Our MTC Experience

On May 2, 2016 we entered the Missionary Training Center and received our famous Black Tags.  We were OFFICIAL!!

It was quite the experience to don the name tags that our sons had placed on their own suits years ago.  We are so grateful for this opportunity to testify of Jesus Christ and serve the people of London.  We pray every day that we will kind and good emissaries of Him who has blessed our lives so very much. 

We were issued a card that would allow us to enter the buildings on the campus and to eat at the cafeteria every day.  Such a fun sight to see so many missionaries in the same place breaking bread together.

We gathered together in the room where we had dropped of Christopher for his mission. This was a much happier room for me now.  Love how we learn(and survive) through life's lessons.  We were greeted by the Presidency of the MTC and their wives.  There were about 110 missionaries in our group and we were assigned to a district of 16 which was actually a double size because they were short of instructors for this week.  The missionaries were assigned all over the world from Australia to the Marshall Islands to the UK and all over the United States.  Many of them were headed to Nauvoo and Kirtland to the Visitors Centers there.  Our district leader was Elder Westergard who is going to serve with his wife in the Anaheim Mission.  Our trainers were Sister Darby Robertson and Elder Spencer Vanleeuen (who had served in the California Roseville mission).  We have once again been reminded of how small the world really is.  

Our MTC District!!

The selfie stick came in handy already!!

What a treat it was for us to be associated with these sweet people.  How blessed are we!! One of the couples in our district was assigned to Pittsburgh PA as the CES.  They will do such a wonderful job there and will live close to Carnegie Mellon University.  

No MTC experience would be complete without a picture at the World Map.

The first week at the MTC was spent on Preach My Gospel.  We are so grateful we had studied it together as a couple prior to coming on our mission.  It was familiar so that we could truly focus on the points being emphasized by our instructors.  We went twice to the teaching center where we role played with "non member" investigators who were actually members acting as investigators.  It was a great experience though a little unnerving the first time we did it.  We continue to use role playing in almost every missionary meeting.  It gives us a chance to think before we speak which is admittedly a valuable experience for me;-). 

The second week was only for visitors center missionaries.  We began Monday morning with a visit to the Salt Lake Temple Visitors Center to observe how tours are done there and to be introduced to the online teaching center.  We then spent that afternoon and the next day with Elder and Sister Martin who had just returned as directors of the New Zealand Temple Visitors Center.  We found out that approximately 90 percent of visitors to these centers are members of the Church.  The Church spends a lot of money to keep these Visitors Centers going.  They reminded us that their value lies not only in introducing people to our beliefs but primarily in inviting others to come unto Christ...both member and nonmember alike.  That was such a sweet reminder for us.  How grateful we are for this calling.  We were led to understand that the number of nonmember visitors is much higher for the Hyde Park Chapel Visitors Center simply because of its location.  We can definitely say that is true having served here now for two months and having visited the London Temple Visitors Center which is approximately an hour south of London off the beaten path, so to speak.  Their visitors there are primarily members of the church though they work diligently to provide firesides and garden tours to bring in others to partake of the spirit found on those sacred grounds.

Our MTC District

Our Visitors Center Cohorts heading to Nauvoo and Kirtland 
and other places across the world.

Admittedly the best bonus ever to serving in the MTC was that thanks to our dearest friends, The Johnsons, we were able to stay in their home in Provo and spend evenings with Joseph and Ana-Lisa holding little Henry every single moment we could!!

A Month of Blessings

This has indeed been a month of blessings. We spent the final weeks in Granite Bay saying goodbye to our dear friends there....definitely harder for me than I thought.  We were set apart at the Rocklin Stake Center by President Sean Murphy.  We have had close connections with him for many, many years so having him set us apart was very meaningful to us.  He spent over an hour sharing with us the joys and anticipations that lie ahead.  We are so grateful for his kindness and goodness.  He is a wonderful servant of the Lord and we are so blessed to be under his spiritual tutelage.  He is indeed a blessing in our lives.

That same week we experienced yet another blessing as Libby and David and Kate were able to take our luggage for England to Utah  so we did not have to lug an extra 300 pounds of luggage to Boston. Our first stop on the road to our mission was in Boston to attend the blessing of Chris and Jenna's new sweetheart Hannah Joy who was born on Valentines Day. How perfect is that?  She is the sweetest most calm little soul and we soaked up every moment we could with her and her brother and sister. Oh my we do love those Littles!!

Hannah's Blessing Day April 10, 2016

 We went to the movies together....

And Mary Claire turned THREE in her Elsa wig and princess dress 

pushing her new baby buggy!!

And while all this occurred in Boston, out west a celebration of it's own was in order as Joseph and Ana-Lisa welcomed their firstborn, Henry Michael Mullen on Thursday April 7th.  Gratefully he came safely.  We were so very thankful for that blessing.  Mom and Dad were definitely smitten as were all of us!!

Meet Henry Michael Mullen....sooo cute!!

As these new lives entered our little family we also had the opportunity to connect with heaven as we laid the headstone for Gram's grave.  It has literally been years in the making but the final product is so representative of who she was and still is to our family...I miss her so very much.  I have LOVED having this month with my siblings.  We missed having Sherry and Sue there with us.  I am so grateful to be able to share life and heaven with these souls.

So the blessings just kept pouring in....Chris and Jenna and the kids joined us in Utah for Joseph's graduation.  How fun was that to be all together?  THE BEST!!  We attended Joseph's graduation from the BYU Marriott School of Business majoring in marketing and Pre-dental.  He will be attending UCLA School of Dentistry beginning in September of this year.  Well done Joseph!!

Then we spent the weekend soaking in every moment possible.  How grateful we are that Chris and Jenna joined us.  Memories to hold us for the next 18 months!!

Brothers and Cousins...does the mother heart good!!

The flowers at Temple Square were stunning...the family even moreso!

Giggling cousins!

Grampas and boulders....so much fun!!

Then that glorious weekend continued with the blessing of little Henry and the celebration of Ana-Lisa's birthday!!  A glorious weekend indeed!!

BLESSINGS ABOUND!!