March 26th 2013

Wednesday, March 20^th: As I start this week’s blog, I am interested in our audience.  I can look at the overview of our blog and see that during the last month our blog has been read by people from many different countries around the world.  I would like to know who some of you are. Our blog was read by someone in France, I’m not sure I know anyone in France. If you are ok with sharing who you are, please make a comment and tell us who you are and how you found our blog.  The same goes for Russia, the UK, China, Germany and Argentina.  I think I can guess who the rest of you are.  Our blog was opened 577 times last month.  That is awesome and we are pleased that we have so many friends from all over the world sharing our adventure here in Bolivia. 

Thursday, March 21^st:  We were visited today by Elder Nash, who is the assistant Executive Director of the Church History Department, Brother Richard E. Turley Jr. who is the Assistant Church Historian and Recorder and Brother Reid L. Nielson who is Managing Director of the Church History Department.  They were here as part of a 3 week tour of our area to collect the early history of the church in different countries of South America.  We had a 1 hour meeting with them and they shared some amazing history of the endowment and temple work from early church history.  Elder Nash had served in our Area Presidency before his current assignment and is good friends with Pres. and Sister Crayk.  It is always nice to have general authorities visit. 

Saturday, March 23^rd:  We had another busy morning with 2 full early sessions.  After things quieted down, Pres. Crayk asked me and mom to go and speak to a group from La Paz in the patron housing building.  We had about an hour to get ready.  We started at 8:30am and the auditorium was full. 

Group from La Paz.

Bishop Choque had his group all seated and we started right on time.  Mom talked for about 15 minutes and I got a little long winded and spoke for about 40 minutes.  It is getting almost easier to speak without notes or a prepared talk.  They were so cute and appreciative.  They hurried up to the temple for the 10:30am session.  I am going to try and take more pictures of the people who come to the temple.  I have included a couple of pictures of children.

The baby Nicole and her big sister Camilla from Santa Cruz.

Gabriela and Shanon.

Sunday, March 24^th:  We split up today.  Mom went the Universidad Ward and talked to the Relief Society about how to prepare the sisters to come to the temple.  This is the second stake to invite all the missionaries to come on the same Sunday and talk in every RS meeting.  I took the new couple, the Harrisons, to the Jaihuayco Ward.  We have a list of all the wards in Cochabamba and when they start their meetings and the address and so forth.  My list said the meetings would start at 9:00am.  We left at 8:00am and arrived at 8:20am, only to find the sacrament meeting had started at 8:00am.  We came in during the sacrament song and sat in the back.  When the sacrament was over we walked up and sat on the stand.  I asked the Bishop for a few minutes.  I got up and apologized for being late and said I was really embarrassed because last week in the stake conference in the Universidad stake I had given a talk on being on time.  I introduced the Harrisons who are now assigned to that ward.  We got home and had a nice dinner provided by Lynn and Diana Crayk, Pres. Crayk’s brother and his wife.

Monday, March 25^th:  Paseo day.  Mom has planned another outing.  We loaded everybody up in a bus and headed to Pairumani Park. 

On the way to Pairumani.

Pres. and Sister Crayk.

You know this couple.

Lynn and Diana Crayk.

The Johnson's.

The Hurst's.

The Harrison's.

The Gironda's.

The Delgado's.

The Cardon's.

The Vallenas'.

Sister Eames her husband stayed home.

The Dibb's.

The Perez's.

We had a couple of couples that did not come with us. We visited this park a year ago, but many of the new missionaries were not with us a year ago, so we are recycling our outings. 

Most of the group and an extra dog.

Let's eat.

A guest at the park.

After the park and lunch we visited the country home of Senor Patino, the tin baron.  Everyone seemed to have a good time.  I took a couple of pictures of flowers from their garden.

This is the road that leads to the summer home.

The entrance to the Summer home of Senor Patino.

Big leaves and my big stomach.

Some of the gardens the house sits on 20 acres of gardens.

The summer home.

The courtyard of the summer home.

Many of the rooms at the summer home have their original furniture.

The Gironda's and the Norman's.

Part of the gardens.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The have bushes here that are Poinsettia's.

Tuesday, March 26^th:  This morning we had 2 young men (new missionaries) and 2 young women (new missionaries) come for their endowments, all from Santa Cruz.  The 2 young women were sisters born only 11 months apart, one is going to Chile the other to Colombia.  Their parents were with them and their 3 younger teenage sisters had come to support them and did baptisms in the baptistery while they waited for their sisters to receive their endowments.  The oldest of the 3 younger sisters plans to leave on a mission in about 6 months.  They will have 3 daughters serving at the same time.  Sweet family, sweet spirit, our days can’t get much better than this.