Flashback....

Daniel was blessed with the opportunity of giving his mission farewell talk on Easter Sunday. April was a busy month for our ward with General Conference the first week of the month and Stake Conference the third week of the month, so there wasn't much other opportunity. His topic was the Atonement. What better day and topic could a new missionary ask for!!

He had many friends and relatives in attendance that day. His brother Justin (along with Crystal, Kayli, and Kaden) and sister Krystal (along with Walt) were there. His uncles John Bird (along with Connie, Jordan, and Jenika) and Ron Bird were there. Even his Grandma Beverly was there (and the roof didn't cave in). The Korey Lowder family (our BFF) also came to the meeting. Plus lots of others!

That evening we did have a "low key" open house so Daniel's friends could stop by and wish him well. They had lots of fun talking (and eating). Some pictures of that evening are also in this post.

The next week, Daniel went with us over to Logan, Utah and Montpelier, Idaho to see his Grandma Gwen who is in the hospital. Daniel was a great help in moving Grandma out of her apartment and getting it cleaned.

He finished up his time here visiting with friends, attending the temple, and (what else) getting in some last sports. He also attended the missionary farewell for his friend Jordan this last Sunday. Coincidently, Jordan entered the Provo MTC the same day Daniel flew out to Brazil. He enjoyed his last weekend again visiting with friends and having his brother and sister here again. Sunday evening he was set apart as a missionary.

That concludes the flashback! Today, we did finally get an email from the Brazil CTM (that's MTC spelled backwards) telling us Elder Parkinson arrived safely. They said they settled him in a room, set him up with his first companion, and assigned him to a branch president. The work now begins! We expect to get an email from him on his first preparation day which will be this next Tuesday or Wednesday. We'll report next time we hear something!

Thanks for your prayers!!

Link to an older Google video of the Sao Paulo CTM:

http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-4932903236995363772

The Mission Begins

This year in early January, Daniel James Parkinson received a short note from the Prophet of the Lord. He was called to serve a mission as a representative of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints for a period of 24-months in the Brazil Sao Paulo South Mission. Needless to say, he was more than a little excited and apprehensive! He would be the first of our four sons to serve a mission outside the United States, and the only one of the four who really doesn't remember moving around the world with the Air Force. In spite of being born in the England, he's pretty much lived his whole life here in Boise, Idaho.

For the last several weeks, he has been busy balancing the normal life of a 19-year old with work, sports, recreation, sports, girls, sports, and preparing for his mission (did I mention sports?). It all came together (thanks to his wonderful and dedicated mother Lucy Ann), and today is the big day it all begins!

In spite of having a dad who was in the Air Force for 20-years, Daniel (I should start saying Elder Parkinson, I guess) is definitely not a flyer. This afternoon, he took off on a 14-hour series of flights from Boise, Idaho to Sao Paulo, Brazil. As I write this blog, he is just about to take off from Dallas-Ft Worth airport on the final leg into Brazil. I'm sure he is having "fun" and maybe a little "jet lag".

Anyway, given this momentous event in our lives -- our last son entering the mission field, I thought I'd enter the blogging world so friends and relatives can keep up with Daniel (er, Elder Parkinson) as he dedicates the next two years of his life to the Lord.

We'll see just how well this blogging stuff goes as we try to keep everyone up to date. Talk to you more later!