Best Christmas Present for Everyone!!!

December 26, 2013
For Christmas Anziano Edwards was able to use Skype to talk with his family. He is looking fantastic, loving Italy, and is still the same ol' A.J. with the hilarious sense of humor and fun-loving personality. The things he misses most about America this year is carpet (Italy is all tile and concrete), not having to use public transportation, and a big bed.

BUON NATALE AND BUONE FESTE! AGURI!!!

 Glad to hear all went well and you had a great Christmas with some cool presents.

Baptism by the other Anziani in Bologna from a member referral

Our table eating the best lasagna ever!!!

I was a reindeer! :)

All the food the ward gave us for Christmas 

All the food from the ward for Christmas

With all of the food that the ward gave us for Christmas!

William looking Fancy at the (Swiss) Temple! This is the best Christmas present he gave me!!! So cool! Love him!

Best Christmas present for Anziano Edwards' Family!!! Skyping with our happy, funny, awesome missionary!!! Thanks for taking care of him Italy!

Buon Natale! (almost)

Email: December 18, 2013

Well honestly it is not cold here....well its cold, but NOTHING LIKE LAST YEAR! I nearly froze to death each day, here, with a sweater, it feels good, the evenings and nights are cold though. It must get to 0 degrees C at night becuase I have seen frost on the grass, but never on the cars. I hope it stays like this!

I still cant believe STG got that much snow!

In the store the other day I saw the worlds first curved tv....it was expensive, like 8,000 euro expensive! Really cool though!

We have our chapel back! WHOOO!!! Its super nice now! We had a party after church because a young man Beniamino is leaving for the MTC for his mission in Rome. We ate some super tasty food! Some real lasagna! Bologna is famous for its ragù and lasagna! YUMM!!! I will talk a picture of it and send it home it I ever remember....slim chance!

I will be in Milano for mission council on the 31st, so I will get mail then. THANKS SO MUCH!!!

Ciao!

Love you favorite missionary!

Anziano Edwards!

Buon Natale! 

It's me with the Christmas Tree in Centro di Bologna!

Buon Natale! 

Goody New Shoes! Old vs. New

My Shoes! Old and New...they were greatly welcomed!

Italy Warmer than Home?

Email: December 11, 2013

Ok so this email will probaly be super confusing and quite random...sorry in advance... 

Some cool quotes form President Dibb "It is not a social club, it is a missionary force" and he also shared with us in the mission leader confrence back on the 3rd, by Neil A Maxwell. He said somthing along the lines of "you do not have to unload the whole lead of hay at one tim" I loved it!

Random thing that has been on my mind a bit is children, maybe its becuase of thankgiving and chirstmas, but I have realized how fun and grat it is to play with kids. I miss screaming and being nuts in gradmas basement with all the little cusins. Families are SO AWESOME! I miss them all.

We have a zone confrence this friday all the way in Pordenone! We will be sleeping in Meste thursday night. It is there becuase mission confrences are now divided up my zones wich are now aliged with Italian Stakes and member districts. Bologna is in the Venezia (Venice) Stake. This stake is comprised of the Bologna zone and the Venizia Zone. Our stake has two mission zones, the Verona Zone has 3, milano 2, Allesandria 2, the others only have one zone becuase thay are smaller or still a member district. Anyways, it should be super fun and exciting. Thanks to the new idea of teh assistents, us zone leaders are now in charge of it, but that will be fun. For the last 30 min of the confrence it is the chirstmas part....Pres. Dibb isnt as big of a fan of Chirstmas was were the Wolfgramms...

We had a lunch with Vescovo(bishop) Sereno becuae it was part of their family mission plan we established with them. They decided that their family would bring 5 non members and our companionship would bring 10 investigators and we would have a lunch together...tehy brought 2 and we brought 0 becuase he was called into work art the last minute, but is was great anyways! He made us a lasagna and a billion other amazing Italian dishes!  Great success even it is wasnt a big crowd.

We will be doing a mostra in Centro (a street dispaly in town center) next week and we will do it for a few weeks! Pictures and success stories will come! We are super excited!

I cant belive it was that cold and it snowed in STG! CRAZY stuff!!!

That new convert I did her baptimal interview and I have never met anyone more ready and fully converted unto the Lord.

Attached is a picture of me pointing to our appartment in Bologna. In centro, we found a big picture, sky view, of Bologna. It is supposed to be like the cheesy picture we all take in the MTC of pointing to our mission on the wold map...Enjoy!

Positivity and Trust in God

Email: December 4, 2013

Trasfers were nuts! Bologna was indeed a "hub" and missionaries are somtimes the dumbest people in the world! Everyone was told their travel plans and som way they were all confused...it was nuts! People getting on wrong trains, missing thier train, leaving with out their travel buddies, ect. Crazy. But the blessing came, everyone made it to there cities and there new companion...eventualy......after angry assistents and zone leaders. :) 

The sorelle arrived, Sorella Nelson and Sorella Baird. So now all missionaries in Bologna are from Utah! Woot woot! There are truly great sorelle and  wont cause me head aches! 

We missed thanksgiving dinner becuase of trasfers but we had a make-up dinner just for the missionaries on saturday. It was the size of a normal meal so nothing like back home. The members tried their best to make it feel like family and home so we were are super grateful. I had some trukey, corn(of course!), mashed potaoes, rolls, and a slice of pumpkin pie(made from scratch!). Good food, but just not American. It iwas a great time though. We were with the Palmieri Family, American wife, Itlaian Husband, who were married ing SLC but moved to Italy a while ago. Thay all speak English, the father suprizingly well. 

Sadly we did not get a car :( Consiglio della missione was super fun. Some info I can leak out so start some roomers is we will get ipads next june and we are getting nice street displays of family search for the mission, if members make mormon.org profiles, we can have gigantic adds in train stations, bill boards, subways, ect sooner than later, and a bunch of exciting ways to start the "new age" of technology in the Lord's work. 

Its cold, but we dont get snow! haha I am SO greatful it is a mild winter...I am just afraid it will last for ever....its not to terribly cold, like 7 degrees . Maybe at night we will hit freezing, but I am inside so that is fine by me!

pres. Dibb is keeping people in cities longet than Wolfgramm did. The Anz. In Ferrara are doing 4 trasfers togeother as a trainer with his trainee....too long!

This was a better week, we still sucked at teaching lessons but that is all right. I have made a new view on eveything, positivity and trust in God. I feel that I was missing those two in my life. I am truly better now. The ward is better and all freaking out becuase we have sorelle here in Bologna, its good here in Bologna. 

Anziano Edwards! 

Ciao! 

Along the way the hike of San Luca

The View (looks like the Tuscany Hills)

standing the the dome part..right after I touched some electrical wires that were live....that was a REALLY powerful shock of current....no worries, I am still living. It just game me a bit of a jump start...hahaha

Just finding my inner peace

The end place of San Luca

my district last trasfer :) 

Dont try to figure out companionships....no one is with their companion....we were all slightly confused...hahah 

The Bologna Zone last transfer :)