Jim & Jolene Paxman in Nauvoo

Sunday, Aug. 25, 2019 Where has August gone? Time is slipping away so quickly...I can't believe that August / summer is nearly gone.  The weather has cooled down the last couple of days and I am starting to see color changes in the leaves along the river road.  I always hate to see summer end! Although, I love the peaceful autumn days and the color changes....so...morale of the story....enjoy each and every moments of each day. Elder / Sister Warner receiving their flag from Jordan. She took care of all of the mail delivery, etc. for the mission and he worked in the general construction area Elder / Sister Corder receiving their flag from Jordan.  She was the front desk secretary for FM and he did masonry work The face of FM is changing with the departure of these fine missionaries.  One thing I know, they are good friends that we would never have met without coming here.  Each couple has faced and overcome opposition in many forms to serve an...

We stopped in Carthage on our way home today.  I love this place!  The flowers & plants are spectacular AND the spirit is so strong Sunday, Aug. 18, 2019 Each week just get better ! The weeks are just flying by and I can't believe that Sunday has rolled around again.  I am very grateful to go and renew my covenants each week and receive the strength and upliftment from doing so.  This quote was on the front of our ward bulletin and I really like it:   We had a surprise visit from Linda & Stuart Fairbanks (Raymond) on Monday afternoon.  They were on their way home from Boston, Massachusetts (family reunion) and they swung down to Nauvoo.  We spent the later afternoon and evening with them and REALLY enjoyed their visit. We tried to show them as much as possible in a few quick hours! Hope that they got home safe & sound !   My first attempt at a "selfie"....I need a longer arm...haha! This week, we ...

Sunday, Aug. 11, 2019 A week to put in the journal! What a week !  I can't wait to tell to all about it!   We are zone leaders over several districts of young sister missionaries.  We were contacted by one companionship and asked to take them for a dinner appointment to someone that they had contact with at Pageant.  After getting the approval from our mission president, they were excited to meet with Kent, his brother, Mark, and sister, Julie Johnson.  They lived about 10 miles south of Quincy along the river.  When we arrived, we see this beautiful, old farm house and barn with an immaculate yard and garden.  Kent and Mark live in their childhood home while Julie has her own home a few miles away.  Julie brought their childhood family friend (Carol) along as well.  Jim and I were actually abit apprehensive (thinking that it may well be a setup for a Bible bashing session against us) but it turned out to be wonderful.  The...

Sunday, Aug. 4, 2019 Visitors and Nauvoo We have had a fun week of visitors.  On Monday, we learned that Reed & Emma Turner from Raymond were on their way.  Helen Campbell told us that they were staying at her loft apartment and that she had attended school with Reed.  We had an assignment for "Priesthood Presence" on the flats from 5:30 - 6:30 on Monday evening and the first people we ran into were the Turners.  Fun visit! We were able to have a couple more quick visits with them before they left.   I'll explain what "Priesthood Presence" is.  All of the assignments for the senior site missionaries ends at 5:30 but Pres. Lusvardi has decided that the sites need to stay open until 6:30 so the Young Single Sisters manage to do that. Because of them being alone, there is a need for priesthood support and back-up if a problem develops.  Therefore, we head to the Visitor's Center and pick up a designated cellphone that the sisters can call if they...