they will serve in Ukraine.
After the farewell, they packed and were off to the Provo MTC for a week. They really enjoyed the time they spent there. Everyday was scheduled full with classes and meetings. Mom and Dad mostly focused on teaching others the Gospel. They got to play the role of investigators, then missionaries. From what we understood at the MTC, it sounds like teaching will be a big part of their responsibilities in Ukraine. The church is growing there, and people need to hear the message of the Gospel.
During the week, we discovered that Satan is ever present and is always trying to distract and lead us away from our righteous goals. Dad had some more medical concerns with his knee as well as his eye. The MTC took wonderful care of him, got him to the doctor and made sure everything was working well. It turns out that he'd strained a muscle pretty badly just under his knee, and could barely walk. They found a cane that helped a great deal. It looks like he will carry that for the next two or three weeks until it has a chance to fully heal. No major concerns. His eye had a blood vessel break in it, as a result from a previous surgery. Again, no major concerns, it should heal all by itself in two weeks. The doctors all treated Mom and Dad extremely well and made sure they were all set to leave, even though it will be with a few more challenges than expected.
The Elders and Sisters at the MTC treated all of the senior couples extremely well. Mom commented several times that they were all there to help every step of the way. She said it was Wednesday before they ever had to open a door for themselves. I was so pleased to hear Mom and Dad talk about the kindness of the young missionaries. I'm sure the elders and sisters in their mission will treat them with the highest respect and kindness as well. That will also be a big part of their responsibilities, caring for the elders and sisters.
At the end of the week, they drove back home. We got to enjoy their company for one last weekend. We helped put together last minute things that needed to be packed and loved every second we could have. We all got together as a family and had an early Thanksgiving. It was so much fun! We played a game and learned about Ukraine, and had tons of yummy food. It's such a blessing to be able to be all together as a family to support our parents/grandparents on a mission.
Then Tuesday, Nov 5th... it's time to get on a plane! I woke up extra early, and helped Mom get a few last things packed, and we headed to the airport! It was snowing like crazy, but we made it safely. After one last picture, a hug and kiss, they were gone. They both seemed happy and excited. I got a phone call from Mom a bit later saying they were ready to board the plane, they had made it through security okay and all is well. They won't arrive now in their mission until Wednesday (tomorrow) afternoon. I will post again this weekend with news on how they are settling.
It's so wonderful to see the Lord's work hastening on! We love our missionaries. :)

Off to the MTC!

Bye, bye!! 

Farewell

I know we're not supposed to call them "farewells", but it certainly doesn't feel like a regular church meeting when you have missionaries leaving! This past Sunday Mom and Dad spoke in our ward. They spoke on strengthening home and family. We had a great turn out! It was so wonderful to see most of my parents' siblings and their families, as well as several supportive friends. My Grandma, Dad's mom, even made it! Sending sons on missions must be part of the mothers job description.
We recorded the church meeting, because we had a few family members absent. I will post it here as well, if there is anyone else that would like to hear it. ----> (Farewell) After the meeting, we gathered at the condo clubhouse and had some yummy munchies. We ate soup, cookies, and veggies. Mom and Dad got to visit a lot of friends and family. It is amazing to see all the support for their mission.
Since last Sunday, things have been a whirlwind of excitement and preparation. We are vigorously working on making sure Mom and Dad's things are cleaned, packed and stored while they're gone. We're also checking and double checking the things they need to have packed to take. We have all of their luggage put together, and are just finishing shopping for a few last items.
Challenges have been getting tougher. Dad had some emergency dental work done this week. Which, really is more of a blessing since he will not have this same care in Ukraine, and it's great that it can be done here before he leaves. We are getting through these last few days and are excited to have the end upon us!
Mom and Dad will enter the MTC on Monday, October 28th. They will likely be staying in a hotel, since the rooms in the MTC are full of young missionaries. They will stay in Provo for a week, learning about their mission, Preach My Gospel, and whatever other training they will need. On Friday night, they will come home and stay one last weekend with their family. Then, from the information we have so far, they will fly out on Tuesday, November 5th. I will be continuing the blog from here at home with all the updates we recieve from them.
We are so excited to see all of the miracles take place to get our missionaries to Ukraine. The work is hastening on!
I had a few requests for the mission address to be posted, so here it is:
Prospekt Bogdana Khmelnitslcogo 67a
Donetsk 83087 Ukraine

Last General Conference in English

What a fun week, full of mission prep! This week Mom and Dad got so much accomplished and are getting ever closer to leaving! 22 days now. Not that we're counting or keeping track. Lol. Quick note, if anyone out there would like to follow this blog by e-mail or contact me while Mom and Dad are away, I added links on the right for you to do so. Also, it always helps me feel a bit closer if I know what the weather looks like, so I've added Donetsk's weather as well. Brrr....
This week we moved forward in some small things, but even the small things are starting to feel big. Dad finished his final day at his part-time job! It's been a plucky little job that has helped bring in extra mission money, and keep Dad busy. All the same, it's nice to see it behind us. With that, we emptied our storage unit which had all of Jason and my kitchen things. We brought those home, unpacked and cleaned them. Mom meanwhile, worked on packing up her things. It was a crazy mess, switching "kitchens", but we got it done! It's hard to think of this house being "mine", though my family will be the one here. It will always be Mom and Dad's house to me.
We also got Dad in for a final eye check and ordered an extra pair of glasses for him. Having Mom and Dad be so far away makes it difficult for us to get things to them, and if you've ever been without eyesight for too long, it's miserable. We're trying to prepare for anything we possibly can and get them extra sets of everything they can only get here, for example, glasses. These past few months have proved miraculous with Dad's eyesight. When we got his eyes checked to accept the mission call, he was referred to a specialist because his left eye had a cataracts in it. While they did the surgery to remove the cataracts, they also put in a corrective lens. This gave him perfect eyesight (which he's NEVER had) in his left eye. Now the lens in the left side of his glasses is completely blank. It has been such a blessing, that the surgery not only went well, but provided us with better results than we could have expected. It is amazing to see all the little pieces come together to send them to Ukraine.
Another "little" piece that we have been working on, is luggage. Mom and Dad have been searching for luggage to take with them for a couple months. Everywhere they look, the prices seem high and it's not what they want. This past week, we were rummaging through a DI when we found a near new piece of luggage that Dad fell in love with. Kinda hard not to fall in love, when you can buy it for under $5. Cheer! I'm seeing less things happen by "accident" or "coincidence", while more and more I see the hand of Heavenly Father in our lives. It's truly humbling and amazing. He is hastening His work!
We're also working on planning Mom and Dad's farewell, which is not next Sunday, but the Sunday after. It's crazy to think that it's so close! But it is coming! We're planning on inviting everyone to the clubhouse in the Sundowner Condos after sacrament meeting for treats and visiting. It should be a great time. I can't wait to hear what Mom and Dad speak on! (Hopefully we'll even get to hear a little Russian from them as well!)
Mom and Dad are working so hard on their Russian training. Since Dad has finished his job, they are increasing the number of days they spend in Provo from two a week, to three a week. In addition, they work on their training daily here at home using language programs and all the materials they've received from the Church. Mom has been learning about herself as she learns Russian. She has been feeling frustrated and discouraged that she is not grasping things as quickly or as well as she wants. While they were in Provo this week, she was introduced to a recently returned senior missionary, Sister Peterson. Sister Peterson and her husband served in Russia. Anyone who knows Mom, she makes friends like crazy. She can pretty much talk to anyone about anything. She had a great talk with Sister Peterson and told her the fears she had about learning Russian, not knowing enough, and wanting to be able to communicate. Sister Peterson was very sympathetic and understood completely. She explained that during her mission, she never learned to read in Russian, and only knew a few phrases to communicate. Her husband did a lot of the communicating and reading. They both had a good cry. Sometimes all you need is to be understood. But from that conversation, Mom walked away with renewed vigor to learn Russian. She recently decided that she learns best audibly, which with language is easily enough done. Dad bought a new program to help her called "Pimsleur Conversational Russian". In Provo they're learning a lot of the grammar side of Russian, but this program will help them learn more of the conversational side of Russian. We'll see how much they can seep in with 22 days!
So, Conference weekend! It was a little emotional, this is the last conference Mom and Dad will be home with us! Mom and Dad spent it at home with grandchildren. We had a pizza lunch, games, and just enjoyed having family time together. Dad loved the talk given by President Eyring when he talked about his parents. His Mother, that wanted to move closer to family and his Father that got a job offer in Utah, but turned it down. When his father asked his mother about it, she'd said, "Do what you feel is right." So, he turned down the job offer. She wrote him a letter the next day, reminding him of a promise he had made to move them closer to family if ever the opportunity arose. When he asked her why she hadn't just told him that when he asked, she said, "Well, you were suppose to remember!" Dad was almost brought to tears. A mission had not been a conversation between them, until the Spirit prompted Dad to ask Mom about serving a mission. The Holy Ghost had reminded him of his promise.
We are so lucky to help Mom and Dad serve on a mission. It's amazing to see the blessings come!