BLESSINGS

This Thanksgiving week we have been especially blessed with a healthy new granddaughter to Brian and Elizabeth Williams.  Molly their first daughter's delivery was very stressful.  This delivery was a breeze.  We are very grateful.  There will be pictures, of course, as they become available....

   To celebrate this week and Thanksgiving we invited the temple missionary couples; Hoges and Hansens, and Johan and Lisa Koch, who feed us every month and Jesper and Metter Paulsen.  Metter has put together a Danish class for us and Jesper works in the temple with us.  Everyone brought something and it was delicious and a fun night.

  We put out our Christmas Decorations for the occasion, but I needed the centerpiece to be a reminder of the many bounties of life and good things we are blessed with.

I do like the bright red of Christmas.

Primary Program

Just like the rest of the church ,world-wide the Fall, we had our Primary Program. Today, I caught these pictures at the end.  After the meetings here, everyone stays seated while they play a hymn through.  Then they get up and leave.

Kids are the same, all over the world.
 

Satisfying Saturday

Today was a great Saturday. We had several groups from Sweden, two new endowments, 30 from various wards and families for baptisms and all the ordinances full all day.  We love it when the temple is so busy.
  Tonight we are celebrating by getting the Christmas decorations out.  I only brought one box.  It actually is quite nice to have such a limited amount, especially since I have limited space.

Today at the Temple

Several times today we all found ourselves saying what an unusual day at the temple.  Some things were good and some are not so great.  The not so great ..we got new computers and they are not working right!  We have spent all day calling and having people come in to look at it. Maybe the elves will fix them overnight......
   On top of that we opened the door to find out we couldn't go out as there was scaffolding in front to put up Christmas light. Hence we had to use the handicap door for a bit.  Then a lady fell on her bike in front of the temple and they were looking for towels, which we furnished, until the ambulance came,
   The Young Single Adults came and we had this many go on a session and an equal number doing baptisms.  They are such a good group and we really enjoy having them come.

   We also had a group of 14 sister missionaries and 6 elders come to the temple.  They were the missionaries that came a month ago and their trainers.  One of the new sisters was Sis. Thompsen, who turned out to be my cousin's granddaughter.  When she comes again, I will definitely get a picture..

Computer back

I had such a good story for yesterday and my computer wouldn't connect.  But today it is back so on with the great story.
     This is Katya Sviridova from Volgograd, Russia.  She was the translator for the Nørrungs who served a mission there and has come to visit them for a few days.

I asked her how she joined the church.
   Her father was a Russian pilot and they were living in the Ukraine when the Ukraine split off and all Russians were sent back to Russia.  They ended up with her grandparents in Volgograd, but it was very hard on the marriage and her parents were in the final steps to get divorced.
   At this time, a friend came to visit and told them about the church she had just joined.  She felt there was something wrong in the family, even though no one said anything, and asked if they would like to have the missionaries come to visit.  They refused and 3 days before Katya's father was to go to his parents in Siberia, the friend came by again,,with the missionaries.....  They visited for a bit and "accidentally" left a Book of Mormon on the table as they left.
    Katya said that when she returned to the room after saying good-bye to her friend she couldn't believe her eyes, Her parents were doing something she hadn't seen them do for months, they were sitting together on the couch reading and talking about the Book of Mormon.
    The missionaries came back and taught them every day and they set a date to be baptized.

However, her father couldn't stop smoking.  The missionaries tried everything and he decided he couldn't be baptized but that the rest of the family should.  The mother said they should do it as a family or not at all.  The week before the date, the father got up one day, threw his cigarettes in the fireplace and said he would be baptized.  They were baptized the morning that their missionary had an afternoon flight home.  A year later they were sealed in the Swedish temple and her father was bishop of their ward five years later.

Isn't the gospel wonderful!

Thanksgiving at Knudsens

Erling and Elsa Knudsen hosted the senior missionaries for a Thanksgiving dinner tonight.  It was fabulous as usual.  It was very pleasant to visit with everyone.

 The big plate on the right is the stuffing from inside the turkey.  It is a sausage sort of mixture and sooo good.

There are three couples from the temple: Williams, Hoges, Hansens; the office missionaries: Elder and Sister Thorne and Sis. Hamblin; the CES couple -Elder and Sis. Madsen; and one of the couples that digitize records - Elder and Sister Brooks, plus the Knudsens and their beautiful daughter, Lena.

GIANT size apple pie with whipping cream and cranberry sauce for dessert!  The Holidays are starting.

Tivoli Farewell for the Fonnesbecks

Bruce and Michael Ann Fonnesbeck have been here for 90 days, the longest you can remain without a visa.  They have acted as temple missionaries coming every day.  We have so appreciated their service and great spirit.  Per their last request we all went to Tivoli tonight to see the Christmas Decorations and have a last flæskestege sandwich.

The lights were beautiful and we even caught the light and water show by the lake.

Steve and Marion Clawson own an apartment right by the temple but go back to the US from December 9 to April 9.  They would be happy to rent it out if any of you want to come and work in the temple.