They're off. . .

4:40 am After sleeping through their 4:00 am alarms, Mom and Dad woke in a panic and hurried out the door!

5:00 am I met them at a nearby grocery store, and after loading a few final bags (10 suitcases, 2 carry ons, and 2 computer bags in all), we were off!

5:10 am We got on the freewayand had a quick and uneventful ride to the Salt Lake airport.

5:40 am Dad and the skycap unloaded the bags, and then I drove around to the parking garage to park. By the time I got to the ticket counter, they had checked in and the bags were getting airline luggage tags.

In the end, they didn't weigh one bag and only charged them $600 for the extra luggage ($100 per bag). They were expecting to pay more like $1400, so it was a pleasant surprise. One by one we checked to ensure each bag had green tape, luggage tags (made and laminated by Mom), a lock, and then we hauled them off to security.

6:00 am After a quick goodbye and a picture (above) they were on their way! I pulled out of the airport just 20 minutes after parking. Mom and Dad had enough time to stop and eat some breakfast.

7:10 am American Airlines flight departs--with our parents on board!

What a whirlwind departure!!!

Emily

MTC

WOW!  The MTC was an amazing experience!  We arrived on Wednesday and were processed with medical information, photos, travel itineraries and lots of welcomes.

Thursday we started our 3 1/2 day course in how to be a mission president. We had a talk by President Eyring to start and then had a mix of break out sessions and combined lectures. There were 108 new mission presidents in attendance. The meals were exceptional and the staff was very helpful in every way. We feasted on the words of the general authorities, having heard from all of the presidency and most of the Quorum of the Twelve.  They all were in attendance at one time or other.

On Sunday our sessions were concluded and our sacrament meeting speaker was President Monson with all the members of the 12 there except Elder Packer. We had many dear friends also in attendance so after lunch we said our goodbyes and headed back to Mike's mother's home. We had a family gathering and we finalized our packing. We loaded our 10 seventy-lb suitcases into the car and tried to get a good night's sleep. Tomorrow the adventure would begin...!

Aspen Grove!

Map of D R Congo Mission