Putting out Fires . . .

Putting out Fires . . .

 Yes,

 That's what we do.

 And on a pretty regular basis.

 Thank goodness we had a week of being in the mission office and the mission home in between our busy schedule of welcoming 35 new missionaries and transfers week and a rigorous mission tour and zone conferences with a visiting General Authority. 

 All good . . .

 But, it left us with many fires . . .

 We started to count just how many and realized in 48 hours - it looks a bit like this.

•  Reassuring two missionaries they weren't going home after they nearly burned their house down. We're just grateful they're alive! I think we'll have to ban candles during the many power outages. It's flashlights . . . or spending the evening in the dark . . . We just put them to work as painters!  (Missionaries! . . . save your money and get your flashlights and batteries ready!)

  (And you thought I was kidding about the fire part . . .)

• We are missing one missionary, a visa waiter  . . .  at least the mission office thinks he's assigned to our mission . . . but we're pretty sure he's never been here . . . 

• Trying to create a budget for 2014 . . . that's a tough one . . . we have no idea how the budget for 2013 even looks at this point. 

• Set aside a few hours to visit with one missionary returning home in the middle of his transfer schedule so he can arrive in time for school to start. 

•  That left us with a single missionary . . . who is now helping out at the office for a week! Hurray!

•  Preparing talks / translating talks - to speak in four different meetings this week at Stake Conference. (At least we're speaking on something we love! Missionary work! :)

• Assisting a branch president who really is assisting us . . . in getting furnishings for a missionary apartment to an island in the Caribbean.

• Tarantulas, scorpions and iguana's - Who knew . . . they could be so obnoxious!

• Finding 15 new areas we can open in four weeks when our next 31 new missionaries arrive . . .

• Some medical challenges  . . . system infections, ultrasounds, lab work, a fall down a flight of stairs, and the always challenging Dengue or Flu bug determination . . .

• We're missing one missionary . . . and surprise a totally unexpected one arrives in the office!

• A excellent planning meeting with the area Seventy!

• Figuring out how to create 90 - 72 hour kits . . . Whoa . . .

AND my favorite . . . A get away lunch out with the somewhat stressed mission president wife . . . too bad it wasn't something exotic, but the food court at the mall will have to do :)

NOW . . .

We're heading for the fridge for a little bit of that ice cream . . . .

Enough fires for the moment!

The moral to the story . . . when you smell the smoke . . . time to pull out the marshmellows.