November 26, 2012

O's!

My Thanksgiving was pretty great out here in Alabama!! But I couldn’t really tell how yours went, because every picture you sent me was upside down and I can’t rotate it on this dumb computer haha. So I think the turkey was burnt, but that’s about all I can say haha. We went to three dinners and ate a lot at every one haha. I was very full and I got a fat headache at the last one. Too much food for me. And I realized that I do not like Thanksgiving food at all, besides rolls and mashed potatoes. Gravy is gross. I don’t really like turkey, or stuffing, or pie, or green bean casserole. It’s just not my style. I enjoyed the food but I could have enjoyed other food more.

And I think I am still the tallest out of all the cousins! We'll see how long that lasts though ... I got Nick and Steven beat fo sho, it’s Garret I’m worried about. That boy keeps on growing. And did you for reals burn the turkey??? Come on, now. I had a fried turkey for the first time and that thing was too bueno! They injected it with some flavored butter too. It was goodness gracious good.

And Tyler Given has his mission call!! That is sweet. Glad to hear the Los Al guys are still applying and going out. We have quite a few on missions right now. That is good. And I heard the new James Bond movie was good. I can’t believe I have missed so many movies. I got a lot to catch up on when i get home. What do you have on the patio to sit on? Did y’all get a table and stuff or what?

Did Lauren go to the El Dorado ward with y’all yesterday? How is it going? Still busy busy busy? I didn’t play in any turkey bowl this year. It was on Saturday instead of actual Thanksgiving? How weird is that? So I decided not to play in it. And get Elder Yogoh a Seal Beach shirt, and he will be a size medium. He is super small haha. Skinny little African. Only weighs like 160, and he is almost as tall as I am. And yeah, I can’t believe Christmas is only a month away!! I can’t believe time is flying by so fast. We can probably set a time up once I figure out where I will be Skyping you from. And send the boxes whenever you want, mom. Send them closer to Christmas if you want me opening them up then. If you send them now...consider them opened.

And what do you think of the suit???? That thing is pretty classy huh?! And my head is pretty much shaved nowadays. Got barely any hair on my head. I went to use Elder Yogoh’s trimmer, but the biggest size guide he had was a 3 so I went for it hahaha. I can feel the sun on my scalp, which is kinda weird but its all good. Hair grows back. And it is getting cold here again. It was 40 degrees at the hottest part of the day on Saturday. Burrrrrrrrrr up in here. My hands are all types of cracked and my knuckles start bleeding every once in a while haha. I’ve become accustomed to the humidity, so now when there isn’t that much, I dry up. I’m scared for coming home haa.

And no, I cannot believe that Elder Holley is getting married!! Bold move for sure. I can honestly say I didn’t expect that one. Big boy move, right there. And guess what??!! Today I’m going golfing!!!!! Finally! I’ve been trying my whole mission, and today I’m going golfing at the Hampton Cove golf course. A member works there, so he is getting us a lunch in the country club and then we are going out to go hit some balls. I’m so excited. And the golf course is a super fancy one! I’m very happy. I want to get into golfing more when I get home. Time to relax and have some fun.

We set two more baptismal dates this week with Chance and Chris, so please pray for them if you could. This next week I’m going to Fort Payne for an exchange again, going to the mission home for the holiday luncheon with Pres. and Sis. Holzapfel, and then have Zone Leader’s Council in Birmingham on Friday. So I’m going to be running around a lot this week. Can’t believe its almost December. Almost my year and a half mark!! Are you kidding?? So that’s what’s going on with me over here. We can chat if y’all want. Ask some questions.

Love, Elder Oppenlander! 

Before I forget, here is the Scandinavian hot sauce!

Thanksgiving!

Guten morgen!!

You better believe I have had another great week out here in Alabama. Didn’t have a Family Home Evening though, and yours sounded amazing! Andy has some mad skillz putting on that nail polish. And y’all play capture the flag tonight??? I might need to actually attend Young Single Adult activities when I get home haha. And I will tell Pres. Holzapfel “hi” from Larry Johnson. Hopefully he will remember him haha. I’m sure he will, though.

And for the shirts, a 17 neck will be perfect, and my shirts now say "34/35" and they are a little too short. So maybe you need 36's. But I will let you decide on that. And no button-down collar. I don’t like that stuff…

I saw Furby's at Wal-Mart a while ago and I couldn’t believe it ... why would they ever bring those devilish things back? Many-a-night I was awakened by the terrifying voice of Furby. I will never buy my children anything like that!

Tell Kelsey to send me a letter already haha. Shoot, I’ve been waiting like a year and a half to get one from her ... come on! Oh my days...you went to BJ's?? I miss that place pretty bad. I miss a lot of food haha ... still.

That is good that the young single adult’s are loving dad as well. Is he starting to get the hang of things yet? Does he have any spare time to breathe and he still needs to write me, his only son, and tell me his conversion story and how things are going ... get on it, papa bear! Choir is always good, even ponytail dude... :) So stop worrying, mom. Just conduct your little heart out and it'll be alright. The stake choir here in Huntsville is famous. They are crazy good and put on a Christmas concert for the community every year. They have an orchestra and everything. Last year they had 500 non-members show up!! So I’m pumped for this year. It will be December 7-9th. And I heard them sing Saturday for stake conference and it was amazing. Angelic haha. And it sounds like you still have a blast with the "los al ladies" running around So Cal causing a ruckus. And what is bunco??? I thought old ladies played that ;)

And Nick is doing everything nowadays ... getting a job, rowing, going to college, he is leaving me in the dust haha. Got some catching up to do when I get home. Definitely send some pics from Thanksgiving. Is Jackie still planning on coming? And send me some almond roca! I tried making it last year and that was horrible. Burnt my hand and everything! :( So I will not be trying that this week. And yes, I have like 8 invitations for Thanksgiving and we are for sure going to one. Don’t know who else we are going to stop by and see. Elder Yogoh and I are staying together another transfer. So we will be having Thanksgiving and Christmas together! Big deal right there. Also, after this next transfer I will have had a black companion for 9 months straight ... shoot haha :) So I guess I’m not learning something about racism or something? Haha but its been great and so has the teaching. We have been able to do a lot of teaching but we are struggling a little bit finding new investigators. So that is going to be our focus this week and I know we will be able to find some! Field is white, especially in Huntsville.

Sophia Em is waiting for a missionary????? Who dat? And I was actually thinking about her the other day wondering how she is doing? She was always so nice!!! Tell her I say hi if you ever have a chance.

Y’all are getting 100 new missionaries?? Dang, that is a ton for that small of a mission. Here we currently have 140, and we will have 272 by next year. 122 of which are going to be sister missionaries. And we are only going to have 118 elders ... so there are going to be more sisters than elders haha! It’s going to be weird for sure. And our first 18 year old missionary comes in January 1st. That’s way exciting too! It’s cool to see how the Lord is hastening his work, and its great to be a tiny part of it! It’s the best! I still love being a missionary each and everyday, and I keep on learning things too. I finished the Book of Mormon for the 4th time this week as well! Holler!!! I wish I would have read it before my mission. I’ve had to do a lot of catch-up out here. But it’s not that hard. Is definitely worth it as well. It’s weird that I have been happy for more that a year strait, I haven’t missed a day of work in more than a year, and I’m doing great. Who would’ve thought!!! Blessings definitely do come as you keep the commandments. Its simple! Mosiah 2:22 action right there (“And behold, all that he requires of you is to keep his commandments; and he has promised you that if ye would keep his commandments ye should prosper in the land; and he never doth vary from that which he hath said; therefore, if ye do keep his commandments he doth bless you and prosper you”). All we have to do is keep the commandments and we will be blessed. Don’t need to worry about anything. I love the gospel and I can’t wait to keep living it when I get home. Keep up the bishop-ly goodness back home and keep the faith. I'll talk to y’all soon and have a great week! Oh, and I moved ... so my new address is 8003 Benaroya Lane apartment R-2. Yea, I moved downstairs but still, I have a new address haha.

Love,

Elder Oppenlander

Veteran's Day

Goodmorning!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Y’all are so old! That’s not even that busy....haha. Just a normal day out here. But y’all get used to it and it will be no big deal in a lil bit. How did you like going to all of the activities this week? Do a lot of people show up? And what did you think about the dance?? Was it poppin....? Also I’m at a member’s house doing this right now and Emily says "she likes pumpkin pie!" haha. She is pretty funny and reading this over my shoulder haha. But tell dad to write me and tell me his conversion story and tell me how he is liking being a bishop!!! How cool is it back in California?? It is pretty chilly here, but today it is warm and raining. I love the rain. Iphone 5 for his bishop'ly bidniz???? Haha where is mine?? I need one too! I be hatin pretty good right now. And you're gonna still need Siri when I get home ... I ain’t no slave.

And that’s good to hear that Gpa and ma had good birthdays. And does Gpa hit up that In-n-Out all the time now that it is right across the street? I would.

The Ft. Lauderdale finding technique we learned is going well. It is still taking a while to get used to it and perfect it. It takes a lot of practice haha. So I blew it a couple of times, but that is nothing new for me. My whole mission has been me being awkward at doorsteps haha. :) Not too many cool experiences yet. But they will come ;) you better believe that. And our investigators are still going well, keep praying for them and we have some new ones as well. One is named Ricardo and he is pretty legit. Going to see him tonight and we hope he starts progressing pretty quickly.

Have you talked to Kelsey since she has been back?? Tell me how she is doing and let her know I’m praying for her. Have her write a brotha!!! And that would be cool if dad was her bishop. My week had been just as good if not better. I love being a missionary and I feel excited that I still have 7 months left to do some work. P.S. I have some pics to send you, but I totally forgot to bring my camera.

I tried some hot sauce called "Scandinavian Gold' and it says uff-da on it hahaha. Reminded me of Gma B so much. I got fed a lot this week! Ward loves me :) and we got a new bishop here!!!!!!!! So I’m pretty much helping dad out to be a new bishop <3  how cute! So yeah, that’s what’s going on up in here. Any questions???

Give me a 17 size neck. Go for it. Nick looks too cute in my suit :) and is Jackie for reals going to Hawaii with us???????? That would be amazing!!!!!! Holler back at me! I love y’all and thanks for keeping me up to date.

Elder Oppenlanderrrrrr

Huntsville Zone Training

November

Whats happenin’!!

 I’m glad you liked the picture of us at the bonfire on Halloween! It felt so good because it was freezing here in Alabama. Then the next day it was like 84 and perfect. And now it is cold again. But it’s all good, I can always wear more clothes. We got a little rain Thursday night from the hurricane, but not much and no wind. Sounds like y’alls Halloween was pretty good as well. I can’t believe all the neighbors are growing up haha. Oh ... speaking  of Nick’s Burritos, I’m craving that right now. That sounds so good, oh my days! Elder Ojelade got me saying ‘oh my days’ a lot haha. It the dumbest saying ever but I say it .... ha.

And that is cool that the cousins are getting their row on! I think that would be so fun. It will get them in shape real good. And why does Nick have to get all dressed up? I hope some of my old stuff will fit him. We'll see, I guess. And having Thanksgiving over at Uncle Bill’s again, huh? I can’t believe this is going the be the 2nd one I miss! I have been out here in Alabama forever. I can’t believe I only have like 7 full months left. Its crazy! And that is good that Jackie will be filling my spot again this year! I hope she likes hanging out with the family haha. That’s cool, and how in the world did Lauren get a flight home on Thanksgiving day?? I thought that was like, impossible. And there is a young lady in my ward who says she went to tour the animation dept of BYU and met Lauren!! She saw the making of Estefan and that is what she wants to do for her career. So I thought that was pretty cool. Small world if you’re mormon. I’ll deffs write Gma and pa and wish them a happy birthday. How old is they? How is papa holding up as the new bishop of the singles ward? I’m sure they have plenty for y’all to do and keep y’all busy. That is good, though. It will keep you young? :) And Jeffy might be playing for BYU Hawaii?? That would be pretty fun. I’m still excited for the Hawaii trip haha. You for sure have to keep me updated with bishop life though, and I’m excited for y’all. It’s going to be great. Young Single Adult ward haha! And the word gets around way fast nowadays! Facebook and text and all that. Shoot, its good to be out of the loop for once haha. Just have to work and not worry about anything else.

      My week has been amazing! On Halloween we had Zone Leaders Council, and it was awesome!! We got to talk to the mission president of the Fort Lauderdale mission, President Anderson, and he introduced a new finding tool to the mission. We will be going around blessing families, and using our priesthood to invite the spirit. As we talked with President Anderson, he was telling us all these crazy stories. And how their mission went from baptizing 40 per month to last month they had 159!!! So we are pumped to start doing this and seeing the results, and changing lives like they are. And right after we talked with him and his assistants, we Skyped the head of proselyting for the Church. So he is the number one missionary for the entire church!! His name is Tracy Watson, and he was such a good teacher, oh my days haha. I learned a ton from him, and I got to ask some questions and stuff. It was sweet. After that, we had our Zone Training Meeting, and got to instruct the zone on what we had learned. This was the first time I had met the whole zone here in Huntsville, and I’m looking forward to getting to know them more. Good folk! Then I went on an exchange to Fort Payne, Alabama. Fun facts, that is where the Trail of Tears started, and the band "Alabama" is from there. And 1 out of every 9 socks used to be made there ... hahaha. It was a cool place, and I had the best pizza buffet of my life! Stevie B's!!! Good stuff right there. Then we came back on Saturday and baptized Juanita!! She was finally ready and we were able to help her out. Elder Yogoh baptized her and she seems very happy. We have also gotten a couple new investigators this week, and things have been going well for them. We have a brother and sister named Michael and Destiny, and a girl named Anna. So please pray for them! :) And tonight I’m going to be teaching a guy I found 1 year and 4 months ago!!! So hopefully some magic will happen :) It has been a great week, and I am still happy and healthy!

Thank you for your prayers, and I hope y’all are feeling mine as well. I'll send y’all some pics, and let me know what I can do for ya!!

Holler back at me!

Love, Elder cutie pie

Baptism

Elder Yogoh, Chris, Chance & Juanita

Elder Yogoh and Juanita