Christmas Concert

Christmas Concert...

On Friday we attended the Mormon Tabernacle Choir Christmas Concert on Temple Square.  The special guest was Rolando Villazon.  It was fabulous!!!  They started off having these fancy camels coming in from each side as the choir sang, "I Saw Three Ships Come Sailing In."  They had dancing, an amazing organ piece performed by three incredible organ players, the orchestra was fantastic and the bells were first rate.  They told the tender story of the Little Match Girl.  

It was truly spectacular and I'm grateful we got to see it.  

After the concert we took Luke and went to see the lights on Temple square.  They were so beautiful!

I made this quilt for Grandpa and Grandma Choate's Christmas present.

We delivered pumpkin chocolate chip bread and red and green M and M cookies for our neighborhood gifts this year.  We also gave some to Luke's bus driver and the bus aid and Amy delivered some Christmas gifts to her friends. 

Saturday was our Ward Christmas Party.  It was a breakfast this year with yummy breads and breakfast casseroles.  

I made quiche and cinnamon rolls for the breakfast. 

We played games and the youth provided beautiful Christmas Music.  It was fun to visit!

From Elder Todd Stout:

That makes me so happy!! Me and John are still doing way great! Getting a little bit sad because it is dawning on us that this transfer is probably the last one we'll have together, but maybe we'll get another!! He makes it seem like it is more normal to move companionships than that, but maybe we will do the next 3-4 transfers together, which I'd be totally fine with! 

I LOVE THAT LITTLE GIRL!! I feel like it takes living in another part in the world to realize how much you love some people. I CANNOT wait to see those little cheeks again! I seriously smile with every picture of that little angel. We love May in this household (Japanese apartment of Stouts)

My Japanese is definitely growing at a weird rate! I remember not being able to say lots of things, and then randomly I will say a bunch of stuff a week later with vocab that I don't know why I know. It is fun. I have had fun writing those posts too! It was John's idea, but we have definitely forgotten a couple days.. We show those videos several times a day though.

DADA BASE! You should attempt a BREAK! That is not healthy.. I brag about my father everyday, and it is becoming more and more apparent to me that you are a very Japanese man! John is always mentioning how different Japanese people remind him of you, and I didn't see it at first.. But.. You are Japanese for sure.

President Nagano said Christmas day and the days around it in the morning for us in Japan.. Me and Elder Stout were thinking Monday morning the day after Christmas for us at 9 am. I don't know exactly when that is for you!

That is way awesome!! I love that so much.. You guys are seriously the best parents that kid could ask for, I don't know a better way to handle a situation that has caused you guys so much grief! I am so thankful that you guys got in that practice before I came home from my mission so that you guys could show the same love and patience for me, despite how silly I was this last year.. Love you guys!!

SO. This week is a blur!! I can't remember too much, to be completely honest.. Me and Elder Stout taught a bunch of lessons and did a bunch of housing.. And of course, there is lots of laughing between doors.. It is seriously just like we always imagined it would be like as companions. We just have a good time and dendou hard.

We had two pretty intense snow storms this week, but nothing is sticking yet! It is waaaay cold, and we had to refill the gas for our heating system today! It isn't even as cold as it's supposed to get.. People keep telling us that we are GOING to have at least a meter of snow in the next couple coming weeks.. So.. EXCITED.

Me and Elder Stout ate all of the chocolate this morning.. I looked at him in the eye and said, "There are 12 chocolates. No doubt the family expects me to eat one each day until Christmas. But I believe, that we can eat them now." And then we did. And it was good. We also have the little nativity set on our little desk thing that we have!! Thank you so much!!! I am so excited!! I am sorry that I don't have anything to give.. Elder Stout told me that his package is probably not gonna arrive till after Christmas, so I have no hope of making it in time.. SOOOOOORRY

Luke is such a man. He is beautiful, and I love him. I will keep him. Me and John love him and talk about him daily.

Sorry, I suddenly forgot if there was anything else left to share for the week! I hope you all are getting excited for Christmas, I know I am!

OH! On New Years Eve, it is so ineffective to Dendou that President Nagano sent us a letter this morning instructing us to literally read the Book of Mormon all day long, and then visit Shrines the whole next day. Like, he says we have to visit the shrines and participate in Cultural events. HOW COOL IS THAT??

LOVE YOU ALL SO MUCH

-Elder Stout

On Dec 12, 2016, at 12:22 PM, Tim Stout <timstout@

From Elder John Stout:

How are ya? :D

Two things:

1) I'm way excited to gambaru speaking to you on Christmas if i have even only 20 seconds during Todd's call ;) Please don't judge my Japanese. ;)

2) We were wondering if you had a big old list of daily conversation quotes in English and Japanese that we would use in frequent colloquial conversation with friends to sound more actually Japanese (aka not just speaking in "Missionary Japanese") Maybe even stuff from stores and post offices. If it would be hard to compile something like that, please don't bother with it. But if you have something like that already made or know of a book we could locate, by all means we would love to take a look! :) Love you so much and thank you for being the best!

    Elder Stout :D

          🇺🇸  •  🇯🇵

スタウト長老 ^o^