Osijek, Beograd, Sremska, Zone Conference, Varazdin, Zagreb

I hope you have all day. Seems like awhile since I last posted and it looks like we have been busy. Our first news of the day is that Kelly and Rob delivered a beautiful baby boy on November 5, (just missed his Aunt Kimberly's birthday by a day) at 3:15 pm mst. He weighed in at 7 lb 10 oz and 20 in long. Sorry this picture is from skype, we'll get better ones soon. He is healthy and strong and we are so happy he is here. Mom and Dad held up really well and are also doing great. The boys, Robbie and Riley, are still waiting to meet this new addition. No children allowed in the hospitals these days. She will go home on Saturday. Aunt Debbie gets of the honors of coming and helping out in place of Grandma Lewis. Some people have all the luck. Thanks Debbie, you are always there when we need you.

Dad and baby, no name yet.

Now on to missionary work. We started off the month by visiting the Elders in Osijek. We have Elder Babcock, Hadley, Lee, and Alsop. They are all new transfers to the city and are just getting acquainted with the people and city. We went to lunch at a chinese restaurant and then had to stop for some of the finest ice cream in Croatia. We attended the activity that night at the branch.

On our drives this month we have seen some beautiful fall colors and great landscape.

This is on the way to Celije

We left Osijek and drove into Serbia where we attended Institute. Brother Vaseca is our institute and seminary teacher there. Some of those present that night were Irina, Neneva and Emma. I learned how to make a great new dessert from Irina. It's delicious. Bisquits, layed out on the pan. Take the remainder and crunch them up, not too small, about the size of a quarter. Mix plain yogart, 1 c powered sugar and the crunched up bisquits. Soften the bottom layer of bisquits with milk or juice and spread the yogart mixture on top. Cover with fresh or frozen fruit and top with whipping cream. Thanks Irina, I have used it already. After Institute we had pizza from this great place that makes giant pizzas. I'll have to take a picture next time.

We spent the night in Sremska, Serbia where we attended Church on Sunday. Paul and I both spoke in sacrament meeting. A wonderful Branch here, we love these people. This is Paul at the Roman ruins in the middle of town.

It was Ram's birthday this week and we were invited to his party but we were leaving town so came a day early. We were learning to talk with him by using the book on his tray. The Vidra family are wonderful and great missionaries.

This week we had Zone Conference in Ljubljana. This is one of our new elders and President Hill. Elder Wondra of the Area Presidency was on a tour of the mission. President Hill taught us from the scriptures. Luke 19 Zacchaeus found a way and was anxious and willing. Num 13:27, see things thru the Lord's eyes as Caleb did. Acts 9 tell your conversion story.

I am going to share a conversion story of one of our new converts here in our mission as related by President Hill. John was living in Sarajebo when he was searching on the internet. He found the Church there and wanted to find the missionaries. He looked in Bosnia but no Church. The closest one was in Zadar, Croatia. He got on his motorcycle and drove to Zadar where the missionaries taught him for three days. He returned home and they continued to teach him thru skype. He wanted to be baptized. President Hill interviewed him by skype and then he and Sister Hill drove to Sarajebo to baptise him. He was baptised on Saturday. Sunday he was confirmed a member and received the gift of the Holy Ghost, then he received the Aaronic Priesthood and helped bless the sacrament. Choice and wonderful children of our Heavenly Father are waiting for us. "I was called here and I will do His work."

Elder & Sister Wondra. They were Mission President here in 1996-99. They inspired us with their conversion story. In a nutshell. There was an Elder who had 6 months left of his mission. The President asked him what he wanted to do with them. He said send me to Austria and I will commit to finding six people. He and his companion worked very hard and had found five who wanted baptism. The last week they were still searching for the sixth. They were determined. One evening when it was time to go in they said lets go to one more door. They knocked on the door and Elder Wondra answered the door. He was a student studying philosophy and not interested in religion but he invited them in. That was the beginning of his association with the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Sister Wondra told us when they were called as Mission President in their training at the MTC they came away with the desire that all their missionaries would come home with a greater love of Jesus Christ. By knowning Him better we will love Him more, and by loving Him more we will be more like Him. He is the center of our service.

Elder Wondra's advice to the missionaries: go to the Lord, learn to love the people, you have the power within you, you can do the work better than anyone else, purify your hearts. Realize who you are.

The next week we visited Varazdin. Here we have Elder & Sister Willford, the Senior Couple from Rexburg, Idaho, and Sister Lukacek, our Institute teacher and wife of the Branch President. They are doing a great job here. We had a wonderful class and then had soup and visited afterwards.

The Willfords used our car to go visiting with the Elders to some of their members who live way out and so we took advantage of the time to walk around Varazdin and see some of the sights. I am standing outside of the Lace shop where the Willfords met Tihana, a golden contact, who is now a member of the Church and studying in Zagreb. Tihana makes the most beautiful lace. She learned from her grandmother.

The Varazdin castle is right in the middle of town and is not built on a hill but is on low land. It was a fort to protect the people from Turk invasions in the 15th century and then was added on as the centuries went by. It now houses the museum. It has some artifacts from the 17th and 18th centuries.

Elder Lewis, Elder Davey, Elder Pasche, Elder Willford, Sister Willford, and Brother Bozidar Hebek, serving in Varazdin. We all went out to lunch at our favorite pizza place.

Tuesday we went downtown with Sister's Knudsen and Ripley to help with a service project preparing sandwiches for the homeless. On our way back to the bus we saw "the Spider" picking up a car that was parked in the wrong place.

They pick them up and carry them off and to get them back you pay.

Here are the sisters working diligently preparing the boxes.

Sunday we went to Zagreb to Church. This was November 1 and is a special holiday like our Memorial Day. Everyone goes to the cemetery to place candles and flowers on the graves. It is a huge affair. This is Zagreb Square. We went with the Elders and Kristijan from Zagreb. Kristijan gave us a great tour and explained the holiday to us.

This is Kresimer Cosic's grave site. He was the first member of the Church in Yugoslovia and played basketball for BYU where he found and joined the Church. He was really loved by his countrymen and did wonderful things for them.

This was a memorial site

This was really beautiful, a whole pathway of candles with a cross at the end of it. They had a mass here.

President Uchtdorf's CES Fireside last Sunday was great. We suggest you listen to it on lds.org.

"A knowledge of who you really are will help you through your life." "I must never forget I am a chld of God".

Gublers, Rowes, Celje Institute

Elder Lewis, Branch President and Branch members and new Elders in Karlovac

Ljubica Asler and Elder Lewis in Zagreb. She is our institute teacher here.

Elder Schmoe adjusting the wheelchair

Lewis', Schmoes, President Hill and Mirsad. We were able to be present at the closing of a humanitarian project for this organization in Karlovac. This organization does many wonderful projects for their community. Zolo is Mirsad's guide dog which is now being retired after ten years of faithful service.chmoes, Mirsad, Zolo and President Hill

A child's wheelchair was also given to the Jasarevic Family. Belmin is 9 years old and has always needed to be carried wherever he goes. This will be a great help to the family who have two other children.

Greetings at the news conference

Presenting the wheelchair

Presenting the copy machine to Mirsad

Brother & Sister Gubler came to pick up their son at the end of his mission. We all went to see the Vintgar gorge about 6 km from Bled, Slovenia. It was very beautiful.

rushing waters

Elder, Brother and Sister Gubler as they are ready to leave Ljubljana

Brother & Sister Gubler when they arrived. They stayed with us a couple of days.

We had to opportunity to visit with the Vidra family again and meet one of their friends, Pulvina. Ram was not feeling good that day.

On October 17 we drove to Bosnia to meet the Rowe family. They took us to dinner at the old fort where we enjoyed some original Bosnian food. Very delicious and great company. Grandma Rowe was visiting from Provo for Colton's baptism.

Sunday Colton was baptized by his father in a portable pool. It was about 34 degrees out. What a great day. They had invited many of their friends and work associates to the baptism. We had a wonderful time. David, in the white shirt, is one of our seminary students. His Dad is our teacher.

We visited the Celje institute that week. Brother Peric is our teacher and they have a great group. We are blessed with wonderful, dedicated teachers.

Zadar, Rijeka, Pula, & Osijak

We made our first visit to do some training for our institute teachers. We stopped first in Zadar, about 4 1/2 hrs. from Ljubljana. We met Ranka Paunovič at the Church. Ranka is our institute teacher and just went to the temple with the District in August. She does a great job for us.

Ranka and I

Marko Butorac and his mother, Paul and I

Sanja and her children. She is a new member of a month and her son likes to plays soccer.

This is Ladislav's family. He is 1st Counselor in the Branch A great family. We had such fun with them.

Elder Giberson and Matson took us down to hear the sea organ. That's the Adriatic Sea behind them.

This is Krešimir Čosić basketball arena

The Elders with Krešimir

They took us to meet and visit with Darinka Čosič, mother of Krešimir Čosič. He played basketball at BYU, joined the church and brought it back to Yugoslavia. You might have seen his special on BYU channel .

Then we went to have the best ice cream in Croatia (according to the Elders).

Friday morning we drove up the coast to Rijeka. Beautiful country but different from what I expected. There is a mountain range on the east and the sea on the west. The mt. range is mostly rock with small scrubs growing.

In Rijeka we had a treat. For RS Enrichment one of the sisters taught us how to make ?. Sisters Hillam and FitzSimmons serve here.

She made the dough then we wrap it around a plum or any number of fruits. Cook it in boiling water and it floats to the top.

The finished product. Very tasty.

Emma and Sister Hillam enjoying a bite.

Some of the plain ones ready to be cooked.

RS at it's best.

We had an activity Friday night. One of the English students made pizza and we watched "How Rare a Possession".

Elder Rhodes, Julie and Emma

A Branch member and Sister Manley. He came and taught us how to make Burak. We learned all kinds of skills this weekend. This is a potato & onion burak and he also made an apple burak. Really delicious.

This is a view of Bakar a small town just outside of Rijeka.

Saturday morning early we drove by the coast over to Pula to visit the missionaries, Elder Dixon and Brown. This is the coliseum which was built by the Romans and is one of the best preserved in Europe.

Sunrise on the way to Pula

Here come our missionaries. Elder Dixon and Brown.

Driving back to Zagreb we saw some beautiful fall colors.

We went to Osijek to pick up Elder Larsen who is going home and needed a ride to Zagreb. We stopped to meet Zoran. We had heard so much about this wonderful man and were happy to finally meet him. His sister, Ivana, was baptized when we first arrived in Croatia.

Elder Larsen's last good byes to Osijek. Elder Pasche, Larsen, Champian, and Lewis

Monday morning when we woke up in Ljubljana there was snow on the mountain tops. It is definitely sweater and jacket weather now.