ONE MONTH

We've been in Tampico now for one whole month! It's feeling a little more like and home and Jeff and I are settling in to the way things are here and working out a little routine, getting used to working together and finding our way around.

Events of this week:
Met new mission president and his wife: President Stanton Call--we're related, but it's way, way back. He's a marathon runner, which is what he's been doing since he's been here--been around meeting all the missionaries.

English classes are going realy well. We've been maintaining a count of around 45-50 kids each class period. There's always 4-5 new sign ups each time. Jeff is taking the more advanced English speakers and I'm taking the beginners. We've taken photos of most everyone and it's helped us to get to know everyone quicker. The students are fun, helpful, and very nice. And I love this part of our calling especially.

Jeff loves the visiting. Yesterday (Sunday) we drove out to Altimira (about 15 miles away) with the help of Italia and attended the three wards there, and their young single adult classes to give them a message and get them to sign up for institute. We were gone from 8:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m. Then we went to a stake bishop's meeting at 7:00 p.m. with much the same message. Jeff was in heaven--he loves days like that. Earlier in the week, we visited some new converts with the missionaries. It was fun too.

There's a tradition here of the missionaries going to the temple when they are going home and we're very glad that we are invited too. We much enjoyed our session and find I am understanding the Spanish more and more. (still grateful for English headphones).

Challenges: Ants and Mosquitoes and ? . The ants just "spontaneously generate" at anything left out even if it's in a package. Sister Bentley (Temple matron) said that she's tried everything and has just learned to live with them and keep everything in plastic ice cream buckets. Then there's the mosquitoes or that's at least what I think they are. Don't hardly every see them, just feel them sting a few times. Yet my legs and arms are filled with bites and I can't itch them enough.