DUCKLING UPDATE! We have sighted more baby ducks swimming in the canal. One of the older ducklings has survived. At least it was still here yesterday. Seven of the next batch are still around the condos and Skylar counted nine more in the canal. I am hoping that the mother ducks have decided that it is safer for the babies to live around the cars and under the trees than to stay out in the lake.

We are with Marsha and Duane Basham from Branson, Missouri. We met them several years ago and have enjoyed their friendship so very much. Marsha works the breakfast room at the hotel we stay at in Branson. She and Spud play off each other until our sides are hurting from so much laughter. This was the last picture I was able to take with my Sony. The shutter will not open. I took it to Target to get a tech to fix it, then Best Buy to their geek squad, then to Walmart. No one would touch it. so now I'm in the process of trying to send it to Sony Repair in Texas. In the meantime, I have bought another Sony. There are too many cool pictures to take in South Florida, and I don't want to miss any of them.

This was taken during our visit to the Everglades Nation Park down by Homestead. The gator is about six feet long and perfectly still. They come out of the water and enjoy sleeping in the sun. We are standing about six yards from it. The birds in the park are not a bit frightened of humans and most of them feed on the fish that are in the march. The park has a board walk out over the glades and there are gators sleeping everywhere. The one we got the closest to was only three feet away. When it raised it's head, I thought I was going to faint. Hope to get more pictures today. We are taking jiffy and the group out there again.

I got my account information from Medicare today. The little episode with the eye doctor here cost Medicare $1550.00. What a scam! I am now in the process of having all my medical records sent to the doctor in Boca Raton, who will treat me for the Benign Essential Blepharospasm. The one MD here said I have diabete4s. So I got a blood glucose meter and have tested at 96, 90 and 91. I don't have diabetes. We have been sick since last Wednesday. We think we picked up a bug at Homestead and then after getting rained on, we decided to stay home and try to get better. Dr. Bill called in an order for a Z pak for each of us and we are finaly on the mend. We have three teaching appointments tomorrow afternoon and then Marsha from Branson gets here tomrrow night. So we have to get better so we can go play for two days.

Driving the Turnpike in Florida is constant entertainment. No one signals and if we do they speed up to cut us off. I'm only to glad to let Elder Graff do the driving. This car had it's blinker on until I got ready to take the picture. But we just had a good laugh and went our merry way. This was the trip to Kendall where we got caught in the rain. You can sees the storm clouds building in this picture. And if it turns grey you'd better be ready for sosme rain. We have umbrellas in the car, but can never remenber to take them into the buildings with us. Hopefully this last soaking will teach us a lesson. When the weather man says rain, it will rain. Not like home.

This is the Flagler Chapel. I tried to get close enough for you to see the storm stips that they use to attach the storm shutters when the weather turns wet and ugly. All the windows have them. We have been told to have the young missionaries go through their emergency kits and take out any food items and either eat them if they're still good or throw them away. Then to replace them so that by May we all will be ready for the storm season. We have an emergency kit that was left in the aparmtnet and we still haven't taken inventory yet. Guess we'd better take our own advice and get with the program. It's better to be safe than sorry and we hear if they say move out, you need to go. We got into a rain storm at Kendall Thursday evening and got soaked. Elder Graff is still sick. They must have gotten at least an inch in 20 minutes. What a down pour!

Two of the baby ducks have survived the turkey buzzards so far. We found them in the parking lot next to our mail box. Of course my thumb is in the way. But the little ducks are twice the size they were when they hatched. The pair of parents seem to watch over them pretty good. We fed them french fries yesterday. I have been wondering if they would like puppy chow. There isn't any duck food at Target. But there is rabbit food. Any suggestions?

The trouble with my eyes has been diagnosed as Benign Essential Blepharospasm. "BEB" happens as some ladies get past 60 - 65 and it affects the muscles around the eye socket. So even though I have 20/20 vision with my glasses on, I am still blind because my eyes close involuntarily. I see another Neuro Optomologist on February 2, that was recommended to us by the research center in Beaumont Texas that study BEB. I went to four doctors here, had blood test done and an MRI and the last doctor wants to treat my right eye. I said it is the left eye that is closing, and he said to me" I can't see that". So I called the research centre in Texas and they gave me the name of a specialist here in Boca Raton. The treatment is a series of injections into the muscles around the eye sockets. It is not painful, just very frustrating and annoying. I have found that when I am speaking or singing both of my eyes are open. So when I drove to the store by myself the other day, I sang both ways and did just fine. So I will take cd's with me and "song along with Mitch". Most of you out there are not old enough to remember Mitch Miller. The MRI showed that I have not had a stroke or have any blood clots in the brain, so that is good news.

We will be losing Sister Ramey and Sister Zitting soon. They will be going home and we will miss them very much. Elder Graff and I gave them each one of the "starfish" pins in their birthday cards. These young ladies have made a very big difference in our mission and in the lives of the people that they have brought into the church. These young people beside the sisters are two of the newest investigators that they have brought to the ward. It is amazing to see how confident these young ladies are about bringing Christ into the lives of people in South Florida.

Elder Whipple is our newest ASL missionary. He is the one reading the card of appreciation the young Elders were given. These four young men are assigned to our Hollywood Ward, along with the two Sister missionaries. The ward boundary goes from the Atlantic Shore line to the border of the everglades. So it is long and narrow. Elder Munns is behind Elder Whipple and Elder Cook is on the far left. I can't begin to explain just how much fun it is to work with these young people. But it would be a contest between them and the people we teach. We are looking forward to going back to Homestead tonight to meet with those people again. Tonight we should be able to print out some names for them to take to the temple. That means we have more "starfish" waiting on the shoreline!

Elder Frederick was given the job of lighting the candles and he almost got to close to the helium balloons. This room is just off the kitchen and is a great place to have a party like this. We kept the mess in a non carpeted area. Elder Frederick is also one of the group of young missionaries that we do apartment inspections for. I think that assignment has helped us more with the new members than anything else. These young people are always asking what else they can do for us. Our next inspection in February we will take them some Clorox wipes. They are the best thing I have found to clean up the bathroom. They also help with the mold problem.

It was Sister Ramey's birthday yesterday and Sister Sniffen wanted to give her a surprise birthday party. Sister Zitting was also surprised, because we celebrated her birthday too. These young ladies are our ASL sisters and their group of ASL people were also at the party. We are learning a few words of ASL. It is a lot of fun and they seem to get very excited when we try to speak to them. This is a great ward.

The baby ducks have hatched and
the mother ducks are taking them

to the pond. We had the fun of

watching them for four days and

then the Turkey Buzzards flew in and ate all of the little ducks in our neighborhood. One of the sad sides of life in this area. At home it is the snakes and hawks that eat the little quail. There are several large older ducks that seemed to survive the buzzards, but we haven't seem any more of the little ones.

We took Sister Guzman and Sister Boyd to lunch at Taco Bell after we inspected their apartment. The lady that took this picture for us was with her two little children and while they ate their lunch she was underlining verses in her Bible. Every time I go into the Christian Life Book Store I have to wait to be waited on. There are a lot of people here in south florida that are very Christ oriented. I love seeing what the Christian Life store has on their shelves. It was at their store that I found the wood placque that reads " As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord." It now hangs where the christmas stockings were. These sisters are primarily working with the spanish speaking investigators. But they can teach anyone that is interested.

We had apartment inspections all last week. These are the sisters in the Kendall area. They bake us cookies and seem very glad to see us. We are meeting with one of their converts this week at the Homestead Chapel. They made their Christmas Tree out of fabric and attached it to the

wall. They are changing the decorations now to fit the season. It is a joy to be around these special young ladies. President and Sister Hale are doing their interviews which each of the missionaries in their apartments this month. So Elder Graff and I are the front runners with the "Heads Up and Clean Up" shout. We took 1/2 gallons of Clorox, a spray bottle and a scrub brush to each apartment. The fight against mold is an on going battle. It is the most disgusting stuff I have every encountered. We have to spray the shower wall with clorox water every time we finish showering just to try and keep on top of the beast. When the new senior couple get here the apartments will be split into three groups and we will rotate these groups between the Collins, the Sumerfelds, and us.

Elder and Sister Hogge had us over for Ham and Stuff. They provided the ham and the rest of us brought the Stuff. We took grape salad and french bread with cheese and green onion spread. Then we played "Liar's Club". I got a lot of votes, which was funny, because even when Elder Graff had the real word, nobody thought he was serious. It was a hoot and we all enjoyed "kickin back" and getting away from the stress. It's times like this that help build the bonds of that you hear about in the mission field. I'll close this session with this thought to those out there that may be reading this:

Think very seriously about getting your house in order and ask to help in the mission field. You will never be sorry for the effort. The people out in the world need you and your love to bring them the blessing of the Lord. These young missionaries need you to fill the need that senior missionaries can provide. Get ready and Go! It's beyond great; it's marvelous!

A Red Letter Day for the Graffs! We finally found Krispy Kreme! !

They are sold at Walmart, so we knew they had to have a bakery.I finally got "Precious" to find it on the GPS. I made Elder Graff drive 12 miles out of our way to find it. We ate enough to make us sick and gain another 5 lbs. I can't imagine why "Junkin Donuts" have such a hold on South Florida. They must be owned by someone's brother or such. We sacked and froze the rest of the dozen we bought, but they went to church with us and didn't last through High Priest Meeing.

Gigi took this of us after we got on the bus yesterday morning. You can tell it's still dark out. This bus was from Europe and one of the nicest we have riden in. The driver spent two hours while he was waiting for us to all get out of the temple just washing the windows on the inside and sweeping the floor. He didn't want any of us eating on his bus. He is a very tidy "house keeper". We would rent from him again and again. The video screens fall down from the ceiling in the aisle so no one bumps their head getting into the seats. Gigi calls me Momie and Elder Graff, Uncle Spud. I didn't think I would ever use my "red fuszy" on this adventure. But I am really glad I brought it. Elder Graff likes to keep the aparmtent cold enough to keep milk cool. So I have used the fuzzy a lot.

Firehouse Subs is the all time favorite with both young and old missionaries. Elder Graff got his credit card statement the other day and over half the charges were to Firehouse. We bought 140 rolls last week to serve the young missionaries at the transfer meeting. The young missionaries get transfered every six week. Or at least change companions. There are a few exceptions, which is Key West and the ASL Our "cookie Monster" has been sent to Key West to serve with Elder George. We are looking forward to seeing him again. And yes, we are taking a plate of cookies! This time the gift to the apartments will be a small bottle of Clorox, a spray bottle and a scrub brush. Bathroom Mold is a constant problem here in Florida, becauwse of the humidity. We spray and scrub and spray every day in the shower.

We had to take a picture of this winter visitor's mobile home. We were having our usual "dinner" at Wendy's (when we're on the road, we have very questionable choices of eating places) and

this caught our eye. So Elder Graff parked as close as we could and got this picture before he left. You probably can't read what the mail boxes say. But the top one is for air mail, then email, junk mail, regular mail and taxes and bills at the bottom. Two coolers on top and a drain pipe out the back. It is not for gas fumes! This is probably a real "King of the Road". He seemed to be by himself and down to Florida for the winter. This is in the Homestead area. We are spending a lot of time here lately. There are a lot of people very interested in what we are trying to do. We're happy about that.

This is our new friend Don. He and his family have never written down any of their family history. He is so excited to learn Roots Magic and was fascinated watching it work. Then when I showed him how is use Ancestry.com, he was speechless.

Our next meeting at the Homestead Chapel will be this Tuesday evening, after we get back from Key West. Don called and said he will be there. Hopefully we will have eight people there to teach. It will be a bit of a challenge. We have all levels of computer knowledge and all levels of Family History expertise. I am glad that Roots Magic and New Family Search come with tutorials built in. We also have a training meeting scheduled for next Sunday afternoon and next Tuesday at the Coral Springs Family History Center. The mileage on our car in building!

This is what it's all about! Our day at the Orlando Temple was simply awesome. We were with four of the people that we have taught Family History to. Ted on the left is now a Family History Consultant. Gigi, next, is 17 and is going to be one of our "cheer leaders". She decided that we needed to take twelve to the temple next month, so she got up in young womens and challenged them to make the effort to go. Carol is behind me, she and Ted traded names so all of their names could be done. Then Angela is on the far right. She had no family tree done, so we got to work and prepared four generations on her mother's side and she is getting her son to help her with her father's side. She will be going back next month also. It was an eighteen hour trip, but worth every minute. We had to get up at 2:30 am, got home at 9:00 PM. A LONG bus ride!

The critter control people must like Taco Bell as much as we do.

We see this truck there alot. Hope you can see the stiffed critters that they have decorated the truck with. It definitely caught our eye. so when the racoons start calling or the aligators come visitng, we will know who to call. Sister Hogge says you can hear the gators roaring at night in February. So they must leave the swap and find their way into the canals. There are so many ducks around, that they probably try to have them for dinner. We had to clean up the duck poop off of our sidewalk Thursday. That was a feat. We don't have a hose, so we had to take out pans of water. That's what I get for feeding them left over bread and popcorn.

This little friend is a constant visitor at the trash can in front of the mission office building. He must have a taste for left over hanburgers and tacos. There are plenty of nuts and dates that fall from the trees around the building, but this little guy keeping jumpoing into the trash bin. He kept posing for me, so I had to get the camera out. Then he and one of this friends played chase up and down the tree trunks. If nothing else, it kept me entertained while I waited for Elder Graff to stop telling his stories to the young missionaries.

After working at the St Mary's Soup Kitchen, we went to lunch at this Thai Floating Restaurant. the food was great and it was fun to watch the fish and the seagulls. There were severl boats going out to fish and cruise around the bay. There are several housing projects on the other side of the bay that look like their starting price would be a couple of million. Our hotel is about two limes away along the harbor road.