So amazing that 2012 is almost over.  It's just full steam ahead and going faster every day.  I never thought I'd be in South Carolina at this point in time on a mission, working with other senior missionaries, young elders and sisters helping to move the gospel forward.  What a joy it is to my heart!  We experience new challenges daily that help us to grow and learn.  And it's going to get to be a bigger challenge in 2013.  108 total sisters will be in the mission in 2013.  More will start coming in February and gradually swell to that total.  We will have a total of 274 elders and sisters!  Exciting times to be working in a mission office and see first hand the results of the changes in the age requirements. 

Wonderful sisters from our zone.

Part of our group with Sister Rothman in the front in the red dress.  She's amazing!

Me with a few of our sisters at a zone conference.  They are such a blessing and an inspiration.



Monday night we had dinner at the mission home with five departing missionaries and President and Sister Holm.  We had a testimony meeting and were able to spend time with the missionaries before they left the following morning.  Wonderful meals are always prepared for all of us and of course delectable deserts as well.  Below is a picture of the departing missionaries with President and Sister Holm.

 

 On Wednesday we had our zone conference and went to Lexington which is about 20 minutes from where we live.  It's a very nice town and I want to go back on a day off.  The route we took was scenic going over the dam at Lake Murray.  Fortunately, it was a very nice day! We all gathered for a meeting in the chapel and stayed there until about 1:20 when we stopped for lunch.  The relief society prepared a nice meal and served it.  Then we had our Christmas party where everyone had prepared some type of a skit.  Some of them were really hilarious.  I loved it..we all laughed like crazy.  The missionaries are very creative.  Then it was our turn and the office staff sang a song.  Elder Decker played his guitar.  We received a standing ovation...not for our talent but more that they appreciated that we were good sports.

 

 

 

 

 

 On Tuesday evening a new senior couple got here.  Elder and Sister Mihlberger are from Utah and will be serving for a year.  Their timing was perfect because their first day was zone conference and the skits.  They were good sports and agreed to sing with us.

 

 

 

 

 

 

The elders aren't shy and love having their pictures taken!

 

 

 

All mail comes through the office and is relabeled to go to the individual missionary.  This time of the year the volume is incredible.  On Monday alone there were 83 packages plus a bin of mail.  This is a big job and Sister Rothman prepares and organizes all of it and then gives the information to Doyle.  He has a mail merge program and creates labels for all of them.  Then Sister Rothman puts all the labels on envelopes and packages.  We've been transporting the boxes to the post office for the last week on the same day instead of waiting for pickup the following day.  She is very serious about getting the mail out to the missionaries and is a 4'11'' dynamo.  We love her!!!

 

On Christmas Eve we will work in the morning and then load mail and packages and drive to the different areas to hand deliver Christmas packages to the missionaries.  If we didn't they wouldn't get their packages until after Christmas and we just couldn't bear for that to happen!!  On Christmas we will be going to a members' home for dinner and taking Sister Rothman with us.  Danielle was kind enough to invite us over and we readily accepted.  She also invited our  branch missionaries and some other friends.  I'm looking forward to it. 

 

We have received many beautiful cards and letters from friends and family at home.  Thank you all so much for your kind words of support and your love.  We love and miss you all!

 

In closing I would like to share some very personal words that were written by our mission president to his family and shared with us.  "Imagine Christ having been born in Bethlehem and lived without blemish, the perfect life.  His only desire was to do the will of His Father.  All of His life a victim of ugliness; beaten, scourged, mocked, jeered, and then publicly crucified, yet at the very end of His hectic life, with quiet, restrained divine dignity, He prayed for those who crucified Him, "Father, forgive them: for they know not what they do"...Imagine His mercy."

 

We wish all of you a wonderful Christmas and a very happy and healthy New Year. May 2013 be all that you and your family hope for!  May you be blessed by our Father in Heaven!  We love y'all.