11/22/25
On November 21st Todd and I celebrated our 33rd wedding anniversary! It’s hard to believe so many years have gone by. As we look back over our marriage we are amazed at the marvelous work Heavenly Father has done with our lives and the blessings He has seen fit to pour out upon us. The blessings cannot be counted, but the years can! I never would have imagined that we would one day be living and serving the Lord as missionaries in Iceland. It really is a miracle that we are here and it is a blessing in so many ways.
This picture is our engagement photo. We had no clue what was coming for us! Four beautiful daughters, a 33 years as a Church employee for seminaries & institutes, living in three different states and two different countries . . . and all kinds of drama! Through it all, Todd has been my best friend, the love of my life, and my favorite missionary companion. I figure we easily have another 33 years ahead to enjoy and I wonder what those years will bring?!
Here’s a look at how we spent the week celebrating and serving —
We had a busy Sunday, as usual. Todd and I both spoke in the Reykjavik 1st branch sacrament meeting. I spoke about focusing on the most important things in our lives, our relationship with Heavenly Father & Jesus Christ and our relationships with our families. Todd spoke about the importance and blessings of personal scripture study, especially in the Book of Mormon. He shared this amazing quote from Marion G. Romney,
“I feel certain that if, in our homes, parents will read from the Book of Mormon prayerfully and regularly, both by themselves and with their children, the spirit of that great book will come to permeate our homes and all who dwell therein. The spirit of reverence will increase; mutual respect and consideration for each other will grow. The spirit of contention will depart. Parents will counsel their children in greater love and wisdom. Children will be more responsive and submissive to the counsel of their parents. Righteousness will increase. Faith, hope, and charity—the pure love of Christ—will abound in our homes and lives, bringing in their wake peace, joy, and happiness.”
I was so thrilled that Helga would come to church to hear Todd and I speak. She is a great friend and supporter and I love being able to spend time with her.
After church we had a branch potluck. There was a bit of miscommunication about the meal so we had a loaves and fishes kind of miracle. (You can read that story here.) We enjoyed visiting with our friends at church and sharing a meal together.
Two of the newest members of our branch, Prince & Doroth, did all of the dishes! They were happily serving and taking care of everyone.
Sunday evening after church we zoomed into our home ward primary program. Four of our grandchildren were participating and it was fun to see them and many other friends we miss from home. It’s amazing how everyone has grown so much since we have been away.
I was thrilled to get this picture from our daughters. They had a sister chat and took a darling screen shot. I love that they love and support each other. Just in case you’re wonder who is who, top left – Rachel, top right – Erika, middle – Kathryn, bottom – Rebekah.
I chuckled about the picture below on the left. Before institute began Todd and the missionaries were in a deep conversation about something! I was in the kitchen and I’m not sure the topic but they were all very invested in what was being discussed. We love these young elders. Our class went great and the brownies with peanut butter chips were a hit!
It’s that time of year again when we only have a little bit of sunshine each day. On the day this blog is posted, Saturday, there are 5 hours and 48 minutes between sunrise and sunset. However, from our apartment the sunrise and sunset time is much shorter. Soon the sun will not rise above the hill just outside out window. We will have daylight, but not direct sunlight coming into our apartment for several weeks. It is beautiful outside and a good reminder to enjoy all the sunlight we can get. This “sunrise” picture was taken at 12:13 pm.
Of course we’ve had our share of zoom meetings this week too. Don’t we always? When we came on our mission I had no idea how much time we would spend in zoom meetings. I am so grateful for the technology that allows us to meet this way with our friends and missionaries in both Iceland and Denmark.
This meeting is our emotional resilience class for this week. We were learning about managing stress and anxiety. During the class there was an exercise to help with relaxation. Eyes shut, measured breathing, quiet . . . I think they all stayed awake?!
Here is the weekly Iceland missionary district council meeting. The good, hard missionary work in Iceland continues.
Todd has a wonderful lesson on perfection that he has taught to missionaries and FSY groups in many settings. This week we shared that lesson with two sets of sister missionaries in Denmark. Both of these companionships are in our emotional resilience class and they were excited to have some extra companion study time with us. Below you will see L-R: Sister Fergus with Sister Whitt & Sister Beeler with Sister Nelson.
We had our regular TTT mission wide zoom meeting as well. One of the many advantages of facilitating the emotional resilience class is that we are getting to know more of the missionaries in Denmark. It’s fun to see them on the screen in TTT and try to catch their eye and say hello.
Throughout the mission for the last month or so the senior missionaries have been working on updating the apartment 72 hour kits as well as making sure each apartment has a little bit of food storage. Sister Mogenhan & Sister Hutchings have been managing this project and they have done an amazing job. All I have to take care of is our apartment’s supplies. This week I finally sorted through our 72 hour kits and made some updates. I hope we will never have to eat these cans of tuna and protein bars, but if the day ever comes that they are needed, I’m sure we will be glad they are updated. (After all, we do live in a country that is constantly experiencing volcanic eruptions & earthquakes. What could possibly go wrong?!)
We had quite the breakthrough with our cookie drops this week. When we go out to visit and deliver cookies I’ve usually got 6 plates of chocolate crinkles prepped and ready to go. Typically we will deliver three or four of the plates and then find other people to take them to over the next couple of days. This week we left home with six plates of cookies and we were able to share all of them! Four of our stops were to people whose names are on our branch roster, but they are not currently attending. We met one of those members who was at home. At three of the other homes we met a family member, explained who we are and shared cookies and a pass along card with them. Two plates of cookies went to neighbors who we met as we were finding members. One guy had no idea what to make of us, but we hope he enjoyed the cookies. 🙂 It was fun to give out all those chocolate crinkles and pass along cards.
Several weeks ago we found out about a service project for the soup kitchen in downtown Reykjavik. In the past the elders have occasionally volunteered there, helping serve meals. The soup kitchen is moving to a new location and they needed help with their move. We had planned to help them out a couple of weeks ago but at that time they were not ready for 10 people with no construction skills to show up at the new location. We rescheduled for this week. Unfortunately, they were still not ready for 10 people with no construction skills to help them. They are behind schedule in remodeling the space they are moving to, but they still wanted help. So, in the middle of a construction zone we cleaned. 🙂 The elders cleaned and polished kitchen appliances. Todd swept and reswept the floors. I attempted to clean the bathrooms. I don’t know that we made much of a difference in their space. But, they were amazed that so many Americans are living in Iceland sharing the gospel of Jesus Christ. It was worth it to share that example with them.
This week we had another knitting circle at the church. Our numbers are small, but we have a fun time together. I brought the supplies to make paper bag snowflakes as well as work on our knitting. The snowflakes are beautiful and so fun to make, and Helga has me knitting in two colors now, following a pattern! She’s a determined teacher and I don’t want to disappoint her. When I have a picture worth showing I will share it with you!
Here are Karen, Helga, & Agnes with their paper snowflakes to take home.
On our actual anniversary we had a quiet morning at home, went for a drive in the countryside, stopped at the grocery store for delicious food to have for a meal together, and spent the evening at the church in meetings!
Maybe not the most romantic way to spend the day, but it was just right for our needs this year. We enjoyed remembering our wedding day and discussing what things stand out most from that day. It’s surprising the things that we remember. For example, our wedding photographer went to the wrong temple. He was waiting for us to come out after the wedding . . . at the wrong temple. We were outside the temple after our wedding waiting for him to get there. He made it eventually! What do you remember from your wedding day? After all these years the thing that is most memorable is the joy at having found one another and finally being able to start our lives together. This picture isn’t our wedding day but it is our wedding temple! This is the Jordan River Temple in Utah. Our photographer was at the Salt Lake Temple. An easy mistake to make in a state with a lot of temples!
Brother Jens from Denmark was visiting Iceland this week to work with the institute and seminary programs. He held a meeting for the YSA members, brought Dominos pizza, and spent time with them. We were observers in the background and, while there weren’t many who were free to attend, we were glad there was an opportunity for our YSA’s to hear from him.
Our week ended on a quiet note. Todd wasn’t feeling great so we’ve had a quiet day so he could rest. But, no fear, he is on the mend. Maybe he’s just worn out after 33 years of marriage to me?! There is a phrase Todd and I have followed throughout our lives together. “Choose your love; love your choice.” We were blessed to choose each other, and love each other. We will continue to choose and love each other for the next 33 years and for eternity! Thanks for celebrating with us this week. We’ll see you again for another installment of Richardson Mission adventures next week!
You can find more pictures and videos on Todd’s social media pages. You can find him here:
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