Payson Temple Open House

Just over a month ago, Peter and I got to go to the Payson LDS Temple open house with some of Jonathan's family. We were driving to California that day and were lucky enough to get to see the temple before we headed out of the state. LDS temples don't allow the public to tour the buildings after they are dedicated, but prior to their dedication, they have open houses where anyone can go and walk through and see the building. Read more about LDS Temples here. 

Peter and Robin at the Payson Temple

It was fun to go through the temple with Peter. He has seen the outside of many temples throughout Asia, and a couple in the US, but he has never been inside. Members of the LDS church can't go through the temple until they are old enough to have a temple recommend- at the age of 12. So, Peter loves the temple, but it was neat to take him through the inside and talk about all the pictures of Jesus, and how the temple is the House of the Lord.

One thing that I thought was super neat about this temple was that they commissioned a number of paintings for the inside. Some were landscapes from the mountains and canyons around Payson, which were cool because they were the views that you see outside the temple. Some were pictures of Christ. I really liked those ones because they were different from the pictures you see in most church buildings, so it gave a different image of Christ. Instead of just glancing over them, I paid more attention to them because I'd never seen them before so they got my focus.

It was a great way to start our trip. I loved walking through the temple, and it was great to have Peter with me to talk about the temple. The grounds are beautiful, the temple is gorgeous, and it was a calm and happy place. We love the temple and it was a great open house.

Sunday Stories

Sunday with Peter is always interesting. He is constantly on the move, so to get him to sit quietly through an hour of people talking, a couple of songs and a few prayers is trying. This past Sunday, he did really good, but there were a couple of cute things that I need to record.

First off, we behind a family with twin girls, 1 year old. To say Peter was smitten would be an understatement. He was so happy when he saw them, and would play with them whenever their mom was holding them. We sat in front of our neighbors, who have a 4 year old and a 2 year old- both boys. Peter also loves them, and quickly shot under our bench to sit with them. We let him sit there until the meeting got started and then tried to keep him with us.

He was doing good, we got through the opening song and prayer and the sacrament was being passed. In our church, we all eat a piece of bread and drink water to remember Christ and the Atonement. We've been working with Peter to get him to sit quietly while the guys walk around with the trays of bread and water and pass them to everyone. Peter did great taking only one piece of bread. Then it was time for the water. I always try to find a little cup that is half full, because it makes everything easier. I gave him a little cup and then got one for myself, so far so good. He went to drink his, paused, and then I heard a familiar burbling sound...he was blowing bubbles in his tiny water cup. It wasn't super loud, but I'm pretty sure those around us heard. I grabbed his hand and whispered that he needed to drink it...which he promptly did. Then, as I handed the water tray back to the young man who was passing it, Peter exclaimed in a loud voice, "Tank You!" Well...at least he has manners down.

Then, we had made it to the last ten minutes. We brought new church books with us that Sunday, which kept Peter pretty quiet. He likes the Daniel and the Lions' Den story and Noah and the Ark- because of the animals. Anyway, he was getting more and more restless and he escaped to the row behind us to sit with our neighbors- he does a great job of adopting himself into their family all the time. He came back a few minutes later with about 5 stickers on him. He told me all about them, and panicked for a second when he couldn't find his tiger sticker. We have the best neighbors in the world.

After church we drove up to the Bountiful Temple and walked around it a bit. It was a gorgeous day and the temple was brilliant. Peter was holding a little chicken that he got for Easter, and with one quick movement, he threw it between the bars of the fence and onto the lawn. It was far out of reach, so we told Peter he had to say goodbye to the chicken. We continued walking and he kept going between asking for the chicken and saying "temple".

Peter, pointing back to the chicken.

Bountiful LDS Temple

As we were walking and looking at the temple, we noticed that the Dr was also visiting the temple. It's a good thing to do on a Sunday, no matter when you are from.

Peter, Jonathan and the TARDIS.

Peter kept asking about the chicken, and he had already snuck through the bars once, so we knew he could fit...he's fast, and small. So, we took him back to the chicken and told him to go through, get the chicken and come right back out, and if he came right back out, he'd get a cookie. Luckily, the idea of a cookie was enough to get him to come right back out. If he had decided otherwise, we would have been in a heap of trouble.

Peter the burglar 

Successful chicken retrieval 

Get out of jail free card- success.

Sunday is an exciting day when you live with a toddler.

Best Calling in the World

Months ago, I got a call from a member in our church bishopric (the leaders of our local congregation). He asked if I could come in and talk with him. We had just moved back into our ward, so I was pretty sure that I was going to get a calling. In Latter-Day Saint congregations, all of the leaders, music people- choir leaders, pianists/organists, and teachers for children, teenagers and adults, are called from the ward to function in that position for various periods of time. It is done as volunteer work and no one gets paid for the different jobs. Previously in this ward in the one in China, I'd been called to work with the Primary- children aged 3-11. After we set a time to meet, a feeling of dread overcame me. I knew I was going to be in Primary again. Now, there is nothing wrong with being in Primary. It's a fun place to be, the kids are fun to teach and you get to sing lots of fun songs and do activities. But I longed to be with adults again. I was home with Peter most days, and I just really wanted to be able to meet other people in the ward and make friends.

When the day came for the meeting, I walked over to the church building. As I walked, I started to pray that I would be happy wherever I was called to work and that I would be able to learn from the experience. Then, a sudden thought came, "What if they put me in nursery (class for toddlers aged 18 months-3 years)?" Gah! I didn't want to...I needed a break from Peter. I began to pray again in earnest, "Please just let me be okay with wherever I am called and be able to see this as a positive thing."

I got to the building and found Brother Clark. He mentioned that Jonathan didn't come and I replied that he was home with Peter so Peter could get his nap in before church. Brother Clark said, "Well let's get him on the phone. I want to make sure he is willing and able to support you in the calling we want to give you." Gah! Another slight panic- they are going to call me as Relief Society President or some sort of hard calling....I don't know if I can do that. Oh no! Breathe...breathe...you can do anything.

Jonathan picked up the phone and they chatted for just a minute. Then, Brother Clark looked at me and asked if I was familiar with familysearch.org. I froze. Yes, I am very familiar with that website. I majored in family history. I was on the verge of totally and complete excitement. Brother Clark then asked, "Would you be willing to be the family history instructor for our ward?" YES! 100% yes. I was elated.

I love everything about this desk.

 Now, you may not know it, but this has been my dream calling for years. Anytime anyone else is called to this position, I get a teeny bit jealous. I love teaching and I love family history, so it's the best of both worlds. I was giddy. I learned that the bishopric wanted this class to be set up so that people bring their own laptops/tablets/smartphones and do research in class while I teach. What a brilliant idea! They also call about 15-20 people as "temple patrons" and their calling is to attend the temple once a week and to come to my class every Sunday. Other people can also attend the class. Jonathan got called as a temple patron, so he comes to class and takes care of all the tech stuff and keeps me on track. It's great.

I have now taught the class for about 5 months and I'm still loving it. I get great feedback from the people that come to class and I feel like I'm making a difference in their research skills and understanding the importance of doing family history work. I've been doing research on my Mom's paternal grandmother's line throughout class and it has been fascinating. I've learned so much about that family. To me, the best thing about doing family history research is turning names on a page to real people. These people are my family and by learning about them and looking at census records and gravestones, marriage records and pictures, they become real. They mean something to me. This is by far the best calling in the world and I'm loving it. If you have any questions on how to get started on doing your own family history, let me know. We had such amazing technology now, that researching family is getting easier and easier. It's great, it will make you feel good inside. Do it.

Temple Square- SLC- August 2014

Peter, Robin and Jonathan in front of the Salt Lake City Temple

While the Gleaves were in town, we also took a trip up to Salt Lake City to see Temple Square. It was fun to walk around with my family, see the temple and the visitors center and take some pictures. Since we live close to SLC, we've been there a number of times, but it was fun to go with small Peter. Also, we brought our friend Ellison, who had never seen the area. I think it's fun sometimes to go with people when it is there first time, because sometimes things just seem normal to you if you've seen them multiple times, but to someone seeing it for the first time it is really neat. 

Jonathan, Peter and Robin by the twisty tree.

As we walked through the visitors' center, it was fun to watch Peter point out Jesus in the pictures and the big statue of him. It's amazing to me how much Peter understands and retains. Sometimes I feel like nothing I am teaching him is sinking in, and then we walk past a picture and he exclaims, "Jesus! Boat!" Those times make me feel good. I am teaching him, and he is learning good things. I'm glad he knows who Jesus is.

Peter and Robin by the Christus statue. 

We went on a tour of the LDS Conference Center and learned some things about various art pieces and things about the building. Peter took a nap in the stroller during part of the tour, which was nice for us. We went on the top of the roof to see the garden area on top. I'd never been to that part of the building before and I thought it was really neat. Also, across the street at the Temple, there were people cleaning it. We could see some people outside on scaffolding and ropes getting work done. It was fun to watch them work.

It was great to go and walk around Temple Square. We saw some beautiful things and learned some neat facts. It was nice to have the tour. I would do that again. Good times.

St George Temple- August 2014

In between our trips to the national parks, we stopped in St. George Utah to meet with a friend who we knew in NC who had moved out west. We met her and went to the LDS St George Temple to walk around and then went out to lunch. It was cool to take Peter to see another temple. I know he won't remember any of these trips, but we can teach him now of the importance of going to the temple and how we need to make sure we are living a life so we are worthy to attend the temple. 

Peter at the temple

It started raining on our drive to St. George, and it kept raining just a bit while we were at the temple, but by the time we had walked around the temple and were back to our cars, the rain had stopped and we had beautiful weather the rest of the day.

Jonathan and Peter at the temple in St George, Utah

My boys at the temple

Going to St George was a nice little break, and it was cool to see another temple with my little family. The temple is such a special place and it is a place where we love to go.

Pioneer Day

While in California after our Asia travels, we went to a church Pioneer Day celebration. Pioneer day is a day to remember the Latter Day Saint men, women and children who walked across the plains to Utah to find a safe place to live. They had lots of hardships along the way and settled in Utah. Typically these celebrations include lots of food, music and games. This one did not let us down. They had lots of great food. We got our food and claimed a spot of grass with a blanket and ate. This was also one of the first times I felt a little overwhelmed at the number of children present. Coming from China where gatherings are mostly adults with a few children dispersed throughout, to see families with 4-5 kids and they are all running around crazy with their friends, it felt hectic. But, by the end it felt normal again. Peter on the other hand, felt at ease and made new friends. Although, he did find the group of Chinese there and would go to them more regularly than anyone else. 

Peter and a new friend.

He found a Peter-sized chair.

They also had a couple of performances/stories. One guy told a story of an ancestor of his who hid in a barrel (I think to avoid walking) in one of the wagons, only to find that this barrel had molasses in the bottom. So then he had molasses stuck to the bottom of his feet and he had to walk with molasses covered feet until the molasses wore off. For an object lesson, he had a number of people come up, including Jonathan and his parents, and made them step into a bucket of molasses and then walk around for a bit. But, because he was a nice man, he also supplied them with soap and water after a few minutes of walking around. 

Molasses feet

They also had a man there who works at Disney Land as a musician. He can play so many different types of instruments. He demonstrated them, sang us songs and told us background on the instruments. Then, at the end, he got people from the audience to play the instruments with him and he sang a song for us. He got one of the missionaries to help and the missionary asked if he could beatbox with the song. The man said, "Sure" so we had a really interesting version of the song with a bass, spoons, fiddle, washboard and beatbox. It was pretty fantastic. 

The band

Robin and Peter listening to the music

Serious face clapping

It was fun to go to this activity. Jonathan saw a couple of people he knew, we got good food, listened to good music, and be outside in beautiful weather. It was a lovely day.

A boy and his blanket

Redlands Temple

Robin and Jonathan at the Redlands Temple

One day we took a break from doing nothing in California and Jonathan and I took a trip to the LDS Redlands Temple. Jonathan's parents volunteer in the temple every Wednesday, so we went on the same day and were able to see them while we were there. They have to be there for longer than we did, so we drove up separately. As we pulled into the parking lot, Jonathan said, "Oh no. I don't have my wallet." In order to enter an LDS temple, you have to have a temple recommend, and of course, Jonathan's recommend was in his wallet, on the kitchen table. So we were not off to the best start. We went in to the front desk and told them the news. Jonathan told me that he could wait outside for me. But then, his Dad showed up and the front desk guy said that they could call our previous bishop (leader of the congregation) to verify that Jonathan has a current temple recommend. Unfortunately, our previous bishop was in China, but we had his number. So, we gave it to the man and he went to the back to contact our previous bishop. He came back a few minutes later and said we were good to go! Hurrah! 

After that, everything was smooth sailing. We did a session at the temple, at like always it was calm and peaceful (and it was nice to have everything in my native language). Afterwards, we met up with Jonathan parents and walked around the temple. It is such a beautiful building. There is beautiful stained glass on one side, and lovely greenery. It was nice to walk around it. Then, we went out for lunch and then headed home. It was really nice that we were able to go to the temple together. We are trying to make temple attendance more of a priority in our lives. I know that we will be blessed by going to the temple and taking time out of our lives to make time for the Lord. It is the House of the Lord. I love going to the temple and learning and feeling peace. We are blessed to have so many temples so close. 

Jim, Jonathan, Robin and OdaLisa at the Redlands Temple

Tokyo LDS Temple

Peter, Robin and Jonathan at the Tokyo Temple

Our last two days in Japan were spent staying at the LDS temple patron housing. As with staying in the Hong Kong temple housing, it was a fantastic experience and an excellent way to end our travels. When we arrived at the temple, we learned that we could not check in for a couple of hours more, as they were cleaning the rooms. Peter had just fallen asleep in the stroller, so Beccah took him for a walk while Jonathan and I went in and did a temple session. The entire session was in Japanese, but they had headphones we used to hear the English version. It is the first time I had to be the one listening to a different language in a temple. It was bothersome at first, because the sound kept going in and out. But once I got that fixed, everything was fine. Sometimes I'd push one of the headphone ear pieces back so I could hear the Japanese and English. It was pretty cool to hear the Japanese. It was lovely to be in the temple again and just feel peace and calm. The Tokyo temple is gorgeous inside. In the celestial room, there was some beautiful stained glass work on one side, and the ceiling was made up of lots of little mirrors or glass squares that were tilted different ways and it created a really neat visual texture. I loved our time in the Tokyo temple and enjoyed staying in the patron housing.

Tokyo Temple at night

Some stained glass work

More stained glass, because I love it.

One of the neat things about the Tokyo housing was that it was also where the LDS missionaries stayed. The building was a couple of stories high, and one floor was for temple patrons to stay in, and the rest was for the missionaries. Your key only let you go on your needed floor within the building, but we got to brush shoulders with missionaries a couple of times. There were at least two different pairs of sister missionaries we met while we stayed there. We had some great conversations with them.

My favorite time was talking with one of the sisters about the Chinese that she had a chance to teach. We bumped into the missionaries in the metro stop that we used to get to the temple housing, and we started talking with them. I had mentioned that we had lived in China prior to our trip to Japan and I told her that it was sometimes really frustrating living there because the Chinese government doesn't allow missionaries or missionary work in China. But sometimes you would get in a conversation with a coworker or friend and they want to know what you think about God. Or, they ask what Easter is and why we celebrate it. There are people in China who want to know about God and Christ, but foreigners aren't allowed to talk about the LDS church in China. There were times that it was really frustrating for me because I wanted to share what I know and teach them, but if I did, we could get in trouble. The sister missionary I was speaking with got excited as I was telling her this and said that she had been able to teach a number of Chinese who had traveled to Japan for various reasons. You are allowed to share the gospel with Chinese as long as they are not in China. She said that there was one Chinese woman who had the missionaries over frequently and invited all of her Chinese friends to come each time to talk with the missionaries about the church. She also told me about a Chinese guy they had taught and baptized and that he went back to China and told his family about the church and later went on a mission. It was such an exciting conversation for both of us.

It made me so happy to hear that there were so many Chinese who were getting the chance to learn about the restored gospel and that we have a living prophet on the earth today and that they have a Father in heaven who knows and loves them. It reminded me that the Lord does have a plan and He is looking out for all of His children. I am so thankful for the missionaries who go all over the world and get a chance to share the gospel. I am glad I had a chance to meet this particular missionary, who reminded me that even when things seem like they are blocking the way of the gospel or leaving people behind, that the Lord finds a way, and has ways always. I am so grateful for the gospel in my life. I know that families can be together forever, I know that the temple is the house of the Lord and we can feel his love there. I know we have a living prophet who guides our church. I know that by living the commandments and the teachings of our church leaders, my life is better than it would be without it.  I loved meeting the missionaries and feeling their love of the Japanese and their love of the gospel that they were sharing with those around them. The Church is true, and I love it.

Tokyo, Japan Temple

Taipei Temple Round 2

Before we left Taipei, we went to the the temple once more. We had a bit of a crazy morning, so we didn't have time for Jonathan and I to do a session and they didn't have enough priesthood holders to do baptisms, but we did get to do confirmations. I stayed out with Peter first, since he is too young to go in the temple. Peter ate some snacks and walked a circuit around the temple grounds. It was a pretty hot day, so we got sweaty fast. But, Peter was happier outside, so outside we stayed and pointed out all the birds, water, trees and flowers.

He loves the temple.

Just making his rounds.

We found a neat whirlpool in the fountain.

Then, when Jonathan and Beccah came out, I switched places with Beccah and she ran with Peter while I did confirmations. It was really neat to go into this temple. It is a really small temple, which I wasn't expecting. All of the temple workers were really sweet and happy to see us. It was a peaceful place which was good because I was feeling stressed that day and needed some calm. I left feeling much better about the day and as a much happier person.

Robin, Peter and Jonathan at the Taipei Temple

Also, while we were there, we ran into Sister Williams and her companions again! They were the sister missionaries we loved and had met just a couple of days earlier. It was quite the coincidence to see them since their area is a different city and they were just there on a small break they had and were soon heading back to their city. It was great to see them. We were headed the same way for the train station, so we walked and talked together. They are amazing sisters. It was lots of fun to run into them again. Keep being awesome ladies! I'm glad we got to go to the temple, even if it was just for a small time. The temple is a great place and a place that I love to go to.

Neihu Branch Sunday

On Sunday, the 6th of July, we headed to Naihu for church! As far as I understand, Neihu is still Taipei, but a suburb of it. This was a place that Jonathan served in during his mission and a bunch of the church members remembered him. One of the ladies in the ward always made food for the missionaries on Sunday after church and turns out, she wanted to feed us. So, we knew going to church that when church was over, we would get some good food. 

Windmill on the way to church

Church itself was fine. Jonathan translated some, but not everything, so lots of things just went past. A lady came up after Sunday School and took Peter to nursery (a church class for kids aged 18 months- 3 years) and after he was there for about 5 minutes, she found me and reported that he was happy and playing with the other kids. I figured if he did get upset, it would be really easy to identify the parents of the white haired boy. But, he did great and stayed there for the next hour. During that hour, Beccah and I went to Relief Society and Jonathan went to his Priesthood class. One of the missionaries translated the entire class for us. We talked about gratitude and how being grateful can change your attitude and perception on life.

Peter heading downstairs with some new friends.

After church was over, we found an empty room and they started bring food for us to eat. We had a group of about 5 people from the branch as well as our group. Peter was super angry and it took us a few minutes to realize his anger was sleepy rage. We gave him his binky and blanket and BAM, he was down for the count. He slept through the rest of lunch. While he slept, we ate some delicious curry, mango (which for the record are so much better in Taiwan than in America), and guava. Madness it was so good. I could eat that for the rest of my life and life would be great.

Brother Wong and Jonathan

When Peter woke up from his nap, he still had some rage in him. He flailed and screamed and would not let anything calm him down and everyone rushed to give him something to make him happy. It was a little overwhelming even though they were trying to help, so I took him into the hallway to get some quiet space. I took him into the nursery to play with some toys and when we got there, we found a couple of adults chatting watching a little boy playing there. As soon as Peter saw where we were, he calmed down and ran in to play. 

The boy's mom, Sister Huang, asked in Chinese how old Peter was, and I told her and then she asked something else. My face showed confusion as I asked her to repeat her questions. She then re-asked the questions in almost perfect English. I laughed and smiled and we talked for the next 30-45 minutes about cultural differences, raising a child in another country, adjusting to being mom and general things about motherhood. I loved talking with this woman. We had so many things in common in regards to motherhood. Everything I said she would get really excited and say, "I feel the SAME way!!!" Everything she said, I felt the same way. She was exactly who I needed and so many times I found myself wishing we were neighbors. I love finding people like that because they help you feel normal and you can connect with them instantly. If we ever come to Taipei to live, we will be the best of friends. Her little boy was so much like Peter, and give Peter a year and he will be doing the same things that boy was doing. It was fun to watch them play and great to talk with someone so relate-able. It was also neat to see how many similarities we had towards views in life and feelings about things being raised and living in two different parts of the world. People aren't as different as we sometimes think.

Eventually Peter and I ventured back to the other group, where one of the ladies got some great pictures of Peter that she emailed to me later. 

This is Peter's "Oh no!" face. He does it if there is a loud noise, if he drops something, or something falls. It's adorable.

Peter showing off his Asian photo taking skills.

We also had some cake for Beccah's birthday that one of the men had brought. He is a French style baker in Taiwan and word on the street is his cakes are fantastic and very well known. I had a couple of his muffins and they were pretty delicious. We had a great time eating and visiting with some of the church members in Neihu. I would totally live there.

Visiting Nara and the temple- Taipei, Taiwan

The second person we visited in Taiwan was Nara. She is a member of the LDS church who was about 14 years old when Jonathan served his mission here. She took us out to eat...because that's what we do here. It was a cool little place. I liked some of the decor. It was simple, but beautiful.

The entrance to the restaurant.

We left the ordering up to Nara. This time we ate lettuce wraps with shrimp, bok choy- so good, fish dish, an amazing Chinese version pot roast, and another meat dish that was almost more Mexican like than Asian. Nara's friend Perry came as well. He spoke some English. They talked with Jonathan most of the time, and Beccah, Nara and I took turns chasing Peter- who was feeling better but not super interested in eating.

After we ate, they asked if they could take us anywhere. We said yes, because we will always take someone up on a ride in a car. As great as the metro is, it's much nicer to just be in a car and not worry about transfers or where to walk when you get out of the station. We had planned on going over to the temple, so we had them drive us there. They came with us, and Jonathan snagged some sister missionaries to have them give us a tour. The temple is right next to an LDS chapel that doubles as a small visitors center. The missionaries sometimes take people around and give them a brief lesson about our church. 

Peter and Jonathan in the hallway of the chapel. 

There was a group of younger guys playing basketball in the gym and Peter was in heaven. Peter loved the basketballs. Jonathan kept Peter from running onto the court while we talked with the sister missionaries. These ladies were my favorite part of the day. They were 2 young ladies in their early 20s, both from Utah, and they were just as excited to have Americans to talk with as we were. We loved them. They both go to BYU. So we joked/kinda serious about seeing them when they get home. They were awesome. If I wasn't married, I would be their roommates and it would be a blast everyday. But, I digress. These ladies happily took us around with Nara and Perry. Nara is a member, but it didn't seem like she is going to church a lot, and Perry is not a member of our church, so we got to have some neat discussions. Also, since they don't speak too much English and we (Robin and Beccah) speak very little Chinese (Jonathan was still chasing Peter) the sisters switched back and forth Chinese and English. They did awesome, even though the one missionary, who had only been in Taiwan for 3 months, was nervous about her Chinese skills- but honestly, she rocked it. They were the best people to talk with and get to know better. We had a great time at the temple with the missionaries. 

Taipei, Taiwan LDS temple

I am so glad we got to go this day. We didn't go in the temple, as it was closed by the time we got there, but it was great to just see it and be around the missionaries.

Church sign!

Hong Kong- Temple Day

LDS Hong Kong Temple

By far the best day in Hong Kong for me was when we went to the LDS Hong Kong temple. If you want to learn more about the temple, click here. We stayed at the temple patron housing that night- right across the street from the temple. We took a bus there, got off, walked towards the temple housing and saw the missionaries! I've missed seeing missionaries since they are not allowed to go to mainland China, so it was great to see them. They were such helpful guys and so happy to help. They took us to the temple so we could check in and get the key for our room.

While we were checking in we saw a guy who was also checking in who was wearing a BYU shirt! He goes to BYU, but either has Hong Kong background or served in Hong Kong, because I'm pretty sure he spoke Cantonese with the temple helper but he spoke English without an accent. We talked with him a bit in the temple house. He was a super friendly guy and we had fun talking about BYU things.

After checking in, we got the times that we could go to the temple and we went to our room to relax. Peter promptly fell asleep and stayed asleep for 2 hours. Jonathan and Beccah went to the temple to do baptisms. Peter and I stayed in our room for a bit and then went out and talked with an Indian family for a bit. They have a 2 year old girl so she and Peter played for a bit. They had come to Hong Kong from India so their family could be sealed together. We believe that families can be together forever through an ordinance that can be performed in the temple. It was really neat that this family was going to be sealed and be able to have that bond beyond death.

Then, Peter and I went to the park next door to wait for Jonathan and Beccah to get back.

Peter found a giant abacus.

He also went for a ride in the little car. It was super hot outside, Peter tried to go down the slide, but he touched it and then blew on his hand and shook his head, too hot. But he had fun running around.

I loved being at the temple because it felt familiar, peaceful and clean. The temple is the House of the Lord. When we are there, we can feel His spirit with us. We can receive direction and clarity. We can feel His love. I've missed the temple more than I've realized since living in mainland China. It was such a beautiful place to be. The people were all helpful and kind. The Indian family offered us rice or noodles to use if we needed them. A Chinese woman gave the little kids candies. It was cool to see members from mainland China and other countries all coming to the temple. It's a wonderful place to be. I'm glad this was part of our trip.

Peter and Robin in front of the Hong Kong LDS temple.

Jonathan and I left Peter with Beccah that night so we could go to the temple together. It was nice to take a break from the crazy traveling and go and be in the temple. There were only 6 people there with us, which made it feel cozy. For a bit, I could forget about where we needed to go the next day, when the plane left, did we have enough diapers, and just feel love and peace. The temple is a blessing.

Peter and Jonathan in front of the LDS Hong Kong temple.

The next morning was our last day in Hong Kong. We got up, finished packing and headed out. Next stop Taiwan.