"Don't cry for me, Argentina!"

Yep, Elder Dallin Demke has been called to serve in the Rosario, Argentina mission! We are so excited for him and so proud of him! He will report to the MTC on Wednesday, December 3, and his farewell will be the Sunday before, which is the Sunday after Thanksgiving. Kaia is so excited that she likes to remind me (every so often:) "Dallin is going to Argentina, and he is going to speak in Spanish, and I have to speak Spanish to him, and we are going to write him letters!" Yes, Kaia, that's true!

Last weekend was General Conference, one of my favorite weekends of the year, and on Saturday afternoon, Sister Dalton (YW Gen. Pres.) spoke about being prepared. It was one of those talks that truly inspired me and I can't get this quote out of my head: "The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare!" --This is my new mantra: I remind myself of these words throughout the day, and have felt renewed energy as I "prepare" for the different aspects of my day as well as our long term goals as a family, the most important being returning to our Heavenly Father. I've found these words apply to so many aspects of my life: motherhood, wife-hood, homemaker, my calling, other pursuits . . . the list could go on and on from small daily goals to the really big ones . . .

So, these are my words to Dallin, who has prepared his whole life for this noble and most rewarding two years--with these precious 2 months ahead of him to fully concentrate on his beautiful task at hand; to truly prepare for life as a missionary and to wholly and unselfishly serve the Lord for the next 2 years: "The will to win is nothing without the will to prepare!" and (also from General Conference--Elder Oswald of the Sunday School Presidency, regarding teaching) "know them by name, teach from the scriptures, and ponder, using your head and your heart to invite personal revelation"--I know you'll be great! I love you, Dallin!