Smiths Falls

When we first got our call to the Canada Toronto East Mission we looked at the various areas where we might be assigned. Smiths Falls was the farthest from the mission home. Though the East and West missions were combined, we have always worked on the east side of the new Canada Toronto Mission. We have always been curious about Smiths Falls and this week we were able to see it for ourselves.

Smiths Falls tapestry 

Monday was spent preparing our Pearl of Great Price class followed by dinner at Mary's. She said her TV wasn't working right (no signal) so Elder Wheeler took all the cables off and reconnected them to see if there were a connection problem. He finally was able to check the TV settings to get the right combinations of source and channel for the cable box (instructions would have helped). At least it was working by the time we left.

Tuesday was our day for Smiths Falls, almost a 3-hour drive east from Trent Hills. The purpose was a senior couple activity for our zone, hosted by Elder and Sister Bosch from Smiths Falls and including Elder and Sister Hutchinson from Brockville.

Water tower

We took a tour of the Heritage House Museum, a restored 19th century house of an early businessman in Smiths Falls.

The Wheelers, Hutchinsons, and Boshes

Heritage House Museum

the old way of "tickling the ivories"

 We then went to the Carss House for lunch which has been restored as the Kilt and Castle, a Scottish restaurant. Elders Bruce and Seabra joined us briefly to say Hi. They have just been assigned to Smiths Falls. We worked with them in Toronto. Elder Seabra is a Portuguese missionary who is in English work at the moment but hopes to get to go back to Portuguese sometime.

Scottish restaurant

We were planning on seeing the Rideau Canal museum which tells about the 19th-century canal system passing through Smiths Falls. It was closed for the season so we all headed home in the afternoon.

We stopped in Perth on the way back to see Code's Mill, which is now holds a restaurant and some small shops. We took a little walk in Stewart Park across the street and encountered Barbara who told us about the history of the park. With our name tags she thought we were from the historical society. We explained what our name tags were for.

Code's Mill in Perth

Inside Code's Mill

Barbara with Sister Wheeler in the park

 We were able to do some shopping on Wednesday. Sister Wheeler needed to get some more thread so that she can work on the table cloths for the nativity display that the branch will put on in December. It gives us a chance to get out among the people in town. We had branch council in the evening. We are down to "last" now,  so next month will be our last branch council.

We spent most of the day Thursday in the family history center helping Mary. Thursday night was our Pearl of Great Price class at the church. The lesson was from Joseph Smith-History - the first vision. We were able to show "The Restoration" video as part of the class.

Friday we had a lot of small business items to catch up on, like calling Bell to arrange for cancelation of TV and internet and calling Deseret Mutual about forms to reenroll in Medicare. They sent the forms to the mission home so we probably wouldn't get them until it is too late. At several of the local fairs Sister Wheeler has noticed several of the women doing hooked rugs (it seems to be quite popular here). It is a skill that came from the Vikings when they came to Canada. She has been looking for a kit to try, but they don't seem to sell them. She met Karen Kaiser who has a studio in Belleville. We made an appointment to visit her on Friday to learn how to make hooked rugs (not latch hook). With a few simple instructions Sister Wheeler was able to pick up the technique like a pro (maybe a slight exaggeration, but Karen was surprised how fast she picked it up).

Karen showing sister Wheeler how to hook a rug

Ever since Sister Wheeler saw two alpaca at the Hastings Waterfront Festival she has thought about the possibility of raising a couple for herself. On Saturday they had an open-house at the farm where Dawn and Melody have a herd of 32 alpaca. We were able to visit and learn about raising alpaca and the six different grades of fleece. It was fun and very informative. Alpaca fleece is 8 times warmer than wool, it is hypoallergenic, and very very soft.

Alpaca herd

Buying alpaca gloves 

 We then went to Brighton for their Apple Festival. We got there later in the afternoon so much of it was closing down. We did take a tour of the 19th-century Proctor House. After that we went to the main street and saw long rows of booths selling food and other items. A rock band was playing full blast. Who ever invented electronic amplifiers anyway?

Proctor house

The blasting band

 Today (Sunday) ends September. As we drive around we see traces of Fall. Leaves are actually turning color instead of turning brown from the lack of water. There is also a nip in the air saying it must be Thanksgiving time (next week). We removed the air conditioner from the kitchen window and can cool off by opening the windows at night. We are looking forward to General Conference next week, even if the first session starts at noon (the life of east-coast living).