Monday, January 4, 2010

HAPPY UKRAINIAN NEW YEAR!


Hey Family,

Good morning! Yes, in Ukraine I get to celebrate 2 Christmases and 2 New Years! Twice the holidays but they are definitely different from home. It sounds like you all had an eventful Christmas and New Years.

Mom, I can't believe you encouraged Dad to get a new dog and you are still going a million miles an hour. You have no idea how jealous I am that you are going to Jerusalem!!! I have set that as one of my 5-10 year goals!! I want so badly to see the places where Christ worked, especially after teaching people about His life and His gospel! I want to see pictures and hear about everything!

Dad, I read the first part of your letter and was really sad that I only got the first 2 lines but then I found the rest! I am impressed with all our your goals! ..... I also can't believe that you are ready to go back to doggie kindergarten!! I am glad that a lot of this will be happening before I come back. After hearing both you and mom talking about potty training, waking up in the middle of the night... it doesn't sound like a lot of fun! I am sure that this little one will be a little calmer with Dakota around.

Brynn, Sounds like you have had an amazing and slightly stressful few weeks. Your blessing sounds absolutely amazing and I am so happy for you! I remember after I got mine I just wanted to sleep and I think I came home ate and slept for a long time. Hearing about you doing baptisms has made me really think a lot about the temple this last week. I can't wait until the temple opens here and I can go again. I miss that strength that you receive from the temple and I want to go so bad.

Chase and Ashley, I can't believe that you are moving into your last semester! It feels like when I come home that everything should be exactly the same but I know things will be very different. I really hope that you hear from UNLV this week!! I hate just waiting and feeling out of control. Your Christmas and New Years sounded pretty eventful!! But it sounded like a lot of fun!

Okay so this week has been very snowy! Here it snows and it is really hard to walk through snow up to your calves (I know because my skirt barely touches the top of the snow). Then it freezes and you are walking on snow that has been walked on so much that it is really really thick ice. Then it snows again and then process is repeated again and again. Let's just say in short that it is really hard and scary to walk. Last night I had my first serious biff and I am feeling the side effects today. I am a little sore but no serious damage. I am sure that it was hilarious to watch though! haha

So for New Years we have to be in at 4:00 on New Year's eve until 11:00 on the 2nd for safty reasons. We got together with all of the sisters in Kiev and made pizzas and watched "It's a wonderful Life". We sang songs on the guitar and just talked and ate a lot of American candy from everyone's packages. It was a lot of fun. We stayed up until 12 which was so hard!! I was ready for bed at 9. We heard fireworks like crazy outside but we couldn't see anything because the center sisters' apartment is on the first floor. In the morning we made pancakes and watched Ben-Hur. It is a really old movie and I was a little surprised that President gave it to us to watch. We also watched the last quarter of the Holiday Bowl BYU against Michigan. After that Sister Movchanyuk and I hurried home and planned our next week and then just relaxed the rest of the night. It was a very quiet New Years, and I am still not really sure how Ukrainians celebrate it. On the 2nd, our ward had a big Christmas party for the primary kids. All of the kids dressed up in costumes (which I didn't really understand). There were Batmans, supermans, wizards and princesses, it was cool though, and they played a bunch of games and Santa Came. They call him ден марось (Den Marose).

After we went and visited a Bobbushka (grandma) who sent us a letter asking for a Book of Mormon. We took one to her a few weeks ago and she has been reading. We went and taught her and she wants us to come back. She said that she felt really good about what she was reading and she is a very attentive reading. She understands a lot about Joseph Smith and she likes what she has read. She is really cool.

Tonight we will meet with our Ward Mission Leader and his neighbors. They came to a baptism and then to church 2 weeks ago and really liked what they saw and heard. I am excited to meet with them tonight; they seem like a way cool family.

So I was thinking about names for the new puppy this week and there is a girl here and her name is Agata. I think it is a really cool name. We have only taught her a few times but I love her name. I don't know -- think it over. Well I want to send some pictures so I should go! I am excited to get my pouch mail!!!!! Thank you so much for sending it!! I love you all so much! Thank you for everything! Good luck with the dog this week!
Love,
Sister Larsen

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