One of the reasons that Brian went home to Arizona was that his girlfriend, Shani Nance, was getting baptized. On the 24th, Shani was finally able to be baptized. She has a great group of friends who are very supportive...

CONGRATULATIONS, SHANI!!

Who would have guessed?

So, I know this probably comes as no surprise to many of you, but there are a lot of dogs here in Mexico! Some have owners who take really good care of them, some are free to roam the streets, and some are left by their owners to fend for themselves. And it also is no surprise to many of you that I am always looking for a stray little dog to come home with us... On a recent trip back from Tehuecan, as we were driving along the freeway, I got my chance as I saw one dog who had been left to die. I saw him for an instant as we drove along the road and it appeared that he had a rope around his neck. I asked Robert if he would mind driving back to where I had seen him after we dropped off the elders who were traveling with us. We drove back and had a hard time finding him, as he blended in with the rocks, but we finally spotted him high up on a cliff and he indeed was tied to a rock, dangling from the ledge where he was laying. We stopped and tried to get him to come down to us (he was at least 10-15 feet above where we were standing) but he was either too tired or didn't feel that he could move. We drove a little further down the rode and found a place to pull over. I stayed in the car while Robert walked back to where we had seen him and Robert tried to get to him which was very difficult as he was in his Sunday clothes! Plus, as he tried to reach the rope, the dog growled at him! Soon, two men came by and asked what he was doing... Robert explained the situation and they helped him to first get the rock off the rope, at which point the dog stopped growling at them, and then to coax the dog to safety. If we had not gone back to get him, I'm sure he would have died there because the rock was in a position where he couldn't move from where he was. He happily accompanied Robert back to the van. We think he was out there not more than a day but he was still very thirsty and hungry. We stopped to get him some food and the vet at the store said he was probably eight months old.

We brought him home and he loved the back yard! He ate and ran and jumped and loved the freedom. He didn't want to leave my side, but when I would go in the house, he was pretty patient and didn't bark too much, maybe once or twice during the night.

Isn't he beautiful?
The next day I kept him in the house most of the day, as the gardeners were here to work on the yard. I asked one of them if they knew of anyone who would want the dog and one of the other gardeners said he would take him. This was a real miracle and blessing, because the gardeners only come every two or three weeks and they had just been here last week. I was so happy to find him a home!

Bye Bye Brian!

Yesterday Brian left Mexico for a three week trip to Arizona. He has several things planned while he is gone and I will update the blog when they happen...
This is us in the airport in Puebla. They have one flight to Houston in the morning and one flight from Houston in the evening. They also have a flight to Tijuana and to Cancun. It makes flying very easy because we always know when our flights will be! He will catch a flight to Phoenix from Houston. Brian is very excited to see all of his friends and family for a few weeks. I know he will have a great time!

This has really been an interesting Change! Elder Morga was part of the original group that came in on August 22nd, but he was a Visa waiter, serving in Idaho, so on September 3rd, we picked him up at the Puebla airport. On Sunday we had another training session and introduced him to his companion. We are so impressed with the quality of missionaries we are receiving. They are excited to be here and have wonderful testimonies. Welcome Elder Morga!

New Little One...

We received word today that Larry and Melanie welcomed their newest little girl into their family. Abigail Joy Reeves was born at 3:54 am on September 4, 2011. She weighed 6 lb. 1 oz. and was 18 1/2 inches long. Larry was actually able to deliver her! She has a head full of dark hair and is so petite! She is beautiful and looks very much like her brothers and sister.

Welcome to our family, Abigail!