Chinese New Year

Last night was our New Years Eve Celebration. It turned out very well. Very huge success. There were estimated to be over 450. Not enough seats for everyone. They were slow coming, but by 7pm it was really crowded.
The highlight for me was the Lion Dance. That was paid for. About 8 Chinese guys. Some with a large drum and cymbals. The lion starts asleep. Our Stake President started it off by touching his eyes and mouth. He then slowly comes awake and starts to dance. Came off the stage and went around the outside of the cultural hall ending up by a suspended bunch of lettuce and a red envelope. In order to get it one of the guys under the costume gets on the others shoulders and grabs the reward. Meanwhile the drum and cymbals keep the beat of the dance. Very fun for everyone. The majority of the people were Chinese from around the area. Other stakes invited.
The food was prepared beautifully and I was surprised that there was enough. The rest of the entertainment was members. Our cute Abby was the last to sing. She did a really good job. The Mission Presidents from both missions were there.
Friday was a great Baptism. Michael was his name. I have told you about him. He was Elder Williamsons golden contact. The guy is great. Today I sat next to him at church and he was singing away in English. He has accepted everything. He is very friendly to everyone is not at all shy. We hope that in a year he will leave on a mission.
Wednesday we went to the zoo. Had a great time. It is a really nice zoo. Not huge, but with really good compounds for the animals. Enjoyed the Kangaroos and wombats and emus. Saw a koala hidden in a tree. The ultimate of Bird Aviaries. It was great.
Today was Caulfield wards Ward conference. Very nice. Our stake President is really good. He knows many people and is really good with the people. Gave a great talk on family and then during SS he spoke about the goals of the stake for the year. Hardly any notes and calling on people by name. He is not in this ward.
This evening we thought we were just going to show a DVD to Deniz Sun. When we got there her mother had prepared dinner for us. Turkish food. Very nice. We find that people here always have something for us to eat. Very hospitable.
Sariah told us this week how she found the church. She came here from China wanting to go to a church. She finally got around to praying about it and the next day the missionaries found her. We still haven't gotten her to church but we are getting close.
Well we start on another weekly planner tomorrow. That is another six weeks. Very fast. We have found that when we take the proper time to plan our week they go very well. As we pray about what we should do and then plan we feel that we are doing the best that we can. Marc sent us some great quotes from Pres. Monson on the importance of rescuing those that are lost. We feel that is a big part of our mission, along with keeping the new converts active. If someone comes along to investigate along the way that will be and extra blessing.
We love you all and find great joy in knowing that you are following the counsel of our Prophet and teaching your children the importance of learning from the Scriptures. Pray with them daily and enjoy every minute that you have with them, it goes very fast.