Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Elder Flexy 7:5 -email-

Make,

sorry i told you the wrong spelling the G and K make the same sound here. so this week has been great we have done a lot of good work. and today we went for a hike to to execution rock and we saw warthogs, wildebeest, springboks, hippos and zebras. its was super fun. ya i like the story of the missionary and you just have to notice that your to protect your companion from sin not disobedience. And always treat them with respect and you will be ok.

1 How is your toe?

1.its doing well i'm doing my best to take care of it.
2 If you could, would you get me some cool beads from SA?
2.ya i can get you some.
3 What has the temperature been lately?
3.its has been either really hot or really rainy. it rains a lot here.
4 Are you getting used to the climate?
4.yep its not too bad anymore.
5 Are you having success with your teaching?
5.ya i'm getting a little to comfortable so i do most of the talking now.
6 Favorite scripture of the week?
6.well its actually the official declaration called "the living Christ" and i'm actually memorizing it.

Special Question of the week?

7 How does Satan try to bring us down? 

7.he makes us feel like we are the ones holding everyone back and gets you discouraged.
anyway life on mission is doing great. love you.


                                                              Love Elder Flexy
Babe.
Man i miss doing that kind of stuff. i'm so glad your still working with those young guys. they need a good example. ya i've started to find good food to eat that is cheap. we are teaching so much i'm becoming a versatile missionary. the work is getting good we will have a baptism in just a couple weeks so life is good the work is going forward. ya the walking area is nice you really feel like a missionary when you are walking. anyway i better quit. love you

                                                                Love Elder Flexy    

Kels,

wow i am so exited for you! mission is such a good experience and you learn so much. like i've learned that i'm actually a pretty good teacher and i'm thinking about doing it for my job. but you will love it and you will be blessed and you will feel complete joy. i get home every day and all i can say is that i'm tired but i'm happy.  and you don't know why you feel so happy but you just do. idk why but its is the best. anyway love you

                                                                 Love Elder Flexy

EM

i'm a little concerned for your sanity!!!! :) jk but you write the weirdest emails i don't even know what to say except i love you to and keep working hard. haha luv ya guts. BYE!!!!!!!!!!
oxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxoxo

                                                                 Love Elder Flexy

Sunday Best!

“As parents, we should remember that our lives may be the book from the family library which the children most treasure. Are our examples worthy of emulation? Do we live in such a way that a son or a daughter may say, ‘I want to follow my dad,’ or ‘I want to be like my mother’? Unlike the book on the library shelf, the covers of which shield its contents, our lives cannot be closed. Parents, we truly are an open book in the library of learning of our homes.” 

-Thomas S. Monson

Hope your Sunday was the Best! Love, Joy

Two Cents! by T and G.

T (when he was 3): 

"When I was a little boy, I didn't like these?" 

(Conversation Hearts)

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Elder Flexy 7:4 -email-

Mage,

 things are going great in swaziland it is very nice here and the work is going forward. i am enjoying the new area and all is well here.

1 How is your toe?

1.my toe is ok still hurts but i'm doctoring like crazy.

2 How much are you walking?

2.well from 10:30 to 8:00 every day exept appointments. so a lot.

3 How is your new area?

3.new area is good i'm learning even more language they speak Swati here but its close to Zulu so its not to hard.

4 How many people are you teaching?

4.lots of people this area is full of humble people which is nice.

5 Do they speak English? 

5.most do but some don't

6 Do they have a thick accent?

6.ya you could say that they speak in a very interesting way so its hard to understand most of the time. but we try our best.

7 What is your routine? (Example: Get up, exercise, shower, personal study, comp study, tracting or contacting, lunch, teaching appts, dinner, teaching appts.)  

7.well we get up sometimes i work out just a short time because we walk all day so not to hard, then eat breakfast, shower, personal study, comp study. then we go to the area work tract see apointments till bout seven o clock at night then we go to a members house till we get picked up in the car.

8 Have you done anything fun on pday yet?

8.ya we played soccer today and i assisted in three goals and i scored one goal it was good.

9 What kind of housing do most of the people live in in Swaziland?

9.well some live in the mud huts some live in houses and there are some appartment buildings.

10 Do you teach well with Elder Webster?

10.yep when it comes to teaching he is my best companion we teach well together.

11 Are the towns or villages very close together?

11.ya the area where we work is small and the zone leaders work the far away parts of our area.

12 Are the people more receptive to hearing what you have to say?

12.usually but sometimes you meet the babes that think they can't learn anything from young chaps like us

Special Question:

13 What does it mean to be meek? How can we be meek?

13.well i would say that meek is similar to humble and submissive so its your ability to see that you don't know everything and that you can learn still. and you need this in order to grow in the gospel if you know everything what do you need gods help for but the fact of the matter is we don't know everything.

anyway things are going great. if anything really cool happens i will surly let you know. love you.

 

                                   Love Elder Flexy

Sunday Best!

Matthew 5:5 

Blessed are the meek: 

for they shall inherit the earth.

**************

The meek and the humble are those who are teachable. They are willing to learn. They are willing to listen to the whispering of the still, small voice for guidance in their lives. They place the wisdom of the Lord above their own wisdom.

-Gorden B. Hinckley, Stand A Little Taller

***********************************

Being humble and teachable means, that you know that you need help in life. You look to other peoples- example to help you learn and grow and become the best "you"! Parents, siblings, friends, leaders, teachers, and sweethearts, all help us to become the best we can be. They help us by, living a life that shows us the way. They help us by, lovingly telling us ways that we can improve. The person that can help us the most is the Savior. His life and teachings are the way! We need to be meek and He will show us the way! 

Hope your Sunday was the Best! Love, Joy

Family History Friday (FHF): Cyndi's List!

Cyndi is a great help when doing Family History research. 

Check her site out here!!

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Heroes!

Mr. Rogers!

"You are special!" I always felt special when listening to him. From the time I was a little girl, when I would question my worth, I knew I was special and of value, while listening to him. When I got older, doing housework, I would catch glimpses of him, while my children were watching. I knew he was helping them feel special too. His positive way of looking at life is an example of how to live. His life, and program, taught us to, "Love your neighbor as yourself".  Listen to him as he tries to get help from congress for funding for his wonderful program. 
(don't forget to pause the music at the bottom)

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Elder Flexy 7:3 -email-

Mage,
mom the new name in swaziland is mage its said like ma gay. but thats the title for mom here its different here, very different this is what i thought SA was going to be like we are in the bush. swaziland is really cool it only has about a million people so its quite small but its going well.

1 How do you like your new area?

1.its awesome my last area was a hard area and we worked hard and had little success but just since i've been here since tuesday and we already have three B dates.

2 are your living quarters nice?2.yes we rent a house and we stay with our zone leaders we stay down stairs and they stay upstairs. its nice better than the last one.
3 How are things with your new companion?3.good he is from Richfeild idaho he is a good guy.
4 Are there very many members?4. ya at least a hundred or more.
5 Have you seen any animals like elephants or others?5.not yet but we will go to a game park soon and see them.
6 Will you get me a nativity made of wood?6.yep i will
7 Where is Elder Webster from?7. ya he is from idaho
8 How long has he been out?
8.nine and a half monthes
9 Who are the other elders you live with and how long have they been out?9.Elder Ng'anda and Elder Samai
10 Have you learned anything new about South Africa in this move?10.well i learned that SA is not that differant from home but swaziland is!!!
11 Favorite Scripture this week?11.Moroni 10:3-5 awesome scripture!!!

Special question:

12 How do you know that Heavenly Father hears and answers our prayers?

12.hmmm good one, i would have to say that you should listen pay attention to how you feel and keep your eyes open for the answers.
anyway life in Swazi is awesome and i'm gonna lose some weight for sure this place has hills and we are walking. Love you

                                                           Love Elder Flexy

Family History Friday (FHF): Organize Your Documents!

One of my first blog posts for

Family History Friday, 

was about the type of organizing that I like to do. It's called "Color Coding." You can read a little about it here. In addition to color coding, I like to organize all of the family documents in the history of each family. I make a copy of the original, and put the copy in the family's history book. If I have the original of the document, I keep it in a fire safe. The reason that I like to keep the original put away in a safe place is because I can always make a copy. But if I lost the original, or it was destroyed, then it's gone. Others I know keep the important documents in a safety deposit box at the bank. 

When doing research, I always make a copy of an original document. Say it's a census record, if I were to just transcribe the information onto another sheet of paper, I may get numbers transposed. I may think an "S" looks like an "L", and write it like that. If I don't have a copy of the original, I have to go by what I wrote. If I have a copy of the original, I can always go back to it and look. What it says on the census is always there in my records to tell me. 

********

Don't forget to make more than one copy of your records. My parents both have copies of the same information I have. That way, if something ever happens to one our copies. There is a way to replace that information. 

******************

Organize and make copies of your family's documents! Keep the originals in a safe place, and make sure you have more than one back up of your histories. 

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy

Lessons!

Kelsey, Natasha, G and T at the Air Force Museum 

 T in front of a airplane

"You can do hard things." 

One of my dear friends, Annette, is the mother to the little boys we used to tend. You may know them by the posts I've done about them, "Two Cents" by T and G. I haven't tended them everyday for some time, but they still come on occasion to visit and play. When T was just little tiny, maybe 4, he had to go to see the dentist for cavities. He couldn't go to the regular dentist, because he was very scared, and had a hard time doing what the dentist asked him to do. He ended up at the pediatric dentist. In case you don't know, that's a dentist who only works on kids. When Annette came to get the boys on the day T had to go to the dentist, he started to cry. I was wondering how Annette was going to get him to go, when he didn't sound like he would. I've never forgotten what she said to him and I learned a great lesson from my friend. She said, "You can do hard things." Guess what, T still wasn't very happy about it, but he left with his mom and did it. He went to the dentist. 

Ever since that day, when I'm having a tough time with something I need to do, the thought literally comes to my mind, "You can do hard things." I can do hard things. We can all do more than we think we can. 

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Elder Flexy 7:2 -email-

Mama
so i have some news i got transfer news yesterday and i am going to swaziland its pretty freakin awesome. and my new companions name is Elder Webster. but now i'm gonna be in a walking area so i might lose some of my chub. and i hope i'll finally be getting baptisms. but ya today we played sport and me and Elder Clark and Elder Armstrong two white africans were dominating the competition it was fun. i have a bad ingrown toe nail that hurts so freakin bad but oh well it will be ok.  i'm glad all is going well at home and that the little ones are doing well.

1 Have you tried any new recipes?

1.kinda we try weird stuff when we don't have much food.

2 Do you have to do a certain amount (hours) of tracting each week?  or Service?
2.well we tract when we have no appointments so we tract a lot.
3 What activity or lesson do you most look forward to each week?
3.well i look forward to seeing the joseph family and lungani langa
4 If you could change one thing to help your investigators accept the gospel, what would it be?
4.get them to church for sure.
5 Have you met anyone there or know someone at home with traits that you admire? What are they?
5.well Elder shumway and i get along great we have some similarities that make the companionship easier.
6 What character traits would you like to develop?
6.well i am being made to learn patience
7 In what way do you feel you have grown the most since coming out on your mission?
7.well i've learned to be independent thats good
Special Question:

8 How do you recognize inspiration, when making decisions?

8.wel i would just tell them that God gave us feelings so we could communicate with the spirit with our feelings.
anyway things are going great i'll give you more details later but i'm getting photos for you guys so i have even less time so love you 

                                                 Love Elder Flexy

Family History Friday (FHF): Great journal idea!!

You all know I love Family History! I found the cutest idea that I know you will love!!! If you want to keep a journal, but feel overwhelmed at the thought of writing page after page of information. Here is a great way to keep a record of your life and important events without the time and effort involved in writing a journal. I found this idea at 

Design*Sponge,

 it's a calender  journal! Please take a look and read about it here! It's so wonderful! 

I love it!

Happy Family History Friday! Love, Joy 

Look, It Fits!

Kelsey got this great piece of luggage for her mission from our friends, Barry and Iva!

Texas here I come!

Thanks Barry and Iva!!

Howzit-Elder Flexy!

Alex the day he got his mission call

Elder Flexy 7:1 -email-

Mama
wow this week has been tiring we stayed up late new years eve and played Risk and Settlers of Zerahemla it was way fun. and since most of our investigators have been gone for the hollidays we have done a lot of tracting. probably at least fifteen hours this week. but its paying off this area is picking up after all our hard work. thats awesome that you went to st. george i hope you had a good time you probably did. ya mission is still the same as its always been.

1 What are the different types of money there and how do they exchange?

1.well there is the Rand which is seven rands for one dollar.

2 Do you ever run out of $?2.ya sometimes but we get by its not bad.
3 Have you ever scored a goal in soccer, playing with the elders?3.ya i have actually! we played basketball on new years day and i kicked some bum i scored like ten shots.
4 How are you and your companion doing in your teaching?
4.we are doing great a lot better.
5 What is your favorite scripture for this week? ( I want you to give me a favorite each week, so we can see what you're learning and teaching)5.Probably Amos 3:7 we use it when we talk about prophets.
6 Pictures?6.i'm making a cd today so i'll sent it soon.
7 Do you think you will ever write a letter? Do you have time to do both email and letters?7.not really i haven't written any letters in a long time to anyone theres just no time.
8 How many missionaries are in your ward?8.well there are two companionships us and the zone leaders.
9 Did you say your apartment is on a hill?9.kinda i guess the terrain here is very hilly.
10 What is the most prominent religion in South Africa?10.probably whats called the Zion church its a mix between christian and the Zulu culture.

Special Question:

11 How do you help your investigators to recognize the spirit?

11.well if the spirit comes very strong in the lesson we just ask them if they feel that and we bear testimony that its the spirit.
ya the time is flying by and i'll be home in no time. love you 

                                                                     Love Elder Flexy

Sunday Best!

John 1:1-5

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. 2 The same was in the beginning with God. 3 All things were made by him and without him was not any thing made that was made. 4 In him was life; and the life was the light of men. 5 And the light shineth in darkness; and the darkness comprehended it not. 

****

His life is the light of men. If only we will follow His light. His life is an example of what we should do.  

Hope your Sunday was the Best! Love, Joy 

I said to the man who stood at the gate of the year. "Give me a light, that I may travel safely into the unknown." And he replied, "Go out into the darkness and put your hand in the hand of God. That shall be to you, better than light and safer than a known way. 

-Minnie Louis Harkins

May you have the 

Happiest of New Years

 ever!