A New Month Begins

     We have been here a month. My mind still continues to wander back to Home. My two girls handled their ward Christmas party this past week. Our Ezra was baptized yesterday. Kort and Kenz were in the Feast of Carols. Our Ethan won the Regional Wrestling Tournament in his weight-class yesterday. His dad told me last night to stay out here as long as we possibly can, considering how well everyone is getting blessed back at home. He was inferring we stay here for several more years. Possibly until the Cougars win another state football championship. All I can say about this is......can they do it in the next 17 months because we will be in the truck then.
     This little blog is the best thing I can do for myself once a week as I dig deep to find my most recent highlight. Now, some of you may know that our Lindsay is praying for me that an assistant housing coordinator opens up real soon and the Lord calls me to do that. I love my Elder's calling! He is on the road hauling items here and there. He is at estate sales buying dressers for apartments. I tag along as much as I possibly can before and after office hours. I got a beauty of a brown wool coat for 10 bucks at an estate sale this past week. I am in my element in his truck or the mission van.
     As for my calling, you all may breathe a sigh of relief that I can now transfer calls to all phones in the mission office; cut/copy and paste to any document on the computer; answer in full sentences when I am asked where or what President Vest may be doing on such and such a date. I can even schedule flights for arriving and departing missionaries! I tell you all this not to toot my own horn about how clever I am. It is the Lord working miracles. To 99.9% of you, all of the above things I can now almost manage to do daily are nothing. You all can do them. I couldn't. Office work was as foreign to me as a new language.
     So, as you can see, just like my family at home, I have been so very blessed. The Lord is aware of me and my needs and weaknesses. If this is my mission, I can do it. One more thought this week.....I have the absolute best companion. He carries me. Don't even think about going on a mission with your spouse if you don't like him/her. Cornnuts in your ear in the car bug you? Stay home. Don't come if toothpaste tubes are an issue in your marriage. Wise use of electricity can be another deal breaker. In other words, this is no place to work out marriage problems. Besides the Lord, we are all we have. He is my companion, my shopping partner, my fellow tourist, my date, my dearest friend.
So, really, when my thoughts turn to home, I need to remind myself that I am Home. Where my Elder is. Carry on, my dear girls. We will be there soon. We have all been given this opportunity to grow and learn. But someone, please......tell those Cougars about the 17 month deadline.

My love to all 6 readers of our blog,

Sister Seaman

The Virtues of being Independent

Well, he and his wife leave for home this week.  I have tried to get him to trade with me but he won't even joke about it.  Elder Atwood and I have been glued at the hip for the last 4 weeks.  He has been training me to be the Housing Coordinator for the Mission.  Maybe a little about him.  He has lost 85 lbs since being here.  He must have been really big because he is still a good sized man.  He has one of those personalities that is always happy and loud about it.  He whistles or sings a lot of the time.  He jokes with everybody, but loves to joke with missionaries and they love him for it.  He also brings them "stuff" and they really love him for that (ie, new beds, vacuum cleaners, bikes, etc.)  He has taught me the art of going to estate sales and 2nd hand stores to buy "stuff."  I am not real good at it yet but I do have the idea.  Note: Buying items this way is following the handbook.  It must save thousands of dollars, but you get apartments furnished with a great variety of "stuff" that doesn't match.  Well, I digress. Elder Atwood will be missed by me and the missionaries. It has been fun times buying, traveling, delivering, and talking (mostly listening).  Good luck Elder Atwood.  I will be "independent" as of Thursday. The Van will be silent and the thought of that kinda bothers me.  Maybe I can learn a new language. There are no virtues to being "independent" today.

I had no idea that that the support system of a mission was so important.  Without the 3 or 4 couples that work in the office, the place would come to a stand still. It is great to feel needed.  We don't get much attention and no one really knows what we do, but I know the Lord appreciates all of us.

I really wish Sister Seaman could be my assistant.  I know that she has been called to run the Mission from behind the scenes, but I really enjoy having her around.  I think she would eventually take over though and start telling me where to stop (she loves to stop and look at everything.)  That would be OK I guess.  I never let her stop as we traveled through the years, I was always hell-bent on getting there as quickly and as efficiently as possible. NO stopping.  It has been a mistake.  I wish I could take it back. I want to do it just for her because it makes her happy. Making her happy is everything to me.  So I will travel the state of Missouri and sometimes she will get to come along and we will stop and it will be great and she will be happy and I will be happy.

Elder Atwood