Week 62: Not much.

 There is not much to report on this week.  We are receiving a ton of Christmas packages for missionaries. We are also making final plans and preparations for the mission Christmas Party which will be on Tuesday. 

A few parents of missionaries have sent some goodies to us at the office. Blondie's cookies are yummy!

On Monday we joined with the other Senior Missionaries for our Christmas Party. There were 36 of us there! Our numbers are increasing, but ... we still really need someone to replace us at the office soon. At least a call will need to be issued soon so they can be here in March. So .... if anyone knows of a couple who would like the experience of a life time -- put them in touch.

The white elephant gift exchange was a hoot as usual. I ended up with a pot of artificial roses with little miniature lights on them. Something to brighten the office.

Not much else to report. Looking forward to longer daylight hours starting now. 

Also looking forward to having Sam come visit us next week. We'll definitely have more to report on next week!

I'll just end with a thought that keeps coming to me.  It comes from a song called The Secret of Christmas. One line in the song says: "It's not the things you do at Christmas time, it's the Christmas things you do all year through."

What will I do all year through to share the gift of Christmas? He Is the Gift:  Check this out: 
http://www.mormon.org/christmas?cid=HPFR112814529 

That's all I have. But, life is good!

Week 61: Life's Simple Pleasures

So glad to have these Sisters decorate our mission office tree.

 On Monday, we two of our former sister missionaries surprised us with a visit to the office. The first photo is of me between Sister Rea and Sister Chipman. Sister Blatter is on the left. When these sweet sisters left the mission last month, it left a huge hole in our mission, but they've left an eternal impression on our hearts.  They were traveling with Sister Rea's family. She has eight siblings.  An amazing family. The office was a whirlwind of fun and activity Monday afternoon. Loved it!

Biggest box of chocolates we've ever seen!

The rest of the week was pretty quiet. Gave us the opportunity to do some extra cleaning out and organizing at the office. Even though things were slow, Sister Harwood and I were thrilled to have two of the local sister missionaries come decorate our tree. Not something we enjoy doing. Not even a little bit.

Some of Washington experienced some severe storms, flooding, and mudslides. Though it rained here (what's new), we didn't have any flood problems that I know of. Winds were a factor though. Lots of pine boughs strewn about. And our power went out one night for about an hour.

Van called the YMCA to see if their power was out. It wasn't. So ... off we went to exercise rather than sit here in the dark. Exercise really wasn't on my "list" that night (though it should be every night), but I guess it was better than doing nothing.

Swiss Colony -- a Hadlock Christmas tradition

On Saturday we took a missionary to the airport who was returning home because of health problems. We were glad to help out, but sad to see this missionary go. 

The rest of P-Day was spent grocery shopping, cleaning, taking care of personal finances, popping corn, and watching a Redbox rental -- (The 100 Foot Journey). Excellent movie.

Sunday's highlight (other than Sacrament meeting) was opening and enjoying some of our Swiss Colony goodies. It's a family tradition in the month of December to have Swiss Colony after church each Sunday. Silly, I know.

There's not much else to share.  A quiet, simple week. We do miss our family.  But, we are happy and mostly healthy. Life is good.

Week 60: Remembering Jesus and Mom

Mostly just photos to record this week's happenings. Just a few small & simple things that made for a delightful week.

This picture is legendary. A story for another day. 

More fun at the office. Got caught up on a few things, but there's always something to do.  Our ward Relief Society had a Christmas dinner. Food was good, we sang Christmas songs, a few shared Christmas memories. Made me cry.  And .. there were three, two-point bucks in the church parking lot. I tried to get some good photos, but ...

Deer in the parking lot.

Sweet sisters from the Sunset Ward.

My mother would have celebrated her 79th birthday on Friday. In her honor, I made (or attempted to make) her award-winning Pecan Crunch to share with others. How I wish I had gotten to make it with her just once. In addition I scrubbed the corners with a toothbrush when I washed floors on Saturday. I love and miss you Mom.

Pecan Crunch

December 5 was also special because our grandson Preston turned 12 that day. We are grateful for Facetime technology that allowed us to "see" him that day.

We were delightfully surprised on Friday to have the Quillons (John & Lorraine) pay us a visit. We've missed them and so enjoyed spending some time with them this weekend. Elder Hadlock fixed a delicious steak dinner for them on Sunday afternoon.

So real looking.

Well, times about up. The rest of the photos are from the Tacoma Stake Festival of the Nativity.

Each year the members here fill the Stake Center with hundreds, of nativity sets, and displays about Jesus. It's just beautiful. We went Friday after work to view the displays. It is interesting to see all of the cultural and artistic interpretations of the birth of Jesus. If there's one thing we took away from it all, it's the fact that people and cultures all over the world acknowledge the significance of the birth and life of Jesus Christ. He truly IS the focal point of the history of the world -- and of God's entire plan for us.

The First Presidency's Christmas Devotional on Sunday helped top off another good week here in Tacoma. -- That and the Swiss Colony tradition. Our children will understand. Hopefully they enjoyed the Devotional and their Swiss Colony as well.  Life is good.

One of my favorites