The Exiles Have Returned

 On June 14 our lovely Hermana's were exiled.

They packed, not everything, but many things up.... 

 

 and loaded them in their car.

They were on their way to stay with some English speaking

Sister missionaries in another ward.

 

 I noticed that Sister Catfish was covered in mosquito bites.

These Sisters are working hard and they are in the

part of the world filled with bugs and heat.

She is now using mosquito repellant.

 

 The reason the Hermanas were exiled was because our daughter,

her husband, and their 6 children needed a place to sleep.

When The Church asked us if we could house the missionaries

we told them that 2-3 weeks out of the year we needed

that bedroom when our Kentucky grandchildren came to visit.

They told us it would be okay....that they would find the missionaries

a place to stay during that time.

 

That time arrived on June 14.  They were gone for 2 weeks.

This is our family on Father's Day when everyone got together.

(everyone but me....I was taking the picture).

 

 

 Goodbye dear Sisters......We will miss you!

 

 

 They dropped by the house from time to time....

 

They HAD to check for mail......

 

 These are the grandchildren that were sleeping

in their bedrooms (well, some of them).
That is me...the maker of this blog, sitting with them.

 

 

The Sisters arrived home this morning (P-day).

They put their laundry on to wash (snap-snap),

they studied, then they headed out to do their

shopping, play sports, and every other P-day type activity.

Welcome Home Hermanas!!

The Beat Goes On....

It is hard to post pictures of the Sisters these days

because I rarely see them....

 

 Last week the Hermana's went on exchanges.

Sister ReeKay left for 24 hours and Sister Cross came here.

 

 They had a good day together.

I don't remember the details.

It has been too long since I took these pictures.

 

 

 I usually find Sister Catfish doing her studies in the kitchen

in the mornings. She can't get used to my

camera habits, so she is giggling because she knows

I am going to take her picture.

 

 I told her I wanted a natural pose.

There, that's better.

That is what I usually see.....

 

Tonight when the Hermana's came home

I said, "STOP!"  I need to take your picture for the blog.

So, here you go--a picture of them looking hot and tired

after a long day of missionary work in Texas.

I quizzed them about their day..... 

They told me they did their service today.

That involved calling Spanish speaking people on the

phone to give them details about a summer lunch program

in the community.

They said that while they were doing that, they made

one call that wasn't on the list. They "pranked"

the English speaking Elders by calling them... 

pretending they wanted a missionary lesson

(Sister ReeKay was speaking to them in Spanish!).

They got a laugh out of the Elders confusion. 

Then they knocked on some doors.

They said they were happy to teach five lessons today.

They said they got some free nachos when they went to teach

one lesson and instead found the people having a

Mary Kay party.  They rescheduled the lesson for another

time, but enjoyed the nachos they got as they left.

The Sisters are now well acquainted.

They seem to be getting along great.

Summer is here.

They said, "It was hot today, but not too bad." 

They are keeping their spirits up and working hard.



Monday and Tuesday at Home

 Sister Catfish doing laundry on P-Day.

 

 After doing laundry the Hermanas did their shopping,

went to the library to do email, played sports at the church,

and taught a lesson.

 

 It was hot yesterday. I'm afraid summer has finally arrived.

After they planned, Sister Catfish decided she was hungry.

She loves pancakes! Missionaries have long days.

Notice the time. That is not 9:40 a.m.

 

 The "Bug Man" came this morning.

The Sister's room was in disarray because everything

had to be pulled out of the bottom of the closet and

the beds pulled away from the walls, etc.,

so they did their studying in the living room today.

 

 

I am glad they are here.

The New Companionship

 The Hermana's have been studying this morning. They are on their way out the door to a couple of appointments right now, then they plan to knock on doors.
They do have some people to teach, but they are working on building up their
teaching pool.  

 

I haven't told you anything about Hermana Catfish,

so let me introduce you to her.

She was born in Canada, so at this time we are once

again an international household with US, Canadian, and

Mexican citizenship. As with Hermana ReeKay, she has

lived in the United States most of her life.
In fact, she has lived all over the place,
but she came here from Colorado.
 She went to BYU.

She loves to dance, sing, ski, play tennis, and softball.

She wants to be a nurse. She loves being a missionary!

She is very sweet. I love having her here.
I look forward to getting to know her
as she works hard planting seeds and bringing
others into this wonderful gospel life that is ours.



Goodbye and Hello

 I am going to miss Sister Maximum's super enthusiasm,

her ability to adapt, and her grateful demeanor.
I loved hearing about her family...
how normal (yet famous) they are. :)
She loves them so much.

 

 21 months of housing the missionaries has left me feeling

like a mother that rotates her children in and out every so often.

Having different Sisters living here with us in such close quarters

(our house is not very big) has given me a chance to see how different

all of us in the human race are, yet how similar we are when we have

the common bond of the gospel of Jesus Christ.   

 

Each Hermana who has lived here has been different, yet the same.

They come as total strangers and leave as one of the family.

I have loved every one of them!

 

 Hermana Maximum was eating dinner standing up last night at

9:30 p.m. I have noticed that almost all of the Sister Missionaries

have eaten standing up a few times while they've been here.
Missionaries have so much to do that they just hate sitting still.

Last night I was lamenting the fact that I would not see Sister

Max any more, so I kept taking her picture (as if that would embed her

sweet self in my forgetful mind forever).

She said, "Sister Whitley, my mom won't like to see me standing

like this!"  I said, "Okay, stand some other way and I'll take

it again."
 

 She felt this was the more feminine, graceful pose that her mother

would like seeing on the Blog. Then she said, "It's okay to post

the other picture, she won't really care."

 

 Here she is this morning, all packed up and ready to roll!

She got this guitar from an Elder that went home.

She rose extra early in order to be ready for the big move.

I know she loves us, but I know she is ready to have some

new and exciting missionary experiences in her next area, too.

 

 I think Sister Maximum wins the prize for having the most stuff

and her mission in only halfway over!!

 

 Oh My!!!

 

 I think a few of those boxes are mission stuff in the trunk, though.

I guess they forgot to clean out the trunk before transfers like

they usually do.

 Eating her breakfast on the run.....

 

 Goodbye Sister Maximum~~~

I will always remember you!
Please come back to visit me!

The Sisters left promptly at 8 a.m.
 

about an hour and a half later.......

 

 We had a NEW Hermana moving in!

Hermana CATFISH!!!!
(I always give each new sister a nickname for my blog.)

 

 Hermana ReeKay and Hermana Catfish were unpacking and

getting acquainted this morning before I left for work.

 

The revolving door never fails me.

I love having new missionaries in the house.
My days are never dull. The Sisters are all so delightful.  



Rainy Day Sunday

 The last Sunday for Hermana Maximum.....
(I'm lamenting her departure...)

 

They came home to eat a quick dinner tonight....
 and now, their OFF to spread the gospel!

It rained a bit today.
We needed it. 

The Revolving Door is Turning.......

 Tonight was the night for transfer calls.

This is one of the last times you will see these two

missionary faces together on my blog!

 

They were late coming in tonight.

They said they waited for the transfer call
at a snow cone place nearby.

Can you guess which flavors they ate?

I am going to MISS Sister Maximum to the MAX!

(You will have to wait for your email to see where she is going.) 

I will miss her, but after almost seven months in one place
she is ready to leave, and excited for a different
missionary experience her new area.