This is the picture of Satisfaction!!!!! We had just finished eating our Thanksgiving day dinner when I looked around to see if the Elders needed anything else when this is the picture that I saw. They had just finished their desserts.
We had the missionaries and our Katie Bug over for dinner. Thanksgiving is one of the few holidays that are not celebrated here in Malaysia. They do understand what it is and why we celebrate this day. Last Thanksgiving we had the missionaries and David Choong. David ate my whole chocolate cake by himself last year---soooo I did not invite him this year. I actually did not invite him last year, but he came with the missionaries. We love David--he has been a great help to us. We have learned that when the church members hear that you are cooking and inviting some people, they just might pop in also!!!!
This year I wanted to have a traditional American Thanksgiving meal for our missionaries. Turkeys(the gobbly kind!!!) are hard to find here in East Malaysia. You can find most things in West Malaysia, especially in KL. I found a frozen Butterball turkey in Hong Seng Coldstorage. It looked as though it had been in the freezer for about 10 years!!!! I'm not kidding!! So we had our usual chicken instead. The Malaysians do not waste anything. They keep it until someone buys it!!! Many stores have items that have been obsolete in the US for years. E. Larson and I love to go in hardware stores here, because we see items that even the Chinese haven't seen for a century!!
Oh well, back to Thanksgiving dinner. I fixed chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, stuffing(Sis. Brown brought me a box of corn meal from US last month!!), sweet potato casserole, fresh green beans, seven layer salad, jello-cranberry salad(Thanks to my girls for the REAL jello!!), sweet potato pies, pumpkin pies, and chocolate cake!!!! Understand why the missionaries were laid out on the floor??? It was good even if I do say so myself. I have never made a pie crust before in my life. It's so easy to buy good pie crusts back home, so why waste my time doing that? Well, guess what else you can't buy in East Malaysia. PIE CRUSTS!! Thanks to our Jenny, we had the most delicious pie crusts. She shared with me the most delicious recipe. Also, if you can't find pie crusts, guess what else you can't find? Yep that's right---PIE PANS!!!!! I finally found some disposable tins that substituted for pie pans. Who cares what they looked like, they were delicious. I forgot to tell you that the pumpkin and cranberry sauce that I used had been left by the missionary sister before us. They were still in date. I have a feeling that they had been sent to her or she picked them up in Singapore, because they are not to be found on the Island of Borneo!!!
The best part of Thanksgiving was to watch our young missionaries laugh, enjoy their meal, and then head out to teach the Gospel. I'm so thankful for them and wish that I could let their parents know just how fabulous they are. We had our regular Tuesday District meeting with them today and then went to lunch before they went to teach new investigators. They are such great examples for E. Larson and me. I took the last seven pieces of pie for them to eat today. I would share my last bite of food with them any day!!!
I'm also grateful for my wonderful family members whom I miss more and more the closer we are to coming home. I'm thankful for friends around the world. (I can say that now) We really miss our Ward in Concord, our wonderful Bishop, home teacher, and the best Southern friends anywhere!!! We're so thankful for the terrific new friends that we have made on our mission--fellow missionaries and fellow saints.
I'm especially thankful for a loving Heavenly Father who loves me, a Savior who made it possible for me to live with family again some day, the Gospel that enriches my life every day, and love that makes me happy and content. Thanks you, Family and Friends!!!
WE LOVE YOU
DAD & MOM
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