Monday, March 31, 2014

March 30 2014 Weekly Letter

Australia Sunday Mar 30, 2014
Dear Family and Friends:
Wow, where did March go?  The saying goes that when you are busy time flies by, and that is so true.  It is hard to believe we are going into the 4th month of the year.
First we would like to say Thank You to Deven for putting the “Roberts Review” together, and for all those who wrote.  It was so good to read what everyone is doing in their lives.  We printed it off and that was the first thing we did when we got home Monday was to read it.  Next time hopefully all will write an update of their family. 
Robin, our IT guy came in Monday and was hoping us and Williams were not in the office as he wanted to install the new firewall in our building, so we said we would leave at 4.  He said it should take him a couple of hours.  When we got to the office Tuesday morning I opened the door to put our lunch in the refrigerator and saw wires all over where he was working when we left Monday and said I was sure we had no internet, and we didn’t.  As we walked through the office at Buckland House to go get the mail, he said there was something wrong, and he had been on the phone all day with Salt Lake and Queensland and they couldn’t seem to get it resolved.  He came in just before we left on Tuesday, we had stayed late for Family Home Evening, and said he had patched it up again and he would not be in for 10 days, he has finals.  So far it is working. 
Family Home Evening was the farewell party for the Tanners, they return home to Payson, Utah in the morning.  We are sure going to miss them.  They are still going to continue with the articles for the Mormon Newsroom, AU, until the new couple come.  They are supposed to be here on the 15th of April.  The Moore’s did the dinner, all the Tanners favorites, lasagna, spaghetti, pizza and French bread.  Their gift was a book on Sydney with history and beautiful pictures.  We then played Pictionary and that was a hoot.  Another really fun night.  I guess you saw the picture dad took of all the couples that were there.  Next month we will get another one with the Archibald’s there.  Elder Archibald was in New Zealand working and Sister Archibald is in Utah with a new grandson.  Hopefully Tina got to meet her. 
Dad has been emailing Salt Lake all week about more lights for our camera.  In order to install a new program they want us to use we need more lights so we ran around on Wednesday looking for 200 watt bulbs and there are no such thing in our area.  We went to the office at 7:30 on Friday to call Henry and he was already gone but Darin was there so he got on team viewer and told Dad to lower our lights and see if that would work, so he installed the new program on the computer and said he would be in the office for about another hour.  We tried to calibrate the camera and it wouldn’t calibrate so Dad called him back.  He had to uninstall the new program and put the old one back on and said to just work with it.  Dad was still on the phone with him when we left for the Birthday Morning Tea.  The Physical Facilities team were in charge and they had little sandwiches, tortilla’s with mayo, ham and lettuce or turkey, then rolled up and cut and stood up.  They looked really cute and were very good.  They also had strawberries, grapes, watermelon, nuts, cookies, potato chips, crackers, and dips.  It was really good.  After Sister Moore had everyone stay for a picture, missionaries in front with name tags on holding boxes of Sanitarium Cereals.  They are made by the Seventh Day Adventist, and they have a meeting with them next week, so they are going to show them that we love their cereal. 
On Wednesday we got an email from Mark saying he wanted to have lunch on Thursday and asked Sister Williams to organize it.  Paul Pardin and his wife joined us, he is over Family History somehow, I don’t know his exact calling.  We ate subway sandwiches, chips and grapes.  Mark showed the results of an online survey about family history given around Australia.  It was very interesting.  It is good just to visit also.
Yesterday we took the Killebrew’s on the rivercat to the Quays and walked to the bridge pylon so they could see it.  I did not walk up the 200 steps, I just sat on a bench.  They had not been down to Sydney so they really enjoyed it.  We hadn’t been on the rivercat for a while so it was fun and it was perfect weather.  We had fish and chips when we got off the cat and then walked.  We got home around 6:30.
Church today was very good.  It is good to be back after missing a week.  We missed Ward Conference last week, and a baptism yesterday because we didn’t know about it.  Priesthood and Relief Society combined was on missionary work.  It was good. 
Tonight we went to the office for the very first NSW Multi-Stake Webinar Devotional titled “Sharing the Gospel Online: Good, Better and Best.”  It was really good and very informative.  Steve and Kathi Tanner have worked on this for several months and this is their last official thing to do.  They leave at 5 in the morning.  When you have time look up on YouTube “Baptist converts to Mormon.”  He talked on the webinar, he was a Baptist missionary in the states and ran into missionaries in a Southern State.   Just as we were getting ready to leave the office we had thunder and lightning, and rain.  Since we got home we have had really hard rain.  We have had rain off and on all week and everything is so green and beautiful.  There is a tree blooming all over with really deep beautiful purple flowers.  I hope we get a picture this week.  I need to find out what it is. 
We are so glad Ezra and Kaylee and Rowan are together again as a family and beginning their new life in the Marines in Yuma, Arizona.  We will see where Deven and Michelle and family are tomorrow when we call.  They are going to be loving Skype and the media as we do.  Can’t imagine being this far away without it.  When we don’t have Wi-Fi in the office I am frustrated because I can’t call or text any of the kids.  At least when it is out I can bring email and Facebook up on our work computers that are wired direct.
Friday we sent in 15500 images so we are right on track to finish in October.  We need to stay ahead for when we have a lot of meetings and activities.  We were actually surprised it was that many when we unhooked the hard drive.
The Killebrew’s brought up some chocolate cake and we had it when we got home from the office.  It was really good.  They wanted to tell us thanks for taking them yesterday.


In closing I want to quote the 3rd verse of “Let Us All Press On”
If we do what’s right we have no need to fear,
For the Lord, our helper, will ever be near;
In the days of trial his Saints he will cheer,
And prosper the cause of truth.
Chorus:
Fear not, though the enemy deride;
Courage, for the Lord is on our side.
We will heed not what the wicked my say,
But the Lord alone we will obey.
We Love you and Pray for you all!
Mum and Dad


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