It hasn't started yet, but...

I know I don't leave until Wednesday, but I needed to write about today before I leave!
First off: Brother and Sister Whitlock have Home and Visit taught my family for quite a few years. One month he would give a Home Teaching lesson and the next month she would give the visiting teaching lesson. It was a brilliant system. And my family grew very close to them. They are so very very sweet and dear to us.
When I received my mission call they were very excited for me because they served in the Liberty Jail when they served their first Senior mission. Tonight they came over for Family Home Evening and shared stories with us of the time they served there, and brought along a scrapbook with odds and ends that they had saved!
I have known for a very long time that they met on their mission, but until tonight I did not realize that they served in the central states, which is inclusive of the mission that I am going to! They met in Missouri!
NOT only that, but tonight we heard her first impression of him. Which happened a little bit like this:
He needed to get some work done and something important set up, so he planned on using the other elders to help him out when they got to the building. And when they got there they were helpful, until the sisters came. He heard them in the other room, having the time of their lives! BUT he needed the work done, so he went in and kindly asked the sisters to go some other designated area. The sisters (his future wife, little did he know) stared at him like he was the meanest man in the world! She did think he was rather mean. Fortunately her opinion of him improved enough for her to marry him when she returned from her mission. We got to hear of some wonderful pranks to play- so watch out Missouri Independence Mission Elders: Here I Come!

The Countdown

I will be leaving for my mission in sixteen days. SIXTEEN! I can hardly believe it is getting this close! I'm working on getting the last few missionary clothes and shoes and, oh yeah, I need a bag. (Any suggestions on good sister missionary bags? Something that worked really well for you?) Anyway, I just thought I'd make one small announcement for anyone who is reading this blog:
I will be speaking in church before I leave. Not my farewell, but rather, the "SICPTLOMM" (aka: Speaking in church prior to leaving on my mission) talk. This will be on Sunday March 21st at the American Fork North Stake Center. (As long as I'm doing acronyms, this one will be the AFNSC).
Church starts at 9 and the address is 900 North 60 East, and, yes, in American Fork.
And thats all I have to say. Everything else I'll save up for Sunday morning!