I got to go to Vancouver to visit my parents on their mission while Chris and his sister Jessica stayed with our kids. I had a wonderful time seeing the city, and especially visiting with my parents. It was an amazing experience being able to visit them while they are on their mission. There is nothing like seeing your parents totally focused on their mission and seeing what a wonderful relationship they have. I wish I could have stayed longer.
They drove me all around and showed me so many things. On "Number 5 Road" (seriously, that is the name), there are several temples which are beautiful and huge. We got to go into a Buddhist temple (not this one). The grounds were so neat and there were statues all over. It was very impressive, but definitely not the same feeling as an LDS temple.
This is the former mission home that the church has since sold. My understanding is that it is huge and has an entire ballroom inside.
My parents apartment is pretty small (compared to their home), but they are perfectly content. My favorite part was when they decided to watch a movie from Netflix. They have to put the computer in front of them and use earphones. I was cracking up! It's quite a stretch from their usual big screen.
We went into the mission office and I got to help my mom by typing up some things including some baptism reports. It was neat to see the things that she usually does and to see both of them interacting with the missionaries in the office. Those missionaries are sure lucky to have them there!
My mom at her desk.
We went out to White Rock and saw the beautiful homes and the ocean. On our way out, we encountered this San Francisco style street. I told my dad that we needed to go up it-kind of like a free amusement park ride. He decided to up the ante by pretending that we were stopped (our gas light was on). I about had a heart attack. The street is ridiculously steep and the road was slippery and wet. I was screaming which just egged him on. We had to go down and back up again and he loved every minute of it. Free entertainment!
Vancouver has a beautiful area called Stanley Park. It is huge and filled with amazing trees and beaches. Unfortunately, it was raining and we didn't break out our swimming suits (as if), but it was fun to see everything. These are the totems in the park recognizing First Nation and the first inhabitants of North America.
Dad and I in our matching hats.
Out at White Rock-I loved seeing the ocean, even if it was a little chilly. My dad ran back in the car after our picture.
I had such a great time and will cherish the memories that I have of my missionary parents.
