December 22, 2010- Feliz Navidad y Natal!!!!

Hola Everyone!!
This has been yet another absolutely amazing week out in the mission field! The weather is starting to get chillier, or at least the locals think so (it's like in the 60s and 70s). I had my first day of working in the rain out here and we got absolutely DRENCHED. I thought at first that this was not going to be great weather to go out and work in, especially because everybody will be inside. But it is actually GREAT weather to work in because people are just so surprised to see that we still go out and share our message no matter what the weather is like. It's true, our message is that important that weather is not a factor, but rather a benefit. So we had a bunch of stuff happen this last week so I will share. This last Saturday we had our Desayuno de Navidad Fiesta (Ward Christmas Breakfast) and they went all out for it! They served us tons of food for breakfast and had a full program of music, games, pictures, etc., also they had a massive 'sleigh' pulled by 2 horses that they took everybody for a ride out on the STREETS with! haha it was pretty cool, and of course, no Mexican party is complete without a pinata, and of course, no Mexican is as tall as Elder Neilson so I was the designated holder again haha. So we left that party wayyyyyyy stuffed of food, then we worked and ate some lunch and later that night went to dinner at a members home. Well, these members (like all) sure did like to feed the missionaries and they fed us each 6 large enchiladas, 2 full plates of rice and beans, and then tons of this Pineapple desert thing on top of this. I was filled to absolute capacity. After dinner, we promised one of our investigators that we would go over to their house because they wanted us to go to their party. So we did and it turned out to be their daughter's Quincenera, in other words, it was a HUGE party. And of course, all they wanted to do was feed us. So, we had just finished eating a ridiculously large dinner, and now they wanted us to pound down even more. (I feel bad about what happened next but my companion thinks it is really funny and it kind of is haha) I took about 3 bites of the food (which was great food) when I simply could NOT eat any more, I mean my stomach was so stuffed that I felt like I was starting to store food in my throat (sorry for the visual). The trash can was too far away, and if I were to throw away a full plate the mom would very much be offended. So, I resorted to my last option. I waited until everyone was distracted and was looking away, and I opened my backpack and just threw the plate of food in there. I didn't even care that it made a mess in there and that my backpack will now forever smell like Mexico, I just could not eat anymore. I am very grateful that the people here are so kind as to always be feeding us though, they truly do treat us like family and would do anything that we ask of them (besides come to church and be baptized haha). We also got to go visit the Christmas lights that are at the Mesa Temple and that was super cool and I saw a kid from BYUH named Andrew Monahan there (some of you might know him), so that was rad. Also our area got expanded this week from 8 square miles to 65 square miles. yup, I'm serious. Kind of a long story but basically one of the other Spanish elders finally got his Mexican visa and left and now we have taken on their area which was significantly larger than our previous one. At least we have a car! Last night we attended a funeral for one of our investigator's infant son (they are Catholic but couldn't afford a funeral in the Catholic church so we let them use our building). They were initially really distraught over the loss because the Catholic church told them that their baby is now stuck in 'Limbo' for all of eternity since it was not baptized. They are super open and receptive to the message of the Gospel though right now and we are going to continue to teach them. We are so lucky as members of Christ's Church to know with a surety that there is life after this one. What a blessing and comfort it is to know this, and we should have such a desire to want to share this message with all that we know. The scriptures teach us that if we do not warn our neighbors and friends about the Gospel of Christ, and when they die in their sins, that their blood will be upon our heads (yikes). It's true though. We should go about it though with a positive attitude though. The blessing of the Gospel is happiness and if people can't tell that we are TRULY happy then they won't care to listen to what we may have to say. Anyways, I love you all so much and am so grateful for my relationship with you and wish you all a MERRY CHRISTMAS!!! Make sure to give the little ones (that includes Annie!) tons of loves for me!!!!!!
Love,
Elder Michael J. Neilson

December 15, 2010- In the Hispanic World, the Tallest Guy Always Holds the Pinata!!

Buenos Dias Todos!
  So this last week was a really great week!! We were extremely busy and really didn't have too much time to think, which is great! The work here is going great and I am so blessed to be here right now. The Latinos here are so kind and are almost always willing to let us share a message with them. So I am just gonna share a couple of stories of things that happened this last week. So last week we were out gathering contacts when we contacted into a Mexican Birthday Party! Now Mexican Birthday Parties are much different than traditional American Parties because the parents don't just drop off their kids and come back in a couple of hours to pick them up, no no no, EVERYBODY of all ages comes and stays at the party and the adults party a lot harder than the kids haha. So when we walked by and started talking with us they then demanded that we eat some of their carne asada, especially me because they said I was too skinny haha so we did and after a while we were saying our goodbyes when somebody ran out with a pinata and asked me if I could hold it since I am 'so ridiculously tall', I wanted to invite them all to California for a Neilson get-together when they said this haha, so I did it and they had me stand on a chair to be even taller, and it was pretty funny so I had my companion take some pictures while I has holding it. Next story. So there is a member in our ward, the Ray 5th Spanish Ward, who is always really tight with the missionaries and he and his wife had us over for dinner. The guy is super nice and way cool but he loves to pull small pranks or make little jokes with the missionaries which is totally cool because I would do the same thing, so he had his wife cook pasta for us and after we finished he asked us how we liked it. We said it was good but definitely had a different taste to it and he said it's because he told his wife to use elk meat instead of regular cow meat haha he thought it was pretty funny, so ya, I pretty much ate Bambi for dinner haha. Out here in Chandler we run into A LOT of interesting people and one old guy the other day lectured us for about 10 minutes about how the world is going to end on May 21, 2011 and then we met another guy who said he wouldn't listen to us because he doesn't believe in worshiping John Smith and Pocahontas, I don't see what's so wrong with that? haha just kidding, it's just funny to see what people think of us. The Spanish is coming along, it can be tough though when you get the Mexicans who speak super fast and blend their words together (yes, that is almost ALL Mexicans) but I've learned that you can get the gist of what they are saying by just picking up words every now and then. I have truly seen the Gift of Tongues in action and am so grateful that I am blessed to have the Lord helping me learn this language. I still have to study Portuguese so it can get real confusing studying both languages, but it's great, I love it. I hope all is well back home and that you all have an amazing Holiday season in remembering the birth of Christ. I love you all so much and make sure to give the little ones extra love for me!!!
Love,
Elder Michael Neilson

December 8, 2010

Aloha everyone!
  So I got out to Tempe two days ago, Monday morning, and it has been absolutely great out here! President Howes and his wife are amazing people and they really made me feel at home. Everyone else who works at the office is super nice too. Of course they all told me that I am so lucky to be reassigned to the Greatest Mission in the World, so I guess I can only hope that Florianopolis is the Second Greatest haha.When I got off the airplane the President and the assistants were there waiting for me and the first thing the President asked me was, 'How is your Spanish?'. It kind of threw me off because I was assuming that I was just going to teach in English so I told him my Spanish used to be pretty good but I'm not sure how great it is now after studying Portuguese for 9 weeks. He laughed and told me that he prayed where I should go and he felt strongly that I should be placed with a Spanish-speaking missionary and learn the language of Spanish. So, I went back to the mission home and they gave me a Spanish Preach My Gospel, Bible, Book of Mormon and a few other Spanish things and the President just told me to read thru the Spanish Book of Mormon as fast as possible and I will be fine. Also that I would not ever teach in English and that if we meet someone interested in the Church who speaks English that we must refer him to the English missionaries. I then met my trainer Elder Southern who is from Idaho and we were off to our area, Chandler, AZ. The first day was pretty tough because my whole vocab was in Portuguese and when I would speak quickly it would usually come out in Portuguese (the funny thing is that in the MTC everyone gave me a lot of grief because it seemed like I spoke a lot of Spanish). The next day was a LOT better tho, I was totally understanding El Libro De Mormon and the very first person I contacted asked me if he could come to church so that was pretty rad! We have been teaching a lot of lessons and I've actually been able to participate a ton in those lessons, just goes to show how powerful the Gift of Tongues can be! The Mexican people here are wayyyyy nice and they feed us extremely well. I can totally see how missionaries develop so much love for the people in their areas, they are amazing and you so badly want to see them progress in the Gospel. Elder Southern works me hard which is exactly what I wanted. These first few days have been WAY tiring because we ride our bikes EVERYWHERE and I have rode a bike for a while it seems like. If I stay here my whole mission I'd be willing to be I'd come back with some pretty ripped legs haha because down in Brazil it is all walking. We also got to go to the Mesa Temple this morning and that was such an amazing experience!! That Temple was so beautiful and the Spirit was so strong!! Chandler is a pretty cool town too, there are areas that are nice and then our areas. The weather has been consistently in the 70s and 80s too so I can't complain although it is not very pretty out here in the desert, they really need an ocean. But I'm doing great!! I already love it here and am trying to think as little about my visa and Portuguese as possible but it's hard because like President Howes told me, "You've been called by a prophet of God to serve in Brazil and that is where you will serve.". I hope all is going well back home!! O ya and they said to have all mail just mailed to the Mission Home and they will forward it. Also to make sure to put my first and last name on all packages and letters. Love you all and make sure to give the little ones some loves for me!!!
Love,
Elder Neilson

December 3, 2010

Aloha Everyone!

Well, I only have 3 days left here in the MTC! Looking back on the MTC I am sooooo grateful for the opportuntiy I had to stay here. You here a lot of people say how they absolutely hated the MTC and that's fine for them, but for me the MTC has been a lifesaver. The spiritual experiences that I have had here have been out of this world and I have never felt this close to the Savior. The MTC has really helped me see a lot of my weaknesses and helped me realize the purpose of this life. The food isn't the greatest but it is definitely edible and the people who work in the cafeteria are superrr nice. Also just being in a District with 12 other missionaries all the time is so fun and it is going to be weird just being with one person all day, everyday out in the field. I have never been so white and fat in my life! and I can't wait to get out and get tan and skinny again!! haha I've also gained a lot of respect for the state of Utah and the people from here. I think the snow is wayyy rad but I just wish I could have the snow AND the ocean all winter, that would be paradise...o wait, that place does exist, it's called Southern California! haha but really I will always think fondly back on my experience of the MTC. Whenever I would get somewhat down at this place, I would always just think to myself, if I can't be happy here while I am coming closer to the Savior then how can I possibly go out to the world and proclaim that the Gospel truly does bring happiness? This mindset has helped me a TON. It truly was no coincidence that I was to come here to the Provo MTC first, all the things that I have learned from the people in my district and being able to witness 5 Apostles give Devotionals, are clearly testimony of this. I think the thing that I've learned most here at the MTC is the importance of having love for everyone and especially the Savior. When we love the Savior and show that by following His commandments then we will develop love for all man. I am sooooooooooooooo excited tho to get out into the field, get to work and just be exhausted every night! This mission is such a blessing from the Lord. Our whole peurpose on this earth is to have joy and return to live with our Heavenly Father. There is nothing I want more than to receive exaltation and I didn't always think like this necessarily before this mission and I am so grateful that the Lord is allowing me this time so that I can do just that. Also I know that this mission will be such a blessing for me, my family now, and my future family, it's so cool! Anyways...I haven't called home yet to tell my parents where I am going so I am just going to give you all a hint as to where I have been reassigned until my visa comes... It covers 3 states, boarders another country and is heavily influenced by drug cartels...Any guesses??? haha all I have to say is that I am SO stoked to go there and it is EXACTLY the place that I have been praying to be reassigned to! I love you all and give loves to the little ones for me!!!

Love,

Elder Michael Neilson

November 26, 2010

Oiii Everyone!

This week was great as usual! Yesterday was Thanksgiving and we had Elder Holland come and give a Morning Devotional, it was the most amazing thing ever!! He started off by having his grandkids sing "My Heavenly Father Loves Me" to us and then he had his wife speak and she talked about how the Savior loves us sooo much. Elder Holland then stood up and just talked for a while about how amazing his wife is. It was super cool to see just how much he really loves his wife! Elder Holland is such a powerful man and an incredible speaker. He talked about how/why we help the poor and if we aren't willing to seek out the poor and assist them, then our prayers are in vain. Also how the Savior performed the Atonement on His own but luckily we don't have to serve our mission alone because we can always have His Spirit with us. It was such an amzing talk and pretty much all of the Elders and Sisters were crying the whole time. We then had Thanksgiving Lunch which was actually really good but we didn't get to eat dinner in the cafeteria so we had to make sack dinners. Then we went to a Humanitatrian Devotional and made backpacks and collected school supplies for kids in the U.S. who don't have these things. It was way cool!!! We finished off the night by having a Thankful Fireside where President Smith let the first 30 missionaries up to the microphone get to share what they are grateful for. As you can imagine there were definitely more than 30 missionaries who wanted to bear their testimonies but Pres. SMith only allowed 30. It was a way good day tho and then this morning we got to go to the Temple so that was way rad!! It is such a blessing to be able to go to the Temple every week, it will be a bummer when I get to Brazil and there is no Temple in my mission. O well. But ya, the 'massive storm' that was suppose to hit Provo this last week...well it did, we got about 1/2 inch of snow, quite the storm haha but it is getting colder here but it's definitely not as bad as a lot of Californians make it out to be. If my visa doesn't come by this next wednesday tho then I get my temporary reassignment!! I'm way pumped to hear where I will go if I do get another assignment! The MTC is great and I've put on another 6lbs but I'm ready to get down to Brazil and get skinny again!! haha love you all and give the little ones loves for me!!!!

Love,

Elder Michael Neilson

November 19, 2010

Alooha Everyone!

  This last week has been hands down the best/most spiritual week so far at the MTC!! It all started with our Tuesday night Devotional in which we got to hear From Elder Kevein W. Pearson of the 70. We were kind of bummed to hear it wasn't an apostle but this ended up being the best talk I have EVER heard in my LIFE. He talked about how we have Divine Identity and right now on our mission we are Disciples of Jesus Christ and He has called us to serve His people. I had never thought of it this way and this has definitely changed my attitude for my mission. He also talked about how it is crazy that people think that if we are exactly obedient then we will become robots and lose our personality. Instead he said that when we completely follow the rules we will turn into who the person the Lord wants us to become and that we will keep our personality. This is exactly what I needed to hear!! Earlier that day I had been thinking about what small things I could give up here in the MTC and I came up with a pretty lengthy list and came to the conclusion that I didn't want to give up any of them because 'that's not who I am'. So I heard him say this and the Sprirt testified to me of the truthfulness of this and I decided then to leave all of those things behind, to leave who I thought Michael Neilson was behind, and to become Elder Michael Neilson who the Lord wants me to be. I've never felt the Spirit as strongly in my life as I have the last few days, it's such a blessing!! O and that was super kind of the Las Flores ward to send me that care package! They are so cool!! Anyways, I gotta run but I want you all to know that I love you and am giving it my all out here and can't wait to get out to the field!!! Give the little ones loves for me!!!

Love,

Elder Michael Neilson

November 12, 2010

Hey Everyone!

  This last week was absolutely AMAZING. We had Elder Bednar come and give a devotional and his talk was soooo powerful. He talked about how the 'Answer is Always in the Doctrine' and he said that too often in the Church we seek to resolve things by using applications but he says that we first need to understand the relationship between the Doctine, Principles, and Applications. He talked about how we come to understand things and that we can only understand something when the Holy Ghost testifies to us through our hearts that it's true. He also gave 2 Apostolic Blessings, one of which talked about how thru the Atonement our capacity will enlarge so we will be able to help others, such a great thing to hear!! He then closed his talk by bearing his testimony about how he is a witness of Heavenly Father and Jesus Christ!! Such a cool experience for me and everyone else here, the guy is just incredible!! Also we had really really good news this weeks because we FINALLY had some Brazil visas come and I got called up to the Travel Office where they told me that mine should be here in a month or sooner!! It was so relieving to here this and hearing this news has definitely pumped up all of the Brazillian missionaries. The language is reaaally starting to come, it is so cool to see how that works!! I'm now able to read from the Portuguese Book of Mormon and actually understand what is being said and mark scriptures based on cool things that I find! I'm way stoked to get out in the field but this last week has definitely made me realize how grateful I am for the MTC. I can see the blessings of being here such as the fact that I've put on 8 POUNDS in the last couple of weeks!! I'm getting fat! Or more like, getting closer to be normal!! haha also I've seen how much easier it is for me to recognize the promptings of the Spirit and seen how greatly that has benefitted me since being here. Also I'm so grateful for the life I had before I came to the MTC and would not have changed a thing, a lot of people say how they wished they would have prepared better, but personally, this work is hard and it keeps you busy so I'm kind of glad I had 19 years to relax and be pretty lazy at times haha but the weather here is starting to get real real cold and there is no snow on the ground so it's not even fun for it to be cold. I've realized from the one day that we did have snow that it is way rad and way fun but to have to live in it with no ocean?? no way, not me! Anyways, I love you all and hope everything is going well back home. Give the kids some loves for me!!!

 

Love,

Michael

November 5, 2010

Ola Todos!

  So this week was another AMAZING week. We had Elder Ballard come and give a devotional on Tuesday and he talked about the importance of becoming a masterful communicator and that we should gain a deep understanding of the Gospel so that we feel confident to talk about it in our everyday conversations with people. We have been sooooo lucky here because this was the third straight week that we have heard from an Apostle, definitely one of the many benefits of the MTC! Anyways the rest of the week was really solid. Me and my companion had to teach 2 more investigatorts in Portuguese and it went sooo much better than I could've hoped it would. The language is coming pretty fast and it is all because the Lord is blessing us by loosening our tongues. Then today we went to the Temple and did a session. We were in a deaf session so we got to see everything done is sign language too, it was a super cool experience, I learned so much!! Then after we did our session we decided to eat in the cafeteria in the Temple and they served FILET MIGNON!! It was so so so good and everyone in our district was way happy we made that decision. Also thanks sooo much for the bread again! My district absolutely loves it when I get a package because it almost always has food in it!! The wheat bread, cinnamon pull apart bread and cinnamon rolls are definitely the favorites and get eaten pretty quick. Anyways...I think that's all! Can't wait to hear from you soon! Give all the kids a hug and kiss for me!!!

 

Love,

Michael

Friday October 29, 2010

Hey everyone!

  This week was absolutely amazing!! Lots of stuff happened but the I'll just say some of the big points. We had Richard G. Scott come and give a devotional here, the best talk I have ever seen in person! He gave an Apostolic Blessing to the sister missionaries for protection and gave everyone else an Apostolic Blessing of the Gift of Tongues, it was incredible and I already see my Portuguese vastly improving because of it! He also bore the most powerful testimony of the Savior that I have ever heard, my whole body was just overwhelmed by the Spirit as he closed his talk by saying that he knows that Christ lives and has a glorified body and he knows this because he knows the Savior personally...it was soooo cool when he said this and we couldn't stop talking about it after the meeting. Then this morning the temple need proxies for sealings and we got to do them! It was so neat since I won't be able to be there when Lillee and William are sealed to our family, but this experience was priceless. I personally love it here in the MTC but most of the elders in our district hate it here but we are all excited to be able to get out into the field. I got to see Taylor Jones on his first day too so that was way rad! Thank you so much Mom for all the packages!! I got the one with my black cords and shirts like an hour ago so thank you again so much!!! O and for the bread too, everyone in our district loves that we have stuff to munch on during the day. And Lisa and Sean are so great for sending me some crescants, they were soo good!! Well, all is going well here so don't even spend a second worrying about me!!!

Love,

Michael

Friday October 22, 2010

Hey everyone,

  This last week has been way rad here in the MTC! It just keeps getting better everyday and my knowledge of the scriptures and Portuguese expands soooo fast, it's crazy. So this last Tuesday we had a devotional and Russell M. Nelson was the speaker, such an amazing experience! He only spoke for like 10-15 minutes (they usually speak for at least 30 mins) so that was kind of odd but it was just so cool to be in the presence of an Apostle of God. It's really funny how excited we get for devotionals too, it is really all that we have to look forward to. Me and my companion did another 'mock investigator' thing at the TRC (Training Resource Center) and it went really really well. The guy was from Sao Palo and was a member but he did a great job at asking questions that made us think. We pretty much do role play at least 3 times a day here in the MTC, usually teaching the discussions, so getting good at teaching and role playing before you get in here definitely would help a TON. Your Las Flores ward did a really good job at that with the priests I noticed so that is really cool. Mom, Thank you sooooo much for sending those packages!!! Everyone in my district was so stoked to see that one of us actually got a care package full of real food haha candy and other stuff is still really good but it's nice to get some healthy stuff every now and then. And that book with all of our family photos is my favorite!! But thanks again Mom, youre the greatest I love you so much!!! Me and my companion have to teach Sunday school this week and it's on Christlike Attributes so we are excited to be able to share our message in 2 days. The Spirit of the MTC is so incedible, this is by far the hardest and most tiring (no 2 hour naps everyday haha) work that I have ever done, but it is no question the most rewarding and spiritually refreshing thing I have ever done. Anyways...I love you all so so much and give all the little ones a big hug and kiss for me!!

Love,

Michael

Friday, October 15, 2010

Hey everyone,

So we finally got our first week down, it went really well and our district is really really close with each other. We have 13 missionaries and are crammed into this tiny room but it's fine because we don't have any annoying people. We finally got another Portuguese teacher this week too!!! We are all super happy because we were getting tired of not ever having a teacher. Today is P-day so we got to go to the temple and do a session and it was amzing, the Spirit there is so strong. We also made a point of emphasis in our district to truly have faith in the Lord that our visas will come and so we all prayed earnestly for this in the temple. It was a great experience and it was my favorite trip to the temple thus far. Besides that everything has been going really well. The work is long and hard and I was not at all prepared to be working this hard before I came here but they just keep telling us to be obedient, trust in the Lord and give it your all and everything will be just fine. The weather has been amazing this last week too, I think it's because the Lord knows I don't like cold weather so wherever I live the weather is always warm haha lets just hope I get my visa before the snow comes or I might just freeze to death. Love you all, it was so good to hear from Aunt Lisa and Aunt Arlene this week and I'd love to hear from anyone else!

Com amor,

Michael

Saturday, October 9, 2010

Hey family,

  Everything has been going pretty great so far in the MTC, it is not nearly as bad as everyone made it out to be. However I know that living away from home for a long period of time has definitely helped me not be too home sick. My companion is Elder Parsons from Idaho and he is an awesome guy, we get along super well and both have pretty calm personalities. We got lucky with our roommates too, Elder Ricker and Hildebrandt from Idaho and Utah are really fun guys and easy going. Our district is pretty big, we have 13 elders and we are crammed into a room the size of half of my old bedroom, seriously, it's crazy tight in there!! Our teachers are great too but it is kind of weird because we only get taught like 2, maybe 3 hours a day and the rest of the time we have to find studying for ouselves and companions to do. There is a massive shortage of teachers, especially Protuguese tachers, since they weren't expecting to have to house all of these elders who should be in Brazil. Our district is hoping so badly that our visas come thru quickly because we are all really anxious to get down to Brazil. The language is defintiley different from Spanish but it is so much cooler than spanish! Anyways, it's been a really good experience here so far and it's been good to grasp the Spirit of the MTC. Before I came here I thought about all the things in my life that I wanted to change over these next 2 years and I quickly learned this is not the attitude to have. Instead I know that if I just focus on serving others and learning the gospel principles and the Portuguese language, that in return I know the Lord will make me a better person. Also as much as I don't really want to admit it, gettting up at 5 in the morning for seminary for 4 years in high school has definitely made it a lot easier to wake up early here, there are a lot of elders here who really struggle with getting up. I finally got your packages and DearElder letters today and it was so great to have mail! Those cinnamon rolls will definitely be a lot better than anything they could possibly serve here for breakfast (lunch and dinner aren't too bad usually). I've seen pretty much everyone here in the MTC that I already knew was here, the only one you would really know would be Austin Taylor but I've seen a ton of friends from school. Sooo quick story, the Elders in our district are pretty obsessed with always talking about our visas, especially my rommate Elder Ricker. He always jokes that each day is his last day here in Provo and that his visa is coming tomorrow. So I decided to write a note from the "MTC Travel Coordinator" saying that they had received the visas for the 4 Elders in our room. I slipped the note under our door and when our district all went back to our rooms later that night, Elder Ricker opened our door and walked in to find the note. He read it and started running down the hall yelling how he got his visa, this caused everyone in our district to run out of their rooms and huddle around the note. Their reactions were priceless! I was in the background laughing so hard and after a couple of minutes my companion and I finally told Elder Ricker and the rest of the Elders that I wrote the note as a joke and they all thought it was hysterical. And it was. haha other elders saw this and decided to do the same joke on their roommates too. The MTC is great and we do all that we can to focus the entire day so that we can become better instruments in the Lord's hand but we realize that we still have to have some fun every now and then or else we will all go crazy!! Well, it was cool that I got to talk to you the other day on the phone and thank you for sending in those immunization records, I really appreciate it. I love you all and hope all is well back home!! Can't wait to hear from you next week!! Tell the babies I love them and miss them so much! and you too, Mom, Dad, Annie, Tiersha, Tahnee, Josh and Tyler!

 

Chao!

Michael (the golden child)

ps. it is starting to get REALLY cold here...it ain't no Hawaii out here!!

and sorry if there are a ton of typing errors, I only have so many minutes to write so I gotta go fast! But I'm doing great!!

Dropping him off!

Here are the pictures from dropping Michael off at the MTC!  He looked great and was very excited!  It's not quite as "heartless" as everyone makes it seem.  We pulled up and two missionaries were there to help him and told us that we could take as long as we needed to say goodbye.  However, it was very quick, and no tears were shed.  It was a great goodbye!

These guys were funny, but I'm sure they helped Michael with everything he needed.  They seemed really excited to help.

I'm going to try REALLY hard to keep this updated

Michael entered the MTC on Wednesday, and I'm going to try really hard to keep a blog of the emails & pcitures he sends home. I'm sure it would be nice to be able to put a book together of everything when he gets home. If there's anything Michael sends you that you would like me to put up let me know! I have pictures from dropping him off at the MTC, but do not have my camera so those pictures will be up soon!