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Mele Kalikimaka everyone! 

Merry Christmas Hawaiian Style!
These are our sweet muumuus we get to wear everyday.
Chihu!

It's a little late I know, but hey! At least I got to CALL YOU!!!!!! I can't believe I got to talk to you guys and hear your voices only a week ago! Did that really happen?? Did I really get to talk to the coolest people on earth? Oh man, BEST Christmas present ever. You sounded like you were having way too much fun... :D Stop it. ha You all sounded so good and I'm already totes stoked for five months from now! And what are your plans for New Years? Got something sweet planned? Don't have too much fun without me. For New Years guess what we as missionaries get to do... stay up til one baby!! Chihu! One AM! Usually I'm in bed by like 9:30 so let's see if I can actually stay up that late. 

So another choice week out on the mission. It was crazy with the Holidays with choke amounts of people at the VC. So sweet! Since there are so many people visiting for the holidays, the VC has been putting on musical firesides every Sunday night. We scheduled the Tongan choir to sing one of the nights and everyone was soups excited because...well... it's the TONGAN choir! Have any of you heard a Tongan sing before? Ya... angelic voicesI tell ya. So a couple days before, they called us up and cancelled. Yep. So you're wondering, now what right?? Tons of people come to these things; enough where speakers have to be put outside the VC and people have to listen from outside. PACKED. As we were thinking about what to do, someone suggests, "Hey! Maybe the missionaries can put on the fireside!"
ha I'm sorry, what?? Replace the Tongan choir? In two days? No, you don't understand, we have not called to sing in front of massive amounts of people! But as we talked about it, we totally knew it was the right thing to do. We practiced and practiced like crazy for the next two days and didn't sleep or eat. ha no we ate, of course we ate! Missionaries! Anyway, let's say it was stressful, but finally right before the fireside we kind of pulled it together. As a Laie Zone, we all prayed together, asking Heavenly Father to help us not totally bomb. After we all prayed, and throughout the fireside, we felt calm and happy. Even though we messed up sometimes, we knew it didn't matter because what was the point of the whole thing? Not to show off our performance skills, definitely not. The point was for all of us performing and listening, to feel the spirit of Christmas and the spirit of Christ. I know I could feel it. Plus it was so awesome singing Christmas songs and playing the ukelele at the same time. Can't beat that. 

This week was also choice because Sister J and I got to go to the sealing of the Tune family! So amazing! We had taught them a little bit before and they're such an adorable, solid family. After our lessons, Brother Tune would husk a coconut for us with a machete dude! A machete! Don't see those very often. We were looking forward to their sealing day for a full transfer and it finally came on Friday. Brother and Sister Tune with their cute daughter Emily were beaming and beautiful and happy, and now... eternal.  What a blessing Heavenly Father has given us right? To give us the opportunity and blessing of being with our best friends forever. He loves us so much. I could absolutely feel it as we sat in the sealing room. Temples truly are the house of the Lord. 

Well my dear ones, I better be off! Know that I love you <----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------> this much!!! Remember that your Heavenly Father is only a prayer away. He is waiting to help us and bless us, if only we ask. I didn't realize how powerful prayer really can be until my mission. And I'm still learning everyday. Make this the best week ever! I heard a cute saying the other day that says, "your day goes the way the corners of your mouth turn." Cool huh? And even if they're pointing down, the Lord can help us! Through Him, they can always be turned up.

I love you all! But more importantly, Heavenly Father loves you. 

Love always,
Sister Annen

Michael Ballum came for a fireside at the Visitor's Center during Christmas!
He was incredible!
He told us he had a "devilish" of a time.....  :)