May 5 Afternoon - He's All Ours (Finally!)

We went straight from the terminal to the hotel to put Elder H's well-worn bag away. He took a nice, hot shower and promptly fell asleep for a few hours. We wanted to go to the mall, but knew he had worn himself out in the Lord's service, so we waited for him to wake. We had to talk Elder H into letting us buy him a nice new pair of shoes, and he successfully talked his Dad into getting a nice short haircut -- then we toured around the busy and beautiful city of Guayaquil.








It was nice to see Elder H relaxed every once and a while, but it was also amazing to watch him talk to complete strangers about the gospel...our taxi driver, and this Peruvian man Elder H met in the bathroom!

May 5 Morning - Terminal

Walking into the bus terminal -- a beautiful busy hub with a mall downstairs -- and seeing all the beautiful & handsome missionaries buzzing with excitement, was like walking into Heaven. And there was Elder Heimuli in the middle of them all!








Who knew Napoleon Dynamite (in the center) served a mission in Ecuador?






After spending over an hour with the missionaries who have literally been Elder Heimuli's family for the last 2 years, it's time to drag him out of the terminal and get him into a taxi...not easy for Elder H to say goodbye...


One final stop at the mission office to pick up his tailor-made suit and say some more goodbyes

May 3-4, 2008 - Baptism in Jipijapa, Ruta del Sol

As Jose and Liliana Alvarado drove Dad & Mom into Jipijapa, it was a hot, dusty afternoon. Everything seemed to be the same color...brown. Suddenly, 2 white spots came into view. "There he is!" I (the Mom) said. Elder Heimuli and his companion Elder Peters were quickly walking down the road, probably setting up for the baptism. We stopped to pick them up, and it was SO GREAT to see him.






Last Sunday in Jipijapa










Dad, Mom, Jose & Liliana head back to Guayaquil along the Ruta del Sol...we'll see Elder Heimuli on Monday!