Count your blessings...

It is that time of the year...

Time to Count your Blessings

but if I named them one by one 

this post would go on forever!

So just to name a few...

1.  The Temple

 It has been well over 2 years since I have had the chance to go to the temple.
Just getting to visit the Bogota temple brought tears to my eyes.
I felt like I had ¨come home¨ when I walked into this Holy House.
I hope I can feel just like that when I return to my Heavenly Father.
Here we are with President and Sister Wakefield of the Bogota Temple.

2.  Returned Missionaries

 There is something special about seeing the missionaries who served with you
and seeing them happy and faithful in the gospel.
It is like seeing your kids after a long absence.
Thanks Elder Duque for coming to the airport in Cusco to visit us!

3.  Meeting missionary parents and families

The Quispe family in Cusco, Peru

When you meet the missionary families you understand where 

the power to do missionary work comes from.  

You can feel their faith and prayers for you and their missionary.  

You can feel their love and support.

I am grateful for these faithful parents who are the wind beneath our wings!

Brother and Sister Stevenson in St. George, UT

4.  Faithful friends and servants of the Lord

Twice a year we get to meet with all the Mission Presidents in our area.

Here we are with all the mission presidents serving in Colombia.

President and Sister Searle - Colombia Baranquilla

President and Sister Pitarch - Colombia Medellin

President and Sister Lozano - Colombia Bogotá South

President and Sister Dyer - Colombia Bogotá MTC

President and Sister Andelin - Colombia Bogotá North

President and Sister Prince - Colombia Cali

All I can say is:

¨Somewhere in my youth or childhood, I must have done something good!¨

to get to associate with these wonderful men and women!

5.  Temple Covenants

I was able to go to the St. George Temple with our youngest daughter as she received

her endowment and made covenants with her Father in Heaven.

It was a beautiful, sacred experience and like water to my parched soul.

How grateful I am for my Temple Covenants!

6.  Our Parents

Well into their 80´s, our parents support us in everything we do.

We are grateful for their wisdom, counsel, laughter, and the

ability to endure to the end with us...they promised to wait!!

7.  The 5 Prince Kids

Words can not describe the love and admiration I have for my wonderful children.

They are my greatest blessings!

 and their spouses...

How lucky we are for each of them and the way they fit into our family.

They all rallied to support Marcie as she married.  

We love this family!

8.  Our Grandchildren

I met 4 of these little ones for the first time...and it was LOVE at first hug.

They are happy, fun, energetic, and the hope of the future.

What an incredible blessing!

9.  Technology

I am grateful for skype!

Through skype we are able to know our grandchildren.

Through skype we are able to keep in touch with our parents.

Through skype we are able to help meet our children´s needs.

Through skype President Prince was able to attend our family dinner

and participate in some of our daughters wedding events.

We are indeed blessed to live in a time when we can be two places at once.

10.  Missionaries and faithful members

Our November 2013 Missionary Leadership Council

and our Buenaventura Branch

They had 140 in attendance this Sunday 

and families who had just been sealed in the temple bore testimony.

This is the gospel in action...this is an incredible blessing.

11, 12, 13....the list goes on

November has been a VERY blessed month.

Feeling grateful!

November Newbies...more power for us!...

An early morning airport run on November 1

netted us 5 powerful new missionaries

After arriving in Cali, the new missionaries go directly to 

the immigration office to get their visas registered and apply for their Colombian Cedula.

Then they go to the office where they:

1.  Have their first interview with President Prince

2.  Write a quick note home to tell their parents they arrived

and

3.  Fill out a survey of information we like to know about them.

Then they arrive at the mission home for lunch...

and for some photos

Our November 2013 Group

Elders Peñafiel, Pezo, Rodriguez, Montalvo, and Tobar

We then go up the mountain 

where they can get a good look at the city of Cali.

Elders Rodgriguez, Montalvo, Tobar, Peñafiel, and Pezo

They are always in the Lord´s hands!

We return to the office where they rest, have fun with the assistants,

have a pizza dinner, and the go out to work with some of our 

missionaries in areas close by.  

They arrive to their beds EXHAUSTED after having left the MTC at 3:30am!

The training day starts off with a 

good breakfast

followed by HOURS of training

(I always wonder how much they remember!)

then at about 12:30 they get ready to meet their first companion

 Our trainers...waiting to go inside

Elders S. Walker, Henostroza, Musselman, Fuentealba, Jolley

 eyes closed...door opening...

 sneaking up behind their companions...

Welcome to the mission!

Our newest companionships...

 Elders Fuentealba and Montalvo

 Elders Jolley and Tobar

 Elders Musselman and Pezo

 Elders Peñafiel and Henostroza

Elders Rodriguez and S. Walker

and then LUNCH...

by now you must realize I don´t let them go out to the field hungry!

and brownies with ice cream!

AND

more training...

and then OFF to the mission field.

These new missionaries bring a POWER with them.

This is the first group that we received that has only had an 8 day MTC stay.

Changing of the guard

(or new assistant)

Elder Menendez (right) has been serving as assistant for almost 7 months.

This transfer he will go back out to the field and continue to 

baptize, lead, inspire, and help the people of Colombia.

Elder LaBar (center) is joining the office as our new assistant.

He will be companions with Elder Welling (left) who continues on as assistant.

Elders Welling and LaBar

Assistants to the President

President Prince with his assistants

How grateful we are for these powerful missionaries!