Less than two weeks until Christmas! I can't believe it, but it's almost here. Excited to call home, that's for sure. This week has been great. More than great actually. It's been amazing! I suppose that the two highlights of the week would be finally setting a baptismal date with Evelyn and the Summer Wonderland activity that happened on Friday night. This week has flown by though because of how busy we've been. All week we've been full on with teaching. I'm struggling to remember the specifics of this week because I left my old planner at home, since today is the first day of a new transfer and all. Speaking of transfers, I'm staying in Kwinana for at least another 6 weeks, which I'm so happy about. I realllly didn't want to get transferred right before Christmas and miss hanging out with the Preedys and all that. Elder Jorgensen, however, is getting transferred. This is the first time that I've ever had a companion for only one transfer. It was pretty unexpected especially since he's only been in the area for one transfer and he's off. So we got the call that he was getting transferred on Saturday night from the Zone Leaders but last night (Sunday) we got a call from President Cahoon that Elder Jorgensen is going to go be a district leader now elsewhere and I am going to be training a new missionary! And this time he is going to be a legit NEW missionary, straight out of the MTC, not Alabama haha. I'm pretty excited to train. I'm just on this "new experience" buzz you know? I have no idea where he's going to be from or anything like that. I don't find out until Thursday this week. What is also going to be exciting about it is that Elder Metekingi in Rockingham is also training at the same time so we'll be able to help each other heaps. Although I will miss his previous companion, Elder Abel, I'm sure I'll serve around him again. I love both of those Elders. They're always such a great help to me and to others. I am sad to see Elder Jorgensen go so soon. He and I were just starting to really get along really well. It took us awhile to get used to each other I think, but we really started to get along great about 2 weeks ago. Something just clicked, I don't quite know what it was. But he's a district leader now, just like I told him he would be. He is sort of dreading it, but he'll do a good job.

This weekend has been hectic starting from Thursday. We went on Thursday morning to do some service for a friend of Angela's. He wanted us to lay some pavers, or slabs of concrete (I don't know what they're called in America), in his back yard. He originally told us that it wouldn't be that big of a job. When we got there, there were about 50 of these pavers that he wanted us to lay. This being our 4th job like this to do, we knew that this was no small job. In the past we've laid like, 15-20 pavers for one job. Luckily though, we've gained the experienced and cranked it out in about 3 hours, lunch break included. There were 4 of us missionaries there, Me, Jorgensen, Metekingi, and Lowe, and Metekingi and I were the only ones that really knew what we were doing so we just hammered out quick as we could. It was mean. I got a nice little sunburn from that as well. It was nice. So when we got back home by about 2:30, we baked some cookies for one of our investigators, which took about an hour. I don't know if you remember me saying anything about John and Tina how he is a less active and she's a non-member. Well we haven't been able to see them since that first time that we saw them. So we decided to bake some cookies and take them over to them to let them know that we haven't forgotten about them and hopefully they haven't forgotten about us. They've had to cancel on us the past two weeks but we have another appointment with them tomorrow, so we'll hope for the best. By the time we baked them and biked over to their house and gave them the cookies, it was time to go to Arturo and Evelyn's house. We taught Arturo and Evelyn a great lesson, about what I cannot remember, I've slept since then. But I know that it was a great lesson and we all felt the spirit testifying to each and every one of us. We asked Evelyn if she was able to pray about a baptismal date and she told us the date that she came up with was December 25th. Afterwards Arturo said it would probably be better to have it a week later because everyone will probably be to be on Christmas day. Personally, I couldn't think of a better Christmas present to give someone than the gift of baptism, but I understand that people that aren't missionaries still have lives to attend to. Looking at the bright side, I can't think of a better way to start the new year other than having a baptism on 1 January 2011. It's going to be great. So over the next few weeks we're going to be teaching all of the lessons again and then set up the interview with a Tagalog translator. We're pumped. Jorgensen is sad he has to miss it though.

Friday night was the Summer Wonderland activity which was AMAZING! They guesstimated that there were about 1000 people there, give or take a few. I got to see the McGaugheys, the Mains, the Berrymans, everyone! It was so great to see everyone. It was even better to see that they all still remembered me haha. The McGaugheys invited me to their temple sealing which they are anticipating is going to be on the 15th of January! So he gave me his mobile number and I just have to give him a ring early January and get it all organised. I feel pretty honored that they feel like I left a big enough impact on their family that they want me to be at their temple sealing. He gives me the credit for helping reactivate him and his family. One of my biggest goals on my mission is to see someone that I either taught or baptised get sealed in the temple before I go home. So I feel so privileged to be invited to their temple sealing. They said that they got the letter that I sent them awhile back and put the picture of me that I sent them in the corner of the frame of the picture of the temple that Elder Glover and I gave them while we were there. I thought that was awesome. Lucky I'm not getting transferred too, because I could've gotten sent up north or something and not have been able to go, so I consider myself pretty blessed.

Seeing the Mains and Berrymans was great too. The Mains have moved to a place called Clarkson which is in Merriwa ward in Warwick stake. That means that I have another chance to serve in their area! They said that every missionary they've told that to has said the same thing though haha. So if I ever serve up in Merriwa, I'll be so happy. I've heard that it's just a good area anyways, even before they moved there. But yeah, when I leave Kwinny I'll probably only have 6 or 7 transfers left in my mission, so the chances are pretty slim. Auntie Berryman told me that I'm welcome to have my farewell party at the end of my mission at her house. She just had one last week for Elder Weitzeil who went home on Friday and she was sad that I couldn't make it, so she told me to come have mine at her house. It's a long time from now, but never hurts to plan ahead.

We didn't get home from the Summer Wonderland activity until after midnight, but we had permission. All the missionaries had to stick around to help clean up and get everything off the field outside into the chapel. The activity itself didn't end until 9:45 so we cleaned up until 11:30 then drove home. It was good to see all the missionaries too. Well, most of the missionaries anyways. Great night though. The APs sent us all a text thanking us for all the hard work that we put into it and told us that someone has already set a baptismal date from that night. We were way excited to hear that. What do you expect though when you have around 400 nonmembers show up to an activity like that. So yeah, fantastic night.

On Saturday I got to give my first baptismal interview as a district leader. It was for an 11 year old girl so it went really well. She was on to it though aye. Way smart. Her dad who wasn't a member was way proud of her for passing the interview, so hopefully those missionaries can work with him and teach him as well. Then on Saturday night we had a ward Christmas party which was by far the best ward activity I've been to in this ward, well probably in my whole mission. Not only because most of the ward showed up, but because there was lots to do. Bouncy castles for the kids, Barbeque outside, sumo suits for the adults. Good fun. I'm really growing to love this ward though aye. This will be my second area to serve 4 transfers in and there is even a possibility of doing 5 in this area. I'm pumped!

I love this gospel. I love sharing it with everyone I meet. I'm so excited for this new experience ahead of me. I'm going to realllly have to start doing everything straight by the book. I want to train this new missionary as best as I can. I gave some training this week in District meeting on accountability and who we are accountable to and for what. I feel very accountable for how I train this new missionary. I want to see him become a great missionary, and I know that it is up to me to help him become a great missionary.

Well that's about it for this week. I love every single one of you. I pray for your safety and protection both physically and spiritually every day. Always stay close to Christ and his Gospel if you want to always be happy.

Have a great week!

love,

Elder Tanner