Draft budget complete and birthday party.

The draft budget for next year finally got turned in 

This week has been hectic getting a draft budget request turned in for next year.  Trying to help someone do something but not actually doing it yourself is a challenge!  We even shopped online and went out shopping for prices for equipment for the shop  and for chest freezers for the cooking area.

Here's a picture of our office.  Besides working on the yearly budget, we also started working on Microsoft Certification tests.  We thought we knew about Word, but we have so much more to learn!  We are hoping to get certified in the MS Office products to help the students become certified.

Award Assembly 

On Monday the school had an award assembly in the large gym area.  It was AWESOME seeing all the students at one time.   All the boys sit on one side, and the girls sit on the other.

Notice that both boys and teachers wear the traditional lavalava.  The men wear the black formal lavalava with a white shirt and the boys wear the school uniform lavalava.   However, EVERYONE wears flipflops-- girls, boys, teachers and principle.  

Birthday Surprise!

Our neighbor, Elder Starke, teaches Seminary.   We thought it would be fun to surprise him with  a balloon hat for his birthday.  It turns out that one of his students shared a birthday with him, so we made her one too.

Eating out  (Oh the variety we have in Apia)

There are actually several places to eat out, many of them Chinese restaurants. And yes, there is a McDonald's, though we aren't desperate enough to eat there yet. The Samoan version of McDonalds is Burger Bill's, which even has a children's playground similar to McDonald's.  

Actually the chocolate shakes were not too bad.

Since there is a lot of fishing in Apia, there are several fish and chips spots.  We had to try Mr. Chippy out, not only because the name was funny, but it was recommended by a fellow missionary.  Most of the fish and chip places use local tuna (either Albacore or Yellow Fin), which is really pretty tasty.

A Little Splurge    

Taumeasina Resort is a man made island housing a large resort and restaurant. Though it's just a few minutes away, it's like leaving Samoa and going to a nice hotel and restaurant in Hawaii.  We splurged on the seafood buffet to celebrate a couple of the Elders' birthdays.  

The hotel has several swimming pools that look out on the ocean.  We felt like we were mingling with the "rich and famous."  A father and daughter were there singing as part of the entertainment. It turns out the daughter and Tyler served in the Olongapo, Philippines mission together (small world!)

The staff sang to the 'birthday boys,' brought them a cake, and coaxed them to dance to the band's music.

Get together with the other Senior Missionaries

There are about 10 senior missionary couples serving here in Apia. Once or twice a month we get together for a fireside or cultural activity.   Our cultural trip to the Clam Reserve got rained out so we had a game night.  The other missionaries taught us Crazy Rummy and Karen taught the group The Great Dalmuti (complete with crown).

Mother's Day 

 This little girl at the market was making Mother's Day leis.  She charmed us into buying one.

We traded in 'The Beast' for Uma (our new Hyundai Tucson)  

This week we traded in our 4X4 Toyota truck with the manual shift for the automatic Hyundai Tucsan, which most other missionary couples drive.  It is much nicer for parking but not as well built as the truck.  We nicknamed the truck 'The Beast' and thought we needed a name for our new ride. We christened her Uma, since this is the sound she makes while backing up.