It is Sunday evening and I am grateful we were able to see and talk to you all yesterday. Adam, we will have to make it up to you. Everyone looked good at your home.
Our dinner with the Scholte couple was nice. And we stayed busy all day which made it all easier for me. It was fun to open your gifts, but remember. it is TOO expensive to make it worth it. We love you all so much.
I am sending some pictures of the Dickens Festival that happens here in Deventer for 2 days. They close off a few connecting streets and people dress up in that era's costumes and greet you and perform. It was really enjoyable to experience. We also visited one of the old churches here which has dioramas built on tables depicting Jerusalem and Egypt at the time of the birth of Jesus. The creche scene and villages are intricate. The painted back drops for the dioramas were artwork all in themselves and gave the feeling of being 3 dimensional for part of them. They had birds suspended with fish line so they looked as tho in flight. So many little pieces and detailed. This church also had an area commemorating Charles Dickens. Several of his works were encased in glass book shelves, dating back to who knows when.
When we went on this walk on Christmas before we ate, we saw in this neighborhood in the woods a glass enclosed bookshelf with a roof overhead where people put their used books. It is like a neighborhood library where you can take what book you want to read and bring it back and take another. Sister Scholte made it sound they have them in many places.
Tuesday, December 29, 2015
Sunday, December 27, 2015
Sinterklaas from the first of the month. Please know we love and pray for each of you. Just follow the rules and you will be blessed. It works at home as well as on a mission.
Sunday, December 13, 2015
December 12,2015
Dear Ones,
It has been quite a week; even without all the BYU versus U hype going on on What's App! 🙂
We started Monday with cleaning our apartment and than the missionaries came after lunch to some baking to take to families in the ward and their investigators. Elder Solomon was the instigator and his parents sent cookie mixes from the states made by Krusteaz that were pretty good. I made brownies for them to use and Solomon wanted to make pumpkin bread with peanut butter chips in it. I said you sure of the peanut butter and not chocolate chips? But it is how his mom does it so we did it that way. I made cinnamon rolls for FHE that nite,but my baking is not turning out so grand here. That is why we went to a flour grinding wind mill last Saturday to buy flour. One couple had made a note that it helps things rise better here, but it did not make a remarkable difference.
The wind mill experience was fascinating however. It is an ingenious work of engineering, timbers pulleys, and ropes. I was enthralled with the tour. The thatched roof on the windmill is one foot thick and lasts 70-80 years! The sails are fastened to a cap on the top that turns so the Miller can turn the sails towards the wind; they have a means to turn the cap and anchor it to stay. The mill stones are super thick; they pull them apart and chisel them to sharpen them for grinding. They have a means for doing every part efficiently. It is worth the Saturday visit and is only a short drive. It is in a town we pass through on our way to church. Deventer has a wood cutting windmill we can walk too. We have yet to make that visit.
Tuesday we cooked for Zone Conference on Wednesday where we fed 60- ish elders and adults. The Roemigs another sr Couple split the work with us. The Elders did like the fajitas , chips, and cheesecake. It was mostly a lot of cutting up- we shopped that day too. Wesnesday was zone conference all day or most of it. Thursday we inspected missionary apartments ( and I talked Dad into going across the Germany border so I could say we went there) It was only 7 more km. . Friday was institute and a 5 hour service project with our zone I believe. There were a lot of extra missionaries, but it was fun. We boxed donated food for a food bank a member works with. We all felt like we had made a difference, I think. Dad and I left to prepare food for institute and the missionaries who came that night said the food bank people finally told them they had worked hard enough and they neede to leave some work for another group coming in to help.
My new food for the week was at a family's home who invited all umpteen of us from our ward. It was an Indonesian soup and was good but to be truthful I do not get all psyched about Indonesian food like dad does. Maybe I have not had it done really well, yet. WeI had a dinner sandwich at the market on sAturday and it was good.
I want to remind you that the church is true and each stake receives its own direction or revelation to handle the situations they deal with. We had a good lesson from Pres Benson today! I can see how direction or programs change a little bit to help the members in the particular wards.
Have a great week. Tots Zincs. Mom
Dear Ones,
It has been quite a week; even without all the BYU versus U hype going on on What's App! 🙂
We started Monday with cleaning our apartment and than the missionaries came after lunch to some baking to take to families in the ward and their investigators. Elder Solomon was the instigator and his parents sent cookie mixes from the states made by Krusteaz that were pretty good. I made brownies for them to use and Solomon wanted to make pumpkin bread with peanut butter chips in it. I said you sure of the peanut butter and not chocolate chips? But it is how his mom does it so we did it that way. I made cinnamon rolls for FHE that nite,but my baking is not turning out so grand here. That is why we went to a flour grinding wind mill last Saturday to buy flour. One couple had made a note that it helps things rise better here, but it did not make a remarkable difference.
The wind mill experience was fascinating however. It is an ingenious work of engineering, timbers pulleys, and ropes. I was enthralled with the tour. The thatched roof on the windmill is one foot thick and lasts 70-80 years! The sails are fastened to a cap on the top that turns so the Miller can turn the sails towards the wind; they have a means to turn the cap and anchor it to stay. The mill stones are super thick; they pull them apart and chisel them to sharpen them for grinding. They have a means for doing every part efficiently. It is worth the Saturday visit and is only a short drive. It is in a town we pass through on our way to church. Deventer has a wood cutting windmill we can walk too. We have yet to make that visit.
Tuesday we cooked for Zone Conference on Wednesday where we fed 60- ish elders and adults. The Roemigs another sr Couple split the work with us. The Elders did like the fajitas , chips, and cheesecake. It was mostly a lot of cutting up- we shopped that day too. Wesnesday was zone conference all day or most of it. Thursday we inspected missionary apartments ( and I talked Dad into going across the Germany border so I could say we went there) It was only 7 more km. . Friday was institute and a 5 hour service project with our zone I believe. There were a lot of extra missionaries, but it was fun. We boxed donated food for a food bank a member works with. We all felt like we had made a difference, I think. Dad and I left to prepare food for institute and the missionaries who came that night said the food bank people finally told them they had worked hard enough and they neede to leave some work for another group coming in to help.
My new food for the week was at a family's home who invited all umpteen of us from our ward. It was an Indonesian soup and was good but to be truthful I do not get all psyched about Indonesian food like dad does. Maybe I have not had it done really well, yet. WeI had a dinner sandwich at the market on sAturday and it was good.
I want to remind you that the church is true and each stake receives its own direction or revelation to handle the situations they deal with. We had a good lesson from Pres Benson today! I can see how direction or programs change a little bit to help the members in the particular wards.
Have a great week. Tots Zincs. Mom
Monday, November 23, 2015
Monday November 23
Dear Family,
We are home from the Jovo Conference ( I asked more than once " do we need to be here?") But we were able to see more of Holland even tho it was just a half hour drive. We definitely had the shortest drive of the senior couples. They are fun to be around and laugh with. The inn was a nice place to go to each nite away from the all nigh t activities at the camp. We had a large hall with kitchen facility and the kids stayed in an adjoining building with. Rooms. I did not go check out their facilities. The theme was D&C 6:36 "Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not." The mission pres did a good job with his wife ; we each had to take 5 minutes. The Stake pres came Sunday and closed the day with his comments. We had relief society priesthood mtg combined, sacrament meeting with a testimony meeting which equaled a lot of sitting.
Talking with Chris and Kara last night he challenged me to try something new each week and tell about it.. I had not thought we had been too adventuresome but in fact we have done okay for ourselves. We tried the pourable plain yogurt on our granola cereal which Elder Kleyn loved and left. It is sour and requires getting used too. We decided we did not have to buy that for us! They have pre packaged cut up vegetables that are fun to work with and cook with. I have become a fan of peanut butter on bread with sprinkles on it. It is like what they have for breakfast or lunch with toast or bread. They have a name for the sprinkles , hogenslaw, is what it sounds like, but that is extremely Dutch.sliced cucumbers and chopped tomatoes are a breakfast fare too. They serve a lot of brothy soups with a few vegetables and few noodles of any shape. It makes me think of my trip to Brasil and the soups Myriam's dad liked before the evening meals. He liked almost straight broth with a very few vegetables somewhere in your bowl! The family used to tease him about his soup.
The missionaries moved Thanksgiving dinner from Thurs to Saturday which was fine. We have had winter weather this weekend being cold and rainy ( freezing rain on wind shields).
We have not been outside yet today ,but the sun is out. We need to go to the grocery store . We cleaned house, did our classical stretch tape, and read the scriptures which is a good start. I have made a stew for supper tonight too. We have FHE tonight and we opted not to travel to see the Elders turkey bowl game! All is well here as I hope this finds y ou there as well. We love you all! Mom
Dear Family,
We are home from the Jovo Conference ( I asked more than once " do we need to be here?") But we were able to see more of Holland even tho it was just a half hour drive. We definitely had the shortest drive of the senior couples. They are fun to be around and laugh with. The inn was a nice place to go to each nite away from the all nigh t activities at the camp. We had a large hall with kitchen facility and the kids stayed in an adjoining building with. Rooms. I did not go check out their facilities. The theme was D&C 6:36 "Look unto me in every thought; doubt not, fear not." The mission pres did a good job with his wife ; we each had to take 5 minutes. The Stake pres came Sunday and closed the day with his comments. We had relief society priesthood mtg combined, sacrament meeting with a testimony meeting which equaled a lot of sitting.
Talking with Chris and Kara last night he challenged me to try something new each week and tell about it.. I had not thought we had been too adventuresome but in fact we have done okay for ourselves. We tried the pourable plain yogurt on our granola cereal which Elder Kleyn loved and left. It is sour and requires getting used too. We decided we did not have to buy that for us! They have pre packaged cut up vegetables that are fun to work with and cook with. I have become a fan of peanut butter on bread with sprinkles on it. It is like what they have for breakfast or lunch with toast or bread. They have a name for the sprinkles , hogenslaw, is what it sounds like, but that is extremely Dutch.sliced cucumbers and chopped tomatoes are a breakfast fare too. They serve a lot of brothy soups with a few vegetables and few noodles of any shape. It makes me think of my trip to Brasil and the soups Myriam's dad liked before the evening meals. He liked almost straight broth with a very few vegetables somewhere in your bowl! The family used to tease him about his soup.
The missionaries moved Thanksgiving dinner from Thurs to Saturday which was fine. We have had winter weather this weekend being cold and rainy ( freezing rain on wind shields).
We have not been outside yet today ,but the sun is out. We need to go to the grocery store . We cleaned house, did our classical stretch tape, and read the scriptures which is a good start. I have made a stew for supper tonight too. We have FHE tonight and we opted not to travel to see the Elders turkey bowl game! All is well here as I hope this finds y ou there as well. We love you all! Mom
Sunday, November 15, 2015
November 15 Sunday
Hey, we love you all! Did you know that? It is a "blustery" day according to Dad. Church was good; we had an incident before Relief Society started where a woman slapped our bishop when she was asked to leave. She had slapped another woman earlier due to some jealousy, it sounds. It was handled well and without a lot of fanfare and 'tongue wagging' so that was nice. They even incorporated ihe incident into our lesson, asking how can we be missionAries to this sister? The Dutch are great people- and the ward members are solid. Our rs teacher was nervous to give the lesson and a counselor got up and took over and did a beutiful job. They must all come prepared to fill in or pinch hit during church. The Kleyns said they read all lessons each week in case they had to fill in in the Nymagen branch where he served.
The KLEYNS left Wednesday morn around 10:00. I cleaned some and looked around in closets and cupboards to see what we actually have here. I found a sheet that fits our bed which I was grateful for. We had a double bed sheet spread across our bed but it didn't cover any of the sides well. I did some wash, and though this washer is easier to use , the washing machines here remain confusing! Lisa, you would love my iron. It has a water tank like my Stanley steamer but smaller and it creates that kind of steam! You will like it. I hemmed a couple of skirts and we have tried to keep up on our lessons and scripture reading.I hemmed skirts because I brought them long and I do not wear long ones here on a daily basis. We shopped at IKEAand the Macro (like Costco) this week in prep for zone conference on this Wed and what we needed to cook.we bought a few things for our apartment too.
Dad bought gerber daisies for our apartment at the open air market in the town square. They make everywhere more happy!!
We hope and we Pray that each of you are Happy and well. We pray for you, and your homes and your families individually. We pray you too are making your best efforts to make your homes Happy and at peace. Our institute lesson was on how the Lord knows us one-by-one. He cares, He knows each of us one by one. I know that it is true, share your concerns through prayer and let him come into your lives to help. Love you , Mom
The KLEYNS left Wednesday morn around 10:00. I cleaned some and looked around in closets and cupboards to see what we actually have here. I found a sheet that fits our bed which I was grateful for. We had a double bed sheet spread across our bed but it didn't cover any of the sides well. I did some wash, and though this washer is easier to use , the washing machines here remain confusing! Lisa, you would love my iron. It has a water tank like my Stanley steamer but smaller and it creates that kind of steam! You will like it. I hemmed a couple of skirts and we have tried to keep up on our lessons and scripture reading.I hemmed skirts because I brought them long and I do not wear long ones here on a daily basis. We shopped at IKEAand the Macro (like Costco) this week in prep for zone conference on this Wed and what we needed to cook.we bought a few things for our apartment too.
Dad bought gerber daisies for our apartment at the open air market in the town square. They make everywhere more happy!!
We hope and we Pray that each of you are Happy and well. We pray for you, and your homes and your families individually. We pray you too are making your best efforts to make your homes Happy and at peace. Our institute lesson was on how the Lord knows us one-by-one. He cares, He knows each of us one by one. I know that it is true, share your concerns through prayer and let him come into your lives to help. Love you , Mom
Sunday, November 1, 2015
Arriving in the Netherlands
Well,here we are, actually into miissionary life in the Netherlands. We arrived in Amsterdam on October 10th and spent our first 2 1/2 days at the mission office and mission home receiving instructions, getting Registered with local authorities, and taking a driving test (we needed to learn Europian road signs, etc.). We then were sent to Eindhoven, where we will take up temporary residence for one month. Eindhoven is a city in the southeastern part of the Netherlands, only about 15 miles from the Belgium border.
It's seems like we have been on the road almost every day since we arrived. We've put approximately 1,000 miles on our car since
we got here, traveling to Belgium twice, to the west coast of Holland (near Rotterdam and The Hague) three times, traveling to do cleanliness inspectionsl at four missionary apartments, and traveling to a neighboring city to teach YSA institute, etc. The mission president has asked us to spend a day or two with each of three other couples serving in the mission to get some training. We've spent a couple of days with a wonderful couple in Belgium last week and will leave tomorrow for a couple of days with a couple in Groningen, the furthermost north city in the mission. We've also been to stake conference in Brussels and attended a mission temple day in The Hague.
Shopping has been a whole new experience. The first day at the grocery store we spent over two hours trying to decipher food labels and names of spices. Susan has prepared some great treats for the YSA students at institute (strawberry shortcake and apple crisp). We typically have seven or eight in attendance. Several of them are returned missionaries. They are all great; we have enjoyed being with them
On November. 6th we will be transferring from Eindhoven to Deventer which. Is where we will probably spend the rest of our mission. We love and miss you all, but are grateful for our mission experience (so far 
).
Attached are some pictures with some descriptions of each!
1. View from our kitchen window in Eindhoven
2. A row of typical old Dutch homes.
3. Noah's ark . . . A built to scale actual replica of the ark.
4. Windmills at Kinderdijk, near Rotterdam
5. Eating at an open market in Brugge Belgium with another missionary couple.
6. A church in Dordrecht seen while inspecting missionary apartments.
7. Another windmill
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)