Quito, Ecuador Temple

Quito, Ecuador Temple
Here is where we will be working until Feb. 2023

Welcome

Dear Readers,

We hope as you read this blog of our mission to the Quito, Ecuador temple you will feel the joy and happiness we are experiencing by being in the service of our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ. We hope you can experience some of what we feel. Christine and I met in Quito, Ecuador 51 years ago while serving as missionaries. We are going home.


John and Christine

Total Pageviews

Tuesday, April 29, 2014

April 23rd to April 29



 April 23rd to April 29:  Wednesday, Mom took at job at Northwest Middle School and I worked on getting all the hardware off the doors and I got the first coat of paint on one side of the doors.  After work, mom took front runner down to Lehi, to tend James’ kids.  James and Kirstin went on a little trip so she will be there till Friday. 

Door all lined up ready for painting.
Door all lined up ready for painting.

Thursday, I got all the doors painted with 2 coats on both sides.   Friday, Blake helped me hang doors.  We installed new hinges and door handles and got the doors hung.  Some of them will have to be cut down because the carpet is a lot thicker and the doors rub on the carpet.   I also got the ceiling in the front room painted.  It is about a 13 foot ceiling and when I got done my neck and shoulders were really hurting from looking up so much and holding a roller on an extra long extension pole.  The added weight of the pole really made it a workout.  Mom took Luke for his birthday outing.  So I met them and Jake at Lindsey Gardens for lunch. 

Lunch with Luke and Jake.

I had to hurry to John’s house to tend kids so they could go to the temple while mom was tending Charlotte’s kids while Alex and Charlotte went to the temple.  Saturday, Mom asked me to make my beef and bean burritos for Sunday dinner with everyone coming.  So I started cooking the pinto beans for the refried beans I would need.  I took Luke to his soccer game.  It was raining pretty hard and so when Alex showed up about half way through, I left them to get wet.  I got the kitchen cabinet doors in John’s house fixed and got a few things purchased for the rest of his punch list.  Mom went to a brunch with all her cousins and their daughters on her mother’s side of the family. 
The cousins and Aunt Deanee.
In the evening I went to Stake Conference with Charlotte and Alex.  Dean Hodson from our old ward on the avenues was one of the speakers.  He is the first counselor in the mission presidency.  I went up and talked to him for a few minutes.  It was fun to see an old friend.  Sunday morning I started cooking early and got the refried beans and the enchilada sauce made. It was regional stake conference and was broadcast from the conference center.  Elder Whitney Clayton conducted and Elder Neil L. Anderson presided.  It was a good meeting.  After conference I finished up my burritos/enchiladas. 

Burritos / Enchiladas

We had a great get together with all our children and grandchildren who live here in Utah. 

Dinner was a success.


  We celebrated Chris’s birthday.
Singing to Mom.
I think she gets her wish.
Mom's birthday present.
We played some CEO after dinner.  Good times.  Monday, I met Blake at John’s house and we loaded up John’s table saw into Blake’s pickup truck.  We are going to have to cut down all the doors that rub the carpet.  Blake and Michelle had their grand piano moved out of the upstairs bathroom, where it had been for the last 3 months, so that I could get the baseboard changed out.  Blake helped me get all the doors cut off and then we sanded any of the doors that were too tight because of the added layers of paint.  Maybe we sanded 10 doors and cut down about 14.  I got all the baseboards in the bathroom done and the ceiling in the front room touched up and finished up a couple of doors that we didn’t have the hardware for last Friday.  Mom gave the Family Home Evening lesson on the anchor in our lives (the gospel of Jesus Christ) and the chain (keeping the commandments and serving others) that connects us to our anchor to Charlotte’s family.  Then I pulled all of her boys down the stairs and yes, we stopped when someone got hurt and was crying. They beg me to play this game with them, but I don’t know why.  I then drove the truck to John’s to unload the table saw.  Tuesday, I started at 6:30am and Chris came into help with the last little bit of painting on the trim.  I got the cabinet doors painted and the molding in the last bathroom puttied and caulked and then Chris and I got all the trim painted upstairs that I had left because we were concentrating on the rooms that would get carpet. It looks like I won’t get everything done.  Blake and Michelle will have a few rooms that will need have their walls painted, but pretty much everything they needed me to do is done.  Van came and took us to lunch at La Frontera, trying to get us ready for Mexico.  10 day to go we can’t wait.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

April 16 through April 22:



April 16 through April 22: Wednesday, Mom and I both worked all day painting.  Mom stopped a little early and had her Spanish lesson.  But we didn’t get home until after 6:00pm.  Thursday, was Groundhog Day for me but mom left about 11:00am to tend Kate’s kids.  Kate picked her up from the job site and she tended the kids at Charlotte’s house.  I stayed and painted walls. Friday, was another Groundhog Day for both of us.  We finished up pulling off the tape on the last few rooms about 4:00pm.  If Chris had not spent so much time these last 2 weeks, I never would have gotten it all painted and ready for the carpet layers.  Thanks dear for all your help.  Saturday we spent the morning getting eggs filled with candy and surprises in anticipation of our Easter Egg hunt that we would have in the afternoon.  I got John’s patio all cleaned and the furniture washed and ready for the summer.  I hid all the eggs in John’s back yard and we had a list of the number of eggs and colors that each of the grandkids had to find.  One of the eggs was shinny and had the number of their birth order.  So Badger the oldest grandchild had to find the egg with #1 on it.  That way I could really hide the older kid’s special egg.  When they could not find it I would trade some of their candy for a clue as to where their egg was.  It was a win-win, I think.  The grandkids also made an apron for me to take on our mission.  It has each of their hand prints on it.  So cute.  

My new apron.
All the gang.
Dying Easter Eggs

Everyone had a good time and we ended with a nice barbecue.  We had bought and marinated some sirloin on Friday and it was delicious. 

Barbecue

Sunday, we really enjoy our Sunday school class and we will miss them.  After church we had a great Easter dinner.  James and his family came up and we all over ate.  Ham and funeral potatoes, could you want anything else.  Someone said the reason that everyone wants funeral potatoes at funerals is that is they make everyone feel better.  I concur.  Monday, it was back to Rigby’s for me.  The carpet layers finished on Sunday and it looks great.  Now I have a list of everything they want me to try and finish before we leave.  There are still 9 rooms that need to be painted.  We only got the rooms where carpet would be laid done.  So I need to get some cracks fixed and a few carpentry things, access doors for plumbing valves and broken doors repaired.  Their kids are all moved out but they left them a few things to fix.  Can anyone relate to this?  I left work at 11:00am and hurried home and got cleaned up.  Then Chris and I went to lunch with my brothers and my sister, Alice.  Van took us to the Grand America buffet.  Wow what a spread. 

Lunch at the Grand America. LtoR  Chris, Alice, Tove, Tad, Van and Maude.

We all went to his condo overlooking the temple and spent the next few hours talking about family history and who would do what to try and get more of what we have done online so all or our kids and grandkids have access to it.  Tad read us the talk he had given in Sacrament meeting the day before.  It was one of the best Easter talks I have ever heard and it made us all cry.  We finished off with a light dinner and all in all it was a wonderful day.  Tuesday, mom took a substituting job and dropped me off.  I got a lot done on my punch list.  I think tomorrow I will get the last of all the ceilings painted.  We only have 16 days left.  Hurray we can’t wait.

Tuesday, April 15, 2014

April 10th through April 15th






April 10th through April 15th:  Thursday, I dropped mom off at Kate’s house at 8:00am.  She is going to tend for the day because Kate is in charge of the Parental Defense Conference in Park City.  I got to James’ house just before 9:00am and unloaded my tools, then went to Home Depot to buy the redwood to build 2-eight foot picnic tables for his deck.  I got back to his house about 10:00am and he said, “It should only take a couple of hours, right?”  Well 10 hours later we are finishing up his two tables and 4 benches.  I got home at just before 9:00pm.   A long day, but now they have picnic tables for Rigby’s birthday party on Saturday. 

James has a really big deck.
James and his kids.  One table down one to go.
Emme and Rigby like the tables.

Friday, I installed 4 can lights in the office upstairs and 7 cans, 5 new ones and replaced 2 old ones, in the front room.  It was my day to be an electrician.  It is such a dirty, nasty job.  Cutting the holes in the ceiling and then fishing wires and breathing sheet rock dust and insulation all day long is really not much fun at all. 

New office can lights.
The holes are cut and the wire pulled just have to install the cans.

Ginny, Sam, Xela and Willa flew into town for the weekend.  We have lots of things going on this weekend.  Saturday, we started off at 8:00 am at the state capitol for family pictures.  Everyone had gotten new clothes and matched so well.  Thanks Jamie Christensen Morse for working so hard to get all the families shot and then the big group of us, 27 in all now.  It took a couple of hours to get all the pictures taken. 

Family Picture Day.
Nana and Papa and the 15 best grand-kids in the world.
My sons, James and John the sons of thunder.

We then took everybody that wanted to go, to Betos for breakfast burritos.  Yum so good. 

Betos

Then we went to Fiz for dirty diet cokes or whatever you wanted. 

John's family at Fiz.

We all met at the new Aquarium in Draper for Rigby’s pirate birthday party.  You had to come dressed as a pirate.

Rigby is the birthday boy.
Inside the aquarium.
Evan, Moose and Badger.
In the tunnel.
Luke and Dad, Alex.

After the aquarium, we went to James’ for pizza and birthday cake on the deck with the 2 new picnic tables.  The kids had a wild time with the piñata and then played Zombie tag. 

Rigby about to blow out his candles.

Sunday, we spoke in church and gave our farewell talks.  Included in the sacrament meeting was the blessing of our newest granddaughter, Tilda Beth McBean and a home coming of a missionary who had served in the Philippines.  We had talked our Sunday school class of 12 and 13 year olds into sing also.  Mom spoke first and then it was my turn.  We kept our talks short, but they still had a nice message and the Spirit was strong.  Our Sunday school class was awesome. 

Our Sunday School Class practicing before sacrament meeting.

Our Sunday school class practicing.

The returned missionary had 20 minutes and we got out 10 minutes late.  Not bad, right? But, we did start 5 minutes early.  Then it was off to a mini-cousins’ reunion and good- bye party for Chris and I at the home of John and Courtney Brown in Bluffdale.  About 60 people came and it was fun to see so many of my nieces and nephews and their kids. 

My siblings L to R Tad, Van, Alice and me.
The cousins reunion and the cousins eating crickets.

Monday, we went with Ginny and Sam and their 2 girls to the children’s museum. 

The wind tunnel.
The Helicopter.

We had lunch and we dropped them off at the airport. 

Lunch at Gateway.

We next headed to Nephi so I could go to court and talk to the judge.  After listening to my story of what had happened, the judge dismissed the ticket and as I left the court room I said, “I hope that it gets recorded correctly this time.”  I hope I can go on our mission without an arrest warrant out there for me.  Tuesday, both Chris and I went to work painting at the molding job.  I got the ceilings in the office and bedroom upstairs painted and Chris taped off and cut in some of the rooms downstairs.  I got the walls painted in 2 of the bedrooms downstairs. The carpet guys are coming on Saturday so I have to get everything painted where the carpet is going to go.  I feel a little stressed out.   We had to take a break and go to the Mexican Consulate and get our visas.  Another couple was ahead of us and I heard him say that he had served his mission in the Peru and Ecuador mission.  I knew that he had to have been there either just before us or maybe for some of the same time.  Sure enough, he left about 6 months after I had arrived.  His name is Elder Watkins.  I remember the name and he knew many of the Elders I remember.  One sad thing was he said that Jerry Goodman had passed away of problems with his liver about a year ago.  He was my first companion and a really good missionary.  It is such a small world.  Elder Watkins and his wife are going to the Tampico, Mexico mission.  Their ex-stake president is the mission president and they were recruited.  We are excited to get to the mission field.