Tuesday, June 24, 2014

Shots, Shots, and More Shots!

 We're beginning to feel like pin cushions as we get the necessary shots for our mission. There are a bunch of them. Here's the list:

Hepatitis A & B - Need one more in series of three
Tetanus, Diphtheria, Pertussis - √
Influenza - In December
Typhoid - √
Japanese Encephalitis
Menengitis - √
Pneumonia- √
Shingles - √

We really only have three left. The Japanese Encephalitis is really pricey, and it's a two shot series, but we found a good deal with Walgreen's and our insurance provider . . . much cheaper than the public health department! The flu shot is no big deal and can wait until just before we enter the MTC. We're up to date on that until then. We have one more hep shot to receive as well.

The Preparation Begins

There is a lot to do to prepare, both physically and spiritually, before entering the MTC. We have been reading, studying, and praying much more than we have in the past. This is a good thing.

There are shots to get, videos to watch, material to read, clothes to buy, and the list goes on.


We've watched the first four episodes of The District. It's an unscripted series about missionaries planning and teaching. The first three episodes were about the importance of planning. Sherrie and I had tears in our eyes in each episode. The next episode of what I would call the first in the second season was more about teaching. There were some great examples. The second season involves four sets of missionaries that are different than the first season's three sets of missionaries. They've all been great. We have two more to watch. They have all been well-worth watching!


Saturday, June 21, 2014

The Wait is Over!

It has been a long week. We didn't get our call on Thursday; nor did we receive it on Friday. My patience was being severely tried!

This morning I received a phone call from our mail carrier letting us know the call had arrived. We were cleaning our church building when she called. She let us know what time she would be by and hand it to us at the door.  Fortunately we were pretty much done sop we could make it home by 9:30 AM to meet her.

It's been a pretty busy day with cleaning the Chapel, cleaning our own home, cleaning and selling the wave runners, fixing lunch for family.

Two of our five kids were here for the opening of the white envelope. The others were connected via Google Hangouts. Thank goodness for that. One of our kids is on a trip with his family. They pulled off the freeway by Grand Island, Nebraska so they could participate. It was family time for us.

So, in case you can't read the letters, one for me and one for Sherrie, the first two paragraphs read thusly:

You are hereby called to serve as a missionary of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You are assigned to labor in the Singapore Mission. Your primary assignment is to labor in the Kuching Malaysia CES Programs as a CES specialist. It is anticipated that you will serve for a period of 18 months.

You should report to the Provo Missionary Training Center on Monday, January 19, 2015.

I was completely overwhelmed! Sherrie let me open the call as I didn't get to do that when I received my mission call when I was 19. I was out of town so my dad opened it and read it to me. This was exciting! Our family is excited, too!

We are humbled at the prospect of being called and looking forward to serving. We have plenty of time to get ourselves together.



Tuesday, June 17, 2014

A Pleasant Surprise

I received the following text from Bishop Ridd this morning: 

Good Morning Tony,
I double checked this morning....just for kicks...and found that your assignment has been made...it says on June 13.  Therefore, you should get your call this week!!!

Needless to say, this made my day. It also confirmed to me that the Spirit does communicate with me when I listen. I had the distinct impression last week that our assignment had been made. I was a little chagrined when Bishop Ridd said that the assignment was still waiting to be made. I should learn not to doubt. Lesson learned . . . I hope!

So we will hopefully know where and when by Friday.

Monday, June 16, 2014

It's Been Four Weeks!

I'm glad we were told that it takes four to six weeks for senior couples to receive their call. I've been getting a little antsy of late, but it's only been four weeks since our application was turned in to the Stake.

Bishop Ridd is able to check on the status of our application. Up until Friday, the status was "in process." Last Friday it changed to "Waiting Assignment." It was the same today. So we won't be getting our call this week. I keep telling myself that patience is a virtue. That helps a little. It will be nice to know when and where.

In the meanwhile, we are cleaning out the storage unit and the house as we prepare to welcome our son, Josh, and his family into our home. They will be living here while we are gone. We need to provide space for them so we are cleaning house . . . more like purging house and storage unit. We've begun taking stuff to the DI, and will continue to do so.

Thursday, June 5, 2014

The Wait Continues

What can I say? It's really only been 2 ½ weeks since we turned in our application. However, that doesn't change the feelings of anxiety and expectation.  The call will come and wondering and worrying won't make it happen any faster. Need to relax and worry about other things right now like the Empty Nesters Family Home Evening for the Veterans Center here in Ivins. That's just around the corner; then we've got a presentation to create for Stake Girls Camp. That's in July. We still have more work to do at the house in Salt Lake City, too. I hope we can get it all done without going crazy!