Consejo and Then Some

Eating isn't the only thing we do at Consejo, but it is usually enjoyed by 12 hungry Elders and one Hermana. This was the first Consejo that we had one of the Hermana's with us. Hermana Roerig was still recovering from her foot problem and so we were delighted to have her attend.

You will find her in this photo. The morning was great as all the Zone Leaders presented their focus for the next transfer. All the Zones have been working hard and all of the leaders are doing a great job in helping them to be better missionaries. The Presidente taught them about repentance which was a very powerful presentation. All of the missionaries seemed to enjoy it and learn a lot.

It was such a beautiful spring day so we decided to go outside afterwards to take a picture and just enjoy the sun for a moment. This was Elder Aston's first Consejo as a new zone leader in Vigo. His companion, Elder Nelson and Elder Pederson and Cairns are looking on.

Elder Nestvogel is taking a moment to throw the frisbee. Elder Nestvogel is a fantastic zone leader in Vitoria. We aren't looking forward to sending him home, he is such a hard worker and a great example to all of the missionaries in his Zone.

We decided it was just too good of day to take our picture inside. Everyone wanted to make sure that we got Hermana Roerig's shoes in the picture. She needed to wear them to protect her foot. We actually went to the Doctor in the morning and received some great news. The next day after Consejo she was on the bus back to Gijon. We did enjoy having her and she added so much to Consejo.

We traveled out to Vigo the next day and had the privledge of attending the baptism of Luis. His wife, Fabiola was already a member. They have this adorable daughter. A wonderful note about this family is a cousin of the Fabiola lives in Ponferrada. The missionaries contacted her and she was baptized. Her name is Blanca and Fabiola is her cousin.

Elder Howard and Elder Quinn were two happy missionaries on this beautiful day. This is a beginning of an eternal family.

These two sisters were happy to be there and support the baptism. Hna Beatrice and Hna Mirta both carry the spirit with them.

This was also a very special occasion. Pres. Hernadez on the left is the District President. Pres. Justino Gonzales, Pres. Clegg and Pres. Ruiz de Mendoza make up the mission presidency. Because of distances they are never all together. This night Pres. Ruiz de Mendoza was in Vigo for work. After the baptism he did a wonderful presentation on the Book of Mormon. It was a great night to be in Vigo.

Finally, this past Monday Elder Hansen celebrated his birthday. He was spoiled by Hna Belnap who fixed us all a wonderful lunch in the office and made Elder Hansen a delicious apple pie. Wow, what is more American than that!

The only thing more American is to add vanilla ice cream. Definitely a treat for all. Also in the picture you can see Nico. He is an auditor for the church and was in our office to do the annual audit. Unfortunately for him he got caught in the airline stoppage and couldn't get home to England for over 6 days. He even missed his anniversary. Well at least he got to experience the apple pie!