Freezing Rain in Missouri...& a Baptism!

February 22 was transfer day for our Independence missionaries.  We were lucky enough to have "our" elders for dinner one more time on Wednesday the 21st.  We had homemade Chinese food since it was Chinese New Year.  Ha! that was actually just a coincidence but a fun idea anyway.

We knew one of the elders would be moving since Elder Thompson is going to be training a new elder.  We figured Elder Earl would move so that Elder Thompson could train in the area he was familiar with. This photo shows how tall "our" elders really are.

Our work week was interesting this week since we had two days of freezing rain. One both days, Tuesday and Thursday, our bosses sent us home early to avoid the extremely icy conditions that develop when the temperature suddenly drops when it's raining.  It's treacherous.  Both days, we were wearing our grippers and it was a good thing.

Last week we had a great laugh at Steve's expense.  He was driving along when I noticed that one of the lenses from his sunglasses was missing.  He was squinting but hadn't realized the lens was gone.  It was pretty funny.  I took these photos and sent one to our co-workers, the Briggs.  They thought it was funny too.

A few days later, they presented Steve with a little wrapped gift.  It turned out to be a scratched up, dark lens they found in a parking lot.  It didn't fit Steve's glasses but was a kind thought, nevertheless.

Have you ever seen or eaten a purple sweet potato?  I heard about them and went hunting.  I found one at Sprouts so we tried it this week.  It was pretty good, but we prefer the texture of the popular orange variety.

Here is Steve changing lights in the display at the Visitors' Center.

The day between the ice storms we were busy delivering items all over the place.  We met our boss, Mark, at Platte City where we loaded supplies and dispenses into his truck.

Then we drove back to the shop and loaded up cabinets to deliver to the temple.

Friday, the day after the ice storm, the roads were clear enough for travel and we did the regular rounds with our co-workers, the Briggs.  It is a little hard to see but there are thousands of little ice cycles on this fence around our shop. 

Far West was still covered with ice on the grass, trees, etc.  It is like a world of crystal surrounding everything.  It is very beautiful to look at, but impossible to walk on. It is like everything is covered with shiny, slick glass.

These trees in Hamilton, not too far from Far West, were still covered in shiny ice even though the temperatures had risen considerably.  I guess it takes time to thoroughly thaw.

Friday afternoon, we went with the Briggs to an Independence restaurant they had discovered.  They really loved it so we went for a late lunch.

The place is in the Independence Square area directly across from the courthouse and it is called the Courthouse Exchange.  It began as a tavern back in 1899 and has been serving its famous fried pickles for many years.

Of course, Harry Truman, has eaten there.  Now we have too.  We did have good food and it was enough to feed us for supper too.

Saturday morning we joined the Briggs at the National Trails Museum in Independence.

It is a very nice museum that details the history of the three trails that left from Independence to settle the West--The Santa Fe Trail, The Oregon Trail, and the California (Mormon) Trail through Utah to California.

We posed for this photo outside of the museum next to this statue of the famous explorer, Jim Bridger.  He was very instrumental in the settling of the west and is buried in Independence.

There was a lot of information about the mormon trailblazers.  It was noted that the Mormons were the only group that actually worked to improve the trail and make it better for those who followed.  They built bridges and ferries and planted crops to benefit those who came behind.

After our museum visit, we ran a few errands and went home to prepare for a baptism that evening in our Riverview Branch.  Elder Earl was told he could attend the baptism and perform it if he could get a member ride from his new area in Olathe, Kansas.  We willingly drove the 30 miles south to pick him up along with his new companion Elder Katzenbach.  Then after the baptism, we drove them back to Kansas.  The whole experience took about 4 hours, but it was worth it. 

Here is Jason, the guy in the middle, with both sets of elders.  Elder Jones is Elder Thompson's new companion.

Jason Crandall was baptized.  He bore a very humble testimony and is so excited to begin his new life as a member of Christ's church.  Elder Earl baptized him and Elder Thompson confirmed him the next day during sacrament meeting.  It was a wonderful service.  I was very happy to play the piano for the baptism.

On Sunday, our new friend, Neville, who rides to church with us wore his new white shirt and tie.  He is shy about having his photo taken, but I convinced him to let me take it.  Steve worked with him on tying his tie.  It may take a few weeks to get the knack of it.
About nine primary children sang in sacrament meeting on Sunday too.  I played "Saturday is a special day, It's the day we get ready for Sunday, " as they sang.  We have such a humble branch.

This is the view from our front window.  We often have a pretty sunset.  This one was taken Sunday evening.

Long Days Begin...

We had a couple of really long days this past week.  We moved a lot of furniture, AGAIN!

This time we were cleaning out the old furniture from the call station run by the younger sister missionaries in the basement of the Liberty Jail.  They have expanded it with new cubicles and new computers are on the way.  I guess more and more people are calling for free bibles and Books of Mormon.  The sisters who work in the visitor centers also spend time answer the calls.

                   Some desks are heavier than others.  This one was HEAVY.

Some furniture was taken to our storage "cave" to be used in the future in missionary apartments.  This file cabinet we took to the mission president's home office.

Some items are taken to our shop for future use in chapels or other church facilities.

On the same day, we stopped by the Clayview chapel in Liberty to repair a lock.  Someone broke in the outdoor storage shed.  Broken locks require urgent responses from our team.

McGiver Steve used tape to secure these chairs for their ride about 75 minutes northwest.

After our usual rounds on Friday to service all the historic sites, we returned and spent several hours cutting down the decorative grasses behind the visitor's center.  It was discovered that people were camping out in these beds and had knives, heaters, sleeping bags, etc.  It was a bittersweet experience as we were concerned about their welfare, but we were directed to do it as they could have easily started a fire or caused problems for our sister missionaries.  

We were so blessed to have mild weather Friday afternoon for the outdoor work.  In the morning it was bitter cold when we had to put the flag at Far West at half mast to honor the Florida victims.

Saturday afternoon, we took advantage of the warmer afternoon to take a walk in the park.  We went to Fleming Park and walked on one of the trails.  It was so nice to be outside without freezing every second.  Here I was at the fork in the road.  We had to return the way we came as our energy level didn't match our excitement for adventure.

Most of our kids were ready to go to church on Sunday morning.  One declined.  Here are Christina Sarah and Neville riding in our back seat.  The elders told us Sunday that they had an appointment to teach their mother.  That is what we have been praying for.

Monday morning the day started out pretty warm, about 48 degrees.  If you look closely you can see that the garbage man isn't wearing a shirt.  That was totally crazy to us as we are still wearing our quilted coats.

Since it was Presidents' Day and our bosses were all out of town, we headed over to the Harry S Truman Presidential Library and Museum.  We loved that the driveway was completely lined with flags.  There were several special events taking place that day that made it fun.

Here is an exact replica of the oval room as it was during Truman's presidency.  Notice the big old radio to my right.

It appears that Pres. Truman was not a tall man as he is on a little platform.

He did not seek the office of President and only agreed to be the vice-presidential candidate to try to bring the party together.  When Roosevelt suddenly died, he asked for everyone's prayers.

One of the special events was the unveiling of the 2018 annual Whitehouse Christmas ornament.  This year it features President Truman and the balconies he added for the first family to have an opportunity to safely get some sunshine.

During President Truman's administration, the Presidential seal was also modified slightly.  That is part of the ornament too.  There was a big unveiling ceremony.  We took our photos after the presentation.

This Missouri veteran on the stage getting his photo taken is so typical of a local Missourian.  A lot of them wear these bib overalls.

I am standing in front of President Truman's working office.  When he finished his last term, he returned to his home in Independence.  They had no pension, perks or protection.  He raised the money for the library because he wanted the people to understand history, the presidency and have access to all of his working papers and materials.  There is a big research archive in the library.
He worked in this office for over 9 years and usually came 6 days a week.  He would even give public tours through the museum and answer questions.  He greeted dignitaries and guests here.  A bible is open on his desk.  I would assume that is reflective of him as a person.

This fellow re-entacts a Truman press conference on special occasions.  The museum employees say that no one can stump him with questions.  He stayed in character and was fun to visit with.

Bess and Harry Truman have a true love story and wrote many letters to each other during his absences.  Bess was a private person and didn't enjoy the limelight.  She also took care of her eccentric mother from the time she was a young adult until the mother's death during Truman's presidency. Harry Truman lived with his disagreeable mother-in-law until her death in the Whitehouse in 1952.

We left the Truman Library after 2 1/2 hours to meet our friends from Sandy, Wendy and Kevin Divine for lunch.  Divine's moved to Overland Park, Kansas a couple of years ago to be near one of their sons, Ben.  They love it here and have since discovered that Kevin's family roots were firmly planted in this area.  There is one cemetery just for Divines.  

             It was fun to renew our friendship and we hope to get together again soon.

That evening we were in charge of the FHE activity.  We decided to have a Presidents' trivia game competition.  It was a lot of fun.  The teams were tied at the end of the event.  Everyone received a quarter with Washington's picture on it to use for laundry or shopping carts here in Missouri.

It is back to winter as an ice storm was threatening after the evening event.  The freezing rain and ice have returned.