Christmas 2014 in Santa Rosa

This week started with 2 flash mobs on Monday and Tuesday night Both of the Santa Rosa zones as well as a ton of members from the stake went to the mall to sing Christmas carols from the hymn book. At exactly 7pm one elder randomly started singing in the mall and we all slowly joined in until everyone in that part of the mall were singing with us.

The whole month of December the sisters in our apartment did the 24 days of Christmas. We had an advent calender that one of our moms sent with a passage from the NIV Bible for all 24 days leading up to Christmas. We made a game out of it and made up a song for every night leading up. Then we would read the passage of scripture complete with actions.

Posing in front of the "Christmas tree"

Christmas Eve was so fun. Sister Petersen and I got to spend the evening with the Kitchen family. It was so fun! We had a wonderful Christmas dinner, played a bell game, the present game, and acted out the nativity. Sister Petersen and I got to be wise men. Elder and Sister Seely came too and when we were all introducing ourselves to each other the Seelys claimed us as their granddaughters. It was the best. I almost cried. I felt like I was with my family consisting of Sister Petersen, Sister Seely and Elder Seely. It was great.

Christmas Eve night was hilarious. We got word from President Alba that we could sleep in to 8:00 AM on Christmas morning. We were so excited. The problem is that we were so excited to sleep in that morning that we couldn't sleep at all. Then at 4:30 in the morning we got woken up to someone doorbell ditching our house with candy. It took a good hour and a half to fall asleep after that. It's funny how on a normal missionary night as soon as the head hits the pillow we are out like a light, but the moments we get word that we can sleep in we are so focused on sleeping in that we can't sleep.

Christmas day was awesome!!! We did service cleaning and weeding a park in the morning and afternoon.  Before that we opened presents and ate tons of junk food! GOT TO SKYPE MY FAMILY!! Best Christmas present ever!!
I got stuffed silly eating 2 Christmas dinners. Then we finished with a member taking us out to look at Christmas lights. it was so great!!

This is how close I am to going home.. My picture is right near the top

I haven't done a moment of the week in a while so here's one:

Moment of the Week:
"Elder Heil, what do you think of when you hear Victoria, British Columbia, Canada?"
"I think of a moose, tea, gross sesame candies, and those soldier looking guys in red suits and fuzzy tall black hats."
"Sister Gowens, what do you think of when you hear it?"
"I think of Canadian Bacon, and the TV show How I Met Your Mother"

I cant even count how many times I have had missionaries inquire about if Canadians eat Canadian Bacon. For the record we call it ham in Canada.

Last year I served around Elder Heil and got a package in the mail from my family with some cool assorted Mediterranean candies in it. They were fun to try but not what I would consider a tasty treat, so we made a game out of them. We put them in the computer room at the stake center for all of the missionaries with a rule on it: once a candy enters the mouth it stays in the mouth. Everyone was so curious so they wanted to try one. It was so entertaining watching them put the candies in their mouth, deciding that they didn't like it, but having to follow through with their commitment. It was especially entertaining when they would go for a different one in hope that it would taste better but being equally disappointed and having to finish that one too. Elder Heil got the one that had sesame seeds in it, and has forever associated Canada with weird sesame candy.


Well love you all. Happy New Year!

Sister Carter