December Travels

This month has been a busy one so far with lots to come!  We visited with branch members and missionaries on Menorca and Steve rented my wish for Christmas while we were there.  However, after driving it around, I realized it would be perfect for two adults in the front, but if I ever wanted to take more, i.e., children, friends, or grandkids with me, it would be a tight squeeze.  So, he was smart and did a test drive with the two of us and the missionaries and I think I have dropped it off my list. It really is a cute little car though, and VERY easy to park:)

steve with elders perez & weiss of menorca

isn't it cute?!

We also went to Madrid for a Senior Couple seminar about church employment resources.  The Area Presidency wants us all to be able to be a resource for help in finding jobs for our JAS as well as members of our branches/wards in Spain.  So, we had a fantastic couple of days hearing about what the goals are and how we can help facilitate these goals.  We also were finally able to understand schooling here and the process involved--we can now really help some of our JAS finish their obligatory education and start to move forward.  We had fun visiting a Belén display--beautiful, HUGE, nativity scenes with the whole city depicted--and eating tapas together.  We also realized that being grouchy and negative never solves anything, and we hope that as we get older, we are able to be positive and looking for solutions/ways to help, instead of picking everything apart.  Steve is off to Barcelona this weekend for a quarterly meeting, one more trip to the airport this week and our new favorite place to park where they know us by name already:)

p.s.  happy birthday, mom, i miss you!

bethelehem city display

joseph, mary, baby jesus

wisemen from the east

singing carols waiting for one man with 20 cameras

tapas by the heater

Navidad

We have been doing a few things here in Palma to get a little ready for Christmas.  We inherited this little tree and some ornaments from the previous missionary couple's stash, and with a new string of lights, it is perfect!

plus 2 ornaments from manacor  friends

We also had another festivo--there are may holidays this time of year!--so we invited the JAS over to decorate sugar cookies with Hermana McArthur.  Lots of frosting and colored sugar later, we had many creations and a lot of fun together.  We watched a christmas movie and ate pizza and had the perfect Christmas kickoff.

a true sugar fest!

angel carolers

isabel & raquel

ana, andrea, lemar, & john

For our activity after institute last week, we played "uno para ganar," or "minute to win it," Christmas style.  Some of the games were a lot harder than we thought, but we had a great time laughing with each other. Christmas is coming!

evans & john=very focused

concentrate lemar & panchi!

andrea & freddy

Odds

What are the odds that the only mosquito left in Palma for the winter gets into our piso through closed windows, flies around and finds me--pretty good, since Steve hasn't been touched here--and then bites me on the eye so that it has been swollen for three days?!  I'd say the odds are pretty good, and not in my favor.

pretty attractive, huh!