Monday, November 24, 2014

November 24, 2014

With the holidays coming soon and the decorations all around, I have been feeling a little bit of a yearning for home.  I know that is normal and expected, but it has also made me appreciate this wonderful missionary experience even more.  I know I will have many more Christmases with my family in the future, but for now 
 I treasure the opportunity to be here.

Putting up the tree and other decorations
gave us that "hygglig" cozy and homey feeling.

Service to others is a great opportunity to forget one self and to truly remember what the Savior meant when he said in Matt 16:25:

"For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it." 

These past two weeks, as we have visited with people who are less fortunate than most, we have felt the Holy Spirit again reassuring us that we are in the right place, doing what He wants us to do.  
I can't imagine a better feeling and we're are so grateful. 

This a good friend of ours.  He is homeless
and walks by the church often.  We frequently
invite him in for a hot meal and conversation.
He is a Vietnam veteran and a very nice guy.
Here he joined us for Family Fun Night.


The elders were teaching some of
the kids a fun relay game.

Last Wednesday, a sweet sister in
the branch invited us to an early
Thanksgiving dinner.
Everything was very nice and delicious.    
 
Never a dull moment with these guys. 
Five missionaries in a row waiting to be fed.

Monday, November 10, 2014

November 10, 2014

Monday evening we, and all the other senior missionary couples, attended a special dinner in Frederick with 
Elder and Sister Perkins of the Seventy 
and President and Sister Richards.  
It was a wonderful and fun experience.

 Elder Perkins later spoke to us at a fireside, 
and answered any questions we had. 

The pictures below show all of us bustling around 
getting ready and also enjoying the meal together. 
We had several different soups and stews served in a bread bowl, with a yummy spinach salad and wonderful pies for dessert. 













































On Tuesday we were in meetings all day and received wonderful instruction from our visiting General Authority.

The group picture below is only the east side of the mission.
The west side met during the day on Monday.








All the sister missionaries met with Sister Perkins and 
Sister Richards at the end of the day.  
What a wonderful and sweet experience. 

~~~

Saturday was a special day.  This beautiful lady was baptized and became a member of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints.  We are so happy for her and for us.


Our branch president performed the baptism.







Monday, November 3, 2014

November 3, 2014

Our Halloween week was fun and eventful.  
As always we enjoyed every minute of it.

Elder Lewis is writing the history
of the Brooklyn Park Branch.
This row house in the middle is 

where the members started meeting 
back in early 1993.

We have walked by this beautiful house
many times in the past fourteen months and
have always admired it, wishing we
could peek inside.  One day we were lucky
enough to meet the owners, a lovely elderly
couple who have lived in the house for 57 years and
raised their seven children there. They were
very kind and invited us to come back to visit
and see the house. The following pictures are
from some of the beautiful rooms inside.
Then my camera died and I was so upset that
I couldn't take more!




There were several beautiful
and amazing fireplaces with, as
you can see, magnificent mirrors
above. This is the living room.





The living room from another 
angle with the antique grand piano.

The library and master of the house.

Also the library

Another view of the cozy library

The dining room

another view of the dining room.

The the amazing kitchen window, with a view
to die for, above the table where we were served
pineapple upside down cake and apple cider.



These next three pictures are from
our Halloween party at church.
Moses showed up. He was really 

Gandolf from Lord of the Rings.
Really scary!

Our four young missionaries,
trying to be mummies.