We are getting more anxious now rather than excited. Time is going by sometimes both faster and slower at the same time. We have packed our bags now to see what will fit and how much they weigh. Mom and Dad Reese are coming in from Utah today and will be here for ours and Peters setting apart as missionaries. They are also going to attend Courtney's, (our granddaughter's) baptism. We will send the bags back with them to Utah which will save us the expense the airlines charge for baggage.
All the major things we were concerned with are done, we have sold the car and rented the condo which were the last big items we had left to get ready. We now just have a few little things left to do.
This week and last week we added working at the St Joseph's Shelter for women and children. It has been a good experience and it has helped fill the days making time go by faster. We work in the kitchen helping to prepare the food and then set-up and serve. We have been working with a great chef who is originally from the Ukraine and for a while worked on the cruise ships in the Black Sea. Very interesting to get the inside view of working on a cruise ship. Also interesting to hear his views on socialism and how he see us going in that direction and how, having lived under it, it is the way we don't want to go.

FYI - we are to report to the MTC in Provo, Utah on January 31. We will be there for 2 weeks and then flying to Armenia on Feb. 13. We will be in the MTC for 2 days with Peter before he goes to Tucson AZ (he has a blog at www.elderreese.blogspot.com ) It is going to be great to serve a mission at the same time Peter is!

In order to accomplish everything we need to do before we leave - we taped a big sheet of paper on the wall and started writing our to do list as we thought of things! Now that we have the condo up for rent - we have to take down our list. So here is a picture of us in front of it.

Armenia Yerevan Mission - serving in Georgia

We will be updating this site as we prepare to go on our mission to Georgia!

Packing for Peru!

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We are taking a vacation to Peru with our good friends Tracy and Sharon Stout. We are very excited about the trip.

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On of the ideas we had, in preparing for the trip, was to bring some gifts to the children of Peru. When Dave had gone before they took some small items like pencils and the children LOVED them.

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This time we sent out an e-mail with a list of suggested items that the children of Peru would enjoy. The response was overwhelming. People are generous and love to serve.

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Here are some photos of us packing all the "goodies" for the trip. Thank you everyone!

Girls night for Blair's Birthday!

Happy Birthday Blair!

For Blair's birthday Christy, Marcy and I got together and purchased her a night with a color consultant named Marion. Marion drapes different shades of color over you and determines which colors work best for you. There are 4 categories, Summer, Fall, Winter and Spring. Each "season" of color uses different shades.

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As you can see, she places the person in front of a mirror and has them look at what the different colors does to their face. Some will enhance her natural beauty, some will wash her out and some will create dark shadows and lines on her face. Christy, Marcy and I got to sit in the "viewing area" and watch this process (and give our opinions, of course!).

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It was a lot of fun. Marion always tells interesting stories of the people she has done this for in the past or her children's experiences. She is quick to share thoughts and ideas to help your colors work the best for you.

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Blair, it turns out is an Autumn. Yeah for her. Christy was excited to have someone to share colors with. Blair was excited because those are the colors she is usually drawn too and most of her house is decorated/painted in those colors.

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After our meeting with Marion we went out to dinner to Buca di Beppo's. It is a really nice Italian restaurant in Sacramento (reservation only type). The food was delicious and the company fantastic. We had a wonderful evening honoring Blair.