Aye mi madre! Everything about the temple dedication sounds marvelous and I am a wee bit jealous! Or a lot :) But I am also having a great time here! Some days (or weeks) are harder than others, but on the whole things are wonderful!
For Thanksgiving my comp and I plan on having a baked chicken delivered, making mashed potatoes with cream of mushroom soup gravy, green beans with onions, and making a pistachio pudding pie. So while I´ll be a bit sad not to be at home, we WILL be doing our best to feast that day. Halloween was fun too. We hung up my bright orange sheets over the curtains, bought lots of little candies because they´re only a peso each, and plastic bat glasses. We got a pumpkin-like sqush, and baked it´s seeds, and I carved one hole into it because the rind was very thick. We then turned the hole into a star with Sharpie and drew a Nativity scene, because the people here start decorating for Christmas in October. Fun Fact: most Dominicans think Halloween is really evil, and we got super judged in Relief Society for celebrating it in America. THAT WAS FUN.
Another interesting Dominican thing: nicknames. Almost everyone has a nickname here that is completely unrelated to their actual name. Some examples: Tony is really Sebastion, Predi is really Jorge, and Negra is really Maria Magdalena. And apparently the town of Navarrete is the same. Yes Dad, the real name of the town is Bisono, but no one calls it that, and all the road signs say Navarrete.
I want to take a moment to repent for being so excited about the flood last week, because it actually ruined a lot of homes. The good news is, we went into the stake center last Thursday for Zone Conference, and the foyer was filled with tall stacks of mattresses, boxes, and buckets of relief aid from the church! It was cool to see the hygiene kits that people in the US made and donated, and the supplies that our tithing money bought, actually go somewhere!
We have had some great lessons this week. Mari is amazing, the other night she pulled out a notebook of notes she had taken while reading the Book of Mormon, and I almost cried with joy, because earlier that day had been rough and her faith and diligence is such a privilege to witness.
Love to all especially MOM! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Enjoy the pictures I send!
For Thanksgiving my comp and I plan on having a baked chicken delivered, making mashed potatoes with cream of mushroom soup gravy, green beans with onions, and making a pistachio pudding pie. So while I´ll be a bit sad not to be at home, we WILL be doing our best to feast that day. Halloween was fun too. We hung up my bright orange sheets over the curtains, bought lots of little candies because they´re only a peso each, and plastic bat glasses. We got a pumpkin-like sqush, and baked it´s seeds, and I carved one hole into it because the rind was very thick. We then turned the hole into a star with Sharpie and drew a Nativity scene, because the people here start decorating for Christmas in October. Fun Fact: most Dominicans think Halloween is really evil, and we got super judged in Relief Society for celebrating it in America. THAT WAS FUN.
Another interesting Dominican thing: nicknames. Almost everyone has a nickname here that is completely unrelated to their actual name. Some examples: Tony is really Sebastion, Predi is really Jorge, and Negra is really Maria Magdalena. And apparently the town of Navarrete is the same. Yes Dad, the real name of the town is Bisono, but no one calls it that, and all the road signs say Navarrete.
I want to take a moment to repent for being so excited about the flood last week, because it actually ruined a lot of homes. The good news is, we went into the stake center last Thursday for Zone Conference, and the foyer was filled with tall stacks of mattresses, boxes, and buckets of relief aid from the church! It was cool to see the hygiene kits that people in the US made and donated, and the supplies that our tithing money bought, actually go somewhere!
We have had some great lessons this week. Mari is amazing, the other night she pulled out a notebook of notes she had taken while reading the Book of Mormon, and I almost cried with joy, because earlier that day had been rough and her faith and diligence is such a privilege to witness.
Love to all especially MOM! HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!! Enjoy the pictures I send!