Easter

On Easter we had family and friends to dinner at the house, 

before dinner Adelynne came over for a small egg hunt at Grandma's house.   

Grandpa hid eggs all over the house and most of them were hidden in plain sight 

but it was still alot of fun!   

(Adelynne also looked for eggs when she came to visit on Mother's Day)

 Here is one in the bowl!

 And another on the couch!

My full haul of eggs!

 The table set for dinner!

 Dinner with Family and friends!

His Name is Jeff

What an amazing week this was!!!   My life is just one huge adventure down here!  Some fun stories:

We ran out of water soooo we got to take shower-in-a-bucket!  Well you stand outside and pour waters from a bucket one cup of a time on your body with soap and shampoo and then when you are done you pour the bucket over you! Way fun I felt like I was a kid in the bathtub again! kinda...

Well missionaries carry around pictures because I guess Brazilians love pictures and it is so funny every time I show them pictures without fail three people are commented one.  First Adi and how cute she is.  Then Owen how cute he is. The girls always giggle and point at his picture and then Lauren and how beautiful she is.. it makes me laugh so hard every time.

Oh we did service this week and we helped the bishop prune his fruit trees I wish I had my camera it would have been an epic picture! And then we spread gravel in his yard... yes in his yard but it wasn’t gravel it was crushed up bricks and cement it was way weird!  But he was grateful so that is good.

I have so much time on my hands since I have no idea what’s going on... well I kinda do but it is so easy to daydream.  I always do theses countdowns it’s so bad! And one night I was talking to my district leader and I’m like elder I’m so trunky! I keep counting down till I go home but I’m trunky I love it here! And he just laughs and says I know exactly what you mean it’s just because you don’t know what people are saying so all you can do is think about home.  It was interesting and comforting to know that it isn’t just me!

Oh we also have a family of lizards living with us!  I see the dad a lot I have named him Jeff; well I assume he is the dad he is the biggest.  He is really nice and we like to talk about the weather and sports. It is really nice because he speaks English which is really hard to find here!!

Well this week has been a lot of fun.  We were sitting on the sidewalk and this donkey came running around the corner and it sprinted past us it was so random but soooo funny.  Just the sights you see here are amazing!   I love walking home at night past people on the sidewalk listening to music and playing with their families with smells of cooked meats or fresh fruit it is just one of the most beautiful things I can think of I really do love it here and the culture is amazing.

I love being the white guy here.  Kids will always come up and say "fala ingles" and I’ll just say "ingles" and then they laugh and run away or they’ll ask how tall I am and ill say three meters it is so much fun to just be able to laugh and talk and play with these amazing people here in Brazil!

Well I hope all is well in the states and that you are enjoying your carpet!
Remember if you have a problem turn to the Lord he can solve it better then we can!

Love
Elder Mender

Grandkids are fun!

Last Saturday we watched Adelynne most of the day while her parents went over to Gilford, NH.   We just had a blast with her!   She is such a cute little girl and just so mild mannered.   We had lunch.....grapes, string cheese, and crackers.   We played games - peek a boo and hide and seek.   We read books, and played with legos.   It is so funny that as grandparents you feel like you have so much more time to play the games than when you are the parent!

We bundled up in the car mid afternoon and Adi was out for the whole trip down to Concord to meet her parents and go to dinner.   The picture above was from a ribs place called "Famous Dave's" that I had never heard of but the food was very good and reasonably priced.   We had a great day with the kids!   We did miss Mitch and Owen since we think if they had been there we might have actually been able to finish the "family meal"!   Maybe in a couple years!

Mitch is a Missionary!

It has been a long time since we had all the kids together for a photo in their church clothes! The day that Mitch was set apart as a missionary was occasion enough for everyone to gather at church and to allow us to get a family photo of everyone together. I especially liked this one of the kids. It was a great shot! Everyone happy and smiling, including Adi. 

President Cook set Mitch apart as a missionary and here are a few of the the things that he counseled Mitch to remember as he prepares to serve as a missionary in Brazil.

• The Lord has blessed you with goodly parents, they have taught you good from evil.
• You have been able to make good choices in your life, including recognizing when you have made mistakes.
• You have been foreordained to be a disciple in this life and have a testimony Jesus Christ.
• Be valiant and fearless, you will have energy, desire, and be a hard worker
• You will love your companions, befriend them and you will be lifelong friends
• You are blessed with gifts of tongues to both speak and understand the language.
• You will be able to relate to and love the people and will bring many to the covenant of baptism.
• Jesus said that he who believes and is obedient will have eternal life, which is the greatest gift.
• You are commissioned to teach, preach, baptize those that are prepared.
• You will be protected from harm, danger, and disease
• Write to your parents weekly
• Share your testimony with your siblings and your parents.

Mender Family Photo 2009

We have been averaging a family photo about every two years so it was about time! The last photo we had was when Owen returned from his mission and we are scheduled for our next photo when Mitch returns from his mission! Amazing how time flies.....but I sure am glad we have tortured our children with these family bonding moments. Over the years we have had tears....lost shirts (that is a funny story) and lately just alot of laughter as we have gathered for these photos. I'm so glad we have this history of our family and how they have grown over the years! Now that we have grandchildren in the picture we may need to pick up the frequency of our photo sessions!