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Daniel's here...we are so happy to have our oldest grandson come for a visit.  The rest of the Fishers are coming August 28 for a week.

He took the red-eye 1:00 a.m flight out of Salt Lake City Saturday, with a 2-hour layover in Atlanta, GA, arriving here at Noon on Saturday, August 10.    We stopped at one of the many coconut stands that line the highway to/from the airport.

Got to the temple grounds in time to have a tipica lunch at the cafeteria.  Splurged on lunch at $2 a plate.

"Tipica" being rice, beef asado, chincita, fried bananas, tortillas, and flan.   We're taking him for pupusas on Monday morning.

He got his first view of the San Salvador El Salvador Temple from our 2nd floor terrace patio.  It was clouding up, which makes for easier picture taking of people.
Daniel said he'd gotten a little sleep on the flight, but when we told him to try to rest for a while he slept for 4 1/2 hours.  He was more tired than he realized.

        

 "Beautiful," he said.

While Daniel was sleeping, we got the apple pies baked.  Walt always peels the apples...14 of them and has them cut and ready while I'm making the crust.

We also cooked some hamburger soup...Walt peeling all the potatoes, carrots, chopping cabbage, celery, and onions.  And I mixed a small batch of bread to make scones, cinnamon rolls, and two loaves of bread.

When Walt went in to wake Daniel up at 7:30 for supper, he asked: "What time is it?"
I thought I'd fried way too many scones....but only had three left on the plate after supper.  And they still had room for the hot apple pie with ice cream.

After supper I put together the Lasagna for Sunday dinner.

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After the 9:00-Noon Sacrament Meeting, Sunday School, Priesthood, and Relief Society, we served dinner to 9 in our apartment.
Haroldsen's brought broccoli salad, Clark's the garlic bread, and Utt's did the dessert of strawberry short cake. 

We couldn't have it as leisurely as usual because we had to leave at 1:30 for a fireside we were asked to speak at in Sonsonate - an hour away. Left to right: Elder y Hna. Clark, Elder y Hna. Haroldsen, President Petersen (trying to stand on tip toe to be taller than his grandson), Daniel Fisher (still taller than his grandfather without standing on his toes), and Elder y Hna. Utt--the Perpetual Education Fund missionaries.

President Majano drove us in the temple president's van to Sonsonate, and then he and Hna. Majano drove over to Sonzacate to give a fireside there (a close sister city).
  Here are Walt and Daniel with the Sonsonate Stake Presidency after the hour-and-a-half fireside.  President Enriquez spoke after Walt and I did.

  The Majanos rendezvoused with us after our and their fireside speeches, and we headed back to San Salvador.

We drove by the stake center again after President Majano got lost trying to get back onto the main road.
    Hna. Majano said: "See, even the local Salvadorians get lost." (Referring to the day before when Walt got lost on the way to the airport--his first time driving alone without a local person.  But we were only "lost" for 30 seconds, and just had to turn back onto the road we'd been on.)

I glanced at the car clock as we were leaving: 5:15p.m.
I couldn't believe that as we were waiting at the security guard house for the gate to open into the temple grounds it was 6:15!
They told us it was an hour drive....but I didn't know it would be that exact.
    The Majanos, Walt, and Daniel.

Did we mention we're very happy to have our oldest grandson, Daniel, with us?

Snatches of our fireside messages...
    I shared about my Mother's passing away but that I am so happy for her to be young again in her prime of life, being able to see, hear, remember, run, and laugh.   And that because of her receiving her temple endowment and being sealed to my father, she was able to be reunited with her eternal sweetheart after being a widow for 31 years.   (Julie has some great photos on her blog as a "Tribute to Grama" ... you can go to it from our blog.)
     I shared these two quotes:

"The temple endowment relates the story of man's eternal journey;

            sets the conditions upon which progress in the eternal worlds depends;

            requires covenants or agreements of those participating to accept and use

            the laws of progress; gives tests by which our willingness and fitness for

            righteousness may be known, and finally points out the ultimate destiny of

            those who love truth and live by it."                  -- Elder John A. Widstoe

                                                                       

            President Harold B. Lee adds this dimension to our understanding of the endowment:  "The temple ceremonies are designed by a wise Heavenly Father who has revealed them to us in these last days as a guide and protection throughout our lives that you and I might not fail of an exaltation in the Celestial kingdom where God and Christ dwell."  --Through Temple Doors, John K. Edmunds, p. 141--Harold B. Lee, Decisions for Successful Living

                                                             (Salt Lake City: Deseret Book Co., 1978), p. 141. I
I also shared that each time I go to the temple, I learn something new, and assured them that they could too.

One of the things Walt shared at the fireside was that when we were first married we lived in St. Louis, then Minneapolis, then Oklahoma far from any temple.  When we moved to Burley, Idaho, there were 4 temples within 2 1/2 hours and we thought we'd be going to the temple often.  One month, two months....up to five months passed and we hadn't been to the temple.  Some friends (The Edlefsens) invited us to go to the temple with them.  They said they found if they set a goal of a specific day each month to go to the temple, that worked best for them.
     So we set a goal to go the 3rd Thursday of every month.  From then on we went to the temple each month.
     President Gordon B. Hinckley said: "I know your lives are busy.  I know that you have much to do.  But I make you a promise that if you will go to the House of the Lord, you will be blessed; life will be better for you."
      We leave our testimony that The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints has been restored to the earth by Heavenly Father and His Son Jesus Christ through the Prophet Joseph Smith. The Book of Mormon is Another Testament of Jesus Christ.  Thomas S. Monson is the Prophet of God now. Priesthood temple ordinances have been returned to the earth.  Families are forever!
       Walter Ray Petersen and Eileen Albertson Petersen
          Hope you have had a restful and peaceful Sabbath Day.