Goofing around at the going away for Tessa and Aron Pederson

You know we always have to do one of these shots.

Chai Tea with the girls!

Tessa Pederson, the one in the green, and her husband Aron were visiting our family from Paterson. They were here for three months, traveling the islands to set up systems to aid in translation. They leave this week. They will be missed.

So, some people put dogs in the back of their truck...

Here they put chickens. "Tie 'er down, make sure it doesn't "fly" out of there..."

Languages and Publications

Last time we were here we posted a picture similar to this one that showed all of the different languages that this branch oversees translation for. Since our last picture, things have changed. And the Teach book has come out in four of the languages. Huge progress is being made by the hard working translation teams.

Wild Mocha Time!

For any of you that ever visited Sonora with us...or for those of you that live there, you all know my (Miki's) obsession with Wild Mochas from Dayo. Well, we received a care package from our friends in Sonora and guess what was in it? Among other fabulous stuff, mocha mix! The same kind from our favorite place. Everyone has been loving it. Even the branch committee got to enjoy it during one of their meetings. They always hang a "Do Not Disturb" sign on the door during their Wednesday meeting. This Wednesday, it was out with an amendment. They LOVED their treat.

Here is a look at your new cook...

Some good friends of ours, Brooklyn and Jaiden Meyle (coincidentally they are 7 and 5 years old) sent Jason these fantastic chef hats. Jay loves wearing them in the kitchen because they stand out. And he loves putting them on when a tour comes through the branch. It is always a good kodak moment when the hats come out. Thank you Brooklyn and Jaiden! We are sure the food tastes better because of his fancy new hats.

Memorial

We had a wonderful memorial. We have 80 publishers in our new congregation and 215 attended memorial. It was really encouraging. Many of them were young teenagers that came on their own.

The Chuukese Love to Match

This was at our Circuit Assembly. This family is from the island of Chuuk (pronounced Choo-k). The Chuukese friends love to wear matching outfits. It makes it really easy to find your family, doesn't it?

Shout Out...

We just had to give a shout out to the newest member of our family. Since coming to Guam, Tim (Jason's brother, for all of you that don't know him) got married. We were so sad to not be able to share his big day with him. We are so happy and excited for them. Congratulations Tim and Havilah! We love you.

Sella and Cetti Hike

This hike started on a hill overlooking the ocean...





































We had to slide down the hill on our butts, down into the palm trees. We hiked up a river to a water fall and went swimming, back down the river to where it met the ocean. Swam in the ocean, and back up a different way to meet the car. It was my favorite hike yet. I will post more pics of it later.

Pigs...

It is pretty typical to see a pig or two whenever you are out in service. There are wild pigs here on Guam, but the ones we see are usually in a pen.

So What Happens If We Run Out Of Food For Dinner?

This is what happens...

One night, the food was just too good. And with many mouths to feed and no grub left to go around, Jason and Jared (a good friend of ours here that is overseer of the Kingdom Hall Construction desk in Guam) rolled up their sleeves after work and before meeting and started cooking. Egg McMuffins anyone? It was a hit. They were a great team.

Our Crazy Bethel Family

This is our most recent Bethel Family photo. Two International Construction Volunteer couples were leaving and they took this shot with us after family Watchtower study. This gives you some indication why we feel right at home here.

Night Hiking

They have tons of cool hikes here that usually take you to some cave or waterfall. Some of the hikes are fun to do at night. We took a night hike to a place called Tarzan Falls. We had a campfire when we got there. The bonus of hiking at night is that you don't get hot and sweaty. The downside is that if you don't watch your step, you end up in a muddy creek. It had rained recently and we had some pretty comical muddy feet.

How Encouraging!

This is Alice. Would you believe that she has seven boys? That is right, seven, count them. They are precious. And Alice is a single mom. She gets all seven boys dressed and ready for every meeting. She is never missing. And on Sundays, they always have comments prepared. What an awesome example.

As Requested...More Pics of Jason Cooking

Two mornings a week Jason makes breakfast for the Bethel family. This morning Jason was making 85 scrambled eggs. Not to mention the side dishes. You guys have to see it to believe it. I am kitchen helper with him on Wednesday morning. I always bring my camera, because I still don't believe it.

Meet Some of Our Family...

This is Shem Querimit. He has been off island doing volunteer Kingdom Hall construction work. Seeing his pictures and hearing his stories has been super encouraging. We got really close to Shem when we were here the first time. We are so proud of what he is doing.

Our new couple, Hannah and Neil Abid. They make such a beautiful couple. Everyone had a great time at their wedding.

Debbie Gump, that's our girl. She is a single sister who volunteers at the branch. We love her laughable nature and she loves to sing her heart out...so of course, Jason and Deb have a blast together.

This is Micah and May Griffith. We love these guys. They are some of the most hospitable people we have ever met. You can always count on them to be positive and ready for a good time.

This is Dawn and Jarrod Klingbeil. They are on the outer islands serving as Kingdom Hall Construction Servants. We got to work with them here in Guam for a few months in construction. If you ever want to find them, follow the laughter. They are always cracking people up.

Poor lil guy:(

This lil guy didn't make it, but be assured there are millions here and even ones that are smaller.

Heyyy!

As you can see, my wife really stands out here in Guam! This was taken after a wedding we attended. She was the only blond there. The sister of the two girls on the outside just got married and they asked me to be the M.C. at the wedding and that was a huge privilege. These girls have really treated us like family.

Seriously?

Now here is something you don't see every day...well, at least not in the states. Lets just say that there are a lot of roosters running around on island and so what would happen if one just happened to get entered and it just happened to win?

Our New Missionaries

This is Troy Hamasaki and Sean Duarte. They are new missionaries and they just received their assignment to the atoll of Ebeye (pronounced e-buy). They are very excited to start their new adventure. They are both Ministerial Training School grads. Troy is from Hawaii and Sean came here from Tennesse. We have learned a lot having them here at the branch and will miss them when they go.

Anybody Want To Buy A Yart?

Let's just say that they do speak English here...but I think this sign is evidence of some severe translation issues.

Gab Gab Beach

We went to a beach today that is part of a reserve. The fish there were amazing. Pictures do not do it justice. We promise that we will get better with the camera. Those fish are so fast. Saw a huge sea turtle. What a beautiful animal. It was a very humbling experience. Sea turtles have such sweet faces. The sea turtle on 'Nemo' always pops in my mind when I see one. There were thousands of fish. It was awesome.

We're Back!

Well, we are back in Guam...and loving it. As you can see, Jason has a new job. That's right, he is being trained to be the kitchen overseer. He went from a tool belt to an apron. He is getting in the groove now and having a blast. He sits at a desk a lot. He orders food and grocery shops. Who knew? You always know when he is in the kitchen because he is singing up a storm. You can see me to the right, in my new digs. I am in building services. Basically, I clean things. Anything from rooms to stairwells to windows and some maintenance too. So Jay went from construction to the kitchen and I went from the kitchen to construction. It really is not about skill...obviously.

Bye Guam!

The Fun Had To End

Well, now you know what made it so hard to leave. When we showed up at the airport at 6am to leave for California, there were 20 people there to say goodbye. It broke our hearts to leave.

We Went to Palau!

Ever Heard of Jellyfish Lake?

From the surface, this looks like any old dirty lake in the states. When you get in, you realize you are in a world all its own. The visibility is about 25 feet and you can not move without touching stingless jellyfish. They are all around you and packed below you. The tiniest one we found was like a fourth of your pinky nail and the biggest was about the size of a honey dew melon. You can hold them and play with them. They feel like a big ball of jello. Amazing.

Kingdom Hall

There is a Palaun congregation here with an English group.

Milky Way

They claim that this stuff is like a facial treatment. But let me tell you, it smelled like dookie.

Sharks!

You would never know it but just beyond those boats is a huge drop off filled with reef sharks. We swam with 20 to 30 of them anywhere from 4 to 7 feet long. All of the rock islands that you see in the backround have specific specialties all their own. This particular rock island has sharks. Wish we had an underwater camera.

We Kyacked Through the Mangroves

There are supposed to be saltwater crocs in this water...but we didn't see any.

The Group We Went With to Palau

Can You Believe the Color of This Water?

Some of Our New Friends

Let me show you what I can do!

This is our Project Overseer. "I think I pulled something."

"Can someone help me down?"

Here is a member of the branch committee demonstrating some of his natural abilities.

Everybody hang on!

This is an acceptable form of transportation here. There are only 6 in the back of this truck.