Well, I promised a few more photos, so here they are:

The above picture is our Turku missionaries just before our last change this week:  From L to R,
Elder and Sister Mortensen, Sister Pendleton, Sister Feher, Elder Chase (kneeling), and Elder Bishop.

 This is our Turku district before the last change:  front row:  Elder Bishop, Elder Hoggard (Rauma), Elder Van Geenen (originally from the Netherlands, now from Pori), Sister Feher (from Hungary),
Elder Chase.  Back row:  Elder Welling (a Finn from Oulu, waiting on a visa to go to his mission in Ogden, Utah), Sister and Elder Mortensen, Elder White, Elder Nilsson (Swede after his shoulder surgery, recovering at our place), Sister Pendleton.




               "You are my son, Luke!!"
On a tour of the Turku castle with the district missionaries... testing some of the authentic armor.

In the Turku castle, bowing before the Queen of Finland, I think during Swedish rule.

Addition to mom's collection of bench photos.  Table and chairs in the small yard attached to an apartment building.

Martha likes to take pictures of Finnish architecture.  This is an example of some old architecture.

This is some new-ish art:  sculpture found in a small playground attached to an apartment building.

So there we have it, a few more shots of our fun area.  We haven't taken any pictures since the snow melted.... too busy!  We'll get some soon.

Well, it's been 3 1/2 months since I posted any photos on this blog site;  so I guess I'm overdue.  Some of these pictures were taken quite a while ago, but they will still give you an idea of what we have experienced.

This was our district of elder and sister missionaries, all enjoying Martha's wonderful Thanksgiving Dinner:  Turkey, ham, sweet potato casserole, mashed potatoes, cranberry sauce, relish plate (ask Martha about this... it was hilarious!), and pumpkin cake!   Those present, starting from the left, are:  Sister Holt, Sister Maki, Elder Troff, Elder Hoggard, Elder Heki, Elder Nicoll, Elder Nilsson, and Elder Pope.  We have great stories about each of these people!  Wish I had time to write them.

This duck pond is in the middle of a beautiful park just a block from our apartment.  The ducks and geese and swans stay here year 'round.  We enjoy feeding them.  By the way, I just got through feeding some seagulls right out of our fourth floor window!  Fun.

This is Elder Pope giving me a haircut.  I have had my hair trimmed by Elder Nilsson, Elder Pope, and Sister Feher.  They all did a great job.  Sister Feher (from Hungary.... knew Bruce and Karen Haslem, who served in Hungary on a mission) was a professional hair stylist!

This is Sister Feher, hamming it up and wearing my tie around her head!

This is Kirsti Vuorela, one of our best friends (Sirkka Puikkonen's sister), showing us how to use a kick-sled.  Out in the country, in the wintertime, you can often see very elderly women riding on their kick-sleds.  They put their groceries and handbag on the chair in front, and they stand on one runner while kicking themselves along with the other foot.  These old ladies can go faster than the guys on bikes!!  It's a riot to watch... they are fearless!

This is me (I) coming out of the temple.  We've been there an average of once a month, although one month we went three times!  We're scheduled to go again on Friday of this week.  I have performed baptisms and confirmations in addition to doing regular sessions.  This is an incredibly beautiful temple, decorated in original Finnish artistry and design!  Worth getting a recommend just to see it!

This is our fairly recent district,  just before the amazing Sister Maki left us.  From left to right they are:  Elder Wright, Elder Hoggard, Elder Bishop, Elder Heki, Elder Welling (a Finn, on his way to the Utah Ogden Mission, which includes Logan!), Elder Rogers, Sister Feher, Sister Mortensen, and Sister Maki.  Once again, I have wonderful stories about each and every person in the picture.

That's all for now, but I intend to add more soon!  Enjoy!