Sunday in the Bella Vista Ward

Today we went to church at the Bella Vista ward. It was quite different from the ward we went to last week near the Temple. This ward was comprised almost entirely of Spanish speakers, so obviously, everything was in Spanish.

A pretty church we drove past (Catholic, I think)

The past few days, Emily has been very distraught after getting dressed in the morning, saying that her clothes feel funny. Today was especially bad, and she whined about her clothes all morning, all through sacrament meeting, and into Primary. She didn’t like how it looked when she sat down – her dress bunched up. Hopefully she’ll like what she wears tomorrow.

Our girls are a hit over here, with their blonde hair. After sacrament meeting, Marie was mobbed by loving women of all ages who hugged her, picked her up, kissed her, and left her wondering who all these people were and what they were doing to her.

Neither of the girls wanted to go to Primary. Emily was coaxed by one of the people there, and the girls there were holding her hand and trying to help her, so she stayed. We took Marie to Sunday school with us who just a few minutes into it asked if she could return to primary, which probably looked a lot more fun to her at that point. They both really enjoyed it and came back with handfuls of pictures they had colored.

I talked a bit with the missionaries after the meeting, about Panama, and how the work was going. They said the city is a bit tougher than in the country (and also has more garbage, as we’ve noticed), and the north Americans who live here are pretty mean. But in the country, they get in almost every door. But they love it here, and are teaching some interesting people of many religions. This city is very diverse.

After church we came back and Jen made some macaroni and cheese with chicken in it, for lunch. The girls especially loved that. When Marie heard what Mommy was making, she said, “I didn’t know they had that here! I didn’t know that at all!”

Emily swimming

We took the girls down to the pool for a bit, and Emily enjoyed swimming. Marie was still too afraid to get in the water. I tried to make her once, but she did the same thing she did last time – leaning forward and tucking her head in – so she got more water on her face and just didn’t want another try. We met a nice lady and her son from Guatemala who are here for a wedding.

We came back upstairs and relaxed, took a nap, had leftovers for dinner, and read some family blogs. It looks like the Internet still works up here even though it’s been more than 24 hours since I requested it. Maybe they’ll bill me for two days of use when I check out? Anyway, it’s so much more convenient to have it here in the room.

Tomorrow, we leave for Taboga Island!!