The week before Christmas was pretty quiet. I made a batch of English Toffiee, we went to church and walked around the Temple grounds. It was quite different than the usual hustle-bustle holiday mayhem. This is me in my little kitchen.
Besides a few cookies, my only holiday cooking/baking was English Toffee. After my 1 hour in the kitchen, we strolled up to the temple grounds to see the nativity there. On the way up, we ran into this darling bunch of members who were here at the temple for baptisms. Jeff was with them at the temple in the morning and helped them with ordinances. They are a local group from Soweto and are really lovely, happy people who were delighted to be together at the temple.
The Christmas nativity was very simple but lovely. We walked around the grounds and noticed all the beautiful flowers and palm trees. The red roof in the temple picture is where we live - right next door.
Winter Gardens ?
Here are some of our ward members. The missionary couple is the Hartmans - Terry and Jean. Terry is the Area Medical Specialist who keeps the missionaries in all of our 39 countries mentally and emotionally healthy. They do a fantastic job here and they are a fun couple to have in our ward and to work with in the Area Office.
MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!
My BIG Christmas surprise came in the form of a 2 week trip to Gran Canaria to spend the holiday with our daughter Julie and her family. I had just a few days warning and absolutely NO plans to be going anywhere but Jeff and Julie cooked it up and we went and had a fantastic time. I was very surprised indeed and happy to be able to be with family again. It seemed odd to me to be leaving the area, the office and the missionaries and then I found out that the entire office was closed down for almost 3 weeks! Johannesburg turned into a ghost town and everything was very quiet. Many of the Sr. couple missionaries left and part of the Area Presidency too. Sr. couples had family visitors and many traveled just like we did.
When we got to Gran Canaria, Spain, we had lots of fun all planned out by the Nelson team. Other than the LONG flights, the trip was fantastic. Spencer and Julie are great hosts and saw to it that we were well cared for. They gave us their bedroom, took us to Spencer's games and team fun, took us to a beautiful African resort (so we would feel at home) in the south of the island, took us on fun walks and shopping and to see new parts of Las Palmas and gave us a wonderful Christmas.
Getting ready for the game to start.....
We enjoyed the game so much and it is always fun to watch Spencer play. He has a bunch of nice teammates this year and we had fun with them and their wives during the holiday.
At half-time, they invited all the kids to come down and dance with the GC dancers. Little Miss Hannah Banana stole the show. She had a great time and so did we!
Some of the Young Men in the ward came to see the game - Spencer's big fans.
The Christmas nativity was very simple but lovely. We walked around the grounds and noticed all the beautiful flowers and palm trees. The red roof in the temple picture is where we live - right next door.
Here are some of our ward members. The missionary couple is the Hartmans - Terry and Jean. Terry is the Area Medical Specialist who keeps the missionaries in all of our 39 countries mentally and emotionally healthy. They do a fantastic job here and they are a fun couple to have in our ward and to work with in the Area Office.
My BIG Christmas surprise came in the form of a 2 week trip to Gran Canaria to spend the holiday with our daughter Julie and her family. I had just a few days warning and absolutely NO plans to be going anywhere but Jeff and Julie cooked it up and we went and had a fantastic time. I was very surprised indeed and happy to be able to be with family again. It seemed odd to me to be leaving the area, the office and the missionaries and then I found out that the entire office was closed down for almost 3 weeks! Johannesburg turned into a ghost town and everything was very quiet. Many of the Sr. couple missionaries left and part of the Area Presidency too. Sr. couples had family visitors and many traveled just like we did.
When we got to Gran Canaria, Spain, we had lots of fun all planned out by the Nelson team. Other than the LONG flights, the trip was fantastic. Spencer and Julie are great hosts and saw to it that we were well cared for. They gave us their bedroom, took us to Spencer's games and team fun, took us to a beautiful African resort (so we would feel at home) in the south of the island, took us on fun walks and shopping and to see new parts of Las Palmas and gave us a wonderful Christmas.
Getting ready for the game to start.....
We enjoyed the game so much and it is always fun to watch Spencer play. He has a bunch of nice teammates this year and we had fun with them and their wives during the holiday.
At half-time, they invited all the kids to come down and dance with the GC dancers. Little Miss Hannah Banana stole the show. She had a great time and so did we!
Some of the Young Men in the ward came to see the game - Spencer's big fans.
He got all of them tickets.
Best fans!
"ASSIST" from Dad!
The weather was beautiful when we walked Hannah to her ballet class. Everywhere you look is a wonderful view.
Our big Christmas treat from the Nelsons was a trip to a resort in the south part of the island called Lopesan Baobab. It was really an incredible place and had an African theme. The resort is huge with fun pools and kids playgrounds. We played with the kiddies, laughed, talked, ate and ate some more. The ocean was spectacular. I have to say that it was the most unique resort we have ever stayed at and it is difficult to see how big it really is from these pictures. The ceilings must have been 30' high and the common space was huge. It really made us relax. There were lots of tropical plants, African animals and birds (fake) and authentic African artifacts. It was all really amazing and we loved it. Many thanks Nelsons!!!
Julie and Logan
Daddy~ Daughter Cuddle
Two of these huge Baobab trees lit up the night sky. It was quite a sight!
The weather was beautiful when we walked Hannah to her ballet class. Everywhere you look is a wonderful view.
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