September 21 – 27
Monday –
Another typical Monday! We called our family, planned and prepared for the week ahead, AND managed to squeeze in a walk to Darling Harbour for a Brookie Cookie. 🍪 Priorities! 😂
Tuesday –
Today we drove to Carlingford. I had a doctor’s appointment to review my recent blood work, while Eric met with Elder Taylor, our vehicle coordinator, to trade in our “used” mission car for a BRAND-NEW one! It only had 10 miles on it! I’m thinking this might be the last brand-new car we get during our mission, so we’d better enjoy that new-car smell while it lasts! Ha ha!
I was a little disappointed with my blood work results, but since many of the measurements and ranges are different here in Australia, I couldn’t even tell whether some of my numbers had gotten better or worse. UGH! Looks like I have some investigating to do!
Wednesday –
Today was mostly a work-from-home day. We caught up on things around the flat and worked on updating the Hyde Park roster. I also personally messaged most of the members of our congregation to invite them to our friend Joseph’s upcoming baptism and asked everyone to bring a plate of treats to share afterward. We’re getting excited for his special day!
Thursday –
Today we taught our LAST zone for this transfer—the Ether Zone in Parramatta! And, once again, Eric’s pancake bar was a HUGE hit! 🥞 Woo hoo! I think we may have officially created a mission tradition that we won’t be allowed to stop now. 😂
This THRIVE lesson focused on Managing Rejection and Exploring Jealousy and Envy, and it ended up being one of our favorite lessons of the transfer. These topics are so applicable to missionaries—and really, to ALL of us!
After training and cleaning everything up, we took Sister Laresma and her companion, Sister Dionisio, both from the Philippines, out to lunch. Sister Laresma previously served in our area and will be completing her mission next week and returning home to the Philippines.
We ADORE Sister Laresma and sincerely hope our paths cross again someday! She is one of the happiest, most positive missionaries we have met during our mission. She once shared with us about the very humble circumstances she grew up in, yet she spoke about her childhood with such JOY and gratitude. Her perspective was a beautiful reminder that earthly “things” are not what bring lasting happiness. Her gratitude for parents who provided a loving home, food, shelter, and—most importantly—a foundation of faith was so touching.
Her love for the Savior and her dedication to following Him seem to radiate from her. She truly SHINES with His light! ❤️
After our special time with the sisters, we headed to IKEA to purchase some dishes, glasses, and other household necessities for two sisters in our Hyde Park Group, Thais and Margarita, who recently moved into an apartment together. We LOVE these two sisters and feel blessed that we can help them out in some small way.
That evening, BOTH Ella and Leslie came to Young Women—woo hoo! 🎉 I interviewed each of them for Trek because the stake is creating a “before” video that they’ll get to watch after they return. We also worked on painting the bags for our upcoming babysitting kits.
I had SUCH an enjoyable evening with these two amazing young women! It was nice to have a little “down time” where we could simply talk. I loved listening to them, laughing with them, and getting to know their hearts a little better. Those simple moments of connection are some of my favorites. ❤️
Friday –
Today Eric headed to the Mission Office to print the programs for Joseph’s baptism and then went to Costco to stock up for the weekend. I stayed home to catch up on our mission blog and call the grandkids we hadn’t been able to talk to on Monday.
While Eric was at Costco, a HUGE rain and thunderstorm rolled through! It was coming down so hard that he had to sit in the parking lot and wait for it to ease up before he could safely drive home.
Sadly, we didn’t get ANY of it over on our side of town in Hyde Park! I LOVE a good thunderstorm, so I was a little jealous! ⛈️😂
Saturday –
Today we were DETERMINED to make it to the Ramsgate Beach House in time for BREAKFAST! 😂 And FINALLY, I got the delicious LOADED avocado toast I’d been craving! Eric tried their breakfast sandwich, which I’d been hoping he would enjoy too.
The restaurant is RIGHT next to the beach, which is beautiful—but it does NOT have air conditioning. On an 85°F day with absolutely NO breeze, it was definitely a little warm!
After breakfast, we grabbed our towels and sunscreen and headed to the beach for a while. It was so hot that I spent most of my time standing waist-deep in the water, looking for interesting shells. The water was incredibly clear—you could see everything on the ocean floor beneath you!
We didn’t stay too long because it was HOT, and we hadn’t come prepared with enough water and other supplies. Lesson learned!
We headed home, cleaned up, and got ready for another AWESOME event—our friend Joseph Vattone’s baptism! ❤️
Both of Joseph’s parents and their spouses attended, along with many members of our Hyde Park Group. It was wonderful to see so many people there to surround Joseph with love and support on such an important day.
Eric gave a talk on baptism, and Elder Marsh played a beautiful clarinet rendition of “His Eye Is on the Sparrow.” Music always brings such a special Spirit to a baptism!
Afterward, we stopped by Thais and Margarita’s new apartment to drop off the household supplies we had purchased for them. They were SO appreciative, and I got a tour of their beautiful THREE-STORY apartment, complete with gorgeous balconies AND a rooftop deck!
Ummm…maybe Eric and I need to inquire about moving there too! 😂
Sunday –
Well, today didn’t go quite as planned!
Saturday night, I noticed I had a slight headache and was starting to develop a sore throat. During the night, I woke up multiple times with significant throat pain and tried several different medications in hopes of getting enough relief to sleep.
By morning, my throat was still really hurting, but I got up thinking maybe I would start feeling better as I moved around. Maybe it was just post-nasal drip? I went ahead and planned my Young Women lesson and hoped I’d rally before church.
Nope.
By the time we needed to leave, I still felt AWFUL. Thankfully, our wonderful sister missionaries were willing to take my lesson plans and teach for me, so I climbed right back into bed.
And pretty much stayed there ALL DAY! 😴
Poor Eric was left to prepare, serve, and host our big Sunday dinner for the junior missionaries ALL BY HIMSELF! But, of course, he did a FABULOUS job! ❤️
The amazing part was that when I finally got up Sunday evening, I felt REMARKABLY better! My throat had hurt so badly during the night that I had seriously wondered if I might have strep throat, so I couldn’t believe how much better I felt by evening.
I know there can be many reasons our bodies begin to feel better, but after such a miserable night and day, that sudden improvement felt like a tender mercy to me. I had been praying for relief, and I was SO grateful to feel like myself again!
I’m continually reminded that the Lord is aware of us—not only in the BIG moments of our mission, but in the small, everyday moments too. ❤️
Another full week of missionaries, friends, service, baptisms, pancakes, beaches, Brookie Cookies, and tender mercies! We are BLESSED! ❤️🇦🇺
Re-read Elder Rasband’s promised Blessings for senior missionaries from the talk “How Great Shall be your Joy”
I also promise that as you serve, you will feel the love of the Lord in your life, you will know Him, He will know you, and “how great shall be your joy.” Your dedicated service to Jesus Christ will inspire and bless your family, your grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. “Peace, and love [will] be multiplied” in their lives for years to come. I promise. In the name of Jesus Christ, amen.
