Temple Serving and Mission Training

I had the awesome opportunity to go to the temple 4x just in July! I hadn't been since before COVID, and it was so wonderful to be able to go again without restrictions. I loved feeling the peaceful spirit in the temple. Josh and I went to the Meridian temple mid-July, then we took the twins to the Idaho Falls temple for their first time, and a week later we went to the Logan temple with my parents, and at the end of the month, Micah and I went back to Idaho Falls when his friends Boaz and Erik went through for their first time.

Idaho Falls with Jonah & Micah for their first time.

Logan temple with my parents.

Idaho Falls temple trip to support Boaz & Erik.

It was a beautiful day spent with friends
in the Lord's house.

We ate at Olive Garden after the temple with the Oliverson family.

Jonah and Micah's LDS missions began with mission training. Jonah had one week at home doing online training before going to the Provo, Utah MTC for 2 more weeks. Micah had 2 weeks at home doing online training before going to the Mexico City MTC for 4 more weeks. I purchased StarLink internet in June, in order to have high-speed internet at our home for their online training. I moved the dining room around, so they could both use it as their desks. But because they had different lessons, and different trainers, they preferred to do their online training in their bedrooms. They were busy for about 8 hours a day, and often had online group devotionals every evening, too. When they had extra time, they spent it packing up their room and getting ready for their departure. When they got to the actual MTC, they were in the same groups as their online training, so they had the same companion assignments and district members, which was nice. In fact, when we were taking Jonah to the Provo MTC, and we stopped for lunch, we met one of his district sister missionaries! 

Micah doing online MTC in his room.

We took Jonah out to In N Out Burger before
dropping him off at the Provo MTC.

We said goodbye to him in the underground 
parking garage at the MTC. I hated that
it was such an impersonal place to leave him!

Wed., July 27--Jonah started the MTC in Provo.

Aunt Linette made the boys missionary pillow
covers. They had to take their own bedding,
so it was a perfect, personalized gift!

We joined Micah on a pre-MTC group webinar, where we could
meet the Mexico MTC President & his wife. It was a neat
experience. We were out of town the night Jonah unfortunately
had his and were unable to meet his Provo MTC President. 

Micah was very ready to go! Especially being home an extra week
after Jonah had left. On his last day home, he finished packing up
his room and all his bags, and we listened to a podcast until Josh was
done with work to drive together to Idaho Falls. We spent the night
at an air bnb & drove Micah super early in the morning to the IF airport.

We woke up at 4:30, checked in his luggage, and
said goodbye about 5:00am for his 6am flight. None
of us had slept well at the air bnb, so it wasn't the most
pleasant of goodbyes. There was a bunch of other 
missionaries on the same flight. That first flight was
to SLC, where he got on a connecting flight to Mexico. 

Micah left for the Mexico MTC on Tues., Aug. 2.