A Fun Day - Saturday, May 29, 2010

We didn't mind that we woke up to an overcast, rainy day because we didn't have plans to go out exploring on this P-day. The Assistants and our office elders were coming to have lunch at our place, so we would be enjoying a day indoors.

We slept until 7:00 and then after getting ourselves showered and ready for the day, we had to do our Saturday cleaning. Earlier in the week, a notice was slipped under our door regarding the pest exterminator coming today, so I wanted to get the cleaning done and things moved away from the walls, so he would have an easier time spraying. He is scheduled to come at 10:00 and usually he comes pretty close to that time. We waited, and waited, and finally I wanted to get the house put back together, so I sent Rich out to search the floors and find out when he would be to our place. He came back and announced that our neighbor across the hall said that he had already been on our floor. What??? I didn't hear him knock. We have a door bell, but it doesn't work. Well, we have missed him before, so it isn't a life and death thing, but I was prepared for him this time.

We ordered helado (ice cream) from Daniels for dessert today. We ordered Chocolate Daniel (like rocky road), Crema Americana (vanilla), and Frutos del Boscue (vanilla with berries). They deliver -- and it is the best!! I made brownies from a box mix, but overcooked them a little. They were still edible.

At noon our four friends came and Elders Lazo and Fernandez were dripping wet. They didn't have an umbrella. The tacos were a hit and they each ate about six. The taco seasoning mix from home flavored the hamburger just right and along with lettuce, tomatoes, and cheese, the refried beans sealed the deal. They were all most complimentary and REALLY enjoyed this lunch. Surrounding the table are Elders Lazo (Peru), Fernandez, (Uruguay), Kroff, Hales, and Peterson. Interesting to us was that the Assistants had been to the Mission Home for breakfast at 8:30 a.m. today with the Argyles, and still they put away the food like they hadn't eaten a thing all day. We gave them the option of moving the lunch date to another Saturday, but they wouldn't hear of it.

We took the traditional group shot before they heading out the door. We had a good time because Elder Lazo kept us laughing. He is a fun elder who speaks good English and also plays the piano. It has been fun getting to know him. Elder Fernandez has been in San Fernando for a few months and we are wondering if he is being replaced as an Assistant and being transferred to some other area. The young missionaries are the best!!

Clean up always goes fast because my handy dandy dish dryer never fails me. The rest of the afternoon was spent with me working on yesterday's entry, and Rich kept burning DVD's.

Because the Argyles are through with their mission, they want to give all the remaining missionaries a copy of the DVD that they usually get before they return home. It is a compilation of pictures that have been taken during the time the elder or sister has been in the mission field. The DVD will not have updated pictures for those who leave the mission after July 1st, but it will have everything up until the Argyles leave. It will be a remembrance of the time with this President. We don't know if the Gulbrandsens are planning on doing this during their tenure in the mission.

Rain continued throughout the day, and because of it we decided to take a remise to our next appointment. We had been invited to dinner at the home of Lidia Mabel Bustos. She is the mother of Rocio Garcia who we went to visit a couple weeks ago. She and her husband, Ezequiel, fed us dinner when we paid them a visit.

We had a great time with Sister Bustos, Rocio, Delfina and Ezequiel Garcia, and another daughter, Leila (16). She fed us Lasagna and it was absolutely delicious. Instead of regular lasagna noodles, it was made with skinny pancakes or thin crepe-like pancakes. They were used in the layers instead of noodles. Upon close examination we could see the pancakes, but would have NEVER guessed they were part of the ingredients. It tasted like regular lasagna, but I did notice that it was very soft and easy to cut through. Wow, what a surprise!

She also made flan for dessert served with a scoop of Dulce de Leche on the side. That won Elder Kroff's heart immediately.

Sister Bustos didn't have a husband in the home, not sure if they are divorced or just separated. However, she has eight natural children and has taken in two other girls to raise. All of her children are members of the church, however, Leila, in this picture is less active. She is a darling girl who is into drama in high school, so she and Elder Kroff connected right away. She was very friendly and stayed right with us talking and seemed to enjoy our company. Usually, sometimes teenagers get bored with grown ups and want to go off doing their thing on the computer etc.

Delfina, Ezequiel, and Rocio still want to go to the Temaiken Zoo with us on the next good Saturday. They said we could take the colectivo to Escobar where the zoo is located. With them we could find it, but alone I don't know if we could go that far alone and be successful.

During the evening, Sister Lidia brought out two heavy clothes hangers full of long beaded necklaces -- some she made, some not. She told me to pick one I liked and to take it. She said she only gives them to her friends. Some were pretty extreme and not to my liking, but I did select a rather conservative one and put it right around my neck.

It was raining pretty hard when we were ready to leave, so we returned home in a remise. We have had a great Saturday!!