Preparation time...

Any experienced missionary mom knows, and now I know, that

a great deal of time and energy goes into shopping for two years

 worth of clothing and supplies.  Most of that was accomplished

here at home.  Medical supplies, perscriptions, toiletries and

electronics were mostly purchased at Wal Mart by Devin. 

That included his two year supply of Gold Bond medicated powder,

which was mandatory on his list, and interestingly enough,

unavailable to buy in the Philippines! 

Then came the 10 white shirts.  Devin heard about

the best shirt for his mission, available at  Eddie Bauer.

Luckily, we have an in there too, and DeAnn Findlay scoured

the whole Northwest part of the state to keep us informed

when new supplies showed up in Devin's size.

Suits, you say?  Well, sure, for the MTC.  But once you're

in the Philippines, NOT.  The plane ride over and back are the

only times he'll need a jacket over there. 

Some things just begged to be bought in Utah, and

 no missionary will want to miss the experience of shopping

at the Missionary Mall.  It seems so practical.  Grab your list, walk

in the door and just take one of each item as you head down the isle.

It's handy because there are so few decisions to make.

One brand, one size of most items on the list. Easy!

Devin already had all that stuff, but it was still fun

to see it all in one place, ready to go.

Ties, now that's important.  Here at the Missionary Mall

they have a wall of washable ties.  Devin picked up two here.

Speaking of ties, while choosing between green plaid or

green checked, we just happened to meet the missionary

couple who are going to the Cebu mission to run the

Mission office!  They'll be watching for Devin to arrive,

and will be counting on him to help them learn the language.

The biggest shopping challenge, we learned, was shoes.

We checked every store for just the right style and fit.

After all, missionaries spend alot of time on their feet.

And once again, we ran into people who had served

recently in the Philippines and had great suggestions about

the type of shoe he'd want in hot, wet, muddy terrain.

The most fun challenge of all, fit all of that stuff into two

suitcases!  No small feat!