August 2009 in the Florida Ft. Lauderdale Mission

The fourteen missionaries that went home!

Elder Thompson and Sister Dalling at the Finisher Dinner. Elder Thompson is from Rigby. Tiffiny knows him, at least when he was little. His father was Nik's high school wrestling coach. Great missionary! We got to know him because he was an AP and worked in the office! Now he is home in Rigby!

"Finisher's Dinner" at President Hales! There were two more tables besides this one! This past week seventeen missionaries came into the mission and fourteen left the mission!

We went to dinner at a Polynesian Restaurant that had a dinner and show. The show pictures were too dark to post. These pictures are in the garden a the restaurant.

Elder and Sister Dalling posing by one of the statues! We had a fun evening but it was nothing like the Polynesian Cultural Center in Hawaii - but still good!

Dinner with the senior couples at - you guessed it - Bahama Breeze!

Orlando Temple Trip in July 2009

President Hale received permission for one senior couple each 6 weeks to leave the Ft. Lauderdale Mission area and accompany the departing missionaries to the Orlando Temple. So on July 1 it was Elder and Sister Dalling's turn!

At 6 pm we loaded the van at the Plantation Ward Chapel with snacks and 8 missionaries!


Missionaries awaiting departure!

And we were off with Elder Dalling the driver and the 8 excited missionaries anxiously engaged in talking about their mission and all their hopes and dreams for the future!

This was a wonderful group of young men with some great leaders in the group and a very seasoned senior couple!

Elder Jorgensen after an exhausting last two days as an AP sleeps most of the way to the temple! I think you could safely say he was tired! He was the only one who slept!

As we came around the corner, we were all taken back by the beauty of this Temple! All in the van were ever so quiet!

Elder and Sister Dalling at the Temple!

All of us outside the Orlando Temple. What an inspiring day!

We were back in Ft. Lauderdale at 5 pm for a dinner at the Hales for all the senior couples and the departing missionaries. After the dinner a very special testimony meeting was held in the Hales living room. One of the missionary's who left a few months ago had several signs made (his parents own the business) and the Hales always hang one up depending on the occasion! This is hung from the upstairs balcony.

Some missionaries waiting for dinner! It is always amazing to me to watch these young men who become good friends with people they would never have hung out with in high school. What good things a mission does for those serving - all ages!

Elder Jorgensen, Elder and Sister Dalling and Elder Barber. We worked with them in the office when they were AP's and we grew to love them. It was sad to see them go, but their families were excited to have them coming home! Now we have seen both sides to the departing and arriving!

Cute picture of Elder Barber!

Elder King from Pennsylvania!

Elder Barber with Elder and Sister Dalling. Elder Barber has a scholarship at BYU for putting the shot put. He was in our ward when we very first came to the mission! And so our Temple Trip came to an end and the 8 missionaries left the next morning. Each 6 weeks we go through it again, but it will not be our turn to go to the temple for a while. It was wonderful to go with the missionaries. We enjoyed it so much as we had not been to the temple since we left for the mission field.

Elder Dalling giving smiling a try!!!!!!

Fridge art from Jarod and Kamri! Thank you Jarod and Kamri! Great pictures!

More fridge art by Emma, Wyatt, Halle, Sami and Kaylie! Wow do we ever have some great artists in the family! We have also received some super wonderful letters and testimonies from our older Grandchildren - thank you all for your love and support! We love talking to you on the phone too. We love you all! - each one of you!

And one more picture of a turtle which is about the size of a dinner plate that was outside our door one morning a few weeks ago. They usually stay in the lake. It looks surprisingly the same as the little ones we used to be able to buy in the US. We actually also found out that these turtles do not eat the little baby ducks, the big stork like birds do - so sad!

June 2009 in Florida

This is our fridge art from Kamri to Grandma for her Birthday! Thank you Kamri!

The Senior couples at Susan's 65th Birthday. We ate at the Grand Lux (a very nice restaurant)and Susan had shrimp. She said the shrimp was great, but later that night thought different as she was sick all night!

This is right outside of the restaurant!

I took this picture of an Iguana right outside our apartment. We don't see them often, but once in awhile they come by!

Sister's Conference May 2009

The Sister's Conference was last Friday! This is a picture with all the young missionaries, the senior missionaries, President and Sister Hale and their two daughters, Heather (21) and Kathryn (10) in front.

Sister Holdstock and I holding her Flat Stanley and one of the young missionaries Flat Stanley's that her nephew sent her! Now you all know about Flat Stanley!

Sister Call (she is going home this month) and I at the Sister's Conference!

This is the Eric Dalling family art! Jarod's on the top, Sami's just below, Amanda clever card and Marisa's nice card and note! - along with Jarod's school picture. We put two of these on because Eric's computer only get every other picture!

Fridge Art of the Month!

Happy Mother's Day in Florida

Thanks to my children for the beautiful bouquet of flowers and the corsage. It was fun to wear it to church today! I was really surprise as no other mothers had one on! Thank you for thinking of me. I love the flowers!

Another shot of the flowers and Sister Dalling

Elder Dalling on Mother's Day!

One more picture of the Daisies! I love them!

Elder and Sister Dalling in front of the President's House - getting dark outside!

Farewell party for Elder and Sister Bean at (where else?) Bahama Breeze!

Sister Bean in the front! Flat Stanley slurping on the straw. The Calls grandchildren sent them Flat Stanley to take pictures of wherever they went while on their mission. Then they send him back to them and they learn all about where he has been through a letter that travels with him. Flat Stanley is the loveable character featured in books by Jeff Smith. Although Stanley was flattened when a bulletin board fell on him, he made the best of his circumstances. Now flat, Stanley can easily travel the world in envelopes and visit any place he wants.

I saw Flat Stanley on American Idol just the other night!

Elder Dalling and Elder Kynaston after dinner at Bahama Breeze (a different dinner) with all the senior couples and the Hales. They are holding Sister Hale's Mother's Day gift for us all -- Banana Bread!

All the Senior Sisters and Sister Hale -- We took this picture after the dinner in front of the Bahama Breeze! It sure seems like we go there a lot, but they have a nice Gazebo that we usually sit in and it is quiet and beautiful!

May 2009 in Florida

This is a picture out our patio of a sunset with really not much color, but I thought it was very beautiful just the same. I love sunsets and I do miss the ones by our house in Idaho!

Brad and I went on a P-Day Excursion to Bascayne National Park. It is a beautiful park by the ocean, but no sandy beaches. It is all coral reefs - a place where in the 1600's many pirate ships were sunk because of storms as they crashed into the rocky shore. Then in the 1700's there was a British War ship that was sunk from a storm. All the ships that sunk are still there and it is a Federal Offense to disturb them. Thus it is an interesting place to snorkel. Biscayne National Park is know as a fantastic place for outdoor and water-based recreation. The park has a shallow bay, undeveloped islands (that you can camp on for up to 14 days before someone comes to pick you up - only one problem if you don't time it just right, the misquotes eat you alive) and living coral reefs. Bascayne Park is the beginning of the Florida Keys - about a half hour drive from Miami. In fact, on a clear day, you can see the coast line of Miami. About the camping - the ranger (I think they are called rangers) told us that the Dry Tortugas National Park was the best place to camp and snorkel because the water is clearer and does not have so many mosquitoes - just poisonous snakes!

There are many of Florida's canals that empty into the ocean here and so the water does not actually get a turquoise blue until you go out a ways. It has been very dry in Florida this year and so the park was not very green.

There is a nature trail that you take alone the ocean and the coral reef coast! We walked quite awhile until the heat got to us - just a little!

A gorgeous ocean view. The Atlantic Ocean does not smell the same to me as the Pacific Ocean and you do not see near as many Seagulls, but still very beautiful. It was not a very populated Park - most likely because there are no sandy beaches to play in ---

--- but still lots of boats!

We also saw Homestead Bayfront Park, but did not go in - actually because it was just an extension of Biscayne Park only with a Marina.

A sister we are teaching with the missionaries gave me some Gardenias. They grow beautiful here, along with the Orchids, and Hibiscus.

These flowers smelled wonderful! They have always been one of my favorite flowers, but always too expensive to buy in Rexburg.

Just about to have dinner on another beautiful, colorful table cloth! Where do they come from - they just magically appear each new season!