Ready, Set, Go--almost

We have registered to vote absentee, picked up 6 months of medications, let our credit card company know we'll be out of the country, changed passwords, renewed the Cd's at the bank, finished filing out income tax forms, prepared short talks for church, talked with MTC about arrival, practiced packing suitcases to see if everything will fit, made a walk-through list for our kids checking on house and studied and studied and studied Spanish. Since we won't be taking our car like we did to Mexico this feels very different to us.

We still have a to-do list for this week. We keep adding to it.

We are very excited with this call and are eager to serve in Colombia.

During the week I re-read the article on Colombia in the March 2005 Liahona. It was probably in the Ensign as well. From the article I learned that the things the stake presidents were working on in Colombia are the same things that we have worked on as a family all of our lives. They talked about family, temple, education, learning self reliance (gardens etc,) and I felt close to them and their goals. They have been my goals as well. The only difference is that James Oliver and Thomas Grover etc. were the pioneers in our family and they are the pioneers in Colombia.

Contrast

To practice uploading a picture this is Monterrey.
In a couple of weeks will will post one of Cali
and you can see the difference as we will .. desert
to tropical.

I should read more closely

In the instructions for missionaries under Letter Mailing Instructions: it says "Tell your family and friends to send letters to the mission office..." Here is the address:

Elder Harold Oliver
Sister Colleen Oliver
Colombia Cali Mission
Apartado Aereo 4892
Cali Valle del Cauca
Colombia

When I skipped the MTC address, I skipped this one also. So if you want to sent pictures (hint) this is where you will send them.

Today I taught the Sunday School lesson, Lehi's Dream. We handed out about 30 copies of the October 2011 Ensign, plus 20 copies of the article "Lehi's Dream" by Elder Bednar. We read part of it in class. If you haven't read it lately, I would suggest it to you.

Matt came for a visit yesterday. I helped him with a sewing project and he and Dad talked about what is involved in upkeep on this place.

Most of our communication while in Colombia will be electronic but here are some instructions for pouch and packages.

Pouch mail is sent from your location to church headquarters by USPS (regular mail). They are forwarded to the mission by courier each Friday. Only postcards or one-page (no envelpes) written on one side of the paper may be sent through pouch. Fold the letter into thirds with the writing inside and tape the long edge about an inch from each end. Do not seal the ends, do not add any enclorsures. Turn over and address the center section like an envelope with your return address in the upper left corner and postage in the upper right corner. Address:
Elder and Sister Oliver
Colombia Cali Mission
POB 30150
Salt Lake City Ut 84130-0150

Packages: Only small packages, less than 4 pounds, mark as "teaching materials" and put a low dollar value on the declaration slip. The best method seems to be the padded envelopes.

Elder Harold Oliver
Sister Colleen Oliver
Colombia Cali Mission
Avenida 2, Oeste #10-130, Edif Tempo
Oficina 201, Barrio Santa Rita
Cali, Valle del Cauca
Colombia

If you ship with a private courier (Fedex or UPS) you will need to add the mission office phone number: 57 2-892-1709

Well, I can now check off "send kids the mission address". One more little thing done to get ready to go :)

This is a report on my 5 year brain tumor checkup. I had thought we would get 2 missions in before the checkup but we received a notice from Dr. Shelton that it was time for the checkup. It happened Thurs. I had been told by our regular doctor that everything would be normal and I didn't think I was worried but after we left Dr. Shelton's office and he had told us everything was normal and that I didn't need to come back. I felt a big relief. The worst part of the evaluation was the MRI which I don't like. I have had two now They also tested my hearing and said the remaining hearing didn't not get any worse.

One of the last days in the temple I went into to initiatory to help another shift before our shift started and there met my audiologist. When I told him where we were going he said that we needed a hearing aide dryer to put the hearing aide in every night. We saw him Thurs also and he had ordered one in and had it waiting for us. He has been very helpful. I had been concerned because when we went to Seattle/Alaska the hearing aide quit the first day out. When we got back the people in Rex Scott's office replaced the filter and said it had become clogged from the humidity.

Now we have a couple of weeks to pack.

We are visiting in Michigan. Keith is showing me how to use the computer. Now I have a blog :)

Friday I went shopping with Bernice and bought a pair of shoes! And 6 pair of socks for Harold, so now we are ready to go. We looked at Keith's iPad but he suggested we can buy one in Columbia.

We get to be here to help Chauncey celebrate his 2nd birthday. And I will go to "It's great to be eight!" with Estella tonight. I took Katrina last January. I have enjoyed doing things with my grandchildren this year.

If I remember how, I'll post next week :)