A week of blessings and one suprise miracle - a photo story.

One busy week . . .

 Our BIGGEST miracle weighed in a 3 pounds and 6 ounces. She also was NOT born at the beginning of the week but I just had to start off the story with our beautiful little tiny miracle Hannah. The week was very intense with concerns for mama and baby but she arrived and is working on growing.

This is where the week actually began. The most perfect Sacrament meeting, because it was a primary sacrament meeting. I LOVE primary sacrament meetings (the extra perk this time was that I did not have  (sorry, I did not get) to speak. :)

Shortly after Sacrament meeting we headed to the airport to attend our first Mission Presidents Training meeting. The seminar was held in Bogata, Columbia. It is not easy to get anywhere from Cochabamba and the travel took an overnight stay!

You are correct - President and his cell phone are rarely parted.

We were happily surprised when the bus carrying the 4 mission presidents from Bolivia stopped at the CCM in Bogata. We were EVEN HAPPIER when the CCM mission president announced that the mission president from Cochabamba was visiting. These brand new missionaries (on their 5th day at the CCM) came running. We cannot wait to welcome them in a few more weeks.

We got to spend time with 30 mission presidents and wives from 

Bolivar, Peru, Ecuador,Venezuela, and Columbia. 

                                  

                                                                                                                                                                             We were INCREDIBLY blessed to be taught, inspired and strengthened by wonderful men like Elder David Evans (first quorum of the seventy and executive director of the missionary department) and all three of our VERY OWN area presidency, Elders Uceda, Waddell and Godoy.

We attended a session in the Bogata Temple - - - with our whole group. THAT WAS INCREDIBLE.

We got to visit with old friends President and Sister Riggins and the new

member of our area presidency Elder Godoy

 Then an afternoon of sightseeing, this is Bogata, a HUGE city. We traveled on Gondolas to the top of Monserrat . . .

We toured the beautiful 17th century church there.  Then we were off to Sucre for a stake conference.

In Sucre we learned there was a baptism scheduled for Saturday morning - so of course we decided to go. The taxi driver stopped when the roads got rough and kindly refused to go further. President had his handy GPS on the phone so off we went . . . in search of the chapel.

We arrived in time for the baptism of these wonderful people - a family of three and a single man. It was great.

Bolivia is a land full of surprises and Stake Conference was another one. We were a little surprised to find people already in their seats when we arrived at 9:30 (30 minutes early) - As we tried to turn the lights on in the chapel we quickly realized the electricity was off. We were trying to figure out how we could hold a conference with no electricity when a member of the stake presidency found us and told us the electricity would be back on at 11. He then offered to drive us to get our luggage from the hotel as the timing of the day had now changed. I was concerned when we returned and walked back into the building. What would all these people be doing with this hour and a half of unstructured time? As I walked past the bathrooms I worried even more. No electricity meant no running water - which is NOT a good thing with all those people in one place. But as I neared the chapel, I did not hear people talking, or playing, I heard - music! and my eyes filled as I entered the chapel to see our wonderful, awesome, incredible missionaries up there on the stand singing hymn after hymn after hymn. It may not have been Tabernacle Choir quality (following a tune is not natural for many of them) but their spirit filled the room. I was so proud of them!

One of our first great blessings of mission service has arrived

We learned this little one was on his way a few months after our call to serve in Bolivia. We consider him a huge mission blessing and are grateful he could join our family. Max arrived on Wednesday and we are so glad he is here. Although a very large part of me longs to be holding this baby and helping my beautiful daughter I know she has many loving hands and hearts surrounding her and all is well. (and I am grateful for facetime!!!)

50 Year Anniversary of the Church in Bolivia

Cochabambas' 5 stakes celebrated the 50th anniversary of the Church in Bolivia by reserving a Plaza in downtown Cochabamba and joining in a "Feria".

 The Relief Society headed up the whole thing.
There were booths to teach about food storage and 48 hour emergency kits.

I learned about the versatility of soda bottles. Theycan be used for food storage, sprouting grains, 

planting vegetables,  and the bottles are even artistically cut up and painted to make floral arrangements.

          There were booths for raising chickens, and guinea pigs.

And the Relief Society shared and sold their beautiful handcrafts. There were beautiful crocheted sweaters, blankets, baby things etc. as well as hand painted table cloths, crafts. baked goods and oil paintings
                                                                        ,

                                   The missionaries were able to talk with many people . . .

... and they filled out many referral cards

They are amazing young men and women and so fun to watch as they serve and teach about the gospel of Jesus Christ. (Look at the Elders outstretched hands :))

We bought these roses at the feria. We paid a little less than $3 for 24 beautiful roses.

On our way home we got a quick shot of a newly married couple in front of the temple. 

This last photo is from today, Sunday. It does not really fit in the whole 50 year celebration but . . . I am going to include it anyway. Today was Stake Conference in one of the 5 stakes here in Cochabamba. They always ask us to speak in every stake conference. My Spanish is very limited, but I think the Lord wants me to stretch (and the Bolivians are very kind as I try to learn). And so I try, and try and try . . .  These beautiful flowers were right in front of us as we sat on the stand and so I held my phone down low and snapped this shot. As you can see in the distance it is 11 AM. Time for church to begin . . . but Bolivia runs on Bolivian time. I think we started about 11:15 with perhaps a third of the people who eventually came. There are a few who drive but many walk or catch taxis, or truffis so it is not always easy to get to church on time. One of my favorite moments from today occured after the meeting. A family came up to greet us and I knelt down to talk to a beautiful little girl - probably less than 2 years old. I smiled and said "Hola" - she looked at me with wide brown eyes and tentatively reached to touch my cheek. I think she was wondering what happened to my skin! It was not the beautiful brown skin she was used to:) I reached and touched her cheek and she smiled from ear to ear. Sometimes I do not need to speak spanish:) 

Election Day in Bolivia

 Today, Sunday October 12 is Election Day in Bolivia. The past few weeks have been full of bands and parades in the streets, and people passing out flags, or posters, or flyers for the candidates at the busier intersections in town.  Beginning Friday gatherings of more than 8 people were against the law. So we had to be cautious with our interviews this and asked the missionaries to come to the mission office only in companionships and not as districts crowding into taxis (as they like to do to save money.) Today there were no church meetings held in the chapels because of the 'no more than 8 people gathering' rule. The missionaries have been in their apartments today, just as a precaution. But they were out teaching tonight 

Everyone over the age of 18 is required to vote. If you do not vote there are penalties, like a freeze on your passport, inability to use banks, or a fine. You also need to go to the place you registered to vote (unless you planned ahead and transferred your registration). Cars, taxis and buses are prohibited from driving today so families are out on the streets walking to vote.

Since I am writing about Bolivian things - - -
This is one of the Bolivian national flowers (yes they have two).
The Kantuta. They were given to Mark and I after a stake conference that we spoke in by a sweet woman welcoming us to Bolivia. The flowers are the three colors of the flag.

 Back to Sunday, We walked down to the temple this morning (since there are not gatherings in chapels) to meet with a SMALL group of temple missionaries to hold a little sacrament meeting. It is awesome to see the sacrament blessed by older men with white hair who help each other up after kneeling. 

   It has  been a beautiful, quiet Sabbath. 

This family, (and missionaries, and an investigator) came for family night on Monday. Often missionaries will bring new converts or investigators for a family night here with us. 

This family came up last week from Tupiza to go with their son through the temple and to have their son set apart by Mark to serve a mission in Paraguay. It is a very long trip by bus (probably 20 hours) but they were all smiles.

This week we are beginning our 'entrevistas' - our interviews. While President meets with each missionary individually, I talk with them and encourage the latin missionaries to learn english . Thee Elders are studing english . . . and this photo was NOT posed. They are fun!

 I just had to close with this darling little girl. We were at a baptism, and she just couldn't stay awake any longer. We are off to Sucre, Tupiza and Potosi this week. Interviews and a district conference:)

A visit from Elder Waddell

We were blessed with a visit from Elder Waddell. We picked him up Tuesday night, Sept 9. One of my favorite parts of the experience was sitting at the kitchen table and just talking with him. He said one main purpose of his trip was to check on and help us. We felt loved and strengthened and lifted. (This calling is a challenge!) We flew with him to Sucre for a 5 hour mission zone conference and a stake training meeting that evening, then back here for another zone conferene and multi stake meeting. The third day (Friday) we held the last zone meeting and sent him to La Paz to reorganize a stake. We were exhausted after all the training and conferences, and worried about him. He told us that as soon as the conferences are over exhaustion hits, but when it is time to serve again he is lifted and able to do what the Lord needs of him. What a great man. I loved how every zone conference was slightly different. One of them he really came down on obedience, another he spent a bit more time  telling the missionaries that they were called to this mission because of the mission president! (well, that is a little humbling!) the third conference was a bit more doctrinal. It was so interesting how he adapted to the spirit/mood in each meeting and what the missionaries needed and were ready for. Here are a few photos of our 264 missionaries.

Traveling the Mission, A photo journey

We took 6 days to visit the southern parts of the mission. This involves a plane flight to Sucre where we picked up the mission vehicle that stays in Sucre. Luckily is it a 4 wheel drive car - we drove and drove through the altipano of Bolivia, It is beautiful. (sorry I am still figuring out how to post the photos, they move around between my uploading them and the final 'publish page' . . . I will learn)

Bolivian traffic cones --- gotta pay attention because . . .

road construction has little warning!

Seat belts???? Not a law in Bolivia

First stop Betanzos, We found a quaint little
chapel on Calle Mormones

 On to Potosi . . . . You can almost touch the sky.
One of the highest cities in the world at 13,400 feet

Then the fun started. LLAMAS, everywhere, on the roads, in the
fields, wandering free on being herded. Although we disagreed
on how to pronouce the name (llamas, yamas, jamas depending
on where you learned spanish) we LOVED watching them

I really took this photo . . . From the window of the car!

Llamas everywhere

and goats . . . .

and burros. It made the drive exciting.

We stopped for a little fun at the Salt Flats
in Uyuni . . . 

Our super human assistants . . .

The drive to Queriza is beautiful with the red rock mountains

Sheep and goat herders are usually young boys or women

 and the green fields by the river are beautiful.

Queriza!

Our missionaries are helping to build the roof on the house in
the center. It will be used for tourists.

I just had to get  photo of this electric meter in an adobe 

The first chapel in Bolivia, was built inQueriza, a very special place.
 It was dedicated by Spencer W Kimball and there are many stories about this special
place. The piano was fun to play . . . a little out of tune but the people of Queriza did not care. They just SANG.

The chapel and the beam.

Missionaries are the best! 

A great place to interview the elders

This picture tells the real story. These are the incredible children of Queriza, many of them are non-members who came to hear us speak. My favorite part of the evening was when President Hansen had 6 young boys up in front and was using them to help tell a story. He then opened his scriptures to read what Jesus had to say about children. I loved watching how those 6 boys crowded to be able to see in the scriptures what the Savior had to say about children. These are beautiful, loving, faithfilled people.