{RM}

I went to Lewiston this last weekend to welcome home my baby brother from his mission. He has served in the Fiji Suva mission for the last two years. It doesn't seem like it has been two years already. I was big-fat pregnant with Wyatt when he left. Time sure is cruising. Anyway, his flight got in at 10pm Thursday night and with the airport in Lewiston being so small, our large family took over the place. You would have thought that Austin was the only person on that flight. I think there were maybe a handful of other people there waiting for the other passengers. He was basically on the plane for almost 24hrs straight and was exhausted but he humored us with hugs and smiles all around.
My mom would have made any offensive tackle proud by the way she bolted through anyone in front of her to get to her missionary first. And if you know my mom you know that isn't typical for her but I don't blame her one bit. I would have done the same thing!!
My Dad was happy to see his youngest home as well.
And then he was attacked by a gang of children. To say the least he was a little shell shocked. He kept looking around like he couldn't believe that he was really home. We are so glad he is home with us now. We spent the weekend soaking him up. He shared a lot about the people and culture of Fiji, what life was like for him there and how the missionary work was. He spoke yesterday in church and bore a simple yet powerful testimony of being obedient. There are wonderful blessings to be had by being obedient. We had so much fun with him. My kids loved all the gifts that he brought home for them. Ayden and the some of the other nephews got LavaLavas. LavaLavas are a traditional skirt that the men in Fiji wear. Austin was allowed to wear these on his mission as well. The one that Ayden is wearing is a dress Lava Lava, he and the other boys who got them wore them to Church on Sunday just like their Uncle Austin. They were pretty excited about it, but Ayden was a little hesitant about wearing it at first because he wasn't sure how to not show his underwear. After a quick tutorial from Uncle Austin he felt confident that he could wear it and still be modest. Normally for church and especially the missionaries, they would wear white shirts, ties and sandals with the Lava lavas. Ayden didn't have sandals so he wore his socks and shoes. I am excited to watch Austin as he readjusts to normal life here in the good 'ole US of A. I already gave him some pointers about approaching girls and what not to say to them because Fijian culture is sooooo very different from ours and I don't want him to scare off all the girls. So hopefully the tips I gave him will prove useful. I am so proud of him and I soo glad he is home!!!