Excellent Fast & Testimony Meeting today. Some of these "kids" share some deep insights and thoughts. Nice to have the Branch President and 1st Counselor back from vacations. Every Fast Sunday ends with a break-the-fast meal in the cultural hall - after the 3 hour block (so 4:00 pm). Today there was quite a spread! The BTF committee plans the main dish and everyone else brings "sides" (salads, desserts, etc.) The wife of the new counselor in the Branch Presidency is a great cook and kitchen person - and helps it all happen. Our 8-year old granddaughter, Kaitlyn, was with us today and helped make the pistachio cookie salad we took. She loved the meal at the church!

Last Monday we rode bikes for the first time since June 15th. We were enjoying it so much we rode for nearly 7 miles before turning back. We stopped and read an informational plaque about "round barns" and saw one off in the distance so rode the bikes to see it. We hadn't heard of round barns before but they were built the last half of the 1800s and the first quarter of the 1900s. Indiana at one time had the largest number of round barns. Along the road to the barn were fields of corn and soybeans. We dismounted and viewed the soybeans up close - and saw those "furry" soybean pods growing on the plants.

We saws these awesome Weeping Willow trees on our Tuesday morning bike ride. Just like last Tuesday, we had a morning rain - but it didn't last long and we were able to get outside. I always expect rain to bring the temperature down conderably - but it often just gets slightly cooler but way more humid! One morning we walked through the large old cemetery. All 5 Ball Brothers, and 5 other people, have large masoleums. There is a special veterans section with white crosses. You can learn interesting things about a place by studying its cemetery.

You should see the midwest rain storms! Saturday evening we had one that was really something! We were driving during part of it and had to pull off the road. It is hard to believe the amount of water that can fall during a storm. The black sky and lightening strikes and deep and crackling thunder are impressive. We feel blessed to be getting rain - to fill the stream beds and water the crops.

Saturday morning was another rain storm but it ended in time for us to walk to the nearby Farmer's Market for some fresh produce. Then we headed to Lafayette and spent the afternoon with Kevin's family at the Columbia park that has a small but nice free zoo. It was 97 degrees! - too hot to enjoy the playground equipment for long. The shaved ice was a welcome treat! Gary taught a good Tuesday lunch lesson from Luke 11, the parable of "the friend at midnight." We had our first experience of getting stood up for a missionary lesson that afternoon! We even had the full time Elders come to meet the man and teach the lesson. During our Thursday lunch we heard from a recently returned missionary president and his wife. President John Chipman used to be in the stake presidency here (then was a stake president in Indianapolis before being an area authority). They shared some wonderful experiences and the joy of living the gospel and serving a mission. Gary taught Institute Thursday night. It was a bit crazy with a student having a panic attack just before class started and friends helping her, etc. Since the lesson was on adversity, all the commotion seemed like a visual aid! Brenda fed homemade clam chowder and corn bread muffins and salad to 9 on Tuesday, taco salad to 10 missionaries on Wednesday, and hot dogs & black bean burgers, fruit and cake to 14 on Thursday. She already has next week's Institute lesson ready to teach.