Missionary Update

Thank you everyone for your support, kind words and understand for our decision.

Aimee is doing very well. She had two baptisms last week and both sisters were confirmed members of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints!

Aimee was able to send some pictures this week, so I thought I would share them with everyone.

We haven't been doing much of anything this past week. Easter weekend was spent with our little family, watching the Harry Potter movies, cleaning, feeding the missionaries, grocery shopping, and soaking up the sunshine.

We've enjoyed the sunshine for the past couple of weeks, but now the cloudy skies and rain are back. I suppose it could be much worse. After watching some of the news clips on the internet and have seen some of the devistation caused by the severe weather in the US. We continue to pray for the people who have been affected by the weather.

Missionary Wednesday?!

Well, I've been trying to figure out how to write this and be "politically correct," but I don't think I can so I'm just gonna write it and let the chips fall where they may.

I will no longer be forwarding Aimee's emails to everyone that requested or that she requested for them to be sent. My reason is simply to help her be more focused on what she is suppose to be doing...serving the Vietnamese people, the Lord, and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ with those who are ready to hear the word. When I have forwarded the emails to everyone, she has gotten a few replies that are not encouraging. Quite frankly, they are judgemental, harsh, critical and sometimes down right mean to her. I won't stand for it any longer!! I realize that she is going to come up against critisism and harsh times, but she shouldn't be hearing it from people who have professed to be her friends and family. I will, however, post updates here on our blog, but not post her emails.

Being on a mission is tough, hard, and challenging. You hear all kinds of things from non-believers, doors slammed in your face, told you are going to Hell, and sometimes even spit at. Sometimes you don't get along with your companion, you might argue with the other missionaries, there are different personalities place in very small places. Every missionary that has ever served or will ever serve can say that they have had the perfect companion EVERY time or gotten along with EVERY companion/missionary that they have encountered...if they profess that they are lying. Not even married people get along ALL of the time, there are going to be differing opinions!

So with that all being said, I'm sorry that it has had to come to this, but something HAD to be said about it.

On a good note. Aimee is doing well, she has been training a new sister the past couple of weeks, had a couple of baptisms, planned a wedding, and become a senior companion. She is loving her mission because she has met wonderful people who do the best they can with what they have, seen some beautiful things, taught the Gospel of Jesus Christ to those who are ready to hear, had a few disappointments, grown tramendously, and has had her testimony strengthened.

It's hard to believe that she is 1/3 of the way done with her mission, just one more year!!! We are so proud of her! She is a great example to her family, especially her sisters. We love her and miss her greatly!!!

Missionary Wednseday!!!

Whew i'm glad we didnt decide to go email first thing this morning then cuz i would have missed your email! that would have been sad! okay so this week has been pretty awesome. I think this week i'll tell you about some of our investigators Bac Ut was baptised on sunday...except she has to be baptised again because the elders did it with thier left hand and they didnt think it mattered but i double checked and surprise! it does matter! who would have thought? *eye roll* oi cac anh ca.... so anyway we had to go back and explain why she had to be baptised again, luckily shes got alot of faith and she wasnt like 'well this church isnt true. see ya.' Chi Hu'o'ng is doing well. she is being baptised for the first time on sunday! yay! we were going to visit her on monday, but she called and cancelled. the only thing i could understand (because she speaks in the northern vietnamese accent its so difficult for me to understand) was that she couldnt meet monday but tuesday she could. so we went back yesterday and she was sad. she said something about her baby and being sick. Sister sparks was like "i think she is sick like morning sickness kinda" i was like "no i think its something else..." so in my super simple vietnamese i asked "Chi Hu'o'ng da co bao phai khong? Nhu'ng bay gio khong co bao phai khong?" (You were pregnent, but right now you're not right?) She nodded then suddenly I understood that she had a miscarrage and that was what she was trying to tell me over the phone on Monday, but i hadnt understood. Sister sparks and i were so sad for her, i felt especially bad because i had no idea. we tried our best to comfort her and we retaught the plan of salvation. I think that was the most spiritual lesson we have had because all we could do was share our pure testimony about Christ comforting us in our trials and the Plan of Salvation. We both agree though that Chi Hu'o'ng will make it though because she understands the gospel alot more than others. and she wasnt angry at all toward God like some people would be. President Smedley said one time that the investigators who go through trials of faith while they are learning are the ones who grow the strongest. So if she overcomes this trial correctly, she can be so strong still. :) Em Nhung is such a cute girl. shes 14 and her father was a member but he died along time ago. Em Nhung lives with her aunt, Chi Lang, and they sew shirts all day long (anywhere between 60 and 80 shirts a day) She hasnt come to church because the sewing takes up so much time, but she promised that after the Khamae new year she would have more time to go. I hope she does because she is so sweet and the Gospel would help her so much in her life. Chi Thu works in a tailor shop (I think Anh Kiet, and maybe Chi Hu'o'ng, knew her because she has one of those pictures with Anh Kiet's name and address on it on her desk, and a bunch of other old elders too) She is such a cute lady! She is so smart and she always asks us questions! She says she feels so happy when we visit her and she's always so excited to learn with us! We decided we would make her more of a priority, even if she claims she cant go to church because who would watch her tailor shop? :) we will just have to work on building her faith that if she goes to church she wont need to worry about that. All in all the work is going good. :) I think the biggest learning experience for this transfer has been and is about the Atonement. I know how they say He will take our burdens and make them light, I never really understood that until now. Truely understood.Like I know i should feel overwhelmed by the responsibilities of being a trainer, senior companion and for all the souls Heavenly Father has entrusted us with at this time, but i dont feel the burden, as long as i'm keeping positive and opptimistic. The moment i begin to doubt or feel afraid is when everything like weighs down again. So everyday i try and stay as postive as possible. Also i just realized that on this day 7 months ago is when i entered the MTC! Holy cow! i've been on my mission 7 months already! Its crazy! :D but so much fun! I love it! This morning during personal study i read Alma 42 when he is talking to his son corianton about the plan of salvation and the fall and the whole justice and mercy thing. I finally understand how it works! (hurray for line upon line precept upon precept!) Mercy is for those who repent and truely follow Jesus Christ. Justice is for those who have not repented and do not follow, they become subject to the punishment because they did not obey the laws. okay that short explination did not do my discovery justice, i appologize. :) Okay well i'm sure i've taken up so much time already. I love you all and i miss you all so much! *loveslovesloves* Sister Holloway Chi ca Tam ^_^ v

Missionary Wednesday

This awesome email is being typed just for you by: Sister Holloway, the awesome wedding planner :P So this week has just flown right on by! I cant believe its April already and so many things have happened this week i dunno where to begin...@_@ okay so lets start off with the new companion sister sparks. she's so good, so much more outgoing than i am really, and i'm so impressed with her vietnamese! ^-^ Chi ca ay gio'i qua!! Together we are doing the best we can every day. :) Sunday was really awesome, Bac Ut got baptised! finally! after 3 long months! but it was all worth it. She's such a sweet old lady, all through the teaching process she kept saying "I wouldnt invite you here if i didnt believe it!" :) haha she's funny. Monday we had a wedding schedualed for one of our investigators, Chi Hu'o'ng. We prayed extra hard that she would come, her husband would come, that the elders could make it so they could witness ect...but the one thing we didn't pray for that we probably should have, was that the branch president would remember and come prepared!! *headdesk* luckily we got it reschedualed for tuesday evening and everything worked out. :3 she should be ready to be baptised by the 17th of this month! yay! ^-^ One thing that the mission president is having us do is to read the book of mormon and mark refrences to Christ, his attributes (Christ's not the mission presidents XD), principles of the gospel and other things. My book of mormon is so colorful now! man, i never really realized how much awesome things are there in the book of mormon. I've been trying to apply the things i learn there from like Alma and Amulek and Ammon. especially Ammon because Ammon was such a joyful guy it seems like. :D Ah! I saw the pics you sent! thank you so much! i cant believe how grown up Kaitlyn looks! daaaaang! TT___TT orz i miss you kaity! Ack! wait, you all are moving?! I'm thinking New Mexico...if you are then i totally called it when you said you had a prompting to learn spanish!...oh speaking of how is the spanish going?? and does this mean you'll be at the airport when i get home?...oh yeah i've been meaning to ask, what are the odds you and daddy will come visit me right before I end my mission? :P Yeah being extra friendly really helps on a mission, even if its just smiling at everyone as you bike past them. ^-^ Man the language is going so good now, sometimes i'll be talking or listening and suddenly i'll think "Man, i know vietnamese! yay!"....and then i'm instantly humbled. XD hahaha oh well. Ack, faith promoting stories....ummm lets see i know i have some, i just cant think of any right now. *fail* this my friends is why we keep a journal.... hmmm...well i guess the biggest faith building thing right now is that the Lord truely doesnt give us anything we cant handle. and even when the trails seem tough, through the Atonement we can feel our burdens become light. like seriously, i dont think i've felt the heavy burden of training, but i know thats only because of Jesus Christ. Seriously, if it wasnt for him i wouldn't be able to function here i dont thing. and every day we must always try a little harder to do a little bit more better...(sorry vietnamese grammar there i think) Well i'm glad everyone is doing well! and i will pray that things get taken care of quickly! I love you all so much! Love Sister Holloway, Chi ca Tam

SHOWTIME 2011

Sleeping Beauty

Brussels American School

Brussels, Belgium

1 April 2011

Kaitlyn the night before her debut performance!

Hair and Make-up. This girl has the longest eyelashes I have ever seen in my life! Even longer then Wendy's!!

Okay, so I know it's weird to have pictures of the bathroom but it was too good to pass up! The restrooms in the main hall of the school were taken from typical drab school bathroom to the chic upscale restroom of a typical Opera House! They even smelled snooty! ;0)

Please enjoy some of the pictures of this cute play that some of the elementary students put on for one night only.

Mrs. Allen welcoming everyone to this "theater in the round" production of SLEEPING BEAUTY.

We were reminded to turn off our cellphones, pagers and other devices by the "Wizard from DownUnder."

Megan and Kaitlyn as part of the "Royal Court"

Flower Fairies

"Morgana" and her "Ghouls"

"Aurora" pricked her finger and fell down dead

"Prince Ferdindad" and "Princess Aurora"

The cast

Mrs. Allen with some of the girls

This experience has been great for Kaitlyn. She has shown wonderful talent with her natural ability to be a drama queen. She has made friends and had a wonderful time! A great memory for our time in Brussels, Belgium and at BAS.