Christmas 2012

Christmas was fun!  We spent it with the Elders and Sisters.  They all came to breakfast on We gave Elders Hadfield and Lichner warm socks and a tie.  We gave Sisters Larson and Child hand lotion and scarves.  The Sisters gave us matching scarves.  We are going to wear them at the same time.  The elders gave me some rocks that you heat in water and them place on your shoulders or back to reduce stress and tension.  The gave Dan a battery operated back massager.  I guess they think we need to relax more.  After gifts and much laughing, we decided to play some games.  For the next 2 hours, we played and teased one another.  After the Elders and Sisters let, we took a nap.  The Elders and Sisters came back in the evening to skype their families. 

We also were able to talk with Bob and Jenny's family, Kevin and Kim's family, Emily and Brian's family and Paul and Marsha's family.  It was great to to talk with and see all of them.  We talked to Mom and Dad the next day.

We will miss the Weihnachtsmarkts next year.  They are fun to walk around in.  We loved getting a hot chocolate and sitting and watching the people.  It was really "Christmas" feeling when it snowed lightly.  On christmas Eve, we took a bag of candy and went walking around the Weihnachtmarkt t Breitsheidplatz.  We gave candy to the bus driver, people at the bus stop, and people working at the market.  We even were able to give out a pass a long card to a man on the bus. 

We went to a Christmas service at the church in the late afternoon and then to President Kosak's for Christmas Eve dinner.  We had a German dish called Roclette.  Everyone had a little pan that they put differentt veggies and meats in.  We then put this special cheese on top and put it on a grill to cook.  Dinner takes quite a while and is quite a  social event.  We visited after dinner and then read the Christmas Story from Luke.  We got home late.  Elder and Sister William's took us home.  It took forever to get home because for the first 30 minutes we kept going in circles.  It seems that the navi was programed to take us to the mission office instead of home.  We laughed a lot and finally got it right and  got home safe and sound.  The William's go home in February.  We shall miss them.