This is for You--Elder and Sister Starley

James Weldon and John Weldon

I saw Rani's twins (Rani is the gardener at the Mission Home). One of them is named after Elder Starley. They are wearing matching outfits that the Starley's sent to them. John Weldon Starley is on the right. He has always been much bigger than his brother--James Weldon Starley. But little James is starting to catch up. Between the two of them they weigh close to 40 pounds and they are not quite 9 months old! I'm not sure how Melanie carries them.

Santiago's Primary Celebration

This is my friend Seth Acosta. The first time I met him he said in perfect English, "Hello Sister Carlos. My long term plans are to attend Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah." He is a fantastic singer and pianist. He was a finalist in a country-wide search for great singers!

Seth's little brother also danced in the program.

These children are so precious!

You could tell they had really practiced their dances. All went well!

I was able to visit the Santiago Stake's primary celebration. The children from each ward and branch danced a native dance, complete with colorful costumes. Even the tiny ones got involved. It was a real treat to be able to see some of this great event!

A Grand Day in Amulung

Last Saturday we visited the Amulung Ward in Tugeugarao Stake where they had 12 individuals baptized. This was a special day for Elder Bangal, our new AP, because this was his former area and he had worked with each of these people. It was very rewarding for him to go back and witness their baptisms. He was asked to speak at the services.

Elder Vinas and Elder Ariete are the elders currently serving in the area. They are both have worked very hard in this area.

Only in the Philippines...

Only in the Philippines...

Do workers in stores stop what they are doing and perform a folk dance in the aisles. This store is called Kultura (in Manila) and they sell all kinds of beautiful items made right here in the Philippines.


Do traffic cops dance all day to rock music as they direct traffic. This is in downtown Ilagan. One day while we were watching them waiting to get the go ahead President said, "Those guys really get on my nerves!" Can you imagine doing it all day in this heat!

Does everyone celebrate Easter by picnicing and swimming in the rivers. On Saturday before Easter we passed thousands of families at the river.

Do they have Spam Restaurants. This restaurant was in Manila and everything on the menu had spam in it. I must admit that I've actually eaten some Spam since I got here. For the first few months we couldn't find decent bacon or ham. Now we can find bacon. Good ham is only available at Christmas. It's a good thing I bought 12 and froze them!

We were in a meeting in Roxas and heard a marching band outside the building.

Only in the Philippines do you see random marching bands marching down the streets in full uniform on a blazing HOT day!

Church Humanitarian Efforts with Pigs and Earth Worms

Our church is involved in so many wonderful programs. Two programs are now in full swing. One is where a family is given two pigs. The must sign a form saying they promise to allow them to mate and then they must give two piglets to their neighbor. Since most pigs have large liters (do you call them liters with pigs?) they have a number of additional pigs to raise. This gift of two pigs can serve an entire neighborhood.

The other program is where a family gets a styrofoam box with dirt and earth worms. They then put their scrapes into the box and the earth worms turn those food and garden waste into beautiful rich soil. While they are doing that they are multiplying so after a period of time they give half of the worms to their neighbor and teach them to do the same. Then they are taught to use that soil in their gardens to grow the vegetables their families will need. Most farmers stick with just rice and corn and have to purchase their vegetables. This program helps them to become self reliant.

Here is a display that explains the process of turning garden clippings and food scrapes into mulch with the help of earth worms..

Imelda's Daughter is Married



Five couples were married in the mayor's office that day icluding Mareen and Gian Carlo. Meet the Espinosa's.



Here are the newleyweds with some friends and family.

The reception luncheon with lots of food!

Imelda's front door.

We were able to attend Imelda (our housekeeper) daughter's wedding. She was married in the mayor's office. There were four other couples being married that day. The officiator just spoke to all of them and then went down the line as couple took their vows. Afterwards Imelda held a nice reception luncheon at her home. She and her family members had worked very hard to make it so nice.

Two Weeks of Interviews Ahead

Right when we got back from the Mission Presidents seminar it was time for President to conduct his quarterly interviews with all 140 missionaries. I love attending their zone meetings and seeing each and every missionary in a short period of time. It's exhausting for the President but he always comes away energized and full of love for the missionaries hard work and dedication to this work! They are truly amazing and we love each and every one of them!

Sister Sajol and Sister Abad sang a beautiful duet in the Cauayan Zone's meeting.

Alicia Zone held a brainstorming session for ways they could improve their work. Elder Valdez led the group in an exercise that proved that your attitude is the difference maker.

Alicia Zone mingling after the meeting.

In Roxas they began with a contest where they had to move spaghetti off a plate into a box, rice into a bowl and had to eat watermelon in a race.   

Sister Casurog and Sister Corpuz are the only sisters serving in Roxas. They are a powerful match.

In Ilagan the missionaries were asked to simplify their teaching. After a period of time to plan, the door opened and in marched their "investigators." Children who had volunteered to work with our missionaries. It was really fun to watch the missionaries teach these darling kids.

Sister Abad and Sister Benes taught this six year old about the Law of Chastity.

Elder Mabanta and Elder Andreasen, the Zone Leaders for Tuguegarao Zone

Role Playing in the Tugeugarao Zone

The Nueva Vizcaya zones had to go on a scavenger hunt around the building to find the ingredients for cookie dough. Only problem--one district didn't get any eggs, butter or vanila. The missing ingredients make a huge difference. Just like the ingredients to be a great missionary. If you fail to pray, study, plan, love the people, you won't be very effective!

Their dough looked yummy. In fact most of the missionaries didn't take their dough home to try and bake in their toaster ovens. Instead, they ate it right on the spot!

Elder Riner and Elder Haycock lead the Santiago Zone.

Santiago Zone have more sister missionaries than any other zone. No wonder this zone looks so great!

Elder Constantino asked me to look at his swollen ankle. It wasn't hard to see the tennis ball showing through his sock, but I couldn't resist bringing the photo home for Sister Larson, the Mission Nurse, to look at. She got a good laugh out of it.

Good to Be Back Home with the People We Love!

I attended the Gospel Essentials Class while President interviewed some of the members. The two sister missionares are kneeling. Those in the picture are new converts. (Except for the woman in the far left-she's a long time member.)

There are only three flights a week into Cauayan and since we were returning on a Sunday we had to fly into Tugeugarao airport (2.5 hours from Cauayan). The Assistants to the President drove up and picked us up. We were able to make it to church there before driving home. It was the ward where Sister Conje and Sister Laguiton are serving. They are two of our dearest filipina missionaries!

An Early Birthday Dinner to Remember

Besides American fast food we did get to enjoy a wonderful date night at a very fancy Italian Restaurant. It was some of the best Italian food we've ever eaten. My birthday is in early May so President spoiled me with this lovely meal and some unexpected gifts.

This was really a fantastic restaurant. The food and service was impeccable!

After dinner we enjoyed listenting to a wonderful string quartet in the lobby of the hotel as we shared a piece of cheesecake! There is culture in the Philippines! We found it at the Shangra-La Hotel.

A Visit with President's Family

We were blessed while in Manila to get to spend an afternoon with President's mother, Virginia Carlos. She lived near us in Oregon for many years, then retired from her job as a seamstress with the State of Oregon and  has since been enjoying her retirement in Australia, Philippines and back in Oregon. We almost lost her two years ago but she has fully recovered and is doing very well!
Two of President's sisters (Beth and Rosie, who lives in Australia) and their husbands were able to join us. We knew that Beth and Manuel would be there but were surprised when Rosie and Dean popped out! They happened to be in the Philippines attending a wedding the same week we were there. (Rosie's darling grandson also came along although he was too shy to talk to me.)
Also two of President's brothers were there: Georage and his wife and Billy. It was fun to see them all and to hear all about their lives. Most are retired or nearing retirement. They all seemed healthy and happy! We are so glad about that. Thanks to all for our dear family for the great visit!

Can you believe that we chose Kentucky Fried Chicken for lunch with all the great restaurants in Manila. But we hadn't seen most of the American Fastfood since we landed in Cauayan10 months ago. We made the rounds while we were there eating at Wendy's, Haagan Dazs, Sbarro, and Chilies. Yikes! There goes the diet!

Rosie, Beth, Billy, President Carlos, mother Virginia and George.

Mission President's Seminar in Manila

Twice a year the brethren conduct training for Mission Presidents. This one was held at the beautiful Shangri-La Hotel in Manila. Because of the lack of flights in and out of our mission we had to go on Wednesday. Most of the others arrived on Thursday. That bought us an extra day for seeing Rudy's family, shopping and going to the Manila Temple.

The Shangri-La really knows how to treat its guests. They had a towncar pick us up at the airport. When we pulled up to the curve our private concierge and bellhop were waiting. We didn't have to go check in. They called us by name and took us right up to our lovely room.

The meetings were the highlight of the trip. We had Elder Snow of the Seventy as well our Area Presidency there to teach and train us. We both learned so much from their great presentations. It's really a treat to visit with the other Mission Presidents and their wives and realize that their lives are just as hectic as ours!

A Visit to Alicia Zone District Meeting

Elder Hardman is a great district leader!

We had the great opportunity to visit Alicia Zone District Meetings one Tuesday morning. Elder Hardman is one of the district leaders in that zone. He gave a great lesson that really fired us all up.

Getting mail is always a great part of our get togethers!

 Afterwards, Brother Pete from Tugeugarao surprised the missionaries with meatball and salisbury steak sandwiches. He rode his motorcycle for 3 hours to deliver them fresh and hot! What a great friend he is to our missionaries!

General Conference a Week Late

 Since the Philippines is 14 hours ahead of Salt Lake City, Utah time we can't get conference the first weekend in April. So it's recorded here in the middle of the night and shown a week later. On Sunday between sessions we usually invite the Cauayan missionaries to come to the mission home for dinner.

President Carlos made BBQ hamburgers, with baked beans and potato salad. Elder Cabanacan was asking, "Where's the rice?"

Elder Medina's father was in the Cauayan area doing business and so we invited him to join us for dinner. His son, is currently in Lagawe in Nueva Vizcaya, far from the mission home.

One advantage of watching conference a week late is that you can check it out ahead of viewing. Brother Ed heard that Bishop Burton spoke on Sunday, wearing a pink tie so he spread the word for a bunch of our missionaries and President to join in the fun. We decided that only real men can get away with wearing a pink tie. Here are a few of our "real" men.

Only in the Philippines...

Here's a few more interesting things I've witnessed in the past month...
Only in the Philippines...
Do kids drink soda out of a plastic bag and straw. You can get it in the bottle but then you have to pay for the bottle. It's much cheaper to get it in the plastic bag!

Our friend, A-ron is enjoying his coke from a plastic bag and straw!

 Do funeral processions have hearses that look like Cinderellas carriage. The friends and family walk behind the hearse and there's loud music blasting from loud speakers. The song being played is the deceased person's favorite song. Sometimes you hear rock music!

Festival Parade and Street Dance Competition

There's a precious town about 1/2 hour from the Mission Home called Angadanan. The Branch President there is the high school English teacher and basketball coach. His wife teaches Home Ec and Computers. Everyone in town knows them. They are always so good to invite us to activities in their town. (This is the branch where Elder Elgan and Elder Joslin currently serve as well as Elder and Sister Breese.)
One Saturday Sister Larson, Sister Breese and I went to watch their festival parade. Each school in town was represented. The students had made amazing costumes and prepared dances to dance in the parade and to show during the competition.

 After watching the parade we went to the town's auditorium. We looked around and wondered where we could find seats as it was already packed. Immediately someone ran over to us and sat up three chairs down on the floor for us. Then they asked us our names and they announced that they would like to welcome the guests from America, "Sister Carlos, Sister Breese and Sister Carson" from the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints. We stood and waived to the crowd of people. It was so funny. (We laughed that they got Sister Larson's name wrong.) Then the most amazing competition unfolded before us. The Festival was called the Gita Festival, which means bamboo raft. Each dance had to have elements of the harvest (corn and rice) and include a raft. You absolutely wouldn't believe how precise and polished these dances were. We left before hearing who won. I'm sure glad I wasn't a judge because everyone of them was awesome!

April Zone Leader Council

We always love to get together with our zone leaders. This month we had quite a few new ones to join the council. This is their time to share their ideas and concerns with each other and council with President Carlos. Sister Russell was in charge of the lunch and everyone enjoyed her fruit kabobs, lasagna and chocolate cupcakes.