Original MTC Group

November 2013 Zone Conference

Gainsville Area

Cambodian Christmas Meal

We had a really great Christmas! I can't stop thinking about that Cambodian food. You never had egg rolls until you've had Sister Son's egg rolls! The noodles and stuff were so good! They were unusually spicy for my taste, so I don't know why I can't stop thinking about it. So good!! We did a lot of Christmas Caroling! MAN does that soften hearts and open doors. I don't think anyone does it down here. We caroled to a referral, and they let all of us in (which was our whole district so there was around 16 missionaries). They said that the whole time they had been married, 30 years, they never had carolers! They told us to come back anytime we wanted! We also made another lady cry. I felt good about that. We got several more potentials from it as well. This week we got an unusual amount of investigators. Six! They are just coming out of the woodwork! The Lord is certainly leading us to those who's hearts have been softened. 

Yummy noodles!

Skype at noon Christmas Day.

Florida in December

Normandy District December 2013

There's an older woman in the ward who is a lot like Momma Odie in Princess and the Frog (that movie describes the South so well). She was a preacher in her previous church and was baptized two years ago. Her name is Sister M. She's not blind, but one of her eyes kind of goes off to the side and, like a lot of people here, has several teeth missing. She's probably one of my most favorite people I've met on my mission!! Anyway... in gospel principles class we were talking about how God knows and sees all... the teacher related a little joke: A robber who broke into a house. There was a parrot warned him that Jesus was watching him. When he turned on the light there was a huge doberman named "Jesus" just a few feet away! This reminded Sister M of an experience she had. There was a cat that she didn't like that kept sneaking into their house. One day she found it in the kitchen and she had had it. She buried it alive out in the backyard. It took several minutes to get back on track to the lesson, but it will be one I will never forget!

Florida Spring 2013

Summer 2013

In Memory of my Mother

Venice Maxwell Whitney Child

January 1955

Bruce and Venice

My baby brother Ward.

My brother Mark with mom in our yard in Council Bluffs, Iowa.

Mom was an excellent seamstress. When she wasn’t teaching school she liked to sew all my clothes during the summer breaks. She sewed most of my dresses for dances and my entire wardrobe for my mission including bathrobe and nightgown.

Here we are in front of the Osmond Studios in Orem, Utah with one of the oldest Osmond’s a few days before I entered the MTC.  While we were touring Mr. Osmond asked us in part English and sign language if we would like to take a picture with him.

The three piece rust polyester suit.

Mom and I were in a musical church play together about Mormon Immigrants who moved to Utah during the 1800’s.  Mom played my Swedish mother and dyed her hair blond. She liked the color so well that she decided to keep the same color after the performance.

Mom married Brandt Child 1985

They retired to Kanab, Utah where we liked to visit a lot.

Julz and Jess with grandma 2000.

Mom passed away from bone cancer August 23, 2005.

She was 69.

I miss her.

Memoir from Me

It's Christmas Eve and I got all the presents wrapped around 10:00 pm.  I really thought I would be up until midnight, but these last few years I've been able to get everything done at an agreeable time.

Today was a beautiful clear day and I attended a funeral up at one of the older Grandview chapels.  I had never been in this particular chapel before, and I was impressed by the beautiful woodwork and large windows. Since the funeral or memoriam was around 11:00 am the sun light was shining through and there were no electrical lights that needed to be used. It almost felt like we were in a church some where in Europe with beautiful flower arrangements everywhere.  Emily Harrison was buried yesterday and her family had a service for her today.  I cried during almost all of the talks because this wonderful woman has touched so many lives.

Sister Harrison was my Relief Society President when I had just moved to Provo, Utah as a new bride. My first calling in the ward was taking a cassette tape of the Sunday RS lesson around to all the elderly women in the ward who couldn't get out of their homes very often.  One of the women was Sister Harrison's mother in-law.  I grew to love my calling because these women became my first friends in a place where I had no family.

I knew Emily grew up in Finland because she had such a beautiful accent and loved to talk about her homeland.  I didn't know that she started going to the Mormon church at the age of sixteen.  Her parents wouldn't let her get baptized so when she turned eighteen she secretly got baptized on Christmas Eve. Her parents found a picture of her baptism inside her bible. When Emily got home from school the day they found the picture all of her belongings were packed in suitcases and put outside in front of her home.  Fortunately her grandmother took her in and when her aunt won the lottery in Finland she gave some of the money to Emily so she could travel to Provo, Utah and attend BYU.

Maybe that's why Vuokko Emily Harrison was filled with so much love and compassion.  She had lost everything at a young age but came to Utah and married a returned missionary who had served in Finland while Emily was attending BYU. Emily and Harlan had nine children and I am so grateful to have been able to have associated with the Harrison family for the first six years of my life in Provo.  I felt so much love from the Harrison's that I wanted to be like them.

Today one of the speakers said that Emily told her once that a good marriage isn't from compromising but having the gift of giving.  Someone in the marriage has to give and give and give.

Underneath Emily's picture on today's program it read: Christmas Eve in Finland, families go to the cemetery and place candles on the graves of loved ones to light the dark Finnish winter night.  Emily has done the same with her children for 46 years.  Tonight they placed their first candle on her grave.

Sister Florida

Hey Family,

This second week in Normandy has been pretty fun! Especially now that I'm feeling better. We figured out that it was the car's driving wheel that got me sick so quickly. The weather here is more bi-polar than it is in Utah. One day it decided to be 40 degrees, the next day it's 90 degrees, the next day there's so much fog you can't see a thing... crazy. I don't get it. One second you need a coat, the next you need shorts. I'm really starting to miss all the trees in Gainesville. Jacksonville is more what I pictured Florida to be like, but I miss my trees. The sky is too open here.

Thursday we had interviews with President. Mostly he just asked me how my family was.... how my companionship is going.... looked at my planner.... said to keep doing what I was doing and stay happy. It was pretty quick.

Sister Florida

Hello my beloved family!
This was a really crazy week.

Thanksgiving was really fun! We ate with a family from the ward for lunch.  Then biked to a another family for "dinner". It was way too much food for Sister Martinez to handle and she wasn’t feeling very good for a solid day.

We are in a "Car Share" with the other sisters in the Normandy ward. Sister Heckel (who was once companions with Sister Crowton!!) and Sister Orton (who came out with me in the MTC!!). The Burnett family gave us two bikes that we could use, and the Spanish Elders here gave us helmets. All we have to get are lights to attach to them. Normandy split into thirds, biking every other day isn't that bad! I'm so glad this didn't happen in the middle of the summer.

Memoir from Me "Pumpkin Pie"

For as long as I can remember I have never been able to eat very much pumpkin pie.  I don’t know why, it’s just one of those desserts I’ve never really liked.  One of my daughter's also does not like pumpkin pie so I know she takes after me.  This year for Thanksgiving I decided to buy only one kind of a dessert, and yes it was pumpkin pie.  I even purchased two of them at Sam’s club.  This way I knew I would not have to stress over sweet consumption.

For the first time we went out to eat at the Marriott Hotel Thanksgiving Buffet.  My dear friend Pam came along and we were excited to try a new experience.  The food was great and I totally ignored the dessert table. Although there was a classical guitarist who sat next to the table of many sweets. He made the atmosphere very relaxing and played one of GW’s favorite songs “Classical Gas”. It was nice tasting different foods and we were able to get new ideas on how we might prepare the big feast next year.  The gravy was made with corn starch which had a different taste, but very good.  I didn’t even eat the mashed potatoes because the yams had pecans in them and they were very fluffy and light.  Everyone liked the cooked shrimp best with a great cocktail sauce.  In all, going out to eat was nice since I didn’t have to work as hard, but the cost was a bit pricey.

Thanksgiving night we had more friends over for cold cuts, rolls, fruit salad and pie.  It didn’t take very long for me to prepare since I had baked a turkey the day before.  I had also purchased a new game called “Wits and Wagers”.  I like to listen to talk radio stations and Dave Ramsey had recommended the game.  I’m happy to say the game was a success! I think those are my favorite memories, sitting around a table playing fun uplifting board games. Other games we like to play when we have company over are: Apples to Apples, The Worst Case Scenario, Would You Rather, Yahtzee and Fact or Crap. There have been nights while playing games we have been able to wear off a few calories because of episodes of laughter.

This year I didn’t feel stuffed from consumption of food since fruit and chocolate covered almonds was my dessert. That is why I like pumpkin pie.  It fills family and friends up and you don’t even have to think about it.

Sister Florida

Hey Family!

So... I've been transferred to a place in Jacksonville called Normandy. It's on the West Side of St. John's River in the JAX West Zone. I'll leave tomorrow. Three days before Mrs. S's baptism. Dang. My new companions name is Sister Martinez. I've never met her. Jacksonville is about a two hour drive away so I don't think I'll be able to get permission to go to the baptism. Maybe I'll get permission to call. I now have a huge testimony to grow where you're planted. When I first came out, all I wanted to do was get transferred from area to area, and see a lot of the mission. Now all I want to do is stay in Gainesville. If the Lord puts you in a situation, hit the ground running!

Funny thing though, Mrs. S told us that next summer for their family vacation, they're going to Salt Lake City! Y'all should meet up and have lunch or something! Show her around the conference center :) Her daughter arranged the trip and she's not even a member!

Sunday Mrs. S was able to have a 'get to know you' interview with the Bishop, have her baptismal interview by Elder Wilde, and watch the baptism of an eight year old in the Ward. After the baptism, the young man's grandma asked Mrs. S how she felt. S said, "I just want to jump in there after him!"

Can y'all write Mrs. S some letters of encouragement? She is super bummed that I'm leaving.

Anyway. We have another baptismal date! We've been teaching a less-active lady's son named C and he's preparing to be baptized December 28th. Which I will also not be there for. He's a super nice kid!