Feeding the missionaries

The theme of this blog has been and will probably continue to be what it's like to move to a completely different part of the United States. Even though our church affiliation stayed the same, there are differences between congregations or wards just because no two groups of people are alike. In our church, we take turns feeding dinner to the missionaries in our ward (congregation.) Missionaries are usually young men between the ages of 19 to 25 or so and young ladies who are 21 and older. There are senior missionary sisters and couples who serve as well but they are in the minority. In our ward one of the huge differences is that we have six mouths to feed. Our old ward like most wards has only two. It is really great to have so many missionaries around.

So they came over on Sunday and ate lots of hamburgers and cupcakes. I usually try to feed them healthier food than that but I made an exception this time. Michael cranked out the grill for the first time since we moved here. I'm not sure why it took us so long. The burgers were delicious. You cannot imagine more delightful and appreciative dinner guests than these six young men. The hands belong to Michael who didn't want to be in the picture.

Our elders come from California, Washington State, Arizona and of course, Utah. When my son, Z, served his mission in Pennsylvania (in a different part of the state), he was only one of two from Texas among the hundreds of missionaries serving in his part of the state.

I'll try to remember to give my blog address to the elders on Sunday so that they can send it to their moms. They are fine young men who really stand out in a world that's interested in a lot of things other than honesty and righteousness. If their moms (and dads) are out there reading this, they should be very proud.

In other news, my daughter in the Czech Republic and I talked today. She moved yesterday and said that things went well. She and her family arrive at our house on Friday. (If you add to all that the fact that she's due in November, you can see why she deserves a motherhood medal.) I cannot wait for them to get here. After she arrives my son flies in from Texas. I am going to be one happy camper in just a few days. Our moving up here has created a great challenge in getting our family together. I knew in my head that that was going to be true when we moved up here, but the reality is even harder than I imagined. It probably doesn't help that a lot of people in our ward are in the same boat and spend a lot of time and money traveling great distances to visit their families.

The most amazing thing came in the mail today. My first letter from a grandchild! C, the oldest of them, is just six but I got a nice letter from her today addressed to Grammie. Thanks, C! It was a beautiful letter. And now the postman knows who I really am!