Family Fun!!!

Ayo Family and Friends!

It is so much fun to have family (and friends) come and visit!  We just love having Jason and Aly here with us.  We have done lots of fun things and thankfully not had a very demanding week as far as missionary work goes.  But, I am going to let Elder Bell tell you all about the family fun we have had this week.  You may have noticed you got this blog a day early….because we are having yet more family fun early Monday morning and so will not have time to get this blog out tomorrow.  Now, in honor of Kevin's birthday/Mother's Day, which happen to fall on the same day, I made our very favorite treat for dinner tonight…homemade bread!  We gobbled nearly an entire loaf ourselves!  Between the constant rice and the hot bread there is no hope for a slim waistline.

So, I am going to start with today and share our great day that happened before we got to work on the homemade bread project.  We had another baptism in Carmen and if you recall that is a river baptism.  Carmen is about a 90 minute drive from where we live and is situated in the middle of the island, and so we headed out early to pick up the missionaries and the members and prospective baptismal candidate, and then we headed for the river.  The river is getting lower and lower in this dry season and so it runs very slow and fortunately is fairly deep in some spots.  The descent down to the river is very steep and in a dress can be a little tricky but it is well worth the effort to hike down.

The young man in front is Jeimer Lagria, who was baptized today, with the missionaries and branch members who showed up to support him today.

Elder Jennings baptizing Jeimer!

It was a hot day today and so after the baptism was over it did not take too long for all of the kids, young and old alike, to jump in and cool off! (I kinda wanted to join them myself but refrained)

Elders Head, Ludbey, Giauque, and Lang singing 'How Firm a Foundation'

This week was the Calape District Youth Conference on Thursday, Friday and Saturday.  They traveled to Talibon and stayed in a pretty nice resort for the event.  Elder Bell had been invited up to teach a workshop to all of the young men on Duty to God.  Jason and Aly went with us and we enjoyed lunch with the group and then just observed while the workshops were going on.  The boys got a gospel-based talk and activity to accomplish and the girls worked for the full two hours on a cool craft project….even in the far reaches of the Church we women work too hard at all of this sometimes!

Elder Bell presenting his workshop on 'Duty to God'

And…the fancy craft project of the young women!

Well, that is all for me this week.  I just want you all to know that I love the Lord and I love His work in this part of the vineyard.  It is a joy to serve with my husband. I learn to appreciate him more and more each week as he serves with all of his heart and soul these beautiful people.  It is a remarkable experience to stand by the side of a man who honors his priesthood and uses it to bless the lives of many people.  This is something I never take for granted.  Happy Birthday Dear 'Kauban' (companion).  I love you forever!

And to all of you, I love you too and appreciate your letters, prayers and fleeting thoughts each week.  Please keep hanging in there with us….we need you!  Missions are hard work and it really takes your love and support to keep us going.  Happy Mothers Day to all of the wonderful women in my life.  

Love all of you forever also,

Sister Bell (Nanay, Lola, Amigo)

Kamusta Family and Friends

Well another exciting fun filled week in Paradise, better known as the Island of Bohol.  We had a great time with Jason and Aly in both fun and testimony.

One thing that happened last week for testimony meeting is Jason stood up and bore his testimony in Tagalog.  Tagalog is the national language of the Philippines and everyone understands most of it even the we speak Visayan in this part of the Philippines.  The members were amazed when he started speaking and really enjoyed hearing his testimony.  The Branch President paid him a complement for still keeping fluent in the language for 11 years after serving in the Philippines.  I guess from talking with Jason and also our own experiences we are having, the Philippines will always own a special place in your heart after serving with the people here.  We know that just from the 8 months we have already served.

We went to the Isla Hayahay 2 times snorkeling this week. The first time we went to the pool there to swim and had supper that evening watching the sunset.  Then followed up we had a Nindot Kaayo (Awesome Very) snorkel the next morning.

Sunset in Paradise

The second day we went on a island hopping tour with a little snorkeling thrown in for fun.

We visited an Island off Calape that has a fishing village.  The residents only return to the mainland of Bohol once a year by boat.

Another day we visited Magaso (smokey) Falls that was Nidot Kaayo also.

Jason brought a Drone that can fly out 4 miles away and take video of the beauties of the Island of Bohol.  We went out on a pier at Inabanga and he was able to take some great videos of the coast.

 The children on the peer as Jason brings the Drone back home.

Visit to the Chocolate Hills at Sagbayan Peak.

Well, there is more planned for next week so we will fill you in on the rest of the visit from Jason and Aly next week.

I will close with my appreciation for my family and also the people we are privileged to serve with.  I love the Lord and all the great people in our lives.  We are truly blessed beyond any thing we could have ever asked for.

Nahi Gugma always,

Elder Bell (Tatay, LoLo and Amigo)