First of all I want to wish all of you a Happy Thanksgiving and hope that you are able to enjoy the special day with family and friends. Take time out of the busy week to reflect on the many things the Lord has blessed you with and continues to bless you with on a daily basis.

Six of the senior couples in our District got together last Monday and had a Thanksgiving dinner. It was a very enjoyable time with lots of delicious food, fancy decorations, and a special time with dear friends. To finish the evening we watched the movie, “The Ultimate Gift”. I highly recommend the movie if you haven't seen it already.

Thursday was our second Thanksgiving dinner. The Senior Citizen Center had invited us to come for their Thanksgiving dinner. It was an equally delicious meal with more dear friends. They had a really big turnout that day. I know there were over 60 people in attendance. The officers of the Center wanted to honor those that have helped them (the bus drivers, the cook, custodian, etc.). Little did we know we were to be honored also. We kind of hurried through our dinner because they ran out of chairs and needed places for the late-comers to sit. As we were getting ready to leave, (not because we wanted to, but because we had an appointment) they asked us to stay for a minute. A couple of the ladies got up and talked to the group in Navajo. I could tell, however, they were talking about us. Then one handed us a big present. When we unwrapped it, we were dumbfounded. Inside was a beautiful, king-size, star quilt. The ladies at the Center had all worked together on it and made it for us. What a special gift – one we will cherish forever.

Today was another Thanksgiving dinner. This one was with our Branch. We need to have a Thanksgiving dinner more often. We had over 50 people to Church, that is the most we have had in attendance during our sojourn here. There were eight or more people that showed up after the meeting to join us for the meal. It was amazing to see the amount of food – two long tables crammed full of a wide variety of food, even fry bread. When our Branch has a dinner, we have to clear out all the chairs in the chapel, set up the round tables, and also the serving tables. We don't have the luxury of a cultural hall in our building. So the chapel has to serve duel purposes, but they make it work. It was very heart-warming to see all the people visiting and enjoying each others company. I know that the Branch President was thrilled and told me how awesome he thought it was.

I even had ten children in Primary today. Only three girls and the rest boys. Only two of the boys have been baptized. Hopefully, we will be able to work with the other boys, and they will want to continue coming to Church.

I had made little turkey candy bags as favors for the people at the Center and also for our Branch. They turned out kind of cute.

We have one more Thanksgiving dinner to go before we are through. We have been invited to a member's home on Thanksgiving to spend the day with him and his family. By then I will have almost made a whole Thanksgiving dinner because I did smashed potatoes and gravy on Monday; turkey, dressing, and gravy for another one; and pies for the next one. The best thing is that I have had several days to do it in and not have the stress of trying to get it all done in a day or so. We certainly have an abundance of things to be thankful for.

We are teaching a man the Preach My Gospel lessons. Owen said that in Priesthood meeting today he had pertinent comments to go along with the lesson. He told the others there that he wasn't a member, but was looking forward to being baptized and that he wants his son to be baptized, also. That is exciting. He told Owen that since he has let Jesus into his life, people have commented that they have noticed a change in him and want to know what the difference is. That is a good thing in more ways than one. We will continue to work with him, do our part and see what happens.

We love the work. We love the people. We love this beautiful area where we are serving. We love the Lord and know that He is helping us on a daily basis.