Happy New Year, everyone!!  We hope that 2012 holds many wonderful blessings for you.  Since this is the big holiday here, this week has been light at work with everyone having Thursday and Friday off.  But we did do some fun activities.

 On Friday evening we attended the RM Ball for returned missionaries.  This was the lovely banner that hung at one end of the hall.

 This is two returned missionaries that we know.  Bolorsaikhan served her mission in Washington DC, and Tsolmon served his mission here in Mongolia.  They are a lovely young couple that are dating.

 Batsengel was dressed festive for the evening.  She is a sweet young lady who works in the office downstairs near ours.  She served her mission in Mesa AZ.

 The dance was more of a show with singers, musicians, dancers, and a magician.  Here is Soyolmaa singing a song with her husband, Enkhbold.  She is the head of the service center at the mission office and he is bishop of the Sansar branch.

 Then there was some time for dancing.  These were some of the married couples.

 And then there were the singles dancing with each other.  It was an enjoyable evening but of course the senior couples went home before it was over.  Those that had planned this evening put in a lot of time and it turned out great.

 On Saturday the senior couples went to a steak house we had never been to before for lunch.  It was pretty good and they gave you lots of food.  I had to bring half of mine home to eat for dinner.  After lunch we all went to see the ice sculptures in the plaza.  They were beautiful.  And here we have the Statue of Liberty and the Empire State building.

Then last night four of us couples got together to play games as we welcomed the New Year.  And there were fireworks going off all around the city til long after midnight.

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!  We finally had a White Christmas!!! Of course it has been white here all month!  But before I get into our Christmas activities let me tell you about the whole week.  First Elder Shrope got a new computer in the office but of course now his printer will not work.  I got his old one because it was newer than mine and of course it will not recognize my printer yet, so no printing in our office!  But eventually the techs from upstairs in the service department will get it all fixed for us.

 On Thursday evening and Friday morning we taught the first 6 temple lessons to these three new missionaries.  Iggy was our translator and she will also escort these missionaries to Manila to the MTC and temple.  They leave tomorrow afternoon.
Yesterday morning all the senior couples had Christmas breakfast in the mission home.  It was very nice and very festive.  A great start to our Christmas celebration.

 Then last night we went to Nalaikh and had Christmas Eve dinner with Bolosaikhan's family along with the fulltime missionaries serving there.  We had Mongolian buuzs, potato salad, and fruit salad.  All very good.  Then there was singing, dancing, and even a little Michael Jackson impersonation.  Bolorsaikhan's father played the harmonica.  It was a fun night.  When we were leaving, we put money on the Christmas tree for the kids.  That is a Mongolian tradition.  Also they do not have gifts until Dec. 31 and they are brought by Father Winter (Santa dressed in white).
This morning we got to skype with our oldest son, Steve, and his family in Cedar City Utah.  Our granddaughter, Becky, played us two Christmas songs she has just learned on the piano.  It was so good to see and talk with them.  Boy the kids have really grown since we have been gone.

 Then we went to church.  We got there early and got to watch them practice for the sacrament program.  This is Enkhmuren and she conducted the choir.  Her mom is in the hospital and after church she returned to the city with us and came home with us to wait for the Christmas program put on by the district choir.

 

 This was part of the branch choir practicing.  They sang several songs including two in English.  They are all young people.  And they did a beautiful job.  The primary children also sang two songs and were just darling.

 Here I am following along as they do a run through of the program.  This is their first Christmas program that was a scriptural reading with songs by the Primary and choir intermingled in the readings.  Usually they just have speakers like any other Sunday.  It was great and they were excited to do it.

Then tonight we went to listen to the district choir program.  They did songs in Mongolian and English.  President Clark did a solo part in "O Holy Night."  It was a wonderful performance that really made it feel like Christmas.  And the Spirit was so strong during their singing that it brought tears to my eyes.  Except for the hour bus ride home from Nalaikh in which the bus was so crowded that we had to stand the whole way, this has been a wonderful and spiritual Christmas day!!  Hope all our friends and family also have a wonderful Christmas and may the Spirit of Christ be with you today and through out the coming year.  Love to you all.

 Well it is almost Christmas.  Here is our little tree with some gifts from our kids.  This week also marked our half way point of our mission!!  It sure has gone by fast!!!  Probably because it is sooo great.

 On Friday we had a baptism at Nalaikh of a nine year old girl.  Her grandmother is one of the first members in Nalaikh and faithfully attends every week.  She was very proud of her granddaughter and her granddaughter was so excited she was greeting everyone that came to her baptism.

Naranbaatar is a priest and this was his first baptism.  It took him a while to get the prayer correct.  Unfortunately the hot water heater is not working and the water in the font was sooo cold that the young lady was still shivering a half hour later!  But the cold water didn't dampen her spirit at all.  Wonderful baptism.

This has been kind of a light week.  We did not teach English this week because Altan went on a trip to China with her sons.  Monday night we took the Twister game to family home evening and it was a hit.  They loved playing it.  Of course we drove the van (because no one wants to be the first to put a scratch on the new Land Cruiser) and we almost didn't get out of the church driveway because it was icy! 
At the office this week, I decorated our door for Christmas, we put up the Christmas tree for our area(which was very easy because it is stored completely decorated!), gave the last Michigan test for this year to Battsengel, and got her test and all of the test booklets mailed off to BYU Hawaii.
Friday Elder Shrope finally drove the new vehicle so that we could go to Nalaikh and attend the baptism of a lady.  She is such a sweet sister and even though her husband does not want to come to church, he was still there to support her at her baptism.  Most of the time the person being baptized is the only one in the family and none of the rest come, so this was special.
Today we rode the bus home from Nalaikh and by the time we got home my toes were so cold I thought they would crack off.  It is not really that cold here yet, but the floorboard of the bus is so cold my feet freeze!
We have been looking for a hat for Elder Shrope.  He thought he might like to look 'cool' like some of the young men in Nalaikh and get one like this---

It also has a long fox tail in the back.  Don't you think that is the real him?

  On Friday we had a baptism at the Nalaikh branch.  This young man was baptized and will be a great addition to the Priest quorum and the branch.  He has been coming to FHE on Monday nights and we really enjoy having him there.

 On Sat. morning we held a Reverse MTC for these 6 missionaries that have finished their missions and are now going home.  The one in the middle with the orange sweater, Sister Naraganvuu, served these last six months in Nalaikh and always had a big smile and a big hug for me every Sunday.  We will miss her and are so happy that we got this time to get to know her.  We know that she will serve her home branch well, as will all of these returned missionaries.

 And on Wednesday afternoon, we put up the tree and decorated it in the mission office to get ready for Christmas.  At the apartment I put out the nativity that Batbayar, Miigaa's husband, carved for me. 

Here is a close up so you can see the Mongolian features on Mary and Joseph.  He did such a beautiful job and I just love it!  It is almost Christmas and we have now been on our mission for eleven months!! Boy how the time has flown!!!

We have had a fun week!  It started Monday evening as we drove to Nalaikh for family home evening.  It was sleeting a little and sooo cold that half way there the windshield wipers froze and so we had to drive with ice on the windshield.  The roads were icy and we were in the mini van so it took us an hour to make a 35 minute drive.  After the meeting we drove Bolorsaikhan home in the ger district.  The roads there are all dirt usually but that night they were ice.  We could not get traction enough to go up a small incline and were stuck there trying for 20 minutes.  Finally Tom kept backing up until he was level enough to get the van moving and we were able to get back to a paved road.  I should have taken pictures of us trying and of the Mongolian couple that did not speak any English that was trying to help, but I was too busy praying that we would not have to stay out there all night in the -20* F weather!  And on the way home, the wipers froze again!

 On Thursday, we had our Thanksgiving feast with all the couples in President and Sister Clark's apartment.  Yes, Sister Clark found a turkey at the American goods store!! And the couples prepared all the trimmings: stuffing, mashed potatoes with gravy, yams, green bean casserole, rolls with raspberry butter, and pumpkin desserts!  President Clark is telling one of his jokes.  We had a wonderful evening.

 On Saturday we went to Nalaikh for an activity.  While I was inside helping to set up, Tom was outside helping to shovel snow from the church parking lot.

 The activity was a Memory Book celebration.  We had three full tables of people and a few more that we squeezed in as they arrived a little late.  A great turn out.

First they had people represent each of the sections in a memory book and tell about what they put into those sections.

 Then some shared their memory books.  This is Nara and she is the district family history person.  She travels to all the branches and helps put on these activities to promote family history.  We happened to see her at the bus stop and gave her a ride.  She speaks pretty good English.  She served her mission in the Ukraine.

 She is one of the first members of the Church in Nalaikh.  She was showing temple cards of ancestors she has done the temple work for. 

And this was one of the younger people who shared his memory book.  He is showing his family tree sheet with pictures of his immediate family.  Everyone was given information about how to start their memory book, what they can put in it, and how to do their family history.  It was a great activity!

Today Elder and Sister Gledhill dropped us off in Nalaikh as they drove to Bagnuur for church.  After the block time, we attended the branch's ward council.  We are trying to help them hold productive councils.  Then we rode the bus back to the city.  By the time we got back to the apartment it was after 4:00 pm and my toes were frozen!  But overall it has been a wonderful day and a great week.

 On Tuesday we went to lunch with Marta and her family.  They were here in UB because on Wednesday they left to go to the Hong Kong temple.  Marta and her brother will be sealed to their parents.  Her sister was sealed to them ten years ago.  They were so excited and we were excited for them!

 This is Elder and Sister Hunt who came in last Wednesday.  They were put right to work and have a busy teaching schedule like we did when we got here.

 And this is Elder and Sister Lamoreaux.  They got here this Wednesday and are from Orem, Utah.  They left early Thursday morning for Erdenet where they will be serving.   So we all went out to dinner Wednesday night to say hello and good-bye to them at the same time.

Mongolian snowmen!!  These were in the parking lot of the Nalaikh chapel this morning.  A group of young adults there have started a community service group called, ANT.  Yesterday they had shoveled the snow from the parking area at the chapel.  Saturday they are going to assist the local police and clean the ice from the main roadways in Nalaikh.  That is good because the roads were quite icy today.  We rode to church with a member of the district presidency as it was branch conference today.  We were so glad since this morning it was a nippy -21* F!  Just a little bit cool!!

Monday we held a Book of Mormon jeopardy night with our family home evening group in Nalaikh.  It was on the first five books.  They had studied and did really well.  In three weeks they want to do the next four or five books.

On Wednesday our new senior couple arrived.  They are Elder and Sister Hunt from the Salt Lake area.  They will be working in the PEF and so that means they will be working with us.  We are so excited to no longer being the only couple in the basement of the mission office building again.  We have have been done there alone since the Clarks went home in July.  Of course we are never really alone down there.  It is also office to Miigaa, our translator/secretary, Batsengel in the BYUH online computer lab, President Odgerel who is over Seminary and Institute, and his secretary, Bolormaa.

On Thursday evening and Friday morning we taught this group of missionaries the 6 temple preparation classes.  Eeggy, in the middle on the back row, translated for us.  She also goes to the Missionary training center with them to translate and help them.  Friday afternoon five of them left for the MTC in Manila and will serve here in Mongolia.  The others are going to the MTC in Provo and will serve in the US and Canada.

Today we did not have a car to drive to Nalaikh for church so we tried to take the bus.  We waited for 45 minutes in -9 degree weather but no bus to Nalaikh came.  When our cheeks felt frozen, our fingers were stinging, and our toes were numb, we gave up and went to church in the Sansar branch that meets in the mission building.  Don't know what we are going to do when it really gets cold here!!  But it will work out.

No pictures this week.  We did not have internet in the office for a few days so not alot of work was done during that time.  But now the internet connections have all been upgraded in the building so we should have no more interruptions.
Last Sunday we were approached by a young couple as we were in the middle of crossing the street.  They were interested in learning about the Church.  We contacted the full time Elders and they set up a meeting for Tuesday evening.  We were to take part in the lesson.  Unfortunately the couple, T.J. and Zolo, did not come.  We were very disappointed but pray they will come by again so we can answer their questions.  But on Monday evening as we were heading home after returning from Family Home Evening, we were asked by Elder Jolley and his new companion to help them teach a new member discussion to a young lady that had been baptized on Friday.  That was neat!
It is getting colder and I have worn my heavy coat a couple of times when out at night.  Elder Shrope is still just in his suit jacket.  The Mongolian people think he is a little crazy because they are in coats and gloves!  But he thinks his coat is too hot to wear just yet.
We finished our eight weeks of Thursday night lessons to prepare those who want to take the Michigan test, an English proficiency exam.  Since most were pretty good at their English, we concentrated on helping them with testing hints and practices.  Now this week we will give them the exam and see how well they do.  They were a great class and I think some of them will pass the exam.
We have a busy week this week with teaching temple prep classes to a group of missionaries that will be leaving for the MTC in Manila, and also welcoming a new senior couple! 

 This is Batsetseg, her husband and their little daughter.  We were invited along with the other couples and some of the office people to celebrate the little one's first birthday.  It was at a very nice restaurant called Inner Mongolia.  Batsetseg is the mission's financial clerk and she also translates for us when we teach the temple classes to the newly called Mongolian missionaries.

 The restaurant had some wonderful food and the birthday cake was delicious too!

 On Friday we traveled to Nalaikh for a baptism.  It was our first experience travelling by bus.  The busses to Nalaikh were so overcrowded we could not even get in the door, so we took a shorter bus to a stop where we then got a taxi to Nalaikh.  But it was worth it.  It was a special baptism.  This sister cannot walk hardly at all and was afraid they would not be able to get her down into font.  But the two fulltime Elders and a returned missionary gave her the support she needed and she was baptized.  She was so happy, as were we all!  What a wonderful evening!!

On Saturday morning we heald another reverse MTC for seven missionaries who had finished their missions and were heading home.  We also had a couple of sister missionaries that are not going home but were with their companion who was or were signing for the sister who is deaf.  We love these classes with the missionaries.  They are such fun and ready to participate openly in the class.  We pray they will continue to have that strong Spirit about them as they start the next phase of their lives. 

 This was the scenery on the way to Nalaikh on Saturday.  It is beginning to look like it did when we first got here--a lot of white all around.

 And this is President Batmunkh's little son dressed for the cold weather.  This is how they dress their babies to go out when it is cold.  The only thing you can see is their eyes.

 We met with the Young men and Young women to teach them how to cook some Mexican food.  The girls were making flour tortillas.  They already make a dough for hooshures that make great flour tortillas so they did not need directions here.

 The only difference was in the cooking of the tortillas.  Hooshures are filled and then fried, so here they are learning to cook plain tortillas in a heated pan.  They were also learning to cook Mexican rice.

 Deegii is the Young Women's president.  She is learning how to fill the tortilla with beef and beans, topping it with cheddar cheese, and folding it to make a burrito.

 Enkhmuren is the class president.  She got to be the first to taste the food.  It was all very good.

 Some of the girls did not know how to hold the burrito to eat it and some of them were not sure they liked refried beans.  The boys had no such trouble and they all cleaned their plates thoroughly.

 This was our group of young men and young women.  They are a lot of fun to be with.

 This was our youngest young woman.  She is Deegii's daughter.  She enjoyed feeding herself the rice.

 After the lunch, they played a game we in the States call 'bobbing for apples.'  The young women did not want to get their faces wet but most of the young men gave it a try but with no luck.

So Sainbayar, 1st counselor in the branch presidency, showed them how it was done.  He had his apple in less than three seconds.  After watching him, the boys got their apples!  Then they all went about cleaning the church so that it would be ready for Sunday.  It was a great day of food, fun, and service.
Today was the Asia Area Conference.  We met with the other senior couples in the mission home to watch it in English.  All the wards and branches watched it in their chapels at their regular meeting time in Mongolian.  We received great counsel from Elder Osguthrope, Sister Dibb, Bishop H. David Burton, Elder Anthony D. Perkins of the Seventy serving in Asia, and Elder Richard G. Scott.  It was a day of great counsel and great instruction.  A wonderful way to begin the week!