Thanksgiving Down Under

This week was Thanksgiving in America but not here in Australia.  I think we were all really missing it.  I missed the crisp, cool weather too.  The Senior missionaries put together their own Thanksgiving on Monday for FHE and here we are.  All but two couples were American plus one Senior Sister missionary was from England.  We enjoyed celebrating together and the food was really good.  I was put in charge of the gluten-free stuffing, gravy and rolls.  Tim and I made stuffing from scratch with gf bread--the store bought stuffing mix is awful. I was really pleased with the result and will do that from now on!  We received a new couple, the Rhotens, the week before from Washington state and he is gluten-free so I'm not the only one anymore!  Yay!  

  

This week we received another couple from Spanish Fork, Utah, the Nebekers.  We have been running from pillar to post with all the new senior couples.  We train them when they come in and we take them shopping to get their phones switched over to Australian sim cards, and to get electrical appliances like blow dryers and curling irons.  Even with the adapters the U.S. ones get really hot and start smoking! Sometimes we take them out for driving lessons which is a lot because everything you thought you knew about driving gets thrown out the window when you drive on the left-hand side of the road.

The couples from America fly in at 5:00 am so they are tired and jetlagged after 16 hours on a plane!  We've decided not to train them until the second day. :D  Each one of the office departments trains them:  Office, Finances, Housing and Vehicles.  I thought it was too much information for them to remember so I started making a packet for them to refer too.  It has the 6-week calendar that we go by, a copy of the most recent transfer board and information broken down by departments including necessary paperwork they have to fill out.  I've also included maps so they can get the lay of the land--that was hardest for me, I needed to SEE it.  It has been very helpful to have documentation to refer to when they're not so tired.  Tim runs these training sessions because he is the Senior Missionary Zone Leader.

All my kids were together at my house in Saratoga Springs, Utah this week!  It's always fun seeing them together.  They know how to have fun as evidenced here!  Laura brought Gabby's Playhouse kitty ears for all the little girls.

Really have missed my family but very thankful for Zoom and Marco Polo which let us participate from 8,000 miles away!  Love you all!  Enjoy the holidays!