We are back in Iceland and hard at work....and play too :)

It's great having my companion healthy and happy again. Terry's kidney stone surgery went even better than the doctor had hoped for (yup that is what happens when you pray non-stop :)  Two weeks and one day, in and out, and off again to our wonderful Family Search project at the National Archives of Iceland.

However, I must admit, it was wonderful being home in the spring, enjoying the warm weather, shopping with my sister and in stores where I could read the labels, and most of all being with family and friends.  

There is no place like home :)

 Now Terry is driving every morning to the Archive and I'm asking him a zillion questions :)

 The construction just outside the Archive lunchroom is still going strong.

The beautiful Lutheran Cathedral is calling our name to go to the top, for a few ISL ($$) the elevator will take you to the top. Those pictures to come.

 It's always great when we can meet up with the other two Senior Couples, the Michaelsen's and Loveland's.  However, the Lovelands left Iceland yesterday (sad face), they were reassigned to the Boston, Mass mission. God bless you on your journey.

 We are always finding the most awesome vehicles to gawk at! Terry REALLY liked this one.

The sun is setting around 11:00ish p.m. . . . or later. I have to set my alarm to remind us to go to bed, otherwise, it's past midnight and still light outside.

 The spring flowers are finally blooming, it only took them about two months. Totally worth the wait.

We had wonderful friends and amazing business partners stop by Iceland for a week. Thank you Jessica and Clay, and of course your precious two little guys. What a beautiful family you are.

 One of the main bus stops is at our little shopping village. There are always a ton of buses parked with people coming and going; I wonder who they are and where they are going.

 I'm certain if you have ever lived in Iceland, you will know EXACTLY where this bus stop is and you'll be flooded with a ton of memories.

The guys . . . Clay from Washington State, Fridrik from Iceland with his son (who now live in Utah), and Terry with Clay's older son. Notice the cute photo bombers behind Terry, good job Jessica and Alanna. I met Fridrik about 20 years ago and life has brought us together, again. What a treat. What a wonderful man who loves to serve with a smile.

Thank you Jessica, for meeting up with your leaders Alana and Stephanie (Fridrik's wife), in beautiful Iceland. It was WONDERFUL having you all here!

 The visitors were so sad to leave, but no worries, I found the perfect shirt for them when they get stressed . . . don't get a therapist, just come back to Iceland.

 One week later, at 11:30 p.m. . . . getting lighter and lighter, and so far, we love it. When you're tired, you just close your eyes and sleep comes :)


The young missionaries get to have an outing every now and again, and us oldies but goodies get the wonderful task of driving them. Last Thursday we took the day off from the Archives (which proved to be perfect because the entire network needed repaired and we couldn't work anyway :), and off we went to Glymur, the second highest, longest waterfall in Iceland. I sent our kids a message letting them know we were headed out for the day, every one of them sent a text back and said BE CAREFUL! 

The most interesting thing about driving and walking to the BIG waterfall are ALL of the little waterfalls you see along the road getting there and then walking, climbing, huffing, and puffing, getting there. Not to mention the other beautiful sites to look at along the way.

 First might river we saw along the way. The snow is melting and the rivers are flowing.

 How would you like to live here? Looks like a peace of heaven. So pretty!

 More waterfalls.

 More waterfalls along the way.

 Still yet another one as we drove to Glymur.

 The young missionaries are SO EXCITED to get out and start the hike. Elder Michaelsen needed to make sure his walking sticks were in good shape before we took off.

 The hike started out pretty mild . . . but then WOW, it was not easy for this aging woman to CLIMB up the rock and steep trail. However, it was SO fun, the weather was just perfect, and hearts were happy.

Boys will be boys!

 Always a sign around each corner so we stayed on the right trail.

 Went up and then back down several of these wonderful steps made by some kind soul.

 We had to climb through a cave, I told the Loveland's to SMILE. Darn, Iceland is sure going to miss them.

 Yup, we had to walk over the river on a log . . . Elder Wight said he would show me how to do it, while Elder Rodriguez promised to come fetch me out of the water if I fell. Ha, thank goodness there was a rope to hang on to.

Elder and Sister Michaelsen are real troopers . . . they have Terry and I by 10 years, and nothing stops them. In fact, they passed us . . it was their third time to Glymur, they knew what to expect. We love serving with them.

Terry loves kidding around with the young missionaries. He is always making them laugh and if you know Terry very well, you know he has TONS of what we call Terryisms . . . And as you can see, the young missionaries make Terry very happy too!

 Elder Geslison was full of life, jumping, smiling, and having a great day~

What a great group of young men who love God, the people of Iceland, their families, and serving from night until morning. Terry said to me the other day, look at their shoes. You can plainly see they walk, and walk, and walk some more to share the message of their Elder Brother Jesus Christ. God bless each of them, their families, and those they teach.

Here is a sample of just one place where there was a rope to hang on to as you climbed UP the hill and held on to for dear life coming back down. There were about six or eight places like this. WOW, challenging yet so rewarding when you get to the top.

 More falls.

 And more . . .

 And more . . . . . 

 And more . . . . . . 

 And yes, even more :)

And the best of the best - GLYMUR!

 Finally, back on flat ground, so happy, and thrilled for the experience.

 I love to take pictures of the plants/flowers I see, for my cute sister. I found out later these are similar to the lamb ear plants we have at home.

 I loved this sign, good thing I know what the big P stands for, otherwise, we would not have found the parking lot :)

So we were off to work all day Friday. The network system was totally fixed and we spent the day working and getting so much done. In fact, at lunch time Terry said 'Lil, we're late for lunch'. Then all of a sudden I said 'Terry, it's past 5:00 . . . we both love what we're doing.

We have been scanning records from the South coast of Iceland. The other day I was scanning and started recognizing names like Geslison and Leifson, who I'm sure are relatives of the Western Icelanders who live in Spanish Fork, Utah. I got so involved looking at the names that I forgot to watch the documents I had scanned, and WOWSER, I had to rework about 40 pages. 

It gave me a wonderful warm feeling to know these Western Icelanders would soon be able to connect their family tree on the Family Search website.



Now it's Saturday, May 14, and our Icelandic son, Au∂unn, called and said he wanted to take us for an off-road trip. We went to the top of the mountains right in Reykjavik, it was so fun and beautiful, of course. 

 There are islands here, there, and everywhere off the coast. 

Terry and Au∂unn walking and talking. Can you tell it's cold? They both have their hands tucked in their pockets.

New apartment buildings are going up everywhere inside and outside of Reykjavik. We have a great view from the top to see all what was happening where.

We ran in to other off road vehicles. . . of course Terry and Au∂unn had a good talk about these awesome tires, fenders, climbers, etc. etc. etc. :)

 We passed several people riding the Icelandic horses.

 Drove through the water . . . GULP!

 More horses and riders.

 A beautiful lake with a few summer homes around it.

 This is the new jail being built. Au∂unn said there is only one jail now in the entire country of Iceland, which is on the South coast. When the new jail is finished, the old jail will be closed down.

 Terry telling Au∂unn takk (thanks) for a fun morning

 This is Au∂unn's favorite restaurant. The word HANINN means rooster :) It is DELICIOUS, we know, we have been here several times.

The inside is decorated so cute!

 Lots of roosters here, there, and everywhere.

 And of course, the food is yummy!

When we got home from our adventure, someone had tagged me on Facebook with this post! Our son and his wife, Tyler and Kellie Shepherd, have a passion for running. So, they opened a running store, Endurance Athletics, in Spanish Fork. They have only been opened for two years this coming July, and take a look at that! They were voted the second best running store in all of Utah County. GOOD JOB, we're so proud of you sharing your passion, building your dreams, and working for what you believe in!

Tyler is preparing for the Wasatch 100 . . .yes, that means running from northern Utah, through the mountains to Heber. WOWSER, Terry said he thinks Tyler must have mountain goat in him.

Like father, like son, like uncle, like nephew - these four little cousins all attend Salem schools. Jack, Tyler's son (in the green shirt), won two of races. The other three ran their hearts out. Brit, Tracie's son (black shirt), Kylin, Ben's son (blue shirt), and Boston, Katie's son (red shirt). Im pretty sure this picture brought a tear to my eye, not Terry . . . several tears. We love our family, miss them like crazy, but so grateful for the opportunity to serve our Heavenly Father and assist Him in making it possible so families can be connected for eternity.

If you and/or your spouse are thinking of serving a mission, put on your papers you would like to serve in the Family Search project. They need COUPLES, lots of them. You choose, 12 months, 18 months, or two years. We only have eight months left, the time flies by quickly, and like Terry said at our farewell . . . it's kind of like a second honeymoon . . . only better :)

This is a sneak peek for my next post . . . Iceland's water . . .that's what we missed the most while we were home . . . it is beyond superior for more reasons than one, or two, or more :)

God bless,
Terry and Lil