Catching Up - Still serving and loving it!

It has been a while! We have been as busy as ever enjoying the many experiences of an ITEP mission. Over the Christmas holidays we had a visit from two of our children, Jamie and Matt,  and were able to spend some time in the south island of New Zealand. Senior missionaries are able to have visits from family and friends, and with the approval of your mission president do some sightseeing in the area. We had a wonderful time with our kids and they agreed with our opinion of the beauty of New Zealand. 

Now we are entering into the last four months of our 23 month mission and it feels like our mission life has come full circle. We are now sending home ITEP missionaries who we welcomed 18 months ago. Almost at the same time we are busy welcoming the new missionary couples who will replace them for training in Auckland before starting their ITEP mission service in the islands.

It is a humbling experience to see how the Lord provides the right people to serve as ITEP missionaries. They are talented and experienced teachers and administrators and they are a real blessing to the schools where they serve. 

Recently we welcomed three ITEP couples who arrived on the same plane from Los Angeles. Elder and Sister Decker (below left), Elder and Sister Stonehocker (center), and Elder and Sister Hammond (right). The missionary couples each arrive with four suitcases packed to EXACTLY the weight limit. With three couples we had quite a load of luggage to transport to the hotel where they would stay in Auckland for training. They still  look good after the 13 hour flight from L.A. don't they? :)

Training at the Pacific Area Office includes a session about the history, mission  and purpose of the church schools. Bruce Yerman, Director of Church Schools provides that training. Elder and Sister Stonehocker (left) are from Canada, Elder and Sister Decker (third from left) are from Iowa, Bruce Yerman, Elder Jacobsen, Sister Haleck (wife of Elder Haleck, second counselor in the Pacific Area Presidency), and Elder and Sister Hammond (right) are from Idaho.

We had time to fit in a trip to the Temple in Hamilton.

We were treated to Sunday night desserts at the Yerman's home. Bruce Yerman and his daughter Anahi are shown above. Sarah Yerman made the yummy desserts and daughter Indie also made us all feel welcome. With the wonders of technology, Elder and Sister Decker were able to meet Michael Carthew, the principal of the LDS Church College of Fiji, before their arrival.

The famous ice cream shops in Pokeno, New Zealand are a must-do activity. Really good ice-cream at the bargain price of a dollar a scoop. 

Tauranga

Tauranga,  New Zealand harbor

 A few weeks ago Elder  Jacobsen and I signed up for a Saturday morning "Swim with the Dolphins" tour that left from Tauranga, a port city that is a four hour drive from Auckland. 

Mount Manganui is the identifying landmark in Tauranga, which is the busiest port in New Zealand. We only saw one dolphin on our five hour boat ride and so we get a free return trip next time we are in Tauranga. It was a sunny, warm day and so we had a great time anyway. 

Auckland Harbor

Back in Auckland...we recently sailed around the Auckland Harbor under the Harbor Bridge and back to the pier. This is the pier we left from and you can see our sailboat in the middle of the picture.

Never get tired of that skyline!

Love and Prayers 'til Our Next Post!