It's been over two weeks since I posted and that's a long time and a lot of information.  The good news is that took lots of pictures and we all know that speaks volumes, so hopefully the pictures will fill in any blanks. 
I left home here in South Carolina and flew into Seattle on the morning of the 15th.  Doyle took me to the airport at 5am and my flight left at 6am.  My layover was in Chicago for 54 minutes.  Never having been to this airport before, I was concerned about making my connections, but I found my gate without any problem.  I arrived in Seattle at about 11am and my sister Linda was waiting for me.  My luggage did not make it so we made arrangements to have it delivered to my sisters home.
We spent the day together and made a mad dash for East Wenatchee to get my clothes for the wedding.  It was fun to surprise my neighbors, Gerry and Dar Simmons and Mary Dodge.  They did not know I was coming.  We drove over 400 miles that day to get back to Chehalis.  I was pretty tired.  The next few days were a blur of activity as we all prepared for the bridal shower and the wedding.  It was so wonderful to see my family!!!

This is the bachelor party.  They all went to the Family Fun Center in Tukwila the night of the bridal shower.

 

 

Great pictures of our bridal shower group.  We had so much fun.

Beautiful cake that my sister got for the shower.

Kim and I sitting in the rocker together just like we did when she was a little girl.  Only we don't fit quite so well together as we once did.

Rehearsal the morning of the wedding.

Kim's dad and Auntie Linda looking on.

My handsome son, Casey and my handsome grandson, Josiah striking a pose for me.

                                   Kim and her Grandpa Boness share a special moment together.

Kim and her youngest son Ezra checking out the cake.

Kim and her new husband, Jason cutting the cake.

 

 

We had a wonderful evening.  There were around 100 people in the hall and we had lots of different foods donated by friends and family.  Kim had a play list all set up, but the highlight really came when everyone got out on the dance floor and waited for the Harlem shake to begin, led by Josiah.  It was hilarious.

Josiah has on the wig and huge sunglasses.

There they go, including the bride.  If you don't know what the Harlem shake is, go to YouTube and plug it in.  That's what I did because I didn't know.  It's silly and fun.

After Kim and Jason left for a brief honeymoon, I spent the next three days being the soccer grandma and providing transportation and meals for my two growing grandsons.  It was great.  Just the three of us, and a few of Josiah's friends.  We had his track meets to go to.  The final conference was the day after I left and he took the championship in the 100 and 200 meter hurdles.  We also were able to attend a band concert for Ezra.  He plays the trombone.

And the winner is....Josiah!

Ezra is in the back.

Ezra is also very artistic and Kim has lined the hallway with framed artwork.  He does a great job.

 

 

Wednesday finally came and Kim and Jason got back from their honeymoon and it was time for me to get packed up and ready for my flight home.  We needed to get my sisters van back to her.  I used it while I was home, so we met her and her husband Walt in Yelm and said our goodbyes.

My sister Linda and her husband Walt.

 

My flight home was pure misery.  I left Seattle at 10:30 and arrived in DC stiff and sleepless.  I had never been to this airport either and it was a long distance from where I landed to where I took off.  Lots of walking and a schuttle.  By the time I got here to Columbia, SC, I was absolutely rummy.  I had hoped to go to the office, but I needed sleep in the worst way, so I spent much of Thursday sleeping.  Friday morning I was super ready to go back to work.  I really love what I do and I knew there would be piles of things to be tended to.  I was not disappointed.  Doyle and I went in on Saturday and spent some time there today as well. 

This week will be crazy as we have several new senior couples coming in and we need to move into the apartments and get them ready.  Transfers are coming up again with a huge incoming and only four missionaries going home.  So we have about 10 new apartments for the young missionaries as well.  We do such wonderful and rewarding things.

And lastly, a picture of my husband relaxing.....waxing the RV...what else??

 

 

 

  

 

 





 

 

 

 

 

I'll be going home for a few days.  I have a wonderful wedding to attend.  My daughter Kim is getting married to Jason Reed.  This is a picture of them with my grandsons, Josiah on the left, who is 14 and Ezra on the right who is 11.  I'll be spending a week with them and I'm so excited to see them.  While Kim and Jason are gone on a brief honeymoon, I'll be able to spend some quality time with these two beauties.
I love weddings!!!!

We are so blessed to have this mission call and be here in beautiful South Carolina.  We have a wonderful Mission President, President Holm and his wife to lead the mission and to have the privilege to work with them.  They are truly examples of hard work, patience and love for each of us.  They love our missionaries and do all they can to help them and to lift them to be all that they can be.
Being a mission president is not a job for the weary or the faint of heart.  He travels to the far reaches of the mission on a regular basis, organizes meetings, interviews, firesides, handles all kinds of calls from missionaries and from members, stake presidents, bishops and branch presidents.  He reviews letters from missionaries, signs a plethora a documents and letters and gives instruction and guidance.
We all think he is amazing.  His wife loves the missionaries as if they were her own children and sheds plenty of tears when they go home.  We all love them!

The top picture is from our goodbye luncheon with the Wakefield's who have completed their mission and will be leaving us.  The bottom picture is of our two new temporary senior missionaries who will be replacing the Benedict's who left about a month ago.  They will serve in Goose Creek which is down very close to Charleston.

As always the week vanished with so much on our plates to take care of.  Doyle spent lots of time putting together some of the furniture we purchased for missionary apartments as well as making repairs to some of the donated items.  He really does enjoy it.  He's at his best when he can put in about half a day in the office (mornings) and then do physical stuff in the afternoons.  He's always been like that for as long as I've known him.  So...being the loving wife that I am, I try to make sure that we have those kinds of projects to keep him active.  It's not hard to do when we need so much furniture and other things for our apartments.

Today we met with a street vendor that we found one day in Orangeburg and picked up more furniture from him for our senior apartments.  I have spent time in the regular furniture stores and I'm amazed at the cost of new furniture.  It's simply too overpriced.

Pictured above are our Sisters Assistants, Sister Brand and Sister Lundhom.  They live with Sister Rothman who is our office receptionist and 1st class mail distributor.  All the missionaries love her because she is so diligent in getting their mail and packages to them.

This afternoon we are just hanging out here at the 5th wheel. I'm doing some laundry and writing the blog.  Doyle is relaxing outside in his lounge chair.  He put in a hard week and I suggested that he just go outside and relax.  I didn't have to make that suggestion twice.

Tomorrow is Mother's Day.  I'll be away from my children and grandchildren and my Mom is gone, so it feels strange.  But I'm grateful to have had a mother who loved me and raised me to the very best of her ability.  We always got along very well and I can say without reservation that she was there for me when I needed someone to talk to about anything.  I never felt unloved or unwanted.  In today's society that in itself is a huge accomplishment.

I hope all Mom's reading this have a wonderful day tomorrow and that you are blessed in your role as mothers.

Blessings y'all!!

 

 



 

It's been pretty dreary this week.  We've had overcast skies with about 70 degrees during the day.  Some rain has come down, but not too much, but somehow the moisture in the air makes for a chill unlike what we have in dessert country.  The humidity has definitely increased.  We purchased a dehumidifier for the fifth wheel and I'm so glad we did.  It has about a gallon and a half capacity and we dump it out every two days because it gets full.  It's amazingly efficient.

Tuesday we opened our final apartment, one day before transfers.  It was a little one bedroom, one bath that a senior couple had just moved out of.  It's a new area for sisters in Anderson, SC. 

When we open new apartments we have two different tow vehicles to use and a nice enclosed trailer.  It comfortably holds all the furnishings for one apartment.   This picture shows the Chevy Silverado.

We are opening lots of new areas for sisters.  By the time we have our full compliment of missionaries all areas in our mission will have at least one companionship of elders and one of sisters, if not more.  That includes branches as well as wards.  We added three new zones this transfer alone.  More are forthcoming.

We delivered a new bed to Sister Landon and Sister Mumford to be used by a sister visa waiter.  They had a very nice and very clean, well organized apartment.

At transfers we lost a great group of elders and one sister.  The incoming group was 26 strong with plenty of new sisters!  We are also losing a set of senior missionaries in about 10 days.  It's a very emotional time because we are so attached to them and their testimonies are very touching and heartfelt.  Many of the missionaries talk about reunions that we will have in St. George.  We look forward to those as well.

These are our seven departing elders, one departing sister and the Wakefield's, our departing seniors.

Sister Wakefield and I.

Elder and Sister Wakefield live in Texas now, but she was raised in the town of Sumter where they are completing their mission.

 

Elder Brannan with Elder France at the mission home.

 

Transfer day is very long and exhausting, but so wonderful.  We get to greet all our new incoming missionaries and give them an orientation on things they need to know.  I have a packet I give them on their housing, including housekeeping tips, mold tips, how to avoid bed bugs and palmetto bugs in their apartments, how to be energy efficient and several other informational sheets.  Doyle gives a presentation on records, including baptisms and instructions on ordering media.  They also have instruction on their finances, their cars and their mail. Then we have transfer meeting where new companionship's are introduced, then we go to the temple with the outgoing missionaries and then we all go to the mission home for dinner. 

 

Elder North enjoyed making us laugh but he was also very talented.  He played the piano and was a chorister at many of our meetings.  At this transfer, he played and sang "A Poor Wayfaring Man of Grief."

President Holm has added Sister Assistants as the number of new sisters is increasing so rapidly.  Above is Sister Brand (l) and Sister Lundhom (r) with our former Assistant to the President, Elder Lash.  Elder Lash was just transferred to Augusta to help open the new Georgia Macon Mission.

We will lose our Augusta Zone to this new mission in July and all the missionaries that are serving in the area when the change occurs. 

 

This is Sister Titus and Sister Rogers.

On Friday I delivered several different items to apartments in Columbia and took these pictures with one of our Washington state sisters for her Mom, Adrianna, who reads my blog from time to time.  Adrianna, these are especially for you and Suzi Graden. 

My new list of areas to open has been prepared by President Holm.  I'll be very busy working on these as the list is about a dozen new areas.  That means about a dozen new apartments.  All within the next six weeks.  This time there will be a one week pause in my progress as I go home for my daughters wedding.  I'm very excited to be able to go.  Of course my absence for a week means that I will need to work double time before and after I'm gone.  It's all good!

It always strikes me that so many of the departing missionaries talk about how their mission has changed them so much, how much they have grown spiritually and how their lives will be forever changed because of their missions.  We can see the incredible difference in outgoing missionaries!  This group was particularly special in so many ways.  We love the missionaries and wish the best for each and every one of them.  I always write down special comments made by our departing
missionaries.  I'd like to share just a few:
"I learned to surrender to God-my mind and my heart."
"Rules give us strength.  Live the simple rules and they will free you emotionally and spiritually."
"True joy comes from helping others."
"Out of all my years, this has had the most worth."
"This is the foundation of the beginning.  Make sure your foundation is structured well."
"I'm going home with the strongest testimony I've ever had."
"There's no such thing as a return missionary.  If you return something it's broken or you don't want it."
With those comments, I'll close for this week.
Love y'all!!