Touring Ireland

 Dear Family and Friends,

There is no place more beautiful than Ireland when the sun is shinning, and few places more miserable when a storm blows in off the Atlantic with sheets of rain and gale force winds. We’ve had a few days like that lately. Yesterday was beautiful and no wind. I took a nice long walk. 

Our dear friends Todd and Karen Wolfley and their daughter Elena came to visit us. They flew into Dublin March 16. They planned on staying there 2 nights to see some sights in Northern Ireland. When they looked into getting a room they were surprised as nothing was available unless you were willing to pay several hundred Euros. They couldn’t figure out what was going on in Dublin until they learned, it was St. Paddy’s Day! They felt a little foolish and had a good laugh. They stayed in Belfast instead, on Wednesday they took the train to Galway.

We had such a wonderful visit, reminiscing, laughing and sight-seeing. On Thursday morning we went to see the Cliffs of Moher. Fortunately, it was a beautiful day for viewing the cliffs and seeing the countryside. 

That evening we went down to shop street in Galway. It is definitely a must see with a charm all its own. There were a few musicators out entertaining passers-by but shops were beginning to close up for the night. We managed to pick up a few souvenirs. 

Friday morning we left early for Blarney Castle. It was a lovely day for a long drive. We arrived about noon, had a bite to eat then walked to the castle. We are pleased to announce that all 3 of the Wolfley’s made it up the narrow, winding stone staircases to the very top of the castle and kissed the “Blarney Stone.” Now they have the gift of eloquence, if they didn’t have it before.

You did it Elly. You kissed the Blarney Stone! Poor Todd, he's been thrown in the Blarney Castle dungeon. What did you do now Todd?

For the next couple of hours, we enjoyed a leisurely walk around the castle grounds and took some amazing pictures. It is a beautiful setting.  

This is a view of the grounds from the top of Blarney Castle. It is a beautiful place!

The unusual hanging rock is actually a passage tomb. (A passage tomb forms a narrow passage, wide at the front and narrow at the back. It is usually made with large stones and has one or more burial chambers covered with earth or stone. These tombs date from the Neolithic Age.)  Emily Pillo is underneath. The amazing tree on the upper right is a Western Red Cedar. There were several on the grounds. The castle-like structure is the Blarney Mansion. 

On Saturday, we went to the open market in city center. Dozens of vendors set up booths  on Saturday morning and sell – fish, fresh vegetables, homemade breads and pastries, soups, jewelry, clothes, candles, handbags, flowers, pictures and etc. It is an adventure to walk through. 

A Fish monger is on the left and on the right is a candle booth and behind that is a large produce area.

That afternoon we went to a baptism in Limerick. All in all we had an amazing week with Todd, Karen and Elena. We had a grand time and good ole craic!  You won’t believe this, it didn’t rain all week! But the day they left, it began raining again.  

There is one thing you can be sure of in Ireland and that is the rain!

Love,

Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma, Elder and Sister Weber

Couple's Conference

Dear Friends and Family,

This month we had the opportunity to attend a couple's conference in Edinburgh. When we arrived we were told there was a surprise for that evening. We couldn't imagine what it could be. They did say we would be going to the Bridge Inn at Ratho. When everyone finally arrived, we were escorted through the restaurant in a circuitous route and then out the back door. We thought how strange. The hostess led us down two flights of steps to the banks of the Union Canal. There waiting for us was a large restaurant barge. We were  escorted on board and entered a lovely dinning room the length of the boat. What a surprise! We enjoyed a lovely evening on board visiting, dinning and cruising the canal. Sister Brown made all the arrangement and kept it a secret even from the office staff. She was so proud of herself.

This is Sister Wager and Sister Fergeson. They are part of the mission office staff. Sister Wager is responsible for apartments in the entire mission. Both of them came and stayed with us for a week in November and we took them to inspect all the apartments in our District. They are such neat ladies!

Gary and I, and Brent and Sandra Hale stayed the night at the mission home. It is a beautiful old mansion. We stayed in what was once the maid's room. Next to the ceiling was a bell, which at one time summoned the maid. The room also had its own stairway down to the kitchen. The Hales stayed in the Elder's dorm room. It has 4 sets of bunks 3 high. They use it for incoming and departing missionaries. There is a similar room for the Sisters.

The next morning we had our conference at the chapel next to the mission home. Gary and I were asked to give a 40 min presentation pertaining to senior missionaries. The best part is having an opportunity to visit with other couples and talk about needs, challenges and successes they've had. Here we are enjoying our   lunch between sessions.

 Sister Brown planned this lovely meal and is actually taking time to sit down and enjoy lunch with Brother and Sister May. The May's are serving in Tralee close the the Dingle Peninsula in the Limerick District. They are getting ready to leave for home in a couple of weeks.

This is a large formal dinning room in the mission home.

This is a rare moment for President Brown when he can relax and socialize. He seems to be enjoying himself.

This monument stands in front of the mission home. It has a well known 

statement on it, "What ere thou art, Act well thy part." This is the story behind it. 

President David O. McKay (1873–1970) often related an account that occurred while he was a missionary serving in Scotland. He was feeling homesick after being in the mission for just a short time and spent a few hours sightseeing at nearby Stirling Castle. When he and his companion returned from visiting the castle, they passed a building where the stone above the door had a carved inscription of a quotation, usually attributed to Shakespeare, that read, “What-E’er Thou Art, Act Well Thy Part.”

Recalling this experience, President McKay explained: “I said to myself, or the Spirit within me, ‘You are a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. More than that, you are here as a representative of the Lord Jesus Christ. You accepted the responsibility as a representative of the Church.’ Then I thought [about] what we had done that forenoon. We had been sightseeing; we had gained historical instruction and information, it is true, and I was thrilled with it. … However, that was not missionary work. … I accepted the message given to me on that stone, and from that moment we tried to do our part as missionaries in Scotland.”¹ This message was so important and had such an impact on him that President McKay used it as inspiration for the rest of his life. He determined that whatever responsibility he had, he would do his very best.

With Our Love
Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma, Gary and Karen Weber

                                     

Stormy February

Hello Friends and Family,

Couldn't resist putting in this adorable picture of Logan and big brother Bryson. (Joseph & Tanna)

This little brother was a pleasant surprise for Bryson!

And here is our cute little Tre at 14 months old

"Secure your posts, here I come!" (Janice & Tracy)

Current Galway Six - Left to right - Gary and I, Elder Novotny, Elder, Shubin

kneeling - Elder Udell left, Elder Tarbet right, new convert, Bo Wen, in the center.

He was baptized January 10, in Limerick, located an hour away, we have 

no baptismal font here in Galway. He is a super nice young man and is here studying at the University.

These  two cuties are Sister Griffin and Sister Montoya 
from Limerick. They are oh so sweet and silly. We 
love them.

Nataide and Sarah Shafer over for Sunday dinner

Sister Montoya is from Mexico, her Spanish has come in handy as there is a growing number of Spanish speaking people from Mexico, Central and South America in Ireland. Most of them come to learn English. Nataide in the picture above is a member from Mexico and here to learn English. Nataide is such a lovely person and so cute too.

Our sweet Sister Weber on the right and her companion Sister 
Simmons on the left with their new convert, Jovanna. Cierra  is 
having a great experience and seems to be very busy. She says 
they see miracles all the time.

After District meeting we headed to McDonalds for lunch. It is always good craic (good fun) to be with the missionaries. They do keep us young. We marvel how hard they work even when it's pouring rain. A couple of Sunday's ago they rode their bikes to church, when they arrived they were soaked to the bone and dripping. But they are always upbeat and take the weather in stride. Each one is endearing with their little individual  quirks. We get quite a kick out of there antics.

We treat them like our grandkids and they like that. They love the hugs and huge meals we prepare for them too. 

The children seem to be quite involved and having a good ole time making a bigger mess.

There are the Matshazi children - Shiobhan, Shiloh, and Shaquel. Oliver Shafer, Ryan and Annie O'Toole.

                                     The Primary children are preparing for a puppet show. 

                                     Alexis in the above picture and Trisha are helping them 

                                     make paper mache puppet heads. Another week they 

                                     will paint the heads and make cloth bodies. It was a 

                                     fun project for them. 

Love you all

Gary and Karen Weber

Christmas In Galway, Part 2

Dear Family and Friends,

Yea, we can blog again! We have had some technical difficulties getting to our blog site on Google Chrome, after fighting it for weeks, we switched to a different browser and we are back in business.

News of Our Family

Here is the newest member of our family, "Logan Adam Weber," son of Joseph and Tanna. What an adorable little bundle. Born January 13th at 4:39 am. Logan weighed 6lb 4oz and was 19 1/2" in length. He came 3 weeks early.   Surprise I'm here!

This is our newest missionary. Devon Weber,  Ammon and Terie's oldest son.

Devon is on his way to Chile where he will be in the Missionary Training Center for 2 months learning Spanish. Way to go Devon!

Here is our sweet Cierra and her companion.  Cierra will be home in May, just 4 months away. Ammon and Terie are anxious to get this sweet daughter home again.

We are so proud of these grandchildren!

Christmas In Galway

This is an overhead view of the Galway Christmas Market with booths from Europe. It was here for an entire month before Christmas.

Gary and I had a wonderful time roaming the Christmas market picking up souvenirs here and there. We found a nativity from Bethlehem.

A close up of the German Windmill House. Look at the nativity figures in the tower. It was quite amazing. The house below is a bar.

Our Primary children acted out the nativity on the Sunday before Christmas. They thought it was great fun. We have 3 wisemen, an angel, 2 shepherds and Joseph and Mary.

We had the Shafer Family over for dinner on Christmas Day, Cody, Sara and little Oliver. Oliver is playing the part of Joseph in the photo above.

Sara is here at the University working on a Master's degree in mental health advocacy. Cody is a writer and holds down the home front.

Here are 3 very sweet young  women. On the left is Leswa; she is  attending Galway Uni. Emily Pillo in the middle was here for 3 months as a para(nanny). We had a lot of fun with her. Allison  met Emily when she was out in September. Ems is delightful. We love you and miss you Ems! On the right is Nateide from Sao Paulo Brazil. She came to Ireland to learn English. Right now she is working as a para. She is a sweetheart! Nateide stayed with us Christmas Eve and Christmas Day. She is lovely young woman.

Alexis on the left is a new convert as of last July from California.
She is such a cutie. I absolutely love this picture of her and Emily.

In the middle front row is Korrin Cheatwood. She was here for a few weeks working on a dairy farm and then as a para while touring around trying to see everything she possibly could in Ireland. I think she did extremely well. We miss you Korrin! On the back row, left to right is Elders - Shubin from Colo, Novotny - Czech Republic, Campbell - Utah and Dickinson - England.





Gary and I are busy and happy! It seems like there is always something new in the branch to keep us on our toes. Our YSA group is keeps growing. It's fun to be around these energetic young adults and missionaries.

In closing, here is a picture from city center. Gary decided to wait outside while I went inside to shop.

Here is Grandpa sitting on a bench with his 2 friends

We will see you all soon -

Love Mom and Dad, Grandpa and Grandma, Elder and Sister Weber