Christmas Morning

Christmas morning we were excited to open our packages from home but waited until we were skyping our family to open the ones from them. Thanks to Sue, Gloria and Gay for sending their thoughtful gifts to us. We shall be using and wearing them. See if you can spot them in our photo below. We also received many cards from our family and friends, thank you for thinking of us. These are all the gift we received from home and our friends over here. We feel very loved.

Happy Christmas

I was so looking forward to spending Christmas on the Beach sunbathing but it was cloudy and windy. Never mind we still went to Raglan beach and ate Maltesers in the car. But on our way there we had to go through the land of the giants. Checkout these giant marshmallow!!! 

Christmas Cheer

On Christmas Eve Elder Saunders and I delivered the Christmas packages we had for the missionaries in Tauranga and Rotorua. These Zone Leader had so much fun with Elder Saunders. I'll try to post the video later.

VC Lights

 

On Tuesday Elder Saunders and I helped out at the Christmas lights at the Visitors Centre. We arrived about 7pm and left about 11pm. What a beautify night it was. Both the weather and spiritually. Over 4,400 people came to se the lights and 500 actually went into the visitors centre to participate in the tour. I was given the assignment of counting the people as they entered the VC. Wow that was so special getting to talk to all those people. I had a clicker counter so didn't have to remember any numbers in my head. These beautiful sisters above are actually assigned Visitor Centre Sisters and they have worked every night since 13th the December until 31st December. So quickly book your flights and you should arrive in time for the last night. Sister Thalaman the middle sister on the right hand picture have the most amazing voice. If I can get permission I will put on our blog the lovely song she sang at the Christmas Conference.

The sister below is Sister Morrison who we served with in the London Temple. It was so special to see her. Apparently she had been looking for us the past few day so she was thrilled to find us.

The Nativity

 

The Nativity Cast List

The Angel blowing her trumpet      Lilly

Baby Jesus                                           Bella

Mary                                                          Sophia

Joseph                                                                 Nathan

Wise (Wo)men                                         Nikki, Lesley and Ga

Shepherds                                                         CeeJay and Graham

Special guest appearance as the Donkey                      Zebra the Giraffe

 

 

 

You're have a giraffe (laugh)

 

Not quite sure if the world is ready for this but this is a special post for Sophia who is looking after Grandma's 'Zebra the Giraffe' while she is away. Now grandma has a 'Zebra the Giraffe' with her in New Zealand.

 



Whole Mission Christmas Conference

This conference was amazing. The planning and logistics of it must have been a lot of hard work. There was a least 280 people there mostly missionaries. The venue was Tuhikaramea Camp, which is where Elder and Sister Witts are camp managers. They have worked so hard to get the camp ready to open officially on the 7^th January and I do believe they have the ok to do so. Now back to the conference. We were all split into 6 groups and went to different workstations. Like I said before the planning was a lot of hard work and the Assistant to the President did that marvellously. Elder Saunders and I were in the blue group but Elder Saunders actually stayed and helped out the Witts with setting up the Porto Loos. But me well I was like a  big kid going around with the other big kid missionaries. Check out these photos and see what fun we had.

Floating Elders!

 

Just the start of our team building experiences it was so funny to watch.

 

 Our group worked as a great team in accomplishing this task. I am hiding at the back!

A group of beautiful posing Sisters. I copied this idea from a baptismal picture where they were all standing with their hands on their hips and I thought it look effective.

Temple Christmas Lights

Saturday was the first night of this Family Celebration of the birth of Christ. Elder Saunders and I went as visitors as compared to us helping them out next Wednesday then the following Tuesday. The choir was beautiful I hope I can post some of the music, if not please take my word for it. There are so many lights around the visitors centre and also displays. It is at times like this that I need my family and friends around me to share in the atmosphere. After meeting up with our close friends the Witts we walked to a few houses nearby to see their lights. After we said bye to them we drove the same route and then a little bit further. What a discovery, one whole neighbourhood had not only decorated their houses but had set up stalls outside and were welcoming us all to stop for a lolly or sausage sizzle. One house had popcorn and seats to watch a movie on a large screen outside of their house.

This is the front of the Temple

This is the entrance to Temple drive

 A house nearby

   Another house nearby

 The Mission President's house 

Missionary Experiences

 I guess as we are on a mission I should share our missionary experiences with you. Saturday 6^th December in the evening we were determined to spend some time walking along the beach at Gisborne. So after picking up a few sea shell (“not another shell, you cannot take them home you know” ”Yes Elder Saunders I know”) Anyway after pick up another shell for my collection we were stopped by a man!!!!!! He asked who we were and said that we were special and stood out from other people. Thinking that we were going to get a load of abuse he just chatted to us for about an hour and was very complementary. He said he would come to church with us the following day. Which he did, wow! There is a bigger story there but I really do not want to go into that as I would sound very hmm how should I put it, judgmental, even if it was a funny story. Now I’ve got you all thinking, well maybe sometime I will share it with you but for now it’s a mystery. Ha ha ha.

This past Saturday (13^th) we were up very early and out shopping for more missionary supplies before we went into town to skype with Chelle.  By the way A BIG CONGRATUALIONS to CHELLE who is now a university graduate, well done Chelle. We didn’t even have breakfast so by about 12.30 we were hungry and still needed to by our grocery shopping. So Elder Saunders said he would take me to Carl’s Jr my favourite real ice cream Oreo milk shake place, which I am sure I have mentioned before and will mention again. But for some reason I said no, let’s just pop into Burger King. No said Elder S, no BK said I. So I won as we were just standing right outside BK. Just as I had placed my order a stranger said hello to us and said he would like to buy us lunch. WOW! He explained that he had not been to church in a while and was very sad about it. His job takes him away from home a lot, he is a furniture removal man. So along with his fellow worker, who was also a less active member we had a lovely chatty lunch together.

East Coast Sunshine

 

More pictures to make you jealous. Last weekend we went down to Gisborne again. One of the missionaries flats is overlooking the beautiful bay at Tokomaru. It’s there that I recorded the Tui bird but didn’t have a good enough picture to post Apparently the Tui bird is a brilliant mimic so a bit like the ‘MockingJay’. But I did take this photo of a Kingfisher sitting on a telephone wire.

Christmas Misson Conference Preparations

O boy! what a week it has been getting prepared for this amazing get together. All of the missionaries in the Hamilton Mission are meeting at Camp Tuhikaramea next Tuesday 16^th December. For those of you from Reading Stake that is where Elder and Sister Witts are serving as camp managers. I think my week of organisation has been hard but Elder and Sister Witts are working overtime to get the camp ready for opening. I’m sure us coming then is adding extra stress to their lives. But for those of you who know the Witts they are amazing and can perform miracles. I’m sure I will be adding lots of photos of that day. So why have I been so busy. In the office we had to put together a booklet for each missionary, basically a year book of all the missionaries serving in our mission this Christmas. Sister Marsden who is the other sister missionary in the office (along with her husband) sorted out all the photos. Some of them were done before but they all needed adjusting for one reason or other. She printed them out and I helped bind the books together, only 280. I also created a Christmas card for all the missionaries from the Mission Office Couples just four of us. And I’m quite pleased with myself to be honest. Just a sneak preview for you but don’t show any missionaries from the Hamilton mission.
This is a photo I took at the Temple  Visitors Centre this week.

As we share the message of

‘He is the Gift’ with those around us this season we pray that you will find the

Joy of the gospel in your lives.

Best wishes from the Mission Office 

Elder Sister Marsden 

Elder and Sister Saunders

 

The card is not set out like this but it is the only way I can seem to post it

We Still Here

I can’t believe that it has been two weeks since I’ve posted anything. Shame on me because that means that I have not written anything in my personal journal as well. Obviously I don’t put all the personal things that happen to us on our blog but it is my main record for recording what we are doing on our mission. So what have we been up to the past two weeks? The first week I was very busy in the office trying to get all the baptisms recorded onto the church system which will then give the new members their membership record number. At the beginning of the week I had 21 outstanding records which I had not received so I had to make lots of phone calls to the missionaries to ask where the records were. After lots and lots more phone calls and getting all the information I needed I was just left with 4 on Monday. More phone calls, sigh, but finally all information was entered and all the baptisms were entered and accepted for the month of November. Hurrah! It may seem like little things please little people, but actually I consider baptisms an amazing part of my mission. I also love receiving the photos of the new members just before or just after their baptisms. I put together the monthly mission newsletter and I include all the photos that are sent to me. Thankfully I do not have to put in my own message just organize other peoples messages.

Hoe Hoe Hoe

Hoe Hoe Hoe No No No!

Is this Plymouth Hoe, no! But it is New Plymouth sea front. Also it was New Plymouth’s Christmas carnival some very good floats. Loved the concluding float.

Exercise Time

Elder Mitchell doing his daily exercises cheered on by Sister Baird. It is such fun to be with these missionaries, during the spiritual times and well as the not so spiritual.

 

Climg Every Mountain

 

On our way back from Mania to New Plymouth we decided to go as far as we could up the mountain, driving that is. We made it half way up before the height got to me and we had to come back down again. Next time Elder Saunders is going to go up on his own. I can deal with that.