[Note from Missionary Mom (Rexene). Deb will be in CS about the 19th of December for a few days. We will be in Utah by the 23rd. Reply back with your holiday plan - I know she would like to see as many of you as she can].

Hola,

Well. Once again. Busy p-day in which we had to do other thing other than p-day things. My comp from Cali needed to get winter clothes so we went to the mall. Weird. Kohls was okay, but Old Navy and some other 'hip' places we did not fit in very well. I finally got my bajillon dollar knee brace and it's really good. It's like wearing braces on your knee. Maybe that's why it's called a knee brace. There's like a little rubber thing that pushes up against one side of the knee cap while I walk and attempts to shove it where it's supposed to be. Like a tooth! Cool, huh?

The Lord always really blesses us on exchanges. We didn't have a single appointment scheduled, but driving to see a recent convert we pulled over and did some random service for people raking leaves for two hours in the rain. My kinda fun. :-) Really. Then we saw this recent convert that dissappeared after her baptism for about 6 months. Her son had strep, so she was at home and we got to talk to her and get a new phone number. She still hasn't signed her baptismal form. There's a year limit on getting that turned in.

Then I remembered a member referral a little kid had given us at a dinner appointment, so we went and she was sick too! Yea! So she was home from work and invited us in to teach lesson one. And we're going to teach her tomorrow. That takes so much preparation for people to just let us in like that. Especially white people. I always wonder how the Lord's hand has been in their life and they probably haven't even seen it. I guess the same goes for my own life, though.

I'm glad Dad's surviving. Zone Conference and church on Sunday was mostly about trials. Strong kind people are strong and kind for a reason. The Van Komens, our mission president and wife, have been through a lot. They're still going through a lot. I wonder sometimes what I'm going to have placed in my path to be a strong, kind, and wise person, too. Kind of worries me...anywho.

Love you all. I'm excited about going to Nauvoo in a few weeks. Mom, I've never traveled or booked anything around here, so I say go cheap...send me the address and I can tell you if it's in the ghetto or not. Beyond that I'm not much help. Sorry. Keep me updated. Happy Thanksgiving! We're eating at Sister Hamilton's and she's attempting to teach me how to sew next p-day. Con muchisimo amor.

Love,
Hermana Deb