Fun, laughter......and a few tears along the way.....

Saw this little plaque in a member's home and thought what good advice it is for missionaries-- as well as anyone else.

Sometimes, the ups and downs of trying to help people can be a little discouraging.  Finding the fun and humor in situations is what seems to get us through them.

It is always discouraging when members don't come to church when they say they will.  Transportation is a real issue here.... as well as work and family situations.

This past week some of our "up" moments were going to visit Denise with no particular goal in mind--- only to find out that she has never done any family history work.  We gave her the "My Family" book and she is excited to start  filling it out.  So glad we decided to make the visit!

Having all of our temple class members in the 1st Ward present and accounted for on Sunday was also a high point.  Talking with one sister afterwards was also very rewarding as she poured her heart out to us.  We haven't met anyone before who has had so many tragic happenings in life.  We couldn't  help but shed a few tears along with her.  Even so,  it was so great for us to be able to tell her that we know that if she keeps trying, that she will feel the power of the atonement in her life. We know that it will bless her tremendously. She promised she wouldn't ever give up and forcefully told us that she felt the Lord sent us after her because the last couple missionaries didn't quite get the job done!  She is one of the funniest and most fun people we know!

Another "up" was a fun P-day.  Jim and I

parked on Mt. Washington and rode the "incline" (a railway type car that goes down steep hills into town.) We then roamed around Station Square (an old railroad depot) and walked across the Smithfield Bridge into downtown.  We are still a little lost in downtown.......so it may take a few more trips to not look so much like tourists.  We ended up at the Point State Park (where the two rivers--Alleghenny & Monogahaela---converge to create the Ohio River.  The elders from the 1st and 7th Wards were there playing football.  They were just ending their game so we took a few pictures and then left to go meet with the Matembu family for Family Home Evening.

Another fun moment was seeing this van parked a couple of blocks from our apartment.  We told the elders that it was our new "dream car".  It makes us smile just thinking of us driving around in it.  Our kids and grandkids would be SO embarrassed!
The way we are going, we worry that we may be in need of a new vehicle when we get home.  The roads and traffic seem very hard on cars here.  Often we see side view mirrors sheared off because the roads are so narrow!

Really, we are more and more grateful for our garage and realize how rare it is to get one here in the city.  Having it is a real blessing!

One bit of fun family news was to get a text of Kent on
a spur of the moment trip to Paris.  He has been on a whirlwind UPS trip for the past week and has more to go.  Guess he didn't have enough to see with his stops to Amsterdam, Vilnius, Warsaw, Brussels, Dusseldorf, Milan, and Madrid. So he and a coworker ended up taking a "spontaneous" trip to the Eiffel Tower.  Don't know where he gets his energy!!!

We are so thankful for all of the protection, care, and love that we feel from our Heavenly Father to us, our family, and to all others.  We feel that He is real.........and He cares.......and is always reaching out to all of His children even when the bad things of life come our way.



 Knowing that does help us to truly enjoy life and not just endure.