Letter to my Missionary

So every Sunday night I write a letter to my missionary.  It occurred to me tonight that I should post these letters on my blog, as they will be a record of my life during the next 22 months!  So here is tonight's letter to my son. 

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Hola my wonderful missionary son!  How are you today, your second P-day in Honduras? We absolutely loved your last letter!  We were amazed at your description of your lifestyle in Ciudad Nueva.  What a crazy adventure you are having.  Can't imagine speaking a foreign language, living in a rain forest and washing clothes by hand!  I'm glad you have someone to cook a meal for you every day, at least we know you are not starving.  

We are doing well, we have had a busy week.  We had a house full of company on Wednesday.  Your cousin Hunter is starting school at BYU-Idaho, and Linda drove him out.  They stayed overnight at Billy's house on their way through, and we had a big Smith family get-together at our house with Billy, Josette, Charlotte and Layton, Linda and Hunter, Rachel and George, Sarah, Derek and Anna, Trevor, and Maggie.  It was great to see Maggie, she started at BYU last week, she loves it so far. Your name came up often!  They had all read your letters on your missionary blog and are excited about what you are doing.  We had a fun evening with all of them.  

Yesterday (Saturday) we spent the day in Preston at Grandma and Grandpa Kindred's house.  They will be home from their mission in a couple of weeks, and their house was in need of some serious cleaning after sitting empty for a year and a half.  Bryan sent an email to all my siblings inviting us all to come on September 14th to get some work done.  We weeded the yard, pruned the shrubs, dusted, disinfected, vacuumed, and wiped down all the surfaces.  They'd had a few mice move in, we found droppings in all the closets, drawers and storage areas.  Ick!  We worked hard all day and when we left last night it looked good and smelled fresh.  We were all very tired at the end of the day, but we know Grandma and Grandpa will appreciate coming home to a clean house.  It was fun to chat with everyone as we worked, again your name came up often.  They all said they enjoy reading your letters.

School is keeping us busy, Dad has an unusual schedule this year, he is teaching all health classes--no P.E.!  He is teaching a couple of "Medical Anatomy and Physiology" classes that he has to study for.  It is fun and challenging for him to teach in a classroom every day after spending 20 years in the gym!  I asked him if he misses the gym, he said yes, but he is happy for a change this year.  And he still gets his fill of gym time, he is spending a couple of evenings every week at Lehi for pre-season open gym.  He is getting to know the boys and says there is a lot of work to be done before the season begins.  

Stefanie is doing great, it has not taken her long to adjust to being an only child.  Our house is definitely cleaner and quieter, and we have plenty of storage space.  Another big change we have noticed is that we always have lots of food around!  It just doesn't disappear like it did when you were here!  Leftovers sit in the fridge and freezer for days!  It is strange.   

So here is a weekly sports update from Dad:  "Lehi football won their first region game in 6 years!  They beat Westlake on Friday night at Westlake, 34-16.  Everyone is excited because their record now stands at 3-1.  A winning season is possible!  My cross country team ran at the Herriman Invitational this week, everyone complained about the big hill.  My boys ran well, the girls were just OK.  There were 17 or 18 teams there.  A huge rainstorm came through during the girls' race, everyone was slipping and sliding through the mud.  BYU football had a bye, and last night Utah lost their Pack-12 opening at home in overtime to Oregon State.  RSL lost this week to Seattle.  They are now tied for first place with Seattle."

Well, my son, I think that wraps up our news for this week.  You are ALWAYS on our minds and in our prayers.  Let us know some specific things we can pray for that will help you the most.  Tell us your struggles and challenges so we can help to pray you through them.  Also, we would love to know the names of your investigators so we can pray for them, and so I can put their names, along with your name, on the temple prayer roll.  We want to help you any way we possibly can!  We love and miss you.  

Love, Mom, Dad and Stefanie

 (This is Braden's mission president and his wife, President Carlos and Sister Ana Hernandez from El Salvador, and companion, Elder Glassett.)