One more not so funny thing

Good morning,

As we start our day, you are all still fast asleep.  One thing I forgot to tell you in the email. Simon, the man from Ghana, that we have been teaching, lives in the Bijlmer.  This is a community just South of where we live.  It is a place where most of the people living there are black, illegal people from Africa. The streets are just covered with litter, there is nothing but tall 10 story apartment buildings. People are just kind of 'hanging around' not doing anything but watching others walk by.  I really don't like going into this part of the city.  Anyway, as we go to visit Simon, the Sisters warn us NOT to touch anything. We carry hand sanitizer wherever we go, but here we Really have it handy. The floors are filthy and our shoes stick to the floor.....and the smell, UGH. Yesterday there was a notice in the 'lift', elevator, telling people NOT to 'pee' in the corners of the hallways, on the sidewalks, in the lift....only in the toilets! Now you know why we carry sanitizer, our feet stick to the floor, and the smell. The joys of Missionary work!.  It is really sad because some children live their whole life in conditions like this.  Their playground is the balcony of the apartments or the streets. There are some grassy areas, small, but we do see children playing ball there.  There is LOUD rap music coming from many apartments as well. The other day as the Sisters were tying to teach Simon about the Restoration, they could hardly be heard above the music coming from next door. Are we blessed to live where we do!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Have a GREAT Sunday. We will go to Haarlem for the Confirmation of Madina, then hurry back to Amsterdam for Sacrament meeting...then have a couple that are in the process of moving in for lunch, then go with the Elders to teach Levi's sister, then come home and pack for JoVo camp. No, we are NOT sitting around doing nothing:)

We LOVE YOU TONS:)

Vader and Moeder

More Pictures!

                                                         Beautiful yards of Holland

                                      What I want our yard to look like when we return

 This lady was sitting in the church at Marken, A small village outside of Amsterdam.  I thought she was a mannequin the way she was dressed and sitting so still.  She was born and raised in this small town and has never left the town. When she blinked I was startled. The Sisters asked if we could take her picture...isn't she cute.

                                                 Horse drawn carriage in Antwerpen

                Elder Salden eating a smoked eel.....looks like he is eating a snake:( 

                                                      More beautiful Netherlands

          Mom, dad and Levi...she was thrilled, we gave her a picture of President Monson.

Missionary work FULL Steam ahead:)

Dear Family and Friends,

Well, I will try to get this off before the evening ends. Tomorrow is another very busy day, so thought if you were going to get "the Missionary email", it better be tonight. Sorry about last week, I had vertigo and the world was spinning.  Elder deLeeuw had to do FHE by himself, so the JoVo's got Pizza and he is their hero.

Will start with a good joke Elder Calkins emailed us the other day. Why are all the other churches so poor? Because they are a "non Prophet" organization!! Cute huh.

Well, the weather has finally warmed up and we are of course complaining of the heat and humidity. The past two days it has been cloudy, with a few sprinkles, so that only adds to the humidity. Here in the Netherlands in the last month, we had 300% of normal rainfall, so you can see how much wet weather we had. Even the ducks in the canal were complaining. One other thing we are noticing is the daylight hours. It was not getting dark until 11:30 pm, but in that last week it is dark now by 10:15 pm, and not light until about 5:30 am. Because we are so far North we have been told that the daylight hours drop fast when they start.  Won't be long until we will be complaining about how early it gets dark......are we never happy:)

We lose two of our Senior Couples in the next two weeks. It is so sad to see them go, but they are ready to see family and friends again.  A new couple will come the middle of August and another one in October. There are two JoVo Centrums that need Senior couples so the quicker they come the better. This week is transfer week for the Missionaries.  A Sister and an Elder will go home this week, and in the next few transfers we lose 6 Sister Missionaries...but 4 new ones are coming.  The joy of being in the Mission Field. 

This next week will be an adventure for us.  We are going to JoVo camp. The camp is about a two hour drive from Amsterdam, and as we understand, it is in a Forest setting, with dorm like accommodations.  We have heard there are about 180 YSA's that have signed up to attend.  They have workshops, special speakers, dances, games,and the last day is a Testimony Meeting.  YSA's come from all over Europe and even Canada and the USA. The Senior Couples that went last year tell us it is really fun.  We help serve the meals, transport the kids to their different activities, seek out the 'loners', chaperon the dances, and of course bake cookies. Yesterday I baked 4 large batches of cookies to take...they need enough to have 300 plus. Next weeks email will be all about the week.  Pray for us that we survive:) We have also been told that the JoVo's don't sleep much during the week.  They say they are adults and can do what they want! This will be an adventure for sure:)

Well, now on to all the Missionary work we have been involved in. Last week we had Levi and the Elders here for dinner.  Levi's one daughter is very interested in the church, so we were hoping she could come to dinner, but she had to work.  Levi just glows she is so happy to have found the gospel. Her youngest daughter has had some struggles with life and choices she has made....but she has moved back in with Levi and has made a change.  Levi said: "the devil wants to  take my daughter, but I pray to God, and God will win." We so hope that Levi can come to Utah some day so you can meet her. She is an amazing woman. Last Thursday we were invited to Haarlem to have dinner with Fabiena.  She is the young woman from the Ukraine the Sisters are teaching. She is not happy with her life, so we are encouraging her to read the Book of Mormon, Pray, and feel the love of the Savior. We have also been joint teaching a man from Ghana, Simon, who will be baptized next Saturday.  He is a Bible reader and quotes from that all the time.  Today we went with the Sisters to teach him and he was struggling because he has already been Baptized twice.  Once with sprinkling, and another by immersion into the Baptist church. He told us that he loves God, keeps the Commandments, and does not know why he needs to be Baptized by immersion again.  We asked him if he knew what the Apostasy was and what he knew about Priesthood Authority. Dad had taken his Priesthood Line of Authority to show Simon. By the time we left we had answered his questions, encouraged him to do more reading from the Book of Mormon, and pray. He knows he is being taught by the Sisters because he made a comment the other day:" I am here being taught not by accident, but by the will of God". The Sisters were glad dad and I were there to go a little deeper into the answers. We have also been with the Assistants to visit Daniel and Zsanett.  They are the couple from Hungry that need to get married so they can be Baptized. The legal system here is so complex and the cost to get legal papers is expensive so the Elders don't know when all of this will happen. Here in Holland when  a coupe wants to marry, they have to go the the city they live in and get a "temporary" license.  Then after a week they can get married. Temple Marriages are NOT recognized as legal marriages, so couples get married first at the city building, then they can go to the Temple and be sealed. The cost is about 700 Euro for a Marriage License, so that is why couples live together rather than marry. We hope legal papers will soon arrive because this couple is so ready to be Baptized.....Missionary work is what it is all about!!!!!!!!! Dad and I were talking today about the people we have been privileged to teach.....Jenny from England. Levi from Suriname. Riaz, parents are from Suriname but he is Dutch, Simon from Ghana, Fabiena from Ukraine, Daniel and Zsanett from Hungry, and last, another Baptism today for your dad...Doop is the word for Baptism in Dutch, so the Elders and Sisters are calling dad the "Dooper". Madina, a beautiful young lady from Somalia, was at the Baptism when Riaz was baptized by dad.  She was so impressed by dad, that when the Sisters that have been teaching her, asked who she would like to do the Baptism, she said Elder deLeeuw.  We had never been to her home for a joint teach, so Friday we went to Haarlem and had a wonderful lesson with her. She asked dad if he would bless her home so she could feel the Spirit of the Lord and feel peace. What an experience.  Today as she came up out of the water she hugged dad and said: "I am new!" Dad told her to just stand there for a minute and experience the feelings she was having. Tears were running down her face, and she was just beaming. WOW, this is what the Gospel is all about for sure.  Hard to express in words.Madina Ali Geedi is her name.  I will send pictures. So, here in Holland we are being able to teach many of "Gods Children" from all parts of the world. We are so blessed to meet these wonderful people and have them be part of our lives. WE LOVE BEING MISSIONARIES!

Well, it's taken me forever to type this.  Have had a couple of phone calls, and the Elders stopped in for their "cookie fix." We love you all.  Just a parting note....we love to hear news from home.  We as Senior Couples CAN read emails ANYTIME, and emails are our link to home. PLEASE send us a note and tell us what is happening in the Ward and neighborhood! Cheryl, we are proud of you for taking 4 minutes off your running time..you go girl. Lauren, get some sleep, and we hope you loved Wicked. It is playing in Den Haag right now as well.Travin, drive with both hands on the wheel. Elisha, enjoy each minute with your family. Aubree, keep dancing. Emily, stay 'bone break free'....Shelby, compose a Baptism song....Ethan, have fun at camp....Syd, keep cooking so when we come home you can cook for Oma! Dylan, sack the quarterback:) Laren and Sarah, quit getting older:) Corey, get straight A's...Brittany, just stay beautiful....Cameron and Alexis thank you for taking care our home and Polly. Oh, and Cameron, grandpa has used his Priesthood Line of Authority twice already.

We love you all. We love the Gospel of Jesus Christ, and we are thankful to be serving him as Missionaries.

Elder and Sister deLeeuw

Opa and Oma

Pictures

Madina and dad

Sister Stout and Henchcliff...the Sisters who taught her the Gospel

Senior Sisters at Texel Island

Large fishing boats...we were told they being in 300 ton of fish each week

Funny looking sheep here in the Netherlands

Oma found a cat to pet:)

Beautiful front yard in Texel

Sister Moses and Sister Palenikova eating raw Herring....UGH! Not me

Love Windmills....can't take enough pictures

 

 

 

Greeting from your Father

  This is your letter for today, Mother has had Vertigo for the past two days and is unable to function at present. This will make you appreciate Her letters even more after reading this short note.  All the Senior Couples went to Texal on  a ferry boat ride for a short distance and Her day changed at that point, and this was Friday Morning.  WE are doing everything we know possible and finally She is showing a little improvement .  She is downstairs and has eaten  some crackers etc.  We hope that in the morning all will be well, tomorrow is FHE and she asked me what I was going to prepare for them.  That is a good question , one I hope does not happen.

     Today at Church everyone was asking about Zuster deLeeuw because several  were waiting to see Her.  She is loved and appreciated by everyone, and when she walks in the room the whole spirit changes.   She is spreading LOVE ever where she goes and many individuals depend on  Your Mother for love and comfort, and off course encouragement.  Yes, I love your Mother and am very proud of Her and the family she  has raised.  I had better be quitting before I get carried away about my feelings for Her and the Family.

     Thanks for your love and support,  it  is very much appreciated.   Mother will be at the computer soon  to provide more detail about the Week,  I think she has adjusted to the hair cutttttttt.   Many have said how Young she looks,  You would be VERY PROUD OF HER AS ALWAYS.

      Have fun in Wayne County for us all and remember to be careful.  Would some one take some cookies to Uncle Earl to spoil him and  THANK HIM FOR TAKING CARE OF THE PLACE, AND DON'T FORGET MADELYN FOR WATERING THE FLOWERS  AND LAWN.  YOU WILL MAKE THEIR DAY.    

THANKS ,, ALL MY LOVE   OPA , DAD, AND ELDER   deLeeuw

Hair cut

Are you ready for this.  The JoVo's, Elders and Sisters, when they have seen me for the first time, all say: "Sister deLeeuw, you got a haircut." Duh.....and then the JoVo's tell me NOT to go to a Salon here in the Netherlands. I have had several offers for the next haircut, which I will not need until we return home in a year, to be done by the JoVo's. It has given us all something to laugh about.   See, dad's hair IS longer than mine:)

                               President and Sister Robinson at District Meeting today

                                          Elders and Sister in the Den Haag District...

Lasagna, Salad, French Bread, and Donuts.  Since I am not cooking for Institute I cooked for District Meeting today

The new kitchen in the Amsterdam Kerk.  A couple of the Zusters have thanked dad and I.  They say  'they' got the new kitchen because of the JoVo's..

Look how beautiful our back yard is.  Those flowers were some of grandpa Roper's favorite.

It is still raining and cold.  I have been wearing my winter long sleeve shirts again.

Enjoy the laugh....now you can see that I WAS scalped.

Love you

Moeder

 

New blog spot

Hey,

Still cloudy, windy and rainy. The Elders are wearing their coats and sweaters, and the Sisters have their long wool sock on again.  Only in Holland:) It did get up to 18 degrees C today. 64 degrees F. Heat wave.

Our new 'Mission Mom" has a new blog.......belgiumnetherlandsmission.blogspot.com

They were in Amsterdam for District Meeting Tuesday, so  our pictures are on the blog.  All of these darling Elders and Sisters are the ones we serve with.

What did you all decide yesterday about coming to Amsterdam next spring? That would be the 'frosting on the cake' to have you all here.

We are having Levi and the Elders here for dinner tonight.  Her daughter was suppose to come as well, but she had to work....darn, The Elders are teaching her the Missionary Lessons, and so wanted her here as well.  It will be fun to have Levi.

Love you all....look at the Blog.

Love, Moeder

Building an Ark

Dear Family and Friends,

Our weather here is as extreme as your weather is in Utah.  It has rained every day this week, and at times it has poured! Thursday Morning we were awakened at about 4:30 am with a thunder and lighting storm which we have not experienced before.  The thunder was so loud that it set off a car alarm on one of the cars parked in front of our apartment. Our plants are dying not from the heat, but of toooo much water. We are back wearing sweaters and jackets.  The Temperature the other night was 16 degrees Celsius, or 60 degrees Fahrenheit. That is VERY cool for the middle of July.  Sure wish we could send some of this rain your way. We are not complaining, well maybe just a little, but we will take this over hot and humid any day:)

Last Monday for FHE.....it had rained all day and cleared just as we got to the church.....we set up the ward BBQ grill and fixed 'American Hamburgers' for the JoVo's.  The kitchen in the Amsterdam church building is being renovated so I cannot cook or warm anything there for a few weeks. So, we cooked outside, and the JoVo's LOVED what we had. Bacon cheese burgers with, onions, tomatoes, lettuce, potato chips, and of course cucumbers and carrots. For dessert we had purchased chocolate donuts. Wow, we were a hit.  We had invited the joVo's from Den Haag, that is where the Moore's left, and we had 3 from that Centrum. In total we had 23 JoVo's. They ate, and ate and ate.  Some of the Young men would have eaten 3 and 4 of the hamburgers if we would have had the makings. Wednesday night for Institute, we took salads and sandwich makings.  I had made a jello salad, and again, that is something the joVo's don't have here in the Netherlands.  I had to ration the servings, and they made us promise we would make more this coming week. If we only took jello and cookies the JoVo's would be happy. We will only have FHE now until the middle of August, because so many of the joVo's will be gone on Holiday, at EFY in Sweden, and of course JoVo camp held here in the Netherlands the last week of July.  Dad and I will be at that camp all week. Gives me a break from so much cooking....but now the District leaders want us to furnish the meal on Tuesday for District Meeting.  CES DOES mean "cooking every second. So much for the rest:) You should see me shop now....and I even know where the sale items are. Dad is a riot, he just follows me around the store pushing the cart, puts the items on the counter to be scanned, then hurries to the end of the counter to start bagging the groceries.  People here have NO patience, so we have to move quick before the next person  starts their groceries coming down the line. If we have not bagged all our groceries, the man or woman behind us just push our things out of the way, and start with their own grocery bagging. We have learned to just smile,and MOVE OUT OF THEIR WAY.

I had an experience on Thursday that I am still trying to deal with. I have not had a haircut since we arrived here in Amsterdam.  Dad and Sister Pankratz has kept the back trimmed for me, and I have been doing my best to keep the front trimmed. Well, it was time for a "real' haircut.  I have been a bit afraid to go and make an appointment, not knowing if I would get the cut that I wanted.  Dad told me to 'slay the dragon' and go get the haircut.....so I did make the appointment. When I sat down in the chair the girl ask me how I wanted the cut.  I showed her that I wanted about 1/4 inch cut off, trimmed over my ears, and short in the back. How simple is that. She took her scissors, and the first cut I just about had a heart attack! Instead of cutting 1/4 inch off, she was leaving me 1/4 inch on my head. I tried not to cry while in the Salon, but my heart was beating so fast I really did think I would die. When the lady was through 'scalping' me, she asked if it was short enough......I paid, drove home, and walked in the Apartment, and fell apart. My hair is shorter than dads.  It took me awhile to gain my composure, and then I decided there is nothing I can do but wait for my hair to grow back....and looking on the bright side, I won't need another hair cut until we get home.  I am cutting dads hair now, and he looks great! He won't need a barber again.

Tuesday we had an Interview with President Robinson. He is such a wonderful man, and Sister Robinson is darling. They are still in "Mission Shock", having Zone Conferences and Interviews with all the Missionaries, in the first 2 weeks of their arrival. Sister Robinson, being a school teacher, talks with us like one of her students. She knows my frustration about learning the Dutch language, so on Tuesday took me aside, and told me if she can teach first graders how to read, she can help me learn to speak Dutch. Since then, dad and I have been taking an hour each day to study Dutch.  Dad can speak VERY well, and I am encouraging him to speak more. He is now praying in Dutch at each meal and night time prayers. You would be proud of me...I can say  the words to a simple prayer, and when I get the courage I will surprise dad and say a prayer in Dutch. I can also bear a simple testimony. Today we received a Liahona, and dad is reading the Conference Articles in Dutch. We may not be fluent in this language, but we are trying. Dad suggested that we read the Dutch Book Of Mormon, so I can learn the ''Gospel" words. He is a GREAT teacher!

Speaking of the language.  Last Wednesday at Institute I said some of the Dutch phrases I do know, to some of the JoVo's. They really appreciate that we are trying.  I asked them to keep me in their prayers, that I may have the 'gift of tongues".  Thursday we went to the Temple, and in the session was one of our JoVo's.  While I was waiting for dad to come into the Celestial Room, Ezra, our JoVo, came up to me and said: "Sister deLeeuw, I took seriously what you said the other night, and I am praying for you that you can speak Dutch." Wow, how was that! Now we really have to study.....

You are getting this email today, because tomorrow is our Gouda LONG day. The Den Haag Stake is in charge of this again in September, and since the Moore's are gone, it will be interesting to see who will be helping us with the Meeting and meal. We just take one day at a time, and know that everything will work out as we do the Lords work.

We have been studying the Doctrine and Covenants. So many of the chapters talk about Missionary work, and Section 4 is what is recited at each District Meeting weekly. As we have been reading, we feel so blessed, as the early Missionaries were sent out 'into the world' without knowing how long they would be asked to serve, not having funds to pay for their Mission, being asked not even to take extra clothes. Here we are complaining about impatience people at the grocery store.  How blessed we are to be serving with the people of the Netherlands, having the love and support of family and friends, and feeling the love of our Savior when we have a frustrating day. WE KNOW WE ARE TO BE HERE SERVING AT THIS TIME. We do so love these Young Adults we have been asked to be stewards over for a short time.

Next week we will have Levi and her daughter, who is taking the Missionary lesson, over for dinner Wednesday evening. Levi is so excited to have someone else in her family being taught the Gospel. We will also be having a 'farewell' outing as two of the Senior Couples will be leaving to go home. I will sign off with a couple of Dutch phrases you can practice on how to say: Ik Ben blij...ij is an'I' sound: that says: I am happy. Ik ben Moe....I am tired.  Ik Ben Verdrietig...I am sad. Ik hou van jou...I love you. A 'v' makes an f sound, e makes an 'a' sound, double o makes an 'uw' sound.....this is a hard language to learn.  Try it:)

We send our love. Thank you for your emails, that we so look forward to receiving each week, and the pictures. We love being Missionaries and serving the Lord.

Opa and Oma

Vader and Moeder

Elder and Sister deLeeuw

JoVo Pictures

                                                          JoVo's in 'our room'

                                                          The line at the BBQ

 

                                                  Eating American Hamburgers

                                                                       Cute kids

                                                                              Smile

                                                    More of the picnic at Alkmaar

                                                 Oma feeding the sheep at Roos farm

More Pictures

                                    Having FHE on the Beach with the JoVo's in Alkmaar

                                   Having FHE on the Beach with the JoVo's in Alkmaar

                                    Look at the size of this drawbridge....4 lanes of traffic.

Boats along the canal by our Apt. The other day we waited for 7 to cross under the drawbridge.

                                      Oma at Madurodam....don't you love the shoes:)

                                                          Windmills at Kinderdijk

                                                               Opa at Kinderdijk

Pictures

Opa and Raiz
Opa and the man at the Ice Cream shop in Rotterdam
The cute girl at the ice Cream shop Sister Anderson and I told about the JoVo's
Opa and Oma in Rotterdam
The last picture taken of all the Senior Couples with President and Sister Brubaker.  This was taken at the memorial Service for Sister Moore.  The Brubakers and Elder Moore left the next morning.
Dad and Elder Moore at Madurodam
Jenny, Emily and Altris at the Hauge Temple. They are all converts to the church.
Dad and I at Kims graduation
The cute Elders that live close by


This is all I can send now.  We are going to the Temple tonight....it is 5:45 pm here:) I will send more tomorrow of our Beach outing ihn Alkmaar