Caleb's Baptism

Caleb turned eight while in Houston, and was excited to be old enough to get baptized. He decided he wanted to wait a bit longer until we were back in Yaounde in our own church branch.

We planned the baptism for Saturday, June 28 - the last weekend before our good friends Elder and Sister Hanks were to finish their mission and depart Cameroon. We invited close friends from the Embassy community as well as members of the branch.

The service was held in the new chapel. The meeting was conducted in French, with the talks given in English. Sister Hanks played the organ and gave a very nice talk on the covenants of baptism. Then we moved outside to the font, where Jeff baptized Caleb. While Jeff and Caleb changed clothes, Stacey distributed index cards and pens for everyone in attendance to share their feelings or testimonies. We have a wonderful collection of heartfelt thoughts in English and in French that will always remind Caleb of his baptism in Central Africa. The service then continued with a talk by Noah on the Holy Ghost, a song by Elijah, and Caleb bore his testimony. Elder Hanks closed the service with a prayer.

It was a wonderful afternoon, and we were glad to have some dear friends there, including the Ham family (the boys' cub scout buddies), Tad Brown, Mary Namondo, and our (former) housekeepers Odelia and Nelly. Of course all the young Elders were there along with the Hanks and the Hendriksens.

Caleb was confirmed a member of the Church on Sunday, July 6 (exactly 23 years after Stacey's baptism). After the confirmation, Jeff shared his testimony in French, which was nothing short of a miracle!

Caleb says he feels good and wants to keep his promises to the Lord to keep the commandments, be kind and helpful to others, and take the name of Christ. We think he's already a great disciple of Christ.

American Vacation

We have started an entry on our vacation in the U.S. several times, but a combination of bad internet connections and demanding children have kept us from it. So now that it's so late, we'll just say that we had a WONDERFUL time from Tennessee to Texas to Arizona to Colorado with all the Smiths and Bishops and Sabeys. Here are some photo highlights:

Saying goodbye to Mchanga, who is staying with a family in Houston for the summer.

We spent A LOT of time in the car - but managed to have fun!

Smoky Mountains National Park - site of the Smith Family Reunion
All the Smiths (except Matt's family - Beckie was too close to her due date to travel)
Whitewater rafting in Tennessee

Smith cousins having fun

Our junior herpetologists always love finding salamanders in the Smoky Mountains, but finding this Eastern Black Rat Snake was especially exciting!

On our way West, we stopped at an old favorite spot in West Texas - Balmorhea State Park

The Bishop Family Reunion in Arizona

The Bishop cousins had LOTS of fun in the woods around the cabin

We explored Lava Tube Cave near Flagstaff

And, of course, we went to the Grand Canyon - the first time for Stacey and the kids

Elijah saved his cousins from the one-mile drop to the bottom of the canyon!
The Bishops all helped Noah celebrate his tenth birthday

Then we headed north to Colorado

How do you get four kids to get along on vacation?
Keep them in four different states!

Four Corners - CO, UT, NM, AZ

It was wonderful to be back in Colorado!

We enjoyed yurt camping at the Sabey Family Reunion near Colorado Springs

And especially enjoyed meeting the newest Smith - Sheri Anna!

Stacey and Jeff were heading for the horseshoe championship, when Zach Sabey topped Jeff's ringer with two of his own and stole the game!

But Stacey and Katie did go home with the Sabey Cup after winning the Rook championship!

This is only a small portion of the great times we had enjoying our beautiful country and our fabulous families. It was awfully hard to say goodbye again and return to Yaounde, but we're glad to have a few more months to get things together in preparation for the move to Dublin.