Report in ONE Day!

When I woke up this morning and got on the computer, this is the first thing I saw:

Major butterflies for me and Terry said, "piece of cake!".

(Don't get confused, we are going to Iceland, however, the

country of Iceland falls in the Denmark Mission boundaries.) 

The first time we signed in to the Full Time Missionary Portal back in September it said 126 days, that seemed like a long time away. Now, here it is. It's been fun making memories, reflecting, and enjoying every moment.

Last Sunday was our Mission Farewell, WOW, what a great time we had. THANK YOU to our family, friends, business partners, and neighbors for your love and support. MANY of you attended, while others sent messages, we appreciate and love every.single.one.of.YOU!

Here are a few shots taken at our home after Church. Photo credits go mostly to Lorraine Brown, my Uncle Terry Brown's wife. 

 Berit Lockhort, Brynlie Bradford, Paxton Auger
Lots of cousin fun

 Michele and Brad Nelson

My nephew and his wife

 Vina Lee Johnson Foster

My sister and best friend

 Tara and Bob Nelson

My nephew and his wife

 My handsome companion

He had a GREAT day, he's a 'people' person

 Me, Natasha Brown Lockhart, her son Gunner, and Terry

Tasha's my cousin

Abbie Foster, Haylie Nelson, Mason Foster

My niece, great niece, and great nephew

Korey and Emily Wright

Keyton and Ashlyn

The Wright's are our friends and business partners

Keyton is Terry's best little buddy

Ashlyn is a sweetheart, inside and out

Tracie Shepherd Bradford

Our daughter

Me, Tasha, and cute little Gunner

Beretta Bradford

Our handsome grandson

Ashlie Irene Shepherd Hughes and Morgan Hughes

Ashlie is our daughter, Morgan is our grandson

Sydnie Hughes

Our beautiful granddaughter

Benjamin Arthur Shepherd

Our son

Tyler Lee Shepherd

Our son

Kellie Lundell Shepherd

Our beautiful daughter-in-law

Tyler's wife

 Joshua James Foster and Michael

Josh is my cute nephew and his baby son

Terry, Sydnie, and me

Me, Josh & Allie Quist, Terry

and the STAR, Ember

Ember Grace Quist

Our Great Granddaughter

She thought the day was just wonderful!

Grandpa still got his Sunday afternoon nap,

even with lots of shenanigans from the grandkids

Brielle Bradford, Lillie Auger, Paxton Auger, Brynlie Bradford 

Knox Terry Auger

This little guy is our grandson who was born in Australia. It was said, this is how everyone feels about Grandpa and Grandma leaving for an entire year :)  

There were LOTS MORE people, I wish I had a picture of each and every one of you to post. I don't, though. However, our hearts and minds are filled with memories of your love, support, and goodness.

Thanks to Kellie being persistent, she was able to get tickets to the Provo City Center Tempe Open House. It was wonderful to see this beautiful House of the Lord before we leave. Thank you Kellie! 

Kathie Johnson Lawrence and me

Kathie was my best buddy in junior high and high school. She called the morning of our Farewell and was crying because of the snow, she couldn't make the drive. She did come a few days later, for one last hug. Thank you Kathie for your constant love, friendship, and example of good.

President Daniel Byron Geslison came to our home today and set both Terry and I apart to do this special records preservation mission in Iceland.  

MAJOR BUTTERFLIES . . . PIECE OF CAKE 

Every Thing Has A Purpose

It's true! Every thing we do, every thing we say, every place we go, all has a purpose. Our lives our meant to have purpose. Sometimes the 'purpose' comes with sacrifice, hardships, and joy beyond measure.

Serving this mission to Iceland does have a purpose, a very important purpose. A purpose that will bring some sacrifice, some hardships, and a GREAT BUNDLE of joy beyond measure.

Our biggest sacrifice and hardship is leaving behind these people for an entire year:

Our 23 precious grandchildren

Our first darling great grandchild

Terry's 87 year-old Mother

Our five children who have given their support

100% to care for their Grandma and love all those

babies while we're gone (even though their eyes

are filled with tears and hearts are aching).

Our greatest joy is to pay forward the great sacrifice, hardships, and love beyond measure for our parents, our great grandparents, and beyond:

 Terry's wonderful parents, Lee Alma and Geraldine McArthur Shepherd

They both became deaf as very young children, yet

never felt they were handicapped in any way. They

showed the wonderful example of being productive,

successful, and happy people. (On a side note, Lee and my

father (Art) were great friends when they were young boys. 

This friendship lasted througout their lifetime. )

Lil's wonderful parents, Arthur Sigurdur, Jr. and Marian Irene Brown Johnson

Even they are both deceased, not a day goes by that

something good they taught their posterity makes a

positive difference in the world.

My father is of Icelandic descent. When the mission call

came and it was set in stone we were headed to Iceland, one

of his great grandchildren said, "If there are buttons on clothes

in heaven, then all of Grandpa J's buttons just popped off"!

Arthur Sigurdur, Sr. and Lily Jameson Johnson

These are Lil's grandparents, on her father's side.

Grandpa is 50% Icelandic descent

Grandma is 100% Icelandic descent

When Lil was a young child, she believed EVERY

SINGLE PERSON in the world was from Iceland.

No kidding. Grandma Lily was so proud of her Icelandic

heritage and even though Grandpa had passed on before

Lil was ever born, the roots were planted deep and held

strong for generation, after generation, after generation.

Grandpa Arthur Sigurdur Johnson, Sr's. Four Generation Chart

Grandma Lily Jameson Johnson's Four Generation Chart

Take a look at all those ancestors who truly know

what sacrifice, hardships, pure joy is all about.

This is a picture of Arthur Sigurdur Johnson, Sr.,

as a young boy with his Grandmother Vilborg Thordasdottir

and Grandfather Sigurdur Arnason

The purpose of our mission is great; to connect the most important treasure on earth, FAMILIES. We will have the opportunity of working in the historic archives in Iceland, recovering, restoring, and preserving ancient histories of people. Every single person has a family. Every single person is important. Every single person deserves to be connected to their very own family.

How blessed we are to assist with this project and thank those who have gone on before us, who made sacrifices, lived through hardships, and paved the way.  

We know in the end our joy will be beyond measure by serving His children, leaving behind our treasures, and connecting the dots so others can find their roots.  

Last doTERRA Event for a Year

The last seven years our life has been blessed beyond measure due to a company called doTERRA International.  We have met lifelong friends, learned how modern medicine (specifically essential oils) teams up with Mother Nature as great partners, and traveled the world.  

We just returned home from our last doTERRA event where all of the owners of doTERRA, Presidential and Blue Diamonds leaders, and amazing staff met for three days. It's marvelous to be associated with great people full of integrity and goodness.

We'll be praying for everyone on our team as well as every team member in doTERRA for your continued success and goodness.

Off to Santa Barbara, California for our last doTERRA event!

January 4, 2016

My best buddy in doTERRA, Peggy Smith.

Thank you for ALL you've taught me.

I love you girlfriend!

Our team of Blue Diamond Leaders.

Arin Ingraham, Jessica Iddings,

Betty Torres-Forbord, Rosalie Elliott,

Laurie Langfitt, and we missed you

Mark Shepard & Rani So

Always fun, laughter, beautiful scenery, and lots of learning!

Farewell and God Bless Team doTERRA!

Farewell

It's almost time for us to say farewell for one year. We are excited, honored, and a little overwhelmed with the opportunity to assist the government of Iceland with their records preservation project. We keep telling ourselves, 'we can learn new things' :) 

Our official farewell is just around the corner. We've each been given 10 minutes to share our thoughts. Terry is an excellent speaker, it would be worth your time to stop by just to hear him.

Sunday, January 24
11:00 a.m.
Benson Building (300 South 1400 East)
Spanish Fork

We'll have a soup bar at our home during the afternoon. We would love to have you stop by if you have time. Our home address is 84 North 1100 East, Spanish Fork.

If you would like updates on our mission, we're going to do our best to make a post at least once a week. 

Iceland Records Preservation Mission
February 2016-February 2017