Our Summer Polar Vortex

Hi Everybody,

So we'd be happy if this kind of weather lasted the whole rest of the summer!  While all of you are getting desert weather it has been absolutely beautiful here.  There really is a summer polar vortex and the temperature is about 10-15 degrees lower than normal (highs in the low to mid 70's) and the humidity disappeared.  But I think that is ending today so we'll appreciate what we had.  At least we're not getting flooded like Rexburg!  Dad says that's what happens when all the farm land is turned into housing developments.  We went on our last preparation day with the Elders and Sisters in our district and they ran us to the top of Buttermilk Falls and back and it didn't even rain once the whole time we were there.  That's unusual.  These are great missionaries here and the Sisters bring a spark into the area that is needed.  They've discovered the waterfalls (via us and our car) and they want to go again for tomorrow's P-day back to Watkins Glen.  We need to keep reminding them that we're not 19 anymore!

We've loved the e-mails and photo texts and everything else that we get from anybody.  There's 3 of us to write to now so we'll totally understand if we never hear from you again (smile!)  The summer is going by too fast where we have a little more control over our time and the students will be back before we know it and then we'll have to start paying to park on campus again.  One of our goals this summer was to learn to ride the bus but we still haven't done that yet (and probably never will....it's too easy to just go get in the car and drive).  And we did plenty of driving this past week.  The highlight of the week was the Hill Cumorah Pageant.  We had hoped to go and help out but with our Senior Couples "Excursion" in the middle of the times our area was assigned to fill volunteer spots, we couldn't do it.  But there's plenty of people who like to volunteer to work at the pageant so our help wasn't missed.  We drove up on Wednesday morning and went to the Temple.  Then Brother Baker and Brother Gammon, our CES supervisors, took us on a personalized tour of some out-of-the-way spots in Palmyra and then to the Sacred Grove.  We'll get to do that again when we go in August for our CES Institute and Seminary Training in Palmyra.  The Pageant was AWESOME for lack of a better, over-used word.  Of course the message is the most important but the special effects and the music on the huge sound system and lighting system was spectacular.  It has to be seen to understand what we're trying to describe.....so next year???????  If we know far enough in advance if anyone is coming (February or March) we can reserve some rooms at the over-priced but oh-so-convenient Palmyra Inn which is within walking distance of all the sites and has a shuttle bus to the Hill.  We hopped on the bus (and promptly met Kathy Allen's sister and a family from Uncle Von and Aunt Lorraine's ward in Boise.  Then at the Hill we met Ty Allen and his family).  The nice thing was that while everybody else was trying to get out of the parking lot after the Pageant (about 45 minutes) we got back on the shuttle and were back to our hotel in 5 minutes.  We decided it was worth the exorbitant price.  The only unpleasant thing was the obnoxious and contentious behavior and language of the anti-Mormon protesters and their electric megaphones.  They have to stay outside the gates and can't yell during the pageant but they say some pretty bad things before and after.  I'm sad that they feel so hateful towards the families coming to the Pageant, especially ones with little kids.  We left early the next morning to drive to Alexandria Bay for our Senior Couple's gathering.  It was so great to see ones we hadn't seen for awhile and others we hadn't met yet.  The Bay is right at the mouth of the St. Lawrence River and we went on a riverboat type "cruise" for a couple of hours and then spent the rest of the afternoon in a beautiful "castle" called Boldt Castle that was built back in the late 1800's and has 131 rooms.  Only the bottom two floors have been restored but they were beautiful and the grounds were amazing.  Will try and send some pictures.  Then finished off with a picnic right on the St. Lawrence River and then home.

The rest of the week was spent catching up on work, helping our special needs YSA get where she needed to go and do what she needed to do and visiting an investigator that we seemed to click with.  On the way home from that visit, we stopped at an antique shop that you all MUST see (you just can't afford to buy anything).  It was run by a woman whose husband passed away just a couple of months ago.  We were her only customers and so we had a good conversation with her.  She's in a beautiful home by a pond and surrounded by fields of grass about the size of the soccer fields that Dad used to mow.  Her grandson from out of town is staying for the summer to mow her lawns and when she said she didn't know what she'd do when he left, Dad offered to mow because we like to do service in our Church.  She hugged Dad when we left!  Then we spoke in Sacrament Meeting in Owego today and stayed for all their meetings and ate lunch with some members there after.  We love those people in Owego!!

Now this week it's back to "work, work, work."  See page 121 of Preach My Gospel!  President Benson's quote.  We love you all and we love that you're such good, even great, "kids."  All of you big ones and little ones.  And if anyone else happens to see this blog, we love you too!  All of you and your goodness blesses our lives immensely!!

XOXO   Dad and Mom/Grandpa and Grandma