Oct 2-8, 2022

 SUNDAY

Conference weekend! Because of the time difference, we watch the Saturday sessions of General Conference on Sunday. Today we met at the office with the SM District, the office Elders, Brother Garlick and Bangeter and the VandeWal's. Gerrit and Norma and prepared lunch for everyone...always a feast when Norma plans a meal!

We walked around Gouda on the way home to show Mike and Meli a little of our city, then spent the evening watching the Sunday morning session and having dinner. It is so nice to have family here! We love our mission but miss seeing the family often so it is such a treat for us to have them here.

Mike, Meli, Marcia, Doug
Mission Office in the background 

MONDAY

We had a wonderful time enjoying some of the sites of The Netherlands with Mike and Meli. First we headed north to Zaanse Schans and had a great time seeing a village re-created to show what it would be like to live here in the 1800's. There are still some working windmills, one grinds pigments into chalk to color the paint. This is actually being used to restore Rembrandt's Night Watch. Another is a saw mill. The logs are cut to match the dimensions used in days gone by and is used in restoration projects.


After eating lots of cheese, apple beignets, chocolate covered waffles and ice cream we headed to Haarlem. The cathedral there is beautiful. The organist was practicing for a concert this week and we were thrilled to hear it. The organ has 5,068 pipes and is 30 meters high. Mozart played this organ when he was 10 years old.

The pipes of the organ at St Bavo's

Doug, Mike and Meli. St Bavo's - Haarlem


We lit candles in Mary's Chapel

From Haarlem we drove to Katwijk and had dinner at one of our favorite places, Pannenkoekenborderij. The Dutch pancakes are delicious!

TUESDAY

After taking Mike and Meli to the airport, we went back to the office and began the day. We have a little catching up to do and also it is the day before Orientation which means we are preparing part of the lunch. 

WEDNESDAY

Orientation for the new Elders and Sisters is always a fun day. We meet at the Office with the new missionaries, their companions, the APs, STL's and Language Elders. They are given an overview of the Mission culture and some things they can expect. Of course, most of their training is done with their own companion each day, but this is a great way to get a lot of information in a short amount of time. And there is always lunch!



THURSDAY

Just wanted to share a little miracle: 
Yesterday Sister Cannegieter told me that she hasn’t been able to hear for a couple weeks and it is not getting any better. (She had said something last week but we were just seeing if it would clear on its own.)
So I told her to check with a local doctor because usually they will see you immediately, similar to Urgent Care. She went this morning and they did not have an appointment until next week. I told her to check around and see about another one or I can ask Aetna to refer her to a provider but that takes a few days as well. 
They found another doctor, he cleared out the wax and she can hear again. He refused to charge her for the visit and asked for a Book of Mormon! They will return and give him the BoM. 
Sometimes the miracles take a little suffering and time but the Lord is in the details!!❤️

FRIDAY

It was so good to end the day attending an Endowment Session at the Den Haag Temple!

SATURDAY

We drove to Almere to deliver the 'First Day of the Month' treats to the Elders there. We also took some cheese cubes and Mustard-Dill dipping sauce for the cheese to Elder Boyer and some Star-burst-like candy to Elder Kempenaers, of course to share with the other Elders. We had a great time taking them out to lunch at Five Guys, just a short walk from their apartment. We love getting to know the missionaries and find this is a great way to do it. Just a small group out to lunch 😁
Elders Landon Boyer, Jackson Burt, Doug, Jorne Kempenaers and Hayden Peterson

It is Stake Conference this weekend. Doug went to the Leadership Meeting and I joined him at the Evening Session. Not many in attendance in person, I counted around 50...maybe everyone is still enjoying Zoom meetings...but it was good to meet together and hear from the Stake leadership.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

April 17-23, 2022

Image
  SUNDAY Happy Easter! Alja Schuur, our friend and the RS President in the Utrecht Ward painted this beautiful picture of that first Easter morning.  I love how we are looking outward from  the sepulcher. We can rejoice with Mary that Jesus Christ really did rise again. Because of Him, we will all be resurrected and can live again with our Father in Heaven and our families.  MONDAY It gets light early (and stays light late) so we have time for a bike ride/walk in the mornings before going to the office. We have time for some personal study in the mornings as well. We get up early, but it is a great way to start the day. Gouda is celebrating 750 years; the city was founded in 1272. From now til October will be a time of celebration. The Market Square is decorated, there are statues that have been painted in various ways all over town. Flags fly on the main streets and over the canals and the King of Nederlands came to town to start off the festivities. TUESDAY The Mis...
Read more

May 14 - 20, 2023

Image
  SUNDAY Happy Mother's Day! I'm so grateful for a wonderful mother who taught me how to live through her example and her teachings. Mom taught me to do the necessary work to keep a family and home running smoothly. She taught me to rely on the Spirit when I had questions or challenges. She taught me to be compassionate and caring. I learned from her how to take care of family members, neighbors and friends. She was a great example of noticing what needed to be done and just doing it. She balanced her job and family very well and always had time for others. She loved to read, play the piano and organ, work in her garden, travel to new places and make quilts. But mostly she loved to have the family gather at her home or in the mountains or at the lake -- anywhere as long as we were all together. As the family grew, that became more of a challenge but always a good time!  At Stake Conference we sustained Percy De Wilde as the new Stake President, Joeri Verwaard, ...
Read more

March 20 - 26

Image
  SUNDAY This morning I was wondering if I had done enough and done my best as a mom and I realized I don't think my kids saw me pray personally very often. The thoughts prompted me to write the following text to them: "I was thinking this morning that I don’t think I was a very good example of personal prayer to you when you were growing up. I always prayed after you went to bed and never really said anything about it. So while it’s on my mind, I just want you to know that even though you didn’t see me pray, it was and is an important part of my day. I know that Heavenly Father hears the pleadings of each of us.  His answers are not always immediate and sometimes not noticeable unless we are really watching for them. I love you so much! Have a great Sabbath!❤️" Reply from Emily: "Oh mom, opposite! As much as I saw dad laying on the floor in front of the kitchen light reading his scriptures, I accidentally busted in on you in your room praying. You've always been...
Read more