WELCOME HOME! -gfh

When we arrived in Portland July 15,2011 the Morgan and Magnusson families and Alan and Jeanie were there to greet us with the traditional banners and balloons! It was a wonderfully exciting moment to share with loved ones as we completed another "best two years of our lives"!!

R & R in London -gfh

After departing from Johannesburg South Africa we made a stop in London for three days. It was a great opportunity for "R & R". To destress from the mission and prepare for rentry into a First world country, economy and life style. After making all the prominent tourist stops i.e. The Tower of London, Changing of the Palace Guard, the British Museum, riding the underground and a double decker bus, going to the longest running stage play "The Mouse Trap" and eating at delicious specialty restaurants, etc. We were ready and excited to get home to family.

CLOSURE -gfh

It has now been a year since we returned from our South Africa Johannesburg mission. A phrase that comes to mind is "days seem like weeks, weeks seem like months and years seem like days". That applies to our eighteen months on our mission and also to the year since we've been home. There has been a longing for home. Not home in Waldport USA, but home in Johannesburg South Africa. Not so much that we would rather be there than here but that there are so many dear friends and people who remain there. There our hearts were opened, our testimonies confirmed and our understanding expanded. There we learned lessons that we never thought we needed to learn. We feel we have left a part of ourselves there but we have also taken so much home with us. Our blog didn't ever really come to closure or completion. The last entry was a month almost to the day before we left for home. Not only did the normal stress and hectic schedule continue but we tried to squeeze in the departure preparation without skipping a beat. We did however skip a blog entry or two. We'll try to make up for that.

This is our AMAZING Preident and Sister Poulsen at their departure dinner.

Elder and Sister Nichols arrived about two weeks before we left to replace Elder and Sister Henrichsen in the office.

This is our Ennerdale Branch Family. The picture was taken on our last Sunday

Our AWESOME YSA young people! Oh how we love them!

President and Sister Omer, SAJM president for two weeks! We were their first missionaries to depart.

Elder and Sister Henrichsen departing from Johannesburg airport July 10, 2011. Mission completed!