August 17 2014 Weekly Letter

Australia Sunday August 17, 2014

Dear Family and Friends,

Happy Birthday today to Danna!

It is 10:30pm so this will be a short letter.  We just finished making a potato salad for a dinner tomorrow night at the Allen’s.  Good thing I made the dressing and cooked the potatoes and eggs this morning.

We got to the office on Monday and Mark was sick and out until Wednesday, and then Elder Smylie came in and said Sister Smylie was sick, and she has been out all week except Wednesday, when she came in and coughed all day.  She should have stayed down.  I called yesterday and she is feeling better thank goodness.  Monday night was Family Home Evening, I conducted and the Killebrew’s fixed a really good chicken casserole with a spinach salad, and the Smith’s had chocolate lasagna for dessert.  It was yummy.  The Smith’s had us sit in a circle and take a piece of paper and read it and comment on it.  They were things like” what is something that you are afraid of and how have you conquered it, and how the 10-10-80 rule affects your finance’s, etc.”  It was really interesting.  Monday night and part of the day Tuesday it rained, the rest of the days have been cool but really nice.

Friday night we hadn’t been home from work long when Rashika, and Dave came to our door bearing gifts from Sri Lanka.  Dave had just come in Thursday night, and they gave Dad a shirt, and me a skirt, tunic and beads.  They are all hand woven cotton and are beautiful.

Kailee is leaving tomorrow for Fiji, she is going to visit some Family History Centers and give a couple of talks on Family History.  She is really excited, and will be back Friday afternoon.

Yesterday we decided to go to the Quays and do some shopping for us.  It is supposed to rain all week starting at noon yesterday.  We rode the river cat down and walked up to the rocks and we went in a store we had been in before and Dad bought a Didgeridoo.  He has wanted one since we got here and we decided if we are going to get one it will be one made by the Aboriginies here in Australia.  The store is mailing it home and it should be delivered to Tina’s on Thur or Fri. It had rained really hard while we were in the store.   We had fish and chips and got back on the ferry at noon as it was still looking very much like rain.  We went to the store and then came home.  We went over to the Moore’s and watched a dvd to see if we can use it for Family Home Evening in Oct.  It is about a ship wreck from Australia to the U S and is the only time loss of life of Mormon Immigrants because of a wreck.  A great book called “Divine Providence, the wreck of the Julia Ann.”

Today we went to the Oatlands Ward to be with Rashika, Dave and Devmini.  It was good to see the members again.  It is still a very small ward.  After Church we were invited to the missionary discussion at Rashika’s at 5:30.  We got home at 4:30, we had invited Kailee to come with us to eat, so we hurried and ate and went to their flat.  They live in A building so we have to take our elevator to -1 and then go to another elevator to go to their floor.  Dave had a lot of questions and the missionaries answered them perfectly.  He had never heard of the pre-existence until at Sunday School and so he said this is a very new way of thinking, but it does make sense.  After the discussion Rashika made Hoppers, a little crepe like dish with an egg cooked in the bottom, then she had lots of toppings to put on it, then you take another little shell and eat it with that.  Then she gave us one that had coconut milk and sugar cooked on it.  Then she brought out a baked Alaska that she had made, she even made the ice cream, 3 flavors.  Oh, it was so good.  The Elders left and then Dave got his guitar out and played to California Girl.  He loves the Beetles!  We were all singing and dancing, and we even got Devmini up to dance.  They told us that Devmini means “God’s Gem”.  She will be 14 in Oct and would love to have some pen pals, Lydia or Makenna?  I will send you her email address.

We are leaving Tuesday for Agquip, a big Agriculture Show that Mark wants us to see.  He always went to it when he was a boy.  It is about a 5-6 hr drive.  We think it is like the one in Tulare, California.  It will be good to get away, and then next weekend we go to Ulladulla to speak.

A little trivia for you, On the 13 of August 1982 the Sydney Temple ground breaking took place, 32 years ago.  Elder Bruch R McConkie of the Quorum of the Twelve presided and offered the dedicatory prayer over the site and turned the first sod of soil.

It is after 11 so we are going to say Good Night!

We Love you all,

Mum and Dad