Week ending April 8, 2012

Two weeks since I wrote and a lot has happened in those two weeks and who knows if I will be able to remember all I should write about.

I am going to skip right to March 29^th, Thursday.  We went to work in the morning and then we went to the airport about 12:30 to pick up Adell and Lee.  Man, it was good to see them finally come through the door.  Until then I couldn’t believe they would actually come. Of course they would have to be one of the last ones to come through.  Of course they blamed it on me for the strange stuff I had them bring me.  They think they had to have their bags inspected closely because of the dish soap, Heinz 57, and protein powder that we desired.

We took them over to the Archives to meet the people we work with and see what we have been doing for seven months. They got to see some of the hardest books Bill has had to digitize.  He has only been getting one done a day.

After work we went to our Pound World and Testco and the shopping began.  They found some things that they wanted right off the bat.

That evening was spent eating, playing games, unpacking and visiting.

Then on Friday I stayed home since Bill only had one book for me to Q.C. and then I would sit and wait forever for the next one.  Bill went in and took the car to be serviced.  It would be finished at 10:00 and so he worked until 10:00.  He came home and we headed into Edinburgh on the bus to visit the castle, and the shops on the Royal Mile.  You will have to ask them their impressions as we have already told you ours.

We ate at a restaurant that we had enjoyed before, but they have changed the menu and way things are done and we were disappointed in the changes. We picked that place because of the story of Bobby the Scottish terrier and his devotion and love of his owner.

Saturday, we again took the bus into the same area to catch the tour on the “Hairy Coo”.  It was an Orange bus that had horns, a fringe on the windshield, and a pink tongue on the bumper to look like a hairy highland cow. 

We had a very entertaining and educational tour /bus driver to show us some of the sights of Scotland and share the history of the country as well.  We stopped at Forth Bridge,

the William Wallace Monument,

the outside of Stirling Castle,

Lake of Menteith,

the lakeside village of Aberfoyle where we ate lunch, and then on to Trossaches National Park ,

Loch Katrina,

and a hotel that had two “Hairy Coos” and a new one just born the night before. 

We finished up at Doune Castle, the backdrop for the movie “Monte Python and the Search for the Holy Grail”. 

Their motto is that you spent more time off the bus than on the bus and they lived up to their motto.  We didn’t get to see each place for long but got to visit lots of places.  Lochs are lakes, coos are cows, and lunch was at a bakery with wonderful sandwiches at a bench outside.  We were having our summer weather these days.  We saw heather but not in bloom, we will go back in August to see that.  We fed the coos bread at one stop and then the next stop we met the oldest highland coo who has been on T.V. and at the grand openings of stores, etc.  He is a celebrity named Hamish.

Sunday, the men went into the Stake Center for Priesthood and Adell and I watched some of the Saturday morning session over the internet until the men came and got us to go in for Saturday afternoon session at the Stake Center.  Lee commented on how not many Stake centers only have 31 parking spots in the parking lot and how small the building is for a Stake Center.

We went to the Mission Home for lunch with the Missionaries in this area between that session and the Sunday Morning Session at 5:00.  They got to see where we will be working and meet all of the missionaries in this area and President and Sister Griffiths.

Monday we got ready and headed on our trip north.  We stopped at Dumferline and hit some stores.  After that stop, we had to turn around and come home to drop off our purchases so we would have room to travel.  Mission cars are not very large.  Then we headed out again after lunch.  We stopped along the way to see the sights and special waterfall called the Hermitage. 

We arrived in Inverness about 7:00 and spent a half hour at least looking for our B&B.  In comments left by guests we knew it was a hard place to find, but when the GPS led us to a church, we knew we were in trouble.  When we finally found it, it was a nice place to stay.  It had two rooms, one with a double bed and the other with two single beds.  We stayed here two nights.  They served us a nice breakfast and Adell and Led learned which breakfast foods they liked best.

Tuesday we woke up to twelve inches of snow on our car.  So Adell and Lee not only got to enjoy the summer weather, but also the winter weather all in four days.  It was the most snow we had experienced over here. 

We waited around to let them clear the roads, changed the direction we had planned on going and took off for a delightful day of exploring the countryside and seashores.  Many a shell and rocks were picked up.  We had a wonderful fish and chip lunch, and the snow disappeared the further we traveled.

Wednesday we then headed to the Isle of Skye with many more stops for shells and rocks and pictures of beautiful scenery.  Time didn’t permit us getting to do all we desired, or stay as long as we would have liked to stay. 

As it was, we didn’t get home until after 11:00.  Thanks to prayer for a safe journey, the roads were not icy and Elder Rasmussen was able to barely miss the one deer we saw.

Thursday, we visited Roslyn Chapel where part of the Da Vinci Code was filmed and take them to our favorite tavern for lunch.  We attended the musical South Pacific with the other missionaries from the office that evening.

Friday was spent at our favorite castle which is Stirling.  Then we went to Falkirk to see the wheel.  We actually saw it in action, moving a barge from one canal to another. 

While we were there we also saw one of the coolest toys—a big ball that you get inside of and roll around in the water. 

We also took them to see the church we attend. Then it was time for the last minute shopping that had to be done including the purchase of another suitcase to handle all they were taking back of my things and their purchases.  Packing was a sad experience because that signaled the end of a wonderful visit for us.  They were able to get all in they had to take home much to my surprise. 

We are so thankful to Zane, Corinne, Colby and Lee for making it so Adell could come.  I wouldn’t have wanted her to come by herself and Zane was so good to share her with us.  Thanks Corinne and Colby for staying with Zane, and Adell for giving up your Spring break, Lee for choosing here to spend your vacation days.  You will never know how much we enjoyed the week.  Who knows if a new Mission President will let us take that much time off if others come over, but we want to invite all who can come to see us.

Now back to work on Tuesday for our last week at the Archives.  Last Friday the Archives was closed for Good Friday and Monday for Easter and so that only leaves four days.  We leave with mixed feelings, sad to leave the people we have worked with and the time I had to study and grow between books, and glad to try a new experience that will be varied and with more light than our dark room.

Today has been a beautiful Sunday with all the talks about the Atonement, and now to watch the Sunday Afternoon session of Conference.  We love you all.  Thanks again for coming Lee and Adell.