Birthday and MISC Happenings

These 9 Shimai came to stay at the Honbu for service the next day and helped Gary celebrate my birthday. Gary got these three cakes that we shared.

They helped arrange the flowers on the table. It is obvious they love to get together.

While they ate cake, I opened gifts from them and from my loving husband.
After our service the next day, all the missionaries presented me with this scrapbook they put together. This page included a picture of every missionary in the mission.
This is another cute page in the scrapbook. Other pages had short notes from each missionary and some pictures. It is a keepsake, for sure.
These are some of the notes and pictures cut out or colored by many of my grandchildren for my birthday. Priceless!!!
My sister, Jan sent me this "sisters" plaque.
Included in this picture is a musical Birthday card from the Jahanas, hand crocheted book mark from the Thomas', two pair of Japanese socks from the Shimai, a book of rememberances of the disaster written by children from Gary and the scrapbook opened to a collage page.
Quite often we receive packages in the mail from families or groups around the world who want to do something nice for the people in our area of Japan. This picture came with a box of blankets and little stuffed dolls from a YSA group and a senior missionary couple from the Hungary Budapest Mission. In their letter which was included in the box, they said, "This project has been a most humbling and emotional one, as we know how badly those in Japan need everything in the way of the most basic things. We realize it is a very small contribution. We have included some little dolls that were made by some of our missionaries in Greece. The Greece government would not permit the missionaries to give them out in Greece. I hope they might, along with the blankets, bring some comfort and joy to some of the children in your area of Japan." We are trying to get these blankets to an orphanage in Sendai.

We got another box in the mail last week from a Ward Primary in Spokane Washington. They had made over 100 Tic Tac Toe games made of felt. We will try to get these games to the Primary children in the mission. Aren't people nice in this world?

The APs give the felt games to the Stake Primary President in Sendai and she distributed them to all the ward Primarys in the Stake. These are pictures of one of the Primarys receiving their games. They were thrilled.